Isaiah 40-65

New American Standard Bible

The Greatness of God

40 “^(A)Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
²“^(B)Speak ^[a]kindly to Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her ^[b]^(C)warfare has ended,
That her ^[c]^(D)guilt has been removed,
That she has received of the Lord’s hand
^(E)Double for all her sins.”

³^(F)The voice of one calling out,
“^(G)Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
Make ^[d]straight in the desert a highway for our God.
⁴Let every valley be lifted up,
And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the uneven ground become a plain,
And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
⁵^[e]Then the ^(H)glory of the Lord will be revealed,
And ^(I)all flesh will see it together;
For the ^(J)mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
⁶A voice says, “Call out.”
Then ^[f]he answered, “What shall I call out?”
^(K)All flesh is grass, and all its ^[g]loveliness is like the flower of the field.
⁷The ^(L)grass withers, the flower fades,
^[h]When the ^(M)breath of the Lord blows upon it;
The people are indeed grass!
⁸The grass withers, the flower fades,
But ^(N)the word of our God stands forever.

⁹Go up on a ^(O)high mountain,
Zion, messenger of ^(P)good news,
Raise your voice forcefully,
Jerusalem, messenger of good news;
Raise it up, do not fear.
Say to the ^(Q)cities of Judah,
“^(R)Here is your God!”
¹⁰Behold, the Lord ^[i]God will come ^(S)with might,
With His ^(T)arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His ^(U)compensation is with Him,
And His reward before Him.
¹¹Like a shepherd He will ^(V)tend His flock,
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in the fold of His robe;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

¹²Who has ^(W)measured the ^[j]waters in the hollow of His hand,
And measured the heavens with a ^[k]span,
And ^[l]calculated the dust of the earth with a measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
¹³^(X)Who has ^[m]directed the Spirit of the Lord,
Or as His ^(Y)counselor has informed Him?
¹⁴^(Z)With whom did He consult and who ^(AA)gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge,
And informed Him of the way of understanding?
¹⁵Behold, the ^(AB)nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of ^(AC)dust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the ^[n]islands like fine dust.
¹⁶Even Lebanon is not enough to ^[o]burn,
Nor its ^(AD)animals enough for a burnt offering.
¹⁷^(AE)All the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and ^[p]meaningless.

¹⁸^(AF)To whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
¹⁹As for the ^[q]^(AG)idol, a craftsman casts it,
A goldsmith ^(AH)plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
²⁰He who is too impoverished for such an offering
Selects a ^(AI)tree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman
To ^[r]prepare ^[s]an idol that ^(AJ)will not totter.

²¹^(AK)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood ^(AL)from the foundations of the earth?
²²It is He who ^[t]sits above the ^[u]^(AM)circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like ^(AN)grasshoppers,
Who ^(AO)stretches out the heavens like a ^(AP)curtain
And spreads them out like a ^(AQ)tent to live in.
²³It is He who reduces ^(AR)rulers to nothing,
Who ^(AS)makes the judges of the earth ^[v]meaningless.
²⁴^[w]Scarcely have they been planted,
^[x]Scarcely have they been sown,
^[y]Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And the ^(AT)storm carries them away like stubble.
²⁵“^(AU)To whom then will you compare Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
²⁶^(AV)Raise your eyes on high
And see ^(AW)who has created these stars,
The ^(AX)One who brings out their ^[z]multitude by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the ^(AY)greatness of His might and the ^[aa]strength of His power,
^(AZ)Not one of them is missing.

²⁷^(BA)Why do you say, Jacob, and you assert, Israel,
“My way is ^(BB)hidden from the Lord,
And the ^(BC)justice due me ^[ab]escapes the notice of ^(BD)my God”?
²⁸^(BE)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The ^(BF)Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is ^(BG)unsearchable.
²⁹He gives strength to the ^(BH)weary,
And to the one who lacks might He ^(BI)increases power.
³⁰Though ^(BJ)youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous ^(BK)young men stumble badly,
³¹Yet those who ^[ac]wait for the Lord
Will ^(BL)gain new strength;
They will ^[ad]^(BM)mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.

Israel Encouraged

41 “^(BN)Listen to Me ^(BO)in silence, you coastlands,
And let the peoples ^(BP)gain new strength;
^(BQ)Let them come forward, then let them speak;
^(BR)Let’s come together for judgment.
²^(BS)Who has stirred one from the east
Whom He ^(BT)calls in righteousness to His ^[ae]feet?
He ^(BU)turns nations over to him
And subdues kings.
He makes them like ^(BV)dust with his sword,
Like the wind-driven ^(BW)chaff with his bow.
³He pursues them, passing on in safety,
By a way he had not been ^[af]traversing with his feet.
⁴^(BX)Who has performed and accomplished it,
Summoning the generations from the beginning?
‘^(BY)I, the Lord, am the first, and with the last. ^(BZ)I am He.’”

⁵The ^(CA)coastlands have seen and are afraid;
The ^(CB)ends of the earth tremble;
They have approached and have come.
⁶Each one helps his neighbor
And says to his brother, “Be strong!”
⁷So the ^(CC)craftsman encourages the ^(CD)smelter,
And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil,
Saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
And he fastens it with nails,
^(CE)So that it will not totter.
⁸“But you, Israel, ^(CF)My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
Descendant of ^(CG)Abraham My ^(CH)friend,
⁹You whom I have ^[ag]^(CI)taken from the ends of the earth
And called from its ^(CJ)remotest parts,
And said to you, ‘You are ^(CK)My servant,
I have ^(CL)chosen you and have not rejected you.
¹⁰Do not ^(CM)fear, for I am with you;
Do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, ^(CN)I will also help you,
I will also uphold you with My righteous ^(CO)right hand.’
¹¹Behold, ^(CP)all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;
^(CQ)Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
¹²^(CR)You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them,
Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.
¹³For I am the Lord your God ^(CS)who takes hold of your right hand,
Who says to you, ‘^(CT)Do not fear, I will help you.’
¹⁴Do not fear, you ^(CU)worm Jacob, you people of Israel;
I will help you,” declares the Lord, “and ^(CV)your ^[ah]Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
¹⁵Behold, I turned you into a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;
^(CW)You will thresh the ^(CX)mountains and pulverize them,
And make the hills like chaff.
¹⁶You will ^(CY)winnow them, and the wind will carry them away,
And the storm will scatter them;
But you will ^(CZ)rejoice in the Lord,
You will boast in the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁷“The poor and needy are seeking ^(DA)water, but there is none,
And their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, the Lord, ^(DB)will answer them Myself;
As the God of Israel I ^(DC)will not abandon them.
¹⁸I will open ^(DD)rivers on the bare heights,
And springs in the midst of the valleys;
I will make ^(DE)the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land fountains of water.
¹⁹I will put the cedar in the wilderness,
The acacia, the ^(DF)myrtle, and the olive tree;
I will place the ^(DG)juniper in the desert,
Together with the elm tree and the cypress,
²⁰So that ^(DH)they may see and recognize,
And consider and gain insight as well,
That the ^(DI)hand of the Lord has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

²¹“^[ai]Present your case,” the Lord says.
“Bring forward your evidence,”
The ^(DJ)King of Jacob says.
²²^(DK)Let them bring them forward and declare to us what is going to take place;
As for the ^(DL)former events, declare what they were,
So that we may consider them and know their outcome.
Or announce to us what is coming;
²³^(DM)Declare the things that are going to come afterward,
So that we may know that you are gods;
Indeed, ^(DN)do good or evil, that we may be afraid and fear together.
²⁴Behold, ^(DO)you are less than nothing,
And ^(DP)your work is less than nothing!
He who chooses you is an ^(DQ)abomination.

²⁵“I have put ^(DR)one from the north into motion, and he has come;
From the rising of the sun he will call on My name;
And he will come upon rulers as upon ^[aj]^(DS)mortar,
As the potter treads on clay.”
²⁶Who has ^(DT)declared this from the beginning, that we might know?
Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?
There was ^(DU)no one at all who declared,
There was no one at all who proclaimed,
There was no one at all who heard your words.
²⁷“^(DV)Previously I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’
And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a ^(DW)messenger of good news.’
²⁸But ^(DX)when I look, there is no one,
And there is no ^(DY)counselor ^[ak]among them
Who, if I ask, can ^(DZ)give an answer.
²⁹Behold, all of them are ^[al]false;
Their ^(EA)works are ^(EB)nothing,
Their cast metal images are ^(EC)wind and emptiness.

God’s Promise concerning His Servant

42 “^(ED)Behold, My ^(EE)Servant, whom I ^[am]uphold;
My ^(EF)chosen one in whom My ^(EG)soul delights.
I have put My ^(EH)Spirit upon Him;
He will bring forth ^(EI)justice to the ^[an]nations.
²He will not cry out nor raise His voice,
Nor make His voice heard in the street.
³A bent reed He will not break off
And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;
He will faithfully bring forth ^(EJ)justice.
⁴He will not be ^(EK)disheartened or crushed
Until He has established justice on the earth;
And the ^(EL)coastlands will wait expectantly for His ^[ao]law.”

⁵This is what God the Lord says,

Who ^(EM)created the heavens and ^(EN)stretched them out,
Who spread out the ^(EO)earth and its ^[ap]offspring,
Who ^(EP)gives breath to the people on it
And spirit to those who walk in it:
⁶“I am the Lord, I have ^(EQ)called You in righteousness,
I will also ^(ER)hold You by the hand and ^(ES)watch over You,
And I will appoint You as a ^(ET)covenant to the people,
As a ^(EU)light to the nations,
⁷To ^(EV)open blind eyes,
To ^(EW)bring out prisoners from the dungeon
And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.
⁸^(EX)I am the Lord, that is ^(EY)My name;
I will not give My ^(EZ)glory to another,
Nor My praise to idols.
⁹Behold, the ^(FA)former things have come to pass,
Now I declare ^(FB)new things;
Before they sprout I proclaim them to you.”

¹⁰Sing to the Lord a ^(FC)new song,
Sing His praise from the ^(FD)end of the earth!
^(FE)You who go down to the sea, and ^(FF)all that is in it;
You ^(FG)islands, and those who live on them.
¹¹Let the ^(FH)wilderness and its cities raise their voices,
The settlements which ^(FI)Kedar inhabits.
Let the inhabitants of ^(FJ)Sela sing aloud,
Let them shout for joy from the tops of the ^(FK)mountains.
¹²Let them ^(FL)give glory to the Lord
And declare His praise in the ^(FM)coastlands.
¹³^(FN)The Lord will go out like a warrior,
He will stir His ^(FO)zeal like a man of war.
He will shout, indeed, He will raise a war cry.
He will ^(FP)prevail against His enemies.

The Blindness of the People

¹⁴“^(FQ)I have kept silent for a long time,
I have kept still and restrained Myself.
Now like a woman in labor I will groan,
I will both gasp and pant.
¹⁵I will ^(FR)lay waste the mountains and hills
And wither all their vegetation;
I will ^(FS)turn the rivers into coastlands
And dry up the ponds.
¹⁶I will ^(FT)lead those who are blind by a way they have not known,
In paths they have not known I will guide them.
I will ^(FU)turn darkness into light before them
And ^(FV)uneven land into plains.
These are the things I will do,
And I will ^(FW)not leave them undone.”
¹⁷They will be turned back and be ^(FX)utterly put to shame,
Who trust in ^[aq]idols,
Who say to cast metal images,
“You are our gods.”

¹⁸^(FY)Hear, you who are deaf!
And look, you who are blind, so that you may see.
¹⁹Who is blind but My ^(FZ)servant,
Or so deaf as My ^(GA)messenger whom I send?
Who is so blind as one who is ^[ar]^(GB)at peace with Me,
Or so blind as the servant of the Lord?
²⁰^(GC)You have seen many things, but you do not retain them;
Your ears are open, but no one hears.
²¹The Lord was pleased for His righteousness’ sake
To make the Law ^(GD)great and glorious.
²²But this is a people plundered and pillaged;
All of them are ^(GE)trapped in ^[as]caves,
Or are ^(GF)hidden away in prisons;
They have become plunder, with no one to save them,
And spoils with no one to say, “Give them back!”

²³Who among you will listen to this?
Who will pay attention and listen in the time to come?
²⁴Who gave Jacob up for spoils, and Israel to plunderers?
Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned,
And in whose ways they ^(GG)were not willing to walk,
And whose Law they did not ^(GH)obey?
²⁵So He poured out on him the heat of His anger
And the ^(GI)fierceness of battle;
And it set him aflame all around,
Yet he did not recognize it;
And it burned him, but he ^[at]^(GJ)paid no attention.

Israel Redeemed

43 But now, this is what the Lord says, He who is your ^(GK)Creator, Jacob,
And He who ^(GL)formed you, Israel:
“Do not ^(GM)fear, for I have ^(GN)redeemed you;
I have ^(GO)called you by name; you are ^(GP)Mine!
²When you ^(GQ)pass through the waters, ^(GR)I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you ^(GS)walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
³For ^(GT)I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your ^(GU)Savior;
I have given Egypt as your ransom,
^[au]^(GV)Cush and Seba in exchange for you.
⁴Since you are ^(GW)precious in My sight,
Since you are ^(GX)honored and I ^(GY)love you,
I will give other people in your place and other nations in exchange for your life.
⁵Do not fear, for ^(GZ)I am with you;
I will bring ^(HA)your offspring from the east,
And ^(HB)gather you from the west.
⁶I will say to the ^(HC)north, ‘Give them up!’
And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring My ^(HD)sons from afar
And My daughters from the ^(HE)ends of the earth,
⁷Everyone who is ^(HF)called by My name,
And whom I have ^(HG)created for My ^(HH)glory,
^(HI)Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”

Israel Is God’s Witness

⁸Bring out the people who are ^(HJ)blind, even though they have eyes,
And those who are deaf, even though they have ears.
⁹All the nations have ^(HK)gathered together
So that the peoples may be assembled.
Who among them can ^(HL)declare this
And proclaim to us the former things?
Let them present ^(HM)their witnesses so ^(HN)that they may be justified,
Or let them hear and say, “It is true.”
¹⁰“You are ^(HO)My witnesses,” declares the Lord,
“And ^(HP)My servant whom I have chosen,
So that you may know and believe Me
And understand that ^(HQ)I am He.
^(HR)Before Me there was no God formed,
And there will be none after Me.
¹¹I, only I, am the Lord,
And there is no ^(HS)savior ^(HT)besides Me.
¹²It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed,
And there was no ^(HU)strange god among you;
So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord,
“And I am God.
¹³Even ^[av]^(HV)from eternity ^(HW)I am He,
And there is ^(HX)no one who can rescue from My hand;
^(HY)I act, and who can reverse it?”

Babylon to Be Destroyed

¹⁴This is what the Lord your ^(HZ)Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says:

“For your sake I have sent to Babylon,
And will bring them all down as fugitives,
^[aw]Even the ^(IA)Chaldeans, into the ^(IB)ships ^[ax]over which they rejoice.
¹⁵I am the Lord, your Holy One,
^(IC)The Creator of Israel, your ^(ID)King.”

¹⁶This is what the Lord says,

He who ^(IE)makes a way through the sea
And a path through the mighty waters,
¹⁷Who brings out the ^(IF)chariot and the horse,
The army and the mighty man
(They will lie down together and not rise again;
They have been ^(IG)extinguished, and have gone out like a wick):
¹⁸“^(IH)Do not call to mind the former things,
Or consider things of the past.
¹⁹Behold, I am going to do something ^(II)new,
Now it will spring up;
Will you not be aware of it?
I will even ^(IJ)make a roadway in the wilderness,
Rivers in the desert.
²⁰The animals of the field will glorify Me,
The ^(IK)jackals and the ostriches,
Because I have ^(IL)given waters in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert,
To give drink to My chosen people.
²¹The people whom ^(IM)I formed for Myself
^(IN)Will declare My praise.

The Shortcomings of Israel

²²“Yet you have not called on Me, Jacob;
But you have become ^(IO)weary of Me, Israel.
²³You have ^(IP)not brought to Me the sheep of your burnt offerings,
Nor have you ^(IQ)honored Me with your sacrifices.
I have not ^(IR)burdened you with ^[ay]offerings,
Nor wearied you with ^(IS)incense.
²⁴You have not bought Me ^[az]^(IT)sweet cane with money,
Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;
Rather, you have burdened Me with your sins,
You have ^(IU)wearied Me with your wrongdoings.

²⁵“I, I alone, am the one who ^(IV)wipes out your wrongdoings ^(IW)for My own sake,
And I will ^(IX)not remember your sins.
²⁶^[ba]Meet Me in court, ^(IY)let’s argue our case together;
State your cause, ^(IZ)so that you may be proved right.
²⁷Your ^(JA)first ^[bb]forefather sinned,
And your ^[bc]^(JB)spokesmen have rebelled against Me.
²⁸So I will profane the ^[bd]officials of the sanctuary,
And I will turn Jacob over to ^(JC)destruction and Israel to ^(JD)abuse.

The Blessings of Israel

44 “But now listen, Jacob, My ^(JE)servant,
And Israel, whom I have chosen:
²This is what the Lord says, He who made you
And ^(JF)formed you from the womb, who ^(JG)will help you:
‘^(JH)Do not fear, Jacob My servant,
And ^[be]^(JI)Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
³For ^(JJ)I will pour water on ^[bf]the thirsty land
And streams on the dry ground;
I will ^(JK)pour out My Spirit on your ^(JL)offspring,
And My blessing on your descendants;
⁴And they will spring up ^[bg]among the grass
Like ^(JM)poplars by streams of water.’
⁵This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’;
And that one ^[bh]will call on the name of Jacob;
And another will ^(JN)write ^[bi]on his hand, ‘Belonging to the Lord,’
And will give himself Israel’s name with honor.

⁶“This is what the Lord says, He who is the ^(JO)King of Israel and his ^(JP)Redeemer, the Lord of armies:

‘I am the ^(JQ)first and I am the last,
And there is no God ^(JR)besides Me.
⁷Who is like Me? ^(JS)Let him proclaim and declare it;
And, let him confront Me
^[bj]Beginning with My establishing of the ancient ^[bk]nation.
Then let them declare to them the things that are coming
And the events that are going to take place.
⁸Do not tremble and do not be afraid;
^(JT)Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?
And ^(JU)you are My witnesses.
Is there any God ^(JV)besides Me,
Or is there any other ^(JW)Rock?
I know of none.’”

The Foolishness of Idolatry

⁹Those who fashion an idol are all futile, and their treasured things are of no benefit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be ^(JX)put to shame. ¹⁰Who has fashioned a god or cast an idol to ^(JY)no benefit? ¹¹Behold, all his companions will be ^(JZ)put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up, let them tremble, let them be put to shame together.

¹²The ^(KA)craftsman of iron shapes a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, ^[bl]fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and ^[bm]his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary. ¹³^(KB)The craftsman of wood extends a measuring line; he outlines it with a marker. He works it with carving knives and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of ^(KC)mankind, so that it may sit in a ^(KD)house. ¹⁴He will cut cedars for himself, and he takes a holm-oak or another oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel tree, and the rain makes it grow. ¹⁵Then it becomes something for a person to burn, so he takes one of them and gets warm; he also makes a fire and bakes bread. He also ^(KE)makes a god and worships it; he makes it a carved image and ^(KF)bows down before it. ¹⁶Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat, he roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” ¹⁷Yet the rest of it he ^(KG)makes into a god, his carved image. He bows down before it and worships; he also ^(KH)prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.”

¹⁸They do not ^(KI)know, nor do they understand, for He has ^(KJ)smeared over their eyes so that they cannot see, and their hearts so that they cannot comprehend. ¹⁹No one ^[bn]remembers, nor is there ^(KK)knowledge or understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I roast meat and eat it. Then ^[bo]I make the rest of it into an ^(KL)abomination, ^[bp]I bow down before a block of wood!” ²⁰He ^[bq]^(KM)feeds on ashes; a ^(KN)deceived heart has misled him. And he cannot save ^[br]himself, nor say, “^(KO)Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

God Forgives and Redeems

²¹“^(KP)Remember these things, Jacob,
And Israel, for you are ^(KQ)My servant;
I have formed you, you are My servant,
Israel, you will ^(KR)not be forgotten by Me.
²²I have ^(KS)wiped out your wrongdoings like a thick cloud
And your sins like a ^[bs]heavy mist.
^(KT)Return to Me, for I have ^(KU)redeemed you.”
²³^(KV)Shout for joy, you heavens, for the Lord has done it!
Shout joyfully, you lower parts of the earth;
^(KW)Break into a shout of jubilation, you mountains,
Forest, and every tree in it;
For ^(KX)the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
And in Israel He ^(KY)shows His glory.

²⁴This is what the Lord says, He who is your ^(KZ)Redeemer, and the one who ^(LA)formed you from the womb:

“I, the Lord, am the maker of all things,
^(LB)Stretching out the heavens by Myself
And spreading out the earth ^[bt]alone,
²⁵^(LC)Causing the ^[bu]omens of diviners to fail,
^[bv]Making fools of fortune-tellers;
^(LD)Causing wise men to turn back
And ^[bw]making their knowledge ridiculous,
²⁶^(LE)Confirming the word of His servant
And ^[bx]carrying out the purpose of His messengers.
It is I who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited!’
And of the ^(LF)cities of Judah, ‘^(LG)They shall be built.’
And I will raise her ruins again.
²⁷I am the One who says to the depth of the sea, ‘Dry up!’
And I will make your rivers ^(LH)dry up.
²⁸It is I who says of ^(LI)Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd,
And he will carry out all My desire.’
And ^[by]he says of Jerusalem, ‘^(LJ)She will be built,’
And of the temple, ‘^[bz]Your foundation will be laid.’”

God Uses Cyrus

45 This is what the Lord says to ^(LK)Cyrus His anointed,
Whom I have taken by the right ^(LL)hand,
To ^(LM)subdue nations before him
And ^[ca]to ^(LN)undo the weapons belt on the waist of kings;
To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
²“I will go before you and ^(LO)make the ^[cb]rough places smooth;
I will ^(LP)shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron ^(LQ)bars.
³I will give you the ^[cc]^(LR)treasures of darkness
And hidden wealth of secret places,
So that you may know that it is I,
The Lord, the God of Israel, who ^(LS)calls you by your name.
⁴For the sake of ^(LT)Jacob My servant,
And Israel My chosen one,
I have also ^(LU)called you by your name;
I have given you a title of honor
Though you have ^(LV)not known Me.
⁵I am the Lord, and ^(LW)there is no one else;
^(LX)There is no God except Me.
I will ^(LY)^[cd]arm you, though you have not known Me,
⁶So that ^(LZ)people may know from the rising to the setting of the sun
That there is ^(MA)no one besides Me.
I am the Lord, and there is no one else,
⁷The One ^(MB)forming light and ^(MC)creating darkness,
Causing ^[ce]well-being and ^(MD)creating disaster;
I am the Lord who does all these things.

God’s Supreme Power

⁸“^(ME)Drip down, heavens, from above,
And let the clouds pour down righteousness;
Let the ^(MF)earth open up and salvation bear fruit,
^(MG)And righteousness sprout with it.
I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹“Woe to the one who ^(MH)quarrels with ^[cf]his Maker—
A piece of pottery ^[cg]among the other earthenware pottery pieces!
Will the ^(MI)clay say to the ^[ch]potter, ‘What are you doing?’
Or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?
¹⁰Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you fathering?’
Or to a woman, ‘To what are you ^[ci]giving birth?’”

¹¹This is what the ^(MJ)Lord says, the Holy One of Israel and ^[cj]his ^(MK)Maker:

“^[ck]^(ML)Ask Me about the things to come ^[cl]concerning My ^(MM)sons,
And you shall commit to Me ^(MN)the work of My hands.
¹²It is I who ^(MO)made the earth, and created mankind upon it.
I ^(MP)stretched out the heavens with My hands,
And I ^[cm]ordained ^(MQ)all their ^[cn]lights.
¹³I have stirred him in ^(MR)righteousness,
And I will ^(MS)make all his ways smooth.
He will ^(MT)build My city and let My exiles go ^(MU)free,
Without any payment or reward,” says the Lord of armies.

¹⁴This is what the Lord says:

“The ^[co]products of ^(MV)Egypt and the merchandise of ^[cp]^(MW)Cush
And the Sabeans, men of stature,
Will ^(MX)come over to you and will be yours;
They will walk behind you, they will come over in ^(MY)chains
And will ^(MZ)bow down to you;
They will plead with you:
‘^[cq]^(NA)God certainly is ^[cr]with you, and ^(NB)there is no one else,
No other God.’”
¹⁵Truly, You are a God who ^(NC)hides Himself,
God of Israel, ^(ND)Savior!
¹⁶They will be ^(NE)put to shame and even humiliated, all of them;
The ^(NF)manufacturers of idols will go away together in humiliation.
¹⁷Israel has been saved by the Lord
With an ^(NG)everlasting salvation;
You ^(NH)will not be put to shame or humiliated
To all eternity.

¹⁸For this is what the Lord says, He who ^(NI)created the heavens (He is the God who ^(NJ)formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it ^[cs]as a ^(NK)waste place, but formed it to be ^(NL)inhabited):

“I am the Lord, and ^(NM)there is no one else.
¹⁹^(NN)I have not spoken in secret,
In ^[ct]some dark land;
I did not say to the ^[cu]^(NO)offspring of Jacob,
‘^(NP)Seek Me in ^[cv]a wasteland’;
I, the Lord, ^(NQ)speak righteousness,
^(NR)Declaring things that are right.

²⁰“^(NS)Gather yourselves and come;
Come together, you survivors of the nations!
^(NT)They have no knowledge,
Who ^(NU)carry around ^[cw]their wooden idol
And ^(NV)pray to a god who cannot save.
²¹^(NW)Declare and present your case;
Indeed, let them consult together.
^(NX)Who has announced this long ago?
Who has long since declared it?
Is it not I, the Lord?
And there is ^(NY)no other God besides Me,
A righteous God and a ^(NZ)Savior;
There is none except Me.
²²^(OA)Turn to Me and ^(OB)be saved, all the ends of the earth;
For I am God, and there is no other.
²³^(OC)I have sworn by Myself;
The ^(OD)word has gone out from My mouth in righteousness
And will not turn back,
That to Me ^(OE)every knee will bow, every tongue will ^(OF)swear allegiance.
²⁴They will say of Me, ‘Only ^(OG)in the Lord are righteousness and strength.’
People will come to Him,
And ^(OH)all who were angry at Him will be put to shame.
²⁵In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
Will be ^(OI)justified and will ^(OJ)boast.”

Babylon’s Idols and the True God

46 ^(OK)Bel has bowed down, Nebo stoops over;
Their idols have become loads for the animals and the cattle.
The things ^[cx]that you carry are burdensome,
A load for the weary animal.
²They stooped over, they have bowed down together;
They could not rescue the burden,
But ^[cy]have themselves ^(OL)gone into captivity.

³“^(OM)Listen to Me, house of Jacob,
And all ^(ON)the remnant of the house of Israel,
You who have been ^(OO)carried by Me from ^[cz]birth
And have been carried from the womb;
⁴Even to your old age ^(OP)I ^[da]will be the same,
And even to your ^[db]^(OQ)graying years I will ^[dc]carry you!
I have ^[dd]done it, and I will bear you;
And I will ^[de]carry you and I will save you.

⁵“^(OR)To whom would you liken Me
And make Me equal, and compare Me,
That we would be alike?
⁶Those who ^(OS)lavish gold from the bag
And weigh silver on the scale,
Hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god;
They ^(OT)bow down, indeed they worship it.
⁷They ^(OU)lift it on the shoulder, carry it,
And set it in its place, and it stands there.
^(OV)It does not move from its place.
Though one may shout to it, it ^(OW)cannot answer;
It ^(OX)cannot save him from his distress.

⁸“^(OY)Remember this, and be ^[df]assured;
^(OZ)Recall it to ^[dg]mind, you ^(PA)wrongdoers.
⁹Remember the ^(PB)former things long past,
For I am God, and there is ^(PC)no other;
I am God, and there is ^(PD)no one like Me,
¹⁰Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, ‘^(PE)My plan will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;
¹¹Calling a ^(PF)bird of prey from the ^(PG)east,
The man of ^[dh]My purpose from a distant country.
Truly I have ^(PH)spoken; truly I will bring it to pass.
I have planned it, I will certainly do it.

¹²“^(PI)Listen to Me, you ^(PJ)stubborn-minded,
Who are ^(PK)far from righteousness.
¹³I ^(PL)bring near My righteousness, it is not far off;
And My salvation will not delay.
And I will grant ^(PM)salvation in Zion,
And My ^(PN)glory for Israel.

Mourning for Babylon

47 “^(PO)Come down and sit in the dust,
^(PP)Virgin ^(PQ)daughter of Babylon;
Sit on the ground without a throne,
Daughter of the Chaldeans!
For you will no longer be called ^(PR)tender and delicate.
²Take the ^(PS)millstones and ^(PT)grind flour.
Remove your ^(PU)veil, ^(PV)strip off the skirt,
Uncover the leg, cross the rivers.
³Your ^(PW)nakedness will be uncovered,
Your shame will also be exposed;
I will ^(PX)take vengeance and will not spare anyone.”
⁴Our ^(PY)Redeemer, the Lord of armies is His name,
The Holy One of Israel.
⁵“^(PZ)Sit silently, and go into ^(QA)darkness,
Daughter of the Chaldeans;
For you will no longer be called
The ^(QB)queen of ^(QC)kingdoms.
⁶I was angry with My people,
I profaned My heritage
And handed them over to you.
You did not show mercy to them,
On the ^(QD)aged you made your yoke very heavy.
⁷Yet you said, ‘I will be a ^(QE)queen forever.’
These things you did not ^(QF)consider
Nor remember the ^(QG)outcome of ^[di]them.

⁸“Now, then, hear this, you ^(QH)luxuriant one,
Who ^(QI)lives securely,
Who says in her heart,
‘^(QJ)I am, and there is no one besides me.
I will ^(QK)not sit as a widow,
Nor know the loss of children.’
⁹But these ^(QL)two things will come on you ^(QM)suddenly in one day:
Loss of children and widowhood.
They will come on you in full measure
In spite of your many ^(QN)sorceries,
In spite of the great power of your spells.
¹⁰You felt ^(QO)secure in your wickedness and said,
‘^(QP)No one sees me,’
Your ^(QQ)wisdom and your knowledge, ^[dj]they have led you astray;
For you have said in your heart,
‘^(QR)I am, and there is no one besides me.’
¹¹But ^(QS)evil will come on you
Which you will not know how to charm away;
And disaster will fall on you
For which you cannot atone;
And ^(QT)destruction about which you do not know
Will come on you ^(QU)suddenly.

¹²“Persist now in your ^(QV)spells
And in your many sorceries
With which you have labored from your youth;
Perhaps you will be able to benefit,
Perhaps you may cause trembling.
¹³You are ^(QW)wearied with your many counsels;
Let now the ^(QX)astrologers,
Those who prophesy by the stars,
Those who predict by the new moons,
Stand up and ^(QY)save you from what will come upon you.
¹⁴Behold, they have become ^(QZ)like stubble,
^(RA)Fire burns them;
They cannot save themselves from the power of the flame;
There will be ^(RB)no coal to warm by
Nor a fire to sit before!
¹⁵So have those become to you with whom you have labored,
Those who have ^(RC)done business with you from your youth;
Each has wandered in his own ^[dk]way;
There is ^(RD)no one to save you.

Israel’s Obstinacy

48 “^(RE)Hear this, house of Jacob, who are named Israel
And who came from the ^(RF)waters of Judah,
Who ^(RG)swear by the name of the Lord
And invoke the God of Israel,
But not in truth nor in ^(RH)righteousness.
²For they name themselves after the ^(RI)holy city,
And ^(RJ)lean on the God of Israel;
The Lord of armies is His name.
³I ^(RK)declared the former things long ago,
And they went out of My mouth, and I proclaimed them.
^(RL)Suddenly I acted, and they ^(RM)came to pass.
⁴Because I know that you are ^[dl]^(RN)obstinate,
And your ^(RO)neck is an iron tendon
And your ^(RP)forehead bronze,
⁵Therefore I declared them to you long ago,
Before ^[dm]they took place I proclaimed them to you,
So that you would not say, ‘My ^(RQ)idol has done them,
And my carved image and my cast metal image have commanded them.’
⁶You have heard; look at all this.
And you, will you not declare it?
I proclaim to you ^(RR)new things from this time,
Hidden things which you have not known.
⁷They are created now and not long ago;
And before today you have not heard them,
So that you will not say, ‘Behold, I knew them.’
⁸You have not ^(RS)heard, you have not known.
Even from long ago your ear has not been open,
Because I knew that you would deal very treacherously;
And you have been called a ^[dn]^(RT)rebel from ^[do]birth.
⁹^(RU)For the sake of My name I ^(RV)delay My wrath,
And for My praise I restrain it for you,
In order not to cut you off.
¹⁰Behold, I have refined you, but ^(RW)not as silver;
I have tested you in the ^(RX)furnace of affliction.
¹¹^(RY)For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act;
For how can My name be profaned?
And I will not give My ^(RZ)glory to another.

Rescue Promised

¹²“Listen to Me, Jacob, Israel ^[dp]whom I called;
^(SA)I am He, ^(SB)I am the first, I am also the last.
¹³Assuredly My hand ^(SC)founded the earth,
And My right hand spread out the heavens;
When I ^(SD)call to them, they stand together.
¹⁴^(SE)Assemble, all of you, and listen!
^(SF)Who among them has declared these things?
The Lord loves him; he will ^(SG)carry out His good pleasure against ^(SH)Babylon,
And His arm will be against the Chaldeans.
¹⁵I, yes I, have spoken; indeed I have ^(SI)called him,
I have brought him, and He will make his ways successful.
¹⁶^(SJ)Come near to Me, listen to this:
From the beginning I have ^(SK)not spoken in secret,
^(SL)From the time it took place, I was there.
And now ^(SM)the Lord ^[dq]God has sent Me, and His Spirit.”

¹⁷This is what the Lord says, He who is your ^(SN)Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:

“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to benefit,
Who ^(SO)leads you in the way you should go.
¹⁸If only you had ^(SP)paid attention to My commandments!
Then your ^[dr]^(SQ)well-being would have been like a river,
And your ^(SR)righteousness like the waves of the sea.
¹⁹Your ^[ds]^(SS)descendants would have been like the sand,
And ^[dt]your offspring like its grains;
^(ST)Their name would never be eliminated or destroyed from My presence.”

²⁰^(SU)Go out from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans!
Declare with the sound of ^(SV)joyful shouting, proclaim this,
^(SW)Send it out to the end of the earth;
Say, “^(SX)The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob.”
²¹They did not ^(SY)thirst when He led them through the deserts.
He ^(SZ)made the water flow out of the rock for them;
He split the rock and ^(TA)the water gushed out.
²²“^(TB)There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.

Salvation Reaches to the Ends of the Earth

49 Listen to Me, you ^(TC)islands,
And pay attention, you peoples from afar.
^(TD)The Lord called Me from the womb;
From the ^[du]body of My mother He named Me.
²He has made My ^(TE)mouth like a sharp sword,
In the ^(TF)shadow of His hand He has concealed Me;
And He has also made Me a sharpened ^(TG)arrow,
He has hidden Me in His quiver.
³He said to Me, “^(TH)You are My Servant, Israel,
^(TI)In whom I will show My glory.”
⁴But I said, “I have ^(TJ)labored in vain,
I have spent My strength for nothing and futility;
Nevertheless, the justice due to Me is with the Lord,
And My ^(TK)reward is with My God.”

⁵And now says ^(TL)the Lord, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant,
To bring Jacob back to Him, so that ^(TM)Israel might be gathered to Him
(For I am ^(TN)honored in the sight of the Lord,
And My God is My ^(TO)strength),
⁶He says, “It is too ^[dv]small a thing that You should be My Servant
To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the ^(TP)protected ones of Israel;
I will also make You a ^(TQ)light ^[dw]of the nations
So that My salvation may ^[dx]reach to the ^(TR)end of the earth.”
⁷This is what the Lord, the ^(TS)Redeemer of Israel and its Holy One,
Says to the ^[dy]^(TT)despised One,
To the One abhorred by the nation,
To the Servant of rulers:
“^(TU)Kings will see and arise,
Princes will also ^(TV)bow down,
Because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen You.”

⁸This is what the Lord says:
“At a ^(TW)favorable time I answered You,
And on a day of salvation I helped You;
And I will ^(TX)watch over You and ^(TY)make You a covenant of the people,
To ^[dz]^(TZ)restore the land, to give as inheritances the deserted hereditary lands;
⁹Saying to those who are ^(UA)bound, ‘^[ea]Go free,’
To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
They will feed along the roads,
And their pasture will be on all ^(UB)bare heights.
¹⁰They will ^(UC)not hunger or thirst,
Nor will the scorching ^(UD)heat or sun strike them down;
For ^(UE)He who has compassion on them will ^(UF)lead them,
And He will guide them to ^(UG)springs of water.
¹¹I will make all ^(UH)My mountains a road,
And My ^(UI)highways will be raised up.
¹²Behold, these will come ^(UJ)from afar;
And behold, these will come from the ^(UK)north and from the west,
And these from the land of Aswan.”
¹³^(UL)Shout for joy, you heavens! And rejoice, you earth!
Break forth into joyful shouting, mountains!
For the ^(UM)Lord has comforted His people
And will ^(UN)have compassion on His afflicted.

Promise to Zion

¹⁴But Zion said, “The Lord has abandoned me,
And the Lord has forgotten me.”
¹⁵“Can a woman forget her nursing child
And have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, but ^(UO)I will not forget you.
¹⁶Behold, I have ^(UP)inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your ^(UQ)walls are continually before Me.
¹⁷Your ^[eb]builders hurry;
Your ^(UR)destroyers and devastators
Will leave you.
¹⁸^(US)Raise your eyes and look around;
^(UT)All of them gather together, ^(UU)they come to you.
^(UV)As I live,” declares the Lord,
“You will certainly ^(UW)put them all on as ^[ec]jewelry and bind them on as a bride.
¹⁹For ^(UX)your ruins and deserted places and your destroyed land—
Now you will certainly be ^(UY)too cramped for the inhabitants,
And those who ^(UZ)swallowed you will be far away.
²⁰The ^(VA)children ^[ed]you lost will yet say in your ears,
‘The place is too cramped for me;
Make room for me that I may live here.’
²¹Then you will ^(VB)say in your heart,
‘Who has fathered these for me,
Since I have been bereaved of my children
And ^(VC)cannot conceive, and I am an ^(VD)exile, and a wanderer?
And who has raised these?
Behold, I was ^(VE)left alone;
^[ee]^(VF)Where are these from?’”

²²This is what the Lord ^[ef]God says:

“Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations
And set up My ^(VG)flag to the peoples;
And they will ^(VH)bring your sons ^[eg]in their arms,
And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders.
²³^(VI)Kings will be your guardians,
And their princesses your nurses.
They will ^(VJ)bow down to you with their faces to the ground
And ^(VK)lick the dust from your feet;
And you will ^(VL)know that I am the Lord;
Those who hopefully ^(VM)wait for Me will ^(VN)not be put to shame.

²⁴“^(VO)Can the prey be taken from a mighty man,
Or the captives of ^[eh]a tyrant be rescued?”

²⁵Indeed, this is what the Lord says:

“Even the ^(VP)captives of the mighty man will be taken away,
And the prey of a tyrant will be rescued;
For I will contend with the one who contends with you,
And I will ^(VQ)save your sons.
²⁶I will feed your ^(VR)oppressors with their ^(VS)own flesh,
And they will become drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine;
And ^[ei]^(VT)humanity will know that I, the Lord, am your ^(VU)Savior
And your ^(VV)Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

God Helps His Servant

50 This is what the Lord says:

“Where is the ^(VW)certificate of divorce
By which I have ^(VX)sent your mother away?
Or to whom of My creditors did I ^(VY)sell you?
Behold, you were sold for your ^(VZ)wrongdoings,
And for your ^(WA)wrongful acts your mother ^(WB)was sent away.
²Why was there ^(WC)no one when I came?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?
Is My ^(WD)hand so short that it cannot redeem?
Or do I have no power to rescue?
Behold, I ^(WE)dry up the sea with My rebuke,
I ^(WF)turn rivers into a wilderness;
Their fish stink for lack of water,
And die of thirst.
³I ^(WG)clothe the heavens with blackness,
And make sackcloth their covering.”

⁴The Lord ^[ej]God has given Me the tongue of ^(WH)disciples,
So that I may know how to ^(WI)sustain the weary one with a word.
He awakens Me ^(WJ)morning by morning,
He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.
⁵The Lord God has ^(WK)opened My ear,
And I was ^(WL)not disobedient,
Nor did I turn back.
⁶I ^(WM)gave My back to those who strike Me,
And My cheeks to those who pull out My beard;
I did not hide My face from insults and spitting.
⁷For the Lord God ^(WN)helps Me,
Therefore, I am ^(WO)not disgraced;
Therefore, I have made My face like ^(WP)flint,
And I know that I will not be ashamed.
⁸He who ^(WQ)vindicates Me is near;
Who will contend with Me?
Let us ^(WR)stand up to each other.
Who has a case against Me?
Let him approach Me.
⁹Behold, ^(WS)the Lord God helps Me;
^(WT)Who is he who condemns Me?
Behold, ^(WU)they will all wear out like a garment;
A moth will eat them.
¹⁰Who is among you who fears the Lord,
Who obeys the voice of His ^(WV)servant,
Who ^(WW)walks in darkness and has no light?
Let him ^(WX)trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.
¹¹Behold, all you who ^(WY)kindle a fire,
Who encircle yourselves with flaming arrows,
Walk in the light of your fire
And among the flaming arrows you have set ablaze.
This you will have from My hand:
You will ^(WZ)lie down in torment.

Israel Exhorted

51 “^(XA)Listen to Me, you who ^(XB)pursue righteousness,
Who seek the Lord:
Look to the ^(XC)rock from which you were cut,
And to the ^[ek]quarry from which you were dug.
²Look to ^(XD)Abraham your father
And to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain;
When he ^(XE)was only one I called him,
Then I blessed him and multiplied him.”
³Indeed, ^(XF)the Lord will comfort Zion;
He will comfort all her ^(XG)ruins.
And He will make her ^(XH)wilderness like ^(XI)Eden,
And her desert like the ^(XJ)garden of the Lord.
^(XK)Joy and gladness will be found in her,
Thanksgiving and the sound of a melody.

⁴“^(XL)Pay attention to Me, My people,
And listen to Me, My ^[el]nation;
For a ^(XM)law will go out from Me,
And I will bring My ^(XN)justice as a ^(XO)light of the peoples.
⁵My ^(XP)righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth,
And My ^(XQ)arms will judge the peoples;
The ^(XR)coastlands will wait for Me,
And they will wait expectantly for My ^(XS)arm.
⁶^(XT)Raise your eyes to the sky,
Then look to the earth beneath;
For the ^(XU)sky will vanish like smoke,
And the ^(XV)earth will wear out like a garment
And its inhabitants will die ^[em]in the same way.
But My ^(XW)salvation will be forever,
And My righteousness will not fail.
⁷^(XX)Listen to Me, you who know righteousness,
A people in whose ^(XY)heart is My Law;
Do not fear the ^(XZ)taunting of ^[en]people,
Nor be terrified of their abuses.
⁸For the ^(YA)moth will eat them like a garment;
Yes, the ^(YB)moth will eat them like wool.
But My ^(YC)righteousness will be forever,
And My salvation to all generations.”

⁹^(YD)Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord;
Awake as in the ^(YE)days of old, the generations of long ago.
^(YF)Was it not You who cut ^[eo]Rahab in pieces,
Who pierced the ^(YG)dragon?
¹⁰Was it not You who ^(YH)dried up the sea,
The waters of the great deep;
Who made the depths of the sea a pathway
For the ^(YI)redeemed to cross over?
¹¹And the ^(YJ)redeemed of the Lord will return
And come to Zion with joyful shouting,
And ^(YK)everlasting joy will be on their heads.
They will obtain gladness and joy,
And ^(YL)sorrow and sighing will flee away.

¹²“I, I Myself, am He who ^(YM)comforts you.
Who are you that you are afraid of ^[ep]^(YN)mortal man,
And of a son of man who is made like ^(YO)grass,
¹³That you have ^(YP)forgotten the Lord your Maker,
Who ^(YQ)stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth,
That you ^(YR)fear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor,
As he makes ready to destroy?
And where is the rage of the ^(YS)oppressor?

¹⁴The ^[eq]^(YT)exile will soon be set free, and will not die in the ^[er]dungeon, ^(YU)nor will his bread be lacking. ¹⁵For I am the Lord your God, who ^(YV)stirs up the sea so that its waves roar (the Lord of armies is His name). ¹⁶And I have ^(YW)put My words in your mouth and have ^(YX)covered you with the shadow of My hand, to ^[es]^(YY)establish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”

¹⁷^(YZ)Pull yourself up! Pull yourself up! Arise, Jerusalem!
You who have ^(ZA)drunk from the Lord’s hand the cup of His anger;
The ^[et]chalice of staggering you have drunk to the dregs.
¹⁸There is ^(ZB)no one to guide her among all the sons to whom she has given birth,
Nor is there anyone to take her by the hand among all the sons she has raised.
¹⁹These two things have happened to you;
Who will mourn for you?
The ^(ZC)devastation and destruction, famine and sword;
How shall I comfort you?
²⁰Your sons have fainted,
They ^(ZD)lie helpless at the head of every street,
Like an ^(ZE)antelope in a net,
Full of the wrath of the Lord,
The ^(ZF)rebuke of your God.

²¹Therefore, listen to this, you ^(ZG)afflicted,
Who are ^(ZH)drunk, but not with wine:
²²This is what your Lord, the Lord, your God
Who ^(ZI)contends for His people says:
“Behold, I have taken from your hand the ^(ZJ)cup of staggering,
The ^[eu]chalice of My anger;
You will never drink it again.
²³I will ^(ZK)put it into the hand of your tormentors,
Who have said to ^[ev]you, ‘^(ZL)Lie down so that we may walk over you.’
You have also made your back like the ground,
And like the street for those who walk over it.”

Cheer for Prostrate Zion

52 ^(ZM)Awake, awake,
Clothe yourself in your strength, Zion;
Clothe yourself with your ^(ZN)beautiful garments,
Jerusalem, the ^(ZO)holy city;
For the uncircumcised and the ^(ZP)unclean
Will no longer come into you.
²Shake yourself ^(ZQ)from the dust, ^(ZR)rise up,
Captive Jerusalem;
^(ZS)Release yourself from the chains around your neck,
Captive daughter of Zion.

³For this is what the Lord says: “You were ^(ZT)sold for nothing, and you will be ^(ZU)redeemed ^(ZV)without money.” ⁴For this is what the Lord ^[ew]God says: “My people ^(ZW)went down to Egypt first to reside there; then the Assyrian oppressed them without reason. ⁵And now, what do I have here,” declares the Lord, “seeing that My people have been taken away without reason?” Again the Lord declares, “Those who rule over them howl, and My ^(ZX)name is continually reviled all day long. ⁶Therefore, My people shall ^(ZY)know My name; therefore on that day I am the one who is speaking, ‘Here I am.’”

⁷How delightful on the mountains
Are the feet of one who brings ^(ZZ)good news,
Who announces ^[ex]peace
And brings good news of ^[ey]happiness,
Who announces salvation,
And says to Zion, “Your ^(AAA)God ^[ez]reigns!”
⁸Listen! Your watchmen raise their ^(AAB)voices,
They shout joyfully together;
For they will see ^[fa]with their own eyes
When the Lord restores Zion.
⁹^(AAC)Be cheerful, shout joyfully together,
You ^(AAD)ruins of Jerusalem;
For the Lord has comforted His people,
He has ^(AAE)redeemed Jerusalem.
¹⁰The Lord has bared His holy ^(AAF)arm
In the sight of all the nations,
^[fb]So that ^(AAG)all the ends of the earth may see
The salvation of our God.

¹¹^(AAH)Depart, depart, go out from there,
^(AAI)Do not touch what is unclean;
Go out of the midst of her, ^(AAJ)purify yourselves,
You who carry the vessels of the Lord.
¹²But you will not go out in ^(AAK)a hurry,
Nor will you go ^[fc]as fugitives;
For the ^(AAL)Lord will go before you,
And ^(AAM)the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

The Exalted Servant

¹³Behold, My ^(AAN)Servant will prosper,
He will be high and lifted up and ^[fd]greatly ^(AAO)exalted.
¹⁴Just as many were appalled at you, My people,
So His ^(AAP)appearance was marred beyond that of a man,
And His form beyond the sons of mankind.
¹⁵So ^[fe]He will ^(AAQ)sprinkle many nations,
Kings will ^(AAR)shut their mouths on account of Him;
For ^(AAS)what they had not been told, they will see,
And what they had not heard, they will understand.

The Suffering Servant

53 ^(AAT)Who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
²For He grew up before Him like a ^(AAU)tender ^[ff]shoot,
And like a root out of dry ground;
He has ^(AAV)no stately form or majesty
That we would look at Him,
Nor an appearance that we would take pleasure in Him.
³He was ^(AAW)despised and abandoned by men,
A man of ^[fg]great pain and ^(AAX)familiar with sickness;
And like one from whom people hide their faces,
He was ^(AAY)despised, and we had no ^(AAZ)regard for Him.

⁴However, it was our sicknesses that He Himself ^(ABA)bore,
And our pains that He carried;
Yet we ourselves assumed that He had been afflicted,
Struck down by ^(ABB)God, and humiliated.
⁵But He was ^[fh]pierced for ^(ABC)our offenses,
He was crushed for ^(ABD)our wrongdoings;
The ^(ABE)punishment for our ^[fi]well-being was laid upon Him,
And by ^(ABF)His wounds we are healed.
⁶All of us, like sheep, have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the wrongdoing of us all
To ^[fj]fall on Him.

⁷He was oppressed and afflicted,
Yet He did not ^(ABG)open His mouth;
^(ABH)Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
⁸By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off from the land of the ^[fk]living
^(ABI)For the wrongdoing of my people, to whom the blow was due?
⁹And His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a ^(ABJ)rich man in His death,
^(ABK)Because He had ^(ABL)done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

¹⁰But the Lord desired
To ^(ABM)crush Him, ^[fl]^(ABN)causing Him grief;
If He renders ^[fm]Himself as a guilt ^(ABO)offering,
He will see ^(ABP)His ^[fn]offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the ^[fo]good ^(ABQ)pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.
¹¹As a result of the ^[fp]anguish of His soul,
He will ^[fq]^(ABR)see it and be satisfied;
By His ^(ABS)knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
For He will ^(ABT)bear their wrongdoings.
¹²Therefore, I will allot Him a ^(ABU)portion with the great,
And He will divide the plunder with the strong,
Because He poured out His ^[fr]^(ABV)life unto death,
And was ^(ABW)counted with wrongdoers;
Yet He Himself ^(ABX)bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the wrongdoers.

The Fertility of Zion

54 “^(ABY)Shout for joy, infertile one, you who have not given birth to any child;
Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor;
For the sons of the ^(ABZ)desolate one will be ^(ACA)more numerous
Than the sons of the married woman,” says the Lord.
²“^(ACB)Enlarge the place of your tent;
^[fs]Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, do not spare them;
Lengthen your ^(ACC)ropes
And strengthen your ^(ACD)pegs.
³For you will ^(ACE)spread out to the right and to the left.
And your ^[ft]descendants will ^(ACF)possess nations
And will ^(ACG)resettle the desolate cities.

⁴“Fear not, for you will ^(ACH)not be put to shame;
And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;
But you will forget the ^(ACI)shame of your youth,
And no longer remember the ^(ACJ)disgrace of your widowhood.
⁵For your ^(ACK)husband is your Maker,
Whose name is the Lord of armies;
And your ^(ACL)Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the ^(ACM)God of all the earth.
⁶For the Lord has called you,
Like a wife ^(ACN)forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,”
Says your God.
⁷“^[fu]For a ^(ACO)brief moment I abandoned you,
But with great compassion I will ^(ACP)gather you.
⁸In an ^[fv]^(ACQ)outburst of anger
I hid My face from you for a moment,
But with everlasting ^(ACR)favor I will ^(ACS)have compassion on you,”
Says the Lord your ^(ACT)Redeemer.

⁹“For ^[fw]this is like the days of Noah to Me,
When I swore that the waters of Noah
Would ^(ACU)not ^[fx]flood the earth again;
So I have sworn that I will ^(ACV)not be angry with you
Nor rebuke you.
¹⁰For the ^(ACW)mountains may be removed and the hills may shake,
But My ^[fy]favor will not be removed from you,
Nor will My ^(ACX)covenant of peace be shaken,”
Says ^(ACY)the Lord who has compassion on you.

¹¹“^(ACZ)Afflicted one, storm-tossed, and ^(ADA)not comforted,
Behold, I will set your stones in antimony,
And I will ^(ADB)lay your foundations with ^[fz]^(ADC)sapphires.
¹²Moreover, I will make your battlements of ^[ga]rubies,
And your gates of ^[gb]crystal,
And your entire ^[gc]wall of precious stones.
¹³^(ADD)All your sons will be ^[gd]taught by the Lord;
And the well-being of your sons will be ^(ADE)great.
¹⁴In ^(ADF)righteousness you will be established;
You will be far from ^(ADG)oppression, for you will ^(ADH)not fear;
And from ^(ADI)terror, for it will not come near you.
¹⁵If anyone fiercely attacks you, it will not be from Me.
^(ADJ)Whoever attacks you will fall because of you.
¹⁶Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows on the fire of coals
And produces a weapon for its work;
And I have created the destroyer to inflict ruin.
¹⁷^(ADK)No weapon that is formed against you will succeed;
And you will condemn ^(ADL)every tongue that ^[ge]accuses you in judgment.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their ^(ADM)vindication is from Me,” declares the Lord.

The Free Offer of Mercy

55 “^[gf]You there! Everyone who ^(ADN)thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have ^(ADO)no ^[gg]money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy ^(ADP)wine and milk
^(ADQ)Without money and without cost.
²Why do you ^[gh]spend money for what is ^(ADR)not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and ^(ADS)eat what is good,
And ^(ADT)delight yourself in abundance.
³^(ADU)Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that ^[gi]you may ^(ADV)live;
And I will make ^(ADW)an everlasting covenant with you,
According to the ^(ADX)faithful mercies ^[gj]shown to David.
⁴Behold, I have made ^(ADY)him a witness to the peoples,
A ^(ADZ)leader and commander for the peoples.
⁵Behold, you will call a ^(AEA)nation you do not know,
And a nation which does not know you will ^(AEB)run to you,
Because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel;
For He has ^(AEC)glorified you.”

⁶^(AED)Seek the Lord while He may be found;
^(AEE)Call upon Him while He is near.
⁷^(AEF)Let the wicked abandon his way,
And the unrighteous person his ^(AEG)thoughts;
And let him ^(AEH)return to the Lord,
And He will have ^(AEI)compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will ^(AEJ)abundantly pardon.
⁸“For My thoughts are not ^(AEK)your thoughts,
Nor are ^(AEL)your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
⁹“For ^(AEM)as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
¹⁰For as the ^(AEN)rain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it produce and sprout,
And providing ^(AEO)seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
¹¹So will My ^(AEP)word be which goes out of My mouth;
It will ^(AEQ)not return to Me empty,
Without ^(AER)accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.
¹²For you will go out with ^(AES)joy
And be led in ^(AET)peace;
The ^(AEU)mountains and the hills will break into shouts of joy before you,
And all the ^(AEV)trees of the field will clap their hands.
¹³Instead of the ^(AEW)thorn bush, the ^(AEX)juniper will come up,
And instead of the ^(AEY)stinging nettle, the myrtle will come up;
And ^[gk]it will be a ^[gl]^(AEZ)memorial to the Lord,
An everlasting ^(AFA)sign which ^(AFB)will not be eliminated.”

Rewards for Obedience to God

56 This is what the Lord says:
“^(AFC)Guard justice and do righteousness,
For My ^(AFD)salvation is about to come
And My righteousness to be revealed.
²^(AFE)Blessed is a man who does this,
And a son of man who ^(AFF)takes hold of it;
Who ^(AFG)keeps from profaning the Sabbath,
And keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
³Let not the ^(AFH)foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,
“The Lord will certainly separate me from His people.”
Nor let the ^(AFI)eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.”
⁴For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who ^(AFJ)keep My Sabbaths,
And choose what pleases Me,
And ^(AFK)hold firmly to My covenant,
⁵To them I will give in My ^(AFL)house and within My ^(AFM)walls a memorial,
And a name better than that of sons and daughters;
I will give ^[gm]them an everlasting ^(AFN)name which ^(AFO)will not be eliminated.

⁶“Also the ^(AFP)foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,
To attend to His service and to love the name of the Lord,
To be His servants, every one who ^(AFQ)keeps the Sabbath so as not to profane it,
And holds firmly to My covenant;
⁷Even ^(AFR)those I will bring to My ^(AFS)holy mountain,
And ^(AFT)make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on ^(AFU)My altar;
For ^(AFV)My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”
⁸The Lord ^[gn]God, who ^(AFW)gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares,
“I will yet gather ^(AFX)others to ^[go]them, to those already gathered.”

⁹All you ^[gp]^(AFY)wild animals,
All you animals in the forest,
Come to eat.
¹⁰His ^(AFZ)watchmen are ^(AGA)blind,
All of them know nothing.
All of them are mute dogs unable to bark,
Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber;
¹¹And the dogs are ^[gq]^(AGB)greedy, they ^[gr]are never satisfied.
And they are shepherds who have ^(AGC)no understanding;
They have all ^(AGD)turned to their own way,
Each one to his unjust gain, ^[gs]without exception.
¹²“Come,” they say, “^[gt]let’s get ^(AGE)wine, and let’s drink heavily of intoxicating drink;
And ^(AGF)tomorrow will be like today, only more so.”

Evil Leaders Rebuked

57 The righteous person perishes, and no one ^(AGG)takes it to heart;
And devout people are taken away, while no one understands.
For the righteous person is taken away from ^(AGH)evil,
²He enters into peace;
They rest in their ^[gu]beds,
Each one who ^(AGI)walked in his upright way.
³“But come here, you sons of a ^(AGJ)sorceress,
^(AGK)Offspring of an adulterer and ^[gv]a ^(AGL)prostitute!
⁴Of whom do you make fun?
Against whom do you open wide your mouth
And stick out your tongue?
Are you not children of ^(AGM)rebellion,
Offspring of deceit,
⁵Who inflame yourselves among the ^(AGN)oaks,
^(AGO)Under every luxuriant tree,
Who ^(AGP)slaughter the children in the ^[gw]ravines,
Under the clefts of the rocks?
⁶Among the ^[gx]^(AGQ)smooth stones of the ^[gy]ravine
Is your portion, ^[gz]they are your lot;
Even to them you have ^(AGR)poured out a drink offering,
You have made a grain offering.
Should I ^[ha]^(AGS)relent of these things?
⁷On a ^(AGT)high and lofty mountain
You have ^(AGU)made your bed.
You also went up there to offer sacrifice.
⁸Behind the door and the doorpost
You have set up your sign;
Indeed, far removed from Me, you have ^(AGV)uncovered yourself,
And have gone up and made your bed wide.
And you have made an agreement for yourself with them,
You have loved their bed,
You have looked at their ^[hb]manhood.
⁹You have journeyed to the king with oil
And increased your perfumes;
You have ^(AGW)sent your messengers a great distance
And made them go down to ^[hc]Sheol.
¹⁰You were tired out by the length of your road,
Yet you did not say, ‘^(AGX)It is hopeless!’
You found ^[hd]renewed strength,
Therefore you did not ^[he]faint.

¹¹“Of ^(AGY)whom were you worried and fearful
When you lied, and did ^(AGZ)not remember Me
^[hf]Nor ^(AHA)give Me a thought?
Was I not silent, even for a long time,
So you do not fear Me?
¹²I will ^(AHB)declare your righteousness and your ^(AHC)deeds,
And they will not benefit you.
¹³When you cry out, ^(AHD)let your collection of idols save you.
But the wind will carry them all up,
And a breath will take them away.
But the one who ^(AHE)takes refuge in Me will ^(AHF)inherit the land
And ^(AHG)possess My holy mountain.”

¹⁴And it will be said,
“^(AHH)Build up, build up, prepare the way,
Remove every obstacle from the way of My people.”
¹⁵For this is what the ^(AHI)high and exalted One
Who ^[hg]^(AHJ)lives forever, whose name is Holy, says:
“I ^(AHK)dwell in a high and holy place,
And also with the ^(AHL)contrite and lowly of spirit
In order to ^(AHM)revive the spirit of the lowly
And to revive the heart of the contrite.
¹⁶For I will ^(AHN)not contend forever,
^(AHO)Nor will I always be angry;
For the spirit would grow faint before Me,
And the ^(AHP)breath of those whom I have made.
¹⁷Because of the wrongful act of his ^(AHQ)unjust gain I was angry and struck him;
I hid My face and was angry,
And he went on ^(AHR)turning away, in the way of his heart.
¹⁸I have seen his ways, but I will ^(AHS)heal him;
I will ^(AHT)lead him and ^(AHU)restore comfort to him and to his mourners,
¹⁹Creating the ^[hh]^(AHV)praise of the lips.
^(AHW)Peace, peace to him who is ^(AHX)far away and to him who is near,”
Says the Lord, “and I will heal him.”
²⁰But the ^(AHY)wicked are like the tossing sea,
For it cannot be quiet,
And its waters toss up refuse and mud.
²¹“^(AHZ)There is no peace,” says ^(AIA)my God, “for the wicked.”

Observances of Fasts

58 “^(AIB)Cry loudly, do not hold back;
Raise your voice like a trumpet,
And declare to My people their ^(AIC)wrongdoing,
And to the house of Jacob their sins.
²Yet they ^(AID)seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways,
As a nation that has done ^(AIE)righteousness
And ^(AIF)has not forsaken the ordinance of their God.
They ask Me for just decisions,
They delight ^(AIG)in the nearness of God.
³‘Why have we ^(AIH)fasted and You do not see?
Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not ^[hi]notice?’
Behold, on the ^(AII)day of your fast you find your desire,
And oppress all your workers.
⁴Behold, you fast for contention and ^(AIJ)strife, and to strike with a wicked fist.
You do not fast like you have done today to ^(AIK)make your voice heard on high!
⁵Is it a fast like this that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it for bowing ^[hj]one’s head like a reed
And for spreading out ^(AIL)sackcloth and ashes as a bed?
Will you call this a fast, even an ^(AIM)acceptable day to the Lord?
⁶Is this not the fast that I choose:
To ^(AIN)release the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the ropes of the yoke,
And to ^(AIO)let the oppressed go free,
And ^(AIP)break every yoke?
⁷Is it not to ^(AIQ)break your bread ^[hk]with the hungry
And ^(AIR)bring the homeless poor into the house;
When you see the ^(AIS)naked, to cover him;
And not to ^(AIT)hide yourself from your own flesh?
⁸Then your ^(AIU)light will break out like the dawn,
And your ^(AIV)recovery will spring up quickly;
And your ^(AIW)righteousness will go before you;
The glory of the ^(AIX)Lord will be your rear guard.
⁹Then you will ^(AIY)call, and the Lord will answer;
You will cry for help, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you ^(AIZ)remove the yoke from your midst,
The ^[hl]^(AJA)pointing of the finger and ^(AJB)speaking wickedness,
¹⁰And if you ^(AJC)offer yourself to the hungry
And satisfy the ^[hm]need of the afflicted,
Then your ^(AJD)light will rise in darkness,
And your gloom will become like midday.
¹¹And the ^(AJE)Lord will continually guide you,
And ^(AJF)satisfy your ^[hn]desire in scorched places,
And ^(AJG)give strength to your bones;
And you will be like a ^(AJH)watered garden,
And like a ^(AJI)spring of water whose waters do not ^[ho]fail.
¹²Those from among you will ^(AJJ)rebuild the ancient ruins;
You will ^(AJK)raise up the age-old foundations;
And you will be called the repairer of the ^(AJL)breach,
The restorer of the ^[hp]streets in which to dwell.

Keeping the Sabbath

¹³“If, because of the Sabbath, you ^(AJM)restrain your foot
From doing as you wish on My holy day,
And call the Sabbath a ^(AJN)pleasure, and the holy day of the Lord honorable,
And honor it, desisting from your ^(AJO)own ways,
From seeking your own pleasure
And ^(AJP)speaking your own word,
¹⁴Then you will take ^(AJQ)delight in the Lord,
And I will make you ride ^(AJR)on the heights of the earth;
And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
For the ^(AJS)mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

Separation from God

59 Behold, ^(AJT)the Lord’s hand is not so short
That it cannot save;
^(AJU)Nor is His ear so dull
That it cannot hear.
²But your ^(AJV)wrongdoings have caused a separation between you and your God,
And your sins have hidden His ^[hq]face from you so that He does ^(AJW)not hear.
³For your ^(AJX)hands are defiled with blood,
And your fingers with wrongdoing;
Your lips have spoken ^(AJY)deceit,
Your tongue mutters wickedness.
⁴^(AJZ)No one sues righteously and ^(AKA)no one pleads ^[hr]honestly.
They ^(AKB)trust in confusion and speak lies;
They ^(AKC)conceive trouble and give birth to disaster.
⁵They hatch vipers’ eggs and ^(AKD)weave the spider’s web;
The one who eats of their eggs dies,
And from what is crushed, a snake breaks out.
⁶Their webs will not become clothing,
Nor will they ^(AKE)cover themselves with their works;
Their ^(AKF)works are works of wrongdoing,
And an ^(AKG)act of violence is in their ^[hs]hands.
⁷^(AKH)Their feet run to evil,
And they hurry to shed innocent blood;
^(AKI)Their thoughts are thoughts of wrongdoing,
Devastation and destruction are in their paths.
⁸They do not know the ^(AKJ)way of peace,
And there is ^(AKK)no justice in their tracks;
They have made their paths crooked,
^(AKL)Whoever walks on ^[ht]them does not know peace.

A Confession of Wickedness

⁹Therefore ^(AKM)justice is far from us,
And righteousness does not reach us;
We ^(AKN)hope for light, but there is darkness,
For brightness, but we walk in gloom.
¹⁰We ^(AKO)grope for the wall like people who are blind,
We grope like those who have no eyes.
We ^(AKP)stumble at midday as in the twilight;
Among those who are healthy we are ^(AKQ)like the dead.
¹¹All of us growl like bears,
And ^(AKR)moan sadly like doves;
We hope for ^(AKS)justice, but there is none;
For salvation, but it is far from us.
¹²For our ^(AKT)wrongful acts have multiplied before You,
And our ^(AKU)sins have testified against us;
For our wrongful acts are with us,
And ^[hu]we know our wrongdoings:
¹³^[hv]Offending and ^(AKV)denying the Lord,
And turning away from our God,
Speaking ^(AKW)oppression and revolt,
Conceiving and ^(AKX)uttering lying words from the heart.
¹⁴^(AKY)Justice is turned back,
And ^(AKZ)righteousness stands far away;
For truth has stumbled in the street,
And uprightness cannot enter.
¹⁵Truth is lacking,
And one who turns aside from evil ^(ALA)makes himself a prey.
Now the Lord saw,
And it was ^[hw]displeasing in His sight ^(ALB)that there was no justice.
¹⁶And He saw that there was ^(ALC)no one,
And was amazed that there was not one to intercede;
Then His ^(ALD)own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
¹⁷He put on ^(ALE)righteousness like a breastplate,
And a ^(ALF)helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on ^(ALG)garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with ^(ALH)zeal as a cloak.
¹⁸^(ALI)According to their deeds, ^[hx]so will He repay:
Wrath to His adversaries, ^[hy]retribution to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will ^[hz]deal ^[ia]retribution.
¹⁹So they will fear the name of the Lord from the ^(ALJ)west
And His glory from the ^(ALK)rising of the sun,
For He will ^(ALL)come like a ^[ib]rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives.
²⁰“A ^(ALM)Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those in Jacob who ^(ALN)turn from wrongdoing,” declares the Lord.

²¹“As for Me, this is My ^(ALO)covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My ^(ALP)Spirit who is upon you, and My ^(ALQ)words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your ^[ic]offspring, nor from the mouth of your ^[id]offspring’s offspring,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”

A Glorified Zion

60 “^(ALR)Arise, shine; for your ^(ALS)light has come,
And the ^(ALT)glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
²For behold, ^(ALU)darkness will cover the earth
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the Lord will rise upon you
And His ^(ALV)glory will appear upon you.
³^(ALW)Nations will come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.

⁴“^(ALX)Raise your eyes all around and see;
They all gather together, they ^(ALY)come to you.
Your sons will come from afar,
And your ^(ALZ)daughters will be ^[ie]carried on the hip.
⁵Then you will see and be ^(AMA)radiant,
And your heart will ^[if]thrill and rejoice;
Because the ^[ig]^(AMB)abundance of the sea will be turned to you,
The ^(AMC)wealth of the nations will come to you.
⁶A multitude of camels will cover you,
The young camels of Midian and ^(AMD)Ephah;
All those from ^(AME)Sheba will come;
They will bring ^(AMF)gold and frankincense,
And ^(AMG)proclaim good news of the praises of the Lord.
⁷All the flocks of ^(AMH)Kedar will be gathered to you,
The rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
They will go up on My ^(AMI)altar with acceptance,
And I will ^(AMJ)glorify My glorious house.
⁸^(AMK)Who are these who fly like a cloud
And like the doves to their windows?
⁹Certainly the ^(AML)coastlands will wait for Me;
And the ^(AMM)ships of Tarshish will come first,
To ^(AMN)bring your sons from afar,
Their silver and their gold with them,
For the name of the Lord your God,
And for the Holy One of Israel because He has ^(AMO)glorified you.

¹⁰“^(AMP)Foreigners will build up your walls,
And their ^(AMQ)kings will serve you;
For in My ^(AMR)wrath I struck you,
And in My favor I have had compassion on you.
¹¹Your ^(AMS)gates will be open continually;
They will not be closed day or night,
So that people may ^(AMT)bring you the wealth of the nations,
With ^(AMU)their kings led in procession.
¹²For the ^(AMV)nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish,
And the nations will be utterly ruined.
¹³The ^(AMW)glory of Lebanon will come to you,
The ^(AMX)juniper, the elm tree and the ^[ih]cedar together,
To beautify the place of My sanctuary;
And I will make the ^(AMY)place of My feet glorious.
¹⁴The ^(AMZ)sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you will bow down at the soles of your feet;
And they will call you the ^(ANA)city of the Lord,
The ^(ANB)Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁵“Whereas you have been ^(ANC)forsaken and ^(AND)hated
With no one passing through,
I will make you an ^(ANE)object of pride forever,
A joy from generation to generation.
¹⁶You will also ^(ANF)suck the milk of nations,
And suck the breast of kings;
Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your ^(ANG)Savior
And your ^(ANH)Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
¹⁷Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
And instead of iron I will bring silver,
And instead of wood, bronze,
And instead of stones, iron.
And I will make peace your administrators,
And righteousness your overseers.
¹⁸^(ANI)Violence will not be heard again in your land,
Nor ^(ANJ)devastation or destruction within your borders;
But you will call your ^(ANK)walls salvation, and your ^(ANL)gates praise.
¹⁹No longer will you have the ^(ANM)sun for light by day,
Nor will the moon give you light for brightness;
But you will have the ^(ANN)Lord as an everlasting light,
And your ^(ANO)God as your ^[ii]glory.
²⁰Your ^(ANP)sun will no longer set,
Nor will your moon wane;
For you will have the Lord as an everlasting light,
And the days of your ^(ANQ)mourning will be over.
²¹Then all your ^(ANR)people will be righteous;
They will ^(ANS)possess the land forever,
The branch of ^[ij]My planting,
The ^(ANT)work of My hands,
That I may be ^(ANU)glorified.
²²The ^(ANV)smallest one will become a thousand,
And the least one a mighty nation.
I, the Lord, will bring it about quickly in its time.”

Exaltation of the Afflicted

61 The ^(ANW)Spirit of the Lord ^[ik]God is upon me,
Because the Lord anointed me
To ^(ANX)bring good news to the ^(ANY)humble;
He has sent me to ^(ANZ)bind up the brokenhearted,
To ^(AOA)proclaim ^[il]release to captives
And ^[im]freedom to prisoners;
²To ^(AOB)proclaim the favorable year of the Lord
And the ^(AOC)day of vengeance of our God;
To ^(AOD)comfort all who mourn,
³To ^(AOE)grant those who mourn in Zion,
Giving them a garland instead of ashes,
The ^(AOF)oil of gladness instead of mourning,
The cloak of praise instead of a disheartened spirit.
So they will be called ^[in]^(AOG)oaks of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.

⁴Then they will ^(AOH)rebuild the ancient ruins,
They will raise up the former devastations;
And they will repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations.
⁵^(AOI)Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks,
And ^[io]foreigners will be your farmers and your vinedressers.
⁶But you will be called the ^(AOJ)priests of the Lord;
You will be spoken of as ^(AOK)ministers of our God.
You will eat the ^(AOL)wealth of nations,
And you will boast in their ^[ip]riches.
⁷Instead of your ^(AOM)shame you will have a ^(AON)double portion,
And instead of humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion.
Therefore they will possess a double portion in their land,
^(AOO)Everlasting joy will be theirs.
⁸For I, the Lord, ^(AOP)love justice,
I hate robbery ^[iq]in the burnt offering;
And I will faithfully give them their reward,
And make an ^(AOQ)everlasting covenant with them.
⁹Then their offspring will be known among the nations,
And their descendants in the midst of the peoples.
All who see them will recognize them
Because they are the ^(AOR)offspring whom the Lord has blessed.

¹⁰I will ^(AOS)rejoice greatly in the Lord,
My soul will be joyful in ^(AOT)my God;
For He has ^(AOU)clothed me with garments of salvation,
He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness,
As a groom puts on a turban,
And ^(AOV)as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
¹¹For as the ^(AOW)earth produces its sprouts,
And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up,
So the Lord ^[ir]God will ^(AOX)cause ^(AOY)righteousness and praise
To spring up before all the nations.

Zion’s Glory and New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her ^(AOZ)righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her ^(APA)salvation like a torch that is burning.
²The ^(APB)nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new ^(APC)name
Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.
³You will also be a ^(APD)crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
⁴It will no longer be said to you, “^[is]^(APE)Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “^[it]Desolate”;
But you will be called, “^[iu]My delight is in her,”
And your land, “^[iv]^(APF)Married”;
For the ^(APG)Lord delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
⁵For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the ^[iw]groom rejoices over the bride,
So your ^(APH)God will rejoice over you.

⁶On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed ^(API)watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who ^(APJ)profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
⁷And ^(APK)give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes ^(APL)Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.
⁸^(APM)The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm:
“I will ^(APN)never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will ^[ix]foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
⁹But those who ^(APO)harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.

¹⁰Go through, ^(APP)go through the gates,
Clear a way ^[iy]for the people!
^(APQ)Build up, build up the ^(APR)highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a ^(APS)flag over the peoples.
¹¹Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the ^(APT)end of the earth:
^(APU)Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your ^(APV)salvation is coming;
^(APW)Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”
¹²And they will call them, “^(APX)The holy people,
The ^(APY)redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City ^(APZ)Not Abandoned.”

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

63 Who is this who comes from ^(AQA)Edom,
With ^(AQB)garments of ^[iz]glowing colors from ^(AQC)Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
^[ja]Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I, the One who speaks in righteousness, ^(AQD)mighty to save.”
²Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like one who ^(AQE)treads in the wine press?
³“^(AQF)I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no one with Me.
I also ^(AQG)trod them in My anger
And ^(AQH)trampled them in My wrath;
And ^(AQI)their ^[jb]lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I ^[jc]stained all My clothes.
⁴For the ^(AQJ)day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come.
⁵I looked, but there was ^(AQK)no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My ^(AQL)own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.
⁶I ^(AQM)trampled down the peoples in My anger
And made them ^(AQN)drunk with My wrath,
And I ^[jd]poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

⁷I will make mention of the ^(AQO)mercies of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord,
According to all that the Lord has granted us,
And the great ^(AQP)goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has granted them according to His ^(AQQ)compassion
And according to the abundance of His mercies.
⁸For He said, “Certainly they are ^(AQR)My people,
Sons who will not deal falsely.”
So He became their ^(AQS)Savior.
⁹In all their distress ^[je]^(AQT)He was distressed,
And the ^(AQU)angel of His presence saved them;
In His ^(AQV)love and in His mercy He ^(AQW)redeemed them,
And He ^(AQX)lifted them and carried them all the days of old.
¹⁰But they ^(AQY)rebelled
And grieved His ^(AQZ)Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them.
¹¹Then ^(ARA)His people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is ^(ARB)He who brought them up out of the sea with the ^[jf]shepherds of His flock?
Where is He who ^(ARC)put His Holy Spirit in the midst of ^[jg]them,
¹²Who caused His ^(ARD)glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses,
Who ^(ARE)divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
¹³Who led them through the depths?
Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not ^(ARF)stumble;
¹⁴Like the cattle which go down into the valley,
The Spirit of the ^(ARG)Lord gave ^[jh]them rest.
So You ^(ARH)led Your people,
To make for Yourself a glorious name.

You Are Our Father

¹⁵^(ARI)Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious ^(ARJ)lofty habitation;
Where are Your ^(ARK)zeal and Your mighty deeds?
The ^(ARL)stirrings of Your heart and Your compassion are restrained toward me.
¹⁶For You are our ^(ARM)Father, though ^(ARN)Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, Lord, are our Father,
Our ^(ARO)Redeemer from ancient times is Your name.
¹⁷Why, Lord, do You ^(ARP)cause us to stray from Your ways
And ^(ARQ)harden our heart from fearing You?
^(ARR)Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
¹⁸Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while,
Our adversaries have ^(ARS)trampled it down.
¹⁹We have become like those over whom You have never ruled,
Like those who were not called by Your name.

Prayer for Mercy and Help

64 ^[ji]Oh, that You would tear open the heavens and ^(ART)come down,
That the mountains would ^(ARU)quake at Your presence—
²^[jj]As fire kindles brushwood, as fire causes water to boil—
To make Your name known to Your adversaries,
That the ^(ARV)nations may tremble at Your presence!
³When You did ^(ARW)awesome things which we did not expect,
You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence.
⁴For from days of old ^(ARX)they have not heard or perceived by ear,
Nor has the eye seen a God besides You,
Who acts in behalf of one who ^(ARY)waits for Him.
⁵You ^(ARZ)meet him who rejoices in ^(ASA)doing righteousness,
Who ^(ASB)remembers You in Your ways.
Behold, ^(ASC)You were angry, for we sinned,
We continued in ^[jk]our sins for a long time;
Yet shall we be saved?
⁶For all of us have become like one who is ^(ASD)unclean,
And all our ^(ASE)righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us ^(ASF)wither like a leaf,
And our ^(ASG)wrongdoings, like the wind, take us away.
⁷There is ^(ASH)no one who calls on Your name,
Who stirs himself to take hold of You;
For You have ^(ASI)hidden Your face from us
And have ^[jl]surrendered us to the power of our wrongdoings.

⁸But now, Lord, ^(ASJ)You are our Father;
We are the ^(ASK)clay, and You our potter,
And all of us are the ^(ASL)work of Your hand.
⁹Do not be ^(ASM)angry beyond measure, Lord,
^(ASN)Nor remember wrongdoing forever.
Behold, please look, all of us are ^(ASO)Your people.
¹⁰Your ^(ASP)holy cities have become a ^(ASQ)wilderness,
Zion has become a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
¹¹Our holy and beautiful ^(ASR)house,
Where our fathers praised You,
Has been burned by fire;
And ^(ASS)all our precious things have become a ruin.
¹²Will You ^(AST)restrain Yourself at these things, Lord?
Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?

A Rebellious People

65 “I permitted Myself to be sought by ^(ASU)those who did not ask for Me;
I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’
To a nation which ^(ASV)did not call on My name.
²^(ASW)I have spread out My hands all day long to a ^(ASX)rebellious people,
Who walk in the way which is not good, ^[jm]following their own ^(ASY)thoughts,
³A people who continually ^(ASZ)provoke Me to My face,
Offering sacrifices in ^(ATA)gardens and ^(ATB)burning incense on bricks;
⁴Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places;
Who ^(ATC)eat pig’s flesh,
And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.
⁵Who say, ‘^(ATD)Keep to yourself, do not come near me,
For I am holier than you!’
These are smoke in My ^[jn]nostrils,
A fire that burns all the day.
⁶Behold, it is written before Me:
I will ^(ATE)not keep silent, but ^(ATF)I will repay;
I will even repay ^[jo]into their laps,
⁷Both your own ^(ATG)wrongdoings and the wrongdoings of your fathers together,” says the Lord.
“Because they have ^(ATH)burned incense on the mountains
And ^(ATI)scorned Me on the hills,
Therefore I will ^(ATJ)measure their former work ^[jp]into their laps.”

⁸This is what the Lord says:

“Just as the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is ^[jq]benefit in it,’
So I will act in behalf of My servants
In order ^(ATK)not to destroy ^[jr]all of them.
⁹I will bring forth ^[js]^(ATL)offspring from Jacob,
And an ^(ATM)heir of My mountains from Judah;
^(ATN)My chosen ones shall inherit it,
And ^(ATO)My servants will live there.
¹⁰^(ATP)Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks,
And the ^(ATQ)Valley of Achor a resting place for herds,
For My people who ^(ATR)seek Me.
¹¹But as for you who ^(ATS)abandon the Lord,
Who forget My ^(ATT)holy mountain,
Who set a table for ^[jt]Fortune,
And fill a jug of mixed wine for ^[ju]Destiny,
¹²I will destine you for the ^(ATU)sword,
And all of you will bow down to the ^(ATV)slaughter.
Because I called, but you ^(ATW)did not answer;
I spoke, but you did not listen.
Instead, you did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight.”

¹³Therefore, this is what the Lord ^[jv]God says:
“Behold, My servants will ^(ATX)eat, but you will be ^(ATY)hungry.
Behold, My servants will ^(ATZ)drink, but you will be ^(AUA)thirsty.
Behold, My servants will ^(AUB)rejoice, but you will be ^(AUC)put to shame.
¹⁴Behold, My servants will ^(AUD)shout joyfully with a glad heart,
But you will ^(AUE)cry out from a painful heart,
And you will wail from a broken spirit.
¹⁵You will leave your name as a ^(AUF)curse to My chosen ones,
And the Lord ^[jw]God will put you to death.
But ^[jx]My servants will be called by ^(AUG)another name.
¹⁶Because the one who ^[jy]is blessed on the earth
Will ^[jz]be blessed by the ^(AUH)God of truth;
And the one who swears an oath on the earth
Will ^(AUI)swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My sight!

New Heavens and a New Earth

¹⁷“For behold, I create ^(AUJ)new heavens and a new earth;
And the ^(AUK)former things will not be remembered or come to ^[ka]mind.
¹⁸But be ^(AUL)glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing
And her people for gladness.
¹⁹I will also ^(AUM)rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people;
And there will no longer be heard in her
The voice of ^(AUN)weeping and the sound of crying.
²⁰No longer will there be ^[kb]in it an infant who lives only a few days,
Or an old person who does ^(AUO)not ^[kc]live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of a hundred,
And the ^[kd]^(AUP)one who does not reach the age of a hundred
Will be thought accursed.
²¹They will ^(AUQ)build houses and inhabit them;
They will also ^(AUR)plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
²²They will not build and ^(AUS)another inhabit,
They will not plant and another eat;
For ^(AUT)as the ^[ke]lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people,
And My chosen ones will ^(AUU)fully enjoy the work of their hands.
²³They will ^(AUV)not labor in vain,
Or give birth to children for disaster;
For they are the ^[kf]^(AUW)descendants of those blessed by the Lord,
And their descendants with them.

Footnotes

Isaiah 40:2 Lit to the heart of
Isaiah 40:2 Or hard service
Isaiah 40:2 Or penalty of guilt accepted as paid off
Isaiah 40:3 Or smooth
Isaiah 40:5 Or In order that the
Isaiah 40:6 Another reading is I said
Isaiah 40:6 Or constancy
Isaiah 40:7 Or Because
Isaiah 40:10 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 40:12 DSS reads waters of the sea
Isaiah 40:12 Or half cubit (9 in. or 22.8 cm)
Isaiah 40:12 Lit contained; or comprehended
Isaiah 40:13 Or measured, marked off
Isaiah 40:15 Or coastlands
Isaiah 40:16 I.e., for fire on an altar
Isaiah 40:17 Or void
Isaiah 40:19 Or carved image
Isaiah 40:20 Or set up
Isaiah 40:20 Or a carved image
Isaiah 40:22 Or is enthroned
Isaiah 40:22 Or vault
Isaiah 40:23 Or void
Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
Isaiah 40:26 Lit host
Isaiah 40:26 As in DSS and ancient versions; MT strong
Isaiah 40:27 Lit passes by my God
Isaiah 40:31 Or hope in
Isaiah 40:31 Or sprout wings
Isaiah 41:2 Lit foot
Isaiah 41:3 Lit going
Isaiah 41:9 Lit seized
Isaiah 41:14 Or Redeemer, the Holy One
Isaiah 41:21 Lit Bring near
Isaiah 41:25 I.e., the building material
Isaiah 41:28 Lit out of those
Isaiah 41:29 Another reading is nothing
Isaiah 42:1 Or hold fast
Isaiah 42:1 Or Gentiles
Isaiah 42:4 Or instruction
Isaiah 42:5 Or vegetation
Isaiah 42:17 Or carved images
Isaiah 42:19 Or the devoted one
Isaiah 42:22 Or holes
Isaiah 42:25 Lit did not lay it to heart
Isaiah 43:3 Or Ethiopia
Isaiah 43:13 As in LXX; MT from the day
Isaiah 43:14 Another reading is As for the Chaldeans, their rejoicing is turned into mourning
Isaiah 43:14 Lit of their rejoicing
Isaiah 43:23 Or a meal offering
Isaiah 43:24 Or calamus
Isaiah 43:26 Or Report to Me
Isaiah 43:27 Lit father
Isaiah 43:27 Or interpreters
Isaiah 43:28 Or holy princes
Isaiah 44:2 I.e., Israel
Isaiah 44:3 Or him who is thirsty
Isaiah 44:4 Another reading is like grass among the waters
Isaiah 44:5 Another reading is will be called by the name of Jacob
Isaiah 44:5 Or with
Isaiah 44:7 Lit From My establishing of
Isaiah 44:7 Or people
Isaiah 44:12 Lit and fashions
Isaiah 44:12 Lit there is no strength
Isaiah 44:19 Lit returns to his heart
Isaiah 44:19 Or shall I make?
Isaiah 44:19 Or shall I bow...?
Isaiah 44:20 Or is a companion of ashes
Isaiah 44:20 Lit his soul
Isaiah 44:22 Or cloud
Isaiah 44:24 Or who was with Me?
Isaiah 44:25 Lit signs
Isaiah 44:25 Lit He makes
Isaiah 44:25 Lit He turns
Isaiah 44:26 Lit He performs
Isaiah 44:28 Lit to say
Isaiah 44:28 Lit You will be founded
Isaiah 45:1 Lit I will loose
Isaiah 45:2 Another reading is mountains
Isaiah 45:3 Or hoarded treasures
Isaiah 45:5 Or embrace
Isaiah 45:7 Or peace
Isaiah 45:9 Lit He who formed him
Isaiah 45:9 Lit with
Isaiah 45:9 Lit he who formed him
Isaiah 45:10 Lit in labor pains with
Isaiah 45:11 Lit He who formed him
Isaiah 45:11 Or Will you ask
Isaiah 45:11 Or upon
Isaiah 45:12 Or commanded
Isaiah 45:12 Lit host; i.e., sun, stars, etc.
Isaiah 45:14 Lit labor
Isaiah 45:14 Or Ethiopia
Isaiah 45:14 Or God is with you alone
Isaiah 45:14 Or in
Isaiah 45:18 LXX in vain
Isaiah 45:19 Lit a place of a land of darkness
Isaiah 45:19 Lit seed
Isaiah 45:19 Or vain
Isaiah 45:20 Lit the wood of their carved image
Isaiah 46:1 Lit carried by you
Isaiah 46:2 Or their soul has
Isaiah 46:3 Lit the belly
Isaiah 46:4 Lit will be He
Isaiah 46:4 Lit gray hairs
Isaiah 46:4 Or support
Isaiah 46:4 Or made you
Isaiah 46:4 Or support
Isaiah 46:8 Lit firm
Isaiah 46:8 Lit heart
Isaiah 46:11 Lit His
Isaiah 47:7 Lit it
Isaiah 47:10 Lit it has
Isaiah 47:15 Lit side, region
Isaiah 48:4 Or harsh
Isaiah 48:5 Lit it
Isaiah 48:8 Or transgressor
Isaiah 48:8 Lit the belly
Isaiah 48:12 Lit My called one
Isaiah 48:16 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 48:18 Or peace
Isaiah 48:19 Lit seed
Isaiah 48:19 Lit the offspring of your inward parts
Isaiah 49:1 Lit inward parts
Isaiah 49:6 Lit light
Isaiah 49:6 Or to
Isaiah 49:6 Lit be
Isaiah 49:7 Lit despised of soul
Isaiah 49:8 Lit establish
Isaiah 49:9 Lit Go out
Isaiah 49:17 Ancient versions and DSS; MT sons
Isaiah 49:18 Lit an ornament
Isaiah 49:20 Lit of your bereavement
Isaiah 49:21 Lit These, where are they?
Isaiah 49:22 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 49:22 Lit on the chest
Isaiah 49:24 Ancient versions and DSS; MT the righteous, cf. v 25
Isaiah 49:26 Lit all flesh
Isaiah 50:4 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
Isaiah 51:1 Lit excavation of a pit
Isaiah 51:4 Or people
Isaiah 51:6 Another reading is like gnats
Isaiah 51:7 Or mankind
Isaiah 51:9 I.e., a sea monster, not to be confused with Rahab in Joshua 2
Isaiah 51:12 Lit man who dies
Isaiah 51:14 Lit one in chains
Isaiah 51:14 Lit pit
Isaiah 51:16 Lit plant
Isaiah 51:17 Lit bowl of the cup of reeling
Isaiah 51:22 Lit bowl of the cup of
Isaiah 51:23 Lit your soul
Isaiah 52:4 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 52:7 Or well-being
Isaiah 52:7 Lit good
Isaiah 52:7 Or is King
Isaiah 52:8 Lit eye to eye
Isaiah 52:10 Or And all...will see
Isaiah 52:12 Lit in flight
Isaiah 52:13 Or very high
Isaiah 52:15 LXX many nations will wonder at Him
Isaiah 53:2 Lit suckling
Isaiah 53:3 Lit pains
Isaiah 53:5 Or wounded
Isaiah 53:5 Or peace
Isaiah 53:6 Lit encounter Him
Isaiah 53:8 Or life
Isaiah 53:10 Lit He made Him sick
Isaiah 53:10 Lit His soul
Isaiah 53:10 Lit seed
Isaiah 53:10 Or will of
Isaiah 53:11 Or trouble
Isaiah 53:11 DSS see light; LXX also has light
Isaiah 53:12 Lit soul
Isaiah 54:2 Lit Let them stretch out
Isaiah 54:3 Lit seed
Isaiah 54:7 Lit In
Isaiah 54:8 Lit overflowing
Isaiah 54:9 Some mss the waters of Noah this is to Me
Isaiah 54:9 Lit cross over
Isaiah 54:10 Or faithfulness
Isaiah 54:11 Or lapis lazuli
Isaiah 54:12 I.e., bright red
Isaiah 54:12 Or carbuncles
Isaiah 54:12 Lit border, boundary
Isaiah 54:13 Or disciples of
Isaiah 54:17 Lit rises against
Isaiah 55:1 Lit Hoy
Isaiah 55:1 Lit silver
Isaiah 55:2 Lit weigh out silver
Isaiah 55:3 Lit your soul
Isaiah 55:3 Lit of David
Isaiah 55:13 I.e., the transformation of the desert
Isaiah 55:13 Lit name
Isaiah 56:5 As in DSS; MT him
Isaiah 56:8 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 56:8 Lit him
Isaiah 56:9 Lit animals of the field
Isaiah 56:11 Lit strong of soul/appetite
Isaiah 56:11 Lit do not know satisfaction
Isaiah 56:11 Lit from his end
Isaiah 56:12 As in DSS and some ancient versions; MT I will
Isaiah 57:2 I.e., graves
Isaiah 57:3 As in ancient versions; MT she prostitutes herself
Isaiah 57:5 Or wadis
Isaiah 57:6 I.e., symbols of fertility gods
Isaiah 57:6 Or wadi
Isaiah 57:6 Lit they, they
Isaiah 57:6 Or repent
Isaiah 57:8 Lit hand
Isaiah 57:9 I.e., the netherworld
Isaiah 57:10 Lit the life of your hand
Isaiah 57:10 Or become sick
Isaiah 57:11 Lit You did not set it upon your heart
Isaiah 57:15 Or dwells in eternity
Isaiah 57:19 Lit fruit of the lips
Isaiah 58:3 Lit know
Isaiah 58:5 Lit his
Isaiah 58:7 Lit for
Isaiah 58:9 I.e., an abusive gesture
Isaiah 58:10 Or soul
Isaiah 58:11 Or soul
Isaiah 58:11 Or deceive
Isaiah 58:12 Lit paths
Isaiah 59:2 As in ancient versions; MT faces
Isaiah 59:4 Lit in truth
Isaiah 59:6 Lit palms
Isaiah 59:8 Lit it
Isaiah 59:12 Lit our wrongdoings we know them
Isaiah 59:13 Or Revolting against and
Isaiah 59:15 Or evil
Isaiah 59:18 Lit accordingly
Isaiah 59:18 Lit requital
Isaiah 59:18 Lit repay
Isaiah 59:18 Lit requital
Isaiah 59:19 Lit narrow
Isaiah 59:21 Lit seed
Isaiah 59:21 Lit seed
Isaiah 60:4 Lit cared for
Isaiah 60:5 Lit tremble and open wide
Isaiah 60:5 Lit roar
Isaiah 60:13 Or cypress
Isaiah 60:19 Or beauty
Isaiah 60:21 Lit His
Isaiah 61:1 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 61:1 Or liberty
Isaiah 61:1 Lit opening to those who are bound
Isaiah 61:3 Or terebinths
Isaiah 61:5 Lit sons of the foreigner
Isaiah 61:6 Or glory
Isaiah 61:8 Or with malice
Isaiah 61:11 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 62:4 I.e., Azubah
Isaiah 62:4 I.e., Shemamah
Isaiah 62:4 I.e., Hephzibah
Isaiah 62:4 I.e., Beulah
Isaiah 62:5 Lit joy of the groom is over
Isaiah 62:8 Lit sons of foreigners
Isaiah 62:10 Lit of
Isaiah 63:1 Or crimson
Isaiah 63:1 Lit Inclining
Isaiah 63:3 Lit juice
Isaiah 63:3 Lit defiled
Isaiah 63:6 Lit brought down their juice to the earth
Isaiah 63:9 Another reading is He was not an adversary
Isaiah 63:11 Some mss shepherd
Isaiah 63:11 Lit him
Isaiah 63:14 Lit him
Isaiah 64:1 Ch 63:19b in Heb
Isaiah 64:2 Ch 64:1 in Heb
Isaiah 64:5 Lit them
Isaiah 64:7 As in DSS and ancient versions; MT melted
Isaiah 65:2 Lit after
Isaiah 65:5 Lit nose
Isaiah 65:6 I.e., individually and fully
Isaiah 65:7 I.e., individually and fully
Isaiah 65:8 Lit blessing
Isaiah 65:8 Lit the whole
Isaiah 65:9 Lit seed
Isaiah 65:11 Heb Gad
Isaiah 65:11 Heb Meni
Isaiah 65:13 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 65:15 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Isaiah 65:15 As in LXX; MT He will call His servants
Isaiah 65:16 Or bless(es) himself
Isaiah 65:16 Or bless(es) himself
Isaiah 65:17 Lit heart
Isaiah 65:20 Lit from there
Isaiah 65:20 Lit fill out
Isaiah 65:20 Lit one who misses the mark
Isaiah 65:22 Lit days
Isaiah 65:23 Lit seed

Isaiah 40-50

New International Version

Comfort for God’s People

40 Comfort, comfort^(A) my people,
    says your God.
²Speak tenderly^(B) to Jerusalem,
    and proclaim to her
that her hard service^(C) has been completed,^(D)
    that her sin has been paid for,^(E)
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
    double^(F) for all her sins.

³A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
    the way^(G) for the Lord^[a];
make straight^(H) in the desert
    a highway for our God.^[b]^(I)
⁴Every valley shall be raised up,^(J)
    every mountain and hill^(K) made low;
the rough ground shall become level,^(L)
    the rugged places a plain.
⁵And the glory^(M) of the Lord will be revealed,
    and all people will see it together.^(N)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”^(O)

⁶A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”

“All people are like grass,^(P)
    and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
⁷The grass withers^(Q) and the flowers fall,
    because the breath^(R) of the Lord blows^(S) on them.
    Surely the people are grass.
⁸The grass withers and the flowers^(T) fall,
    but the word^(U) of our God endures^(V) forever.^(W)”

⁹You who bring good news^(X) to Zion,
    go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,^[c]^(Y)
    lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
    say to the towns of Judah,
    “Here is your God!”^(Z)
¹⁰See, the Sovereign Lord comes^(AA) with power,^(AB)
    and he rules^(AC) with a mighty arm.^(AD)
See, his reward^(AE) is with him,
    and his recompense accompanies him.
¹¹He tends his flock like a shepherd:^(AF)
    He gathers the lambs in his arms^(AG)
and carries them close to his heart;^(AH)
    he gently leads^(AI) those that have young.^(AJ)

¹²Who has measured the waters^(AK) in the hollow of his hand,^(AL)
    or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?^(AM)
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
    or weighed the mountains on the scales
    and the hills in a balance?^(AN)
¹³Who can fathom the Spirit^[d]^(AO) of the Lord,
    or instruct the Lord as his counselor?^(AP)
¹⁴Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
    and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,^(AQ)
    or showed him the path of understanding?^(AR)

¹⁵Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
    they are regarded as dust on the scales;^(AS)
    he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.^(AT)
¹⁶Lebanon^(AU) is not sufficient for altar fires,
    nor its animals^(AV) enough for burnt offerings.
¹⁷Before him all the nations^(AW) are as nothing;^(AX)
    they are regarded by him as worthless
    and less than nothing.^(AY)

¹⁸With whom, then, will you compare God?^(AZ)
    To what image^(BA) will you liken him?
¹⁹As for an idol,^(BB) a metalworker casts it,
    and a goldsmith^(BC) overlays it with gold^(BD)
    and fashions silver chains for it.
²⁰A person too poor to present such an offering
    selects wood^(BE) that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
    to set up an idol^(BF) that will not topple.^(BG)

²¹Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?^(BH)
Has it not been told^(BI) you from the beginning?^(BJ)
    Have you not understood^(BK) since the earth was founded?^(BL)
²²He sits enthroned^(BM) above the circle of the earth,
    and its people are like grasshoppers.^(BN)
He stretches out the heavens^(BO) like a canopy,^(BP)
    and spreads them out like a tent^(BQ) to live in.^(BR)
²³He brings princes^(BS) to naught
    and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.^(BT)
²⁴No sooner are they planted,
    no sooner are they sown,
    no sooner do they take root^(BU) in the ground,
than he blows^(BV) on them and they wither,^(BW)
    and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.^(BX)

²⁵“To whom will you compare me?^(BY)
    Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.^(BZ)
²⁶Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:^(CA)
    Who created^(CB) all these?
He who brings out the starry host^(CC) one by one
    and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,^(CD)
    not one of them is missing.^(CE)

²⁷Why do you complain, Jacob?
    Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
    my cause is disregarded by my God”?^(CF)
²⁸Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?^(CG)
The Lord is the everlasting^(CH) God,
    the Creator^(CI) of the ends of the earth.^(CJ)
He will not grow tired or weary,^(CK)
    and his understanding no one can fathom.^(CL)
²⁹He gives strength^(CM) to the weary^(CN)
    and increases the power of the weak.
³⁰Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men^(CO) stumble and fall;^(CP)
³¹but those who hope^(CQ) in the Lord
    will renew their strength.^(CR)
They will soar on wings like eagles;^(CS)
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.^(CT)

The Helper of Israel

41 “Be silent^(CU) before me, you islands!^(CV)
Let the nations renew their strength!^(CW)
Let them come forward^(CX) and speak;
let us meet together^(CY) at the place of judgment.

²“Who has stirred^(CZ) up one from the east,^(DA)
    calling him in righteousness^(DB) to his service^[e]?^(DC)
He hands nations over to him
    and subdues kings before him.
He turns them to dust^(DD) with his sword,
    to windblown chaff^(DE) with his bow.^(DF)
³He pursues them and moves on unscathed,^(DG)
    by a path his feet have not traveled before.
⁴Who has done this and carried it through,
    calling^(DH) forth the generations from the beginning?^(DI)
I, the Lord—with the first of them
    and with the last^(DJ)—I am he.^(DK)”

⁵The islands^(DL) have seen it and fear;
    the ends of the earth^(DM) tremble.
They approach and come forward;
⁶    they help each other
    and say to their companions, “Be strong!^(DN)”
⁷The metalworker^(DO) encourages the goldsmith,^(DP)
    and the one who smooths with the hammer
    spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
    The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.^(DQ)

⁸“But you, Israel, my servant,^(DR)
    Jacob, whom I have chosen,^(DS)
    you descendants of Abraham^(DT) my friend,^(DU)
⁹I took you from the ends of the earth,^(DV)
    from its farthest corners I called^(DW) you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;^(DX)
    I have chosen^(DY) you and have not rejected you.
¹⁰So do not fear,^(DZ) for I am with you;^(EA)
    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen^(EB) you and help^(EC) you;
    I will uphold you^(ED) with my righteous right hand.^(EE)

¹¹“All who rage^(EF) against you
    will surely be ashamed and disgraced;^(EG)
those who oppose^(EH) you
    will be as nothing and perish.^(EI)
¹²Though you search for your enemies,
    you will not find them.^(EJ)
Those who wage war against you
    will be as nothing^(EK) at all.
¹³For I am the Lord your God
    who takes hold of your right hand^(EL)
and says to you, Do not fear;
    I will help^(EM) you.
¹⁴Do not be afraid,^(EN) you worm^(EO) Jacob,
    little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help^(EP) you,” declares the Lord,
    your Redeemer,^(EQ) the Holy One^(ER) of Israel.
¹⁵“See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,^(ES)
    new and sharp, with many teeth.
You will thresh the mountains^(ET) and crush them,
    and reduce the hills to chaff.^(EU)
¹⁶You will winnow^(EV) them, the wind will pick them up,
    and a gale^(EW) will blow them away.^(EX)
But you will rejoice^(EY) in the Lord
    and glory^(EZ) in the Holy One^(FA) of Israel.

¹⁷“The poor and needy search for water,^(FB)
    but there is none;
    their tongues are parched with thirst.^(FC)
But I the Lord will answer^(FD) them;
    I, the God of Israel, will not forsake^(FE) them.
¹⁸I will make rivers flow^(FF) on barren heights,
    and springs within the valleys.
I will turn the desert^(FG) into pools of water,^(FH)
    and the parched ground into springs.^(FI)
¹⁹I will put in the desert^(FJ)
    the cedar and the acacia,^(FK) the myrtle and the olive.
I will set junipers^(FL) in the wasteland,
    the fir and the cypress^(FM) together,^(FN)
²⁰so that people may see and know,^(FO)
    may consider and understand,^(FP)
that the hand^(FQ) of the Lord has done this,
    that the Holy One^(FR) of Israel has created^(FS) it.

²¹“Present your case,^(FT)” says the Lord.
    “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.^(FU)
²²“Tell us, you idols,
    what is going to happen.^(FV)
Tell us what the former things^(FW) were,
    so that we may consider them
    and know their final outcome.
Or declare to us the things to come,^(FX)
²³    tell us what the future holds,
    so we may know^(FY) that you are gods.
Do something, whether good or bad,^(FZ)
    so that we will be dismayed^(GA) and filled with fear.
²⁴But you are less than nothing^(GB)
    and your works are utterly worthless;^(GC)
    whoever chooses you is detestable.^(GD)

²⁵“I have stirred^(GE) up one from the north,^(GF) and he comes—
    one from the rising sun who calls on my name.
He treads^(GG) on rulers as if they were mortar,
    as if he were a potter treading the clay.
²⁶Who told of this from the beginning,^(GH) so we could know,
    or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?
No one told of this,
    no one foretold^(GI) it,
    no one heard any words^(GJ) from you.
²⁷I was the first to tell^(GK) Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’
    I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.^(GL)
²⁸I look but there is no one^(GM)—
    no one among the gods to give counsel,^(GN)
    no one to give answer^(GO) when I ask them.
²⁹See, they are all false!
    Their deeds amount to nothing;^(GP)
    their images^(GQ) are but wind^(GR) and confusion.

The Servant of the Lord

42 “Here is my servant,^(GS) whom I uphold,
    my chosen one^(GT) in whom I delight;^(GU)
I will put my Spirit^(GV) on him,
    and he will bring justice^(GW) to the nations.^(GX)
²He will not shout or cry out,^(GY)
    or raise his voice in the streets.
³A bruised reed^(GZ) he will not break,^(HA)
    and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.^(HB)
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;^(HC)
⁴    he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice^(HD) on earth.
    In his teaching^(HE) the islands^(HF) will put their hope.”^(HG)

⁵This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens,^(HH) who stretches them out,
    who spreads out the earth^(HI) with all that springs from it,^(HJ)
    who gives breath^(HK) to its people,
    and life to those who walk on it:
⁶“I, the Lord, have called^(HL) you in righteousness;^(HM)
    I will take hold of your hand.^(HN)
I will keep^(HO) you and will make you
    to be a covenant^(HP) for the people
    and a light^(HQ) for the Gentiles,^(HR)
⁷to open eyes that are blind,^(HS)
    to free^(HT) captives from prison^(HU)
    and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.^(HV)

⁸“I am the Lord;^(HW) that is my name!^(HX)
    I will not yield my glory to another^(HY)
    or my praise to idols.^(HZ)
⁹See, the former things^(IA) have taken place,
    and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
    I announce^(IB) them to you.”

Song of Praise to the Lord

¹⁰Sing^(IC) to the Lord a new song,^(ID)
    his praise^(IE) from the ends of the earth,^(IF)
you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,^(IG)
    you islands,^(IH) and all who live in them.
¹¹Let the wilderness^(II) and its towns raise their voices;
    let the settlements where Kedar^(IJ) lives rejoice.
Let the people of Sela^(IK) sing for joy;
    let them shout from the mountaintops.^(IL)
¹²Let them give glory^(IM) to the Lord
    and proclaim his praise^(IN) in the islands.^(IO)
¹³The Lord will march out like a champion,^(IP)
    like a warrior^(IQ) he will stir up his zeal;^(IR)
with a shout^(IS) he will raise the battle cry
    and will triumph over his enemies.^(IT)

¹⁴“For a long time I have kept silent,^(IU)
    I have been quiet and held myself back.^(IV)
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
    I cry out, I gasp and pant.^(IW)
¹⁵I will lay waste^(IX) the mountains^(IY) and hills
    and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn rivers into islands
    and dry up^(IZ) the pools.
¹⁶I will lead^(JA) the blind^(JB) by ways they have not known,
    along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light^(JC) before them
    and make the rough places smooth.^(JD)
These are the things I will do;
    I will not forsake^(JE) them.
¹⁷But those who trust in idols,
    who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’^(JF)
    will be turned back in utter shame.^(JG)

Israel Blind and Deaf

¹⁸“Hear, you deaf;^(JH)
    look, you blind, and see!
¹⁹Who is blind^(JI) but my servant,^(JJ)
    and deaf like the messenger^(JK) I send?
Who is blind like the one in covenant^(JL) with me,
    blind like the servant of the Lord?
²⁰You have seen many things, but you pay no attention;
    your ears are open, but you do not listen.”^(JM)
²¹It pleased the Lord
    for the sake^(JN) of his righteousness
    to make his law^(JO) great and glorious.
²²But this is a people plundered^(JP) and looted,
    all of them trapped in pits^(JQ)
    or hidden away in prisons.^(JR)
They have become plunder,
    with no one to rescue them;^(JS)
they have been made loot,
    with no one to say, “Send them back.”

²³Which of you will listen to this
    or pay close attention^(JT) in time to come?
²⁴Who handed Jacob over to become loot,
    and Israel to the plunderers?^(JU)
Was it not the Lord,^(JV)
    against whom we have sinned?
For they would not follow^(JW) his ways;
    they did not obey his law.^(JX)
²⁵So he poured out on them his burning anger,^(JY)
    the violence of war.
It enveloped them in flames,^(JZ) yet they did not understand;^(KA)
    it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.^(KB)

Israel’s Only Savior

43 But now, this is what the Lord says—
    he who created^(KC) you, Jacob,
    he who formed^(KD) you, Israel:^(KE)
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed^(KF) you;
    I have summoned you by name;^(KG) you are mine.^(KH)
²When you pass through the waters,^(KI)
    I will be with you;^(KJ)
and when you pass through the rivers,
    they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,^(KK)
    you will not be burned;
    the flames will not set you ablaze.^(KL)
³For I am the Lord your God,^(KM)
    the Holy One^(KN) of Israel, your Savior;^(KO)
I give Egypt^(KP) for your ransom,
    Cush^[f]^(KQ) and Seba^(KR) in your stead.^(KS)
⁴Since you are precious and honored^(KT) in my sight,
    and because I love^(KU) you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
    nations in exchange for your life.
⁵Do not be afraid,^(KV) for I am with you;^(KW)
    I will bring your children^(KX) from the east
    and gather^(KY) you from the west.^(KZ)
⁶I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
    and to the south,^(LA) ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
    and my daughters^(LB) from the ends of the earth^(LC)—
⁷everyone who is called by my name,^(LD)
    whom I created^(LE) for my glory,^(LF)
    whom I formed and made.^(LG)”

⁸Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,^(LH)
    who have ears but are deaf.^(LI)
⁹All the nations gather together^(LJ)
    and the peoples assemble.
Which of their gods foretold^(LK) this
    and proclaimed to us the former things?
Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,
    so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”
¹⁰“You are my witnesses,^(LL)” declares the Lord,
    “and my servant^(LM) whom I have chosen,
so that you may know^(LN) and believe me
    and understand that I am he.
Before me no god^(LO) was formed,
    nor will there be one after me.^(LP)
¹¹I, even I, am the Lord,^(LQ)
    and apart from me there is no savior.^(LR)
¹²I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
    I, and not some foreign god^(LS) among you.
You are my witnesses,^(LT)” declares the Lord, “that I am God.
¹³    Yes, and from ancient days^(LU) I am he.^(LV)
No one can deliver out of my hand.
    When I act, who can reverse it?”^(LW)

God’s Mercy and Israel’s Unfaithfulness

¹⁴This is what the Lord says—
    your Redeemer,^(LX) the Holy One^(LY) of Israel:
“For your sake I will send to Babylon
    and bring down as fugitives^(LZ) all the Babylonians,^[g]^(MA)
    in the ships in which they took pride.
¹⁵I am the Lord,^(MB) your Holy One,
    Israel’s Creator,^(MC) your King.^(MD)”

¹⁶This is what the Lord says—
    he who made a way through the sea,
    a path through the mighty waters,^(ME)
¹⁷who drew out^(MF) the chariots and horses,^(MG)
    the army and reinforcements together,^(MH)
and they lay^(MI) there, never to rise again,
    extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:^(MJ)
¹⁸“Forget the former things;^(MK)
    do not dwell on the past.
¹⁹See, I am doing a new thing!^(ML)
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness^(MM)
    and streams in the wasteland.^(MN)
²⁰The wild animals^(MO) honor me,
    the jackals^(MP) and the owls,
because I provide water^(MQ) in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
²¹    the people I formed^(MR) for myself^(MS)
    that they may proclaim my praise.^(MT)

²²“Yet you have not called on me, Jacob,
    you have not wearied^(MU) yourselves for^[h] me, Israel.^(MV)
²³You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings,^(MW)
    nor honored^(MX) me with your sacrifices.^(MY)
I have not burdened^(MZ) you with grain offerings
    nor wearied you with demands^(NA) for incense.^(NB)
²⁴You have not bought any fragrant calamus^(NC) for me,
    or lavished on me the fat^(ND) of your sacrifices.
But you have burdened me with your sins
    and wearied^(NE) me with your offenses.^(NF)

²⁵“I, even I, am he who blots out
    your transgressions,^(NG) for my own sake,^(NH)
    and remembers your sins^(NI) no more.^(NJ)
²⁶Review the past for me,
    let us argue the matter together;^(NK)
    state the case^(NL) for your innocence.
²⁷Your first father^(NM) sinned;
    those I sent to teach^(NN) you rebelled^(NO) against me.
²⁸So I disgraced the dignitaries of your temple;
    I consigned Jacob to destruction^[i]^(NP)
    and Israel to scorn.^(NQ)

Israel the Chosen

44 “But now listen, Jacob, my servant,^(NR)
    Israel, whom I have chosen.^(NS)
²This is what the Lord says—
    he who made^(NT) you, who formed you in the womb,^(NU)
    and who will help^(NV) you:
Do not be afraid,^(NW) Jacob, my servant,^(NX)
    Jeshurun,^[j]^(NY) whom I have chosen.
³For I will pour water^(NZ) on the thirsty land,
    and streams on the dry ground;^(OA)
I will pour out my Spirit^(OB) on your offspring,
    and my blessing^(OC) on your descendants.^(OD)
⁴They will spring up like grass^(OE) in a meadow,
    like poplar trees^(OF) by flowing streams.^(OG)
⁵Some will say, ‘I belong^(OH) to the Lord’;
    others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand,^(OI) ‘The Lord’s,’^(OJ)
    and will take the name Israel.

The Lord, Not Idols

⁶“This is what the Lord says—
    Israel’s King^(OK) and Redeemer,^(OL) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;^(OM)
    apart from me there is no God.^(ON)
⁷Who then is like me?^(OO) Let him proclaim it.
    Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
    and what is yet to come—
    yes, let them foretell^(OP) what will come.
⁸Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
    Did I not proclaim^(OQ) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God^(OR) besides me?
    No, there is no other Rock;^(OS) I know not one.”

⁹All who make idols^(OT) are nothing,
    and the things they treasure are worthless.^(OU)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;^(OV)
    they are ignorant, to their own shame.^(OW)
¹⁰Who shapes a god and casts an idol,^(OX)
    which can profit nothing?^(OY)
¹¹People who do that will be put to shame;^(OZ)
    such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
    they will be brought down to terror and shame.^(PA)

¹²The blacksmith^(PB) takes a tool
    and works with it in the coals;
he shapes an idol with hammers,
    he forges it with the might of his arm.^(PC)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
    he drinks no water and grows faint.^(PD)
¹³The carpenter^(PE) measures with a line
    and makes an outline with a marker;
he roughs it out with chisels
    and marks it with compasses.
He shapes it in human form,^(PF)
    human form in all its glory,
    that it may dwell in a shrine.^(PG)
¹⁴He cut down cedars,
    or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
    or planted a pine,^(PH) and the rain made it grow.
¹⁵It is used as fuel^(PI) for burning;
    some of it he takes and warms himself,
    he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
But he also fashions a god and worships^(PJ) it;
    he makes an idol and bows^(PK) down to it.
¹⁶Half of the wood he burns in the fire;
    over it he prepares his meal,
    he roasts his meat and eats his fill.
He also warms himself and says,
    “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.^(PL)”
¹⁷From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
    he bows down to it and worships.^(PM)
He prays^(PN) to it and says,
    “Save^(PO) me! You are my god!”
¹⁸They know nothing, they understand^(PP) nothing;
    their eyes^(PQ) are plastered over so they cannot see,
    and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
¹⁹No one stops to think,
    no one has the knowledge or understanding^(PR) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;^(PS)
    I even baked bread over its coals,
    I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable^(PT) thing from what is left?
    Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”^(PU)
²⁰Such a person feeds on ashes;^(PV) a deluded^(PW) heart misleads him;
    he cannot save himself, or say,
    “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?^(PX)”

²¹“Remember^(PY) these things, Jacob,
    for you, Israel, are my servant.^(PZ)
I have made you, you are my servant;^(QA)
    Israel, I will not forget you.^(QB)
²²I have swept away^(QC) your offenses like a cloud,
    your sins like the morning mist.
Return^(QD) to me,
    for I have redeemed^(QE) you.”

²³Sing for joy,^(QF) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
    shout aloud, you earth^(QG) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,^(QH)
    you forests and all your trees,^(QI)
for the Lord has redeemed^(QJ) Jacob,
    he displays his glory^(QK) in Israel.

Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

²⁴“This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,^(QL) who formed^(QM) you in the womb:^(QN)

I am the Lord,
    the Maker of all things,
    who stretches out the heavens,^(QO)
    who spreads out the earth^(QP) by myself,
²⁵who foils^(QQ) the signs of false prophets
    and makes fools of diviners,^(QR)
who overthrows the learning of the wise^(QS)
    and turns it into nonsense,^(QT)
²⁶who carries out the words^(QU) of his servants
    and fulfills^(QV) the predictions of his messengers,

who says of Jerusalem,^(QW) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
    of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
    and of their ruins,^(QX) ‘I will restore them,’^(QY)
²⁷who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
    and I will dry up^(QZ) your streams,’
²⁸who says of Cyrus,^(RA) ‘He is my shepherd
    and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,^(RB) “Let it be rebuilt,”
    and of the temple,^(RC) “Let its foundations^(RD) be laid.”’

45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,^(RE)
    to Cyrus,^(RF) whose right hand I take hold^(RG) of
to subdue nations^(RH) before him
    and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
    so that gates will not be shut:
²I will go before you^(RI)
    and will level^(RJ) the mountains^[k];
I will break down gates^(RK) of bronze
    and cut through bars of iron.^(RL)
³I will give you hidden treasures,^(RM)
    riches stored in secret places,^(RN)
so that you may know^(RO) that I am the Lord,
    the God of Israel, who summons you by name.^(RP)
⁴For the sake of Jacob my servant,^(RQ)
    of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
    and bestow on you a title of honor,
    though you do not acknowledge^(RR) me.
⁵I am the Lord, and there is no other;^(RS)
    apart from me there is no God.^(RT)
I will strengthen you,^(RU)
    though you have not acknowledged me,
⁶so that from the rising of the sun
    to the place of its setting^(RV)
people may know^(RW) there is none besides me.^(RX)
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
⁷I form the light and create darkness,^(RY)
    I bring prosperity and create disaster;^(RZ)
    I, the Lord, do all these things.

⁸“You heavens above, rain^(SA) down my righteousness;^(SB)
    let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
    let salvation^(SC) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
    I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹“Woe to those who quarrel^(SD) with their Maker,^(SE)
    those who are nothing but potsherds^(SF)
    among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,^(SG)
    ‘What are you making?’^(SH)
Does your work say,
    ‘The potter has no hands’?^(SI)
¹⁰Woe to the one who says to a father,
    ‘What have you begotten?’
or to a mother,
    ‘What have you brought to birth?’

¹¹“This is what the Lord says—
    the Holy One^(SJ) of Israel, and its Maker:^(SK)
Concerning things to come,
    do you question me about my children,
    or give me orders about the work of my hands?^(SL)
¹²It is I who made the earth^(SM)
    and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;^(SN)
    I marshaled their starry hosts.^(SO)
¹³I will raise up Cyrus^[l]^(SP) in my righteousness:
    I will make all his ways straight.^(SQ)
He will rebuild my city^(SR)
    and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,^(SS)
    says the Lord Almighty.”

¹⁴This is what the Lord says:

“The products^(ST) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,^[m]
    and those tall Sabeans^(SU)—
they will come over to you^(SV)
    and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,^(SW)
    coming over to you in chains.^(SX)
They will bow down before you
    and plead^(SY) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,^(SZ) and there is no other;
    there is no other god.^(TA)’”

¹⁵Truly you are a God who has been hiding^(TB) himself,
    the God and Savior^(TC) of Israel.
¹⁶All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;^(TD)
    they will go off into disgrace together.
¹⁷But Israel will be saved^(TE) by the Lord
    with an everlasting salvation;^(TF)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,^(TG)
    to ages everlasting.

¹⁸For this is what the Lord says—
he who created the heavens,
    he is God;
he who fashioned and made the earth,^(TH)
    he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,^(TI)
    but formed it to be inhabited^(TJ)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
    and there is no other.^(TK)
¹⁹I have not spoken in secret,^(TL)
    from somewhere in a land of darkness;^(TM)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,^(TN)
    ‘Seek^(TO) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
    I declare what is right.^(TP)

²⁰“Gather together^(TQ) and come;
    assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant^(TR) are those who carry^(TS) about idols of wood,
    who pray to gods that cannot save.^(TT)
²¹Declare what is to be, present it—
    let them take counsel together.
Who foretold^(TU) this long ago,
    who declared it from the distant past?^(TV)
Was it not I, the Lord?
    And there is no God apart from me,^(TW)
a righteous God^(TX) and a Savior;^(TY)
    there is none but me.

²²“Turn^(TZ) to me and be saved,^(UA)
    all you ends of the earth;^(UB)
    for I am God, and there is no other.^(UC)
²³By myself I have sworn,^(UD)
    my mouth has uttered in all integrity^(UE)
    a word that will not be revoked:^(UF)
Before me every knee will bow;^(UG)
    by me every tongue will swear.^(UH)
²⁴They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
    are deliverance^(UI) and strength.^(UJ)’”
All who have raged against him
    will come to him and be put to shame.^(UK)
²⁵But all the descendants^(UL) of Israel
    will find deliverance^(UM) in the Lord
    and will make their boast in him.^(UN)

Gods of Babylon

46 Bel^(UO) bows down, Nebo stoops low;
    their idols^(UP) are borne by beasts of burden.^[n]
The images that are carried^(UQ) about are burdensome,
    a burden for the weary.
²They stoop and bow down together;
    unable to rescue the burden,
    they themselves go off into captivity.^(UR)

³“Listen^(US) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
    all the remnant^(UT) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,^(UU)
    and have carried^(UV) since you were born.^(UW)
⁴Even to your old age and gray hairs^(UX)
    I am he,^(UY) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
    I will sustain^(UZ) you and I will rescue you.

⁵“With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
    To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?^(VA)
⁶Some pour out gold from their bags
    and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith^(VB) to make it into a god,
    and they bow down and worship it.^(VC)
⁷They lift it to their shoulders and carry^(VD) it;
    they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
    From that spot it cannot move.^(VE)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;^(VF)
    it cannot save^(VG) them from their troubles.

⁸“Remember^(VH) this, keep it in mind,
    take it to heart, you rebels.^(VI)
⁹Remember the former things,^(VJ) those of long ago;^(VK)
    I am God, and there is no other;
    I am God, and there is none like me.^(VL)
¹⁰I make known the end from the beginning,^(VM)
    from ancient times,^(VN) what is still to come.^(VO)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,^(VP)
    and I will do all that I please.’
¹¹From the east I summon^(VQ) a bird of prey;^(VR)
    from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
    what I have planned,^(VS) that I will do.^(VT)
¹²Listen^(VU) to me, you stubborn-hearted,^(VV)
    you who are now far from my righteousness.^(VW)
¹³I am bringing my righteousness^(VX) near,
    it is not far away;
    and my salvation^(VY) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,^(VZ)
    my splendor^(WA) to Israel.

The Fall of Babylon

47 “Go down, sit in the dust,^(WB)
    Virgin Daughter^(WC) Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
    queen city of the Babylonians.^[o]^(WD)
No more will you be called
    tender or delicate.^(WE)
²Take millstones^(WF) and grind^(WG) flour;
    take off your veil.^(WH)
Lift up your skirts,^(WI) bare your legs,
    and wade through the streams.
³Your nakedness^(WJ) will be exposed
    and your shame^(WK) uncovered.
I will take vengeance;^(WL)
    I will spare no one.^(WM)”

⁴Our Redeemer^(WN)—the Lord Almighty^(WO) is his name^(WP)—
is the Holy One^(WQ) of Israel.

⁵“Sit in silence,^(WR) go into darkness,^(WS)
    queen city of the Babylonians;^(WT)
no more will you be called
    queen^(WU) of kingdoms.^(WV)
⁶I was angry^(WW) with my people
    and desecrated my inheritance;^(WX)
I gave them into your hand,^(WY)
    and you showed them no mercy.^(WZ)
Even on the aged
    you laid a very heavy yoke.
⁷You said, ‘I am forever^(XA)—
    the eternal queen!’^(XB)
But you did not consider these things
    or reflect^(XC) on what might happen.^(XD)

⁸“Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure,
    lounging in your security^(XE)
and saying to yourself,
    ‘I am, and there is none besides me.^(XF)
I will never be a widow^(XG)
    or suffer the loss of children.’
⁹Both of these will overtake you
    in a moment,^(XH) on a single day:
    loss of children^(XI) and widowhood.^(XJ)
They will come upon you in full measure,
    in spite of your many sorceries^(XK)
    and all your potent spells.^(XL)
¹⁰You have trusted^(XM) in your wickedness
    and have said, ‘No one sees me.’^(XN)
Your wisdom^(XO) and knowledge mislead^(XP) you
    when you say to yourself,
    ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
¹¹Disaster^(XQ) will come upon you,
    and you will not know how to conjure it away.
A calamity will fall upon you
    that you cannot ward off with a ransom;
a catastrophe you cannot foresee
    will suddenly^(XR) come upon you.

¹²“Keep on, then, with your magic spells
    and with your many sorceries,^(XS)
    which you have labored at since childhood.
Perhaps you will succeed,
    perhaps you will cause terror.
¹³All the counsel you have received has only worn you out!^(XT)
    Let your astrologers^(XU) come forward,
those stargazers who make predictions month by month,
    let them save^(XV) you from what is coming upon you.
¹⁴Surely they are like stubble;^(XW)
    the fire^(XX) will burn them up.
They cannot even save themselves
    from the power of the flame.^(XY)
These are not coals for warmth;
    this is not a fire to sit by.
¹⁵That is all they are to you—
    these you have dealt with
    and labored^(XZ) with since childhood.
All of them go on in their error;
    there is not one that can save^(YA) you.

Stubborn Israel

48 “Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob,
    you who are called by the name of Israel^(YB)
    and come from the line of Judah,^(YC)
you who take oaths^(YD) in the name of the Lord^(YE)
    and invoke^(YF) the God of Israel—
    but not in truth^(YG) or righteousness—
²you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city^(YH)
    and claim to rely^(YI) on the God of Israel—
    the Lord Almighty is his name:^(YJ)
³I foretold the former things^(YK) long ago,
    my mouth announced^(YL) them and I made them known;
    then suddenly^(YM) I acted, and they came to pass.
⁴For I knew how stubborn^(YN) you were;
    your neck muscles^(YO) were iron,
    your forehead^(YP) was bronze.
⁵Therefore I told you these things long ago;
    before they happened I announced^(YQ) them to you
so that you could not say,
    ‘My images brought them about;^(YR)
    my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’
⁶You have heard these things; look at them all.
    Will you not admit them?

“From now on I will tell you of new things,^(YS)
    of hidden things unknown to you.
⁷They are created^(YT) now, and not long ago;^(YU)
    you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
    ‘Yes, I knew^(YV) of them.’
⁸You have neither heard nor understood;^(YW)
    from of old your ears^(YX) have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous^(YY) you are;
    you were called a rebel^(YZ) from birth.
⁹For my own name’s sake^(ZA) I delay my wrath;^(ZB)
    for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
    so as not to destroy you completely.^(ZC)
¹⁰See, I have refined^(ZD) you, though not as silver;
    I have tested^(ZE) you in the furnace^(ZF) of affliction.
¹¹For my own sake,^(ZG) for my own sake, I do this.
    How can I let myself be defamed?^(ZH)
    I will not yield my glory to another.^(ZI)

Israel Freed

¹²“Listen^(ZJ) to me, Jacob,
    Israel, whom I have called:^(ZK)
I am he;^(ZL)
    I am the first and I am the last.^(ZM)
¹³My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,^(ZN)
    and my right hand spread out the heavens;^(ZO)
when I summon them,
    they all stand up together.^(ZP)

¹⁴“Come together,^(ZQ) all of you, and listen:
    Which of the idols has foretold^(ZR) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally^(ZS)
    will carry out his purpose^(ZT) against Babylon;^(ZU)
    his arm will be against the Babylonians.^[p]
¹⁵I, even I, have spoken;
    yes, I have called^(ZV) him.
I will bring him,
    and he will succeed^(ZW) in his mission.

¹⁶“Come near^(ZX) me and listen^(ZY) to this:

“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;^(ZZ)
at the time it happens, I am there.”

And now the Sovereign Lord^(AAA) has sent^(AAB) me,
endowed with his Spirit.^(AAC)

¹⁷This is what the Lord says—
    your Redeemer,^(AAD) the Holy One^(AAE) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
    who teaches^(AAF) you what is best for you,
    who directs^(AAG) you in the way^(AAH) you should go.
¹⁸If only you had paid attention^(AAI) to my commands,
    your peace^(AAJ) would have been like a river,^(AAK)
    your well-being^(AAL) like the waves of the sea.
¹⁹Your descendants^(AAM) would have been like the sand,^(AAN)
    your children like its numberless grains;^(AAO)
their name would never be blotted out^(AAP)
    nor destroyed from before me.”

²⁰Leave Babylon,
    flee^(AAQ) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy^(AAR)
    and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;^(AAS)
    say, “The Lord has redeemed^(AAT) his servant Jacob.”
²¹They did not thirst^(AAU) when he led them through the deserts;
    he made water flow^(AAV) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
    and water gushed out.^(AAW)

²²“There is no peace,”^(AAX) says the Lord, “for the wicked.”^(AAY)

The Servant of the Lord

49 Listen^(AAZ) to me, you islands;^(ABA)
    hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born^(ABB) the Lord called^(ABC) me;
    from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.^(ABD)
²He made my mouth^(ABE) like a sharpened sword,^(ABF)
    in the shadow of his hand^(ABG) he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow^(ABH)
    and concealed me in his quiver.
³He said to me, “You are my servant,^(ABI)
    Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.^(ABJ)”
⁴But I said, “I have labored in vain;^(ABK)
    I have spent my strength for nothing at all.
Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,^(ABL)
    and my reward^(ABM) is with my God.”^(ABN)

⁵And now the Lord says—
    he who formed me in the womb^(ABO) to be his servant
to bring Jacob back to him
    and gather Israel^(ABP) to himself,
for I am^[q] honored^(ABQ) in the eyes of the Lord
    and my God has been my strength^(ABR)—
⁶he says:
“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant^(ABS)
    to restore the tribes of Jacob
    and bring back those of Israel I have kept.^(ABT)
I will also make you a light^(ABU) for the Gentiles,^(ABV)
    that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”^(ABW)

⁷This is what the Lord says—
    the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel^(ABX)—
to him who was despised^(ABY) and abhorred by the nation,
    to the servant of rulers:
“Kings^(ABZ) will see you and stand up,
    princes will see and bow down,^(ACA)
because of the Lord, who is faithful,^(ACB)
    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen^(ACC) you.”

Restoration of Israel

⁸This is what the Lord says:

“In the time of my favor^(ACD) I will answer you,
    and in the day of salvation I will help you;^(ACE)
I will keep^(ACF) you and will make you
    to be a covenant for the people,^(ACG)
to restore the land^(ACH)
    and to reassign its desolate inheritances,^(ACI)
⁹to say to the captives,^(ACJ) ‘Come out,’
    and to those in darkness,^(ACK) ‘Be free!’

“They will feed beside the roads
    and find pasture on every barren hill.^(ACL)
¹⁰They will neither hunger nor thirst,^(ACM)
    nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.^(ACN)
He who has compassion^(ACO) on them will guide^(ACP) them
    and lead them beside springs^(ACQ) of water.
¹¹I will turn all my mountains into roads,
    and my highways^(ACR) will be raised up.^(ACS)
¹²See, they will come from afar^(ACT)—
    some from the north, some from the west,^(ACU)
    some from the region of Aswan.^[r]”

¹³Shout for joy,^(ACV) you heavens;
    rejoice, you earth;^(ACW)
    burst into song, you mountains!^(ACX)
For the Lord comforts^(ACY) his people
    and will have compassion^(ACZ) on his afflicted ones.^(ADA)

¹⁴But Zion^(ADB) said, “The Lord has forsaken^(ADC) me,
the Lord has forgotten me.”

¹⁵“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
    and have no compassion on the child^(ADD) she has borne?
Though she may forget,
    I will not forget you!^(ADE)
¹⁶See, I have engraved^(ADF) you on the palms of my hands;
    your walls^(ADG) are ever before me.
¹⁷Your children hasten back,
    and those who laid you waste^(ADH) depart from you.
¹⁸Lift up your eyes and look around;
    all your children gather^(ADI) and come to you.
As surely as I live,^(ADJ)” declares the Lord,
    “you will wear^(ADK) them all as ornaments;
    you will put them on, like a bride.

¹⁹“Though you were ruined and made desolate^(ADL)
    and your land laid waste,^(ADM)
now you will be too small for your people,^(ADN)
    and those who devoured^(ADO) you will be far away.
²⁰The children born during your bereavement
    will yet say in your hearing,
‘This place is too small for us;
    give us more space to live in.’^(ADP)
²¹Then you will say in your heart,
    ‘Who bore me these?^(ADQ)
I was bereaved^(ADR) and barren;
    I was exiled and rejected.^(ADS)
    Who brought these^(ADT) up?
I was left^(ADU) all alone,^(ADV)
    but these—where have they come from?’”

²²This is what the Sovereign Lord^(ADW) says:

“See, I will beckon to the nations,
    I will lift up my banner^(ADX) to the peoples;
they will bring^(ADY) your sons in their arms
    and carry your daughters on their hips.^(ADZ)
²³Kings^(AEA) will be your foster fathers,
    and their queens your nursing mothers.^(AEB)
They will bow down^(AEC) before you with their faces to the ground;
    they will lick the dust^(AED) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;^(AEE)
    those who hope^(AEF) in me will not be disappointed.^(AEG)”

²⁴Can plunder be taken from warriors,^(AEH)
or captives be rescued from the fierce^[s]?

²⁵But this is what the Lord says:

“Yes, captives^(AEI) will be taken from warriors,^(AEJ)
    and plunder retrieved from the fierce;^(AEK)
I will contend with those who contend with you,^(AEL)
    and your children I will save.^(AEM)
²⁶I will make your oppressors^(AEN) eat^(AEO) their own flesh;
    they will be drunk on their own blood,^(AEP) as with wine.
Then all mankind will know^(AEQ)
    that I, the Lord, am your Savior,^(AER)
    your Redeemer,^(AES) the Mighty One of Jacob.^(AET)”

Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience

50 This is what the Lord says:

“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce^(AEU)
    with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
    did I sell^(AEV) you?
Because of your sins^(AEW) you were sold;^(AEX)
    because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
²When I came, why was there no one?
    When I called, why was there no one to answer?^(AEY)
Was my arm too short^(AEZ) to deliver you?
    Do I lack the strength^(AFA) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke^(AFB) I dry up the sea,^(AFC)
    I turn rivers into a desert;^(AFD)
their fish rot for lack of water
    and die of thirst.
³I clothe the heavens with darkness^(AFE)
    and make sackcloth^(AFF) its covering.”

⁴The Sovereign Lord^(AFG) has given me a well-instructed tongue,^(AFH)
    to know the word that sustains the weary.^(AFI)
He wakens me morning by morning,^(AFJ)
    wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.^(AFK)
⁵The Sovereign Lord^(AFL) has opened my ears;^(AFM)
    I have not been rebellious,^(AFN)
    I have not turned away.
⁶I offered my back to those who beat^(AFO) me,
    my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;^(AFP)
I did not hide my face
    from mocking and spitting.^(AFQ)
⁷Because the Sovereign Lord^(AFR) helps^(AFS) me,
    I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,^(AFT)
    and I know I will not be put to shame.^(AFU)
⁸He who vindicates^(AFV) me is near.^(AFW)
    Who then will bring charges against me?^(AFX)
    Let us face each other!^(AFY)
Who is my accuser?
    Let him confront me!

Footnotes

Isaiah 40:3 Or A voice of one calling in the wilderness: / “Prepare the way for the Lord
Isaiah 40:3 Hebrew; Septuagint make straight the paths of our God
Isaiah 40:9 Or Zion, bringer of good news, / go up on a high mountain. / Jerusalem, bringer of good news
Isaiah 40:13 Or mind
Isaiah 41:2 Or east, / whom victory meets at every step
Isaiah 43:3 That is, the upper Nile region
Isaiah 43:14 Or Chaldeans
Isaiah 43:22 Or Jacob; / surely you have grown weary of
Isaiah 43:28 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
Isaiah 44:2 Jeshurun means the upright one, that is, Israel.
Isaiah 45:2 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
Isaiah 45:13 Hebrew him
Isaiah 45:14 That is, the upper Nile region
Isaiah 46:1 Or are but beasts and cattle
Isaiah 47:1 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 5
Isaiah 48:14 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 20
Isaiah 49:5 Or him, / but Israel would not be gathered; / yet I will be
Isaiah 49:12 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text Sinim
Isaiah 49:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Septuagint and verse 25); Masoretic Text righteous

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

New American Standard Bible is made available by The Lockman Foundation

New International Version (NIV)

Isaiah 40-65 New American Standard Bible

The Greatness of God

Israel Encouraged

God’s Promise concerning His Servant

The Blindness of the People

Israel Redeemed

Israel Is God’s Witness

Babylon to Be Destroyed

The Shortcomings of Israel

The Blessings of Israel

The Foolishness of Idolatry

God Forgives and Redeems

God Uses Cyrus

God’s Supreme Power

Babylon’s Idols and the True God

Mourning for Babylon

Israel’s Obstinacy

Rescue Promised

Salvation Reaches to the Ends of the Earth

Promise to Zion

God Helps His Servant

Israel Exhorted

Cheer for Prostrate Zion

The Exalted Servant

The Suffering Servant

The Fertility of Zion

The Free Offer of Mercy

Rewards for Obedience to God

Evil Leaders Rebuked

Observances of Fasts

Keeping the Sabbath

Separation from God

A Confession of Wickedness

A Glorified Zion

Exaltation of the Afflicted

Zion’s Glory and New Name

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

You Are Our Father

Prayer for Mercy and Help

A Rebellious People

New Heavens and a New Earth

Footnotes

Cross references

Isaiah 40-50 New International Version

Comfort for God’s People

The Helper of Israel

The Servant of the Lord

Song of Praise to the Lord

Israel Blind and Deaf

Israel’s Only Savior

God’s Mercy and Israel’s Unfaithfulness

Israel the Chosen

The Lord, Not Idols

Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

Gods of Babylon

The Fall of Babylon

Stubborn Israel

Israel Freed

The Servant of the Lord

Restoration of Israel

Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience

Footnotes

Cross references

More on the NIV

Isaiah 40-65

New American Standard Bible

Isaiah 40-50

New International Version