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Isaiah 49-51
New Living Translation
Isaiah 49-51
New Living Translation
The Lord’s Servant Commissioned
49 Listen to me, all you in distant lands!
Pay attention, you who are far away!
The Lord called me before my birth;
from within the womb he called me by name.
2 He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword.
He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.
I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel,
and you will bring me glory.”
4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless!
I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose.
Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand;
I will trust God for my reward.”
5 And now the Lord speaks—
the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant,
who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him.
The Lord has honored me,
and my God has given me strength.
6 He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.
I will make you a light to the Gentiles,
and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
7 The Lord, the Redeemer
and Holy One of Israel,
says to the one who is despised and rejected by the nations,
to the one who is the servant of rulers:
“Kings will stand at attention when you pass by.
Princes will also bow low
because of the Lord, the faithful one,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
Promises of Israel’s Restoration
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At just the right time, I will respond to you.[a]
On the day of salvation I will help you.
I will protect you and give you to the people
as my covenant with them.
Through you I will reestablish the land of Israel
and assign it to its own people again.
9 I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out in freedom,’
and to those in darkness, ‘Come into the light.’
They will be my sheep, grazing in green pastures
and on hills that were previously bare.
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst.
The searing sun will not reach them anymore.
For the Lord in his mercy will lead them;
he will lead them beside cool waters.
11 And I will make my mountains into level paths for them.
The highways will be raised above the valleys.
12 See, my people will return from far away,
from lands to the north and west,
and from as far south as Egypt.[b]”
13 Sing for joy, O heavens!
Rejoice, O earth!
Burst into song, O mountains!
For the Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on them in their suffering.
14 Yet Jerusalem[c] says, “The Lord has deserted us;
the Lord has forgotten us.”
15 “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child?
Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?
But even if that were possible,
I would not forget you!
16 See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.
Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.
17 Soon your descendants will come back,
and all who are trying to destroy you will go away.
18 Look around you and see,
for all your children will come back to you.
As surely as I live,” says the Lord,
“they will be like jewels or bridal ornaments for you to display.
19 “Even the most desolate parts of your abandoned land
will soon be crowded with your people.
Your enemies who enslaved you
will be far away.
20 The generations born in exile will return and say,
‘We need more room! It’s crowded here!’
21 Then you will think to yourself,
‘Who has given me all these descendants?
For most of my children were killed,
and the rest were carried away into exile.
I was left here all alone.
Where did all these people come from?
Who bore these children?
Who raised them for me?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“See, I will give a signal to the godless nations.
They will carry your little sons back to you in their arms;
they will bring your daughters on their shoulders.
23 Kings and queens will serve you
and care for all your needs.
They will bow to the earth before you
and lick the dust from your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.
Those who trust in me will never be put to shame.”
24 Who can snatch the plunder of war from the hands of a warrior?
Who can demand that a tyrant[d] let his captives go?
25 But the Lord says,
“The captives of warriors will be released,
and the plunder of tyrants will be retrieved.
For I will fight those who fight you,
and I will save your children.
26 I will feed your enemies with their own flesh.
They will be drunk with rivers of their own blood.
All the world will know that I, the Lord,
am your Savior and your Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Israel.[e]”
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Was your mother sent away because I divorced her?
Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors?
No, you were sold because of your sins.
And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.
2 Why was no one there when I came?
Why didn’t anyone answer when I called?
Is it because I have no power to rescue?
No, that is not the reason!
For I can speak to the sea and make it dry up!
I can turn rivers into deserts covered with dying fish.
3 I dress the skies in darkness,
covering them with clothes of mourning.”
The Lord’s Obedient Servant
4 The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom,
so that I know how to comfort the weary.
Morning by morning he wakens me
and opens my understanding to his will.
5 The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me,
and I have listened.
I have not rebelled or turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat me
and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard.
I did not hide my face
from mockery and spitting.
7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore, I have set my face like a stone,
determined to do his will.
And I know that I will not be put to shame.
8 He who gives me justice is near.
Who will dare to bring charges against me now?
Where are my accusers?
Let them appear!
9 See, the Sovereign Lord is on my side!
Who will declare me guilty?
All my enemies will be destroyed
like old clothes that have been eaten by moths!
10 Who among you fears the Lord
and obeys his servant?
If you are walking in darkness,
without a ray of light,
trust in the Lord
and rely on your God.
11 But watch out, you who live in your own light
and warm yourselves by your own fires.
This is the reward you will receive from me:
You will soon fall down in great torment.
A Call to Trust the Lord
51 “Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance—
all who seek the Lord!
Consider the rock from which you were cut,
the quarry from which you were mined.
2 Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor,
and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation.
Abraham was only one man when I called him.
But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.”
3 The Lord will comfort Israel[f] again
and have pity on her ruins.
Her desert will blossom like Eden,
her barren wilderness like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness will be found there.
Songs of thanksgiving will fill the air.
4 “Listen to me, my people.
Hear me, Israel,
for my law will be proclaimed,
and my justice will become a light to the nations.
5 My mercy and justice are coming soon.
My salvation is on the way.
My strong arm will bring justice to the nations.
All distant lands will look to me
and wait in hope for my powerful arm.
6 Look up to the skies above,
and gaze down on the earth below.
For the skies will disappear like smoke,
and the earth will wear out like a piece of clothing.
The people of the earth will die like flies,
but my salvation lasts forever.
My righteous rule will never end!
7 “Listen to me, you who know right from wrong,
you who cherish my law in your hearts.
Do not be afraid of people’s scorn,
nor fear their insults.
8 For the moth will devour them as it devours clothing.
The worm will eat at them as it eats wool.
But my righteousness will last forever.
My salvation will continue from generation to generation.”
9 Wake up, wake up, O Lord! Clothe yourself with strength!
Flex your mighty right arm!
Rouse yourself as in the days of old
when you slew Egypt, the dragon of the Nile.[g]
10 Are you not the same today,
the one who dried up the sea,
making a path of escape through the depths
so that your people could cross over?
11 Those who have been ransomed by the Lord will return.
They will enter Jerusalem[h] singing,
crowned with everlasting joy.
Sorrow and mourning will disappear,
and they will be filled with joy and gladness.
12 “I, yes I, am the one who comforts you.
So why are you afraid of mere humans,
who wither like the grass and disappear?
13 Yet you have forgotten the Lord, your Creator,
the one who stretched out the sky like a canopy
and laid the foundations of the earth.
Will you remain in constant dread of human oppressors?
Will you continue to fear the anger of your enemies?
Where is their fury and anger now?
It is gone!
14 Soon all you captives will be released!
Imprisonment, starvation, and death will not be your fate!
15 For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea, causing its waves to roar.
My name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
16 And I have put my words in your mouth
and hidden you safely in my hand.
I stretched out[i] the sky like a canopy
and laid the foundations of the earth.
I am the one who says to Israel,
‘You are my people!’”
17 Wake up, wake up, O Jerusalem!
You have drunk the cup of the Lord’s fury.
You have drunk the cup of terror,
tipping out its last drops.
18 Not one of your children is left alive
to take your hand and guide you.
19 These two calamities have fallen on you:
desolation and destruction, famine and war.
And who is left to sympathize with you?
Who is left to comfort you?[j]
20 For your children have fainted and lie in the streets,
helpless as antelopes caught in a net.
The Lord has poured out his fury;
God has rebuked them.
21 But now listen to this, you afflicted ones
who sit in a drunken stupor,
though not from drinking wine.
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord,
your God and Defender, says:
“See, I have taken the terrible cup from your hands.
You will drink no more of my fury.
23 Instead, I will hand that cup to your tormentors,
those who said, ‘We will trample you into the dust
and walk on your backs.’”
Footnotes
- 49:8 Greek version reads I heard you. Compare 2 Cor 6:2.
- 49:12 As in Dead Sea Scrolls, which read from the region of Aswan, which is in southern Egypt. Masoretic Text reads from the region of Sinim.
- 49:14 Hebrew Zion.
- 49:24 As in Dead Sea Scrolls, Syriac version, and Latin Vulgate (also see 49:25); Masoretic Text reads a righteous person.
- 49:26 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 14:1.
- 51:3 Hebrew Zion; also in 51:16.
- 51:9 Hebrew You slew Rahab; you pierced the dragon. Rahab is the name of a mythical sea monster that represents chaos in ancient literature. The name is used here as a poetic name for Egypt.
- 51:11 Hebrew Zion.
- 51:16 As in Syriac version (see also 51:13); Hebrew reads planted.
- 51:19 As in Dead Sea Scrolls and Greek, Latin, and Syriac versions; Masoretic Text reads How can I comfort you?
Isaiah 49-51
New International Version
Isaiah 49-51
New International Version
The Servant of the Lord
49 Listen(A) to me, you islands;(B)
hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born(C) the Lord called(D) me;
from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.(E)
2 He made my mouth(F) like a sharpened sword,(G)
in the shadow of his hand(H) he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow(I)
and concealed me in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,(J)
Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.(K)”
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;(L)
I have spent my strength for nothing at all.
Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,(M)
and my reward(N) is with my God.”(O)
5 And now the Lord says—
he who formed me in the womb(P) to be his servant
to bring Jacob back to him
and gather Israel(Q) to himself,
for I am[a] honored(R) in the eyes of the Lord
and my God has been my strength(S)—
6 he says:
“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant(T)
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring back those of Israel I have kept.(U)
I will also make you a light(V) for the Gentiles,(W)
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”(X)
7 This is what the Lord says—
the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel(Y)—
to him who was despised(Z) and abhorred by the nation,
to the servant of rulers:
“Kings(AA) will see you and stand up,
princes will see and bow down,(AB)
because of the Lord, who is faithful,(AC)
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen(AD) you.”
Restoration of Israel
8 This is what the Lord says:
“In the time of my favor(AE) I will answer you,
and in the day of salvation I will help you;(AF)
I will keep(AG) you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people,(AH)
to restore the land(AI)
and to reassign its desolate inheritances,(AJ)
9 to say to the captives,(AK) ‘Come out,’
and to those in darkness,(AL) ‘Be free!’
“They will feed beside the roads
and find pasture on every barren hill.(AM)
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,(AN)
nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.(AO)
He who has compassion(AP) on them will guide(AQ) them
and lead them beside springs(AR) of water.
11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,
and my highways(AS) will be raised up.(AT)
12 See, they will come from afar(AU)—
some from the north, some from the west,(AV)
some from the region of Aswan.[b]”
13 Shout for joy,(AW) you heavens;
rejoice, you earth;(AX)
burst into song, you mountains!(AY)
For the Lord comforts(AZ) his people
and will have compassion(BA) on his afflicted ones.(BB)
15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child(BE) she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!(BF)
16 See, I have engraved(BG) you on the palms of my hands;
your walls(BH) are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten back,
and those who laid you waste(BI) depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around;
all your children gather(BJ) and come to you.
As surely as I live,(BK)” declares the Lord,
“you will wear(BL) them all as ornaments;
you will put them on, like a bride.
19 “Though you were ruined and made desolate(BM)
and your land laid waste,(BN)
now you will be too small for your people,(BO)
and those who devoured(BP) you will be far away.
20 The 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.’(BQ)
21 Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who bore me these?(BR)
I was bereaved(BS) and barren;
I was exiled and rejected.(BT)
Who brought these(BU) up?
I was left(BV) all alone,(BW)
but these—where have they come from?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord(BX) says:
“See, I will beckon to the nations,
I will lift up my banner(BY) to the peoples;
they will bring(BZ) your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their hips.(CA)
23 Kings(CB) will be your foster fathers,
and their queens your nursing mothers.(CC)
They will bow down(CD) before you with their faces to the ground;
they will lick the dust(CE) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;(CF)
those who hope(CG) in me will not be disappointed.(CH)”
25 But this is what the Lord says:
“Yes, captives(CJ) will be taken from warriors,(CK)
and plunder retrieved from the fierce;(CL)
I will contend with those who contend with you,(CM)
and your children I will save.(CN)
26 I will make your oppressors(CO) eat(CP) their own flesh;
they will be drunk on their own blood,(CQ) as with wine.
Then all mankind will know(CR)
that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(CS)
your Redeemer,(CT) the Mighty One of Jacob.(CU)”
Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce(CV)
with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
did I sell(CW) you?
Because of your sins(CX) you were sold;(CY)
because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
2 When I came, why was there no one?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?(CZ)
Was my arm too short(DA) to deliver you?
Do I lack the strength(DB) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke(DC) I dry up the sea,(DD)
I turn rivers into a desert;(DE)
their fish rot for lack of water
and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness(DF)
and make sackcloth(DG) its covering.”
4 The Sovereign Lord(DH) has given me a well-instructed tongue,(DI)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(DJ)
He wakens me morning by morning,(DK)
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.(DL)
5 The Sovereign Lord(DM) has opened my ears;(DN)
I have not been rebellious,(DO)
I have not turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(DP) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(DQ)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(DR)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(DS) helps(DT) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(DU)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(DV)
8 He who vindicates(DW) me is near.(DX)
Who then will bring charges against me?(DY)
Let us face each other!(DZ)
Who is my accuser?
Let him confront me!
9 It is the Sovereign Lord(EA) who helps(EB) me.
Who will condemn(EC) me?
They will all wear out like a garment;
the moths(ED) will eat them up.
10 Who among you fears(EE) the Lord
and obeys(EF) the word of his servant?(EG)
Let the one who walks in the dark,
who has no light,(EH)
trust(EI) in the name of the Lord
and rely on their God.
11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,(EJ)
go, walk in the light of your fires(EK)
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:(EL)
You will lie down in torment.(EM)
Everlasting Salvation for Zion
51 “Listen(EN) to me, you who pursue righteousness(EO)
and who seek(EP) the Lord:
Look to the rock(EQ) from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you were hewn;
2 look to Abraham,(ER) your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him he was only one man,
and I blessed him and made him many.(ES)
3 The Lord will surely comfort(ET) Zion(EU)
and will look with compassion on all her ruins;(EV)
he will make her deserts like Eden,(EW)
her wastelands(EX) like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness(EY) will be found in her,
thanksgiving(EZ) and the sound of singing.
4 “Listen to me, my people;(FA)
hear me,(FB) my nation:
Instruction(FC) will go out from me;
my justice(FD) will become a light to the nations.(FE)
5 My righteousness draws near speedily,
my salvation(FF) is on the way,(FG)
and my arm(FH) will bring justice to the nations.
The islands(FI) will look to me
and wait in hope(FJ) for my arm.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
look at the earth beneath;
the heavens will vanish like smoke,(FK)
the earth will wear out like a garment(FL)
and its inhabitants die like flies.
But my salvation(FM) will last forever,(FN)
my righteousness will never fail.(FO)
7 “Hear me, you who know what is right,(FP)
you people who have taken my instruction to heart:(FQ)
Do not fear the reproach of mere mortals
or be terrified by their insults.(FR)
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment;(FS)
the worm(FT) will devour them like wool.
But my righteousness will last forever,(FU)
my salvation through all generations.”
9 Awake, awake,(FV) arm(FW) of the Lord,
clothe yourself with strength!(FX)
Awake, as in days gone by,
as in generations of old.(FY)
Was it not you who cut Rahab(FZ) to pieces,
who pierced that monster(GA) through?
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,(GB)
the waters of the great deep,(GC)
who made a road in the depths of the sea(GD)
so that the redeemed(GE) might cross over?
11 Those the Lord has rescued(GF) will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;(GG)
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy(GH) will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.(GI)
12 “I, even I, am he who comforts(GJ) you.
Who are you that you fear(GK) mere mortals,(GL)
human beings who are but grass,(GM)
13 that you forget(GN) the Lord your Maker,(GO)
who stretches out the heavens(GP)
and who lays the foundations of the earth,
that you live in constant terror(GQ) every day
because of the wrath of the oppressor,
who is bent on destruction?
For where is the wrath of the oppressor?(GR)
14 The cowering prisoners will soon be set free;(GS)
they will not die in their dungeon,
nor will they lack bread.(GT)
15 For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea(GU) so that its waves roar(GV)—
the Lord Almighty(GW) is his name.
16 I have put my words in your mouth(GX)
and covered you with the shadow of my hand(GY)—
I who set the heavens in place,
who laid the foundations of the earth,(GZ)
and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.(HA)’”
The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath
17 Awake, awake!(HB)
Rise up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup(HC) of his wrath,(HD)
you who have drained to its dregs(HE)
the goblet that makes people stagger.(HF)
18 Among all the children(HG) she bore
there was none to guide her;(HH)
among all the children she reared
there was none to take her by the hand.(HI)
19 These double calamities(HJ) have come upon you—
who can comfort you?(HK)—
ruin and destruction,(HL) famine(HM) and sword(HN)—
who can[d] console you?
20 Your children have fainted;
they lie at every street corner,(HO)
like antelope caught in a net.(HP)
They are filled with the wrath(HQ) of the Lord,
with the rebuke(HR) of your God.
21 Therefore hear this, you afflicted(HS) one,
made drunk,(HT) but not with wine.
22 This is what your Sovereign Lord says,
your God, who defends(HU) his people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
the cup(HV) that made you stagger;
from that cup, the goblet of my wrath,
you will never drink again.
23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,(HW)
who said to you,
‘Fall prostrate(HX) that we may walk(HY) on you.’
And you made your back like the ground,
like a street to be walked on.”(HZ)
Footnotes
- 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
- Isaiah 51:19 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text / how can I
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.