The glory of Zion

60 ‘Arise, shine, for your light has come,
    and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
    and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.
Nations will come to your light,
    and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

‘Lift up your eyes and look about you:
    all assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
    and your daughters are carried on the hip.
Then you will look and be radiant,
    your heart will throb and swell with joy;
the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,
    to you the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels will cover your land,
    young camels of Midian and Ephah.
And all from Sheba will come,
    bearing gold and incense
    and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.
All Kedar’s flocks will be gathered to you,
    the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
they will be accepted as offerings on my altar,
    and I will adorn my glorious temple.

‘Who are these that fly along like clouds,
    like doves to their nests?
Surely the islands look to me;
    in the lead are the ships of Tarshish,[a]
bringing your children from afar,
    with their silver and gold,
to the honour of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendour.

10 ‘Foreigners will rebuild your walls,
    and their kings will serve you.
Though in anger I struck you,
    in favour I will show you compassion.
11 Your gates will always stand open,
    they will never be shut, day or night,
so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations –
    their kings led in triumphal procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish;
    it will be utterly ruined.

13 ‘The glory of Lebanon will come to you,
    the juniper, the fir and the cypress together,
to adorn my sanctuary;
    and I will glorify the place for my feet.
14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing before you;
    all who despise you will bow down at your feet
and will call you the City of the Lord,
    Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 ‘Although you have been forsaken and hated,
    with no one travelling through,
I will make you the everlasting pride
    and the joy of all generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations
    and be nursed at royal breasts.
Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Saviour,
    your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,
    and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,
    and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace your governor
    and well-being your ruler.
18 No longer will violence be heard in your land,
    nor ruin or destruction within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation
    and your gates Praise.
19 The sun will no more be your light by day,
    nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,
    and your God will be your glory.
20 Your sun will never set again,
    and your moon will wane no more;
the Lord will be your everlasting light,
    and your days of sorrow will end.
21 Then all your people will be righteous
    and they will possess the land for ever.
They are the shoot I have planted,
    the work of my hands,
    for the display of my splendour.
22 The least of you will become a thousand,
    the smallest a mighty nation.
I am the Lord;
    in its time I will do this swiftly.’

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 60:9 Or the trading ships

The Glory of Zion

60 “Arise,(A) shine, for your light(B) has come,
    and the glory(C) of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness(D) covers the earth
    and thick darkness(E) is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.
Nations(F) will come to your light,(G)
    and kings(H) to the brightness of your dawn.

“Lift up your eyes and look about you:
    All assemble(I) and come to you;
your sons come from afar,(J)
    and your daughters(K) are carried on the hip.(L)
Then you will look and be radiant,(M)
    your heart will throb and swell with joy;(N)
the wealth(O) on the seas will be brought to you,
    to you the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels(P) will cover your land,
    young camels of Midian(Q) and Ephah.(R)
And all from Sheba(S) will come,
    bearing gold and incense(T)
    and proclaiming the praise(U) of the Lord.
All Kedar’s(V) flocks will be gathered to you,
    the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
they will be accepted as offerings(W) on my altar,(X)
    and I will adorn my glorious temple.(Y)

“Who are these(Z) that fly along like clouds,(AA)
    like doves to their nests?
Surely the islands(AB) look to me;
    in the lead are the ships of Tarshish,[a](AC)
bringing(AD) your children from afar,
    with their silver and gold,(AE)
to the honor(AF) of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One(AG) of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendor.(AH)

10 “Foreigners(AI) will rebuild your walls,
    and their kings(AJ) will serve you.
Though in anger I struck you,
    in favor(AK) I will show you compassion.(AL)
11 Your gates(AM) will always stand open,
    they will never be shut, day or night,
so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations(AN)
    their kings(AO) led in triumphal procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve(AP) you will perish;
    it will be utterly ruined.(AQ)

13 “The glory of Lebanon(AR) will come to you,
    the juniper, the fir and the cypress together,(AS)
to adorn my sanctuary;(AT)
    and I will glorify the place for my feet.(AU)
14 The children of your oppressors(AV) will come bowing before you;
    all who despise you will bow down(AW) at your feet
and will call you the City(AX) of the Lord,
    Zion(AY) of the Holy One(AZ) of Israel.

15 “Although you have been forsaken(BA) and hated,
    with no one traveling(BB) through,
I will make you the everlasting pride(BC)
    and the joy(BD) of all generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations
    and be nursed(BE) at royal breasts.
Then you will know(BF) that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(BG)
    your Redeemer,(BH) the Mighty One of Jacob.(BI)
17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,(BJ)
    and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,
    and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace(BK) your governor
    and well-being your ruler.(BL)
18 No longer will violence(BM) be heard in your land,
    nor ruin or destruction(BN) within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation(BO)
    and your gates Praise.(BP)
19 The sun will no more be your light by day,
    nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,(BQ)
    and your God will be your glory.(BR)
20 Your sun(BS) will never set again,
    and your moon will wane no more;
the Lord will be your everlasting light,
    and your days of sorrow(BT) will end.
21 Then all your people will be righteous(BU)
    and they will possess(BV) the land forever.
They are the shoot I have planted,(BW)
    the work of my hands,(BX)
    for the display of my splendor.(BY)
22 The least of you will become a thousand,
    the smallest a mighty nation.(BZ)
I am the Lord;
    in its time I will do this swiftly.”(CA)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 60:9 Or the trading ships

60 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord.

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.

Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

10 And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.

11 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee; The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 Whereas thou has been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.

18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.

19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.

20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.

22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the Lord will hasten it in his time.