Isaiah 52–66

cAwake, awake,

put on your strength, O Zion;

dput on your beautiful garments,

O Jerusalem, ethe holy city;

ffor there shall no more come into you

the uncircumcised and the unclean.

gShake yourself from the dust and arise;

be seated, O Jerusalem;

hloose the bonds from your neck,

O captive daughter of Zion.

For thus says the Lord: iYou were sold for nothing, and jyou shall be redeemed without money. For thus says the Lord God: kMy people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 Now therefore what have I here, declares the Lord, seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail, declares the Lord, and lcontinually all the day my name is despised. Therefore my people shall know my name. mTherefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.

nHow beautiful upon the mountains

are the feet of him who brings good news,

who publishes peace, owho brings good news of happiness,

who publishes salvation,

who says to Zion, Your God reigns.

The voice of pyour watchmenthey lift up their voice;

together they sing for joy;

qfor eye to eye they see

the return of the Lord to Zion.

rBreak forth together into singing,

syou waste places of Jerusalem,

for tthe Lord has comforted his people;

he has redeemed Jerusalem.

10  uThe Lord has bared his holy arm

before the eyes of all the nations,

vand all the ends of the earth shall see

the salvation of our God.

11  wDepart, depart, go out from there;

touch no unclean thing;

go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,

xyou who bear the vessels of the Lord.

12  For you shall not ygo out in haste,

and you shall not go in flight,

zfor the Lord will go before you,

aand the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

13  Behold, bmy servant shall act wisely;2

he shall be high and lifted up,

and shall be exalted.

14  As many were astonished at you

chis appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,

and his form beyond that of the children of mankind

15  so dshall he sprinkle3 many nations.

eKings shall shut their mouths because of him,

ffor that which has not been told them they see,

and that which they have not heard they understand.

gWho has believed what he has heard from us?4

And to whom has hthe arm of the Lord been revealed?

For he grew up before him like a young plant,

iand like a root out of dry ground;

jhe had no form or majesty that we should look at him,

and no beauty that we should desire him.

kHe was despised and rejected5 by men,

a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8

and as one from whom men hide their faces9

he was despised, and lwe esteemed him not.

mSurely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

nsmitten by God, and afflicted.

oBut he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

pand with his wounds we are healed.

qAll we like sheep have gone astray;

we have turnedevery oneto his own way;

rand the Lord has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,

syet he opened not his mouth;

tlike a ulamb that is led to the slaughter,

and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,

so he opened not his mouth.

By oppression and judgment he was taken away;

and as for his generation, vwho considered

that he was cut off out of the land of the living,

stricken for the transgression of my people?

And they made his grave with the wicked

wand with a rich man in his death,

although10 xhe had done no violence,

and there was no deceit in his mouth.

10  Yet yit was the will of the Lord to crush him;

he has put him to grief;11

zwhen his soul makes12 an offering for guilt,

he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;

athe will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

11  Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see13 and be satisfied;

by his knowledge shall bthe righteous one, my servant,

cmake many to be accounted righteous,

dand he shall bear their iniquities.

12  eTherefore I will divide him a portion with the many,14

fand he shall divide the spoil with the strong,15

because he poured out his soul to death

and was numbered with the transgressors;

gyet he bore the sin of many,

and makes intercession for the transgressors.

hSing, O barren one, who did not bear;

break forth into singing and cry aloud,

you who have not been in labor!

For the children of ithe desolate one jwill be more

than the children of her who is married, says the Lord.

kEnlarge the place of your tent,

and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;

do not hold back; lengthen your cords

and strengthen your stakes.

lFor you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,

and your offspring will possess the nations

and will people the desolate cities.

Fear not, mfor you will not be ashamed;

be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;

for you will forget the shame of your youth,

and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

nFor your Maker is your husband,

the Lord of hosts is his name;

oand the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,

pthe God of the whole earth he is called.

qFor the Lord has called you

like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,

like a wife of youth when she is cast off,

says your God.

rFor a brief moment I deserted you,

but with great compassion I will gather you.

rIn overflowing anger for a moment

I hid my face from you,

sbut with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,

says the Lord, your Redeemer.

This is like tthe days of Noah16 to me:

as I swore that the waters of Noah

should no more go over the earth,

so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,

and will not rebuke you.

10  For the mountains may depart

and the hills be removed,

but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,

and umy covenant of peace shall not be removed,

says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

11  vO afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,

behold, wI will set your stones in antimony,

xand lay your foundations with sapphires.17

12  I will make your pinnacles of agate,18

your gates of carbuncles,19

and all your wall of precious stones.

13  yAll your children zshall be taught by the Lord,

aand great shall be the peace of your children.

14  In righteousness you shall be established;

you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;

and from terror, for it shall not come near you.

15  bIf anyone stirs up strife,

it is not from me;

whoever stirs up strife with you

shall fall because of you.

16  Behold, I have created the smith

who blows the fire of coals

and produces a weapon for its purpose.

I have also created the ravager to destroy;

17  no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,

and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.

This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord

cand their vindication20 from me, declares the Lord.

dCome, everyone who thirsts,

come to the waters;

and he who has no money,

ecome, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk

without money and without price.

fWhy do you spend your money for that which is not bread,

and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,

and delight yourselves in rich food.

Incline your ear, and come to me;

ghear, that your soul may live;

hand I will make with you an everlasting covenant,

imy steadfast, sure love for jDavid.

kBehold, I made him a witness to the peoples,

la leader and commander for the peoples.

kBehold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,

and ma nation that did not know you shall run to you,

because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,

nfor he has glorified you.

oSeek the Lord while he may be found;

call upon him while he is near;

let the wicked forsake his way,

and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,

and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

pFor as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10  qFor as the rain and the snow come down from heaven

and do not return there but water the earth,

making it bring forth and sprout,

rgiving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

11  so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;

it shall not return to me empty,

but sit shall accomplish that which I purpose,

and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

12  tFor you shall go out in joy

and be led forth in peace;

uthe mountains and the hills before you

shall break forth into singing,

and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13  vInstead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;

instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;

and it shall make a name for the Lord,

an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

Thus says the Lord:

Keep justice, and do righteousness,

wfor soon my salvation will come,

and my righteousness be revealed.

Blessed is the man who does this,

and the son of man who holds it fast,

xwho keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it,

and keeps his hand from doing any evil.

Let not ythe foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,

The Lord will surely separate me from his people;

and let not the eunuch say,

Behold, I am za dry tree.

For thus says the Lord:

To the eunuchs xwho keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me

and hold fast my covenant,

aI will give in my house and within my walls

a bmonument and a name

better than sons and daughters;

cI will give them an everlasting name

that shall not be cut off.

And ythe foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,

to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,

and to be his servants,

everyone xwho keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant

dthese I will bring to emy holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

ftheir burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for gmy house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.

The Lord God,

hwho gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

iI will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.

jAll you beasts of the field, come to devour

all you beasts in the forest.

10  kHis watchmen are blind;

they are all without knowledge;

they are all silent ldogs;

they cannot bark,

dreaming, lying down,

loving to slumber.

11  mThe dogs have a mighty appetite;

they never have enough.

But nthey are shepherds who have no understanding;

they have all turned to their own way,

oeach to his own gain, one and all.

12  pCome, they say, let me get wine;

let us fill ourselves with strong drink;

qand tomorrow will be like this day,

great beyond measure.

The righteous man perishes,

and no one lays it to heart;

rdevout men are taken away,

while no one understands.

For the righteous man is taken away from calamity;

she enters into peace;

they rest tin their beds

who walk in their uprightness.

But you, draw near,

sons of the sorceress,

uoffspring of the adulterer and the loose woman.

Whom are you mocking?

Against whom vdo you open your mouth wide

and stick out your tongue?

Are you not children of wtransgression,

xthe offspring of deceit,

you who burn with lust among ythe oaks,21

under every green tree,

zwho slaughter your children in the valleys,

under the clefts of the rocks?

Among the smooth stones of athe valley is your portion;

they, they, are your lot;

to them you have poured out a drink offering,

you have brought a grain offering.

Shall I relent for these things?

bOn a high and lofty mountain

you have set your bed,

and there you went up to offer sacrifice.

Behind the door and the doorpost

you have set up your memorial;

for, deserting me, cyou have uncovered your bed,

you have gone up to it,

dyou have made it wide;

and you have made a covenant for yourself with them,

you have loved their bed,

you have looked on nakedness.22

You journeyed to the king with oil

and multiplied your perfumes;

eyou sent your envoys far off,

and sent down even to Sheol.

10  You were wearied with the length of your way,

fbut you did not say, It is hopeless;

you found new life for your strength,

and so you were not faint.23

11  gWhom did you dread and fear,

hso that you lied,

and did not remember me,

did not lay it to heart?

iHave I not held my peace, even for a long time,

and you do not fear me?

12  I will declare your righteousness and your deeds,

but they will not profit you.

13  jWhen you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!

The wind will carry them all off,

a breath will take them away.

kBut he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land

and shall inherit lmy holy mountain.

14  And it shall be said,

mBuild up, build up, prepare the way,

remove every obstruction from my people’s way.

15  For thus says nthe One who is high and lifted up,

who inhabits eternity, whose name is oHoly:

pI dwell in the high and holy place,

and also qwith him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,

rto revive the spirit of the lowly,

and to revive the heart of the contrite.

16  sFor I will not contend forever,

nor will I always be angry;

for the spirit would grow faint before me,

and the breath of life that I made.

17  Because of the iniquity of his tunjust gain I was angry,

I struck him; I hid my face and was angry,

but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.

18  I have seen his ways, ubut I will heal him;

I will lead him vand restore comfort to him and his mourners,

19  wcreating xthe fruit of the lips.

yPeace, peace, zto the far and to the near, says the Lord,

uand I will heal him.

20  aBut the wicked are like the tossing sea;

for it cannot be quiet,

and its waters toss up mire and dirt.

21  bThere is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.

Cry aloud; do not hold back;

clift up your voice like a trumpet;

ddeclare to my people their transgression,

to the house of Jacob their sins.

eYet they seek me daily

and delight to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that did righteousness

and did not forsake the judgment of their God;

they ask of me righteous judgments;

they delight to draw near to God.

fWhy have we fasted, and you see it not?

Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?

Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,24

gand oppress all your workers.

Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight

and to hit with a wicked fist.

Fasting like yours this day

will not make your voice to be heard on high.

hIs such the fast that I choose,

ia day for a person to humble himself?

Is it to bow down his head like a reed,

and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?

Will you call this a fast,

and a day acceptable to the Lord?

Is not this the fast that I choose:

jto loose the bonds of wickedness,

to undo the straps kof the yoke,

to let the oppressed25 go free,

and to break every yoke?

Is it not lto share your bread with the hungry

and bring the homeless poor into your house;

when you see the naked, to cover him,

mand not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

nThen shall your light break forth like the dawn,

oand your healing shall spring up speedily;

pyour righteousness shall go before you;

qthe glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;

you shall cry, and he will say, Here I am.

If you take away rthe yoke from your midst,

sthe pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,

10  tif you pour yourself out for the hungry

and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,

nthen shall your light rise in the darkness

and your gloom be as the noonday.

11  And the Lord will guide you continually

and satisfy your desire in scorched places

and make your bones strong;

and you shall be ulike a watered garden,

like a spring of water,

whose waters do not fail.

12  vAnd your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;

you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,

the restorer of streets to dwell in.

13  wIf you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,

from doing your pleasure26 on my holy day,

and call the Sabbath a delight

and the holy day of the Lord honorable;

if you honor it, not going your own ways,

or seeking xyour own pleasure,27 or talking idly;28

14  then you shall take delight in the Lord,

yand I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;29

zI will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,

afor the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Behold, bthe Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,

or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;

cbut your iniquities have made a separation

between you and your God,

and your sins have hidden his face from you

so that he does not hear.

dFor your hands are defiled with blood

and your fingers with iniquity;

your lips have spoken lies;

your tongue mutters wickedness.

eNo one enters suit justly;

no one goes to law honestly;

they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies,

fthey conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.

They hatch adders’ eggs;

they weave the spider’s web;

he who eats their eggs dies,

and from one that is crushed a viper is hatched.

gTheir webs will not serve as clothing;

men will not cover themselves with what they make.

Their works are works of iniquity,

and deeds of violence are in their hands.

hTheir feet run to evil,

and they are swift to shed innocent blood;

their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;

desolation and destruction are in their highways.

The way of peace they do not know,

and there is no justice in their paths;

they have made their roads crooked;

ino one who treads on them knows peace.

Therefore justice is far from us,

and righteousness does not overtake us;

jwe hope for light, and behold, darkness,

and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.

10  kWe grope for the wall like the blind;

we grope like those who have no eyes;

we stumble at noon as in the twilight,

lamong those in full vigor we are like dead men.

11  We all growl like bears;

mwe moan and moan like doves;

nwe hope for justice, but there is none;

for salvation, but it is far from us.

12  For our transgressions are multiplied before you,

and our sins testify against us;

for our transgressions are with us,

and we know our iniquities:

13  transgressing, and denying the Lord,

and turning back from following our God,

ospeaking oppression and revolt,

conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.

14  pJustice is turned back,

and righteousness stands far away;

for truth has stumbled in the public squares,

and uprightness cannot enter.

15  Truth is lacking,

and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.

The Lord saw it, and it displeased him30

that there was no justice.

16  qHe saw that there was no man,

and wondered that there was no one to intercede;

then his own arm brought him salvation,

and his righteousness upheld him.

17  rHe put on righteousness as a breastplate,

and a helmet of salvation on his head;

he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,

and wrapped himself in szeal as a cloak.

18  tAccording to their deeds, so will he repay,

wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;

uto the coastlands he will render repayment.

19  vSo they shall fear the name of the Lord from the west,

and his glory from the rising of the sun;

wfor he will come like a rushing stream,31

which the wind of the Lord drives.

20  xAnd ya Redeemer will come to Zion,

to those in Jacob who turn from transgression, declares the Lord.

21 And as for me, zthis is my covenant with them, says the Lord: My Spirit that is upon you, aand my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children’s offspring, says the Lord, from this time forth and forevermore.

bArise, shine, for your light has come,

and cthe glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,

and thick darkness the peoples;

but the Lord will arise upon you,

and his glory will be seen upon you.

dAnd nations shall come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your rising.

eLift up your eyes all around, and see;

they all gather together, they come to you;

fyour sons shall come from afar,

and your daughters shall be carried on the hip.

Then you shall see and gbe radiant;

your heart shall thrill and exult,32

because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,

hthe wealth of the nations shall come to you.

A multitude of camels shall cover you,

the young camels of iMidian and jEphah;

all those from kSheba shall come.

lThey shall bring gold and frankincense,

and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord.

All the flocks of mKedar shall be gathered to you;

the rams of nNebaioth shall minister to you;

othey shall come up with acceptance on my altar,

pand I will beautify my beautiful house.

Who are these that fly like a cloud,

and qlike doves to their windows?

For rthe coastlands shall hope for me,

sthe ships of Tarshish first,

tto bring your children from afar,

their silver and gold with them,

for the name of the Lord your God,

and for the Holy One of Israel,

because uhe has made you beautiful.

10  vForeigners shall build up your walls,

and vtheir kings shall minister to you;

for in my wrath I struck you,

but in my favor I have had mercy on you.

11  wYour gates shall be open continually;

day and night they shall not be shut,

wthat people may bring to you the wealth of the nations,

with their kings led in procession.

12  xFor the nation and kingdom

that will not serve you shall perish;

those nations shall be utterly laid waste.

13  yThe glory of Lebanon shall come to you,

the cypress, the plane, and zthe pine,

to beautify the place of my sanctuary,

and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

14  aThe sons of those who afflicted you

shall come bending low to you,

band all who despised you

shall bow down at your feet;

cthey shall call you the City of the Lord,

the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15  dWhereas you have been forsaken and hated,

with no one passing through,

eI will make you majestic forever,

a joy from age to age.

16  fYou shall suck the milk of nations;

you shall nurse at the breast of kings;

and you shall know that gI, the Lord, am your Savior

and your Redeemer, hthe Mighty One of Jacob.

17  Instead of bronze I will bring gold,

and instead of iron I will bring silver;

instead of wood, bronze,

instead of stones, iron.

I will make your overseers peace

iand your taskmasters righteousness.

18  jViolence shall no more be heard in your land,

devastation or destruction within your borders;

kyou shall call your walls Salvation,

and your gates Praise.

19  lThe sun shall be no more

your light by day,

nor for brightness shall the moon

give you light;33

but the Lord will be your everlasting light,

and your God will be your glory.34

20  Your sun shall no more go down,

nor your moon withdraw itself;

for the Lord will be your everlasting light,

and myour days of mourning shall be ended.

21  nYour people shall all be righteous;

othey shall possess the land forever,

pthe branch of my planting, the work of my hands,

that I might be glorified.35

22  qThe least one shall become a clan,

and the smallest one a mighty nation;

rI am the Lord;

in its time I will hasten it.

sThe Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

because the Lord has tanointed me

to bring good news to the poor;36

he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and uthe opening of the prison to those who are bound;37

vto proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,

wand the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all who mourn;

to grant to those who mourn in Zion

xto give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,

ythe oil of gladness instead of mourning,

the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;

zthat they may be called oaks of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord, athat he may be glorified.38

bThey shall build up the ancient ruins;

they shall raise up the former devastations;

they shall repair the ruined cities,

the devastations of many generations.

cStrangers shall stand and tend your flocks;

foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers;

dbut you shall be called the priests of the Lord;

they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God;

eyou shall eat the wealth of the nations,

and in their glory you shall boast.

fInstead of your shame there shall be a double portion;

instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot;

therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion;

they shall have everlasting joy.

gFor I the Lord love justice;

I hate robbery and wrong;39

hI will faithfully give them their recompense,

iand I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Their offspring shall be known among the nations,

and their descendants in the midst of the peoples;

all who see them shall acknowledge them,

that they are an offspring the Lord has blessed.

10  jI will greatly rejoice in the Lord;

my soul shall exult in my God,

kfor he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;

he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,

as a bridegroom decks himself llike a priest with a beautiful headdress,

mand as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

11  For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,

and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,

so the Lord God will cause nrighteousness and praise

to sprout up before all the nations.

oFor Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,

and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet,

puntil her righteousness goes forth as brightness,

and her salvation as a burning torch.

qThe nations shall see your righteousness,

and all the kings your glory,

rand you shall be called by a new name

that the mouth of the Lord will give.

You shall be sa crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,

and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

tYou shall no more be termed uForsaken,40

and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,41

rbut you shall be called vMy Delight Is in Her,42

and your land Married;43

for the Lord delights in you,

and your land shall be married.

For as a young man marries a young woman,

so wshall your sons marry you,

and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,

so xshall your God rejoice over you.

On your walls, O Jerusalem,

I have set ywatchmen;

all the day and all the night

they shall never be silent.

You who put the Lord in remembrance,

take no rest,

and give him no rest

until he establishes Jerusalem

and makes it za praise in the earth.

The Lord has sworn aby his right hand

and by his mighty arm:

I will not again give byour grain

to be food for your enemies,

cand foreigners shall not drink your wine

for which you have labored;

but dthose who garner it shall eat it

and praise the Lord,

and dthose who gather it shall drink it

in the courts of my sanctuary.44

10  Go through, go through the gates;

eprepare the way for the people;

fbuild up, build up the highway;

clear it of stones;

glift up a signal over the peoples.

11  Behold, the Lord has proclaimed

to the end of the earth:

hSay to the daughter of Zion,

iBehold, your salvation comes;

behold, his reward is with him,

and his recompense before him.

12  jAnd they shall be called The Holy People,

The Redeemed of the Lord;

kand you shall be called Sought Out,

A City Not Forsaken.

Who is this who comes from lEdom,

in crimsoned garments from lBozrah,

he who is splendid in his apparel,

mmarching in the greatness of his strength?

It is I, speaking in righteousness,

mighty to save.

Why is your napparel red,

and your garments like his owho treads in the winepress?

pI have trodden the winepress alone,

qand from the peoples no one was with me;

I trod them in my anger

and trampled them in my wrath;

their lifeblood45 spattered on my garments,

and stained all my apparel.

rFor the day of vengeance was in my heart,

and my year of redemption46 had come.

I looked, but sthere was no one to help;

I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold;

so my own arm brought me salvation,

and my wrath upheld me.

I trampled down the peoples in my anger;

tI made them drunk in my wrath,

and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.

I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord,

the praises of the Lord,

according to all that the Lord has granted us,

uand the great goodness to the house of Israel

that he has granted them according to his compassion,

according to the abundance of his steadfast love.

For he said, Surely they are my people,

children who will not deal falsely.

And he became their Savior.

vIn all their affliction he was afflicted,47

and the angel of his presence saved them;

win his love and in his pity he redeemed them;

xhe lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

10  yBut they rebelled

zand grieved his Holy Spirit;

therefore he turned to be their enemy,

and himself fought against them.

11  Then he remembered athe days of old,

of Moses and his people.48

bWhere is he who brought them up out of the sea

with the shepherds of his flock?

Where is he who put in the midst of them

his Holy Spirit,

12  who caused his glorious arm

to go at the right hand of Moses,

cwho divided the waters before them

dto make for himself an everlasting name,

13  who led them through the depths?

Like a horse in the desert,

they did not stumble.

14  Like livestock that go down into the valley,

ethe Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.

So you led your people,

dto make for yourself a glorious name.

15  fLook down from heaven and see,

gfrom your holy and beautiful49 habitation.

Where are hyour zeal and your might?

The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion

are held back from me.

16  For iyou are our Father,

though Abraham does not know us,

and Israel does not acknowledge us;

you, O Lord, are our Father,

jour Redeemer from of old is your name.

17  O Lord, why do you make us wander from your ways

and kharden our heart, so that we fear you not?

lReturn for the sake of your servants,

the tribes of your heritage.

18  mYour holy people held possession for a little while;50

nour adversaries have trampled down your sanctuary.

19  oWe have become like those over whom you have never ruled,

like those who are not called by your name.

pOh that you would rend the heavens and come down,

qthat the mountains might quake at your presence

51 as when fire kindles brushwood

and the fire causes water to boil

rto make your name known to your adversaries,

and that the nations might tremble at your presence!

sWhen you did awesome things that we did not look for,

you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.

tFrom of old no one has heard

or perceived by the ear,

uno eye has seen a God besides you,

who acts for those who wait for him.

You meet him who joyfully works righteousness,

those who remember you in your ways.

Behold, you were angry, and we sinned;

in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?52

vWe have all become like one who is unclean,

and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.

wWe all fade like a leaf,

and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

xThere is no one who calls upon your name,

who rouses himself to take hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us,

and have made us melt in53 the hand of our iniquities.

yBut now, O Lord, you are our Father;

zwe are the clay, and you are our potter;

awe are all the work of your hand.

bBe not so terribly angry, O Lord,

cand remember not iniquity forever.

Behold, please look, we are all your people.

10  dYour holy cities have become a wilderness;

Zion has become a wilderness,

Jerusalem a desolation.

11  eOur holy and beautiful54 house,

where our fathers praised you,

has been burned by fire,

and all our pleasant places have become ruins.

12  fWill you restrain yourself at these things, O Lord?

Will you keep silent, and afflict us so terribly?

gI was ready to be sought by hthose who did not ask for me;

I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me.

I said, Here I am, here I am,

to a nation that was not called by55 my name.

iI spread out my hands all the day

to a rebellious people,

who walk in a way that is not good,

following their own devices;

a people who provoke me

to my face continually,

jsacrificing in gardens

and making offerings on bricks;

who sit in tombs,

and spend the night in secret places;

kwho eat pig’s flesh,

and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels;

who say, Keep to yourself,

do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.

lThese are a smoke in my nostrils,

a fire that burns all the day.

Behold, mit is written before me:

nI will not keep silent, but I will repay;

oI will indeed repay into their lap

both your iniquities pand your fathers’ iniquities together,

says the Lord;

qbecause they made offerings on the mountains

qand insulted me on the hills,

I will measure into their lap

payment for their former deeds.56

Thus says the Lord:

rAs the new wine is found in the cluster,

and they say, Do not destroy it,

for there is a blessing in it,

so I will do for my servants’ sake,

sand not destroy them all.

tI will bring forth offspring from Jacob,

and from Judah possessors of my mountains;

my chosen shall possess it,

and my servants shall dwell there.

10  uSharon shall become a pasture for flocks,

and vthe Valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down,

for my people wwho have sought me.

11  But xyou who forsake the Lord,

who forget ymy holy mountain,

who zset a table for Fortune

and zfill cups of mixed wine for Destiny,

12  I will destine you to the sword,

and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter,

abecause, when I called, you did not answer;

when I spoke, you did not listen,

bbut you did what was evil in my eyes

and chose what I did not delight in.

13  Therefore thus says the Lord God:

Behold, cmy servants shall eat,

but you shall be hungry;

behold, my servants shall drink,

but you shall be thirsty;

behold, my servants shall rejoice,

but you shall be put to shame;

14  behold, dmy servants shall sing for gladness of heart,

but you shall cry out for pain of heart

and shall wail for breaking of spirit.

15  You shall leave your name to emy chosen ffor a curse,

and the Lord God will put you to death,

but his servants ghe will call by another name,

16  so that he who hblesses himself in the land

shall bless himself by hthe God of truth,

and he who takes an oath in the land

shall swear by ithe God of truth;

jbecause the former troubles are forgotten

and are hidden from my eyes.

17  For behold, kI create new heavens

and a new earth,

and the former things shall not be remembered

or come into mind.

18  But be glad and rejoice forever

in that which I create;

for behold, lI create Jerusalem to be a joy,

and her people to be a gladness.

19  mI will rejoice in Jerusalem

and be glad in my people;

nno more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping

and the cry of distress.

20  No more shall there be in it

an infant who lives but a few days,

or an old man who does not fill out his days,

for othe young man shall die a hundred years old,

and pthe sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.

21  qThey shall build houses and inhabit them;

they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

22  qThey shall not build and another inhabit;

they shall not plant and another eat;

rfor like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,

and my chosen shall long enjoy57 the work of their hands.

23  sThey shall not labor in vain

tor bear children for calamity,58

for uthey shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord,

and their descendants with them.

24  vBefore they call I will answer;

wwhile they are yet speaking I will hear.

25  xThe wolf and the lamb shall graze together;

the lion shall eat straw like the ox,

and ydust shall be the serpent’s food.

zThey shall not hurt or destroy

in all my holy mountain,

says the Lord.

aThus says the Lord:

bHeaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool;

what is the house that you would build for me,

and what is the place of my rest?

cAll these things my hand has made,

and so all these things came to be,

declares the Lord.

dBut this is the one to whom I will look:

he who is humble and contrite in spirit

and trembles at my word.

eHe who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man;

he who sacrifices a lamb, like one who breaks a dog’s neck;

he who presents a grain offering, like one who offers fpig’s blood;

he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like one who blesses an idol.

gThese have chosen their own ways,

and their soul delights in their abominations;

hI also will choose harsh treatment for them

and bring itheir fears upon them,

jbecause when I called, no one answered,

when I spoke, they did not listen;

kbut they did what was evil in my eyes

and chose that in which I did not delight.

Hear the word of the Lord,

you who tremble at his word:

Your brothers who hate you

and cast you out for my name’s sake

have said, lLet the Lord be glorified,

that we may see your joy;

but it is they who shall be put to shame.

The sound of an uproar from the city!

A sound from the temple!

The sound of the Lord,

mrendering recompense to his enemies!

nBefore she was in labor

she gave birth;

before her pain came upon her

she delivered a son.

Who has heard such a thing?

Who has seen such things?

Shall a land be born in one day?

Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?

For nas soon as Zion was in labor

she brought forth her children.

Shall I bring to the point of birth and not cause to bring forth?

says the Lord;

shall I, who cause to bring forth, shut the womb?

says your God.

10  oRejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,

all you who love her;

rejoice with her in joy,

all you who mourn over her;

11  that you may nurse and be satisfied

from her consoling breast;

that you may drink deeply with delight

from her glorious abundance.59

12  For thus says the Lord:

pBehold, I will extend peace to her like a river,

and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;

and qyou shall nurse, you shall be carried upon her hip,

and bounced upon her knees.

13  As one whom his mother comforts,

so rI will comfort you;

you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

14  You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;

syour bones shall flourish like the grass;

and tthe hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants,

and he shall show his indignation against his enemies.

15  For behold, uthe Lord will come in fire,

and vhis chariots like the whirlwind,

to render his anger in fury,

and his rebuke with flames of fire.

16  For wby fire xwill the Lord enter into judgment,

and by his sword, with all flesh;

and those slain by the Lord shall be many.

17 yThose who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the midst, zeating pig’s flesh and the abomination and mice, shall come to an end together, declares the Lord.

18 For I know60 their works and their thoughts, and the time is coming61 ato gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see my glory, 19 and I will set a sign among them. And from them bI will send survivors to the nations, to cTarshish, dPul, and dLud, who draw the bow, to eTubal and eJavan, fto the coastlands far away, gthat have not heard my fame or seen my glory. And they shall declare my glory among the nations. 20 hAnd they shall bring all your brothers from all the nations ias an offering to the Lord, on horses and in chariots and in litters and on mules and on dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the Lord, just as the Israelites bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the Lord. 21 jAnd some of them also I will take for priests and for Levites, says the Lord.

22  For as kthe new heavens and the new earth

that I make

shall remain before me, says the Lord,

so lshall your offspring and your name remain.

23  mFrom new moon to new moon,

and from Sabbath to Sabbath,

all flesh shall come to worship before me,

declares the Lord.

24 And they shall go out and look on the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against me. For ntheir worm shall not die, otheir fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.

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