Isaiah 49:14-23

New International Version

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

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

¹⁹“Though you were ruined and made desolate^(K)
    and your land laid waste,^(L)
now you will be too small for your people,^(M)
    and those who devoured^(N) 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.’^(O)
²¹Then you will say in your heart,
    ‘Who bore me these?^(P)
I was bereaved^(Q) and barren;
    I was exiled and rejected.^(R)
    Who brought these^(S) up?
I was left^(T) all alone,^(U)
    but these—where have they come from?’”

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

“See, I will beckon to the nations,
    I will lift up my banner^(W) to the peoples;
they will bring^(X) your sons in their arms
    and carry your daughters on their hips.^(Y)
²³Kings^(Z) will be your foster fathers,
    and their queens your nursing mothers.^(AA)
They will bow down^(AB) before you with their faces to the ground;
    they will lick the dust^(AC) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;^(AD)
    those who hope^(AE) in me will not be disappointed.^(AF)”

Read full chapter

Isaiah 49:14-23

New American Standard Bible

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 ^(A)I will not forget you.
¹⁶Behold, I have ^(B)inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your ^(C)walls are continually before Me.
¹⁷Your ^[a]builders hurry;
Your ^(D)destroyers and devastators
Will leave you.
¹⁸^(E)Raise your eyes and look around;
^(F)All of them gather together, ^(G)they come to you.
^(H)As I live,” declares the Lord,
“You will certainly ^(I)put them all on as ^[b]jewelry and bind them on as a bride.
¹⁹For ^(J)your ruins and deserted places and your destroyed land—
Now you will certainly be ^(K)too cramped for the inhabitants,
And those who ^(L)swallowed you will be far away.
²⁰The ^(M)children ^[c]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 ^(N)say in your heart,
‘Who has fathered these for me,
Since I have been bereaved of my children
And ^(O)cannot conceive, and I am an ^(P)exile, and a wanderer?
And who has raised these?
Behold, I was ^(Q)left alone;
^[d]^(R)Where are these from?’”

²²This is what the Lord ^[e]God says:

“Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations
And set up My ^(S)flag to the peoples;
And they will ^(T)bring your sons ^[f]in their arms,
And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders.
²³^(U)Kings will be your guardians,
And their princesses your nurses.
They will ^(V)bow down to you with their faces to the ground
And ^(W)lick the dust from your feet;
And you will ^(X)know that I am the Lord;
Those who hopefully ^(Y)wait for Me will ^(Z)not be put to shame.