Isaiah 40:1-11

Contemporary English Version

Encourage God's People

40 Our God has said:
“Encourage my people!
    Give them comfort.
²Speak kindly to Jerusalem
    and announce:
Your slavery is past;
    your punishment is over.
I, the Lord, made you pay
    double for your sins.”

³^(A)^(B) Someone is shouting:
“Clear a path in the desert!
    Make a straight road
    for the Lord our God.
⁴Fill in the valleys;
flatten every hill
    and mountain.
Level the rough
    and rugged ground.
⁵Then the glory of the Lord
    will appear for all to see.
The Lord has promised this!”

⁶^(C) Someone told me to shout,
and I asked,
    “What should I shout?”
We humans are merely grass,
and we last no longer
    than wild flowers.
⁷At the Lord's command,
flowers and grass disappear,
    and so do we.
⁸Flowers and grass fade away,
but what our God has said
    will never change.

Your God Is Here!

⁹There is good news
    for the city of Zion.
Shout it as loud as you can^[a]
    from the highest mountain.
Don't be afraid to shout
to the towns of Judah:
    “Your God is here!”
¹⁰^(D) Look! The powerful Lord God
is coming to rule
    with his mighty arm.
He brings with him
what he has taken in war,
    and he rewards his people.
¹¹^(E) The Lord cares for his nation,
just as shepherds care
    for their flocks.
He carries the lambs
    in his arms,
while gently leading
    the mother sheep.