Isaiah 55-56
New American Standard Bible
The Free Offer of Mercy
55 “[a]You there! Everyone who (A)thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have (B)no [b]money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy (C)wine and milk
(D)Without money and without cost.
2 Why do you [c]spend money for what is (E)not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and (F)eat what is good,
And (G)delight yourself in abundance.
3 (H)Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that [d]you may (I)live;
And I will make (J)an everlasting covenant with you,
According to the (K)faithful mercies [e]shown to David.
4 Behold, I have made (L)him a witness to the peoples,
A (M)leader and commander for the peoples.
5 Behold, you will call a (N)nation you do not know,
And a nation which does not know you will (O)run to you,
Because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel;
For He has (P)glorified you.”
6 (Q)Seek the Lord while He may be found;
(R)Call upon Him while He is near.
7 (S)Let the wicked abandon his way,
And the unrighteous person his (T)thoughts;
And let him (U)return to the Lord,
And He will have (V)compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will (W)abundantly pardon.
8 “For My thoughts are not (X)your thoughts,
Nor are (Y)your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
9 “For (Z)as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For as the (AA)rain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it produce and sprout,
And providing (AB)seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 So will My (AC)word be which goes out of My mouth;
It will (AD)not return to Me empty,
Without (AE)accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.
12 For you will go out with (AF)joy
And be led in (AG)peace;
The (AH)mountains and the hills will break into shouts of joy before you,
And all the (AI)trees of the field will clap their hands.
13 Instead of the (AJ)thorn bush, the (AK)juniper will come up,
And instead of the (AL)stinging nettle, the myrtle will come up;
And [f]it will be a [g](AM)memorial to the Lord,
An everlasting (AN)sign which (AO)will not be eliminated.”
Rewards for Obedience to God
56 This is what the Lord says:
“(AP)Guard justice and do righteousness,
For My (AQ)salvation is about to come
And My righteousness to be revealed.
2 (AR)Blessed is a man who does this,
And a son of man who (AS)takes hold of it;
Who (AT)keeps from profaning the Sabbath,
And keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3 Let not the (AU)foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,
“The Lord will certainly separate me from His people.”
Nor let the (AV)eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who (AW)keep My Sabbaths,
And choose what pleases Me,
And (AX)hold firmly to My covenant,
5 To them I will give in My (AY)house and within My (AZ)walls a memorial,
And a name better than that of sons and daughters;
I will give [h]them an everlasting (BA)name which (BB)will not be eliminated.
6 “Also the (BC)foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,
To attend to His service and to love the name of the Lord,
To be His servants, every one who (BD)keeps the Sabbath so as not to profane it,
And holds firmly to My covenant;
7 Even (BE)those I will bring to My (BF)holy mountain,
And (BG)make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on (BH)My altar;
For (BI)My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”
8 The Lord [i]God, who (BJ)gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares,
“I will yet gather (BK)others to [j]them, to those already gathered.”
9 All you [k](BL)wild animals,
All you animals in the forest,
Come to eat.
10 His (BM)watchmen are (BN)blind,
All of them know nothing.
All of them are mute dogs unable to bark,
Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber;
11 And the dogs are [l](BO)greedy, they [m]are never satisfied.
And they are shepherds who have (BP)no understanding;
They have all (BQ)turned to their own way,
Each one to his unjust gain, [n]without exception.
12 “Come,” they say, “[o]let’s get (BR)wine, and let’s drink heavily of intoxicating drink;
And (BS)tomorrow will be like today, only more so.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 55:1 Lit Hoy
- Isaiah 55:1 Lit silver
- Isaiah 55:2 Lit weigh out silver
- Isaiah 55:3 Lit your soul
- Isaiah 55:3 Lit of David
- Isaiah 55:13 I.e., the transformation of the desert
- Isaiah 55:13 Lit name
- Isaiah 56:5 As in DSS; MT him
- Isaiah 56:8 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
- Isaiah 56:8 Lit him
- Isaiah 56:9 Lit animals of the field
- Isaiah 56:11 Lit strong of soul/appetite
- Isaiah 56:11 Lit do not know satisfaction
- Isaiah 56:11 Lit from his end
- Isaiah 56:12 As in DSS and some ancient versions; MT I will
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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