Isaiah 62-66

New American Standard Bible

Zion’s Glory and New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her ^(A)righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her ^(B)salvation like a torch that is burning.
²The ^(C)nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new ^(D)name
Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.
³You will also be a ^(E)crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
⁴It will no longer be said to you, “^[a]^(F)Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “^[b]Desolate”;
But you will be called, “^[c]My delight is in her,”
And your land, “^[d]^(G)Married”;
For the ^(H)Lord delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
⁵For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the ^[e]groom rejoices over the bride,
So your ^(I)God will rejoice over you.

⁶On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed ^(J)watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who ^(K)profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
⁷And ^(L)give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes ^(M)Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.
⁸^(N)The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm:
“I will ^(O)never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will ^[f]foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
⁹But those who ^(P)harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.

¹⁰Go through, ^(Q)go through the gates,
Clear a way ^[g]for the people!
^(R)Build up, build up the ^(S)highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a ^(T)flag over the peoples.
¹¹Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the ^(U)end of the earth:
^(V)Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your ^(W)salvation is coming;
^(X)Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”
¹²And they will call them, “^(Y)The holy people,
The ^(Z)redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City ^(AA)Not Abandoned.”

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

63 Who is this who comes from ^(AB)Edom,
With ^(AC)garments of ^[h]glowing colors from ^(AD)Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
^[i]Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I, the One who speaks in righteousness, ^(AE)mighty to save.”
²Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like one who ^(AF)treads in the wine press?
³“^(AG)I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no one with Me.
I also ^(AH)trod them in My anger
And ^(AI)trampled them in My wrath;
And ^(AJ)their ^[j]lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I ^[k]stained all My clothes.
⁴For the ^(AK)day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come.
⁵I looked, but there was ^(AL)no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My ^(AM)own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.
⁶I ^(AN)trampled down the peoples in My anger
And made them ^(AO)drunk with My wrath,
And I ^[l]poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

⁷I will make mention of the ^(AP)mercies of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord,
According to all that the Lord has granted us,
And the great ^(AQ)goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has granted them according to His ^(AR)compassion
And according to the abundance of His mercies.
⁸For He said, “Certainly they are ^(AS)My people,
Sons who will not deal falsely.”
So He became their ^(AT)Savior.
⁹In all their distress ^[m]^(AU)He was distressed,
And the ^(AV)angel of His presence saved them;
In His ^(AW)love and in His mercy He ^(AX)redeemed them,
And He ^(AY)lifted them and carried them all the days of old.
¹⁰But they ^(AZ)rebelled
And grieved His ^(BA)Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them.
¹¹Then ^(BB)His people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is ^(BC)He who brought them up out of the sea with the ^[n]shepherds of His flock?
Where is He who ^(BD)put His Holy Spirit in the midst of ^[o]them,
¹²Who caused His ^(BE)glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses,
Who ^(BF)divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
¹³Who led them through the depths?
Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not ^(BG)stumble;
¹⁴Like the cattle which go down into the valley,
The Spirit of the ^(BH)Lord gave ^[p]them rest.
So You ^(BI)led Your people,
To make for Yourself a glorious name.

You Are Our Father

¹⁵^(BJ)Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious ^(BK)lofty habitation;
Where are Your ^(BL)zeal and Your mighty deeds?
The ^(BM)stirrings of Your heart and Your compassion are restrained toward me.
¹⁶For You are our ^(BN)Father, though ^(BO)Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, Lord, are our Father,
Our ^(BP)Redeemer from ancient times is Your name.
¹⁷Why, Lord, do You ^(BQ)cause us to stray from Your ways
And ^(BR)harden our heart from fearing You?
^(BS)Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
¹⁸Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while,
Our adversaries have ^(BT)trampled it down.
¹⁹We have become like those over whom You have never ruled,
Like those who were not called by Your name.

Prayer for Mercy and Help

64 ^[q]Oh, that You would tear open the heavens and ^(BU)come down,
That the mountains would ^(BV)quake at Your presence—
²^[r]As fire kindles brushwood, as fire causes water to boil—
To make Your name known to Your adversaries,
That the ^(BW)nations may tremble at Your presence!
³When You did ^(BX)awesome things which we did not expect,
You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence.
⁴For from days of old ^(BY)they have not heard or perceived by ear,
Nor has the eye seen a God besides You,
Who acts in behalf of one who ^(BZ)waits for Him.
⁵You ^(CA)meet him who rejoices in ^(CB)doing righteousness,
Who ^(CC)remembers You in Your ways.
Behold, ^(CD)You were angry, for we sinned,
We continued in ^[s]our sins for a long time;
Yet shall we be saved?
⁶For all of us have become like one who is ^(CE)unclean,
And all our ^(CF)righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us ^(CG)wither like a leaf,
And our ^(CH)wrongdoings, like the wind, take us away.
⁷There is ^(CI)no one who calls on Your name,
Who stirs himself to take hold of You;
For You have ^(CJ)hidden Your face from us
And have ^[t]surrendered us to the power of our wrongdoings.

⁸But now, Lord, ^(CK)You are our Father;
We are the ^(CL)clay, and You our potter,
And all of us are the ^(CM)work of Your hand.
⁹Do not be ^(CN)angry beyond measure, Lord,
^(CO)Nor remember wrongdoing forever.
Behold, please look, all of us are ^(CP)Your people.
¹⁰Your ^(CQ)holy cities have become a ^(CR)wilderness,
Zion has become a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
¹¹Our holy and beautiful ^(CS)house,
Where our fathers praised You,
Has been burned by fire;
And ^(CT)all our precious things have become a ruin.
¹²Will You ^(CU)restrain Yourself at these things, Lord?
Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?

A Rebellious People

65 “I permitted Myself to be sought by ^(CV)those who did not ask for Me;
I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’
To a nation which ^(CW)did not call on My name.
²^(CX)I have spread out My hands all day long to a ^(CY)rebellious people,
Who walk in the way which is not good, ^[u]following their own ^(CZ)thoughts,
³A people who continually ^(DA)provoke Me to My face,
Offering sacrifices in ^(DB)gardens and ^(DC)burning incense on bricks;
⁴Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places;
Who ^(DD)eat pig’s flesh,
And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.
⁵Who say, ‘^(DE)Keep to yourself, do not come near me,
For I am holier than you!’
These are smoke in My ^[v]nostrils,
A fire that burns all the day.
⁶Behold, it is written before Me:
I will ^(DF)not keep silent, but ^(DG)I will repay;
I will even repay ^[w]into their laps,
⁷Both your own ^(DH)wrongdoings and the wrongdoings of your fathers together,” says the Lord.
“Because they have ^(DI)burned incense on the mountains
And ^(DJ)scorned Me on the hills,
Therefore I will ^(DK)measure their former work ^[x]into their laps.”

⁸This is what the Lord says:

“Just as the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is ^[y]benefit in it,’
So I will act in behalf of My servants
In order ^(DL)not to destroy ^[z]all of them.
⁹I will bring forth ^[aa]^(DM)offspring from Jacob,
And an ^(DN)heir of My mountains from Judah;
^(DO)My chosen ones shall inherit it,
And ^(DP)My servants will live there.
¹⁰^(DQ)Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks,
And the ^(DR)Valley of Achor a resting place for herds,
For My people who ^(DS)seek Me.
¹¹But as for you who ^(DT)abandon the Lord,
Who forget My ^(DU)holy mountain,
Who set a table for ^[ab]Fortune,
And fill a jug of mixed wine for ^[ac]Destiny,
¹²I will destine you for the ^(DV)sword,
And all of you will bow down to the ^(DW)slaughter.
Because I called, but you ^(DX)did not answer;
I spoke, but you did not listen.
Instead, you did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight.”

¹³Therefore, this is what the Lord ^[ad]God says:
“Behold, My servants will ^(DY)eat, but you will be ^(DZ)hungry.
Behold, My servants will ^(EA)drink, but you will be ^(EB)thirsty.
Behold, My servants will ^(EC)rejoice, but you will be ^(ED)put to shame.
¹⁴Behold, My servants will ^(EE)shout joyfully with a glad heart,
But you will ^(EF)cry out from a painful heart,
And you will wail from a broken spirit.
¹⁵You will leave your name as a ^(EG)curse to My chosen ones,
And the Lord ^[ae]God will put you to death.
But ^[af]My servants will be called by ^(EH)another name.
¹⁶Because the one who ^[ag]is blessed on the earth
Will ^[ah]be blessed by the ^(EI)God of truth;
And the one who swears an oath on the earth
Will ^(EJ)swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My sight!

New Heavens and a New Earth

¹⁷“For behold, I create ^(EK)new heavens and a new earth;
And the ^(EL)former things will not be remembered or come to ^[ai]mind.
¹⁸But be ^(EM)glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing
And her people for gladness.
¹⁹I will also ^(EN)rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people;
And there will no longer be heard in her
The voice of ^(EO)weeping and the sound of crying.
²⁰No longer will there be ^[aj]in it an infant who lives only a few days,
Or an old person who does ^(EP)not ^[ak]live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of a hundred,
And the ^[al]^(EQ)one who does not reach the age of a hundred
Will be thought accursed.
²¹They will ^(ER)build houses and inhabit them;
They will also ^(ES)plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
²²They will not build and ^(ET)another inhabit,
They will not plant and another eat;
For ^(EU)as the ^[am]lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people,
And My chosen ones will ^(EV)fully enjoy the work of their hands.
²³They will ^(EW)not labor in vain,
Or give birth to children for disaster;
For they are the ^[an]^(EX)descendants of those blessed by the Lord,
And their descendants with them.

²⁴It will also come to pass that before they call, I will ^(EY)answer; while they are still speaking, I will listen. ²⁵The ^(EZ)wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the ^(FA)lion will eat straw like the ox; and ^(FB)dust will be the serpent’s food. They will ^(FC)do no evil or harm on all My ^(FD)holy mountain,” says the Lord.

Heaven Is God’s Throne

66 This is what the Lord says:

“^(FE)Heaven is My throne and the earth is the footstool for My feet.
Where then is a ^(FF)house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that ^[ao]I may rest?
²For ^(FG)My hand made all these things,
So all these things came into being,” declares the Lord.
“But I will look to this one,
At one who is humble and ^(FH)contrite in spirit, and who ^(FI)trembles at My word.

Hypocrisy Rebuked

³“But the one who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a person;
The one who sacrifices a lamb is like one who breaks a dog’s neck;
One who offers a grain offering is like one who offers ^(FJ)pig’s blood;
One who ^[ap]^(FK)burns incense is like one who blesses an idol.
As they have chosen their ^(FL)own ways,
And their souls delight in their ^(FM)abominations,
⁴So I will ^(FN)choose their ^[aq]punishments
And ^(FO)bring on them what they dread.
Because I called, but ^(FP)no one answered;
I spoke, but they did not listen.
Instead, they did ^(FQ)evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight.”
⁵Hear the word of the Lord, you who ^(FR)tremble at His word:
“Your brothers who ^(FS)hate you, who ^(FT)exclude you on account of My name,
Have said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified, so that we may see your joy.’
But ^(FU)they will be put to shame.
⁶A sound of uproar from the city, a voice from the temple,
The voice of the Lord who is ^(FV)dealing retribution to His enemies.

⁷“Before she was in labor, ^(FW)she delivered;
Before her pain came, ^(FX)she gave birth to a boy.
⁸^(FY)Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?
Can a land be ^[ar]born in one day?
Can a nation be given birth all at once?
As soon as Zion was in labor, she also delivered her sons.
⁹Shall I bring to the point of birth but ^(FZ)not give delivery?” says the Lord.
“Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?” says your God.

Joy in Jerusalem’s Future

¹⁰“Be ^(GA)joyful with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who ^(GB)love her;
Be exceedingly ^(GC)glad with her, all you who mourn over her,
¹¹So that you may nurse and ^(GD)be satisfied with her comforting breasts,
So that you may drink fully and be delighted with her ^(GE)bountiful breasts.”
¹²For this is what the Lord says: “Behold, I extend ^(GF)peace to her like a river,
And the ^(GG)glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;
And you will ^[as]be nursed, you will be ^(GH)carried on the ^[at]hip and rocked back and forth on the knees.
¹³As one whom his mother comforts, so I will ^(GI)comfort you;
And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”
¹⁴Then you will ^(GJ)see this, and your ^(GK)heart will be glad,
And your ^(GL)bones will flourish like the new grass;
And the ^(GM)hand of the Lord will be made known to His servants,
But He will be ^(GN)indignant toward His enemies.
¹⁵For behold, the Lord will come in ^(GO)fire,
And His ^(GP)chariots like the whirlwind,
To render His anger with fury,
And His rebuke with flames of fire.
¹⁶For the Lord will execute judgment by ^(GQ)fire
And by His ^(GR)sword on ^[au]humanity,
And those put to death by the Lord will be many.
¹⁷“Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the ^(GS)gardens,
^[av]Following one in the center,
Who eat ^(GT)pig’s flesh, detestable things, and mice,
Will ^(GU)come to an end altogether,” declares the Lord.

¹⁸“For I ^[aw]know their works and their ^(GV)thoughts; ^[ax]the time is coming to ^(GW)gather all the nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My glory. ¹⁹And I will put a ^(GX)sign among them and send survivors from them to the nations: ^(GY)Tarshish, ^[ay]Put, ^(GZ)Lud, ^[az]Meshech, ^(HA)Tubal, and ^[ba]Javan, to the distant ^(HB)coastlands that have neither heard of My fame nor seen My glory. And they will ^(HC)declare My glory among the nations. ²⁰Then they shall ^(HD)bring all your countrymen from all the nations as a grain offering to the Lord, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, and on camels, to My ^(HE)holy mountain Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the sons of Israel bring their grain offering in a ^(HF)clean vessel to the house of the Lord. ²¹I will also take some of them as ^(HG)priests and Levites,” says the Lord.

²²“For just as the ^(HH)new heavens and the new earth,
Which I make, will endure before Me,” declares the Lord,
“So will your ^(HI)descendants and your ^(HJ)name endure.
²³And it shall be from ^(HK)new moon to new moon
And from Sabbath to Sabbath,
All ^[bb]mankind will come to ^(HL)bow down before Me,” says the Lord.
²⁴“Then they will go out and look
At the ^(HM)corpses of the people
Who have ^(HN)rebelled against Me.
For their ^(HO)worm will not die
^(HP)And their fire will not be extinguished;
And they will be an ^(HQ)abhorrence to all ^[bc]mankind.”