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Isaiah 42
International Standard Version
Isaiah 42
International Standard Version
The Servant of the Lord
42 “Here is my servant, whom I support,
my chosen one, in whom I delight.[a]
I’ve placed my Spirit upon him;
and[b] he’ll deliver his[c] justice throughout the world.[d]
2 He won’t shout,
or raise his voice,
or make it heard in the street.
3 A crushed reed he will not break,
and a fading candle[e] he won’t snuff out.[f]
He’ll bring forth[g] justice for the truth.
4 And[h] he won’t grow faint or be crushed
until he establishes justice on the mainland,
and the coastlands take ownership of[i] his Law.”
God Speaks about the Servant
5 This is what God says—
the God[j] who created the heavens
and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and its produce,
who gives breath to the people on it
and life[k] to those who walk in it:
6 “I’ve[l] called you in righteousness.
I’ll take hold of your hand.
I’ll preserve you and appoint you
as a covenant to the people,[m]
as a light for the nations,
7 to open blind eyes
and to bring out those who are bound[n] from their cells,
and[o] those sitting in darkness from prison.
8 I, the Lord, am the one,
and I won’t give my name and[p] glory to another,
nor my praise to idols.
9 See, the former things have taken place,
and I’m announcing the[q] new things—
before they spring into being
I’m telling you about them.”
Praise in Song to God
10 Sing to the Lord a new song,
and[r] his praise from the ends of the earth,
you who sail down the sea and by everything in it,
you coastlands and their inhabitants.
11 Let the desert cry out,[s]
its towns and the[t] villages where Kedar lives;
and[u] let those who live in Sela sing for joy.
Let them shout aloud[v] from the mountaintops.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord,
and declare his praise in the islands.
13 The Lord marches out like a warrior;
he stirs up his rage like a man of war;
he makes his anger heard;
he shouts aloud;[w]
he declares his mastery over his enemies:
14 “I have certainly[x] stayed silent for a long time;
I’ve kept still and held myself back.
Now, like a woman giving birth, I’ll cry out.
All of a sudden I’ll gasp and pant.
15 I’ll devastate the mountains and hills,
and dry up all their vegetation;
I’ll turn rivers into islands,
and dry up the ponds.
16 I’ll help the blind walk,
even[y] on a road they do not know;
I’ll guide them
in directions[z] they do not know.
I’ll turn the dark places[aa] into light in front of them,
and the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I will do,
and I won’t abandon them.
17 Those who trust in carved idols
will turn back and[ab] be completely disappointed,[ac]
along with those[ad] who say to metal images,
‘You are our gods.’”
God Rebukes Israel
18 “Listen, you deaf people,
and look up, you blind people, so you may see!
19 Who is blind except my servant,
or deaf like my messenger I am sending?
Who is blind like the one committed to me,
or blind like the Lord’s servant?
20 You’ve seen[ae] many things, but you pay no[af] attention.
His ears are open,[ag] but he doesn’t listen.
21 The Lord was pleased, for the sake of his vindication,
that he should magnify his Law and make it glorious.
22 But this is a people who have been robbed and plundered,
all of them trapped in pits
or hidden away in prisons.[ah]
They have become prey, with no one to rescue them;
they have been made loot, with no one to say, ‘Send them back!’
23 “Who among you will listen,
and[ai] pay attention,
and listen for the time to come?”
God Punishes Israel
24 “Who handed Jacob over to looters,
and Israel to robbers?
Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned?
After all, they weren’t willing to walk in his ways,
and they wouldn’t obey[aj] his instruction,
25 so he drenched him with[ak] the heat that is his anger,[al]
the violence of war.
It enveloped him in flames,
but still he had no insight.
It burned him up,
but he didn’t take it to heart.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 42:1 Lit. whom my soul delights
- Isaiah 42:1 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 42:1 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack his
- Isaiah 42:1 Lit. justice to the nations
- Isaiah 42:3 Lit. fading linen wick
- Isaiah 42:3 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads quench it
- Isaiah 42:3 I.e. will demonstrate
- Isaiah 42:4 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsah MT lack And
- Isaiah 42:4 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read the islands wait for (cf. 4QIsah)
- Isaiah 42:5 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsaa corrector reads and; MT reads the Lord
- Isaiah 42:5 Lit. spirit
- Isaiah 42:6 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsah MT read I, the Lord, have; LXX reads I, the Lord God, have
- Isaiah 42:6 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; 4QIsah reads as an everlasting covenant
- Isaiah 42:7 So 1QIsaa LXX; 4QIsah MT read out prisoners
- Isaiah 42:7 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsah MT lack and
- Isaiah 42:8 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsah MT LXX read I am the Lord; that is my name. I won’t give my
- Isaiah 42:9 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsab 4QIsah MT LXX lack the
- Isaiah 42:10 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsah MT lack and
- Isaiah 42:11 So 1QIsaa 4QIsah LXX (sing.); MT (pl.)
- Isaiah 42:11 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read and its towns
- Isaiah 42:11 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 42:11 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads them cry joyfully
- Isaiah 42:13 So 1QIsaa; MT reads He makes a war cry and shouts out his anger
- Isaiah 42:14 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks certainly
- Isaiah 42:16 Or and; so 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks even
- Isaiah 42:16 Lit. paths
- Isaiah 42:16 So 1QIsaa (misspelling places); MT LXX read darkness
- Isaiah 42:17 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 42:17 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; MTms lacks disappointed
- Isaiah 42:17 1QIsaa MT LXX lack along with those
- Isaiah 42:20 So 1QIsaa MT; MTqere reads To see (or He sees )
- Isaiah 42:20 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; MTmss read he pays no
- Isaiah 42:20 So 1QIsaa; MT reads to open; or are open
- Isaiah 42:22 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; 4QIsag reads prison
- Isaiah 42:23 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 42:24 Or wouldn’t listen to
- Isaiah 42:25 Lit. he poured out on him
- Isaiah 42:25 So 1QIsaa LXX; 4QIsag MT read the heat, his anger
Isaiah 42
New International Version
Isaiah 42
New International Version
The Servant of the Lord
42 “Here is my servant,(A) whom I uphold,
my chosen one(B) in whom I delight;(C)
I will put my Spirit(D) on him,
and he will bring justice(E) to the nations.(F)
2 He will not shout or cry out,(G)
or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed(H) he will not break,(I)
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.(J)
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;(K)
4 he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice(L) on earth.
In his teaching(M) the islands(N) will put their hope.”(O)
5 This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens,(P) who stretches them out,
who spreads out the earth(Q) with all that springs from it,(R)
who gives breath(S) to its people,
and life to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called(T) you in righteousness;(U)
I will take hold of your hand.(V)
I will keep(W) you and will make you
to be a covenant(X) for the people
and a light(Y) for the Gentiles,(Z)
7 to open eyes that are blind,(AA)
to free(AB) captives from prison(AC)
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.(AD)
8 “I am the Lord;(AE) that is my name!(AF)
I will not yield my glory to another(AG)
or my praise to idols.(AH)
9 See, the former things(AI) have taken place,
and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
I announce(AJ) them to you.”
Song of Praise to the Lord
10 Sing(AK) to the Lord a new song,(AL)
his praise(AM) from the ends of the earth,(AN)
you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,(AO)
you islands,(AP) and all who live in them.
11 Let the wilderness(AQ) and its towns raise their voices;
let the settlements where Kedar(AR) lives rejoice.
Let the people of Sela(AS) sing for joy;
let them shout from the mountaintops.(AT)
12 Let them give glory(AU) to the Lord
and proclaim his praise(AV) in the islands.(AW)
13 The Lord will march out like a champion,(AX)
like a warrior(AY) he will stir up his zeal;(AZ)
with a shout(BA) he will raise the battle cry
and will triumph over his enemies.(BB)
14 “For a long time I have kept silent,(BC)
I have been quiet and held myself back.(BD)
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
I cry out, I gasp and pant.(BE)
15 I will lay waste(BF) the mountains(BG) and hills
and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up(BH) the pools.
16 I will lead(BI) the blind(BJ) by ways they have not known,
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light(BK) before them
and make the rough places smooth.(BL)
These are the things I will do;
I will not forsake(BM) them.
17 But those who trust in idols,
who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’(BN)
will be turned back in utter shame.(BO)
Israel Blind and Deaf
18 “Hear, you deaf;(BP)
look, you blind, and see!
19 Who is blind(BQ) but my servant,(BR)
and deaf like the messenger(BS) I send?
Who is blind like the one in covenant(BT) with me,
blind like the servant of the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but you pay no attention;
your ears are open, but you do not listen.”(BU)
21 It pleased the Lord
for the sake(BV) of his righteousness
to make his law(BW) great and glorious.
22 But this is a people plundered(BX) and looted,
all of them trapped in pits(BY)
or hidden away in prisons.(BZ)
They have become plunder,
with no one to rescue them;(CA)
they have been made loot,
with no one to say, “Send them back.”
23 Which of you will listen to this
or pay close attention(CB) in time to come?
24 Who handed Jacob over to become loot,
and Israel to the plunderers?(CC)
Was it not the Lord,(CD)
against whom we have sinned?
For they would not follow(CE) his ways;
they did not obey his law.(CF)
25 So he poured out on them his burning anger,(CG)
the violence of war.
It enveloped them in flames,(CH) yet they did not understand;(CI)
it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.(CJ)
Isaiah 42
King James Version
Isaiah 42
King James Version
42 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
5 Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:
6 I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.
8 I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.
9 Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.
10 Sing unto the Lord a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory unto the Lord, and declare his praise in the islands.
13 The Lord shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies.
14 I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once.
15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools.
16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.
17 They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.
18 Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.
19 Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the Lord's servant?
20 Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not.
21 The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable.
22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore.
23 Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time to come?
24 Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? did not the Lord, he against whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient unto his law.
25 Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart.
International Standard Version (ISV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.