Isaiah 35

English Standard Version

The Ransomed Shall Return

35 ^(A)The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;
    ^(B)the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus;
²it shall blossom abundantly
    and rejoice with joy and singing.
^(C)The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
    the majesty of ^(D)Carmel and ^(E)Sharon.
^(F)They shall see the glory of the Lord,
    the majesty of our God.

³^(G)Strengthen the weak hands,
    and make firm the feeble knees.
⁴Say to those who have an anxious heart,
    “Be strong; fear not!
^(H)Behold, your God
    will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
    He will come and save you.”

⁵^(I)Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
    and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
⁶^(J)then shall the lame man leap like a deer,
    and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
^(K)For waters break forth in the wilderness,
    and streams in the desert;
⁷^(L)the burning sand shall become a pool,
    and the thirsty ground springs of water;
in the haunt of ^(M)jackals, where they lie down,
    the grass shall become reeds and rushes.

⁸^(N)And a highway shall be there,
    and it shall be called the Way of Holiness;
^(O)the unclean shall not pass over it.
    It shall belong to those who walk on the way;
    even if they are fools, they shall not go astray.^[a]
⁹No lion shall be there,
    nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it;
they shall not be found there,
    but the redeemed shall walk there.
¹⁰^(P)And the ransomed of the Lord shall return
    and come to Zion with singing;
^(Q)everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
    they shall obtain gladness and joy,
    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Isaiah 35:8 Or if they are fools, they shall not wander in it

Matthew 1:18-25

English Standard Version

The Birth of Jesus Christ

¹⁸Now the birth of ^(A)Jesus Christ^[a] took place in this way. ^(B)When his mother Mary had been betrothed^[b] to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child ^(C)from the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling ^(D)to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. ²⁰But as he considered these things, behold, ^(E)an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will bear a son, and ^(F)you shall call his name Jesus, ^(G)for he will save his people from their sins.” ²²^(H)All this took place ^(I)to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

²³^(J)“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name ^(K)Immanuel”

(which means, God ^(L)with us). ²⁴When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, ²⁵but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And ^(M)he called his name Jesus.

Read full chapter