Isaiah 51
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Blessings in Store for God’s People
51 Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord.
Look to the rock from which you were hewn
and to the quarry from which you were dug.(A)
2 Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah, who bore you,
for he was but one when I called him,
but I blessed him and made him many.(B)
3 For the Lord will comfort Zion;
he will comfort all her waste places
and will make her wilderness like Eden,
her desert like the garden of the Lord;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the voice of song.(C)
4 Listen to me, my people,
and give heed to me, my nation,
for a teaching will go out from me
and my justice for a light to the peoples.(D)
5 I will bring near my deliverance swiftly;
my salvation has gone out,
and my arms will rule the peoples;
the coastlands wait for me,
and for my arm they hope.(E)
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens
and look at the earth beneath,
for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and those who live on it will die like gnats,[a]
but my salvation will be forever,
and my deliverance will never be ended.(F)
7 Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
you people who have my teaching in your hearts;
do not fear the reproach of others,
and do not be dismayed when they revile you.(G)
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment,
and the worm will eat them like wool,
but my deliverance will be forever
and my salvation to all generations.(H)
9 Awake, awake, put on strength,
O arm of the Lord!
Awake, as in days of old,
the generations of long ago!
Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,
who pierced the dragon?(I)
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep;
who made the depths of the sea a way
for the redeemed to cross over?(J)
11 So the ransomed of the Lord shall return
and come to Zion with rejoicing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.(K)
12 I, I am he who comforts you;
why then are you afraid of a mere mortal who must die,
a human being who fades like grass?(L)
13 You have forgotten the Lord, your Maker,
who stretched out the heavens
and laid the foundations of the earth.
You fear continually all day long
because of the fury of the oppressor,
who is bent on destruction.
But where is the fury of the oppressor?(M)
14 The oppressed shall speedily be released;
they shall not die and go down to the Pit,
nor shall they lack bread.(N)
15 For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of hosts is his name.(O)
16 I have put my words in your mouth
and hidden you in the shadow of my hand,
stretching out[b] the heavens
and laying the foundations of the earth
and saying to Zion, “You are my people.”(P)
17 Rouse yourself, rouse yourself!
Stand up, O Jerusalem,
you who have drunk at the hand of the Lord
the cup of his wrath,
who have drunk to the dregs
the cup of staggering.(Q)
18 There is no one to guide her
among all the children she has borne;
there is no one to take her by the hand
among all the children she has brought up.(R)
19 These two things have befallen you
—who will grieve with you?—
devastation and destruction, famine and sword.
Who will comfort you?[c](S)
20 Your children have fainted;
they lie at the head of every street
like an antelope in a net;
they are full of the wrath of the Lord,
the rebuke of your God.(T)
21 Therefore hear this, you who are wounded,[d]
who are drunk but not with wine:(U)
22 Thus says your Sovereign, the Lord,
your God who pleads the cause of his people:
See, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;
you shall drink no more
from the cup of my wrath.(V)
23 And I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,
who have said to you,
“Bow down, that we may walk on you,”
and you have made your back like the ground
and like the street for them to walk on.(W)
Isaiah 51
Christian Standard Bible
Salvation for Zion
51 Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look to Abraham your father,
and to Sarah who gave birth to you.
When I called him, he was only one;
I blessed him and made him many.(A)
3 For the Lord will comfort Zion;(B)
he will comfort all her waste places,
and he will make her wilderness like Eden,(C)
and her desert like the garden of the Lord.(D)
Joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and melodious song.
4 Pay attention to me, my people,
and listen to me, my nation;
for instruction will come from me,
and my justice for a light to the nations.(E)
I will bring it about quickly.
5 My righteousness is near,(F)
my salvation appears,
and my arms will bring justice to the nations.(G)
The coasts and islands will put their hope in me,
and they will look to my strength.[a]
6 Look up to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and its inhabitants will die like gnats.[b](H)
But my salvation will last forever,(I)
and my righteousness will never be shattered.
7 Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is my instruction:(J)
do not fear disgrace by men,
and do not be shattered by their taunts.
8 For moths will devour them like a garment,(K)
and worms will eat them like wool.(L)
But my righteousness will last forever,
and my salvation for all generations.
9 Wake up, wake up!
Arm of the Lord, clothe yourself with strength.
Wake up as in days past,
as in generations long ago.
Wasn’t it you who hacked Rahab to pieces,(M)
who pierced the sea monster?(N)
10 Wasn’t it you who dried up the sea,(O)
the waters of the great deep,
who made the sea-bed into a road
for the redeemed to pass over?(P)
11 And the ransomed of the Lord will return(Q)
and come to Zion with singing,
crowned with unending joy.
Joy and gladness will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee.
12 I—I am the one who comforts you.
Who are you that you should fear humans who die,(R)
or a son of man who is given up like grass?(S)
13 But you have forgotten the Lord, your Maker,
who stretched out the heavens
and laid the foundations of the earth.(T)
You are in constant dread all day long
because of the fury of the oppressor,
who has set himself to destroy.
But where is the fury of the oppressor?(U)
14 The prisoner[c] is soon to be set free;
he will not die and go to the Pit,
and his food will not be lacking.
15 For I am the Lord your God
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar(V)—
his name is the Lord of Armies.
16 I have put my words in your mouth,(W)
and covered you in the shadow of my hand,(X)
in order to plant[d] the heavens,
to found the earth,
and to say to Zion, “You are my people.”
17 Wake yourself, wake yourself up!
Stand up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk the cup of his fury(Y)
from the Lord’s hand;
you who have drunk the goblet to the dregs—
the cup that causes people to stagger.
18 There is no one to guide her
among all the children she has raised;
there is no one to take hold of her hand
among all the offspring she has brought up.
19 These two things have happened to you:(Z)
devastation and destruction,
famine and sword.
Who will grieve for you?
How can I[e] comfort you?
20 Your children have fainted;
they lie at the head of every street
like an antelope in a net.
They are full of the Lord’s fury,
the rebuke of your God.
21 So listen to this, suffering
and drunken one—but not with wine.(AA)
22 This is what your Lord says—
the Lord, even your God,
who defends his people(AB)—
“Look, I have removed from your hand
the cup that causes staggering;
that goblet, the cup of my fury.
You will never drink it again.
23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,
who said to you,(AC)
‘Lie down, so we can walk over you.’
You made your back like the ground,
and like a street for those who walk on it.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.