Isaiah 54 Contemporary English Version

A Promise of the Lord's Protection

54 ^(A) Sing and shout,
even though you have never
    had children!
The Lord has promised that you
    will have more children
than someone married
    for a long time.
²Make your tents larger!
Spread out the tent pegs;
    fasten them firmly.
³You and your descendants
will take over the land
    of other nations.
You will settle in towns
    that are now in ruins.

⁴Don't be afraid or ashamed
and don't be discouraged.
    You won't be disappointed.
Forget how sinful you were
    when you were young;
stop feeling ashamed
    for being left a widow.
⁵The Lord All-Powerful,
the Holy God of Israel,
    rules all the earth.
He is your Creator and husband,
    and he will rescue you.

⁶You were like a young wife,
    brokenhearted and crying
because her husband
    had divorced her.
But the Lord your God says,
    “I am taking you back!
⁷I rejected you for a while,
but with love and tenderness
    I will embrace you again.
⁸For a while, I turned away
    in furious anger.
Now I will have mercy
    and love you forever!
I, your protector and Lord,
    make this promise.”

The Lord Promises Lasting Peace

⁹^(B) I once promised Noah that I
would never again destroy
    the earth by a flood.
Now I have promised that I
will never again get angry
    and punish you.
¹⁰^(C) Every mountain and hill
    may disappear.
But I will always be kind
    and merciful to you;
I won't break my agreement
    to give your nation peace.

The New Jerusalem

¹¹^(D)^(E) Jerusalem, you are sad
and discouraged,
    tossed around in a storm.
But I, the Lord,
will rebuild your city
    with precious stones;^[a]
for your foundation
    I will use blue sapphires.
¹²Your fortresses^[b]
    will be built of rubies,
your gates of jewels,
    and your walls of gems.
¹³^(F) I will teach your children
    and make them successful.

¹⁴You will be built on fairness
    with no fears of injustice;
every one of your worries
    will be taken far from you.
¹⁵I will never send anyone
    to attack your city,
and you will make prisoners
    of those who do attack.
¹⁶Don't forget that I created
metalworkers who make weapons
    over burning coals.
I also created armies
    that can bring destruction.
¹⁷Weapons made to attack you
    won't be successful;
words spoken against you
    won't hurt at all.

My servants, Jerusalem is yours!
I, the Lord, promise
to bless you with victory.

Footnotes

54.11 with precious stones: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
54.12 fortresses: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.