Isaiah 60
New English Translation
Zion’s Future Splendor
60 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor[a] of the Lord shines on you!
2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers[b] the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor[c] appears over you.
3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
4 Look all around you![d]
They all gather and come to you—
your sons come from far away,
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
5 Then you will look and smile,[e]
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride.[f]
For the riches of distant lands[g] will belong to you,
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
6 Camel caravans will cover your roads,[h]
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba[i] will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord.[j]
7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices.[k]
They will go up on my altar acceptably,[l]
and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.
8 Who are these who float along[m] like a cloud,
who fly like doves to their shelters?[n]
9 Indeed, the coastlands[o] look eagerly for me;
the large ships[p] are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God,[q]
the Holy One of Israel,[r] for he has bestowed honor on you.
10 Foreigners will rebuild your walls;
their kings will serve you.
Even though I struck you down in my anger,
I will restore my favor and have compassion on you.[s]
11 Your gates will remain open at all times;
they will not be shut during the day or at night,
so that the wealth of nations may be delivered,
with their kings leading the way.[t]
12 Indeed,[u] nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish;
such nations will definitely be destroyed.[v]
13 The splendor of Lebanon will come to you,
its evergreens, firs, and cypresses together,
to beautify my palace;[w]
I will bestow honor on my throne room.[x]
14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;
all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.
They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’[y]
15 You were once abandoned
and despised, with no one passing through,
but I will make you[z] a permanent source of pride
and joy to coming generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations;
you will nurse at the breasts of kings.[aa]
Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your Deliverer,
your Protector,[ab] the Powerful One of Jacob.[ac]
17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold;
instead of iron, I will bring you silver;
instead of wood, I will bring you[ad] bronze;
instead of stones, I will bring you[ae] iron.
I will make prosperity[af] your overseer,
and vindication your sovereign ruler.[ag]
18 Sounds of violence will no longer be heard in your land,
or the sounds of[ah] destruction and devastation within your borders.
You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’
and your gates, ‘Praise.’
19 The sun will no longer supply light for you by day,
nor will the moon’s brightness shine on you;
the Lord will be your permanent source of light—
the splendor of your God will shine upon you.[ai]
20 Your sun will no longer set;
your moon will not disappear;[aj]
the Lord will be your permanent source of light;
your time[ak] of sorrow will be over.
21 All your people will be godly;[al]
they will possess the land permanently.
I will plant them like a shoot;
they will be the product of my labor,
through whom I reveal my splendor.[am]
22 The least of you will multiply into[an] a thousand;
the smallest of you will become a large nation.
When the right time comes, I the Lord will quickly do this!”[ao]
Footnotes
- Isaiah 60:1 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).
- Isaiah 60:2 tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
- Isaiah 60:2 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”
- Isaiah 60:4 tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”
- Isaiah 60:5 tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
- Isaiah 60:5 tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”
- Isaiah 60:5 tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.
- Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”
- Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”
- Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”
- Isaiah 60:7 tn Heb “will serve you,” i.e., be available as sacrifices (see the next line). Another option is to understood these “rams” as symbolic of leaders who will be subject to the people of Zion. See v. 10.
- Isaiah 60:7 tc Heb “they will go up on acceptance [on] my altar.” Some have suggested that the preposition עַל (ʿal) is dittographic (note the preceding יַעֲלוּ [yaʿalu]). Consequently, the form should be emended to לְרָצוֹן (leratson, “acceptably”; see BDB 953 s.v. רָצוֹן). However, the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has both לרצון followed by the preposition על, which would argue against deleting the preposition. As the above translation seeks to demonstrate, the preposition עַל (ʿal) indicates a norm (“in accordance with acceptance” or “acceptably”; IBHS 218 §11.2.13e, n. 111), and the “altar” functions as an objective accusative with a verb of motion (cf. Gen 49:4; Lev 2:2; Num 13:17; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:534, n. 14).
- Isaiah 60:8 tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.”
- Isaiah 60:8 tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.
- Isaiah 60:9 tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”
- Isaiah 60:9 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.
- Isaiah 60:9 tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
- Isaiah 60:9 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
- Isaiah 60:10 tn Heb “in my favor I will have compassion on you.”
- Isaiah 60:11 tn Or “led in procession.” The participle is passive.
- Isaiah 60:12 tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); TEV “But.”
- Isaiah 60:12 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
- Isaiah 60:13 tn Or “holy place, sanctuary.”
- Isaiah 60:13 tn Heb “the place of my feet.” See Ezek 43:7, where the Lord’s throne is called the “place of the soles of my feet.”
- Isaiah 60:14 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
- Isaiah 60:15 tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.”
- Isaiah 60:16 sn The nations and kings are depicted as a mother nursing her children. Restored Zion will be nourished by them as she receives their wealth as tribute.
- Isaiah 60:16 tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.
- Isaiah 60:16 sn See 1:24 and 49:26.
- Isaiah 60:17 tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines).
- Isaiah 60:17 tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the first two lines of the verse).
- Isaiah 60:17 tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions).
- Isaiah 60:17 tn The plural indicates degree. The language is ironic; in the past Zion was ruled by oppressive tyrants, but now personified prosperity and vindication will be the only things that will “dominate” the city.
- Isaiah 60:18 tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Isaiah 60:19 tn Heb “and your God for your splendor.”
- Isaiah 60:20 sn In this verse “sun” and “moon” refer to the Lord’s light, which will replace the sun and moon (see v. 19). Light here symbolizes the restoration of divine blessing and prosperity in conjunction with the Lord’s presence. See 30:26.
- Isaiah 60:20 tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
- Isaiah 60:21 tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”
- Isaiah 60:21 tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”
- Isaiah 60:22 tn Heb “will become” (so NASB, NIV).
- Isaiah 60:22 tn Heb “I, the Lord, in its time, I will quickly do it.”
Isaiah 60
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Ingathering of the Dispersed
60 Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.(A)
2 For darkness shall cover the earth
and thick darkness the peoples,
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.(B)
3 Nations shall come to your light
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.(C)
4 Lift up your eyes and look around;
they all gather together; they come to you;
your sons shall come from far away,
and your daughters shall be carried in their nurses’ arms.(D)
5 Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and rejoice,[a]
because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you;
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.(E)
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense
and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.(F)
7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you;
they shall be acceptable on my altar,[b]
and I will glorify my glorious house.(G)
8 Who are these that fly like a cloud
and like doves to their windows?
9 For the coastlands shall wait for me,
the ships of Tarshish first,
to bring your children from far away,
their silver and gold with them,
for the name of the Lord your God
and for the Holy One of Israel,
because he has glorified you.(H)
10 Foreigners shall build up your walls,
and their kings shall minister to you,
for in my wrath I struck you down,
but in my favor I have had mercy on you.(I)
11 Your gates shall always be open;
day and night they shall not be shut,
so that nations shall bring you their wealth,
with their kings led in procession.(J)
12 For the nation and kingdom
that will not serve you shall perish;
those nations shall be utterly laid waste.(K)
13 The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,
the cypress, the plane, and the pine,
to beautify the place of my sanctuary,
and I will glorify where my feet rest.(L)
14 The descendants of those who oppressed you
shall come bending low to you,
and all who despised you
shall bow down at your feet;
they shall call you the City of the Lord,
the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.(M)
15 Whereas you have been forsaken and hated,
with no one passing through,
I will make you majestic forever,
a joy from age to age.(N)
16 You shall suck the milk of nations;
you shall suck the breasts of kings,
and you shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior
and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.(O)
17 Instead of bronze I will bring gold;
instead of iron I will bring silver;
instead of wood, bronze;
instead of stones, iron.
I will appoint Peace as your overseer
and Righteousness as your taskmaster.
18 Violence shall no more be heard in your land,
devastation or destruction within your borders;
you shall call your walls Salvation
and your gates Praise.(P)
God the Glory of Zion
19 The sun shall no longer be
your light by day,
nor for brightness shall the moon
give light to you by night,[c]
but the Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.(Q)
20 Your sun shall no more go down
or your moon withdraw itself,
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your days of mourning shall be ended.(R)
21 Your people shall all be righteous;
they shall possess the land forever.
They are the shoot that I planted, the work of my hands,
so that I might be glorified.(S)
22 The least of them shall become a clan
and the smallest one a mighty nation;
I am the Lord;
in its time I will accomplish it quickly.(T)
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