The Lord's Day of Vengeance

63 Who is this who comes from (A)Edom,
    in crimsoned garments from (B)Bozrah,
he who is splendid in his apparel,
    (C)marching in the greatness of his strength?
“It is I, speaking in righteousness,
    mighty to save.”

Why is your (D)apparel red,
    and your garments like his (E)who treads in the winepress?

(F)“I have trodden the winepress alone,
    (G)and from the peoples no one was with me;
I trod them in my anger
    and trampled them in my wrath;
their lifeblood[a] spattered on my garments,
    and stained all my apparel.
(H)For the day of vengeance was in my heart,
    and my year of redemption[b] had come.
I looked, but (I)there was no one to help;
    I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold;
so my own arm brought me salvation,
    and my wrath upheld me.
I trampled down the peoples in my anger;
    (J)I made them drunk in my wrath,
    and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”

The Lord's Mercy Remembered

I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord,
    the praises of the Lord,
according to all that the Lord has granted us,
    (K)and the great goodness to the house of Israel
that he has granted them according to his compassion,
    according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
For he said, “Surely they are my people,
    children who will not deal falsely.”
    And he became their Savior.
(L)In all their affliction he was afflicted,[c]
    and the angel of his presence saved them;
(M)in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
    (N)he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

10 (O)But they rebelled
    (P)and grieved his Holy Spirit;
therefore he turned to be their enemy,
    and himself fought against them.
11 Then he remembered (Q)the days of old,
    of Moses and his people.[d]
(R)Where is he who brought them up out of the sea
    with the shepherds of his flock?
Where is he who put in the midst of them
    his Holy Spirit,
12 who caused his glorious arm
    to go at the right hand of Moses,
(S)who divided the waters before them
    (T)to make for himself an everlasting name,
13     who led them through the depths?
Like a horse in the desert,
    they did not stumble.
14 Like livestock that go down into the valley,
    (U)the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.
So you led your people,
    (V)to make for yourself a glorious name.

Prayer for Mercy

15 (W)Look down from heaven and see,
    (X)from your holy and beautiful[e] habitation.
Where are (Y)your zeal and your might?
    The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion
    are held back from me.
16 For (Z)you are our Father,
    though Abraham does not know us,
    and Israel does not acknowledge us;
you, O Lord, are our Father,
    (AA)our Redeemer from of old is your name.
17 O Lord, why do you make us wander from your ways
    and (AB)harden our heart, so that we fear you not?
(AC)Return for the sake of your servants,
    the tribes of your heritage.
18 (AD)Your holy people held possession for a little while;[f]
    (AE)our adversaries have trampled down your sanctuary.
19 (AF)We have become like those over whom you have never ruled,
    like those who are not called by your name.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 63:3 Or their juice; also verse 6
  2. Isaiah 63:4 Or the year of my redeemed
  3. Isaiah 63:9 Or he did not afflict
  4. Isaiah 63:11 Or Then his people remembered the days of old, of Moses
  5. Isaiah 63:15 Or holy and glorious
  6. Isaiah 63:18 Or They have dispossessed your holy people for a little while

The Lord’s Day of Vengeance

63 Who is this coming from Edom(A)
in crimson-stained garments from Bozrah—
this one who is splendid in his apparel,
striding in his formidable[a] might?
It is I, proclaiming vindication,[b]
powerful to save.
Why are your clothes red,
and your garments like one who treads a winepress?(B)
I trampled the winepress alone,
and no one from the nations was with me.
I trampled them in my anger
and ground them underfoot in my fury;
their blood spattered my garments,
and all my clothes were stained.
For I planned the day of vengeance,(C)
and the year of my redemption[c] came.

I looked, but there was no one to help,(D)
and I was amazed that no one assisted;
so my arm accomplished victory for me,
and my wrath assisted me.

I crushed nations in my anger;
I made them drunk with my wrath(E)
and poured out their blood on the ground.(F)

Remembrance of Grace

I will make known the Lord’s faithful love
and the Lord’s praiseworthy acts,
because of all the Lord has done for us—
even the many good things
he has done for the house of Israel,
which he did for them based on his compassion
and the abundance of his faithful love.
He said, “They are indeed my people,
children who will not be disloyal,”
and he became their Savior.
In all their suffering, he suffered,[d](G)
and the angel of his presence saved them.
He redeemed them
because of his love and compassion;(H)
he lifted them up and carried them
all the days of the past.(I)
10 But they rebelled
and grieved his Holy Spirit.(J)
So he became their enemy
and fought against them.
11 Then he[e] remembered the days of the past,
the days of Moses and his people.
Where is he who brought them out of the sea
with the shepherds[f] of his flock?
Where is he who put his Holy Spirit among the flock?
12 He made his glorious strength
available at the right hand of Moses,
divided the water before them(K)
to make an eternal name for himself,
13 and led them through the depths
like a horse in the wilderness,
so that they did not stumble.

14 Like cattle that go down into the valley,
the Spirit of the Lord gave them[g] rest.
You led your people this way
to make a glorious name for yourself.

Israel’s Prayer

15 Look down from heaven and see(L)
from your lofty home—holy and beautiful.
Where is your zeal and your might?
Your yearning[h] and your compassion
are withheld from me.
16 Yet you are our Father,
even though Abraham does not know us
and Israel doesn’t recognize us.
You, Lord, are our Father;
your name is Our Redeemer(M)
from Ancient Times.
17 Why, Lord, do you make us stray from your ways?
You harden our hearts so we do not fear[i] you.(N)
Return, because of your servants,
the tribes of your heritage.
18 Your holy people had a possession[j]
for a little while,
but our enemies have trampled down
your sanctuary.(O)
19 We have become like those you never ruled,
like those who did not bear your name.(P)

Footnotes

  1. 63:1 Syr, Vg read apparel, striding forward in
  2. 63:1 Or righteousness
  3. 63:4 Or blood retribution
  4. 63:9 Alt Hb tradition reads did not suffer
  5. 63:11 Or they
  6. 63:11 LXX, Tg, Syr read shepherd
  7. 63:14 Lit him
  8. 63:15 Lit The agitation of your inward parts
  9. 63:17 Lit our heart from fearing
  10. 63:18 Or Your people possessed your holy place