16 Lord, they sought You (A)in distress;
They [a]could only whisper a prayer,
Your discipline was upon them.
17 (B)As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth,
She writhes and cries out in her labor pains;
This is how we were before You, Lord.
18 We were pregnant, we writhed in labor,
We (C)gave birth, as it seems, only to wind.
We could not accomplish deliverance for the earth,
Nor were (D)inhabitants of the world [b]born.
19 Your (E)dead will live;
[c]Their corpses will rise.
You who lie in the dust, (F)awake and shout for joy,
For your dew is as the dew of the [d]dawn,
And the earth will [e]give birth to the [f]departed spirits.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 26:16 Lit sound forth a whisper
  2. Isaiah 26:18 Lit fallen
  3. Isaiah 26:19 As in some ancient versions; MT My
  4. Isaiah 26:19 Lit lights
  5. Isaiah 26:19 Lit cause to fall
  6. Isaiah 26:19 Or shades

16 Lord, they[a] came to you in distress;
    they poured out their secret[b] prayer
        when your chastenings were[c] afflicting[d] them.
17 Just as a pregnant woman writhes
    and cries out during her labor
when she is about to give birth,
    so were we because of you, Lord.
18 We were pregnant, writhing in pain,
    but we gave birth only to wind.
We have not won your[e] victory on earth,
nor have the inhabitants of the world been born.”

The Resurrection of the Dead

19 “But your dead will live; their bodies will rise.
Those who live in the dust will wake up and shout for joy![f]
For your dew is like the dew of dawn,
and the earth will give birth to the dead.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 26:16 So 1QIsaa MT; MTmss LXXmss read we; LXX reads I remembered you
  2. Isaiah 26:16 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsab MT read out a magical
  3. Isaiah 26:16 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read your chastening was
  4. Isaiah 26:16 Lit. upon
  5. Isaiah 26:18 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT lacks your
  6. Isaiah 26:19 So 1QIsaa; MT reads Wake up and shout for joy, you; LXX reads Those in the dust will rejoice, for