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 O Lord, in distress they sought thee,
    they poured out a prayer[a]
    when thy chastening was upon them.
17 Like a woman with child,
    who writhes and cries out in her pangs,
    when she is near her time,
so were we because of thee, O Lord;
18     we were with child, we writhed,
    we have as it were brought forth wind.
We have wrought no deliverance in the earth,
    and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.
19 Thy dead shall live, their bodies[b] shall rise.
    O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy!
For thy dew is a dew of light,
    and on the land of the shades thou wilt let it fall.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 26:16 Heb uncertain
  2. Isaiah 26:19 Cn Compare Syr Tg: Heb my body