The Future Glory of Zion

35 The (A)wilderness and the [a]wasteland shall be glad for them,
And the (B)desert[b] shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;
(C)It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,
Even with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
The excellence of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the (D)glory of the Lord,
The excellency of our God.

(E)Strengthen the [c]weak hands,
And make firm the [d]feeble knees.
Say to those who are fearful-hearted,
“Be strong, do not fear!
Behold, your God will come with (F)vengeance,
With the recompense of God;
He will come and (G)save you.”

Then the (H)eyes of the blind shall be opened,
And (I)the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
Then the (J)lame shall leap like a deer,
And the (K)tongue of the dumb sing.
For (L)waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,
And streams in the desert.
The parched ground shall become a pool,
And the thirsty land springs of water;
In (M)the habitation of jackals, where each lay,
There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

A (N)highway shall be there, and a road,
And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.
(O)The unclean shall not pass over it,
But it shall be for others.
Whoever walks the road, although a fool,
Shall not go astray.
(P)No lion shall be there,
Nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it;
It shall not be found there.
But the redeemed shall walk there,
10 And the (Q)ransomed of the Lord shall return,
And come to Zion with singing,
With everlasting joy on their heads.
They shall obtain joy and gladness,
And (R)sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 35:1 desert
  2. Isaiah 35:1 Heb. arabah
  3. Isaiah 35:3 Lit. sinking
  4. Isaiah 35:3 tottering or stumbling

The Ransomed Return to Zion

35 Wilderness and dry land shall be glad,[a]
    and desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus.
It shall blossom abundantly,
    and it shall rejoice indeed with rejoicing and exulting.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
    the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They are the ones who[b] shall see the glory of Yahweh,
    the majesty of our God.
Strengthen the weak hands
    and make the staggering knees firm.

Say to those who are hasty of heart,

“Be strong; you must not fear!
    Look! your God will come with vengeance,
with divine retribution.[c]
    He is the one who[d] will come and save you.”
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
    and the ears of the deaf shall be opened.
Then the lame shall leap like the deer,
    and the tongue of the dumb shall sing for joy,
for waters shall break forth in the wilderness
    and streams in the desert.
And the parched ground shall become a pool,
    and the thirsty ground springs of water.
Her resting place is in a settlement of jackals;
    the grass shall become like reeds[e] and rushes.[f]
And a highway shall be there, and a way,
    and it shall be called the way of holiness.
The unclean shall not travel through it,
    but[g] it is for them, he who walks on the way;
    and fools shall not wander about.
No lion shall be there,
    and no ferocious wild beast shall go up it.
It shall not be found there,
    but[h] the redeemed shall walk there.
10 And the ransomed of Yahweh shall return,
    and they shall come to Zion with rejoicing.
And everlasting joy shall be on their head;
    joy and gladness shall overtake them,
        and sorrow and sighing shall flee.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 35:1 The Hebrew has an extra “them,” probably from an accidental of the first letter of the next word
  2. Isaiah 35:2 Literally “they”
  3. Isaiah 35:4 Literally “the retribution of gods”
  4. Isaiah 35:4 Literally “he”
  5. Isaiah 35:7 Hebrew “reed”
  6. Isaiah 35:7 Hebrew “rush”
  7. Isaiah 35:8 Or “and”
  8. Isaiah 35:9 Or “and”