Isaiah 49:14-21
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”(A)
15 Can a woman forget her nursing child
or show no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even these might forget,
yet I will not forget you.(B)
16 See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before me.(C)
17 Your builders outdo your destroyers,[a]
and those who laid you waste go away from you.(D)
18 Lift up your eyes all around and see;
they all gather; they come to you.
As I live, says the Lord,
you shall put all of them on like an ornament,
and like a bride you shall bind them on.(E)
19 For your wastelands, your desolate places,
and your devastated land—
now you will be too crowded for your inhabitants,
and those who swallowed you up will be far away.(F)
20 The children born in the time of your bereavement
will yet say in your hearing:
“The place is too crowded for me;
make room for me to settle.”(G)
21 Then you will say in your heart,
“Who has borne me these?
I was bereaved and barren,
exiled and put away—
so who has reared these?
I was left all alone—
where, then, have these come from?”(H)
Footnotes
- 49.17 Or Your children come swiftly; your destroyers
Isaiah 49:14-21
Evangelical Heritage Version
The Faithful Few Are Not Forgotten
14 But Zion said, “The Lord has abandoned me.
The Lord has forgotten me.”
15 Can a woman forget her nursing child
and not show mercy to the son from her womb?
Even if these women could forget,
I will never forget you.
16 Look, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands.
Your walls are never out of my sight.
17 Your children[a] are hurrying back.
Those who destroyed and devastated you will depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes all around and see!
All of them are gathered. They are coming to you.
As surely as I live, declares the Lord,
all of them are like jewelry that you will put on.
You will wear them like a bride.
19 Though your land was wasted and desolate and devastated,
now it will be too small for its inhabitants.
Then those who are swallowing you will be far from you.
20 The children you lost will say this into your ears once again,
“The place is too small for me.
Make room for me so that I can settle there.”
21 Then you will say in your heart,
“Who has given birth to these for me?
I had lost my children and could have no more.
I was exiled and divorced.
So who raised these?
I was left all by myself.
Where did these come from?”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 49:17 Hebrew variant your builders
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.