Isaiah 49:8-13
New American Standard Bible
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At a (A)favorable time I answered You,
And on a day of salvation I helped You;
And I will (B)watch over You and (C)make You a covenant of the people,
To [a](D)restore the land, to give as inheritances the deserted hereditary lands;
9 Saying to those who are (E)bound, ‘[b]Go free,’
To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
They will feed along the roads,
And their pasture will be on all (F)bare heights.
10 They will (G)not hunger or thirst,
Nor will the scorching (H)heat or sun strike them down;
For (I)He who has compassion on them will (J)lead them,
And He will guide them to (K)springs of water.
11 I will make all (L)My mountains a road,
And My (M)highways will be raised up.
12 Behold, these will come (N)from afar;
And behold, these will come from the (O)north and from the west,
And these from the land of Aswan.”
13 (P)Shout for joy, you heavens! And rejoice, you earth!
Break forth into joyful shouting, mountains!
For the (Q)Lord has comforted His people
And will (R)have compassion on His afflicted.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 49:8 Lit establish
- Isaiah 49:9 Lit Go out
Isaiah 49:8-13
New English Translation
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At the time I decide to show my favor, I will respond to you;
in the day of deliverance I will help you;
I will protect you[a] and make you a covenant mediator for people,[b]
to rebuild[c] the land[d]
and to reassign the desolate property.
9 You will say[e] to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’
and to those who are in dark dungeons,[f] ‘Emerge.’[g]
They will graze beside the roads;
on all the slopes they will find pasture.
10 They will not be hungry or thirsty;
the sun’s oppressive heat will not beat down on them,[h]
for one who has compassion on them will guide them;
he will lead them to springs of water.
11 I will make all my mountains into a road;
I will construct my roadways.”
12 Look, they come from far away!
Look, some come from the north and west,
and others from the land of Sinim.[i]
13 Shout for joy, O sky![j]
Rejoice, O earth!
Let the mountains give a joyful shout!
For the Lord consoles his people
and shows compassion to the[k] oppressed.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 49:8 tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצָר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצָר (yatsar, “form”).
- Isaiah 49:8 tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (berit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. Here עָם (ʿam, “people”) appears to refer to Israel. See the note at 42:6.
- Isaiah 49:8 tn The Hiphil of קוּם (qum, “arise”) is probably used here in the sense of “rebuild.”
- Isaiah 49:8 tn The “land” probably stands by metonymy for the ruins within it.
- Isaiah 49:9 tn Heb “to say.” In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct is subordinated to what precedes.
- Isaiah 49:9 tn Heb “in darkness” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “the prisoners of darkness.”
- Isaiah 49:9 tn Heb “show yourselves” (so ASV, NAB, NASB).
- Isaiah 49:10 tn Heb “and the heat and the sun will not strike them.” In Isa 35:7, its only other occurrence in the OT, שָׁרָב (sharav) stands parallel to “parched ground” and in contrast to “pool.” In later Hebrew and Aramaic it refers to “dry heat, heat of the sun” (Jastrow 1627 s.v.). Here it likely has this nuance and forms a hendiadys with “sun.”
- Isaiah 49:12 tc The MT reads “Sinim” here; the Dead Sea Scrolls read “Syene,” a location in Egypt associated with modern Aswan. A number of recent translations adopt this reading: “Syene” (NAB, NRSV); “Aswan” (NIV); “Egypt” (NLT).sn The precise location of the land of Sinim is uncertain, but since the north and west are mentioned in the previous line, it was a probably located in the distant east or south.
- Isaiah 49:13 tn Or “O heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
- Isaiah 49:13 tn Heb “his” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
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