Isaiah 50

New Living Translation

50 This is what the Lord says:

“Was your mother sent away because I divorced her?
    Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors?
No, you were sold because of your sins.
    And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.
²Why was no one there when I came?
    Why didn’t anyone answer when I called?
Is it because I have no power to rescue?
    No, that is not the reason!
For I can speak to the sea and make it dry up!
    I can turn rivers into deserts covered with dying fish.
³I dress the skies in darkness,
    covering them with clothes of mourning.”

The Lord’s Obedient Servant

⁴The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom,
    so that I know how to comfort the weary.
Morning by morning he wakens me
    and opens my understanding to his will.
⁵The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me,
    and I have listened.
    I have not rebelled or turned away.
⁶I offered my back to those who beat me
    and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard.
I did not hide my face
    from mockery and spitting.

⁷Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,
    I will not be disgraced.
Therefore, I have set my face like a stone,
    determined to do his will.
    And I know that I will not be put to shame.
⁸He who gives me justice is near.
    Who will dare to bring charges against me now?
Where are my accusers?
    Let them appear!
⁹See, the Sovereign Lord is on my side!
    Who will declare me guilty?
All my enemies will be destroyed
    like old clothes that have been eaten by moths!

¹⁰Who among you fears the Lord
    and obeys his servant?
If you are walking in darkness,
    without a ray of light,
trust in the Lord
    and rely on your God.
¹¹But watch out, you who live in your own light
    and warm yourselves by your own fires.
This is the reward you will receive from me:
    You will soon fall down in great torment.

Isaiah 50

Contemporary English Version

The Lord's Power To Punish

50 ^(A) The Lord says, “Children,
I didn't divorce your mother
    or sell you to pay debts;
I divorced her and sold you
    because of your sins.
²I came and called out,
    but you didn't answer.
Have I lost my power
    to rescue and save?
At my command oceans and rivers
    turn into deserts;
fish rot and stink
    for lack of water.
³I make the sky turn dark
like the sackcloth
    you wear at funerals.”

God's Servant Must Suffer

⁴The Lord God gives me
the right words
    to encourage the weary.
Each morning he awakens me
    eager to learn his teaching;
⁵he made me willing to listen
    and not rebel or run away.

⁶^(B) I let them beat my back
    and pull out my beard.
I didn't turn aside
when they insulted me
    and spit in my face.
⁷But the Lord God keeps me
    from being disgraced.
So I refuse to give up,
because I know
    God will never let me down.

⁸^(C) My protector is nearby;
no one can stand here
    to accuse me of wrong.
⁹The Lord God will help me
    and prove I am innocent.
My accusers will wear out
    like moth-eaten clothes.

¹⁰None of you respect the Lord
    or obey his servant.
You walk in the dark
    instead of the light;
you don't trust the name
    of the Lord your God.^[a]
¹¹Go ahead and walk in the light
    of the fires you have set.^[b]
But with his own hand,
the Lord will punish you
    and make you suffer.

Footnotes

50.10 God: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 10.
50.11 Go … set: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Isaiah 50 New Living Translation