The Glory of Zion

60 “Arise,(A) shine, for your light(B) has come,
    and the glory(C) of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness(D) covers the earth
    and thick darkness(E) is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.
Nations(F) will come to your light,(G)
    and kings(H) to the brightness of your dawn.

“Lift up your eyes and look about you:
    All assemble(I) and come to you;
your sons come from afar,(J)
    and your daughters(K) are carried on the hip.(L)
Then you will look and be radiant,(M)
    your heart will throb and swell with joy;(N)
the wealth(O) on the seas will be brought to you,
    to you the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels(P) will cover your land,
    young camels of Midian(Q) and Ephah.(R)
And all from Sheba(S) will come,
    bearing gold and incense(T)
    and proclaiming the praise(U) of the Lord.
All Kedar’s(V) flocks will be gathered to you,
    the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
they will be accepted as offerings(W) on my altar,(X)
    and I will adorn my glorious temple.(Y)

“Who are these(Z) that fly along like clouds,(AA)
    like doves to their nests?
Surely the islands(AB) look to me;
    in the lead are the ships of Tarshish,[a](AC)
bringing(AD) your children from afar,
    with their silver and gold,(AE)
to the honor(AF) of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One(AG) of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendor.(AH)

10 “Foreigners(AI) will rebuild your walls,
    and their kings(AJ) will serve you.
Though in anger I struck you,
    in favor(AK) I will show you compassion.(AL)
11 Your gates(AM) will always stand open,
    they will never be shut, day or night,
so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations(AN)
    their kings(AO) led in triumphal procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve(AP) you will perish;
    it will be utterly ruined.(AQ)

13 “The glory of Lebanon(AR) will come to you,
    the juniper, the fir and the cypress together,(AS)
to adorn my sanctuary;(AT)
    and I will glorify the place for my feet.(AU)
14 The children of your oppressors(AV) will come bowing before you;
    all who despise you will bow down(AW) at your feet
and will call you the City(AX) of the Lord,
    Zion(AY) of the Holy One(AZ) of Israel.

15 “Although you have been forsaken(BA) and hated,
    with no one traveling(BB) through,
I will make you the everlasting pride(BC)
    and the joy(BD) of all generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations
    and be nursed(BE) at royal breasts.
Then you will know(BF) that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(BG)
    your Redeemer,(BH) the Mighty One of Jacob.(BI)
17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,(BJ)
    and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,
    and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace(BK) your governor
    and well-being your ruler.(BL)
18 No longer will violence(BM) be heard in your land,
    nor ruin or destruction(BN) within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation(BO)
    and your gates Praise.(BP)
19 The sun will no more be your light by day,
    nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,(BQ)
    and your God will be your glory.(BR)
20 Your sun(BS) will never set again,
    and your moon will wane no more;
the Lord will be your everlasting light,
    and your days of sorrow(BT) will end.
21 Then all your people will be righteous(BU)
    and they will possess(BV) the land forever.
They are the shoot I have planted,(BW)
    the work of my hands,(BX)
    for the display of my splendor.(BY)
22 The least of you will become a thousand,
    the smallest a mighty nation.(BZ)
I am the Lord;
    in its time I will do this swiftly.”(CA)

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

61 The Spirit(CB) of the Sovereign Lord(CC) is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed(CD) me
    to proclaim good news(CE) to the poor.(CF)
He has sent me to bind up(CG) the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom(CH) for the captives(CI)
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,[b]
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor(CJ)
    and the day of vengeance(CK) of our God,
to comfort(CL) all who mourn,(CM)
    and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown(CN) of beauty
    instead of ashes,(CO)
the oil(CP) of joy
    instead of mourning,(CQ)
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
    a planting(CR) of the Lord
    for the display of his splendor.(CS)

They will rebuild the ancient ruins(CT)
    and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
    that have been devastated for generations.
Strangers(CU) will shepherd your flocks;
    foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
And you will be called priests(CV) of the Lord,
    you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth(CW) of nations,
    and in their riches you will boast.

Instead of your shame(CX)
    you will receive a double(CY) portion,
and instead of disgrace
    you will rejoice in your inheritance.
And so you will inherit(CZ) a double portion in your land,
    and everlasting joy(DA) will be yours.

“For I, the Lord, love justice;(DB)
    I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
In my faithfulness I will reward my people
    and make an everlasting covenant(DC) with them.
Their descendants(DD) will be known among the nations
    and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
    that they are a people the Lord has blessed.”(DE)

10 I delight greatly in the Lord;
    my soul rejoices(DF) in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
    and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,(DG)
as a bridegroom adorns his head(DH) like a priest,
    and as a bride(DI) adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up
    and a garden(DJ) causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness(DK)
    and praise spring up before all nations.

Zion’s New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,(DL)
    for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,
till her vindication(DM) shines out like the dawn,(DN)
    her salvation(DO) like a blazing torch.
The nations(DP) will see your vindication,
    and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name(DQ)
    that the mouth of the Lord will bestow.
You will be a crown(DR) of splendor in the Lord’s hand,
    a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
No longer will they call you Deserted,(DS)
    or name your land Desolate.(DT)
But you will be called Hephzibah,[c](DU)
    and your land Beulah[d];
for the Lord will take delight(DV) in you,
    and your land will be married.(DW)
As a young man marries a young woman,
    so will your Builder marry you;
as a bridegroom(DX) rejoices over his bride,
    so will your God rejoice(DY) over you.

I have posted watchmen(DZ) on your walls, Jerusalem;
    they will never be silent day or night.
You who call on the Lord,
    give yourselves no rest,(EA)
and give him no rest(EB) till he establishes Jerusalem
    and makes her the praise(EC) of the earth.

The Lord has sworn(ED) by his right hand
    and by his mighty arm:
“Never again will I give your grain(EE)
    as food for your enemies,
and never again will foreigners drink the new wine
    for which you have toiled;
but those who harvest it will eat(EF) it
    and praise the Lord,(EG)
and those who gather the grapes will drink it
    in the courts of my sanctuary.”(EH)

10 Pass through, pass through the gates!(EI)
    Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!(EJ)
    Remove the stones.
Raise a banner(EK) for the nations.

11 The Lord has made proclamation
    to the ends of the earth:(EL)
“Say to Daughter Zion,(EM)
    ‘See, your Savior comes!(EN)
See, his reward is with him,
    and his recompense accompanies him.’”(EO)
12 They will be called(EP) the Holy People,(EQ)
    the Redeemed(ER) of the Lord;
and you will be called Sought After,
    the City No Longer Deserted.(ES)

God’s Day of Vengeance and Redemption

63 Who is this coming from Edom,(ET)
    from Bozrah,(EU) with his garments stained crimson?(EV)
Who is this, robed in splendor,
    striding forward in the greatness of his strength?(EW)

“It is I, proclaiming victory,
    mighty to save.”(EX)

Why are your garments red,
    like those of one treading the winepress?(EY)

“I have trodden the winepress(EZ) alone;
    from the nations no one was with me.
I trampled(FA) them in my anger
    and trod them down in my wrath;(FB)
their blood spattered my garments,(FC)
    and I stained all my clothing.
It was for me the day of vengeance;(FD)
    the year for me to redeem had come.
I looked, but there was no one(FE) to help,
    I was appalled that no one gave support;
so my own arm(FF) achieved salvation for me,
    and my own wrath sustained me.(FG)
I trampled(FH) the nations in my anger;
    in my wrath I made them drunk(FI)
    and poured their blood(FJ) on the ground.”

Praise and Prayer

I will tell of the kindnesses(FK) of the Lord,
    the deeds for which he is to be praised,
    according to all the Lord has done for us—
yes, the many good things(FL)
    he has done for Israel,
    according to his compassion(FM) and many kindnesses.
He said, “Surely they are my people,(FN)
    children who will be true to me”;
    and so he became their Savior.(FO)
In all their distress he too was distressed,
    and the angel(FP) of his presence(FQ) saved them.[e]
In his love and mercy he redeemed(FR) them;
    he lifted them up and carried(FS) them
    all the days of old.(FT)
10 Yet they rebelled(FU)
    and grieved his Holy Spirit.(FV)
So he turned and became their enemy(FW)
    and he himself fought(FX) against them.

11 Then his people recalled[f] the days of old,
    the days of Moses and his people—
where is he who brought them through the sea,(FY)
    with the shepherd of his flock?(FZ)
Where is he who set
    his Holy Spirit(GA) among them,
12 who sent his glorious arm(GB) of power
    to be at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters(GC) before them,
    to gain for himself everlasting renown,(GD)
13 who led(GE) them through the depths?(GF)
Like a horse in open country,
    they did not stumble;(GG)
14 like cattle that go down to the plain,
    they were given rest(GH) by the Spirit of the Lord.
This is how you guided your people
    to make for yourself a glorious name.

15 Look down from heaven(GI) and see,
    from your lofty throne,(GJ) holy and glorious.
Where are your zeal(GK) and your might?
    Your tenderness and compassion(GL) are withheld(GM) from us.
16 But you are our Father,(GN)
    though Abraham does not know us
    or Israel acknowledge(GO) us;
you, Lord, are our Father,
    our Redeemer(GP) from of old is your name.
17 Why, Lord, do you make us wander(GQ) from your ways
    and harden our hearts(GR) so we do not revere(GS) you?
Return(GT) for the sake of your servants,
    the tribes that are your inheritance.(GU)
18 For a little while(GV) your people possessed your holy place,
    but now our enemies have trampled(GW) down your sanctuary.(GX)
19 We are yours from of old;
    but you have not ruled over them,
    they have not been called[g] by your name.(GY)

64 [h]Oh, that you would rend the heavens(GZ) and come down,(HA)
    that the mountains(HB) would tremble before you!
As when fire sets twigs ablaze
    and causes water to boil,
come down to make your name(HC) known to your enemies
    and cause the nations to quake(HD) before you!
For when you did awesome(HE) things that we did not expect,
    you came down, and the mountains trembled(HF) before you.
Since ancient times no one has heard,
    no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,(HG)
    who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.(HH)
You come to the help of those who gladly do right,(HI)
    who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
    you were angry.(HJ)
    How then can we be saved?
All of us have become like one who is unclean,(HK)
    and all our righteous(HL) acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,(HM)
    and like the wind our sins sweep us away.(HN)
No one(HO) calls on your name(HP)
    or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden(HQ) your face from us
    and have given us over(HR) to[i] our sins.

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.(HS)
    We are the clay, you are the potter;(HT)
    we are all the work of your hand.(HU)
Do not be angry(HV) beyond measure, Lord;
    do not remember our sins(HW) forever.
Oh, look on us, we pray,
    for we are all your people.(HX)
10 Your sacred cities(HY) have become a wasteland;
    even Zion is a wasteland, Jerusalem a desolation.(HZ)
11 Our holy and glorious temple,(IA) where our ancestors praised you,
    has been burned with fire,
    and all that we treasured(IB) lies in ruins.
12 After all this, Lord, will you hold yourself back?(IC)
    Will you keep silent(ID) and punish us beyond measure?

Judgment and Salvation

65 “I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me;
    I was found by those who did not seek me.(IE)
To a nation(IF) that did not call on my name,(IG)
    I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.’
All day long I have held out my hands
    to an obstinate people,(IH)
who walk in ways not good,
    pursuing their own imaginations(II)
a people who continually provoke me
    to my very face,(IJ)
offering sacrifices in gardens(IK)
    and burning incense(IL) on altars of brick;
who sit among the graves(IM)
    and spend their nights keeping secret vigil;
who eat the flesh of pigs,(IN)
    and whose pots hold broth of impure meat;
who say, ‘Keep away; don’t come near me,
    for I am too sacred(IO) for you!’
Such people are smoke(IP) in my nostrils,
    a fire that keeps burning all day.

“See, it stands written before me:
    I will not keep silent(IQ) but will pay back(IR) in full;
    I will pay it back into their laps(IS)
both your sins(IT) and the sins of your ancestors,”(IU)
    says the Lord.
“Because they burned sacrifices on the mountains
    and defied me on the hills,(IV)
I will measure into their laps
    the full payment(IW) for their former deeds.”

This is what the Lord says:

“As when juice is still found in a cluster of grapes(IX)
    and people say, ‘Don’t destroy it,
    there is still a blessing in it,’
so will I do in behalf of my servants;(IY)
    I will not destroy them all.
I will bring forth descendants(IZ) from Jacob,
    and from Judah those who will possess(JA) my mountains;
my chosen(JB) people will inherit them,
    and there will my servants live.(JC)
10 Sharon(JD) will become a pasture for flocks,(JE)
    and the Valley of Achor(JF) a resting place for herds,
    for my people who seek(JG) me.

11 “But as for you who forsake(JH) the Lord
    and forget my holy mountain,(JI)
who spread a table for Fortune
    and fill bowls of mixed wine(JJ) for Destiny,
12 I will destine you for the sword,(JK)
    and all of you will fall in the slaughter;(JL)
for I called but you did not answer,(JM)
    I spoke but you did not listen.(JN)
You did evil in my sight
    and chose what displeases me.”(JO)

13 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“My servants will eat,(JP)
    but you will go hungry;(JQ)
my servants will drink,(JR)
    but you will go thirsty;(JS)
my servants will rejoice,(JT)
    but you will be put to shame.(JU)
14 My servants will sing(JV)
    out of the joy of their hearts,
but you will cry out(JW)
    from anguish of heart
    and wail in brokenness of spirit.
15 You will leave your name
    for my chosen ones to use in their curses;(JX)
the Sovereign Lord will put you to death,
    but to his servants he will give another name.(JY)
16 Whoever invokes a blessing(JZ) in the land
    will do so by the one true God;(KA)
whoever takes an oath in the land
    will swear(KB) by the one true God.
For the past troubles(KC) will be forgotten
    and hidden from my eyes.

New Heavens and a New Earth

17 “See, I will create
    new heavens and a new earth.(KD)
The former things will not be remembered,(KE)
    nor will they come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice(KF) forever
    in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem(KG) to be a delight
    and its people a joy.
19 I will rejoice(KH) over Jerusalem
    and take delight(KI) in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying(KJ)
    will be heard in it no more.

20 “Never again will there be in it
    an infant(KK) who lives but a few days,
    or an old man who does not live out his years;(KL)
the one who dies at a hundred
    will be thought a mere child;
the one who fails to reach[j] a hundred
    will be considered accursed.
21 They will build houses(KM) and dwell in them;
    they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.(KN)
22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them,(KO)
    or plant and others eat.
For as the days of a tree,(KP)
    so will be the days(KQ) of my people;
my chosen(KR) ones will long enjoy
    the work of their hands.
23 They will not labor in vain,(KS)
    nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune;(KT)
for they will be a people blessed(KU) by the Lord,
    they and their descendants(KV) with them.
24 Before they call(KW) I will answer;(KX)
    while they are still speaking(KY) I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb(KZ) will feed together,
    and the lion will eat straw like the ox,(LA)
    and dust will be the serpent’s(LB) food.
They will neither harm nor destroy
    on all my holy mountain,”(LC)
says the Lord.

Judgment and Hope

66 This is what the Lord says:

“Heaven is my throne,(LD)
    and the earth is my footstool.(LE)
Where is the house(LF) you will build for me?
    Where will my resting place be?
Has not my hand made all these things,(LG)
    and so they came into being?”
declares the Lord.

“These are the ones I look on with favor:
    those who are humble and contrite in spirit,(LH)
    and who tremble at my word.(LI)
But whoever sacrifices a bull(LJ)
    is like one who kills a person,
and whoever offers a lamb
    is like one who breaks a dog’s neck;
whoever makes a grain offering
    is like one who presents pig’s(LK) blood,
and whoever burns memorial incense(LL)
    is like one who worships an idol.
They have chosen their own ways,(LM)
    and they delight in their abominations;(LN)
so I also will choose harsh treatment for them
    and will bring on them what they dread.(LO)
For when I called, no one answered,(LP)
    when I spoke, no one listened.
They did evil(LQ) in my sight
    and chose what displeases me.”(LR)

Hear the word of the Lord,
    you who tremble at his word:(LS)
“Your own people who hate(LT) you,
    and exclude you because of my name, have said,
‘Let the Lord be glorified,
    that we may see your joy!’
    Yet they will be put to shame.(LU)
Hear that uproar from the city,
    hear that noise from the temple!
It is the sound(LV) of the Lord
    repaying(LW) his enemies all they deserve.

“Before she goes into labor,(LX)
    she gives birth;
before the pains come upon her,
    she delivers a son.(LY)
Who has ever heard of such things?
    Who has ever seen(LZ) things like this?
Can a country be born in a day(MA)
    or a nation be brought forth in a moment?
Yet no sooner is Zion in labor
    than she gives birth to her children.(MB)
Do I bring to the moment of birth(MC)
    and not give delivery?” says the Lord.
“Do I close up the womb
    when I bring to delivery?” says your God.
10 “Rejoice(MD) with Jerusalem and be glad for her,
    all you who love(ME) her;
rejoice greatly with her,
    all you who mourn(MF) over her.
11 For you will nurse(MG) and be satisfied
    at her comforting breasts;(MH)
you will drink deeply
    and delight in her overflowing abundance.”(MI)

12 For this is what the Lord says:

“I will extend peace(MJ) to her like a river,(MK)
    and the wealth(ML) of nations like a flooding stream;
you will nurse and be carried(MM) on her arm
    and dandled on her knees.
13 As a mother comforts her child,(MN)
    so will I comfort(MO) you;
    and you will be comforted over Jerusalem.”

14 When you see this, your heart will rejoice(MP)
    and you will flourish(MQ) like grass;
the hand(MR) of the Lord will be made known to his servants,(MS)
    but his fury(MT) will be shown to his foes.
15 See, the Lord is coming with fire,(MU)
    and his chariots(MV) are like a whirlwind;(MW)
he will bring down his anger with fury,
    and his rebuke(MX) with flames of fire.
16 For with fire(MY) and with his sword(MZ)
    the Lord will execute judgment(NA) on all people,
    and many will be those slain(NB) by the Lord.

17 “Those who consecrate and purify themselves to go into the gardens,(NC) following one who is among those who eat the flesh of pigs,(ND) rats(NE) and other unclean things—they will meet their end(NF) together with the one they follow,” declares the Lord.

18 “And I, because of what they have planned and done,(NG) am about to come[k] and gather the people of all nations(NH) and languages, and they will come and see my glory.(NI)

19 “I will set a sign(NJ) among them, and I will send some of those who survive(NK) to the nations—to Tarshish,(NL) to the Libyans[l] and Lydians(NM) (famous as archers), to Tubal(NN) and Greece,(NO) and to the distant islands(NP) that have not heard of my fame or seen my glory.(NQ) They will proclaim my glory among the nations. 20 And they will bring(NR) all your people, from all the nations, to my holy mountain(NS) in Jerusalem as an offering to the Lord—on horses, in chariots and wagons, and on mules and camels,”(NT) says the Lord. “They will bring them, as the Israelites bring their grain offerings, to the temple of the Lord in ceremonially clean vessels.(NU) 21 And I will select some of them also to be priests(NV) and Levites,” says the Lord.

22 “As the new heavens and the new earth(NW) that I make will endure before me,” declares the Lord, “so will your name and descendants endure.(NX) 23 From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath(NY) to another, all mankind will come and bow down(NZ) before me,” says the Lord. 24 “And they will go out and look on the dead bodies(OA) of those who rebelled(OB) against me; the worms(OC) that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched,(OD) and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 60:9 Or the trading ships
  2. Isaiah 61:1 Hebrew; Septuagint the blind
  3. Isaiah 62:4 Hephzibah means my delight is in her.
  4. Isaiah 62:4 Beulah means married.
  5. Isaiah 63:9 Or Savior in their distress. / It was no envoy or angel / but his own presence that saved them
  6. Isaiah 63:11 Or But may he recall
  7. Isaiah 63:19 Or We are like those you have never ruled, / like those never called
  8. Isaiah 64:1 In Hebrew texts 64:1 is numbered 63:19b, and 64:2-12 is numbered 64:1-11.
  9. Isaiah 64:7 Septuagint, Syriac and Targum; Hebrew have made us melt because of
  10. Isaiah 65:20 Or the sinner who reaches
  11. Isaiah 66:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
  12. Isaiah 66:19 Some Septuagint manuscripts Put (Libyans); Hebrew Pul

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