Isaiah 63
New American Standard Bible
God’s Vengeance on the Nations
63 Who is this who comes from (A)Edom,
With (B)garments of [a]glowing colors from (C)Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
[b]Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I, the One who speaks in righteousness, (D)mighty to save.”
2 Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like one who (E)treads in the wine press?
3 “(F)I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no one with Me.
I also (G)trod them in My anger
And (H)trampled them in My wrath;
And (I)their [c]lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I [d]stained all My clothes.
4 For the (J)day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come.
5 I looked, but there was (K)no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My (L)own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.
6 I (M)trampled down the peoples in My anger
And made them (N)drunk with My wrath,
And I [e]poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”
God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled
7 I will make mention of the (O)mercies of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord,
According to all that the Lord has granted us,
And the great (P)goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has granted them according to His (Q)compassion
And according to the abundance of His mercies.
8 For He said, “Certainly they are (R)My people,
Sons who will not deal falsely.”
So He became their (S)Savior.
9 In all their distress [f](T)He was distressed,
And the (U)angel of His presence saved them;
In His (V)love and in His mercy He (W)redeemed them,
And He (X)lifted them and carried them all the days of old.
10 But they (Y)rebelled
And grieved His (Z)Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them.
11 Then (AA)His people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is (AB)He who brought them up out of the sea with the [g]shepherds of His flock?
Where is He who (AC)put His Holy Spirit in the midst of [h]them,
12 Who caused His (AD)glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses,
Who (AE)divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
13 Who led them through the depths?
Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not (AF)stumble;
14 Like the cattle which go down into the valley,
The Spirit of the (AG)Lord gave [i]them rest.
So You (AH)led Your people,
To make for Yourself a glorious name.
You Are Our Father
15 (AI)Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious (AJ)lofty habitation;
Where are Your (AK)zeal and Your mighty deeds?
The (AL)stirrings of Your heart and Your compassion are restrained toward me.
16 For You are our (AM)Father, though (AN)Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, Lord, are our Father,
Our (AO)Redeemer from ancient times is Your name.
17 Why, Lord, do You (AP)cause us to stray from Your ways
And (AQ)harden our heart from fearing You?
(AR)Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
18 Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while,
Our adversaries have (AS)trampled it down.
19 We have become like those over whom You have never ruled,
Like those who were not called by Your name.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 63:1 Or crimson
- Isaiah 63:1 Lit Inclining
- Isaiah 63:3 Lit juice
- Isaiah 63:3 Lit defiled
- Isaiah 63:6 Lit brought down their juice to the earth
- Isaiah 63:9 Another reading is He was not an adversary
- Isaiah 63:11 Some mss shepherd
- Isaiah 63:11 Lit him
- Isaiah 63:14 Lit him
Isaiah 63
Expanded Bible
The Lord Judges His People
63 Who is this coming from Edom [34:5],
from the city of Bozrah, ·dressed in red [or in crimson-stained garments; C Edom means “red”]?
Who is this dressed in ·fine clothes [honorable clothing; or royal garments]
and marching forward with his great power?
He says, “I, the Lord, speak ·what is right [in righteousness].
I ·have the power [am mighty] to save you.”
2 Someone asks, “Why are your clothes bright red
as if you had ·walked [stomped; trodden] on the grapes to make wine?”
3 The Lord answers, “I have ·walked [stomped; trodden] in the winepress alone,
and no one among the nations ·helped [L was with] me.
I was angry and ·walked [stomped; trod] on the nations
and crushed them because of my anger.
Blood splashed on my clothes,
and I stained all my clothing.
4 ·I chose a time to punish people [L …for the day of vengeance was in my heart],
and the ·time [year] has come for me to ·save [redeem].
5 I looked around, but I saw no one to help me.
I was ·surprised [shocked; appalled] that no one supported me [59:16].
So ·I used my own power to save my people [L my own arm accomplished salvation/victory];
my own ·anger [wrath] ·supported [sustained; upheld] me.
6 While I was angry, I ·walked on the [trampled] nations.
In my ·anger [wrath] I ·punished them [made them drunk; 49:26; 51:23]
and poured their ·blood [L juice] on the ·ground [earth].”
The Lord’s Kindness to His People
7 I will tell about the Lord’s ·kindness [lovingkindness; loyalty; covenant love]
and praise him for everything he has done.
I will praise the Lord for the many good things he has given us
and for his goodness to the ·people [L house] of Israel.
·He has shown great mercy to us […according to his compassion]
and ·has been very kind to us [according to his great lovingkindness/loyalty/covenant love].
8 He said, “[L Surely] These are my people;
my children will not ·lie to [deal falsely with; betray] me.”
So he saved them.
9 When they ·suffered [were distressed/afflicted], he ·suffered [was distressed/afflicted] also.
·He sent his own angel to save them [L The angel/messenger of his presence/face saved them; Ex. 14:19].
Because of his love and kindness, he saved them.
·Since long ago [L All the days of old] he has ·picked [lifted] them up and carried them [Deut. 32:10–12].
10 But they ·turned [rebelled] against him [Ex. 15:24; Num. 14:11; Ps. 78:17]
and ·made his Holy Spirit very sad [grieved his Holy Spirit; Ps. 78:40].
So he became their enemy,
and he fought against them.
11 But then his people remembered ·what happened long ago [L the days of old],
in the days of Moses and the Israelites with him.
Where is the Lord who brought the people ·through [up out of] the sea [Ex. 14:19–22],
with the ·leaders of his people [L shepherds of the flock; C probably Moses, Aaron and the tribal leaders]?
Where is the one
who put his ·Holy Spirit [or holy spirit] among them,
12 who led Moses by the right hand
with his ·wonderful power [L glorious arm],
who divided the water before them [Ex. 14:21]
to make ·his name famous [a reputation/name for himself] forever,
13 who led the people through the ·deep waters [depths]?
Like a horse walking ·through a desert [in the wilderness],
the people did not stumble.
14 Like cattle that go down to the valley,
the Spirit of the Lord gave ·the people a place to rest [them rest].
Lord, that is the way you led your people,
and by this you ·won [made] for yourself ·wonderful fame [a glorious reputation/name].
A Prayer for Help
15 Lord, look down from the heavens and see;
look at us from your ·wonderful [glorious] and holy ·home [abode] in heaven.
Where is your ·strong love [zeal] and power?
Why are you ·keeping [holding back] your ·love [tenderness] and ·mercy [compassion] from us?
16 You are our father.
[L …though] Abraham doesn’t know ·we are his children [L us],
and Israel doesn’t recognize us.
Lord, you are our father.
·You are called [or Your name is] “·the one who has always saved us [our redeemer from of old].”
17 Lord, why are you making us wander from your ways?
Why do you make ·us stubborn [L our hearts hard] so that we don’t ·honor [fear] you?
For our sake come back to us,
your servants, ·who belong to you [L the tribes of your inheritance].
18 Your ·people [or holy people] had ·your Temple [possession of your holy place; or possession of a land] for a while,
but now our enemies have ·walked on your holy place and crushed it [trampled down your sanctuary].
19 We have become like people you never ruled over,
like those who have never ·worn [been called by] your name.
Isaiah 63
International Standard Version
God’s Day of Vengeance
63 “Who is this coming from Edom,
from Bozrah, in garments stained crimson?
Who is this, robed in such splendor,
marching in his great might?
It is I, speaking in vindication,
mighty to save.
2 “Why is your clothing red,
and your garments like those worn by the ones who tread in the winepress?[a]
3 “I have trodden the winepress alone,
and from my people[b] no one was with me,
I trampled them in my anger
and trod them down in my wrath;
their lifeblood spattered on my garments,[c]
and I stained[d] all my clothing.
4 “For the day of vengeance was in my heart,
and the year for my redeeming work had come.
5 I looked, but there was no helper,
I was appalled that there was no one to give support;[e]
so my own arm[f] brought me victory,
and as for my wrath, it supported me.
6 I trampled people[g] in my anger;
in my wrath I made them drunk
and I poured out their lifeblood on the ground.”
God’s Grace to Israel
7 I will recount the gracious deeds of the Lord,
the praiseworthy acts of the Lord,
according to all the Lord has done for us—
yes, the great goodness to the house of Israel
that he has granted them according to his mercy,
according to the abundance of his gracious love.
8 For he said, “Surely they are my people,
children who won’t act falsely.”
And so he became their savior.
9 In all their distress he wasn’t distressed,[h]
but the angel of his presence saved them;
in his acts of love[i] and in his acts[j] of pity he redeemed them;
he carried them and lifted them up[k] all the days of old.
10 Yet they rebelled
and grieved his Holy Spirit;
so he changed and became their enemy,
and[l] he himself fought against them.
11 Then they[m] remembered the days of old,
of Moses his servant.
Where is the one who brought up[n] out of the sea
the[o] shepherds of his flock?
Where is the one who put his Holy Spirit among them,
12 and[p] who made his glorious arm[q] march at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters in front of them
to win[r] an everlasting name,
13 who led them through the depths?
Like a horse in the open desert,
they did not stumble;
14 like cattle that go down into the valley,
the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.
For[s] you led your people,
to win for yourself a glorious name.
God the Father
15 Look down from heaven, and see
from your holy and glorious dwelling.
Where are your zeal and your might?
Where are the yearning of your heart and your compassion?
They are held back from me.
16 But you are our Father,
even[t] Abraham does not know us
and Israel has not acknowledged[u] us;
you are he,[v] O Lord, our Father,
from long ago, ‘Our Redeemer’ is your name.
17 Why, Lord, do you make us wander[w] from your ways
and harden our hearts, so that we do not fear you?
Turn back for the sake of your servants,
for the sake of the tribes that are your heritage.
18 Your holy people took possession[x] for a little while,
but now our enemies have trampled down your sanctuary.
19 For a long time we have been those you do not rule,
those who are not called by your name.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 63:2 So 1QIsaa; or coriander or clothing
- Isaiah 63:3 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT LXX read from the peoples
- Isaiah 63:3 So 1QIsab MT LXX; 1QIsaa lacks I trampled…my garment
- Isaiah 63:3 So 1QIsaa 1QIsab; MT verb I stained is problematic.
- Isaiah 63:5 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT read to support me
- Isaiah 63:5 I.e. the Messiah
- Isaiah 63:6 Lit. peoples
- Isaiah 63:9 So 1QIsaa MT; some MTmss read he was distressed.
- Isaiah 63:9 So 1QIsaa; MT reads in his love; LXX reads because of his love for them
- Isaiah 63:9 So 1QIsaa; MT reads act of pity
- Isaiah 63:9 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT read lifted them up and carried them
- Isaiah 63:10 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT lacks and
- Isaiah 63:11 I.e. his people
- Isaiah 63:11 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads brought them up
- Isaiah 63:11 So 1QIsaa; MT reads with the
- Isaiah 63:12 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 63:12 I.e. the Meessiah; lit. arm of his glories; so 1QIsaa; MT reads arm of his glory
- Isaiah 63:12 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read to win for himself
- Isaiah 63:14 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read This is how
- Isaiah 63:16 Lit. and; so 1QIsaa; MT LXX read but or although
- Isaiah 63:16 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads Israel does not acknowledge
- Isaiah 63:16 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT LXX read you
- Isaiah 63:17 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read do you make us wander, Lord
- Isaiah 63:18 So 1QIsaa (sing.); MT is pl.; LXX reads so that we may take possession
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
