25 And the Lord spake unto Moses in mount Sinai, saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath unto the Lord.

Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof;

But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land.

And the sabbath of the land shall be meat for you; for thee, and for thy servant, and for thy maid, and for thy hired servant, and for thy stranger that sojourneth with thee.

And for thy cattle, and for the beast that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be meat.

And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years; and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty and nine years.

Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubile to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.

10 And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.

11 A jubile shall that fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed.

12 For it is the jubile; it shall be holy unto you: ye shall eat the increase thereof out of the field.

13 In the year of this jubile ye shall return every man unto his possession.

14 And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour, or buyest ought of thy neighbour's hand, ye shall not oppress one another:

15 According to the number of years after the jubile thou shalt buy of thy neighbour, and according unto the number of years of the fruits he shall sell unto thee:

16 According to the multitude of years thou shalt increase the price thereof, and according to the fewness of years thou shalt diminish the price of it: for according to the number of the years of the fruits doth he sell unto thee.

17 Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God:for I am the Lord your God.

18 Wherefore ye shall do my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; and ye shall dwell in the land in safety.

19 And the land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety.

20 And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase:

21 Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.

22 And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in ye shall eat of the old store.

23 The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine, for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.

24 And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land.

25 If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.

26 And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it;

27 Then let him count the years of the sale thereof, and restore the overplus unto the man to whom he sold it; that he may return unto his possession.

28 But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that hath bought it until the year of jubile: and in the jubile it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession.

29 And if a man sell a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year may he redeem it.

30 And if it be not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be established for ever to him that bought it throughout his generations: it shall not go out in the jubile.

31 But the houses of the villages which have no wall round about them shall be counted as the fields of the country: they may be redeemed, and they shall go out in the jubile.

32 Notwithstanding the cities of the Levites, and the houses of the cities of their possession, may the Levites redeem at any time.

33 And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the year of jubile: for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.

34 But the field of the suburbs of their cities may not be sold; for it is their perpetual possession.

35 And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee.

36 Take thou no usury of him, or increase: but fear thy God; that thy brother may live with thee.

37 Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.

38 I am the Lord your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.

39 And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee; thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bondservant:

40 But as an hired servant, and as a sojourner, he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubile.

41 And then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return.

42 For they are my servants, which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: they shall not be sold as bondmen.

43 Thou shalt not rule over him with rigour; but shalt fear thy God.

44 Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.

45 Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.

46 And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour.

47 And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him wax poor, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner by thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family:

48 After that he is sold he may be redeemed again; one of his brethren may redeem him:

49 Either his uncle, or his uncle's son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family may redeem him; or if he be able, he may redeem himself.

50 And he shall reckon with him that bought him from the year that he was sold to him unto the year of jubile: and the price of his sale shall be according unto the number of years, according to the time of an hired servant shall it be with him.

51 If there be yet many years behind, according unto them he shall give again the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for.

52 And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubile, then he shall count with him, and according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption.

53 And as a yearly hired servant shall he be with him: and the other shall not rule with rigour over him in thy sight.

54 And if he be not redeemed in these years, then he shall go out in the year of jubile, both he, and his children with him.

55 For unto me the children of Israel are servants; they are my servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

26 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the Lord your God.

Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.

The Sabbath Year

25 The Lord said to Moses at Mount Sinai,(A) “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops.(B) But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest,(C) a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards.(D) Do not reap what grows of itself(E) or harvest the grapes(F) of your untended vines.(G) The land is to have a year of rest. Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year(H) will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, as well as for your livestock and the wild animals(I) in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten.

The Year of Jubilee(J)(K)

“‘Count off seven sabbath years—seven times seven years—so that the seven sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. Then have the trumpet(L) sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month;(M) on the Day of Atonement(N) sound the trumpet throughout your land. 10 Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty(O) throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee(P) for you; each of you is to return to your family property(Q) and to your own clan. 11 The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee(R) for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines.(S) 12 For it is a jubilee and is to be holy for you; eat only what is taken directly from the fields.

13 “‘In this Year of Jubilee(T) everyone is to return to their own property.

14 “‘If you sell land to any of your own people or buy land from them, do not take advantage of each other.(U) 15 You are to buy from your own people on the basis of the number of years(V) since the Jubilee. And they are to sell to you on the basis of the number of years left for harvesting crops. 16 When the years are many, you are to increase the price, and when the years are few, you are to decrease the price,(W) because what is really being sold to you is the number of crops. 17 Do not take advantage of each other,(X) but fear your God.(Y) I am the Lord your God.(Z)

18 “‘Follow my decrees and be careful to obey my laws,(AA) and you will live safely in the land.(AB) 19 Then the land will yield its fruit,(AC) and you will eat your fill and live there in safety.(AD) 20 You may ask, “What will we eat in the seventh year(AE) if we do not plant or harvest our crops?” 21 I will send you such a blessing(AF) in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years.(AG) 22 While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in.(AH)

23 “‘The land(AI) must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine(AJ) and you reside in my land as foreigners(AK) and strangers. 24 Throughout the land that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption(AL) of the land.

25 “‘If one of your fellow Israelites becomes poor and sells some of their property, their nearest relative(AM) is to come and redeem(AN) what they have sold. 26 If, however, there is no one to redeem it for them but later on they prosper(AO) and acquire sufficient means to redeem it themselves, 27 they are to determine the value for the years(AP) since they sold it and refund the balance to the one to whom they sold it; they can then go back to their own property.(AQ) 28 But if they do not acquire the means to repay, what was sold will remain in the possession of the buyer until the Year of Jubilee. It will be returned(AR) in the Jubilee, and they can then go back to their property.(AS)

29 “‘Anyone who sells a house in a walled city retains the right of redemption a full year after its sale. During that time the seller may redeem it. 30 If it is not redeemed before a full year has passed, the house in the walled city shall belong permanently to the buyer and the buyer’s descendants. It is not to be returned in the Jubilee. 31 But houses in villages without walls around them are to be considered as belonging to the open country. They can be redeemed, and they are to be returned in the Jubilee.

32 “‘The Levites always have the right to redeem their houses in the Levitical towns,(AT) which they possess. 33 So the property of the Levites is redeemable—that is, a house sold in any town they hold—and is to be returned in the Jubilee, because the houses in the towns of the Levites are their property among the Israelites. 34 But the pastureland belonging to their towns must not be sold; it is their permanent possession.(AU)

35 “‘If any of your fellow Israelites become poor(AV) and are unable to support themselves among you, help them(AW) as you would a foreigner and stranger, so they can continue to live among you. 36 Do not take interest(AX) or any profit from them, but fear your God,(AY) so that they may continue to live among you. 37 You must not lend them money at interest(AZ) or sell them food at a profit. 38 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan(BA) and to be your God.(BB)

39 “‘If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and sell themselves to you, do not make them work as slaves.(BC) 40 They are to be treated as hired workers(BD) or temporary residents among you; they are to work for you until the Year of Jubilee. 41 Then they and their children are to be released, and they will go back to their own clans and to the property(BE) of their ancestors.(BF) 42 Because the Israelites are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt,(BG) they must not be sold as slaves. 43 Do not rule over them ruthlessly,(BH) but fear your God.(BI)

44 “‘Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. 45 You may also buy some of the temporary residents living among you and members of their clans born in your country, and they will become your property. 46 You can bequeath them to your children as inherited property and can make them slaves for life, but you must not rule over your fellow Israelites ruthlessly.

47 “‘If a foreigner residing among you becomes rich and any of your fellow Israelites become poor and sell themselves(BJ) to the foreigner or to a member of the foreigner’s clan, 48 they retain the right of redemption(BK) after they have sold themselves. One of their relatives(BL) may redeem them: 49 An uncle or a cousin or any blood relative in their clan may redeem them. Or if they prosper,(BM) they may redeem themselves. 50 They and their buyer are to count the time from the year they sold themselves up to the Year of Jubilee.(BN) The price for their release is to be based on the rate paid to a hired worker(BO) for that number of years. 51 If many years remain, they must pay for their redemption a larger share of the price paid for them. 52 If only a few years remain until the Year of Jubilee, they are to compute that and pay for their redemption accordingly.(BP) 53 They are to be treated as workers hired from year to year; you must see to it that those to whom they owe service do not rule over them ruthlessly.(BQ)

54 “‘Even if someone is not redeemed in any of these ways, they and their children are to be released in the Year of Jubilee, 55 for the Israelites belong to me as servants. They are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt.(BR) I am the Lord your God.(BS)

Reward for Obedience

26 “‘Do not make idols(BT) or set up an image(BU) or a sacred stone(BV) for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone(BW) in your land to bow down before it. I am the Lord your God.

“‘Observe my Sabbaths(BX) and have reverence for my sanctuary.(BY) I am the Lord.

53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

54 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.

Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.

For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer.

For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.

10 For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.

11 O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.

12 And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

13 And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.

16 Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

55 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

56 Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed.

Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.

Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.

For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;

Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.

Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;

Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.

The Lord God, which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.

All ye beasts of the field, come to devour, yea, all ye beasts in the forest.

10 His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.

11 Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.

12 Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant.

57 The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.

He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.

But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.

Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood.

Enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks?

Among the smooth stones of the stream is thy portion; they, they are thy lot: even to them hast thou poured a drink offering, thou hast offered a meat offering. Should I receive comfort in these?

Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.

Behind the doors also and the posts hast thou set up thy remembrance: for thou hast discovered thyself to another than me, and art gone up; thou hast enlarged thy bed, and made thee a covenant with them; thou lovedst their bed where thou sawest it.

And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell.

10 Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved.

11 And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered me, nor laid it to thy heart? have not I held my peace even of old, and thou fearest me not?

12 I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.

13 When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take them: but he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain;

14 And shall say, Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people.

15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

16 For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made.

17 For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.

18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners.

19 I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord; and I will heal him.

20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.

21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

58 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.

Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.

Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.

Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?

Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.

Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:

11 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

59 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.

Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.

Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.

The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.

10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.

11 We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.

12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;

13 In transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.

15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.

16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.

17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.

18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.

19 So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him.

20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord.

21 As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever.

60 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord.

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.

Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

10 And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.

11 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee; The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 Whereas thou has been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.

18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.

19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.

20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.

22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the Lord will hasten it in his time.

61 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.

And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.

For I the Lord love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed.

10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

62 For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.

And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.

Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.

Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.

For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.

I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,

And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:

But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.

10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.

11 Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

12 And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.

63 Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.

Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?

I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.

For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.

And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me.

And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.

I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses.

For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour.

In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.

10 But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.

11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?

12 That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?

13 That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble?

14 As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name.

15 Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?

16 Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.

17 O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants' sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

18 The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.

19 We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.

64 Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence,

As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence!

When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.

For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.

But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Be not wroth very sore, O Lord, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.

10 Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.

11 Our holy and our beautiful house, where our fathers praised thee, is burned up with fire: and all our pleasant things are laid waste.

12 Wilt thou refrain thyself for these things, O Lord? wilt thou hold thy peace, and afflict us very sore?

53 Who has believed our message(A)
    and to whom has the arm(B) of the Lord been revealed?(C)
He grew up before him like a tender shoot,(D)
    and like a root(E) out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
    nothing in his appearance(F) that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by mankind,
    a man of suffering,(G) and familiar with pain.(H)
Like one from whom people hide(I) their faces
    he was despised,(J) and we held him in low esteem.

Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,(K)
yet we considered him punished by God,(L)
    stricken by him, and afflicted.(M)
But he was pierced(N) for our transgressions,(O)
    he was crushed(P) for our iniquities;
the punishment(Q) that brought us peace(R) was on him,
    and by his wounds(S) we are healed.(T)
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,(U)
    each of us has turned to our own way;(V)
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity(W) of us all.

He was oppressed(X) and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;(Y)
he was led like a lamb(Z) to the slaughter,(AA)
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
By oppression[a] and judgment(AB) he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;(AC)
    for the transgression(AD) of my people he was punished.[b]
He was assigned a grave with the wicked,(AE)
    and with the rich(AF) in his death,
though he had done no violence,(AG)
    nor was any deceit in his mouth.(AH)

10 Yet it was the Lord’s will(AI) to crush(AJ) him and cause him to suffer,(AK)
    and though the Lord makes[c] his life an offering for sin,(AL)
he will see his offspring(AM) and prolong his days,
    and the will of the Lord will prosper(AN) in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,(AO)
    he will see the light(AP) of life[d] and be satisfied[e];
by his knowledge[f] my righteous servant(AQ) will justify(AR) many,
    and he will bear their iniquities.(AS)
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[g](AT)
    and he will divide the spoils(AU) with the strong,[h]
because he poured out his life unto death,(AV)
    and was numbered with the transgressors.(AW)
For he bore(AX) the sin of many,(AY)
    and made intercession(AZ) for the transgressors.

The Future Glory of Zion

54 “Sing, barren woman,(BA)
    you who never bore a child;
burst into song, shout for joy,(BB)
    you who were never in labor;(BC)
because more are the children(BD) of the desolate(BE) woman
    than of her who has a husband,(BF)
says the Lord.
“Enlarge the place of your tent,(BG)
    stretch your tent curtains wide,
    do not hold back;
lengthen your cords,
    strengthen your stakes.(BH)
For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
    your descendants(BI) will dispossess nations(BJ)
    and settle in their desolate(BK) cities.

“Do not be afraid;(BL) you will not be put to shame.(BM)
    Do not fear disgrace;(BN) you will not be humiliated.
You will forget the shame of your youth(BO)
    and remember no more the reproach(BP) of your widowhood.(BQ)
For your Maker(BR) is your husband(BS)
    the Lord Almighty is his name—
the Holy One(BT) of Israel is your Redeemer;(BU)
    he is called the God of all the earth.(BV)
The Lord will call you back(BW)
    as if you were a wife deserted(BX) and distressed in spirit—
a wife who married young,(BY)
    only to be rejected,” says your God.
“For a brief moment(BZ) I abandoned(CA) you,
    but with deep compassion(CB) I will bring you back.(CC)
In a surge of anger(CD)
    I hid(CE) my face from you for a moment,
but with everlasting kindness(CF)
    I will have compassion(CG) on you,”
    says the Lord your Redeemer.(CH)

“To me this is like the days of Noah,
    when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth.(CI)
So now I have sworn(CJ) not to be angry(CK) with you,
    never to rebuke(CL) you again.
10 Though the mountains be shaken(CM)
    and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love(CN) for you will not be shaken(CO)
    nor my covenant(CP) of peace(CQ) be removed,”
    says the Lord, who has compassion(CR) on you.

11 “Afflicted(CS) city, lashed by storms(CT) and not comforted,(CU)
    I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise,[i](CV)
    your foundations(CW) with lapis lazuli.(CX)
12 I will make your battlements of rubies,
    your gates(CY) of sparkling jewels,
    and all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children will be taught by the Lord,(CZ)
    and great will be their peace.(DA)
14 In righteousness(DB) you will be established:(DC)
Tyranny(DD) will be far from you;
    you will have nothing to fear.(DE)
Terror(DF) will be far removed;
    it will not come near you.
15 If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing;
    whoever attacks you will surrender(DG) to you.

16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmith(DH)
    who fans the coals into flame
    and forges a weapon(DI) fit for its work.
And it is I who have created the destroyer(DJ) to wreak havoc;
17     no weapon forged against you will prevail,(DK)
    and you will refute(DL) every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants(DM) of the Lord,
    and this is their vindication(DN) from me,”
declares the Lord.

Invitation to the Thirsty

55 “Come, all you who are thirsty,(DO)
    come to the waters;(DP)
and you who have no money,
    come, buy(DQ) and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk(DR)
    without money and without cost.(DS)
Why spend money on what is not bread,
    and your labor on what does not satisfy?(DT)
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,(DU)
    and you will delight in the richest(DV) of fare.
Give ear and come to me;
    listen,(DW) that you may live.(DX)
I will make an everlasting covenant(DY) with you,
    my faithful love(DZ) promised to David.(EA)
See, I have made him a witness(EB) to the peoples,
    a ruler and commander(EC) of the peoples.
Surely you will summon nations(ED) you know not,
    and nations you do not know will come running to you,(EE)
because of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One(EF) of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendor.”(EG)

Seek(EH) the Lord while he may be found;(EI)
    call(EJ) on him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake(EK) their ways
    and the unrighteous their thoughts.(EL)
Let them turn(EM) to the Lord, and he will have mercy(EN) on them,
    and to our God, for he will freely pardon.(EO)

“For my thoughts(EP) are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”(EQ)
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,(ER)
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.(ES)
10 As the rain(ET) and the snow
    come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
    without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,(EU)
    so that it yields seed(EV) for the sower and bread for the eater,(EW)
11 so is my word(EX) that goes out from my mouth:
    It will not return to me empty,(EY)
but will accomplish what I desire
    and achieve the purpose(EZ) for which I sent it.
12 You will go out in joy(FA)
    and be led forth in peace;(FB)
the mountains and hills
    will burst into song(FC) before you,
and all the trees(FD) of the field
    will clap their hands.(FE)
13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
    and instead of briers(FF) the myrtle(FG) will grow.
This will be for the Lord’s renown,(FH)
    for an everlasting sign,
    that will endure forever.”

Salvation for Others

56 This is what the Lord says:

“Maintain justice(FI)
    and do what is right,(FJ)
for my salvation(FK) is close at hand
    and my righteousness(FL) will soon be revealed.
Blessed(FM) is the one who does this—
    the person who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath(FN) without desecrating it,
    and keeps their hands from doing any evil.”

Let no foreigner(FO) who is bound to the Lord say,
    “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”(FP)
And let no eunuch(FQ) complain,
    “I am only a dry tree.”

For this is what the Lord says:

“To the eunuchs(FR) who keep my Sabbaths,
    who choose what pleases me
    and hold fast to my covenant(FS)
to them I will give within my temple and its walls(FT)
    a memorial(FU) and a name
    better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name(FV)
    that will endure forever.(FW)
And foreigners(FX) who bind themselves to the Lord
    to minister(FY) to him,
to love the name(FZ) of the Lord,
    and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath(GA) without desecrating it
    and who hold fast to my covenant—
these I will bring to my holy mountain(GB)
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices(GC)
    will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
    a house of prayer for all nations.(GD)(GE)
The Sovereign Lord declares—
    he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gather(GF) still others to them
    besides those already gathered.”

God’s Accusation Against the Wicked

Come, all you beasts of the field,(GG)
    come and devour, all you beasts of the forest!
10 Israel’s watchmen(GH) are blind,
    they all lack knowledge;(GI)
they are all mute dogs,
    they cannot bark;
they lie around and dream,
    they love to sleep.(GJ)
11 They are dogs with mighty appetites;
    they never have enough.
They are shepherds(GK) who lack understanding;(GL)
    they all turn to their own way,(GM)
    they seek their own gain.(GN)
12 “Come,” each one cries, “let me get wine!(GO)
    Let us drink our fill of beer!
And tomorrow will be like today,
    or even far better.”(GP)

57 The righteous perish,(GQ)
    and no one takes it to heart;(GR)
the devout are taken away,
    and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
    to be spared from evil.(GS)
Those who walk uprightly(GT)
    enter into peace;
    they find rest(GU) as they lie in death.

“But you—come here, you children of a sorceress,(GV)
    you offspring of adulterers(GW) and prostitutes!(GX)
Who are you mocking?
    At whom do you sneer
    and stick out your tongue?
Are you not a brood of rebels,(GY)
    the offspring of liars?
You burn with lust among the oaks(GZ)
    and under every spreading tree;(HA)
you sacrifice your children(HB) in the ravines
    and under the overhanging crags.
The idols(HC) among the smooth stones of the ravines are your portion;
    indeed, they are your lot.
Yes, to them you have poured out drink offerings(HD)
    and offered grain offerings.
    In view of all this, should I relent?(HE)
You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill;(HF)
    there you went up to offer your sacrifices.(HG)
Behind your doors and your doorposts
    you have put your pagan symbols.
Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed,
    you climbed into it and opened it wide;
you made a pact with those whose beds you love,(HH)
    and you looked with lust on their naked bodies.(HI)
You went to Molek[j](HJ) with olive oil
    and increased your perfumes.(HK)
You sent your ambassadors[k](HL) far away;
    you descended to the very realm of the dead!(HM)
10 You wearied(HN) yourself by such going about,
    but you would not say, ‘It is hopeless.’(HO)
You found renewal of your strength,(HP)
    and so you did not faint.

11 “Whom have you so dreaded and feared(HQ)
    that you have not been true to me,
and have neither remembered(HR) me
    nor taken this to heart?(HS)
Is it not because I have long been silent(HT)
    that you do not fear me?
12 I will expose your righteousness and your works,(HU)
    and they will not benefit you.
13 When you cry out(HV) for help,
    let your collection of idols save(HW) you!
The wind will carry all of them off,
    a mere breath will blow(HX) them away.
But whoever takes refuge(HY) in me
    will inherit the land(HZ)
    and possess my holy mountain.”(IA)

Comfort for the Contrite

14 And it will be said:

“Build up, build up, prepare the road!(IB)
    Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.”(IC)
15 For this is what the high and exalted(ID) One says—
    he who lives forever,(IE) whose name is holy:
“I live in a high(IF) and holy place,
    but also with the one who is contrite(IG) and lowly in spirit,(IH)
to revive the spirit of the lowly
    and to revive the heart of the contrite.(II)
16 I will not accuse(IJ) them forever,
    nor will I always be angry,(IK)
for then they would faint away because of me—
    the very people(IL) I have created.
17 I was enraged by their sinful greed;(IM)
    I punished them, and hid(IN) my face in anger,
    yet they kept on in their willful ways.(IO)
18 I have seen their ways, but I will heal(IP) them;
    I will guide(IQ) them and restore comfort(IR) to Israel’s mourners,
19     creating praise on their lips.(IS)
Peace, peace,(IT) to those far and near,”(IU)
    says the Lord. “And I will heal them.”
20 But the wicked(IV) are like the tossing sea,(IW)
    which cannot rest,
    whose waves cast up mire(IX) and mud.
21 “There is no peace,”(IY) says my God, “for the wicked.”(IZ)

True Fasting

58 “Shout it aloud,(JA) do not hold back.
    Raise your voice like a trumpet.(JB)
Declare to my people their rebellion(JC)
    and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.(JD)
For day after day they seek(JE) me out;
    they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
    and has not forsaken(JF) the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
    and seem eager for God to come near(JG) them.
‘Why have we fasted,’(JH) they say,
    ‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled(JI) ourselves,
    and you have not noticed?’(JJ)

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please(JK)
    and exploit all your workers.
Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,(JL)
    and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
    and expect your voice to be heard(JM) on high.
Is this the kind of fast(JN) I have chosen,
    only a day for people to humble(JO) themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed(JP)
    and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?(JQ)
Is that what you call a fast,
    a day acceptable to the Lord?

“Is not this the kind of fasting(JR) I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice(JS)
    and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed(JT) free
    and break every yoke?(JU)
Is it not to share your food with the hungry(JV)
    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter(JW)
when you see the naked, to clothe(JX) them,
    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?(JY)
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,(JZ)
    and your healing(KA) will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[l](KB) will go before you,
    and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.(KC)
Then you will call,(KD) and the Lord will answer;(KE)
    you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
    with the pointing finger(KF) and malicious talk,(KG)
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
    and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,(KH)
then your light(KI) will rise in the darkness,
    and your night will become like the noonday.(KJ)
11 The Lord will guide(KK) you always;
    he will satisfy your needs(KL) in a sun-scorched land(KM)
    and will strengthen(KN) your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,(KO)
    like a spring(KP) whose waters never fail.
12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins(KQ)
    and will raise up the age-old foundations;(KR)
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,(KS)
    Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath(KT)
    and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight(KU)
    and the Lord’s holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
    and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,(KV)
14 then you will find your joy(KW) in the Lord,
    and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights(KX) of the land
    and to feast on the inheritance(KY) of your father Jacob.”
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.(KZ)

Sin, Confession and Redemption

59 Surely the arm(LA) of the Lord is not too short(LB) to save,
    nor his ear too dull to hear.(LC)
But your iniquities have separated(LD)
    you from your God;
your sins have hidden his face from you,
    so that he will not hear.(LE)
For your hands are stained with blood,(LF)
    your fingers with guilt.(LG)
Your lips have spoken falsely,(LH)
    and your tongue mutters wicked things.
No one calls for justice;(LI)
    no one pleads a case with integrity.
They rely(LJ) on empty arguments, they utter lies;(LK)
    they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.(LL)
They hatch the eggs of vipers(LM)
    and spin a spider’s web.(LN)
Whoever eats their eggs will die,
    and when one is broken, an adder is hatched.
Their cobwebs are useless for clothing;
    they cannot cover themselves with what they make.(LO)
Their deeds are evil deeds,
    and acts of violence(LP) are in their hands.
Their feet rush into sin;
    they are swift to shed innocent blood.(LQ)
They pursue evil schemes;(LR)
    acts of violence mark their ways.(LS)
The way of peace they do not know;(LT)
    there is no justice in their paths.
They have turned them into crooked roads;(LU)
    no one who walks along them will know peace.(LV)

So justice is far from us,
    and righteousness does not reach us.
We look for light, but all is darkness;(LW)
    for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.
10 Like the blind(LX) we grope along the wall,
    feeling our way like people without eyes.
At midday we stumble(LY) as if it were twilight;
    among the strong, we are like the dead.(LZ)
11 We all growl like bears;
    we moan mournfully like doves.(MA)
We look for justice, but find none;
    for deliverance, but it is far away.

12 For our offenses(MB) are many in your sight,
    and our sins testify(MC) against us.
Our offenses are ever with us,
    and we acknowledge our iniquities:(MD)
13 rebellion(ME) and treachery against the Lord,
    turning our backs(MF) on our God,
inciting revolt and oppression,(MG)
    uttering lies(MH) our hearts have conceived.
14 So justice(MI) is driven back,
    and righteousness(MJ) stands at a distance;
truth(MK) has stumbled in the streets,
    honesty cannot enter.
15 Truth(ML) is nowhere to be found,
    and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey.

The Lord looked and was displeased
    that there was no justice.(MM)
16 He saw that there was no one,(MN)
    he was appalled that there was no one to intervene;(MO)
so his own arm achieved salvation(MP) for him,
    and his own righteousness(MQ) sustained him.
17 He put on righteousness as his breastplate,(MR)
    and the helmet(MS) of salvation on his head;
he put on the garments(MT) of vengeance(MU)
    and wrapped himself in zeal(MV) as in a cloak.
18 According to what they have done,
    so will he repay(MW)
wrath to his enemies
    and retribution to his foes;
    he will repay the islands(MX) their due.
19 From the west,(MY) people will fear the name of the Lord,
    and from the rising of the sun,(MZ) they will revere his glory.(NA)
For he will come like a pent-up flood
    that the breath(NB) of the Lord drives along.[m]

20 “The Redeemer(NC) will come to Zion,(ND)
    to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,”(NE)
declares the Lord.

21 “As for me, this is my covenant(NF) with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit,(NG) who is on you, will not depart from you,(NH) and my words that I have put in your mouth(NI) will always be on your lips, on the lips of your children and on the lips of their descendants—from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.

The Glory of Zion

60 “Arise,(NJ) shine, for your light(NK) has come,
    and the glory(NL) of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness(NM) covers the earth
    and thick darkness(NN) is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.
Nations(NO) will come to your light,(NP)
    and kings(NQ) to the brightness of your dawn.

“Lift up your eyes and look about you:
    All assemble(NR) and come to you;
your sons come from afar,(NS)
    and your daughters(NT) are carried on the hip.(NU)
Then you will look and be radiant,(NV)
    your heart will throb and swell with joy;(NW)
the wealth(NX) on the seas will be brought to you,
    to you the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels(NY) will cover your land,
    young camels of Midian(NZ) and Ephah.(OA)
And all from Sheba(OB) will come,
    bearing gold and incense(OC)
    and proclaiming the praise(OD) of the Lord.
All Kedar’s(OE) flocks will be gathered to you,
    the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
they will be accepted as offerings(OF) on my altar,(OG)
    and I will adorn my glorious temple.(OH)

“Who are these(OI) that fly along like clouds,(OJ)
    like doves to their nests?
Surely the islands(OK) look to me;
    in the lead are the ships of Tarshish,[n](OL)
bringing(OM) your children from afar,
    with their silver and gold,(ON)
to the honor(OO) of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One(OP) of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendor.(OQ)

10 “Foreigners(OR) will rebuild your walls,
    and their kings(OS) will serve you.
Though in anger I struck you,
    in favor(OT) I will show you compassion.(OU)
11 Your gates(OV) will always stand open,
    they will never be shut, day or night,
so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations(OW)
    their kings(OX) led in triumphal procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve(OY) you will perish;
    it will be utterly ruined.(OZ)

13 “The glory of Lebanon(PA) will come to you,
    the juniper, the fir and the cypress together,(PB)
to adorn my sanctuary;(PC)
    and I will glorify the place for my feet.(PD)
14 The children of your oppressors(PE) will come bowing before you;
    all who despise you will bow down(PF) at your feet
and will call you the City(PG) of the Lord,
    Zion(PH) of the Holy One(PI) of Israel.

15 “Although you have been forsaken(PJ) and hated,
    with no one traveling(PK) through,
I will make you the everlasting pride(PL)
    and the joy(PM) of all generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations
    and be nursed(PN) at royal breasts.
Then you will know(PO) that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(PP)
    your Redeemer,(PQ) the Mighty One of Jacob.(PR)
17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,(PS)
    and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,
    and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace(PT) your governor
    and well-being your ruler.(PU)
18 No longer will violence(PV) be heard in your land,
    nor ruin or destruction(PW) within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation(PX)
    and your gates Praise.(PY)
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,(PZ)
    and your God will be your glory.(QA)
20 Your sun(QB) will never set again,
    and your moon will wane no more;
the Lord will be your everlasting light,
    and your days of sorrow(QC) will end.
21 Then all your people will be righteous(QD)
    and they will possess(QE) the land forever.
They are the shoot I have planted,(QF)
    the work of my hands,(QG)
    for the display of my splendor.(QH)
22 The least of you will become a thousand,
    the smallest a mighty nation.(QI)
I am the Lord;
    in its time I will do this swiftly.”(QJ)

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

61 The Spirit(QK) of the Sovereign Lord(QL) is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed(QM) me
    to proclaim good news(QN) to the poor.(QO)
He has sent me to bind up(QP) the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom(QQ) for the captives(QR)
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,[o]
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor(QS)
    and the day of vengeance(QT) of our God,
to comfort(QU) all who mourn,(QV)
    and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown(QW) of beauty
    instead of ashes,(QX)
the oil(QY) of joy
    instead of mourning,(QZ)
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
    a planting(RA) of the Lord
    for the display of his splendor.(RB)

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

Instead of your shame(RG)
    you will receive a double(RH) portion,
and instead of disgrace
    you will rejoice in your inheritance.
And so you will inherit(RI) a double portion in your land,
    and everlasting joy(RJ) will be yours.

“For I, the Lord, love justice;(RK)
    I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
In my faithfulness I will reward my people
    and make an everlasting covenant(RL) with them.
Their descendants(RM) 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.”(RN)

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

Zion’s New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,(RU)
    for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,
till her vindication(RV) shines out like the dawn,(RW)
    her salvation(RX) like a blazing torch.
The nations(RY) will see your vindication,
    and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name(RZ)
    that the mouth of the Lord will bestow.
You will be a crown(SA) of splendor in the Lord’s hand,
    a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
No longer will they call you Deserted,(SB)
    or name your land Desolate.(SC)
But you will be called Hephzibah,[p](SD)
    and your land Beulah[q];
for the Lord will take delight(SE) in you,
    and your land will be married.(SF)
As a young man marries a young woman,
    so will your Builder marry you;
as a bridegroom(SG) rejoices over his bride,
    so will your God rejoice(SH) over you.

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

The Lord has sworn(SM) by his right hand
    and by his mighty arm:
“Never again will I give your grain(SN)
    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(SO) it
    and praise the Lord,(SP)
and those who gather the grapes will drink it
    in the courts of my sanctuary.”(SQ)

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

11 The Lord has made proclamation
    to the ends of the earth:(SU)
“Say to Daughter Zion,(SV)
    ‘See, your Savior comes!(SW)
See, his reward is with him,
    and his recompense accompanies him.’”(SX)
12 They will be called(SY) the Holy People,(SZ)
    the Redeemed(TA) of the Lord;
and you will be called Sought After,
    the City No Longer Deserted.(TB)

God’s Day of Vengeance and Redemption

63 Who is this coming from Edom,(TC)
    from Bozrah,(TD) with his garments stained crimson?(TE)
Who is this, robed in splendor,
    striding forward in the greatness of his strength?(TF)

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

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

“I have trodden the winepress(TI) alone;
    from the nations no one was with me.
I trampled(TJ) them in my anger
    and trod them down in my wrath;(TK)
their blood spattered my garments,(TL)
    and I stained all my clothing.
It was for me the day of vengeance;(TM)
    the year for me to redeem had come.
I looked, but there was no one(TN) to help,
    I was appalled that no one gave support;
so my own arm(TO) achieved salvation for me,
    and my own wrath sustained me.(TP)
I trampled(TQ) the nations in my anger;
    in my wrath I made them drunk(TR)
    and poured their blood(TS) on the ground.”

Praise and Prayer

I will tell of the kindnesses(TT) 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(TU)
    he has done for Israel,
    according to his compassion(TV) and many kindnesses.
He said, “Surely they are my people,(TW)
    children who will be true to me”;
    and so he became their Savior.(TX)
In all their distress he too was distressed,
    and the angel(TY) of his presence(TZ) saved them.[r]
In his love and mercy he redeemed(UA) them;
    he lifted them up and carried(UB) them
    all the days of old.(UC)
10 Yet they rebelled(UD)
    and grieved his Holy Spirit.(UE)
So he turned and became their enemy(UF)
    and he himself fought(UG) against them.

11 Then his people recalled[s] the days of old,
    the days of Moses and his people—
where is he who brought them through the sea,(UH)
    with the shepherd of his flock?(UI)
Where is he who set
    his Holy Spirit(UJ) among them,
12 who sent his glorious arm(UK) of power
    to be at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters(UL) before them,
    to gain for himself everlasting renown,(UM)
13 who led(UN) them through the depths?(UO)
Like a horse in open country,
    they did not stumble;(UP)
14 like cattle that go down to the plain,
    they were given rest(UQ) 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(UR) and see,
    from your lofty throne,(US) holy and glorious.
Where are your zeal(UT) and your might?
    Your tenderness and compassion(UU) are withheld(UV) from us.
16 But you are our Father,(UW)
    though Abraham does not know us
    or Israel acknowledge(UX) us;
you, Lord, are our Father,
    our Redeemer(UY) from of old is your name.
17 Why, Lord, do you make us wander(UZ) from your ways
    and harden our hearts(VA) so we do not revere(VB) you?
Return(VC) for the sake of your servants,
    the tribes that are your inheritance.(VD)
18 For a little while(VE) your people possessed your holy place,
    but now our enemies have trampled(VF) down your sanctuary.(VG)
19 We are yours from of old;
    but you have not ruled over them,
    they have not been called[t] by your name.(VH)

64 [u]Oh, that you would rend the heavens(VI) and come down,(VJ)
    that the mountains(VK) would tremble before you!
As when fire sets twigs ablaze
    and causes water to boil,
come down to make your name(VL) known to your enemies
    and cause the nations to quake(VM) before you!
For when you did awesome(VN) things that we did not expect,
    you came down, and the mountains trembled(VO) before you.
Since ancient times no one has heard,
    no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,(VP)
    who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.(VQ)
You come to the help of those who gladly do right,(VR)
    who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
    you were angry.(VS)
    How then can we be saved?
All of us have become like one who is unclean,(VT)
    and all our righteous(VU) acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,(VV)
    and like the wind our sins sweep us away.(VW)
No one(VX) calls on your name(VY)
    or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden(VZ) your face from us
    and have given us over(WA) to[v] our sins.

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.(WB)
    We are the clay, you are the potter;(WC)
    we are all the work of your hand.(WD)
Do not be angry(WE) beyond measure, Lord;
    do not remember our sins(WF) forever.
Oh, look on us, we pray,
    for we are all your people.(WG)
10 Your sacred cities(WH) have become a wasteland;
    even Zion is a wasteland, Jerusalem a desolation.(WI)
11 Our holy and glorious temple,(WJ) where our ancestors praised you,
    has been burned with fire,
    and all that we treasured(WK) lies in ruins.
12 After all this, Lord, will you hold yourself back?(WL)
    Will you keep silent(WM) and punish us beyond measure?

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 53:8 Or From arrest
  2. Isaiah 53:8 Or generation considered / that he was cut off from the land of the living, / that he was punished for the transgression of my people?
  3. Isaiah 53:10 Hebrew though you make
  4. Isaiah 53:11 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also Septuagint); Masoretic Text does not have the light of life.
  5. Isaiah 53:11 Or (with Masoretic Text) 11 He will see the fruit of his suffering / and will be satisfied
  6. Isaiah 53:11 Or by knowledge of him
  7. Isaiah 53:12 Or many
  8. Isaiah 53:12 Or numerous
  9. Isaiah 54:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  10. Isaiah 57:9 Or to the king
  11. Isaiah 57:9 Or idols
  12. Isaiah 58:8 Or your righteous One
  13. Isaiah 59:19 Or When enemies come in like a flood, / the Spirit of the Lord will put them to flight
  14. Isaiah 60:9 Or the trading ships
  15. Isaiah 61:1 Hebrew; Septuagint the blind
  16. Isaiah 62:4 Hephzibah means my delight is in her.
  17. Isaiah 62:4 Beulah means married.
  18. Isaiah 63:9 Or Savior in their distress. / It was no envoy or angel / but his own presence that saved them
  19. Isaiah 63:11 Or But may he recall
  20. Isaiah 63:19 Or We are like those you have never ruled, / like those never called
  21. Isaiah 64:1 In Hebrew texts 64:1 is numbered 63:19b, and 64:2-12 is numbered 64:1-11.
  22. Isaiah 64:7 Septuagint, Syriac and Targum; Hebrew have made us melt because of