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Isaiah 48:12-52
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Isaiah 48:12-52
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
12 Listen to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I called!
I, it is I who am the first,
and am I the last.(A)
13 Yes, my hand laid the foundations of the earth;
my right hand spread out the heavens.
When I summon them,
they stand forth at once.(B)
14 All of you assemble and listen:
Who among you declared these things?
The one the Lord loves[a] shall do his will
against Babylon and the offspring of Chaldea.
15 I myself have spoken, I have summoned him,
I have brought him, and his way succeeds!
16 Come near to me and hear this!
From the beginning I did not speak in secret;
At the time it happens, I am there:
“Now the Lord God has sent me, and his spirit.”[b]
17 Thus says the Lord, your redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel:
I am the Lord, your God,
teaching you how to prevail,
leading you on the way you should go.
18 If only you would attend to my commandments,
your peace would be like a river,
your vindication like the waves of the sea,
19 Your descendants like the sand,
the offspring of your loins like its grains,
Their name never cut off
or blotted out from my presence.
20 Go forth from Babylon, flee from Chaldea!
With shouts of joy declare this, announce it;
Make it known to the ends of the earth,
Say: “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob.
21 They did not thirst
when he led them through dry lands;
Water from the rock he set flowing for them;
he cleft the rock, and waters welled forth.”(C)
22 There is no peace[c] for the wicked,
says the Lord.
B. Expiation of Sin, Spiritual Liberation of Israel
Chapter 49
The Servant of the Lord[d]
1 Hear me, coastlands,
listen, distant peoples.(D)
Before birth the Lord called me,
from my mother’s womb he gave me my name.[e]
2 He made my mouth like a sharp-edged sword,
concealed me, shielded by his hand.
He made me a sharpened arrow,
in his quiver he hid me.
3 He said to me, You are my servant,
in you, Israel,[f] I show my glory.
4 Though I thought I had toiled in vain,
for nothing and for naught spent my strength,
Yet my right is with the Lord,
my recompense is with my God.(E)
5 For now the Lord has spoken
who formed me as his servant from the womb,
That Jacob may be brought back to him
and Israel gathered to him;
I am honored in the sight of the Lord,
and my God is now my strength!
6 It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant,
to raise up the tribes of Jacob,
and restore the survivors of Israel;(F)
I will make you a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.[g]
7 Thus says the Lord,
the redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,
To the one despised, abhorred by the nations,
the slave of rulers:
When kings see you, they shall stand up,
and princes shall bow down
Because of the Lord who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.(G)
The Liberation and Restoration of Zion
8 Thus says the Lord:
In a time of favor I answer you,[h]
on the day of salvation I help you;
I form you and set you
as a covenant for the people,
To restore the land
and allot the devastated heritages,(H)
9 To say to the prisoners: Come out!
To those in darkness: Show yourselves!
Along the roadways they shall find pasture,
on every barren height shall their pastures be.(I)
10 They shall not hunger or thirst;
nor shall scorching wind or sun strike them;
For he who pities them leads them
and guides them beside springs of water.(J)
11 I will turn all my mountains into roadway,
and make my highways level.(K)
12 See, these shall come from afar:
some from the north and the west,
others from the land of Syene.[i]
13 Sing out, heavens, and rejoice, earth,
break forth into song, you mountains,
For the Lord comforts his people
and shows mercy to his afflicted.
14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”(L)
15 Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.(M)
16 See, upon the palms of my hands I have engraved you;[j]
your walls are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten—
your levelers, your destroyers
go forth from you;
18 Look about and see,
they are all gathering and coming to you.
As I live—oracle of the Lord—
you shall don them as jewels,
bedeck yourself like a bride.
19 Though you were waste and desolate,
a land of ruins,
Now you shall be too narrow for your inhabitants,
while those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20 The children of whom you were bereft
shall yet say in your hearing,
“This place is too narrow for me,
make room for me to live in.”
21 You shall ask yourself:
“Who has borne me these,
when I was bereft and barren?
Exiled and repudiated,
who has reared them?
I was left all alone;
where then do these come from?”(N)
22 Thus says the Lord God:
See, I will lift up my hand to the nations,
and to the peoples raise my signal;
They shall bring your sons in their arms,
your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.(O)
23 Kings shall be your guardians,
their princesses your nursemaids;
Face to the ground, they shall bow down before you
and lick the dust at your feet.
Then you shall know that I am the Lord,
none who hope in me shall be ashamed.
24 Can plunder be taken from a warrior,
or captives rescued from a tyrant?
25 Thus says the Lord:
Yes, captives can be taken from a warrior,
and plunder rescued from a tyrant;
Those who oppose you I will oppose,
and your sons I will save.
26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,
and they shall be drunk with their own blood
as though with new wine.
All flesh shall know
that I, the Lord, am your savior,
your redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.(P)
Chapter 50
Salvation Through the Lord’s Servant
1 Thus says the Lord:
Where is the bill of divorce
with which I dismissed your mother?[k]
Or to which of my creditors
have I sold you?
It was for your sins you were sold,
for your rebellions your mother was dismissed.(Q)
2 Why was no one there when I came?
Why did no one answer when I called?[l]
Is my hand too short to ransom?
Have I not the strength to deliver?
See, with my rebuke I dry up the sea,
I turn rivers into wilderness;
Their fish rot for lack of water,
and die of thirst.(R)
3 I clothe the heavens in black,
and make sackcloth their covering.
4 [m]The Lord God has given me
a well-trained tongue,
That I might know how to answer the weary
a word that will waken them.
Morning after morning
he wakens my ear to hear as disciples do;
5 The Lord God opened my ear;
I did not refuse,
did not turn away.[n]
6 I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who tore out my beard;[o]
My face I did not hide
from insults and spitting.(S)
7 The Lord God is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
Therefore I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.(T)
8 He who declares my innocence is near.
Who will oppose me?
Let us appear together.
Who will dispute my right?
Let them confront me.
9 See, the Lord God is my help;
who will declare me guilty?
See, they will all wear out like a garment,
consumed by moths.(U)
10 Who among you fears the Lord,[p]
heeds his servant’s voice?
Whoever walk in darkness,
without any light,
Yet trust in the name of the Lord
and rely upon their God!(V)
11 All you who kindle flames
and set flares alight,
Walk by the light of your own fire
and by the flares you have burnt!
This is your fate from my hand:
you shall lie down in a place of torment.
Chapter 51
Exhortation to Trust in the Lord
1 Listen to me, you who pursue justice,
who seek the Lord;
Look to the rock from which you were hewn,
to the quarry[q] from which you were taken;(W)
2 Look to Abraham, your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth;
Though he was but one when I called him,
I blessed him and made him many.(X)
3 Yes, the Lord shall comfort Zion,
shall comfort all her ruins;
Her wilderness he shall make like Eden,
her wasteland like the garden of the Lord;
Joy and gladness shall be found in her,
thanksgiving and the sound of song.
4 Be attentive to me, my people;[r]
my nation, give ear to me.
For teaching shall go forth from me,
and my judgment, as light to the peoples.(Y)
5 I will make my victory come swiftly;
my salvation shall go forth
and my arm shall judge the nations;
In me the coastlands shall hope,
and my arm they shall await.
6 Raise your eyes to the heavens,
look at the earth below;
Though the heavens vanish like smoke,
the earth wear out like a garment
and its inhabitants die like flies,
My salvation shall remain forever
and my victory shall always be firm.[s]
7 Hear me, you who know justice,
you people who have my teaching at heart:
Do not fear the reproach of others;
remain firm at their revilings.
8 They shall be like a garment eaten by moths,
like wool consumed by grubs;
But my victory shall remain forever,
my salvation, for all generations.(Z)
9 Awake, awake, put on strength,
arm of the Lord!
Awake as in the days of old,
in ages long ago!
Was it not you who crushed Rahab,[t]
you who pierced the dragon?(AA)
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep,[u]
You who made the depths of the sea into a way
for the redeemed to pass through?
11 Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return
and enter Zion singing,
crowned with everlasting joy;
They will meet with joy and gladness,
sorrow and mourning will flee.
12 I, it is I who comfort you.
Can you then fear mortals who die,
human beings who are just grass,
13 And forget the Lord, your maker,
who stretched out the heavens
and laid the foundations of earth?
All the day you are in constant dread
of the fury of the oppressor
When he prepares himself to destroy;
but where is the oppressor’s fury?
14 The captives shall soon be released;
they shall not die and go down into the pit,
nor shall they want for bread.
15 For I am the Lord, your God,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar;
the Lord of hosts by name.(AB)
16 I have put my words into your mouth,
I covered you, shielded by my hand,
Stretching out the heavens,
laying the foundations of the earth,
saying to Zion: You are my people.
The Cup of the Lord
17 Wake up, wake up!
Arise, Jerusalem,
You who drank at the Lord’s hand
the cup of his wrath;
Who drained to the dregs
the bowl of staggering!(AC)
18 She has no one to guide her
of all the children she bore;
She has no one to take her by the hand,
of all the children she reared!—
19 Your misfortunes are double;
who is there to grieve with you?
Desolation and destruction, famine and sword!
Who is there to comfort you?
20 Your children lie helpless
at every street corner
like antelopes in a net.
They are filled with the wrath of the Lord,
the rebuke of your God.
21 But now, hear this, afflicted one,
drunk, but not with wine,(AD)
22 Thus says the Lord, your Master,
your God, who defends his people:
See, I am taking from your hand
the cup of staggering;
The bowl of my wrath
you shall no longer drink.
23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,
those who said to you,
“Bow down, that we may walk over you.”
So you offered your back like the ground,
like the street for them to walk on.
Chapter 52
Let Zion Rejoice
1 Awake, awake!
Put on your strength, Zion;
Put on your glorious garments,
Jerusalem, holy city.
Never again shall the uncircumcised
or the unclean enter you.
2 Arise, shake off the dust,
sit enthroned, Jerusalem;
Loose the bonds from your neck,
captive daughter Zion!
3 For thus says the Lord:
For nothing you were sold,
without money you shall be redeemed.
4 For thus says the Lord God:
To Egypt long ago my people went down,
to sojourn there;
Assyria, too, oppressed them for nought.
5 But now, what am I to do here?
—oracle of the Lord.
My people have been taken away for nothing;
their rulers mock, oracle of the Lord;
constantly, every day, my name is reviled.
6 Therefore my people shall know my name
on that day, that it is I who speaks: Here I am!
7 How beautiful upon the mountains[v]
are the feet of the one bringing good news,
Announcing peace, bearing good news,
announcing salvation, saying to Zion,
“Your God is King!”(AE)
8 Listen! Your sentinels raise a cry,
together they shout for joy,
For they see directly, before their eyes,
the Lord’s return to Zion.(AF)
9 Break out together in song,
O ruins of Jerusalem!
For the Lord has comforted his people,
has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has bared his holy arm
in the sight of all the nations;
All the ends of the earth can see
the salvation of our God.
11 Depart, depart, go out from there,
touch nothing unclean!
Out from there![w] Purify yourselves,
you who carry the vessels of the Lord.
12 But not in hurried flight will you go out,
nor leave in headlong haste,
For the Lord goes before you,
and your rear guard is the God of Israel.(AG)
Footnotes
- 48:14 The one the Lord loves: the reference is no doubt to Cyrus, who does the Lord’s will by overcoming Babylon and releasing Israel from captivity.
- 48:16 “Now the Lord…spirit”: said by Cyrus; cf. v. 14.
- 48:22 No peace: while the good news proclaimed by the prophet is directed to the people as a whole, “peace,” which can represent the fullness of God’s blessings and which would here include deliverance from exile, is not extended to all regardless of disposition.
- 49:1–7 The second of the four “servant of the Lord” oracles (cf. note on 42:1–4).
- 49:1 Gave me my name: designated me for a special task or mission (cf. Jer 1:5).
- 49:3 Israel: the servant is identified with the people of Israel as their ideal representative; however, vv. 5–6 seem to distinguish the servant from Israel.
- 49:6 The servant’s vocation extends beyond the restoration of Israel in order to bring the knowledge of Israel’s God to the rest of the earth; cf. Lk 2:32.
- 49:8 You: the individual is not named; perhaps Cyrus or the prophet.
- 49:12 Syene: now called Aswan, at the first cataract of the Nile in southern Egypt.
- 49:16 Upon the palms…you: for continual remembrance; cf. Ex 13:9, 16; Dt 6:6–9.
- 50:1 Responding to the people’s complaint of utter abandonment by God, the prophet asserts that their sins were responsible for their banishment. Since there was no bill of divorce, the bond between the Lord and his people still exists and he has the power to deliver them (v. 2).
- 50:2 Israel’s faith in God is weak; the people do not answer God’s call, nor believe promises of deliverance.
- 50:4–11 The third of the four “servant of the Lord” oracles (cf. note on 42:1–4); in vv. 4–9 the servant speaks; in vv. 10–11 God addresses the people directly.
- 50:5 The servant, like a well-trained disciple, does not refuse the divine vocation.
- 50:6 He willingly submits to insults and beatings. Tore out my beard: a grave and painful insult.
- 50:10–11 The Lord offers a choice to those who walk in darkness: either trust in the true light (v. 10), or walk in their false light and suffer the consequences.
- 51:1 Rock…quarry: your glorious ancestry.
- 51:4–5 The conversion of the nations.
- 51:6 While the heavens and the earth appear eternal and changeless, they are not so firm and lasting as God’s saving will for Israel.
- 51:9 Rahab: see note on 30:7. The dragon: see notes on 27:1; Ps 74:12–17.
- 51:10 Great deep: a reference to the primeval chaos (cf. Gn 1:2; 7:11; 49:25; Jb 28:14; Ps 36:7; Jon 2:4).
- 52:7–10 God leads the people back from Babylon to Zion, from whose ruined walls sentinels greet the returning exiles.
- 52:11 From there: from Babylon. Vessels of the Lord: taken to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, now carried back by the exiles returning in procession to Zion; cf. Ezr 1:7.
Isaiah 48:12-52
New International Version
Isaiah 48:12-52
New International Version
Israel Freed
12 “Listen(A) to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:(B)
I am he;(C)
I am the first and I am the last.(D)
13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,(E)
and my right hand spread out the heavens;(F)
when I summon them,
they all stand up together.(G)
14 “Come together,(H) all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold(I) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally(J)
will carry out his purpose(K) against Babylon;(L)
his arm will be against the Babylonians.[a]
15 I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called(M) him.
I will bring him,
and he will succeed(N) in his mission.
16 “Come near(O) me and listen(P) to this:
“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;(Q)
at the time it happens, I am there.”
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(U) the Holy One(V) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches(W) you what is best for you,
who directs(X) you in the way(Y) you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention(Z) to my commands,
your peace(AA) would have been like a river,(AB)
your well-being(AC) like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants(AD) would have been like the sand,(AE)
your children like its numberless grains;(AF)
their name would never be blotted out(AG)
nor destroyed from before me.”
20 Leave Babylon,
flee(AH) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy(AI)
and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;(AJ)
say, “The Lord has redeemed(AK) his servant Jacob.”
21 They did not thirst(AL) when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow(AM) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
and water gushed out.(AN)
The Servant of the Lord
49 Listen(AQ) to me, you islands;(AR)
hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born(AS) the Lord called(AT) me;
from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.(AU)
2 He made my mouth(AV) like a sharpened sword,(AW)
in the shadow of his hand(AX) he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow(AY)
and concealed me in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,(AZ)
Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.(BA)”
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;(BB)
I have spent my strength for nothing at all.
Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,(BC)
and my reward(BD) is with my God.”(BE)
5 And now the Lord says—
he who formed me in the womb(BF) to be his servant
to bring Jacob back to him
and gather Israel(BG) to himself,
for I am[b] honored(BH) in the eyes of the Lord
and my God has been my strength(BI)—
6 he says:
“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant(BJ)
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring back those of Israel I have kept.(BK)
I will also make you a light(BL) for the Gentiles,(BM)
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”(BN)
7 This is what the Lord says—
the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel(BO)—
to him who was despised(BP) and abhorred by the nation,
to the servant of rulers:
“Kings(BQ) will see you and stand up,
princes will see and bow down,(BR)
because of the Lord, who is faithful,(BS)
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen(BT) you.”
Restoration of Israel
8 This is what the Lord says:
“In the time of my favor(BU) I will answer you,
and in the day of salvation I will help you;(BV)
I will keep(BW) you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people,(BX)
to restore the land(BY)
and to reassign its desolate inheritances,(BZ)
9 to say to the captives,(CA) ‘Come out,’
and to those in darkness,(CB) ‘Be free!’
“They will feed beside the roads
and find pasture on every barren hill.(CC)
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,(CD)
nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.(CE)
He who has compassion(CF) on them will guide(CG) them
and lead them beside springs(CH) of water.
11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,
and my highways(CI) will be raised up.(CJ)
12 See, they will come from afar(CK)—
some from the north, some from the west,(CL)
some from the region of Aswan.[c]”
13 Shout for joy,(CM) you heavens;
rejoice, you earth;(CN)
burst into song, you mountains!(CO)
For the Lord comforts(CP) his people
and will have compassion(CQ) on his afflicted ones.(CR)
15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child(CU) she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!(CV)
16 See, I have engraved(CW) you on the palms of my hands;
your walls(CX) are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten back,
and those who laid you waste(CY) depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around;
all your children gather(CZ) and come to you.
As surely as I live,(DA)” declares the Lord,
“you will wear(DB) them all as ornaments;
you will put them on, like a bride.
19 “Though you were ruined and made desolate(DC)
and your land laid waste,(DD)
now you will be too small for your people,(DE)
and those who devoured(DF) you will be far away.
20 The children born during your bereavement
will yet say in your hearing,
‘This place is too small for us;
give us more space to live in.’(DG)
21 Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who bore me these?(DH)
I was bereaved(DI) and barren;
I was exiled and rejected.(DJ)
Who brought these(DK) up?
I was left(DL) all alone,(DM)
but these—where have they come from?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord(DN) says:
“See, I will beckon to the nations,
I will lift up my banner(DO) to the peoples;
they will bring(DP) your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their hips.(DQ)
23 Kings(DR) will be your foster fathers,
and their queens your nursing mothers.(DS)
They will bow down(DT) before you with their faces to the ground;
they will lick the dust(DU) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;(DV)
those who hope(DW) in me will not be disappointed.(DX)”
25 But this is what the Lord says:
“Yes, captives(DZ) will be taken from warriors,(EA)
and plunder retrieved from the fierce;(EB)
I will contend with those who contend with you,(EC)
and your children I will save.(ED)
26 I will make your oppressors(EE) eat(EF) their own flesh;
they will be drunk on their own blood,(EG) as with wine.
Then all mankind will know(EH)
that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(EI)
your Redeemer,(EJ) the Mighty One of Jacob.(EK)”
Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce(EL)
with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
did I sell(EM) you?
Because of your sins(EN) you were sold;(EO)
because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
2 When I came, why was there no one?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?(EP)
Was my arm too short(EQ) to deliver you?
Do I lack the strength(ER) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke(ES) I dry up the sea,(ET)
I turn rivers into a desert;(EU)
their fish rot for lack of water
and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness(EV)
and make sackcloth(EW) its covering.”
4 The Sovereign Lord(EX) has given me a well-instructed tongue,(EY)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(EZ)
He wakens me morning by morning,(FA)
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.(FB)
5 The Sovereign Lord(FC) has opened my ears;(FD)
I have not been rebellious,(FE)
I have not turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(FF) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(FG)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(FH)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(FI) helps(FJ) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(FK)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(FL)
8 He who vindicates(FM) me is near.(FN)
Who then will bring charges against me?(FO)
Let us face each other!(FP)
Who is my accuser?
Let him confront me!
9 It is the Sovereign Lord(FQ) who helps(FR) me.
Who will condemn(FS) me?
They will all wear out like a garment;
the moths(FT) will eat them up.
10 Who among you fears(FU) the Lord
and obeys(FV) the word of his servant?(FW)
Let the one who walks in the dark,
who has no light,(FX)
trust(FY) in the name of the Lord
and rely on their God.
11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,(FZ)
go, walk in the light of your fires(GA)
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:(GB)
You will lie down in torment.(GC)
Everlasting Salvation for Zion
51 “Listen(GD) to me, you who pursue righteousness(GE)
and who seek(GF) the Lord:
Look to the rock(GG) from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you were hewn;
2 look to Abraham,(GH) your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him he was only one man,
and I blessed him and made him many.(GI)
3 The Lord will surely comfort(GJ) Zion(GK)
and will look with compassion on all her ruins;(GL)
he will make her deserts like Eden,(GM)
her wastelands(GN) like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness(GO) will be found in her,
thanksgiving(GP) and the sound of singing.
4 “Listen to me, my people;(GQ)
hear me,(GR) my nation:
Instruction(GS) will go out from me;
my justice(GT) will become a light to the nations.(GU)
5 My righteousness draws near speedily,
my salvation(GV) is on the way,(GW)
and my arm(GX) will bring justice to the nations.
The islands(GY) will look to me
and wait in hope(GZ) for my arm.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
look at the earth beneath;
the heavens will vanish like smoke,(HA)
the earth will wear out like a garment(HB)
and its inhabitants die like flies.
But my salvation(HC) will last forever,(HD)
my righteousness will never fail.(HE)
7 “Hear me, you who know what is right,(HF)
you people who have taken my instruction to heart:(HG)
Do not fear the reproach of mere mortals
or be terrified by their insults.(HH)
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment;(HI)
the worm(HJ) will devour them like wool.
But my righteousness will last forever,(HK)
my salvation through all generations.”
9 Awake, awake,(HL) arm(HM) of the Lord,
clothe yourself with strength!(HN)
Awake, as in days gone by,
as in generations of old.(HO)
Was it not you who cut Rahab(HP) to pieces,
who pierced that monster(HQ) through?
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,(HR)
the waters of the great deep,(HS)
who made a road in the depths of the sea(HT)
so that the redeemed(HU) might cross over?
11 Those the Lord has rescued(HV) will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;(HW)
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy(HX) will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.(HY)
12 “I, even I, am he who comforts(HZ) you.
Who are you that you fear(IA) mere mortals,(IB)
human beings who are but grass,(IC)
13 that you forget(ID) the Lord your Maker,(IE)
who stretches out the heavens(IF)
and who lays the foundations of the earth,
that you live in constant terror(IG) every day
because of the wrath of the oppressor,
who is bent on destruction?
For where is the wrath of the oppressor?(IH)
14 The cowering prisoners will soon be set free;(II)
they will not die in their dungeon,
nor will they lack bread.(IJ)
15 For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea(IK) so that its waves roar(IL)—
the Lord Almighty(IM) is his name.
16 I have put my words in your mouth(IN)
and covered you with the shadow of my hand(IO)—
I who set the heavens in place,
who laid the foundations of the earth,(IP)
and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.(IQ)’”
The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath
17 Awake, awake!(IR)
Rise up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup(IS) of his wrath,(IT)
you who have drained to its dregs(IU)
the goblet that makes people stagger.(IV)
18 Among all the children(IW) she bore
there was none to guide her;(IX)
among all the children she reared
there was none to take her by the hand.(IY)
19 These double calamities(IZ) have come upon you—
who can comfort you?(JA)—
ruin and destruction,(JB) famine(JC) and sword(JD)—
who can[e] console you?
20 Your children have fainted;
they lie at every street corner,(JE)
like antelope caught in a net.(JF)
They are filled with the wrath(JG) of the Lord,
with the rebuke(JH) of your God.
21 Therefore hear this, you afflicted(JI) one,
made drunk,(JJ) but not with wine.
22 This is what your Sovereign Lord says,
your God, who defends(JK) his people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
the cup(JL) that made you stagger;
from that cup, the goblet of my wrath,
you will never drink again.
23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,(JM)
who said to you,
‘Fall prostrate(JN) that we may walk(JO) on you.’
And you made your back like the ground,
like a street to be walked on.”(JP)
52 Awake, awake,(JQ) Zion,
clothe yourself with strength!(JR)
Put on your garments of splendor,(JS)
Jerusalem, the holy city.(JT)
The uncircumcised(JU) and defiled(JV)
will not enter you again.(JW)
2 Shake off your dust;(JX)
rise up,(JY) sit enthroned, Jerusalem.
Free yourself from the chains on your neck,(JZ)
Daughter Zion,(KA) now a captive.
3 For this is what the Lord says:
4 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
5 “And now what do I have here?” declares the Lord.
“For my people have been taken away for nothing,
and those who rule them mock,[f]”
declares the Lord.
“And all day long
my name is constantly blasphemed.(KG)
6 Therefore my people will know(KH) my name;(KI)
therefore in that day(KJ) they will know
that it is I who foretold(KK) it.
Yes, it is I.”
7 How beautiful on the mountains(KL)
are the feet of those who bring good news,(KM)
who proclaim peace,(KN)
who bring good tidings,
who proclaim salvation,
who say to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”(KO)
8 Listen! Your watchmen(KP) lift up their voices;(KQ)
together they shout for joy.(KR)
When the Lord returns(KS) to Zion,(KT)
they will see it with their own eyes.
9 Burst into songs of joy(KU) together,
you ruins(KV) of Jerusalem,
for the Lord has comforted(KW) his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.(KX)
10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm(KY)
in the sight of all the nations,(KZ)
and all the ends of the earth(LA) will see
the salvation(LB) of our God.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 48:14 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 20
- Isaiah 49:5 Or him, / but Israel would not be gathered; / yet I will be
- Isaiah 49:12 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text Sinim
- Isaiah 49:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Septuagint and verse 25); Masoretic Text righteous
- Isaiah 51:19 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text / how can I
- Isaiah 52:5 Dead Sea Scrolls and Vulgate; Masoretic Text wail
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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