Isaiah 66:7-16

English Standard Version

Rejoice with Jerusalem

⁷^(A)“Before she was in labor
    she gave birth;
before her pain came upon her
    she delivered a son.
⁸Who has heard such a thing?
    Who has seen such things?
Shall a land be born in one day?
    Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?
For ^(B)as soon as Zion was in labor
    she brought forth her children.
⁹Shall I bring to the point of birth and not cause to bring forth?”
    says the Lord;
“shall I, who cause to bring forth, shut the womb?”
    says your God.

¹⁰^(C)“Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,
    all you who love her;
rejoice with her in joy,
    all you who mourn over her;
¹¹that you may nurse and be satisfied
    from her consoling breast;
that you may drink deeply with delight
    from her glorious abundance.”^[a]

¹²For thus says the Lord:
^(D)“Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river,
    and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;
and ^(E)you shall nurse, you shall be carried upon her hip,
    and bounced upon her knees.
¹³As one whom his mother comforts,
    so ^(F)I will comfort you;
    you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
¹⁴You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;
    ^(G)your bones shall flourish like the grass;
and ^(H)the hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants,
    and he shall show his indignation against his enemies.

Final Judgment and Glory of the Lord

¹⁵“For behold, ^(I)the Lord will come in fire,
    and ^(J)his chariots like the whirlwind,
to render his anger in fury,
    and his rebuke with flames of fire.
¹⁶For ^(K)by fire ^(L)will the Lord enter into judgment,
    and by his sword, with all flesh;
    and those slain by the Lord shall be many.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Isaiah 66:11 Or breast

Psalm 33:8-19

English Standard Version

⁸Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
⁹For ^(A)he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.

¹⁰The Lord ^(B)brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
    he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
¹¹^(C)The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
    the plans of his heart to all generations.
¹²^(D)Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
    the people whom he has ^(E)chosen as his heritage!

¹³The Lord ^(F)looks down from heaven;
    he sees all the children of man;
¹⁴from ^(G)where he sits enthroned he ^(H)looks out
    on all the inhabitants of the earth,
¹⁵he who fashions the hearts of them all
    and observes all their deeds.
¹⁶^(I)The king is not saved by his great army;
    a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
¹⁷^(J)The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
    and by its great might it cannot rescue.

¹⁸Behold, ^(K)the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
^(L)on those who hope in his steadfast love,
¹⁹that he may ^(M)deliver their soul from death
and keep them alive in ^(N)famine.

Read full chapter

John 16:16-24

English Standard Version

Your Sorrow Will Turn into Joy

¹⁶^(A)“A little while, and you will see me no longer; and ^(B)again a little while, and you will see me.” ¹⁷So ^(C)some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ^(D)‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ^(E)‘because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? ^(F)We do not know what he is talking about.” ¹⁹^(G)Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? ²⁰Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(H)you will weep and lament, but ^(I)the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but ^(J)your sorrow will turn into joy. ²¹^(K)When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. ²²^(L)So also you have sorrow now, but ^(M)I will see you again, and ^(N)your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. ²³^(O)In that day you will ^(P)ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(Q)whatever you ask of the Father in my name, ^(R)he will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have asked nothing in my name. ^(S)Ask, and you will receive, ^(T)that your joy may be full.