Chronological
The Glory of Yahweh Will Be Revealed
40 “(A)Comfort, O comfort My people,” says your God.
2 “(B)Speak to the heart of Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her [a](C)warfare has been fulfilled,
That her [b](D)iniquity has been removed,
That she has received from the hand of Yahweh
(E)Double for all her sins.”
3 (F)A voice [c]is calling,
“(G)Prepare the way for Yahweh in the wilderness;
Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Let every valley be lifted up,
And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the rough ground become a plain,
And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5 [d]Then the (H)glory of Yahweh will be revealed,
And (I)all flesh will see it together;
For the (J)mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
6 A voice says, “Call out.”
Then [e]he answered, “What shall I call out?”
(K)All flesh is grass, and all its lovingkindness is like the flower of the field.
7 The (L)grass [f]withers, the flower fades,
[g]When the (M)breath of Yahweh blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass [h]withers, the flower fades,
But (N)the word of our God stands forever.
9 Get yourself up on a (O)high mountain,
O Zion, bearer of (P)good news,
Raise up your voice powerfully,
O Jerusalem, bearer of good news;
Raise it up, do not fear.
Say to the (Q)cities of Judah,
“(R)Behold your God!”
10 Behold, Lord Yahweh will come (S)with strength,
With His (T)arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His (U)reward is with Him
And His recompense before Him.
11 Like a shepherd He will (V)shepherd His flock;
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in His bosom;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
12 Who has (W)measured the [i]waters in the hollow of His hand,
And [j]encompassed the heavens by the [k]span,
And [l]calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
13 (X)Who has [m]encompassed the Spirit of Yahweh,
Or as His (Y)counselor has informed Him?
14 (Z)With whom did He take counsel and who (AA)gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge
And made Him know the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the (AB)nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are counted as a speck of (AC)dust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the coastlands like fine dust.
16 Even Lebanon is not enough to burn,
Nor its (AD)beasts enough for a burnt offering.
17 (AE)All the nations are as nothing before Him;
They are counted by Him as non-existent and utterly formless.
18 (AF)To whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the (AG)graven images, a craftsman casts it,
A goldsmith (AH)plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20 He who is too impoverished to make such a contribution
Chooses a (AI)tree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a wise craftsman
To [n]prepare a graven image that (AJ)will not be shaken.
21 (AK)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood (AL)from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who [o]inhabits above the [p](AM)circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like (AN)grasshoppers;
It is He who (AO)stretches out the heavens like a (AP)curtain
And spreads them out like a (AQ)tent to inhabit.
23 It is He who reduces (AR)rulers to nothing,
Who (AS)makes the [q]judges of the earth utterly formless.
24 [r]Scarcely have they been planted;
[s]Scarcely have they been sown;
[t]Scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they [u]wither,
And the (AT)storm carries them away like stubble.
25 “(AU)To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 (AV)Lift up your eyes on high
And see (AW)who has created these stars,
The (AX)One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the (AY)greatness of His vigor and the [v]strength of His power,
(AZ)Not one of them is missing.
27 (BA)Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
“My way is (BB)hidden from Yahweh,
And the (BC)justice due me passes by (BD)my God”?
28 (BE)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The (BF)Everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth,
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is (BG)unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the (BH)weary,
And to him who lacks vigor He (BI)increases might.
30 Though (BJ)youths grow weary and tired,
And choice (BK)young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who hope in Yahweh
Will (BL)gain new power;
They will [w](BM)mount up with [x]wings like eagles;
They will run and not get tired;
They will walk and not become weary.
Do Not Fear, for I Am with You
41 “(BN)Coastlands, listen to Me (BO)in silence,
And let the peoples (BP)gain new power;
(BQ)Let them come forward, then let them speak;
(BR)Let us draw near together for judgment.
2 (BS)Who has awakened one from the east
Whom He (BT)calls in righteousness to His [y]feet?
He (BU)gives up nations before him
And [z]has dominion over kings.
He makes them like (BV)dust with his sword,
As the wind-driven (BW)chaff with his bow.
3 He pursues them, passing on in peace,
By a way he had not [aa]come with his feet.
4 (BX)Who has worked and done it,
Calling forth the generations from the beginning?
‘(BY)I, Yahweh, am the first; and with the last, (BZ)I am He.’”
5 The (CA)coastlands have seen and are afraid;
The (CB)ends of the earth tremble;
They have drawn near and have come.
6 Each one helps his neighbor
And says to his brother, “Be strong!”
7 So the (CC)craftsman strengthens the (CD)smelter,
And he who smooths metal with the hammer strengthens him who beats the anvil,
Saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
And he strengthens it with nails,
(CE)So that it will not be shaken.
8 “But you, Israel, (CF)My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
Seed of (CG)Abraham My (CH)friend,
9 You whom I have [ab](CI)strongly taken hold of from the ends of the earth,
And called from its (CJ)remotest parts
And said to you, ‘You are (CK)My servant,
I have (CL)chosen you and not rejected you.
10 Do not (CM)fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will make you mighty, surely (CN)I will help you;
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous (CO)right hand.’
11 Behold, (CP)all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;
(CQ)Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
12 (CR)You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them,
Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.
13 For I am Yahweh your God, (CS)who [ac]strongly takes hold of your right hand,
Who says to you, ‘(CT)Do not fear, I will help you.’
14 Do not fear, you (CU)worm Jacob, you men of Israel;
I will help you,” declares Yahweh, “[ad]and (CV)your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15 Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;
(CW)You will thresh the (CX)mountains and pulverize them,
And will make the hills like chaff.
16 You will (CY)winnow them, and the wind will carry them away,
And the storm will scatter them;
But you will (CZ)rejoice in Yahweh;
You will boast in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The [ae]afflicted and needy are seeking (DA)water, but there is none,
And their tongue is parched with thirst;
I, Yahweh, (DB)will answer them Myself,
As the God of Israel I (DC)will not forsake them.
18 I will open (DD)rivers on the bare heights
And springs in the midst of the valleys;
I will make (DE)the wilderness a pool of water
And the dry land fountains of water.
19 I will put the cedar in the wilderness,
The acacia and the (DF)myrtle and the [af]olive tree;
I will place the (DG)juniper in the desert
Together with the box tree and the cypress,
20 That (DH)they may see and know,
And establish and gain insight as well,
That the (DI)hand of Yahweh has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
21 “Bring near your case,” Yahweh says.
“Bring forward your mighty arguments,”
The (DJ)King of Jacob says.
22 (DK)Let them bring it forth and declare to us what is going to take place;
As for the (DL)former events, declare what they were,
That we may establish our heart on them and know their outcome.
Or cause us to hear of what is coming;
23 (DM)Declare the things that are to come afterward,
That we may know that you are gods;
Indeed, (DN)do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together.
24 Behold, (DO)you are nothing,
And (DP)your work is non-existent;
He who chooses you is an (DQ)abomination.
25 “I have awakened (DR)one from the north, and he has come;
From the rising of the sun he will call on My name;
And he will come upon officials as upon (DS)mortar,
Even as the potter treads clay.”
26 Who has (DT)declared this from the beginning, that we might know?
Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?
Surely there was (DU)no one who declared;
Surely there was no one who caused those words to be heard;
Surely there was no one who heard your words.
27 “(DV)Formerly I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’
And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a (DW)messenger of good news.’
28 But (DX)I look, and there is no one,
And there is no (DY)counselor [ag]among them
Who, if I ask, can (DZ)respond with a word.
29 Behold, all of them are [ah]false;
Their (EA)works are (EB)non-existent;
Their molten images are (EC)wind and utter formlessness.
Yahweh’s Chosen Servant
42 “(ED)Behold, My (EE)Servant, whom I [ai]uphold;
My (EF)chosen one in whom My (EG)soul is well-pleased.
I have put My (EH)Spirit upon Him;
He will bring forth (EI)justice to the [aj]nations.
2 He will not cry out or raise His voice,
Nor make His voice heard in the street.
3 A crushed reed He will not break
And a faintly burning wick He will not extinguish;
He will bring forth (EJ)justice in truth.
4 He will not be (EK)faint or crushed
Until He has established justice in the earth;
And the (EL)coastlands will wait expectantly for His [ak]law.”
5 Thus says the God, Yahweh,
Who (EM)created the heavens and (EN)stretched them out,
Who spread out the (EO)earth and its [al]offspring,
Who (EP)gives breath to the people on it
And spirit to those who walk in it,
6 “I am Yahweh, I have (EQ)called You in righteousness;
I will also (ER)take hold of You by the hand and (ES)guard You,
And I will give You as a (ET)covenant to the people,
As a (EU)light to the nations,
7 To (EV)open blind eyes,
To (EW)bring out prisoners from the dungeon
And those who inhabit darkness from the prison.
8 (EX)I am Yahweh, that is (EY)My name;
I will not give My (EZ)glory to another,
Nor My praise to [am]graven images.
9 Behold, the (FA)former things have come to pass;
Now I declare (FB)new things;
Before they spring forth I cause you to hear them.”
10 Sing to Yahweh a (FC)new song,
Sing His praise from the (FD)end of the earth!
(FE)You who go down to the sea, (FF)as well as its fullness.
You (FG)coastlands, and those who inhabit them.
11 Let the (FH)wilderness and its cities lift up their voices,
The villages where (FI)Kedar inhabits.
Let the inhabitants of (FJ)Sela sing aloud,
Let them shout for joy from the tops of the (FK)mountains.
12 Let them (FL)give glory to Yahweh
And declare His praise in the (FM)coastlands.
13 (FN)Yahweh will go forth like a warrior;
He will awaken His (FO)zeal like a man of war.
He will make a loud shout, indeed, He will raise a war cry.
He will (FP)prevail against His enemies.
Israel’s Blindness and Deafness
14 “(FQ)I have kept silent for a long time;
I have kept still and restrained Myself.
Now like a woman in labor I will groan;
I will both gasp and pant.
15 I will (FR)lay waste the mountains and hills
And dry up all their vegetation;
I will (FS)make the rivers into coastlands
And dry up the pools of waters.
16 I will (FT)lead the blind by a way they do not know,
In paths they do not know I will guide them.
I will (FU)make darkness into light before them
And (FV)rugged places into plains.
These are the things I will do,
And I will (FW)not forsake them.”
17 They will be turned back and be (FX)utterly put to shame,
Who trust in graven images,
Who say to molten images,
“You are our gods.”
18 (FY)Hear, you deaf!
And look, you blind, that you may see.
19 Who is blind but My (FZ)servant,
Or so deaf as My (GA)messenger whom I send?
Who is so blind as he that is [an](GB)at peace with Me,
Or so blind as the servant of Yahweh?
20 (GC)You have seen many things, but you do not keep them;
Your ears are open, but none hears.
21 Yahweh was pleased for His righteousness’ sake
That He make the law (GD)great and majestic.
22 But this is a people plundered and pillaged as spoil;
All of them are (GE)trapped in [ao]caves,
Or are (GF)hidden away in prisons;
They have become a plunder with none to deliver them,
And a spoil, with none to say, “Have them return!”
23 Who among you will give ear to this?
Who will give heed and hear hereafter?
24 Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers?
Was it not Yahweh, against whom we have sinned,
And in whose ways they (GG)were not willing to walk,
And whose law they did not (GH)obey?
25 So He poured out on him the heat of His anger
And the (GI)fierceness of battle;
And it set him aflame all around,
Yet he did not know it;
And it burned him, but he did not (GJ)set it upon his heart.
The Redemption of Israel
43 But now, thus says Yahweh, your (GK)Creator, O Jacob,
And He who (GL)formed you, O Israel,
“Do not (GM)fear, for I have (GN)redeemed you;
I have (GO)called you by name; you are (GP)Mine!
2 When you (GQ)pass through the waters, (GR)I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you (GS)walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
3 For (GT)I am Yahweh your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your (GU)Savior;
I have given Egypt as your ransom,
[ap](GV)Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
4 Since you are (GW)precious in My sight,
Since you are (GX)honored and I (GY)love you,
I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life.
5 Do not fear, for (GZ)I am with you;
I will bring (HA)your seed from the east,
And (HB)gather you from the west.
6 I will say to the (HC)north, ‘Give them up!’
And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring My (HD)sons from afar
And My daughters from the (HE)ends of the earth,
7 Everyone who is (HF)called by My name,
And whom I have (HG)created for My (HH)glory,
(HI)Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”
Israel Is Yahweh’s Witness
8 Bring out the people who are (HJ)blind, even though they have eyes,
And the deaf, even though they have ears.
9 All the nations have (HK)gathered together
So that the peoples may be assembled.
Who among them can (HL)declare this
And make us hear the former things?
Let them present (HM)their witnesses (HN)that they may be justified,
Or let them hear and say, “It is true.”
10 “You are (HO)My witnesses,” declares Yahweh,
“And (HP)My servant whom I have chosen,
So that you may know and believe Me
And understand that (HQ)I am He.
(HR)Before Me there was no god formed,
And there will be none after Me.
11 I, even I, am Yahweh,
And there is no (HS)savior (HT)besides Me.
12 It is I who have declared and saved and caused it to be heard,
And there was no (HU)strange god among you;
So you are My witnesses,” declares Yahweh,
“And I am God.
13 Even [aq](HV)from eternity (HW)I am He,
And there is (HX)none who can deliver out of My hand;
(HY)I act and who can reverse it?”
Rivers in the Wasteland
14 Thus says Yahweh your (HZ)Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,
“For your sake I have sent to Babylon,
And will bring down those who fled—all of them,
[ar]Even the (IA)Chaldeans—into the (IB)ships [as]in which they shouted for joy.
15 I am Yahweh, your Holy One,
(IC)The Creator of Israel, your (ID)King.”
16 Thus says Yahweh,
Who (IE)makes a way through the sea
And a path through the mighty waters,
17 Who brings forth the (IF)chariot and the horse,
The military force and the mighty man;
They will lie down together and not rise again;
They have been (IG)extinguished and quenched like a wick:
18 “(IH)Do not remember the former things,
Nor carefully consider things of the past.
19 Behold, I will do something (II)new;
Now it will spring forth;
Will you not know it?
I will even (IJ)make a roadway in the wilderness,
Rivers in the wasteland.
20 The beasts of the field will glorify Me,
The (IK)jackals and the ostriches,
Because I have (IL)given waters in the wilderness
And rivers in the wasteland,
To give drink to My chosen people.
21 The people whom (IM)I formed for Myself
(IN)Will recount My praise.
22 “Yet you have not called on Me, O Jacob;
But you have become (IO)weary of Me, O Israel.
23 You have (IP)not brought to Me the sheep of your burnt offerings,
Nor have you (IQ)glorified Me with your sacrifices.
I have not (IR)burdened you with [at]offerings,
Nor wearied you with (IS)frankincense.
24 You have not bought Me [au](IT)sweet cane with money,
Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;
Rather you have burdened Me with your sins;
You have (IU)wearied Me with your iniquities.
25 “I, even I, am the one who (IV)wipes out your transgressions (IW)for My own sake,
And I will (IX)not remember your sins.
26 [av]Bring Me to remembrance, (IY)let us enter into judgment together;
Recount your cause, (IZ)that you may be proved right.
27 Your (JA)first father sinned,
And your [aw](JB)spokesmen have [ax]transgressed against Me.
28 So I will [ay]profane the [az]princes of the sanctuary,
And I will give Jacob to be (JC)devoted to destruction and Israel to (JD)revilement.
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