Old/New Testament
Israel Was Punished for Its Sin
50 This is what the Lord says:
“People of Israel, you say I divorced your mother.
Then where is the paper that proves it?
Or do you think I sold you to pay a debt?
No! It was because of the evil things you did that I sold you.
It was because of the times she turned against me that your mother was sent away.
2 I came home and found no one there.
I called, but no one answered.
Do you think I am not able to save you?
Do I not have the power to save you?
Look, I need only to shout, and the sea becomes dry.
I change rivers into a desert.
Their fish rot because there is no water.
The fish die of thirst.
3 I can make the skies dark.
I can make them black like clothes of sadness.”
God’s Servant Obeys
4 The Lord God gave me the ability to teach.
He has taught me what to say to make the weak strong.
Every morning he wakes me.
He teaches me to listen like a student.
5 The Lord God helps me learn.
And I have not turned against him.
I have not stopped following him.
6 I offered my back to those who beat me.
I offered my cheeks to those who pulled my beard.
I won’t hide my face from them
when they make fun of me and spit at me.
7 The Lord God helps me.
So I will not be ashamed.
I will be determined.
I know I will not be disgraced.
8 The Lord shows that I am innocent, and he is close to me.
So who can accuse me?
If there is someone, let us go to court together.
If someone wants to prove I have done wrong,
he should come and tell me.
9 It is the Lord God who helps me.
So who can prove me guilty?
All those who try will become useless like old clothes.
Moths will eat them.
10 Who among you fears the Lord
and obeys his servant?
That person may walk in the dark
and have no light.
Then let him trust in the Lord.
Let him depend on his God.
11 But instead, some of you want to light your own fires.
You want to make your own light.
So, go, walk in the light of your fires.
Trust your own light to guide you.
But this is what you will receive from me:
You will lie down in a place of pain.
Jerusalem Will Be Saved
51 The Lord says, “Listen to me,
those of you who try to live right and follow the Lord.
Look at the rock from which you were cut.
Look at the stone quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look at Abraham, your ancestor.
Look at Sarah, who gave birth to your ancestors.
Abraham had no children when I called him.
But I blessed him and gave him many descendants.
3 So the Lord will comfort Jerusalem.
He will show mercy to those who live in her ruins.
He will change her deserts into a garden like Eden.
He will make her empty lands like the garden of the Lord.
People there will be very happy.
They will give thanks and sing songs.
4 “My people, listen to me.
My nation, pay attention to me.
I will give the people my teachings.
And my decisions will be like a light to all people.
5 I will soon show I do what is right.
I will soon save you.
I will use my power and judge all nations.
All the faraway places are waiting for me.
They wait for my power to help them.
6 Look up to the heavens.
Look around you at the earth below.
The skies will disappear like clouds of smoke.
The earth will become useless like old clothes.
Its people will die like flies.
But my salvation will continue forever.
My goodness will never end.
7 “You people who know what is right should listen to me.
You people who follow my teachings should hear what I say.
Don’t be afraid of the evil things people say.
Don’t be upset by their insults.
8 Moths will eat those people as if they were clothes.
Worms will eat them as if they were wool.
But my goodness will continue forever.
My salvation will continue from now on.”
9 Wake up, wake up, and use your strength,
powerful Lord.
Wake up as you did in the old times.
Wake up as you did a long time ago.
With your own power, you cut Rahab into pieces.
You killed that sea monster.
10 You caused the sea to become dry.
You dried the waters of the deep ocean.
You made the deepest parts of the sea into a road.
Your people crossed over on that road and were saved.
11 The people the Lord has freed will return.
They will enter Jerusalem with joy.
Their happiness will last forever.
They will have joy and gladness.
All sadness and sorrow will be gone far away.
12 The Lord says, “I am the one who comforts you.
So why should you be afraid of people, who die?
Why should you fear people who die like the grass?
13 Have you forgotten that the Lord made you?
He stretched out the skies.
He made the earth.
Why are you always afraid
of those angry people who trouble you?
They want to destroy.
But where are those angry people now?
14 People in prison will soon be set free.
They will not die in prison.
They will have enough food.
15 This is because I am the Lord your God.
I stir the sea and make the waves roar.
My name is the Lord of heaven’s armies.
16 I will give you the words I want you to say.
I will cover you with my hands and protect you.
I made the heavens and the earth.
And I say to Jerusalem, ‘You are my people.’”
God Punished Israel
17 The Lord was very angry with you.
Your punishment was like wine in a cup.
The Lord made you drink that wine
until you stumbled.
18 Jerusalem had many people.
But there was not a person to lead her.
Of all the people who grew up there,
no one was there to guide her.
19 Troubles came to you in groups of two.
No one will feel sorry for you.
There was ruin and disaster, great hunger and fighting.
No one can comfort you.
20 Your people have become weak.
They fall down and lie on every street corner.
They are like animals caught in a net.
They have felt the full anger of the Lord.
They have heard God’s angry shout.
21 So listen to me, poor Jerusalem,
you who are drunk but not from wine.
22 Your God will fight for his people.
This is what the Lord your God says:
“The punishment I gave you is like a cup of wine.
You drank it and could not walk straight.
I am taking that cup of my anger away from you.
You will never be punished by my anger again.
23 I will now give that cup of punishment to those who gave you pain.
They told you,
‘Bow down so we can walk over you.’
They made your back like dirt for them to walk on.
You were like a street for them to travel on.”
Jerusalem Will Be Saved
52 Wake up, wake up, Jerusalem!
Become strong!
Be beautiful again,
holy city of Jerusalem.
The people who do not worship God and who are not pure
will not enter you again.
2 Jerusalem, you once were a prisoner.
Now shake off the dust and stand up.
Jerusalem, you once were a prisoner.
But now free yourself from the chains around your neck.
3 This is what the Lord says:
“You were not sold for a price.
So you will be saved without cost.”
4 This is what the Lord God says:
“First my people went down to Egypt to live.
Later Assyria made them slaves.
5 “Now see what has happened,” says the Lord.
“Another nation has taken away my people for nothing.
This nation who rules them makes fun of me,” says the Lord.
“All day long they speak against me.
6 But this has happened so my people will know who I am.
They will know I am God.
And they will know that I am the one speaking to them.”
7 How beautiful is the person
who comes over the mountains to bring good news.
How beautiful is the one who announces peace.
He brings good news
and announces salvation.
How beautiful are the feet of the one who says to Jerusalem,
“Your God is king.”
8 Listen! Your guards are shouting.
They are all shouting for joy!
They all will see with their own eyes
when the Lord returns to Jerusalem.
9 Jerusalem, your buildings are destroyed now.
But shout and rejoice together.
You can rejoice because the Lord has comforted his people.
He has saved Jerusalem.
10 The Lord will show his holy power
to all the nations.
Then everyone on earth
will see the salvation of our God.
11 You people, leave, leave; get out of Babylon!
Touch nothing that is unclean.
You men who carry the things used in worship,
leave there and make yourselves pure.
12 You will not be forced to leave Babylon quickly.
You will not be forced to run away.
The Lord will go before you.
And the God of Israel will guard you from behind.
God’s Suffering Servant
13 The Lord says, “See, my servant will act wisely.
People will greatly honor and respect him.
14 Many people were shocked when they saw him.
His appearance was so damaged he did not look like a man.
His form was changed so much they could barely tell he was human.
15 But now he will sprinkle many people.
Kings will be amazed and shut their mouths.
They will see the things they had not been told about my servant.
They will understand the things they had not heard.”
Be Ready for the Lord’s Coming
5 Now, brothers, we do not need to write to you about times and dates. 2 You know very well that the day the Lord comes again will be a surprise like a thief that comes in the night. 3 People will say, “We have peace and we are safe.” At that time they will be destroyed quickly, as pains come quickly to a woman having a baby. And those people will not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not living in darkness. And so that day will not surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all people who belong to the light. You belong to the day. We do not belong to the night or to darkness. 6 So we should not be like other people. We should not be sleeping, but we should be awake and have self-control. 7 Those who sleep, sleep at night. Those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But we belong to the day; so we should control ourselves. We should wear faith and love to protect us. And the hope of salvation should be our helmet. 9 God did not choose us to suffer his anger, but to have salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 Jesus died for us so that we can live together with him. It is not important if we are alive or dead when Jesus comes. 11 So comfort each other and give each other strength, just as you are doing now.
Final Instructions and Greetings
12 Now, brothers, we ask you to respect those people who work hard with you, who lead you in the Lord and teach you. 13 Respect them with a very special love because of the work they do with you.
Live in peace with each other. 14 We ask you, brothers, to warn those who do not work. Encourage the people who are afraid. Help those who are weak. Be patient with every person. 15 Be sure that no one pays back wrong for wrong. But always try to do what is good for each other and for all people.
16 Always be happy. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Give thanks whatever happens. That is what God wants for you in Christ Jesus.
19 Do not stop the work of the Holy Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecy as if it were not important. 21 But test everything. Keep what is good. 22 And stay away from everything that is evil.
23 We pray that God himself, the God of peace, will make you pure, belonging only to him. We pray that your whole self—spirit, soul, and body—will be kept safe and be without wrong when our Lord Jesus Christ comes. 24 The One who calls you will do that for you. You can trust him.
25 Brothers, please pray for us.
26 Give all the brothers a holy kiss when you meet. 27 I tell you by the authority of the Lord to read this letter to all the brothers.
28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.