Isaiah 49
49
God Calls His Special Servant
1All of you people in faraway places, listen to me.
Listen, all you nations far away.
Before I was born, the Lord called me to serve him.
The Lord named me while I was still in my mother’s body.
2The Lord made my tongue like a sharp sword.
He hid me in the shadow of his hand.
The Lord made me like a sharp arrow.
He hid me in the holder for his arrows.
3The Lord told me, “Israel, you are my servant.
I will show my glory through you.”
4But I said, “I have worked hard for nothing.
I have used all my power, but I did nothing useful.
But the Lord will decide what my work is worth.
God will decide my reward.”
5The Lord made me in the body of my mother
so I would be his servant.
He made me to lead the people of Jacob back to him.
He made me so that Israel might be gathered to him.
The Lord will honor me.
I will get my strength from my God.
6The Lord told me,
“You are an important servant to me.
You will bring back the tribes of Jacob.
You will bring back the people of Israel who are left alive.
But, more importantly, I will make you a light for all nations.
You will show people all over the world the way to be saved.”
7The Lord is your close relative who saves you.
He is the Holy One of Israel.
He speaks to the one who is hated by the people.
He speaks to the servant of rulers.
The Lord says, “Kings will see you and stand to honor you.
Great leaders will bow down before you.
This is because the Lord can be trusted.
He is the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
The Day of Salvation
8This is what the Lord says:
“At the right time I will hear your prayers.
On the day of salvation I will help you.
I will protect you.
And you will be the sign of my agreement with the people.
You will bring back the people to the land.
You will give the land that is now ruined back to its owners.
9You will tell the prisoners, ‘Come out of your prison.’
You will tell those in darkness, ‘Come into the light.’
The people will eat beside the roads.
They will find food even on bare hills.
10They will not be hungry or thirsty.
Neither the hot sun nor the desert wind will hurt them.
The God who comforts them will lead them.
He will lead them by springs of water.
11I will make my mountains into roads for my people.
And the roads will be raised up.
12Look, people are coming to me from far away.
They are coming from the north and from the west.
They are coming from Aswan in southern Egypt.”
13Heavens and earth, be happy.
Mountains, shout with joy.
Be happy because the Lord comforts his people.
He will comfort those who suffer.
Jerusalem and Her Children
14But Jerusalem said, “The Lord has left me.
The Lord has forgotten me.”
15The Lord answers, “Can a woman forget the baby she nurses?
Can she feel no kindness for the child she gave birth to?
Even if she could forget her children,
I will not forget you.
16See, I have written your name on my hand.
Jerusalem, I always think about your walls.
17Your children will soon return to you.
And the people who defeated you and destroyed you will leave.
18Look up and look around you.
All your children are gathering to return to you.”
The Lord says, “As surely as I live,
your children will be like jewels.
You will be as proud of them as a bride is of her jewels.
19“You were destroyed and defeated.
Your land was made useless.
But now you will have more people than the land can hold.
And those people who destroyed you will be far away.
20Children were born to you while you were sad.
But they will say to you,
‘This place is too small for us.
Give us a bigger place to live.’
21Then you will say to yourself,
‘Who gave me all these children?
I was sad and lonely.
I was defeated and away from my people.
So who reared these children?
I was left all alone.
Where did all these children come from?’”
22This is what the Lord God says:
“See, I will lift my hand to signal the nations.
I will raise my banner for all people to see.
Then they will bring your sons back to you in their arms.
They will carry your daughters on their shoulders.
23Kings will teach your children.
Daughters of kings will take care of those children.
They will bow down before you.
They will kiss the dirt at your feet.
Then you will know I am the Lord.
Anyone who trusts in me will not be disappointed.”
24Can the wealth a soldier wins in war be taken away from him?
Can a prisoner be freed from a powerful soldier?
25But this is what the Lord says:
“The prisoners will be taken from the strong soldiers.
What the soldiers have taken will be saved.
I will fight your enemies.
I will save your children.
26I will force those who trouble you to eat their own flesh.
Their own blood will be the wine that makes them drunk.
Then everyone will know
I, the Lord, am the One who saves you.
I am the Powerful One of Jacob who saves you.”
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Isaiah 49: ICB
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Isaiah 49
49
The Work of the Lord's Servant
1 #
Jr 1.5. Everyone, listen,
even you foreign nations
across the sea.
The Lord chose me
and gave me a name
before I was born.
2 #
He 4.12; Rev 1.16. He made my words pierce
like a sharp sword
or a pointed arrow;
he kept me safely hidden
in the palm of his hand.
3The Lord said to me,
“Israel, you are my servant;
and because of you
I will be highly honored.”
4I said to myself,
“I'm completely worn out;
my time has been wasted.
But I did it for the Lord God,
and he will reward me.”
5Even before I was born,
the Lord God chose me
to serve him and to lead back
the people of Israel.
So the Lord has honored me
and made me strong.
6 #
Is 42.6; Lk 2.32; Ac 26.23;
Ac 13.47. Now the Lord says to me,
“It isn't enough for you
to be merely my servant.
You must do more than lead back
survivors from the tribes
of Israel.
I have placed you here as a light
for other nations;
you must take my saving power
to everyone on earth.”
The Lord Will Rescue His People
7Israel, I am the holy Lord God,
the one who rescues you.
You are slaves of rulers
and of a nation
who despises you.#49.7 You … you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Now this is what I promise:
Kings and rulers will honor you
by kneeling at your feet.
You can trust me! I am your Lord,
the holy God of Israel,
and you are my chosen ones.
The Lord Will Lead His People Home
8 #
2 Co 6.2. This is what the Lord says:
I will answer your prayers
because I have set a time
when I will help
by coming to save you.
I have chosen you
to take my promise of hope
to other nations.#49.8 my … nations: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
You will rebuild the country
from its ruins,
then people will come
and settle there.
9You will set prisoners free
from dark dungeons
to see the light of day.
On their way home,
they will find plenty to eat,
even on barren hills.
10 #
Rev 7.16,17. They won't go hungry
or get thirsty;
they won't be bothered
by the scorching sun
or hot desert winds.
I will be merciful
while leading them along
to streams of water.
11I will level the mountains
and make roads.
12Then my people will return
from distant lands
in the north and the west
and from the city of Syene.#49.12 Syene: The Dead Sea Scrolls; the Standard Hebrew Text “Sinim.” This city was located at the first cataract of the Nile near the site of modern-day Aswan.
The Lord's Mercy
13Tell the heavens and the earth
to celebrate and sing;
command every mountain
to join in the song.
The Lord's people have suffered,
but he has shown mercy
and given them comfort.
14The people of Zion said,
“The Lord has turned away
and forgotten us.”
15The Lord answered,
“Could a mother forget a child
who nurses at her breast?
Could she fail to love an infant
who came from her own body?
Even if a mother could forget,
I will never forget you.
16A picture of your city
is drawn on my hand.
You are always in my thoughts!
17“Your city will be built faster
than it was destroyed#49.17 Your city … destroyed: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.—
those who attacked it
will retreat and leave.
18Look around! You will see
your people coming home.
As surely as I live,
I, the Lord, promise
that your city with its people
will be as lovely as a bride
wearing her jewelry.”
Jerusalem's Bright Future
19Jerusalem is now in ruins!
Nothing is left of the city.
But it will be rebuilt
and soon overcrowded;
its cruel enemies
will be gone far away.
20Jerusalem is a woman
whose children were born
while she was in deep sorrow#49.20 whose children … sorrow: These “children” are Jews who were born in foreign countries during the time that Jerusalem was in ruins. Jerusalem probably stands for all the cities in Judah that were destroyed by the Babylonians.
over the loss of her husband.
Now those children
will come and seek room
in the crowded city,
21and Jerusalem will ask,
“Am I really their mother?
How could I have given birth
when I was still mourning
in a foreign land?
Who raised these children?
Where have they come from?”
22 #
Ba 5.6. The Lord God says:
“I will soon give a signal
for the nations
to return your sons
and your daughters
to the arms of Jerusalem.
23The kings and queens
of those nations
where they were raised
will come and bow down.
They will take care of you
just like a slave
taking care of a child.
Then you will know
that I am the Lord.
You won't be disappointed
if you trust me.”
The Lord Is on Our Side
24Is it possible to rescue victims
from someone strong
and cruel?#49.24 cruel: The Dead Sea Scrolls and two ancient translations; the Standard Hebrew Text “good.”
25But the Lord has promised
to fight on our side
and to rescue our children
from those strong
and violent enemies.
26He will make those cruel people
dine on their own flesh
and get drunk from drinking
their own blood.
Then everyone will know
that the Lord is our Savior;
the powerful God of Israel
has rescued his people.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.