Isaiah 49
49
The Lord’s Servant Will Bring Salvation to the Nations
1Listen to me, you islands.
Pay attention, you people far away.
Before I was born, the Lord chose me.
While I was in my mother’s womb, he recorded my name.
2He made my tongue like a sharp sword
and hid me in the palm of his hand.
He made me like a sharpened arrow
and hid me in his quiver.
3He said to me,
“You are my servant Israel.
I will display my glory through you.”
4But I said,
“I have worked hard for nothing.
I have used my strength, but I didn’t accomplish anything.
Yet, certainly my case is in the Lord’s hands,
and my reward is with my God.”
5The Lord formed me in the womb to be his servant
in order to bring Jacob back to him
and gather Israel to him.
(The Lord honors me,
and my God has become my strength.)
6Now, the Lord says,
“You are not just my servant
who restores the tribes of Jacob
and brings back those in Israel whom I have preserved.
I have also made you a light for the nations
so that you would save people all over the world.”
7The Lord is the defender of Israel, its Holy One.
This is what the Lord says to the despised one, to the one scorned by the nation, to the slave of rulers:
Kings will see ⌞you⌟ and stand.
Princes will see ⌞you⌟ and bow.
The Lord is faithful.
The Holy One of Israel has chosen you.
8This is what the Lord says:
In the time of favor I will answer you.
In the day of salvation I will help you.
I will protect you.
I will appoint you as my promise #49:8 Or “covenant.” to the people.
You will restore the land.
You will make them inherit the desolate inheritance.
9You will say to the prisoners, “Come out,”
and to those who are in darkness, “Show yourselves.”
They will graze along every path,
and they will find pastures on every bare hill.
10They will never be hungry or thirsty,
nor will the sun or the burning, hot wind strike them.
The one who has compassion on them will lead them
and guide them to springs.
11I will turn all my mountains into roads,
and my highways will be restored.
12They will come from far away.
They will come from the north and from the west,
and they will come from the land of Sinim.
13Sing with joy, you heavens!
Rejoice, you earth!
Break into shouts of joy, you mountains!
The Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on his humble people.
The LORD Has Not Forgotten Israel
14But Zion said, “The Lord has abandoned me.
My Lord has forgotten me.”
15Can a woman forget her nursing child?
Will she have no compassion on the child from her womb?
Although mothers may forget,
I will not forget you.
16I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.
Your walls are always in my presence.
17Your children will hurry back.
Those who destroyed you and laid waste to you will leave you.
18Look up, look around, and watch!
All of your children are gathering together and returning to you.
“I solemnly swear as I live,” declares the Lord,
“you will wear all of them like jewels
and display them on yourself as a bride would.”
19Though you are destroyed and demolished and your land is in ruins,
you will be too crowded for ⌞your⌟ people now.
Those who devoured you will be long gone.
20The children taken from you will say to you,
“This place is too crowded for me.
Make room for me to live here.”
21Then you will ask yourself,
“Who has fathered these ⌞children⌟ for me?
I was childless and unable to have children.
I was exiled and rejected.
Who raised these ⌞children for me⌟?
I was left alone.
Where have they come from?”
22This is what the Almighty Lord says:
I will lift my hand ⌞to signal⌟ the nations.
I will raise my flag for the people.
They will bring your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their shoulders.
23Then kings will be your foster fathers,
and their queens will nurse you.
They will bow in front of you
with their faces touching the ground.
They will lick the dust at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.
Those who wait with hope for me will not be put to shame.
24Can loot be taken away from mighty men
or prisoners be freed from conquerors?
25This is what the Lord says:
Prisoners will be freed from mighty men.
Loot will be taken away from tyrants.
I will fight your enemies,
and I will save your children.
26I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,
and they will become drunk on their own blood
as though it were new wine.
Then all humanity will know that I am the Lord, who saves you,
the Mighty One of Jacob, who reclaims you.
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Isaiah 49: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
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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© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.