Isaiah 51
51
Salvation for Zion
1Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
2Look to Abraham your father,
and to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain.
When I called him, he was only one;
I blessed him and made him many. # Gn 12:1; 15:5; Dt 1:10; Is 29:22; 41:8; 63:16; Ezk 33:24
3For the Lord will comfort Zion; # Is 40:1
He will comfort all her waste places,
and He will make her wilderness like Eden, # Gn 2:8; Jl 2:3
and her desert like the garden of the Lord. # Gn 13:10
Joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and melodious song.
4Pay attention to Me, My people,
and listen to Me, My nation;
for instruction will come from Me,
and My justice for a light to the nations. # Is 42:6; 49:6
I will bring it about quickly.
5My righteousness is near, # Is 46:13; 54:17
My salvation appears,
and My arms will bring justice to the nations. # Is 40:10
The coastlands # Or islands will put their hope in Me,
and they will look to My strength. # Lit arm
6Look up to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and its inhabitants will die like gnats. # Or die in like manner # Ps 102:25-26; Is 34:4; Mt 24:35; Heb 1:10-12; 2Pt 3:10
But My salvation will last forever, # Is 45:17; 2Tm 2:10; Heb 5:9
and My righteousness will never be shattered.
7Listen to Me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is My instruction: # Ps 37:31
do not fear disgrace by men,
and do not be shattered by their taunts.
8For the moth will devour them like a garment, # Is 50:9
and the worm will eat them like wool. # Is 14:11
But My righteousness will last forever,
and My salvation for all generations.
9Wake up, wake up!
Put on the strength of the Lord’s power.
Wake up as in days past,
as in generations of long ago.
Wasn’t it You who hacked Rahab to pieces, # Jb 26:12; Ps 89:10; Is 30:7
who pierced the sea monster? # Ps 74:13; Is 27:1
10Wasn’t it You who dried up the sea, # Is 11:15-16; 50:2; 63:11-12
the waters of the great deep,
who made the sea-bed into a road
for the redeemed to pass over? # Ex 15:13
11And the redeemed of the Lord will return # Is 35:10
and come to Zion with singing,
crowned with unending joy.
Joy and gladness will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee.
12I — I am the One who comforts you.
Who are you that you should fear man who dies, # Ps 118:6; Is 2:22
or a son of man who is given up like grass? # Is 40:6-7; Jms 1:10-11; 1Pt 1:24
13But you have forgotten the Lord, your Maker,
who stretched out the heavens
and laid the foundations of the earth. # Is 44:24; 45:12, Am 9:6; Zch 12:1
You are in constant dread all day long
because of the fury of the oppressor,
who has set himself to destroy.
But where is the fury of the oppressor? # Is 49:26
14The prisoner # Hb obscure is soon to be set free;
he will not die and go to the Pit,
and his food will not be lacking.
15For I am Yahweh your God
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar # Ps 107:25; Jr 31:35 —
His name is Yahweh of Hosts.
16I have put My words in your mouth, # Is 59:21
and covered you in the shadow of My hand, # Ex 33:22; Is 49:2
in order to plant # Syr reads to stretch out the heavens,
to found the earth,
and to say to Zion, “You are My people.”
17Wake yourself, wake yourself up!
Stand up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk the cup of His fury # Jb 21:20; Is 63:6; Jr 25:15; Mt 20:22; 26:39; Jn 18:1; Rv 14:10
from the hand of the Lord;
you who have drunk the goblet to the dregs —
the cup that causes people to stagger.
18There is no one to guide her
among all the children she has raised;
there is no one to take hold of her hand
among all the offspring she has brought up.
19These two things have happened to you: # Is 47:9
devastation and destruction,
famine and sword.
Who will grieve for you?
How can I # DSS, LXX, Syr, Vg read you? Who can comfort you?
20Your children have fainted;
they lie at the head of every street
like an antelope in a net.
They are full of the Lord’s fury,
the rebuke of your God.
21So listen to this, afflicted
and drunken one — but not with wine. # Is 29:9
22This is what your Lord says —
Yahweh, even your God,
who defends His people # Is 3:12-13; 49:25; Jr 50:34 —
“Look, I have removed
the cup of staggering from your hand;
that goblet, the cup of My fury.
You will never drink it again.
23I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,
who said to you: # Is 49:26; Jr 25:15-17,26,28; Zch 12:2
Lie down, so we can walk over you.
You made your back like the ground,
and like a street for those who walk on it.
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Isaiah 51: HCSB
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Isaiah 51
51
The Lord Will Bring Comfort
1 #
4 Macc 13.12. If you want to do right
and obey the Lord,
follow Abraham's example.
He was the rock from which
you were chipped.
2God chose Abraham and Sarah
to be your ancestors.
The Lord blessed Abraham,
and from that one man
came many descendants.
3Though Zion is in ruins,
the Lord will bring comfort,
and the city will be as lovely
as the garden of Eden
that he provided.
Then Zion will celebrate;
it will be thankful
and sing joyful songs.
The Lord's Victory Will Last
4The Lord says:
You are my people and nation!
So pay attention to me.
My teaching will cause justice
to shine like a light
for every nation.
5Those who live across the sea
are eagerly waiting
for me to rescue them.
I am strong and ready;
soon I will come to save
and to rule all nations.
6Look closely at the sky!
Stare at the earth.
The sky will vanish like smoke;
the earth will wear out
like clothes.
Everyone on this earth
will die like flies.
But my victory will last;
my saving power never ends.
7If you want to do right
and obey my teaching
with all your heart,
then pay close attention.
Don't be discouraged
when others insult you
and say hurtful things.
8They will be eaten away
like a moth-eaten coat.
But my victory will last;
my saving power
will never end.
A Prayer for the Lord's Help
9Wake up! Do something, Lord.
Be strong and ready.
Wake up! Do what you did
for our people long ago.
Didn't you chop up
Rahab#51.9 Rahab: This may refer to Egypt at the time of the exodus. the monster?
10Didn't you dry up the deep sea
and make a road for your people
to follow safely across?
11Now those you have rescued
will return to Jerusalem,
singing on their way.
They will be crowned
with great happiness,
never again to be burdened
with sadness and sorrow.
The Lord Gives Hope
12I am the Lord, the one
who encourages you.
Why are you afraid
of mere humans?
They dry up and die like grass.
13I spread out the heavens
and laid foundations
for the earth.
But you have forgotten me,
your Lord and Creator.
All day long you were afraid
of those who were angry
and hoped to oppress you.
Where are they now?
14Everyone crying out in pain
will be quickly set free;
they will be rescued
from the power of death
and never go hungry.
15I will help them
because I am your God,
the Lord All-Powerful,
who makes the ocean roar.
16I have told you what to say,
and I will keep you safe
in the palm of my hand.
I spread out the heavens
and laid foundations
for the earth.
Now I say, “Jerusalem,
your people are mine.”
A Warning to Jerusalem
17 #
Rev 14.10; 16.19. Jerusalem, wake up! Stand up!
You've drunk too much
from the cup filled
with the Lord's anger.
You have swallowed every drop,
and you can't walk straight.
18Not one of your many children
is there to guide you
or to offer a helping hand.
19You have been destroyed
by war and by famine;
I cannot comfort you.#51.19 I … you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
20The Lord your God is angry,
and on every street corner
your children lie helpless,
like deer trapped in nets.
21You are in trouble and drunk,
but not from wine.
So pay close attention
22to the Lord your God,
who defends you and says,
“I have taken from your hands
the cup filled with my anger
that made you drunk.
You will never be forced
to drink it again.
23Instead I will give it
to your brutal enemies,
who treated you like dirt
and walked all over you.”
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.