Isaiah 49

Ideal Israel Delivers the Exiles

1 Listen to me, you coastlands!ts
Pay attention, you people who live far away!
The Lord summoned me from birth;t
he commissioned me when my mother brought me into the world.t

2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
he hid me in the hollow of his hand;
he made me like a sharpenedt arrow,
he hid me in his quiver.s

3 He said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, through whom I will reveal my splendor.”s

4 But I thought,t “I have worked in vain;
I have expended my energy for absolutely nothing.”t
But the Lord will vindicate me;
my God will reward me.t

5 So now the Lord says,
the one who formed me from birtht to be his servant –
he did thist to restore Jacob to himself,
so that Israel might be gathered to him;
and I will be honoredt in the Lord’s sight,
for my God is my source of strengtht –

6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,
to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,
and restore the remnantt of Israel?s
I will make you a light to the nations,t
so you can bringt my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

7 This is what the Lord,
the protectort of Israel, their Holy One,s says
to the one who is despiseds and rejectedt by nations,t
a servant of rulers:
“Kings will see and rise in respect,t
princes will bow down,
because of the faithful Lord,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”

8 This is what the Lord says:
“At the time I decide to show my favor, I will respond to you;
in the day of deliverance I will help you;
I will protect yout and make you a covenant mediator for people,t
to rebuildt the landt
and to reassign the desolate property.

9 You will sayt to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’
and to those who are in dark dungeons,t ‘Emerge.’t
They will graze beside the roads;
on all the slopes they will find pasture.

10 They will not be hungry or thirsty;
the sun’s oppressive heat will not beat down on them,t
for one who has compassion on them will guide them;
he will lead them to springs of water.

11 I will make all my mountains into a road;
I will construct my roadways.”

12 Look, they come from far away!
Look, some come from the north and west,
and others from the land of Sinim!ss

13 Shout for joy, O sky!t
Rejoice, O earth!
Let the mountains give a joyful shout!
For the Lord consoles his people
and shows compassion to thet oppressed.

The Lord Remembers Zion

14 “Zion said, ‘The Lord has abandoned me,
the sovereign mastert has forgotten me.’

15 Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast?t
Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne?t
Even if motherst were to forget,
I could never forget you!s

16 Look, I have inscribed your namet on my palms;
your walls are constantly before me.

17 Your children hurry back,
while those who destroyed and devastated you depart.

18 Look all around you!t
All of them gather to you.
As surely as I live,” says the Lord,
“you will certainly wear all of them like jewelry;
you will put them on as if you were a bride.

19 Yes, your land lies in ruins;
it is desolate and devastated.t
But now you will be too small to hold your residents,
and those who devoured you will be far away.

20 Yet the children born during your time of bereavement
will say within your hearing,
‘This place is too cramped for us,t
make room for us so we can live here.’t

21 Then you will think to yourself,t
‘Who bore these children for me?
I was bereaved and barren,
dismissed and divorced.t
Who raised these children?
Look, I was left all alone;
where did these children come from?’”

22 This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“Look I will raise my hand to the nations;
I will raise my signal flag to the peoples.
They will bring your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

23 Kings will be your children’st guardians;
their princesses will nurse your children.t
With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you
and they will lick the dirt ont your feet.
Then you will recognize that I am the Lord;
those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.

24 Can spoils be taken from a warrior,
or captives be rescued from a conqueror?s

25 Indeed,” says the Lord,
“captives will be taken from a warrior;
spoils will be rescued from a conqueror.
I will oppose your adversary
and I will rescue your children.

26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh;
they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine.s
Then all humankindt will recognize that
I am the Lord, your deliverer,
your protector,t the powerful ruler of Jacob.”t

ISAIAH 49

The Work //of the [Lord]'s Servant

1  t Everyone, listen,
even you foreign nations
across the sea.
The [Lord] chose me
and gave me a name
before I was born.

2  t He made my words pierce
like a sharp sword
or a pointed arrow;
he kept me safely hidden
in the palm of his hand.

3 The [Lord] said to me,
“Israel, you are my servant;
and because of you
I will be highly honored.”

4 I 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.”

5 Even 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  t 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

7 Israel, I am the holy [Lord] God,
the one who rescues you.
You are slaves of rulers
and of a nation
who despises you.t
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  t 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.t
You will rebuild the country
from its ruins,
then people will come
and settle there.

9 You 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  t 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.

11 I will level the mountains
and make roads.

12 Then my people will return
from distant lands
in the north and the west
and from the city of Syene.t

The [Lord]'s Mercy

13 Tell 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.

14 The people of Zion said,
“The [Lord] has turned away
and forgotten us.”

15 The [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.

16 A 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 destroyedt —
those who attacked it
will retreat and leave.

18 Look 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

19 Jerusalem 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.

20 Jerusalem is a woman
whose children were born
while she was in deep sorrowt
over the loss of her husband.
Now those children
will come and seek room
in the crowded city,

21 and 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  t 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.

23 The 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

24 Is it possible to rescue victims
from someone strong
and cruel?t

25 But the [Lord] has promised
to fight on our side
and to rescue our children
from those strong
and violent enemies.

26 He 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.