Isaiah 52-56
Contemporary English Version
Jerusalem Can Celebrate
52 (A) Jerusalem, wake up!
Stand up and be strong.
Holy city of Zion,
dress in your best clothes.
Those foreigners who ruined
your sacred city
won't bother you again.
2 Zion, rise from the dirt!
Free yourself from the rope
around your neck.
Suffering Will End
3 The Lord says:
My people, you were sold,
but not for money;
now you will be set free,
but not for a payment.
4 Long ago you went to Egypt
where you lived
as foreigners.
Then Assyria was cruel to you,
5 (B) and now another nation[a]
has taken you prisoner
for no reason at all.
Your leaders groan with pain,[b]
and day after day
my own name is cursed.
6 My people, you will learn
who I am and who is speaking
because I am here.
A Message of Hope for Jerusalem
7 (C) What a beautiful sight!
On the mountains a messenger
announces to Jerusalem,
“Good news! You're saved.
There will be peace.
Your God is now King.”
8 Everyone on guard duty,
sing and celebrate!
Look! You can see the Lord
returning to Zion.
9 Jerusalem, rise from the ruins!
Join in the singing.
The Lord has given comfort
to his people;
he comes to your rescue.
10 The Lord has shown all nations
his mighty strength;
now everyone will see
the saving power of our God.
A Command To Leave Babylon
11 (D) Leave the city of Babylon!
Don't touch anything filthy.
Wash yourselves. Be ready
to carry back everything sacred
that belongs to the Lord.
12 You won't need to run.
No one is chasing you.
The Lord God of Israel
will lead and protect you
from enemy attacks.
The Suffering Servant
13 The Lord says:
My servant will succeed!
He will be given great praise
and the highest honors.
14 Many were horrified
at what happened to him.[c]
But everyone who saw him
was even more horrified
because he suffered until
he no longer looked human.[d]
15 (E) My servant will make
nations worthy to worship me;[e]
kings will be silent
as they bow in wonder.[f]
They will see and think about
things they have never seen
or thought about before.
What God's Servant Did for Us
53 (F) Has anyone believed us
or seen the mighty power
of the Lord in action?
2 Like a young plant or a root
that sprouts in dry ground,
the servant grew up
obeying the Lord.
He wasn't some handsome king.
Nothing about the way he looked
made him attractive to us.
3 He was hated and rejected;
his life was filled with sorrow
and terrible suffering.
No one wanted to look at him.
We despised him and said,
“He is a nobody!”
4 He suffered and endured
great pain for us,
but we thought his suffering
was punishment from God.
5 (G)(H) He was wounded and crushed
because of our sins;
by taking our punishment,
he made us completely well.
6 (I) All of us were like sheep
that had wandered off.
We had each gone our own way,
but the Lord gave him
the punishment we deserved.
7 (J)(K) (L) He was painfully abused,
but he did not complain.
He was silent like a lamb
being led to the butcher,
as quiet as a sheep
having its wool cut off.
8 He was condemned to death
without a fair trial.
Who could have imagined
what would happen to him?
His life was taken away
because of the sinful things
my people[g] had done.
9 (M) He wasn't dishonest or violent,
but he was buried in a tomb
among cruel, rich people.[h]
10 The Lord decided his servant
would suffer as a sacrifice
to take away the sin
and guilt of others.
Now the servant will live
to see his own descendants.[i]
He did everything
the Lord had planned.
11 By suffering, the servant
will learn the true meaning
of obeying the Lord.
Although he is innocent,
he will take the punishment
for the sins of others,
so that many of them
will no longer be guilty.
12 (N) The Lord will reward him
with honor and power
for sacrificing his life.
Others thought he was a sinner,
but he suffered for our sins
and asked God to forgive us.
A Promise of the Lord's Protection
54 (O) Sing and shout,
even though you have never
had children!
The Lord has promised that you
will have more children
than someone married
for a long time.
2 Make your tents larger!
Spread out the tent pegs;
fasten them firmly.
3 You and your descendants
will take over the land
of other nations.
You will settle in towns
that are now in ruins.
4 Don't be afraid or ashamed
and don't be discouraged.
You won't be disappointed.
Forget how sinful you were
when you were young;
stop feeling ashamed
for being left a widow.
5 The Lord All-Powerful,
the Holy God of Israel,
rules all the earth.
He is your Creator and husband,
and he will rescue you.
6 You were like a young wife,
brokenhearted and crying
because her husband
had divorced her.
But the Lord your God says,
“I am taking you back!
7 I rejected you for a while,
but with love and tenderness
I will embrace you again.
8 For a while, I turned away
in furious anger.
Now I will have mercy
and love you forever!
I, your protector and Lord,
make this promise.”
The Lord Promises Lasting Peace
9 (P) I once promised Noah that I
would never again destroy
the earth by a flood.
Now I have promised that I
will never again get angry
and punish you.
10 (Q) Every mountain and hill
may disappear.
But I will always be kind
and merciful to you;
I won't break my agreement
to give your nation peace.
The New Jerusalem
11 (R)(S) Jerusalem, you are sad
and discouraged,
tossed around in a storm.
But I, the Lord,
will rebuild your city
with precious stones;[j]
for your foundation
I will use blue sapphires.
12 Your fortresses[k]
will be built of rubies,
your gates of jewels,
and your walls of gems.
13 (T) I will teach your children
and make them successful.
14 You will be built on fairness
with no fears of injustice;
every one of your worries
will be taken far from you.
15 I will never send anyone
to attack your city,
and you will make prisoners
of those who do attack.
16 Don't forget that I created
metalworkers who make weapons
over burning coals.
I also created armies
that can bring destruction.
17 Weapons made to attack you
won't be successful;
words spoken against you
won't hurt at all.
My servants, Jerusalem is yours!
I, the Lord, promise
to bless you with victory.
The Lord's Invitation
55 (U) If you are thirsty,
come and drink water!
If you don't have any money,
come, eat what you want!
Drink wine and milk
without paying a cent.
2 (V) Why waste your money
on what really isn't food?
Why work hard for something
that doesn't satisfy?
Listen carefully to me,
and you will enjoy
the very best foods.
3 (W) Pay close attention!
Come to me and live.
I will promise you
the eternal love and loyalty
that I promised David.
4 I made him the leader and ruler
of the nations;
he was my witness to them.
5 You will call out to nations
you have never known.
And they have never known you,
but they will come running
because I am the Lord,
the holy God of Israel,
and I have honored you.
God's Words Are Powerful
6 Turn to the Lord!
He can still be found.
Call out to God! He is near.
7 Give up your evil ways
and your evil thoughts.
Return to the Lord our God.
He will be merciful
and forgive your sins.
8 The Lord says:
“My thoughts and my ways
are not like yours.
9 Just as the heavens
are higher than the earth,
my thoughts and my ways
are higher than yours.
10 (X) “Rain and snow fall from the sky.
But they don't return
without watering the earth
that produces seeds to plant
and grain to eat.
11 That's how it is with my words.
They don't return to me
without doing everything
I send them to do.”
God's People Will Celebrate
12 When you are set free,
you will celebrate
and travel home in peace.
Mountains and hills will sing
as you pass by,
and trees will clap.
13 Cypress and myrtle trees
will grow in fields
once covered by thorns.
And then those trees will stand
as a lasting witness
to the glory of the Lord.
All Nations Will Be Part of God's People
56 The Lord said:
Be honest and fair!
Soon I will come to save you;
my saving power will be seen
everywhere on earth.
2 I will bless everyone
who respects the Sabbath
and refuses to do wrong.
3 Foreigners who worship me
must not say,
“The Lord won't let us
be part of his people.”
Men who are unable
to become fathers
must no longer say,
“We are dried-up trees.”
4 (Y) To them, I, the Lord, say:
Respect the Sabbath,
obey me completely,
and keep our agreement.
5 Then you will be like monuments
in my temple with your names
written on them.
This will be much better
than having children,
because these monuments
will stand there forever.
6 Foreigners will follow me.
They will love me and worship
in my name;
they will respect the Sabbath
and keep our agreement.
7 (Z) I will bring them
to my holy mountain,
where they will celebrate
in my house of worship.
Their sacrifices and offerings
will always be welcome
on my altar.
Then my house will be known
as a house of worship
for all nations.
8 I, the Lord, promise
to bring together my people
who were taken away,
and let them join the others.
God Promises To Punish Israel's Leaders
9 Come from the forest,
you wild animals!
Attack and gobble up
your victims.
10 You leaders of Israel
should be watchdogs,
protecting my people.
But you can't see a thing,
and you never warn them.
Dozing and daydreaming
are all you ever do.
11 You stupid leaders are a pack
of hungry and greedy dogs
that never get enough.
You are shepherds
who mistreat your own sheep
for selfish gain.
12 You say to each other,
“Let's drink till we're drunk!
Tomorrow we'll do it again.
We'll really enjoy ourselves.”
Footnotes
- 52.5 another nation: Babylonia.
- 52.5 groan with pain: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 52.14 him: One ancient translation; Hebrew “you.”
- 52.14 human: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 14.
- 52.15 My … me: Hebrew; one ancient translation “The nations will be amazed at him.”
- 52.15 kings … wonder: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 53.8 my people: Or “his people.”
- 53.9 but he … people: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 53.10 The Lord … descendants: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 54.11 with precious stones: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 54.12 fortresses: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Isaiah 52-56
New International Version
52 Awake, awake,(A) Zion,
clothe yourself with strength!(B)
Put on your garments of splendor,(C)
Jerusalem, the holy city.(D)
The uncircumcised(E) and defiled(F)
will not enter you again.(G)
2 Shake off your dust;(H)
rise up,(I) sit enthroned, Jerusalem.
Free yourself from the chains on your neck,(J)
Daughter Zion,(K) now a captive.
3 For this is what the Lord says:
4 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
5 “And now what do I have here?” declares the Lord.
“For my people have been taken away for nothing,
and those who rule them mock,[a]”
declares the Lord.
“And all day long
my name is constantly blasphemed.(Q)
6 Therefore my people will know(R) my name;(S)
therefore in that day(T) they will know
that it is I who foretold(U) it.
Yes, it is I.”
7 How beautiful on the mountains(V)
are the feet of those who bring good news,(W)
who proclaim peace,(X)
who bring good tidings,
who proclaim salvation,
who say to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”(Y)
8 Listen! Your watchmen(Z) lift up their voices;(AA)
together they shout for joy.(AB)
When the Lord returns(AC) to Zion,(AD)
they will see it with their own eyes.
9 Burst into songs of joy(AE) together,
you ruins(AF) of Jerusalem,
for the Lord has comforted(AG) his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.(AH)
10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm(AI)
in the sight of all the nations,(AJ)
and all the ends of the earth(AK) will see
the salvation(AL) of our God.
11 Depart,(AM) depart, go out from there!
Touch no unclean thing!(AN)
Come out from it and be pure,(AO)
you who carry the articles(AP) of the Lord’s house.
12 But you will not leave in haste(AQ)
or go in flight;
for the Lord will go before you,(AR)
the God of Israel will be your rear guard.(AS)
The Suffering and Glory of the Servant
13 See, my servant(AT) will act wisely[b];
he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.(AU)
14 Just as there were many who were appalled(AV) at him[c]—
his appearance was so disfigured(AW) beyond that of any human being
and his form marred beyond human likeness(AX)—
15 so he will sprinkle(AY) many nations,[d]
and kings(AZ) will shut their mouths(BA) because of him.
For what they were not told, they will see,
and what they have not heard, they will understand.(BB)
53 Who has believed our message(BC)
and to whom has the arm(BD) of the Lord been revealed?(BE)
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,(BF)
and like a root(BG) out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance(BH) that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering,(BI) and familiar with pain.(BJ)
Like one from whom people hide(BK) their faces
he was despised,(BL) and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,(BM)
yet we considered him punished by God,(BN)
stricken by him, and afflicted.(BO)
5 But he was pierced(BP) for our transgressions,(BQ)
he was crushed(BR) for our iniquities;
the punishment(BS) that brought us peace(BT) was on him,
and by his wounds(BU) we are healed.(BV)
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,(BW)
each of us has turned to our own way;(BX)
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity(BY) of us all.
7 He was oppressed(BZ) and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;(CA)
he was led like a lamb(CB) to the slaughter,(CC)
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression[e] and judgment(CD) he was taken away.
Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;(CE)
for the transgression(CF) of my people he was punished.[f]
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,(CG)
and with the rich(CH) in his death,
though he had done no violence,(CI)
nor was any deceit in his mouth.(CJ)
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will(CK) to crush(CL) him and cause him to suffer,(CM)
and though the Lord makes[g] his life an offering for sin,(CN)
he will see his offspring(CO) and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper(CP) in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,(CQ)
he will see the light(CR) of life[h] and be satisfied[i];
by his knowledge[j] my righteous servant(CS) will justify(CT) many,
and he will bear their iniquities.(CU)
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[k](CV)
and he will divide the spoils(CW) with the strong,[l]
because he poured out his life unto death,(CX)
and was numbered with the transgressors.(CY)
For he bore(CZ) the sin of many,(DA)
and made intercession(DB) for the transgressors.
The Future Glory of Zion
54 “Sing, barren woman,(DC)
you who never bore a child;
burst into song, shout for joy,(DD)
you who were never in labor;(DE)
because more are the children(DF) of the desolate(DG) woman
than of her who has a husband,(DH)”
says the Lord.
2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,(DI)
stretch your tent curtains wide,
do not hold back;
lengthen your cords,
strengthen your stakes.(DJ)
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
your descendants(DK) will dispossess nations(DL)
and settle in their desolate(DM) cities.
4 “Do not be afraid;(DN) you will not be put to shame.(DO)
Do not fear disgrace;(DP) you will not be humiliated.
You will forget the shame of your youth(DQ)
and remember no more the reproach(DR) of your widowhood.(DS)
5 For your Maker(DT) is your husband(DU)—
the Lord Almighty is his name—
the Holy One(DV) of Israel is your Redeemer;(DW)
he is called the God of all the earth.(DX)
6 The Lord will call you back(DY)
as if you were a wife deserted(DZ) and distressed in spirit—
a wife who married young,(EA)
only to be rejected,” says your God.
7 “For a brief moment(EB) I abandoned(EC) you,
but with deep compassion(ED) I will bring you back.(EE)
8 In a surge of anger(EF)
I hid(EG) my face from you for a moment,
but with everlasting kindness(EH)
I will have compassion(EI) on you,”
says the Lord your Redeemer.(EJ)
9 “To me this is like the days of Noah,
when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth.(EK)
So now I have sworn(EL) not to be angry(EM) with you,
never to rebuke(EN) you again.
10 Though the mountains be shaken(EO)
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love(EP) for you will not be shaken(EQ)
nor my covenant(ER) of peace(ES) be removed,”
says the Lord, who has compassion(ET) on you.
11 “Afflicted(EU) city, lashed by storms(EV) and not comforted,(EW)
I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise,[m](EX)
your foundations(EY) with lapis lazuli.(EZ)
12 I will make your battlements of rubies,
your gates(FA) of sparkling jewels,
and all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children will be taught by the Lord,(FB)
and great will be their peace.(FC)
14 In righteousness(FD) you will be established:(FE)
Tyranny(FF) will be far from you;
you will have nothing to fear.(FG)
Terror(FH) will be far removed;
it will not come near you.
15 If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing;
whoever attacks you will surrender(FI) to you.
16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmith(FJ)
who fans the coals into flame
and forges a weapon(FK) fit for its work.
And it is I who have created the destroyer(FL) to wreak havoc;
17 no weapon forged against you will prevail,(FM)
and you will refute(FN) every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants(FO) of the Lord,
and this is their vindication(FP) from me,”
declares the Lord.
Invitation to the Thirsty
55 “Come, all you who are thirsty,(FQ)
come to the waters;(FR)
and you who have no money,
come, buy(FS) and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk(FT)
without money and without cost.(FU)
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?(FV)
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,(FW)
and you will delight in the richest(FX) of fare.
3 Give ear and come to me;
listen,(FY) that you may live.(FZ)
I will make an everlasting covenant(GA) with you,
my faithful love(GB) promised to David.(GC)
4 See, I have made him a witness(GD) to the peoples,
a ruler and commander(GE) of the peoples.
5 Surely you will summon nations(GF) you know not,
and nations you do not know will come running to you,(GG)
because of the Lord your God,
the Holy One(GH) of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.”(GI)
6 Seek(GJ) the Lord while he may be found;(GK)
call(GL) on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake(GM) their ways
and the unrighteous their thoughts.(GN)
Let them turn(GO) to the Lord, and he will have mercy(GP) on them,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.(GQ)
8 “For my thoughts(GR) are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”(GS)
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,(GT)
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.(GU)
10 As the rain(GV) and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,(GW)
so that it yields seed(GX) for the sower and bread for the eater,(GY)
11 so is my word(GZ) that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,(HA)
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose(HB) for which I sent it.
12 You will go out in joy(HC)
and be led forth in peace;(HD)
the mountains and hills
will burst into song(HE) before you,
and all the trees(HF) of the field
will clap their hands.(HG)
13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
and instead of briers(HH) the myrtle(HI) will grow.
This will be for the Lord’s renown,(HJ)
for an everlasting sign,
that will endure forever.”
Salvation for Others
56 This is what the Lord says:
“Maintain justice(HK)
and do what is right,(HL)
for my salvation(HM) is close at hand
and my righteousness(HN) will soon be revealed.
2 Blessed(HO) is the one who does this—
the person who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath(HP) without desecrating it,
and keeps their hands from doing any evil.”
3 Let no foreigner(HQ) who is bound to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”(HR)
And let no eunuch(HS) complain,
“I am only a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs(HT) who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant(HU)—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls(HV)
a memorial(HW) and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name(HX)
that will endure forever.(HY)
6 And foreigners(HZ) who bind themselves to the Lord
to minister(IA) to him,
to love the name(IB) of the Lord,
and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath(IC) without desecrating it
and who hold fast to my covenant—
7 these I will bring to my holy mountain(ID)
and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices(IE)
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations.(IF)”(IG)
8 The Sovereign Lord declares—
he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gather(IH) still others to them
besides those already gathered.”
God’s Accusation Against the Wicked
9 Come, all you beasts of the field,(II)
come and devour, all you beasts of the forest!
10 Israel’s watchmen(IJ) are blind,
they all lack knowledge;(IK)
they are all mute dogs,
they cannot bark;
they lie around and dream,
they love to sleep.(IL)
11 They are dogs with mighty appetites;
they never have enough.
They are shepherds(IM) who lack understanding;(IN)
they all turn to their own way,(IO)
they seek their own gain.(IP)
12 “Come,” each one cries, “let me get wine!(IQ)
Let us drink our fill of beer!
And tomorrow will be like today,
or even far better.”(IR)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 52:5 Dead Sea Scrolls and Vulgate; Masoretic Text wail
- Isaiah 52:13 Or will prosper
- Isaiah 52:14 Hebrew you
- Isaiah 52:15 Or so will many nations be amazed at him (see also Septuagint)
- Isaiah 53:8 Or From arrest
- Isaiah 53:8 Or generation considered / that he was cut off from the land of the living, / that he was punished for the transgression of my people?
- Isaiah 53:10 Hebrew though you make
- Isaiah 53:11 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also Septuagint); Masoretic Text does not have the light of life.
- Isaiah 53:11 Or (with Masoretic Text) 11 He will see the fruit of his suffering / and will be satisfied
- Isaiah 53:11 Or by knowledge of him
- Isaiah 53:12 Or many
- Isaiah 53:12 Or numerous
- Isaiah 54:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Isaiah 52-56
King James Version
52 Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
2 Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
3 For thus saith the Lord, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.
4 For thus saith the Lord God, My people went down aforetime into Egypt to sojourn there; and the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.
5 Now therefore, what have I here, saith the Lord, that my people is taken away for nought? they that rule over them make them to howl, saith the Lord; and my name continually every day is blasphemed.
6 Therefore my people shall know my name: therefore they shall know in that day that I am he that doth speak: behold, it is I.
7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
8 Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion.
9 Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
11 Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord.
12 For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the Lord will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your reward.
13 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.
14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:
15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.
53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
54 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.
2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;
3 For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
4 Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.
5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
6 For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.
7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
8 In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer.
9 For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
10 For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
11 O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.
12 And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.
13 And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.
14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.
15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
16 Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.
17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.
55 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.
4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.
5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.
6 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
56 Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed.
2 Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.
3 Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.
4 For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;
5 Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.
6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;
7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
8 The Lord God, which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.
9 All ye beasts of the field, come to devour, yea, all ye beasts in the forest.
10 His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
11 Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.
12 Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant.
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