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Isaiah 50-52
Common English Bible
Isaiah 50-52
Common English Bible
50 The Lord says:
Where’s your mother’s divorce decree,
with which I sent her away?
Or to which lender did I sell you?
On account of your sins you were sold;
on account of your transgressions
your mother was sent away.
2 Why did I come and find no one?
Why did I call when no one answered?
Is my hand too small to redeem you?[a]
Don’t I have enough power to save?
With my rebuke I dry up the sea
and make the rivers into wilderness.
Their fish stink from lack of water;
they die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness
and cover them with funeral clothing.
God’s faithful servant
4 The Lord God gave me an educated tongue
to know how to respond to the weary
with a word that will awaken them in the morning.[b]
God awakens my ear in the morning to listen,
as educated people do.
5 The Lord God opened my ear;
I didn’t rebel; I didn’t turn my back.
6 Instead, I gave my body to attackers,
and my cheeks to beard pluckers.
I didn’t hide my face
from insults and spitting.
7 The Lord God will help me;
therefore, I haven’t been insulted.
Therefore, I set my face like flint,
and knew I wouldn’t be ashamed.
8 The one who will declare me innocent is near.
Who will argue with me?
Let’s stand up together.
Who will bring judgment against me?
Let him approach me.
9 Look! The Lord God will help me.
Who will condemn me?
Look, they will wear out like clothing;
the moth will eat them.
10 Who among you fears the Lord?
Who listens to the voice of his servant,
who walks in darkness
and has no light?
They will trust in the Lord’s name,
and rely upon their God.
11 Look! All of you are kindling fire,
igniting torches.
Walk by the light of your fire,
by the torches you have ignited.
This is what will happen to you by my hand:
you will lie down in grief.
Look to Abraham and Sarah
51 Listen to me,
you who look for righteousness,
you who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut
and to the quarry where you were dug.
2 Look to Abraham your ancestor,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
They were alone when I called them,
but I blessed them and made them many.
3 The Lord will comfort Zion;
he will comfort all her ruins.
He will make her desert like Eden
and her wilderness like the Lord’s garden.
Happiness and joy will be found in her—
thanks and the sound of singing.
Salvation endures forever
4 Pay attention to me, my people;
listen to me, my nation,
for teaching will go out from me,
my justice, as a light to the nations.
5 I will quickly bring my victory.
My salvation is on its way,
and my arm will judge the peoples.
The coastlands hope for me;
they wait for my judgment.[c]
6 Look up to the heavens,
and gaze at the earth beneath.
The heavens will disappear like smoke,
the earth will wear out like clothing,
and its inhabitants will die like gnats.
But my salvation will endure forever,
and my righteousness will be unbroken.
7 Listen to me, you who know what is right,
people who carry my teaching in your heart:
Don’t fear human scorn,
and don’t be upset when they abuse you.
8 The moth will eat them as if they were clothing,
and the worm will eat them like wool,
but my righteousness is forever,
and my salvation for all generations.
Awake, arm of the Lord
9 Awake, awake, put on strength,
arm of the Lord.
Awake as in times past,
generations long ago.
Aren’t you the one who crushed Rahab,
who pierced the dragon?
10 Didn’t you dry up the sea,
the waters of the great deep?
And didn’t you make the redeemed a road to cross
through the depths of the sea,
a road for the redeemed to pass?
11 Then let those ransomed by the Lord return
and come to Zion with singing
and with everlasting joy upon their heads.
Let happiness and joy overwhelm them;
let grief and groaning flee.
12 I, I am the one who comforts you.
Why should you fear humans who will die,
mortals who are treated like grass?
13 You forgot the Lord your maker,
the one who stretched out the heavens
and founded the earth.
You were continually afraid, all day long,
on account of the oppressor’s wrath—
a fear by which they intend to destroy you.
Where now is the oppressor’s wrath?
14 The imprisoned ones will soon be released;
they won’t die in the pit
or even lack bread.
15 I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of heavenly forces is his name.
16 I put my words in your mouth
and hid you in the shadow of my hand,
stretching out[d] the heavens, founding the earth,
and saying to Zion, “You are my people.”
Wake yourself, Jerusalem
17 Wake yourself, wake yourself!
Rise up, Jerusalem,
who drank the cup of wrath from the Lord’s hand.
You drank; you drained the goblet of reeling.
18 There’s no one to guide her among all the children she bore;
there’s no one to take her by the hand among all the children she raised.
19 These two things have happened to you—
Who will be sorry for you?[e]—
destruction and devastation,
famine and sword—
who will comfort you?[f]
20 Your children passed out;
they lay at the head of every street like antelope in a net,
filled with the Lord’s wrath,
with the rebuke of your God.
21 Therefore, hear this, suffering one,
who is drunk, but not from wine.
22 The Lord, your Lord and your God,
who contends for his people, says:
Look, I have taken the cup of reeling,
the goblet of my wrath, from your hand.
You will no longer drink from it.
23 I will put it in the hand of your tormentors,
who said to you,
“Lie down so that we can walk on you.
Make your back like the ground,
like a street for those walking on it.”
Awake, holy Zion
52 Awake, awake,
put on your strength, Zion!
Put on your splendid clothing,
Jerusalem, you holy city;
for the uncircumcised and unclean
will no longer come into you.
2 Shake the dust off yourself;
rise up; sit enthroned, Jerusalem.
Loose the bonds from your neck,
captive Daughter Zion!
3 The Lord proclaims:
You were sold for nothing,
and you will be redeemed without money.
4 The Lord God proclaims:
Long ago my people went down
to reside in Egypt.
Moreover, Assyria has oppressed them without cause.
5 And now what have I here? says the Lord.
My people are taken away for nothing.
Their rulers wail, says the Lord,
and continually all day long my name is despised.
6 Therefore, my people will know my name on that day;
I’m the one who promises it; I’m here.
Your God rules
7 How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of a messenger
who proclaims peace,
who brings good news,
who proclaims salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God rules!”
8 Listen! Your lookouts lift their voice;
they sing out together!
Right before their eyes they see the Lord returning to Zion.
9 Break into song together, you ruins of Jerusalem!
The Lord has comforted his people and has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has bared his holy arm in view of all the nations;
all the ends of the earth have seen our God’s victory.
11 Depart! Depart! Go out from there!
Unclean! Don’t touch!
Get out of that place; purify yourselves,
carriers of the Lord’s equipment!
12 You won’t go out in a rush,
nor will you run away,
because the one going before you is the Lord;
your rear guard is the God of Israel.
Suffering servant
13 Look, my servant will succeed.
He will be exalted and lifted very high.
14 Just as many were appalled by you,
he too appeared disfigured, inhuman,
his appearance unlike that of mortals.
15 But he will astonish[g] many nations.
Kings will be silenced because of him,
because they will see what they haven’t seen before;
what they haven’t heard before, they will ponder.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 50:2 Heb lacks you.
- Isaiah 50:4 Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 51:5 Or for my arm
- Isaiah 51:16 Or planting
- Isaiah 51:19 DSS (1QIsaa), LXX, Vulg; MT How will I
- Isaiah 51:19 Or how will I comfort you?
- Isaiah 52:15 Or sprinkle
Isaiah 50-52
New International Version
Isaiah 50-52
New International Version
Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce(A)
with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
did I sell(B) you?
Because of your sins(C) you were sold;(D)
because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
2 When I came, why was there no one?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?(E)
Was my arm too short(F) to deliver you?
Do I lack the strength(G) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke(H) I dry up the sea,(I)
I turn rivers into a desert;(J)
their fish rot for lack of water
and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness(K)
and make sackcloth(L) its covering.”
4 The Sovereign Lord(M) has given me a well-instructed tongue,(N)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(O)
He wakens me morning by morning,(P)
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.(Q)
5 The Sovereign Lord(R) has opened my ears;(S)
I have not been rebellious,(T)
I have not turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(U) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(V)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(W)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(X) helps(Y) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(Z)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(AA)
8 He who vindicates(AB) me is near.(AC)
Who then will bring charges against me?(AD)
Let us face each other!(AE)
Who is my accuser?
Let him confront me!
9 It is the Sovereign Lord(AF) who helps(AG) me.
Who will condemn(AH) me?
They will all wear out like a garment;
the moths(AI) will eat them up.
10 Who among you fears(AJ) the Lord
and obeys(AK) the word of his servant?(AL)
Let the one who walks in the dark,
who has no light,(AM)
trust(AN) in the name of the Lord
and rely on their God.
11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,(AO)
go, walk in the light of your fires(AP)
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:(AQ)
You will lie down in torment.(AR)
Everlasting Salvation for Zion
51 “Listen(AS) to me, you who pursue righteousness(AT)
and who seek(AU) the Lord:
Look to the rock(AV) from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you were hewn;
2 look to Abraham,(AW) your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him he was only one man,
and I blessed him and made him many.(AX)
3 The Lord will surely comfort(AY) Zion(AZ)
and will look with compassion on all her ruins;(BA)
he will make her deserts like Eden,(BB)
her wastelands(BC) like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness(BD) will be found in her,
thanksgiving(BE) and the sound of singing.
4 “Listen to me, my people;(BF)
hear me,(BG) my nation:
Instruction(BH) will go out from me;
my justice(BI) will become a light to the nations.(BJ)
5 My righteousness draws near speedily,
my salvation(BK) is on the way,(BL)
and my arm(BM) will bring justice to the nations.
The islands(BN) will look to me
and wait in hope(BO) for my arm.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
look at the earth beneath;
the heavens will vanish like smoke,(BP)
the earth will wear out like a garment(BQ)
and its inhabitants die like flies.
But my salvation(BR) will last forever,(BS)
my righteousness will never fail.(BT)
7 “Hear me, you who know what is right,(BU)
you people who have taken my instruction to heart:(BV)
Do not fear the reproach of mere mortals
or be terrified by their insults.(BW)
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment;(BX)
the worm(BY) will devour them like wool.
But my righteousness will last forever,(BZ)
my salvation through all generations.”
9 Awake, awake,(CA) arm(CB) of the Lord,
clothe yourself with strength!(CC)
Awake, as in days gone by,
as in generations of old.(CD)
Was it not you who cut Rahab(CE) to pieces,
who pierced that monster(CF) through?
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,(CG)
the waters of the great deep,(CH)
who made a road in the depths of the sea(CI)
so that the redeemed(CJ) might cross over?
11 Those the Lord has rescued(CK) will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;(CL)
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy(CM) will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.(CN)
12 “I, even I, am he who comforts(CO) you.
Who are you that you fear(CP) mere mortals,(CQ)
human beings who are but grass,(CR)
13 that you forget(CS) the Lord your Maker,(CT)
who stretches out the heavens(CU)
and who lays the foundations of the earth,
that you live in constant terror(CV) every day
because of the wrath of the oppressor,
who is bent on destruction?
For where is the wrath of the oppressor?(CW)
14 The cowering prisoners will soon be set free;(CX)
they will not die in their dungeon,
nor will they lack bread.(CY)
15 For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea(CZ) so that its waves roar(DA)—
the Lord Almighty(DB) is his name.
16 I have put my words in your mouth(DC)
and covered you with the shadow of my hand(DD)—
I who set the heavens in place,
who laid the foundations of the earth,(DE)
and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.(DF)’”
The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath
17 Awake, awake!(DG)
Rise up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup(DH) of his wrath,(DI)
you who have drained to its dregs(DJ)
the goblet that makes people stagger.(DK)
18 Among all the children(DL) she bore
there was none to guide her;(DM)
among all the children she reared
there was none to take her by the hand.(DN)
19 These double calamities(DO) have come upon you—
who can comfort you?(DP)—
ruin and destruction,(DQ) famine(DR) and sword(DS)—
who can[a] console you?
20 Your children have fainted;
they lie at every street corner,(DT)
like antelope caught in a net.(DU)
They are filled with the wrath(DV) of the Lord,
with the rebuke(DW) of your God.
21 Therefore hear this, you afflicted(DX) one,
made drunk,(DY) but not with wine.
22 This is what your Sovereign Lord says,
your God, who defends(DZ) his people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
the cup(EA) that made you stagger;
from that cup, the goblet of my wrath,
you will never drink again.
23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,(EB)
who said to you,
‘Fall prostrate(EC) that we may walk(ED) on you.’
And you made your back like the ground,
like a street to be walked on.”(EE)
52 Awake, awake,(EF) Zion,
clothe yourself with strength!(EG)
Put on your garments of splendor,(EH)
Jerusalem, the holy city.(EI)
The uncircumcised(EJ) and defiled(EK)
will not enter you again.(EL)
2 Shake off your dust;(EM)
rise up,(EN) sit enthroned, Jerusalem.
Free yourself from the chains on your neck,(EO)
Daughter Zion,(EP) 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,[b]”
declares the Lord.
“And all day long
my name is constantly blasphemed.(EV)
6 Therefore my people will know(EW) my name;(EX)
therefore in that day(EY) they will know
that it is I who foretold(EZ) it.
Yes, it is I.”
7 How beautiful on the mountains(FA)
are the feet of those who bring good news,(FB)
who proclaim peace,(FC)
who bring good tidings,
who proclaim salvation,
who say to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”(FD)
8 Listen! Your watchmen(FE) lift up their voices;(FF)
together they shout for joy.(FG)
When the Lord returns(FH) to Zion,(FI)
they will see it with their own eyes.
9 Burst into songs of joy(FJ) together,
you ruins(FK) of Jerusalem,
for the Lord has comforted(FL) his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.(FM)
10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm(FN)
in the sight of all the nations,(FO)
and all the ends of the earth(FP) will see
the salvation(FQ) of our God.
11 Depart,(FR) depart, go out from there!
Touch no unclean thing!(FS)
Come out from it and be pure,(FT)
you who carry the articles(FU) of the Lord’s house.
12 But you will not leave in haste(FV)
or go in flight;
for the Lord will go before you,(FW)
the God of Israel will be your rear guard.(FX)
The Suffering and Glory of the Servant
13 See, my servant(FY) will act wisely[c];
he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.(FZ)
14 Just as there were many who were appalled(GA) at him[d]—
his appearance was so disfigured(GB) beyond that of any human being
and his form marred beyond human likeness(GC)—
15 so he will sprinkle(GD) many nations,[e]
and kings(GE) will shut their mouths(GF) because of him.
For what they were not told, they will see,
and what they have not heard, they will understand.(GG)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 51:19 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text / how can I
- 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)
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.