Isaiah 49

1 Listen to Me, O islands; pay attention, O distant peoples: The LORD called Me from the womb; from the body of My mother He named Me.

Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken, ye peoples, from far: the LORD hath called me from the womb, from the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of my name;

2 He made My mouth like a sharp sword; He hid Me in the shadow of His hand. He made Me like a polished arrow; He hid Me in His quiver.

And He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of His hand hath He hid me; and He hath made me a polished shaft, in His quiver hath He concealed me;

3 He said to Me, “You are My Servant, Israel, in whom I will display My glory.”

And He said unto me: 'Thou art My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.'

4 But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent My strength in futility and vanity; yet My vindication is with the LORD, and My reward is with My God.”

But I said: 'I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and vanity; yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God.'

5 And now says the LORD, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, that Israel might be gathered to Him— for I am honored in the sight of the LORD, and My God is My strength—

And now saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be His servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, and that Israel be gathered unto Him — for I am honourable in the eyes of the LORD, and my God is become my strength —

6 He says: “It is not enough for You to be My Servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the protected ones of Israel. I will also make You a light for the nations, to bring My salvation to the ends of the earth.”

Yea, He saith: 'It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the offspring of Israel; I will also give thee for a light of the nations, that My salvation may be unto the end of the earth.'

7 Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, to Him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the Servant of rulers: “Kings will see You and rise, and princes will bow down, because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen You.”

Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him who is despised of men, to him who is abhorred of nations, to a servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the LORD that is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee.

8 This is what the LORD says: “In the time of favor I will answer You, and in the day of salvation I will help You; I will keep You and appoint You to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land, to apportion its desolate inheritances,

Thus saith the LORD: In an acceptable time have I answered thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to raise up the land, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;

9 to say to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ They will feed along the pathways, and find pasture on every barren hill.

Saying to the prisoners: 'Go forth'; to them that are in darkness: 'Show yourselves'; they shall feed in the ways, and in all high hills shall be their pasture;

10 They will not hunger or thirst, nor will scorching heat or sun beat down on them. For He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.

They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them; for He that hath compassion on them will lead them, even by the springs of water will He guide them.

11 I will turn all My mountains into roads, and My highways will be raised up.

And I will make all My mountains a way, and My highways shall be raised on high.

12 Behold, they will come from far away, from the north and from the west, and from the land of Aswan.”

Behold, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Sinim.

13 Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; break forth in song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people, and He will have compassion on His afflicted ones.

Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth, and break forth into singing, O mountains; for the LORD hath comforted His people, and hath compassion upon His afflicted.

14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; the Lord has forgotten me!”

But Zion said: 'The LORD hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath forgotten me.'

15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child, or lack compassion for the son of her womb? Even if she could forget, I will not forget you!

Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, these may forget, yet will not I forget thee.

16 Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are ever before Me.

Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands; thy walls are continually before Me.

17 Your builders hasten back; your destroyers and wreckers depart from you.

Thy children make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee.

18 Lift up your eyes and look around. They all gather together; they come to you. As surely as I live,” declares the LORD, “you will wear them all as jewelry and put them on like a bride.

Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament, and gird thyself with them, like a bride.

19 For your ruined and desolate places and your ravaged land will now indeed be too small for your people, and those who devoured you will be far away.

For thy waste and thy desolate places and thy land that hath been destroyed — surely now shalt thou be too strait for the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.

20 Yet the children of your bereavement will say in your hearing, ‘This place is too small for us; make room for us to live here.’

The children of thy bereavement shall yet say in thine ears: 'The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell.'

21 Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has begotten these for me? I was bereaved and barren; I was exiled and rejected. So who has reared them? Look, I was left all alone, so where did they come from?’”

Then shalt thou say in thy heart: 'Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have been bereaved of my children, and am solitary, an exile, and wandering to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where were they?'

22 This is what the Lord GOD says: “Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations, and raise My banner to the peoples. They will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations, and set up Mine ensign to the peoples, and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.

23 Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow to you facedown and lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who hope in Me will never be put to shame.”

And kings shall be thy foster-fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face to the earth, and lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD, for they shall not be ashamed that wait for Me.

24 Can the plunder be snatched from the mighty, or the captives of a tyrant be delivered?

Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of the victorious be delivered?

25 Indeed, this is what the LORD says: “Even the captives of the mighty will be taken away, and the plunder of the tyrant will be retrieved; I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.

But thus saith the LORD: Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; and I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.

26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will be drunk on their own blood, as with wine. Then all mankind will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.