Isaiah 35
1 The waste land and the dry places will be glad; the lowland will have joy and be full of flowers.
The wilderness and dry land will celebrate; the desert will blossom like the crocus.
2 It will be flowering like the rose; it will be full of delight and songs; the glory of Lebanon will be given to it; the pride of Carmel and Sharon: they will see the glory of the Lord, the power of our God.
Bloom profusely, celebrate and sing! The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God.
3 Make strong the feeble hands, give support to the shaking knees.
Make the weak hands strong, and make the trembling knees firm!
4 Say to those who are full of fear, Be strong and take heart: see, your God will give punishment; the reward of God will come; he himself will come to be your saviour.
Tell those who are frightened, “Be strong! Don't be afraid! Look, your God is coming to punish his enemies, with divine retribution he will come to save you.”
5 Then the eyes of the blind will see, and the ears which are stopped will be open.
When that happens, the blind will see, and the deaf will hear.
6 Then will the feeble-footed be jumping like a roe, and the voice which was stopped will be loud in song: for in the waste land streams will be bursting out, and waters in the dry places.
The lame will jump like a deer, and the dumb will sing for joy. Springs will gush in the wilderness; streams will flow in the desert.
7 And the burning sand will become a pool, and the dry earth springs of waters: the fields where the sheep take their food will become wet land, and water-plants will take the place of grass.
The dried-up ground will become like a pool, the arid land like water springs. In the place where jackals used to live, there will be grass and reeds and rushes.
8 And a highway will be there; its name will be, The Holy Way; the unclean and the sinner may not go over it, and those who go on it will not be turned out of the way by the foolish.
There will be a highway there, a road called “The Way of Holiness.” Nobody bad will travel on it, only those who follow the Way. Fools will not go there.
9 No lion will be there, or any cruel beast; they will not be seen there; but those for whom the Lord has given a price,
No lions or other dangerous animals will be found there on the road—only the redeemed will walk along it.
10 Even those whom he has made free, will come back again; they will come with songs to Zion; on their heads will be eternal joy; delight and joy will be theirs, and sorrow and sounds of grief will be gone for ever.
Those the Lord has set free will return, singing as they enter Jerusalem, wearing crowns of everlasting joy. They are overcome with thankfulness and happiness; sorrow and sadness simply disappear.
