Isaiah 49

1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; YHWH hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

Listen to me, you islands; and attend, you Gentiles; after a long time it shall come to pass, says the Lord: from my mother's womb he has called my name:

2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;

and he has made my mouth as a sharp sword, and he has hid me under the shadow of his hand; he has made me as a choice shaft, and he has hid me in his quiver;

3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

and said to me, You are my servant, O Israel, and in you I will be glorified.

4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with YHWH, and my work with my Elohim.

Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have given my strength for vanity and for nothing: therefore is my judgment with the Lord, and my labor before my God.

5 And now, saith YHWH that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of YHWH, and my Elohim shall be my strength.

And now, thus says the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his own servant, to gather Jacob to him and Israel. I shall be gathered and glorified before the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.

6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

And he said to me, [It is] a great thing for you to be called my servant, to establish the tribes of Jacob, and to recover the dispersion of Israel: behold, I have given you for the covenant of a race, for a light of the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the end of the earth.

7 Thus saith YHWH, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of YHWH that is faithful, and he Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.

Thus says the Lord that delivered you, the God of Israel, Sanctify him that despises his life, him that is abhorred by the nations that are the servants of princes: kings shall behold him, and princes shall arise, and shall worship him, for the Lord's sake: for the Holy One of Israel is faithful, and I have chosen you.

8 Thus saith YHWH, In an acceptable time have I heard 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 establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;

Thus says the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard you, and in a day of salvation have I succored you: and I have formed you, and given you for a covenant of the nations, to establish the earth, and to cause to inherit the desert heritages:

9 That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.

saying to them that are in bonds, Go forth; and [bidding] them that are in darkness show themselves. They shall be fed in all the ways, and in all the paths [shall be] their pasture.

10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.

They shall not hunger, neither shall they thirst; neither shall the heat nor the sun strike them; but he that has mercy on them shall comfort [them], and by fountains of waters shall he lead them.

11 And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted.

And I will make every mountain a way, and every path a pasture to them.

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

Behold, these shall come from far: [and] these from the north and the west, and others from the land of the Persians.

13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for YHWH hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.

Rejoice, you heavens; and let the earth be glad: let the mountains break forth [with] joy; for the Lard has had mercy on his people, and has comforted the lowly ones of his people.

14 But Zion said, YHWH hath forsaken me, and my master hath forgotten me.

But Sion said, The Lord has forsaken me, and, The Lord has forgotten me.

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

Will a woman forget her child, so as not to have compassion upon the offspring of her womb? but if a woman should even forget these, yet I will not forget you, says the Lord.

16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

Behold, I have painted your walls on my hands, and you are continually before me.

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

And you shall soon be built by those by whom you were destroyed, and they that made you desolate shall go forth of you.

18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith YHWH, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.

Lift up your eyes round about, and look on them all; behold, they are gathered together, and are come to you. [As] I live, says the Lord, you shall clothe yourself with them all as with an ornament, and put them on as a bride her attire.

19 For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.

For your desert and marred and ruined [places] shall now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that devoured you shall be removed far from you.

20 The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell.

For your sons whom you have lost shall say in your ears, The place [is too] narrow for me: make room for me that I may dwell.

21 Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been?

And you shall say in your heart, Who has begotten me these? whereas I [was] childless, and a widow; but who has brought up these for me? and I was left alone; but whence came these to me?

22 Thus saith the Master YHWH, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.

Thus says the Lord, [even] the Lord, Behold, I lift up mine hand to the nations, and I will lift up my signal to the islands: and they shall bring your sons in [their] bosom, and shall bear your daughters on [their] shoulders.

23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am YHWH: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.

And kings shall be your nursing fathers, and their princesses your nurses, they shall bow down to you on the face of the earth, and shall lick the dust of your feet; and you shall know that I am the Lord, and they that wait on me shall not be ashamed.

24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?

Will any one take spoils from a giant? and if one should take [a man] captive unjustly, shall he be delivered?

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

For thus says the Lord, If one should take a giant captive, he shall take spoils, and he who takes [them] from a mighty [man] shall be delivered: for I will plead your cause, and I will deliver your children.

26 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 YHWH am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

And they that afflicted you shall eat their own flesh; and they shall drink their own blood as new wine, and shall be drunken: and all flesh shall perceive that I am the Lord that delivers you, and that upholds the strength of Jacob.