Isaiah 60

1 "Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.

[You people of] Jerusalem [PRS], stand up! Yahweh has done glorious things for you, and he has acted powerfully for you; so show others that he is very great!

2 For, look, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise on you, and his glory shall be seen on you.

[But spiritual] darkness has covered [all the other people-groups on] the earth, complete darkness, but Yahweh will show you how great he is, and other people will also see it.

3 Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.

By seeing what he has done for you, [people of all] people-groups will see that he is very great, and kings will come to see the wonderful things that have happened to you.

4 "Lift up your eyes all around, and see: they all gather themselves together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far, and your daughters shall be carried in the arms.

[Yahweh says], “Look around and you will see the people who will be returning from (exile/countries to which they have been forced to go)! Your sons will come from distant countries; others will carry your [little] daughters home.

5 Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart shall thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you.

When you look at this happening, you will be very joyful [DOU], because people will bring valuable goods to you [from all around the world]. They will bring in ships valuable things from [many] nations.

6 The multitude of camels shall cover you, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praises of the LORD.

People will [also] bring valuable goods to you on herds/caravans of camels: Camels from the Midian and Ephah [areas of northern Arabia]. And from Sheba [in southern Arabia] they will come, bringing gold and frankincense; they will all come to praise [me], Yahweh.

7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall come up with acceptance on my altar; and I will glorify the house of my glory.

They will bring flocks [of sheep and goats] from Kedar [in northern Arabia and give them] to you. [They will bring] [PRS] rams from Nebaioth for you [to sacrifice] on my altars, and I will accept them [happily]. [At that time] I will cause my temple to be very beautifully decorated.

8 "Who are these who fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

And what are those things that are moving swiftly like [SIM] clouds? They resemble [SIM] doves [returning] to their nests.

9 Surely the islands shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of the LORD your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has glorified you.

But they are really ships from Tarshish that are bringing your people back here. When your people come, they will bring with them [all] the valuable possessions that they have acquired, and [they will do that] to honor [me], Yahweh, your God, the Holy One of Israel, because I will have greatly honored you.

10 "Foreigners shall build up your walls, and their kings shall minister to you: for in my wrath I struck you, but in my favor have I had mercy on you.

Foreigners will [come and] rebuild the walls of your [cities], and their kings will serve/help you. Although I punished you because I was angry with you, these things will happen now because I will act mercifully toward you because I am kind.

11 Your gates also shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, and their kings led captive.

The gates of your [cities] will be open during the day and [also] during the night, in order that people will be able to bring into your cities valuable things from [many] countries, with their kings being led to you in the processions.

12 For that nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

And the kingdoms and nations whose [people] refuse to allow you to rule them will be completely destroyed [DOU].

13 "The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, the fir tree, the pine, and the box tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

The glorious/beautiful things in Lebanon will be brought to you— [lumber from] cypress [trees] and fir [trees] and pine [trees]— to be used to make my temple beautiful. When that is done, my temple [MTY] will [truly] be glorious!

14 The sons of those who afflicted you shall come bending to you; and all those who despised you shall bow themselves down at the soles of your feet; and they shall call you The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

The descendants of those who (oppressed you/treated you cruelly) will come and bow down to you; those who despised you will prostrate themselves in front of your feet. They will say that your city on Zion Hill is the City of Yahweh, where the Holy One of Israel lives.

15 "Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no man passed through you, I will make you an everlasting excellency, a joy of many generations.

Previously everyone hated you and ignored you, but now your [city] will be majestic/honored forever; and [I will cause you to be] joyful forever.

16 You shall also drink the milk of the nations, and shall nurse from royal breasts; and you shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior, and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

People of all nations and their kings will gladly bring [MET] their wealth to you. And [when that happens], you will realize that I truly am Yahweh, the one who saves you and rescues you [from your enemies], and that I am the mighty one to whom you Israeli people belong.

17 For bronze I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood bronze, and for stones iron. I will also make your officers peace, and righteousness your ruler.

Instead of [metals that are not valuable, like] bronze and iron, I will bring to you silver and gold. Instead of wood and stones, I will bring you bronze and iron [for your buildings]. There will be peace in your country, and your rulers will do what is fair/just.

18 Violence shall no more be heard in your land, destruction nor calamity within your borders; but you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.

People in your country will no longer act violently, and people will no longer destroy your land and cause it to become desolate/ruined. The people in the city will be safe, and everyone there will praise me [MTY].

19 The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the moon shine for illumination at night; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.

And you will no longer need the sun and moon to give you light, because [I], Yahweh, will give you more light [than the sun and moon]; I will be a glorious light for you forever.

20 Your sun shall no more go down, neither shall your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended.

[It will seem as though] the sun and moon will always be shining [LIT], because [I], Yahweh, will be an everlasting light for you. You will never again be sad [because of things that happen to you].

21 Your people also shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.

Your people will all be righteous, and they will occupy the land forever, because I myself have put you there [like people plant trees] [MET] in order that you will show others that I am very great.

22 The little one shall become a thousand, and the small one a strong nation; I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time."

At that time, the [groups that are] very small now will become [very large] clans, and small clans will become great nations. [All those things will happen because], I, Yahweh, will cause them to happen at the right time.”