Isaiah 50

Contemporary English Version

The Lord's Power To Punish

50 ^(A) The Lord says, “Children,
I didn't divorce your mother
    or sell you to pay debts;
I divorced her and sold you
    because of your sins.
²I came and called out,
    but you didn't answer.
Have I lost my power
    to rescue and save?
At my command oceans and rivers
    turn into deserts;
fish rot and stink
    for lack of water.
³I make the sky turn dark
like the sackcloth
    you wear at funerals.”

God's Servant Must Suffer

⁴The Lord God gives me
the right words
    to encourage the weary.
Each morning he awakens me
    eager to learn his teaching;
⁵he made me willing to listen
    and not rebel or run away.

⁶^(B) I let them beat my back
    and pull out my beard.
I didn't turn aside
when they insulted me
    and spit in my face.
⁷But the Lord God keeps me
    from being disgraced.
So I refuse to give up,
because I know
    God will never let me down.

⁸^(C) My protector is nearby;
no one can stand here
    to accuse me of wrong.
⁹The Lord God will help me
    and prove I am innocent.
My accusers will wear out
    like moth-eaten clothes.

¹⁰None of you respect the Lord
    or obey his servant.
You walk in the dark
    instead of the light;
you don't trust the name
    of the Lord your God.^[a]
¹¹Go ahead and walk in the light
    of the fires you have set.^[b]
But with his own hand,
the Lord will punish you
    and make you suffer.