Isaiah 59-63

New American Standard Bible

Separation from God

59 Behold, ^(A)the Lord’s hand is not so short
That it cannot save;
^(B)Nor is His ear so dull
That it cannot hear.
²But your ^(C)wrongdoings have caused a separation between you and your God,
And your sins have hidden His ^[a]face from you so that He does ^(D)not hear.
³For your ^(E)hands are defiled with blood,
And your fingers with wrongdoing;
Your lips have spoken ^(F)deceit,
Your tongue mutters wickedness.
⁴^(G)No one sues righteously and ^(H)no one pleads ^[b]honestly.
They ^(I)trust in confusion and speak lies;
They ^(J)conceive trouble and give birth to disaster.
⁵They hatch vipers’ eggs and ^(K)weave the spider’s web;
The one who eats of their eggs dies,
And from what is crushed, a snake breaks out.
⁶Their webs will not become clothing,
Nor will they ^(L)cover themselves with their works;
Their ^(M)works are works of wrongdoing,
And an ^(N)act of violence is in their ^[c]hands.
⁷^(O)Their feet run to evil,
And they hurry to shed innocent blood;
^(P)Their thoughts are thoughts of wrongdoing,
Devastation and destruction are in their paths.
⁸They do not know the ^(Q)way of peace,
And there is ^(R)no justice in their tracks;
They have made their paths crooked,
^(S)Whoever walks on ^[d]them does not know peace.

A Confession of Wickedness

⁹Therefore ^(T)justice is far from us,
And righteousness does not reach us;
We ^(U)hope for light, but there is darkness,
For brightness, but we walk in gloom.
¹⁰We ^(V)grope for the wall like people who are blind,
We grope like those who have no eyes.
We ^(W)stumble at midday as in the twilight;
Among those who are healthy we are ^(X)like the dead.
¹¹All of us growl like bears,
And ^(Y)moan sadly like doves;
We hope for ^(Z)justice, but there is none;
For salvation, but it is far from us.
¹²For our ^(AA)wrongful acts have multiplied before You,
And our ^(AB)sins have testified against us;
For our wrongful acts are with us,
And ^[e]we know our wrongdoings:
¹³^[f]Offending and ^(AC)denying the Lord,
And turning away from our God,
Speaking ^(AD)oppression and revolt,
Conceiving and ^(AE)uttering lying words from the heart.
¹⁴^(AF)Justice is turned back,
And ^(AG)righteousness stands far away;
For truth has stumbled in the street,
And uprightness cannot enter.
¹⁵Truth is lacking,
And one who turns aside from evil ^(AH)makes himself a prey.
Now the Lord saw,
And it was ^[g]displeasing in His sight ^(AI)that there was no justice.
¹⁶And He saw that there was ^(AJ)no one,
And was amazed that there was not one to intercede;
Then His ^(AK)own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
¹⁷He put on ^(AL)righteousness like a breastplate,
And a ^(AM)helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on ^(AN)garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with ^(AO)zeal as a cloak.
¹⁸^(AP)According to their deeds, ^[h]so will He repay:
Wrath to His adversaries, ^[i]retribution to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will ^[j]deal ^[k]retribution.
¹⁹So they will fear the name of the Lord from the ^(AQ)west
And His glory from the ^(AR)rising of the sun,
For He will ^(AS)come like a ^[l]rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives.
²⁰“A ^(AT)Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those in Jacob who ^(AU)turn from wrongdoing,” declares the Lord.

²¹“As for Me, this is My ^(AV)covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My ^(AW)Spirit who is upon you, and My ^(AX)words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your ^[m]offspring, nor from the mouth of your ^[n]offspring’s offspring,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”

A Glorified Zion

60 “^(AY)Arise, shine; for your ^(AZ)light has come,
And the ^(BA)glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
²For behold, ^(BB)darkness will cover the earth
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the Lord will rise upon you
And His ^(BC)glory will appear upon you.
³^(BD)Nations will come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.

⁴“^(BE)Raise your eyes all around and see;
They all gather together, they ^(BF)come to you.
Your sons will come from afar,
And your ^(BG)daughters will be ^[o]carried on the hip.
⁵Then you will see and be ^(BH)radiant,
And your heart will ^[p]thrill and rejoice;
Because the ^[q]^(BI)abundance of the sea will be turned to you,
The ^(BJ)wealth of the nations will come to you.
⁶A multitude of camels will cover you,
The young camels of Midian and ^(BK)Ephah;
All those from ^(BL)Sheba will come;
They will bring ^(BM)gold and frankincense,
And ^(BN)proclaim good news of the praises of the Lord.
⁷All the flocks of ^(BO)Kedar will be gathered to you,
The rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
They will go up on My ^(BP)altar with acceptance,
And I will ^(BQ)glorify My glorious house.
⁸^(BR)Who are these who fly like a cloud
And like the doves to their windows?
⁹Certainly the ^(BS)coastlands will wait for Me;
And the ^(BT)ships of Tarshish will come first,
To ^(BU)bring your sons from afar,
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 ^(BV)glorified you.

¹⁰“^(BW)Foreigners will build up your walls,
And their ^(BX)kings will serve you;
For in My ^(BY)wrath I struck you,
And in My favor I have had compassion on you.
¹¹Your ^(BZ)gates will be open continually;
They will not be closed day or night,
So that people may ^(CA)bring you the wealth of the nations,
With ^(CB)their kings led in procession.
¹²For the ^(CC)nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish,
And the nations will be utterly ruined.
¹³The ^(CD)glory of Lebanon will come to you,
The ^(CE)juniper, the elm tree and the ^[r]cedar together,
To beautify the place of My sanctuary;
And I will make the ^(CF)place of My feet glorious.
¹⁴The ^(CG)sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you will bow down at the soles of your feet;
And they will call you the ^(CH)city of the Lord,
The ^(CI)Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁵“Whereas you have been ^(CJ)forsaken and ^(CK)hated
With no one passing through,
I will make you an ^(CL)object of pride forever,
A joy from generation to generation.
¹⁶You will also ^(CM)suck the milk of nations,
And suck the breast of kings;
Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your ^(CN)Savior
And your ^(CO)Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
¹⁷Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
And instead of iron I will bring silver,
And instead of wood, bronze,
And instead of stones, iron.
And I will make peace your administrators,
And righteousness your overseers.
¹⁸^(CP)Violence will not be heard again in your land,
Nor ^(CQ)devastation or destruction within your borders;
But you will call your ^(CR)walls salvation, and your ^(CS)gates praise.
¹⁹No longer will you have the ^(CT)sun for light by day,
Nor will the moon give you light for brightness;
But you will have the ^(CU)Lord as an everlasting light,
And your ^(CV)God as your ^[s]glory.
²⁰Your ^(CW)sun will no longer set,
Nor will your moon wane;
For you will have the Lord as an everlasting light,
And the days of your ^(CX)mourning will be over.
²¹Then all your ^(CY)people will be righteous;
They will ^(CZ)possess the land forever,
The branch of ^[t]My planting,
The ^(DA)work of My hands,
That I may be ^(DB)glorified.
²²The ^(DC)smallest one will become a thousand,
And the least one a mighty nation.
I, the Lord, will bring it about quickly in its time.”

Exaltation of the Afflicted

61 The ^(DD)Spirit of the Lord ^[u]God is upon me,
Because the Lord anointed me
To ^(DE)bring good news to the ^(DF)humble;
He has sent me to ^(DG)bind up the brokenhearted,
To ^(DH)proclaim ^[v]release to captives
And ^[w]freedom to prisoners;
²To ^(DI)proclaim the favorable year of the Lord
And the ^(DJ)day of vengeance of our God;
To ^(DK)comfort all who mourn,
³To ^(DL)grant those who mourn in Zion,
Giving them a garland instead of ashes,
The ^(DM)oil of gladness instead of mourning,
The cloak of praise instead of a disheartened spirit.
So they will be called ^[x]^(DN)oaks of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.

⁴Then they will ^(DO)rebuild the ancient ruins,
They will raise up the former devastations;
And they will repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations.
⁵^(DP)Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks,
And ^[y]foreigners will be your farmers and your vinedressers.
⁶But you will be called the ^(DQ)priests of the Lord;
You will be spoken of as ^(DR)ministers of our God.
You will eat the ^(DS)wealth of nations,
And you will boast in their ^[z]riches.
⁷Instead of your ^(DT)shame you will have a ^(DU)double portion,
And instead of humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion.
Therefore they will possess a double portion in their land,
^(DV)Everlasting joy will be theirs.
⁸For I, the Lord, ^(DW)love justice,
I hate robbery ^[aa]in the burnt offering;
And I will faithfully give them their reward,
And make an ^(DX)everlasting covenant with them.
⁹Then their offspring will be known among the nations,
And their descendants in the midst of the peoples.
All who see them will recognize them
Because they are the ^(DY)offspring whom the Lord has blessed.

¹⁰I will ^(DZ)rejoice greatly in the Lord,
My soul will be joyful in ^(EA)my God;
For He has ^(EB)clothed me with garments of salvation,
He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness,
As a groom puts on a turban,
And ^(EC)as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
¹¹For as the ^(ED)earth produces its sprouts,
And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up,
So the Lord ^[ab]God will ^(EE)cause ^(EF)righteousness and praise
To spring up before all the nations.

Zion’s Glory and New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her ^(EG)righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her ^(EH)salvation like a torch that is burning.
²The ^(EI)nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new ^(EJ)name
Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.
³You will also be a ^(EK)crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
⁴It will no longer be said to you, “^[ac]^(EL)Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “^[ad]Desolate”;
But you will be called, “^[ae]My delight is in her,”
And your land, “^[af]^(EM)Married”;
For the ^(EN)Lord delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
⁵For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the ^[ag]groom rejoices over the bride,
So your ^(EO)God will rejoice over you.

⁶On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed ^(EP)watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who ^(EQ)profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
⁷And ^(ER)give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes ^(ES)Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.
⁸^(ET)The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm:
“I will ^(EU)never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will ^[ah]foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
⁹But those who ^(EV)harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.

¹⁰Go through, ^(EW)go through the gates,
Clear a way ^[ai]for the people!
^(EX)Build up, build up the ^(EY)highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a ^(EZ)flag over the peoples.
¹¹Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the ^(FA)end of the earth:
^(FB)Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your ^(FC)salvation is coming;
^(FD)Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”
¹²And they will call them, “^(FE)The holy people,
The ^(FF)redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City ^(FG)Not Abandoned.”

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

63 Who is this who comes from ^(FH)Edom,
With ^(FI)garments of ^[aj]glowing colors from ^(FJ)Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
^[ak]Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I, the One who speaks in righteousness, ^(FK)mighty to save.”
²Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like one who ^(FL)treads in the wine press?
³“^(FM)I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no one with Me.
I also ^(FN)trod them in My anger
And ^(FO)trampled them in My wrath;
And ^(FP)their ^[al]lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I ^[am]stained all My clothes.
⁴For the ^(FQ)day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come.
⁵I looked, but there was ^(FR)no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My ^(FS)own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.
⁶I ^(FT)trampled down the peoples in My anger
And made them ^(FU)drunk with My wrath,
And I ^[an]poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

⁷I will make mention of the ^(FV)mercies of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord,
According to all that the Lord has granted us,
And the great ^(FW)goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has granted them according to His ^(FX)compassion
And according to the abundance of His mercies.
⁸For He said, “Certainly they are ^(FY)My people,
Sons who will not deal falsely.”
So He became their ^(FZ)Savior.
⁹In all their distress ^[ao]^(GA)He was distressed,
And the ^(GB)angel of His presence saved them;
In His ^(GC)love and in His mercy He ^(GD)redeemed them,
And He ^(GE)lifted them and carried them all the days of old.
¹⁰But they ^(GF)rebelled
And grieved His ^(GG)Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them.
¹¹Then ^(GH)His people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is ^(GI)He who brought them up out of the sea with the ^[ap]shepherds of His flock?
Where is He who ^(GJ)put His Holy Spirit in the midst of ^[aq]them,
¹²Who caused His ^(GK)glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses,
Who ^(GL)divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
¹³Who led them through the depths?
Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not ^(GM)stumble;
¹⁴Like the cattle which go down into the valley,
The Spirit of the ^(GN)Lord gave ^[ar]them rest.
So You ^(GO)led Your people,
To make for Yourself a glorious name.

You Are Our Father

¹⁵^(GP)Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious ^(GQ)lofty habitation;
Where are Your ^(GR)zeal and Your mighty deeds?
The ^(GS)stirrings of Your heart and Your compassion are restrained toward me.
¹⁶For You are our ^(GT)Father, though ^(GU)Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, Lord, are our Father,
Our ^(GV)Redeemer from ancient times is Your name.
¹⁷Why, Lord, do You ^(GW)cause us to stray from Your ways
And ^(GX)harden our heart from fearing You?
^(GY)Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
¹⁸Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while,
Our adversaries have ^(GZ)trampled it down.
¹⁹We have become like those over whom You have never ruled,
Like those who were not called by Your name.