Isaiah 49
Israel the LORD's Servant |
1 |
Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye
people, from far; The LORD hath called me from
the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of 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;
|
3 |
and said unto me, Thou art my
servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
|
4 |
Then I said, I have labored in vain, I
have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my
judgment is with the LORD, and my work
with my God.
|
5 |
And now, saith the LORD 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 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, Is. 42.6 · Lk. 2.32 · Acts 26.23 that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Acts 13.47
|
7 |
Thus saith the LORD,
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
the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy
One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
|
The Restoration of
Zion Promised |
8 |
Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in
a day of salvation have I helped thee: 2 Cor. 6.2 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;
|
9 |
that thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go
forth; to them that are in darkness, Show yourselves. They
shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all
high places.
|
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. Rev.
7.16, 17
|
11 |
And I will make all my mountains a way,
and my highways shall be exalted.
|
12 |
Behold, these shall come from far: and,
lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land
of Sinim.
|
13 |
Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth;
and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy
upon his afflicted.
|
14 |
But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath 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.
|
16 |
Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms
of my hands; thy walls are continually before
me.
|
17 |
Thy children shall make haste; thy
destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of
thee.
|
18 |
Lift up thine eyes round about, and
behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to
thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou
shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and
bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.
|
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.
|
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.
|
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?
|
22 |
Thus saith the Lord GOD, 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.
|
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 the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for
me.
|
24 |
Shall the prey be taken from the
mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?
|
25 |
But thus saith the LORD, 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.
|
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 the
LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Jacob.
|