Isaiah 49

1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye peoples from afar. Jehovah 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, he hath concealed me under the shadow of his hand, and he hath made me a polished shaft: in his quiver hath he hidden 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 he said unto me, Thou art my servant, Israel, in whom I will glorify myself.

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

4 — And I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and in vain; nevertheless my judgment is with Jehovah, and my work with my God.

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

5 And now, saith Jehovah, that formed me from the womb to be his servant, that I should bring Jacob again to him; (though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorified in the eyes of Jehovah, and my God 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 saith, It is a small thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; I have even given thee for a light of the nations, 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 Jehovah, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to the servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, princes, and they shall worship, because of Jehovah who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen 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 Jehovah: In a time of acceptance have I answered thee, and in the day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the land, 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 saying to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pasture shall be on all bare hills.

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 will lead them, and by the springs of water will 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 raised up.

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

12 Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, 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 Shout, ye heavens; and be joyful, thou earth; and break forth into singing, ye mountains: for Jehovah hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted ones.

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, Jehovah hath forsaken me, and the Lord 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? Even these forget, but I will 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 Lo, 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 sons shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that laid thee waste shall go forth from 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: they all gather themselves together, they come to thee. As I live, saith Jehovah, thou shalt indeed clothe thee with them all as with an ornament, and bind them on as a bride doth.

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 [in] thy waste and thy desolate places, and thy destroyed land, thou shalt even now be too straitened 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 of thy bereavement shall yet say in thine ears, The place is too narrow for me: make room for 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 And thou shalt say in thy heart, Who hath borne me these, seeing I had lost my children and was desolate, an exile, and driven about? and who hath brought up these? behold, I was left alone; these, where were they?

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 Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations, and set up my banner to the peoples; and they shall bring thy sons in [their] bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon the shoulder.

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 princesses thy nursing-mothers: they shall bow down to thee with the face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet. And thou shalt know that I [am] Jehovah; for they shall not be ashamed who wait on 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? and shall he that is rightfully captive be delivered?

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

25 For thus saith Jehovah: Even the captive of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; and I will strive with him that striveth 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 new wine. And all flesh shall know that I, Jehovah, [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.