Isaiah 54

1 Sing for joy, childless woman, you who have had a baby! Shout aloud, and sing happily, Jerusalem, you who have never given birth! For the abandoned woman now has more children than the married woman, says the Lord.

Sing, O barren, thou [that] didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou [that] didst not travail with child: for more [are] the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

2 Make the tent where you live bigger; stretch the fabric to enlarge your home. Don't try and save space—extend your tent cords and make your tent pegs stronger.

Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them extend the curtains of thy habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

3 You're going to be spreading out right and left; your descendants will take over the land of other nations and live in towns that were once abandoned.

For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

4 Do not be afraid, for you won't be humiliated; don't be upset, for you won't be disgraced. You will forget about the shame of your youth, and you won't remember the embarrassment of your widowhood any longer.

Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame; for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

5 For your Maker is your husband, the Lord Almighty is his name the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, he is called the God of the whole earth.

For thy maker [is] thy husband; the LORD of hosts [is] his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

6 The Lord has called you to come back, like a wife who's been abandoned and deeply hurt, a wife who was married when she was young, only to be rejected, says your God.

For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.

7 I deserted you for just a little while, but I will bring you back, showing you a great deal of kindness.

For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

8 In a moment of anger I turned my face away from you, but now with trustworthy love I will always be kind to you, says the Lord, your Redeemer.

In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

9 To me this is just like Noah's time, when I promised on oath that a flood would never cover the earth again. In the same way I promise on oath that I won't be angry with you or tell you off.

For this [is as] the waters of Noah to me: for [as] I have sworn that the waters of Noah shall no more overflow the earth; so have I sworn that I will not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.

10 Though the mountains cease to exist and the hills disappear, yet my trustworthy love for you won't cease to exist and my agreement of peace won't disappear, says the Lord, who shows you kindness.

For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.

11 My poor storm-damaged city that can't be comforted! Look, I'm going to reset your stones in cement made of antimony, I will use sapphires to lay your foundations.

Oh thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, [and] not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.

12 I will make your fortifications out of rubies; I will make your gates out of sparkling beryl. All your walls will be made of precious stones,

And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

13 and all your children will be students of the Lord, and they will live in complete peace.

And all thy children [shall be] taught from the LORD; and great [shall be] the peace of thy children.

14 Your society will operate from principles of goodness and right; nobody will be there to oppress you. You won't be afraid; you won't have to face any kind of terror.

In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

15 If any invader comes to attack you, I didn't send them; you will defeat anyone who attacks you.

Behold, they shall surely assemble [but] not by me: whoever shall assemble against thee shall fall for thy sake.

16 Look—I have created a blacksmith who blows the coals into a hot flame and forges a suitable weapon; and I have created the destroyer who brings destruction.

Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

17 None of the weapons forged against you will succeed, and you will condemn anyone who accuses you. This is how the servants of the Lord are blessed, and I am the one who vindicates them, declares the Lord.

No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue [that] shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This [is] the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness [is] from me, saith the LORD.

A Dove is Sent Forth from the Ark