Isaiah 49:12–17

12 See, they will come from afar—

some from the north, some from the west,

some from the region of Aswan.”

13 Shout for joy, you heavens;

rejoice, you earth;

burst into song, you mountains!

For the Lord comforts his people

and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,

the Lord has forgotten me.”

15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast

and have no compassion on the child she has borne?

Though she may forget,

I will not forget you!

16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are ever before me.

17 Your children hasten back,

and those who laid you waste depart from you.

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.

12 See, my people will return from far away,

from lands to the north and west,

and from as far south as Egypt.”

13 Sing for joy, O heavens!

Rejoice, O earth!

Burst into song, O mountains!

For the Lord has comforted his people

and will have compassion on them in their suffering.

14 Yet Jerusalem says, “The Lord has deserted us;

the Lord has forgotten us.”

15 “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child?

Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?

But even if that were possible,

I would not forget you!

16 See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.

Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.

17 Soon your descendants will come back,

and all who are trying to destroy you will go away.

12 Surely these shall come from afar;

Look! Those from the north and the west,

And these from the land of Sinim.”

13 Sing, O heavens!

Be joyful, O earth!

And break out in singing, O mountains!

For the Lord has comforted His people,

And will have mercy on His afflicted.

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,

And my Lord has forgotten me.”

15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child,

And not have compassion on the son of her womb?

Surely they may forget,

Yet I will not forget you.

16 See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;

Your walls are continually before Me.

17 Your sons shall make haste;

Your destroyers and those who laid you waste

Shall go away from you.

12 Look, people are coming to me from far away,

from the north and from the west,

from Aswan in southern Egypt.”

13 Heavens and earth, be happy.

Mountains, shout with joy,

because the Lord comforts his people

and will have pity on those who suffer.

14 But Jerusalem said, “The Lord has left me;

the Lord has forgotten me.”

15 The Lord answers, “Can a woman forget the baby she nurses?

Can she feel no kindness for the child to which she gave birth?

Even if she could forget her children,

I will not forget you.

16 See, I have written your name on my hand.

Jerusalem, I always think about your walls.

17 Your children will soon return to you,

and the people who defeated you and destroyed you will leave.

12 Lo, 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 Jehovah hath comforted his people, and will have compassion upon his afflicted.

14 But Zion said, Jehovah hath forsaken me, and the 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, these may forget, yet will not I forget thee. 16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. 17 Thy children make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee.

12 Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.

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. 14 But Zion said, Jehovah hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath 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. 16 Lo, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. 17 Thy sons shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that laid thee waste shall go forth from thee.

12 They will come from far away. 

They will come from the north and from the west, 

and they will come from the land of Sinim. 

13 Sing with joy, you heavens! 

Rejoice, you earth! 

Break into shouts of joy, you mountains! 

The Lord has comforted his people 

and will have compassion on his humble people. 

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has abandoned me. 

My Lord has forgotten me.” 

15 Can a woman forget her nursing child? 

Will she have no compassion on the child from her womb? 

Although mothers may forget, 

I will not forget you. 

16 I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. 

Your walls are always in my presence. 

17 Your children will hurry back. 

Those who destroyed you and laid waste to you will leave you. 

12 See, these will come from far away,

from the north and from the west,

and from the land of Sinim.

13 Shout for joy, you heavens!

Earth, rejoice!

Mountains break into joyful shouts!

For the Lord has comforted His people,

and will have compassion on His afflicted ones.

14 Zion says, “The Lord has abandoned me;

The Lord has forgotten me!”

15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child,

or lack compassion for the child of her womb?

Even if these forget,

yet I will not forget you.

16 Look, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;

your walls are continually before Me.

17 Your builders hurry;

those who destroy and devastate you will leave you.

12 Look, some shall come from far away,

some from the north and from the west,

and some from the land of Syene.

13 Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;

break forth, O mountains, into singing!

For the Lord has comforted his people

and will have compassion on his suffering ones.

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me;

my Lord has forgotten me.”

15 Can a woman forget her nursing child

or show no compassion for the child of her womb?

Even these might forget,

yet I will not forget you.

16 See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are continually before me.

17 Your builders outdo your destroyers,

and those who laid you waste go away from you.

12 Look! These shall come from afar,

And look! These from the north and from the west

and these from the land of Sinim.”

13 Sing for joy, heavens, and rejoice, earth!

Mountains must break forth in rejoicing!

For Yahweh has comforted his people,

and he will take pity on his afflicted ones.

14 But Zion said, “Yahweh has forsaken me,

and the Lord has forgotten me!”

15 Can a woman forget her suckling,

refrain from having compassion on the child of her womb?

Indeed, these may forget,

but I, I will not forget you!

16 Look, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are continually before me.

17 Your children hasten;

your destroyers and those who laid you waste depart from you.

12 They will come from far away.

Some of them will come from the north.

Others will come from the west.

Still others will come from Aswan in the south.”

13 Shout with joy, you heavens!

Be glad, you earth!

Burst into song, you mountains!

The Lord will comfort his people.

He will show his tender love to those who are suffering.

14 But the city of Zion said, “The Lord has deserted me.

The Lord has forgotten me.”

15 The Lord answers, “Can a mother forget the baby

who is nursing at her breast?

Can she stop showing her tender love

to the child who was born to her?

She might forget her child.

But I will not forget you.

16 I have written your name on the palms of my hands.

Your walls are never out of my sight.

17 Your people will hurry back.

Those who destroyed you so completely will leave you.

12 “Behold, these will come from afar;

And lo, these will come from the north and from the west,

And these from the land of Sinim.”

13 Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O earth!

Break forth into joyful shouting, O mountains!

For the Lord has comforted His people

And will have compassion on His afflicted.

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,

And the Lord has forgotten me.”

15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child

And have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.

16 “Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;

Your walls are continually before Me.

17 “Your builders hurry;

Your destroyers and devastators

Will depart from you.