Isaiah 51

CHAPTER 51

Yahweh’s Righteousness is Forever

¹“^aListen to Me, you who ^bpursue righteousness,

Who seek Yahweh:

Look to the ^crock from which you were hewn

And to the ¹quarry from which you were dug.

²“Look to ^aAbraham your father

And to Sarah who brought you forth through labor pains;

When he ^bwas but one I called him,

Then I blessed him and multiplied him.”

³Indeed, ^aYahweh will comfort Zion;

He will comfort all her ^bwaste places.

And her ^cwilderness He will make like ^dEden,

And her desert like the ^egarden of Yahweh;

^fJoy and gladness will be found in her,

Thanksgiving and sound of a melody.

⁴“^aPay attention to Me, O My people,

And give ear to Me, O My ¹nation;

For a ^blaw will go forth from Me,

And I will ²set My ^cjustice for a ^dlight of the peoples.

⁵“My ^arighteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth,

And My ^barms will judge the peoples;

The ^ccoastlands will hope in Me,

And for My ^darm they will wait expectantly.

⁶“^aLift up your eyes to the sky,

Then look to the earth beneath;

For the ^bsky will vanish like smoke,

And the ^cearth will wear out like a garment,

And its inhabitants will die ¹in like manner;

But My ^dsalvation will be forever,

And My righteousness will not be dismayed.

⁷“^aListen to Me, you who know righteousness,

A people in whose ^bheart is My law;

Do not fear the ^creproach of man,

Nor be dismayed at their revilings.

⁸“For the ^amoth will eat them like a garment,

And the ^bgrub will eat them like wool.

But My ^crighteousness will be forever,

And My salvation to all generations.”

^9aAwake, awake, put on strength, O arm of Yahweh;

Awake as in the ^bdays of old, the generations of long ago.

^cWas it not You who chopped Rahab in pieces,

Who pierced the ^ddragon?

¹⁰Was it not You who ^adried up the sea,

The waters of the great deep,

Who made the depths of the sea a pathway

For the ^bredeemed to cross over?

¹¹So the ^aransomed of Yahweh will return

And come with joyful shouting to Zion,

And ^beverlasting gladness will be on their heads.

They will obtain joy and gladness,

And ^csorrow and sighing will flee away.

¹²“I, even I, am He who ^acomforts you.

Who are you that you are afraid of ^bman who dies

And of the son of man who is made ^clike grass,

¹³That you have ^aforgotten Yahweh your Maker,

Who ^bstretched out the heavens

And laid the foundations of the earth,

That you ^ctremble in dread continually all day long because of the wrath of the one who brings distress,

As he makes ready to bring ruin?

But where is the wrath of the ^done who brings distress?

¹⁴“The ^aone in chains will soon be set free and will not die in the pit, ^bnor will his bread be lacking.

¹⁵“For I am Yahweh your God, who ^astirs up the sea, and its waves roar—Yahweh of hosts is His name.

¹⁶“I have ^aput My words in your mouth and have ^bcovered you with the shadow of My hand, to ^1cestablish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”

^17aAwaken yourself! Awaken yourself! Arise, O Jerusalem,

You who have ^bdrunk from the hand of Yahweh the cup of His wrath;

The ¹chalice of reeling you have ²drained to the dregs.

¹⁸There is ^anone to guide her among all the sons she has borne,

Nor is there one to take hold of her by the hand among all the sons she has reared.

¹⁹These two things have befallen you;

Who will console you?

The ^adevastation and destruction, famine and sword;

How shall I comfort you?

²⁰Your sons have fainted;

They ^alie helpless at the head of every street,

Like an ^bantelope in a net,

Full of the wrath of Yahweh,

The ^crebuke of your God.

²¹Therefore, now, listen to this, you ^aafflicted,

Who are ^bdrunk, but not with wine:

²²Thus says your Lord, Yahweh, even your God

Who ^acontends for His people,

“Behold, I have taken out of your hand the ^bcup of reeling,

The ¹chalice of My wrath;

You will never drink it again.

²³“I will ^aset it into the hand of those who cause you grief,

Who have said to ¹you, ‘^bLie down that we may walk over you.’

You have even set your back down like the ground

And like the street for those who walk over it.”