Isaiah 62–63

New Jerusalem

62Because I love Jerusalem, I will continue to speak for her;

for Jerusalem’s sake I will not stop speaking

until her goodness shines like a bright light,

until her salvation burns bright like a flame.

²Jerusalem, the nations will see your goodness,

and all kings will see your glory.

Then you will have a new name,

which the Lord himself will give you.

³You will be like a beautiful crown in the Lord’s hand,

like a king’s crown in your God’s hand.

⁴You will never again be called the People that God Left,

nor your land the Land that God Destroyed.

You will be called the People God Loves,

and your land will be called the Bride of God,

because the Lord loves you.

And your land will belong to him as a bride belongs to her husband.

⁵As a young man marries a woman,

so your children will marry your land.

As a man rejoices over his new wife,

so your God will rejoice over you.

⁶Jerusalem, I have put guards on the walls to watch.

They must not be silent day or night.

You people who remind the Lord of your needs in prayer

should never be quiet.

⁷You should not stop praying to him until he builds up Jerusalem

and makes it a city all people will praise.

⁸The Lord has made a promise,

and by his power he will keep his promise.

He said, “I will never again give your grain

as food to your enemies.

I will not let your enemies drink the new wine

that you have worked to make.

⁹Those who gather food will eat it,

and they will praise the Lord.

Those who gather the grapes will drink the wine

in the courts of my Temple.”

¹⁰Go through, go through the gates!

Make the way ready for the people.

Build up, build up the road!

Move all the stones off the road.

Raise the banner as a sign for the people.

¹¹The Lord is speaking

to all the faraway lands:

“Tell the people of Jerusalem,

‘Look, your Savior is coming.

He is bringing your reward to you;

he is bringing his payment with him.’ ”

¹²His people will be called the Holy People,

the Saved People of the Lord,

and Jerusalem will be called the City God Wants,

the City God Has Not Rejected.

The Lord Judges His People

63Who is this coming from Edom,

from the city of Bozrah, dressed in red?

Who is this dressed in fine clothes

and marching forward with his great power?

He says, “I, the Lord, speak what is right.

I have the power to save you.”

²Someone asks, “Why are your clothes bright red

as if you had walked on the grapes to make wine?”

³The Lord answers, “I have walked in the winepress alone,

and no one among the nations helped me.

I was angry and walked on the nations

and crushed them because of my anger.

Blood splashed on my clothes,

and I stained all my clothing.

⁴I chose a time to punish people,

and the time has come for me to save.

⁵I looked around, but I saw no one to help me.

I was surprised that no one supported me.

So I used my own power to save my people;

my own anger supported me.

⁶While I was angry, I walked on the nations.

In my anger I punished them

and poured their blood on the ground.”

The Lord’s Kindness to His People

⁷I will tell about the Lord’s kindness

and praise him for everything he has done.

I will praise the Lord for the many good things he has given us

and for his goodness to the people of Israel.

He has shown great mercy to us

and has been very kind to us.

⁸He said, “These are my people;

my children will not lie to me.”

So he saved them.

⁹When they suffered, he suffered also.

He sent his own angel to save them.

Because of his love and kindness, he saved them.

Since long ago he has picked them up and carried them.

¹⁰But they turned against him

and made his Holy Spirit very sad.

So he became their enemy,

and he fought against them.

¹¹But then his people remembered what happened long ago,

in the days of Moses and the Israelites with him.

Where is the Lord who brought the people through the sea,

with the leaders of his people?

Where is the one

who put his Holy Spirit among them,

¹²who led Moses by the right hand

with his wonderful power,

who divided the water before them

to make his name famous forever,

¹³who led the people through the deep waters?

Like a horse walking through a desert,

the people did not stumble.

¹⁴Like cattle that go down to the valley,

the Spirit of the Lord gave the people a place to rest.

Lord, that is the way you led your people,

and by this you won for yourself wonderful fame.

A Prayer for Help

¹⁵Lord, look down from the heavens and see;

look at us from your wonderful and holy home in heaven.

Where is your strong love and power?

Why are you keeping your love and mercy from us?

¹⁶You are our father.

Abraham doesn’t know we are his children,

and Israel doesn’t recognize us.

Lord, you are our father.

You are called “the one who has always saved us.”

¹⁷Lord, why are you making us wander from your ways?

Why do you make us stubborn so that we don’t honor you?

For our sake come back to us,

your servants, who belong to you.

¹⁸Your people had your Temple for a while,

but now our enemies have walked on your holy place and crushed it.

¹⁹We have become like people you never ruled over,

like those who have never worn your name.