Isaiah 42

The Servant of the Lord

42“Here is my servant,^l whom I uphold,

my chosen one^m in whom I delight;ⁿ

I will put my Spirit^o on him,

and he will bring justice^p to the nations.^q

²He will not shout or cry out,^r

or raise his voice in the streets.

³A bruised reed^s he will not break,^t

and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.^u

In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;^v

⁴he will not falter or be discouraged

till he establishes justice^w on earth.

In his teaching^x the islands^y will put their hope.”^z

⁵This is what God the Lord says—

the Creator of the heavens,^a who stretches them out,

who spreads out the earth^b with all that springs from it,^c

who gives breath^d to its people,

and life to those who walk on it:

⁶“I, the Lord, have called^e you in righteousness;^f

I will take hold of your hand.^g

I will keep^h you and will make you

to be a covenantⁱ for the people

and a light^j for the Gentiles,^k

⁷to open eyes that are blind,^l

to free^m captives from prisonⁿ

and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.^o

⁸“I am the Lord;^p that is my name!^q

I will not yield my glory to another^r

or my praise to idols.^s

⁹See, the former things^t have taken place,

and new things I declare;

before they spring into being

I announce^u them to you.”

Song of Praise to the Lord

¹⁰Sing^v to the Lord a new song,^w

his praise^x from the ends of the earth,^y

you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,^z

you islands,^a and all who live in them.

¹¹Let the wilderness^b and its towns raise their voices;

let the settlements where Kedar^c lives rejoice.

Let the people of Sela^d sing for joy;

let them shout from the mountaintops.^e

¹²Let them give glory^f to the Lord

and proclaim his praise^g in the islands.^h

¹³The Lord will march out like a champion,ⁱ

like a warrior^j he will stir up his zeal;^k

with a shout^l he will raise the battle cry

and will triumph over his enemies.^m

¹⁴“For a long time I have kept silent,ⁿ

I have been quiet and held myself back.^o

But now, like a woman in childbirth,

I cry out, I gasp and pant.^p

¹⁵I will lay waste^q the mountains^r and hills

and dry up all their vegetation;

I will turn rivers into islands

and dry up^s the pools.

¹⁶I will lead^t the blind^u by ways they have not known,

along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;

I will turn the darkness into light^v before them

and make the rough places smooth.^w

These are the things I will do;

I will not forsake^x them.

¹⁷But those who trust in idols,

who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’^y

will be turned back in utter shame.^z

Israel Blind and Deaf

¹⁸“Hear, you deaf;^a

look, you blind, and see!

¹⁹Who is blind^b but my servant,^c

and deaf like the messenger^d I send?

Who is blind like the one in covenant^e with me,

blind like the servant of the Lord?

²⁰You have seen many things, but you pay no attention;

your ears are open, but you do not listen.”^f

²¹It pleased the Lord

for the sake^g of his righteousness

to make his law^h great and glorious.

²²But this is a people plunderedⁱ and looted,

all of them trapped in pits^j

or hidden away in prisons.^k

They have become plunder,

with no one to rescue them;^l

they have been made loot,

with no one to say, “Send them back.”

²³Which of you will listen to this

or pay close attention^m in time to come?

²⁴Who handed Jacob over to become loot,

and Israel to the plunderers?ⁿ

Was it not the Lord,^o

against whom we have sinned?

For they would not follow^p his ways;

they did not obey his law.^q

²⁵So he poured out on them his burning anger,^r

the violence of war.

It enveloped them in flames,^s yet they did not understand;^t

it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.^u