Isaiah 49:14–21

¹⁴Yet 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!

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

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

¹⁷Soon your descendants will come back,

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

¹⁸Look around you and see,

for all your children will come back to you.

As surely as I live,” says the Lord,

“they will be like jewels or bridal ornaments for you to display.

¹⁹“Even the most desolate parts of your abandoned land

will soon be crowded with your people.

Your enemies who enslaved you

will be far away.

²⁰The generations born in exile will return and say,

‘We need more room! It’s crowded here!’

²¹Then you will think to yourself,

‘Who has given me all these descendants?

For most of my children were killed,

and the rest were carried away into exile.

I was left here all alone.

Where did all these people come from?

Who bore these children?

Who raised them for me?’ ”