Chapter 42

God’s Promise concerning His Servant

1 “aBehold, My bServant, whom I 1uphold;

My cchosen one in whom My dsoul delights.

I have put My eSpirit upon Him;

He will bring forth fjustice to the 2nations.

2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice,

Nor make His voice heard in the street.

3 “A bruised reed He will not break

And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;

He will faithfully bring forth ajustice.

4 “He will not be adisheartened or crushed

Until He has established justice in the earth;

And the bcoastlands will wait expectantly for His 1law.”

5 Thus says God the Lord,

Who acreated the heavens and bstretched them out,

Who spread out the cearth and its 1offspring,

Who dgives breath to the people on it

And spirit to those who walk in it,

6 “I am the Lord, I have acalled You in righteousness,

I will also bhold You by the hand and cwatch over You,

And I will appoint You as a dcovenant to the people,

As a elight to the nations,

7 To aopen blind eyes,

To bbring out prisoners from the dungeon

And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.

8 “aI am the Lord, that is bMy name;

I will not give My cglory to another,

Nor My praise to 1graven images.

9 “Behold, the aformer things have come to pass,

Now I declare bnew things;

Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.”

10 Sing to the Lord a anew song,

Sing His praise from the bend of the earth!

cYou who go down to the sea, and dall that is in it.

You eislands, and those who dwell on them.

11 Let the awilderness and its cities lift up their voices,

The settlements where bKedar inhabits.

Let the inhabitants of cSela sing aloud,

Let them shout for joy from the tops of the dmountains.

12 Let them agive glory to the Lord

And declare His praise in the bcoastlands.

13 aThe Lord will go forth like a warrior,

He will arouse His bzeal like a man of war.

He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry.

He will cprevail against His enemies.

The Blindness of the People

14 “aI have kept silent for a long time,

I have kept still and restrained Myself.

Now like a woman in labor I will groan,

I will both gasp and pant.

15 “I will alay waste the mountains and hills

And wither all their vegetation;

I will bmake the rivers into coastlands

And dry up the ponds.

16 “I will alead the blind by a way they do not know,

In paths they do not know I will guide them.

I will bmake darkness into light before them

And crugged places into plains.

These are the things I will do,

And I will dnot leave them undone.”

17 They will be turned back and be autterly put to shame,

Who trust in 1idols,

Who say to molten images,

“You are our gods.”

18 aHear, you deaf!

And look, you blind, that you may see.

19 Who is blind but My aservant,

Or so deaf as My bmessenger whom I send?

Who is so blind as he that is 1cat peace with Me,

Or so blind as the servant of the Lord?

20 aYou have seen many things, but you do not observe them;

Your ears are open, but none hears.

21 The Lord was pleased for His righteousness’ sake

To make the law agreat and glorious.

22 But this is a people plundered and despoiled;

All of them are atrapped in 1caves,

Or are bhidden away in prisons;

They have become a prey with none to deliver them,

And a spoil, with none to say, “Give them back!”

23 Who among you will give ear to this?

Who will give heed and listen hereafter?

24 Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers?

Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned,

And in whose ways they awere not willing to walk,

And whose law they did not bobey?

25 So He poured out on him the heat of His anger

And the afierceness of battle;

And it set him aflame all around,

Yet he did not recognize it;

And it burned him, but he 1bpaid no attention.