The Future Glory of Zion

54 “Sing, barren woman,u

you who never bore a child;

burst into song, shout for joy,v

you who were never in labor;w

because more are the childrenx of the desolatey woman

than of her who has a husband,z”

says the Lord.

2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,a

stretch your tent curtains wide,

do not hold back;

lengthen your cords,

strengthen your stakes.b

3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;

your descendantsc will dispossess nationsd

and settle in their desolatee cities.

4 “Do not be afraid;f you will not be put to shame.g

Do not fear disgrace;h you will not be humiliated.

You will forget the shame of your youthi

and remember no more the reproachj of your widowhood.k

5 For your Makerl is your husbandm—

the Lord Almighty is his name—

the Holy Onen of Israel is your Redeemer;o

he is called the God of all the earth.p

6 The Lord will call you backq

as if you were a wife desertedr and distressed in spirit—

a wife who married young,s

only to be rejected,” says your God.

7 “For a brief momentt I abandonedu you,

but with deep compassionv I will bring you back.w

8 In a surge of angerx

I hidy my face from you for a moment,

but with everlasting kindnessz

I will have compassiona on you,”

says the Lord your Redeemer.b

9 “To me this is like the days of Noah,

when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth.c

So now I have swornd not to be angrye with you,

never to rebukef you again.

10 Though the mountains be shakeng

and the hills be removed,

yet my unfailing loveh for you will not be shakeni

nor my covenantj of peacek be removed,”

says the Lord, who has compassionl on you.

11 “Afflictedm city, lashed by stormsn and not comforted,o

I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise,a p

your foundationsq with lapis lazuli.r

12 I will make your battlements of rubies,

your gatess of sparkling jewels,

and all your walls of precious stones.

13 All your children will be taught by the Lord,t

and great will be their peace.u

14 In righteousnessv you will be established:w

Tyrannyx will be far from you;

you will have nothing to fear.y

Terrorz will be far removed;

it will not come near you.

15 If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing;

whoever attacks you will surrendera to you.

16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmithb

who fans the coals into flame

and forges a weaponc fit for its work.

And it is I who have created the destroyerd to wreak havoc;

17 no weapon forged against you will prevail,e

and you will refutef every tongue that accuses you.

This is the heritage of the servantsg of the Lord,

and this is their vindicationh from me,”

declares the Lord.

Invitation to the Thirsty

55 “Come, all you who are thirsty,i

come to the waters;j

and you who have no money,

come, buyk and eat!

Come, buy wine and milkl

without money and without cost.m

2 Why spend money on what is not bread,

and your labor on what does not satisfy?n

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,o

and you will delight in the richestp of fare.

3 Give ear and come to me;

listen,q that you may live.r

I will make an everlasting covenants with you,

my faithful lovet promised to David.u

4 See, I have made him a witnessv to the peoples,

a ruler and commanderw of the peoples.

5 Surely you will summon nationsx you know not,

and nations you do not know will come running to you,y

because of the Lord your God,

the Holy Onez of Israel,

for he has endowed you with splendor.”a

6 Seekb the Lord while he may be found;c

calld on him while he is near.

7 Let the wicked forsakee their ways

and the unrighteous their thoughts.f

Let them turng to the Lord, and he will have mercyh on them,

and to our God, for he will freely pardon.i

8 “For my thoughtsj are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,”k

declares the Lord.

9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,l

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.m

10 As the rainn and the snow

come down from heaven,

and do not return to it

without watering the earth

and making it bud and flourish,o

so that it yields seedp for the sower and bread for the eater,q

11 so is my wordr that goes out from my mouth:

It will not return to me empty,s

but will accomplish what I desire

and achieve the purposet for which I sent it.

12 You will go out in joyu

and be led forth in peace;v

the mountains and hills

will burst into songw before you,

and all the treesx of the field

will clap their hands.y

13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,

and instead of briersz the myrtlea will grow.

This will be for the Lord’s renown,b

for an everlasting sign,

that will endure forever.”

Salvation for Others

56 This is what the Lord says:

“Maintain justicec

and do what is right,d

for my salvatione is close at hand

and my righteousnessf will soon be revealed.

2 Blessedg is the one who does this—

the person who holds it fast,

who keeps the Sabbathh without desecrating it,

and keeps their hands from doing any evil.”

3 Let no foreigneri who is bound to the Lord say,

“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”j

And let no eunuchk complain,

“I am only a dry tree.”

4 For this is what the Lord says:

“To the eunuchsl who keep my Sabbaths,

who choose what pleases me

and hold fast to my covenantm—

5 to them I will give within my temple and its wallsn

a memorialo and a name

better than sons and daughters;

I will give them an everlasting namep

that will endure forever.q

6 And foreignersr who bind themselves to the Lord

to ministers to him,

to love the namet of the Lord,

and to be his servants,

all who keep the Sabbathu without desecrating it

and who hold fast to my covenant—

7 these I will bring to my holy mountainv

and give them joy in my house of prayer.

Their burnt offerings and sacrificesw

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house will be called

a house of prayer for all nations.x”y

8 The Sovereign Lord declares—

he who gathers the exiles of Israel:

“I will gatherz still others to them

besides those already gathered.”

God’s Accusation Against the Wicked

9 Come, all you beasts of the field,a

come and devour, all you beasts of the forest!

10 Israel’s watchmenb are blind,

they all lack knowledge;c

they are all mute dogs,

they cannot bark;

they lie around and dream,

they love to sleep.d

11 They are dogs with mighty appetites;

they never have enough.

They are shepherdse who lack understanding;f

they all turn to their own way,g

they seek their own gain.h

12 “Come,” each one cries, “let me get wine!i

Let us drink our fill of beer!

And tomorrow will be like today,

or even far better.”j