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The Lord's Love for Israel

54 (A)Jerusalem, you have been like a childless woman,
    but now you can sing and shout for joy.
Now you will have more children
    than a woman whose husband never left her.
Make the tent you live in larger;
    lengthen its ropes and strengthen the pegs!
You will extend your boundaries on all sides;
    your people will get back the land
    that the other nations now occupy.
    Cities now deserted will be filled with people.

Do not be afraid—you will not be disgraced again;
    you will not be humiliated.
You will forget your unfaithfulness as a young wife,
    and your desperate loneliness as a widow.
Your Creator will be like a husband to you—
    the Lord Almighty is his name.
The holy God of Israel will save you—
    he is the ruler of all the world.

Israel, you are like a young wife,
    deserted by her husband and deeply distressed.
But the Lord calls you back to him and says:
“For one brief moment I left you;
    with deep love I will take you back.
I turned away angry for only a moment,
    but I will show you my love forever.”
So says the Lord who saves you.

(B)“In the time of Noah I promised
    never again to flood the earth.
Now I promise not to be angry with you again;
    I will not reprimand or punish you.
10 (C)The mountains and hills may crumble,
    but my love for you will never end;
    I will keep forever my promise of peace.”
So says the Lord who loves you.

The Future Jerusalem

11 (D)The Lord says,

“O Jerusalem, you suffering, helpless city,
    with no one to comfort you,
I will rebuild your foundations with precious stones.
12 I will build your towers with rubies,
    your gates with stones that glow like fire,
    and the wall around you with jewels.

13 (E)“I myself will teach your people
    and give them prosperity and peace.
14 Justice and right will make you strong.
    You will be safe from oppression and terror.
15 Whoever attacks you,
    does it without my consent;
whoever fights against you will fall.

16 “I create the blacksmith,
    who builds a fire and forges weapons.
I also create the soldier,
    who uses the weapons to kill.
17 But no weapon will be able to hurt you;
    you will have an answer for all who accuse you.
I will defend my servants
    and give them victory.”

The Lord has spoken.

The Future Glory of Zion

54 “Sing, barren woman,(A)
    you who never bore a child;
burst into song, shout for joy,(B)
    you who were never in labor;(C)
because more are the children(D) of the desolate(E) woman
    than of her who has a husband,(F)
says the Lord.
“Enlarge the place of your tent,(G)
    stretch your tent curtains wide,
    do not hold back;
lengthen your cords,
    strengthen your stakes.(H)
For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
    your descendants(I) will dispossess nations(J)
    and settle in their desolate(K) cities.

“Do not be afraid;(L) you will not be put to shame.(M)
    Do not fear disgrace;(N) you will not be humiliated.
You will forget the shame of your youth(O)
    and remember no more the reproach(P) of your widowhood.(Q)
For your Maker(R) is your husband(S)
    the Lord Almighty is his name—
the Holy One(T) of Israel is your Redeemer;(U)
    he is called the God of all the earth.(V)
The Lord will call you back(W)
    as if you were a wife deserted(X) and distressed in spirit—
a wife who married young,(Y)
    only to be rejected,” says your God.
“For a brief moment(Z) I abandoned(AA) you,
    but with deep compassion(AB) I will bring you back.(AC)
In a surge of anger(AD)
    I hid(AE) my face from you for a moment,
but with everlasting kindness(AF)
    I will have compassion(AG) on you,”
    says the Lord your Redeemer.(AH)

“To me this is like the days of Noah,
    when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth.(AI)
So now I have sworn(AJ) not to be angry(AK) with you,
    never to rebuke(AL) you again.
10 Though the mountains be shaken(AM)
    and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love(AN) for you will not be shaken(AO)
    nor my covenant(AP) of peace(AQ) be removed,”
    says the Lord, who has compassion(AR) on you.

11 “Afflicted(AS) city, lashed by storms(AT) and not comforted,(AU)
    I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise,[a](AV)
    your foundations(AW) with lapis lazuli.(AX)
12 I will make your battlements of rubies,
    your gates(AY) of sparkling jewels,
    and all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children will be taught by the Lord,(AZ)
    and great will be their peace.(BA)
14 In righteousness(BB) you will be established:(BC)
Tyranny(BD) will be far from you;
    you will have nothing to fear.(BE)
Terror(BF) 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 surrender(BG) to you.

16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmith(BH)
    who fans the coals into flame
    and forges a weapon(BI) fit for its work.
And it is I who have created the destroyer(BJ) to wreak havoc;
17     no weapon forged against you will prevail,(BK)
    and you will refute(BL) every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants(BM) of the Lord,
    and this is their vindication(BN) from me,”
declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 54:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.