II. Oracles of Salvation1*In days to come the mount of the Lord’s house Shall be established as the highest mountain; it shall be raised above the hills, And peoples shall stream to it:a 2Many nations shall come, and say, “Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, That he may instruct us in his ways, that we may walk in his paths.” For from Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3He shall judge between many peoples and set terms for strong and distant nations; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again. 4They shall all sit under their own vines, under their own fig trees, undisturbed; for the Lord of hosts has spoken.b 5Though all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, We will walk in the name of the Lord, our God, forever and ever. 6*On that day—oracle of the Lord— I will gather the lame, And I will assemble the outcasts, and those whom I have afflicted. 7I will make of the lame a remnant, and of the weak a strong nation; The Lord shall be king over them on Mount Zion, from now on and forever.c 8And you, O tower of the flock,* hill of daughter Zion! To you it shall come: the former dominion shall be restored, the reign of daughter Jerusalem. 9Now why do you cry out so? Are you without a king? Or has your adviser perished, That you are seized with pains like a woman in labor? 10*Writhe, go into labor, O daughter Zion, like a woman giving birth; For now you shall leave the city and camp in the fields; To Babylon you shall go, there you shall be rescued. There the Lord shall redeem you from the hand of your enemies. 11*And now many nations are gathered against you! They say, “Let her be profaned, let our eyes see Zion’s downfall!” 12But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord, nor understand his plan: He has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor. 13Arise and thresh, O daughter Zion; your horn I will make iron And your hoofs I will make bronze, that you may crush many peoples; You shall devote their spoils to the Lord,* their riches to the Lord of the whole earth.d 14Now grieve, O grieving daughter!* “They have laid siege against us!” With the rod they strike on the cheek the ruler of Israel. Book IntroductionFootnotesScripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Bible Hub |