1“Behold My Servant (the Messiah, Jesus Christ), Whom I uphold; My Elect, in Whom My soul delights; I have put My Spirit upon Him; He shall bring forth justice to the nations. 2He shall not cry, nor raise His voice to be heard in the street. 3A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoldering flax wick He shall not quench; He shall bring forth justice in faithfulness. 4He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till He has established justice in the earth; and the islands shall put their faith in His teaching.” 5Thus is what God, the LORD, He Who created the heavens, and stretched them out, says; He Who spread forth the earth, and that which comes out of it; He Who gives breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk on earth: 6“I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand, and will keep You, and give You for a covenant of the people, for a Light for the Gentiles; 7To open the eyes of the blind, to release captives from the prison, and those who sit in darkness, out of the dungeons. 8“I am the LORD; that is My name; and will I not give My glory to another, nor My praise to idols or graven images. 9Behold, the things I previously prophesied have come to pass, and now I announce new things; I tell you of them before they occur.” 10Sing unto the LORD a new song, and His praise from the end of the earth, you that go down to the sea, and all that is in it; the islands, and all who live in them. 11Let the wilderness and its towns lift their voice, let the villages where Kedar lives, rejoice; let the inhabitants of Sela, the rock, sing for joy, let them shout from the top of the mountains. 12Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare His praise in the islands. 13The LORD shall march out like a mighty warrior stirred with jealousy; He shall cry, indeed, roar; He shall prevail against His enemies. 14“I have restrained Myself for long time and held My peace; I have been still; but now, I will cry out like a travailing woman; I will gasp and pant. 15I will lay waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their vegetation; and I will make the rivers into coastlands, and I will dry up the pools. 16And I will lead the blind by ways that they have not known; I will lead them in unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light before them, and make the crooked ways straight. These things will I do for them, and not forsake them. 17But those that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, “You are our gods”, they shall be turned back, greatly ashamed.” 18“Hear, you deaf; and look, you blind (heathen idol worshippers v.17), that you may see. 19Who is blind, but My servant (Israel)? Or deaf, like My messenger (Israel, God's messenger to the heathen nations) that I sent? Who is blind as My chosen people, the LORD's servant? 20You have seen many things, but you do not perceive; you have open ears, but you hear not.” 21It pleased the LORD, for His righteousness' sake; to make His law great and glorious. (God is pleased for His righteousness' sake to magnify the law, and make it honorable.) 22But this is a people plundered and looted; all of them are trapped in pits, or hidden in prisons; they have become prey, and no one rescues them, they are nothing but plunder, and no one says, “Restore them to their homes.” 23Who among you will listen to this? Who will hear of the time to come? 24Who turned Jacob over to be plundered, and gave Israel to the robbers? Was it not the LORD, He against Whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in His ways, nor were they obedient to His law. 25So He has poured upon Israel the fury of His anger, and the violence of war; and it has enveloped him in flames all around, and yet he did not learn his lesson; and it consumed him, yet he did not take it to heart. Reader-Friendly Bible: Purple Letter Edition © 2024 by Jim Musser. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Bible Hub |