Isaiah 49
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
49 Give ear, ye islands, and hearken, ye people from afar. The Lord hath called me from the womb, from the bowels of my mother he hath been mindful of my name.
2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword: in the shadow of his hand he hath protected me, and hath made me as a chosen arrow: in his quiver he hath hidden me.
3 And he said to me: Thou art my servant Israel, for in thee will I glory.
4 And I said: I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength without cause and in vain: therefore my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.
5 And now saith the Lord, that formed me from the womb to be his servant, that I may bring back Jacob unto him, and Israel will not be gathered together: and I am glorified in the eyes of the Lord, and my God is made my strength.
6 And he said: It is a small thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold, I have given thee to be the light of the Gentiles, that thou mayst be my salvation even to the farthest part of the earth.
7 Thus saith the Lord the redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to the soul that is despised, to the nation that is abhorred, to the servant of rulers: Kings shall see, and princes shall rise up, and adore for the Lord's sake, because he is faithful, and for the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee.
8 Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time I have heard thee, and in the day of salvation I have helped thee: and I have preserved thee, and given thee to be a covenant of the people, that thou mightest raise up the earth, and possess the inheritances that were destroyed:
9 That thou mightest say to them that are bound: Come forth: and to them that are in darkness: shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in every plain.
10 They shall not hunger, nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun strike them: for he that is merciful to them, shall be their shepherd, and at the fountains of waters he shall give them drink.
11 And I will make all my mountains a way, and my paths shall be exalted.
12 Behold these shall come from afar, and behold these from the north and from the sea, and these from the south country.
13 Give praise, O ye heavens, and rejoice, O earth, ye mountains, give praise with jubilation: because the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy on his poor ones.
14 And Sion said: The Lord hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath forgotten me.
15 Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb? and if she should forget, yet will not I forget thee.
16 Behold, I have graven thee in my hands: thy walls are always before my eyes.
17 Thy builders are come: they that destroy thee and make thee waste shall go out of thee.
18 Lift up thy eyes round about, and see all these are gathered together, they are come to thee: I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt be clothed with all these as with an ornament, and as a bride thou shalt put them about thee.
19 For thy deserts, and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction shall now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be chased far away.
20 The children of thy barrenness shall still say in thy ears: The place is too strait for me, make me room to dwell in.
21 And thou shalt-say in thy heart: Who hath begotten these? I was barren and brought not forth, led away, and captive: and who hath brought up these? I was destitute and alone: and these, where were they?
22 Thus saith the Lord God: Behold I will lift up my hand to the Gentiles, and will set up my standard to the people. And they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and carry thy daughters upon their shoulders.
23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and queens thy nurses: they shall worship thee with their face toward the earth, and they shall lick up the dust of thy feet. And thou shalt know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be confounded that wait for him.
24 Shall the prey be taken from the strong? or can that which was taken by the mighty be delivered?
25 For thus saith the Lord: Yea verily, even the captivity shall be taken away from the strong: and that which was taken by the mighty, shall be delivered. But I will judge those that have judged thee, and thy children I will save.
26 And I will feed thy enemies with their own flesh: and they shall be made drunk with their own blood, as with new wine: and all flesh shall know, that I am the Lord that save thee, and thy Redeemer the Mighty One of Jacob.
Isaiah 49
International Children’s Bible
God Calls His Special Servant
49 All of you people in faraway places, listen to me.
Listen, all you nations far away.
Before I was born, the Lord called me to serve him.
The Lord named me while I was still in my mother’s body.
2 The Lord made my tongue like a sharp sword.
He hid me in the shadow of his hand.
The Lord made me like a sharp arrow.
He hid me in the holder for his arrows.
3 The Lord told me, “Israel, you are my servant.
I will show my glory through you.”
4 But I said, “I have worked hard for nothing.
I have used all my power, but I did nothing useful.
But the Lord will decide what my work is worth.
God will decide my reward.”
5 The Lord made me in the body of my mother
so I would be his servant.
He made me to lead the people of Jacob back to him.
He made me so that Israel might be gathered to him.
The Lord will honor me.
I will get my strength from my God.
6 The Lord told me,
“You are an important servant to me.
You will bring back the tribes of Jacob.
You will bring back the people of Israel who are left alive.
But, more importantly, I will make you a light for all nations.
You will show people all over the world the way to be saved.”
7 The Lord is your close relative who saves you.
He is the Holy One of Israel.
He speaks to the one who is hated by the people.
He speaks to the servant of rulers.
The Lord says, “Kings will see you and stand to honor you.
Great leaders will bow down before you.
This is because the Lord can be trusted.
He is the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
The Day of Salvation
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At the right time I will hear your prayers.
On the day of salvation I will help you.
I will protect you.
And you will be the sign of my agreement with the people.
You will bring back the people to the land.
You will give the land that is now ruined back to its owners.
9 You will tell the prisoners, ‘Come out of your prison.’
You will tell those in darkness, ‘Come into the light.’
The people will eat beside the roads.
They will find food even on bare hills.
10 They will not be hungry or thirsty.
Neither the hot sun nor the desert wind will hurt them.
The God who comforts them will lead them.
He will lead them by springs of water.
11 I will make my mountains into roads for my people.
And the roads will be raised up.
12 Look, people are coming to me from far away.
They are coming from the north and from the west.
They are coming from Aswan in southern Egypt.”
13 Heavens and earth, be happy.
Mountains, shout with joy.
Be happy because the Lord comforts his people.
He will comfort those who suffer.
Jerusalem and Her Children
14 But Jerusalem said, “The Lord has left me.
The Lord has forgotten me.”
15 The Lord answers, “Can a woman forget the baby she nurses?
Can she feel no kindness for the child she gave birth to?
Even if she could forget her children,
I will not forget you.
16 See, I have written your name on my hand.
Jerusalem, I always think about your walls.
17 Your children will soon return to you.
And the people who defeated you and destroyed you will leave.
18 Look up and look around you.
All your children are gathering to return to you.”
The Lord says, “As surely as I live,
your children will be like jewels.
You will be as proud of them as a bride is of her jewels.
19 “You were destroyed and defeated.
Your land was made useless.
But now you will have more people than the land can hold.
And those people who destroyed you will be far away.
20 Children were born to you while you were sad.
But they will say to you,
‘This place is too small for us.
Give us a bigger place to live.’
21 Then you will say to yourself,
‘Who gave me all these children?
I was sad and lonely.
I was defeated and away from my people.
So who reared these children?
I was left all alone.
Where did all these children come from?’”
22 This is what the Lord God says:
“See, I will lift my hand to signal the nations.
I will raise my banner for all people to see.
Then they will bring your sons back to you in their arms.
They will carry your daughters on their shoulders.
23 Kings will teach your children.
Daughters of kings will take care of those children.
They will bow down before you.
They will kiss the dirt at your feet.
Then you will know I am the Lord.
Anyone who trusts in me will not be disappointed.”
24 Can the wealth a soldier wins in war be taken away from him?
Can a prisoner be freed from a powerful soldier?
25 But this is what the Lord says:
“The prisoners will be taken from the strong soldiers.
What the soldiers have taken will be saved.
I will fight your enemies.
I will save your children.
26 I will force those who trouble you to eat their own flesh.
Their own blood will be the wine that makes them drunk.
Then everyone will know
I, the Lord, am the One who saves you.
I am the Powerful One of Jacob who saves you.”
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
