1Listen , O isles, unto me ; and hearken , ye peoples , from far : Jehovah hath called me from the womb ; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name : 2and he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword ; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me : and he hath made me a polished shaft ; in his quiver hath he kept me close : 3and he said unto me , Thou art my servant ; Israel , in whom I will be glorified . 4But I said, I have labored in vain , I have spent my strength for nought and vanity ; yet surely the justice due to me is with Jehovah , and my recompense with my God . 5And now saith Jehovah that formed me from the womb to be his servant , to bring Jacob again to him , and that Israel be gathered unto him ( for I am honorable in the eyes of Jehovah , and my God is become my strength ); 6yea, he saith, It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob , and to restore the preserved of Israel : I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles , that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
Restoration and Redemption
7Thus saith Jehovah , the Redeemer of Israel , and his Holy One , to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth , to a servant of rulers : Kings shall see and arise ; princes , and they shall worship ; because of Jehovah that is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel , who hath chosen thee . 8Thus saith Jehovah , In an acceptable time have I answered thee , and in a day of salvation have I helped thee ; and I will preserve thee , and give thee for a covenant of the people , to raise up the land , to make them inherit the desolate heritages ; 9saying to them that are bound, Go forth ; to them that are in darkness , Show yourselves . They shall feed in the ways , and on all bare heights shall be their pasture . 10They shall not hunger nor thirst ; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them : for he that hath mercy on them will lead them , even by springs of water will he guide them . 11And I will make all my mountains a way , and my highways shall be exalted . 12Lo , these shall come from far ; and , lo , these from the north and from the west ; and these from the land of Sinim .
God's Assurance and Comfort
13Sing , O heavens ; and be joyful , O earth ; and break forth into singing , O mountains : for Jehovah hath comforted his people , and will have compassion upon his afflicted . 14But Zion said, Jehovah hath forsaken me , and the Lord hath forgotten me . 15Can a woman forget her sucking child , that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea , these may forget , yet will not I forget thee. 16Behold , I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands ; thy walls are continually before me . 17Thy children make haste ; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee. 18Lift up thine eyes round about , and behold : all these gather themselves together , and come to thee . As I live , saith Jehovah , thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament , and gird thyself with them , like a bride . 19For , as for thy waste and thy desolate places , and thy land that hath been destroyed , surely now shalt thou be too strait for the inhabitants , and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away . 20The children of thy bereavement shall yet say in thine ears, The place is too strait for me ; give place to me that I may dwell . 21Then shalt thou say in thy heart , Who hath begotten me these , seeing I have been bereaved of my children , and am solitary , an exile , and wandering to and fro ? and who hath brought up these ? Behold , I was left alone ; these , where were they ? 22Thus saith the Lord Jehovah , Behold , I will lift up my hand to the nations , and set up my ensign to the peoples ; and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom , and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders . 23And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers : they shall bow down to thee with their faces to the earth , and lick the dust of thy feet ; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah ; and they that wait for me shall not be put to shame.
The Future Glory of Zion
24Shall the prey be taken from the mighty , or the lawful captives be delivered ? 25But thus saith Jehovah , Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away , and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered ; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee , and I will save thy children . 26And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh ; and they shall be drunken with their own blood , as with sweet wine : and all flesh shall know that I , Jehovah , am thy Saviour , and thy Redeemer , the Mighty One of Jacob .