Month: December 2019

Israel, A Light to the Nations

1 Listen to me, distant nations,

you people who live far away!

Before I was born, theLordchose me

and appointed me to be his servant.

2 He made my words as sharp as a sword.

With his own hand he protected me.

He made me like an arrow,

sharp and ready for use.

3 He said to me, “Israel, you are my servant;

because of you, people will praise me.”

4 I said, “I have worked, but how hopeless it is!

I have used up my strength, but have accomplished nothing.”

Yet I can trust theLordto defend my cause;

he will reward me for what I do.

5 Before I was born, theLordappointed me;

he made me his servant to bring back his people,

to bring back the scattered people of Israel.

TheLordgives me honor;

he is the source of my strength.

6 TheLordsaid to me,

“I have a greater task for you, my servant.

Not only will you restore to greatness

the people of Israel who have survived,

but I will also make you a light to the nations—

so that all the world may be saved.”

7 Israel’s holy God and savior says

to the one who is deeply despised,

who is hated by the nations

and is the servant of rulers:

“Kings will see you released

and will rise to show their respect;

princes also will see it,

and they will bow low to honor you.”

This will happen because theLordhas chosen his servant;

the holy God of Israel keeps his promises.

The Restoration of Jerusalem

8 TheLordsays to his people,

“When the time comes to save you, I will show you favor

and answer your cries for help.

I will guard and protect you

and through you make a covenant with all peoples.

I will let you settle once again

in your land that is now laid waste.

9 I will say to the prisoners, ‘Go free!’

and to those who are in darkness,

‘Come out to the light!’

They will be like sheep that graze on the hills;

10 they will never be hungry or thirsty.

Sun and desert heat will not hurt them,

for they will be led by one who loves them.

He will lead them to springs of water.

11 “I will make a highway across the mountains

and prepare a road for my people to travel.

12 My people will come from far away,

from the north and the west,

and from Aswanin the south.”

13 Sing, heavens! Shout for joy, earth!

Let the mountains burst into song!

TheLordwill comfort his people;

he will have pity on his suffering people.

14 But the people of Jerusalem said,

“TheLordhas abandoned us!

He has forgotten us.”

15 So theLordanswers,

“Can a woman forget her own baby

and not love the child she bore?

Even if a mother should forget her child,

I will never forget you.

16 Jerusalem, I can never forget you!

I have written your name on the palms of my hands.

17 “Those who will rebuild you are coming soon,

and those who destroyed you will leave.

18 Look around and see what is happening!

Your people are assembling—they are coming home!

As surely as I am the living God,

you will be proud of your people,

as proud as a bride is of her jewels.

19 “Your country was ruined and desolate—

but now it will be too small

for those who are coming to live there.

And those who left you in ruins

will be far removed from you.

20 Your people who were born in exile

will one day say to you,

‘This land is too small—

we need more room to live in!’

21 Then you will say to yourself,

‘Who bore all these children for me?

I lost my children and could have no more.

I was exiled and driven away—

who brought these children up?

I was left all alone—

where did these children come from?’”

22 The SovereignLordsays to his people:

“I will signal to the nations,

and they will bring your children home.

23 Kings will be like fathers to you;

queens will be like mothers.

They will bow low before you and honor you;

they will humbly show their respect for you.

Then you will know that I am theLord;

no one who waits for my help will be disappointed.”

24 Can you take away a soldier’s loot?

Can you rescue the prisoners of a tyrant?

25 TheLordreplies,

“That is just what is going to happen.

The soldier’s prisoners will be taken away,

and the tyrant’s loot will be seized.

I will fight against whoever fights you,

and I will rescue your children.

26 I will make your oppressors kill each other;

they will be drunk with murder and rage.

Then all people will know that I am theLord,

the one who saves you and sets you free.

They will know that I am Israel’s powerful God.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/49-abd0d1f8384673a3374dabd0ed9f40ea.mp3?version_id=68—

1 TheLordsays,

“Do you think I sent my people away

like a man who divorces his wife?

Where, then, are the papers of divorce?

Do you think I sold you into captivity

like a man who sells his children as slaves?

No, you went away captive because of your sins;

you were sent away because of your crimes.

2 “Why did my people fail to respond

when I went to them to save them?

Why did they not answer when I called?

Am I too weak to save them?

I can dry up the sea with a command

and turn rivers into a desert,

so that the fish in them die for lack of water.

3 I can make the sky turn dark,

as if it were in mourning for the dead.”

The Obedience of the Lord’s Servant

4 The SovereignLordhas taught me what to say,

so that I can strengthen the weary.

Every morning he makes me eager

to hear what he is going to teach me.

5 TheLordhas given me understanding,

and I have not rebelled

or turned away from him.

6 I bared my back to those who beat me.

I did not stop them when they insulted me,

when they pulled out the hairs of my beard

and spit in my face.

7 But their insults cannot hurt me

because the SovereignLordgives me help.

I brace myself to endure them.

I know that I will not be disgraced,

8 for God is near,

and he will prove me innocent.

Does anyone dare bring charges against me?

Let us go to court together!

Let him bring his accusation!

9 The SovereignLordhimself defends me—

who, then, can prove me guilty?

All my accusers will disappear;

they will vanish like moth-eaten cloth.

10 All of you that honor theLord

and obey the words of his servant,

the path you walk may be dark indeed,

but trust in theLord, rely on your God.

11 All of you that plot to destroy others

will be destroyed by your own plots.

TheLordhimself will make this happen;

you will suffer a miserable fate.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/50-e98cc87649cb90fb11bfb18494381697.mp3?version_id=68—

Words of Comfort to Jerusalem

1 TheLordsays,

“Listen to me, you that want to be saved,

you that come to me for help.

Think of the rock from which you came,

the quarry from which you were cut.

2 Think of your ancestor, Abraham,

and of Sarah, from whom you are descended.

When I called Abraham, he was childless,

but I blessed him and gave him children;

I made his descendants numerous.

3 “I will show compassion to Jerusalem,

to all who live in her ruins.

Though her land is a desert, I will make it a garden,

like the garden I planted in Eden.

Joy and gladness will be there,

and songs of praise and thanks to me.

4 “Listen to me, my people,

listen to what I say:

I give my teaching to the nations;

my laws will bring them light.

5 I will come quickly and save them;

the time of my victory is near.

I myself will rule over the nations.

Distant lands wait for me to come;

they wait with hope for me to save them.

6 Look up at the heavens; look at the earth!

The heavens will disappear like smoke;

the earth will wear out like old clothing,

and all its people will die like flies.

But the deliverance I bring will last forever;

my victory will be final.

7 “Listen to me, you that know what is right,

who have my teaching fixed in your hearts.

Do not be afraid when people taunt and insult you;

8 they will vanish like moth-eaten clothing!

But the deliverance I bring will last forever;

my victory will endure for all time.”

9 Wake up,Lord, and help us!

Use your power and save us;

use it as you did in ancient times.

It was you that cut the sea monster Rahabto pieces.

10 It was you also who dried up the sea

and made a path through the water,

so that those you were saving could cross.

11 Those whom you have rescued

will reach Jerusalem with gladness,

singing and shouting for joy.

They will be happy forever,

forever free from sorrow and grief.

12 TheLordsays,

“I am the one who strengthens you.

Why should you fear mortals,

who are no more enduring than grass?

13 Have you forgotten theLordwho made you,

who stretched out the heavens

and laid the earth’s foundations?

Why should you live in constant fear

of the fury of those who oppress you,

of those who are ready to destroy you?

Their fury can no longer touch you.

14 Those who are prisoners will soon be set free;

they will live a long life

and have all the food they need.

15 “I am theLordyour God;

I stir up the sea

and make its waves roar.

My name is theLordAlmighty!

16 I stretched outthe heavens

and laid the earth’s foundations;

I say to Jerusalem, ‘You are my people!

I have given you my teaching,

and I protect you with my hand.’”

The End of Jerusalem’s Suffering

17 Jerusalem, wake up!

Rouse yourself and get up!

You have drunk the cup of punishment

that theLordin his anger gave you to drink;

you drank it down, and it made you stagger.

18 There is no one to lead you,

no one among your people

to take you by the hand.

19 A double disaster has fallen on you:

your land has been devastated by war,

and your people have starved.

There is no one to show you sympathy.

20 At the corner of every street

your people collapse from weakness;

they are like deer caught in a hunter’s net.

They have felt the force of God’s anger.

21 You suffering people of Jerusalem,

you that stagger as though you were drunk,

22 theLordyour God defends you and says,

“I am taking away the cup

that I gave you in my anger.

You will no longer have to drink

the wine that makes you stagger.

23 I will give it to those who oppressed you,

to those who made you lie down in the streets

and trampled on you as if you were dirt.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/51-3bdda3d576a5e0ffacba12f77a806f56.mp3?version_id=68—

God Will Rescue Jerusalem

1 Jerusalem, be strong and great again!

Holy city of God, clothe yourself with splendor!

The heathen will never enter your gates again.

2 Shake yourself free, Jerusalem!

Rise from the dust and sit on your throne!

Undo the chains that bind you,

captive people of Zion!

3 The SovereignLordsays to his people, “When you became slaves, no money was paid for you; in the same way nothing will be paid to set you free.

4 When you went to live in Egypt as foreigners, you did so of your own free will; Assyria, however, took you away by force and paid nothing for you.

5 And now in Babylonia the same thing has happened: you are captives, and nothing was paid for you. Those who rule over you boast and brag and constantly show contempt for me.

6 In time to come you will acknowledge that I am God and that I have spoken to you.”

7 How wonderful it is to see

a messenger coming across the mountains,

bringing good news, the news of peace!

He announces victory and says to Zion,

“Your God is king!”

8 Those who guard the city are shouting,

shouting together for joy.

They can see with their own eyes

the return of theLordto Zion.

9 Break into shouts of joy,

you ruins of Jerusalem!

TheLordwill rescue his city

and comfort his people.

10 TheLordwill use his holy power;

he will save his people,

and all the world will see it.

11 Be sure to leave Babylonia,

all you that carry the Temple equipment.

Touch no forbidden thing;

keep yourselves holy and leave.

12 This time you will not have to leave in a hurry;

you will not be trying to escape.

TheLordyour God will lead you

and protect you on every side.

The Suffering Servant

13 TheLordsays,

“My servant will succeed in his task;

he will be highly honored.

14 Many people were shocked when they saw him;

he was so disfigured that he hardly looked human.

15 But now many nations will marvel at him,

and kings will be speechless with amazement.

They will see and understand

something they had never known.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/52-4eb3a58bae941843fec3a70b3d1a45e2.mp3?version_id=68—

1 The people reply,

“Who would have believed what we now report?

Who could have seen theLord’s hand in this?

2 It was the will of theLordthat his servant

grow like a plant taking root in dry ground.

He had no dignity or beauty

to make us take notice of him.

There was nothing attractive about him,

nothing that would draw us to him.

3 We despised him and rejected him;

he endured suffering and pain.

No one would even look at him—

we ignored him as if he were nothing.

4 “But he endured the suffering that should have been ours,

the pain that we should have borne.

All the while we thought that his suffering

was punishment sent by God.

5 But because of our sins he was wounded,

beaten because of the evil we did.

We are healed by the punishment he suffered,

made whole by the blows he received.

6 All of us were like sheep that were lost,

each of us going his own way.

But theLordmade the punishment fall on him,

the punishment all of us deserved.

7 “He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly;

he never said a word.

Like a lamb about to be slaughtered,

like a sheep about to be sheared,

he never said a word.

8 He was arrested and sentenced and led off to die,

and no one cared about his fate.

He was put to death for the sins of our people.

9 He was placed in a grave with those who are evil,

he was buried with the rich,

even though he had never committed a crime

or ever told a lie.”

10 TheLordsays,

“It was my will that he should suffer;

his death was a sacrifice to bring forgiveness.

And so he will see his descendants;

he will live a long life,

and through him my purpose will succeed.

11 After a life of suffering, he will again have joy;

he will know that he did not suffer in vain.

My devoted servant, with whom I am pleased,

will bear the punishment of many

and for his sake I will forgive them.

12 And so I will give him a place of honor,

a place among the great and powerful.

He willingly gave his life

and shared the fate of evil men.

He took the place of many sinners

and prayed that they might be forgiven.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/53-143e345c6de23294c244f04914d431cd.mp3?version_id=68—

The Lord’s Love for Israel

1 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.

2 Make the tent you live in larger;

lengthen its ropes and strengthen the pegs!

3 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.

4 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.

5 Your Creator will be like a husband to you—

theLordAlmighty is his name.

The holy God of Israel will save you—

he is the ruler of all the world.

6 Israel, you are like a young wife,

deserted by her husband and deeply distressed.

But theLordcalls you back to him and says:

7 “For one brief moment I left you;

with deep love I will take you back.

8 I turned away angry for only a moment,

but I will show you my love forever.”

So says theLordwho saves you.

9 “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 The mountains and hills may crumble,

but my love for you will never end;

I will keep forever my promise of peace.”

So says theLordwho loves you.

The Future Jerusalem

11 TheLordsays,

“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 “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.”

TheLordhas spoken.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/54-adea75df1800254c2754c746976c998d.mp3?version_id=68—

God’s Offer of Mercy

1 TheLordsays,

“Come, everyone who is thirsty—

here is water!

Come, you that have no money—

buy grain and eat!

Come! Buy wine and milk—

it will cost you nothing!

2 Why spend money on what does not satisfy?

Why spend your wages and still be hungry?

Listen to me and do what I say,

and you will enjoy the best food of all.

3 “Listen now, my people, and come to me;

come to me, and you will have life!

I will make a lasting covenant with you

and give you the blessings I promised to David.

4 I made him a leader and commander of nations,

and through him I showed them my power.

5 Now you will summon foreign nations;

at one time they did not know you,

but now they will come running to join you!

I, theLordyour God, the holy God of Israel,

will make all this happen;

I will give you honor and glory.”

6 Turn to theLordand pray to him,

now that he is near.

7 Let the wicked leave their way of life

and change their way of thinking.

Let them turn to theLord, our God;

he is merciful and quick to forgive.

8 “My thoughts,” says theLord, “are not like yours,

and my ways are different from yours.

9 As high as the heavens are above the earth,

so high are my ways and thoughts above yours.

10 “My word is like the snow and the rain

that come down from the sky to water the earth.

They make the crops grow

and provide seed for planting and food to eat.

11 So also will be the word that I speak—

it will not fail to do what I plan for it;

it will do everything I send it to do.

12 “You will leave Babylon with joy;

you will be led out of the city in peace.

The mountains and hills will burst into singing,

and the trees will shout for joy.

13 Cypress trees will grow where now there are briers;

myrtle trees will come up in place of thorns.

This will be a sign that will last forever,

a reminder of what I, theLord, have done.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/55-43a4700ef3388243a07e2848cf0ca23f.mp3?version_id=68—

God’s People Will Include All Nations

1 TheLordsays to his people, “Do what is just and right, for soon I will save you.

2 I will bless those who always observe the Sabbath and do not misuse it. I will bless those who do nothing evil.”

3 A foreigner who has joined theLord’s people should not say, “TheLordwill not let me worship with his people.”

A man who has been castrated should never think that because he cannot have children, he can never be part of God’s people.

4 TheLordsays to such a man, “If you honor me by observing the Sabbath and if you do what pleases me and faithfully keep my covenant,

5 then your name will be remembered in my Temple and among my people longer than if you had sons and daughters. You will never be forgotten.”

6 And theLordsays to those foreigners who become part of his people, who love him and serve him, who observe the Sabbath and faithfully keep his covenant:

7 “I will bring you to Zion, my sacred hill,give you joy in my house of prayer, and accept the sacrifices you offer on my altar. My Temple will be called a house of prayer for the people of all nations.”

8 The SovereignLord, who has brought his people Israel home from exile, has promised that he will bring still other people to join them.

Israel’s Leaders Are Condemned

9 TheLordhas told the foreign nations to come like wild animals and devour his people.

10 He says, “All the leaders, who are supposed to warn my people, are blind! They know nothing. They are like watch dogs that don’t bark—they only lie around and dream. How they love to sleep!

11 They are like greedy dogs that never get enough. These leaders have no understanding. They each do as they please and seek their own advantage.

12 ‘Let’s get some wine,’ these drunkards say, ‘and drink all we can hold! Tomorrow will be even better than today!’”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/56-30dc8fdb1b1622c5c3aeb6f30aa513bc.mp3?version_id=68—

Israel’s Idolatry Is Condemned

1 Good people die, and no one understands or even cares. But when they die, no calamity can hurt them.

2 Those who live good lives find peace and rest in death.

3 Come here to be judged, you sinners! You are no better than sorcerers, adulterers, and prostitutes.

4 Who are you making fun of? Who are you liars jeering at?

5 You worship the fertility gods by having sex under those sacred trees of yours. You offer your children as sacrifices in the rocky caves near stream beds.

6 You take smooth stones from there and worship them as gods. You pour out wine as offerings to them and bring them grain offerings. Do you think I am pleased with all this?

7 You go to the high mountains to offer sacrifices and have sex.

8 You set up your obscene idols just inside your front doors. You forsake me; you take off your clothes and climb in your large beds with your lovers, whom you pay to sleep with you. And there you satisfy your lust.

9 You put on your perfumes and ointments and go to worship the god Molech. To find gods to worship, you send messengers far and wide, even to the world of the dead.

10 You wear yourselves out looking for other gods, but you never give up. You think your obscene idols give you strength, and so you never grow weak.

11 TheLordsays, “Who are these gods that make you afraid, so that you tell me lies and forget me completely? Have you stopped honoring me because I have kept silent for so long?

12 You think that what you do is right, but I will expose your conduct, and your idols will not be able to help you.

13 When you cry for help, let those idols of yours save you! A puff of wind will carry them off! But those who trust in me will live in the land and will worship me in my Temple.”

God’s Promise of Help and Healing

14 TheLordsays, “Let my people return to me. Remove every obstacle from their path! Build the road and make it ready!

15 “I am the high and holy God, who lives forever. I live in a high and holy place, but I also live with people who are humble and repentant, so that I can restore their confidence and hope.

16 I gave my people life, and I will not continue to accuse them or be angry with them forever.

17 I was angry with them because of their sin and greed, and so I punished them and abandoned them. But they were stubborn and kept on going their own way.

18 “I have seen how they acted, but I will heal them. I will lead them and help them, and I will comfort those who mourn.

19 I offer peace to all, both near and far! I will heal my people.

20 But evil people are like the restless sea, whose waves never stop rolling in, bringing filth and muck.

21 There is no safety for sinners,” says theLord.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/57-33ff51a5556afbf2ffb2e8bac1c909a0.mp3?version_id=68—

True Fasting

1 TheLordsays, “Shout as loud as you can! Tell my people Israel about their sins!

2 They worship me every day, claiming that they are eager to know my ways and obey my laws. They say they want me to give them just laws and that they take pleasure in worshiping me.”

3 The people ask, “Why should we fast if theLordnever notices? Why should we go without food if he pays no attention?”

TheLordsays to them, “The truth is that at the same time you fast, you pursue your own interests and oppress your workers.

4 Your fasting makes you violent, and you quarrel and fight. Do you think this kind of fasting will make me listen to your prayers?

5 When you fast, you make yourselves suffer; you bow your heads low like a blade of grass and spread out sackcloth and ashes to lie on. Is that what you call fasting? Do you think I will be pleased with that?

6 “The kind of fasting I want is this: Remove the chains of oppression and the yoke of injustice, and let the oppressed go free.

7 Share your food with the hungry and open your homes to the homeless poor. Give clothes to those who have nothing to wear, and do not refuse to help your own relatives.

8 “Then my favor will shine on you like the morning sun, and your wounds will be quickly healed. I will always be with you to save you; my presence will protect you on every side.

9 When you pray, I will answer you. When you call to me, I will respond.

“If you put an end to oppression, to every gesture of contempt, and to every evil word;

10 if you give food to the hungry and satisfy those who are in need, then the darkness around you will turn to the brightness of noon.

11 And I will always guide you and satisfy you with good things. I will keep you strong and well. You will be like a garden that has plenty of water, like a spring of water that never goes dry.

12 Your people will rebuild what has long been in ruins, building again on the old foundations. You will be known as the people who rebuilt the walls, who restored the ruined houses.”

The Reward for Keeping the Sabbath

13 TheLordsays, “If you treat the Sabbath as sacred and do not pursue your own interests on that day; if you value my holy day and honor it by not traveling, working, or talking idly on that day,

14 then you will find the joy that comes from serving me. I will make you honored all over the world, and you will enjoy the land I gave to your ancestor, Jacob. I, theLord, have spoken.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/ISA/58-f2adbeb67b4b9e54c0b4a169233910e1.mp3?version_id=68—