1 Listen, O coastlands, to Me; and listen, [lend your ear], peoples from afar; the LORD has called Me from the womb; He has made mention of My name from My mother's bowels.
2 And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, and made Me a polished shaft. He has hidden Me in His quiver,
3 and said to Me, You [are] My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
4 Then I said, I have labored in vain; I have spent My strength for nothing, and in vain; [yet] surely My judgment is with the LORD, and My work with My God.
5 And now, says the LORD who formed Me from the womb [to be] His servant, to bring Jacob again to Him, Though Israel is not gathered, yet I shall be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and My God shall be My strength.
6 And He said, It is but a little [thing] that You should be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to bring back the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You for a light to the nations, to be My salvation to the end of the earth.
7 So says Jehovah, the Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One, [to Him] whom man despises, [to Him] whom the nation hates, the servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, rulers also shall worship, because of the LORD who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, and He shall choose You.
8 So says the LORD, in a favorable time I replied to You, and in a day of salvation I have helped You; and I will preserve You, and give You for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause them to inherit the wasted inheritances;
9 that You may say to the prisoners, Go out! To those who [are] in darkness, Show yourselves! They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.
10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; nor shall the heat nor sun strike them; for He who has mercy on them shall lead them; even by the springs of water He shall guide them.
11 And I will make all My mountains a way, and My highways shall be set on high.
12 Behold, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.
13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break out [into] singing, O mountains; for the Lord has comforted His people, and will have mercy on His afflicted.
14 But Zion said, The LORD has forsaken me, and my LORD has forgotten me.
15 Can a woman forget her suckling child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, they may forget, yet I will not forget you.
16 Behold, I have carved you on the palms of [My] hands; your walls [are] forever before Me.
17 Your sons shall make haste; those destroying you and ruining you shall go out from you.
18 Lift up your eyes all around and see; they all gather [and] come to you. [As] I live, says the LORD, you shall surely wear them as an ornament, and bind them [on] as a bride.
19 For your wastes and your deserted places, and your land of ruins, shall even now be too narrow to dwell there, and they who swallowed you up shall be far away.
20 The sons of your bereavement shall yet say in your ears, The place [is] too narrow for me; come near to me so that I may dwell.
21 Then you shall say in your heart, Who has borne me these, since I [am] bereaved, and desolate, turned aside and an exile, and who has brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where [were] they?
22 So says the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations, and have set up My banner to the people; and they shall bring your sons in [their] bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on [their] shoulders.
23 And kings shall be your nursing fathers, and their queens your nurses. They shall bow to you, faces to the earth, and lick up the dust of your feet; and you shall know that I [am] the LORD; by whom they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.
24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?
25 But so says the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the fearful ones shall escape. For I will contend with him who contends with you, and I will save your sons.
26 And I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh; and they shall be drunk with their own blood, as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I Jehovah [am] your Savior and your Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.