Isa 52 | HCSB | STEP | “Wake up , wake up ; put on your strength , Zion ! Put on your beautiful garments , Jerusalem , the Holy City ! For the uncircumcised and the unclean will no longer enter you.

Isaiah 52

1 “Wake up, wake up;

put on your strength, ^{▼▼Zion: Originally a term for the fortified section of Jerusalem and then, by extension, used for the temple and the city of Jerusalem both in the present time and in the future}Zion!
Put on your beautiful garments, ^b
Jerusalem, the Holy City! ^c
For the uncircumcised and the ^{▼▼unclean: When something is clean, it is holy or acceptable to God. When it is unclean, it is unholy (such as an unclean spirit). The term can be used in a ritual sense to apply to moral standards for living.}unclean
will no longer enter you. ^e
2 Stand up, shake the dust off yourself!
Take your seat, Jerusalem.
Remove the bonds ^{▼▼Alt Hb tradition reads The bonds are removed} from your neck,
captive Daughter Zion.”
3 For this is what the Lord says:
“You were sold for nothing,
and you will be redeemed without silver.” ^g
4 For this is what the Lord God says:
“At first My people went down to Egypt to live there, ^h
then Assyria oppressed them without cause. ^{▼▼Or them at last, or them for nothing}
5 So now what have I here” –
this is the Lord’s declaration –

“that My people are taken away for nothing?
Its rulers wail” –
this is the Lord’s declaration –

“and My name is continually blasphemed all day long. ^j
6 Therefore My people will know My name; ^k
therefore they will know on that day
that I am He who says:
Here I am.”

7 How beautiful on the mountains
are the feet of the herald,
who proclaims peace,
who brings news of good things, ^l
who proclaims salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” ^m
8 The voices of your watchmen ⁿ –
they lift up their voices,
shouting for joy together;
for every eye will see
when the Lord returns to Zion.
9 Be joyful, rejoice together,
you ruins of Jerusalem! ^o
For the Lord has comforted His people; ^p
He has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has displayed His holy arm
in the sight of all the nations; ^q
all the ends of the earth will see
the salvation of our God. ^r

11 Leave, leave, go out from there! ^s
Do not touch anything unclean;
go out from her, purify yourselves, ^t
you who carry the vessels of the Lord.
12 For you will not leave in a hurry, ^u
and you will not have to take flight;
because the Lord is going before you, ^v
and the God of Israel is your rear guard. ^w

The Servant’s Suffering and Exaltation

13 See, My Servant ^{▼▼Tg adds the Messiah
,} ^y will act wisely; ^{▼▼Or will be successful}
He will be raised and lifted up and greatly exalted. ^aa
14 Just as many were appalled at You ^{▼▼Some Hb mss, Syr, Tg read Him} –
His appearance was so disfigured
that He did not look like a man,
and His form did not resemble a human being –
15 so He will sprinkle ^{▼▼Or startle
,} ^{▼▼As the blood of a sacrifice is sprinkled on the altar on behalf of the people} many nations. ^{▼▼LXX reads so many nations will marvel at Him
,} ^af
Kings will shut their mouths because of Him,
For they will see what had not been told them,
and they will understand what they had not heard. ^ag