Isa 51 | NASB2020 | STEP | “ Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness , Who seek the Lord : Look to the rock from which you were cut , And to the quarry from which you were dug .

Isaiah 51

Israel Exhorted

1 “ ^aListen to Me, you who ^bpursue righteousness,
Who seek the Lord:
Look to the ^crock from which you were cut,
And to the ^{▼▼Lit excavation of a pit}quarry from which you were dug.
2 “Look to ^eAbraham your father
And to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain;
When he ^fwas only one I called him,
Then I blessed him and multiplied him.”
3 Indeed, ^gthe Lord will comfort Zion;
He will comfort all her ^hruins.
And He will make her ⁱwilderness like ^jEden,
And her desert like the ^kgarden of the Lord.
^lJoy and gladness will be found in her,
Thanksgiving and the sound of a melody.

4 “ ^mPay attention to Me, My people,
And listen to Me, My ^{▼▼Or people}nation;
For a ^olaw will go out from Me,
And I will bring My ^pjustice as a ^qlight of the peoples.
5 “My ^rrighteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth,
And My ^sarms will judge the peoples;
The ^tcoastlands will wait for Me,
And they will wait expectantly for My ^uarm.
6 “ ^vRaise your eyes to the sky,
Then look to the earth beneath;
For the ^wsky will vanish like smoke,
And the ^xearth will wear out like a garment
And its inhabitants will die ^{▼▼Another reading is like gnats}in the same way.
But My ^zsalvation will be forever,
And My righteousness will not fail.
7 “ ^aaListen to Me, you who know righteousness,
A people in whose ^abheart is My Law;
Do not fear the ^actaunting of ^{▼▼Or mankind}people,
Nor be terrified of their abuses.
8 “For the ^aemoth will eat them like a garment;
Yes, the ^afmoth will eat them like wool.
But My ^agrighteousness will be forever,
And My salvation to all generations.”

9 ^ahAwake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord;
Awake as in the ^aidays of old, the generations of long ago.
^ajWas it not You who cut ^{▼▼I.e., a sea monster, not to be confused with Rahab in Joshua 2}Rahab in pieces,
Who pierced the ^aldragon?
10 Was it not You who ^amdried up the sea,
The waters of the great deep;
Who made the depths of the sea a pathway
For the ^anredeemed to cross over?
11 And the ^aoredeemed of the Lord will return
And come to Zion with joyful shouting,
And ^apeverlasting joy will be on their heads.
They will obtain gladness and joy,
And ^aqsorrow and sighing will flee away.

12 “I, I Myself, am He who ^arcomforts you.
Who are you that you are afraid of ^{▼▼Lit man who dies
,} ^atmortal man,
And of a son of man who is made like ^augrass,
13 That you have ^avforgotten the Lord your Maker,
Who ^awstretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth,
That you ^axfear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor,
As he makes ready to destroy?
And where is the rage of the ^ayoppressor?
14 The ^{▼▼Lit one in chains
,} ^baexile will soon be set free, and will not die in the ^{▼▼Lit pit}dungeon, ^bcnor will his bread be lacking. 15 For I am the Lord your God, who ^bdstirs up the sea so that its waves roar (the Lord of armies is His name). 16 And I have ^beput My words in your mouth and have ^bfcovered you with the shadow of My hand, to ^{▼▼Lit plant
,} ^bhestablish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”

17 ^biPull yourself up! Pull yourself up! Arise, Jerusalem!
You who have ^bjdrunk from the Lord’s hand the cup of His anger;
The ^{▼▼Lit bowl of the cup of reeling}chalice of staggering you have drunk to the dregs.
18 There is ^blno one to guide her among all the sons to whom she has given birth,
Nor is there anyone to take her by the hand among all the sons she has raised.
19 These two things have happened to you;
Who will mourn for you?
The ^bmdevastation and destruction, famine and sword;
How shall I comfort you?
20 Your sons have fainted,
They ^bnlie helpless at the head of every street,
Like an ^boantelope in a net,
Full of the wrath of the Lord,
The ^bprebuke of your God.

21 Therefore, listen to this, you ^bqafflicted,
Who are ^brdrunk, but not with wine:
22 This is what your Lord, the Lord, your God
Who ^bscontends for His people says:
“Behold, I have taken from your hand the ^btcup of staggering,
The ^{▼▼Lit bowl of the cup of}chalice of My anger;
You will never drink it again.
23 “I will ^bvput it into the hand of your tormentors,
Who have said to ^{▼▼Lit your soul}you, ‘ ^bxLie down so that we may walk over you.’
You have also made your back like the ground,
And like the street for those who walk over it.”