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Jeremiah 18–22 Jeremiah 18–22 (Listen) The Potter and the Clay 18 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 “Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear1 my words.” 3 So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. 4 And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7 If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, 8 and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. 9 And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, 10 and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. 11 Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the LORD, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds.’ 12 “But they say, ‘That is in vain! We will follow our own plans, and will every one act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’ 13   “Therefore thus says the LORD:   Ask among the nations,     Who has heard the like of this?   The virgin Israel     has done a very horrible thing. 14   Does the snow of Lebanon leave     the crags of Sirion?2   Do the mountain waters run dry,3     the cold flowing streams? 15   But my people have forgotten me;     they make offerings to false gods;   they made them stumble in their ways,     in the ancient roads,   and to walk into side roads,     not the highway, 16   making their land a horror,     a thing to be hissed at forever.   Everyone who passes by it is horrified     and shakes his head. 17   Like the east wind I will scatter them     before the enemy.   I will show them my back, not my face,     in the day of their calamity.” 18 Then they said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah, for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not pay attention to any of his words.” 19   Hear me, O LORD,     and listen to the voice of my adversaries. 20   Should good be repaid with evil?     Yet they have dug a pit for my life.   Remember how I stood before you     to speak good for them,     to turn away your wrath from them. 21   Therefore deliver up their children to famine;     give them over to the power of the sword;   let their wives become childless and widowed.     May their men meet death by pestilence,     their youths be struck down by the sword in battle. 22   May a cry be heard from their houses,     when you bring the plunderer suddenly upon them!   For they have dug a pit to take me     and laid snares for my feet. 23   Yet you, O LORD, know     all their plotting to kill me.   Forgive not their iniquity,     nor blot out their sin from your sight.   Let them be overthrown before you;     deal with them in the time of your anger. The Broken Flask 19 Thus says the LORD, “Go, buy a potter’s earthenware flask, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests, 2 and go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the entry of the Potsherd Gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you. 3 You shall say, ‘Hea

Jeremiah 14–17 Jeremiah 14–17 (Listen) Famine, Sword, and Pestilence 14 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought: 2   “Judah mourns,     and her gates languish;   her people lament on the ground,     and the cry of Jerusalem goes up. 3   Her nobles send their servants for water;     they come to the cisterns;   they find no water;     they return with their vessels empty;   they are ashamed and confounded     and cover their heads. 4   Because of the ground that is dismayed,     since there is no rain on the land,   the farmers are ashamed;     they cover their heads. 5   Even the doe in the field forsakes her newborn fawn     because there is no grass. 6   The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights;     they pant for air like jackals;   their eyes fail     because there is no vegetation. 7   “Though our iniquities testify against us,     act, O LORD, for your name’s sake;   for our backslidings are many;     we have sinned against you. 8   O you hope of Israel,     its savior in time of trouble,   why should you be like a stranger in the land,     like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night? 9   Why should you be like a man confused,     like a mighty warrior who cannot save?   Yet you, O LORD, are in the midst of us,     and we are called by your name;     do not leave us.” 10   Thus says the LORD concerning this people:   “They have loved to wander thus;     they have not restrained their feet;   therefore the LORD does not accept them;     now he will remember their iniquity     and punish their sins.” 11 The LORD said to me: “Do not pray for the welfare of this people. 12 Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.” Lying Prophets 13 Then I said: “Ah, Lord GOD, behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’” 14 And the LORD said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name although I did not send them, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not come upon this land’: By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed. 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and sword, with none to bury them—them, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out their evil upon them. 17   “You shall say to them this word:   ‘Let my eyes run down with tears night and day,     and let them not cease,   for the virgin daughter of my people is shattered with a great wound,     with a very grievous blow. 18   If I go out into the field,     behold, those pierced by the sword!   And if I enter the city,     behold, the diseases of famine!   For both prophet and priest ply their trade through the land     and have no knowledge.’” 19   Have you utterly rejected Judah?     Does your soul loathe Zion?   Why have you struck us down     so that there is no healing for us?   We looked for peace, but no good came;     for a time of healing, but behold, terror. 20   We acknowledge our wickedness, O LORD,     and the iniquity of our fathers,     for we have sinned against you. 21   Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake;     do not dishonor your glorious throne;     remember and do not break your covenant with

Jeremiah 10–13 Jeremiah 10–13 (Listen) Idols and the Living God 10 Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2 Thus says the LORD:   “Learn not the way of the nations,     nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens     because the nations are dismayed at them, 3   for the customs of the peoples are vanity.1   A tree from the forest is cut down     and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. 4   They decorate it with silver and gold;     they fasten it with hammer and nails     so that it cannot move. 5   Their idols2 are like scarecrows in a cucumber field,     and they cannot speak;   they have to be carried,     for they cannot walk.   Do not be afraid of them,     for they cannot do evil,     neither is it in them to do good.” 6   There is none like you, O LORD;     you are great, and your name is great in might. 7   Who would not fear you, O King of the nations?     For this is your due;   for among all the wise ones of the nations     and in all their kingdoms     there is none like you. 8   They are both stupid and foolish;     the instruction of idols is but wood! 9   Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish,     and gold from Uphaz.   They are the work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;     their clothing is violet and purple;     they are all the work of skilled men. 10   But the LORD is the true God;     he is the living God and the everlasting King.   At his wrath the earth quakes,     and the nations cannot endure his indignation. 11 Thus shall you say to them: “The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”3 12   It is he who made the earth by his power,     who established the world by his wisdom,     and by his understanding stretched out the heavens. 13   When he utters his voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,     and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.   He makes lightning for the rain,     and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses. 14   Every man is stupid and without knowledge;     every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,   for his images are false,     and there is no breath in them. 15   They are worthless, a work of delusion;     at the time of their punishment they shall perish. 16   Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,     for he is the one who formed all things,   and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;     the LORD of hosts is his name. 17   Gather up your bundle from the ground,     O you who dwell under siege! 18   For thus says the LORD:   “Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land     at this time,   and I will bring distress on them,     that they may feel it.” 19   Woe is me because of my hurt!     My wound is grievous.   But I said, “Truly this is an affliction,     and I must bear it.” 20   My tent is destroyed,     and all my cords are broken;   my children have gone from me,     and they are not;   there is no one to spread my tent again     and to set up my curtains. 21   For the shepherds are stupid     and do not inquire of the LORD;   therefore they have not prospered,     and all their flock is scattered. 22   A voice, a rumor! Behold, it comes!—     a great commotion out of the north country   to make the cities of Judah a desolation,     a lair of jackals. 23   I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself,     that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps. 24   Correct me, O LORD, but in justice;     not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing. 25   Pour out your wrath on the nations that know you not,

Jeremiah 7–9 Jeremiah 7–9 (Listen) Evil in the Land 7 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 “Stand in the gate of the LORD’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the LORD. 3 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ 5 “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another, 6 if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, 7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever. 8 “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? 11 Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the LORD. 12 Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these things, declares the LORD, and when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to the house that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. 15 And I will cast you out of my sight, as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring of Ephraim. 16 “As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven. And they pour out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke me to anger. 19 Is it I whom they provoke? declares the LORD. Is it not themselves, to their own shame? 20 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, my anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, upon man and beast, upon the trees of the field and the fruit of the ground; it will burn and not be quenched.” 21 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices, and eat the flesh. 22 For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’ 24 But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward. 25 From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day. 26 Yet they did not listen to me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers. 27 “So you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you. You shall call to them, but they will not answer you. 28 And you shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, and did not accept discipline; truth has perished; it is cut off from thei

Jeremiah 4–6 Jeremiah 4–6 (Listen) 4   “If you return, O Israel,       declares the LORD,     to me you should return.   If you remove your detestable things from my presence,     and do not waver, 2   and if you swear, ‘As the LORD lives,’     in truth, in justice, and in righteousness,   then nations shall bless themselves in him,     and in him shall they glory.” 3 For thus says the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:   “Break up your fallow ground,     and sow not among thorns. 4   Circumcise yourselves to the LORD;     remove the foreskin of your hearts,     O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;   lest my wrath go forth like fire,     and burn with none to quench it,     because of the evil of your deeds.” Disaster from the North 5 Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say,   “Blow the trumpet through the land;     cry aloud and say,   ‘Assemble, and let us go     into the fortified cities!’ 6   Raise a standard toward Zion,     flee for safety, stay not,   for I bring disaster from the north,     and great destruction. 7   A lion has gone up from his thicket,     a destroyer of nations has set out;     he has gone out from his place   to make your land a waste;     your cities will be ruins     without inhabitant. 8   For this put on sackcloth,     lament and wail,   for the fierce anger of the LORD     has not turned back from us.” 9 “In that day, declares the LORD, courage shall fail both king and officials. The priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.” 10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, surely you have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you,’ whereas the sword has reached their very life.” 11 At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind from the bare heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow or cleanse, 12 a wind too full for this comes for me. Now it is I who speak in judgment upon them.” 13   Behold, he comes up like clouds;     his chariots like the whirlwind;   his horses are swifter than eagles—     woe to us, for we are ruined! 14   O Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil,     that you may be saved.   How long shall your wicked thoughts     lodge within you? 15   For a voice declares from Dan     and proclaims trouble from Mount Ephraim. 16   Warn the nations that he is coming;     announce to Jerusalem,   “Besiegers come from a distant land;     they shout against the cities of Judah. 17   Like keepers of a field are they against her all around,     because she has rebelled against me,       declares the LORD. 18   Your ways and your deeds     have brought this upon you.   This is your doom, and it is bitter;     it has reached your very heart.” Anguish over Judah’s Desolation 19   My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!     Oh the walls of my heart!   My heart is beating wildly;     I cannot keep silent,   for I hear the sound of the trumpet,     the alarm of war. 20   Crash follows hard on crash;     the whole land is laid waste.   Suddenly my tents are laid waste,     my curtains in a moment. 21   How long must I see the standard     and hear the sound of the trumpet? 22   “For my people are foolish;     they know me not;   they are stupid children;     they have no understanding.   They are ‘wise’—in doing evil!     But how to do good they know not.” 23   I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void;     and to the heavens, and they had no light. 24   I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking,     and all the hills moved to

Jeremiah 1–3 Jeremiah 1–3 (Listen) 1 The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, 2 to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month. The Call of Jeremiah 4 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5   “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,   and before you were born I consecrated you;   I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” 6 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” 7 But the LORD said to me,   “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;   for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,   and whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8   Do not be afraid of them,   for I am with you to deliver you,       declares the LORD.” 9 Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the LORD said to me,   “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. 10   See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,   to pluck up and to break down,   to destroy and to overthrow,   to build and to plant.” 11 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see an almond1 branch.” 12 Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.” 13 The word of the LORD came to me a second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, facing away from the north.” 14 Then the LORD said to me, “Out of the north disaster2 shall be let loose upon all the inhabitants of the land. 15 For behold, I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, declares the LORD, and they shall come, and every one shall set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its walls all around and against all the cities of Judah. 16 And I will declare my judgments against them, for all their evil in forsaking me. They have made offerings to other gods and worshiped the works of their own hands. 17 But you, dress yourself for work;3 arise, and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. 18 And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. 19 They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.” Israel Forsakes the Lord 2 The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD,   “I remember the devotion of your youth,     your love as a bride,   how you followed me in the wilderness,     in a land not sown. 3   Israel was holy to the LORD,     the firstfruits of his harvest.   All who ate of it incurred guilt;     disaster came upon them,       declares the LORD.” 4 Hear the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the clans of the house of Israel. 5 Thus says the LORD:   “What wrong did your fathers find in me     that they went far from me,   and went after worthlessness, and became worthless? 6   They did not say, ‘Where is the LORD     who brought us up from the land of Egypt,   who led us in the wilderness,     in a land of deserts and pits,   in a land of drought and deep darkness,     in a land that none passes through,     where no man dwells?’ 7   And I brought you into a plentiful land     to enjoy its fruits and its good things.   

Isaiah 63–66 Isaiah 63–66 (Listen) The Lord’s Day of Vengeance 63   Who is this who comes from Edom,     in crimsoned garments from Bozrah,   he who is splendid in his apparel,     marching in the greatness of his strength?   “It is I, speaking in righteousness,     mighty to save.” 2   Why is your apparel red,     and your garments like his who treads in the winepress? 3   “I have trodden the winepress alone,     and from the peoples no one was with me;   I trod them in my anger     and trampled them in my wrath;   their lifeblood1 spattered on my garments,     and stained all my apparel. 4   For the day of vengeance was in my heart,     and my year of redemption2 had come. 5   I looked, but there was no one to help;     I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold;   so my own arm brought me salvation,     and my wrath upheld me. 6   I trampled down the peoples in my anger;     I made them drunk in my wrath,     and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.” The Lord’s Mercy Remembered 7   I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD,     the praises of the LORD,   according to all that the LORD has granted us,     and the great goodness to the house of Israel   that he has granted them according to his compassion,     according to the abundance of his steadfast love. 8   For he said, “Surely they are my people,     children who will not deal falsely.”     And he became their Savior. 9   In all their affliction he was afflicted,3     and the angel of his presence saved them;   in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;     he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. 10   But they rebelled     and grieved his Holy Spirit;   therefore he turned to be their enemy,     and himself fought against them. 11   Then he remembered the days of old,     of Moses and his people.4   Where is he who brought them up out of the sea     with the shepherds of his flock?   Where is he who put in the midst of them     his Holy Spirit, 12   who caused his glorious arm     to go at the right hand of Moses,   who divided the waters before them     to make for himself an everlasting name, 13     who led them through the depths?   Like a horse in the desert,     they did not stumble. 14   Like livestock that go down into the valley,     the Spirit of the LORD gave them rest.   So you led your people,     to make for yourself a glorious name. Prayer for Mercy 15   Look down from heaven and see,     from your holy and beautiful5 habitation.   Where are your zeal and your might?     The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion     are held back from me. 16   For you are our Father,     though Abraham does not know us,     and Israel does not acknowledge us;   you, O LORD, are our Father,     our Redeemer from of old is your name. 17   O LORD, why do you make us wander from your ways     and harden our heart, so that we fear you not?   Return for the sake of your servants,     the tribes of your heritage. 18   Your holy people held possession for a little while;6     our adversaries have trampled down your sanctuary. 19   We have become like those over whom you have never ruled,     like those who are not called by your name. 64   Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down,     that the mountains might quake at your presence— 2   7 as when fire kindles brushwood     and the fire causes water to boil—   to make your name known to your adversaries,     and that the nations might tremble at your presence! 3   When you did awesome things that we did not look for,     you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. 4   From o

Isaiah 59–62 Isaiah 59–62 (Listen) Evil and Oppression 59   Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,     or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2   but your iniquities have made a separation     between you and your God,   and your sins have hidden his face from you     so that he does not hear. 3   For your hands are defiled with blood     and your fingers with iniquity;   your lips have spoken lies;     your tongue mutters wickedness. 4   No one enters suit justly;     no one goes to law honestly;   they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies,     they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity. 5   They hatch adders’ eggs;     they weave the spider’s web;   he who eats their eggs dies,     and from one that is crushed a viper is hatched. 6   Their webs will not serve as clothing;     men will not cover themselves with what they make.   Their works are works of iniquity,     and deeds of violence are in their hands. 7   Their feet run to evil,     and they are swift to shed innocent blood;   their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;     desolation and destruction are in their highways. 8   The way of peace they do not know,     and there is no justice in their paths;   they have made their roads crooked;     no one who treads on them knows peace. 9   Therefore justice is far from us,     and righteousness does not overtake us;   we hope for light, and behold, darkness,     and for brightness, but we walk in gloom. 10   We grope for the wall like the blind;     we grope like those who have no eyes;   we stumble at noon as in the twilight,     among those in full vigor we are like dead men. 11   We all growl like bears;     we moan and moan like doves;   we hope for justice, but there is none;     for salvation, but it is far from us. 12   For our transgressions are multiplied before you,     and our sins testify against us;   for our transgressions are with us,     and we know our iniquities: 13   transgressing, and denying the LORD,     and turning back from following our God,   speaking oppression and revolt,     conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words. Judgment and Redemption 14   Justice is turned back,     and righteousness stands far away;   for truth has stumbled in the public squares,     and uprightness cannot enter. 15   Truth is lacking,     and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.   The LORD saw it, and it displeased him1     that there was no justice. 16   He saw that there was no man,     and wondered that there was no one to intercede;   then his own arm brought him salvation,     and his righteousness upheld him. 17   He put on righteousness as a breastplate,     and a helmet of salvation on his head;   he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,     and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak. 18   According to their deeds, so will he repay,     wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;     to the coastlands he will render repayment. 19   So they shall fear the name of the LORD from the west,     and his glory from the rising of the sun;   for he will come like a rushing stream,2     which the wind of the LORD drives. 20   “And a Redeemer will come to Zion,     to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the LORD. 21 “And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from this time forth and forevermore.” The Future Glory of Israel 60   Arise, shine, for y

Isaiah 54–58 Isaiah 54–58 (Listen) The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;     break forth into singing and cry aloud,     you who have not been in labor!   For the children of the desolate one will be more     than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD. 2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,     and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;   do not hold back; lengthen your cords     and strengthen your stakes. 3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,     and your offspring will possess the nations     and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;     be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;   for you will forget the shame of your youth,     and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. 5   For your Maker is your husband,     the LORD of hosts is his name;   and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,     the God of the whole earth he is called. 6   For the LORD has called you     like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,   like a wife of youth when she is cast off,     says your God. 7   For a brief moment I deserted you,     but with great compassion I will gather you. 8   In overflowing anger for a moment     I hid my face from you,   but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”     says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah1 to me:     as I swore that the waters of Noah     should no more go over the earth,   so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,     and will not rebuke you. 10   For the mountains may depart     and the hills be removed,   but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,     and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”     says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,     behold, I will set your stones in antimony,     and lay your foundations with sapphires.2 12   I will make your pinnacles of agate,3     your gates of carbuncles,4     and all your wall of precious stones. 13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,     and great shall be the peace of your children. 14   In righteousness you shall be established;     you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;     and from terror, for it shall not come near you. 15   If anyone stirs up strife,     it is not from me;   whoever stirs up strife with you     shall fall because of you. 16   Behold, I have created the smith     who blows the fire of coals     and produces a weapon for its purpose.   I have also created the ravager to destroy; 17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,     and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.   This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD     and their vindication5 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,     come to the waters;   and he who has no money,     come, buy and eat!   Come, buy wine and milk     without money and without price. 2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,     and your labor for that which does not satisfy?   Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,     and delight yourselves in rich food. 3   Incline your ear, and come to me;     hear, that your soul may live;   and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,     my steadfast, sure love for David. 4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,     a leader and commander for the peoples. 5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,     and a nation that did not kn

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,     and give attention, you peoples from afar.   The LORD called me from the womb,     from the body of my mother he named my name. 2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;     in the shadow of his hand he hid me;   he made me a polished arrow;     in his quiver he hid me away. 3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,     Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”1 4   But I said, “I have labored in vain;     I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;   yet surely my right is with the LORD,     and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,     he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,   to bring Jacob back to him;     and that Israel might be gathered to him—   for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,     and my God has become my strength— 6   he says:   “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant     to raise up the tribes of Jacob     and to bring back the preserved of Israel;   I will make you as a light for the nations,     that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,     the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,   to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,     the servant of rulers:   “Kings shall see and arise;     princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;   because of the LORD, who is faithful,     the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:   “In a time of favor I have answered you;     in a day of salvation I have helped you;   I will keep you and give you     as a covenant to the people,   to establish the land,     to apportion the desolate heritages, 9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’     to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.’   They shall feed along the ways;     on all bare heights shall be their pasture; 10   they shall not hunger or thirst,     neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,   for he who has pity on them will lead them,     and by springs of water will guide them. 11   And I will make all my mountains a road,     and my highways shall be raised up. 12   Behold, these shall come from afar,     and behold, these from the north and from the west,2     and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;     break forth, O mountains, into singing!   For the LORD has comforted his people     and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;     my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,     that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?   Even these may forget,     yet I will not forget you. 16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;     your walls are continually before me. 17   Your builders make haste;4     your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you. 18   Lift up your eyes around and see;     they all gather, they come to you.   As I live, declares the LORD,     you shall put them all on as an ornament;     you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places     and your devastated land—   surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,     and those who swallowed you up will be far away. 20   The children of your bereavement     will yet say in your ears:   ‘The place is too narrow for me;     make room for me to dwell in.’ 21   Then you will say in your heart:     ‘Who has borne me these?   I was bereaved and barren,     exiled and put away,     but who h

Isaiah 44–48 Isaiah 44–48 (Listen) Israel the Lord’s Chosen 44   “But now hear, O Jacob my servant,     Israel whom I have chosen! 2   Thus says the LORD who made you,     who formed you from the womb and will help you:   Fear not, O Jacob my servant,     Jeshurun whom I have chosen. 3   For I will pour water on the thirsty land,     and streams on the dry ground;   I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring,     and my blessing on your descendants. 4   They shall spring up among the grass     like willows by flowing streams. 5   This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’s,’     another will call on the name of Jacob,   and another will write on his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’     and name himself by the name of Israel.” Besides Me There Is No God 6   Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel     and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:   “I am the first and I am the last;     besides me there is no god. 7   Who is like me? Let him proclaim it.1     Let him declare and set it before me,   since I appointed an ancient people.     Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. 8   Fear not, nor be afraid;     have I not told you from of old and declared it?     And you are my witnesses!   Is there a God besides me?     There is no Rock; I know not any.” The Folly of Idolatry 9 All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame. 10 Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is profitable for nothing? 11 Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble, let them stand forth. They shall be terrified; they shall be put to shame together. 12 The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint. 13 The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil.2 He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. 14 He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. 15 Then it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it. 16 Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, “Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!” 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!” 18 They know not, nor do they discern, for he has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand. 19 No one considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, “Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and have eaten. And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?” 20 He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?” The Lord Redeems Israel 21   Remember these things, O Jacob,     and Israel, for you are my servant;   I formed you; you are my servant;     O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me. 22   I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud     and your sins like mist;   return to me, for I have redeemed you. 23   Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it;     shout, O depths of the earth;   break forth

Isaiah 40–43 Isaiah 40–43 (Listen) Comfort for God’s People 40   Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2   Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,     and cry to her   that her warfare1 is ended,     that her iniquity is pardoned,   that she has received from the LORD’s hand     double for all her sins. 3   A voice cries:2   “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD;     make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4   Every valley shall be lifted up,     and every mountain and hill be made low;   the uneven ground shall become level,     and the rough places a plain. 5   And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,     and all flesh shall see it together,     for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” The Word of God Stands Forever 6   A voice says, “Cry!”     And I said,3 “What shall I cry?”   All flesh is grass,     and all its beauty4 is like the flower of the field. 7   The grass withers, the flower fades     when the breath of the LORD blows on it;     surely the people are grass. 8   The grass withers, the flower fades,     but the word of our God will stand forever. The Greatness of God 9   Go on up to a high mountain,     O Zion, herald of good news;5   lift up your voice with strength,     O Jerusalem, herald of good news;6     lift it up, fear not;   say to the cities of Judah,     “Behold your God!” 10   Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,     and his arm rules for him;   behold, his reward is with him,     and his recompense before him. 11   He will tend his flock like a shepherd;     he will gather the lambs in his arms;   he will carry them in his bosom,     and gently lead those that are with young. 12   Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand     and marked off the heavens with a span,   enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure     and weighed the mountains in scales     and the hills in a balance? 13   Who has measured7 the Spirit of the LORD,     or what man shows him his counsel? 14   Whom did he consult,     and who made him understand?   Who taught him the path of justice,     and taught him knowledge,     and showed him the way of understanding? 15   Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,     and are accounted as the dust on the scales;     behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust. 16   Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,     nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering. 17   All the nations are as nothing before him,     they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness. 18   To whom then will you liken God,     or what likeness compare with him? 19   An idol! A craftsman casts it,     and a goldsmith overlays it with gold     and casts for it silver chains. 20   He who is too impoverished for an offering     chooses wood8 that will not rot;   he seeks out a skillful craftsman     to set up an idol that will not move. 21   Do you not know? Do you not hear?     Has it not been told you from the beginning?     Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22   It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,     and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;   who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,     and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; 23   who brings princes to nothing,     and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. 24   Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,     scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,   when he blows on them, and they wither,     and the tempest carries them off like stubble. 25   To whom then will you compare me,     that I should be like him? says the Holy One. 26   Lift up your eyes