The Lord's Comfort for Zion

Isaiah 51

1 d "Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord:
look to the rock from which you were hewn,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
 2 Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah who bore you;
for e he was but one when I called him,
that I might bless him and multiply him.
 3 For the Lord f comforts Zion;
he comforts all her waste places
and makes her wilderness like g Eden,
her desert like h the garden of the Lord;
i joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the voice of song.

4 j "Give attention to me, my people,
and give ear to me, my nation;
k for a law 1 will go out from me,
and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.
 5 l My righteousness draws near,
my salvation has gone out,
and my arms will judge the peoples;
m the coastlands hope for me,
and for my arm they wait.
 6 n Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
o for the heavens vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; 2
p but my salvation will be forever,
and my righteousness will never be dismayed.

7 q "Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people r in whose heart is my law;
s fear not the reproach of man,
nor be dismayed at their revilings.
 8 t For the moth will eat them up like a garment,
and the worm will eat them like wool;
p but my righteousness will be forever,
and my salvation to all generations."

9 u Awake, awake, v put on strength,
O w arm of the Lord;
awake, x as in days of old,
the generations of long ago.
Was it not you who cut y Rahab in pieces,
who pierced z the dragon?
 10 a Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep,
who made the depths of the sea a way
for the redeemed to pass over?
 11 b And the ransomed of the Lord shall return
and come to Zion with singing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain gladness and joy,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

12 "I, I am he c who comforts you;
who are you that you are afraid of d man who dies,
of the son of man who is made e like grass,
 13 and have forgotten the Lord, your Maker,
f who stretched out the heavens
and g laid the foundations of the earth,
and you fear continually all the day
because of the wrath of h the oppressor,
when he sets himself to destroy?
And where is the wrath of h the oppressor?
 14 i He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;
he shall not die and go down j to the pit,
neither shall his bread be lacking.
 15 I am the Lord your God,
k who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar -
the Lord of hosts is his name.
 16 l And I have put my words in your mouth
m and covered you in the shadow of my hand,
n establishing 3 the heavens
and o laying the foundations of the earth,
and saying to Zion, 'You are my people.'"

17 p Wake yourself, wake yourself,
stand up, O Jerusalem,
q you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup of his wrath,
who have drunk to the dregs
the bowl, r the cup of staggering.
 18 s There is none to guide her
among all the sons she has borne;
there is none to take her by the hand
among all the sons she has brought up.
 19 t These two things have happened to you -
who will console you? -
devastation and destruction, famine and sword;
who will comfort you? 4
20 u Your sons have fainted;
they lie at the head of every street
like an v antelope w in a net;
they are full of the wrath of the Lord,
the rebuke of your God.

21 x Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,
who are drunk, but not with wine:
 22 Thus says your Lord, the Lord,
your God y who pleads the cause of his people:
"Behold, I have taken from your hand r the cup of staggering;
the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;
 23 z and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,
a who have said to you,
'Bow down, that we may pass over';
and b you have made your back like the ground
and like the street for them to pass over."

  1. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:7
    Listen to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; fear not the reproach of man, nor be dismayed at their revilings.
  2. Cross References
    Ezekiel 33:24
    "Son of man, the inhabitants of these waste places in the land of Israel keep saying, 'Abraham was only one man, yet he got possession of the land; but we are many; the land is surely given us to possess.'
  3. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:1
    Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
    Isaiah 52:9
    Break forth together into singing, you waste places of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people; he has redeemed Jerusalem.
  4. Cross References
    Genesis 2:8
    And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.
    Ezekiel 28:13
    You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared.
    Ezekiel 31:9
    I made it beautiful in the mass of its branches, and all the trees of Eden envied it, that were in the garden of God.
    Joel 2:3
    Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.
  5. Cross References
    Genesis 13:10
    And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)
  6. Cross References
    Isaiah 35:10
    And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
  7. Cross References
    Psalms 78:1
    Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
  8. Cross References
    Isaiah 2:3
    And many peoples shall come, and say: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths." For out of Zion shall go the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
  9. Cross References
    Isaiah 46:13
    I bring near my righteousness; it is not far off, and my salvation will not delay; I will put salvation in Zion, for Israel my glory.
  10. Cross References
    Isaiah 11:11
    In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
  11. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:26
    Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing.
  12. Cross References
    Psalms 102:26
    They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away.
    Matthew 24:25
    See, I have told you beforehand.
    2 Peter 3:10
    But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
    Revelation 21:1
    Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
  13. Cross References
    Psalms 102:27 - 28
    But you are the same, and your years have no end.
  14. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:1
    Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the Lord : look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.
  15. Cross References
    Psalms 37:31
    The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip.
  16. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:14
    Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord ; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
    Matthew 10:28
    And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
  17. Cross References
    Isaiah 50:9
    Behold, the Lord God helps me; who will declare me guilty? Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment; the moth will eat them up.
  18. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:6
    Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; but my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed.
  19. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:17
    Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering.
    Isaiah 52:1
    Awake, awake, put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for there shall no more come into you the uncircumcised and the unclean.
  20. Cross References
    Psalms 93:1
    The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
  21. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:10
    Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.
    Isaiah 52:10
    The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
    Isaiah 53:1
    Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
    Luke 1:51
    He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
  22. Cross References
    Psalms 44:1
    O God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers have told us, what deeds you performed in their days, in the days of old:
  23. Cross References
    Isaiah 30:7
    Egypt's help is worthless and empty; therefore I have called her "Rahab who sits still.
  24. Cross References
    Isaiah 27:1
    In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea.
    Psalms 74:13 - 14
    You divided the sea by your might; you broke the heads of the sea monsters on the waters.
    Ezekiel 29:3
    Speak, and say, Thus says the Lord God : "Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, 'My Nile is my own; I made it for myself.
  25. Cross References
    Isaiah 43:16
    Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters.
    Exodus 14:21
    Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
    Psalms 106:9
    He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry, and he led them through the deep as through a desert.
  26. Cross References
    Isaiah 35:10
    And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
  27. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:1
    Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
    Isaiah 66:13
    As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
  28. Cross References
    Psalms 118:6
    The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
  29. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:6
    A voice says, "Cry!" And I said, "What shall I cry?" All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
  30. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:22
    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.
  31. Cross References
    Isaiah 48:13
    My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together.
  32. Cross References
    Isaiah 14:4
    You will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: "How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased!
  33. Cross References
    Isaiah 14:4
    You will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: "How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased!
  34. Cross References
    Isaiah 45:13
    I have stirred him up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways level; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward," says the Lord of hosts.
  35. Cross References
    Zechariah 9:11
    As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
  36. Cross References
    Jeremiah 31:35
    Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for light by day and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar - the Lord of hosts is his name:
  37. Cross References
    Isaiah 59:21
    "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."
    Isaiah 50:4
    The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.
  38. Cross References
    Isaiah 49:2
    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.
  39. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:22
    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.
  40. Cross References
    Isaiah 48:13
    My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together.
  41. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:9
    Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord ; awake, as in days of old, the generations of long ago. Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces, who pierced the dragon?
    Isaiah 52:1
    Awake, awake, put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for there shall no more come into you the uncircumcised and the unclean.
  42. Cross References
    Job 21:20
    Let their own eyes see their destruction, and l...
    Jeremiah 25:15
    Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: "...
    Matthew 20:22
    Jesus answered, "You do not know what you are a...
    Matthew 26:39
    And going a little farther he fell on his face ...
    Matthew 26:42
    Again, for the second time, he went away and pr...
    Mark 10:38
    Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you a...
    Mark 14:36
    And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are poss...
    Luke 22:42
    Saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove thi...
    John 18:11
    So Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into it...
  43. Cross References
    Psalms 60:3
    You have made your people see hard things; you have given us wine to drink that made us stagger.
    Zechariah 12:2
    Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah.
  44. Cross References
    Psalms 74:9
    We do not see our signs; there is no longer any prophet, and there is none among us who knows how long.
    Jeremiah 5:31
    The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?
  45. Cross References
    Isaiah 47:9
    These two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day; the loss of children and widowhood shall come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the great power of your enchantments.
  46. Cross References
    Lamentations 2:11 - 12
    My eyes are spent with weeping; my stomach churns; my bile is poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babies faint in the streets of the city.
  47. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 14:5
    The deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep.
  48. Cross References
    Psalms 141:10
    Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by safely.
  49. Cross References
    Isaiah 54:11
    O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted, behold, I will set your stones in antimony, and lay your foundations with sapphires.
  50. Cross References
    Jeremiah 50:34
    Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name. He will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.
    Isaiah 49:25
    For thus says the Lord : "Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued, for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.
  51. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:17
    Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering.
  52. Cross References
    Jeremiah 25:17
    So I took the cup from the Lord 's hand, and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it:
    Jeremiah 25:26
    All the kings of the north, far and near, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth. And after them the king of Babylon shall drink.
    Jeremiah 25:28
    And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts: You must drink!
  53. Cross References
    Isaiah 47:6
    I was angry with my people; I profaned my heritage; I gave them into your hand; you showed them no mercy; on the aged you made your yoke exceedingly heavy.
  54. Cross References
    Isaiah 52:2
    Shake yourself from the dust and arise; be seated, O Jerusalem; loose the bonds from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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