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Isaiah 49

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1 ἀκούσατέ μου νῆσοι καὶ προσέχετε ἔθνη διὰ χρόνου πολλοῦ στήσεται λέγει κύριος ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός μου ἐκάλεσεν τὸ ὄνομά μου 2 καὶ ἔθηκεν τὸ στόμα μου ὡσεὶ μάχαιραν ὀξεῖαν καὶ ὑπὸ τὴν σκέπην τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ ἔκρυψέν με ἔθηκέν με ὡς βέλος ἐκλεκτὸν καὶ ἐν τῇ φαρέτρᾳ αὐτοῦ ἐσκέπασέν με 3 καὶ εἶπέν μοι δοῦλός μου εἶ σύ Ισραηλ καὶ ἐν σοὶ δοξασθήσομαι 4 καὶ ἐγὼ εἶπα κενῶς ἐκοπίασα καὶ εἰς μάταιον καὶ εἰς οὐδὲν ἔδωκα τὴν ἰσχύν μου διὰ τοῦτο ἡ κρίσις μου παρὰ κυρίῳ καὶ ὁ πόνος μου ἐναντίον τοῦ θεοῦ μου 5 καὶ νῦν οὕτως λέγει κύριος ὁ πλάσας με ἐκ κοιλίας δοῦλον ἑαυτῷ τοῦ συναγαγεῖν τὸν Ιακωβ καὶ Ισραηλ πρὸς αὐτόν συναχθήσομαι καὶ δοξασθήσομαι ἐναντίον κυρίου καὶ ὁ θεός μου ἔσται μου ἰσχύς 6 καὶ εἶπέν μοι μέγα σοί ἐστιν τοῦ κληθῆναί σε παῖδά μου τοῦ στῆσαι τὰς φυλὰς Ιακωβ καὶ τὴν διασπορὰν τοῦ Ισραηλ ἐπιστρέψαι ἰδοὺ τέθεικά σε εἰς διαθήκην γένους εἰς φῶς ἐθνῶν τοῦ εἶναί σε εἰς σωτηρίαν ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς

1 Listen, remote islands; pay heed to me, nations from far away. Ere ever I was born, the Lord sent me his summons, kept me in mind already, when I lay in my mother’s womb.[1] 2 Word of mine is sword of his, ready sharpened, under cover of his hand; arrow he has chosen out carefully, hidden yet in his quiver. 3 Thou art my servant, he whispers, thou art the Israel I claim for my own.[2] 4 To me, all my labour seemed useless, my strength worn out in vain; his to judge me, he, my God, must reward my work as he would. 5 But now a new message he sends me; I am his servant, appointed ever since I lay in the womb, to bring Jacob back to him. What if Israel will not answer the summons? None the less, the Lord destines me to honour; none the less, he, my God, protects me. 6 Use thee I will, he promises, nor with thy service be content, when the tribes of Jacob thou hast summoned, brought back the poor remnant of Israel; nay, I have appointed thee to be the light of the Gentiles, in thee I will send out my salvation to the furthest corners of the earth.

1

Audite, insulæ,
et attendite, populi de longe:
Dominus ab utero vocavit me;
de ventre matris meæ recordatus est nominis mei. 2
Et posuit os meum quasi gladium acutum,
in umbra manus suæ protexit me,
et posuit me sicut sagittam electam:
in pharetra sua abscondit me. 3
Et dixit mihi: Servus meus es tu Israël,
quia in te gloriabor. 4
Et ego dixi: In vacuum laboravi;
sine causa et vane fortitudinem meam consumpsi:
ergo judicium meum cum Domino,
et opus meum cum Deo meo. 5
Et nunc dicit Dominus,
formans me ex utero servum sibi,
ut reducam Jacob ad eum,
et Israël non congregabitur;
et glorificatus sum in oculis Domini,
et Deus meus factus est fortitudo mea. 6
Et dixit: Parum est ut sis mihi servus
ad suscitandas tribus Jacob,
et fæces Israël convertendas:
ecce dedi te in lucem gentium,
ut sis salus mea
usque ad extremum terræ.

7 οὕτως λέγει κύριος ὁ ῥυσάμενός σε ὁ θεὸς Ισραηλ ἁγιάσατε τὸν φαυλίζοντα τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ τὸν βδελυσσόμενον ὑπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν τῶν δούλων τῶν ἀρχόντων βασιλεῖς ὄψονται αὐτὸν καὶ ἀναστήσονται ἄρχοντες καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτῷ ἕνεκεν κυρίου ὅτι πιστός ἐστιν ὁ ἅγιος Ισραηλ καὶ ἐξελεξάμην σε

7 A message from the Lord, Israel’s ransomer, Israel’s Holy One, to the despised one, to the nation that is abhorred,[3] to the slave of tyrants: Kings, when they see this, shall rise up from their thrones, princes too, and fall down to worship, in honour of the Lord, that keeps his promise so faithfully, the Holy One of Israel, that claims thee still.

7
Hæc dicit Dominus,
redemptor Israël, Sanctus ejus,
ad contemptibilem animam, ad abominatam gentem,
ad servum dominorum:
Reges videbunt,
et consurgent principes, et adorabunt
propter Dominum, quia fidelis est,
et Sanctum Israël qui elegit te.

8 οὕτως λέγει κύριος καιρῷ δεκτῷ ἐπήκουσά σου καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ σωτηρίας ἐβοήθησά σοι καὶ ἔδωκά σε εἰς διαθήκην ἐθνῶν τοῦ καταστῆσαι τὴν γῆν καὶ κληρονομῆσαι κληρονομίαν ἐρήμου 9 λέγοντα τοῖς ἐν δεσμοῖς ἐξέλθατε καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῷ σκότει ἀνακαλυφθῆναι καὶ ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτῶν βοσκηθήσονται καὶ ἐν πάσαις ταῖς τρίβοις ἡ νομὴ αὐτῶν 10 οὐ πεινάσουσιν οὐδὲ διψήσουσιν οὐδὲ πατάξει αὐτοὺς καύσων οὐδὲ ὁ ἥλιος ἀλλὰ ὁ ἐλεῶν αὐτοὺς παρακαλέσει καὶ διὰ πηγῶν ὑδάτων ἄξει αὐτούς 11 καὶ θήσω πᾶν ὄρος εἰς ὁδὸν καὶ πᾶσαν τρίβον εἰς βόσκημα αὐτοῖς 12 ἰδοὺ οὗτοι πόρρωθεν ἔρχονται οὗτοι ἀπὸ βορρᾶ καὶ οὗτοι ἀπὸ θαλάσσης ἄλλοι δὲ ἐκ γῆς Περσῶν 13 εὐφραίνεσθε οὐρανοί καὶ ἀγαλλιάσθω ἡ γῆ ῥηξάτωσαν τὰ ὄρη εὐφροσύνην καὶ οἱ βουνοὶ δικαιοσύνην ὅτι ἠλέησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ τοὺς ταπεινοὺς τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ παρεκάλεσεν

8 Thus says the Lord, Here is a time of pardon, when prayer of thine shall be answered, a day of salvation, when I will bring thee aid. I have kept thee in readiness, to make, by thy means, a covenant with my people.[4] Thine to revive a ruined country, to parcel out the forfeited lands anew, 9 men that are bound in darkness restoring to freedom and to the light. There shall be pasture for my flock by the wayside, feeding-grounds they shall have on all the barren uplands; 10 they will hunger and thirst no more, noonday heat nor sun overpower them; theirs is a merciful shepherd, that will lead them to welling fountains and give them drink. 11 And I will turn all these mountains of mine into a highroad for you; safe through the uplands my path shall lead. 12 See how they come from far away! Exiles from north and west, exiles from the south country return. 13 Ring out, heaven, with praise; let earth keep holiday, and its mountains echo that praise again; the Lord brings consolation to his people, takes pity on their need.

8

Hæc dicit Dominus:
In tempore placito exaudivi te,
et in die salutis auxiliatus sum tui:
et servavi te, et dedi te in fœdus populi,
ut suscitares terram,
et possideres hæreditates dissipatas; 9
ut diceres his qui vincti sunt: Exite,
et his qui in tenebris: Revelamini.
Super vias pascentur,
et in omnibus planis pascua eorum. 10
Non esurient neque sitient,
et non percutiet eos æstus et sol,
quia miserator eorum reget eos,
et ad fontes aquarum potabit eos. 11
Et ponam omnes montes meos in viam,
et semitæ meæ exaltabuntur. 12
Ecce isti de longe venient,
et ecce illi ab aquilone et mari,
et isti de terra australi. 13
Laudate, cæli, et exsulta, terra;
jubilate, montes, laudem,
quia consolatus est Dominus populum suum,
et pauperum suorum miserebitur.

14 εἶπεν δὲ Σιων ἐγκατέλιπέν με κύριος καὶ ὁ κύριος ἐπελάθετό μου 15 μὴ ἐπιλήσεται γυνὴ τοῦ παιδίου αὐτῆς τοῦ μὴ ἐλεῆσαι τὰ ἔκγονα τῆς κοιλίας αὐτῆς εἰ δὲ καὶ ἐπιλάθοιτο ταῦτα γυνή ἀλ{L'} ἐγὼ οὐκ ἐπιλήσομαί σου εἶπεν κύριος 16 ἰδοὺ ἐπὶ τῶν χειρῶν μου ἐζωγράφησά σου τὰ τείχη καὶ ἐνώπιόν μου εἶ διὰ παντός 17 καὶ ταχὺ οἰκοδομηθήσῃ ὑ{F'} ὧν καθῃρέθης καὶ οἱ ἐρημώσαντές σε ἐκ σοῦ ἐξελεύσονται 18 ἆρον κύκλῳ τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου καὶ ἰδὲ πάντας ἰδοὺ συνήχθησαν καὶ ἤλθοσαν πρὸς σέ ζῶ ἐγώ λέγει κύριος ὅτι πάντας αὐτοὺς ἐνδύσῃ καὶ περιθήσῃ αὐτοὺς ὡς κόσμον νύμφης 19 ὅτι τὰ ἔρημά σου καὶ τὰ διεφθαρμένα καὶ τὰ πεπτωκότα νῦν στενοχωρήσει ἀπὸ τῶν κατοικούντων καὶ μακρυνθήσονται ἀπὸ σοῦ οἱ καταπίνοντές σε 20 ἐροῦσιν γὰρ εἰς τὰ ὦτά σου οἱ υἱοί σου οὓς ἀπολώλεκας στενός μοι ὁ τόπος ποίησόν μοι τόπον ἵνα κατοικήσω 21 καὶ ἐρεῖς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου τίς ἐγέννησέν μοι τούτους ἐγὼ δὲ ἄτεκνος καὶ χήρα τούτους δὲ τίς ἐξέθρεψέν μοι ἐγὼ δὲ κατελείφθην μόνη οὗτοι δέ μοι ποῦ ἦσαν 22 οὕτως λέγει κύριος ἰδοὺ αἴρω εἰς τὰ ἔθνη τὴν χεῖρά μου καὶ εἰς τὰς νήσους ἀρῶ σύσσημόν μου καὶ ἄξουσιν τοὺς υἱούς σου ἐν κόλπῳ τὰς δὲ θυγατέρας σου ἐ{P'} ὤμων ἀροῦσιν 23 καὶ ἔσονται βασιλεῖς τιθηνοί σου αἱ δὲ ἄρχουσαι τροφοί σου ἐπὶ πρόσωπον τῆς γῆς προσκυνήσουσίν σοι καὶ τὸν χοῦν τῶν ποδῶν σου λείξουσιν καὶ γνώσῃ ὅτι ἐγὼ κύριος καὶ οὐκ αἰσχυνθήσῃ

14 Did Sion complain, the Lord has forsaken me, my own Master gives me never a thought? 15 What, can a woman forget her child that is still unweaned, pity no longer the son she bore in her womb? Let her forget; I will not be forgetful of thee. 16 Why, I have cut thy image on the palms of my hands; those walls of thine dwell before my eyes continually. 17 Here are craftsmen ready to build thee again; vanished, now, the spoilers that plundered thee. 18 Look about thee, and see thy children met together, coming back to thee; As I am living God, the Lord says, all these shall be a robe to deck thee, shall ring thee round like a bride’s jewels; 19 the silent homes, the lonely places of a ruined country-side, shall have no room, now, for thy many inhabitants, when all that robbed thee of thy lands have fled far away. 20 Sons born to thee in the days of thy barrenness shall cry out, Here all is confined, give me room to live! 21 Who has begotten me these? thou wilt ask. Barren days of exile, when I could not give birth; who has reared me these, when I was left solitary? Where were these all the while? 22 Even now, says the Lord God, I will beckon to the nations, lift up a signal for all the world to see; son and daughter of thine shall be nursed in their arms, carried on their shoulders. 23 Thou shalt have kings to foster them, queens to nurse them for thee; kings and queens shall bow to earth before thee, kissing the dust thy feet have trodden. And thou shalt know at last what a Lord I am, a Lord none ever trusted in vain.

14

Et dixit Sion: Dereliquit me Dominus,
et Dominus oblitus est mei. 15
Numquid oblivisci potest mulier infantem suum,
ut non misereatur filio uteri sui?
Etsi illa oblita fuerit,
ego tamen non obliviscar tui. 16
Ecce in manibus meis descripsi te;
muri tui coram oculis meis semper. 17
Venerunt structores tui;
destruentes te et dissipantes a te exibunt. 18
Leva in circuitu oculos tuos, et vide:
omnes isti congregati sunt, venerunt tibi.
Vivo ego, dicit Dominus,
quia omnibus his velut ornamento vestieris,
et circumdabis tibi eos quasi sponsa; 19
quia deserta tua, et solitudines tuæ,
et terra ruinæ tuæ,
nunc angusta erunt præ habitatoribus;
et longe fugabuntur qui absorbebant te. 20
Adhuc dicent in auribus tuis
filii sterilitatis tuæ:
Angustus est mihi locus;
fac spatium mihi ut habitem. 21
Et dices in corde tuo:
Quis genuit mihi istos?
ego sterilis et non pariens,
transmigrata, et captiva;
et istos quis enutrivit?
ego destituta et sola;
et isti ubi erant? 22
Hæc dicit Dominus Deus:
Ecce levabo ad gentes manum meam,
et ad populos exaltabo signum meum:
et afferent filios tuos in ulnis,
et filias tuas super humeros portabunt. 23
Et erunt reges nutritii tui,
et reginæ nutrices tuæ;
vultu in terram demisso adorabunt te,
et pulverem pedum tuorum lingent.
Et scies quia ego Dominus,
super quo non confundentur qui exspectant eum.

24 μὴ λήμψεταί τις παρὰ γίγαντος σκῦλα καὶ ἐὰν αἰχμαλωτεύσῃ τις ἀδίκως σωθήσεται 25 οὕτως λέγει κύριος ἐάν τις αἰχμαλωτεύσῃ γίγαντα λήμψεται σκῦλα λαμβάνων δὲ παρὰ ἰσχύοντος σωθήσεται ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν κρίσιν σου κρινῶ καὶ ἐγὼ τοὺς υἱούς σου ῥύσομαι 26 καὶ φάγονται οἱ θλίψαντές σε τὰς σάρκας αὐτῶν καὶ πίονται ὡς οἶνον νέον τὸ αἷμα αὐτῶν καὶ μεθυσθήσονται καὶ αἰσθανθήσεται πᾶσα σὰρξ ὅτι ἐγὼ κύριος ὁ ῥυσάμενός σε καὶ ἀντιλαμβανόμενος ἰσχύος Ιακωβ

24 Shall the strong be robbed of his spoil? Who shall deliver the captives from a warrior’s hand?[5] 25 Captives of the strong, the Lord says, shall be taken away from him, the valiant warrior shall lose his spoil. I will pass judgement on the men who have been thy judges, and thy own children shall escape. 26 I will feed thy enemies on their own flesh, give them their own blood to make them drunk, and all mankind shall know that I, the Lord, have delivered thee, that I, the Prince of Israel, have brought thee rescue.

24
Numquid tolletur a forti præda?
aut quod captum fuerit a robusto, salvum esse poterit? 25
Quia hæc dicit Dominus:
Equidem, et captivitas a forti tolletur,
et quod ablatum fuerit a robusto, salvabitur.
Eos vero qui judicaverunt te, ego judicabo,
et filios tuos ego salvabo. 26
Et cibabo hostes tuos carnibus suis,
et quasi musto, sanguine suo inebriabuntur,
et sciet omnis caro
quia ego Dominus salvans te,
et redemptor tuus fortis Jacob.

[1] It is not certain whether the speaker here is the prophet himself, or the servant of the Lord referred to in 42.1 and elsewhere.

[2] Perhaps in the sense that this one man is all the Israel left, at a time of general apostasy. The sentence may also be rendered, ‘Thou, Israel, art my servant’; but verse 6 below seems to indicate that the person addressed is a messenger sent to Israel, not the people itself.

[3] In the Hebrew text, the probable meaning is ‘to him that is abhorred by the nation’. This would mean that the promise is made to the Servant of the Lord (or perhaps to the prophet), not to the Jewish nation. Whatever explanation be given, it is not easy to be sure of the connexion of this verse either with what precedes it or with what follows it.

[4] Cf. II Cor. 6.2.

[5] Cf. Mt. 12.29.

Knox Translation Copyright © 2013 Westminster Diocese
Nihil Obstat. Father Anton Cowan, Censor.
Imprimatur. +Most Rev. Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster. 8th January 2012.
Re-typeset and published in 2012 by Baronius Press Ltd