No resident of Zion will say, "I am ill"; the people who live there will have their sin forgiven.

those whom the Lord has ransomed will return that way. They will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.

Your claim to have a strategy and military strength is just empty talk. In whom are you trusting, that you would dare to rebel against me?

"Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: 'Don't let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, "Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria."

Were the nations whom my predecessors destroyed -- the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar -- rescued by their gods?

Whom have you taunted and hurled insults at? At whom have you shouted and looked so arrogantly? At the Holy One of Israel!

Certainly you must have heard! Long ago I worked it out, in ancient times I planned it, and now I am bringing it to pass. The plan is this: Fortified cities will crash into heaps of ruins.

"I thought, 'In the middle of my life I must walk through the gates of Sheol, I am deprived of the rest of my years.'

Like a swallow or a thrush I chirp, I coo like a dove; my eyes grow tired from looking up to the sky. O sovereign master, I am oppressed; help me!

What can I say? He has decreed and acted. I will walk slowly all my years because I am overcome with grief.

Some of your very own descendants whom you father will be taken away and will be made eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.'"

From whom does he receive directions? Who teaches him the correct way to do things, or imparts knowledge to him, or instructs him in skillful design?

To whom can you compare God? To what image can you liken him?

"To whom can you compare me? Whom do I resemble?" says the Holy One.

Who acts and carries out decrees? Who summons the successive generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am present at the very beginning, and at the very end -- I am the one.

"You, my servant Israel, Jacob whom I have chosen, offspring of Abraham my friend,

you whom I am bringing back from the earth's extremities, and have summoned from the remote regions -- I told you, "You are my servant." I have chosen you and not rejected you.

Don't be afraid, for I am with you! Don't be frightened, for I am your God! I strengthen you -- yes, I help you -- yes, I uphold you with my saving right hand!

For I am the Lord your God, the one who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, 'Don't be afraid, I am helping you.'

Don't be afraid, despised insignificant Jacob, men of Israel. I am helping you," says the Lord, your protector, the Holy One of Israel.

"Look, I am making you like a sharp threshing sledge, new and double-edged. You will thresh the mountains and crush them; you will make the hills like straw.

"Here is my servant whom I support, my chosen one in whom I take pleasure. I have placed my spirit on him; he will make just decrees for the nations.

I am the Lord! That is my name! I will not share my glory with anyone else, or the praise due me with idols.

Who handed Jacob over to the robber? Who handed Israel over to the looters? Was it not the Lord, against whom we sinned? They refused to follow his commands; they disobeyed his law.

When you pass through the waters, I am with you; when you pass through the streams, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not harm you.

For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your deliverer. I have handed over Egypt as a ransom price, Ethiopia and Seba in place of you.

Don't be afraid, for I am with you. From the east I will bring your descendants; from the west I will gather you.

everyone who belongs to me, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed -- yes, whom I made!

You are my witnesses," says the Lord, "my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may consider and believe in me, and understand that I am he. No god was formed before me, and none will outlive me.

I, I am the Lord, and there is no deliverer besides me.

I decreed and delivered and proclaimed, and there was no other god among you. You are my witnesses," says the Lord, "that I am God.

From this day forward I am he; no one can deliver from my power; I will act, and who can prevent it?"

I am the Lord, your Holy One, the one who created Israel, your king."

"Look, I am about to do something new. Now it begins to happen! Do you not recognize it? Yes, I will make a road in the desert and paths in the wilderness.

the people whom I formed for myself, so they might praise me."

I, I am the one who blots out your rebellious deeds for my sake; your sins I do not remember.

"Now, listen, Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen!"

This is what the Lord, the one who made you, says -- the one who formed you in the womb and helps you: "Don't be afraid, my servant Jacob, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen!

This is what the Lord, Israel's king, says, their protector, the Lord who commands armies: "I am the first and I am the last, there is no God but me.

Half of it he burns in the fire -- over that half he cooks meat; he roasts a meal and fills himself. Yes, he warms himself and says, 'Ah! I am warm as I look at the fire.'

This is what the Lord, your protector, says, the one who formed you in the womb: "I am the Lord, who made everything, who alone stretched out the sky, who fashioned the earth all by myself,

I will give you hidden treasures, riches stashed away in secret places, so you may recognize that I am the Lord, the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel.

I am the Lord, I have no peer, there is no God but me. I arm you for battle, even though you do not recognize me.

I do this so people will recognize from east to west that there is no God but me; I am the Lord, I have no peer.

I am the one who forms light and creates darkness; the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. I am the Lord, who accomplishes all these things.

For this is what the Lord says, the one who created the sky -- he is the true God, the one who formed the earth and made it; he established it, he did not create it without order, he formed it to be inhabited -- "I am the Lord, I have no peer.

I have not spoken in secret, in some hidden place. I did not tell Jacob's descendants, 'Seek me in vain!' I am the Lord, the one who speaks honestly, who makes reliable announcements.

Turn to me so you can be delivered, all you who live in the earth's remote regions! For I am God, and I have no peer.

To whom can you compare and liken me? Tell me whom you think I resemble, so we can be compared!

Remember what I accomplished in antiquity! Truly I am God, I have no peer; I am God, and there is none like me,

I am bringing my deliverance near, it is not far away; I am bringing my salvation near, it does not wait. I will save Zion; I will adorn Israel with my splendor."

So now, listen to this, O one who lives so lavishly, who lives securely, who says to herself, 'I am unique! No one can compare to me! I will never have to live as a widow; I will never lose my children.'

You were complacent in your evil deeds; you thought, 'No one sees me.' Your self-professed wisdom and knowledge lead you astray, when you say, 'I am unique! No one can compare to me!'

You have heard; now look at all the evidence! Will you not admit that what I say is true? From this point on I am announcing to you new events that are previously unrevealed and you do not know about.

Listen to me, O Jacob, Israel, whom I summoned! I am the one; I am present at the very beginning and at the very end.

Approach me! Listen to this! From the very first I have not spoken in secret; when it happens, I am there." So now, the sovereign Lord has sent me, accompanied by his spirit.

This is what the Lord, your protector, says, the Holy One of Israel: "I am the Lord your God, who teaches you how to succeed, who leads you in the way you should go.

He said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, through whom I will reveal my splendor."

Kings will be your children's guardians; their princesses will nurse your children. With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you and they will lick the dirt on your feet. Then you will recognize that I am the Lord; those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.

I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine. Then all humankind will recognize that I am the Lord, your deliverer, your protector, the powerful ruler of Jacob."

But the sovereign Lord helps me, so I am not humiliated. For that reason I am steadfastly resolved; I know I will not be put to shame.

I am ready to vindicate, I am ready to deliver, I will establish justice among the nations. The coastlands wait patiently for me; they wait in anticipation for the revelation of my power.

Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return; they will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.

"I, I am the one who consoles you. Why are you afraid of mortal men, of mere human beings who are as short-lived as grass?

I am the Lord your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves surge. The Lord who commands armies is his name!

For this reason my people will know my name, for this reason they will know at that time that I am the one who says, 'Here I am.'"

"As far as I am concerned, this is like in Noah's time, when I vowed that the waters of Noah's flood would never again cover the earth. In the same way I have vowed that I will not be angry at you or shout at you.

"O afflicted one, driven away, and unconsoled! Look, I am about to set your stones in antimony and I lay your foundation with lapis-lazuli.

This is what the Lord says, "Promote justice! Do what is right! For I am ready to deliver you; I am ready to vindicate you openly.

No foreigner who becomes a follower of the Lord should say, 'The Lord will certainly exclude me from his people.' The eunuch should not say, 'Look, I am like a dried-up tree.'"

At whom are you laughing? At whom are you opening your mouth and sticking out your tongue? You are the children of rebels, the offspring of liars,

Whom are you worried about? Whom do you fear, that you would act so deceitfully and not remember me or think about me? Because I have been silent for so long, you are not afraid of me.

I am the one who gives them reason to celebrate. Complete prosperity is available both to those who are far away and those who are nearby," says the Lord, "and I will heal them.

Then you will call out, and the Lord will respond; you will cry out, and he will reply, 'Here I am.' You must remove the burdensome yoke from among you and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.

You will drink the milk of nations; you will nurse at the breasts of kings. Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your deliverer, your protector, the powerful ruler of Jacob.

All of your people will be godly; they will possess the land permanently. I will plant them like a shoot; they will be the product of my labor, through whom I reveal my splendor.

"I made myself available to those who did not ask for me; I appeared to those who did not look for me. I said, 'Here I am! Here I am!' to a nation that did not invoke my name.

They say, 'Keep to yourself! Don't get near me, for I am holier than you!' These people are like smoke in my nostrils, like a fire that keeps burning all day long.

For look, I am ready to create new heavens and a new earth! The former ones will not be remembered; no one will think about them anymore.

But be happy and rejoice forevermore over what I am about to create! For look, I am ready to create Jerusalem to be a source of joy, and her people to be a source of happiness.

For this is what the Lord says: "Look, I am ready to extend to her prosperity that will flow like a river, the riches of nations will flow into her like a stream that floods its banks. You will nurse from her breast and be carried at her side; you will play on her knees.

"I hate their deeds and thoughts! So I am coming to gather all the nations and ethnic groups; they will come and witness my splendor.

"For just as the new heavens and the new earth I am about to make will remain standing before me," says the Lord, "so your descendants and your name will remain.

I answered, "Oh, Lord God, I really do not know how to speak well enough for that, for I am too young."

The Lord said to me, "Do not say, 'I am too young.' But go to whomever I send you and say whatever I tell you.

Do not be afraid of those to whom I send you, for I will be with you to protect you," says the Lord.

Then the Lord said, "You have observed correctly. This means I am watching to make sure my threats are carried out."

"Go and shout this message to my people in the countries in the north. Tell them, 'Come back to me, wayward Israel,' says the Lord. 'I will not continue to look on you with displeasure. For I am merciful,' says the Lord. 'I will not be angry with you forever.

"Come back to me, my wayward sons," says the Lord, "for I am your true master. If you do, I will take one of you from each town and two of you from each family group, and I will bring you back to Zion.

Raise a signal flag that tells people to go to Zion. Run for safety! Do not delay! For I am about to bring disaster out of the north. It will bring great destruction.

No, a wind too strong for that will come at my bidding. Yes, even now I, myself, am calling down judgment on them.'

In fact, I hear a cry like that of a woman in labor, a cry of anguish like that of a woman giving birth to her first baby. It is the cry of Daughter Zion gasping for breath, reaching out for help, saying, "I am done in! My life is ebbing away before these murderers!"

The Lord says, "Listen, nation of Israel! I am about to bring a nation from far away to attack you. It will be a nation that was founded long ago and has lasted for a long time. It will be a nation whose language you will not know. Its people will speak words that you will not be able to understand.

I am as full of anger as you are, Lord, I am tired of trying to hold it in." The Lord answered, "Vent it, then, on the children who play in the street and on the young men who are gathered together. Husbands and wives are to be included, as well as the old and those who are advanced in years.

Hear this, you peoples of the earth: 'Take note! I am about to bring disaster on these people. It will come as punishment for their scheming. For they have paid no attention to what I have said, and they have rejected my law.

You steal. You murder. You commit adultery. You lie when you swear on oath. You sacrifice to the god Baal. You pay allegiance to other gods whom you have not previously known.

But I am not really the one being troubled!" says the Lord. "Rather they are bringing trouble on themselves to their own shame!

The Lord says, "Yes indeed, I am sending an enemy against you that will be like poisonous snakes which cannot be charmed away. And they will inflict fatal wounds on you."

Then I said, "There is no cure for my grief! I am sick at heart!

My heart is crushed because my dear people are being crushed. I go about crying and grieving. I am overwhelmed with dismay.