Later the Lord explained, "In the same way that my servant Isaiah has walked around in undergarments and barefoot for the past three years, as an object lesson and omen pertaining to Egypt and Cush,

"At that time I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah.

Everyone will suffer -- the priest as well as the people, the master as well as the servant, the elegant lady as well as the female attendant, the seller as well as the buyer, the borrower as well as the lender, the creditor as well as the debtor.

I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant."'"

"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.

"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.

My servant is truly blind, my messenger is truly deaf. My covenant partner, the servant of the Lord, is truly blind.

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.

"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!

Remember these things, O Jacob, O Israel, for you are my servant. I formed you to be my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you!

For the sake of my servant Jacob, Israel, my chosen one, I call you by name and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize me.

Leave Babylon! Flee from the Babylonians! Announce it with a shout of joy! Make this known! Proclaim it throughout the earth! Say, 'The Lord protects his servant Jacob.

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

So now the Lord says, the one who formed me from birth to be his servant -- he did this to restore Jacob to himself, so that Israel might be gathered to him; and I will be honored in the Lord's sight, for my God is my source of strength --

he says, "Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant, to reestablish the tribes of Jacob, and restore the remnant of Israel? I will make you a light to the nations, so you can bring my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth."

This is what the Lord, the protector of Israel, their Holy One, says to the one who is despised and rejected by nations, a servant of rulers: "Kings will see and rise in respect, princes will bow down, because of the faithful Lord, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you."

Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys his servant? Whoever walks in deep darkness, without light, should trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.

"Look, my servant will succeed! He will be elevated, lifted high, and greatly exalted --

Having suffered, he will reflect on his work, he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. "My servant will acquit many, for he carried their sins.