Isaiah · Brenton's English Septuagint
Isaiah 49 Brenton's English Septuagint
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (2)
- Square brackets mark words Brenton supplied for English sense.
- Old Testament only (no New Testament). First printed 1844; the 1851 edition added the deuterocanonical books.
1 Hearken to me, ye islands; and attend, ye Gentiles; after a long time it shall come to pass, saith the Lord: from my mother's womb he has called my name:
1 Listen, islands, to me. Listen, you peoples, from afar: Yahweh has called me from the womb; from the inside of my mother, he has mentioned my name.
2 and he has made my mouth as a sharp sword, and he has hid me under the shadow of his hand; he has made me as a choice shaft, and he has hid me in his quiver;
2 He has made my mouth like a sharp sword. He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand. He has made me a polished shaft. He has kept me close in his quiver.
3 and said to me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, and in thee I will be glorified.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have given my strength for vanity and for nothing: therefore is my judgment with the Lord, and my labour before my God.
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength in vain for nothing; yet surely the justice due to me is with Yahweh, and my reward with my God.”
5 And now, thus saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his own servant, to gather Jacob to him and Israel. I shall be gathered and glorified before the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.
5 Now Yahweh, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, says to bring Jacob again to him, and to gather Israel to him, for I am honorable in Yahweh’s eyes, and my God has become my strength.
6 And he said to me, [It is] a great thing for thee to be called my servant, to establish the tribes of Jacob, and to recover the dispersion of Israel: behold, I have given thee for the covenant of a race, for a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation to the end of the earth.
6 Indeed, he says, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give you as a light to the nations, that you may be my salvation to the end of the earth.”
7 Thus saith the Lord that delivered thee, the God of Israel, Sanctify him that despises his life, him that is abhorred by the nations that are the servants of princes: kings shall behold him, and princes shall arise, and shall worship him, for the Lord's sake: for the Holy One of Israel is faithful, and I have chosen thee.
7 Yahweh, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, says to him whom man despises, to him whom the nation abhors, to a servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and rise up, princes, and they shall worship, because of Yahweh who is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
8 Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I succoured thee: and I have formed thee, and given thee for a covenant of the nations, to establish the earth, and to cause to inherit the desert heritages:
8 Yahweh says, “I have answered you in an acceptable time. I have helped you in a day of salvation. I will preserve you and give you for a covenant of the people, to raise up the land, to make them inherit the desolate heritage,
9 saying to them that are in bonds, Go forth; and [bidding] them that are in darkness shew themselves. They shall be fed in all the ways, and in all the paths [shall be] their pasture.
9 saying to those who are bound, ‘Come out!’; to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves!’ “They shall feed along the paths, and their pasture shall be on all treeless heights.
10 They shall not hunger, neither shall they thirst; neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; but he that has mercy on them shall comfort [them], and by fountains of waters shall he lead them.
10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun strike them, for he who has mercy on them will lead them. He will guide them by springs of water.
11 And I will make every mountain a way, and every path a pasture to them.
11 I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways shall be exalted.
12 Behold, these shall come from far: [and] these from the north and the west, and others from the land of the Persians.
12 Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Sinim.”
13 Rejoice, ye heavens; and let the earth be glad: let the mountains break forth [with] joy; for the Lord has had mercy on his people, and has comforted the lowly ones of his people.
13 Sing, heavens, and be joyful, earth! Break out into singing, mountains! For Yahweh has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his afflicted.
14 But Sion said, The Lord has forsaken me, and, The Lord has forgotten me.
14 But Zion said, “Yahweh has forsaken me, and the Lord has forgotten me.”
15 Will a woman forget her child, so as not to have compassion upon the offspring of her womb? but if a woman should even forget these, yet I will not forget thee, saith the Lord.
15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, these may forget, yet I will not forget you!
16 Behold, I have painted thy walls on my hands, and thou art continually before me.
16 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Your walls are continually before me.
17 And thou shalt soon be built by those by whom thou wert destroyed, and they that made thee desolate shall go forth of thee.
17 Your children hurry. Your destroyers and those who devastated you will leave you.
18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and look on them all; behold, they are gathered together, and are come to thee. [As] I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt clothe thyself with them all as with an ornament, and put them on as a bride her attire.
18 Lift up your eyes all around, and see: all these gather themselves together, and come to you. As I live,” says Yahweh, “you shall surely clothe yourself with them all as with an ornament, and dress yourself with them, like a bride.
19 For thy desert and marred and ruined [places] shall now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that devoured thee shall be removed far from thee.
19 “For, as for your waste and your desolate places, and your land that has been destroyed, surely now that land will be too small for the inhabitants, and those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20 For thy sons whom thou hast lost shall say in thine ears, The place [is too] narrow for me: make room for me that I may dwell.
20 The children of your bereavement will say in your ears, ‘This place is too small for me. Give me a place to live in.’
21 And thou shalt say in thine heart, Who has begotten me these? whereas I [was] childless, and a widow; but who has brought up these for me? and I was left alone; but whence came these to me?
21 Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has conceived these for me, since I have been bereaved of my children and am alone, an exile, and wandering back and forth? Who has brought these up? Behold, I was left alone. Where were these?’”
22 Thus saith the Lord, [even] the Lord, Behold, I lift up mine hand to the nations, and I will lift up my signal to the islands: and they shall bring thy sons in [their] bosom, and shall bear thy daughters on [their] shoulders.
22 The Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations, and lift up my banner to the peoples. They shall bring your sons in their bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.
23 And kings shall be thy nursing-fathers, and their princesses thy nurses, they shall bow down to thee on the face of the earth, and shall lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord, and they that wait on me shall not be ashamed.
23 Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am Yahweh; and those who wait for me won’t be disappointed.”
24 Will any one take spoils from a giant? and if one should take [a man] captive unjustly, shall he be delivered?
24 Shall the plunder be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captives be delivered?
25 For thus saith the Lord, If one should take a giant captive, he shall take spoils, and he who takes [them] from a mighty [man] shall be delivered: for I will plead thy cause, and I will deliver thy children.
25 But Yahweh says, “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the plunder retrieved from the fierce, for I will contend with him who contends with you and I will save your children.
26 And they that afflicted thee shall eat their own flesh; and they shall drink their own blood as new wine, and shall be drunken: and all flesh shall perceive that I am the Lord that delivers thee, and that upholds the strength of Jacob.
26 I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh; and they will be drunk on their own blood, as with sweet wine. Then all flesh shall know that I, Yahweh, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
Cross references (26)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Jeremiah 1:5; Galatians 1:15; Isaiah 44:2; Isaiah 49:5; Luke 1:31
- 2 Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 1:16; Isaiah 50:4; Revelation 2:12; Isaiah 51:16
- 3 Isaiah 42:1; 1 Peter 2:9; Isaiah 44:23; John 17:1; Isaiah 52:13
- 4 Isaiah 35:4; Galatians 4:11; 2 Corinthians 12:15; Isaiah 62:11; Isaiah 40:10
- 5 John 3:35; Matthew 17:5; Romans 15:8; 1 Peter 3:22; Matthew 28:18
- 6 Acts 13:47; Isaiah 42:6; Luke 2:32; Psalm 98:2–3; Isaiah 52:10
- 7 1 Peter 2:4; Matthew 26:67; Isaiah 53:3; Isaiah 48:17; Psalm 72:10–11
- 8 2 Corinthians 6:2; Isaiah 42:6; Psalm 69:13; Hebrews 12:24; Isaiah 61:4
- 9 1 Peter 2:9; Isaiah 42:16; Isaiah 42:7; Luke 4:18; Psalm 69:33
- 10 Revelation 7:16–17; Matthew 5:6; Ezekiel 34:23; Isaiah 33:16; Psalm 121:5–6
- 11 Isaiah 11:16; Isaiah 62:10; Luke 3:4–5; Isaiah 35:8–10; Isaiah 40:3–4
- 12 Isaiah 43:5–6; Luke 13:29; Isaiah 2:2–3; Psalm 72:17; Psalm 72:10–11
- 13 Isaiah 44:23; Isaiah 51:3; Psalm 96:11–13; Isaiah 52:9; Isaiah 40:1–2
- 14 Isaiah 40:27; Psalm 22:1; Romans 11:1–5; Lamentations 5:20; Psalm 89:38–46
- 15 Isaiah 44:21; Psalm 103:13; Matthew 7:11; Jeremiah 31:20; Hosea 11:1
- 16 Haggai 2:23; Isaiah 60:18; Isaiah 62:6; Song of Songs 8:6; Isaiah 26:1
- 17 Isaiah 51:13; Isaiah 62:5; Isaiah 51:22–23; Ezekiel 28:24; Isaiah 51:18–20
- 18 Isaiah 54:1–3; Isaiah 61:10; Isaiah 66:12–13; Isaiah 54:9; Isaiah 54:7
- 19 Zechariah 10:10; Isaiah 54:1–2; Jeremiah 30:18–19; Isaiah 49:25–26; Isaiah 51:3
- 20 Joshua 17:14–16; Galatians 4:26–28; Hosea 1:10; Isaiah 60:4; 2 Kings 6:1
- 21 Isaiah 64:10; Galatians 3:29; Isaiah 54:3–8; Isaiah 5:13; Matthew 24:29–30
- 22 Luke 13:29; Psalm 86:9; Isaiah 14:2; Malachi 1:11; Psalm 67:4–7
- 23 Isaiah 60:14; Isaiah 60:16; Isaiah 60:3; Micah 7:17; Isaiah 45:14
- 24 Luke 11:21–22; Psalm 124:6–7; Matthew 12:29; Ezekiel 37:3; Isaiah 42:22
- 25 Isaiah 54:15–17; Isaiah 35:4; Isaiah 41:11–12; Jeremiah 50:33–34; Isaiah 54:13
- 26 Isaiah 9:20; Isaiah 41:14–20; Isaiah 9:4; Revelation 16:6; Ezekiel 39:7
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… kingdom, the earth has been called again by Christ [to its pristine condition], and Jerusalem rebuilt after the pattern of the Jerusalem above, of which the prophet Isaiah says, "Behold, I have depicted thy walls upon my hands, and thou art always in my sight." And the apostle, too, writing to the Galatians, says in like manner, "But the Jerusalem …
… Prophets foretold, that is, ye have leaves only), "lo, we turn to the Gentiles." For this also was foretold by the Prophets; "Behold, I have given Thee for a light of the Gentiles, that Thou mayest be My salvation unto the end of the earth." See then, the tree hath withered away; and Christ hath been removed unto the Gentiles, …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 6 (1888)
"For though," saith He, "a woman should forget the fruits of her womb, yet will I not forget thee."
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
This also the Prophet says in His person, From the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of My name; because the Angel foretold that He should be called Jesus.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)
… salutary doctrine, the Apostle Paul also says, "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son;" and God declares by the prophet, "In an acceptable time have I heard Thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee;" and yet again the apostle, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 7 (1888)