Chapter 52

  Awake! awake! put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful robes, O Jerusalem, the holy town: for from now there will never again come into you the unclean and those without circumcision.  

  Make yourself clean from the dust; up! and take the seat of your power, O Jerusalem: the bands of your neck are loose, O prisoned daughter of Zion.  

  For the Lord says, You were given for nothing, and you will be made free without price.  

  For the Lord God says, My people went down at first into Egypt, to get a place for themselves there: and the Assyrian put a cruel yoke on them without cause.  

  Now then, what have I here? says the Lord, for my people are taken away without cause; they are made waste and give cries of sorrow, says the Lord, and all the day the nations put shame on my name.  

  For this cause I will make my name clear to my people; in that day they will be certain that it is my word which comes to them; see, here am I.  

  How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who comes with good news, who gives word of peace, saying that salvation is near; who says to Zion, Your God is ruling!  

  The voice of your watchmen! their voices are loud in song together; for they will see him, eye to eye, when the Lord comes back to Zion.  

  Give sounds of joy, make melody together, waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord has given comfort to his people, he has taken up the cause of Jerusalem.  

  The Lord has let his holy arm be seen by the eyes of all nations; and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.  

  Away! away! go out from there, touching no unclean thing; go out from among her; be clean, you who take up the vessels of the Lord.  

  For you will not go out suddenly, and you will not go in flight: for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will come after you to keep you.  

  See, my servant will do well in his undertakings, he will be honoured, and lifted up, and be very high.  

  As peoples were surprised at him, And his face was not beautiful, so as to be desired: his face was so changed by disease as to be unlike that of a man, and his form was no longer that of the sons of men.  

  So will nations give him honour; kings will keep quiet because of him: for what had not been made clear to them they will see; and they will give their minds to what had not come to their ears.