Study Desk

And now he says, "You are a very important servant to me. You must bring back to me the tribes of Jacob. You must bring back the people of Israel who are still alive. But I have something else for you to do that is even more important: I will make you a light for the other nations. You will show people all over the world the way to be saved."

The Lord , the Holy Protector of Israel, speaks to his servant. People hate that servant. Nations despise him. He is now a slave to rulers. The Lord says to him, "Kings will see you and stand to honor you. Great leaders will bow down to you." This will happen for the Lord . The Holy One of Israel is the one who chose you, and he can be trusted.

I will make a road for my people. The mountains will be made flat, and the low roads will be raised.

You were sad for the children you lost, but they will tell you, ‘This place is too small! Give us a bigger place to live!'

This is what the Lord God says: "Look, I will wave my hand to the nations. I will raise my flag for everyone to see. Then they will bring your children to you. They will carry your children on their shoulders, and they will hold them in their arms.

Kings will be their teachers. The daughters of kings will care for them. The kings and their daughters will bow down to you. They will kiss the dirt at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord , and anyone who trusts in me will not be disappointed."

But look, the Lord God helps me, so no one can prove me guilty. As for them, they will all be like worthless old clothes, eaten by moths.

"Some of you people try hard to live good lives. You go to the Lord for help. Listen to me. You should look at Abraham your father. He is the rock you were cut from.

In the same way, the Lord will bless Zion. He will feel sorry for her and her people, and he will do something great for her. He will turn the desert into a garden. It will be like the Garden of Eden. The land was empty, but it will become like the Lord 's garden. People there will be very happy. They will sing victory songs to thank God for what he did.

I will soon save you and show that I am fair. I will use my power and judge all nations. All the faraway places are waiting for me. They wait for my power to help them.

Jerusalem had many people, but none of them became leaders for her. None of the children she raised became guides to lead her.

Troubles came to you, Jerusalem, in pairs: Your land was destroyed and lies in ruins, and your people suffered from famine and war. But no one felt sorry for you or showed you mercy.

Your God is the one who fights for his people. He is your Lord God , and he says to you, "Look, I am taking this ‘cup of poison' away from you. It is full of my anger, and I am taking it out of your hand. You will not be punished by my anger again.

I will now use my anger to punish the people who hurt you. They tried to kill you. They told you, ‘Bow down before us, and we will walk on you.' They forced you to bow down before them, and then they walked on your back like dirt. You were like a road for them to walk on."

The Lord says, "You were not sold for money. So I will not use money to set you free."

The fact is, it was our suffering he took on himself; he bore our pain. But we thought that God was punishing him, that God was beating him for something he did.

But he was being punished for what we did. He was crushed because of our guilt. He took the punishment we deserved, and this brought us peace. We were healed because of his pain.

He was taken away by force and judged unfairly. The people of his time did not even notice that he was killed. But he was put to death for the sins of his people.

But the Lord was pleased with this humble servant who suffered such pain. Even after giving himself as an offering for sin, he will see his descendants and enjoy a long life. He will succeed in doing what the Lord wanted.

For this reason, I will treat him as one of my great people. I will give him the rewards of one who wins in battle, and he will share them with his powerful ones. I will do this because he gave his life for the people. He was considered a criminal, but the truth is, he carried away the sins of many. Now he will stand before me and speak for those who have sinned."