42The LORD says, "Here is my servant, whom I strengthen - the one I have chosen, with whom I am pleased. I have filled him with my Spirit, and he will bring justice to every nation.H5650H8551H972H5315H7521H5414H7307H3318H4941H14712He will not shout or raise his voice or make loud speeches in the streets.H6817H5375H6963H8085H23513He will not break off a bent reed nor put out a flickering lamp. He will bring lasting justice to all.H7533H7070H7665H3544H6594H3518H3318H4941H5714He will not lose hope or courage; he will establish justice on the earth. Distant lands eagerly wait for his teaching."H3543H7533H7760H4941H776H339H3176H84515God created the heavens and stretched them out; he fashioned the earth and all that lives there; he gave life and breath to all its people. And now the LORD God says to his servant,H559H410H3068H1254H8064H5186H7554H776H6631H5414H5397H5971H7307H19806"I, the LORD, have called you and given you power to see that justice is done on earth. Through you I will make a covenant with all peoples; through you I will bring light to the nations.H3068H7121H6664H2388H3027H5341H5414H1285H5971H216H14717You will open the eyes of the blind and set free those who sit in dark prisons.H6491H5787H5869H3318H616H4525H3427H2822H3608H10048"I alone am the LORD your God. No other god may share my glory; I will not let idols share my praise.H3068H8034H3519H5414H312H8416H64569The things I predicted have now come true. Now I will tell you of new things even before they begin to happen."H7223H935H2319H5046H6779H8085
A Song of Praise
10Sing a new song to the LORD; sing his praise, all the world! Praise him, you that sail the sea; praise him, all creatures of the sea! Sing, distant lands and all who live there!H7891H3068H2319H7892H8416H7097H776H3381H3220H4393H339H342711Let the desert and its towns praise God; let the people of Kedar praise him! Let those who live in the city of Sela shout for joy from the tops of the mountains!H4057H5892H5375H2691H6938H3427H3427H5553H7442H6681H7218H202212Let those who live in distant lands give praise and glory to the LORD!H7760H3519H3068H5046H8416H33913The LORD goes out to fight like a warrior; he is ready and eager for battle. He gives a war cry, a battle shout; he shows his power against his enemies.H3068H3318H1368H5782H7068H376H4421H7321H6873H1396H341
God Promises to Help His People
14God says, "For a long time I kept silent; I did not answer my people. But now the time to act has come; I cry out like a woman in labor.H5769H2814H2790H662H6463H3205H5395H8074H7602H316215I will destroy the hills and mountains and dry up the grass and trees. I will turn the river valleys into deserts and dry up the pools of water.H2717H2022H1389H3001H6212H7760H5104H339H3001H9816"I will lead my blind people by roads they have never traveled. I will turn their darkness into light and make rough country smooth before them. These are my promises, and I will keep them without fail.H3212H5787H1870H3045H1869H5410H3045H7760H4285H216H6440H4625H4334H1697H6213H580017All who trust in idols, who call images their gods, will be humiliated and disgraced."H5472H268H1322H954H982H6459H559H4541H430
Israel’s Failure to Learn
18The LORD says, "Listen, you deaf people! Look closely, you that are blind!H8085H2795H5027H5787H720019Is anyone more blind than my servant, more deaf than the messenger I send?H5787H5650H2795H4397H7971H5787H7999H5787H3068H565020Israel, you have seen so much, but what has it meant to you? You have ears to hear with, but what have you really heard?"H7200H7200H7227H8104H6491H241H808521The LORD is a God who is eager to save, so he exalted his laws and teachings, and he wanted his people to honor them.H3068H2654H6664H1431H8451H14222But now his people have been plundered; they are locked up in dungeons and hidden away in prisons. They were robbed and plundered, with no one to come to their rescue.H5971H962H8154H6351H2352H970H2244H3608H1004H957H5337H4933H559H772523Will any of you listen to this? From now on will you listen with care?H238H7181H8085H26824Who gave Israel up to the looters? It was the LORD himself, against whom we sinned! We would not live as he wanted us to live or obey the teachings he gave us.H5414H3290H4933H4882H3478H962H3068H2098H2398H14H1980H1870H8085H845125So he made us feel the force of his anger and suffer the violence of war. Like fire his anger burned throughout Israel, but we never knew what was happening; we learned nothing at all from it.H8210H2534H639H5807H4421H3857H5439H3045H1197H7760H3820