The Servant says he was called from the womb and is to be a light to the Gentiles, that God's salvation may reach to the end of the earth. Zion says the LORD has forgotten her, and God answers, Can a woman forget her sucking child?
1 Listen , O isles , unto me; and hearken , ye people , from far ; The LORD hath called me from the womb ; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name .
2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword ; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft ; in his quiver hath he hid me;
3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant , O Israel , in whom I will be glorified .
4 Then I said , I have laboured in vain , I have spent my strength for nought , and in vain : yet surely my judgment is with the LORD , and my work with my God .
5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant , to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered , yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD , and my God shall be my strength .
6 And he said , It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob , and to restore the preserved of Israel : I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles , that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth .
7 Thus saith the LORD , the Redeemer of Israel , and his Holy One , to him whom man despiseth , to him whom the nation abhorreth , to a servant of rulers , Kings shall see and arise , princes also shall worship , because of the LORD that is faithful , and the Holy One of Israel , and he shall choose thee.
8 Thus saith the LORD , In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people , to establish the earth , to cause to inherit the desolate heritages ;
9 That thou mayest say to the prisoners , Go forth ; to them that are in darkness , Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways , and their pastures shall be in all high places .
10 They shall not hunger nor thirst ; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.
11 And I will make all my mountains a way , and my highways shall be exalted .
12 Behold, these shall come from far : and, lo, these from the north and from the west ; and these from the land of Sinim .
13 Sing , O heavens ; and be joyful , O earth ; and break forth into singing , O mountains : for the LORD hath comforted his people , and will have mercy upon his afflicted .
14 But Zion said , The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.
15 Can a woman forget her sucking child , that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb ? yea, they may forget , yet will I not forget thee.
16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands ; thy walls are continually before me.
17 Thy children shall make haste ; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee.
18 Lift up thine eyes round about , and behold : all these gather themselves together , and come to thee. As I live , saith the LORD , thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament , and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.
19 For thy waste and thy desolate places , and the land of thy destruction , shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants , and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away .
20 The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears , The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell .
21 Then shalt thou say in thine heart , Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children , and am desolate , a captive , and removing to and fro ? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been?
22 Thus saith the Lord GOD , Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles , and set up my standard to the people : and they shall bring thy sons in their arms , and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders .
23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers , and their queens thy nursing mothers : they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth , and lick up the dust of thy feet ; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD : for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty , or the lawful captive delivered ?
25 But thus saith the LORD , Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away , and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered : for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children .
26 And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh ; and they shall be drunken with their own blood , as with sweet wine : and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer , the mighty One of Jacob .