Isaiah 62

Salvation will come to Zion

1 Because I love Zion,

I will not be quiet.

I cannot stay quiet,

because Jerusalem is in trouble.

I will continue to speak until she is safe again.

I want her righteousness to shine

like the sun at dawn.

I want her salvation to be a bright light in the dark.

2 Jerusalem, the nations will see your righteousness.

All their kings will see how great you are.

People will call you by a new name,

which the Lord himself will give to you.

3 The Lord your God will hold you in his hand,

and you will bring him honour.

You will be like his beautiful crown!

4 They will no longer call you by the name ‘Alone’.

They will not call your land ‘Empty place’.

Instead, they will call you ‘The one that makes God happy’.

The name of your land will be ‘Married’.

Yes, the Lord will be very happy with you.

Your land will be his bride.

5 As a young man marries a pure young woman,

so your sons will marry you, Jerusalem.

Your God will be very happy that you belong to him,

as a bridegroom is happy with his new wife.

6 I have put guards on your walls, Jerusalem.

They should never be quiet,

during the day and during the night.

You people who cause the Lord to remember his promises,

never stop and rest!

7 Do not give the Lord a chance to rest,

until he has made Jerusalem strong again.

Continue to pray until he makes it a famous city

that the whole world will praise.

8 The Lord makes a strong promise,

and he has the power to make it happen.

He says:

‘I will never again take away your grain,

and give it to your enemies for food.

Foreign soldiers will not drink your wine

that you have worked very hard to make.

9 Instead, the people who pick the grain at harvest time

are the people who will eat it.

And they will praise the Lord for it.

The people who pick the grapes

will drink the wine.

They will drink it in the yards of my temple.’

10 Pass through the gates! Pass through the gates!

Prepare the way for the people to travel on.

Build up the road! Make it strong!

Remove the stones!

Lift up a flag,

so that the nations can see the way to go.

11 Look! The Lord has this message for the whole earth:

‘Say to the people of Zion,

“Look! Your Saviour is coming!

Look again! He is bringing his gifts with him.

He brings the prize that he has won.” ’

12 Their name will be ‘God's holy People’,

and ‘The People that the Lord has redeemed’.

And Jerusalem's name will be ‘The City where people are happy’,

and ‘The City that is full of people’.