Isaiah 49:21-22

49:21 Then you will think to yourself, ¹ 

‘Who bore these children for me?

I was bereaved and barren,

dismissed and divorced. ² 

Who raised these children?

Look, I was left all alone;

where did these children come from?’”

49:22 This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“Look I will raise my hand to the nations;

I will raise my signal flag to the peoples.

They will bring your sons in their arms

and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

Isaiah 54:1-5

Zion Will Be Secure

54:1 “Shout for joy, O barren one who has not given birth!

Give a joyful shout and cry out, you who have not been in labor!

For the children of the desolate one are more numerous

than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.

54:2 Make your tent larger,

stretch your tent curtains farther out! ³ 

Spare no effort,

lengthen your ropes,

and pound your stakes deep. ⁴ 

54:3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;

your children will conquer ⁵  nations

and will resettle desolate cities.

54:4 Don’t be afraid, for you will not be put to shame!

Don’t be intimidated, ⁶  for you will not be humiliated!

You will forget about the shame you experienced in your youth;

you will no longer remember the disgrace of your abandonment. ⁷ 

54:5 For your husband is the one who made you –

the Lord who commands armies is his name.

He is your protector, ⁸  the Holy One of Israel. ⁹ 

He is called “God of the entire earth.”

Isaiah 60:1-5

Zion’s Future Splendor

60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!

The splendor ¹⁰  of the Lord shines on you!

60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth

and deep darkness covers ¹¹  the nations,

but the Lord shines on you;

his splendor ¹²  appears over you.

60:3 Nations come to your light,

kings to your bright light.

60:4 Look all around you! ¹³ 

They all gather and come to you –

your sons come from far away

and your daughters are escorted by guardians.

60:5 Then you will look and smile, ¹⁴ 

you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride. ¹⁵ 

For the riches of distant lands ¹⁶  will belong to you

and the wealth of nations will come to you.

Galatians 4:26-27

4:26 But the Jerusalem above is free, ¹⁷  and she is our mother. 4:27 For it is written:

“Rejoice, O barren woman who does not bear children; ¹⁸ 

break forth and shout, you who have no birth pains,

because the children of the desolate woman are more numerous

than those of the woman who has a husband.” ¹⁹ 

[49:21]  ¹ tn Heb “and you will say in your heart.”

[49:21]  ² tn Or “exiled and thrust away”; NIV “exiled and rejected.”

[54:2]  ³ tn Heb “the curtains of our dwelling places let them stretch out.”

[54:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “your stakes strengthen.”

[54:3]  ⁵ tn Or “take possession of”; NAB “shall dispossess.”

[54:4]  ⁶ tn Or “embarrassed”; NASB “humiliated…disgraced.”

[54:4]  ⁷ tn Another option is to translate, “the disgrace of our widowhood” (so NRSV). However, the following context (vv. 6-7) refers to Zion’s husband, the Lord, abandoning her, not dying. This suggests that an אַלְמָנָה (’almanah) was a woman who had lost her husband, whether by death or abandonment.

[54:5]  ⁸ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[54:5]  ⁹ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[60:1]  ¹⁰ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).

[60:2]  ¹¹ tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[60:2]  ¹² tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”

[60:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”

[60:5]  ¹⁴ tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[60:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”

[60:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.

[4:26]  ¹⁷ sn The meaning of the statement the Jerusalem above is free is that the other woman represents the second covenant (cf. v. 24); she corresponds to the Jerusalem above that is free. Paul’s argument is very condensed at this point.

[4:27]  ¹⁸ tn The direct object “children” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied for clarity. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[4:27]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “because more are the children of the barren one than of the one having a husband.”