Isaiah 61:3-11

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ¹  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ²  instead of discouragement. ³ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ⁴ 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ⁵ 

61:4 They will rebuild the perpetual ruins

and restore the places that were desolate; ⁶ 

they will reestablish the ruined cities,

the places that have been desolate since ancient times.

61:5 ⁷ “Foreigners will take care of ⁸  your sheep;

foreigners will work in your fields and vineyards.

61:6 You will be called, ‘the Lord’s priests,

servants of our God.’ ⁹ 

You will enjoy ¹⁰  the wealth of nations

and boast about ¹¹  the riches you receive from them. ¹² 

61:7 Instead of shame, you will get a double portion; ¹³ 

instead of humiliation, they will rejoice over the land they receive. ¹⁴ 

Yes, ¹⁵  they will possess a double portion in their land

and experience lasting joy.

61:8 For I, the Lord, love justice

and hate robbery and sin.

I will repay them because of my faithfulness; ¹⁶ 

I will make a permanent covenant with them.

61:9 Their descendants will be known among the nations,

their offspring among the peoples.

All who see them will recognize that

the Lord has blessed them.” ¹⁷ 

61:10 I ¹⁸  will greatly rejoice ¹⁹  in the Lord;

I will be overjoyed because of my God. ²⁰ 

For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;

he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. ²¹ 

I look like a bridegroom when he wears a turban as a priest would;

I look like a bride when she puts on her jewelry. ²² 

61:11 For just as the ground produces its crops

and a garden yields its produce,

so the sovereign Lord will cause deliverance ²³  to grow,

and give his people reason to praise him in the sight of all the nations. ²⁴ 

[61:3]  ¹ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ² tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ³ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ⁴ tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”

[61:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”

[61:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “and the formerly desolate places they will raise up.”

[61:5]  ⁷ sn The Lord speaks in vv. 7-8 (and possibly v. 9). It is not clear where the servant’s speech (see vv. 1-3a) ends and the Lord’s begins. Perhaps the direct address to the people signals the beginning of the Lord’s speech.

[61:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “will stand [in position] and shepherd.”

[61:6]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew text adds, “it will be said concerning you.”

[61:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “eat” (KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “feed on”; NLT “be fed with.”

[61:6]  ¹¹ tc The form in the Hebrew text is probably a corruption of יִתְאַמְּרוּ (yit’ammÿru), a Hitpael from אָמַר (’amar), meaning “boast about” (see HALOT 67 s.v. II אמר, HALOT 416 s.v. ימר, and BDB 56 s.v. אָמַר).

[61:6]  ¹² tn Heb “their glory” (i.e., riches).

[61:7]  ¹³ tn Heb “instead of your shame, a double portion.”

[61:7]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and [instead of] humiliation they will rejoice [over] their portion.” The term תָחָת (takhat, “instead of”) is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[61:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “therefore” (so KJV, NASB); NIV “and so.”

[61:8]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “in faithfulness”; NASB, NRSV, NLT “faithfully.”

[61:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “all who see them will recognize them, that they [are] descendants [whom] the Lord has blessed.”

[61:10]  ¹⁸ sn The speaker in vv. 10-11 is not identified, but it is likely that the personified nation (or perhaps Zion) responds here to the Lord’s promise of restoration.

[61:10]  ¹⁹ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.

[61:10]  ²⁰ tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”

[61:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”

[61:10]  ²² tn Heb “like a bridegroom [who] acts like a priest [by wearing] a turban, and like a bride [who] wears her jewelry.” The words “I look” are supplied for stylistic reasons and clarification.

[61:11]  ²³ tn Or perhaps, “righteousness,” but the context seems to emphasize deliverance and restoration (see v. 10 and 62:1).

[61:11]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and praise before all the nations.”