שִׁמְעוּ אֵלַי רֹדְפֵי צֶדֶק מְבַקְשֵׁי ה' הַבִּיטוּ אֶל צוּר חֻצַּבְתֶּם וְאֶל מַקֶּבֶת בּוֹר נֻקַּרְתֶּם

Listen to Me, pursuers of justice, seekers of the Lord. For those interested in closeness to God, the prophet offers: Look to the rock from which you were hewn, that is, your foundation stones, and to the hole of the pit from which you were dug; return to your roots.

הַבִּיטוּ אֶל אַבְרָהָם אֲבִיכֶם וְאֶל שָׂרָה תְּחוֹלֶלְכֶם כִּי אֶחָד קְרָאתִיו וַאֲבָרְכֵהוּ וְאַרְבֵּהוּ

These foundation stones are a metaphor for Israel’s first patriarch and matriarch: Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah your maker; for as one I called him to Me; I declared him for Myself, I singled Abraham out by name, and I nurtured him. Abraham and Sarah were merely a couple, but I multiplied them and made them into a nation: And I blessed him and multiplied him. Abraham and Sarah were a barren couple who experienced rejuvenation after their childbearing years had passed, and they begot a nation that inherited the Land of Israel. Likewise, you, the stones hewn from them, will rise again and rebuild the land.

כִּי נִחַם ה' צִיּוֹן נִחַם כָּל חָרְבֹתֶיהָ וַיָּשֶׂם מִדְבָּרָהּ כְּעֵדֶן וְעַרְבָתָהּ כְּגַן ה' שָׂשׂוֹן וְשִׂמְחָה יִמָּצֵא בָהּ תּוֹדָה וְקוֹל זִמְרָה

For the Lord will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her ruins; He will render its wilderness fertile and pleasant like Eden and its desert like a garden of the Lord. Gladness and joy will be found in it, thanksgiving and the sound of music.

הַקְשִׁיבוּ אֵלַי עַמִּי וּלְאוּמִּי אֵלַי הַאֲזִינוּ כִּי תוֹרָה מֵאִתִּי תֵצֵא ומִשְׁפָּטִי לְאוֹר עַמִּים אַרְגִּיעַ

Pay attention to Me, My people, and listen to Me, My nation; for Torah will emerge from Me, and My judgment I will lay down [argia] upon the world as a light for peoples. The term argia may also indicate that the justice will be imposed in a calm manner [roga], or that God will impose tranquility upon the nations.

קָרוֹב צִדְקִי יָצָא יִשְׁעִי וּזְרֹעַי עַמִּים יִשְׁפֹּטוּ אֵלַי אִיִּים יְקַוּוּ וְאֶל זְרֹעִי יְיַחֵלוּן

My justice is near; My justice will soon be revealed. Retribution is approaching: My salvation has emerged and My arms will judge peoples; the lands of the sea will long for Me and for My arm, My strength, will they yearn. God’s power will be sought after, and it will be revealed at the time of the redemption, even at the far corners of the world (see also 11:10, 42:4).

שְׂאוּ לַשָּׁמַיִם עֵינֵיכֶם וְהַבִּיטוּ אֶל הָאָרֶץ מִתַּחַת כִּי שָׁמַיִם כֶּעָשָׁן נִמְלָחוּ וְהָאָרֶץ כַּבֶּגֶד תִּבְלֶה וְיֹשְׁבֶיהָ כְּמוֹ כֵן יְמוּתוּן וישׁוּעָתִי לְעוֹלָם תִּהְיֶה וְצִדְקָתִי לֹא תֵחָת

Raise your eyes to the heavens and look to the earth below, as the heavens will be eroded like smoke; alternatively, the verse means that the heavens will be in disarray. And the earth will be tattered like a garment. There will be great upheaval in the world; heaven and earth will not look as they appear now. And its, the earth’s, inhabitants, likewise, will die. But My salvation will be forever, and My righteousness will not be daunted; rather, it shall continue to grow and spread throughout the world. Some commentaries interpret the verse as follows: Even if heaven and earth were to be destroyed, God’s justice and salvation would remain. Others maintain that the verse alludes to a physical destruction of the world at the End of Days.

שִׁמְעוּ אֵלַי יֹדְעֵי צֶדֶק עַם תּוֹרָתִי בְלִבָּם אַל תִּירְאוּ חֶרְפַּת אֱנוֹשׁ וּמִגִּדֻּפֹתָם אַל תֵּחָתּוּ

In the meantime, listen to Me, knowers of justice, the people with My Torah in their heart; do not fear the revilement of man, and from their taunt do not be daunted.

כִּי כַבֶּגֶד יֹאכְלֵם עָשׁ וְכַצֶּמֶר יֹאכְלֵם סָס וְצִדְקָתִי לְעוֹלָם תִּהְיֶה וִישׁוּעָתִי לְדוֹר דּוֹרִים

For like a garment, a moth will eat them, the taunting enemies, and like wool, a caterpillar will eat them. The enemies do not pose a real threat. They are like a perforated garment: From a distance, the garment appears whole, but from up close, one can see that the garment has been chewed up and is not wearable. But My righteousness will be forever and My salvation for all generations.

עוּרִי עוּרִי לִבְשִׁי עֹז זְרוֹעַ ה'עוּרִי כִּימֵי קֶדֶם דֹּרוֹת עוֹלָמִים הֲלוֹא אַתְּ הִיא הַמַּחְצֶבֶת רַהַב מְחוֹלֶלֶת תַּנִּין

The prophet now addresses the arm of God: Awaken, awaken, don strength, arm of the Lord; let the might of God once again be revealed in the world. Awaken, like in days of old, as in generations of yore. Are you not, arm of God, that which hewed Rahav, which killed the sea serpent [tanin]? Rahav is a large, fearsome sea creature that is used to symbolize Egypt. The tanin is also an ancient monster that the hand of God will eliminate. The commentaries explain that the term tanin is a reference to Pharaoh, who is called “the great tanim that lies in the midst of his rivers.”

הֲלוֹא אַתְּ הִיא הַמַּחֲרֶבֶת יָם מֵי תְּהוֹם רַבָּה הַשָּׂמָה מַעֲמַקֵּי יָם דֶּרֶךְ לַעֲבֹר גְּאוּלִים

Are you not, arm of God, that which dried the sea, and the waters of the great deep; which rendered the depths of the sea a way to cross for the redeemed? It was the might of God that split the Red Sea and dried its depths so that the children of Israel could pass through it on their way out of Egypt.

וּפְדוּיֵי ה' יְשׁוּבוּן וּבָאוּ צִיּוֹן בְּרִנָּה וְשִׂמְחַת עוֹלָם עַל רֹאשָׁם שָׂשׂוֹן וְשִׂמְחָה יַשִּׂיגוּן נָסוּ יָגוֹן וַאֲנָחָה

So shall it be in the future: The redeemed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with song, and eternal and unbounded joy will be upon their heads; then, they will attain gladness and joy; sorrow and sighing will flee (see 35:10).

אָנֹכִי אָנֹכִי הוּא מְנַחֶמְכֶם מִי אַתְּ וַתִּירְאִי מֵאֱנוֹשׁ יָמוּת וּמִבֶּן אָדָם חָצִיר יִנָּתֵן

It is I, I who am your Comforter; therefore, who are you, that you fear mortal man, and a person who will be rendered to grass? Why should the children of Israel fear mere mortals, who are compared to grass that withers away or is cut? You fear mortal man because you have forgotten the source of your strength.

וַתִּשְׁכַּח ה' עֹשֶׂךָ נוֹטֶה שָׁמַיִם וְיֹסֵד אָרֶץ וַתְּפַחֵד תָּמִיד כָּל הַיּוֹם מִפְּנֵי חֲמַת הַמֵּצִיק כַּאֲשֶׁר כּוֹנֵן לְהַשְׁחִית – וְאַיֵּה חֲמַת הַמֵּצִיק!

You forgot the Lord your Maker, who spread the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth. God, in His might, created the world; it is only because you do not remember Him that you have feared continually all day due to the fury of the oppressor, when he prepares his weapons to destroy. But look around you: Where is the fury of the oppressor? What is left of all those threats, of the bows that were aimed at you? You are wasting your time and energy with unnecessary concerns over transient matters. Instead, rely on the might of God, which is not bounded by time, place, or ability.

מִהַר צֹעֶה לְהִפָּתֵחַ וְלֹא יָמוּת לַשַּׁחַת וְלֹא יֶחְסַר לַחְמוֹ

The wanderer, the exiled nation of Israel, will quickly be released from exile. Tzoeh may also mean the subordinate, the distressed, or the one who shouts. According to some commentaries, the verse means that Israel’s oppressor is weak and lowly, easily separated from its weaponry, or quickly emits its bile from its body. He will not die in the destruction, and his bread will not be lacking.

וְאָנֹכִי ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ רֹגַע הַיָּם וַיֶּהֱמוּ גַּלָּיו ה' צְבָאוֹת שְׁמוֹ

And I am the Lord your God, who constrains [roga] the sea though its waves rage. Some interpret the term roga to mean that God constrains the sea, or conversely, that He stirs it. In any case, the verse means that since God controls the storms and waves of the sea, it is certainly within His power to control the raging emotions of Israel’s oppressors; the Lord of hosts is His name.

וָאָשִׂים דְּבָרַי בְּפִיךָ וּבְצֵל יָדִי כִּסִּיתִיךָ לִנְטֹעַ שָׁמַיִם וְלִיסֹד אָרֶץ וְלֵאמֹר לְצִיּוֹן עַמִּי אָתָּה

I placed My words, which create, invigorate, and console, in your mouth, the mouth of the people. In this manner I have placed you under my protection, and with the shadow of My hand I have covered you. I am God, who said to plant the heavens, and to lay the foundation of the earth, and to say to Zion: You are My people. These are the greatest and most stable of God’s creations: heaven, earth, and the nation of Israel. A similar idea is also reflected in the Mishna, which teaches that God acquired five entities in His world: the Torah, heaven and earth, Abraham, the people of Israel, and the Temple. Alternatively, the verse means: I have placed My words in your mouth and protected you in order to create heavens and earth anew through you, My people, Zion.

הִתְעוֹרְרִי הִתְעוֹרְרִי קוּמִי יְרוּשָׁלִַם אֲשֶׁר שָׁתִית מִיַּד ה' אֶת כּוֹס חֲמָתוֹ אֶת קֻבַּעַת כּוֹס הַתַּרְעֵלָה שָׁתִית מָצִית

The theme of consolation continues, in poetic fashion: Awaken, awaken, arise, Jerusalem, who has suffered and drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of His fury; the goblet,or: The sediment fixed at the bottom of the cup of stupefaction have you drunk and drained of its contents.

אֵין מְנַהֵל לָהּ מִכָּל בָּנִים יָלָדָה וְאֵין מַחֲזִיק בְּיָדָהּ מִכָּל בָּנִים גִּדֵּלָה

From Zion’s perspective, there is no one to guide her from all the children she bore. None of her many children are interested in caring for her; they are all busy attending to their own affairs. And there is no one holding her hand from all the children she raised. Zion is compared to a mother whose children have grown and abandoned her. In their absence, others have come to visit her.

שְׁתַּיִם הֵנָּה קֹרְאֹתַיִךְ מִי יָנוּד לָךְ! הַשֹּׁד וְהַשֶּׁבֶר וְהָרָעָב וְהַחֶרֶב מִי אֲנַחֲמֵךְ

Your experiences are these two, that is, you will experience coupled tragedies; who will be moved for you? Pillage and destruction, famine and the sword, shall visit Zion in the absence of her children. Alternatively, the verse does not refer to pairs of tragedies; rather, pillage and destruction are in fact the famine and the sword. Who will comfort you?

בָּנַיִךְ עֻלְּפוּ שָׁכְבוּ בְּרֹאשׁ כָּל חוּצוֹת כְּתוֹא מִכְמָר הַמְלֵאִים חֲמַת ה' גַּעֲרַת אֱלֹהָיִךְ

Your children have fainted; they lie at the head of every street, like an aurochs that lies helpless after becoming ensnared in a trap. Your children also lie in the streets defeated and depressed, as they are full of the fury of the Lord, the rebuke of your God.

לָכֵן שִׁמְעִי נָא זֹאת עֲנִיָּה וּשְׁכֻרַת וְלֹא מִיָּיִן

Therefore, now hear this, afflicted, and you who are drunken, but not from wine, but from the cup of overwhelming tragedy. A tormented individual can reach a state similar to drunkenness in which he is confused, disoriented, unstable, and distraught.

כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנַיִךְ ה' וֵאלֹהַיִךְ יָרִיב עַמּוֹ הִנֵּה לָקַחְתִּי מִיָּדֵךְ אֶת כּוֹס הַתַּרְעֵלָה אֶת קֻבַּעַת כּוֹס חֲמָתִי – לֹא תוֹסִיפִי לִשְׁתּוֹתָהּ עוֹד

So said your Master, the Lord, and your God who will eventually fight for His people: Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of stupefaction from which you drink; the goblet of the cup of My fury, you will not continue to drink it any longer. The persecution, killings, decrees, exiles, and massacres to which you have been subject for so long will eventually cease.

וְשַׂמְתִּיהָ בְּיַד מוֹגַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר אָמְרוּ לְנַפְשֵׁךְ שְׁחִי וְנַעֲבֹרָה וַתָּשִׂימִי כָאָרֶץ גֵּוֵךְ וְכַחוּץ לַעֹבְרִים

I will place it, this cup, into the hand of your oppressors, who have brought sadness upon you, who said to your soul, your living body: Bow and we will pass over you and trample you; you placed your body like the ground, and you were like the street for the passersby. Those proud nations that trampled you will drink from the cup of stupefaction from which you drank. You will recover, and they will come to understand the suffering you endured.