רָנִּי עֲקָרָה לֹא יָלָדָה פִּצְחִי רִנָּה וְצַהֲלִי לֹא חָלָה כִּי רַבִּים בְּנֵי שׁוֹמֵמָה מִבְּנֵי בְעוּלָה אָמַר ה'

The prophet addresses the feminine embodiment of the nation of Israel: Sing, barren one, the nation of Israel, who did not give birth; burst into song and rejoice, she who it seems did not go into labor, for in truth it shall be that the children of the desolate are more than the children of the married woman, said the Lord.

הַרְחִיבִי מְקוֹם אָהֳלֵךְ וִירִיעוֹת מִשְׁכְּנוֹתַיִךְ יַטּוּ אַל תַּחְשֹׂכִי הַאֲרִיכִי מֵיתָרַיִךְ וִיתֵדֹתַיִךְ חַזֵּקִי

Expand the place of your tent in order to receive your many children, and spread the curtains, the tent-coverings, of your dwellings, do not spare any space or curtains. Extend your cords that fasten the curtains to the stakes, and reinforce your stakes, as the time of your wandering has come to an end and you will now establish your tent in a fixed location.

כִּי יָמִין וּשְׂמֹאול תִּפְרֹצִי וְזַרְעֵךְ גּוֹיִם יִירָשׁ וְעָרִים נְשַׁמּוֹת יוֹשִׁיבוּ

For you will spread out to the right and the left; and your descendants will inherit nations and they will settle desolate cities.

אַל תִּירְאִי כִּי לֹא תֵבוֹשִׁי וְאַל תִּכָּלְמִי כִּי לֹא תַחְפִּירִי כִּי בֹשֶׁת עֲלוּמַיִךְ תִּשְׁכָּחִי וְחֶרְפַּת אַלְמְנוּתַיִךְ לֹא תִזְכְּרִי עוֹד

The prophet continues to address Zion, which he previously compared to a barren woman: Do not fear anything, for you will not be shamed, do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced anymore; for you will forget the shame of your youth and you will not remember the disgrace of your widowhood any longer. There will come a time when you no longer remember the loneliness you felt before you were married, nor the vulnerability you experienced as a widow.

כִּי בֹעֲלַיִךְ עֹשַׂיִךְ ה' צְבָאוֹת שְׁמוֹ וְגֹאֲלֵךְ קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל אֱלֹהֵי כָל הָאָרֶץ יִקָּרֵא

For your Husband is your Maker, the Lord of hosts is His name. You are neither single nor widowed; your extended separation from your Husband has made you forget His existence. You will, however, be reunited with Him. And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, the God of the entire world He will be called, and He can do anything.

כִּי כְאִשָּׁה עֲזוּבָה וַעֲצוּבַת רוּחַ קְרָאָךְ ה'וְאֵשֶׁת נְעוּרִים כִּי תִמָּאֵס אָמַר אֱלֹהָיִךְ

For as a wife forsaken and aggrieved of spirit, depressed and despondent in exile, the Lord called you back to Him, and as the wife of one’s youth she will be spurned, said your God. In God’s eyes, you are as the wife of one’s youth, who is never entirely rejected. As such, He will ultimately renew His bond with you.

בְּרֶגַע קָטֹן עֲזַבְתִּיךְ וּבְרַחֲמִים גְּדֹלִים אֲקַבְּצֵךְ

God says: For a brief moment I forsook you; the lengthy exile is like a short moment from My perspective. And by contrast, with great and ongoing mercy I will gather you. Alternatively, the verse may be understood in line with the next verse, that in a brief moment of anger I forsook you for an extended period, and during this lengthy separation My compassion toward you has been steadily increasing.

בְּשֶׁצֶף קֶצֶף הִסְתַּרְתִּי פָנַי רֶגַע מִמֵּךְ וּבְחֶסֶד עוֹלָם רִחַמְתִּיךְ אָמַר גֹּאֲלֵךְ ה'

In an outburst of rage, I concealed My face from you for a moment. This is only a momentary concealment of My face, not actual vengeance. Otherwise, nothing would have remained of the nation of Israel. But nevertheless, with eternal grace I will have mercy on you, said your Redeemer, the Lord. When all returns to its proper state, you will see that the depressing times of exile and persecution were only temporary.

כִּי מֵי נֹחַ – זֹאת לִי אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי מֵעֲבֹר מֵי נֹחַ עוֹד עַל הָאָרֶץ כֵּן נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי מִקְּצֹף עָלַיִךְ וּמִגְּעָר בָּךְ

For this is for Me like the waters of the flood in the time of Noah. That is to say, just as I took an oath that the waters of Noah would no longer pass over the earth and I have kept that oath, so too, I took an oath that I would not be furious with you, nor would I rebuke or abandon you as in the past.

כִּי הֶהָרִים יָמוּשׁוּ וְהַגְּבָעוֹת תְּמוּטֶנָה – חַסְדִּי מֵאִתֵּךְ לֹא יָמוּשׁ וּבְרִית שְׁלוֹמִי לֹא תָמוּט אָמַר מְרַחֲמֵךְ ה'

For even if the mountains will move and the hills will collapse, and nothing will remain secure, but nonetheless My grace will not move from you and the covenant of My peace will not collapse; the bond with God will remain eternally stable, said the One who has mercy on you, the Lord.

עֲנִיָּה סֹעֲרָה לֹא נֻחָמָה הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי מַרְבִּיץ בַּפּוּךְ אֲבָנַיִךְ וִיסַדְתִּיךְ בַּסַּפִּירִים

The prophet offers another message of comfort to the nation of Israel: Afflicted, storm-tossed one, who has been tossed about without rest; she has not yet been comforted despite all the earlier promises: Behold, when you are restored to your land, I will set your flagstones with carbuncleand lay your foundation with sapphires;you will build with precious stones.

וְשַׂמְתִּי כַּדְכֹד שִׁמְשֹׁתַיִךְ וּשְׁעָרַיִךְ לְאַבְנֵי אֶקְדָּח וְכָל גְּבוּלֵךְ לְאַבְנֵי חֵפֶץ

I will make your windows of chalcedony; the verse refers to decorative panels that glisten in the sun, perhaps stained glass panels. And I will make your gates of ruby, and your entire border, which is the entire space within your border, of precious stones. Some explain that the entire border refers to all the edges of a structure, such as the borders around a window or doorway, which were typically constructed with special stones. The prophet’s message is: There will come a time when you are no longer afflicted and tossed about; you will leave your tents and dwell in magnificent buildings, both literally and metaphorically.

וְכָל בָּנַיִךְ לִמּוּדֵי ה'וְרַב שְׁלוֹם בָּנָיִךְ

Not only will the physical appearance of Zion change; its inhabitants will also undergo a significant transformation: All your children will be disciples of the Lord, they will know Him and follow His ways, and the peace of your children will be abundant. These learned children will not quarrel with one another, but will live together in peace and harmony.

בִּצְדָקָה תִּכּוֹנָנִי רַחֲקִי מֵעֹשֶׁק כִּי לֹא תִירָאִי ומִמְּחִתָּה כִּי לֹא תִקְרַב אֵלָיִךְ

When your ruins are restored, with righteousness you will be established; you will be rebuilt on a foundation of honesty and justice. Distance yourself from exploitation, for you need not fear. Sometimes, one acts dishonestly out of fear. Since you will live in tranquility, you will be capable of distancing yourselves from such behavior. And distance yourself from ruin, as it will not come near you. Some interpret the verse to mean: You will not fear exploitation or ruin, because they will be far from you. Alternatively: Distance yourself from exploitation, as then you will not fear ruin.

הֵן גּוֹר יָגוּר אֶפֶס מֵאוֹתִי מִי גָר אִתָּךְ עָלַיִךְ יִפּוֹל

Behold, one who is not with Me nor under My protection will be afraid [gor yagur], but whoever resides [gar] with you and joins you, nation of Israel, will fall in with you; such individuals will be safe. Some interpret the word gar as relating to one who provokes [mitgareh] the nation of Israel: Whoever provokes you will fall because of you. In any case, the verse means that the nation of Israel will be able to build without fear, as it is God who controls everything, including the constructive and destructive forces.

הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי בָּרָאתִי חָרָשׁ נֹפֵחַ בְּאֵשׁ פֶּחָם וּמוֹצִיא כְלִי לְמַעֲשֵׂהוּ וְאָנֹכִי בָּרָאתִי מַשְׁחִית לְחַבֵּל

Behold, I created the smith who, in the course of his work, fans the fire of coal, and thereby produces a tool with his labor, and yet I also created the destroyer to cause harm. Just as I created those who develop the world and fashion tools for its growth, I also created those who destroy it.

כָּל כְּלִי יוּצַר עָלַיִךְ – לֹא יִצְלָח וְכָל לָשׁוֹן תָּקוּם אִתָּךְ לַמִּשְׁפָּט – תַּרְשִׁיעִי זֹאת נַחֲלַת עַבְדֵי ה'וְצִדְקָתָם מֵאִתִּי נְאֻם ה'

Since everything is Mine, any weapon that will be crafted in order to be used against you will not succeed; and any tongue, that is, any person or any nation, that will rise against you in judgment will be condemned. Those who rise against you with legal claims will be defeated, just like those who rise against you with physical force. This is the guaranteed inheritance of the servants of the Lord and their just deserts, or their salvation, which they shall receive from Me – the utterance of the Lord.