1. “Rejoice, childless one, who did not give birth;burst into song and shout,you who have not been in labor! For the children of the forsaken one will be morethan the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.
2. “Enlarge the site of your tent,and let your tent curtains be stretched out; do not hold back;lengthen your ropes,and drive your pegs deep.
3. For you will spread out to the right and to the left, and your descendants will dispossess nationsand inhabit the desolate cities.
4. “Do not be afraid, for you will not be put to shame; don’t be humiliated, for you will not be disgraced.For you will forget the shame of your youth,and you will no longer rememberthe disgrace of your widowhood.
5. Indeed, your husband is your Maker —His name is Yahweh of Hosts —and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; He is called the God of all the earth.
6. For the Lord has called you,like a wife deserted and wounded in spirit, a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,”says your God.
7. “I deserted you for a brief moment, but I will take you back with great compassion.
8. In a surge of angerI hid My face from you for a moment,but I will have compassion on youwith everlasting love,” says the Lord your Redeemer.
9. “For this is like the days of Noah to Me:when I swore that the waters of Noahwould never flood the earth again, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with youor rebuke you.