1. Listen, islands, to me.Listen, you peoples, from afar:the Lord has called me from the womb;from the inside of my mother he has mentioned my name.
2. He has made my mouth like a sharp sword.He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.He has made me a polished shaft.He has kept me close in his quiver.
3. He said to me, “You are my servant;Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
4. But I said, “I have laboured in vain.I have spent my strength in vain for nothing;yet surely the justice due to me is with the Lord,and my reward with my God.”
5. Now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,to bring Jacob again to him,and to gather Israel to him,for I am honourable in the Lord’s eyes,and my God has become my strength.