Isaiah 35:1-10

The wilderness and dry land will be joyously glad! The desert will blossom like a rose and rejoice! Every dry and barren place will burst forth with abundant blossoms, dancing and spinning with delight! Lebanon’s lush splendor covers it, the magnificent beauty of Carmel and Sharon. My people will see the awesome glory of YAHWEH, the beautiful grandeur of our God. Strengthen those who are discouraged. Energize those who feel defeated. Say to the anxious and fearful, “Be strong and never afraid. Look, here comes your God! He is breaking through to give you victory! He comes to avenge your enemies. With divine retribution he comes to save you!” Then blind eyes will open and deaf ears will hear. Then the lame will leap like playful deer and the tongue-tied will sing songs of triumph. Gushing water will spring up in the wilderness and streams will flow through the desert. The burning sand will become a refreshing oasis, the parched ground bubbling springs, and the dragon’s lair a meadow with grass, reeds, and papyrus. There will be a highway of holiness called the Sacred Way. The impure will not be permitted on this road, but it will be accessible to God’s people. And not even fools will lose their way. The lion will not be found there; no wild beast will travel on it— they will not be found there. But the redeemed will find a pathway on it. YAHWEH’s ransomed ones will return with glee to Zion. They will enter with a song of rejoicing and be crowned with everlasting joy. Ecstatic joy will overwhelm them; weariness and grief will disappear!