1A shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will produce fruit.

2The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him, which is a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of advice and power, a Spirit of knowledge and awe of the Lord.

3His happiness will be in giving reverence to the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees, and he will not make decisions based on what he hears.

4Instead, he will judge the poor justly, and make decisions fairly on behalf of the destitute people of the earth. He will strike the earth when he pronounces judgment, and he will execute the wicked with just a word from his lips.

5He will wear goodness like a sash and trustworthiness like a belt.

6Wolves will live with lambs; leopards will lie down with young goats, calves and young lions and young livestock will be together, and a small child will lead them along.

7Cows and bears will graze side by side; young lions will eat straw like cattle.

8Babies will be able to play safely near snake holes, little children will be able to put their hands into a vipers' den.

9Nothing will cause any harm or damage anywhere on my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord in the same way that water fills the sea.

10At that time the root of Jesse will stand like a banner for the nations. Foreigners will come to him, and the place of where he lives will be glorious.

11At that time the Lord will act a second time ⁴⁵to bring back the remnant of His people from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Babylonia, Hamath, and from the Mediterranean islands.

12He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiled people of Israel; he will bring together the scattered people of Judah from the ends of the earth.

13Ephraim's jealousy will disappear, and Judah's enemies will be destroyed; Ephraim won't be jealous of Judah, and Judah won't treat Ephraim as an enemy.

14Together they will fly downhill to attack the Philistines to the west; they will plunder the people of the east. They will defeat Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will become their subjects.

15The Lord will divide the Gulf of Suez; ⁴⁶he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River creating a scorching wind. He will split it into seven streams so that people can cross easily on foot.

16There will be a highway from Assyria for the remnant of his people that are left, just as there was for Israel when they left the land of Egypt.