₁₇The LORD says, “I am making a new earth and new heavens. The events of the past will be completely forgotten. ₁₈Be glad and rejoice for ever in what I create. The new Jerusalem I make will be full of joy, and her people will be happy. ₁₉I myself will be filled with joy because of Jerusalem and her people. There will be no weeping there, no calling for help. ₂₀Babies will no longer die in infancy, and all people will live out their life span. Those who live to be a hundred will be considered young. To die before that would be a sign that I had punished them. _21-22People will build houses and live in them themselves — they will not be used by someone else. They will plant vineyards and enjoy the wine — it will not be drunk by others. Like trees, my people will live long lives. They will fully enjoy the things that they have worked for. ₂₃The work they do will be successful, and their children will not meet with disaster. I will bless them and their descendants for all time to come. ₂₄Even before they finish praying to me, I will answer their prayers. ₂₅Wolves and lambs will eat together; lions will eat straw, as cattle do, and snakes will no longer be dangerous. On Zion, my sacred hill, there will be nothing harmful or evil.”

₁A day is coming when people will sing,

₄A day is coming when people will sing,