46 Bowed down hath Bel, stooping is Nebo, Their idols have been for the beast and for cattle, Your burdens are loaded, a burden to the weary.

² They have stooped, they have bowed together, They have not been able to deliver the burden, And themselves into captivity have gone.

³ Hearken unto Me, O house of Jacob, And all the remnant of Israel, Who are borne from the belly, Who are carried from the womb,

⁴ Even to old age I [am] He, and to grey hairs I carry, I made, and I bear, yea, I carry and deliver.

⁵ To whom do ye liken Me, and make equal? And compare Me, that we may be like?

⁶ -- They are pouring out gold from a bag, And silver on the beam they weigh, They hire a refiner, and he maketh it a god, They fall down, yea, they bow themselves.

⁷ They lift him up on the shoulder, They carry him, and cause him to rest in his place, And he standeth, from his place he moveth not, Yea, one crieth unto him, and he answereth not, From his adversity he saveth him not.

⁸ Remember this, and shew yourselves men, Turn [it] back, O transgressors, to the heart.

⁹ Remember former things of old, For I [am] Mighty, and there is none else, God -- and there is none like Me.

¹⁰ Declaring from the beginning the latter end, And from of old that which hath not been done, Saying, `My counsel doth stand, And all My delight I do.'

¹¹ Calling from the east a ravenous bird, From a far land the man of My counsel, Yea, I have spoken, yea, I bring it in, I have formed [it], yea, I do it.

¹² Hearken unto Me, ye mighty in heart, Who are far from righteousness.

¹³ I have brought near My righteousness, It is not far off, And My salvation -- it doth not tarry, And I have given in Zion salvation, To Israel My glory!

47 Come down, and sit on the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon, Sit on the earth, there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans, For no more do they cry to thee, `O tender and delicate one.'

² Take millstones, and grind flour, Remove thy veil, draw up the skirt, Uncover the leg, pass over the floods.

³ Revealed is thy nakedness, yea, seen is thy reproach, Vengeance I take, and I meet not a man.

⁴ Our redeemer [is] Jehovah of Hosts, His name [is] the Holy One of Israel.

⁵ Sit silent, and go into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans, For no more do they cry to thee, `Mistress of kingdoms.'

⁶ I have been wroth against My people, I have polluted Mine inheritance And I give them into thy hand, Thou hast not appointed for them mercies, On the aged thou hast made thy yoke very heavy,

⁷ And thou sayest, `To the age I am mistress,' While thou hast not laid these things to thy heart, Thou hast not remembered the latter end of it.

⁸ And now, hear this, O luxurious one, Who is sitting confidently -- Who is saying in her heart, `I [am], and none else, I sit not a widow, nor know bereavement.'

⁹ And come in to thee do these two things, In a moment, in one day, childlessness and widowhood, According to their perfection they have come upon thee, In the multitude of thy sorceries, In the exceeding might of thy charms.

¹⁰ And thou art confident in thy wickedness, Thou hast said, `There is none seeing me,' Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, It is turning thee back, And thou sayest in thy heart, `I [am], and none else.'

¹¹ And come in on thee hath evil, Thou knowest not its rising, And fall on thee doth mischief, Thou art not able to pacify it, And come on thee suddenly doth desolation, Thou knowest not.

¹² Stand, I pray thee, in thy charms, And in the multitude of thy sorceries, In which thou hast laboured from thy youth, It may be thou art able to profit, It may be thou dost terrify!

¹³ Thou hast been wearied in the multitude of thy counsels, Stand up, I pray thee, and save thee, Let the charmers of the heavens, Those looking on the stars, Those teaching concerning the months, From those things that come on thee!

¹⁴ Lo, they have been as stubble! Fire hath burned them, They deliver not themselves from the power of the flame, There is not a coal to warm them, a light to sit before it.

¹⁵ So have they been to thee with whom thou hast laboured, Thy merchants from thy youth, Each to his passage they have wandered, Thy saviour is not!

48 Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, Who are called by the name of Israel, And from the waters of Judah came out, Who are swearing by the name of Jehovah, And of the God of Israel make mention, Not in truth nor in righteousness.

² For from the Holy City they have been called, And on the God of Israel been supported, Jehovah of Hosts [is] His name.

³ The former things from that time I declared, And from my mouth they have gone forth, And I proclaim them, Suddenly I have done, and it cometh.

⁴ From my knowing that thou art obstinate, And a sinew of iron thy neck, And thy forehead brass,

⁵ And I declare to thee from that time, Before it cometh I have caused thee to hear, Lest thou say, `Mine idol hath done them, And my graven image, And my molten image did command them.

⁶ Thou hast heard, see the whole of it, And ye, do ye not declare? I have caused thee to hear new things from this time, And things reserved that ye knew not.

⁷ Now they have been produced and not from that time, Yea, before the day, and thou hast not heard them, Lest thou say, `Lo, I have known them.'

⁸ Yea, thou hast not heard, Yea, thou hast not known, Yea, from that time not opened hath thine ear, For I have known thou dealest treacherously, And `Transgressor from the belly,' One is crying to thee.

⁹ For My name's sake I defer Mine anger, And My praise I restrain for thee, So as not to cut thee off.

¹⁰ Lo, I have refined thee, and not with silver, I have chosen thee in a furnace of affliction.

¹¹ For My sake, for Mine own sake, I do [it], For how is it polluted? And Mine honour to another I give not.

¹² Hearken to me, O Jacob, and Israel, My called one, I [am] He, I [am] first, and I [am] last;

¹³ Also, My hand hath founded earth, And My right hand stretched out the heavens, I am calling unto them, they stand together.

¹⁴ Be gathered all of you, and hear, Who among them did declare these things? Jehovah hath loved him, He doth His pleasure on Babylon, And His arm [is on] the Chaldeans.

¹⁵ I -- I have spoken, yea, I have called him, I have brought him in, And he hath made prosperous his way.

¹⁶ Come ye near unto me, hear this, Not from the beginning in secret spake I, From the time of its being, there [am] I, And now the Lord Jehovah hath sent me, and His Spirit.

¹⁷ Thus said Jehovah, thy redeemer, The Holy One of Israel, `I [am] Jehovah thy God, teaching thee to profit, Causing thee to tread in the way thou goest.

¹⁸ O that thou hadst attended to My commands, Then as a river is thy peace, And thy righteousness as billows of the sea,

¹⁹ And as sand is thy seed, And the offspring of thy bowels as its gravel, Not cut off nor destroyed his name before Me.

²⁰ Go out from Babylon, flee from the Chaldeans, With a voice of singing declare, Cause ye this to be heard, Bring it forth unto the end of the earth, Say, Redeemed hath Jehovah His servant Jacob.

²¹ And they have not thirsted in waste places, He hath caused them to go on, Waters from a rock he hath caused to flow to them, Yea, he cleaveth a rock, and flow do waters.

²² There is no peace, said Jehovah, to the wicked!