Isaiah 41-46

New International Version

² “Who has stirred^(F) up one from the east,^(G)
    calling him in righteousness^(H) to his service^[a]?^(I)
He hands nations over to him
    and subdues kings before him.
He turns them to dust^(J) with his sword,
    to windblown chaff^(K) with his bow.^(L)
3 He pursues them and moves on unscathed,^(M)
    by a path his feet have not traveled before.
⁴ Who has done this and carried it through,
    calling^(N) forth the generations from the beginning?^(O)
I, the Lord—with the first of them
    and with the last^(P)—I am he.^(Q)”

⁵ The islands^(R) have seen it and fear;
    the ends of the earth^(S) tremble.
They approach and come forward;
⁶     they help each other
    and say to their companions, “Be strong!^(T)”
⁷ The metalworker^(U) encourages the goldsmith,^(V)
    and the one who smooths with the hammer
    spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
    The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.^(W)

⁸ “But you, Israel, my servant,^(X)
    Jacob, whom I have chosen,^(Y)
    you descendants of Abraham^(Z) my friend,^(AA)
9 I took you from the ends of the earth,^(AB)
    from its farthest corners I called^(AC) you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;^(AD)
    I have chosen^(AE) you and have not rejected you.
¹⁰ So do not fear,^(AF) for I am with you;^(AG)
    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen^(AH) you and help^(AI) you;
    I will uphold you^(AJ) with my righteous right hand.^(AK)

¹¹ “All who rage^(AL) against you
    will surely be ashamed and disgraced;^(AM)
those who oppose^(AN) you
    will be as nothing and perish.^(AO)
12 Though you search for your enemies,
    you will not find them.^(AP)
Those who wage war against you
    will be as nothing^(AQ) at all.
¹³ For I am the Lord your God
    who takes hold of your right hand^(AR)
and says to you, Do not fear;
    I will help^(AS) you.
¹⁴ Do not be afraid,^(AT) you worm^(AU) Jacob,
    little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help^(AV) you,” declares the Lord,
    your Redeemer,^(AW) the Holy One^(AX) of Israel.
¹⁵ “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,^(AY)
    new and sharp, with many teeth.
You will thresh the mountains^(AZ) and crush them,
    and reduce the hills to chaff.^(BA)
16 You will winnow^(BB) them, the wind will pick them up,
    and a gale^(BC) will blow them away.^(BD)
But you will rejoice^(BE) in the Lord
    and glory^(BF) in the Holy One^(BG) of Israel.

¹⁷ “The poor and needy search for water,^(BH)
    but there is none;
    their tongues are parched with thirst.^(BI)
But I the Lord will answer^(BJ) them;
    I, the God of Israel, will not forsake^(BK) them.
¹⁸ I will make rivers flow^(BL) on barren heights,
    and springs within the valleys.
I will turn the desert^(BM) into pools of water,^(BN)
    and the parched ground into springs.^(BO)
19 I will put in the desert^(BP)
    the cedar and the acacia,^(BQ) the myrtle and the olive.
I will set junipers^(BR) in the wasteland,
    the fir and the cypress^(BS) together,^(BT)
20 so that people may see and know,^(BU)
    may consider and understand,^(BV)
that the hand^(BW) of the Lord has done this,
    that the Holy One^(BX) of Israel has created^(BY) it.

²¹ “Present your case,^(BZ)” says the Lord.
    “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.^(CA)
22 “Tell us, you idols,
    what is going to happen.^(CB)
Tell us what the former things^(CC) were,
    so that we may consider them
    and know their final outcome.
Or declare to us the things to come,^(CD)
23     tell us what the future holds,
    so we may know^(CE) that you are gods.
Do something, whether good or bad,^(CF)
    so that we will be dismayed^(CG) and filled with fear.
²⁴ But you are less than nothing^(CH)
    and your works are utterly worthless;^(CI)
    whoever chooses you is detestable.^(CJ)

²⁵ “I have stirred^(CK) up one from the north,^(CL) and he comes—
    one from the rising sun who calls on my name.
He treads^(CM) on rulers as if they were mortar,
    as if he were a potter treading the clay.
²⁶ Who told of this from the beginning,^(CN) so we could know,
    or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?
No one told of this,
    no one foretold^(CO) it,
    no one heard any words^(CP) from you.
²⁷ I was the first to tell^(CQ) Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’
    I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.^(CR)
28 I look but there is no one^(CS)—
    no one among the gods to give counsel,^(CT)
    no one to give answer^(CU) when I ask them.
²⁹ See, they are all false!
    Their deeds amount to nothing;^(CV)
    their images^(CW) are but wind^(CX) and confusion.

⁵ This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens,^(DN) who stretches them out,
    who spreads out the earth^(DO) with all that springs from it,^(DP)
    who gives breath^(DQ) to its people,
    and life to those who walk on it:
⁶ “I, the Lord, have called^(DR) you in righteousness;^(DS)
    I will take hold of your hand.^(DT)
I will keep^(DU) you and will make you
    to be a covenant^(DV) for the people
    and a light^(DW) for the Gentiles,^(DX)
7 to open eyes that are blind,^(DY)
    to free^(DZ) captives from prison^(EA)
    and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.^(EB)

⁸ “I am the Lord;^(EC) that is my name!^(ED)
    I will not yield my glory to another^(EE)
    or my praise to idols.^(EF)
9 See, the former things^(EG) have taken place,
    and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
    I announce^(EH) them to you.”

¹⁴ “For a long time I have kept silent,^(FA)
    I have been quiet and held myself back.^(FB)
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
    I cry out, I gasp and pant.^(FC)
15 I will lay waste^(FD) the mountains^(FE) and hills
    and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn rivers into islands
    and dry up^(FF) the pools.
¹⁶ I will lead^(FG) the blind^(FH) by ways they have not known,
    along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light^(FI) before them
    and make the rough places smooth.^(FJ)
These are the things I will do;
    I will not forsake^(FK) them.
¹⁷ But those who trust in idols,
    who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’^(FL)
    will be turned back in utter shame.^(FM)

²³ Which of you will listen to this
    or pay close attention^(FZ) in time to come?
²⁴ Who handed Jacob over to become loot,
    and Israel to the plunderers?^(GA)
Was it not the Lord,^(GB)
    against whom we have sinned?
For they would not follow^(GC) his ways;
    they did not obey his law.^(GD)
25 So he poured out on them his burning anger,^(GE)
    the violence of war.
It enveloped them in flames,^(GF) yet they did not understand;^(GG)
    it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.^(GH)

⁸ Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,^(HN)
    who have ears but are deaf.^(HO)
9 All the nations gather together^(HP)
    and the peoples assemble.
Which of their gods foretold^(HQ) this
    and proclaimed to us the former things?
Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,
    so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”
¹⁰ “You are my witnesses,^(HR)” declares the Lord,
    “and my servant^(HS) whom I have chosen,
so that you may know^(HT) and believe me
    and understand that I am he.
Before me no god^(HU) was formed,
    nor will there be one after me.^(HV)
11 I, even I, am the Lord,^(HW)
    and apart from me there is no savior.^(HX)
12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
    I, and not some foreign god^(HY) among you.
You are my witnesses,^(HZ)” declares the Lord, “that I am God.
¹³     Yes, and from ancient days^(IA) I am he.^(IB)
No one can deliver out of my hand.
    When I act, who can reverse it?”^(IC)

¹⁶ This is what the Lord says—
    he who made a way through the sea,
    a path through the mighty waters,^(IK)
17 who drew out^(IL) the chariots and horses,^(IM)
    the army and reinforcements together,^(IN)
and they lay^(IO) there, never to rise again,
    extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:^(IP)
18 “Forget the former things;^(IQ)
    do not dwell on the past.
¹⁹ See, I am doing a new thing!^(IR)
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness^(IS)
    and streams in the wasteland.^(IT)
20 The wild animals^(IU) honor me,
    the jackals^(IV) and the owls,
because I provide water^(IW) in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
²¹     the people I formed^(IX) for myself^(IY)
    that they may proclaim my praise.^(IZ)

²² “Yet you have not called on me, Jacob,
    you have not wearied^(JA) yourselves for^[d] me, Israel.^(JB)
23 You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings,^(JC)
    nor honored^(JD) me with your sacrifices.^(JE)
I have not burdened^(JF) you with grain offerings
    nor wearied you with demands^(JG) for incense.^(JH)
24 You have not bought any fragrant calamus^(JI) for me,
    or lavished on me the fat^(JJ) of your sacrifices.
But you have burdened me with your sins
    and wearied^(JK) me with your offenses.^(JL)

²⁵ “I, even I, am he who blots out
    your transgressions,^(JM) for my own sake,^(JN)
    and remembers your sins^(JO) no more.^(JP)
26 Review the past for me,
    let us argue the matter together;^(JQ)
    state the case^(JR) for your innocence.
²⁷ Your first father^(JS) sinned;
    those I sent to teach^(JT) you rebelled^(JU) against me.
²⁸ So I disgraced the dignitaries of your temple;
    I consigned Jacob to destruction^[e](JV)
    and Israel to scorn.^(JW)

⁹ All who make idols^(KZ) are nothing,
    and the things they treasure are worthless.^(LA)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;^(LB)
    they are ignorant, to their own shame.^(LC)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,^(LD)
    which can profit nothing?^(LE)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;^(LF)
    such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
    they will be brought down to terror and shame.^(LG)

¹² The blacksmith^(LH) takes a tool
    and works with it in the coals;
he shapes an idol with hammers,
    he forges it with the might of his arm.^(LI)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
    he drinks no water and grows faint.^(LJ)
13 The carpenter^(LK) measures with a line
    and makes an outline with a marker;
he roughs it out with chisels
    and marks it with compasses.
He shapes it in human form,^(LL)
    human form in all its glory,
    that it may dwell in a shrine.^(LM)
14 He cut down cedars,
    or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
    or planted a pine,^(LN) and the rain made it grow.
¹⁵ It is used as fuel^(LO) for burning;
    some of it he takes and warms himself,
    he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
But he also fashions a god and worships^(LP) it;
    he makes an idol and bows^(LQ) down to it.
¹⁶ Half of the wood he burns in the fire;
    over it he prepares his meal,
    he roasts his meat and eats his fill.
He also warms himself and says,
    “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.^(LR)”
¹⁷ From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
    he bows down to it and worships.^(LS)
He prays^(LT) to it and says,
    “Save^(LU) me! You are my god!”
¹⁸ They know nothing, they understand^(LV) nothing;
    their eyes^(LW) are plastered over so they cannot see,
    and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
¹⁹ No one stops to think,
    no one has the knowledge or understanding^(LX) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;^(LY)
    I even baked bread over its coals,
    I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable^(LZ) thing from what is left?
    Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”^(MA)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;^(MB) a deluded^(MC) heart misleads him;
    he cannot save himself, or say,
    “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?^(MD)”

²¹ “Remember^(ME) these things, Jacob,
    for you, Israel, are my servant.^(MF)
I have made you, you are my servant;^(MG)
    Israel, I will not forget you.^(MH)
22 I have swept away^(MI) your offenses like a cloud,
    your sins like the morning mist.
Return^(MJ) to me,
    for I have redeemed^(MK) you.”

²³ Sing for joy,^(ML) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
    shout aloud, you earth^(MM) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,^(MN)
    you forests and all your trees,^(MO)
for the Lord has redeemed^(MP) Jacob,
    he displays his glory^(MQ) in Israel.

I am the Lord,
    the Maker of all things,
    who stretches out the heavens,^(MU)
    who spreads out the earth^(MV) by myself,
²⁵ who foils^(MW) the signs of false prophets
    and makes fools of diviners,^(MX)
who overthrows the learning of the wise^(MY)
    and turns it into nonsense,^(MZ)
26 who carries out the words^(NA) of his servants
    and fulfills^(NB) the predictions of his messengers,

who says of Jerusalem,^(NC) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
    of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
    and of their ruins,^(ND) ‘I will restore them,’^(NE)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
    and I will dry up^(NF) your streams,’
²⁸ who says of Cyrus,^(NG) ‘He is my shepherd
    and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,^(NH) “Let it be rebuilt,”
    and of the temple,^(NI) “Let its foundations^(NJ) be laid.”’

45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,^(NK)
    to Cyrus,^(NL) whose right hand I take hold^(NM) of
to subdue nations^(NN) before him
    and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
    so that gates will not be shut:
² I will go before you^(NO)
    and will level^(NP) the mountains^[g];
I will break down gates^(NQ) of bronze
    and cut through bars of iron.^(NR)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,^(NS)
    riches stored in secret places,^(NT)
so that you may know^(NU) that I am the Lord,
    the God of Israel, who summons you by name.^(NV)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,^(NW)
    of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
    and bestow on you a title of honor,
    though you do not acknowledge^(NX) me.
⁵ I am the Lord, and there is no other;^(NY)
    apart from me there is no God.^(NZ)
I will strengthen you,^(OA)
    though you have not acknowledged me,
⁶ so that from the rising of the sun
    to the place of its setting^(OB)
people may know^(OC) there is none besides me.^(OD)
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
⁷ I form the light and create darkness,^(OE)
    I bring prosperity and create disaster;^(OF)
    I, the Lord, do all these things.

⁸ “You heavens above, rain^(OG) down my righteousness;^(OH)
    let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
    let salvation^(OI) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
    I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹ “Woe to those who quarrel^(OJ) with their Maker,^(OK)
    those who are nothing but potsherds^(OL)
    among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,^(OM)
    ‘What are you making?’^(ON)
Does your work say,
    ‘The potter has no hands’?^(OO)
10 Woe to the one who says to a father,
    ‘What have you begotten?’
or to a mother,
    ‘What have you brought to birth?’

¹¹ “This is what the Lord says—
    the Holy One^(OP) of Israel, and its Maker:^(OQ)
Concerning things to come,
    do you question me about my children,
    or give me orders about the work of my hands?^(OR)
12 It is I who made the earth^(OS)
    and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;^(OT)
    I marshaled their starry hosts.^(OU)
13 I will raise up Cyrus^[h](OV) in my righteousness:
    I will make all his ways straight.^(OW)
He will rebuild my city^(OX)
    and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,^(OY)
    says the Lord Almighty.”

“The products^(OZ) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,^[i]
    and those tall Sabeans^(PA)—
they will come over to you^(PB)
    and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,^(PC)
    coming over to you in chains.^(PD)
They will bow down before you
    and plead^(PE) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,^(PF) and there is no other;
    there is no other god.^(PG)’”

¹⁵ Truly you are a God who has been hiding^(PH) himself,
    the God and Savior^(PI) of Israel.
¹⁶ All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;^(PJ)
    they will go off into disgrace together.
¹⁷ But Israel will be saved^(PK) by the Lord
    with an everlasting salvation;^(PL)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,^(PM)
    to ages everlasting.

¹⁸ For this is what the Lord says—
he who created the heavens,
    he is God;
he who fashioned and made the earth,^(PN)
    he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,^(PO)
    but formed it to be inhabited^(PP)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
    and there is no other.^(PQ)
19 I have not spoken in secret,^(PR)
    from somewhere in a land of darkness;^(PS)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,^(PT)
    ‘Seek^(PU) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
    I declare what is right.^(PV)

²⁰ “Gather together^(PW) and come;
    assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant^(PX) are those who carry^(PY) about idols of wood,
    who pray to gods that cannot save.^(PZ)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
    let them take counsel together.
Who foretold^(QA) this long ago,
    who declared it from the distant past?^(QB)
Was it not I, the Lord?
    And there is no God apart from me,^(QC)
a righteous God^(QD) and a Savior;^(QE)
    there is none but me.

²² “Turn^(QF) to me and be saved,^(QG)
    all you ends of the earth;^(QH)
    for I am God, and there is no other.^(QI)
23 By myself I have sworn,^(QJ)
    my mouth has uttered in all integrity^(QK)
    a word that will not be revoked:^(QL)
Before me every knee will bow;^(QM)
    by me every tongue will swear.^(QN)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
    are deliverance^(QO) and strength.^(QP)’”
All who have raged against him
    will come to him and be put to shame.^(QQ)
25 But all the descendants^(QR) of Israel
    will find deliverance^(QS) in the Lord
    and will make their boast in him.^(QT)

³ “Listen^(QY) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
    all the remnant^(QZ) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,^(RA)
    and have carried^(RB) since you were born.^(RC)
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs^(RD)
    I am he,^(RE) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
    I will sustain^(RF) you and I will rescue you.

⁵ “With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
    To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?^(RG)
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
    and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith^(RH) to make it into a god,
    and they bow down and worship it.^(RI)
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry^(RJ) it;
    they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
    From that spot it cannot move.^(RK)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;^(RL)
    it cannot save^(RM) them from their troubles.

⁸ “Remember^(RN) this, keep it in mind,
    take it to heart, you rebels.^(RO)
9 Remember the former things,^(RP) those of long ago;^(RQ)
    I am God, and there is no other;
    I am God, and there is none like me.^(RR)
10 I make known the end from the beginning,^(RS)
    from ancient times,^(RT) what is still to come.^(RU)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,^(RV)
    and I will do all that I please.’
¹¹ From the east I summon^(RW) a bird of prey;^(RX)
    from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
    what I have planned,^(RY) that I will do.^(RZ)
12 Listen^(SA) to me, you stubborn-hearted,^(SB)
    you who are now far from my righteousness.^(SC)
13 I am bringing my righteousness^(SD) near,
    it is not far away;
    and my salvation^(SE) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,^(SF)
    my splendor^(SG) to Israel.