Isaiah 45
Evangelical Heritage Version
Cyrus the Lord’s Anointed Shepherd
45
This is what the Lord says to his anointed one,
to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
by stripping kings of their weapons,
to open doors before him
so that the gates cannot be shut.
2 I myself will go before you,
and I will level high mountains.[a]
I will break bronze doors into pieces,
and I will cut through iron bars.
3 I will give you treasures hidden in darkness
and riches concealed in secret places,
so that you will acknowledge that I am the Lord,
the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,
for the sake of Israel my chosen one,
I will call you by your name.
I will give you an honored name, though you do not know me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other.
Except for me, there is no god.
I will equip you even though you do not know me,
6 so that people will know from the rising of the sun
to the place where it sets
that there is no one except me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I am the one who forms light and creates darkness,
the one who makes peace and creates disaster.
I am the Lord, the one who does all these things.
Coming Blessings
8 Shower down, you heavens, from above,
and let the clouds rain down righteousness.
Let the earth open up,
so that salvation will produce fruit.
Let righteousness sprout up along with it.
I, the Lord, am creating this.
Arguing With the Lord
9 Woe to anyone who argues against the potter who formed him.
He is just a potsherd among the broken pieces of pottery on the ground.
Does clay say to its potter, “What are you making?
Your work looks like something made by a potter with no hands”?
10 Woe to anyone who says to his father, “What have you fathered?”
or to a woman, “What are you giving birth to?”
11 This is what the Lord says,
the Holy One of Israel, who formed Israel.
Do you wish to question me concerning things to come?
Will you give me orders about my children
and about the work of my hands?
12 I myself made the earth,
and I created Adam[b] upon it.
With my hands I stretched out the heavens,
and I commanded all their army.
Cyrus as the Lord’s Servant
13 I myself will arouse him in righteousness,
and I will make all his roads level for him.
He himself will rebuild my city.
He will set my exiles free—
but not for a price and not for a gift,
says the Lord of Armies.
14 This is what the Lord says.
The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush
and those tall Sabeans will cross over to you and become yours.
They will walk behind you and approach you in chains.
They will bow down to you and plead with you and say,
“Yes, God is with you, and there is no other.
There is no other God.”
The Hidden God Is Revealed
15 Indeed, you are a God who hides himself.
You are the God of Israel, the Savior.
16 They will be ashamed.
All of them will also be disgraced.
Together they will walk in humiliation—those experts at crafting images.
17 Israel will be saved by the Lord with everlasting salvation.
You will not be ashamed or disgraced for all eternity.
18 This is what the Lord says.
He created the heavens,
He is God!
He formed the earth and made it.
Yes, he established it!
He did not create it to remain empty.[c]
He formed it to be inhabited.
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19 I did not speak in secret,
or from someplace in a land of darkness.
I did not say to the descendants[d] of Jacob,
“Seek me in the midst of chaos.”[e]
I, the Lord, am speaking in righteousness.
I am declaring what is right.
20 Gather! Come! Draw near together,
you survivors from the nations.
They have no knowledge—
those who are lifting up their idols of wood
and praying to a god that cannot save.
21 Make an announcement and come close.
Let them consult together.
Who made this known ahead of time?
From time past who announced it?
Was it not I, the Lord?
There is no god except me,
a righteous God and Savior.
There is no one except me.
22 Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth,
because I am God,
and there is no other.
23 I have sworn by myself.
From my mouth a righteous word has gone out,
and it will not return unfulfilled.
Indeed, to me every knee will bow,
and every tongue will swear allegiance.
24 “Only in the Lord,” they will say of me,
“Only in the Lord is there true righteousness and strength.”
To him they will come and be ashamed—
all those who are angry at him.
25 In the Lord, all the descendants[f] of Israel will be justified.
They will be praised by him.[g]
Footnotes
- Isaiah 45:2 The translation mountains follows the Dead Sea Scroll of Isaiah and the Greek Old Testament. The word in the standard Hebrew text occurs only here. It may mean rough places or walls.
- Isaiah 45:12 Or mankind
- Isaiah 45:18 The same Hebrew word translated empty describes the first stage of creation in Genesis 1.
- Isaiah 45:19 Literally the seed
- Isaiah 45:19 The same Hebrew translated chaos describes the first stage of creation in Genesis 1.
- Isaiah 45:25 Or all the seed
- Isaiah 45:25 Or be confident in him or shine in glory
Isaiah 45
Legacy Standard Bible
Cyrus, Yahweh’s Anointed
45 Thus says Yahweh to (A)Cyrus His anointed,
Whom I have taken hold of by his right (B)hand,
To (C)subdue nations before him
And [a]to (D)loose the loins of kings,
To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
2 “I will go before you and (E)make the [b]rough places smooth;
I will (F)shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron (G)bars.
3 I will give you the [c](H)treasures of darkness
And hidden wealth of secret places,
So that you may know that it is I,
Yahweh, the God of Israel, who (I)calls you by your name.
4 For the sake of (J)Jacob My servant,
And Israel My chosen one,
I have also (K)called you by your name;
I have given you a title of honor
Though you have (L)not known Me.
5 I am Yahweh, and (M)there is no other;
(N)Besides Me there is no God.
I will [d](O)gird you, though you have not known Me,
6 That (P)they may know from the rising to the setting of the sun
That there is (Q)no one besides Me.
I am Yahweh, and there is no other,
7 The One (R)forming light and (S)creating darkness,
Producing peace and (T)creating calamity;
I am Yahweh who does all these.
Yahweh the Maker
8 “(U)Drip down, O heavens, from above,
And let the skies pour down righteousness;
Let the (V)earth open up and salvation bear fruit,
(W)And righteousness [e]spring up with it.
I, Yahweh, have created it.
9 “Woe to the one who (X)contends with his [f]Maker—
An earthenware vessel [g]among the vessels of earth!
Will the (Y)clay say to the [h]potter, ‘What are you doing?’
Or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’
Or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor pains?’”
11 Thus says (Z)Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, and his [i](AA)Maker:
“[j](AB)Ask Me about the things that are to come [k]concerning My (AC)sons,
And you shall [l]commit to Me (AD)the work of My hands.
12 It is I who (AE)made the earth and created man upon it.
I (AF)stretched out the heavens with My hands,
And I commanded (AG)all their host.
13 I have awakened him in (AH)righteousness,
And I will (AI)make all his ways smooth;
He will (AJ)build My city and will (AK)let My exiles go,
Without any payment or reward,” says Yahweh of hosts.
14 Thus says Yahweh,
“The fruit of the labor of (AL)Egypt and the profit of [m](AM)Ethiopia
And the Sabeans, men of stature,
Will (AN)come over to you and will be yours;
They will walk behind you; they will come over in (AO)chains
And will (AP)bow down to you;
They will make supplication to you:
‘[n]Surely, (AQ)God is [o]with you, and (AR)there is none else,
No other God.’”
15 Truly, You are a God who (AS)hides Himself,
O God of Israel, (AT)Savior!
16 They will be (AU)put to shame and even dishonored, all of them;
The (AV)craftsmen of idols will go away together in dishonor.
17 Israel has been saved by Yahweh
With an (AW)everlasting salvation;
You (AX)will not be put to shame or dishonored
To all eternity.
18 For thus says Yahweh, who (AY)created the heavens (He is the God who (AZ)formed the earth and made it; He established it and did not create it [p]a (BA)formless place, but formed it to be (BB)inhabited),
“I am Yahweh, and (BC)there is none else.
19 (BD)I have not spoken in secret,
In [q]some dark land;
I did not say to the (BE)seed of Jacob,
‘(BF)Seek Me in [r]a formless place’;
I, Yahweh, (BG)speak righteousness,
(BH)Declaring things that are upright.
20 “(BI)Gather yourselves and come;
Draw near together, you who have escaped from the nations;
(BJ)They do not know,
Who (BK)carry about their graven image of wood
And (BL)pray to a god who cannot save.
21 (BM)Declare and draw near with your case;
Indeed, let them consult together.
(BN)Who has made this heard from of old?
Who has long since declared it?
Is it not I, Yahweh?
And there is (BO)no other God besides Me,
A righteous God and a (BP)Savior;
There is none except Me.
22 (BQ)Turn to Me and (BR)be saved, all the ends of the earth;
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 (BS)I have sworn by Myself,
The (BT)word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness
And will not turn back,
That to Me (BU)every knee will bow, every tongue will (BV)swear allegiance.
24 They will say of Me, ‘Only (BW)in Yahweh are righteousness and strength.’
Men will come to Him,
And (BX)all who were angry at Him will be put to shame.
25 In Yahweh all the seed of Israel
Will be (BY)justified and will (BZ)boast.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 45:1 Lit I will open, cf. 45:1b
- Isaiah 45:2 Or mountains
- Isaiah 45:3 Or hoarded treasures
- Isaiah 45:5 Or arm
- Isaiah 45:8 Or branch forth, cf. 61:11
- Isaiah 45:9 Lit Fashioner
- Isaiah 45:9 Lit with
- Isaiah 45:9 Lit Fashioner
- Isaiah 45:11 Lit Fashioner
- Isaiah 45:11 Or Will you ask...?
- Isaiah 45:11 Or upon
- Isaiah 45:11 Lit command
- Isaiah 45:14 Or Cush, cf. Gen 10:6
- Isaiah 45:14 Or God is with you alone
- Isaiah 45:14 Or in
- Isaiah 45:18 Or in vain
- Isaiah 45:19 Lit a place of a land of darkness
- Isaiah 45:19 Or vain
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.
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