Isaiah 45

45The Lord says this to Cyrus, his anointed,^r

whose right hand I have grasped^s

to subdue nations before him

and disarm^A kings,^a

to open doors before him,

and even city gates will not be shut:

²“I will go before you

and level the uneven places;^Bb

I will shatter the bronze doors

and cut the iron bars in two.^c

³I will give you the treasures of darkness

and riches from secret places,^d

so that you may know that I am the Lord.

I am the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.^e

⁴I call you by your name,

for the sake of my servant Jacob^f

and Israel my chosen one.

I give a name to you,

though you do not know me.

⁵I am the Lord, and there is no other;^g

there is no God but me.^h

I will strengthen^C you,

though you do not know me,

⁶so that all may know from the rising of the sun to its setting

that there is no one but me.ⁱ

I am the Lord, and there is no other.

⁷I form light and create darkness,^j

I make success and create disaster;^k

I am the Lord, who does all these things.

⁸“Heavens, sprinkle from above,

and let the skies shower righteousness.^l

Let the earth open up

so that salvation will sprout

and righteousness will spring up with it.^m

I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹“Woe to the one who argues with his Maker—

one clay pot among many.^A

Does clay say to the one forming it,

‘What are you making?’ⁿ

Or does your work say,

‘He has no hands’?^B

¹⁰Woe to the one who says to his father,

‘What are you fathering?’

or to his mother,^C

‘What are you giving birth to?’ ”

¹¹This is what the Lord,

the Holy One of Israel^o and its Maker, says:

“Ask me what is to happen to^D my sons,^p

and instruct me about the work of my hands.^q

¹²I made the earth,

and created humans on it.

It was my hands that stretched out the heavens,^r

and I commanded everything in them.

¹³I have stirred him up in righteousness,^s

and will level all roads for him.

He will rebuild my city,^t

and set my exiles free,^u

not for a price or a bribe,”

says the Lord of Armies.

GOD ALONE IS THE SAVIOR

¹⁴This is what the Lord says:

“The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush

and the Sabeans, men of stature,^v

will come over to you^w

and will be yours;

they will follow you,

they will come over in chains

and bow down to you.

They will confess^E to you,

‘God is indeed with you,^x and there is no other;

there is no other God.’ ”

¹⁵Yes, you are a God who hides,^y

God of Israel, Savior.^z

¹⁶All of them are put to shame, even humiliated;^aa

the makers of idols go in humiliation together.

¹⁷Israel will be saved by the Lord

with an everlasting salvation;

you will not be put to shame or humiliated

for all eternity.^ab

¹⁸For this is what the Lord says—

the Creator of the heavens,

the God who formed the earth and made it,

the one who established it

(he did not create it to be a wasteland,

but formed it to be inhabited)^ac—

he says, “I am the Lord,

and there is no other.

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret,^a

somewhere in a land of darkness.

I did not say to the descendants of Jacob:

Seek me in a wasteland.^b

I am the Lord, who speaks righteously,^c

who declares what is right.

²⁰“Come, gather together,

and approach, you fugitives of the nations.

Those who carry their wooden idols

and pray to a god who cannot save^d

have no knowledge.^e

²¹Speak up and present your case^Af—

yes, let them consult each other.

Who predicted this long ago?

Who announced it from ancient times?

Was it not I, the Lord?

There is no other God but me,

a righteous God and Savior;^g

there is no one except me.^h

²²Turn to me and be saved,

all the ends of the earth.

For I am God,

and there is no other.

²³By myself I have sworn;ⁱ

truth has gone from my mouth,^j

a word that will not be revoked:

Every knee will bow^k to me,

every tongue will swear allegiance.

²⁴It will be said about me, ‘Righteousness and strength

are found only in the Lord.’ ”

All who are enraged against him

will come to him and be put to shame.^l

²⁵All the descendants of Israel

will be justified and boast in the Lord.