Isaiah 43–44

Chapter 43

¹But now thus saith Jehovah, that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. ²When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. ³For I am Jehovah thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee. ⁴Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee; and I will give men for thee, and peoples for thy life. ⁵Fear not, for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; ⁶I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from afar, and my daughters from the end of the earth, ⁷every one that is called by my name, and whom I have created for my glory: I have formed him, yea, I have made him.

⁸Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears. ⁹Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled: who among them declareth this, or causeth us to hear former things? let them bring forth their witnesses, that they may be justified; or let them hear, and say, It is truth. ¹⁰Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, and my servant whom I have chosen; that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am HE: before me there was no •God formed, neither shall there be after me. ¹¹I, I am Jehovah; and besides me there is no saviour. ¹²It is I that have declared, and have saved, and have shewed, when there was no strange god among you; and ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, that I am •God. ¹³Yea, since the day was, I am HE, and there is none that delivereth out of my hand: I will work, and who shall hinder it?

¹⁴Thus saith Jehovah, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought all of them down as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships. ¹⁵I am Jehovah, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King. ¹⁶Thus saith Jehovah, who maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters, ¹⁷who bringeth forth chariot and horse, army and power—they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched as tow: ¹⁸—Remember not the former things, neither consider the ancient things: ¹⁹behold, I do a new thing; now it shall spring forth: shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the waste. ²⁰The beast of the field shall glorify me, the jackals and the ostriches; for I will give waters in the wilderness, rivers in the waste, to give drink to my people, my chosen. ²¹This people have I formed for myself: they shall shew forth my praise.

²²—But thou hast not called upon me, Jacob; for thou hast been weary of me, O Israel: ²³thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt-offerings, neither hast thou glorified me with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to toil with an oblation, nor wearied thee with incense. ²⁴Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices; but thou hast made me to toil with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities. ²⁵—I, I am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and I will not remember thy sins. ²⁶Put me in remembrance, let us plead together; rehearse thine own cause, that thou mayest be justified. ²⁷Thy first father hath sinned, and thy mediators have rebelled against me. ²⁸And I have profaned the princes of the sanctuary, and have given Jacob to the ban, and Israel to reproaches.

Chapter 44

¹And now hear, Jacob, my servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen: ²thus saith Jehovah, that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, who helpeth thee, Fear not, Jacob, my servant, and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. ³For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring. ⁴And they shall spring up among the grass, as willows by the water-courses. ⁵One shall say, I am Jehovah’s; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall write with his hand: I am Jehovah’s, and surname himself by the name of Israel. ⁶Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and beside me there is no God. ⁷And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? And the coming things, and those that shall happen, let them declare unto them. ⁸Fear not, neither be afraid. Have I not caused thee to hear from that time, and have declared it? and ye are my witnesses. Is there a †God beside me? yea, there is no Rock: I know not any.

⁹They that form a graven image are all of them vanity, and their delectable things are of no profit; and they are their own witnesses: they see not, nor know; —that they may be ashamed. ¹⁰Who hath formed a •god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing? ¹¹Behold, all his fellows shall be ashamed; and the workmen are but men. Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up: they shall fear, they shall be ashamed together. ¹²The iron-smith hath a chisel, and he worketh in the coals, and he fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with his strong arm; —but he is hungry, and his strength faileth; he hath not drunk water, and he is faint. ¹³The worker in wood stretcheth out a line; he marketh it out with red chalk; he formeth it with sharp tools, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of man: that it may remain in the house. ¹⁴When he heweth him down cedars, he taketh also a holm-oak and a terebinth—he chooseth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth a pine, and the rain maketh it grow. ¹⁵And it shall be for a man to burn, and he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself; he kindleth it also, and baketh bread; he maketh also a •god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto. ¹⁶He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh, he roasteth roast, and is satisfied; yea, he is warm, and saith, Aha, I am become warm, I have seen the fire. ¹⁷And with the remainder thereof he maketh a •god, his graven image; he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me, for thou art my •god. ¹⁸They have no knowledge, and understand not; for he hath plastered their eyes, that they may not see; and their hearts, that they may not understand. ¹⁹And none taketh it to heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire, and have also baked bread upon the coals thereof, I have roasted flesh, and eaten it, and with the rest thereof shall I make an abomination? shall I bow down to a block of wood? ²⁰He feedeth on ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?

²¹Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for thou art my servant; I have formed thee: thou art my servant, Israel; thou shalt not be forgotten of me. ²²I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. ²³Sing, ye heavens; for Jehovah hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth; break forth into singing, ye mountains, the forest, and every tree therein! For Jehovah hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel. ²⁴Thus saith Jehovah, thy Redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb: I am Jehovah, the maker of all things; who alone stretched out the heavens, who did spread forth the earth by myself; ²⁵—he that frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish; ²⁶that confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built up, and I will raise up their ruins; ²⁷that saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers; ²⁸that saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and he shall perform all my pleasure; even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.