Isaiah 44:28–45:13

²⁸He says about Cyrus, “He is my shepherd. 

He will do everything I want him to do.” 

He says about Jerusalem, “It will be rebuilt.” 

He says about the temple, “Your foundation will be laid.” 

45TH CHAPTER

¹This is what the Lord says about Cyrus, his^aanointed one: 

I have held him by his right hand 

so he could conquer the nations ahead of him, 

strip kings of their power, 

and open doors ahead of him 

so that the gates would not be shut. 

²I will go ahead of you, Cyrus, and smooth out the rough places. 

I will break down the bronze doors and cut through the iron bars. 

³I will give you treasures from dark places and hidden stockpiles. 

Then you will know that I, the Lord God of Israel, 

have called you by name. 

⁴For the sake of my servant Jacob, 

Israel, my chosen one, 

I have called you by name. 

I have given you a title of honor, although you don’t know me. 

⁵I am the Lord, and there is no other. 

There is no other God besides me. 

I will strengthen you, although you don’t know me, 

⁶so that from the east to the west people will know 

that there is no God except me. 

I am the Lord, and there is no other. 

⁷I make light and create darkness. 

I make blessings and create disasters. 

I, the Lord, do all these things. 

⁸Rain down from above, you heavens, 

and pour down righteousness, you skies. 

Let the earth open. 

Let salvation and righteousness sprout. 

Let them spring up. 

I, the Lord, have created them. 

⁹How horrible it will be for the one who quarrels with his maker. 

He is pottery among other earthenware pots. 

Does the clay ask the one who shapes it, “What are you making?” 

Does your work say to you, “There are no handles”? 

¹⁰How horrible it will be for the one 

who says to his father, “Why did you conceive me?” 

or to his mother, “Why did you go through labor pains for me?” 

¹¹The Lord is the Holy One and the maker of Israel. 

This is what the Lord says: 

Ask me about what is going to happen to my children! 

Are you going to give me orders concerning my handiwork? 

¹²I made the earth and created humans on it. 

I stretched out the heavens with my own hands. 

I commanded all the stars ⸤to shine⸥. 

¹³I prepared Cyrus for my righteous purpose. 

I will make all his roads straight. 

He will build my city and let my exiles go free 

without any payment or any reward, says the Lord of Armies.