Isaiah 44–45

Israel the Chosen

44“But now listen, Jacob, my servant,^k

Israel, whom I have chosen.^l

²This is what the Lord says—

he who made^m you, who formed you in the womb,ⁿ

and who will help^o you:

Do not be afraid,^p Jacob, my servant,^q

Jeshurun,^ar whom I have chosen.

³For I will pour water^s on the thirsty land,

and streams on the dry ground;^t

I will pour out my Spirit^u on your offspring,

and my blessing^v on your descendants.^w

⁴They will spring up like grass^x in a meadow,

like poplar trees^y by flowing streams.^z

⁵Some will say, ‘I belong^a to the Lord’;

others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;

still others will write on their hand,^b ‘The Lord’s,’^c

and will take the name Israel.

The Lord, Not Idols

⁶“This is what the Lord says—

Israel’s King^d and Redeemer,^e the Lord Almighty:

I am the first and I am the last;^f

apart from me there is no God.^g

⁷Who then is like me?^h Let him proclaim it.

Let him declare and lay out before me

what has happened since I established my ancient people,

and what is yet to come—

yes, let them foretellⁱ what will come.

⁸Do not tremble, do not be afraid.

Did I not proclaim^j this and foretell it long ago?

You are my witnesses. Is there any God^k besides me?

No, there is no other Rock;^l I know not one.”

⁹All who make idols^m are nothing,

and the things they treasure are worthless.ⁿ

Those who would speak up for them are blind;^o

they are ignorant, to their own shame.^p

¹⁰Who shapes a god and casts an idol,^q

which can profit nothing?^r

¹¹People who do that will be put to shame;^s

such craftsmen are only human beings.

Let them all come together and take their stand;

they will be brought down to terror and shame.^t

¹²The blacksmith^u 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.^v

He gets hungry and loses his strength;

he drinks no water and grows faint.^w

¹³The carpenter^x 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,^y

human form in all its glory,

that it may dwell in a shrine.^z

¹⁴He cut down cedars,

or perhaps took a cypress or oak.

He let it grow among the trees of the forest,

or planted a pine,^a and the rain made it grow.

¹⁵It is used as fuel^b 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^c it;

he makes an idol and bows^d down to it.

¹⁶Half 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.^e”

¹⁷From the rest he makes a god, his idol;

he bows down to it and worships.^f

He prays^g to it and says,

“Save^h me! You are my god!”

¹⁸They know nothing, they understandⁱ nothing;

their eyes^j are plastered over so they cannot see,

and their minds closed so they cannot understand.

¹⁹No one stops to think,

no one has the knowledge or understanding^k to say,

“Half of it I used for fuel;^l

I even baked bread over its coals,

I roasted meat and I ate.

Shall I make a detestable^m thing from what is left?

Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”ⁿ

²⁰Such a person feeds on ashes;^o a deluded^p heart misleads him;

he cannot save himself, or say,

“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?^q”

²¹“Remember^r these things, Jacob,

for you, Israel, are my servant.^s

I have made you, you are my servant;^t

Israel, I will not forget you.^u

²²I have swept away^v your offenses like a cloud,

your sins like the morning mist.

Return^w to me,

for I have redeemed^x you.”

²³Sing for joy,^y you heavens, for the Lord has done this;

shout aloud, you earth^z beneath.

Burst into song, you mountains,^a

you forests and all your trees,^b

for the Lord has redeemed^c Jacob,

he displays his glory^d in Israel.

Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

²⁴“This is what the Lord says—

your Redeemer,^e who formed^f you in the womb:^g

I am the Lord,

the Maker of all things,

who stretches out the heavens,^h

who spreads out the earthⁱ by myself,

²⁵who foils^j the signs of false prophets

and makes fools of diviners,^k

who overthrows the learning of the wise^l

and turns it into nonsense,^m

²⁶who carries out the wordsⁿ of his servants

and fulfills^o the predictions of his messengers,

who says of Jerusalem,^p ‘It shall be inhabited,’

of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’

and of their ruins,^q ‘I will restore them,’^r

²⁷who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,

and I will dry up^s your streams,’

²⁸who says of Cyrus,^t ‘He is my shepherd

and will accomplish all that I please;

he will say of Jerusalem,^u “Let it be rebuilt,”

and of the temple,^v “Let its foundations^w be laid.” ’

45“This is what the Lord says to his anointed,^x

to Cyrus,^y whose right hand I take hold^z of

to subdue nations^a before him

and to strip kings of their armor,

to open doors before him

so that gates will not be shut:

²I will go before you^b

and will level^c the mountains^a;

I will break down gates^d of bronze

and cut through bars of iron.^e

³I will give you hidden treasures,^f

riches stored in secret places,^g

so that you may know^h that I am the Lord,

the God of Israel, who summons you by name.ⁱ

⁴For the sake of Jacob my servant,^j

of Israel my chosen,

I summon you by name

and bestow on you a title of honor,

though you do not acknowledge^k me.

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

apart from me there is no God.^m

I will strengthen you,ⁿ

though you have not acknowledged me,

⁶so that from the rising of the sun

to the place of its setting^o

people may know^p there is none besides me.^q

I am the Lord, and there is no other.

⁷I form the light and create darkness,^r

I bring prosperity and create disaster;^s

I, the Lord, do all these things.

⁸“You heavens above, rain^t down my righteousness;^u

let the clouds shower it down.

Let the earth open wide,

let salvation^v spring up,

let righteousness flourish with it;

I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹“Woe to those who quarrel^w with their Maker,^x

those who are nothing but potsherds^y

among the potsherds on the ground.

Does the clay say to the potter,^z

‘What are you making?’^a

Does your work say,

‘The potter has no hands’?^b

¹⁰Woe 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^c of Israel, and its Maker:^d

Concerning things to come,

do you question me about my children,

or give me orders about the work of my hands?^e

¹²It is I who made the earth^f

and created mankind on it.

My own hands stretched out the heavens;^g

I marshaled their starry hosts.^h

¹³I will raise up Cyrus^bi in my righteousness:

I will make all his ways straight.^j

He will rebuild my city^k

and set my exiles free,

but not for a price or reward,^l

says the Lord Almighty.”

¹⁴This is what the Lord says:

“The products^m of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,^c

and those tall Sabeansⁿ—

they will come over to you^o

and will be yours;

they will trudge behind you,^p

coming over to you in chains.^q

They will bow down before you

and plead^r with you, saying,

‘Surely God is with you,^s and there is no other;

there is no other god.^t’ ”

¹⁵Truly you are a God who has been hiding^u himself,

the God and Savior^v of Israel.

¹⁶All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;^w

they will go off into disgrace together.

¹⁷But Israel will be saved^x by the Lord

with an everlasting salvation;^y

you will never be put to shame or disgraced,^z

to ages everlasting.

¹⁸For this is what the Lord says—

he who created the heavens,

he is God;

he who fashioned and made the earth,^a

he founded it;

he did not create it to be empty,^b

but formed it to be inhabited^c—

he says:

“I am the Lord,

and there is no other.^d

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret,^e

from somewhere in a land of darkness;^f

I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,^g

‘Seek^h me in vain.’

I, the Lord, speak the truth;

I declare what is right.ⁱ

²⁰“Gather together^j and come;

assemble, you fugitives from the nations.

Ignorant^k are those who carry^l about idols of wood,

who pray to gods that cannot save.^m

²¹Declare what is to be, present it—

let them take counsel together.

Who foretoldⁿ this long ago,

who declared it from the distant past?^o

Was it not I, the Lord?

And there is no God apart from me,^p

a righteous God^q and a Savior;^r

there is none but me.

²²“Turn^s to me and be saved,^t

all you ends of the earth;^u

for I am God, and there is no other.^v

²³By myself I have sworn,^w

my mouth has uttered in all integrity^x

a word that will not be revoked:^y

Before me every knee will bow;^z

by me every tongue will swear.^a

²⁴They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone

are deliverance^b and strength.^c’ ”

All who have raged against him

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

²⁵But all the descendants^e of Israel

will find deliverance^f in the Lord

and will make their boast in him.^g