Isaiah 43–44

The Redeemer of Israel

43But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, ^afor I have redeemed you;

^bI have called you by your name;

You are Mine.

^2cWhen you pass through the waters, ^dI will be with you;

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

When you ^ewalk through the fire, you shall not be burned,

Nor shall the flame scorch you.

³For I am the Lord your God,

The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

^fI gave Egypt for your ransom,

Ethiopia and Seba in your place.

⁴Since you were precious in My sight,

You have been honored,

And I have ^gloved you;

Therefore I will give men for you,

And people for your life.

^5hFear not, for I am with you;

I will bring your descendants from the east,

And ⁱgather you from the west;

⁶I will say to the ^jnorth, ‘Give them up!’

And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’

Bring My sons from afar,

And My daughters from the ends of the earth—

⁷Everyone who is ^kcalled by My name,

Whom ^lI have created for My glory;

I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”

^8mBring out the blind people who have eyes,

And the ⁿdeaf who have ears.

⁹Let all the nations be gathered together,

And let the people be assembled.

^oWho among them can declare this,

And show us former things?

Let them bring out their witnesses, that they may be justified;

Or let them hear and say, “It is truth.”

¹⁰“You ^pare My witnesses,” says the Lord,

^q“And My servant whom I have chosen,

That you may know and ^rbelieve Me,

And understand that I am He.

Before Me there was no God formed,

Nor shall there be after Me.

¹¹I, even I, ^sam the Lord,

And besides Me there is no savior.

¹²I have declared and saved,

I have proclaimed,

And there was no ^tforeign god among you;

^uTherefore you are My witnesses,”

Says the Lord, “that I am God.

^13vIndeed before the day was, I am He;

And there is no one who can deliver out of My hand;

I work, and who will ^wreverse it?”

¹⁴Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,

The Holy One of Israel:

“For your sake I will send to Babylon,

And bring them all down as fugitives—

The Chaldeans, who rejoice in their ships.

¹⁵I am the Lord, your Holy One,

The Creator of Israel, your ^xKing.”

¹⁶Thus says the Lord, who ^ymakes a way in the sea

And a ^zpath through the mighty waters,

¹⁷Who ^abrings forth the chariot and horse,

The army and the power

(They shall lie down together, they shall not rise;

They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):

¹⁸“Do ^bnot remember the former things,

Nor consider the things of old.

¹⁹Behold, I will do a ^cnew thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

^dI will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert.

²⁰The beast of the field will honor Me,

The jackals and the ostriches,

Because ^eI give waters in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert,

To give drink to My people, My chosen.

^21fThis people I have formed for Myself;

They shall declare My ^gpraise.

Pleading with Unfaithful Israel

²²“But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob;

And you ^hhave been weary of Me, O Israel.

²³ⁱYou have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings,

Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices.

I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings,

Nor wearied you with incense.

²⁴You have bought Me no sweet cane with money,

Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;

But you have burdened Me with your sins,

You have ^jwearied Me with your iniquities.

²⁵“I, even I, am He who ^kblots out your transgressions ^lfor My own sake;

^mAnd I will not remember your sins.

²⁶Put Me in remembrance;

Let us contend together;

State your case, that you may be ¹acquitted.

²⁷Your first father sinned,

And your ²mediators have transgressed against Me.

²⁸Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary;

ⁿI will give Jacob to the curse,

And Israel to reproaches.

God’s Blessing on Israel

44“Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant,

And Israel whom I have chosen.

²Thus says the Lord who made you

And formed you from the womb, who will help you:

‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant;

And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

³For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,

And floods on the dry ground;

I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,

And My blessing on your offspring;

⁴They will spring up among the grass

Like willows by the watercourses.’

⁵One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’;

Another will call himself by the name of Jacob;

Another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’

And name himself by the name of Israel.

There is No Other God

⁶“Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel,

And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:

^a‘I am the First and I am the Last;

Besides Me there is no God.

⁷And ^bwho can proclaim as I do?

Then let him declare it and set it in order for Me,

Since I appointed the ancient people.

And the things that are coming and shall come,

Let them show these to them.

⁸Do not fear, nor be afraid;

^cHave I not told you from that time, and declared it?

^dYou are My witnesses.

Is there a God besides Me?

Indeed ^ethere is no other Rock;

I know not one.’ ”

Idolatry is Foolishness

^9fThose who make an image, all of them are useless,

And their precious things shall not profit;

They are their own witnesses;

^gThey neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.

¹⁰Who would form a god or mold an image

^hThat profits him nothing?

¹¹Surely all his companions would be ⁱashamed;

And the workmen, they are mere men.

Let them all be gathered together,

Let them stand up;

Yet they shall fear,

They shall be ashamed together.

^12jThe blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals,

Fashions it with hammers,

And works it with the strength of his arms.

Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails;

He drinks no water and is faint.

¹³The craftsman stretches out his rule,

He marks one out with chalk;

He fashions it with a plane,

He marks it out with the compass,

And makes it like the figure of a man,

According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.

¹⁴He cuts down cedars for himself,

And takes the cypress and the oak;

He ¹secures it for himself among the trees of the forest.

He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it.

¹⁵Then it shall be for a man to burn,

For he will take some of it and warm himself;

Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread;

Indeed he makes a god and worships it;

He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.

¹⁶He burns half of it in the fire;

With this half he eats meat;

He roasts a roast, and is satisfied.

He even warms himself and says,

“Ah! I am warm,

I have seen the fire.”

¹⁷And the rest of it he makes into a god,

His carved image.

He falls down before it and worships it,

Prays to it and says,

“Deliver me, for you are my god!”

^18kThey do not know nor understand;

For ^lHe has ²shut their eyes, so that they cannot see,

And their hearts, so that they cannot ^munderstand.

¹⁹And no one ⁿconsiders in his heart,

Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say,

“I have burned half of it in the fire,

Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals;

I have roasted meat and eaten it;

And shall I make the rest of it an abomination?

Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”

²⁰He feeds on ashes;

^oA deceived heart has turned him aside;

And he cannot deliver his soul,

Nor say, “Is there not a ^plie in my right hand?”

Israel is Not Forgotten

²¹“Remember these, O Jacob,

And Israel, for you are My servant;

I have formed you, you are My servant;

O Israel, you will not be ^qforgotten by Me!

^22rI have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions,

And like a cloud, your sins.

Return to Me, for ^sI have redeemed you.”

^23tSing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it!

Shout, you lower parts of the earth;

Break forth into singing, you mountains,

O forest, and every tree in it!

For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,

And ^uglorified Himself in Israel.

Judah Will Be Restored

²⁴Thus says the Lord, ^vyour Redeemer,

And ^wHe who formed you from the womb:

“I am the Lord, who makes all things,

^xWho stretches out the heavens ³all alone,

Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;

²⁵Who ^yfrustrates the signs ^zof the babblers,

And drives diviners mad;

Who turns wise men backward,

^aAnd makes their knowledge foolishness;

^26bWho confirms the word of His servant,

And performs the counsel of His messengers;

Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’

To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’

And I will raise up her waste places;

^27cWho says to the deep, ‘Be dry!

And I will dry up your rivers’;

²⁸Who says of ^dCyrus, ‘He is My shepherd,

And he shall perform all My pleasure,

Saying to Jerusalem, ^e“You shall be built,”

And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’