Isaiah 41:17–24

¹⁷“When the poor and needy search for water and there is none,

and their tongues are parched from thirst,

then I, the Lord, will answer them.

I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them.

¹⁸I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus.

I will give them fountains of water in the valleys.

I will fill the desert with pools of water.

Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground.

¹⁹I will plant trees in the barren desert—

cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine.

²⁰I am doing this so all who see this miracle

will understand what it means—

that it is the Lord who has done this,

the Holy One of Israel who created it.

²¹“Present the case for your idols,”

says the Lord.

“Let them show what they can do,”

says the King of Israel.

²²“Let them try to tell us what happened long ago

so that we may consider the evidence.

Or let them tell us what the future holds,

so we can know what’s going to happen.

²³Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead.

Then we will know you are gods.

In fact, do anything—good or bad!

Do something that will amaze and frighten us.

²⁴But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all.

Those who choose you pollute themselves.