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Isaiah 44:6-45:25
New International Version
Isaiah 44:6-45:25
New International Version
The Lord, Not Idols
6 “This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King(A) and Redeemer,(B) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;(C)
apart from me there is no God.(D)
7 Who then is like me?(E) 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 foretell(F) what will come.
8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim(G) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God(H) besides me?
No, there is no other Rock;(I) I know not one.”
9 All who make idols(J) are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.(K)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(L)
they are ignorant, to their own shame.(M)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(N)
which can profit nothing?(O)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(P)
such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
they will be brought down to terror and shame.(Q)
12 The blacksmith(R) 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.(S)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
he drinks no water and grows faint.(T)
13 The carpenter(U) 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,(V)
human form in all its glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.(W)
14 He cut down cedars,
or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
or planted a pine,(X) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(Y) 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(Z) it;
he makes an idol and bows(AA) down to it.
16 Half 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.(AB)”
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
he bows down to it and worships.(AC)
He prays(AD) to it and says,
“Save(AE) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(AF) nothing;
their eyes(AG) are plastered over so they cannot see,
and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
19 No one stops to think,
no one has the knowledge or understanding(AH) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(AI)
I even baked bread over its coals,
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(AJ) thing from what is left?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(AK)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(AL) a deluded(AM) heart misleads him;
he cannot save himself, or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(AN)”
21 “Remember(AO) these things, Jacob,
for you, Israel, are my servant.(AP)
I have made you, you are my servant;(AQ)
Israel, I will not forget you.(AR)
22 I have swept away(AS) your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return(AT) to me,
for I have redeemed(AU) you.”
23 Sing for joy,(AV) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, you earth(AW) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,(AX)
you forests and all your trees,(AY)
for the Lord has redeemed(AZ) Jacob,
he displays his glory(BA) in Israel.
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,(BE)
who spreads out the earth(BF) by myself,
25 who foils(BG) the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,(BH)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(BI)
and turns it into nonsense,(BJ)
26 who carries out the words(BK) of his servants
and fulfills(BL) the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,(BM) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
and of their ruins,(BN) ‘I will restore them,’(BO)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
and I will dry up(BP) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(BQ) ‘He is my shepherd
and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(BR) “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple,(BS) “Let its foundations(BT) be laid.”’
45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(BU)
to Cyrus,(BV) whose right hand I take hold(BW) of
to subdue nations(BX) before him
and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
so that gates will not be shut:
2 I will go before you(BY)
and will level(BZ) the mountains[a];
I will break down gates(CA) of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.(CB)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,(CC)
riches stored in secret places,(CD)
so that you may know(CE) that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(CF)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,(CG)
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge(CH) me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;(CI)
apart from me there is no God.(CJ)
I will strengthen you,(CK)
though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting(CL)
people may know(CM) there is none besides me.(CN)
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness,(CO)
I bring prosperity and create disaster;(CP)
I, the Lord, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain(CQ) down my righteousness;(CR)
let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
let salvation(CS) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel(CT) with their Maker,(CU)
those who are nothing but potsherds(CV)
among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(CW)
‘What are you making?’(CX)
Does your work say,
‘The potter has no hands’?(CY)
10 Woe 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(CZ) of Israel, and its Maker:(DA)
Concerning things to come,
do you question me about my children,
or give me orders about the work of my hands?(DB)
12 It is I who made the earth(DC)
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(DD)
I marshaled their starry hosts.(DE)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[b](DF) in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.(DG)
He will rebuild my city(DH)
and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(DI)
says the Lord Almighty.”
14 This is what the Lord says:
“The products(DJ) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,[c]
and those tall Sabeans(DK)—
they will come over to you(DL)
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,(DM)
coming over to you in chains.(DN)
They will bow down before you
and plead(DO) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,(DP) and there is no other;
there is no other god.(DQ)’”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding(DR) himself,
the God and Savior(DS) of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;(DT)
they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved(DU) by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;(DV)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,(DW)
to ages everlasting.
18 For this is what the Lord says—
he who created the heavens,
he is God;
he who fashioned and made the earth,(DX)
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,(DY)
but formed it to be inhabited(DZ)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other.(EA)
19 I have not spoken in secret,(EB)
from somewhere in a land of darkness;(EC)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,(ED)
‘Seek(EE) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
I declare what is right.(EF)
20 “Gather together(EG) and come;
assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant(EH) are those who carry(EI) about idols of wood,
who pray to gods that cannot save.(EJ)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold(EK) this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?(EL)
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no God apart from me,(EM)
a righteous God(EN) and a Savior;(EO)
there is none but me.
22 “Turn(EP) to me and be saved,(EQ)
all you ends of the earth;(ER)
for I am God, and there is no other.(ES)
23 By myself I have sworn,(ET)
my mouth has uttered in all integrity(EU)
a word that will not be revoked:(EV)
Before me every knee will bow;(EW)
by me every tongue will swear.(EX)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
are deliverance(EY) and strength.(EZ)’”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.(FA)
25 But all the descendants(FB) of Israel
will find deliverance(FC) in the Lord
and will make their boast in him.(FD)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 45:2 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
- Isaiah 45:13 Hebrew him
- Isaiah 45:14 That is, the upper Nile region
Isaiah 44:6-45:25
King James Version
Isaiah 44:6-45:25
King James Version
6 Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.
7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall 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 shew unto them.
8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.
9 They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.
10 Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing?
11 Behold, all his fellows shall be ashamed: and the workmen, they are of men: let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, and they shall be ashamed together.
12 The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the strength of his arms: yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth: he drinketh no water, and is faint.
13 The carpenter stretcheth out his rule; he marketh it out with a line; he fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man; that it may remain in the house.
14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.
15 Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.
16 He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire:
17 And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god.
18 They have not known nor understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand.
19 And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?
20 He 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?
21 Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me.
22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.
23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.
24 Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;
25 That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish;
26 That 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, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof:
27 That saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers:
28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
45 Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;
2 I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron:
3 And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.
4 For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:
6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else.
7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.
8 Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness: let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together; I the Lord have created it.
9 Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?
10 Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou? or to the woman, What hast thou brought forth?
11 Thus saith the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me.
12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways: he shall build my city, and he shall let go my captives, not for price nor reward, saith the Lord of hosts.
14 Thus saith the Lord, The labour of Egypt, and merchandise of Ethiopia and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine: they shall come after thee; in chains they shall come over, and they shall fall down unto thee, they shall make supplication unto thee, saying, Surely God is in thee; and there is none else, there is no God.
15 Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.
16 They shall be ashamed, and also confounded, all of them: they shall go to confusion together that are makers of idols.
17 But Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end.
18 For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else.
19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the Lord speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.
20 Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that are escaped of the nations: they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save.
21 Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the Lord? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.
22 Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.
23 I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.
24 Surely, shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed.
25 In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.
New International Version (NIV) 
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