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Isaiah 44-48
Common English Bible
Isaiah 44-48
Common English Bible
You are my witnesses
44 But now hear this, Jacob my servant,
and Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 The Lord your maker,
who formed you in the womb and will help you, says:
Don’t fear, my servant Jacob,
Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 I will pour out water upon thirsty ground
and streams upon dry land.
I will pour out my spirit upon your descendants
and my blessing upon your offspring.
4 They will spring up from among the reeds
like willows by flowing streams.
5 This one will say, “I am the Lord’s,”
and that one will be named after Jacob.
Another will write on his hand, “The Lord’s”
and will take the name Israel.
6 The Lord, Israel’s king and redeemer,
the Lord of heavenly forces, says:
I am the first, and I am the last,
and besides me there are no gods.
7 Who is like me?
Let them speak up, explain it, and lay it out for me.
Who announced long ago what is to be?[a]
Let them tell us[b] what is to come.
8 Don’t tremble; have no fear!
Didn’t I proclaim it?
Didn’t I inform you long ago?
You are my witnesses!
Is there a God besides me?
There is no other rock; I know of none.
Idol-makers mocked
9 Idol-makers are all as nothing;
their playthings do no good.
Their promoters neither see nor know anything,
so they ought to be ashamed.
10 Who would form a god or cast an idol
that does no good?
11 All its worshippers will be ashamed,
and its artisans, who are only human.
They will all gather and stand,
tremble and be ashamed together.
12 A blacksmith with his tools
works it over coals,
and shapes it with hammers,
and works it with his strong arm.
He even becomes hungry and weak.
If he didn’t drink water, he’d pass out.
13 A carpenter stretches out a string,
marks it out with a stylus,
fashions it with carving tools,
and marks it with a compass.
He makes it into a human form,
like a splendid human,
to live in a temple.
14 He cuts down cedars for himself,
or chooses a cypress[c] or oak,
selecting from all the trees of the forest.
He plants a pine,[d] and the rain makes it grow.
15 It becomes suitable to burn for humans,
so he takes some of the wood and warms himself.
He kindles fire and bakes bread.
He fashions a god and worships it;
he makes an idol and bows down to it.
16 Half of it he burns in the fire;
on that half he roasts and eats meat, and he is satisfied.
He warms himself and says,
“Ah, I’m warm, watching the fire!”
17 And the rest of it he makes into a god,
into his idol,
and he bows down, worships, and prays to it, saying, “Save me, for you are my god!”
18 They don’t know or comprehend,
for their eyes can’t see
and their minds can’t comprehend.
19 He doesn’t think,
and has no knowledge or understanding to think:
Half of it I burned in the fire,
and I baked bread on its coals,
and roasted meat and ate.
Should I make the rest into something detestable?
Should I bow down to a block of wood?
20 He’s feeding on ashes;
his deluded mind has led him astray.
He can’t save himself and say,
“Isn’t this thing in my hand a lie?”
Promises to Jacob and Jerusalem
21 Remember these things, Jacob;
Israel, for you are my servant.
I formed you; you are my servant!
I won’t forget you, Israel.
22 I swept away your rebellions like a cloud,
and your sins like fog.
Return to me,
because I have redeemed you.
23 Sing, heavens, for the Lord has acted;
shout, depths of the earth!
Burst out with a ringing cry,
you mountains, forest, and every tree in it.
The Lord has redeemed Jacob,
and will glorify himself through Israel.
24 The Lord your redeemer
who formed you in the womb says:
I am the Lord, the maker of all,
who alone stretched out the heavens,
who spread out the earth by myself,
25 who frustrates the omens of diviners
and makes a mockery of magicians,
who turns back the wise
and turns their knowledge into folly.
26 But who confirms the word of my[e] servant,
and fulfills the predictions of my messengers;
who says about Jerusalem, “It will be resettled”;
and who says about the cities of Judah, “They will be rebuilt,
and I will restore their ruins”;
27 who says to the ocean depths,
“Dry up; I will dry your streams”;
28 who says about Cyrus, “My shepherd—
he will do all that I want”;
who says about Jerusalem,
“She will be rebuilt”;
and who says about the temple,
“You will be founded once again.”
Cyrus as God’s anointed
45 The Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whom I have grasped by the strong hand,
to conquer nations before him,
disarming kings,
and opening doors before him,
so no gates will be shut:
2 I myself will go before you,
and I will level mountains.
I will shatter bronze doors;
I will cut through iron bars.
3 I will give you hidden treasures of secret riches,
so you will know that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who calls you by name.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my chosen,
I called you by name.
I gave you an honored title,
though you didn’t know me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;
besides me there is no God.
I strengthen you—
though you don’t know me—
6 so all will know, from the rising of the sun to its setting,
that there is nothing apart from me.
I am the Lord; there’s no other.
7 I form light and create darkness,
make prosperity and create doom;
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
8 Pour down, you heavens above,
and let the clouds flow with righteousness.
Let the earth open for salvation to bear fruit;
let righteousness sprout as well.
I, the Lord, have created these things.
Potter and clay
9 Doom to the one who argues with the potter,[f]
as if he were just another clay pot!
Does the clay say to the potter, “What are you making?”
or “Your work has no handles”?
10 Doom to one who says to a father,
“What have you fathered?”
and to a woman,
“With what are you in labor?”
11 The Lord, the holy one of Israel and its maker,[g] says:
Are you questioning me[h] about my own children?
Are you telling me what to do with the work of my hands?
12 I myself made the earth,
and created humans upon it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens.
I commanded all their forces.
13 I have a right to awaken Cyrus;
I will smooth all his paths.
He will build my city
and set my exiles free,
not for a price and not for a bribe,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
14 The Lord says:
Egypt will grow weary, Cush will be sold,[i]
and the tall Sabeans will cross over to you.
They will be yours, and after you they will go.
In chains they will come;
to you they will bow down.
They will plead with you:
“Truly God is with you;
there’s no other, no other God.”
15 Surely you are a god who hides himself,
Israel’s God and savior.
Idols contrasted with God
16 They will all be shamed and disgraced;
the makers of idols will end up disgraced together.
17 Israel has been saved by the Lord of everlasting salvation.
You won’t be shamed,
and you won’t be disgraced forever and always.
18 For this is what the Lord said, who created the heavens,
who is God,
who formed the earth and made it,
who established it,
who didn’t create it a wasteland but formed it as a habitation:
I, the Lord, and none other!
19 I didn’t speak in secret
or in some land of darkness;
I didn’t say to the offspring of Jacob,
“Seek me in chaos.”
I am the Lord, the one who speaks truth,
who announces what is correct.
20 Gather and come,
draw near together,
fugitives of the nations!
Those who carry their wooden idols don’t know;
those who pray to a god who won’t save.
21 Announce! Approach! Confer together!
Who proclaimed this from the beginning, announced it from long ago?
Wasn’t it I, the Lord?
There’s no other God except me,
a righteous God and a savior;
there’s none besides me!
22 Turn to me and be saved,
all you ends of the earth,
for I am God, and there’s no other.
23 I have sworn a solemn pledge;
a word has left my mouth;
it is reliable and won’t fail.
Surely every knee will bow
and every tongue will confess;
24 they will say, “Righteousness and strength come only from the Lord.
All who are angry with him will come to shame.
25 All the Israelites
will be victorious and rejoice.”
Babylon’s idols can’t compare
46 Bel crouches down; Nebo cowers.
Their idols sit on animals, on beasts.
The objects you once carried about
are now borne as burdens by the weary animals.
2 They crouch down and cower together.
They aren’t able to rescue the burden,
but they themselves go into captivity.
3 Listen to me, house of Jacob,
all that remains from the house of Israel
who have been borne by me since pregnancy,
whom I carried from the womb
4 until you grow old. I am the one,
and until you turn gray I will support you.
I have done it, and I will continue to bear it;
I will support and I will rescue.
5 To whom will you liken me and count me equal
and compare me so that we are alike?
6 Those who pour out gold from a bag
and weigh silver with a balance
hire a metalworker; then he makes a god.
They bow down; they worship;
7 they carry the idol[j] on their shoulders and support it;
they set it down, and it stands still,
unable to move from its place.
If one cries out to it, it doesn’t answer.
It can’t save people from their distress.
Remember past events
8 Remember this and take courage;
take it to heart, you rebels.
9 Remember the prior things—from long ago;
I am God, and there’s no other.
I am God! There’s none like me,
10 who tells the end at the beginning,
from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, “My plan will stand;
all that I decide I will do,”
11 I call a bird of prey from the east,
a man from a distant land for my plan.
As surely as I have spoken, I’ll make it happen;
I have planned, and yes, I’ll do it.
12 Listen to me, you bullheaded people
who are far from victory:
13 I’m bringing my victory near—it isn’t far,
and my salvation—it won’t delay.
I will establish salvation in Zion
and grant my splendor to Israel.
Daughter Babylon dethroned
47 Go down and sit in the dust,
virgin Daughter Babylon!
Sit on the ground without a throne,
Daughter Chaldea,
because they will no longer call you tender and pampered.
2 Take the millstones and grind flour!
Remove your veil, strip off your robe,
expose your thighs, wade through the rivers!
3 Your nakedness will be exposed,
and your disgrace will be seen.
I will take vengeance;
no one will intervene.[k]
4 Our redeemer has spoken;
the Lord of heavenly forces is his name,
the holy one of Israel.
5 Sit silent and go into darkness, Daughter Chaldea,
because they will no longer call you Queen of Kingdoms.
6 I was enraged with my people;
I made my inheritance impure
and put them under your power.
You took no pity on them.
You made your yoke heavy even on the elderly.
7 You said, “I’m forever; I’m the eternal mistress.”
You didn’t stop and think;
you didn’t consider the outcome.
8 So listen to this,
luxuriant one who sits secure,
who says in her heart, I’m utterly unique;
I’ll never sit as a widow;
I’ll never know childlessness:
9 Both of these will happen to you at once, on a single day:
childlessness and widowhood
will envelop you in full measure,
despite your many sorceries,
despite your very powerful spells.
10 You felt secure in your evil;
you said, “No one sees me.”
Your wisdom and knowledge spun you around.
You thought to yourself, I and no one else.
11 Now evil will come against you,
something you won’t anticipate.
A curse will fall upon you,
something you won’t be able to dispel.
Destruction will come upon you suddenly,
something you won’t foresee.
12 Continue with your enchantments,
and with your many spells,
which you have practiced since childhood.
Maybe you will be able to succeed.
Maybe you will inspire terror.
13 You are weary from all your consultations;
let the astrologers stand up and save you,
those who gaze at the stars,
and predict what will happen to you at each new moon.
14 They are just like stubble;
the fire burns them.
They won’t save themselves from the powerful flames.
This is no warming ember or fire to sit beside.
15 Those with whom you have wearied yourself are like this,
those with whom you were in business from your youth:
each has wandered off on their own way;
none will save you.
New things from now on
48 Listen to this, house of Jacob,
who are known by the name of Israel,
descendants of Judah,[l]
who swear by the Lord’s name
and invoke Israel’s God dishonestly and unrighteously.
2 They are known as residents of the holy city,
those who depend upon the God of Israel—
the Lord of heavenly forces is his name.
3 Past things I announced long ago;
from my mouth I proclaimed them.
I acted suddenly, and they came about.
4 Because I know that you are stubborn,
your neck is made of iron,
and your forehead is bronze.
5 I informed you long ago;
before they came about I proclaimed them to you
so you wouldn’t say, “My idol did them;
my wood statue and metal god commanded them.”
6 You’ve heard and seen all this—
won’t you admit it?
From now on I’ll tell you new things,
guarded secrets that you don’t know.
7 They are created now, not long ago;
before today you hadn’t heard of them,
so you won’t say, “I already knew them.”
8 You haven’t heard, nor have you known;
as in ages past your ears are closed,
because I knew what a traitor you were;
you were known as a rebel from birth.
9 For the sake of my reputation I control my anger;
for your sake I restrain my powerful radiance
so as to not destroy you.
10 See, I have refined you, but not like silver;
I have tested you[m] in the furnace of misery.
11 For the sake of my reputation, for my own sake, I will act,
for why will my name be made impure?
I won’t give my glory to another.
12 Listen to me, Jacob;
Israel, whom I called:
I am the one;
I am the first and I am the last.
13 My hand founded the earth;
my strong hand spread out the heavens.
When I call to them, they all stand up.
14 Gather yourselves, all of you, and listen.
Who among you announced these things?
“The Lord loves him.
He will do what God wants with Babylon
and with the descendants[n] of Chaldea.”
15 I, I have spoken and told him
the things that will happen to him;
I will make him succeed.
16 Come close to me; listen to this:
Since the very beginning I haven’t spoken in secret.
Whenever anything happens, I am there.
(And now the Lord God has sent me with his spirit.)
17 The Lord your redeemer,
the holy one of Israel, proclaims:
I am the Lord your God
who teaches you for your own good,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18 If you would pay attention to my commands,
your well-being would be like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.
19 Your offspring would be like the sand,
and your descendants like its grains.
Their name would never be eliminated,
never wiped out from before me.
20 Go out from Babylon;
flee from the Chaldeans!
Report this with a loud shout, proclaim it;
broadcast it out to the end of the earth.
Say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!”
21 They weren’t thirsty when he led them through the deserts.
God made water flow from the rock for them;
split the rock, and water flowed out.
22 There is no well-being, says the Lord, for the wicked.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 44:7 Or Since I placed an ancient people and coming things
- Isaiah 44:7 Or them
- Isaiah 44:14 Species uncertain
- Isaiah 44:14 Species uncertain
- Isaiah 44:26 Or his; also in next line
- Isaiah 45:9 Or maker
- Isaiah 45:11 Or potter
- Isaiah 45:11 Or about future things ask me
- Isaiah 45:14 Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 46:7 Or it
- Isaiah 47:3 Syr, cf Vulg; MT I won’t meet a man
- Isaiah 48:1 Or came out from the waters of Judah
- Isaiah 48:10 Or I have chosen
- Isaiah 48:14 LXX; MT his arm
Isaiah 44-48
New International Version
Isaiah 44-48
New International Version
Israel the Chosen
44 “But now listen, Jacob, my servant,(A)
Israel, whom I have chosen.(B)
2 This is what the Lord says—
he who made(C) you, who formed you in the womb,(D)
and who will help(E) you:
Do not be afraid,(F) Jacob, my servant,(G)
Jeshurun,[a](H) whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water(I) on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;(J)
I will pour out my Spirit(K) on your offspring,
and my blessing(L) on your descendants.(M)
4 They will spring up like grass(N) in a meadow,
like poplar trees(O) by flowing streams.(P)
5 Some will say, ‘I belong(Q) to the Lord’;
others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand,(R) ‘The Lord’s,’(S)
and will take the name Israel.
The Lord, Not Idols
6 “This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King(T) and Redeemer,(U) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;(V)
apart from me there is no God.(W)
7 Who then is like me?(X) 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(Y) what will come.
8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim(Z) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God(AA) besides me?
No, there is no other Rock;(AB) I know not one.”
9 All who make idols(AC) are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.(AD)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(AE)
they are ignorant, to their own shame.(AF)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(AG)
which can profit nothing?(AH)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(AI)
such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
they will be brought down to terror and shame.(AJ)
12 The blacksmith(AK) 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.(AL)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
he drinks no water and grows faint.(AM)
13 The carpenter(AN) 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,(AO)
human form in all its glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.(AP)
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,(AQ) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(AR) 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(AS) it;
he makes an idol and bows(AT) 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.(AU)”
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
he bows down to it and worships.(AV)
He prays(AW) to it and says,
“Save(AX) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(AY) nothing;
their eyes(AZ) 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(BA) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(BB)
I even baked bread over its coals,
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(BC) thing from what is left?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(BD)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(BE) a deluded(BF) heart misleads him;
he cannot save himself, or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(BG)”
21 “Remember(BH) these things, Jacob,
for you, Israel, are my servant.(BI)
I have made you, you are my servant;(BJ)
Israel, I will not forget you.(BK)
22 I have swept away(BL) your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return(BM) to me,
for I have redeemed(BN) you.”
23 Sing for joy,(BO) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, you earth(BP) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,(BQ)
you forests and all your trees,(BR)
for the Lord has redeemed(BS) Jacob,
he displays his glory(BT) in Israel.
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,(BX)
who spreads out the earth(BY) by myself,
25 who foils(BZ) the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,(CA)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(CB)
and turns it into nonsense,(CC)
26 who carries out the words(CD) of his servants
and fulfills(CE) the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,(CF) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
and of their ruins,(CG) ‘I will restore them,’(CH)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
and I will dry up(CI) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(CJ) ‘He is my shepherd
and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(CK) “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple,(CL) “Let its foundations(CM) be laid.”’
45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(CN)
to Cyrus,(CO) whose right hand I take hold(CP) of
to subdue nations(CQ) 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(CR)
and will level(CS) the mountains[b];
I will break down gates(CT) of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.(CU)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,(CV)
riches stored in secret places,(CW)
so that you may know(CX) that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(CY)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,(CZ)
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge(DA) me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;(DB)
apart from me there is no God.(DC)
I will strengthen you,(DD)
though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting(DE)
people may know(DF) there is none besides me.(DG)
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness,(DH)
I bring prosperity and create disaster;(DI)
I, the Lord, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain(DJ) down my righteousness;(DK)
let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
let salvation(DL) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel(DM) with their Maker,(DN)
those who are nothing but potsherds(DO)
among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(DP)
‘What are you making?’(DQ)
Does your work say,
‘The potter has no hands’?(DR)
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(DS) of Israel, and its Maker:(DT)
Concerning things to come,
do you question me about my children,
or give me orders about the work of my hands?(DU)
12 It is I who made the earth(DV)
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(DW)
I marshaled their starry hosts.(DX)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[c](DY) in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.(DZ)
He will rebuild my city(EA)
and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(EB)
says the Lord Almighty.”
14 This is what the Lord says:
“The products(EC) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,[d]
and those tall Sabeans(ED)—
they will come over to you(EE)
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,(EF)
coming over to you in chains.(EG)
They will bow down before you
and plead(EH) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,(EI) and there is no other;
there is no other god.(EJ)’”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding(EK) himself,
the God and Savior(EL) of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;(EM)
they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved(EN) by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;(EO)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,(EP)
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,(EQ)
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,(ER)
but formed it to be inhabited(ES)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other.(ET)
19 I have not spoken in secret,(EU)
from somewhere in a land of darkness;(EV)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,(EW)
‘Seek(EX) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
I declare what is right.(EY)
20 “Gather together(EZ) and come;
assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant(FA) are those who carry(FB) about idols of wood,
who pray to gods that cannot save.(FC)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold(FD) this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?(FE)
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no God apart from me,(FF)
a righteous God(FG) and a Savior;(FH)
there is none but me.
22 “Turn(FI) to me and be saved,(FJ)
all you ends of the earth;(FK)
for I am God, and there is no other.(FL)
23 By myself I have sworn,(FM)
my mouth has uttered in all integrity(FN)
a word that will not be revoked:(FO)
Before me every knee will bow;(FP)
by me every tongue will swear.(FQ)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
are deliverance(FR) and strength.(FS)’”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.(FT)
25 But all the descendants(FU) of Israel
will find deliverance(FV) in the Lord
and will make their boast in him.(FW)
Gods of Babylon
46 Bel(FX) bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols(FY) are borne by beasts of burden.[e]
The images that are carried(FZ) about are burdensome,
a burden for the weary.
2 They stoop and bow down together;
unable to rescue the burden,
they themselves go off into captivity.(GA)
3 “Listen(GB) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant(GC) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,(GD)
and have carried(GE) since you were born.(GF)
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs(GG)
I am he,(GH) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain(GI) you and I will rescue you.
5 “With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?(GJ)
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith(GK) to make it into a god,
and they bow down and worship it.(GL)
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry(GM) it;
they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
From that spot it cannot move.(GN)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;(GO)
it cannot save(GP) them from their troubles.
8 “Remember(GQ) this, keep it in mind,
take it to heart, you rebels.(GR)
9 Remember the former things,(GS) those of long ago;(GT)
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.(GU)
10 I make known the end from the beginning,(GV)
from ancient times,(GW) what is still to come.(GX)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,(GY)
and I will do all that I please.’
11 From the east I summon(GZ) a bird of prey;(HA)
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned,(HB) that I will do.(HC)
12 Listen(HD) to me, you stubborn-hearted,(HE)
you who are now far from my righteousness.(HF)
13 I am bringing my righteousness(HG) near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation(HH) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,(HI)
my splendor(HJ) to Israel.
The Fall of Babylon
47 “Go down, sit in the dust,(HK)
Virgin Daughter(HL) Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
queen city of the Babylonians.[f](HM)
No more will you be called
tender or delicate.(HN)
2 Take millstones(HO) and grind(HP) flour;
take off your veil.(HQ)
Lift up your skirts,(HR) bare your legs,
and wade through the streams.
3 Your nakedness(HS) will be exposed
and your shame(HT) uncovered.
I will take vengeance;(HU)
I will spare no one.(HV)”
5 “Sit in silence,(IA) go into darkness,(IB)
queen city of the Babylonians;(IC)
no more will you be called
queen(ID) of kingdoms.(IE)
6 I was angry(IF) with my people
and desecrated my inheritance;(IG)
I gave them into your hand,(IH)
and you showed them no mercy.(II)
Even on the aged
you laid a very heavy yoke.
7 You said, ‘I am forever(IJ)—
the eternal queen!’(IK)
But you did not consider these things
or reflect(IL) on what might happen.(IM)
8 “Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure,
lounging in your security(IN)
and saying to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.(IO)
I will never be a widow(IP)
or suffer the loss of children.’
9 Both of these will overtake you
in a moment,(IQ) on a single day:
loss of children(IR) and widowhood.(IS)
They will come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries(IT)
and all your potent spells.(IU)
10 You have trusted(IV) in your wickedness
and have said, ‘No one sees me.’(IW)
Your wisdom(IX) and knowledge mislead(IY) you
when you say to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
11 Disaster(IZ) will come upon you,
and you will not know how to conjure it away.
A calamity will fall upon you
that you cannot ward off with a ransom;
a catastrophe you cannot foresee
will suddenly(JA) come upon you.
12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells
and with your many sorceries,(JB)
which you have labored at since childhood.
Perhaps you will succeed,
perhaps you will cause terror.
13 All the counsel you have received has only worn you out!(JC)
Let your astrologers(JD) come forward,
those stargazers who make predictions month by month,
let them save(JE) you from what is coming upon you.
14 Surely they are like stubble;(JF)
the fire(JG) will burn them up.
They cannot even save themselves
from the power of the flame.(JH)
These are not coals for warmth;
this is not a fire to sit by.
15 That is all they are to you—
these you have dealt with
and labored(JI) with since childhood.
All of them go on in their error;
there is not one that can save(JJ) you.
Stubborn Israel
48 “Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel(JK)
and come from the line of Judah,(JL)
you who take oaths(JM) in the name of the Lord(JN)
and invoke(JO) the God of Israel—
but not in truth(JP) or righteousness—
2 you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city(JQ)
and claim to rely(JR) on the God of Israel—
the Lord Almighty is his name:(JS)
3 I foretold the former things(JT) long ago,
my mouth announced(JU) them and I made them known;
then suddenly(JV) I acted, and they came to pass.
4 For I knew how stubborn(JW) you were;
your neck muscles(JX) were iron,
your forehead(JY) was bronze.
5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;
before they happened I announced(JZ) them to you
so that you could not say,
‘My images brought them about;(KA)
my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’
6 You have heard these things; look at them all.
Will you not admit them?
“From now on I will tell you of new things,(KB)
of hidden things unknown to you.
7 They are created(KC) now, and not long ago;(KD)
you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
‘Yes, I knew(KE) of them.’
8 You have neither heard nor understood;(KF)
from of old your ears(KG) have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous(KH) you are;
you were called a rebel(KI) from birth.
9 For my own name’s sake(KJ) I delay my wrath;(KK)
for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
so as not to destroy you completely.(KL)
10 See, I have refined(KM) you, though not as silver;
I have tested(KN) you in the furnace(KO) of affliction.
11 For my own sake,(KP) for my own sake, I do this.
How can I let myself be defamed?(KQ)
I will not yield my glory to another.(KR)
Israel Freed
12 “Listen(KS) to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:(KT)
I am he;(KU)
I am the first and I am the last.(KV)
13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,(KW)
and my right hand spread out the heavens;(KX)
when I summon them,
they all stand up together.(KY)
14 “Come together,(KZ) all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold(LA) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally(LB)
will carry out his purpose(LC) against Babylon;(LD)
his arm will be against the Babylonians.[g]
15 I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called(LE) him.
I will bring him,
and he will succeed(LF) in his mission.
16 “Come near(LG) me and listen(LH) to this:
“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;(LI)
at the time it happens, I am there.”
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(LM) the Holy One(LN) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches(LO) you what is best for you,
who directs(LP) you in the way(LQ) you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention(LR) to my commands,
your peace(LS) would have been like a river,(LT)
your well-being(LU) like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants(LV) would have been like the sand,(LW)
your children like its numberless grains;(LX)
their name would never be blotted out(LY)
nor destroyed from before me.”
20 Leave Babylon,
flee(LZ) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy(MA)
and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;(MB)
say, “The Lord has redeemed(MC) his servant Jacob.”
21 They did not thirst(MD) when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow(ME) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
and water gushed out.(MF)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 44:2 Jeshurun means the upright one, that is, Israel.
- 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 46:1 Or are but beasts and cattle
- Isaiah 47:1 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 5
- Isaiah 48:14 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 20
Isaiah 44-48
King James Version
Isaiah 44-48
King James Version
44 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:
2 Thus saith the Lord that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:
4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.
5 One shall say, I am the Lord's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.
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.
46 Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth, their idols were upon the beasts, and upon the cattle: your carriages were heavy loaden; they are a burden to the weary beast.
2 They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but themselves are gone into captivity.
3 Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb:
4 And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.
5 To whom will ye liken me, and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be like?
6 They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship.
7 They bear him upon the shoulder, they carry him, and set him in his place, and he standeth; from his place shall he not remove: yea, one shall cry unto him, yet can he not answer, nor save him out of his trouble.
8 Remember this, and shew yourselves men: bring it again to mind, O ye transgressors.
9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.
12 Hearken unto me, ye stouthearted, that are far from righteousness:
13 I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.
47 Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon, sit on the ground: there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate.
2 Take the millstones, and grind meal: uncover thy locks, make bare the leg, uncover the thigh, pass over the rivers.
3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.
4 As for our redeemer, the Lord of hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel.
5 Sit thou silent, and get thee into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called, The lady of kingdoms.
6 I was wroth with my people, I have polluted mine inheritance, and given them into thine hand: thou didst shew them no mercy; upon the ancient hast thou very heavily laid thy yoke.
7 And thou saidst, I shall be a lady for ever: so that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the latter end of it.
8 Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children:
9 But these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments.
10 For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me.
11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.
12 Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail.
13 Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels. Let now the astrologers, the stargazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save thee from these things that shall come upon thee.
14 Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it.
15 Thus shall they be unto thee with whom thou hast laboured, even thy merchants, from thy youth: they shall wander every one to his quarter; none shall save thee.
48 Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth, nor in righteousness.
2 For they call themselves of the holy city, and stay themselves upon the God of Israel; The Lord of hosts is his name.
3 I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them suddenly, and they came to pass.
4 Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass;
5 I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them.
6 Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have shewed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.
7 They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew them.
8 Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time that thine ear was not opened: for I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called a transgressor from the womb.
9 For my name's sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain for thee, that I cut thee not off.
10 Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.
11 For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another.
12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.
13 Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens: when I call unto them, they stand up together.
14 All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear; which among them hath declared these things? The Lord hath loved him: he will do his pleasure on Babylon, and his arm shall be on the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken; yea, I have called him: I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.
16 Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord God, and his Spirit, hath sent me.
17 Thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the Lord thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.
18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:
19 Thy seed also had been as the sand, and the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me.
20 Go ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the Chaldeans, with a voice of singing declare ye, tell this, utter it even to the end of the earth; say ye, The Lord hath redeemed his servant Jacob.
21 And they thirsted not when he led them through the deserts: he caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them: he clave the rock also, and the waters gushed out.
22 There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked.
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