Isaiah 44
1 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen.
But now hear, Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says Jehovah who made thee, and formed thee from the womb, who will help thee: Fear not, O Jacob my servant, and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
Thus saith the Lord God that made thee, and he that formed thee from the womb; Thou shalt yet be helped: fear not, my servant Jacob; and beloved Israel, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water upon him who is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground. I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.
For I will give water to the thirsty that walk in a dry land: I will put my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessings upon thy children:
4 And they shall spring up among the grass, as willows by the watercourses.
and they shall spring up as grass between brooks, and as willows on [the banks of] running water.
5 One shall say, I am Jehovah's, and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob, and another shall subscribe with his hand to Jehovah, and surname himself by the name of Israel.
One shall say, I am God's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall write with his hand, I am God's, and shall call himself by the name of Israel.
6 Thus says Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God.
Thus saith God the King of Israel, and the God of hosts that delivered him; I am the first, and I am hereafter: 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 established the ancient people? And let them declare the things that are coming, and that shall come to pass.
Who is like me? let him stand, and call, and declare, and prepare for me from the time that I made man for ever; and let them tell you the things that are coming before they arrive.
8 Fear ye not, nor be afraid. Have I not declared to thee of old, and shown it? And ye are my witnesses. Is there a God besides me? Yea, there is no Rock. I know not any.
Hide not yourselves, nor go astray: have ye not heard from the beginning, and [have not] I told you? ye are witnesses if there is a God beside me.
9 Those who fashion a graven image are all of them vanity. And the things that they delight in shall not profit. And their own witnesses see not, nor know, that they may be put to shame.
But they that framed [false gods] did not then hearken; and they that graved [images] are all vain, performing their own desires, which shall not profit them, but they shall be ashamed
10 Who has fashioned a god, or molded an image that is profitable for nothing?
that form a god, and all that grave worthless things:
11 Behold, all his fellows shall be put to shame, and the workmen. They are of men. Let them all be gathered together. Let them stand up. They shall fear. They shall be put to shame together.
and all by whom they were made are withered: yea, let all the deaf be gathered from [among] men, and let them stand together; and let them be ashamed and confounded together:
12 The smith makes an axe, and works in the coals, and fashions it with hammers, and works it with his strong arm. Yea, he is hungry, and his strength fails. He drinks no water, and is faint.
For the artificer sharpens the iron; he fashions [the idol] with an axe, and fixes it with an awl, and fashions it with the strength of his arm: and he will be hungry and weak, and will drink no water.
13 The carpenter stretches out a line. He marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes. And he marks it out with the compasses, and shapes it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house.
The artificer having chosen a piece of wood, marks it out with a rule, and fits it with glue, and makes it as the form of a man, and as the beauty of a man, to set it up in the house.
14 He hews down cedars for him, and takes the holm tree and the oak, and strengthens for himself one among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir tree, and the rain nourishes it.
He cuts wood out of the forest, which the Lord planted, [even] a pine tree, and the rain made it grow,
15 Then it shall be for a man to burn. And he takes of it, and warms himself. Yea, he kindles it, and bakes bread. Yea, he makes a god, and worships it. He makes it a graven image, and falls down to it.
that it might be for men to burn: and having taken part of it he warms himself; yea, they burn part of it, and bake loaves thereon; and [of] the rest they make for themselves gods, and they worship them.
16 He burns part of it in the fire. With part of it he eats flesh. He roasts roast, and is satisfied. Yea, he warms himself, and says, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire.
Half thereof he burns in the fire, and with half of it he bakes loaves on the coals; and having roasted flesh on it he eats, and is satisfied, and having warmed himself he says, I am comfortable, for I have warmed myself, and have seen the fire.
17 And the residue of it he makes a god, even his graven image. He falls down to it and worships, and prays to it, and says, Deliver me, for thou are my god.
And the rest he makes a graven god, and worships, and prays, saying, Deliver me; for thou art my God.
18 They do not know, nor do they consider. For he has shut their eyes, that they cannot see, and their hearts, that they cannot understand.
They have no understanding to perceive; for they have been blinded so that they should not see with their eyes, nor perceive with their heart.
19 And none calls to mind, nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire. Yea, I have also baked bread upon the coals of it. I have roasted flesh and eaten it. And shall I make the residue of it an abomination? Shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?
And one has not considered in his mind, nor known in his understanding, that he has burnt up half of it in the fire, and baked loaves on the coals thereof and has roasted and eaten flesh, and of the rest of it he has made an abomination, and they worship it.
20 He feeds on ashes. A deceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
Know thou that their heart is ashes, and they err, and no one is able to deliver his soul: see, ye will not say, [There is a] lie in my right hand.
21 Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for thou are my servant. I have formed thee. Thou are my servant, O Israel, thou shall not be forgotten by me.
Remember these things, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant; I have formed thee [to be] my servant: and do thou, Israel, not forget me.
22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins. Return to me, for I have redeemed thee.
For behold, I have blotted out as a cloud thy transgressions, and thy sin as darkness: turn to me, and I will redeem thee.
23 Sing, O ye heavens, for Jehovah has done it. Shout, ye lower parts of the earth. Break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein. For Jehovah has redeemed Jacob, and will glorify himself in Israel.
Rejoice, ye heavens; for God has had mercy upon Israel: sound the trumpet, ye foundations of the earth: ye mountains, shout [with] joy, ye hills, and all the trees therein: for God has redeemed Jacob, and Israel shall be glorified.
24 Thus says Jehovah, thy Redeemer, and he who formed thee from the womb: I am Jehovah, who makes all things, who stretches forth the heavens alone, who spreads abroad the earth (who is with me?),
Thus saith the Lord that redeems thee, and who formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that performs all things: I stretched out the heaven alone, and established the earth.
25 who frustrates the signs of the liars, and makes diviners mad, who turns wise men backward, and makes their knowledge foolish,
Who else will frustrate the tokens of those that have divining spirits, and prophecies from the heart of [man]? turning the wise back, and making their counsel foolishness;
26 who confirms the word of his servant, and performs the counsel of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, She shall be inhabited, and of the cities of Judah, They shall be built, and I will raise up the waste places of it,
and confirming the word of his servant, and verifying the counsel of his messengers: who says to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Idumea, Ye shall be built, and her desert places shall spring forth.
27 who says to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers,
Who says to the deep, Thou shalt be dried up, and I will dry up the rivers.
28 who says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure, even saying of Jerusalem, She shall be built, and of the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
Who bids Cyrus be wise, and he shall perform all my will: who says to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built, and I will lay the foundation of my holy house.
