Isaiah 44
1 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen.
But now listen, Jacob, my servant, Israel, the one I've 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.
This is what the Lord says, the one who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Don't be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, the one I've 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'm going to pour out water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground. I'm going to pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children.
4 And they shall spring up among the grass, as willows by the watercourses.
They will grow up among the grass, like willows beside streams.
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 of them will say, “I belong to the Lord,” while another will call himself by the name Jacob, and yet another will write on his hand, “Belonging to the Lord,” and will name himself 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.
This is what the Lord says, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides me.
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 them announce it, make a declaration, and demonstrate it before me. For I was the one who long ago established a people and predicted its future. Let them predict what's going to happen.
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.
Don't tremble, don't be afraid! Didn't I tell you long ago what I was going to do? Didn't I explain it? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? There is no other Rock—I don't know any!
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.
All those who make idols are stupid; these things they love so much don't bring them any benefit. Those people who believe in idols can't see this, and they don't know anything, making them look foolish.
10 Who has fashioned a god, or molded an image that is profitable for nothing?
Who makes a god, who molds an idol that's no use to them?
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.
Everyone who makes idols should be ashamed of themselves. Idol-makers are just human beings! Bring them all together and have them stand up, trembling in shame.
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.
The blacksmith makes an iron tool for woodcarving. Working over hot coals, he hammers it into shape as hard as he can. He gets hungry and loses his strength, and because he doesn't drink he grows weak.
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 woodworker measures out a piece of wood, and draws an image on it. He carves it with a chisel and uses a compass to make an outline. He creates an idol that looks like a person, someone beautiful, to be put in a shrine.
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 chops down cedars, or takes a cypress or an oak. He lets them grow strong in the forest. He plants a fir tree, and the rain makes 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.
Some wood he burns, to keep him warm and to bake his bread. Then he uses some of the same wood to make a god to worship, an idol he bows down to!
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.
So he burns part of the wood to roast his meat to eat, and to warm him up, and says, “Ah! Look at that fire that keeps me warm!”
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.
Then he uses the rest of the wood to make himself a god, an idol he bows down to in worship and prays to, saying, “Save me, for you are 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.
How ignorant they are, how dumb! Their eyes have been plastered over so they can't see, their minds closed so they don't have insight.
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?
They can't think things over, they don't have the wisdom or the understanding to say, “Some of the wood I burned in the fire—I used it to bake my bread and roast my meat to eat. The rest of it I used to make a disgusting idol, and I bow down in worship to a block of wood.”
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?
He is feeding on ashes, seduced by the deceptive thinking of his mind. He can't save himself, and he doesn't even ask, “Isn't this idol I'm holding just a lie?”
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 all this, Jacob and Israel, for you are my servant. I made you, Israel, you are my servant. I won't forget you.
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.
I have wiped away your acts of rebellion as if they were like a cloud, your sins as if they were like the mist. Come back to me, for I have set you free.”
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.
Sing in celebration, you heavens, for the Lord has done this; cry out loud, you depths of the earth. Shout with joy, you mountains, you forests and every tree. For the Lord has set Jacob free, and his glory is shown in Israel!
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?),
This is what the Lord says, your Redeemer, who shaped you in the womb: “I am the Lord, the Creator of everything. I alone made the heavens, and I myself formed the earth.
25 who frustrates the signs of the liars, and makes diviners mad, who turns wise men backward, and makes their knowledge foolish,
I am the one who proves the signs of false prophets are wrong. I am the one who makes fools of fortune-tellers. I turn the wisdom of the wise upside-down, and make their knowledge ridiculous.
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,
But I confirm the messages given by my servants, and fulfill what my messengers say. They state, ‘Jerusalem will be inhabited again, the towns of Judah will be rebuilt, your ruins will be repaired.’
27 who says to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers,
When I order deep waters, ‘Dry up!’ I will make sure the rivers dry up!
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.
When I say to Cyrus, ‘You are my shepherd,’ he will carry out everything I wish. He will give the order, ‘Jerusalem shall be rebuilt,’ and he will say, ‘the Temple shall be restored.’”
