Isaiah 41

1 “Be silent before Me, O islands, and let the peoples renew their strength. Let them come forward and testify; let us together draw near for judgment.

Keep silence before me, O islands, and let the peoples renew their strength. Let them come near, then let them speak. Let us come near together to judgment.

2 Who has aroused one from the east and called him to his feet in righteousness? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow.

Who raised up the righteous man from the east, calls him to his foot, gives nations before him, and makes him rule over kings? He gives them as the dust to his sword, as the driven stubble to his bow.

3 He pursues them, going on safely, hardly touching the path with his feet.

He pursues them, and passes on safely, even by a way that he had not gone with his feet.

4 Who has performed this and carried it out, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—the first and the last— I am He.”

Who has wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Jehovah, the first, and with the last, I am he.

5 The islands see and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They approach and come forward.

The isles have seen, and fear. The ends of the earth tremble, they draw near, and come.

6 Each one helps the other and says to his brother, “Be strong!”

They help every man his neighbor, and says to his brother, Be of good courage.

7 The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and he who wields the hammer cheers him who strikes the anvil, saying of the welding, “It is good.” He nails it down so it will not be toppled.

So the carpenter encourages the goldsmith, he who smoothes with the hammer, him who smites the anvil, saying of the soldering, It is good, and he fastens it with nails, that it should not be moved.

8 “But you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham My friend—

But thou, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend,

9 I brought you from the ends of the earth and called you from its farthest corners. I said, ‘You are My servant.’ I have chosen and not rejected you.

thou whom I have taken hold of from the ends of the earth, and called from the corners thereof, and said to thee, Thou are my servant, I have chosen thee and not cast thee away.

10 Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.

Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee. Yea, I will help thee. Yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

11 Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish.

Behold, all those who are incensed against thee shall be put to shame and confounded. Those who strive with thee shall be as nothing, and shall perish.

12 You will seek them but will not find them. Those who wage war against you will come to nothing.

Thou shall seek them, and shall not find them, even those who contend with thee. Those who war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of naught.

13 For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and tells you: Do not fear, I will help you.

For I, Jehovah thy God, will hold thy right hand, saying to thee, Fear not, I will help thee.

14 Do not fear, O worm of Jacob, O few men of Israel. I will help you,” declares the LORD. “Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel. I will help thee, says Jehovah, and thy Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff.

Behold, I have made thee as a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth. Thou shall thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shall make the hills as chaff.

16 You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

Thou shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them. And thou shall rejoice in Jehovah. Thou shall glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 The poor and needy seek water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

The poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue fails for thirst. I, Jehovah, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

18 I will open rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the middle of the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into flowing springs.

I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

19 I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees. I will set cypresses in the desert, elms and boxwood together,

I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, and the myrtle, and the oil tree. I will set in the desert the fir tree, the pine, and the box tree together,

20 so that all may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this and the Holy One of Israel has created it.”

that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of Jehovah has done this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 “Present your case,” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments,” says the King of Jacob.

Produce your case, says Jehovah. Bring forth your strong reasons, says the King of Jacob.

22 “Let them come and tell us what will happen. Tell the former things, so that we may reflect on them and know the outcome. Or announce to us what is coming.

Let them bring forth, and declare to us what shall happen. Declare ye the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them, or show us things to come.

23 Tell us the things that are to come, so that we may know that you are gods. Yes, do something good or evil, that we may look on together in dismay.

Declare the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods. Yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

24 Behold, you are nothing and your work is of no value. Anyone who chooses you is detestable.

Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work is of naught. An abomination is he who chooses you.

25 I have raised up one from the north, and he has come— one from the east who calls on My name. He will march over rulers as if they were mortar, like a potter who treads the clay.

I have raised up him from the north, and he has come, him who calls upon my name from the rising of the sun. And he shall come upon rulers as upon mortar, and as the potter treads clay.

26 Who has declared this from the beginning, so that we may know, and from times past, so that we may say: ‘He was right’? No one announced it, no one foretold it, no one heard your words.

Who has declared it from the beginning, that we may know, and beforetime, that we may say, He is right? Yea, there is none who declares. Yea, there is none who shows. Yea, there is none who hears your words.

27 I was the first to tell Zion: ‘Look, here they are!’ And I gave to Jerusalem a herald of good news.

First to Zion. Behold, behold them, and I will give to Jerusalem him who brings good news.

28 When I look, there is no one; there is no counselor among them; when I ask them, they have nothing to say.

And when I look, there is no man. Even among them there is no counselor, that, when I ask of them, can answer a word.

29 See, they are all a delusion; their works amount to nothing; their images are as empty as the wind.

Behold, all of them, their works are vanity and nothing. Their molten images are wind and confusion.