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 silent toward Me, O islands, And the peoples pass on [to] power, They come near, then they speak, “Together we draw near 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 stirred up a righteous one from the east? He calls him to His foot, He gives nations before him, And He causes him to rule kings, He gives [them] as dust [to] his sword, As driven stubble [to] his bow.

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

He pursues them, he passes over in safety A path he does not enter 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 worked and done, Calling the generations from the first? I, YHWH, 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.

Islands have seen and fear, The ends of the earth tremble, They have drawn near, indeed, they come.

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

They each help his neighbor, And to his brother he says, “Be strong.”

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.

And an artisan strengthens the refiner, A smoother [with] a hammer, Him who is beating [on] an anvil, saying, “For joining it [is] good,” And he strengthens it with nails, it is not moved!

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

And you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My lover,

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.

Whom I have taken hold of, from the ends of the earth, And from its near places I have called you, And I say to you, You [are] My servant, I have chosen you, and not rejected you.

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.

Do not be afraid, for I [am] with you, do not look around, for I [am] your God, I have strengthened you, Indeed, I have helped you, indeed, I upheld you, 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 displeased with you, They are ashamed and blush, They are as nothing, indeed, The men who strive with you perish.

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

You seek them, and do not find them, The men who debate with you, They are as nothing, indeed, as nothing, The men who war with you.

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, your God YHWH, Am strengthening your right hand, He who is saying to you, “Do not fear, I have helped you.”

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.

Do not fear, O worm Jacob, You men of Israel, I helped you, a declaration of YHWH, Even your redeemer, 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 set you for a new sharp threshing instrument, Possessing teeth, you thresh mountains, And beat small, and make 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.

You winnow them, and a wind lifts them up, And a whirlwind scatters them, And you rejoice in YHWH, [And] boast yourself 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 the needy are seeking water, And there is none, Their tongue has failed with thirst, I, YHWH, answer them, The God of Israel—I do 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 open rivers on high places, And fountains in midst of valleys, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land becomes 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 give in a wilderness the cedar, Shittah, and myrtle, and oil-tree, I set in a desert the fir-pine and box-wood 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.”

So that they see, and know, And regard, and act wisely together, For the hand of YHWH 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.

Bring your cause near, says YHWH, Bring your mighty ones near, 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.

They bring [them] near, and declare to us that which happens, Declare the first things—what they [are], And we set our heart, and know their latter end, Or cause us to hear the coming things.

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 coming hereafter, And we know that you [are] gods, Indeed, you may do good or do evil, And we look around and see [it] together.

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

Behold, you [are] of nothing, and your work of nothing, An abomination—it fixes on 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 stirred up [one] from the north, And he comes, From the rising of the sun he calls in My Name, And he comes in [on] prefects as [on] clay, And as a potter treads down mire.

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 from the first, and we know? And formerly, and we say, “Righteous?” Indeed, there is none declaring, Indeed, there is none proclaiming, Indeed, there is none hearing your sayings.

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 to Jerusalem I give one proclaiming tidings,

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

And I see that there is no man, Indeed, of these that there is no counselor, And I ask them, and they return 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 [are] vanity, Their works [are] nothing, Their molten images [are] wind and emptiness!”