Isaiah 41

1 Keep silence before me, islands; and let the peoples renew [their] strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us draw near together to judgment.

“Listen before me in silence, you coastlands; let the nations renew their strength; let them come near and speak; let us come near together to argue a dispute.

2 Who raised up from the east him whom righteousness calleth to its foot? He gave the nations before him, and caused him to have dominion over kings; he gave them as dust to his sword, as driven stubble to his bow.

Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service? He hands nations over to him and helps him subdue kings. He turns them to dust with his sword, like windblown stubble with his bow.

3 He pursued them, he passed on in safety, by a way he had never come with his feet.

He pursues them and passes by safely, by a swift path that his feet scarcely touch.

4 Who hath wrought and done [it], calling the generations from the beginning? I, Jehovah, the first; and with the last, I [am] HE.

Who has performed and accomplished these deeds? Who has summoned the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, the first, and with the last ones, I am he.

5 The isles saw [it], and feared; the ends of the earth trembled: they drew near, and came.

The isles have seen and are afraid; the ends of the earth tremble; they approach and come.

6 They helped every one his neighbour, and [each] said to his brother, Take courage.

Everyone helps his neighbor, and every one says to one another, 'Be encouraged.'

7 And the artizan encouraged the founder, he that smootheth [with] the hammer him that smiteth on the anvil, saying of the soldering, It is good; and he fasteneth it with nails, that it be not moved.

So the carpenter encourages the goldsmith, and he who works with the hammer encourages him who works with an anvil, saying of the welding, 'It is good.' They fasten it with nails so it will not topple over.

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

But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham my friend,

9 — thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from the extremities thereof, and to whom I said, Thou art my servant, I have chosen thee and not rejected thee,

you whom I am bringing back from the ends of the earth, and whom I called from the far away places, and to whom I said, 'You are my servant;' I have chosen you and not rejected you.

10 — Fear 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.

Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be anxious, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, and I will help you, and I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

11 Lo, all that are incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded; they that strive with thee shall be as nothing, and shall perish.

See, they will be ashamed and disgraced, all who have been angry with you; they will be as nothing and will perish, those who oppose you.

12 Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them — them that contend with thee; they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.

You will seek and will not find those who contended with you; those who warred against you will be like nothing, absolutely nothing.

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

For I, Yahweh your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, 'Do not fear; I am helping you.'

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

Do not fear, Jacob you worm, and you men of Israel; I will help you—this is Yahweh's declaration, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I have made of thee a new sharp threshing instrument having double teeth: thou shalt thresh and beat small the mountains, and shalt make the hills as chaff;

Look, I am making you like a sharp threshing sledge, new and two-edged; you will thresh the mountains and crush them; you will make the hills like chaff.

16 thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them; and thou shalt rejoice in Jehovah, thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away; the wind will scatter them. You will rejoice in Yahweh, you will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

17 The afflicted and the needy seek water, and there is none; their tongue faileth for thirst: I, Jehovah, will answer them, [I], the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

The oppressed and needy look for water, but there is none, and their tongues are parched for thirst; I, Yahweh, will respond to their prayers; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

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

I will make streams to flow down the slopes, and springs in the middle of the valleys; I will make the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into springs of water.

19 I will give in the wilderness the cedar, acacia, myrtle, and oleaster; I will set in the desert the cypress, pine, and box-tree together;

In the wilderness I will set the cedar, the acacia, and the myrtle, and the olive tree. I will set the cypress in the desert plain, with the pines and the cypress box trees.

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

I will do this so that the people may see, recognize, and understand together, that the hand of Yahweh has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 Produce your cause, saith Jehovah; bring forward your arguments, saith the King of Jacob.

“Present your case,” says Yahweh, “present your best arguments for your idols,” says the King of Jacob.

22 Let them bring them forward, and declare to us what shall happen: shew the former things, what they are, that we may give attention to them, and know the end of them; — or let us hear things to come:

Let them bring us their own arguments; have them come forward and declare to us what will happen, so we may know these things well. Have them tell us of earlier predictive declarations, so we can reflect on them and know how they were fulfilled.

23 declare the things that are to happen hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods; yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be astonished, and behold it together.

Tell things about the future, that we may know if you are gods; do something good or evil, that we may be frightened and impressed.

24 Behold, ye are less than nothing, and your work is of nought; an abomination is he that chooseth you. ...

See, you idols are nothing and your deeds are nothing; the one who chooses you is detestable.

25 I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come, — from the rising of the sun, he who will call upon my name; and he shall come upon princes as on mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay.

I have raised up one from the north, and he comes; from the sun's rising I summon him who calls on my name, and he will trample the rulers like mud, like a potter who is treading on the clay.

26 Who hath declared [it] from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, [It is] right? Indeed, there is none that declareth; no, none that sheweth; no, none that heareth your words.

Who announced this from the beginning, that we might know? Before this time, that we may say, “He is right”? Indeed none of them decreed it, yes, none heard you say anything.

27 The first, [I said] to Zion, Behold, behold them! and to Jerusalem, I will give one that bringeth glad tidings.

I first said to Zion, “Look here they are;” I sent a herald to Jerusalem.

28 And I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, — and there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.

When I look, there is no one, not one among them who can give good advice, who, when I ask, can answer a word.

29 Behold, they are all vanity, their works are nought, their molten images are wind and emptiness.

Look, all of them are nothing, and their deeds are nothing; their cast metal figures are wind and emptiness.