Isaiah 43

1 And now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and formed thee, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed thee, and called thee by thy name: thou art mine.

But now this is what the Lord says to Jacob, the one who created you; to Israel, the one who formed you: “Don't be afraid! I have saved you! I have called you by name; you are mine!

2 When thou shalt pass through the waters, I will be with thee, and the rivers shall not cover thee: when thou shalt walk in the fire, thou shalt not be burnt, and the flames shall not burn in thee:

When you walk through the water, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they won't flood over you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you on fire.

3 For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I have given Egypt for thy atonement, Ethiopia and Saba for thee.

For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave Egypt to pay for your freedom; I traded Ethiopia and Seba for you.

4 Since thou becamest honourable in my eyes, thou art glorious: I have loved thee, and I will give men for thee, and people for thy life.

Because you are so valuable to me, because I honor you, and because I love you, I give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your lives.

5 Fear not, for I am with thee: I will. bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west.

Don't be afraid, for I am with you! I will bring you and your children from the east and the west, and gather you together.

6 I will say to the north: Give up: and to the south: Keep not back: bring my sons from afar, and my daughters from the ends of the earth.

I will tell the north, ‘Hand them over!’ and the south, ‘Don't stop them!’ Bring my sons back from far away and my daughters from distant lands.

7 And every one that calleth upon my name, I have created him for my glory, I have formed him, and made him.

Bring back everyone who bears my name, those I created for my honor, those I formed and made.

8 Bring forth the people that are blind, and have eyes: that are deaf, and have ears.

Bring back those who have eyes but are blind, those who have ears but are deaf.

9 All the nations are assembled together, and the tribes are gathered: who among you can declare this, and shall make us hear the former things? let them bring forth their witnesses, let them be justified, and hear, and say: It is truth.

Have all the nations gather together! Have all the peoples assemble! Who among them could have said this, and predict what was going to happen? Have them bring their witnesses to prove that they're right. Then have them listen, and say, ‘It's true!’

10 You are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen: that you may know, and believe me, and understand that I myself am. Before me there was no God formed, and after me there shall be none.

However, you are my witnesses, the Lord declares, and my chosen servant, so that you can think about it, and believe me and understand that I am God. No god preceded me, and none will come after me.

11 I am, I am the Lord: and there is no saviour besides me.

I, yes I am the Lord, and there is no Savior apart from me.

12 I have declared, and have saved. I have made it heard, and there was no strange one among you. You are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and I am God.

I predicted what was going to happen, then I saved you, then I announced it—there was no foreign god among you that did this. You are my witnesses that I am God, declares the Lord.

13 And from the beginning I am the same, and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall turn it away?

I am God from the beginning. No one can snatch anybody from my hand. No one can reverse what I do.

14 Thus saith the Lord your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: For your sake I sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their bars, and the Chaldeans glorying in their ships.

This is what the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says: For your sake I will send attackers against Babylon and bring them down. All the Babylonians will be like fugitives, escaping in the ships they're so proud of.

15 I am the Lord your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.

I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, and your King.

16 Thus saith the Lord, who made a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters.

This is what the Lord says, the one who makes a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters;

17 Who brought forth the chariot and the horse, the army and the strong: they lay down to sleep together, and they shall not rise again: they are broken as flax, and are extinct.

the one who brought out a great army with it horses and chariots and lay them down, never to rise again, snuffed out like a burning wick.

18 Remember not former things, and look not on things of old.

But don't dwell on the past; don't concentrate on what happened back then.

19 Behold I do new things, and now they shall spring forth, verily you shall know them: I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

Just look at something new I'm going to do now! In fact it's started already. Can't you see it? Yes, I'm making a way through the wilderness, rivers in the desert!

20 The beast of the field shall glorify me, the dragons and the ostriches: because I have given waters in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, to my chosen.

The wild animals will be grateful to me, the jackals and the owls, because I'm providing water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, so my people, my chosen people, can drink.

21 This people have I formed for myself, they shall shew forth my praise.

I made this people for myself so that through their praise for me they could make me known.

22 But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob, neither hast thou laboured about me, O Israel.

But you haven't called on me for help, Jacob. You've grown tired of me, Israel.

23 Thou hast not offered me the ram of thy holocaust, nor hast thou glorified me with thy victims: I have not caused thee to serve with oblations, nor wearied thee with incense.

You haven't brought me sheep for burnt offerings; you haven't honored me with your sacrifices. I haven't burdened you by asking for grain offerings; I haven't tired you out by demanding incense.

24 Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy victims. But thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thy iniquities.

You haven't used your money to buy scented calamus; you have not pleased me with the fat of your sacrifices. Instead you have burdened me with your sins, and tired me out with your guilt.

25 I am, I am he that blot out thy iniquities for my own sake, and I will not remember thy sins.

I, yes I am the God who wipes out your sins because of who I am, and who doesn't remember your sins any more.

26 Put me in remembrance, and let us plead together: tell if thou hast any thing to justify thyself.

Remind me of the evidence so we can come to a decision together! Present your case to prove that you're right!

27 Thy brat father sinned, and thy teachers have transgressed against me.

Your very first father sinned, and your leaders rebelled against me.

28 And I have profaned the holy princes, I have given Jacob to slaughter, and Israel to reproach.

So I treated the priests of the sanctuary with contempt, and I handed Jacob over to be destroyed, and Israel to be scorned.”