Isaiah 41
1 Listen to me in silence, you people who live in lands beyond the sea. Let the nations regain their strength. Then let them come and speak, and let us join together for judgment.
Come quietly before me, O sea-lands, and let the peoples get together their strength: let them come near; then let them say what they have to say: let us put forward our cause against one another.
2 Who has encouraged this one from the east who is called into God's service to do what is right? He gives him nations, and helps him trample kings underfoot. He makes them like dust with his sword, and turns them into chaff with his bow, blown before him on the wind.
Who sent out from the east one who is right wherever he goes? he gives the nations into his hands, and makes him ruler over kings; he gives them as the dust to his sword, as dry stems before the wind to his bow.
3 He chases them down, and goes on unharmed, not following the usual routes.
He goes after them safely, not touching the road with his feet.
4 Who has achieved and done this, calling into existence each generation from the beginning of time? I, the Lord, the first and the last, I am the one.
Whose purpose and work was it? His who sent out the generations from the start. I the Lord, the first, and with the last, I am he.
5 The islands watch in fear, the distant lands tremble. They get together and consult.
The sea-lands saw it, and were in fear; the ends of the earth were shaking: they came near.
6 They all help each other, encouraging one another to “Be strong!”
They gave help everyone to his neighbour; and everyone said to his brother, Take heart!
7 The craftsman encourages the goldsmith; the one who beats out the metal with a hammer encourages the one hitting the anvil, saying the soldering is good. They nail the idol down so it won't fall over.
So the metal-worker put heart into the gold-worker, and he who was hammering the metal smooth said kind words to the iron-worker, saying of the plate, It is ready: and he put it together with nails, so that there might be no slipping.
8 But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, the ones I have chosen, descendants of my friend Abraham,
But as for you, Israel, my servant, and you, Jacob, whom I have taken for myself, the seed of Abraham my friend:
9 I brought you back from distant lands, I called you back from faraway places, telling you, “You are my servants.” I have chosen you, and I have not abandoned you.
You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and sent for from its farthest parts, saying to you, You are my servant, whom I have taken for myself, and whom I have not given up:
10 Don't be afraid, for I am with you! Don't be frightened for I, your God, will make you strong, and I will certainly help you. I will support you with my strong hand, acting for what is right.
Have no fear, for I am with you; do not be looking about in trouble, for I am your God; I will give you strength, yes, I will be your helper; yes, my true right hand will be your support.
11 See—everyone who is angry with you will be ashamed and disgraced. Those who fight against you will end up as nothing and die.
Truly, all those who are angry with you will be made low and put to shame: those desiring to do you wrong will come to nothing and never again be seen.
12 Even though you look for your enemies, you won't find them. Those who attack you will become absolutely nothing.
You will make search for your haters but they will not be there; those who make war against you will be as nothing and will come to destruction.
13 For I the Lord will grab you by the hand and tell you, “Don't be afraid! I myself will help you.
For I, the Lord your God, have taken your right hand in mine, saying to you, Have no fear; I will be your helper.
14 Don't be frightened, Jacob, you little worm, you people of Israel, for I will help you,” declared the Lord your Savior, the Holy One of Israel.
Have no fear, you worm Jacob, and you men of Israel; I will be your helper, says the Lord, even he who takes up your cause, the Holy One of Israel.
15 Look! I will make you into a new and sharp threshing device, with many pointed teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush the hills, turning them into chaff.
See, I will make you like a new grain-crushing instrument with teeth, crushing the mountains small, and making the hills like dry stems.
16 You will throw them into the air, the wind will carry them away, and a storm will scatter them. Then you will be happy in the Lord, and boast about the Holy One of Israel.
You will send the wind over them, and it will take them away; they will go in all directions before the storm-wind: you will have joy in the Lord, and be glad in the Holy One of Israel.
17 The poor and needy search for water, but don't find any—their tongues are dry with thirst. I, the Lord, will respond to them; I, the God of Israel, won't abandon them.
The poor and crushed are looking for water where no water is, and their tongue is dry for need of it: I the Lord will give ear to their prayer, I the God of Israel will not give them up.
18 I will open up rivers in the desolate highlands and springs in the valleys. I will make pools in the wilderness and springs in the desert.
I will make rivers on the dry mountain-tops, and fountains in the valleys: I will make the waste land a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant cedars, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees in the desert. I will place evergreens in the desert, firs and box trees together.
I will put in the waste land the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive-tree; and in the lowland will be planted the fir-tree, the plane, and the cypress together:
20 In this way everyone can see and know, they can think about it and draw the conclusion that the it is the Lord who has done this, that the Holy One of Israel made it happen.
So that they may see and be wise and give their mind to it, and that it may be clear to them all that the hand of the Lord has done this, and that the Holy One of Israel has made it.
21 “Now you submit your case,” says the Lord. “Present your evidence,” says the King of Jacob.
Put forward your cause, says the Lord; let your strong argument come out, says the King of Jacob.
22 “Let them come and tell us what's about to happen. Let them explain the things of the past, so that we can think about them and discover the final outcome. Or they can tell us about the future.
Let the future be made clear to us: give us news of the past things, so that we may give thought to them; or of the things to come, so that we may see if they are true.
23 Predict what's coming so we can know for sure that you are gods. At least do something, good or bad, to impress us when we see it.
Give us word of what will be after this, so that we may be certain that you are gods: yes, do good or do evil, so that we may all see it and be surprised.
24 But look at you! You're nothing, and you can't do anything! Anyone who chooses you is disgusting!
But you are nothing, and your work is of no value: foolish is he who takes you for his gods.
25 I have encouraged the one who comes from the north. He is from the east, and will respect me. He will tread on rulers as if they were mortar, like a potter treading on clay.
I have sent for one from the north, and from the dawn he has come; in my name he will get rulers together and go against them; they will be like dust, even as the wet earth is stamped on by the feet of the potter.
26 Who announced this beforehand so that we could know about it? Who let us know in the past, so that now we could say: ‘He was right’? None of you announced it, none of you predicted it, and nobody heard you say a word!
Who has given knowledge of it from the first, so that we may be certain of it? and from the start, so that we may say, His word is true? There is no one who gives news, or says anything, or who gives ear to your words.
27 I was the first to announce to Zion: ‘Look, here they are!’ I was the one who brought to Jerusalem the good news.
I was the first to give word of it to Zion, and I gave the good news to Jerusalem.
28 I look at these idols, and find there is no one who can say anything. None of them can give advice; when I ask them something, they can't even answer.
And I saw that there was no man, even no wise man among them, who might give an answer to my questions.
29 Look at them! They're all evil, deceptive things. They can't do anything! They're just idols full of hot air!”
Truly they are all nothing, their works are nothing and of no value: their metal images are of no more use than wind.
