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.
Be silent [and hearken] unto me, O ye Coastlands, And let the Races of Men renew their strength, —Let them approach, then, let them speak, Together, for controversy, let us draw near: —
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 roused up one from the East, In righteousness, called him to his feet, —Set before him nations And over kings, caused him to rule, His sword, made [them] like dust, His bow like driven chaff:
3 He chases them down, and goes on unharmed, not following the usual routes.
He pursued them passed along safely, —Upon the path of his own feet, entered he not?
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.
Who hath wrought and performed, Calling the generations, in advance? I, Yahweh, [who am] First, And with them who are last, I, am the Same!
5 The islands watch in fear, the distant lands tremble. They get together and consult.
Coastlands have seen, so they fear, The ends of the earth, are in dread, —They have drawn near, and have come:
6 They all help each other, encouraging one another to “Be strong!”
Every man, to his neighbour, giveth help, —And to his brother, saith Take courage!
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 carver, hath encouraged, the goldsmith, he that maketh smooth with the hammer, him that smiteth the anvil, —Saying of the welding, It is, good, Then hath he fastened it with nails—it must not totter!
8 But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, the ones I have chosen, descendants of my friend Abraham,
But, thou, Israel, my Servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, —The seed of Abraham my loving one;
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.
Thou whom I have taken hold of from the ends of the earth, And from the extremities thereof, have called thee, —And said to thee, My Servant, thou! I have chosen thee and not cast thee off,
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.
Do not fear, for with thee, I am! Look not around, for, I, am thy God, —I have emboldened thee, Yea I have helped thee, Yea I have upheld thee with my righteous right-hand.
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.
Lo! they shall turn pale and be ashamed—All they who have been incensed against thee, —They shall become as nothing and perish—The men who have been thine accusers:
12 Even though you look for your enemies, you won't find them. Those who attack you will become absolutely nothing.
Thou shalt seek them, but shalt not find them—The men who have contended with thee, They shall become as nothing, and as a thing of nought—The men who have warred against thee;
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, Yahweh thy God am firmly grasping thy right-hand, —Who am saying unto thee Do not fear! I, have become thy 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.
Do not fear, Thou worm Jacob, Ye men of Israel, —I, have become thy helper, Declareth Yahweh, And thy redeemer 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.
Lo! I have made of thee a new pointed threshing sledge, owning teeth, —Thou shalt thresh mountains and crush them, And, hills—like chaff, shalt thou make:
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.
Thou shalt fan them and, a wind, shall carry them away, And, a whirlwind, scatter, them, —But, thou, shalt exult in Yahweh, And, in the Holy One of Israel, shalt thou boast thyself.
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.
As for the oppressed and the needy. Seeking water when there is none, Their tongue with thirst being parched I—Yahweh, will answer them, The God of Israel, I will not forsake them:
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 open, On bare hills rivers, and In the midst of plains, fountains, —I will make The desert, a lake of water, and Parched 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 set in the desert! Cedar, acacia, and myrtle, and oil-tree, —I will place, in the waste plain, Cypress, holm-oak, and sherbin-cedar, 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.
That men may see and observe and consider and understand at once, That, the hand of Yahweh, hath done this, That the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
21 “Now you submit your case,” says the Lord. “Present your evidence,” says the King of Jacob.
Bring near your contention, Saith Yahweh, —Advance your defences, Saith 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 them advance them, and tell us, What shall happen, —Things known in advance—what they were, tell ye, That we may lay them to our heart and mark the after-story of them, Or, things yet to come, let us hear:
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.
Tell ye the events which shall be here-after, That we may perceive that gods, ye are, —Surely ye must do something—good or bad, That we may be amazed and behold it, at once.
24 But look at you! You're nothing, and you can't do anything! Anyone who chooses you is disgusting!
Lo! ye, are, of nought, And your work is a puff of breath, —An abomination, he that chooseth you!
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 roused up one from the North, and he hath come, From the rising of the sun, calleth he on my Name, —And he hath come, on deputies, as though they were mortar, And as a potter treadeth clay.
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 hath told in advance, that we might know, And beforetime, that we might say Right! Nay, there is none who can tell. Nay, there is none who can let us hear, Nay, there is none who can understand what ye utter.
27 I was the first to announce to Zion: ‘Look, here they are!’ I was the one who brought to Jerusalem the good news.
He who is First, [can say], To Zion, Lo! there they are! And to Jerusalem, A herald of good-tidings, do I give.
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.
So I look, And there is not, a Man! Even among these And there is none to advise, —That, when I ask them, can answer a word.
29 Look at them! They're all evil, deceptive things. They can't do anything! They're just idols full of hot air!”
Lo! as to all of them, Vanity—nothingness, are their works, Wind and emptiness, their molten images!
