Isaiah 41

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

Let the islands be silent before me, and let the nations take new strength. Let them draw near, and then speak. Let us apply for judgment together.

2 Who raised up the righteous [man] from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made [him] rule over kings? he gave [them] as the dust to his sword, [and] as driven stubble to his bow.

Who has raised up a just man from the east, and has called him to follow him? He will place the nations under his gaze, and he will rule over kings. He will cause them to be like dust before his sword, like chaff driven by the wind before his bow.

3 He pursued them, [and] passed safely; [even] by the way [that] he had not gone with his feet.

He will pursue them. He will pass by in peace. No trace will appear after his feet.

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

Who has worked and accomplished these things, calling to the generations from the beginning? “It is I, the Lord! I am the first and the last.”

5 The isles saw [it], and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came.

The islands saw it and were afraid. The ends of the earth were stupefied. They drew near and arrived.

6 They helped every one his neighbour; and [every one] said to his brother, Be of good courage.

Each one will help his neighbor and will say to his brother, “Be strengthened.”

7 So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, [and] he that smootheth [with] the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It [is] ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, [that] it should not be moved.

The coppersmith striking with the mallet encouraged him who was forging at that time, saying, “It is ready for soldering.” And he strengthened it with nails, so that it would not be moved.

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

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

9 [Thou] whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou [art] my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.

For his sake, I have taken you from the ends of the earth, and I have called you from its distant places. And I said to you: “You are my servant. I have chosen you, and I have not cast you aside.”

10 Fear thou 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 be afraid, for I am with you. Do not turn away, for I am your God. I have strengthened you, and I have assisted you, and the right hand of my just one has upheld you.

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

Behold, all who fight against you shall be confounded and ashamed. They will be as if they did not exist, and the men who contradict you will perish.

12 Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, [even] them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.

You will seek them, and you will not find them. The men who rebel against you will be as if they did not exist. And the men who make war against you will be like something that has been consumed.

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

For I am the Lord your God. I take you by your hand, and I say to you: Do not be afraid. I have helped you.

14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, [and] ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

Fear not, O worm of Jacob, you who are dead within Israel. I have helped you, says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat [them] small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.

I have established you like a new threshing cart, having serrated blades. You will thresh the mountains and crush them. And you will turn the hills into chaff.

16 Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, [and] shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

You will winnow them, and the wind will blow them away, and the whirlwind will scatter them. And you shall exult in the Lord; you shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

17 [When] the poor and needy seek water, and [there is] none, [and] their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

The indigent and the poor are seeking water, but there is none. Their tongue has been dried up by thirst. I, the Lord, will heed them. I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.

18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers in the high hills, and fountains in the midst of the plains. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the impassable land into streams of water.

19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, [and] the pine, and the box tree together:

I will plant the cedar in a deserted place, with the thorn, and the myrtle, and the olive tree. In the desert, I will plant the pine, and the elm, and the box tree together,

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

so that they may see and know, acknowledge and understand, together, that the hand of the Lord has accomplished this, and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 Produce your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your strong [reasons], saith the King of Jacob.

Bring your case forward, says the Lord. Bring it here, if you have anything to allege, says the King of Jacob.

22 Let them bring [them] forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the former things, what they [be], that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.

Let them approach and announce to us the things that will occur. Announce to us the things that were before. And we will apply our heart to them, and we will know their end. And so, reveal to us the things that will occur.

23 Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye [are] gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold [it] together.

Announce the things that will occur in the future, and we will know that you are gods. Likewise, accomplish good or evil, if you are able, and let us speak of it and see it together.

24 Behold, ye [are] of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination [is he that] chooseth you.

Behold, you exist out of nothing, and your work is from what does not exist; he who has chosen you is an abomination.

25 I have raised up [one] from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as [upon] morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.

I have raised up one from the north, and he will arrive from the rising of the sun. He will call upon my name, and he will reduce magistrates to mud, like a potter working with clay.

26 Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, [He is] righteous? yea, [there is] none that sheweth, yea, [there is] none that declareth, yea, [there is] none that heareth your words.

Who has announced this from its rising, so that we may know it, or from its beginning, so that we may say, “You are just.” There is no one who either announces, or predicts, or hears your words.

27 The first [shall say] to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.

The first one will say to Zion: “Behold, they are here,” and to Jerusalem, “I will present an evangelist.”

28 For 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.

And I saw, and there was no one among any of them to consult, or who, when I asked, could answer a word.

29 Behold, they [are] all vanity; their works [are] nothing: their molten images [are] wind and confusion.

Behold, they are all unjust, and their works are empty. Their idols are wind and emptiness.