Isaiah 44
1 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:
But now hear, Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 Thus hath said the Lord thy Maker, and he that formed thee from the womb, who will help thee, Fear not, O my servant Jacob; and thou Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
Thus says the Lord God that made you, and he that formed you from the womb; You shall yet be helped: fear not, my servant Jacob; and beloved Israel, whom I have chosen.
3 For [as] I pour water upon the thirsty [land], and rain-droppings upon the dry ground: [so] will I pour my spirit over thy seed, and my blessing over thy offspring.
For I will give water to the thirsty that walk in a dry land: I will put my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessings upon your children:
4 After they shall spring up [as] among grass, like willows by the water-courses.
and they shall spring up as grass between brooks, and as willows on [the banks of] running water.
5 This one will say, I belong to the Lord; and the other will call himself by the name of Jacob; and the other will inscribe himself with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.
One shall say, I am God's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall write with his hand, I am God's, and shall call himself by the name of Israel.
6 Thus hath said the Lord, the king of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no god.
Thus says God the King of Israel, and the God of hosts that delivered him; I am the first, and I am hereafter: beside me there is no God.
7 And who, like me, will announce, and will tell it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the people of ancient times? and the future things, and those which are to happen, —let them foretell unto them.
Who is like me? let him stand, and call, and declare, and prepare for me from the time that I made man for ever; and let them tell you the things that are coming before they arrive.
8 Have no dread, and do not despond; have I not long since informed thee, and have told it? and ye are my witnesses: Is there a god beside me? yea, there is no rock, whom I know not.
Hide not yourselves, nor go astray: have you not heard from the beginning, and [have not] I told you? you are witnesses if there is a God beside me.
9 The makers of graven images are all vanity; and their costly idols cannot profit; and they are their own witnesses, that they see not and know not, in order that they may be ashamed.
But they that framed [false gods] did not then listen; and they that graved [images] are all vain, performing their own desires, which shall not profit them, but they shall be ashamed
10 Who hath formed a god, or cast an image that profiteth nothing?
that form a god, and all that grave worthless things:
11 Behold, all his associates shall be ashamed, for the workmen themselves are but men: let them all be gathered, let them stand up, they shall be terrified, they shall be ashamed together.
and all by whom they were made are withered: yes, let all the deaf be gathered from [amongst] men, and let them stand together; and let them be ashamed and confounded together:
12 The iron-smith [maketh] an axe and worketh it in the coals, and with hammers he fashioneth it, and worketh it with his powerful arm; he also, when he is hungry, loseth his strength: when he drinketh no water, he becometh faint.
For the artificer sharpens the iron; he fashions [the idol] with an axe, and fixes it with an awl, and fashions it with the strength of his arm: and he will be hungry and weak, and will drink no water.
13 The worker in wood stretcheth out the rule; he marketh it out with chalk; he fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, after the beauty of a child of earth, that it may dwell in a house.
The artificer having chosen a piece of wood, marks it out with a rule, and fits it with glue, and makes it as the form of a man, and as the beauty of a man, to set it up in the house.
14 He felleth for himself cedars, and taketh cypress and oak, and he chooseth for himself the strongest among the trees of the forest; he planteth an ash, and the rain causeth it to grow.
He cuts wood out of the forest, which the Lord planted, [even] a pine tree, and the rain made it grow,
15 Then doth it serve a man for burning; and he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself; he also heateth therewith, and baketh bread; he also worketh out a god, and boweth himself; he maketh of it an image, and kneeleth down thereto.
that it might be for men to burn: and having taken part of it he warms himself; yes, they burn part of it, and bake loaves thereon; and [of] the rest they make for themselves gods, and they worship them.
16 The half thereof hath he burnt in fire; with the half thereof will he eat flesh; he will roast food, and be satisfied; he will also warm himself, and say, Aha, I am warm, I have felt the fire:
Half thereof he burns in the fire, and with half of it he bakes loaves on the coals; and having roasted flesh on it he eats, and is satisfied, and having warmed himself he says, I am comfortable, for I have warmed myself, and have seen the fire.
17 And the residue thereof hath he made into a god, his graven image; he kneeleth down unto it, and boweth himself, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for my god art thou.
And the rest he makes a graven god, and worships, and prays, saying, Deliver me; for you are my God.
18 They know not, they understand not; for their eyes are daubed over, that they cannot see; their hearts, that they cannot understand.
They have no understanding to perceive; for they have been blinded so that they should not see with their eyes, nor perceive with their heart.
19 And he layeth it not to heart, and hath no knowledge, no understanding, to say, The half thereof have I burnt in fire; and I have also baked upon its coals bread; I [now] will roast flesh, and eat it: and shall I make of its residue an abomination, before a block of wood shall I kneel?
And one has not considered in his mind, nor known in his understanding, that he has burnt up half of it in the fire, and baked loaves on the coals thereof and has roasted and eaten flesh, and of the rest of it he has made an abomination, and they worship it.
20 He pursueth ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside; and he cannot deliver his soul, and will not say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
Know you that their heart is ashes, and they err, and no one is able to deliver his soul: see, you will not say, [There is a] lie in my right hand.
21 Remember these things, O Jacob; and Israel, for thou art my servant: I have formed thee to be my servant, thou [art this]; O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten by me.
Remember these things, O Jacob and Israel; for you are my servant; I have formed you [to be] my servant: and do you, Israel, not forget me.
22 I have blotted out, as a vapor, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.
For behold, I have blotted out as a cloud your transgressions, and your sin as darkness: turn to me, and I will redeem you.
23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it; shout, ye lowest depths of the earth; break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein; for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and on Israel will he glorify himself.
Rejoice, you heavens; for God has had mercy upon Israel: sound the trumpet, you foundations of the earth: you mountains, shout [with] joy, you hills, and all the trees therein: for God has redeemed Jacob, and Israel shall be glorified.
24 Thus hath said the Lord, thy Redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that hath made all things; that hath stretched forth the heavens by myself alone; that hath spread abroad the earth from my own self;
Thus says the Lord that redeems you, and who formed you from the womb, I am the Lord that performs all things: I stretched out the heaven alone, and established the earth.
25 That frustrate the tokens of the liars, and confuseth diviners; that turneth the wise backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish;
Who else will frustrate the tokens of those that have divining spirits, and prophecies from the heart of [man]? turning the wise back, and making their counsel foolishness;
26 That fulfilleth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith of Jerusalem, It shall be inhabited; and of the cities of Judah, They shall be built, and their ruins will I raise up.
and confirming the word of his servant, and verifying the counsel of his messengers: who says to Jerusalem, You shall be inhabited; and to the cities of Idumea, You shall be built, and her desert places shall spring forth.
27 That saith to the deep, Be dry, and thy rivers will I dry up;
Who says to the deep, You shall be dried up, and I will dry up the rivers.
28 That saith of Cyrus, [He is] my shepherd, and all my pleasure shall he perform: even saying of Jerusalem, It shall be built; and the temple's foundation shall be laid.
Who bids Cyrus be wise, and he shall perform all my will: who says to Jerusalem, You shall be built, and I will lay the foundation of my holy house.
