Isaiah 41
1 Keep silence, and hear me, ye distant lands. Ye nations, gather your strength! Let them come near; then let them speak; Let us go together into 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 hath raised up from the region of the East Him whom victory meeteth in his march? Who hath subdued nations before him, And given him dominion over kings? Who made their swords like dust, And their bows like driven stubble?
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 pursued them, and passed in safety, By a path which his foot had never trodden.
He pursued them passed along safely, —Upon the path of his own feet, entered he not?
4 Who hath wrought and done it? I, who have called the generations from the beginning, I, Jehovah, the first; And with the last also am I.
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 Distant nations saw it, and were afraid; The ends of the earth, and trembled; They drew near, and came together.
Coastlands have seen, so they fear, The ends of the earth, are in dread, —They have drawn near, and have come:
6 One helped another, And said to him, “Be of good courage!”
Every man, to his neighbour, giveth help, —And to his brother, saith Take courage!
7 The carpenter encouraged the smith, He that smoothed with the hammer him that smote on the anvil, And said, “The soldering is good,” And he fastened it with nails that it might not fall.
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 thou, O Israel, my servant, Thou, Jacob, whom I have chosen, Offspring of Abraham, my friend!
But, thou, Israel, my Servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, —The seed of Abraham my loving one;
9 Thou, whom I have led by the hand from the ends of the earth, And called from the extremities thereof, And said to thee, “Thou art my servant, I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away!”
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 Fear not, for I am with thee; Faint not, for I, thy God, will strengthen thee; I will help thee, and sustain thee, with my right hand of salvation!
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 Behold, all who are enraged against thee Shall be ashamed and confounded; All that contend with thee Shall come to nothing and perish.
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 Thou shalt seek and not find Them that contend with thee; They shall come to nothing, and be no more, Who make war against thee.
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, Jehovah, am thy God, that holdeth thee by the right hand, That saith to thee, “Fear not, I am thy helper!”
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 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, thou feeble people of Israel! I am thy helper, saith Jehovah; Thy redeemer is 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 Behold, I will make thee a thrashing-wain, sharp and new, With double edges; Thou shalt thrash the mountains, and beat them small, And make the hills as 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 Thou shalt winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, And the whirlwind shall scatter them. But thou shalt rejoice in Jehovah, And glory in 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 When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, And their tongue is parched with thirst, I, Jehovah, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake 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 rivers upon the bare hills, 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, 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 in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia, The myrtle and the olive-tree; I will place in the desert the cypress, The plane-tree and the larch 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 That they may see, and know, And consider, and understand together, That the hand of Jehovah hath done this, And that the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
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 Bring forward your cause, saith Jehovah; Produce your strong reasons, saith the king of Jacob.
Bring near your contention, Saith Yahweh, —Advance your defences, Saith the King of Jacob:
22 Let them produce them, and show us what shall happen! Tell us what ye have predicted in times past, That we may consider, and know its fulfilment! Or declare to us things that are to come!
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 Let us hear what shall happen in future times, That we may know whether ye are gods; Do something, be it good or evil, That we may be astonished, and see it together!
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 Behold, ye are less than nothing, And your work is less than naught; An abomination is he that chooseth you!
Lo! ye, are, of nought, And your work is a puff of breath, —An abomination, he that chooseth you!
25 I have raised up one from the north, and he cometh; From the rising of the sun he calleth upon my name; He trampleth upon princes as upon mortar; As the potter treadeth down the 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 hath declared this from the beginning, that we might know it, And long ago, that we might say, It is true? There was not one that foretold it, not one that declared it, Not one that heard your words.
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 first said to Zion, Behold! behold them! And I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of glad tidings.
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 looked, but there was no man; Even among them, but there was none that gave counsel; I inquired of them that they might give an 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 But behold, they are all vanity; Their works are nothing; Wind and emptiness are their molten images.
Lo! as to all of them, Vanity—nothingness, are their works, Wind and emptiness, their molten images!
