Isaiah 41

1 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: —

Keep silent toward Me, O islands, And the peoples pass on [to] power, They come near, then they speak, “Together we draw near to judgment.”

2 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:

Who stirred up a righteous one from the east? He calls him to His foot, He gives nations before him, And He causes him to rule kings, He gives [them] as dust [to] his sword, As driven stubble [to] his bow.

3 He pursued them passed along safely, —Upon the path of his own feet, entered he not?

He pursues them, he passes over in safety A path he does not enter with his feet.

4 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!

Who has worked and done, Calling the generations from the first? I, YHWH, the first, and with the last I [am] He.

5 Coastlands have seen, so they fear, The ends of the earth, are in dread, —They have drawn near, and have come:

Islands have seen and fear, The ends of the earth tremble, They have drawn near, indeed, they come.

6 Every man, to his neighbour, giveth help, —And to his brother, saith Take courage!

They each help his neighbor, And to his brother he says, “Be strong.”

7 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!

And an artisan strengthens the refiner, A smoother [with] a hammer, Him who is beating [on] an anvil, saying, “For joining it [is] good,” And he strengthens it with nails, it is not moved!

8 But, thou, Israel, my Servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, —The seed of Abraham my loving one;

And you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My lover,

9 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,

Whom I have taken hold of, from the ends of the earth, And from its near places I have called you, And I say to you, You [are] My servant, I have chosen you, and not rejected you.

10 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.

Do not be afraid, for I [am] with you, do not look around, for I [am] your God, I have strengthened you, Indeed, I have helped you, indeed, I upheld you, With the right hand of My righteousness.

11 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:

Behold, all those displeased with you, They are ashamed and blush, They are as nothing, indeed, The men who strive with you perish.

12 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;

You seek them, and do not find them, The men who debate with you, They are as nothing, indeed, as nothing, The men who war with you.

13 For I, Yahweh thy God am firmly grasping thy right-hand, —Who am saying unto thee Do not fear! I, have become thy helper!

For I, your God YHWH, Am strengthening your right hand, He who is saying to you, “Do not fear, I have helped you.”

14 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.

Do not fear, O worm Jacob, You men of Israel, I helped you, a declaration of YHWH, Even your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 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:

Behold, I have set you for a new sharp threshing instrument, Possessing teeth, you thresh mountains, And beat small, and make hills as chaff.

16 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.

You winnow them, and a wind lifts them up, And a whirlwind scatters them, And you rejoice in YHWH, [And] boast yourself in the Holy One of Israel.

17 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:

The poor and the needy are seeking water, And there is none, Their tongue has failed with thirst, I, YHWH, answer them, The God of Israel—I do not forsake them.

18 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;

I open rivers on high places, And fountains in midst of valleys, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land becomes springs of water.

19 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

I give in a wilderness the cedar, Shittah, and myrtle, and oil-tree, I set in a desert the fir-pine and box-wood together.

20 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.

So that they see, and know, And regard, and act wisely together, For the hand of YHWH has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 Bring near your contention, Saith Yahweh, —Advance your defences, Saith the King of Jacob:

Bring your cause near, says YHWH, Bring your mighty ones near, says the King of Jacob.

22 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:

They bring [them] near, and declare to us that which happens, Declare the first things—what they [are], And we set our heart, and know their latter end, Or cause us to hear the coming things.

23 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.

Declare the things that are coming hereafter, And we know that you [are] gods, Indeed, you may do good or do evil, And we look around and see [it] together.

24 Lo! ye, are, of nought, And your work is a puff of breath, —An abomination, he that chooseth you!

Behold, you [are] of nothing, and your work of nothing, An abomination—it fixes on you.

25 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.

I have stirred up [one] from the north, And he comes, From the rising of the sun he calls in My Name, And he comes in [on] prefects as [on] clay, And as a potter treads down mire.

26 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.

Who has declared from the first, and we know? And formerly, and we say, “Righteous?” Indeed, there is none declaring, Indeed, there is none proclaiming, Indeed, there is none hearing your sayings.

27 He who is First, [can say], To Zion, Lo! there they are! And to Jerusalem, A herald of good-tidings, do I give.

First to Zion, Behold, behold them, And to Jerusalem I give one proclaiming tidings,

28 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.

And I see that there is no man, Indeed, of these that there is no counselor, And I ask them, and they return word:

29 Lo! as to all of them, Vanity—nothingness, are their works, Wind and emptiness, their molten images!

“Behold, all of them [are] vanity, Their works [are] nothing, Their molten images [are] wind and emptiness!”