Isaiah 44
1 Now, then—hear, O Jacob, my Servant, —and Israel whom I have chosen:
But now listen, Jacob, my servant, Israel, the one I've chosen.
2 Thus, saith Yahweh—Who made thee and formed thee from birth, Who helpeth thee: Do not fear O my Servant Jacob, and Jeshurun whom I have chosen;
This is what the Lord says, the one who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Don't be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, the one I've chosen.
3 For I will pour, Water upon the thirsty soil, and Floods upon the dry ground, —I will pour My spirit upon thy seed, and My blessing upon thine offspring;
For I'm going to pour out water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground. I'm going to pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children.
4 So will they spring up among the grass, As willows by the water-courses:
They will grow up among the grass, like willows beside streams.
5 This one, will say Yahweh’s, am I, and That one, will call himself by the name of Jacob, and Yonder one will write on his hand—Yahweh’s, And after the name of Israel, will one entitle himself.
One of them will say, “I belong to the Lord,” while another will call himself by the name Jacob, and yet another will write on his hand, “Belonging to the Lord,” and will name himself Israel.
6 Thus saith Yahweh—King of Israel, Even his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts, —I, am, First, and, I, Last, And besides me, there is no God.
This is what the Lord says, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides me.
7 Who then, like me, can call, and declare it, and order it, for me, Seeing that I appointed an age-abiding people, —Or things yet to be, and that shall come to pass, Let them declare on their part.
Who is like me? Let them announce it, make a declaration, and demonstrate it before me. For I was the one who long ago established a people and predicted its future. Let them predict what's going to happen.
8 Do not ye dread, nor yet be alarmed, Have I not from olden time, told thee and declared? So that, ye, are my witnesses, —Whether there is a GOD besides me? Or is no Rock—I knew of none!
Don't tremble, don't be afraid! Didn't I tell you long ago what I was going to do? Didn't I explain it? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? There is no other Rock—I don't know any!
9 The fashioners of an image—all of them, are emptiness, And, the things they delight in, cannot profit, —And, their, witnesses, they, neither see nor know, That they may be ashamed.
All those who make idols are stupid; these things they love so much don't bring them any benefit. Those people who believe in idols can't see this, and they don't know anything, making them look foolish.
10 Who hath fashioned a GOD, Oran image, hath molten? It cannot profit!
Who makes a god, who molds an idol that's no use to them?
11 Lo! all his partners, turn pale, Even, the artificers themselves, are of the sons of earth, —Let them gather themselves together—all of them. Let them take their stand, Let them dread, and turn pale, together!
Everyone who makes idols should be ashamed of themselves. Idol-makers are just human beings! Bring them all together and have them stand up, trembling in shame.
12 As for the smith, [with his] cutting-tool, —When he hath wrought in the live coals, And, with hammers, hath fashioned it, —And hath wrought it with his strong arm, Anon he is hungry, and hath no strength, He hath drunk no water and so hath become faint!
The blacksmith makes an iron tool for woodcarving. Working over hot coals, he hammers it into shape as hard as he can. He gets hungry and loses his strength, and because he doesn't drink he grows weak.
13 As for the carpenter, —He hath stretched out a line hath drawn it with a pencil, Hath made it with carving tools, With compasses, hath rounded it, —And so hath made it after the figure of a great man, After the beauty of a son of earth, that it may remain in a house!
The woodworker measures out a piece of wood, and draws an image on it. He carves it with a chisel and uses a compass to make an outline. He creates an idol that looks like a person, someone beautiful, to be put in a shrine.
14 When one was cutting him down cedars, Then took he a holm-tree and an oak, And secured them for himself, among the trees of the forest, —He planted a fir-tree and the pouring rain made it grow;
He chops down cedars, or takes a cypress or an oak. He lets them grow strong in the forest. He plants a fir tree, and the rain makes it grow.
15 So it serveth for a man to burn, And he hath taken of the branches and warmed himself, Also he kindleth a fire, and baketh bread, —Also he maketh a GOD, and hath bowed himself down, Hath made of it a carved image, and adored it:
Some wood he burns, to keep him warm and to bake his bread. Then he uses some of the same wood to make a god to worship, an idol he bows down to!
16 The half thereof, hath he burned in the fire, Over half thereof, he eateth flesh, He roasteth roast, that he may be satisfied, —Also he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen a blaze;
So he burns part of the wood to roast his meat to eat, and to warm him up, and says, “Ah! Look at that fire that keeps me warm!”
17 And the residue thereof, Into a GOD, he maketh, Into his carved image, —Adoreth it, and boweth down and prayeth unto it, And saith Deliver me, for, my GOD, thou art!
Then he uses the rest of the wood to make himself a god, an idol he bows down to in worship and prays to, saying, “Save me, for you are my god!”
18 They have not taken note, neither can they perceive, —He hath besmeared—past seeing—their eyes, Past understanding, their hearts;
How ignorant they are, how dumb! Their eyes have been plastered over so they can't see, their minds closed so they don't have insight.
19 And no one reflecteth—There is neither knowledge nor discernment—to say, Half thereof, have I burned up in the fire Moreover also I have baked, on the coals thereof, bread, I roasted flesh, and have been eating, —And of the remainder thereof, an abomination, shall I make? And, to a log of wood, shall I pay adoration?
They can't think things over, they don't have the wisdom or the understanding to say, “Some of the wood I burned in the fire—I used it to bake my bread and roast my meat to eat. The rest of it I used to make a disgusting idol, and I bow down in worship to a block of wood.”
20 He is feeding on ashes, A deluded heart, hath turned him aside, —And he cannot deliver his own soul nor say, Is there not a falsehood in my right hand?
He is feeding on ashes, seduced by the deceptive thinking of his mind. He can't save himself, and he doesn't even ask, “Isn't this idol I'm holding just a lie?”
21 Remember these things, O Jacob, And, Israel, —for, my Servant, thou art, —I have fashioned thee, a Servant of mine, thou art.
“Remember all this, Jacob and Israel, for you are my servant. I made you, Israel, you are my servant. I won't forget you.
22 O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me, I have wiped out, As with a thick cloud, thy transgressions, And as with a broad cloud, thy sins, —Return unto me, for I have redeemed thee.
I have wiped away your acts of rebellion as if they were like a cloud, your sins as if they were like the mist. Come back to me, for I have set you free.”
23 Shout in triumph ye heavens for Yahweh, hath effectually wrought. Shout, O ye underparts of the earth, Ring out, Ye mountains, into cries of triumph, Thou forest, and every tree therein, —For, Yahweh, hath redeemed, Jacob, And in Israel, will he get himself glory.
Sing in celebration, you heavens, for the Lord has done this; cry out loud, you depths of the earth. Shout with joy, you mountains, you forests and every tree. For the Lord has set Jacob free, and his glory is shown in Israel!
24 Thus, saith Yahweh Who hath redeemed thee, Who hath fashioned thee from birth, —I—Yahweh, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens, alone, Spreading forth the earth, of myself;
This is what the Lord says, your Redeemer, who shaped you in the womb: “I am the Lord, the Creator of everything. I alone made the heavens, and I myself formed the earth.
25 Frustrating the signs of praters, And, diviners, he confoundeth, —Turning wise men backwards, And their knowledge, he maketh folly;
I am the one who proves the signs of false prophets are wrong. I am the one who makes fools of fortune-tellers. I turn the wisdom of the wise upside-down, and make their knowledge ridiculous.
26 Establishing the word of his Servant, And the counsel of his Messengers, he maketh good, —Who saith of Jerusalem—She shall be inhabited! And of the cities of Judah—They shall be built! And the ruins thereof, will I set up!
But I confirm the messages given by my servants, and fulfill what my messengers say. They state, ‘Jerusalem will be inhabited again, the towns of Judah will be rebuilt, your ruins will be repaired.’
27 Who saith to the deep—Be dry and Thy rivers, will I drain!
When I order deep waters, ‘Dry up!’ I will make sure the rivers dry up!
28 Who saith of Cyrus—My Shepherd! and All my pleasure, shall he make good Even saying of Jerusalem—She shall be built! And of the temple—Be her foundation laid!
When I say to Cyrus, ‘You are my shepherd,’ he will carry out everything I wish. He will give the order, ‘Jerusalem shall be rebuilt,’ and he will say, ‘the Temple shall be restored.’”
