Isaiah 45
1 Cyrus is the one whom Yahweh has appointed [to be the emperor of Persia] and to whom he will give great power [IDM]; Yahweh will enable him to defeat other nations and to take away the power of their kings. He will cause gates of cities to be opened, and no one will ever be able to shut them.
Thus, saith Yahweh, to his Anointed, to Cyrus—Whose right hand I have firmly grasped To subdue before him, nations, And the loins of kings, will I ungird, —To open, before him, the two-leaved doors, And, the gates, shall not be shut:
2 This is what Yahweh says to him: “Cyrus, I will go ahead of you and level the mountains. I will smash down bronze gates and cut through iron bars.
I, before thee, will go, And the hills, will I level—The doors of bronze, will I break in pieces, And the bars of iron, will I cut asunder;
3 I will give you treasures [that people have hidden] in dark secret places [DOU]. I will do that in order that you will know that I am Yahweh, the God to whom the Israelis belong, the God who calls you by your name.
Then will I give thee The treasures of darkness, Even the hoards of hidden places, —That thou mayest get to know That I—Yahweh, who am calling thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.
4 I have summoned you, calling out your name, for the sake of [the people of] Israel [DOU] whom I have chosen, who serve me. Even though you do not know me, I will give you a title which has great honor.
For the sake of my servant Jacob, Even Israel my chosen Therefore have I called unto thee by thy name, I give thee a title though thou hast not known me, —
5 I am Yahweh, and there is no other God [DOU]. Even though you do not know me, I will give you power
I, am Yahweh, and there is none else, Besides me, there is no God, —I gird thee, though thou hast not known me:
6 in order that everyone in the world, from the east to the west, will know that there is no other [God]. I am Yahweh, and there is no other [God].
That men may get to know. From the rising of the sun And from the west. That there is none besides me, —I, am Yahweh, and there is none else:
7 I created the light and the darkness. I cause there to be peace and I cause there to be disasters. I, Yahweh, do all those things.”
Forming light and creating darkness, Making prosperity, and creating misfortune, —I—Yahweh, who doeth all these.
8 [And Yahweh also says, “I want my] rescue [of my people] [MET] to fall from the sky like rain. Just like the earth opens wide to accept rain, I will rescue/save my people and cause them to be treated justly. I, Yahweh, am the one who will cause both of those things to happen.
Let the drops fall ye heavens, from above, Yea, let, the skies, pour down righteousness, —Let the earth open and let them bear as their fruit—deliverance And let, justice, spring forth therewith, I—Yahweh, have created it.
9 Terrible things will happen to those who argue with me, the one who created them. [They are like] [MET] a clay pot and [I am like] the one who made it; so they certainly cannot [RHQ] criticize me. A lump of clay certainly cannot [RHQ] argue with the one who shapes it [to form a pot], saying, ‘Why are you making me like this?’ The pot cannot say ‘[You have no skill, because] what you made has no handles!’
Alas for him who contendeth with his Fashioner, —A potsherd, [should contend] with the potsherds of the ground! Shall it be said by the clay, unto him that is fashioning it, What wouldst thou make? Or, thy work say, of thee, He hath no hands?
10 And it would be terrible if an unborn baby would say to its father, ‘Why are you [RHQ] causing me to be born?’ or if it said to its mother, ‘The result of your labor pains will be useless?’”
Alas, for one who saith to a father, What begettest thou? Or to a woman What dost thou bring forth?
11 Yahweh, the Holy One of the Israeli people, the one who created Israel, says this to them: “(Why do you ask questions about [what I do for you], my children?/You should not ask questions about [what I do for you], my children.) [RHQ] (Why do you tell me about the work that I should do?/You should not tell me about the work that I should do.) [RHQ]
Thus, saith, Yahweh, The Holy One of Israel And his Fashioner, As to things to come, they have asked me, Concerning my sons and concerning the work of my hands, they would command me!
12 I am the one who created the earth and created people to live on it. I stretched out the sky with my hands, and I put the stars in their places.
I, made the earth, And man upon it, I created, —I—mine own hands, stretched out the heavens, And all their host, I commanded:
13 And I will appoint Cyrus to do things that are right/just, and I will enable him to do all those things easily [MET]. His [workers] will rebuild my city, and he will free my people who have been (exiled/forced to leave their country). And he will do it without my rewarding/paying him! [Those things will surely happen because] I, the Commander of the armies of angels, have said it.
I, have roused him up in righteousness, And all his roads, will I level, —He, shall build my city, And my captives, shall he let go, Not for price, nor for bribe, Saith Yahweh of hosts.
14 And this is [also] what [I], Yahweh, say [to you, my people]: ‘You will rule the people of Egypt and Ethiopia, and the tall people of Seba [in Arabia] will become your slaves. They will come to you bringing all the things that they sell, and it will all be yours. [As prisoners], they will have chains on their arms as they follow you. They will prostrate themselves in front of you and say, “God is with/helping you and he is the only God; there is no other God.” '”
Thus, saith Yahweh—The produce of Egypt and the gain of Ethiopia, and the Sabeans, men of great stature, Unto thee, shall come over, And thine, shall they become, After thee, shall they journey, In chains, shall they come over, —And unto thee, shall they bow down Unto thee, shall they pray [saying], —Surely, in thee, is a GOD And there is none else—no, God!
15 God, although we cannot see you, you are the one to whom [we] Israeli people belong, the one who saves us.
Surely, thou, art a GOD utterly hiding thyself, —O God of Israel, able to save!
16 All those who make idols will be humiliated. They will all be disgraced together.
They have turned pale and even been put to shame, all of them, —Together have they gone into disgrace, have the makers of images:
17 But you, Yahweh, will rescue [us, your] Israeli people, and we will be free forever. Never again will we again be humiliated and disgraced.
Israel, hath been delivered by Yahweh, with an age-abiding deliverance, —Ye shall neither turn pale nor he put to shame, unto the ages of futurity,
18 Yahweh is God; he is the one who created the sky and created and formed the earth. He did not want it to remain with nothing living on it; he wanted people to live on it. [He says], “I am Yahweh; there is no other [God].
For, Thus, saith Yahweh, Who created the heavens God himself! Who fashioned the earth—And made it Himself, established it, …Not a waste, created he it To be dwelt in, he fashioned it, …I, am Yahweh, and there is none else:
19 [What I proclaimed], I did not speak secretly or [hide what I was saying by speaking] in a dark place. When I spoke to the descendants of Jacob, I did not tell them ‘It will be useless for you to (seek for/pray to) me!’ I, Yahweh, speak [only] what is true and what is right.
Not in secret, have I spoken In a place of the earth that is dark, —I have not said unto the seed of Jacob, In a waste, seek ye me, —I, am Yahweh, Speaking the thing that is right, Declaring the things that are just.
20 You people who are still alive after experiencing great disasters, should come and gather together [and listen to this]: The people who carry around their wooden idols and pray to them are foolish, because those idols cannot rescue them!
Assemble yourselves and come Draw near together, ye escaped of the nations, —They know not Who carry the wood of their carved image, And pray unto a GOD who cannot save.
21 Talk among yourselves, and decide what you will say to prove that [your praying to idols is good]. [And when you do that, I will ask you], ‘Who predicted long ago [what has now happened]? Did any idol tell you [that those things would happen] [RHQ]?’ No, it was [RHQ] only I, Yahweh, who told you, because I am the only God; there is no other God. I am a God who acts righteously and saves people; there is no other one [who does these things].
Tell ye—and bring near, Yea let them take counsel, together, —Who let this be known aforetime. In time past, declared it? Was it not, I—Yahweh? And there is none else that is God besides me, A GOD, righteous and ready to save, There is none, besides me!
22 Everyone in the world should ask me to save them, because I am the only God who can do that; there is no other one.
Turn unto me—and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth, —For, I, am GOD, and there is none else.
23 I have solemnly declared, using my own name; I [SYN] have spoken what is true, and I will never change what I have said: [Some day], everyone [SYN] will bow in front of me, and they will all solemnly promise to be loyal to me.
By myself, have I sworn, Gone forth out of my mouth, is righteousness as a decree And shall not turn back, —That, unto myself, Shall bow every knee, Shall swear every tongue:
24 They will declare, ‘Yahweh is the one who enables us to live righteously and to be strong.’” And all those who have been angry at him will come to him, and they will be ashamed [for having been angry with him].
Only in Yahweh—for me, Hath one said, Is there righteousness and strength, Unto him, shall come and turn pale—All who have been incensed against him:
25 Yahweh is the only one who will enable [us] Israeli people in the future to defeat our enemies, [and then] we will boast about what he [has done for us].
In Yahweh, shall be justified and shall boast themselves—All the seed of Israel.
