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Isaiah 44-48
The Message
Isaiah 44-48
The Message
Proud to Be Called Israel
44 1-5 “But for now, dear servant Jacob, listen—
yes, you, Israel, my personal choice.
God who made you has something to say to you;
the God who formed you in the womb wants to help you.
Don’t be afraid, dear servant Jacob,
Jeshurun, the one I chose.
For I will pour water on the thirsty ground
and send streams coursing through the parched earth.
I will pour my Spirit into your descendants
and my blessing on your children.
They shall sprout like grass on the prairie,
like willows alongside creeks.
This one will say, ‘I am God’s,’
and another will go by the name Jacob;
That one will write on his hand ‘God’s property’—
and be proud to be called Israel.”
6-8 God, King of Israel,
your Redeemer, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says:
“I’m first, I’m last, and everything in between.
I’m the only God there is.
Who compares with me?
Speak up. See if you measure up.
From the beginning, who else has always announced what’s coming?
So what is coming next? Anybody want to venture a try?
Don’t be afraid, and don’t worry:
Haven’t I always kept you informed, told you what was going on?
You’re my eyewitnesses:
Have you ever come across a God, a real God, other than me?
There’s no Rock like me that I know of.”
Lover of Emptiness
9-11 All those who make no-god idols don’t amount to a thing, and what they work so hard at making is nothing. Their little puppet-gods see nothing and know nothing—they’re total embarrassments! Who would bother making gods that can’t do anything, that can’t “god”? Watch all the no-god worshipers hide their faces in shame. Watch the no-god makers slink off humiliated when their idols fail them. Get them out here in the open. Make them face God-reality.
12 The blacksmith makes his no-god, works it over in his forge, hammering it on his anvil—such hard work! He works away, fatigued with hunger and thirst.
13-17 The woodworker draws up plans for his no-god, traces it on a block of wood. He shapes it with chisels and planes into human shape—a beautiful woman, a handsome man, ready to be placed in a chapel. He first cuts down a cedar, or maybe picks out a pine or oak, and lets it grow strong in the forest, nourished by the rain. Then it can serve a double purpose: Part he uses as firewood for keeping warm and baking bread; from the other part he makes a god that he worships—carves it into a god shape and prays before it. With half he makes a fire to warm himself and barbecue his supper. He eats his fill and sits back satisfied with his stomach full and his feet warmed by the fire: “Ah, this is the life.” And he still has half left for a god, made to his personal design—a handy, convenient no-god to worship whenever so inclined. Whenever the need strikes him he prays to it, “Save me. You’re my god.”
18-19 Pretty stupid, wouldn’t you say? Don’t they have eyes in their heads? Are their brains working at all? Doesn’t it occur to them to say, “Half of this tree I used for firewood: I baked bread, roasted meat, and enjoyed a good meal. And now I’ve used the rest to make a repulsive no-god. Here I am praying to a stick of wood!”
20 This lover of emptiness, of nothing, is so out of touch with reality, so far gone, that he can’t even look at what he’s doing, can’t even look at the no-god stick of wood in his hand and say, “This is crazy.”
* * *
21-22 “Remember these things, O Jacob.
Take it seriously, Israel, that you’re my servant.
I made you, shaped you: You’re my servant.
O Israel, I’ll never forget you.
I’ve wiped the slate of all your wrongdoings.
There’s nothing left of your sins.
Come back to me, come back.
I’ve redeemed you.”
23 High heavens, sing!
God has done it.
Deep earth, shout!
And you mountains, sing!
A forest choir of oaks and pines and cedars!
God has redeemed Jacob.
God’s glory is on display in Israel.
24 God, your Redeemer,
who shaped your life in your mother’s womb, says:
“I am God. I made all that is.
With no help from you I spread out the skies
and laid out the earth.”
25-28 He makes the magicians look ridiculous
and turns fortunetellers into jokes.
He makes the experts look trivial
and their latest knowledge look silly.
But he backs the word of his servant
and confirms the counsel of his messengers.
He says to Jerusalem, “Be inhabited,”
and to the cities of Judah, “Be rebuilt,”
and to the ruins, “I raise you up.”
He says to Ocean, “Dry up.
I’m drying up your rivers.”
He says to Cyrus, “My shepherd—
everything I want, you’ll do it.”
He says to Jerusalem, “Be built,”
and to the Temple, “Be established.”
The God Who Forms Light and Darkness
45 1-7 God’s Message to his anointed,
to Cyrus, whom he took by the hand
To give the task of taming the nations,
of terrifying their kings—
He gave him free rein,
no restrictions:
“I’ll go ahead of you,
clearing and paving the road.
I’ll break down bronze city gates,
smash padlocks, kick down barred entrances.
I’ll lead you to buried treasures,
secret caches of valuables—
Confirmations that it is, in fact, I, God,
the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.
It’s because of my dear servant Jacob,
Israel my chosen,
That I’ve singled you out, called you by name,
and given you this privileged work.
And you don’t even know me!
I am God, the only God there is.
Besides me there are no real gods.
I’m the one who armed you for this work,
though you don’t even know me,
So that everyone, from east to west, will know
that I have no god-rivals.
I am God, the only God there is.
I form light and create darkness,
I make harmonies and create discords.
I, God, do all these things.
8-10 “Open up, heavens, and rain.
Clouds, pour out buckets of my goodness!
Loosen up, earth, and bloom salvation;
sprout right living.
I, God, generate all this.
But doom to you who fight your Maker—
you’re a pot at odds with the potter!
Does clay talk back to the potter:
‘What are you doing? What clumsy fingers!’
Would a sperm say to a father,
‘Who gave you permission to use me to make a baby?’
Or a fetus to a mother,
‘Why have you cooped me up in this belly?’”
11-13 Thus God, The Holy of Israel, Israel’s Maker, says:
“Do you question who or what I’m making?
Are you telling me what I can or cannot do?
I made earth,
and I created man and woman to live on it.
I handcrafted the skies
and direct all the constellations in their turnings.
And now I’ve got Cyrus on the move.
I’ve rolled out the red carpet before him.
He will build my city.
He will bring home my exiles.
I didn’t hire him to do this. I told him.
I, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.”
* * *
14 God says:
“The workers of Egypt, the merchants of Ethiopia,
and those statuesque Sabeans
Will all come over to you—all yours.
Docile in chains, they’ll follow you,
Hands folded in reverence, praying before you:
‘Amazing! God is with you!
There is no other God—none.’”
Look at the Evidence
15-17 Clearly, you are a God who works behind the scenes,
God of Israel, Savior God.
Humiliated, all those others
will be ashamed to show their faces in public.
Out of work and at loose ends, the makers of no-god idols
won’t know what to do with themselves.
The people of Israel, though, are saved by you, God,
saved with an eternal salvation.
They won’t be ashamed,
they won’t be at loose ends, ever.
18-24 God, Creator of the heavens—
he is, remember, God.
Maker of earth—
he put it on its foundations, built it from scratch.
He didn’t go to all that trouble
to just leave it empty, nothing in it.
He made it to be lived in.
This God says:
“I am God,
the one and only.
I don’t just talk to myself
or mumble under my breath.
I never told Jacob,
‘Seek me in emptiness, in dark nothingness.’
I am God. I work out in the open,
saying what’s right, setting things right.
So gather around, come on in,
all you refugees and castoffs.
They don’t seem to know much, do they—
those who carry around their no-god blocks of wood,
praying for help to a dead stick?
So tell me what you think. Look at the evidence.
Put your heads together. Make your case.
Who told you, and a long time ago, what’s going on here?
Who made sense of things for you?
Wasn’t I the one? God?
It had to be me. I’m the only God there is—
The only God who does things right
and knows how to help.
So turn to me and be helped—saved!—
everyone, whoever and wherever you are.
I am God,
the only God there is, the one and only.
I promise in my own name:
Every word out of my mouth does what it says.
I never take back what I say.
Everyone is going to end up kneeling before me.
Everyone is going to end up saying of me,
‘Yes! Salvation and strength are in God!’”
24-25 All who have raged against him
will be brought before him,
disgraced by their unbelief.
And all who are connected with Israel
will have a robust, praising, good life in God!
This Is Serious Business, Rebels
46 1-2 The god Bel falls down, god Nebo slumps.
The no-god hunks of wood are loaded on mules
And have to be hauled off,
wearing out the poor mules—
Dead weight, burdens who can’t bear burdens,
hauled off to captivity.
3-4 “Listen to me, family of Jacob,
everyone that’s left of the family of Israel.
I’ve been carrying you on my back
from the day you were born,
And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old.
I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and gray.
I’ve done it and will keep on doing it,
carrying you on my back, saving you.
5-7 “So to whom will you compare me, the Incomparable?
Can you picture me without reducing me?
People with a lot of money
hire craftsmen to make them gods.
The artisan delivers the god,
and they kneel and worship it!
They carry it around in holy parades,
then take it home and put it on a shelf.
And there it sits, day in and day out,
a dependable god, always right where you put it.
Say anything you want to it, it never talks back.
Of course, it never does anything either!
8-11 “Think about this. Wrap your minds around it.
This is serious business, rebels. Take it to heart.
Remember your history,
your long and rich history.
I am God, the only God you’ve had or ever will have—
incomparable, irreplaceable—
From the very beginning
telling you what the ending will be,
All along letting you in
on what is going to happen,
Assuring you, ‘I’m in this for the long haul,
I’ll do exactly what I set out to do,’
Calling that eagle, Cyrus, out of the east,
from a far country the man I chose to help me.
I’ve said it, and I’ll most certainly do it.
I’ve planned it, so it’s as good as done.
12-13 “Now listen to me:
You’re a hardheaded bunch and hard to help.
I’m ready to help you right now.
Deliverance is not a long-range plan.
Salvation isn’t on hold.
I’m putting salvation to work in Zion now,
and glory in Israel.”
The Party’s Over
47 1-3 “Get off your high horse and sit in the dirt,
virgin daughter of Babylon.
No more throne for you—sit on the ground,
daughter of the Chaldeans.
Nobody will be calling you ‘charming’
and ‘alluring’ anymore. Get used to it.
Get a job, any old job:
Clean gutters, scrub toilets.
Pawn your gowns and scarves,
put on your working pants—the party’s over.
Your nude body will be on public display,
exposed to vulgar taunts.
It’s vengeance time, and I’m taking vengeance.
No one gets let off the hook.”
You’re Acting Like the Center of the Universe
4-13 Our Redeemer speaks,
named God-of-the-Angel-Armies, The Holy of Israel:
“Shut up and get out of the way,
daughter of Chaldeans.
You’ll no longer be called
‘First Lady of the Kingdoms.’
I was fed up with my people,
thoroughly disgusted with my progeny.
I turned them over to you,
but you had no compassion.
You put old men and women
to cruel, hard labor.
You said, ‘I’m the First Lady.
I’ll always be the pampered darling.’
You took nothing seriously, took nothing to heart,
never gave tomorrow a thought.
Well, start thinking, party girl.
You’re acting like the center of the universe,
Smugly saying to yourself, ‘I’m Number One. There’s nobody but me.
I’ll never be a widow, I’ll never lose my children.’
Those two things are going to hit you both at once,
suddenly, on the same day:
Spouse and children gone, a total loss,
despite your many enchantments and charms.
You were so confident and comfortable in your evil life,
saying, ‘No one sees me.’
You thought you knew so much, had everything figured out.
What delusion!
Smugly telling yourself, ‘I’m Number One. There’s nobody but me.’
Ruin descends—
you can’t charm it away.
Disaster strikes—
you can’t cast it off with spells.
Catastrophe, sudden and total—
and you’re totally at sea, totally bewildered!
But don’t give up. From your great repertoire
of enchantments there must be one you haven’t yet tried.
You’ve been at this a long time.
Surely something will work.
I know you’re exhausted trying out remedies,
but don’t give up.
Call in the astrologers and stargazers.
They’re good at this. Surely they can work up something!
14-15 “Fat chance. You’d be grasping at straws
that are already in the fire,
A fire that is even now raging.
Your ‘experts’ are in it and won’t get out.
It’s not a fire for cooking venison stew,
not a fire to warm you on a winter night!
That’s the fate of your friends in sorcery, your magician cronies
you’ve been colluding with all your life.
They reel, confused, bumping into one another.
None of them bother to help you.”
Tested in the Furnace of Affliction
48 1-11 “And now listen to this, family of Jacob,
you who are called by the name Israel:
Who got you started in the loins of Judah,
you who use God’s name to back up your promises
and pray to the God of Israel?
But do you mean it?
Do you live like it?
You claim to be citizens of the Holy City;
you act as though you lean on the God of Israel,
named God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
For a long time now, I’ve let you in on the way I work:
I told you what I was going to do beforehand,
then I did it and it was done, and that’s that.
I know you’re a bunch of hardheads,
obstinate and flint-faced,
So I got a running start and began telling you
what was going on before it even happened.
That is why you can’t say,
‘My god-idol did this.’
‘My favorite god-carving commanded this.’
You have all this evidence
confirmed by your own eyes and ears.
Shouldn’t you be talking about it?
And that was just the beginning.
I have a lot more to tell you,
things you never knew existed.
This isn’t a variation on the same old thing.
This is new, brand-new,
something you’d never guess or dream up.
When you hear this you won’t be able to say,
‘I knew that all along.’
You’ve never been good listeners to me.
You have a history of ignoring me,
A sorry track record of fickle attachments—
rebels from the womb.
But out of the sheer goodness of my heart,
because of who I am,
I keep a tight rein on my anger and hold my temper.
I don’t wash my hands of you.
Do you see what I’ve done?
I’ve refined you, but not without fire.
I’ve tested you like silver in the furnace of affliction.
Out of myself, simply because of who I am, I do what I do.
I have my reputation to keep up.
I’m not playing second fiddle to either gods or people.
12-13 “Listen, Jacob. Listen, Israel—
I’m the One who named you!
I’m the One.
I got things started and, yes, I’ll wrap them up.
Earth is my work, handmade.
And the skies—I made them, too, horizon to horizon.
When I speak, they’re on their feet, at attention.
14-16 “Come everybody, gather around, listen:
Who among the gods has delivered the news?
I, God, love this man Cyrus, and I’m using him
to do what I want with Babylon.
I, yes I, have spoken. I’ve called him.
I’ve brought him here. He’ll be successful.
Come close, listen carefully:
I’ve never kept secrets from you.
I’ve always been present with you.”
Your Progeny, Like Grains of Sand
16-19 And now, the Master, God, sends me and his Spirit
with this Message from God
your Redeemer, The Holy of Israel:
“I am God, your God,
who teaches you how to live right and well.
I show you what to do, where to go.
If you had listened all along to what I told you,
your life would have flowed full like a river,
blessings rolling in like waves from the sea.
Children and grandchildren are like sand,
your progeny like grains of sand.
There would be no end of them,
no danger of losing touch with me.”
20 Get out of Babylon! Run from the Babylonians!
Shout the news. Broadcast it.
Let the world know, the whole world.
Tell them, “God redeemed his dear servant Jacob!”
21 They weren’t thirsty when he led them through the deserts.
He made water pour out of the rock;
he split the rock and the water gushed.
22 “There is no peace,” says God, “for the wicked.”
Isaiah 44-48
New International Version
Isaiah 44-48
New International Version
Israel the Chosen
44 “But now listen, Jacob, my servant,(A)
Israel, whom I have chosen.(B)
2 This is what the Lord says—
he who made(C) you, who formed you in the womb,(D)
and who will help(E) you:
Do not be afraid,(F) Jacob, my servant,(G)
Jeshurun,[a](H) whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water(I) on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;(J)
I will pour out my Spirit(K) on your offspring,
and my blessing(L) on your descendants.(M)
4 They will spring up like grass(N) in a meadow,
like poplar trees(O) by flowing streams.(P)
5 Some will say, ‘I belong(Q) to the Lord’;
others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand,(R) ‘The Lord’s,’(S)
and will take the name Israel.
The Lord, Not Idols
6 “This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King(T) and Redeemer,(U) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;(V)
apart from me there is no God.(W)
7 Who then is like me?(X) Let him proclaim it.
Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
and what is yet to come—
yes, let them foretell(Y) what will come.
8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim(Z) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God(AA) besides me?
No, there is no other Rock;(AB) I know not one.”
9 All who make idols(AC) are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.(AD)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(AE)
they are ignorant, to their own shame.(AF)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(AG)
which can profit nothing?(AH)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(AI)
such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
they will be brought down to terror and shame.(AJ)
12 The blacksmith(AK) takes a tool
and works with it in the coals;
he shapes an idol with hammers,
he forges it with the might of his arm.(AL)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
he drinks no water and grows faint.(AM)
13 The carpenter(AN) measures with a line
and makes an outline with a marker;
he roughs it out with chisels
and marks it with compasses.
He shapes it in human form,(AO)
human form in all its glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.(AP)
14 He cut down cedars,
or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
or planted a pine,(AQ) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(AR) for burning;
some of it he takes and warms himself,
he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
But he also fashions a god and worships(AS) it;
he makes an idol and bows(AT) down to it.
16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire;
over it he prepares his meal,
he roasts his meat and eats his fill.
He also warms himself and says,
“Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.(AU)”
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
he bows down to it and worships.(AV)
He prays(AW) to it and says,
“Save(AX) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(AY) nothing;
their eyes(AZ) are plastered over so they cannot see,
and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
19 No one stops to think,
no one has the knowledge or understanding(BA) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(BB)
I even baked bread over its coals,
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(BC) thing from what is left?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(BD)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(BE) a deluded(BF) heart misleads him;
he cannot save himself, or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(BG)”
21 “Remember(BH) these things, Jacob,
for you, Israel, are my servant.(BI)
I have made you, you are my servant;(BJ)
Israel, I will not forget you.(BK)
22 I have swept away(BL) your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return(BM) to me,
for I have redeemed(BN) you.”
23 Sing for joy,(BO) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, you earth(BP) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,(BQ)
you forests and all your trees,(BR)
for the Lord has redeemed(BS) Jacob,
he displays his glory(BT) in Israel.
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,(BX)
who spreads out the earth(BY) by myself,
25 who foils(BZ) the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,(CA)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(CB)
and turns it into nonsense,(CC)
26 who carries out the words(CD) of his servants
and fulfills(CE) the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,(CF) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
and of their ruins,(CG) ‘I will restore them,’(CH)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
and I will dry up(CI) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(CJ) ‘He is my shepherd
and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(CK) “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple,(CL) “Let its foundations(CM) be laid.”’
45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(CN)
to Cyrus,(CO) whose right hand I take hold(CP) of
to subdue nations(CQ) before him
and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
so that gates will not be shut:
2 I will go before you(CR)
and will level(CS) the mountains[b];
I will break down gates(CT) of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.(CU)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,(CV)
riches stored in secret places,(CW)
so that you may know(CX) that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(CY)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,(CZ)
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge(DA) me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;(DB)
apart from me there is no God.(DC)
I will strengthen you,(DD)
though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting(DE)
people may know(DF) there is none besides me.(DG)
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness,(DH)
I bring prosperity and create disaster;(DI)
I, the Lord, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain(DJ) down my righteousness;(DK)
let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
let salvation(DL) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel(DM) with their Maker,(DN)
those who are nothing but potsherds(DO)
among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(DP)
‘What are you making?’(DQ)
Does your work say,
‘The potter has no hands’?(DR)
10 Woe to the one who says to a father,
‘What have you begotten?’
or to a mother,
‘What have you brought to birth?’
11 “This is what the Lord says—
the Holy One(DS) of Israel, and its Maker:(DT)
Concerning things to come,
do you question me about my children,
or give me orders about the work of my hands?(DU)
12 It is I who made the earth(DV)
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(DW)
I marshaled their starry hosts.(DX)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[c](DY) in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.(DZ)
He will rebuild my city(EA)
and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(EB)
says the Lord Almighty.”
14 This is what the Lord says:
“The products(EC) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,[d]
and those tall Sabeans(ED)—
they will come over to you(EE)
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,(EF)
coming over to you in chains.(EG)
They will bow down before you
and plead(EH) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,(EI) and there is no other;
there is no other god.(EJ)’”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding(EK) himself,
the God and Savior(EL) of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;(EM)
they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved(EN) by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;(EO)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,(EP)
to ages everlasting.
18 For this is what the Lord says—
he who created the heavens,
he is God;
he who fashioned and made the earth,(EQ)
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,(ER)
but formed it to be inhabited(ES)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other.(ET)
19 I have not spoken in secret,(EU)
from somewhere in a land of darkness;(EV)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,(EW)
‘Seek(EX) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
I declare what is right.(EY)
20 “Gather together(EZ) and come;
assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant(FA) are those who carry(FB) about idols of wood,
who pray to gods that cannot save.(FC)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold(FD) this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?(FE)
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no God apart from me,(FF)
a righteous God(FG) and a Savior;(FH)
there is none but me.
22 “Turn(FI) to me and be saved,(FJ)
all you ends of the earth;(FK)
for I am God, and there is no other.(FL)
23 By myself I have sworn,(FM)
my mouth has uttered in all integrity(FN)
a word that will not be revoked:(FO)
Before me every knee will bow;(FP)
by me every tongue will swear.(FQ)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
are deliverance(FR) and strength.(FS)’”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.(FT)
25 But all the descendants(FU) of Israel
will find deliverance(FV) in the Lord
and will make their boast in him.(FW)
Gods of Babylon
46 Bel(FX) bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols(FY) are borne by beasts of burden.[e]
The images that are carried(FZ) about are burdensome,
a burden for the weary.
2 They stoop and bow down together;
unable to rescue the burden,
they themselves go off into captivity.(GA)
3 “Listen(GB) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant(GC) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,(GD)
and have carried(GE) since you were born.(GF)
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs(GG)
I am he,(GH) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain(GI) you and I will rescue you.
5 “With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?(GJ)
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith(GK) to make it into a god,
and they bow down and worship it.(GL)
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry(GM) it;
they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
From that spot it cannot move.(GN)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;(GO)
it cannot save(GP) them from their troubles.
8 “Remember(GQ) this, keep it in mind,
take it to heart, you rebels.(GR)
9 Remember the former things,(GS) those of long ago;(GT)
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.(GU)
10 I make known the end from the beginning,(GV)
from ancient times,(GW) what is still to come.(GX)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,(GY)
and I will do all that I please.’
11 From the east I summon(GZ) a bird of prey;(HA)
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned,(HB) that I will do.(HC)
12 Listen(HD) to me, you stubborn-hearted,(HE)
you who are now far from my righteousness.(HF)
13 I am bringing my righteousness(HG) near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation(HH) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,(HI)
my splendor(HJ) to Israel.
The Fall of Babylon
47 “Go down, sit in the dust,(HK)
Virgin Daughter(HL) Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
queen city of the Babylonians.[f](HM)
No more will you be called
tender or delicate.(HN)
2 Take millstones(HO) and grind(HP) flour;
take off your veil.(HQ)
Lift up your skirts,(HR) bare your legs,
and wade through the streams.
3 Your nakedness(HS) will be exposed
and your shame(HT) uncovered.
I will take vengeance;(HU)
I will spare no one.(HV)”
5 “Sit in silence,(IA) go into darkness,(IB)
queen city of the Babylonians;(IC)
no more will you be called
queen(ID) of kingdoms.(IE)
6 I was angry(IF) with my people
and desecrated my inheritance;(IG)
I gave them into your hand,(IH)
and you showed them no mercy.(II)
Even on the aged
you laid a very heavy yoke.
7 You said, ‘I am forever(IJ)—
the eternal queen!’(IK)
But you did not consider these things
or reflect(IL) on what might happen.(IM)
8 “Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure,
lounging in your security(IN)
and saying to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.(IO)
I will never be a widow(IP)
or suffer the loss of children.’
9 Both of these will overtake you
in a moment,(IQ) on a single day:
loss of children(IR) and widowhood.(IS)
They will come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries(IT)
and all your potent spells.(IU)
10 You have trusted(IV) in your wickedness
and have said, ‘No one sees me.’(IW)
Your wisdom(IX) and knowledge mislead(IY) you
when you say to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
11 Disaster(IZ) will come upon you,
and you will not know how to conjure it away.
A calamity will fall upon you
that you cannot ward off with a ransom;
a catastrophe you cannot foresee
will suddenly(JA) come upon you.
12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells
and with your many sorceries,(JB)
which you have labored at since childhood.
Perhaps you will succeed,
perhaps you will cause terror.
13 All the counsel you have received has only worn you out!(JC)
Let your astrologers(JD) come forward,
those stargazers who make predictions month by month,
let them save(JE) you from what is coming upon you.
14 Surely they are like stubble;(JF)
the fire(JG) will burn them up.
They cannot even save themselves
from the power of the flame.(JH)
These are not coals for warmth;
this is not a fire to sit by.
15 That is all they are to you—
these you have dealt with
and labored(JI) with since childhood.
All of them go on in their error;
there is not one that can save(JJ) you.
Stubborn Israel
48 “Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel(JK)
and come from the line of Judah,(JL)
you who take oaths(JM) in the name of the Lord(JN)
and invoke(JO) the God of Israel—
but not in truth(JP) or righteousness—
2 you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city(JQ)
and claim to rely(JR) on the God of Israel—
the Lord Almighty is his name:(JS)
3 I foretold the former things(JT) long ago,
my mouth announced(JU) them and I made them known;
then suddenly(JV) I acted, and they came to pass.
4 For I knew how stubborn(JW) you were;
your neck muscles(JX) were iron,
your forehead(JY) was bronze.
5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;
before they happened I announced(JZ) them to you
so that you could not say,
‘My images brought them about;(KA)
my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’
6 You have heard these things; look at them all.
Will you not admit them?
“From now on I will tell you of new things,(KB)
of hidden things unknown to you.
7 They are created(KC) now, and not long ago;(KD)
you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
‘Yes, I knew(KE) of them.’
8 You have neither heard nor understood;(KF)
from of old your ears(KG) have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous(KH) you are;
you were called a rebel(KI) from birth.
9 For my own name’s sake(KJ) I delay my wrath;(KK)
for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
so as not to destroy you completely.(KL)
10 See, I have refined(KM) you, though not as silver;
I have tested(KN) you in the furnace(KO) of affliction.
11 For my own sake,(KP) for my own sake, I do this.
How can I let myself be defamed?(KQ)
I will not yield my glory to another.(KR)
Israel Freed
12 “Listen(KS) to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:(KT)
I am he;(KU)
I am the first and I am the last.(KV)
13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,(KW)
and my right hand spread out the heavens;(KX)
when I summon them,
they all stand up together.(KY)
14 “Come together,(KZ) all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold(LA) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally(LB)
will carry out his purpose(LC) against Babylon;(LD)
his arm will be against the Babylonians.[g]
15 I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called(LE) him.
I will bring him,
and he will succeed(LF) in his mission.
16 “Come near(LG) me and listen(LH) to this:
“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;(LI)
at the time it happens, I am there.”
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(LM) the Holy One(LN) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches(LO) you what is best for you,
who directs(LP) you in the way(LQ) you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention(LR) to my commands,
your peace(LS) would have been like a river,(LT)
your well-being(LU) like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants(LV) would have been like the sand,(LW)
your children like its numberless grains;(LX)
their name would never be blotted out(LY)
nor destroyed from before me.”
20 Leave Babylon,
flee(LZ) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy(MA)
and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;(MB)
say, “The Lord has redeemed(MC) his servant Jacob.”
21 They did not thirst(MD) when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow(ME) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
and water gushed out.(MF)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 44:2 Jeshurun means the upright one, that is, Israel.
- Isaiah 45:2 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
- Isaiah 45:13 Hebrew him
- Isaiah 45:14 That is, the upper Nile region
- Isaiah 46:1 Or are but beasts and cattle
- Isaiah 47:1 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 5
- Isaiah 48:14 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 20
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.