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Isaiah 40-55
New King James Version
Isaiah 40-55
New King James Version
God’s People Are Comforted(A)
40 “Comfort, yes, comfort My people!”
Says your God.
2 “Speak [a]comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her,
That her warfare is ended,
That her iniquity is pardoned;
(B)For she has received from the Lord’s hand
Double for all her sins.”
3 (C)The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
(D)“Prepare the way of the Lord;
(E)Make straight [b]in the desert
A highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted
And every mountain and hill brought low;
(F)The crooked places shall be made [c]straight
And the rough places smooth;
5 The (G)glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
And all flesh shall see it together;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
6 The voice said, “Cry out!”
And [d]he said, “What shall I cry?”
(H)“All flesh is grass,
And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades,
Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
But (I)the word of our God stands forever.”
9 O Zion,
You who bring good tidings,
Get up into the high mountain;
O Jerusalem,
You who bring good tidings,
Lift up your voice with strength,
Lift it up, be not afraid;
Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God shall come [e]with a strong hand,
And (J)His arm shall rule for Him;
Behold, (K)His reward is with Him,
And His [f]work before Him.
11 He will (L)feed His flock like a shepherd;
He will gather the lambs with His arm,
And carry them in His bosom,
And gently lead those who are with young.
12 (M)Who has measured the [g]waters in the hollow of His hand,
Measured heaven with a [h]span
And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure?
Weighed the mountains in scales
And the hills in a balance?
13 (N)Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord,
Or as His counselor has taught Him?
14 With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him,
And (O)taught Him in the path of justice?
Who taught Him knowledge,
And showed Him the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket,
And are counted as the small dust on the scales;
Look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.
16 And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn,
Nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
17 All nations before Him are as (P)nothing,
And (Q)they are counted by Him less than nothing and worthless.
18 To whom then will you (R)liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare to Him?
19 (S)The workman molds an image,
The goldsmith overspreads it with gold,
And the silversmith casts silver chains.
20 Whoever is too impoverished for such [i]a contribution
Chooses a tree that will not rot;
He seeks for himself a skillful workman
(T)To prepare a carved image that will not totter.
21 (U)Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who (V)stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
And spreads them out like a (W)tent to dwell in.
23 He [j]brings the (X)princes to nothing;
He makes the judges of the earth useless.
24 Scarcely shall they be planted,
Scarcely shall they be sown,
Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth,
When He will also blow on them,
And they will wither,
And the whirlwind will take them away like stubble.
25 “To(Y) whom then will you liken Me,
Or to whom shall I be equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high,
And see who has created these things,
Who brings out their host by number;
(Z)He calls them all by name,
By the greatness of His might
And the strength of His power;
Not one is missing.
27 (AA)Why do you say, O Jacob,
And speak, O Israel:
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
And my just claim is passed over by my God”?
28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the Lord,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
(AB)His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who (AC)wait on the Lord
(AD)Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
Israel Assured of God’s Help
41 “Keep (AE)silence before Me, O coastlands,
And let the people renew their strength!
Let them come near, then let them speak;
Let us (AF)come near together for judgment.
2 “Who raised up one (AG)from the east?
Who in righteousness called him to His feet?
Who (AH)gave the nations before him,
And made him rule over kings?
Who gave them as the dust to his sword,
As driven stubble to his bow?
3 Who pursued them, and passed [k]safely
By the way that he had not gone with his feet?
4 (AI)Who has performed and done it,
Calling the generations from the beginning?
‘I, the Lord, am (AJ)the first;
And with the last I am (AK)He.’ ”
5 The coastlands saw it and feared,
The ends of the earth were afraid;
They drew near and came.
6 (AL)Everyone helped his neighbor,
And said to his brother,
[l]“Be of good courage!”
7 (AM)So the craftsman encouraged the (AN)goldsmith;[m]
He who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil,
Saying, [n]“It is ready for the soldering”;
Then he fastened it with pegs,
(AO)That it might not totter.
8 “But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have (AP)chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My (AQ)friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 (AR)Fear not, (AS)for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you
Shall be (AT)ashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
[o]Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
14 “Fear not, you (AU)worm Jacob,
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says the Lord
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold, (AV)I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You shall (AW)winnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in the Lord,
And (AX)glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy seek water, but there is none,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, the Lord, will hear them;
I, the God of Israel, will not (AY)forsake them.
18 I will open (AZ)rivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the (BA)wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the (BB)desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together,
20 (BC)That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of the Lord has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
The Futility of Idols
21 “Present your case,” says the Lord.
“Bring forth your strong reasons,” says the (BD)King of Jacob.
22 “Let(BE) them bring forth and show us what will happen;
Let them show the (BF)former things, what they were,
That we may [p]consider them,
And know the latter end of them;
Or declare to us things to come.
23 (BG)Show the things that are to come hereafter,
That we may know that you are gods;
Yes, (BH)do good or do evil,
That we may be dismayed and see it together.
24 Indeed (BI)you are nothing,
And your work is nothing;
He who chooses you is an abomination.
25 “I have raised up one from the north,
And he shall come;
From the [q]rising of the sun (BJ)he shall call on My name;
(BK)And he shall come against princes as though mortar,
As the potter treads clay.
26 (BL)Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know?
And former times, that we may say, ‘He is righteous’?
Surely there is no one who shows,
Surely there is no one who declares,
Surely there is no one who hears your words.
27 (BM)The first time (BN)I said to Zion,
‘Look, there they are!’
And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.
28 (BO)For I looked, and there was no man;
I looked among them, but there was no counselor,
Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 (BP)Indeed they are all [r]worthless;
Their works are nothing;
Their molded images are wind and confusion.
The Servant of the Lord
42 “Behold! (BQ)My Servant whom I uphold,
My [s]Elect One in whom My soul (BR)delights!
(BS)I have put My Spirit upon Him;
He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.
2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice,
Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed He will not break,
And [t]smoking flax He will not [u]quench;
He will bring forth justice for truth.
4 He will not fail nor be discouraged,
Till He has established justice in the earth;
(BT)And the coastlands shall wait for His law.”
5 Thus says God the Lord,
(BU)Who created the heavens and stretched them out,
Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,
(BV)Who gives breath to the people on it,
And spirit to those who walk on it:
6 “I,(BW) the Lord, have called You in righteousness,
And will hold Your hand;
I will keep You (BX)and give You as a covenant to the people,
As (BY)a light to the Gentiles,
7 (BZ)To open blind eyes,
To (CA)bring out prisoners from the prison,
Those who sit in (CB)darkness from the prison house.
8 I am the Lord, that is My name;
And My (CC)glory I will not give to another,
Nor My praise to carved images.
9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,
And new things I declare;
Before they spring forth I tell you of them.”
Praise to the Lord
10 (CD)Sing to the Lord a new song,
And His praise from the ends of the earth,
(CE)You who go down to the sea, and [v]all that is in it,
You coastlands and you inhabitants of them!
11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice,
The villages that Kedar inhabits.
Let the inhabitants of Sela sing,
Let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord,
And declare His praise in the coastlands.
13 The Lord shall go forth like a mighty man;
He shall stir up His zeal like a man of war.
He shall cry out, (CF)yes, shout aloud;
He shall prevail against His enemies.
Promise of the Lord’s Help
14 “I have held My peace a long time,
I have been still and restrained Myself.
Now I will cry like a woman in [w]labor,
I will pant and gasp at once.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills,
And dry up all their vegetation;
I will make the rivers coastlands,
And I will dry up the pools.
16 I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;
I will lead them in paths they have not known.
I will make darkness light before them,
And crooked places straight.
These things I will do for them,
And not forsake them.
17 They shall be (CG)turned back,
They shall be greatly ashamed,
Who trust in carved images,
Who say to the molded images,
‘You are our gods.’
18 “Hear, you deaf;
And look, you blind, that you may see.
19 (CH)Who is blind but My servant,
Or deaf as My messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as he who is perfect,
And blind as the Lord’s servant?
20 Seeing many things, (CI)but you do not observe;
Opening the ears, but he does not hear.”
Israel’s Obstinate Disobedience
21 The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness’ sake;
He will exalt the law and make it honorable.
22 But this is a people robbed and plundered;
All of them are [x]snared in holes,
And they are hidden in prison houses;
They are for prey, and no one delivers;
For plunder, and no one says, “Restore!”
23 Who among you will give ear to this?
Who will listen and hear for the time to come?
24 Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers?
Was it not the Lord,
He against whom we have sinned?
(CJ)For they would not walk in His ways,
Nor were they obedient to His law.
25 Therefore He has poured on him the fury of His anger
And the strength of battle;
(CK)It has set him on fire all around,
(CL)Yet he did not know;
And it burned him,
Yet he did not take it to (CM)heart.
The Redeemer of Israel
43 But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,
And He who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, (CN)for I have redeemed you;
(CO)I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.
2 (CP)When you pass through the waters, (CQ)I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you (CR)walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
(CS)I gave Egypt for your ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
4 Since you were precious in My sight,
You have been honored,
And I have (CT)loved you;
Therefore I will give men for you,
And people for your life.
5 (CU)Fear not, for I am with you;
I will bring your descendants from the east,
And (CV)gather you from the west;
6 I will say to the (CW)north, ‘Give them up!’
And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’
Bring My sons from afar,
And My daughters from the ends of the earth—
7 Everyone who is (CX)called by My name,
Whom (CY)I have created for My glory;
I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”
8 (CZ)Bring out the blind people who have eyes,
And the (DA)deaf who have ears.
9 Let all the nations be gathered together,
And let the people be assembled.
(DB)Who among them can declare this,
And show us former things?
Let them bring out their witnesses, that they may be justified;
Or let them hear and say, “It is truth.”
10 “You(DC) are My witnesses,” says the Lord,
(DD)“And My servant whom I have chosen,
That you may know and (DE)believe Me,
And understand that I am He.
Before Me there was no God formed,
Nor shall there be after Me.
11 I, even I, (DF)am the Lord,
And besides Me there is no savior.
12 I have declared and saved,
I have proclaimed,
And there was no (DG)foreign god among you;
(DH)Therefore you are My witnesses,”
Says the Lord, “that I am God.
13 (DI)Indeed before the day was, I am He;
And there is no one who can deliver out of My hand;
I work, and who will (DJ)reverse it?”
14 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,
The Holy One of Israel:
“For your sake I will send to Babylon,
And bring them all down as fugitives—
The Chaldeans, who rejoice in their ships.
15 I am the Lord, your Holy One,
The Creator of Israel, your (DK)King.”
16 Thus says the Lord, who (DL)makes a way in the sea
And a (DM)path through the mighty waters,
17 Who (DN)brings forth the chariot and horse,
The army and the power
(They shall lie down together, they shall not rise;
They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):
18 “Do(DO) not remember the former things,
Nor consider the things of old.
19 Behold, I will do a (DP)new thing,
Now it shall spring forth;
Shall you not know it?
(DQ)I will even make a road in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert.
20 The beast of the field will honor Me,
The jackals and the ostriches,
Because (DR)I give waters in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert,
To give drink to My people, My chosen.
21 (DS)This people I have formed for Myself;
They shall declare My (DT)praise.
Pleading with Unfaithful Israel
22 “But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob;
And you (DU)have been weary of Me, O Israel.
23 (DV)You have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings,
Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices.
I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings,
Nor wearied you with incense.
24 You have bought Me no sweet cane with money,
Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;
But you have burdened Me with your sins,
You have (DW)wearied Me with your iniquities.
25 “I, even I, am He who (DX)blots out your transgressions (DY)for My own sake;
(DZ)And I will not remember your sins.
26 Put Me in remembrance;
Let us contend together;
State your case, that you may be [y]acquitted.
27 Your first father sinned,
And your [z]mediators have transgressed against Me.
28 Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary;
(EA)I will give Jacob to the curse,
And Israel to reproaches.
God’s Blessing on Israel
44 “Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant,
And Israel whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says the Lord who made you
And formed you from the womb, who will help you:
‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant;
And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,
And floods on the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,
And My blessing on your offspring;
4 They will spring up among the grass
Like willows by the watercourses.’
5 One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’;
Another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
Another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’
And name himself by the name of Israel.
There Is No Other God
6 “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel,
And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
(EB)‘I am the First and I am the Last;
Besides Me there is no God.
7 And (EC)who can proclaim as I do?
Then let him declare it and set it in order for Me,
Since I appointed the ancient people.
And the things that are coming and shall come,
Let them show these to them.
8 Do not fear, nor be afraid;
(ED)Have I not told you from that time, and declared it?
(EE)You are My witnesses.
Is there a God besides Me?
Indeed (EF)there is no other Rock;
I know not one.’ ”
Idolatry Is Foolishness
9 (EG)Those who make an image, all of them are useless,
And their precious things shall not profit;
They are their own witnesses;
(EH)They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.
10 Who would form a god or mold an image
(EI)That profits him nothing?
11 Surely all his companions would be (EJ)ashamed;
And the workmen, they are mere men.
Let them all be gathered together,
Let them stand up;
Yet they shall fear,
They shall be ashamed together.
12 (EK)The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals,
Fashions it with hammers,
And works it with the strength of his arms.
Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails;
He drinks no water and is faint.
13 The craftsman stretches out his rule,
He marks one out with chalk;
He fashions it with a plane,
He marks it out with the compass,
And makes it like the figure of a man,
According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.
14 He cuts down cedars for himself,
And takes the cypress and the oak;
He [aa]secures it for himself among the trees of the forest.
He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it.
15 Then it shall be for a man to burn,
For he will take some of it and warm himself;
Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread;
Indeed he makes a god and worships it;
He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.
16 He burns half of it in the fire;
With this half he eats meat;
He roasts a roast, and is satisfied.
He even warms himself and says,
“Ah! I am warm,
I have seen the fire.”
17 And the rest of it he makes into a god,
His carved image.
He falls down before it and worships it,
Prays to it and says,
“Deliver me, for you are my god!”
18 (EL)They do not know nor understand;
For (EM)He has [ab]shut their eyes, so that they cannot see,
And their hearts, so that they cannot (EN)understand.
19 And no one (EO)considers in his heart,
Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say,
“I have burned half of it in the fire,
Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals;
I have roasted meat and eaten it;
And shall I make the rest of it an abomination?
Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”
20 He feeds on ashes;
(EP)A deceived heart has turned him aside;
And he cannot deliver his soul,
Nor say, “Is there not a (EQ)lie in my right hand?”
Israel Is Not Forgotten
21 “Remember these, O Jacob,
And Israel, for you are My servant;
I have formed you, you are My servant;
O Israel, you will not be (ER)forgotten by Me!
22 (ES)I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions,
And like a cloud, your sins.
Return to Me, for (ET)I have redeemed you.”
23 (EU)Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it!
Shout, you lower parts of the earth;
Break forth into singing, you mountains,
O forest, and every tree in it!
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
And (EV)glorified Himself in Israel.
Judah Will Be Restored
24 Thus says the Lord, (EW)your Redeemer,
And (EX)He who formed you from the womb:
“I am the Lord, who makes all things,
(EY)Who stretches out the heavens [ac]all alone,
Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;
25 Who (EZ)frustrates the signs (FA)of the babblers,
And drives diviners mad;
Who turns wise men backward,
(FB)And makes their knowledge foolishness;
26 (FC)Who confirms the word of His servant,
And performs the counsel of His messengers;
Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’
To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’
And I will raise up her waste places;
27 (FD)Who says to the deep, ‘Be dry!
And I will dry up your rivers’;
28 Who says of (FE)Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd,
And he shall perform all My pleasure,
Saying to Jerusalem, (FF)“You shall be built,”
And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’
Cyrus, God’s Instrument
45 “Thus says the Lord to His anointed,
To (FG)Cyrus, whose (FH)right hand I have [ad]held—
(FI)To subdue nations before him
And (FJ)loose the armor of kings,
To open before him the double doors,
So that the gates will not be shut:
2 ‘I will go before you
(FK)And[ae] make the [af]crooked places straight;
(FL)I will break in pieces the gates of bronze
And cut the bars of iron.
3 I will give you the treasures of darkness
And hidden riches of secret places,
(FM)That you may know that I, the Lord,
Who (FN)call you by your name,
Am the God of Israel.
4 For (FO)Jacob My servant’s sake,
And Israel My elect,
I have even called you by your name;
I have named you, though you have not known Me.
5 I (FP)am the Lord, and (FQ)there is no other;
There is no God besides Me.
(FR)I will gird you, though you have not known Me,
6 (FS)That they may (FT)know from the rising of the sun to its setting
That there is none besides Me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other;
7 I form the light and create darkness,
I make peace and (FU)create calamity;
I, the Lord, do all these things.’
8 “Rain(FV) down, you heavens, from above,
And let the skies pour down righteousness;
Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation,
And let righteousness spring up together.
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to him who strives with (FW)his Maker!
Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth!
(FX)Shall the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’
Or shall your handiwork say, ‘He has no hands’?
10 Woe to him who says to his father, ‘What are you begetting?’
Or to the woman, ‘What have you brought forth?’ ”
11 Thus says the Lord,
The Holy One of Israel, and his Maker:
(FY)“Ask Me of things to come concerning (FZ)My sons;
And concerning (GA)the work of My hands, you command Me.
12 (GB)I have made the earth,
And (GC)created man on it.
I—My hands—stretched out the heavens,
And (GD)all their host I have commanded.
13 (GE)I have raised him up in righteousness,
And I will [ag]direct all his ways;
He shall (GF)build My city
And let My exiles go free,
(GG)Not for price nor reward,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
The Lord, the Only Savior
14 Thus says the Lord:
(GH)“The labor of Egypt and merchandise of Cush
And of the Sabeans, men of stature,
Shall come over to you, and they shall be yours;
They shall walk behind you,
They shall come over (GI)in chains;
And they shall bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying, (GJ)‘Surely God is in you,
And there is no other;
(GK)There is no other God.’ ”
15 Truly You are God, (GL)who hide Yourself,
O God of Israel, the Savior!
16 They shall be (GM)ashamed
And also disgraced, all of them;
They shall go in confusion together,
Who are makers of idols.
17 (GN)But Israel shall be saved by the Lord
With an (GO)everlasting salvation;
You shall not be ashamed or (GP)disgraced
Forever and ever.
18 For thus says the Lord,
(GQ)Who created the heavens,
Who is God,
Who formed the earth and made it,
Who has established it,
Who did not create it [ah]in vain,
Who formed it to be (GR)inhabited:
(GS)“I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19 I have not spoken in (GT)secret,
In a dark place of the earth;
I did not say to the seed of Jacob,
‘Seek Me [ai]in vain’;
(GU)I, the Lord, speak righteousness,
I declare things that are right.
20 “Assemble yourselves and come;
Draw near together,
You who have escaped from the nations.
(GV)They have no knowledge,
Who carry the wood of their carved image,
And pray to a god that cannot save.
21 Tell and bring forth your case;
Yes, let them take counsel together.
(GW)Who has declared this from ancient time?
Who has told it from that time?
Have not I, the Lord?
(GX)And there is no other God besides Me,
A just God and a Savior;
There is none besides Me.
22 “Look to Me, and be saved,
(GY)All you ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 (GZ)I have sworn by Myself;
The word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness,
And shall not return,
That to Me every (HA)knee shall bow,
(HB)Every tongue shall take an oath.
24 He shall say,
[aj]‘Surely in the Lord I have (HC)righteousness and strength.
To Him men shall come,
And (HD)all shall be ashamed
Who are incensed against Him.
25 (HE)In the Lord all the descendants of Israel
Shall be justified, and (HF)shall glory.’ ”
Dead Idols and the Living God
46 Bel (HG)bows down, Nebo stoops;
Their idols were on the beasts and on the cattle.
Your carriages were heavily loaded,
(HH)A burden to the weary beast.
2 They stoop, they bow down together;
They could not deliver the burden,
(HI)But have themselves gone into captivity.
3 “Listen to Me, O house of Jacob,
And all the remnant of the house of Israel,
(HJ)Who have been upheld by Me from [ak]birth,
Who have been carried from the womb:
4 Even to your old age, (HK)I am He,
And even to gray hairs (HL)I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
5 “To(HM) whom will you liken Me, and make Me equal
And compare Me, that we should be alike?
6 (HN)They lavish gold out of the bag,
And weigh silver on the scales;
They hire a (HO)goldsmith, and he makes it a god;
They prostrate themselves, yes, they worship.
7 (HP)They bear it on the shoulder, they carry it
And set it in its place, and it stands;
From its place it shall not move.
Though (HQ)one cries out to it, yet it cannot answer
Nor save him out of his trouble.
8 “Remember this, and [al]show yourselves men;
(HR)Recall to mind, O you transgressors.
9 (HS)Remember the former things of old,
For I am God, and (HT)there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like Me,
10 (HU)Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, (HV)‘My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure,’
11 Calling a bird of prey (HW)from the east,
The man (HX)who executes My counsel, from a far country.
Indeed (HY)I have spoken it;
I will also bring it to pass.
I have purposed it;
I will also do it.
12 “Listen to Me, you (HZ)stubborn-hearted,
(IA)Who are far from righteousness:
13 (IB)I bring My righteousness near, it shall not be far off;
My salvation (IC)shall not [am]linger.
And I will place (ID)salvation in Zion,
For Israel My glory.
The Humiliation of Babylon
47 “Come (IE)down and (IF)sit in the dust,
O virgin daughter of (IG)Babylon;
Sit on the ground without a throne,
O daughter of the Chaldeans!
For you shall no more be called
Tender and [an]delicate.
2 (IH)Take the millstones and grind meal.
Remove your veil,
Take off the skirt,
Uncover the thigh,
Pass through the rivers.
3 (II)Your nakedness shall be uncovered,
Yes, your shame will be seen;
(IJ)I will take vengeance,
And I will not arbitrate with a man.”
4 As for (IK)our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts is His name,
The Holy One of Israel.
5 “Sit in (IL)silence, and go into darkness,
O daughter of the Chaldeans;
(IM)For you shall no longer be called
The Lady of Kingdoms.
6 (IN)I was angry with My people;
(IO)I have profaned My inheritance,
And given them into your hand.
You showed them no mercy;
(IP)On the elderly you laid your yoke very heavily.
7 And you said, ‘I shall be (IQ)a lady forever,’
So that you did not (IR)take these things to heart,
(IS)Nor remember the latter end of them.
8 “Therefore hear this now, you who are given to pleasures,
Who dwell securely,
Who say in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me;
I shall not sit as a widow,
Nor shall I know the loss of children’;
9 But these two things shall come to you
(IT)In a moment, in one day:
The loss of children, and widowhood.
They shall come upon you in their fullness
Because of the multitude of your sorceries,
For the great abundance of your enchantments.
10 “For you have trusted in your wickedness;
You have said, ‘No one (IU)sees me’;
Your wisdom and your knowledge have [ao]warped you;
And you have said in your heart,
‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’
11 Therefore evil shall come upon you;
You shall not know from where it arises.
And trouble shall fall upon you;
You will not be able [ap]to put it off.
And (IV)desolation shall come upon you (IW)suddenly,
Which you shall not know.
12 “Stand now with your enchantments
And the multitude of your sorceries,
In which you have labored from your youth—
Perhaps you will be able to profit,
Perhaps you will prevail.
13 (IX)You are wearied in the multitude of your counsels;
Let now (IY)the[aq] astrologers, the stargazers,
And [ar]the monthly prognosticators
Stand up and save you
From what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, they shall be (IZ)as stubble,
The fire shall (JA)burn them;
They shall not deliver themselves
From the power of the flame;
It shall not be a coal to be warmed by,
Nor a fire to sit before!
15 Thus shall they be to you
With whom you have labored,
(JB)Your merchants from your youth;
They shall wander each one to his [as]quarter.
No one shall save you.
Israel Refined for God’s Glory
48 “Hear this, O house of Jacob,
Who are called by the name of Israel,
And have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah;
Who swear by the name of the Lord,
And make mention of the God of Israel,
But (JC)not in truth or in righteousness;
2 For they call themselves (JD)after the holy city,
And (JE)lean on the God of Israel;
The Lord of hosts is His name:
3 “I have (JF)declared the former things from the beginning;
They went forth from My mouth, and I caused them to hear it.
Suddenly I did them, (JG)and they came to pass.
4 Because I knew that you were [at]obstinate,
And (JH)your neck was an iron sinew,
And your brow bronze,
5 Even from the beginning I have declared it to you;
Before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you,
Lest you should say, ‘My idol has done them,
And my carved image and my molded image
Have commanded them.’
6 “You have heard;
See all this.
And will you not declare it?
I have made you hear new things from this time,
Even hidden things, and you did not know them.
7 They are created now and not from the beginning;
And before this day you have not heard them,
Lest you should say, ‘Of course I knew them.’
8 Surely you did not hear,
Surely you did not know;
Surely from long ago your ear was not opened.
For I knew that you would deal very treacherously,
And were called (JI)a transgressor from the womb.
9 “For(JJ) My name’s sake (JK)I will [au]defer My anger,
And for My praise I will restrain it from you,
So that I do not cut you off.
10 Behold, (JL)I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tested you in the (JM)furnace of affliction.
11 For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it;
For (JN)how should My name be profaned?
And (JO)I will not give My glory to another.
God’s Ancient Plan to Redeem Israel
12 “Listen to Me, O Jacob,
And Israel, My called:
I am He, (JP)I am the (JQ)First,
I am also the Last.
13 Indeed (JR)My hand has laid the foundation of the earth,
And My right hand has stretched out the heavens;
When (JS)I call to them,
They stand up together.
14 “All of you, assemble yourselves, and hear!
Who among them has declared these things?
(JT)The Lord loves him;
(JU)He shall do His pleasure on Babylon,
And His arm shall be against the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken;
Yes, (JV)I have called him,
I have brought him, and his way will prosper.
16 “Come near to Me, hear this:
(JW)I have not spoken in secret from the beginning;
From the time that it was, I was there.
And now (JX)the Lord God and His Spirit
[av]Have sent Me.”
17 Thus says (JY)the Lord, your Redeemer,
The Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
Who teaches you to profit,
(JZ)Who leads you by the way you should go.
18 (KA)Oh, that you had heeded My commandments!
(KB)Then your peace would have been like a river,
And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.
19 (KC)Your descendants also would have been like the sand,
And the offspring of your body like the grains of sand;
His name would not have been cut off
Nor destroyed from before Me.”
20 (KD)Go forth from Babylon!
Flee from the Chaldeans!
With a voice of singing,
Declare, proclaim this,
Utter it to the end of the earth;
Say, “The Lord has (KE)redeemed
His servant Jacob!”
21 And they (KF)did not thirst
When He led them through the deserts;
He (KG)caused the waters to flow from the rock for them;
He also split the rock, and the waters gushed out.
22 “There(KH) is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
The Servant, the Light to the Gentiles
49 “Listen, (KI)O coastlands, to Me,
And take heed, you peoples from afar!
(KJ)The Lord has called Me from the womb;
From the [aw]matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.
2 And He has made (KK)My mouth like a sharp sword;
(KL)In the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me,
And made Me (KM)a polished shaft;
In His quiver He has hidden Me.”
3 “And He said to me,
(KN)‘You are My servant, O Israel,
(KO)In whom I will be glorified.’
4 (KP)Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain,
I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain;
Yet surely my [ax]just reward is with the Lord,
And my [ay]work with my God.’ ”
5 “And now the Lord says,
Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant,
To bring Jacob back to Him,
So that Israel (KQ)is [az]gathered to Him
(For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord,
And My God shall be My strength),
6 Indeed He says,
‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant
To raise up the tribes of Jacob,
And to restore the preserved ones of Israel;
I will also give You as a (KR)light to the Gentiles,
That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”
7 Thus says the Lord,
The Redeemer of Israel, [ba]their Holy One,
(KS)To Him [bb]whom man despises,
To Him whom the nation abhors,
To the Servant of rulers:
(KT)“Kings shall see and arise,
Princes also shall worship,
Because of the Lord who is faithful,
The Holy One of Israel;
And He has chosen You.”
8 Thus says the Lord:
“In an (KU)acceptable[bc] time I have heard You,
And in the day of salvation I have helped You;
I will [bd]preserve You (KV)and give You
As a covenant to the people,
To restore the earth,
To cause them to inherit the desolate [be]heritages;
9 That You may say (KW)to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’
To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
“They shall feed along the roads,
And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
10 They shall neither (KX)hunger nor thirst,
(KY)Neither heat nor sun shall strike them;
For He who has mercy on them (KZ)will lead them,
Even by the springs of water He will guide them.
11 (LA)I will make each of My mountains a road,
And My highways shall be elevated.
12 Surely (LB)these shall come from afar;
Look! Those from the north and the west,
And these from the land of Sinim.”
13 (LC)Sing, O heavens!
Be joyful, O earth!
And break out in singing, O mountains!
For the Lord has comforted His people,
And will have mercy on His afflicted.
God Will Remember Zion
14 (LD)But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,
And my Lord has forgotten me.”
15 “Can(LE) a woman forget her nursing child,
[bf]And not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget,
(LF)Yet I will not forget you.
16 See, (LG)I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your walls are continually before Me.
17 Your [bg]sons shall make haste;
Your destroyers and those who laid you waste
Shall go away from you.
18 (LH)Lift up your eyes, look around and see;
All these gather together and come to you.
As I live,” says the Lord,
“You shall surely clothe yourselves with them all (LI)as an ornament,
And bind them on you as a bride does.
19 “For your waste and desolate places,
And the land of your destruction,
(LJ)Will even now be too small for the inhabitants;
And those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20 (LK)The children you will have,
(LL)After you have lost the others,
Will say again in your ears,
‘The place is too small for me;
Give me a place where I may dwell.’
21 Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who has begotten these for me,
Since I have lost my children and am desolate,
A captive, and wandering to and fro?
And who has brought these up?
There I was, left alone;
But these, where were they?’ ”
22 (LM)Thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, I will lift My hand in an oath to the nations,
And set up My [bh]standard for the peoples;
They shall bring your sons in their [bi]arms,
And your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders;
23 (LN)Kings shall be your foster fathers,
And their queens your nursing mothers;
They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth,
And (LO)lick up the dust of your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord,
(LP)For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”
25 But thus says the Lord:
“Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,
And the prey of the terrible be delivered;
For I will contend with him who contends with you,
And I will save your children.
26 I will (LR)feed those who oppress you with their own flesh,
And they shall be drunk with their own (LS)blood as with sweet wine.
All flesh (LT)shall know
That I, the Lord, am your Savior,
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
The Servant, Israel’s Hope
50 Thus says the Lord:
“Where is (LU)the certificate of your mother’s divorce,
Whom I have put away?
Or which of My (LV)creditors is it to whom I have sold you?
For your iniquities (LW)you have sold yourselves,
And for your transgressions your mother has been put away.
2 Why, when I came, was there no man?
Why, when I called, was there none to answer?
Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem?
Or have I no power to deliver?
Indeed with My (LX)rebuke I dry up the sea,
I make the rivers a wilderness;
Their fish stink because there is no water,
And die of thirst.
3 (LY)I clothe the heavens with blackness,
(LZ)And I make sackcloth their covering.”
4 “The(MA) Lord God has given Me
The tongue of the learned,
That I should know how to speak
A word in season to him who is (MB)weary.
He awakens Me morning by morning,
He awakens My ear
To hear as the learned.
5 The Lord God (MC)has opened My ear;
And I was not (MD)rebellious,
Nor did I turn away.
6 (ME)I gave My back to those who struck Me,
And (MF)My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard;
I did not hide My face from shame and (MG)spitting.
7 “For the Lord God will help Me;
Therefore I will not be disgraced;
Therefore (MH)I have set My face like a flint,
And I know that I will not be ashamed.
8 (MI)He is near who justifies Me;
Who will contend with Me?
Let us stand together.
Who is [bk]My adversary?
Let him come near Me.
9 Surely the Lord God will help Me;
Who is he who will condemn Me?
(MJ)Indeed they will all grow old like a garment;
(MK)The moth will eat them up.
10 “Who among you fears the Lord?
Who obeys the voice of His Servant?
Who (ML)walks in darkness
And has no light?
(MM)Let him trust in the name of the Lord
And rely upon his God.
11 Look, all you who kindle a fire,
Who encircle yourselves with sparks:
Walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks you have kindled—
(MN)This you shall have from My hand:
You shall lie down (MO)in torment.
The Lord Comforts Zion(MP)
51 “Listen to Me, (MQ)you who [bl]follow after righteousness,
You who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were hewn,
And to the hole of the pit from which you were dug.
2 (MR)Look to Abraham your father,
And to Sarah who bore you;
(MS)For I called him alone,
And (MT)blessed him and increased him.”
3 For the Lord will (MU)comfort Zion,
He will comfort all her waste places;
He will make her wilderness like Eden,
And her desert (MV)like the garden of the Lord;
Joy and gladness will be found in it,
Thanksgiving and the voice of melody.
4 “Listen to Me, My people;
And give ear to Me, O My nation:
(MW)For law will proceed from Me,
And I will make My justice rest
(MX)As a light of the peoples.
5 (MY)My righteousness is near,
My salvation has gone forth,
(MZ)And My arms will judge the peoples;
(NA)The coastlands will wait upon Me,
And (NB)on My arm they will trust.
6 (NC)Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
And look on the earth beneath.
For (ND)the heavens will vanish away like smoke,
(NE)The earth will grow old like a garment,
And those who dwell in it will die in like manner;
But My salvation will be (NF)forever,
And My righteousness will not be [bm]abolished.
7 “Listen to Me, you who know righteousness,
You people (NG)in whose heart is My law:
(NH)Do not fear the reproach of men,
Nor be afraid of their insults.
8 For (NI)the moth will eat them up like a garment,
And the worm will eat them like wool;
But My righteousness will be forever,
And My salvation from generation to generation.”
9 (NJ)Awake, awake, (NK)put on strength,
O arm of the Lord!
Awake (NL)as in the ancient days,
In the generations of old.
(NM)Are You not the arm that cut (NN)Rahab apart,
And wounded the (NO)serpent?
10 Are You not the One who (NP)dried up the sea,
The waters of the great deep;
That made the depths of the sea a road
For the redeemed to cross over?
11 So (NQ)the ransomed of the Lord shall return,
And come to Zion with singing,
With everlasting joy on their heads.
They shall obtain joy and gladness;
Sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
12 “I, even I, am He (NR)who comforts you.
Who are you that you should be afraid
(NS)Of a man who will die,
And of the son of a man who will be made (NT)like grass?
13 And (NU)you forget the Lord your Maker,
(NV)Who stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth;
You have feared continually every day
Because of the fury of the oppressor,
When he has prepared to destroy.
(NW)And where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 The captive exile hastens, that he may be loosed,
(NX)That he should not die in the pit,
And that his bread should not fail.
15 But I am the Lord your God,
Who (NY)divided the sea whose waves roared—
The Lord of hosts is His name.
16 And (NZ)I have put My words in your mouth;
(OA)I have covered you with the shadow of My hand,
(OB)That I may [bn]plant the heavens,
Lay the foundations of the earth,
And say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’ ”
God’s Fury Removed
17 (OC)Awake, awake!
Stand up, O Jerusalem,
You who (OD)have drunk at the hand of the Lord
The cup of His fury;
You have drunk the dregs of the cup of trembling,
And drained it out.
18 There is no one to guide her
Among all the sons she has brought forth;
Nor is there any who takes her by the hand
Among all the sons she has brought up.
19 (OE)These two things have come to you;
Who will be sorry for you?—
Desolation and destruction, famine and sword—
(OF)By whom will I comfort you?
20 (OG)Your sons have fainted,
They lie at the head of all the streets,
Like an antelope in a net;
They are full of the fury of the Lord,
The rebuke of your God.
21 Therefore please hear this, you afflicted,
And drunk (OH)but not with wine.
22 Thus says your Lord,
The Lord and your God,
Who (OI)pleads the cause of His people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
The cup of trembling,
The dregs of the cup of My fury;
You shall no longer drink it.
23 (OJ)But I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you,
Who have said to [bo]you,
‘Lie down, that we may walk over you.’
And you have laid your body like the ground,
And as the street, for those who walk over.”
God Redeems Jerusalem
52 Awake, awake!
Put on your strength, O Zion;
Put on your beautiful garments,
O Jerusalem, the holy city!
For the uncircumcised (OK)and the unclean
Shall no longer come to you.
2 (OL)Shake yourself from the dust, arise;
Sit down, O Jerusalem!
(OM)Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck,
O captive daughter of Zion!
3 For thus says the Lord:
4 For thus says the Lord God:
“My people went down at first
Into (OP)Egypt to [bp]dwell there;
Then the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.
5 Now therefore, what have I here,” says the Lord,
“That My people are taken away for nothing?
Those who rule over them
[bq]Make them wail,” says the Lord,
“And My name is (OQ)blasphemed continually every day.
6 Therefore My people shall know My name;
Therefore they shall know in that day
That I am He who speaks:
‘Behold, it is I.’ ”
7 (OR)How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who proclaims peace,
Who brings glad tidings of good things,
Who proclaims salvation,
Who says to Zion,
(OS)“Your God reigns!”
8 Your watchmen shall lift up their voices,
With their voices they shall sing together;
For they shall see eye to eye
When the Lord brings back Zion.
9 Break forth into joy, sing together,
You waste places of Jerusalem!
For the Lord has comforted His people,
He has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 (OT)The Lord has [br]made bare His holy arm
In the eyes of (OU)all the nations;
And all the ends of the earth shall see
The salvation of our God.
11 (OV)Depart! Depart! Go out from there,
Touch no unclean thing;
Go out from the midst of her,
(OW)Be clean,
You who bear the vessels of the Lord.
12 For (OX)you shall not go out with haste,
Nor go by flight;
(OY)For the Lord will go before you,
(OZ)And the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
The Sin-Bearing Servant
13 Behold, (PA)My Servant shall [bs]deal prudently;
(PB)He shall be exalted and [bt]extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you,
So His (PC)visage[bu] was marred more than any man,
And His form more than the sons of men;
15 (PD)So shall He [bv]sprinkle many nations.
Kings shall shut their mouths at Him;
For (PE)what had not been told them they shall see,
And what they had not heard they shall consider.
The Sin-Bearing Messiah
53 Who (PF)has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,
And as a root out of dry ground.
He has no [bw]form or [bx]comeliness;
And when we see Him,
There is no [by]beauty that we should desire Him.
3 (PG)He is despised and [bz]rejected by men,
A Man of [ca]sorrows and (PH)acquainted with [cb]grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and (PI)we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely (PJ)He has borne our [cc]griefs
And carried our [cd]sorrows;
Yet we [ce]esteemed Him stricken,
[cf]Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was (PK)wounded[cg] for our transgressions,
He was [ch]bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His (PL)stripes[ci] we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the Lord [cj]has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet (PM)He opened not His mouth;
(PN)He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
8 He was (PO)taken from [ck]prison and from judgment,
And who will declare His generation?
For (PP)He was cut off from the land of the living;
For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
9 (PQ)And [cl]they made His grave with the wicked—
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any (PR)deceit in His mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to [cm]bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul (PS)an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.
11 [cn]He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.
By His knowledge (PT)My righteous (PU)Servant shall (PV)justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
12 (PW)Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
(PX)And He shall divide the [co]spoil with the strong,
Because He (PY)poured out His soul unto death,
And He was (PZ)numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And (QA)made intercession for the transgressors.
A Perpetual Covenant of Peace
54 “Sing, O (QB)barren,
You who have not borne!
Break forth into singing, and cry aloud,
You who have not labored with child!
For more are the children of the desolate
Than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.
2 “Enlarge(QC) the place of your tent,
And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings;
Do not spare;
Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes.
3 For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will (QD)inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited.
4 “Do(QE) not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame;
For you will forget the shame of your youth,
And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.
5 (QF)For your Maker is your husband,
The Lord of hosts is His name;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;
He is called (QG)the God of the whole earth.
6 For the Lord (QH)has called you
Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Like a youthful wife when you were refused,”
Says your God.
7 “For(QI) a mere moment I have forsaken you,
But with great mercies (QJ)I will gather you.
8 With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment;
(QK)But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,”
Says the Lord, your Redeemer.
9 “For this is like the waters of (QL)Noah to Me;
For as I have sworn
That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth,
So have I sworn
That I would not be angry with (QM)you, nor rebuke you.
10 For (QN)the mountains shall depart
And the hills be removed,
(QO)But My kindness shall not depart from you,
Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,”
Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.
11 “O you afflicted one,
Tossed with tempest, and not comforted,
Behold, I will lay your stones with (QP)colorful gems,
And lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
Your gates of crystal,
And all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be (QQ)taught by the Lord,
And (QR)great shall be the peace of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me.
Whoever assembles against you shall (QS)fall for your sake.
16 “Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire,
Who brings forth an [cp]instrument for his work;
And I have created the [cq]spoiler to destroy.
17 No weapon formed against you shall (QT)prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
(QU)And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the Lord.
An Invitation to Abundant Life
55 “Ho! (QV)Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
(QW)Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.
2 Why do you [cr]spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear, and (QX)come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
(QY)And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—
The (QZ)sure mercies of David.
4 Indeed I have given him as (RA)a witness to the people,
(RB)A leader and commander for the people.
5 (RC)Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
(RD)And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the Lord your God,
And the Holy One of Israel;
(RE)For He has glorified you.”
6 (RF)Seek the Lord while He may be (RG)found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
7 (RH)Let the [cs]wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man (RI)his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
(RJ)And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 “For(RK) My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
9 “For(RL) as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 “For (RM)as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
11 (RN)So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me [ct]void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall (RO)prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
12 “For(RP) you shall go out with joy,
And be led out with peace;
The mountains and the hills
Shall (RQ)break forth into singing before you,
And (RR)all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 (RS)Instead of (RT)the thorn shall come up the cypress tree,
And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree;
And it shall be to the Lord (RU)for a name,
For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 40:2 Lit. to the heart of
- Isaiah 40:3 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX omits in the desert
- Isaiah 40:4 Or a plain
- Isaiah 40:6 So with MT, Tg.; DSS, LXX, Vg. I
- Isaiah 40:10 in strength
- Isaiah 40:10 recompense
- Isaiah 40:12 So with MT, LXX, Vg.; DSS adds of the sea; Tg. adds of the world
- Isaiah 40:12 A span .5 cubit, 9 inches; or the width of His hand
- Isaiah 40:20 an offering
- Isaiah 40:23 reduces
- Isaiah 41:3 Lit. in peace
- Isaiah 41:6 Lit. Be strong
- Isaiah 41:7 refiner
- Isaiah 41:7 Or The soldering is good
- Isaiah 41:12 Lit. Men of your strife
- Isaiah 41:22 Lit. set our heart on them
- Isaiah 41:25 East
- Isaiah 41:29 So with MT, Vg.; DSS, Syr., Tg. nothing; LXX omits first line
- Isaiah 42:1 Chosen
- Isaiah 42:3 dimly burning
- Isaiah 42:3 extinguish
- Isaiah 42:10 Lit. its fullness
- Isaiah 42:14 childbirth
- Isaiah 42:22 Or trapped in caves
- Isaiah 43:26 justified
- Isaiah 43:27 interpreters
- Isaiah 44:14 Lit. appropriates
- Isaiah 44:18 Lit. smeared over
- Isaiah 44:24 By Himself
- Isaiah 45:1 strengthened or sustained
- Isaiah 45:2 Tg. I will trample down the walls; Vg. I will humble the great ones of the earth
- Isaiah 45:2 DSS, LXX mountains
- Isaiah 45:13 Or make all his ways straight
- Isaiah 45:18 Or empty, a waste
- Isaiah 45:19 Or in a waste place
- Isaiah 45:24 Or Only in the Lord are all righteousness and strength
- Isaiah 46:3 Lit. the belly
- Isaiah 46:8 be men, take courage
- Isaiah 46:13 delay
- Isaiah 47:1 dainty
- Isaiah 47:10 led you astray
- Isaiah 47:11 Lit. to cover it or atone for it
- Isaiah 47:13 Lit. viewers of the heavens
- Isaiah 47:13 Lit. those giving knowledge for new moons
- Isaiah 47:15 own side or way
- Isaiah 48:4 Heb. hard
- Isaiah 48:9 delay
- Isaiah 48:16 Heb. verb is sing.; or Has sent Me and His Spirit
- Isaiah 49:1 Lit. inward parts
- Isaiah 49:4 justice
- Isaiah 49:4 recompense
- Isaiah 49:5 Qr., DSS, LXX gathered to Him; Kt. not gathered
- Isaiah 49:7 Lit. his or its
- Isaiah 49:7 Lit. who is despised of soul
- Isaiah 49:8 favorable
- Isaiah 49:8 keep
- Isaiah 49:8 inheritances
- Isaiah 49:15 Lit. From having compassion
- Isaiah 49:17 DSS, LXX, Tg., Vg. builders
- Isaiah 49:22 banner
- Isaiah 49:22 Lit. bosom
- Isaiah 49:24 So with MT, Tg.; DSS, Syr., Vg. of the mighty; LXX unjustly
- Isaiah 50:8 Lit. master of My judgment
- Isaiah 51:1 pursue
- Isaiah 51:6 broken
- Isaiah 51:16 establish
- Isaiah 51:23 Lit. your soul
- Isaiah 52:4 As resident aliens
- Isaiah 52:5 DSS Mock; LXX Marvel and wail; Tg. Boast themselves; Vg. Treat them unjustly
- Isaiah 52:10 Revealed His power
- Isaiah 52:13 prosper
- Isaiah 52:13 Lit. be lifted up
- Isaiah 52:14 appearance
- Isaiah 52:15 Or startle
- Isaiah 53:2 Stately form
- Isaiah 53:2 splendor
- Isaiah 53:2 Lit. appearance
- Isaiah 53:3 Or forsaken
- Isaiah 53:3 Lit. pains
- Isaiah 53:3 Lit. sickness
- Isaiah 53:4 Lit. sicknesses
- Isaiah 53:4 Lit. pains
- Isaiah 53:4 reckoned
- Isaiah 53:4 Struck down
- Isaiah 53:5 Or pierced through
- Isaiah 53:5 crushed
- Isaiah 53:5 Blows that cut in
- Isaiah 53:6 Lit. has caused to land on Him
- Isaiah 53:8 confinement
- Isaiah 53:9 Lit. he or He
- Isaiah 53:10 crush
- Isaiah 53:11 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; DSS, LXX From the labor of His soul He shall see light
- Isaiah 53:12 plunder
- Isaiah 54:16 Or weapon
- Isaiah 54:16 destroyer
- Isaiah 55:2 Lit. weigh out silver
- Isaiah 55:7 Lit. man of iniquity
- Isaiah 55:11 empty, without fruit
Isaiah 40-50
New International Version
Isaiah 40-50
New International Version
Comfort for God’s People
40 Comfort, comfort(A) my people,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly(B) to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service(C) has been completed,(D)
that her sin has been paid for,(E)
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double(F) for all her sins.
3 A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
the way(G) for the Lord[a];
make straight(H) in the desert
a highway for our God.[b](I)
4 Every valley shall be raised up,(J)
every mountain and hill(K) made low;
the rough ground shall become level,(L)
the rugged places a plain.
5 And the glory(M) of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.(N)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”(O)
6 A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
“All people are like grass,(P)
and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
7 The grass withers(Q) and the flowers fall,
because the breath(R) of the Lord blows(S) on them.
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers and the flowers(T) fall,
but the word(U) of our God endures(V) forever.(W)”
9 You who bring good news(X) to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,[c](Y)
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”(Z)
10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes(AA) with power,(AB)
and he rules(AC) with a mighty arm.(AD)
See, his reward(AE) is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:(AF)
He gathers the lambs in his arms(AG)
and carries them close to his heart;(AH)
he gently leads(AI) those that have young.(AJ)
12 Who has measured the waters(AK) in the hollow of his hand,(AL)
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?(AM)
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?(AN)
13 Who can fathom the Spirit[d](AO) of the Lord,
or instruct the Lord as his counselor?(AP)
14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,(AQ)
or showed him the path of understanding?(AR)
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales;(AS)
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.(AT)
16 Lebanon(AU) is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals(AV) enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations(AW) are as nothing;(AX)
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.(AY)
18 With whom, then, will you compare God?(AZ)
To what image(BA) will you liken him?
19 As for an idol,(BB) a metalworker casts it,
and a goldsmith(BC) overlays it with gold(BD)
and fashions silver chains for it.
20 A person too poor to present such an offering
selects wood(BE) that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
to set up an idol(BF) that will not topple.(BG)
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(BH)
Has it not been told(BI) you from the beginning?(BJ)
Have you not understood(BK) since the earth was founded?(BL)
22 He sits enthroned(BM) above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.(BN)
He stretches out the heavens(BO) like a canopy,(BP)
and spreads them out like a tent(BQ) to live in.(BR)
23 He brings princes(BS) to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.(BT)
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root(BU) in the ground,
than he blows(BV) on them and they wither,(BW)
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.(BX)
25 “To whom will you compare me?(BY)
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.(BZ)
26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:(CA)
Who created(CB) all these?
He who brings out the starry host(CC) one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,(CD)
not one of them is missing.(CE)
27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?(CF)
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(CG)
The Lord is the everlasting(CH) God,
the Creator(CI) of the ends of the earth.(CJ)
He will not grow tired or weary,(CK)
and his understanding no one can fathom.(CL)
29 He gives strength(CM) to the weary(CN)
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men(CO) stumble and fall;(CP)
31 but those who hope(CQ) in the Lord
will renew their strength.(CR)
They will soar on wings like eagles;(CS)
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.(CT)
The Helper of Israel
41 “Be silent(CU) before me, you islands!(CV)
Let the nations renew their strength!(CW)
Let them come forward(CX) and speak;
let us meet together(CY) at the place of judgment.
2 “Who has stirred(CZ) up one from the east,(DA)
calling him in righteousness(DB) to his service[e]?(DC)
He hands nations over to him
and subdues kings before him.
He turns them to dust(DD) with his sword,
to windblown chaff(DE) with his bow.(DF)
3 He pursues them and moves on unscathed,(DG)
by a path his feet have not traveled before.
4 Who has done this and carried it through,
calling(DH) forth the generations from the beginning?(DI)
I, the Lord—with the first of them
and with the last(DJ)—I am he.(DK)”
5 The islands(DL) have seen it and fear;
the ends of the earth(DM) tremble.
They approach and come forward;
6 they help each other
and say to their companions, “Be strong!(DN)”
7 The metalworker(DO) encourages the goldsmith,(DP)
and the one who smooths with the hammer
spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.(DQ)
8 “But you, Israel, my servant,(DR)
Jacob, whom I have chosen,(DS)
you descendants of Abraham(DT) my friend,(DU)
9 I took you from the ends of the earth,(DV)
from its farthest corners I called(DW) you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;(DX)
I have chosen(DY) you and have not rejected you.
10 So do not fear,(DZ) for I am with you;(EA)
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen(EB) you and help(EC) you;
I will uphold you(ED) with my righteous right hand.(EE)
11 “All who rage(EF) against you
will surely be ashamed and disgraced;(EG)
those who oppose(EH) you
will be as nothing and perish.(EI)
12 Though you search for your enemies,
you will not find them.(EJ)
Those who wage war against you
will be as nothing(EK) at all.
13 For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand(EL)
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help(EM) you.
14 Do not be afraid,(EN) you worm(EO) Jacob,
little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help(EP) you,” declares the Lord,
your Redeemer,(EQ) the Holy One(ER) of Israel.
15 “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,(ES)
new and sharp, with many teeth.
You will thresh the mountains(ET) and crush them,
and reduce the hills to chaff.(EU)
16 You will winnow(EV) them, the wind will pick them up,
and a gale(EW) will blow them away.(EX)
But you will rejoice(EY) in the Lord
and glory(EZ) in the Holy One(FA) of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy search for water,(FB)
but there is none;
their tongues are parched with thirst.(FC)
But I the Lord will answer(FD) them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake(FE) them.
18 I will make rivers flow(FF) on barren heights,
and springs within the valleys.
I will turn the desert(FG) into pools of water,(FH)
and the parched ground into springs.(FI)
19 I will put in the desert(FJ)
the cedar and the acacia,(FK) the myrtle and the olive.
I will set junipers(FL) in the wasteland,
the fir and the cypress(FM) together,(FN)
20 so that people may see and know,(FO)
may consider and understand,(FP)
that the hand(FQ) of the Lord has done this,
that the Holy One(FR) of Israel has created(FS) it.
21 “Present your case,(FT)” says the Lord.
“Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.(FU)
22 “Tell us, you idols,
what is going to happen.(FV)
Tell us what the former things(FW) were,
so that we may consider them
and know their final outcome.
Or declare to us the things to come,(FX)
23 tell us what the future holds,
so we may know(FY) that you are gods.
Do something, whether good or bad,(FZ)
so that we will be dismayed(GA) and filled with fear.
24 But you are less than nothing(GB)
and your works are utterly worthless;(GC)
whoever chooses you is detestable.(GD)
25 “I have stirred(GE) up one from the north,(GF) and he comes—
one from the rising sun who calls on my name.
He treads(GG) on rulers as if they were mortar,
as if he were a potter treading the clay.
26 Who told of this from the beginning,(GH) so we could know,
or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?
No one told of this,
no one foretold(GI) it,
no one heard any words(GJ) from you.
27 I was the first to tell(GK) Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’
I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.(GL)
28 I look but there is no one(GM)—
no one among the gods to give counsel,(GN)
no one to give answer(GO) when I ask them.
29 See, they are all false!
Their deeds amount to nothing;(GP)
their images(GQ) are but wind(GR) and confusion.
The Servant of the Lord
42 “Here is my servant,(GS) whom I uphold,
my chosen one(GT) in whom I delight;(GU)
I will put my Spirit(GV) on him,
and he will bring justice(GW) to the nations.(GX)
2 He will not shout or cry out,(GY)
or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed(GZ) he will not break,(HA)
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.(HB)
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;(HC)
4 he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice(HD) on earth.
In his teaching(HE) the islands(HF) will put their hope.”(HG)
5 This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens,(HH) who stretches them out,
who spreads out the earth(HI) with all that springs from it,(HJ)
who gives breath(HK) to its people,
and life to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called(HL) you in righteousness;(HM)
I will take hold of your hand.(HN)
I will keep(HO) you and will make you
to be a covenant(HP) for the people
and a light(HQ) for the Gentiles,(HR)
7 to open eyes that are blind,(HS)
to free(HT) captives from prison(HU)
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.(HV)
8 “I am the Lord;(HW) that is my name!(HX)
I will not yield my glory to another(HY)
or my praise to idols.(HZ)
9 See, the former things(IA) have taken place,
and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
I announce(IB) them to you.”
Song of Praise to the Lord
10 Sing(IC) to the Lord a new song,(ID)
his praise(IE) from the ends of the earth,(IF)
you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,(IG)
you islands,(IH) and all who live in them.
11 Let the wilderness(II) and its towns raise their voices;
let the settlements where Kedar(IJ) lives rejoice.
Let the people of Sela(IK) sing for joy;
let them shout from the mountaintops.(IL)
12 Let them give glory(IM) to the Lord
and proclaim his praise(IN) in the islands.(IO)
13 The Lord will march out like a champion,(IP)
like a warrior(IQ) he will stir up his zeal;(IR)
with a shout(IS) he will raise the battle cry
and will triumph over his enemies.(IT)
14 “For a long time I have kept silent,(IU)
I have been quiet and held myself back.(IV)
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
I cry out, I gasp and pant.(IW)
15 I will lay waste(IX) the mountains(IY) and hills
and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up(IZ) the pools.
16 I will lead(JA) the blind(JB) by ways they have not known,
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light(JC) before them
and make the rough places smooth.(JD)
These are the things I will do;
I will not forsake(JE) them.
17 But those who trust in idols,
who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’(JF)
will be turned back in utter shame.(JG)
Israel Blind and Deaf
18 “Hear, you deaf;(JH)
look, you blind, and see!
19 Who is blind(JI) but my servant,(JJ)
and deaf like the messenger(JK) I send?
Who is blind like the one in covenant(JL) with me,
blind like the servant of the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but you pay no attention;
your ears are open, but you do not listen.”(JM)
21 It pleased the Lord
for the sake(JN) of his righteousness
to make his law(JO) great and glorious.
22 But this is a people plundered(JP) and looted,
all of them trapped in pits(JQ)
or hidden away in prisons.(JR)
They have become plunder,
with no one to rescue them;(JS)
they have been made loot,
with no one to say, “Send them back.”
23 Which of you will listen to this
or pay close attention(JT) in time to come?
24 Who handed Jacob over to become loot,
and Israel to the plunderers?(JU)
Was it not the Lord,(JV)
against whom we have sinned?
For they would not follow(JW) his ways;
they did not obey his law.(JX)
25 So he poured out on them his burning anger,(JY)
the violence of war.
It enveloped them in flames,(JZ) yet they did not understand;(KA)
it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.(KB)
Israel’s Only Savior
43 But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who created(KC) you, Jacob,
he who formed(KD) you, Israel:(KE)
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed(KF) you;
I have summoned you by name;(KG) you are mine.(KH)
2 When you pass through the waters,(KI)
I will be with you;(KJ)
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,(KK)
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.(KL)
3 For I am the Lord your God,(KM)
the Holy One(KN) of Israel, your Savior;(KO)
I give Egypt(KP) for your ransom,
Cush[f](KQ) and Seba(KR) in your stead.(KS)
4 Since you are precious and honored(KT) in my sight,
and because I love(KU) you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life.
5 Do not be afraid,(KV) for I am with you;(KW)
I will bring your children(KX) from the east
and gather(KY) you from the west.(KZ)
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south,(LA) ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughters(LB) from the ends of the earth(LC)—
7 everyone who is called by my name,(LD)
whom I created(LE) for my glory,(LF)
whom I formed and made.(LG)”
8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,(LH)
who have ears but are deaf.(LI)
9 All the nations gather together(LJ)
and the peoples assemble.
Which of their gods foretold(LK) this
and proclaimed to us the former things?
Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,
so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”
10 “You are my witnesses,(LL)” declares the Lord,
“and my servant(LM) whom I have chosen,
so that you may know(LN) and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god(LO) was formed,
nor will there be one after me.(LP)
11 I, even I, am the Lord,(LQ)
and apart from me there is no savior.(LR)
12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
I, and not some foreign god(LS) among you.
You are my witnesses,(LT)” declares the Lord, “that I am God.
13 Yes, and from ancient days(LU) I am he.(LV)
No one can deliver out of my hand.
When I act, who can reverse it?”(LW)
God’s Mercy and Israel’s Unfaithfulness
14 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(LX) the Holy One(LY) of Israel:
“For your sake I will send to Babylon
and bring down as fugitives(LZ) all the Babylonians,[g](MA)
in the ships in which they took pride.
15 I am the Lord,(MB) your Holy One,
Israel’s Creator,(MC) your King.(MD)”
16 This is what the Lord says—
he who made a way through the sea,
a path through the mighty waters,(ME)
17 who drew out(MF) the chariots and horses,(MG)
the army and reinforcements together,(MH)
and they lay(MI) there, never to rise again,
extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:(MJ)
18 “Forget the former things;(MK)
do not dwell on the past.
19 See, I am doing a new thing!(ML)
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness(MM)
and streams in the wasteland.(MN)
20 The wild animals(MO) honor me,
the jackals(MP) and the owls,
because I provide water(MQ) in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
21 the people I formed(MR) for myself(MS)
that they may proclaim my praise.(MT)
22 “Yet you have not called on me, Jacob,
you have not wearied(MU) yourselves for[h] me, Israel.(MV)
23 You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings,(MW)
nor honored(MX) me with your sacrifices.(MY)
I have not burdened(MZ) you with grain offerings
nor wearied you with demands(NA) for incense.(NB)
24 You have not bought any fragrant calamus(NC) for me,
or lavished on me the fat(ND) of your sacrifices.
But you have burdened me with your sins
and wearied(NE) me with your offenses.(NF)
25 “I, even I, am he who blots out
your transgressions,(NG) for my own sake,(NH)
and remembers your sins(NI) no more.(NJ)
26 Review the past for me,
let us argue the matter together;(NK)
state the case(NL) for your innocence.
27 Your first father(NM) sinned;
those I sent to teach(NN) you rebelled(NO) against me.
28 So I disgraced the dignitaries of your temple;
I consigned Jacob to destruction[i](NP)
and Israel to scorn.(NQ)
Israel the Chosen
44 “But now listen, Jacob, my servant,(NR)
Israel, whom I have chosen.(NS)
2 This is what the Lord says—
he who made(NT) you, who formed you in the womb,(NU)
and who will help(NV) you:
Do not be afraid,(NW) Jacob, my servant,(NX)
Jeshurun,[j](NY) whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water(NZ) on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;(OA)
I will pour out my Spirit(OB) on your offspring,
and my blessing(OC) on your descendants.(OD)
4 They will spring up like grass(OE) in a meadow,
like poplar trees(OF) by flowing streams.(OG)
5 Some will say, ‘I belong(OH) to the Lord’;
others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand,(OI) ‘The Lord’s,’(OJ)
and will take the name Israel.
The Lord, Not Idols
6 “This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King(OK) and Redeemer,(OL) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;(OM)
apart from me there is no God.(ON)
7 Who then is like me?(OO) 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(OP) what will come.
8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim(OQ) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God(OR) besides me?
No, there is no other Rock;(OS) I know not one.”
9 All who make idols(OT) are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.(OU)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(OV)
they are ignorant, to their own shame.(OW)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(OX)
which can profit nothing?(OY)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(OZ)
such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
they will be brought down to terror and shame.(PA)
12 The blacksmith(PB) 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.(PC)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
he drinks no water and grows faint.(PD)
13 The carpenter(PE) 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,(PF)
human form in all its glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.(PG)
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,(PH) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(PI) 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(PJ) it;
he makes an idol and bows(PK) 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.(PL)”
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
he bows down to it and worships.(PM)
He prays(PN) to it and says,
“Save(PO) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(PP) nothing;
their eyes(PQ) 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(PR) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(PS)
I even baked bread over its coals,
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(PT) thing from what is left?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(PU)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(PV) a deluded(PW) heart misleads him;
he cannot save himself, or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(PX)”
21 “Remember(PY) these things, Jacob,
for you, Israel, are my servant.(PZ)
I have made you, you are my servant;(QA)
Israel, I will not forget you.(QB)
22 I have swept away(QC) your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return(QD) to me,
for I have redeemed(QE) you.”
23 Sing for joy,(QF) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, you earth(QG) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,(QH)
you forests and all your trees,(QI)
for the Lord has redeemed(QJ) Jacob,
he displays his glory(QK) in Israel.
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,(QO)
who spreads out the earth(QP) by myself,
25 who foils(QQ) the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,(QR)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(QS)
and turns it into nonsense,(QT)
26 who carries out the words(QU) of his servants
and fulfills(QV) the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,(QW) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
and of their ruins,(QX) ‘I will restore them,’(QY)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
and I will dry up(QZ) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(RA) ‘He is my shepherd
and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(RB) “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple,(RC) “Let its foundations(RD) be laid.”’
45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(RE)
to Cyrus,(RF) whose right hand I take hold(RG) of
to subdue nations(RH) 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(RI)
and will level(RJ) the mountains[k];
I will break down gates(RK) of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.(RL)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,(RM)
riches stored in secret places,(RN)
so that you may know(RO) that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(RP)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,(RQ)
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge(RR) me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;(RS)
apart from me there is no God.(RT)
I will strengthen you,(RU)
though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting(RV)
people may know(RW) there is none besides me.(RX)
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness,(RY)
I bring prosperity and create disaster;(RZ)
I, the Lord, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain(SA) down my righteousness;(SB)
let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
let salvation(SC) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel(SD) with their Maker,(SE)
those who are nothing but potsherds(SF)
among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(SG)
‘What are you making?’(SH)
Does your work say,
‘The potter has no hands’?(SI)
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(SJ) of Israel, and its Maker:(SK)
Concerning things to come,
do you question me about my children,
or give me orders about the work of my hands?(SL)
12 It is I who made the earth(SM)
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(SN)
I marshaled their starry hosts.(SO)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[l](SP) in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.(SQ)
He will rebuild my city(SR)
and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(SS)
says the Lord Almighty.”
14 This is what the Lord says:
“The products(ST) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,[m]
and those tall Sabeans(SU)—
they will come over to you(SV)
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,(SW)
coming over to you in chains.(SX)
They will bow down before you
and plead(SY) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,(SZ) and there is no other;
there is no other god.(TA)’”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding(TB) himself,
the God and Savior(TC) of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;(TD)
they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved(TE) by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;(TF)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,(TG)
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,(TH)
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,(TI)
but formed it to be inhabited(TJ)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other.(TK)
19 I have not spoken in secret,(TL)
from somewhere in a land of darkness;(TM)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,(TN)
‘Seek(TO) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
I declare what is right.(TP)
20 “Gather together(TQ) and come;
assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant(TR) are those who carry(TS) about idols of wood,
who pray to gods that cannot save.(TT)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold(TU) this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?(TV)
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no God apart from me,(TW)
a righteous God(TX) and a Savior;(TY)
there is none but me.
22 “Turn(TZ) to me and be saved,(UA)
all you ends of the earth;(UB)
for I am God, and there is no other.(UC)
23 By myself I have sworn,(UD)
my mouth has uttered in all integrity(UE)
a word that will not be revoked:(UF)
Before me every knee will bow;(UG)
by me every tongue will swear.(UH)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
are deliverance(UI) and strength.(UJ)’”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.(UK)
25 But all the descendants(UL) of Israel
will find deliverance(UM) in the Lord
and will make their boast in him.(UN)
Gods of Babylon
46 Bel(UO) bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols(UP) are borne by beasts of burden.[n]
The images that are carried(UQ) 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.(UR)
3 “Listen(US) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant(UT) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,(UU)
and have carried(UV) since you were born.(UW)
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs(UX)
I am he,(UY) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain(UZ) 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?(VA)
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith(VB) to make it into a god,
and they bow down and worship it.(VC)
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry(VD) it;
they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
From that spot it cannot move.(VE)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;(VF)
it cannot save(VG) them from their troubles.
8 “Remember(VH) this, keep it in mind,
take it to heart, you rebels.(VI)
9 Remember the former things,(VJ) those of long ago;(VK)
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.(VL)
10 I make known the end from the beginning,(VM)
from ancient times,(VN) what is still to come.(VO)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,(VP)
and I will do all that I please.’
11 From the east I summon(VQ) a bird of prey;(VR)
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned,(VS) that I will do.(VT)
12 Listen(VU) to me, you stubborn-hearted,(VV)
you who are now far from my righteousness.(VW)
13 I am bringing my righteousness(VX) near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation(VY) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,(VZ)
my splendor(WA) to Israel.
The Fall of Babylon
47 “Go down, sit in the dust,(WB)
Virgin Daughter(WC) Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
queen city of the Babylonians.[o](WD)
No more will you be called
tender or delicate.(WE)
2 Take millstones(WF) and grind(WG) flour;
take off your veil.(WH)
Lift up your skirts,(WI) bare your legs,
and wade through the streams.
3 Your nakedness(WJ) will be exposed
and your shame(WK) uncovered.
I will take vengeance;(WL)
I will spare no one.(WM)”
5 “Sit in silence,(WR) go into darkness,(WS)
queen city of the Babylonians;(WT)
no more will you be called
queen(WU) of kingdoms.(WV)
6 I was angry(WW) with my people
and desecrated my inheritance;(WX)
I gave them into your hand,(WY)
and you showed them no mercy.(WZ)
Even on the aged
you laid a very heavy yoke.
7 You said, ‘I am forever(XA)—
the eternal queen!’(XB)
But you did not consider these things
or reflect(XC) on what might happen.(XD)
8 “Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure,
lounging in your security(XE)
and saying to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.(XF)
I will never be a widow(XG)
or suffer the loss of children.’
9 Both of these will overtake you
in a moment,(XH) on a single day:
loss of children(XI) and widowhood.(XJ)
They will come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries(XK)
and all your potent spells.(XL)
10 You have trusted(XM) in your wickedness
and have said, ‘No one sees me.’(XN)
Your wisdom(XO) and knowledge mislead(XP) you
when you say to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
11 Disaster(XQ) 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(XR) come upon you.
12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells
and with your many sorceries,(XS)
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!(XT)
Let your astrologers(XU) come forward,
those stargazers who make predictions month by month,
let them save(XV) you from what is coming upon you.
14 Surely they are like stubble;(XW)
the fire(XX) will burn them up.
They cannot even save themselves
from the power of the flame.(XY)
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(XZ) with since childhood.
All of them go on in their error;
there is not one that can save(YA) you.
Stubborn Israel
48 “Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel(YB)
and come from the line of Judah,(YC)
you who take oaths(YD) in the name of the Lord(YE)
and invoke(YF) the God of Israel—
but not in truth(YG) or righteousness—
2 you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city(YH)
and claim to rely(YI) on the God of Israel—
the Lord Almighty is his name:(YJ)
3 I foretold the former things(YK) long ago,
my mouth announced(YL) them and I made them known;
then suddenly(YM) I acted, and they came to pass.
4 For I knew how stubborn(YN) you were;
your neck muscles(YO) were iron,
your forehead(YP) was bronze.
5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;
before they happened I announced(YQ) them to you
so that you could not say,
‘My images brought them about;(YR)
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,(YS)
of hidden things unknown to you.
7 They are created(YT) now, and not long ago;(YU)
you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
‘Yes, I knew(YV) of them.’
8 You have neither heard nor understood;(YW)
from of old your ears(YX) have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous(YY) you are;
you were called a rebel(YZ) from birth.
9 For my own name’s sake(ZA) I delay my wrath;(ZB)
for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
so as not to destroy you completely.(ZC)
10 See, I have refined(ZD) you, though not as silver;
I have tested(ZE) you in the furnace(ZF) of affliction.
11 For my own sake,(ZG) for my own sake, I do this.
How can I let myself be defamed?(ZH)
I will not yield my glory to another.(ZI)
Israel Freed
12 “Listen(ZJ) to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:(ZK)
I am he;(ZL)
I am the first and I am the last.(ZM)
13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,(ZN)
and my right hand spread out the heavens;(ZO)
when I summon them,
they all stand up together.(ZP)
14 “Come together,(ZQ) all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold(ZR) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally(ZS)
will carry out his purpose(ZT) against Babylon;(ZU)
his arm will be against the Babylonians.[p]
15 I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called(ZV) him.
I will bring him,
and he will succeed(ZW) in his mission.
16 “Come near(ZX) me and listen(ZY) to this:
“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;(ZZ)
at the time it happens, I am there.”
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(AAD) the Holy One(AAE) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches(AAF) you what is best for you,
who directs(AAG) you in the way(AAH) you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention(AAI) to my commands,
your peace(AAJ) would have been like a river,(AAK)
your well-being(AAL) like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants(AAM) would have been like the sand,(AAN)
your children like its numberless grains;(AAO)
their name would never be blotted out(AAP)
nor destroyed from before me.”
20 Leave Babylon,
flee(AAQ) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy(AAR)
and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;(AAS)
say, “The Lord has redeemed(AAT) his servant Jacob.”
21 They did not thirst(AAU) when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow(AAV) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
and water gushed out.(AAW)
The Servant of the Lord
49 Listen(AAZ) to me, you islands;(ABA)
hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born(ABB) the Lord called(ABC) me;
from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.(ABD)
2 He made my mouth(ABE) like a sharpened sword,(ABF)
in the shadow of his hand(ABG) he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow(ABH)
and concealed me in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,(ABI)
Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.(ABJ)”
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;(ABK)
I have spent my strength for nothing at all.
Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,(ABL)
and my reward(ABM) is with my God.”(ABN)
5 And now the Lord says—
he who formed me in the womb(ABO) to be his servant
to bring Jacob back to him
and gather Israel(ABP) to himself,
for I am[q] honored(ABQ) in the eyes of the Lord
and my God has been my strength(ABR)—
6 he says:
“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant(ABS)
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring back those of Israel I have kept.(ABT)
I will also make you a light(ABU) for the Gentiles,(ABV)
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”(ABW)
7 This is what the Lord says—
the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel(ABX)—
to him who was despised(ABY) and abhorred by the nation,
to the servant of rulers:
“Kings(ABZ) will see you and stand up,
princes will see and bow down,(ACA)
because of the Lord, who is faithful,(ACB)
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen(ACC) you.”
Restoration of Israel
8 This is what the Lord says:
“In the time of my favor(ACD) I will answer you,
and in the day of salvation I will help you;(ACE)
I will keep(ACF) you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people,(ACG)
to restore the land(ACH)
and to reassign its desolate inheritances,(ACI)
9 to say to the captives,(ACJ) ‘Come out,’
and to those in darkness,(ACK) ‘Be free!’
“They will feed beside the roads
and find pasture on every barren hill.(ACL)
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,(ACM)
nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.(ACN)
He who has compassion(ACO) on them will guide(ACP) them
and lead them beside springs(ACQ) of water.
11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,
and my highways(ACR) will be raised up.(ACS)
12 See, they will come from afar(ACT)—
some from the north, some from the west,(ACU)
some from the region of Aswan.[r]”
13 Shout for joy,(ACV) you heavens;
rejoice, you earth;(ACW)
burst into song, you mountains!(ACX)
For the Lord comforts(ACY) his people
and will have compassion(ACZ) on his afflicted ones.(ADA)
15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child(ADD) she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!(ADE)
16 See, I have engraved(ADF) you on the palms of my hands;
your walls(ADG) are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten back,
and those who laid you waste(ADH) depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around;
all your children gather(ADI) and come to you.
As surely as I live,(ADJ)” declares the Lord,
“you will wear(ADK) them all as ornaments;
you will put them on, like a bride.
19 “Though you were ruined and made desolate(ADL)
and your land laid waste,(ADM)
now you will be too small for your people,(ADN)
and those who devoured(ADO) you will be far away.
20 The children born during your bereavement
will yet say in your hearing,
‘This place is too small for us;
give us more space to live in.’(ADP)
21 Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who bore me these?(ADQ)
I was bereaved(ADR) and barren;
I was exiled and rejected.(ADS)
Who brought these(ADT) up?
I was left(ADU) all alone,(ADV)
but these—where have they come from?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord(ADW) says:
“See, I will beckon to the nations,
I will lift up my banner(ADX) to the peoples;
they will bring(ADY) your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their hips.(ADZ)
23 Kings(AEA) will be your foster fathers,
and their queens your nursing mothers.(AEB)
They will bow down(AEC) before you with their faces to the ground;
they will lick the dust(AED) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;(AEE)
those who hope(AEF) in me will not be disappointed.(AEG)”
25 But this is what the Lord says:
“Yes, captives(AEI) will be taken from warriors,(AEJ)
and plunder retrieved from the fierce;(AEK)
I will contend with those who contend with you,(AEL)
and your children I will save.(AEM)
26 I will make your oppressors(AEN) eat(AEO) their own flesh;
they will be drunk on their own blood,(AEP) as with wine.
Then all mankind will know(AEQ)
that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(AER)
your Redeemer,(AES) the Mighty One of Jacob.(AET)”
Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce(AEU)
with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
did I sell(AEV) you?
Because of your sins(AEW) you were sold;(AEX)
because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
2 When I came, why was there no one?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?(AEY)
Was my arm too short(AEZ) to deliver you?
Do I lack the strength(AFA) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke(AFB) I dry up the sea,(AFC)
I turn rivers into a desert;(AFD)
their fish rot for lack of water
and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness(AFE)
and make sackcloth(AFF) its covering.”
4 The Sovereign Lord(AFG) has given me a well-instructed tongue,(AFH)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(AFI)
He wakens me morning by morning,(AFJ)
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.(AFK)
5 The Sovereign Lord(AFL) has opened my ears;(AFM)
I have not been rebellious,(AFN)
I have not turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(AFO) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(AFP)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(AFQ)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(AFR) helps(AFS) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(AFT)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(AFU)
8 He who vindicates(AFV) me is near.(AFW)
Who then will bring charges against me?(AFX)
Let us face each other!(AFY)
Who is my accuser?
Let him confront me!
Footnotes
- Isaiah 40:3 Or A voice of one calling in the wilderness: / “Prepare the way for the Lord
- Isaiah 40:3 Hebrew; Septuagint make straight the paths of our God
- Isaiah 40:9 Or Zion, bringer of good news, / go up on a high mountain. / Jerusalem, bringer of good news
- Isaiah 40:13 Or mind
- Isaiah 41:2 Or east, / whom victory meets at every step
- Isaiah 43:3 That is, the upper Nile region
- Isaiah 43:14 Or Chaldeans
- Isaiah 43:22 Or Jacob; / surely you have grown weary of
- Isaiah 43:28 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
- 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
- Isaiah 49:5 Or him, / but Israel would not be gathered; / yet I will be
- Isaiah 49:12 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text Sinim
- Isaiah 49:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Septuagint and verse 25); Masoretic Text righteous
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