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Isaiah 45-50
New Living Translation
Isaiah 45-50
New Living Translation
Cyrus, the Lord’s Chosen One
45 This is what the Lord says to Cyrus, his anointed one,
whose right hand he will empower.
Before him, mighty kings will be paralyzed with fear.
Their fortress gates will be opened,
never to shut again.
2 This is what the Lord says:
“I will go before you, Cyrus,
and level the mountains.[a]
I will smash down gates of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.
3 And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness—
secret riches.
I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.
4 “And why have I called you for this work?
Why did I call you by name when you did not know me?
It is for the sake of Jacob my servant,
Israel my chosen one.
5 I am the Lord;
there is no other God.
I have equipped you for battle,
though you don’t even know me,
6 so all the world from east to west
will know there is no other God.
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I create the light and make the darkness.
I send good times and bad times.
I, the Lord, am the one who does these things.
8 “Open up, O heavens,
and pour out your righteousness.
Let the earth open wide
so salvation and righteousness can sprout up together.
I, the Lord, created them.
9 “What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator.
Does a clay pot argue with its maker?
Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying,
‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’
Does the pot exclaim,
‘How clumsy can you be?’
10 How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father,
‘Why was I born?’
or if it said to its mother,
‘Why did you make me this way?’”
11 This is what the Lord says—
the Holy One of Israel and your Creator:
“Do you question what I do for my children?
Do you give me orders about the work of my hands?
12 I am the one who made the earth
and created people to live on it.
With my hands I stretched out the heavens.
All the stars are at my command.
13 I will raise up Cyrus to fulfill my righteous purpose,
and I will guide his actions.
He will restore my city and free my captive people—
without seeking a reward!
I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”
Future Conversion of Gentiles
14 This is what the Lord says:
“You will rule the Egyptians,
the Ethiopians,[b] and the Sabeans.
They will come to you with all their merchandise,
and it will all be yours.
They will follow you as prisoners in chains.
They will fall to their knees in front of you and say,
‘God is with you, and he is the only God.
There is no other.’”
15 Truly, O God of Israel, our Savior,
you work in mysterious ways.
16 All craftsmen who make idols will be humiliated.
They will all be disgraced together.
17 But the Lord will save the people of Israel
with eternal salvation.
Throughout everlasting ages,
they will never again be humiliated and disgraced.
18 For the Lord is God,
and he created the heavens and earth
and put everything in place.
He made the world to be lived in,
not to be a place of empty chaos.
“I am the Lord,” he says,
“and there is no other.
19 I publicly proclaim bold promises.
I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner.
I would not have told the people of Israel[c] to seek me
if I could not be found.
I, the Lord, speak only what is true
and declare only what is right.
20 “Gather together and come,
you fugitives from surrounding nations.
What fools they are who carry around their wooden idols
and pray to gods that cannot save!
21 Consult together, argue your case.
Get together and decide what to say.
Who made these things known so long ago?
What idol ever told you they would happen?
Was it not I, the Lord?
For there is no other God but me,
a righteous God and Savior.
There is none but me.
22 Let all the world look to me for salvation!
For I am God; there is no other.
23 I have sworn by my own name;
I have spoken the truth,
and I will never go back on my word:
Every knee will bend to me,
and every tongue will declare allegiance to me.[d]”
24 The people will declare,
“The Lord is the source of all my righteousness and strength.”
And all who were angry with him
will come to him and be ashamed.
25 In the Lord all the generations of Israel will be justified,
and in him they will boast.
Babylon’s False Gods
46 Bel and Nebo, the gods of Babylon,
bow as they are lowered to the ground.
They are being hauled away on ox carts.
The poor beasts stagger under the weight.
2 Both the idols and their owners are bowed down.
The gods cannot protect the people,
and the people cannot protect the gods.
They go off into captivity together.
3 “Listen to me, descendants of Jacob,
all you who remain in Israel.
I have cared for you since you were born.
Yes, I carried you before you were born.
4 I will be your God throughout your lifetime—
until your hair is white with age.
I made you, and I will care for you.
I will carry you along and save you.
5 “To whom will you compare me?
Who is my equal?
6 Some people pour out their silver and gold
and hire a craftsman to make a god from it.
Then they bow down and worship it!
7 They carry it around on their shoulders,
and when they set it down, it stays there.
It can’t even move!
And when someone prays to it, there is no answer.
It can’t rescue anyone from trouble.
8 “Do not forget this! Keep it in mind!
Remember this, you guilty ones.
9 Remember the things I have done in the past.
For I alone am God!
I am God, and there is none like me.
10 Only I can tell you the future
before it even happens.
Everything I plan will come to pass,
for I do whatever I wish.
11 I will call a swift bird of prey from the east—
a leader from a distant land to come and do my bidding.
I have said what I would do,
and I will do it.
12 “Listen to me, you stubborn people
who are so far from doing right.
13 For I am ready to set things right,
not in the distant future, but right now!
I am ready to save Jerusalem[e]
and show my glory to Israel.
Prediction of Babylon’s Fall
47 “Come down, virgin daughter of Babylon, and sit in the dust.
For your days of sitting on a throne have ended.
O daughter of Babylonia,[f] never again will you be
the lovely princess, tender and delicate.
2 Take heavy millstones and grind flour.
Remove your veil, and strip off your robe.
Expose yourself to public view.[g]
3 You will be naked and burdened with shame.
I will take vengeance against you without pity.”
4 Our Redeemer, whose name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
is the Holy One of Israel.
5 “O beautiful Babylon, sit now in darkness and silence.
Never again will you be known as the queen of kingdoms.
6 For I was angry with my chosen people
and punished them by letting them fall into your hands.
But you, Babylon, showed them no mercy.
You oppressed even the elderly.
7 You said, ‘I will reign forever as queen of the world!’
You did not reflect on your actions
or think about their consequences.
8 “Listen to this, you pleasure-loving kingdom,
living at ease and feeling secure.
You say, ‘I am the only one, and there is no other.
I will never be a widow or lose my children.’
9 Well, both these things will come upon you in a moment:
widowhood and the loss of your children.
Yes, these calamities will come upon you,
despite all your witchcraft and magic.
10 “You felt secure in your wickedness.
‘No one sees me,’ you said.
But your ‘wisdom’ and ‘knowledge’ have led you astray,
and you said, ‘I am the only one, and there is no other.’
11 So disaster will overtake you,
and you won’t be able to charm it away.
Calamity will fall upon you,
and you won’t be able to buy your way out.
A catastrophe will strike you suddenly,
one for which you are not prepared.
12 “Now use your magical charms!
Use the spells you have worked at all these years!
Maybe they will do you some good.
Maybe they can make someone afraid of you.
13 All the advice you receive has made you tired.
Where are all your astrologers,
those stargazers who make predictions each month?
Let them stand up and save you from what the future holds.
14 But they are like straw burning in a fire;
they cannot save themselves from the flame.
You will get no help from them at all;
their hearth is no place to sit for warmth.
15 And all your friends,
those with whom you’ve done business since childhood,
will go their own ways,
turning a deaf ear to your cries.
God’s Stubborn People
48 “Listen to me, O family of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel
and born into the family of Judah.
Listen, you who take oaths in the name of the Lord
and call on the God of Israel.
You don’t keep your promises,
2 even though you call yourself the holy city
and talk about depending on the God of Israel,
whose name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
3 Long ago I told you what was going to happen.
Then suddenly I took action,
and all my predictions came true.
4 For I know how stubborn and obstinate you are.
Your necks are as unbending as iron.
Your heads are as hard as bronze.
5 That is why I told you what would happen;
I told you beforehand what I was going to do.
Then you could never say, ‘My idols did it.
My wooden image and metal god commanded it to happen!’
6 You have heard my predictions and seen them fulfilled,
but you refuse to admit it.
Now I will tell you new things,
secrets you have not yet heard.
7 They are brand new, not things from the past.
So you cannot say, ‘We knew that all the time!’
8 “Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely new,
things you never heard of before.
For I know so well what traitors you are.
You have been rebels from birth.
9 Yet for my own sake and for the honor of my name,
I will hold back my anger and not wipe you out.
10 I have refined you, but not as silver is refined.
Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.
11 I will rescue you for my sake—
yes, for my own sake!
I will not let my reputation be tarnished,
and I will not share my glory with idols!
Freedom from Babylon
12 “Listen to me, O family of Jacob,
Israel my chosen one!
I alone am God,
the First and the Last.
13 It was my hand that laid the foundations of the earth,
my right hand that spread out the heavens above.
When I call out the stars,
they all appear in order.”
14 Have any of your idols ever told you this?
Come, all of you, and listen:
The Lord has chosen Cyrus as his ally.
He will use him to put an end to the empire of Babylon
and to destroy the Babylonian[h] armies.
15 “I have said it: I am calling Cyrus!
I will send him on this errand and will help him succeed.
16 Come closer, and listen to this.
From the beginning I have told you plainly what would happen.”
And now the Sovereign Lord and his Spirit
have sent me with this message.
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you what is good for you
and leads you along the paths you should follow.
18 Oh, that you had listened to my commands!
Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river
and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea.
19 Your descendants would have been like the sands along the seashore—
too many to count!
There would have been no need for your destruction,
or for cutting off your family name.”
20 Yet even now, be free from your captivity!
Leave Babylon and the Babylonians.[i]
Sing out this message!
Shout it to the ends of the earth!
The Lord has redeemed his servants,
the people of Israel.[j]
21 They were not thirsty
when he led them through the desert.
He divided the rock,
and water gushed out for them to drink.
22 “But there is no peace for the wicked,”
says the Lord.
The Lord’s Servant Commissioned
49 Listen to me, all you in distant lands!
Pay attention, you who are far away!
The Lord called me before my birth;
from within the womb he called me by name.
2 He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword.
He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.
I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel,
and you will bring me glory.”
4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless!
I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose.
Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand;
I will trust God for my reward.”
5 And now the Lord speaks—
the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant,
who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him.
The Lord has honored me,
and my God has given me strength.
6 He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.
I will make you a light to the Gentiles,
and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
7 The Lord, the Redeemer
and Holy One of Israel,
says to the one who is despised and rejected by the nations,
to the one who is the servant of rulers:
“Kings will stand at attention when you pass by.
Princes will also bow low
because of the Lord, the faithful one,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
Promises of Israel’s Restoration
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At just the right time, I will respond to you.[k]
On the day of salvation I will help you.
I will protect you and give you to the people
as my covenant with them.
Through you I will reestablish the land of Israel
and assign it to its own people again.
9 I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out in freedom,’
and to those in darkness, ‘Come into the light.’
They will be my sheep, grazing in green pastures
and on hills that were previously bare.
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst.
The searing sun will not reach them anymore.
For the Lord in his mercy will lead them;
he will lead them beside cool waters.
11 And I will make my mountains into level paths for them.
The highways will be raised above the valleys.
12 See, my people will return from far away,
from lands to the north and west,
and from as far south as Egypt.[l]”
13 Sing for joy, O heavens!
Rejoice, O earth!
Burst into song, O mountains!
For the Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on them in their suffering.
14 Yet Jerusalem[m] says, “The Lord has deserted us;
the Lord has forgotten us.”
15 “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child?
Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?
But even if that were possible,
I would not forget you!
16 See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.
Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.
17 Soon your descendants will come back,
and all who are trying to destroy you will go away.
18 Look around you and see,
for all your children will come back to you.
As surely as I live,” says the Lord,
“they will be like jewels or bridal ornaments for you to display.
19 “Even the most desolate parts of your abandoned land
will soon be crowded with your people.
Your enemies who enslaved you
will be far away.
20 The generations born in exile will return and say,
‘We need more room! It’s crowded here!’
21 Then you will think to yourself,
‘Who has given me all these descendants?
For most of my children were killed,
and the rest were carried away into exile.
I was left here all alone.
Where did all these people come from?
Who bore these children?
Who raised them for me?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“See, I will give a signal to the godless nations.
They will carry your little sons back to you in their arms;
they will bring your daughters on their shoulders.
23 Kings and queens will serve you
and care for all your needs.
They will bow to the earth before you
and lick the dust from your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.
Those who trust in me will never be put to shame.”
24 Who can snatch the plunder of war from the hands of a warrior?
Who can demand that a tyrant[n] let his captives go?
25 But the Lord says,
“The captives of warriors will be released,
and the plunder of tyrants will be retrieved.
For I will fight those who fight you,
and I will save your children.
26 I will feed your enemies with their own flesh.
They will be drunk with rivers of their own blood.
All the world will know that I, the Lord,
am your Savior and your Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Israel.[o]”
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Was your mother sent away because I divorced her?
Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors?
No, you were sold because of your sins.
And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.
2 Why was no one there when I came?
Why didn’t anyone answer when I called?
Is it because I have no power to rescue?
No, that is not the reason!
For I can speak to the sea and make it dry up!
I can turn rivers into deserts covered with dying fish.
3 I dress the skies in darkness,
covering them with clothes of mourning.”
The Lord’s Obedient Servant
4 The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom,
so that I know how to comfort the weary.
Morning by morning he wakens me
and opens my understanding to his will.
5 The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me,
and I have listened.
I have not rebelled or turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat me
and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard.
I did not hide my face
from mockery and spitting.
7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore, I have set my face like a stone,
determined to do his will.
And I know that I will not be put to shame.
8 He who gives me justice is near.
Who will dare to bring charges against me now?
Where are my accusers?
Let them appear!
9 See, the Sovereign Lord is on my side!
Who will declare me guilty?
All my enemies will be destroyed
like old clothes that have been eaten by moths!
10 Who among you fears the Lord
and obeys his servant?
If you are walking in darkness,
without a ray of light,
trust in the Lord
and rely on your God.
11 But watch out, you who live in your own light
and warm yourselves by your own fires.
This is the reward you will receive from me:
You will soon fall down in great torment.
Footnotes
- 45:2 As in Dead Sea Scrolls and Greek version; Masoretic Text reads the swellings.
- 45:14 Hebrew Cushites.
- 45:19 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 14:1.
- 45:23 Hebrew will confess; Greek version reads will declare allegiance to God. Compare Rom 14:11.
- 46:13 Hebrew Zion.
- 47:1 Or Chaldea; also in 47:5.
- 47:2 Hebrew Bare your legs; pass through the rivers.
- 48:14 Or Chaldean.
- 48:20a Or the Chaldeans.
- 48:20b Hebrew his servant, Jacob. See note on 14:1.
- 49:8 Greek version reads I heard you. Compare 2 Cor 6:2.
- 49:12 As in Dead Sea Scrolls, which read from the region of Aswan, which is in southern Egypt. Masoretic Text reads from the region of Sinim.
- 49:14 Hebrew Zion.
- 49:24 As in Dead Sea Scrolls, Syriac version, and Latin Vulgate (also see 49:25); Masoretic Text reads a righteous person.
- 49:26 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 14:1.
Isaiah 45-50
New International Version
Isaiah 45-50
New International Version
45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(A)
to Cyrus,(B) whose right hand I take hold(C) of
to subdue nations(D) 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(E)
and will level(F) the mountains[a];
I will break down gates(G) of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.(H)
3 I will give you hidden treasures,(I)
riches stored in secret places,(J)
so that you may know(K) that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(L)
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,(M)
of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
and bestow on you a title of honor,
though you do not acknowledge(N) me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;(O)
apart from me there is no God.(P)
I will strengthen you,(Q)
though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting(R)
people may know(S) there is none besides me.(T)
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness,(U)
I bring prosperity and create disaster;(V)
I, the Lord, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain(W) down my righteousness;(X)
let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
let salvation(Y) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel(Z) with their Maker,(AA)
those who are nothing but potsherds(AB)
among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(AC)
‘What are you making?’(AD)
Does your work say,
‘The potter has no hands’?(AE)
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(AF) of Israel, and its Maker:(AG)
Concerning things to come,
do you question me about my children,
or give me orders about the work of my hands?(AH)
12 It is I who made the earth(AI)
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(AJ)
I marshaled their starry hosts.(AK)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[b](AL) in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.(AM)
He will rebuild my city(AN)
and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(AO)
says the Lord Almighty.”
14 This is what the Lord says:
“The products(AP) of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,[c]
and those tall Sabeans(AQ)—
they will come over to you(AR)
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,(AS)
coming over to you in chains.(AT)
They will bow down before you
and plead(AU) with you, saying,
‘Surely God is with you,(AV) and there is no other;
there is no other god.(AW)’”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding(AX) himself,
the God and Savior(AY) of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced;(AZ)
they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved(BA) by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;(BB)
you will never be put to shame or disgraced,(BC)
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,(BD)
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,(BE)
but formed it to be inhabited(BF)—
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other.(BG)
19 I have not spoken in secret,(BH)
from somewhere in a land of darkness;(BI)
I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,(BJ)
‘Seek(BK) me in vain.’
I, the Lord, speak the truth;
I declare what is right.(BL)
20 “Gather together(BM) and come;
assemble, you fugitives from the nations.
Ignorant(BN) are those who carry(BO) about idols of wood,
who pray to gods that cannot save.(BP)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold(BQ) this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?(BR)
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no God apart from me,(BS)
a righteous God(BT) and a Savior;(BU)
there is none but me.
22 “Turn(BV) to me and be saved,(BW)
all you ends of the earth;(BX)
for I am God, and there is no other.(BY)
23 By myself I have sworn,(BZ)
my mouth has uttered in all integrity(CA)
a word that will not be revoked:(CB)
Before me every knee will bow;(CC)
by me every tongue will swear.(CD)
24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
are deliverance(CE) and strength.(CF)’”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.(CG)
25 But all the descendants(CH) of Israel
will find deliverance(CI) in the Lord
and will make their boast in him.(CJ)
Gods of Babylon
46 Bel(CK) bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols(CL) are borne by beasts of burden.[d]
The images that are carried(CM) 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.(CN)
3 “Listen(CO) to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant(CP) of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,(CQ)
and have carried(CR) since you were born.(CS)
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs(CT)
I am he,(CU) I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain(CV) 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?(CW)
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith(CX) to make it into a god,
and they bow down and worship it.(CY)
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry(CZ) it;
they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
From that spot it cannot move.(DA)
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;(DB)
it cannot save(DC) them from their troubles.
8 “Remember(DD) this, keep it in mind,
take it to heart, you rebels.(DE)
9 Remember the former things,(DF) those of long ago;(DG)
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.(DH)
10 I make known the end from the beginning,(DI)
from ancient times,(DJ) what is still to come.(DK)
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,(DL)
and I will do all that I please.’
11 From the east I summon(DM) a bird of prey;(DN)
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned,(DO) that I will do.(DP)
12 Listen(DQ) to me, you stubborn-hearted,(DR)
you who are now far from my righteousness.(DS)
13 I am bringing my righteousness(DT) near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation(DU) will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,(DV)
my splendor(DW) to Israel.
The Fall of Babylon
47 “Go down, sit in the dust,(DX)
Virgin Daughter(DY) Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
queen city of the Babylonians.[e](DZ)
No more will you be called
tender or delicate.(EA)
2 Take millstones(EB) and grind(EC) flour;
take off your veil.(ED)
Lift up your skirts,(EE) bare your legs,
and wade through the streams.
3 Your nakedness(EF) will be exposed
and your shame(EG) uncovered.
I will take vengeance;(EH)
I will spare no one.(EI)”
5 “Sit in silence,(EN) go into darkness,(EO)
queen city of the Babylonians;(EP)
no more will you be called
queen(EQ) of kingdoms.(ER)
6 I was angry(ES) with my people
and desecrated my inheritance;(ET)
I gave them into your hand,(EU)
and you showed them no mercy.(EV)
Even on the aged
you laid a very heavy yoke.
7 You said, ‘I am forever(EW)—
the eternal queen!’(EX)
But you did not consider these things
or reflect(EY) on what might happen.(EZ)
8 “Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure,
lounging in your security(FA)
and saying to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.(FB)
I will never be a widow(FC)
or suffer the loss of children.’
9 Both of these will overtake you
in a moment,(FD) on a single day:
loss of children(FE) and widowhood.(FF)
They will come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries(FG)
and all your potent spells.(FH)
10 You have trusted(FI) in your wickedness
and have said, ‘No one sees me.’(FJ)
Your wisdom(FK) and knowledge mislead(FL) you
when you say to yourself,
‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
11 Disaster(FM) 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(FN) come upon you.
12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells
and with your many sorceries,(FO)
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!(FP)
Let your astrologers(FQ) come forward,
those stargazers who make predictions month by month,
let them save(FR) you from what is coming upon you.
14 Surely they are like stubble;(FS)
the fire(FT) will burn them up.
They cannot even save themselves
from the power of the flame.(FU)
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(FV) with since childhood.
All of them go on in their error;
there is not one that can save(FW) you.
Stubborn Israel
48 “Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel(FX)
and come from the line of Judah,(FY)
you who take oaths(FZ) in the name of the Lord(GA)
and invoke(GB) the God of Israel—
but not in truth(GC) or righteousness—
2 you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city(GD)
and claim to rely(GE) on the God of Israel—
the Lord Almighty is his name:(GF)
3 I foretold the former things(GG) long ago,
my mouth announced(GH) them and I made them known;
then suddenly(GI) I acted, and they came to pass.
4 For I knew how stubborn(GJ) you were;
your neck muscles(GK) were iron,
your forehead(GL) was bronze.
5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;
before they happened I announced(GM) them to you
so that you could not say,
‘My images brought them about;(GN)
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,(GO)
of hidden things unknown to you.
7 They are created(GP) now, and not long ago;(GQ)
you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
‘Yes, I knew(GR) of them.’
8 You have neither heard nor understood;(GS)
from of old your ears(GT) have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous(GU) you are;
you were called a rebel(GV) from birth.
9 For my own name’s sake(GW) I delay my wrath;(GX)
for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
so as not to destroy you completely.(GY)
10 See, I have refined(GZ) you, though not as silver;
I have tested(HA) you in the furnace(HB) of affliction.
11 For my own sake,(HC) for my own sake, I do this.
How can I let myself be defamed?(HD)
I will not yield my glory to another.(HE)
Israel Freed
12 “Listen(HF) to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:(HG)
I am he;(HH)
I am the first and I am the last.(HI)
13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,(HJ)
and my right hand spread out the heavens;(HK)
when I summon them,
they all stand up together.(HL)
14 “Come together,(HM) all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold(HN) these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally(HO)
will carry out his purpose(HP) against Babylon;(HQ)
his arm will be against the Babylonians.[f]
15 I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called(HR) him.
I will bring him,
and he will succeed(HS) in his mission.
16 “Come near(HT) me and listen(HU) to this:
“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;(HV)
at the time it happens, I am there.”
17 This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer,(HZ) the Holy One(IA) of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches(IB) you what is best for you,
who directs(IC) you in the way(ID) you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention(IE) to my commands,
your peace(IF) would have been like a river,(IG)
your well-being(IH) like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants(II) would have been like the sand,(IJ)
your children like its numberless grains;(IK)
their name would never be blotted out(IL)
nor destroyed from before me.”
20 Leave Babylon,
flee(IM) from the Babylonians!
Announce this with shouts of joy(IN)
and proclaim it.
Send it out to the ends of the earth;(IO)
say, “The Lord has redeemed(IP) his servant Jacob.”
21 They did not thirst(IQ) when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow(IR) for them from the rock;
he split the rock
and water gushed out.(IS)
The Servant of the Lord
49 Listen(IV) to me, you islands;(IW)
hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born(IX) the Lord called(IY) me;
from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.(IZ)
2 He made my mouth(JA) like a sharpened sword,(JB)
in the shadow of his hand(JC) he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow(JD)
and concealed me in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,(JE)
Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.(JF)”
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;(JG)
I have spent my strength for nothing at all.
Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,(JH)
and my reward(JI) is with my God.”(JJ)
5 And now the Lord says—
he who formed me in the womb(JK) to be his servant
to bring Jacob back to him
and gather Israel(JL) to himself,
for I am[g] honored(JM) in the eyes of the Lord
and my God has been my strength(JN)—
6 he says:
“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant(JO)
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring back those of Israel I have kept.(JP)
I will also make you a light(JQ) for the Gentiles,(JR)
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”(JS)
7 This is what the Lord says—
the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel(JT)—
to him who was despised(JU) and abhorred by the nation,
to the servant of rulers:
“Kings(JV) will see you and stand up,
princes will see and bow down,(JW)
because of the Lord, who is faithful,(JX)
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen(JY) you.”
Restoration of Israel
8 This is what the Lord says:
“In the time of my favor(JZ) I will answer you,
and in the day of salvation I will help you;(KA)
I will keep(KB) you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people,(KC)
to restore the land(KD)
and to reassign its desolate inheritances,(KE)
9 to say to the captives,(KF) ‘Come out,’
and to those in darkness,(KG) ‘Be free!’
“They will feed beside the roads
and find pasture on every barren hill.(KH)
10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,(KI)
nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.(KJ)
He who has compassion(KK) on them will guide(KL) them
and lead them beside springs(KM) of water.
11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,
and my highways(KN) will be raised up.(KO)
12 See, they will come from afar(KP)—
some from the north, some from the west,(KQ)
some from the region of Aswan.[h]”
13 Shout for joy,(KR) you heavens;
rejoice, you earth;(KS)
burst into song, you mountains!(KT)
For the Lord comforts(KU) his people
and will have compassion(KV) on his afflicted ones.(KW)
15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child(KZ) she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!(LA)
16 See, I have engraved(LB) you on the palms of my hands;
your walls(LC) are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten back,
and those who laid you waste(LD) depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around;
all your children gather(LE) and come to you.
As surely as I live,(LF)” declares the Lord,
“you will wear(LG) them all as ornaments;
you will put them on, like a bride.
19 “Though you were ruined and made desolate(LH)
and your land laid waste,(LI)
now you will be too small for your people,(LJ)
and those who devoured(LK) 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.’(LL)
21 Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who bore me these?(LM)
I was bereaved(LN) and barren;
I was exiled and rejected.(LO)
Who brought these(LP) up?
I was left(LQ) all alone,(LR)
but these—where have they come from?’”
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord(LS) says:
“See, I will beckon to the nations,
I will lift up my banner(LT) to the peoples;
they will bring(LU) your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their hips.(LV)
23 Kings(LW) will be your foster fathers,
and their queens your nursing mothers.(LX)
They will bow down(LY) before you with their faces to the ground;
they will lick the dust(LZ) at your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;(MA)
those who hope(MB) in me will not be disappointed.(MC)”
25 But this is what the Lord says:
“Yes, captives(ME) will be taken from warriors,(MF)
and plunder retrieved from the fierce;(MG)
I will contend with those who contend with you,(MH)
and your children I will save.(MI)
26 I will make your oppressors(MJ) eat(MK) their own flesh;
they will be drunk on their own blood,(ML) as with wine.
Then all mankind will know(MM)
that I, the Lord, am your Savior,(MN)
your Redeemer,(MO) the Mighty One of Jacob.(MP)”
Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience
50 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce(MQ)
with which I sent her away?
Or to which of my creditors
did I sell(MR) you?
Because of your sins(MS) you were sold;(MT)
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?(MU)
Was my arm too short(MV) to deliver you?
Do I lack the strength(MW) to rescue you?
By a mere rebuke(MX) I dry up the sea,(MY)
I turn rivers into a desert;(MZ)
their fish rot for lack of water
and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with darkness(NA)
and make sackcloth(NB) its covering.”
4 The Sovereign Lord(NC) has given me a well-instructed tongue,(ND)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(NE)
He wakens me morning by morning,(NF)
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.(NG)
5 The Sovereign Lord(NH) has opened my ears;(NI)
I have not been rebellious,(NJ)
I have not turned away.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(NK) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(NL)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(NM)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(NN) helps(NO) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(NP)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(NQ)
8 He who vindicates(NR) me is near.(NS)
Who then will bring charges against me?(NT)
Let us face each other!(NU)
Who is my accuser?
Let him confront me!
9 It is the Sovereign Lord(NV) who helps(NW) me.
Who will condemn(NX) me?
They will all wear out like a garment;
the moths(NY) will eat them up.
10 Who among you fears(NZ) the Lord
and obeys(OA) the word of his servant?(OB)
Let the one who walks in the dark,
who has no light,(OC)
trust(OD) in the name of the Lord
and rely on their God.
11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,(OE)
go, walk in the light of your fires(OF)
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:(OG)
You will lie down in torment.(OH)
Footnotes
- 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
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.