²⁸ But when I look there is no one;
    among these there is no counselor
    who, when I ask, gives an answer.^(A)

⁵ I looked, but there was no helper;
    I was abandoned, and there was no one to sustain me,
so my own arm brought me victory,
    and my wrath sustained me.^(A)

¹⁶ He saw that there was no one
    and was appalled that there was no one to intervene,
so his own arm brought him victory,
    and his righteousness upheld him.^(A)

² Why was no one there when I came?
    Why did no one answer when I called?
Is my arm powerless to redeem?
    Or have I no strength to deliver?
By my rebuke I dry up the sea;
    I make the rivers a desert,
so that their fish stink for lack of water
    and die of thirst.^[a](A)

¹³ Who has directed the spirit of the Lord
    or as his counselor has instructed him?^(A)
14 Whom did he consult for his enlightenment,
    and who taught him the path of justice?
[[Who taught him knowledge
    and showed him the way of understanding?