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24 Thus says the Lord, (A)your Redeemer,
    (B)who formed you from the womb:
(C)“I am the Lord, who made all things,
    (D)who alone stretched out the heavens,
    who spread out the earth by myself,
25 who frustrates the signs of liars
    and makes fools of diviners,
(E)who turns wise men back
    and makes their knowledge foolish,
26 (F)who confirms the word of his servant
    and fulfils the counsel of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited’,
    (G)and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built,
    and I will raise up their ruins’;
27 (H)who says to the deep, ‘Be dry;
    I will dry up your rivers’;
28 who says of (I)Cyrus, ‘He is (J)my shepherd,
    and he shall fulfil all my purpose’;
saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built’,
    (K)and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’”

Cyrus, God's Instrument

45 Thus says the Lord to (L)his anointed, to Cyrus,
    (M)whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
    and (N)to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
    that gates may not be closed:
“I will go before you
    and (O)level the exalted places,[a]
(P)I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
    and cut through the bars of iron,
(Q)I will give you the treasures of darkness
    and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
    the God of Israel, (R)who call you by your name.
For the sake of my servant Jacob,
    and Israel my chosen,
(S)I call you by your name,
    (T)I name you, though you do not know me.
(U)I am the Lord, and there is no other,
    besides me there is no God;
    (V)I equip you, though you do not know me,
(W)that people may know, from the rising of the sun
    and from the west, that there is none besides me;
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,
    I make well-being and (X)create calamity,
    I am the Lord, who does all these things.
(Y)“Shower, O heavens, from above,
    and (Z)let the clouds rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit;
    let the earth cause them both to sprout;
    I the Lord have created it.
(AA)“Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,
    a pot among earthen pots!
(AB)Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’
    or ‘Your work has no handles’?
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’
    or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labour?’”
11 Thus says (AC)the Lord,
    the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:
(AD)“Ask me of things to come;
    will you command me (AE)concerning my children and (AF)the work of my hands?[b]
12 (AG)I made the earth
    and created man on it;
it was my hands (AH)that stretched out the heavens,
    and (AI)I commanded all their host.
13 (AJ)I have stirred him up in righteousness,
    (AK)and I will make all his ways level;
(AL)he shall build my city
    (AM)and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,”
    says the Lord of hosts.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 45:2 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint level the mountains
  2. Isaiah 45:11 A slight emendation yields will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands?

Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

24 “This is what the Lord says—
    your Redeemer,(A) who formed(B) you in the womb:(C)

I am the Lord,
    the Maker of all things,
    who stretches out the heavens,(D)
    who spreads out the earth(E) by myself,
25 who foils(F) the signs of false prophets
    and makes fools of diviners,(G)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(H)
    and turns it into nonsense,(I)
26 who carries out the words(J) of his servants
    and fulfills(K) the predictions of his messengers,

who says of Jerusalem,(L) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
    of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
    and of their ruins,(M) ‘I will restore them,’(N)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
    and I will dry up(O) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(P) ‘He is my shepherd
    and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(Q) “Let it be rebuilt,”
    and of the temple,(R) “Let its foundations(S) be laid.”’

45 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed,(T)
    to Cyrus,(U) whose right hand I take hold(V) of
to subdue nations(W) before him
    and to strip kings of their armor,
to open doors before him
    so that gates will not be shut:
I will go before you(X)
    and will level(Y) the mountains[a];
I will break down gates(Z) of bronze
    and cut through bars of iron.(AA)
I will give you hidden treasures,(AB)
    riches stored in secret places,(AC)
so that you may know(AD) that I am the Lord,
    the God of Israel, who summons you by name.(AE)
For the sake of Jacob my servant,(AF)
    of Israel my chosen,
I summon you by name
    and bestow on you a title of honor,
    though you do not acknowledge(AG) me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other;(AH)
    apart from me there is no God.(AI)
I will strengthen you,(AJ)
    though you have not acknowledged me,
so that from the rising of the sun
    to the place of its setting(AK)
people may know(AL) there is none besides me.(AM)
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form the light and create darkness,(AN)
    I bring prosperity and create disaster;(AO)
    I, the Lord, do all these things.

“You heavens above, rain(AP) down my righteousness;(AQ)
    let the clouds shower it down.
Let the earth open wide,
    let salvation(AR) spring up,
let righteousness flourish with it;
    I, the Lord, have created it.

“Woe to those who quarrel(AS) with their Maker,(AT)
    those who are nothing but potsherds(AU)
    among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,(AV)
    ‘What are you making?’(AW)
Does your work say,
    ‘The potter has no hands’?(AX)
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(AY) of Israel, and its Maker:(AZ)
Concerning things to come,
    do you question me about my children,
    or give me orders about the work of my hands?(BA)
12 It is I who made the earth(BB)
    and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;(BC)
    I marshaled their starry hosts.(BD)
13 I will raise up Cyrus[b](BE) in my righteousness:
    I will make all his ways straight.(BF)
He will rebuild my city(BG)
    and set my exiles free,
but not for a price or reward,(BH)
    says the Lord Almighty.”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 45:2 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
  2. Isaiah 45:13 Hebrew him