Isaiah 45
English Standard Version
Cyrus, God's Instrument
45 Thus says the Lord to (A)his anointed, to Cyrus,
(B)whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
and (C)to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
2 “I will go before you
and (D)level the exalted places,[a]
(E)I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut through the bars of iron,
3 (F)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, (G)who call you by your name.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
(H)I call you by your name,
(I)I name you, though you do not know me.
5 (J)I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
(K)I equip you, though you do not know me,
6 (L)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.
7 I form light and create darkness;
I make well-being and (M)create calamity;
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
8 (N)“Shower, O heavens, from above,
and (O)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.
9 (P)“Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,
a pot among earthen pots!
(Q)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 labor?’”
11 Thus says (R)the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:
(S)“Ask me of things to come;
will you command me (T)concerning my children and (U)the work of my hands?[b]
12 (V)I made the earth
and created man on it;
it was my hands (W)that stretched out the heavens,
and (X)I commanded all their host.
13 (Y)I have stirred him up in righteousness,
(Z)and I will make all his ways level;
(AA)he shall build my city
(AB)and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,”
says the Lord of hosts.
The Lord, the Only Savior
14 Thus says the Lord:
(AC)“The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,
and the Sabeans, men of stature,
shall come over to you (AD)and be yours;
they shall follow you;
they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will plead with you, saying:
‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other,
no god besides him.’”
15 (AE)Truly, you are a God who hides himself,
O God of Israel, the Savior.
16 (AF)All of them are put to shame and confounded;
the makers of idols go in confusion together.
17 But Israel is saved by the Lord
with everlasting salvation;
(AG)you shall not be put to shame or confounded
to all eternity.
18 (AH)For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens
(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it
(he established it;
he (AI)did not create it empty,
(AJ)he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19 (AK)I did not speak in secret,
in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
(AL)‘Seek me in vain.’[c]
I the Lord speak (AM)the truth;
I declare what is right.
20 (AN)“Assemble yourselves and come;
draw near together,
you survivors of the nations!
(AO)They have no knowledge
who (AP)carry about their wooden idols,
(AQ)and keep on praying to a god
that cannot save.
21 (AR)Declare and present your case;
let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?
Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God (AS)and a Savior;
there is none besides me.
22 “Turn to me and be saved,
(AT)all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 (AU)By myself I have sworn;
from my mouth has gone out in (AV)righteousness
a word that shall not return:
(AW)‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear allegiance.’[d]
24 (AX)“Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,
are righteousness and (AY)strength;
to him shall come and be ashamed
(AZ)all who were incensed against him.
25 In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
shall be justified and shall glory.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 45:2 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint level the mountains
- Isaiah 45:11 A slight emendation yields will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands?
- Isaiah 45:19 Hebrew in emptiness
- Isaiah 45:23 Septuagint every tongue shall confess to God
Isaiah 45
Holman Christian Standard Bible
45 The Lord says this to Cyrus, His anointed,(A)
whose right hand I have grasped(B)
to subdue nations before him,
to disarm[a] kings,(C)
to open the doors before him
and the gates will not be shut:
2 “I will go before you
and level the uneven places;[b](D)
I will shatter the bronze doors
and cut the iron bars in two.(E)
3 I will give you the treasures of darkness
and riches from secret places,(F)
so that you may know that I, Yahweh,
the God of Israel call you by your name.(G)
4 I call you by your name,
because of Jacob My servant(H)
and Israel My chosen one.
I give a name to you,
though you do not know Me.
5 I am Yahweh, and there is no other;(I)
there is no God but Me.(J)
I will strengthen[c] you,
though you do not know Me,
6 so that all may know from the rising of the sun to its setting
that there is no one but Me.(K)
I am Yahweh, and there is no other.
7 I form light and create darkness,(L)
I make success and create disaster;(M)
I, Yahweh, do all these things.
8 “Heavens, sprinkle from above,
and let the skies shower righteousness.(N)
Let the earth open up
so that salvation will sprout
and righteousness will spring up with it.(O)
I, Yahweh, have created it.
9 “Woe to the one who argues with his Maker—
one clay pot among many.[d]
Does clay say to the one forming it,
‘What are you making?’(P)
Or does your work say,
‘He has no hands’?[e]
10 How absurd is the one who says to his father,
‘What are you fathering?’
or to his mother,
‘What are you giving birth to?’”
11 This is what the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel(Q) and its Maker, says:
“Ask Me what is to happen to[f] My sons,(R)
and instruct Me about the work of My hands.(S)
12 I made the earth,
and created man on it.
It was My hands that stretched out the heavens,(T)
and I commanded all their host.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness,(U)
and will level all roads for him.
He will rebuild My city,(V)
and set My exiles free,(W)
not for a price or a bribe,”
says the Lord of Hosts.
God Alone is the Savior
14 This is what the Lord says:
The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush
and the Sabeans, men of stature,(X)
will come over to you(Y)
and will be yours;
they will follow you,
they will come over in chains
and bow down to you.
They will confess[g] to you:
God is indeed with you,(Z) and there is no other;
there is no other God.
15 Yes, You are a God who hides Himself,(AA)
God of Israel, Savior.(AB)
16 All of them are put to shame, even humiliated;(AC)
the makers of idols go in humiliation together.
17 Israel will be saved by the Lord
with an everlasting salvation;
you will not be put to shame or humiliated
for all eternity.(AD)
18 For this is what the Lord says—
God is the Creator of the heavens.
He formed the earth and made it.
He established it;
He did not create it to be empty,
but formed it to be inhabited(AE)—
“I am Yahweh,
and there is no other.
19 I have not spoken in secret,(AF)
somewhere in a land of darkness.
I did not say to the descendants of Jacob:
Seek Me in a wasteland.(AG)
I, Yahweh, speak truthfully;(AH)
I say what is right.
20 “Come, gather together,
and draw near, you fugitives of the nations.
Those who carry their wooden idols,
and pray to a god who cannot save,(AI)
have no knowledge.(AJ)
21 Speak up and present your case[h](AK)—
yes, let them take counsel together.
Who predicted this long ago?
Who announced it from ancient times?
Was it not I, Yahweh?
There is no other God but Me,
a righteous God and Savior;(AL)
there is no one except Me.(AM)
22 Turn to Me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth.
For I am God,
and there is no other.
23 By Myself I have sworn;(AN)
Truth has gone from My mouth,(AO)
a word that will not be revoked:
Every knee will bow(AP) to Me,
every tongue will swear allegiance.
24 It will be said to Me: Righteousness and strength
is only in the Lord.”
All who are enraged against Him
will come to Him and be put to shame.(AQ)
25 All the descendants of Israel
will be justified and find glory through the Lord.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 45:1 Lit unloosen the loins
- Isaiah 45:2 DSS, LXX read the mountains
- Isaiah 45:5 Lit gird
- Isaiah 45:9 Lit a clay pot with clay pots of the ground
- Isaiah 45:9 Or making? Your work has no hands.
- Isaiah 45:11 Or Me the coming things about
- Isaiah 45:14 Lit pray
- Isaiah 45:21 Lit and approach
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