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45 Thus says Yahweh to his anointed one,
    to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped
to subjugate nations before him,
    and I uncover[a] the loins of kings
to open doors before him,
    and the gates shall not be shut:
“I myself will go before you,
    and I will level the mountains.[b]
I will break the doors of bronze
    and cut throughthe bars of iron.
And I will give you the treasures of darkness
    and treasures of secret places
so that you may know that I am Yahweh,
    the one who calls you by your name, the God of Israel,
for the sake of my servant Jacob,
    and Israel my chosen one.
And I call you by your name;
    I give you a name of honor, though[c] you do not know me.
I am Yahweh, and there is none besides me;
    besides me there is no god.
        I gird you though[d] you do not know me,
so that they may know from the rising of the sun
    and from the west that there is none besides me;
        I am Yahweh and there is none besides me.
I form light and I create darkness;
    I make peace and I create evil;
        I am Yahweh; I do all these things.
Trickle, O heavens, from above,
    and let clouds trickle with righteousness;
let the earth open so that[e] salvation may be fruitful,
    and let it cause righteousness to sprout along with it.[f]
        I myself, Yahweh, have created it.
Woe to the one who strives with his maker,[g]
    a potsherd among[h] potsherds of earth!
Does the clay say to the one who fashions it,
    ‘What are you making?’
    and ‘Your work has no hands’?
10 Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What you are begetting?’
    or[i] to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’”
11 Thus says Yahweh, the holy one of Israel,
    and its maker:[j]
“Ask me of the things to come about[k] my children,
    and you command me about the work of my hands.
12 I myself made the earth,
    and I created humankind upon it.
I, my hands, stretched out the heavens,
    and I commanded all their host.
13 I myself have stirred him up in righteousness,
    and I will make all his paths smooth.
He himself shall build my city,
    and he shall set my exiles free,

not for price or a gift,” says Yahweh of hosts.

Yahweh the Only Savior

14 Thus says Yahweh:
    “The acquisition of Egypt
and the merchandise of Cush
    and the Sabeans, tall men,
shall pass over to you;
    they shall be yours,
and they shall walk behind you.
    They shall pass over in chains,
and they shall bow down to you;
    they will pray to you:
‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other.
    Besides him there is no God.’”
15 Surely you are a God who keeps yourself hidden,
    God of Israel, the savior.
16 All of them are ashamed and indeed humiliated;
    the craftsmen of idols go together in insult.
17 Israel is saved by Yahweh with everlasting salvation;
    you shall not be ashamed,
    and you shall not be humiliated to all eternity.[l]
18 For thus says Yahweh, who created[m] the heavens,
    he is God, who formed[n] the earth
and who made[o] it.
    He himself established it;
he did not create it as emptiness—
    he formed it for inhabiting.

“I am Yahweh and there is none besides me.

19 I have spoken not in secrecy, in a place, a land, of darkness,
    I have not said to the descendants of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain!’[p]
I, Yahweh, am speaking righteousness,
    declaring uprightness.
20 Assemble and come;
    draw near together, survivors of the nations!
    They do not know, those who carry their wooden idols[q]
    and pray to a god who cannot save.
21 Declare and present your case,
    also let them consult together!
Who made this known[r] from former times,[s]
    declared it from of old?[t]
Was it not I, Yahweh?
    And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God besides me,
    and no savior besides me.
22 Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth,
    for I am God and there is none besides me.
23 I have sworn by myself;
    a word that[u] shall not return has gone forth from my mouth in righteousness:
‘Every knee shall kneel down to me;
    every tongue shall swear.’
24 ‘Only in Yahweh,’ one shall say to me, ‘are righteousness and strength.’
    He shall come to him, and all those who were angry with him shall be ashamed.
25 In Yahweh all the offspring of Israel shall be in the right,
    and they shall boast.”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 45:1 Or “let loose”
  2. Isaiah 45:2 Literally “swells”
  3. Isaiah 45:4 Or “and”
  4. Isaiah 45:5 Or “and”
  5. Isaiah 45:8 Or “and”
  6. Isaiah 45:8 Or “together”
  7. Isaiah 45:9 Literally “one who forms”
  8. Isaiah 45:9 Or “with”
  9. Isaiah 45:10 Or “and”
  10. Isaiah 45:11 Literally “one who forms”
  11. Isaiah 45:11 Literally “over”
  12. Isaiah 45:17 Literally “for eternity, forever”
  13. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “creating”
  14. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “forming”
  15. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “making”
  16. Isaiah 45:19 Literally “in emptiness,” as in verse 18
  17. Isaiah 45:20 Literally “the wood of their idol”
  18. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “caused to hear this”
  19. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “before”
  20. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “then”
  21. Isaiah 45:23 Or “and”

45 Yahweh says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, to subdue nations before him, and strip kings of their armor; to open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut:

“I will go before you
    and make the rough places smooth.
I will break the doors of bronze in pieces
    and cut apart the bars of iron.
I will give you the treasures of darkness
    and hidden riches of secret places,
that you may know that it is I, Yahweh, who calls you by your name,
    even the God of Israel.
For Jacob my servant’s sake,
    and Israel my chosen,
I have called you by your name.
    I have given you a title,
    though you have not known me.
I am Yahweh, and there is no one else.
    Besides me, there is no God.
I will strengthen[a] you,
    though you have not known me,
that they may know from the rising of the sun,
    and from the west,
that there is no one besides me.
    I am Yahweh, and there is no one else.
I form the light
    and create darkness.
I make peace
    and create calamity.
I am Yahweh,
    who does all these things.

Rain, you heavens, from above,
    and let the skies pour down righteousness.
Let the earth open, that it may produce salvation,
    and let it cause righteousness to spring up with it.
I, Yahweh, have created it.

Woe to him who strives with his Maker—
    a clay pot among the clay pots of the earth!
Shall the clay ask him who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’
    or your work, ‘He has no hands?’
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What have you become the father of?’
    or to a mother, ‘What have you given birth to?’”

11 Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel
    and his Maker says:
“You ask me about the things that are to come, concerning my sons,
    and you command me concerning the work of my hands!
12 I have made the earth, and created man on it.
    I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens.
    I have commanded all their army.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness,
    and I will make all his ways straight.
He shall build my city,
    and he shall let my exiles go free,
    not for price nor reward,” says Yahweh of Armies.

14 Yahweh says: “The labor of Egypt,
    and the merchandise of Ethiopia,
    and the Sabeans, men of stature, will come over to you,
    and they will be yours.
They will go after you.
    They shall come over in chains.
    They will bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you:
    ‘Surely God is in you; and there is no one else.
    There is no other god.
15 Most certainly you are a God who has hidden yourself,
    God of Israel, the Savior.’”
16 They will be disappointed,
    yes, confounded, all of them.
    Those who are makers of idols will go into confusion together.
17 Israel will be saved by Yahweh with an everlasting salvation.
    You will not be disappointed nor confounded to ages everlasting.

18 For Yahweh who created the heavens,
    the God who formed the earth and made it,
    who established it and didn’t create it a waste,
    who formed it to be inhabited says:
“I am Yahweh.
    There is no other.
19 I have not spoken in secret,
    in a place of the land of darkness.
I didn’t say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’
    I, Yahweh, speak righteousness.
    I declare things that are right.

20 “Assemble yourselves and come.
    Draw near together, you who have escaped from the nations.
Those have no knowledge who carry the wood of their engraved image,
    and pray to a god that can’t save.
21 Declare and present it.
    Yes, let them take counsel together.
Who has shown this from ancient time?
    Who has declared it of old?
    Haven’t I, Yahweh?
There is no other God besides me, a just God and a Savior.
    There is no one besides me.

22 “Look to me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth;
    for I am God, and there is no other.
23 I have sworn by myself.
    The word has gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and will not be revoked,
that to me every knee shall bow,
    every tongue shall take an oath.
24 They will say of me,
    ‘There is righteousness and strength only in Yahweh.’”
Even to him will men come.
    All those who raged against him will be disappointed.
25 All the offspring of Israel will be justified in Yahweh,
    and will rejoice!

Footnotes

  1. 45:5 or, equip