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The Helper of Israel

41 “Be silent(A) before me, you islands!(B)
    Let the nations renew their strength!(C)
Let them come forward(D) and speak;
    let us meet together(E) at the place of judgment.

“Who has stirred(F) up one from the east,(G)
    calling him in righteousness(H) to his service[a]?(I)
He hands nations over to him
    and subdues kings before him.
He turns them to dust(J) with his sword,
    to windblown chaff(K) with his bow.(L)
He pursues them and moves on unscathed,(M)
    by a path his feet have not traveled before.
Who has done this and carried it through,
    calling(N) forth the generations from the beginning?(O)
I, the Lord—with the first of them
    and with the last(P)—I am he.(Q)

The islands(R) have seen it and fear;
    the ends of the earth(S) tremble.
They approach and come forward;
    they help each other
    and say to their companions, “Be strong!(T)
The metalworker(U) encourages the goldsmith,(V)
    and the one who smooths with the hammer
    spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
    The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.(W)

“But you, Israel, my servant,(X)
    Jacob, whom I have chosen,(Y)
    you descendants of Abraham(Z) my friend,(AA)
I took you from the ends of the earth,(AB)
    from its farthest corners I called(AC) you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;(AD)
    I have chosen(AE) you and have not rejected you.
10 So do not fear,(AF) for I am with you;(AG)
    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen(AH) you and help(AI) you;
    I will uphold you(AJ) with my righteous right hand.(AK)

11 “All who rage(AL) against you
    will surely be ashamed and disgraced;(AM)
those who oppose(AN) you
    will be as nothing and perish.(AO)
12 Though you search for your enemies,
    you will not find them.(AP)
Those who wage war against you
    will be as nothing(AQ) at all.
13 For I am the Lord your God
    who takes hold of your right hand(AR)
and says to you, Do not fear;
    I will help(AS) you.
14 Do not be afraid,(AT) you worm(AU) Jacob,
    little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help(AV) you,” declares the Lord,
    your Redeemer,(AW) the Holy One(AX) of Israel.
15 “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,(AY)
    new and sharp, with many teeth.
You will thresh the mountains(AZ) and crush them,
    and reduce the hills to chaff.(BA)
16 You will winnow(BB) them, the wind will pick them up,
    and a gale(BC) will blow them away.(BD)
But you will rejoice(BE) in the Lord
    and glory(BF) in the Holy One(BG) of Israel.

17 “The poor and needy search for water,(BH)
    but there is none;
    their tongues are parched with thirst.(BI)
But I the Lord will answer(BJ) them;
    I, the God of Israel, will not forsake(BK) them.
18 I will make rivers flow(BL) on barren heights,
    and springs within the valleys.
I will turn the desert(BM) into pools of water,(BN)
    and the parched ground into springs.(BO)
19 I will put in the desert(BP)
    the cedar and the acacia,(BQ) the myrtle and the olive.
I will set junipers(BR) in the wasteland,
    the fir and the cypress(BS) together,(BT)
20 so that people may see and know,(BU)
    may consider and understand,(BV)
that the hand(BW) of the Lord has done this,
    that the Holy One(BX) of Israel has created(BY) it.

21 “Present your case,(BZ)” says the Lord.
    “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.(CA)
22 “Tell us, you idols,
    what is going to happen.(CB)
Tell us what the former things(CC) were,
    so that we may consider them
    and know their final outcome.
Or declare to us the things to come,(CD)
23     tell us what the future holds,
    so we may know(CE) that you are gods.
Do something, whether good or bad,(CF)
    so that we will be dismayed(CG) and filled with fear.
24 But you are less than nothing(CH)
    and your works are utterly worthless;(CI)
    whoever chooses you is detestable.(CJ)

25 “I have stirred(CK) up one from the north,(CL) and he comes—
    one from the rising sun who calls on my name.
He treads(CM) on rulers as if they were mortar,
    as if he were a potter treading the clay.
26 Who told of this from the beginning,(CN) so we could know,
    or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?
No one told of this,
    no one foretold(CO) it,
    no one heard any words(CP) from you.
27 I was the first to tell(CQ) Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’
    I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.(CR)
28 I look but there is no one(CS)
    no one among the gods to give counsel,(CT)
    no one to give answer(CU) when I ask them.
29 See, they are all false!
    Their deeds amount to nothing;(CV)
    their images(CW) are but wind(CX) and confusion.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 41:2 Or east, / whom victory meets at every step

41 Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.

He pursued them, and passed safely; even by the way that he had not gone with his feet.

Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he.

The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came.

They helped every one his neighbour; and every one said to his brother, Be of good courage.

So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.

10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish.

12 Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.

13 For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.

16 Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the Lord, and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:

20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

21 Produce your cause, saith the Lord; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob.

22 Let them bring them forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.

23 Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

24 Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooseth you.

25 I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.

26 Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.

27 The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.

28 For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, and there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.

29 Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.

Fear Not, for I Am with You

41 (A)Listen to me in silence, (B)O coastlands;
    let the peoples renew their strength;
let them approach, then let them speak;
    let us together draw near for judgment.

(C)Who stirred up one from the east
    whom victory meets at every (D)step?[a]
(E)He gives up nations before him,
    so that he tramples kings underfoot;
he makes them like dust with his sword,
    (F)like driven stubble with his bow.
He pursues them and passes on safely,
    by paths his feet have not trod.
(G)Who has performed and done this,
    calling the generations from the beginning?
(H)I, the Lord, the first,
    and with the last; I am he.

(I)The coastlands have seen and are afraid;
    the ends of the earth tremble;
    they have drawn near and come.
Everyone helps his neighbor
    and says to his brother, “Be strong!”
(J)The craftsman strengthens the goldsmith,
    and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
    and they strengthen it with nails (K)so that it cannot be moved.

But you, Israel, (L)my servant,
    Jacob, (M)whom I have chosen,
    the offspring of Abraham, (N)my friend;
you whom I took from the ends of the earth,
    and called (O)from its farthest corners,
saying to you, “You are (P)my servant,
    (Q)I have chosen you and not cast you off”;
10 fear not, for I am with you;
    be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
    I will uphold you with (R)my righteous right hand.

11 (S)Behold, all who are incensed against you
    shall be put to shame and confounded;
those who strive against you
    shall be as nothing and shall perish.
12 (T)You shall seek those who contend with you,
    but you shall not find them;
(U)those who war against you
    shall be as nothing at all.
13 For I, the Lord your God,
    hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, “Fear not,
    I am the one who helps you.”

14 Fear not, you (V)worm Jacob,
    you men of Israel!
I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord;
    your (W)Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15 (X)Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge,
    new, sharp, and having teeth;
you shall thresh (Y)the mountains and crush them,
    and you shall make the hills like chaff;
16 (Z)you shall winnow them, and (AA)the wind shall carry them away,
    and the tempest shall scatter them.
(AB)And you shall rejoice in the Lord;
    in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.

17 (AC)When the poor and needy seek water,
    and there is none,
    and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them;
    I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
18 (AD)I will open rivers on the bare heights,
    and fountains in the midst of the valleys.
(AE)I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
    and the dry land springs of water.
19 (AF)I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
    the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive.
I will set in the desert (AG)the cypress,
    the plane and the pine together,
20 that they may see and know,
    may consider and understand together,
that (AH)the hand of the Lord has done this,
    the Holy One of Israel has created it.

The Futility of Idols

21 Set forth your case, says the Lord;
    bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.
22 Let them bring them, and (AI)tell us
    what is to happen.
Tell us the former things, what they are,
    that we may consider them,
that we may know their outcome;
    or declare to us the things to come.
23 (AJ)Tell us what is to come hereafter,
    that we may know that you are gods;
(AK)do good, or do harm,
    that we may be dismayed and terrified.[b]
24 Behold, (AL)you are nothing,
    and your work is less than nothing;
    an abomination is he who chooses you.

25 (AM)I stirred up one from the north, and he has come,
    (AN)from the rising of the sun, (AO)and he shall call upon my name;
he shall trample on rulers as on mortar,
    as the potter treads clay.
26 (AP)Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know,
    and beforehand, that we might say, “He is right”?
There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed,
    none who heard your words.
27 (AQ)I was the first to say[c] to Zion, “Behold, here they are!”
    and (AR)I give to Jerusalem a herald of good news.
28 (AS)But when I look, there is no one;
    among these there is no counselor
    who, when I ask, gives an answer.
29 (AT)Behold, they are all a delusion;
    their works are nothing;
    their metal images are empty wind.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 41:2 Or whom righteousness calls to follow?
  2. Isaiah 41:23 Or that we may both be dismayed and see
  3. Isaiah 41:27 Or Formerly I said

Israel Encouraged

41 (A)Listen to Me (B)in silence, you coastlands,
And let the peoples (C)gain new strength;
(D)Let them come forward, then let them speak;
(E)Let’s come together for judgment.
(F)Who has stirred one from the east
Whom He (G)calls in righteousness to His [a]feet?
He (H)turns nations over to him
And subdues kings.
He makes them like (I)dust with his sword,
Like the wind-driven (J)chaff with his bow.
He pursues them, passing on in safety,
By a way he had not been [b]traversing with his feet.
(K)Who has performed and accomplished it,
Summoning the generations from the beginning?
(L)I, the Lord, am the first, and with the last. (M)I am He.’”

The (N)coastlands have seen and are afraid;
The (O)ends of the earth tremble;
They have approached and have come.
Each one helps his neighbor
And says to his brother, “Be strong!”
So the (P)craftsman encourages the (Q)smelter,
And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil,
Saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
And he fastens it with nails,
(R)So that it will not totter.
“But you, Israel, (S)My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
Descendant of (T)Abraham My (U)friend,
You whom I have [c](V)taken from the ends of the earth
And called from its (W)remotest parts,
And said to you, ‘You are (X)My servant,
I have (Y)chosen you and have not rejected you.
10 Do not (Z)fear, for I am with you;
Do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, (AA)I will also help you,
I will also uphold you with My righteous (AB)right hand.’
11 Behold, (AC)all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;
(AD)Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
12 (AE)You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them,
Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.
13 For I am the Lord your God (AF)who takes hold of your right hand,
Who says to you, ‘(AG)Do not fear, I will help you.’
14 Do not fear, you (AH)worm Jacob, you people of Israel;
I will help you,” declares the Lord, “and (AI)your [d]Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15 Behold, I turned you into a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;
(AJ)You will thresh the (AK)mountains and pulverize them,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You will (AL)winnow them, and the wind will carry them away,
And the storm will scatter them;
But you will (AM)rejoice in the Lord,
You will boast in the Holy One of Israel.

17 “The poor and needy are seeking (AN)water, but there is none,
And their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, the Lord, (AO)will answer them Myself;
As the God of Israel I (AP)will not abandon them.
18 I will open (AQ)rivers on the bare heights,
And springs in the midst of the valleys;
I will make (AR)the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land fountains of water.
19 I will put the cedar in the wilderness,
The acacia, the (AS)myrtle, and the olive tree;
I will place the (AT)juniper in the desert,
Together with the elm tree and the cypress,
20 So that (AU)they may see and recognize,
And consider and gain insight as well,
That the (AV)hand of the Lord has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 [e]Present your case,” the Lord says.
“Bring forward your evidence,”
The (AW)King of Jacob says.
22 (AX)Let them bring them forward and declare to us what is going to take place;
As for the (AY)former events, declare what they were,
So that we may consider them and know their outcome.
Or announce to us what is coming;
23 (AZ)Declare the things that are going to come afterward,
So that we may know that you are gods;
Indeed, (BA)do good or evil, that we may be afraid and fear together.
24 Behold, (BB)you are less than nothing,
And (BC)your work is less than nothing!
He who chooses you is an (BD)abomination.

25 “I have put (BE)one from the north into motion, and he has come;
From the rising of the sun he will call on My name;
And he will come upon rulers as upon [f](BF)mortar,
As the potter treads on clay.”
26 Who has (BG)declared this from the beginning, that we might know?
Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?
There was (BH)no one at all who declared,
There was no one at all who proclaimed,
There was no one at all who heard your words.
27 (BI)Previously I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’
And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a (BJ)messenger of good news.’
28 But (BK)when I look, there is no one,
And there is no (BL)counselor [g]among them
Who, if I ask, can (BM)give an answer.
29 Behold, all of them are [h]false;
Their (BN)works are (BO)nothing,
Their cast metal images are (BP)wind and emptiness.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 41:2 Lit foot
  2. Isaiah 41:3 Lit going
  3. Isaiah 41:9 Lit seized
  4. Isaiah 41:14 Or Redeemer, the Holy One
  5. Isaiah 41:21 Lit Bring near
  6. Isaiah 41:25 I.e., the building material
  7. Isaiah 41:28 Lit out of those
  8. Isaiah 41:29 Another reading is nothing

 神從東方激動了一人

41 眾海島啊!你們要在我面前靜默,

願萬民重新得力。

讓他們近前來,然後說話,

讓我們聚在一起辯論吧!

誰從東方激動了一個人,

憑公義把他召到自己的腳前來?

他把列國交在他面前,

他制伏眾王;

他使他們在他的刀下化作灰塵,

他使他們在他的弓下像碎稭一樣被吹散。

他追趕他們,安然走過他的腳未曾走過的路。

誰定這事並且作成?

誰從起初預定萬代呢?

就是我耶和華,我是首先的,與最後的人同在的,也是我。

眾海島看見了,就都懼怕;

地極也都戰兢;

他們都近前來。

各人彼此幫助,

對自己的兄弟說:“要堅強!”

木匠堅固金匠,

用鎚打光金屬的,鼓勵打砧的;

論銲工說:“銲得好!”

又用釘子釘穩了。

使偶像不致動搖。

 神必扶助其子民

但你以色列,我的僕人啊!

雅各,我所揀選、

我朋友亞伯拉罕的後裔啊!

你是我從地極抓來的,

我從地的遠方召你來,

對你說:“你是我的僕人,

我揀選了你,並沒有棄絕你。”

10 不要懼怕,因為我與你同在;

不要四處張望,因為我是你的 神,

我必堅固你,我必幫助你;

我必用公義的右手扶持你。

11 看哪!向你發怒的都必蒙羞受辱;

與你相爭的人,都要如同無有,並要滅亡。

12 與你爭競的人,你要尋找他們,卻找不著;

與你交戰的人,都必如同無有,好像虛無。

13 因為我,耶和華你們的 神,緊握著你的右手,

對你說:“不要懼怕,我必幫助你。”

14 蟲子雅各啊!以色列人哪!你不要懼怕。

我必幫助你;這是耶和華說的。你的救贖主,就是以色列的聖者。

15 看哪!我要使你成為打糧的器具,

又新,又鋒利,又有很多利齒;

你要揚淨群山,把它們壓得粉碎,

又使岡陵變成糠秕。

16 你必簸揚它們,風要把它們吹去,

旋風也要把它們吹散;

但你要靠耶和華喜樂,

以以色列的聖者誇耀。

17 困苦和貧窮的人尋求水,卻沒有水;

他們的舌頭因口渴而乾燥;

我耶和華必應允他們,

我以色列的 神必不離棄他們。

18 我要在光禿的高處開闢江河,

在山谷之間開闢泉源;

我要使曠野變為水池,

使乾地變成水泉。

19 我要在曠野種上香柏樹、

皂莢樹、番石榴樹和野橄欖樹;

我要在沙漠中栽種松樹、

杉樹和黃楊樹,

20 好叫人看見了,就知道;

思想過,就都明白,

這是耶和華的手所作的,

是以色列的聖者所造的。

假神絕不可靠

21 耶和華說:“呈上你們的案件吧!”

雅各的王說:

“把你們有力的證據拿來吧!”

22 讓它們前來告訴我們將要發生的事。

以前的是甚麼事,讓它們告訴我們,

好叫我們用心思想,得知事情的結局。

或者向我們宣告那要來的事。

23 把以後要來的事告訴我們,

好叫我們知道你們是神;

你們作這些事,或降福或降禍,以致我們彼此對望,一齊觀看。

24 看哪!你們屬於無有,

你們的作為都屬於虛空,

那選擇你們的是可厭惡的。

25 我從北方興起一人,他就來了;

他從日出之地而來,呼求我的名;

他必來踐踏掌權的,好像踐踏灰泥,

又像陶匠踹泥一樣。

26 誰從起初講說這事,使我們知道呢?

誰從先前說明,以致我們說“他沒有錯”呢?

誰也沒有說明,

誰也沒有宣告,

誰也沒有聽見你們的話!

27 我首先對錫安說:“看哪,看看這些!”

我要把一位報好信息的賜給耶路撒冷。

28 我看的時候,卻沒有一個人;

他們中間也沒有謀士,我問他們的時候,

可以回答一句話。

29 看哪!他們都是無有,

他們所作的都是虛無;

他們所鑄的偶像都是風,都是虛空。