Isaiah 41
International Standard Version
The Lord Comes as Judge
41 “Be silent before me, you coastlands,
and let the people renew their strength!
Let them come forward,
then let them speak together—
let’s draw near for a ruling.
2 Who has aroused victory from the east,
and[a] has summoned it to his service,
and[b] has handed over nations to him?
Who brings down kings,
and[c] turns them into dust with his sword,
into windblown stubble with his bow?
3 And[d] who pursues them
and[e] moves on unscathed
by a path that his feet don’t know?[f]
4 Who has performed and carried this out,
calling the generations from the beginning?
I, the Lord—the first
and will be with the last
—I am the One!”
Idolaters Encourage Each Other
5 “The coastlands have looked and are afraid;
the ends of the earth have drawn near together[g]
and come forward.
6 Each helps his neighbor,
saying[h] to each other, ‘Be strong!’
7 The craftsman encourages the goldsmith,
and the hammersmith[i] encourages the one who strikes the anvil.
He says[j] about the welding, ‘It’s good!’
and he reinforces it with nails so that it won’t topple.”
The Lord Encourages Israel
8 “But as for you, Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I’ve chosen,
the offspring of my friend Abraham—
9 you whom I encouraged from the ends of the earth
and called from its farthest corners,
and told you, ‘You’re my servant,
I’ve chosen you
and haven’t cast you aside.’
10 Don’t be afraid,
because I’m with you;
don’t be anxious,
because I am your God.
I keep on strengthening you;
I’m truly helping you.
I’m surely upholding you
with my victorious right hand.”
The Coming Defeat of God’s Enemies
11 “Look! All who are enraged at you
will be put to shame and disgraced;
those who contend with you
will all die.[k]
12 Those who quarrel with you[l]
will be as nothing;
those who fight you
like nothing at all!”
A Call to Courage
13 “For I am the Lord your God,
who takes hold of your right hand,
who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid.
I’ll help you.
14 Don’t be afraid, you little worm Jacob,
and[m] you insects of Israel!
I myself will help you,’[n] declares the Lord,
your[o] Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.”
A Promise of Victory
15 “See, I’m making you[p] into
a new, sharp, and multi-tooth threshing sledge.
You’ll thresh and crush the mountains,
and make the hills like chaff.
16 You’ll winnow them, and the wind will lift them up,
and a tempest will blow them away.
Then you’ll rejoice in the Lord,
and[q] you’ll make your boast in the Holy One of Israel.”
17 “As for the poor, the needy, those seeking[r] water—
when there is none
and their tongues are parched from thirst—
I, the Lord, will answer them.
I, the God of Israel, won’t abandon them.
18 I’ll open up rivers on the barren heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys.
I’ll turn the[s] desert into a pool of water,
and the parched land into springs of water.
19 I’ll put cedar trees in the wilderness,
along with acacia, myrtle, and olive trees.
I’ll plant cypresses in the desert—
box[t] trees, and pine trees together—
20 all so that people may see and recognize,
perceive,[u] consider, and comprehend at the same time,
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.”
Can God’s Enemies Predict the Future?
21 “Put forward your case!” says the Lord.
“Submit your arguments!” says Jacob’s King.
22 Let them approach and ask us,
‘What will happen?
As to the former things, what were they?
Tell us, so that we may consider them and know.
Or[v] the latter things or the things to come—
let us hear.
23 Tell us what the future holds,
so we may know that you are gods!
Yes, do something good or something bad,
so we may hear[w] and gaze at it together.’”
24 “Look! You and your work are less than nothing;[x]
whoever finds you pleasing is disgusting.”
25 “You are stirring up[y] one from the north,
and they are coming[z] from the rising of the sun;
and[aa] he will be called by his[ab] name.
Rulers will arrive like mud;[ac]
just[ad] like a potter, he will trample the clay.
26 Who told of this from the beginning,
so we could know,
or beforehand, so we could ask,
‘Is it right?’[ae]
Indeed, no one told of this,
no one made an announcement,
and no one heard your words:
27 First, to Zion: “There is slumber.”[af]
And to Jerusalem: “I’ll send a messenger with good news.”
28 But when I look, there is no one—
among them there’s no one to give counsel,
no one to give an answer when I ask them.
29 See, none of them exist, and their deeds are nothing.[ag]
Their metal images are only wind and confusion.’”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 41:2 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 41:2 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 41:2 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 41:3 So 1QIsaa LXX; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 41:3 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 41:3 So 1QIsaa; MT reads travel
- Isaiah 41:5 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads earth tremble
- Isaiah 41:6 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT read and saying; cf. LXX
- Isaiah 41:7 Lit. he who smoothes with the hammer
- Isaiah 41:7 So 1QIsaa; MT reads saying
- Isaiah 41:11 So 1QIsaa; MT reads will become nothing and die; cf. LXX
- Isaiah 41:12 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsab MT LXX read You will seek them and not find those who quarrel with you
- Isaiah 41:14 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 41:14 1QIsaa is masculine; MT is feminine
- Isaiah 41:14 1QIsaa is masculine; MT is feminine
- Isaiah 41:15 1QIsaa is masculine; MT is feminine
- Isaiah 41:16 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 41:17 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read poor and the needy seeking
- Isaiah 41:18 So 1QIsaa; MT implies the
- Isaiah 41:19 Or elm
- Isaiah 41:20 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsaa corrector MT LXX read to consider
- Isaiah 41:22 So 1QIsaa; MT reads them. And we may know
- Isaiah 41:23 So 1QIsaa; MT reads stare at one another; cf. LXX
- Isaiah 41:24 So 1QIsaa; MT reads you are nothing, and your work means nothing
- Isaiah 41:25 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read I am raising
- Isaiah 41:25 So 1QIsaa; MT reads I am raising
- Isaiah 41:25 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and
- Isaiah 41:25 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read my
- Isaiah 41:25 I.e. like an overflowing river; so 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads He will come, rulers like mud
- Isaiah 41:25 So 1QIsaa; MT reads and
- Isaiah 41:26 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads He was right
- Isaiah 41:27 So 1QIsaa; MT reads look, there they are
- Isaiah 41:29 So 1QIsaa; MT reads all of their works are utterly nothing
Isaiah 41
English Standard Version
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.
2 (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.
3 He pursues them and passes on safely,
by paths his feet have not trod.
4 (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.
5 (I)The coastlands have seen and are afraid;
the ends of the earth tremble;
they have drawn near and come.
6 Everyone helps his neighbor
and says to his brother, “Be strong!”
7 (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.
8 But you, Israel, (L)my servant,
Jacob, (M)whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, (N)my friend;
9 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
- Isaiah 41:2 Or whom righteousness calls to follow?
- Isaiah 41:23 Or that we may both be dismayed and see
- Isaiah 41:27 Or Formerly I said
以賽亞書 41
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
上帝是以色列的幫助
41 上帝說：「眾海島啊，
要在我面前安靜！
讓眾民重新拿出勇力，
讓他們前來說話，
讓我們一起來理論。
2 「誰使一人從東方興起？
誰憑公義把他召到跟前？
誰把列國交給他，
使他征服列國的君王，
用刀將他們化為塵土，
用弓將他們淪為風吹的碎稭？
3 他追趕他們，
安然走過從未踏足之路。
4 誰成就了這事？
誰在太初就掌管歷史的方向？
是我耶和華，
我太初就在那裡，
末了也在那裡。
5 「眾海島看見我的作為就害怕，
地極也顫抖，
他們都上前來，
6 彼此幫助，
互相勉勵說，『要剛強！』
7 工匠鼓勵銀匠，
打磨的勉勵打砧的，
說，『打得好！』
他們用釘子把偶像釘牢，免得搖晃。
8 「然而，以色列啊，你是我的僕人；
雅各啊，你是我揀選的，
是我朋友亞伯拉罕的後裔。
9 我把你從地極帶來，
從遙遠的角落召來。
我對你說，『你是我的僕人，
我揀選了你，沒有丟棄你。
10 我是你的上帝，我必與你同在，
你不用驚慌也不用害怕。
我必賜你力量，幫助你，
用我公義的右手扶持你。』
11 「看啊，向你發怒的人必抱愧蒙羞；
與你為敵的人都要滅亡，
歸於無有。
12 你尋找與你相爭的人，
卻找不到；
與你爭戰的人必歸於無有。
13 因為我是你的上帝耶和華，
我必拉著你的右手對你說，
『不要怕，我必幫助你。』
14 「如蛆如蟲的雅各啊，以色列人啊，不要怕！
我耶和華必幫助你。
以色列的聖者是你的救贖主。
15 看啊，我要使你成為一具簇新、
帶許多利齒的打穀器。
你要打爛高山，
使丘陵碎如糠秕。
16 你要簸它們，讓風吹散它們，
讓狂風捲走它們。
但你要以耶和華為喜樂，
以以色列的聖者為榮耀。
17 「貧窮困苦的人找不到水喝，
他們口乾舌燥。
但我耶和華必應允他們的呼求，
我——以色列的上帝不會撇棄他們。
18 我要使光禿的山嶺上江河奔流，
山谷中泉水湧流；
我要使沙漠變成水塘，
使乾地冒出泉水。
19 我要在曠野栽香柏樹、
皂莢樹、番石榴樹和橄欖樹。
我要在沙漠種松樹、杉樹和黃楊樹。
20 人一看就知道，
一想就明白，
這是耶和華親手成就的，
是以色列的聖者創造的。」
21 耶和華對偶像說：
「陳明你們的理由。」
雅各的王說：
「拿出你們的證據吧。」
22 告訴我們將要發生的事，
給我們說說以前發生的事，
我們好思想，以便明白事情的結局。
向我們宣告將來的事，
23 告訴我們以後會發生什麼，
好叫我們知道你們是神明。
不論降福降禍，顯顯身手吧，
好叫我們一同驚懼！
24 看啊，你們實在算不得什麼，
你們所做的毫無意義，
拜你們的人真是可憎！
25 「我使一人從北方興起，
他來了，
他在東方求告我的名。
他必把掌權者像灰泥一樣踏在腳下，
像窯匠踩泥一樣踐踏。
26 誰從太初就宣告這事，讓我們知道呢？
誰預先講明這事，讓我們說他能未卜先知呢？
誰也沒有說過，
誰也沒有預言過，
誰也沒有聽見你們說過什麼。
27 是我首先把這件事告訴錫安，
我要給耶路撒冷一個報好消息的使者。
28 我看了看，沒有出謀劃策的。
我問話，沒有一個回答。
29 看啊，它們全是假的，
毫無作為，虛空如風。
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