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Isaiah 44
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Isaiah 44
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 44
1 Hear then, Jacob, my servant,
Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says the Lord who made you,
your help, who formed you from the womb:
Do not fear, Jacob, my servant,
Jeshurun,[a] whom I have chosen.
3 I will pour out water upon the thirsty ground,
streams upon the dry land;
I will pour out my spirit upon your offspring,
my blessing upon your descendants.
4 They shall spring forth amid grass
like poplars beside flowing waters.(A)
5 One shall say, “I am the Lord’s,”
another shall be named after Jacob,
And this one shall write on his hand,[b] “The Lord’s,”
and receive the name Israel.(B)
The True God and False Gods
6 [c]Thus says the Lord, Israel’s king,
its redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
I am the first, I am the last;
there is no God but me.[d](C)
7 Who is like me? Let him stand up and declare,
make it evident, and confront me with it.
Who of old announced future events?
Let them foretell to us the things to come.
8 Do not fear or be troubled.
Did I not announce it to you long ago?
I declared it, and you are my witnesses.
Is there any God but me?
There is no other Rock,[e] I know of none!(D)
9 [f]Those who fashion idols are all nothing;
their precious works are of no avail.
They are their witnesses:[g]
they see nothing, know nothing,
and so they are put to shame.(E)
10 Who would fashion a god or cast an idol,
that is of no use?
11 Look, all its company will be shamed;
they are artisans, mere human beings!
They all assemble and stand there,
only to cower in shame.
12 The ironsmith fashions a likeness,
he works it over the coals,
Shaping it with hammers,
working it with his strong arm.
With hunger his strength wanes,
without water, he grows faint.(F)
13 The woodworker stretches a line,
and marks out a shape with a stylus.
He shapes it with scraping tools,
with a compass measures it off,
Making it the copy of a man,[h]
human display, enthroned in a shrine.
14 He goes out to cut down cedars,
takes a holm tree or an oak.
He picks out for himself trees of the forest,
plants a fir, and the rain makes it grow.
15 It is used for fuel:
with some of the wood he warms himself,
makes a fire and bakes bread.
Yet he makes a god and worships it,
turns it into an idol and adores it!
16 Half of it he burns in the fire,
on its embers he roasts meat;
he eats the roast and is full.
He warms himself and says, “Ah!
I am warm! I see the flames!”
17 The rest of it he makes into a god,
an image to worship and adore.
He prays to it and says,
“Help me! You are my god!”
18 They do not know, do not understand;
their eyes are too clouded to see,
their minds, to perceive.
19 He does not think clearly;
he lacks the wit and knowledge to say,
“Half the wood I burned in the fire,
on its embers I baked bread,
I roasted meat and ate.
Shall I turn the rest into an abomination?
Shall I worship a block of wood?”
20 He is chasing ashes![i]
A deluded mind has led him astray;
He cannot save himself,
does not say, “This thing in my right hand—is it not a fraud?”
21 Remember these things, Jacob,
Israel, for you are my servant!
I formed you, a servant to me;
Israel, you shall never be forgotten by me:
22 I have brushed away your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like a mist;
return to me, for I have redeemed you.
23 Raise a glad cry, you heavens—the Lord has acted!
Shout, you depths of the earth.
Break forth, mountains, into song,
forest, with all your trees.
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
shows his glory through Israel.
Cyrus, Anointed of the Lord, Agent of Israel’s Liberation
24 Thus says the Lord, your redeemer,
who formed you from the womb:
I am the Lord, who made all things,
who alone stretched out the heavens,
I spread out the earth by myself.(G)
25 I bring to nought the omens of babblers,
make fools of diviners,
Turn back the wise
and make their knowledge foolish.
26 I confirm the words of my servant,
carry out the plan my messengers announce.
I say to Jerusalem, Be inhabited!
To the cities of Judah, Be rebuilt!
I will raise up their ruins.
27 I say to the deep, Be dry!
I will dry up your rivers.(H)
28 I say of Cyrus,[j] My shepherd!
He carries out my every wish,
Saying of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple, “Lay its foundations.”(I)
Footnotes
- 44:2 Jeshurun: see note on Dt 32:15; cf. also Dt 33:5, 26.
- 44:5 Write on his hand: an allusion to the Babylonian custom of tattooing the owner’s name on the hand of his slave.
- 44:6–8 Prediction and fulfillment are here seen as the hallmarks of true divinity. See note on 43:9.
- 44:6 No god but me: with Second Isaiah, Israel’s faith is declared to be explicitly monotheistic. However implicit it may have been, earlier formulas did not exclude the existence of other gods, not even that of the first commandment: “You shall not have other gods besides me” (Ex 20:3). Cf. also note on 41:21–29.
- 44:8 Rock: place of refuge, a title here used of God; cf., e.g., Dt 32:4, 18; 1 Sm 2:2; Ps 18:3.
- 44:9–20 A satire on the makers and worshipers of idols.
- 44:9 Their witnesses: Israel has been called to bear witness to the awesome power of God (cf. 43:10, 12; 44:8), but idol makers cannot testify in support of their creations, for idols cannot act (Dt 4:28; Ps 135:15–18).
- 44:13 Copy of a man: in the biblical view human beings are made in the image of God; here gods are made in the image of human beings.
- 44:20 Chasing ashes: an exercise in futility.
- 44:28 Cyrus: king of Persia (559–529 B.C.); cf. note on 41:1–4.
Isaias 44
Ang Pulong Sa Dios
Isaias 44
Ang Pulong Sa Dios
Ang Saad sa Dios ngadto sa Israel
44 “Apan karon, pamati, O Israel nga akong alagad, ang katawhan nga akong pinili, nga mga kaliwat ni Jacob. 2 Ako, ang Ginoo, mao ang naghimo ug nagtabang kanimo. Ayaw kahadlok, ikaw nga akong alagad ug pinili nga katawhan. 3 Kay hatagan ko ikaw ug tubig nga mohupay sa imong kauhaw ug mobasa sa imong malang yuta. Gamhan ko sa akong Espiritu ang imong mga kaliwat ug panalanginan ko sila. 4 Mouswag sila sama sa labong nga mga sagbot nga abunda sa tubig o sa mga kahoy sa daplin sa sapa. 5 May moingon, ‘Iya ako sa Ginoo,’ ug may ubang moingon, ‘Kaliwat ako ni Jacob.’ May mosulat usab diha sa ilang kamot sa ngalan sa Ginoo, ug maghunahuna sa ilang kaugalingon nga sakop sa katawhan sa Israel.
Walay Kapuslanan ang mga dios-dios
6 “Mao kini ang giingon sa Ginoo, ang Hari ug Manluluwas sa Israel, ang Makagagahom nga Ginoo: Ako ang una ug ang kataposan. Wala nay laing Dios gawas kanako. 7 Kinsa ang sama kanako? Ipasulti siya sa akong atubangan kon unsay nahitabo sukad sa panahon nga gitukod ang usa ka nasod, ang akong katawhan, ug kon unsa ang mahitabo sa umaabot. 8 Ayaw kamo kahadlok o kalisang. Dili ba nga gipadayag ko na man kaninyo kaniadto pa ang akong katuyoan? Ug kamo mismo ang akong mga saksi. May lain pa bang Dios gawas kanako? Wala gayod! Wala na akoy nahibaloan pa nga dakong bato nga salipdanan.[a]” 9 Walay pulos ang tanang naghimog mga dios-dios. Ug kining mga dios-dios nga ilang gipakamahal walay bili. Sila mismo makapamatuod nga wala kini bili. Kay dili kini makakita ug walay nahibaloan. Mao gani nga maulawan ang mga nagasimba niini. 10 Buang-buang ang tawo nga naghimo ug mga dios-dios nga dili man lang niya mapuslan. 11 Pamati! Maulawan ang tanang nagasimba sa mga dios-dios, kay ang naghimo niini mga tawo lang usab. Tigoma silang tanan aron sa pagpanalipod sa ilang kaugalingon, kay malisang sila kanako ug maulawan.
12 Ang panday sa puthaw mobutang ug puthaw sa baga. Masohon niya kini ug kusog aron pormahon nga dios-dios. Maluya siya sa kagutom ug malipong sa kauhaw. 13 Ang panday sa kahoy mosukod ug usa ka putol sa kahoy. Markahan niya kini ug pormahong tawo pinaagi sa iyang mga gamit. Unya kuliton niya kini sa matahom nga dagway sa tawo aron ibutang sa usa ka templo. 14 Aron may gamiton siyang kahoy, magputol siyag sedro, o sipres, o terebinto nga iyang gipatubo sa kakahoyan. Magtanom usab siyag kahoyng pino, ug pinaagi sa ulan motubo kini. 15 Gamiton niyang sugnod ang ubang mga kahoy, aron makapainit siya ug makaluto ug pan. Ug ang uban himuon niyang dios-dios, ug unya ludhan niya kini ug simbahon. 16 Ihaling niya ang ubang mga kahoy ug magsugba siyag karne diha sa baga niini. Unya mokaon siya sa sinugba ug mabusog. Magpainit-init usab siya sa kalayo ug moingon, “Maayo kay nainitan ako.” 17 Ug ang ubang kahoy, himuon niyang dios-dios. Moluhod siya ug mosimba niining mga dios-dios, ug mag-ampo nga nagaingon, “Luwasa ako, kay ikaw ang akong dios.”
18 Kining mga tawhana wala masayod o makasabot sa ilang gihimo. Ang ilang mga mata nataptapan, mao nga dili sila makakita. Ang ilang mga hunahuna natak-opan, busa dili sila makasabot. 19 Wala gayod kanilay makapamalandong ug makahunahuna aron sa pag-ingon, “Gisugnod ko ang ubang kahoy ug nagluto akog pan. Nagsugba akog karne diha sa baga niini, ug mikaon ako. Ug karon himuon ko bang usa ka ngil-ad nga butang ang nahibiling kahoy? Mosimba ba ako sa usa ka putol sa kahoy?”
20 Sama lang siya sa nagkaon ug abo. Ang nalimbongan niyang hunahuna nagpahisalaag kaniya. Ug dili niya maluwas ang iyang kaugalingon, ni makaamgo ug makapangutana sa iyang kaugalingon. Dili niya madawat nga ang dios-dios sa iyang mga kamot dili tinuod nga dios.
21 Miingon ang Ginoo, “Hinumdomi kining mga butanga, O Israel, kay ikaw akong alagad. Gihimo ko ikaw, aron moalagad kanako, ug dili ko gayod ikaw kalimtan. 22 Wad-on ko na ang imong mga sala sama sa dag-om o gabon. Balik kanako, O Israel, kay luwason ko gayod ikaw.”
23 Pag-awit sa kalipay, O kalangitan! Singgit ug kusog, O kalibotan! Pag-awit kamong mga bukid ug mga kakahoyan, kay giluwas na sa Ginoo ang mga kaliwat ni Jacob; gipakita niya ang iyang pagkagamhanan sa Israel.
24 Mao kini ang giingon sa Ginoo nga inyong Manluluwas, nga nagbuhat kaninyo: Ako ang Ginoo nga naghimo sa tanang butang. Ako lang gayod ang nagbukhad sa kalangitan, ug nagmugna sa kalibotan. 25 Gisanta ko ang mga tagna sa bakakong mga propeta. Ug gihimo kong mga buang-buang ang mga manalagna. Gituis ko ang kahibalo sa mga maalamon, ug gihimong kawang ang ilang kahibalo. 26 Gituman ko ang mga panagna sa akong alagad[b] ug mga mensahero. Miingon ako nga ang Jerusalem pagapuy-an pag-usab, ug ang uban pang mga lungsod sa Juda tukoron pag-usab. 27 Kon momando ako nga momala ang mga suba, momala kini. 28 Moingon ako kang Cyrus, “Ikaw ang magbalantay sa akong katawhan, ug himuon mo ang tanan kong gusto. Magmando siya nga tukoron pag-usab ang Jerusalem ug ang templo niini.”
Isaiah 44
New International Version
Isaiah 44
New International Version
Israel the Chosen
44 “But now listen, Jacob, my servant,(A)
Israel, whom I have chosen.(B)
2 This is what the Lord says—
he who made(C) you, who formed you in the womb,(D)
and who will help(E) you:
Do not be afraid,(F) Jacob, my servant,(G)
Jeshurun,[a](H) whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water(I) on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;(J)
I will pour out my Spirit(K) on your offspring,
and my blessing(L) on your descendants.(M)
4 They will spring up like grass(N) in a meadow,
like poplar trees(O) by flowing streams.(P)
5 Some will say, ‘I belong(Q) to the Lord’;
others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand,(R) ‘The Lord’s,’(S)
and will take the name Israel.
The Lord, Not Idols
6 “This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King(T) and Redeemer,(U) the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;(V)
apart from me there is no God.(W)
7 Who then is like me?(X) Let him proclaim it.
Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
and what is yet to come—
yes, let them foretell(Y) what will come.
8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim(Z) this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God(AA) besides me?
No, there is no other Rock;(AB) I know not one.”
9 All who make idols(AC) are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.(AD)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(AE)
they are ignorant, to their own shame.(AF)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(AG)
which can profit nothing?(AH)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(AI)
such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
they will be brought down to terror and shame.(AJ)
12 The blacksmith(AK) takes a tool
and works with it in the coals;
he shapes an idol with hammers,
he forges it with the might of his arm.(AL)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
he drinks no water and grows faint.(AM)
13 The carpenter(AN) measures with a line
and makes an outline with a marker;
he roughs it out with chisels
and marks it with compasses.
He shapes it in human form,(AO)
human form in all its glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.(AP)
14 He cut down cedars,
or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
or planted a pine,(AQ) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(AR) for burning;
some of it he takes and warms himself,
he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
But he also fashions a god and worships(AS) it;
he makes an idol and bows(AT) down to it.
16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire;
over it he prepares his meal,
he roasts his meat and eats his fill.
He also warms himself and says,
“Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.(AU)”
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
he bows down to it and worships.(AV)
He prays(AW) to it and says,
“Save(AX) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(AY) nothing;
their eyes(AZ) are plastered over so they cannot see,
and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
19 No one stops to think,
no one has the knowledge or understanding(BA) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(BB)
I even baked bread over its coals,
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(BC) thing from what is left?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(BD)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(BE) a deluded(BF) heart misleads him;
he cannot save himself, or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(BG)”
21 “Remember(BH) these things, Jacob,
for you, Israel, are my servant.(BI)
I have made you, you are my servant;(BJ)
Israel, I will not forget you.(BK)
22 I have swept away(BL) your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return(BM) to me,
for I have redeemed(BN) you.”
23 Sing for joy,(BO) you heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, you earth(BP) beneath.
Burst into song, you mountains,(BQ)
you forests and all your trees,(BR)
for the Lord has redeemed(BS) Jacob,
he displays his glory(BT) in Israel.
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,(BX)
who spreads out the earth(BY) by myself,
25 who foils(BZ) the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,(CA)
who overthrows the learning of the wise(CB)
and turns it into nonsense,(CC)
26 who carries out the words(CD) of his servants
and fulfills(CE) the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,(CF) ‘It shall be inhabited,’
of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’
and of their ruins,(CG) ‘I will restore them,’(CH)
27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,
and I will dry up(CI) your streams,’
28 who says of Cyrus,(CJ) ‘He is my shepherd
and will accomplish all that I please;
he will say of Jerusalem,(CK) “Let it be rebuilt,”
and of the temple,(CL) “Let its foundations(CM) be laid.”’
Footnotes
- Isaiah 44:2 Jeshurun means the upright one, that is, Israel.
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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Ang Pulong Sa Dios (APSD-CEB)
Ang Pulong Sa Dios (Cebuano New Testament) Copyright © 1988, 2001 by International Bible Society® Used by Permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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