Isaiah 44
GOD’S WORD Translation
44 But now listen, my servant Jacob, Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 The Lord made you, formed you in the womb, and will help you.
This is what the Lord says:
Don’t be afraid, my servant Jacob,
Jeshurun,[a] whom I have chosen.
3 I will pour water on thirsty ground and rain on dry land.
I will pour my Spirit on your offspring
and my blessing on your descendants.
4 They will spring up with the grass
as poplars spring up by streams.
5 One person will say, “I belong to the Lord.”
Another will call on the name of Jacob.
Another will write on his hand, “The Lord’s,”
and he will adopt the name of Israel.
The Nations Form Idols, but the Lord Formed Israel
6 The Lord is Israel’s king and defender.
He is the Lord of Armies.
This is what the Lord says:
I am the first and the last,
and there is no God except me.
7 If there is anyone like me, let him say so.
Let him tell me what happened
when I established my people long ago.
Then let him predict what will happen to them.
8 Don’t be terrified or afraid.
Didn’t I make this known to you long ago?
You are my witnesses.
Is there any God except me?
There is no ⌞other⌟ rock; I know of none.
9 All who make idols are nothing. Their precious treasures are worthless. Their own witnesses do not see or know anything, so they will be put to shame. 10 Nothing comes from making gods or casting metal idols. 11 Everyone associated with the gods will be put to shame. The craftsmen themselves are only human. Let them all get together and take their stand. They will be frightened and ashamed together.
12 Blacksmiths shape iron into tools. They work them over the coals and shape them with hammers, working them with their strong arms. They get hungry, and their strength fails. If they don’t drink water, they will faint.
13 Carpenters measure blocks of wood with ⌞chalk⌟ lines. They mark them with pens. They carve them with chisels and mark them with compasses. They carve them into forms of people, beautiful people, so the idols can live in shrines.
14 They cut down cedars for themselves. Then they choose fir trees or oaks. They let them grow strong among the trees in the forest. Then they plant cedars, and the rain makes them grow. 15 These trees become ⌞fuel⌟ for people to burn. So they take some of them and warm themselves with them. They start fires and bake bread. They also make gods from these trees and worship them. They make them into carved statues and bow in front of them. 16 Half of the wood they burn in the fire. Over this half they roast meat that they can eat until they are full. They also warm themselves and say, “Ah! We are warm. We can see the fire!” 17 But the rest of the wood they make into gods, carved statues. They bow to them and worship them. They pray to them, saying, “Rescue us, because you are our gods.”
18 They don’t know or understand anything. Their eyes are plastered shut, so they can’t see. And their minds are closed, so they can’t understand. 19 No one stops to think. No one has enough knowledge or understanding to say, “I burned half of the wood in the fire. I also baked bread over its coals. I roasted meat and ate it. Now I am making the rest of the wood into a disgusting thing and bowing to a block of wood.” 20 They eat ashes because they are deceived. Their own misguided minds lead them astray. They can’t rescue themselves or ask themselves, “Isn’t what I hold in my right hand a false god?”
21 Remember these things, Jacob:
You are my servant, Israel.
I formed you; you are my servant.
Israel, I will not forget you.
22 I made your rebellious acts disappear like a thick cloud
and your sins like the morning mist.
Come back to me, because I have reclaimed you.
23 Sing with joy, you heavens, because the Lord has done this.
Rejoice, you deep places of the earth.
Break into shouts of joy, you mountains,
you forests and every tree in them.
The Lord has reclaimed Jacob.
He will display his glory in Israel.
Through Cyrus the Lord Will Set Israel Free
24 The Lord reclaimed you.
He formed you in the womb.
This is what the Lord says:
I, the Lord, made everything.
I stretched out the heavens by myself.
I spread out the earth all alone.
25 I cause the signs of false prophets to fail
and make fools of fortunetellers.
I make wise men retreat
and turn their knowledge into foolishness.
26 He confirms the word of his servant
and fulfills the plan of his messengers.
He says about Jerusalem, “It will be inhabited.”
He says about the cities of Judah, “They will be rebuilt.”
He says about their ruins, “I will restore them.”
27 He says to the deep water, “Dry up.”
So I will dry up your rivers.
28 He says about Cyrus, “He is my shepherd.
He will do everything I want him to do.”
He says about Jerusalem, “It will be rebuilt.”
He says about the temple, “Your foundation will be laid.”
Footnotes
- 44:2 “Jeshurun ” is another name for Israel.
Isaiah 44
Wycliffe Bible
44 And now, Jacob, my servant, hear thou, and Israel, whom I chose. (And now, my servant Jacob, listen thou, yea, Israel, whom I chose.)
2 The Lord making and forgiving thee, thine helper from the womb, saith these things, My servant, Jacob, do not thou dread, and thou most rightful, whom I chose. (The Lord who made thee and formed thee, thy helper from the womb, saith these things, My servant Jacob, do not thou fear, and thou Jeshurun, whom I chose.)
3 For I shall shed out waters on the thirsty, and floods on the dry land; I shall shed out my spirit on thy seed, and my blessing on thy generation. (For I shall pour out water upon the thirsty land, and floods upon the dry ground; I shall pour out my Spirit upon thy children, and my blessing upon thy descendants.)
4 And they shall burgeon among herbs, as sallows beside running waters. (And they shall flourish among the herbs, like the willows beside the running water.)
5 This man shall say, I am of the Lord, and he shall call in the name of Jacob; and this man shall write with his hand to the Lord, and shall be likened in the name of Israel. (This person shall say, I am of the Lord, and he shall call himself by Jacob’s name; and another person shall write the Lord’s name on his hand, and shall add the name of Israel to his own.)
6 The Lord, King of Israel, and again-buyer thereof, the Lord of hosts saith these things, I am the first, and I am the last, and without me is no God. (The Lord, the King of Israel, and its Redeemer, the Lord of hosts saith these things, I am the first, and I am the last, and there is no God besides me.)
7 Who is like me? call he, and tell, and declare (the) order (of things) to me, since I made [the] eld people (since I made the people of old, or long ago); tell he (out) to them (the) things to coming, and that (that) shall be.
8 Do not ye dread, neither be ye troubled; from that time I made thee for to hear (it), and I told (thee); ye be my witnesses. Whether a God is without me, and a former, whom I knew not? (Do not ye fear, nor be ye troubled; from that time I have made thee to hear it, and I have told thee; ye be my witnesses. Is there any God besides me, or any Creator, or any Maker, whom I knew not?)
9 All the formers of an idol be nothing, and the most loved things of them shall not profit (anything); they be witnesses of them, that they see not, neither understand, that they be shamed (and so let them be ashamed).
10 Who formed a god, and melted out an image, not profitable to anything? (Who formed a god, and melted out an idol, not profitable for anything?)
11 Lo! all the partners thereof shall be shamed; for the smiths be of men (for these smiths be but men). When (they) all shall come, they shall stand, and shall dread, and shall be shamed together.
12 A smith wrought with a file; he formed it in coals, and in hammers (and with hammers), and he wrought with the arm of his strength. He shall be hungry, and he shall fail; he shall not drink water, and he shall be faint.
13 A carpenter stretched forth a rule, he formed it with an adze/with an awl, either a joiner’s hook; he made it in the corner places, and he turned it in compass (he made the corners, and he turned it all around); and he made the image of a man, as a fair man, dwelling in the house.
14 He cutted down cedars, he took an hawthorn, and an oak, that stood among the trees of the forest; he planted a pineapple tree [he planted the pine tree], which he nourished with rain,
15 and it was made into fire to men. He took of those, and was warmed, and he burnt (it), and baked loaves; but of the residue he wrought a god, and worshipped it, and he made a graven image, and he was bowed before that. (and it was made into fire for people. He took some of it, and was warmed, and he burned it, and baked loaves; but with the rest of it he made a god, and then worshipped it, and he made a carved idol, and then he was bowed down before that.)
16 He burnt the half thereof with fire, and of the half thereof he seethed fleshes, and ate; he seethed pottage, and was (ful)filled (He burned half of it in the fire, and so with half of it he boiled meat, and ate; yea, he boiled up some stew, and was fulfilled); and he was warmed, and he said, Well! I am warmed; I saw [the] fire.
17 Forsooth the residue thereof he made a god, and a graven image to himself; he is bowed before that, and worshippeth that, and beseecheth, and saith, Deliver thou me, for thou art my god. (But with the rest of it he made a god, yea, a carved idol for himself; and he is bowed down before that, and worshippeth that, and beseecheth, and saith, Save thou me, for thou art my god.)
18 They knew not, neither understood, for they have forgotten, that their eyes see not, and that they understand not with their heart.
19 They bethink not in their soul, neither they know, neither they feel, that they say, I burnt the half thereof in fire, and I baked loaves on the coals thereof, and I seethed fleshes, and ate; and of the residue thereof shall I make an idol? shall I fall down before the stock of a tree? (They do not think in their soul, nor do they know, nor do they feel, so that they might say, I burned half of it in the fire, and then I baked some loaves on the coals there, and I boiled some meat, and ate; and with the rest of it shall I make an idol? and then shall I fall down before a piece of a tree?/before a piece of wood?)
20 A part thereof is ashes; an unwise heart shall worship it, and he shall not deliver his soul, neither he shall say, A strong leasing is in my right hand. (A part of it is ashes; and an unwise heart shall worship it, but it shall not save his soul, nor shall he say, Only a big lie, or a great falsehood, is in my right hand.)
21 Thou, Jacob, and Israel, have mind of these things (Thou, Jacob, O Israel, remember these things), for thou art my servant; I formed thee, Israel, thou art my servant; thou shalt not forget me.
22 I did away thy wickednesses as a cloud, and thy sins as a mist; turn thou again to me, for I again-bought thee. (I did away thy wickednesses like a cloud, and thy sins like a mist; return thou to me, for I have bought thee back, that is, I have ransomed, or I have redeemed, thee.)
23 Ye heavens, praise, for the Lord hath done mercy; the last parts of [the] earth, sing ye heartily song (the ends of the earth, heartily sing ye songs); hills, sound ye praising; the forest, and each tree thereof, praise God; for the Lord again-bought Jacob, and Israel shall have glory.
24 The Lord, thine again-buyer, and thy former from the womb (and thy Maker from the womb), saith these things, I am the Lord, making all things, and I alone stretch forth (the) heavens, and stablish the earth, and none is with me;
25 and I make void the signs of false diviners, and I turn into madness diviners that divine by sacrifices offered to fiends; and I turn wise men backward, and I make their science fond.
26 And the Lord raiseth the word of his servant, and [ful]filleth the counsel of his messengers; and I say to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be builded (again), and I shall raise (up) the deserts thereof;
27 and I say to the depth, Be thou desolate, and I shall make dry thy floods; (and I say to the ocean depth, Be thou made dry, and I shall make thy rivers run dry/and I shall also dry up thy rivers;)
28 and I say to Cyrus, Thou art my shepherd, and thou shalt fill all my will; and I say to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be builded (again); and to the temple, Thou shalt be founded. (and I say to Cyrus, Thou art my shepherd, and thou shalt fulfill, or thou shalt do, all my will; and I say to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be rebuilt; and to the Temple, Thy foundations shall be laid again.)
Isaiah 44
King James Version
44 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:
2 Thus saith the Lord that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:
4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.
5 One shall say, I am the Lord's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.
6 Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.
7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them.
8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.
9 They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.
10 Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing?
11 Behold, all his fellows shall be ashamed: and the workmen, they are of men: let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, and they shall be ashamed together.
12 The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the strength of his arms: yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth: he drinketh no water, and is faint.
13 The carpenter stretcheth out his rule; he marketh it out with a line; he fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man; that it may remain in the house.
14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.
15 Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.
16 He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire:
17 And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god.
18 They have not known nor understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand.
19 And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?
20 He feedeth on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
21 Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me.
22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.
23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.
24 Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;
25 That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish;
26 That confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof:
27 That saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers:
28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
Isaiah 44
World English Bible
44 Yet listen now, Jacob my servant,
and Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 This is what Yahweh who made you,
and formed you from the womb,
who will help you says:
“Don’t be afraid, Jacob my servant;
and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,
and streams on the dry ground.
I will pour my Spirit on your descendants,
and my blessing on your offspring;
4 and they will spring up among the grass,
as willows by the watercourses.
5 One will say, ‘I am Yahweh’s.’
Another will be called by the name of Jacob;
and another will write with his hand ‘to Yahweh,’
and honor the name of Israel.”
6 This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel,
and his Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies, says:
“I am the first, and I am the last;
and besides me there is no God.
7 Who is like me?
Who will call,
and will declare it,
and set it in order for me,
since I established the ancient people?
Let them declare the things that are coming,
and that will happen.
8 Don’t fear,
neither be afraid.
Haven’t I declared it to you long ago,
and shown it?
You are my witnesses.
Is there a God besides me?
Indeed, there is not.
I don’t know any other Rock.”
9 Everyone who makes a carved image is vain.
The things that they delight in will not profit.
Their own witnesses don’t see, nor know, that they may be disappointed.
10 Who has fashioned a god,
or molds an image that is profitable for nothing?
11 Behold, all his fellows will be disappointed;
and the workmen are mere men.
Let them all be gathered together.
Let them stand up.
They will fear.
They will be put to shame together.
12 The blacksmith takes an ax,
works in the coals,
fashions it with hammers,
and works it with his strong arm.
He is hungry,
and his strength fails;
he drinks no water,
and is faint.
13 The carpenter stretches out a line.
He marks it out with a pencil.
He shapes it with planes.
He marks it out with compasses,
and shapes it like the figure of a man,
with the beauty of a man,
to reside in a house.
14 He cuts down cedars for himself,
and takes the cypress and the oak,
and strengthens for himself one among the trees of the forest.
He plants a cypress tree,
and the rain nourishes it.
15 Then it will be for a man to burn;
and he takes some of it and warms himself.
Yes, he burns it and bakes bread.
Yes, he makes a god and worships it;
he makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.
16 He burns part of it in the fire.
With part of it, he eats meat.
He roasts a roast and is satisfied.
Yes, he warms himself
and says, “Aha! I am warm. I have seen the fire.”
17 The rest of it he makes into a god,
even his engraved image.
He bows down to it and worships,
and prays to it, and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”
18 They don’t know, neither do they consider,
for he has shut their eyes, that they can’t see,
and their hearts, that they can’t understand.
19 No one thinks,
neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say,
“I have burned part of it in the fire.
Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals.
I have roasted meat and eaten it.
Shall I make the rest of it into an abomination?
Shall I bow down to a tree trunk?”
20 He feeds on ashes.
A deceived heart has turned him aside;
and he can’t deliver his soul,
nor say, “Isn’t there a lie in my right hand?”
21 Remember these things, Jacob and Israel,
for you are my servant.
I have formed you.
You are my servant.
Israel, you will not be forgotten by me.
22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, your transgressions,
and, as a cloud, your sins.
Return to me, for I have redeemed you.
23 Sing, you heavens, for Yahweh has done it!
Shout, you lower parts of the earth!
Break out into singing, you mountains, O forest, all of your trees,
for Yahweh has redeemed Jacob,
and will glorify himself in Israel.
24 Yahweh, your Redeemer,
and he who formed you from the womb says:
“I am Yahweh, who makes all things;
who alone stretches out the heavens;
who spreads out the earth by myself;
25 who frustrates the signs of the liars,
and makes diviners mad;
who turns wise men backward,
and makes their knowledge foolish;
26 who confirms the word of his servant,
and performs the counsel of his messengers;
who says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be inhabited;’
and of the cities of Judah, ‘They will be built,’
and ‘I will raise up its waste places;’
27 who says to the deep, ‘Be dry,’
and ‘I will dry up your rivers,’
28 who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure,’
even saying of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built;’
and of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’”
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2001 by Terence P. Noble
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