Isaiah 46-47

Christian Standard Bible

³ “Listen to me, house of Jacob,
all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been sustained from the womb,
carried along since birth.
⁴ I will be the same until your old age,^(C)
and I will bear you up when you turn gray.
I have made you, and I will carry you;
I will bear and rescue you.

⁵ “To whom will you compare me or make me equal?
Who will you measure me with,
so that we should be like each other?^(D)
6 Those who pour out their bags of gold
and weigh out silver on scales—
they hire a goldsmith and he makes it into a god.
Then they kneel and bow down to it.^(E)
7 They lift it to their shoulder and bear it along;^(F)
they set it in its place, and there it stands;
it does not budge from its place.^(G)
They cry out to it but it doesn’t answer;
it saves no one from his trouble.

⁸ “Remember this and be brave;^[a]
take it to heart, you transgressors!
⁹ Remember what happened long ago,^(H)
for I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and no one is like me.
¹⁰ I declare the end from the beginning,
and from long ago what is not yet done,
saying: my plan will take place,
and I will do all my will.^(I)
11 I call a bird of prey^[b] from the east,^(J)
a man for my purpose from a far country.
Yes, I have spoken; so I will also bring it about.^(K)
I have planned it; I will also do it.
¹² Listen to me, you hardhearted,
far removed from justice:
¹³ I am bringing my justice near;^(L)
it is not far away,
and my salvation will not delay.
I will put salvation in Zion,
my splendor in Israel.

⁵ “Daughter Chaldea,
sit in silence^(R) and go into darkness.
For you will no longer be called mistress of kingdoms.
⁶ I was angry with my people;
I profaned my possession,
and I handed them over to you.
You showed them no mercy;
you made your yoke very heavy on the elderly.
⁷ You said, ‘I will be the queen forever.’
You did not take these things to heart
or think about their outcome.

⁸ “So now hear this, lover of luxury,
who sits securely,^(S)
who says to herself,
‘I am, and there is no one else.
I will never be a widow
or know the loss of children.’^(T)
9 These two things will happen to you
suddenly, in one day:
loss of children and widowhood.
They will happen to you in their entirety,
in spite of your many sorceries^(U)
and the potency of your spells.
¹⁰ You were secure in your wickedness;
you said, ‘No one sees me.’^(V)
Your wisdom and knowledge
led you astray.
You said to yourself,
‘I am, and there is no one else.’
¹¹ But disaster will happen to you;
you will not know how to avert it.
And it will fall on you,
but you will be unable to ward it off.^[d]
Devastation will happen to you suddenly
and unexpectedly.^(W)

¹² So take your stand with your spells
and your many sorceries,
which you have wearied yourself with from your youth.
Perhaps you will be able to succeed;
perhaps you will inspire terror!
¹³ You are worn out with your many consultations.
So let the astrologers stand and save you—
those who observe the stars,^(X)
those who predict monthly
what will happen to you.
¹⁴ Look, they are like stubble;^(Y)
fire burns them.^(Z)
They cannot rescue themselves
from the power of the flame.
This is not a coal for warming themselves,
or a fire to sit beside!
¹⁵ This is what they are to you—
those who have wearied you
and have traded with you from your youth—
each wanders on his own way;
no one can save you.