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Isaiah 45:11-48
Lexham English Bible

11 Thus says Yahweh, the holy one of Israel,
    and its maker:[a]
“Ask me of the things to come about[b] my children,
    and you command me about the work of my hands.
12 I myself made the earth,
    and I created humankind upon it.
I, my hands, stretched out the heavens,
    and I commanded all their host.
13 I myself have stirred him up in righteousness,
    and I will make all his paths smooth.
He himself shall build my city,
    and he shall set my exiles free,

not for price or a gift,” says Yahweh of hosts.

Yahweh the Only Savior

14 Thus says Yahweh:
    “The acquisition of Egypt
and the merchandise of Cush
    and the Sabeans, tall men,
shall pass over to you;
    they shall be yours,
and they shall walk behind you.
    They shall pass over in chains,
and they shall bow down to you;
    they will pray to you:
‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other.
    Besides him there is no God.’”
15 Surely you are a God who keeps yourself hidden,
    God of Israel, the savior.
16 All of them are ashamed and indeed humiliated;
    the craftsmen of idols go together in insult.
17 Israel is saved by Yahweh with everlasting salvation;
    you shall not be ashamed,
    and you shall not be humiliated to all eternity.[c]
18 For thus says Yahweh, who created[d] the heavens,
    he is God, who formed[e] the earth
and who made[f] it.
    He himself established it;
he did not create it as emptiness—
    he formed it for inhabiting.

“I am Yahweh and there is none besides me.

19 I have spoken not in secrecy, in a place, a land, of darkness,
    I have not said to the descendants of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain!’[g]
I, Yahweh, am speaking righteousness,
    declaring uprightness.
20 Assemble and come;
    draw near together, survivors of the nations!
    They do not know, those who carry their wooden idols[h]
    and pray to a god who cannot save.
21 Declare and present your case,
    also let them consult together!
Who made this known[i] from former times,[j]
    declared it from of old?[k]
Was it not I, Yahweh?
    And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God besides me,
    and no savior besides me.
22 Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth,
    for I am God and there is none besides me.
23 I have sworn by myself;
    a word that[l] shall not return has gone forth from my mouth in righteousness:
‘Every knee shall kneel down to me;
    every tongue shall swear.’
24 ‘Only in Yahweh,’ one shall say to me, ‘are righteousness and strength.’
    He shall come to him, and all those who were angry with him shall be ashamed.
25 In Yahweh all the offspring of Israel shall be in the right,
    and they shall boast.”

Babylon’s Idols

46 Bel bows down;
    Nebo is stooping.
Their idols are on[m] animals[n] and on[o] cattle;
    your cargo[p] is carried as a burden on[q] weary animals.
2 They stoop;
    they bow down together.
They are not able to save the burden,
    but[r] they themselves go[s] in captivity.
3 “Listen to me, house of Jacob,
    and all the remnant of the house of Israel
who have been carried from the belly,
    who have been carried from the womb:
4 Even[t] to your old age I am he;
    even[u] to your advanced age I myself will support you.
I myself have made you,
    and I myself will carry you,
and I myself will support you,
    and I will save you.
5 To whom will you liken me,
    and count as equal,
and compare with me,
    as though[v] we were alike?
6 Those who lavish gold from the purse
    and weigh out silver in the balance scales;
hire a goldsmith[w]
    and he makes him a god;
they bow down,
    indeed they bow in worship.
7 They carry it on their shoulder;
    they support it and they set it in its place,
and it stands in position.
    It cannot be removed from its place;
even when he cries out to it, it does not answer.
    It does not save him from his trouble.
8 Remember this and pluck up courage!
    Call to mind,[x] you transgressors!
9     Remember the former things from a long time ago,[y]
for I am God and there is none besides me,
    God and there is none like me,
10 who from the beginning declares the end,
    and from before, things that have not been done,
who says, ‘My plan shall stand,’
    and, ‘I will accomplish[z] all my wishes,’[aa]
11 who calls a bird of prey from the east,
    the man of his[ab] plan from a country from afar.
Indeed I have spoken; indeed I will bring it to being.
    I have formed it; indeed I will do it.
12 Listen to me, strong of heart,
    far from righteousness!
13 I bring my righteousness near; it is not far.
    And my salvation will not delay;
and I will put[ac] salvation in Zion,
    for Israel my glory.”

Babylon’s Fall

47 Come down and sit on the dust, virgin daughter of Babylon!
    Sit on the ground without a throne, daughter of Chaldea!
For they shall no longer call[ad] you tender and delicate.
2     Take the pair of mill stones and grind flour!
Uncover your veil,
    strip off your skirt,
uncover your thigh,
    pass through the rivers!
3 Your nakedness shall be exposed;
    indeed, your shame shall become visible.
I will take vengeance
    and I will not spare[ae] a person.

4 Our redeemer, Yahweh of hosts is his name, the holy one of Israel.

5 Sit silently and go into the darkness, daughter of Chaldea,
    for they shall no longer call[af] you mistress of kingdoms.
6 I was angry with my people;
    I profaned my inheritance,
and I gave them into your hand.
    You did not give[ag] them mercy;
on the aged you made your yoke very heavy.
7     And you said, “I shall be an eternal mistress forever!”
You did not set these things upon your heart;
    you did not remember its end.
8 Therefore now hear this, luxuriant one who sits[ah] in security,
    who says[ai] in her heart, “I am, and besides me there is no one.
I shall not sit as a widow,
    and I shall not know the loss of children.”
9 And these two shall come to you in a moment, in one day:
    the loss of children and widowhood shall come on you completely,[aj]
in spite of your many sorceries,
    in spite of the power of your great enchantments.
10 And you felt secure in your wickedness;
    you said, “No one[ak] sees[al] me.”
Your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray,
    and you said in your heart, “I am, and besides me there is no one.”
11 And evil shall come upon you, you will not know;
    it will be on the lookout for her.
And disaster shall fall upon you; you will not be able to avert[am] it.
    And ruin shall come on you suddenly; you do not know.
12 Stand, now, in your enchantments,
    and in your many sorceries with which you have labored from your youth.
Perhaps you may be able to benefit;
    perhaps you may scare away.[an]
13 You struggle with your many consultations;[ao]
    let them stand, now, and save you—
those who see the stars, divide the celestial sphere,[ap]
    who inform by new moons—
        from those things that are coming upon you.
14 Look! They are like stubble;
    the fire burns them completely.
        They cannot deliver themselves[aq] from the power[ar] of the flame;
there is no coal for warming oneself,[as]
    no fire before which to sit.
15 So are to you those with whom you have labored,
    your traders from your youth.
They wander, each to his side;
    there is no one who can save you.

Yahweh Refines Stubborn Israel

48 Hear this, house of Jacob,
who are called by the name of Israel
    and came out from the waters of Judah,
who swear by the name of Yahweh,
    and invoke[at] the God of Israel,
but not in truth
    and not in righteousness.
2 For they call themselves after the holy city,[au]
    and they lean on the God of Israel—
        Yahweh of hosts is his name.
3 “I declared the former things from of old,[av]
    and they went out from my mouth.
And I announced[aw] them suddenly;
    I acted,[ax] and they came to pass,
4 because I know[ay] that you are obstinate,
    and your neck an iron sinew,
    and your forehead bronze.
5 And I declared them to you from of old;
    I announced[az] them to you before they came to pass
so that you would not say, ‘My idol did them,
    and my image and my cast image commanded them.’
6 You have heard; see it all.
    And will you not declare it?
I announce[ba] new things to you from this time
    and hidden things that[bb] you have not known.
7 Now they are created, and not from of old,[bc]
    and before today, and you have not heard them
        so that you could not say, “Look! I knew them.”
8 Neither have you heard, nor have you known,
    nor from of old[bd] has your ear been opened.
For I knew you would deal treacherously, very treacherously,
    and you are called a rebel from the womb.
9 For the sake of my name I refrain from[be] my anger,
    and for my praise I restrain it for you
        so as not to cut you off.
10 Look! I have refined you, but[bf] not like[bg] silver;
    I have chosen you in the furnace of misery.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake I do it;
    for why should it[bh] be defiled?
        And I will not give my glory to another.”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 45:11 Literally “one who forms”
  2. Isaiah 45:11 Literally “over”
  3. Isaiah 45:17 Literally “for eternity, forever”
  4. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “creating”
  5. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “forming”
  6. Isaiah 45:18 Literally “making”
  7. Isaiah 45:19 Literally “in emptiness,” as in verse 18
  8. Isaiah 45:20 Literally “the wood of their idol”
  9. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “caused to hear this”
  10. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “before”
  11. Isaiah 45:21 Literally “then”
  12. Isaiah 45:23 Or “and”
  13. Isaiah 46:1 Literally “to”
  14. Isaiah 46:1 Hebrew “animal”
  15. Isaiah 46:1 Literally “to”
  16. Isaiah 46:1 Literally “things that are carried”
  17. Isaiah 46:1 Literally “to”
  18. Isaiah 46:2 Or “and”
  19. Isaiah 46:2 Literally “their inner self goes”
  20. Isaiah 46:4 Or “And”
  21. Isaiah 46:4 Or “And”
  22. Isaiah 46:5 Or “and”
  23. Isaiah 46:6 Literally “one who smelts”
  24. Isaiah 46:8 Literally “heart”
  25. Isaiah 46:9 Literally “forever”
  26. Isaiah 46:10 Or “do”
  27. Isaiah 46:10 Hebrew “wish”
  28. Isaiah 46:11 The reading tradition (Qere) has “my”
  29. Isaiah 46:13 Or “give”
  30. Isaiah 47:1 Literally “you shall not add they shall call to”
  31. Isaiah 47:3 Literally “plead with”
  32. Isaiah 47:5 Literally “you shall not add they shall call to”
  33. Isaiah 47:6 Literally “set up”
  34. Isaiah 47:8 Or “sitting”
  35. Isaiah 47:8 Or “saying”
  36. Isaiah 47:9 Literally “as their fullness”
  37. Isaiah 47:10 Literally “none”
  38. Isaiah 47:10 Or “is seeing”
  39. Isaiah 47:11 Literally “make amends”
  40. Isaiah 47:12 Literally “terrify”
  41. Isaiah 47:13 Or “advice”
  42. Isaiah 47:13 Literally “heavens,” that is, for astrology
  43. Isaiah 47:14 Literally “their lives”
  44. Isaiah 47:14 Literally “hand”
  45. Isaiah 47:14 Literally “to grow warm”
  46. Isaiah 48:1 Literally “cause to remember”
  47. Isaiah 48:2 Literally “from the city of the holiness”
  48. Isaiah 48:3 Literally “then”
  49. Isaiah 48:3 Literally “caused to hear”
  50. Isaiah 48:3 Or “did”
  51. Isaiah 48:4 Literally “knowing me”
  52. Isaiah 48:5 Literally “caused to hear”
  53. Isaiah 48:6 Literally “cause to hear”
  54. Isaiah 48:6 Or “and”
  55. Isaiah 48:7 Literally “then”
  56. Isaiah 48:8 Literally “then”
  57. Isaiah 48:9 Literally “make long”
  58. Isaiah 48:10 Or “and”
  59. Isaiah 48:10 Or “with”
  60. Isaiah 48:11 That is, my name
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Isaiah 44
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