The Daily Audio Bible

¹⁴ The Lord your redeemer,
    the holy one of Israel, says,
For your sake, I have sent an army^[a] to Babylon,
    and brought down all the bars,
    turning the Chaldeans’ singing into a lament.^[b]
15 I am the Lord, your holy one,
    Israel’s creator, your king!
¹⁶ The Lord says—who makes a way in the sea
    and a path in the mighty waters,
¹⁷     who brings out chariot and horse,
    army and battalion;
    they will lie down together and will not rise;
    they will be extinguished, extinguished like a wick.
¹⁸ Don’t remember the prior things;
    don’t ponder ancient history.
¹⁹ Look! I’m doing a new thing;
    now it sprouts up; don’t you recognize it?
I’m making a way in the desert,
    paths^[c] in the wilderness.
²⁰ The beasts of the field,
        the jackals and ostriches, will honor me,
    because I have put water in the desert
    and streams in the wilderness
    to give water to my people,
    my chosen ones,
²¹     this people whom I formed for myself,
        who will recount my praise.

44 But now hear this, Jacob my servant,
    and Israel, whom I have chosen.
² The Lord your maker,
    who formed you in the womb and will help you, says:
    Don’t fear, my servant Jacob,
    Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
³ I will pour out water upon thirsty ground
    and streams upon dry land.
I will pour out my spirit upon your descendants
    and my blessing upon your offspring.
⁴ They will spring up from among the reeds
    like willows by flowing streams.
⁵ This one will say, “I am the Lord’s,”
        and that one will be named after Jacob.
    Another will write on his hand, “The Lord’s”
        and will take the name Israel.

⁹ Idol-makers are all as nothing;
    their playthings do no good.
Their promoters neither see nor know anything,
    so they ought to be ashamed.
¹⁰ Who would form a god or cast an idol
    that does no good?
¹¹ All its worshippers will be ashamed,
    and its artisans, who are only human.
They will all gather and stand,
    tremble and be ashamed together.
¹² A blacksmith with his tools
    works it over coals,
    and shapes it with hammers,
    and works it with his strong arm.
He even becomes hungry and weak.
    If he didn’t drink water, he’d pass out.
¹³ A carpenter stretches out a string,
    marks it out with a stylus,
    fashions it with carving tools,
    and marks it with a compass.
He makes it into a human form,
    like a splendid human,
    to live in a temple.
¹⁴ He cuts down cedars for himself,
    or chooses a cypress^[f] or oak,
    selecting from all the trees of the forest.
    He plants a pine,^[g] and the rain makes it grow.
¹⁵     It becomes suitable to burn for humans,
        so he takes some of the wood and warms himself.
    He kindles fire and bakes bread.
He fashions a god and worships it;
    he makes an idol and bows down to it.
¹⁶ Half of it he burns in the fire;
    on that half he roasts and eats meat, and he is satisfied.
He warms himself and says,
    “Ah, I’m warm, watching the fire!”
¹⁷ And the rest of it he makes into a god,
    into his idol,
    and he bows down, worships, and prays to it, saying, “Save me, for you are my god!”
¹⁸ They don’t know or comprehend,
    for their eyes can’t see
    and their minds can’t comprehend.
¹⁹ He doesn’t think,
    and has no knowledge or understanding to think:
Half of it I burned in the fire,
    and I baked bread on its coals,
    and roasted meat and ate.
Should I make the rest into something detestable?
    Should I bow down to a block of wood?
²⁰ He’s feeding on ashes;
    his deluded mind has led him astray.
He can’t save himself and say,
    “Isn’t this thing in my hand a lie?”

²¹ Remember these things, Jacob;
    Israel, for you are my servant.
I formed you; you are my servant!
    I won’t forget you, Israel.
²² I swept away your rebellions like a cloud,
    and your sins like fog.
Return to me,
    because I have redeemed you.

45 The Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus,
    whom I have grasped by the strong hand,
    to conquer nations before him,
    disarming kings,
    and opening doors before him,
    so no gates will be shut:
² I myself will go before you,
    and I will level mountains.
I will shatter bronze doors;
    I will cut through iron bars.
³ I will give you hidden treasures of secret riches,
    so you will know that I am the Lord,
    the God of Israel, who calls you by name.
⁴ For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my chosen,
    I called you by name.
I gave you an honored title,
    though you didn’t know me.
⁵ I am the Lord, and there is no other;
    besides me there is no God.
I strengthen you—
    though you don’t know me—
⁶ so all will know, from the rising of the sun to its setting,
    that there is nothing apart from me.
I am the Lord; there’s no other.
⁷     I form light and create darkness,
    make prosperity and create doom;
    I am the Lord, who does all these things.

⁹ Doom to the one who argues with the potter,^[i]
    as if he were just another clay pot!
Does the clay say to the potter, “What are you making?”
    or “Your work has no handles”?
¹⁰ Doom to one who says to a father,
    “What have you fathered?”
    and to a woman,
    “With what are you in labor?”

68 Let God rise up;
    let his enemies scatter;
    let those who hate him
        run scared before him!
² Like smoke is driven away,
        drive them away!
    Like wax melting before fire,
        let the wicked perish before God!
³ But let the righteous be glad
    and celebrate before God.
    Let them rejoice with gladness!
⁴ Sing to God! Sing praises to his name!
        Exalt the one who rides the clouds!
    The Lord is his name.
        Celebrate before him!