Old/New Testament

^1 [a]Thus says the Lord to his anointed,
    to Cyrus whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
    and to remove the armor of kings,
opening doors before him
    and leaving no gates barred:
² I myself will advance before you
    and level the mountains;
I will tear down bronze gates^[b]
    and cut through bars of iron.
³ I will give you treasures concealed in darkness
    and riches hidden away in secret places,
so that you may know that I am the Lord,
    the God of Israel who calls you by your name.
⁴ For the sake of my servant Jacob
    and of Israel my chosen one,
I have called you by your name,
    and I have given you a title,
    even though you do not know me.
⁵ I am the Lord and there is no other;
    there is no god besides me.
I am the Lord who armed you
    even though you did not know me,
⁶ so that it may be acknowledged from east to west
    that there is no god besides me.
    I am the Lord, and there is no other.
⁷ I form the light and create the darkness;
    prosperity and disaster depend upon my will;
    I, the Lord, do all these things.
⁸ Rain down righteousness, you heavens;
    let the skies pour it down from above.
Let the earth open up
    so that salvation may blossom forth,
and let justice also spring up;
    I, the Lord, have created it.
⁹ Woe to anyone who rises up against his Maker,
    or to the pot that is displeased with the potter.
Does the clay say to the one who molds it,
    “What are you doing?
    Your work makes no sense.”
¹⁰ Woe to anyone who asks a father,
    “What are you begetting?”
or who says to a mother,
    “To what have you given birth?”
¹¹ Thus says the Lord,
    the Holy One of Israel and its Maker:
How dare you question me about my children
    or command me regarding the work of my hands?
¹² I was the one who made the earth
    and created mankind upon it.
It was my hands that stretched out the heavens
    and commanded all their host.
¹³ I have raised this man for the triumph of justice,
    and I will smooth all his paths.
He will rebuild my city
    and set my exiles free
without price or ransom,
    says the Lord of hosts.
¹⁴ Thus says the Lord:
    The wealth of Egypt, the commerce of Ethiopia,
    and the Sabeans, tall of stature,
will come over to you and belong to you;
    they will follow you, wearing chains.
They will bow down before you
    and pray to you, saying,
“God is with you alone, and there is no other;
    there is no god aside from him.”^[c]
15 Truly you are a God who is hidden,
    O God of Israel, the Savior.
¹⁶ All the makers of idols are disgraced and humbled;
    they perish in their shame.
¹⁷ But Israel is saved by the Lord,
    a salvation that is everlasting.
You will never be put to shame or humiliated
    forever and ever.
¹⁸ For thus says the Lord,
    the Creator of the heavens,
    he who is God,
the one who formed the earth and created it
    and established it;
he did not create it to be a wasteland,
    but a place to be lived in.
I am the Lord,
    and there is no other.
¹⁹ I did not speak in secret,
    in realms of darkness.
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
    “Search for me in an empty waste.”
I the Lord proclaim the truth;
    I declare what is right.
²⁰ Gather together and come forth;
    assemble, all you survivors of the nations.
Bereft of knowledge are those
    who parade with their wooden idols
    and pray to gods who are unable to save them.
²¹ Come forward and present your case
    once you have examined the evidence.
Who foretold this in ages past?
    Who revealed it long ago?
Was it not I, the Lord?
    There is no god aside from me,
    I alone am the righteous God and Savior.
²² If you turn to me, you will be saved,
    all you ends of the earth,
    for I am God, and there is no other.
²³ By myself I have sworn
    that the word that issues forth from my mouth
    is righteous and irrevocable.
To me every knee will bow,
    every tongue will swear,
²⁴ saying, “In the Lord alone
    are righteousness and strength;
all those who formerly defied him
    and vented their rage against him
    will come before him in shame.
²⁵ Then all the descendants of Israel
    will be triumphant and glory in the Lord.”

¹ Bel^[e] bows down, Nebo stoops low;
    their idols are borne by beasts and cattle.
The images you used to carry on your shoulders
    are now a burden for weary animals.
² They stoop and bow down together
    but are unable to transport their burden safely,
    and they too move forth into captivity.
³ Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
    all who remain of the house of Israel,
you who have been carried by me since your birth
    and borne by me from the womb.
⁴ Even when you reach old age
    I will still be the same.
Even when your hair is gray,
    I will still carry you.
I have made you and I will uphold you;
    I will carry you and save you.
⁵ Whom can you regard as my equal?
    To whom can you compare me as identical?
⁶ Some pour out gold from a purse
    and weigh out silver on the scales.
Then they hire a goldsmith
    who fashions it into a god
    before which they prostrate themselves in adoration.
⁷ They lift it to their shoulders and carry it;
    when they return it to its place, it stands there,
    unable to budge from the spot.
If you cry out to it, it cannot reply,
    nor can it save anyone from trouble.
⁸ Remember this and stand firm in your resolve;
    keep it foremost in your mind, you rebels.
⁹ Remember the things that happened long ago;
    for I am God, and there is no other;
    I am God, and there is no one like me.
¹⁰ From the beginning I reveal the end;
    in advance I foretell what has not yet occurred.
I proclaim that my plan will be fulfilled
    and that I will accomplish my intention.
¹¹ I summon a bird of prey from the east,
    a man from a distant country to fulfill my purpose.
I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;
    what I have planned, I will accomplish.
¹² Listen to me, you whose hearts are stubborn
    and who are far removed from deliverance.
¹³ I will bring near my justice;
    it is not far distant,
    and my salvation will not be delayed.
I will grant my salvation to Zion
    and my glory to Israel.