Isaiah 41

Israel Assured of Gods Help

1 Keep silence before Me, O coastlands, Keep silence before Me, O coastlands, And let the people renew their strength! Let them come near, then let them speak; Let us come near together for judgment.2 Who raised up one from the east? Who in righteousness called him to His feet? Who gave the nations before him, And made him rule over kings? Who gave them as the dust to his sword, As driven stubble to his bow?3 Who pursued them, and passed safely By the way that he had not gone with his feet?4 Who has performed and done it, Calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am the first; And with the last I am He.5 The coastlands saw it and feared, The ends of the earth were afraid; They drew near and came.6 Everyone helped his neighbor, And said to his brother, Be of good courage!7 So the craftsman encouraged the goldsmith; He who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil, Saying, It is ready for the soldering; Then he fastened it with pegs, That it might not totter.8 But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, The descendants of Abraham My friend.9  You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its farthest regions, And said to you, You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away:10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.11 Behold, all those who were incensed against you Shall be ashamed and disgraced; They shall be as nothing, And those who strive with you shall perish.12 You shall seek them and not find them Those who contended with you. Those who war against you Shall be as nothing, As a nonexistent thing.13 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, Saying to you, Fear not, I will help you.14 Fear not, you worm Jacob, You men of Israel! I will help you, says the Lord And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.15 Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth; You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small, And make the hills like chaff.16 You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away, And the whirlwind shall scatter them; You shall rejoice in the Lord, And glory in the Holy One of Israel.17 The poor and needy seek water, but there is none, Their tongues fail for thirst. I, the Lord, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.18 I will open rivers in desolate heights, And fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, And the dry land springs of water.19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree, The myrtle and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine And the box tree together,20 That they may see and know, And consider and understand together, That the hand of the Lord has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

The Futility of Idols

21 Present your case, says the Lord. Bring forth your strong reasons, says the King of Jacob.22 Let them bring forth and show us what will happen; Let them show the former things, what they were, That we may consider them, And know the latter end of them; Or declare to us things to come.23 Show the things that are to come hereafter, That we may know that you are gods; Yes, do good or do evil, That we may be dismayed and see it together.24 Indeed you are nothing, And your work is nothing; He who chooses you is an abomination.25 I have raised up one from the north, And he shall come; From the rising of the sun he shall call on My name; And he shall come against princes as though mortar, As the potter treads clay.26 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know? And former times, that we may say, He is righteous? Surely there is no one who shows, Surely there is no one who declares, Surely there is no one who hears your words.27 The first time I said to Zion, Look, there they are! And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.28 For I looked, and there was no man; I looked among them, but there was no counselor, Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.29 Indeed they are all worthless; Their works are nothing; Their molded images are wind and confusion.

ISAIAH 41

The [Lord] Controls //Human Events

1 Be silent and listen,
every island in the sea.
Have courage and come near,
every one of you nations.
Let's settle this matter!

2 Who appointed this ruler
from the east?t
Who puts nations and kings
in his power?t
His sword and his arrows
turn them to dust
blown by the wind.

3 He goes after them so quickly
that his feet
barely touch the ground—
he doesn't even get hurt.

4 Who makes these things happen?
Who controls human events?
I do! I am the [Lord].
I was there at the beginning;
I will be there at the end.

5 Islands and foreign nations
saw what I did and trembled
as they came near.

What Can Idols Do?

6 Worshipers of idols
comfort each other,
saying, “Don't worry!”

7 Woodcarvers, goldsmiths,
and other workerst
encourage one another and say,
“We've done a great job!”
Then they nail the idol down,
so it won't fall over.

The [Lord]'s Chosen Servant

8  t Israel, you are my servant.
I chose you, the family
of my friend Abraham.

9 From far across the earth
I brought you here and said,
“You are my chosen servant.
I haven't forgotten you.”

10 Don't be afraid. I am with you.
Don't tremble with fear.
I am your God.
I will make you strong,
as I protect you with my arm
and give you victories.

11 Everyone who hates you
will be terribly disgraced;
those who attack
will vanish into thin air.

12 You will look around
for those brutal enemies,
but you won't find them—
they will be gone.

13 I am the [Lord] your God.
I am holding your hand,
so don't be afraid.
I am here to help you.

14 People of Israel, don't worry,
though others may say,
“Israel is only a worm!”
I am the holy God of Israel,
who saves and protects you.

15 I will let you be like a log
covered with sharp spikes.t
You will grind and crush
every mountain and hillt
until they turn to dust.

16 A strong wind will scatter them
in all directions.
Then you will celebrate
and praise me, your [Lord],
the holy God of Israel.

The [Lord] Helps the Poor

17 When the poor and needy
are dying of thirst
and cannot find water,
I, the [Lord] God of Israel,
will come to their rescue.
I won't forget them.

18 I will make rivers flow
on mountain peaks.
I will send streams
to fill the valleys.
Dry and barren land
will flow with springs
and become a lake.

19 I will fill the desert
with all kinds of trees—
cedars, acacias, and myrtles;
olive and cypress trees;
fir trees and pines.

20 Everyone will see this
and know that I,
the holy [Lord] God of Israel,
created it all.

Idols Are Useless

21 I am the [Lord],
the King of Israel!
Come argue your case with me.
Present your evidence.

22 Come near me, you idols.t
Tell us about the past,
and we will think about it.
Tell us about the future,
so we will know
what is going to happen.

23 Prove that you are gods
by making your predictions
come true.
Do something good or evil,
so we can be amazed
and terrified.t

24 You idols are nothing,
and you are powerless.t
To worship you
would be disgusting.

25 I, the [Lord], appointed a ruler
in the north;
now he comes from the east
to honor my name.
He tramplest kings like mud,
as potters trample clay.t

26 Did any of you idols predict
what would happen?
Did any of you get it right?
None of you told about this
or even spoke a word.

27 I was the first to tell
the people of Jerusalem,
“Look, it's happening!”t
I was the one who announced
this good news to Zion.

28 None of these idols
are able to give advice
or answer questions.

29 They are nothing, t
and they can do nothing—
they are merely
a passing breeze.