41:1 | "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. |
41:2 | "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? |
41:3 | Who pursued them, [and] passed safely By the way [that] he had not gone with his feet? |
41:4 | 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.'" |
41:5 | The coastlands saw [it] and feared, The ends of the earth were afraid; They drew near and came. |
41:6 | Everyone helped his neighbor, And said to his brother, "Be of good courage!" |
41:7 | 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. |
41:8 | "But you, Israel, [are] My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, The descendants of Abraham My friend. |
41:9 | [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: |
41:10 | 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.' |
41:11 | "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. |
41:12 | You shall seek them and not find themThose who contended with you. Those who war against you Shall be as nothing, As a nonexistent thing. |
41:13 | For I, the LORD your God, will hold your right hand, Saying to you, `Fear not, I will help you.' |
41:14 | "Fear not, you worm Jacob, You men of Israel! I will help you," says the LORD And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. |
41:15 | "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. |
41:16 | 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. |
41:17 | "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. |
41:18 | 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. |
41:19 | 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, |
41:20 | 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. |
41:21 | "Present your case," says the LORD. "Bring forth your strong [reasons]," says the King of Jacob. |
41:22 | "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. |
41:23 | 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. |
41:24 | Indeed you [are] nothing, And your work [is] nothing; [He who] chooses you [is] an abomination. |
41:25 | "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. |
41:26 | 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. |
41:27 | The first time [I said] to Zion, `Look, there they are!' And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings. |
41:28 | 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. |
41:29 | Indeed they [are] all worthless; Their works [are] nothing; Their molded images [are] wind and confusion. |