Isaiah 41
41
The Lord Helps Israel
1#Hab 2:20; Zec 2:13 Keep silent before Me, O islands,
and let the peoples renew their strength.
Let them come near, then let them speak;
let us come near together to judgment.
2#Isa 40:24; 45:1 Who raised up the righteous man from the east,
called him to His foot,
gave the nations before him,
and made him rule over kings?
He makes them as the dust with his sword,
and as driven stubble with his bow.
3He pursued them, and passed safely,
by paths his feet have not traveled.
4#Isa 41:26; 48:12 Who has performed and done this,
calling the generations from the beginning?
I, the Lord, am the first,
and with the last. I am He.
5#Jos 5:1; Ps 67:7 The coastlands saw it and feared,
the ends of the earth were afraid;
they drew near and came.
6Every one helped his neighbor,
and every one said to his brother, “Be of good courage.”
7#Isa 40:19–20 So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith,
and he who smooths metal with the hammer
encourages him who strikes the anvil,
saying, “It is ready for the soldering”;
and he fastened it with nails so that it should not totter.
8#2Ch 20:7; Jas 2:23 But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
the seed of Abraham, My friend.
9You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
and called from its remotest parts,
and said to you, “You are My servant;
I have chosen you and have not rejected you.”
10#Jos 1:9; Isa 41:13–14 Do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
yes, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
11#Isa 45:24; Ex 23:22 Certainly all those who were incensed against you
shall be ashamed and humiliated;
they shall be as nothing,
and those who strive with you shall perish.
12#Ps 37:35–36; Job 20:7–9 You shall seek them
and shall not find them, even those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
shall be as nothing, as a thing of nonexistence.
13#Isa 45:1 For I, the Lord your God,
will hold your right hand,
saying to you, “Do not fear;
I will help you.”
14#Ps 22:6; Isa 43:14 Do not fear, you worm Jacob,
and you men of Israel.
I will help you, says the Lord
and your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15#Mic 4:13; Hab 3:12 See, I will make you a new sharp threshing instrument
with double edges;
you shall thresh the mountains, and beat them small,
and shall make the hills as chaff.
16#Jer 51:2 You shall fan them, and the wind shall carry them away,
and the whirlwind shall scatter them;
and you shall rejoice in the Lord,
and shall glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17#Isa 30:19; 42:16 When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongues fail for thirst,
I, the Lord, will hear them,
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18#Ps 107:35; Isa 30:25 I will open rivers in high places,
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#Isa 55:13; 60:13 I will plant in the wilderness
the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive tree;
I will set in the desert
the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together,
20#Job 12:9 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 createdit.
The Futility of Idols
21Present your case, says the Lord.
Bring forth your arguments, says the King of Jacob.
22#Isa 45:21; 46:10 Let them bring them forth, and show us
what shall happen;
let them show the former things, what they were,
that we may consider them
and know their outcome,
or declare to us things to come.
23#Isa 42:9; 44:7–8 Show the things that are to come hereafter,
that we may know that you are gods;
do good, or do evil,
that we may be dismayed and see it together.
24#Ps 115:8; 1Co 8:4 Indeed you are nothing,
and your work amounts to nothing;
he who chooses you is an abomination.
25#Isa 41:2; 2Sa 22:43 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 on princes as on mortar,
and as the potter treads clay.
26#Isa 41:22; 44:7 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know?
And from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?
There is no one who shows,
no one who declares,
no one who hears your words.
27#Isa 40:9; 52:7 Formerly I said to Zion, “Look, here they are,”
and to Jerusalem, “I will give one who brings good news.”
28#Isa 63:5 But when I look, there is no man,
even among them, and there is no counselor
who, when I ask of them, could answer a word.
29#Isa 41:24; Jer 5:13 See, they all are vanity;
their works are nothing;
their molded images are wind and emptiness.
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Isaiah 41: MEV
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Military Bible Association
Isaiah 41
41
The Lord Controls Human Events
1Be silent and listen,
every island in the sea.
Have courage and come near,
every one of you nations.
Let's settle this matter!
2Who appointed this ruler
from the east?#41.2 ruler from the east: Probably Cyrus (see 44.28; 45.1; 48.14).
Who puts nations and kings
in his power?#41.2 Who puts … power: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
His sword and his arrows
turn them to dust
blown by the wind.
3He goes after them so quickly
that his feet
barely touch the ground—
he doesn't even get hurt.
4Who 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.
5Islands and foreign nations
saw what I did and trembled
as they came near.
What Can Idols Do?
6Worshipers of idols
comfort each other,
saying, “Don't worry!”
7Woodcarvers, goldsmiths,
and other workers#41.7 and other workers: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
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 #
2 Ch 20.7; Jas 2.23. Israel, you are my servant.
I chose you, the family
of my friend Abraham.
9From far across the earth
I brought you here and said,
“You are my chosen servant.
I haven't forgotten you.”
10Don'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.
11Everyone who hates you
will be terribly disgraced;
those who attack
will vanish into thin air.
12You will look around
for those brutal enemies,
but you won't find them—
they will be gone.
13I am the Lord your God.
I am holding your hand,
so don't be afraid.
I am here to help you.
14People 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.
15I will let you be like a log
covered with sharp spikes.#41.15 I will let … sharp spikes: In ancient times a heavy object was sometimes dragged over wheat or barley to separate the grain from the husk. This was called threshing.
You will grind and crush
every mountain and hill#41.15 mountain and hill: These stand for the power and pride of Israel's enemies.
until they turn to dust.
16A 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
17When 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.
18I 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.
19I will fill the desert
with all kinds of trees—
cedars, acacias, and myrtles;
olive and cypress trees;
fir trees and pines.
20Everyone will see this
and know that I,
the holy Lord God of Israel,
created it all.
Idols Are Useless
21I am the Lord,
the King of Israel!
Come argue your case with me.
Present your evidence.
22Come near me, you idols.#41.22 Come near … idols: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
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.
23Prove that you are gods
by making your predictions
come true.
Do something good or evil,
so we can be amazed
and terrified.#41.23 and terrified: Or “when we see it.”
24You idols are nothing,
and you are powerless.#41.24 powerless: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
To worship you
would be disgusting.
25I, the Lord, appointed a ruler
in the north;
now he comes from the east
to honor my name.
He tramples#41.25 tramples: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. kings like mud,
as potters trample clay.#41.25 trample clay: This was done to soften the clay and make it easier to shape.
26Did 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.
27I was the first to tell
the people of Jerusalem,
“Look, it's happening!”#41.27 Look … happening: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
I was the one who announced
this good news to Zion.
28None of these idols
are able to give advice
or answer questions.
29They are nothing,#41.29 nothing: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
and they can do nothing—
they are merely
a passing breeze.
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