Isaiah 45
45
1Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
and ungird the loins of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
2“I will go before you
and level the mountains,#45.2 One ancient Ms Gk: Heb the swellings
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut asunder the bars of iron,
3I will give you the treasures of darkness
and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
4For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
I surname you, though you do not know me.
5I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I gird you, though you do not know me,
6that men may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7I form light and create darkness,
I make weal and create woe,
I am the Lord, who do all these things.
8“Shower, O heavens, from above,
and let the skies rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation may sprout forth,#45.8 One ancient Ms: Heb that they may bring forth salvation
and let it cause righteousness to spring up also;
I the Lord have created it.
9 #
Is 29.16; Rom 9.20. “Woe to him who strives with his Maker,
an earthen vessel with the potter!#45.9 Cn: Heb potsherdsor potters
Does the clay say to him who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’
or ‘Your work has no handles’?
10Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’
or to a woman, ‘With what are you in travail?’ ”
11Thus says the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker:
“Will you question me#45.11 Cn: Heb Ask me of things to come about my children,
or command me concerning the work of my hands?
12I made the earth,
and created man upon it;
it was my hands that stretched out the heavens,
and I commanded all their host.
13I have aroused him in righteousness,
and I will make straight all his ways;
he shall build my city
and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,”
says the Lord of hosts.
14 #
1 Cor 14.25. Thus says the Lord:
“The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia,
and the Sabeans, men of stature,
shall come over to you and be yours,
they shall follow you;
they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying:
‘God is with you only, and there is no other,
no god besides him.’ ”
15Truly, thou art a God who hidest thyself,
O God of Israel, the Savior.
16All of them are put to shame and confounded,
the makers of idols go in confusion together.
17 #
Heb 5.9. But Israel is saved by the Lord
with everlasting salvation;
you shall not be put to shame or confounded
to all eternity.
18For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens
(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it
(he established it;
he did not create it a chaos,
he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19I did not speak in secret,
in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
‘Seek me in chaos.’
I the Lord speak the truth,
I declare what is right.
20“Assemble yourselves and come,
draw near together,
you survivors of the nations!
They have no knowledge
who carry about their wooden idols,
and keep on praying to a god
that cannot save.
21 #
Acts 15.18. Declare and present your case;
let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?
Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and a Savior;
there is none besides me.
22“Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 #
Rom 14.11; Phil 2.10-11. By myself I have sworn,
from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness
a word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear.’
24“Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,
are righteousness and strength;
to him shall come and be ashamed,
all who were incensed against him.
25In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
shall triumph and glory.”
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Isaiah 45: RSV
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America
Isaiah 45
45
Cyrus, the Lord’s Chosen One
1This is what the Lord says to Cyrus, his anointed one,
whose right hand he will empower.
Before him, mighty kings will be paralyzed with fear.
Their fortress gates will be opened,
never to shut again.
2This is what the Lord says:
“I will go before you, Cyrus,
and level the mountains.#45:2 As in Dead Sea Scrolls and Greek version; Masoretic Text reads the swellings.
I will smash down gates of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.
3And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness—
secret riches.
I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.
4“And why have I called you for this work?
Why did I call you by name when you did not know me?
It is for the sake of Jacob my servant,
Israel my chosen one.
5I am the Lord;
there is no other God.
I have equipped you for battle,
though you don’t even know me,
6so all the world from east to west
will know there is no other God.
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7I create the light and make the darkness.
I send good times and bad times.
I, the Lord, am the one who does these things.
8“Open up, O heavens,
and pour out your righteousness.
Let the earth open wide
so salvation and righteousness can sprout up together.
I, the Lord, created them.
9“What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator.
Does a clay pot argue with its maker?
Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying,
‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’
Does the pot exclaim,
‘How clumsy can you be?’
10How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father,
‘Why was I born?’
or if it said to its mother,
‘Why did you make me this way?’”
11This is what the Lord says—
the Holy One of Israel and your Creator:
“Do you question what I do for my children?
Do you give me orders about the work of my hands?
12I am the one who made the earth
and created people to live on it.
With my hands I stretched out the heavens.
All the stars are at my command.
13I will raise up Cyrus to fulfill my righteous purpose,
and I will guide his actions.
He will restore my city and free my captive people—
without seeking a reward!
I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”
Future Conversion of Gentiles
14This is what the Lord says:
“You will rule the Egyptians,
the Ethiopians,#45:14 Hebrew Cushites. and the Sabeans.
They will come to you with all their merchandise,
and it will all be yours.
They will follow you as prisoners in chains.
They will fall to their knees in front of you and say,
‘God is with you, and he is the only God.
There is no other.’”
15Truly, O God of Israel, our Savior,
you work in mysterious ways.
16All craftsmen who make idols will be humiliated.
They will all be disgraced together.
17But the Lord will save the people of Israel
with eternal salvation.
Throughout everlasting ages,
they will never again be humiliated and disgraced.
18For the Lord is God,
and he created the heavens and earth
and put everything in place.
He made the world to be lived in,
not to be a place of empty chaos.
“I am the Lord,” he says,
“and there is no other.
19I publicly proclaim bold promises.
I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner.
I would not have told the people of Israel#45:19 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 14:1. to seek me
if I could not be found.
I, the Lord, speak only what is true
and declare only what is right.
20“Gather together and come,
you fugitives from surrounding nations.
What fools they are who carry around their wooden idols
and pray to gods that cannot save!
21Consult together, argue your case.
Get together and decide what to say.
Who made these things known so long ago?
What idol ever told you they would happen?
Was it not I, the Lord?
For there is no other God but me,
a righteous God and Savior.
There is none but me.
22Let all the world look to me for salvation!
For I am God; there is no other.
23I have sworn by my own name;
I have spoken the truth,
and I will never go back on my word:
Every knee will bend to me,
and every tongue will declare allegiance to me.#45:23 Hebrew will confess; Greek version reads will declare allegiance to God. Compare Rom 14:11.”
24The people will declare,
“The Lord is the source of all my righteousness and strength.”
And all who were angry with him
will come to him and be ashamed.
25In the Lord all the generations of Israel will be justified,
and in him they will boast.
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