Isaiah 41
41
The Nations Chose Idols, but the LORD Chose Israel
1“Be silent and listen to me, you coastlands.
Let the people gain new strength.
Let them come near and speak.
Let us come together for judgment.
2“Who has raised up from the east
someone to whom the Lord gives victory with every step he takes?
Nations are handed over to him.
He defeats kings.
With his sword he turns them into dust.
With his bow he turns them into straw blown by the wind.
3He chases them, marching by safely
on a path his feet have never traveled before.
4Who has accomplished this?
Who has determined the course of history from the beginning?
I, the Lord, was there first, and I will be there to the end.
I am the one!”
5The coastlands have seen him and are afraid.
The ends of the earth tremble.
They have come near and gathered together.
6People help their neighbors
and say to their relatives, “Be brave!”
7Craftsmen encourage goldsmiths.
Metalsmiths encourage blacksmiths who work at their anvils.
They say that their soldering is good.
And they fasten things with nails so they won’t move.
8“But you are my servant Israel,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
the descendant of Abraham, my dear friend.
9I have taken you from the ends of the earth
and called you from its most distant places.
I said to you, ‘You are my servant.
I’ve chosen you; I haven’t rejected you.’
10Don’t be afraid, because I am with you.
Don’t be intimidated; I am your God.
I will strengthen you.
I will help you.
I will support you with my victorious right hand.
11“Everyone who is angry with you
will be ashamed and disgraced.
Those who oppose you
will be reduced to nothing and disappear.
12You will search for your enemies,
but you will not find them.
Those who are at war with you
will be reduced to nothing and no longer exist.
13I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand
and say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid; I will help you.’
14Don’t be afraid, Jacob, you worm.
You people of Israel, I will help you,”
declares the Lord, your Defender, the Holy One of Israel.
15“I am going to make you into a new threshing #41:15 Threshing is the process of beating stalks to separate them from the grain. sledge
with sharp, double-edged teeth.
You will thresh the mountains and crush them to dust.
You will turn the hills into straw.
16You will winnow #41:16 Winnowing is the process of separating husks from grain. them.
The wind will carry them away.
The windstorm will scatter them.
But you will find joy in the Lord
and praise the Holy One of Israel.
17“The poor and needy are looking for water, but there is none.
Their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, the Lord, will answer them.
I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.
18I will make rivers flow on bare hilltops.
I will make springs flow through valleys.
I will turn deserts into lakes.
I will turn dry land into springs.
19I will plant cedar, acacia, myrtle, and wild olive trees in the desert.
I will place cedar, fir, and cypress trees together in the wilderness.
20People will see and know.
Together they will consider and understand
that the Lord’s power has done this,
that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
21“Present your case,” says the Lord.
“Bring forward your best arguments,” says Jacob’s king.
22“Bring ⌞your idols⌟ so they can tell us what’s going to happen.
Explain past events that your idols told you about
so that we may consider them
and know what their outcome will be.
Tell us about future events.
23Tell us what’s going to happen
so that we may know that you are gods.
Yes, do something, good or evil,
to intimidate us and make us afraid.
24You are nothing!
You can’t do anything!
Whoever chooses you is disgusting.
25“I have raised up someone from the north, and he has come.
He will call on my name from the east.
He will attack rulers as if they were mud,
as if he were treading on clay like a potter.
26Who revealed this from the beginning so that we could know it?
Who revealed this from the past so that we could say that he was right?
No one revealed it.
No one announced it.
No one heard your words.
27I was the first to tell Zion, ‘Look, here they are.’
I gave Jerusalem a messenger with the good news.
28When I look, there is no one.
There is no one to advise them.
When I ask them a question,
will they give an answer?
29All of them are nothing.#41:29 Dead Sea Scrolls, Syriac, Targum; Masoretic Text “They are false.”
They can’t do anything.
Their statues are nothing but air.”
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Isaiah 41: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 41
41
God's Assurance to Israel
1God says,
“Be silent and listen to me, you distant lands!
Get ready to present your case in court;
you will have your chance to speak.
Let us come together to decide who is right.
2“Who was it that brought the conqueror from the east,#41.2 the conqueror from the east: Cyrus, the emperor of Persia (see 45.1).
and makes him triumphant wherever he goes?
Who gives him victory over kings and nations?
His sword strikes them down as if they were dust.
His arrows scatter them like straw before the wind.
3He follows in pursuit and marches safely on,
so fast that he hardly touches the ground!
4Who was it that made this happen?
Who has determined the course of history?
I, the LORD, was there at the beginning,
and I, the LORD, will be there at the end.
5“The people of distant lands have seen what I have done;
they are frightened and tremble with fear.
So they all assemble and come.
6The craftsmen help and encourage one another.
7The carpenter says to the goldsmith, ‘Well done!’
The man who beats the idol smooth
encourages the one who nails it together.
They say, ‘The soldering is good’ —
and they fasten the idol in place with nails.
8 #
2 Chr 20.7; Jas 2.23 “But you, Israel my servant,
you are the people that I have chosen,
the descendants of Abraham, my friend.
9I brought you from the ends of the earth;
I called you from its farthest corners
and said to you, ‘You are my servant.’
I did not reject you, but chose you.
10Do not be afraid — I am with you!
I am your God — let nothing terrify you!
I will make you strong and help you;
I will protect you and save you.
11“Those who are angry with you
will know the shame of defeat.
Those who fight against you will die
12and will disappear from the earth.
13I am the LORD your God;
I strengthen you and say,
‘Do not be afraid; I will help you.’ ”
14The LORD says,
“Small and weak as you are, Israel,
don't be afraid; I will help you.
I, the holy God of Israel, am the one who saves you.
15I will make you like a threshing board,
with spikes that are new and sharp.
You will thresh mountains and destroy them;
hills will crumble into dust.
16You will toss them in the air;
the wind will carry them off,
and they will be scattered by the storm.
Then you will be happy because I am your God;
you will praise me, the holy God of Israel.
17“When my people in their need look for water,
when their throats are dry with thirst,
then I, the LORD, will answer their prayer;
I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them.
18I will make rivers flow among barren hills
and springs of water run in the valleys.
I will turn the desert into pools of water
and the dry land into flowing springs.
19I will make cedars grow in the desert,
and acacias and myrtles and olive trees.
Forests will grow in barren land,
forests of pine and juniper and cypress.
20People will see this and know
that I, the LORD, have done it.
They will come to understand
that Israel's holy God has made it happen.”
The LORD's Challenge to False Gods
21The LORD, the king of Israel, has this to say:
“You gods of the nations, present your case.
Bring the best arguments you have!
22Come here and predict what will happen,
so that we will know it when it takes place.
Explain to the court the events of the past,
and tell us what they mean.
23Tell us what the future holds —
then we will know that you are gods!
Do something good or bring some disaster;
fill us with fear and awe!
24You and all you do are nothing;
those who worship you are disgusting!
25“I have chosen a man who lives in the east;#41.25 a man who lives in the east: See 41.2.
I will bring him to attack from the north.
He tramples on rulers as if they were mud,
like a potter trampling clay.
26Which of you predicted that this would happen,
so that we could say that you were right?
None of you said a word about it;
no one heard you say a thing!
27I, the LORD, was the first to tell Zion the news;
I sent a messenger to Jerusalem to say,
‘Your people are coming! They are coming home!’#41.27 Verse 27 in Hebrew is unclear.
28When I looked among the gods,
none of them had a thing to say;
not one could answer the questions I asked.
29All these gods are useless;
they can do nothing at all —
these idols are weak and powerless.”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.