Holman Christian Standard Bible (213 page)
Read Holman Christian Standard Bible Online
Authors: B&H Publishing Group
Isaiah
The
Lord
versus the Nations' Gods
Lord
versus the Nations' Gods
41
“Be silent before Me, islands!
And let peoples renew their strength.
Let them approach, then let them testify;
let us come together for the trial.
2
Who has stirred him up from the east?
He calls righteousness to his feet.
The
Lord
hands nations over to him,
and he subdues kings.
He makes them like dust with his sword,
like wind-driven stubble with his bow.
3
He pursues them, going on safely,
hardly touching the path with his feet.
4
Who has performed and done this,
calling the generations from the beginning?
I,
•Yahweh
, am the first,
and with the last — I am He.”
“Be silent before Me, islands!
And let peoples renew their strength.
Let them approach, then let them testify;
let us come together for the trial.
2
Who has stirred him up from the east?
He calls righteousness to his feet.
The
Lord
hands nations over to him,
and he subdues kings.
He makes them like dust with his sword,
like wind-driven stubble with his bow.
3
He pursues them, going on safely,
hardly touching the path with his feet.
4
Who has performed and done this,
calling the generations from the beginning?
I,
•Yahweh
, am the first,
and with the last — I am He.”
5
The islands see and are afraid,
the whole earth trembles.
They approach and arrive.
6
Each one helps the other,
and says to another, “Take courage! ”
7
The craftsman encourages the metalworker;
the one who flattens with the hammer
supports the one who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, “It is good.”
He fastens it with nails so that it will not fall over.
The islands see and are afraid,
the whole earth trembles.
They approach and arrive.
6
Each one helps the other,
and says to another, “Take courage! ”
7
The craftsman encourages the metalworker;
the one who flattens with the hammer
supports the one who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, “It is good.”
He fastens it with nails so that it will not fall over.
8
But you, Israel, My servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
descendant of Abraham, My friend —
9
I brought you from the ends of the earth
and called you from its farthest corners.
I said to you: You are My servant;
I have chosen you and not rejected you.
10
Do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you; I will help you;
I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.
But you, Israel, My servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
descendant of Abraham, My friend —
9
I brought you from the ends of the earth
and called you from its farthest corners.
I said to you: You are My servant;
I have chosen you and not rejected you.
10
Do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you; I will help you;
I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.
11
Be sure that all who are enraged against you
will be ashamed and disgraced;
those who contend with you
will become as nothing and will perish.
12
You will look for those who contend with you,
but you will not find them.
Those who war against you
will become absolutely nothing.
13
For I, Yahweh your God,
hold your right hand
and say to you: Do not fear,
I will help you.
14
Do not fear, you worm Jacob,
you men of Israel:
I will help you —
this is the
Lord
's declaration.
Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15
See, I will make you into a sharp threshing board,
new, with many teeth.
You will thresh mountains and pulverize them
and make hills into chaff.
16
You will winnow them
and a wind will carry them away,
a gale will scatter them.
But you will rejoice in the
Lord
;
you will boast in the Holy One of Israel.
Be sure that all who are enraged against you
will be ashamed and disgraced;
those who contend with you
will become as nothing and will perish.
12
You will look for those who contend with you,
but you will not find them.
Those who war against you
will become absolutely nothing.
13
For I, Yahweh your God,
hold your right hand
and say to you: Do not fear,
I will help you.
14
Do not fear, you worm Jacob,
you men of Israel:
I will help you —
this is the
Lord
's declaration.
Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15
See, I will make you into a sharp threshing board,
new, with many teeth.
You will thresh mountains and pulverize them
and make hills into chaff.
16
You will winnow them
and a wind will carry them away,
a gale will scatter them.
But you will rejoice in the
Lord
;
you will boast in the Holy One of Israel.
17
The poor and the needy seek water, but there is none;
their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, Yahweh, will answer them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18
I will open rivers on the barren heights,
and springs in the middle of the plains.
I will turn the desert into a pool of water
and dry land into springs of water.
19
I will plant cedars in the desert,
acacias, myrtles, and olive trees.
I will put juniper trees in the desert,
elms and cypress trees together,
20
so that all may see and know,
consider and understand,
that the hand of the
Lord
has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.
The poor and the needy seek water, but there is none;
their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, Yahweh, will answer them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18
I will open rivers on the barren heights,
and springs in the middle of the plains.
I will turn the desert into a pool of water
and dry land into springs of water.
19
I will plant cedars in the desert,
acacias, myrtles, and olive trees.
I will put juniper trees in the desert,
elms and cypress trees together,
20
so that all may see and know,
consider and understand,
that the hand of the
Lord
has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.
21
“Submit your case,” says the
Lord
.
“Present your arguments,” says Jacob's King.
22
“Let them come and tell us
what will happen.
Tell us the past events,
so that we may reflect on them
and know the outcome,
or tell us the future.
23
Tell us the coming events,
then we will know that you are gods.
Indeed, do something good or bad,
then we will be in awe and perceive.
24
Look, you are nothing
and your work is worthless.
Anyone who chooses you is detestable.
“Submit your case,” says the
Lord
.
“Present your arguments,” says Jacob's King.
22
“Let them come and tell us
what will happen.
Tell us the past events,
so that we may reflect on them
and know the outcome,
or tell us the future.
23
Tell us the coming events,
then we will know that you are gods.
Indeed, do something good or bad,
then we will be in awe and perceive.
24
Look, you are nothing
and your work is worthless.
Anyone who chooses you is detestable.
25
“I have raised up one from the north, and he has come,
one from the east who invokes My name.
He will march over rulers as if they were mud,
like a potter who treads the clay.
26
Who told about this from the beginning,
so that we might know,
and from times past,
so that we might say: He is right?
No one announced it,
no one told it,
no one heard your words.
27
I was the first to say to
•Zion
:
Look! Here they are!
And I gave a herald of good news to Jerusalem.
28
When I look, there is no one;
there is no counselor among them;
when I ask them, they have nothing to say.
29
Look, all of them are a delusion;
their works are nonexistent;
their images are wind and emptiness.
“I have raised up one from the north, and he has come,
one from the east who invokes My name.
He will march over rulers as if they were mud,
like a potter who treads the clay.
26
Who told about this from the beginning,
so that we might know,
and from times past,
so that we might say: He is right?
No one announced it,
no one told it,
no one heard your words.
27
I was the first to say to
•Zion
:
Look! Here they are!
And I gave a herald of good news to Jerusalem.
28
When I look, there is no one;
there is no counselor among them;
when I ask them, they have nothing to say.
29
Look, all of them are a delusion;
their works are nonexistent;
their images are wind and emptiness.
Isaiah
The Servant's Mission
42
“This is My Servant; I strengthen Him,
this is My Chosen One; I delight in Him.
I have put My Spirit on Him;
He will bring justice to the nations.
2
He will not cry out or shout
or make His voice heard in the streets.
3
He will not break a bruised reed,
and He will not put out a smoldering wick;
He will faithfully bring justice.
4
He will not grow weak or be discouraged
until He has established justice on earth.
The islands will wait for His instruction.”
“This is My Servant; I strengthen Him,
this is My Chosen One; I delight in Him.
I have put My Spirit on Him;
He will bring justice to the nations.
2
He will not cry out or shout
or make His voice heard in the streets.
3
He will not break a bruised reed,
and He will not put out a smoldering wick;
He will faithfully bring justice.
4
He will not grow weak or be discouraged
until He has established justice on earth.
The islands will wait for His instruction.”
5
This is what God
•Yahweh
says —
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people on it
and life to those who walk on it —
6
“I, Yahweh, have called You
for a righteous purpose,
and I will hold You by Your hand.
I will keep You and appoint You
to be a covenant for the people
and a light to the nations,
7
in order to open blind eyes,
to bring out prisoners from the dungeon,
and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.
8
I am Yahweh, that is My name;
I will not give My glory to another
or My praise to idols.
9
The past events have indeed happened.
Now I declare new events;
I announce them to you before they occur.”
This is what God
•Yahweh
says —
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people on it
and life to those who walk on it —
6
“I, Yahweh, have called You
for a righteous purpose,
and I will hold You by Your hand.
I will keep You and appoint You
to be a covenant for the people
and a light to the nations,
7
in order to open blind eyes,
to bring out prisoners from the dungeon,
and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.
8
I am Yahweh, that is My name;
I will not give My glory to another
or My praise to idols.
9
The past events have indeed happened.
Now I declare new events;
I announce them to you before they occur.”
A Song of Praise
10
Sing a new song to the
Lord
;
sing His praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea with all that fills it,
you islands with your inhabitants.
11
Let the desert and its cities shout,
the settlements where Kedar dwells cry aloud.
Let the inhabitants of Sela sing for joy;
let them cry out from the mountaintops.
12
Let them give glory to the
Lord
and declare His praise in the islands.
13
The
Lord
advances like a warrior;
He stirs up His zeal like a soldier.
He shouts, He roars aloud,
He prevails over His enemies.
Sing a new song to the
Lord
;
sing His praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea with all that fills it,
you islands with your inhabitants.
11
Let the desert and its cities shout,
the settlements where Kedar dwells cry aloud.
Let the inhabitants of Sela sing for joy;
let them cry out from the mountaintops.
12
Let them give glory to the
Lord
and declare His praise in the islands.
13
The
Lord
advances like a warrior;
He stirs up His zeal like a soldier.
He shouts, He roars aloud,
He prevails over His enemies.
14
“I have kept silent from ages past;
I have been quiet and restrained Myself.
But now, I will groan like a woman in labor,
gasping breathlessly.
15
I will lay waste mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation.
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up marshes.
16
I will lead the blind by a way they did not know;
I will guide them on paths they have not known.
I will turn darkness to light in front of them
and rough places into level ground.
This is what I will do for them,
and I will not forsake them.
17
They will be turned back and utterly ashamed —
those who trust in idols
and say to metal-plated images:
You are our gods!
“I have kept silent from ages past;
I have been quiet and restrained Myself.
But now, I will groan like a woman in labor,
gasping breathlessly.
15
I will lay waste mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation.
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up marshes.
16
I will lead the blind by a way they did not know;
I will guide them on paths they have not known.
I will turn darkness to light in front of them
and rough places into level ground.
This is what I will do for them,
and I will not forsake them.
17
They will be turned back and utterly ashamed —
those who trust in idols
and say to metal-plated images:
You are our gods!
Israel's Blindness and Deafness
18
“Listen, you deaf!
Look, you blind, so that you may see.
19
Who is blind but My servant,
or deaf like My messenger I am sending?
Who is blind like My dedicated one,
or blind like the servant of the
Lord
?
20
Though seeing many things, you do not obey.
Though his ears are open, he does not listen.”
“Listen, you deaf!
Look, you blind, so that you may see.
19
Who is blind but My servant,
or deaf like My messenger I am sending?
Who is blind like My dedicated one,
or blind like the servant of the
Lord
?
20
Though seeing many things, you do not obey.
Though his ears are open, he does not listen.”
21
The
Lord
was pleased, because of His righteousness,
to magnify His instruction and make it glorious.
22
But this is a people plundered and looted,
all of them trapped in holes
or imprisoned in dungeons.
They have become plunder
with no one to rescue them
and loot, with no one saying, “Give it back! ”
23
Who among you will pay attention to this?
Let him listen and obey in the future.
24
Who gave Jacob to the robber,
and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not the
Lord
?
Have we not sinned against Him?
They were not willing to walk in His ways,
and they would not listen to His instruction.
25
So He poured out on Jacob His furious anger
and the power of war.
It surrounded him with fire, but he did not know it;
it burned him, but he paid no attention.
The
Lord
was pleased, because of His righteousness,
to magnify His instruction and make it glorious.
22
But this is a people plundered and looted,
all of them trapped in holes
or imprisoned in dungeons.
They have become plunder
with no one to rescue them
and loot, with no one saying, “Give it back! ”
23
Who among you will pay attention to this?
Let him listen and obey in the future.
24
Who gave Jacob to the robber,
and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not the
Lord
?
Have we not sinned against Him?
They were not willing to walk in His ways,
and they would not listen to His instruction.
25
So He poured out on Jacob His furious anger
and the power of war.
It surrounded him with fire, but he did not know it;
it burned him, but he paid no attention.
Isaiah
Restoration of Israel
43
Now this is what the
Lord
says —
the One who created you, Jacob,
and the One who formed you, Israel —
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; you are Mine.
2
I will be with you
when you pass through the waters,
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not overwhelm you.
You will not be scorched
when you walk through the fire,
and the flame will not burn you.
3
For I
•Yahweh
your God,
the Holy One of Israel, and your Savior,
give Egypt as a ransom for you,
•Cush
and Seba in your place.
4
Because you are precious in My sight
and honored, and I love you,
I will give people in exchange for you
and nations instead of your life.
5
Do not fear, for I am with you;
I will bring your descendants from the east,
and gather you from the west.
6
I will say to the north: Give them up!
and to the south: Do not hold them back!
Bring My sons from far away,
and My daughters from the ends of the earth —
7
everyone called by My name
and created for My glory.
I have formed him; indeed, I have made him.”
Now this is what the
Lord
says —
the One who created you, Jacob,
and the One who formed you, Israel —
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; you are Mine.
2
I will be with you
when you pass through the waters,
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not overwhelm you.
You will not be scorched
when you walk through the fire,
and the flame will not burn you.
3
For I
•Yahweh
your God,
the Holy One of Israel, and your Savior,
give Egypt as a ransom for you,
•Cush
and Seba in your place.
4
Because you are precious in My sight
and honored, and I love you,
I will give people in exchange for you
and nations instead of your life.
5
Do not fear, for I am with you;
I will bring your descendants from the east,
and gather you from the west.
6
I will say to the north: Give them up!
and to the south: Do not hold them back!
Bring My sons from far away,
and My daughters from the ends of the earth —
7
everyone called by My name
and created for My glory.
I have formed him; indeed, I have made him.”
8
Bring out a people who are blind, yet have eyes,
and are deaf, yet have ears.
9
All the nations are gathered together,
and the peoples are assembled.
Who among them can declare this,
and tell us the former things?
Let them present their witnesses
to vindicate themselves,
so that people may hear and say, “It is true.”
10
“You are My witnesses” —
this is the
Lord
's declaration —
“and My servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe Me
and understand that I am He.
No god was formed before Me,
and there will be none after Me.
11
I, I am Yahweh,
and there is no other Savior but Me.
12
I alone declared, saved, and proclaimed —
and not some foreign god among you.
So you are My witnesses” —
this is the
Lord
's declaration —
“and I am God.
13
Also, from today on I am He alone,
and none can deliver from My hand.
I act, and who can reverse it? ”
Bring out a people who are blind, yet have eyes,
and are deaf, yet have ears.
9
All the nations are gathered together,
and the peoples are assembled.
Who among them can declare this,
and tell us the former things?
Let them present their witnesses
to vindicate themselves,
so that people may hear and say, “It is true.”
10
“You are My witnesses” —
this is the
Lord
's declaration —
“and My servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe Me
and understand that I am He.
No god was formed before Me,
and there will be none after Me.
11
I, I am Yahweh,
and there is no other Savior but Me.
12
I alone declared, saved, and proclaimed —
and not some foreign god among you.
So you are My witnesses” —
this is the
Lord
's declaration —
“and I am God.
13
Also, from today on I am He alone,
and none can deliver from My hand.
I act, and who can reverse it? ”
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