Isaiah 41

1 Keep silent towards Me, O isles, And the peoples pass on [to] power, They come nigh, then they speak, 'Together — to judgment we draw near.'

Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

2 Who stirred up from the east a righteous one? He calleth him to His foot, He giveth before him nations, And kings He causeth him to rule, He giveth [them] as dust [to] his sword, As driven stubble [to] his bow.

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 gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.

3 He pursueth them, he passeth over in safety A path with his feet he entereth not.

He pursued them, and passed safely; even by the way that he had not gone with his feet.

4 Who hath wrought and done, Calling the generations from the first? I, Jehovah, the first, and with the last I [am] He.

Who has wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.

5 Seen have isles and fear, ends of the earth tremble, They have drawn near, yea, they come.

The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came.

6 Each his neighbour they help, And to his brother he saith, 'Be strong.'

They helped every one his neighbour; and every one said to his brother, Be of good courage.

7 And strengthen doth an artisan the refiner, A smoother [with] a hammer, Him who is beating [on] an anvil, Saying, 'For joining it [is] good,' And he strengtheneth it with nails, it is not moved!

So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smoothes with the hammer him that stroke the anvil, saying, It is ready for the soldering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

8 — And thou, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My lover,

But you, Israel, are my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

9 Whom I have taken hold of, from the ends of the earth, And from its near places I have called thee, And I say to thee, My servant Thou [art], I have chosen thee, and not rejected thee.

You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called you from the chief men thereof, and said unto you, You are my servant; I have chosen you, and not cast you away.

10 Be not afraid, for with thee I [am], Look not around, for I [am] thy God, I have strengthened thee, Yea, I have helped thee, yea, I upheld thee, With the right hand of My righteousness.

Fear you not; for I am with you: be not dismayed; for I am your God: I will strengthen you; yea, I will help you; yea, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.

11 Lo, all those displeased with thee, They are ashamed and blush, They are as nothing, yea, perish Do the men who strive with thee.

Behold, all they that were incensed against you shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with you shall perish.

12 Thou seekest them, and findest them not, The men who debate with thee, They are as nothing, yea, as nothing, The men who war with thee.

You shall seek them, and shall not find them, even them that contended with you: they that war against you shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nothing.

13 For I, Jehovah thy God, Am strengthening thy right hand, He who is saying to thee, 'Fear not, I have helped thee.'

For I the LORD your God will hold your right hand, saying unto you, Fear not; I will help you.

14 Fear not, O worm Jacob, ye men of Israel, I helped thee, an affirmation of Jehovah, Even thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

Fear not, you worm Jacob, and all of you men of Israel; I will help you, says the LORD, and your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Lo, I have set thee for a new sharp threshing instrument, Possessing teeth, thou threshest mountains, And beatest small, and hills as chaff thou makest.

Behold, I will make you a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: you shall thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shall make the hills as chaff.

16 Thou winnowest them, and a wind lifteth them up, And a whirlwind scattereth them, And thou — thou rejoicest in Jehovah, In the Holy One of Israel dost boast thyself.

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 The poor and the needy are seeking water, And there is none, Their tongue with thirst hath failed, I, Jehovah do answer them, The God of Israel — I forsake them not.

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue fails for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18 I open on high places rivers, And in midst of valleys fountains, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land become springs of water.

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 I give in a wilderness the cedar, Shittah, and myrtle, and oil-tree, I set in a desert the fir-pine and box-wood together.

I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:

20 So that they see, and know, And regard, and act wisely together, For the hand of Jehovah hath done this, And the Holy One of Israel hath prepared it.

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.

21 Bring near your cause, saith Jehovah, Bring nigh your mighty ones, saith the king of Jacob.

Produce your cause, says the LORD; bring forth your strong reasons, says the King of Jacob.

22 They bring nigh, and declare to us that which doth happen, The first things — what they [are] declare ye, And we set our heart, and know their latter end, Or the coming things cause us to hear.

Let them bring them forth, and show us what shall happen: let them show the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things in order to come.

23 Declare the things that are coming hereafter, And we know that ye [are] gods, Yea, ye may do good or do evil, And we look around and see [it] together.

Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that all of you are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

24 Lo, ye [are] of nothing, and your work of nought, An abomination — it fixeth on you.

Behold, all of you are of nothing, and your work of nothing: an abomination is he that chooses you.

25 I have stirred up [one] from the north, And he cometh, From the rising of the sun he calleth in My name, And he cometh in [on] prefects as [on] clay, And as a potter treadeth down mire.

I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon mortar, and as the potter treads clay.

26 Who hath declared from the first, and we know? And beforetime, and we say, 'Righteous?' yea, there is none declaring, Yea, there is none proclaiming, Yea, there is none hearing your sayings.

Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know? and in time past, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that shows, yea, there is none that declares, yea, there is none that hears your words.

27 First to Zion, Behold, behold them, And to Jerusalem one proclaiming tidings I give,

The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that brings good tidings.

28 And I see that there is no man, Yea, of these that there is no counsellor, And I ask them, and they return word:

For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, and there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.

29 'Lo, all of them [are] vanity, Nought [are] their works, Wind and emptiness their molten images!'

Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.