Israel Assured of God’s Help
1 “Keepsilence before Me, O coastlands,
And let the people renewtheirstrength!
Let them come near, then let them speak;
# Let uscome near together for judgment.
2 “Who raised up onefrom the east?
Who in righteousness called him to His feet?
# Whogave the nations before him,
And madehimrule over kings?
Who gavethemas the dusttohis sword,
As driven stubble to his bow?
3 Who pursued them,andpassed safely
By the waythathe had not gone with his feet?
4 Who has performed and doneit,
Calling the generations from the beginning?
# ‘I, theLord, amthe first;
# And with the last IamHe.’ ”
5 The coastlands sawitand feared,
The ends of the earth were afraid;
They drew near and came.
6 Everyone helped his neighbor,
And said to his brother,
“Be of good courage!”
7 So the craftsman encouraged thegoldsmith;
He who smoothswiththe hammerinspiredhim who strikes the anvil,
Saying, “Itisready for the soldering”;
Then he fastened it with pegs,
# Thatit might not totter.
8 “But you, Israel,areMy servant,
# Jacob whom I havechosen,
# The descendants of Abraham Myfriend.
9 Youwhom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘YouareMy servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 Fear not,for Iamwith you;
Be not dismayed, for Iamyour God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you
# Shall beashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, theLordyour God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
14 “Fear not, youworm Jacob,
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says theLord
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold,I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beatthemsmall,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You shallwinnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in theLord,
# Andglory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy seek water, butthereisnone,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, theLord, will hear them;
# I,the God of Israel, will notforsake them.
18 I will openrivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
# I will make thewilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
# I will set in thedesert the cypress treeandthe pine
And the box tree together,
20 That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of theLordhas done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
The Futility of Idols
21 “Present your case,” says theLord.
# “Bring forth your strongreasons,” says theKing of Jacob.
22 “Letthem bring forth and show us what will happen;
# Let them show theformer things, what theywere,
That we may consider them,
And know the latter end of them;
Or declare to us things to come.
23 Show the things that are to come hereafter,
That we may know that youaregods;
# Yes,do good or do evil,
That we may be dismayed and seeittogether.
24 Indeedyouarenothing,
And your workisnothing;
Hewhochooses youisan abomination.
25 “I have raised up one from the north,
And he shall come;
# From the rising of the sunhe shall call on My name;
# And he shall come against princes asthoughmortar,
As the potter treads clay.
26 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know?
And former times, that we may say, ‘Heisrighteous’?
Surelythereisno one who shows,
Surelythereisno one who declares,
Surelythereisno one who hears your words.
27 The first timeIsaidto Zion,
‘Look, there they are!’
And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.
28 For I looked, andtherewasno man;
I looked among them, buttherewasno counselor,
Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 Indeed theyareall worthless;
Their worksarenothing;
Their molded imagesarewind and confusion.