New King James Version (NKJV)

Sennacherib Boasts Against the Lord

1 Nowit came to pass in the fourteenth year of King HezekiahthatSennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.

2 Then the king of Assyria senttheRabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. And he stood by the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller’s Field.

3 AndEliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household,Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came out to him.

4 ThentheRabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: “What confidence is this in which you trust?

5 I say you speak of having plans and power for war; buttheyaremere words. Now in whom do you trust, that you rebel against me?

6 Look! You are trusting in thestaff of this broken reed, Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. SoisPharaoh king of Egypt to all whotrust in him.

7 “But if you say to me, ‘We trust in theLordour God,’isitnot He whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and said to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar’?” ’

8 Now therefore, I urge you, give a pledge to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses—if you are able on your part to put riders on them!

9 How then will you repel one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?

10 Have I now come up without theLordagainst this land to destroy it? TheLordsaid to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”

11 Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said totheRabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understandit;and do not speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people whoareon the wall.”

12 ButtheRabshakeh said, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, who will eat and drink their own waste with you?”

13 ThentheRabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in Hebrew, and said, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria!

14 Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you;

15 nor let Hezekiah make you trust in theLord, saying, “TheLordwill surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ’

16 Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Makepeacewith mebyapresent and come out to me;and every one of you eat from his own vine and every one from his own fig tree, and every one of you drink the waters of his own cistern;

17 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.

18 Bewarelest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “TheLordwill deliver us.” Has any one of thegods of the nations delivered its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?

19 Wherearethe gods of Hamath and Arpad? Wherearethe gods of Sepharvaim? Indeed, have they deliveredSamaria from my hand?

20 Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that theLordshould deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’ ”

21 But they held their peace and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.”

22 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, whowasover the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah withtheirclothes torn, and told him the words oftheRabshakeh.

Isaiah Assures Deliverance

1 Andso it was, when King Hezekiah heardit,that he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of theLord.

2 Then he sent Eliakim, whowasover the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz.

3 And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This dayisa day oftrouble and rebuke and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, butthereisno strength to bring them forth.

4 It may be that theLordyour God will hear the words oftheRabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent toreproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which theLordyour God has heard. Therefore lift upyourprayer for the remnant that is left.’ ”

5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah.

6 And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says theLord: “Do not be afraid of the words which you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.

7 Surely I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.” ’ ”

Sennacherib’s Threat and Hezekiah’s Prayer

8 ThentheRabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed from Lachish.

9 And the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, “He has come out to make war with you.” So when he heardit,he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,

10 “Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”

11 Look! You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by utterly destroying them; and shall you be delivered?

12 Have thegods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers have destroyed, Gozan and Haran and Rezeph, and the people of Eden whowerein Telassar?

13 Whereisthe king ofHamath, the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?’ ”

14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of theLord, and spread it before theLord.

15 Then Hezekiah prayed to theLord, saying:

16 “OLordof hosts, God of Israel,theOnewho dwellsbetweenthe cherubim, YouareGod, Youalone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.

17 Incline Your ear, OLord, and hear; open Your eyes, OLord, and see; andhear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God.

18 Truly,Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and theirlands,

19 and have cast their gods into the fire; for theywerenot gods, but the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them.

20 Now therefore, OLordour God,save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth mayknow that YouaretheLord, You alone.”

The Word of the Lord Concerning Sennacherib

21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says theLordGod of Israel, ‘Because you have prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria,

22 thisisthe word which theLordhas spoken concerning him:

“The virgin, the daughter of Zion,

Has despised you, laughed you to scorn;

The daughter of Jerusalem

Has shakenherhead behind your back!

23 “Whom have you reproached and blasphemed?

Against whom have you raisedyourvoice,

And lifted up your eyes on high?

Against the Holy One of Israel.

24 By your servants you have reproached the Lord,

And said, ‘By the multitude of my chariots

I have come up to the height of the mountains,

To the limits of Lebanon;

I will cut down its tall cedars

Andits choice cypress trees;

I will enter its farthest height,

To its fruitful forest.

25 I have dug and drunk water,

And with the soles of my feet I have dried up

All the brooks of defense.’

26 “Did you not hearlong ago

HowI made it,

From ancient times that I formed it?

Now I have brought it to pass,

That you should be

For crushing fortified citiesintoheaps of ruins.

27 Therefore their inhabitantshadlittle power;

They were dismayed and confounded;

They wereasthe grass of the field

And the green herb,

Asthe grass on the housetops

Andgrainblighted before it is grown.

28 “But I know your dwelling place,

Your going out and your coming in,

And your rage against Me.

29 Because your rage against Me and your tumult

Have come up to My ears,

# ThereforeI will put My hook in your nose

And My bridle in your lips,

# And I willturn you back

By the way which you came.” ’

30 “Thisshallbea sign to you:

You shall eat this year such as grows of itself,

And the second year what springs from the same;

Also in the third year sow and reap,

Plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them.

31 And the remnant who have escaped of the house of Judah

Shall again take root downward,

And bear fruit upward.

32 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant,

And those who escape from Mount Zion.

# Thezeal of theLordof hosts will do this.

33 “Therefore thus says theLordconcerning the king of Assyria:

‘He shall not come into this city,

Nor shoot an arrow there,

Nor come before it with shield,

Nor build a siege mound against it.

34 By the way that he came,

By the same shall he return;

And he shall not come into this city,’

Says theLord.

35 ‘For I willdefend this city, to save it

# For My own sake and for My servantDavid’s sake.’ ”

Sennacherib’s Defeat and Death

36 Then theangel of theLordwent out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and whenpeoplearose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead.

37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went away, returnedhome,and remained at Nineveh.

38 Now it came to pass, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. ThenEsarhaddon his son reigned in his place.

Hezekiah’s Life Extended

1 Inthose days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says theLord:‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ ”

2 Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to theLord,

3 and said,“Remember now, OLord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have donewhatisgood in Yoursight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4 And the word of theLordcame to Isaiah, saying,

5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says theLord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.

6 I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, andI will defend this city.” ’

7 And thisisthe sign to you from theLord, that theLordwill do this thing which He has spoken:

8 “Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.

9 This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:

10 I said,

“In the prime of my life

I shall go to the gates of Sheol;

I am deprived of the remainder of my years.”

11 I said,

“I shall not seeYah,

# TheLordin the land of the living;

I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world.

12 My life span is gone,

Taken from me like a shepherd’s tent;

I have cut off my life like a weaver.

He cuts me off from the loom;

From day until night You make an end of me.

13 I have considered until morning—

Like a lion,

So He breaks all my bones;

From day until night You make an end of me.

14 Like a craneora swallow, so I chattered;

# I mourned like a dove;

My eyes failfromlookingupward.

OLord, I am oppressed;

Undertake for me!

15 “What shall I say?

He has both spoken to me,

And He Himself has doneit.

I shall walk carefully all my years

# In the bitterness of my soul.

16 O Lord, by thesethingsmenlive;

And in all thesethingsisthe life of my spirit;

So You will restore me and make me live.

17 Indeeditwasformyownpeace

ThatI had great bitterness;

But You have lovinglydeliveredmy soul from the pit of corruption,

For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.

18 ForSheol cannot thank You,

Death cannot praise You;

Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.

19 The living, the living man, he shall praise You,

As Idothis day;

# The father shall make known Your truth to the children.

20 “TheLordwasreadyto save me;

Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments

All the days of our life, in the house of theLord.”

21 NowIsaiah had said, “Let them take a lump of figs, and applyitas a poultice on the boil, and he shall recover.”

22 AndHezekiah had said, “Whatisthe sign that I shall go up to the house of theLord?”

The Babylonian Envoys

1 Atthat time Merodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered.

2 And Hezekiah was pleased with them, and showed them the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.

3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?”

# So Hezekiah said, “They came to me from afar country, from Babylon.”

4 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?”

So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all thatisin my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”

5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of theLordof hosts:

6 ‘Behold, the days are comingwhen all thatisin your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says theLord.

7 ‘And they shall take awaysomeof yoursons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”

8 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah,“The word of theLordwhich you have spokenisgood!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”

God’s People Are Comforted

1 “Comfort, yes, comfort My people!”

Says your God.

2 “Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her,

That her warfare is ended,

That her iniquity is pardoned;

# For she has received from theLord’s hand

Double for all her sins.”

3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

# “Prepare the way of theLord;

# Make straight in the desert

A highway for our God.

4 Every valley shall be exalted

And every mountain and hill brought low;

# The crooked places shall be made straight

And the rough places smooth;

5 Theglory of theLordshall be revealed,

And all flesh shall seeittogether;

For the mouth of theLordhas spoken.”

6 The voice said, “Cry out!”

And he said, “What shall I cry?”

# “All fleshisgrass,

And all its lovelinessislike the flower of the field.

7 The grass withers, the flower fades,

Because the breath of theLordblows upon it;

Surely the peoplearegrass.

8 The grass withers, the flower fades,

# Butthe word of our God stands forever.”

9 O Zion,

You who bring good tidings,

Get up into the high mountain;

O Jerusalem,

You who bring good tidings,

Lift up your voice with strength,

Liftitup, be not afraid;

Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”

10 Behold, the LordGodshall come with a stronghand,

# AndHis arm shall rule for Him;

# Behold,His rewardiswith Him,

And His work before Him.

11 He willfeed His flock like a shepherd;

He will gather the lambs with His arm,

And carrythemin His bosom,

Andgently lead those who are with young.

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,

Measured heaven with a span

And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure?

Weighed the mountains in scales

And the hills in a balance?

13 Who has directed the Spirit of theLord,

OrasHis counselor has taught Him?

14 With whom did He take counsel, andwhoinstructed Him,

# Andtaught Him in the path of justice?

Who taught Him knowledge,

And showed Him the way of understanding?

15 Behold, the nationsareas a drop in a bucket,

And are counted as the small dust on the scales;

Look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.

16 And Lebanonisnot sufficient to burn,

Nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.

17 All nations before Himareasnothing,

# Andthey are counted by Him less than nothing and worthless.

18 To whom then will youliken God?

Or what likeness will you compare to Him?

19 The workman molds an image,

The goldsmith overspreads it with gold,

And the silversmith casts silver chains.

20 Whoeveristoo impoverished forsucha contribution

Chooses a treethatwill not rot;

He seeks for himself a skillful workman

# To prepare a carved imagethatwill not totter.

21 Have you not known?

Have you not heard?

Has it not been told you from the beginning?

Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

22 ItisHe who sits above the circle of the earth,

And its inhabitantsarelike grasshoppers,

# Whostretches out the heavens like a curtain,

# And spreads them out like atent to dwell in.

23 He brings theprinces to nothing;

He makes the judges of the earth useless.

24 Scarcely shall they be planted,

Scarcely shall they be sown,

Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth,

When He will also blow on them,

And they will wither,

And the whirlwind will take them away like stubble.

25 “Towhom then will you liken Me,

Ortowhomshall I be equal?” says the Holy One.

26 Lift up your eyes on high,

And see who has created thesethings,

Who brings out their host by number;

# He calls them all by name,

By the greatness of His might

And the strength ofHispower;

Not one is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,

And speak, O Israel:

“My way is hidden from theLord,

And my just claim is passed over by my God”?

28 Have you not known?

Have you not heard?

The everlasting God, theLord,

The Creator of the ends of the earth,

Neither faints nor is weary.

# His understanding is unsearchable.

29 He gives power to the weak,

And tothosewhohaveno might He increases strength.

30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,

And the young men shall utterly fall,

31 But those whowait on theLord

# Shall renewtheirstrength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint.

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.

The Servant of the Lord

1 “Behold!My Servant whom I uphold,

# My Elect OneinwhomMy souldelights!

# I have put My Spirit upon Him;

He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.

2 He will not cry out, nor raiseHisvoice,

Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.

3 A bruised reed He will not break,

And smoking flax He will not quench;

He will bring forth justice for truth.

4 He will not fail nor be discouraged,

Till He has established justice in the earth;

# And the coastlands shall wait for His law.”

5 Thus says God theLord,

# Who created the heavens and stretched them out,

Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,

# Who gives breath to the people on it,

And spirit to those who walk on it:

6 “I,theLord, have called You in righteousness,

And will hold Your hand;

# I will keep Youand give You as a covenant to the people,

# Asa light to the Gentiles,

7 To open blind eyes,

# Tobring out prisoners from the prison,

# Those who sit indarkness from the prison house.

8 IamtheLord, thatisMy name;

# And Myglory I will not give to another,

Nor My praise to carved images.

9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,

And new things I declare;

Before they spring forth I tell you of them.”

Praise to the Lord

10 Sing to theLorda new song,

AndHis praise from the ends of the earth,

# You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,

You coastlands and you inhabitants of them!

11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift uptheirvoice,

The villagesthatKedar inhabits.

Let the inhabitants of Sela sing,

Let them shout from the top of the mountains.

12 Let them give glory to theLord,

And declare His praise in the coastlands.

13 TheLordshall go forth like a mighty man;

He shall stir upHiszeal like a man of war.

# He shall cry out,yes, shout aloud;

He shall prevail against His enemies.

Promise of the Lord’s Help

14 “I have held My peace a long time,

I have been still and restrained Myself.

NowI will cry like a woman in labor,

I will pant and gasp at once.

15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills,

And dry up all their vegetation;

I will make the rivers coastlands,

And I will dry up the pools.

16 I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;

I will lead them in paths they have not known.

I will make darkness light before them,

And crooked places straight.

These things I will do for them,

And not forsake them.

17 They shall beturned back,

They shall be greatly ashamed,

Who trust in carved images,

Who say to the molded images,

‘Youareour gods.’

18 “Hear, you deaf;

And look, you blind, that you may see.

19 Whoisblind but My servant,

Or deaf as My messengerwhomI send?

Whoisblind ashewhoisperfect,

And blind as theLord’s servant?

20 Seeing many things,but you do not observe;

Opening the ears, but he does not hear.”

Israel’s Obstinate Disobedience

21 TheLordis well pleased for His righteousness’ sake;

He will exalt the law and makeithonorable.

22 But thisisa people robbed and plundered;

All of them are snared in holes,

And they are hidden in prison houses;

They are for prey, and no one delivers;

For plunder, and no one says, “Restore!”

23 Who among you will give ear to this?

Whowill listen and hear for the time to come?

24 Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers?

Was it not theLord,

He against whom we have sinned?

# For they would not walk in His ways,

Nor were they obedient to His law.

25 Therefore He has poured on him the fury of His anger

And the strength of battle;

# It has set him on fire all around,

# Yet he did not know;

And it burned him,

# Yet he did not takeittoheart.

The Redeemer of Israel

1 But now, thus says theLord, who created you, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel:

# “Fear not,for I have redeemed you;

# I have calledyouby your name;

YouareMine.

2 When you pass through the waters,Iwillbewith you;

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

# When youwalk through the fire, you shall not be burned,

Nor shall the flame scorch you.

3 For IamtheLordyour God,

The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

# I gave Egypt for your ransom,

Ethiopia and Seba in your place.

4 Since you were precious in My sight,

You have been honored,

# And I haveloved you;

Therefore I will give men for you,

And people for your life.

5 Fear not, for Iamwith you;

I will bring your descendants from the east,

# Andgather you from the west;

6 I will say to thenorth, ‘Give them up!’

And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’

Bring My sons from afar,

And My daughters from the ends of the earth—

7 Everyone who iscalled by My name,

# WhomI have created for My glory;

I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”

8 Bring out the blind people who have eyes,

# And thedeaf who have ears.

9 Let all the nations be gathered together,

And let the people be assembled.

# Who among them can declare this,

And show us former things?

Let them bring out their witnesses, that they may be justified;

Or let them hear and say, “Itistruth.”

10 “YouareMy witnesses,” says theLord,

# “And My servant whom I have chosen,

# That you may know andbelieve Me,

And understand that IamHe.

Before Me there was no God formed,

Nor shall there be after Me.

11 I,evenI,amtheLord,

And besides Methereisno savior.

12 I have declared and saved,

I have proclaimed,

# Andtherewasnoforeigngodamong you;

# Therefore youareMy witnesses,”

Says theLord, “that IamGod.

13 Indeed before the daywas,IamHe;

Andthereisno one who can deliver out of My hand;

# I work, and who willreverse it?”

14 Thus says theLord, your Redeemer,

The Holy One of Israel:

“For your sake I will send to Babylon,

And bring them all down as fugitives—

The Chaldeans, who rejoice in their ships.

15 IamtheLord, your Holy One,

# The Creator of Israel, yourKing.”

16 Thus says theLord, whomakes a way in the sea

# And apath through the mighty waters,

17 Whobrings forth the chariot and horse,

The army and the power

(They shall lie down together, they shall not rise;

They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):

18 “Donot remember the former things,

Nor consider the things of old.

19 Behold, I will do anew thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

# I will even make a road in the wilderness

Andrivers in the desert.

20 The beast of the field will honor Me,

The jackals and the ostriches,

# BecauseI give waters in the wilderness

Andrivers in the desert,

To give drink to My people, My chosen.

21 This people I have formed for Myself;

# They shall declare Mypraise.

Pleading with Unfaithful Israel

22 “But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob;

# And youhave been weary of Me, O Israel.

23 You have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings,

Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices.

I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings,

Nor wearied you with incense.

24 You have bought Me no sweet cane with money,

Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;

But you have burdened Me with your sins,

# You havewearied Me with your iniquities.

25 “I,evenI,amHe whoblots out your transgressionsfor My own sake;

# And I will not remember your sins.

26 Put Me in remembrance;

Let us contend together;

State yourcase,that you may be acquitted.

27 Your first father sinned,

And your mediators have transgressed against Me.

28 Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary;

# I will give Jacob to the curse,

And Israel to reproaches.

God’s Blessing on Israel

1 “Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant,

And Israel whom I have chosen.

2 Thus says theLordwho made you

And formed you from the womb,whowill help you:

‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant;

And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,

And floods on the dry ground;

I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,

And My blessing on your offspring;

4 They will spring up among the grass

Like willows by the watercourses.’

5 One will say, ‘IamtheLord’s’;

Another will callhimselfby the name of Jacob;

Another will writewithhis hand, ‘TheLord’s,’

And namehimselfby the name of Israel.

There Is No Other God

6 “Thus says theLord, the King of Israel,

And his Redeemer, theLordof hosts:

# ‘Iamthe First and Iamthe Last;

Besides Methereisno God.

7 Andwho can proclaim as I do?

Then let him declare it and set it in order for Me,

Since I appointed the ancient people.

And the things that are coming and shall come,

Let them show these to them.

8 Do not fear, nor be afraid;

# Have I not told you from that time, and declaredit?

# YouareMy witnesses.

Is there a God besides Me?

# Indeedthereisno other Rock;

I know notone.’ ”

Idolatry Is Foolishness

9 Those who make an image, all of themareuseless,

And their precious things shall not profit;

Theyaretheir own witnesses;

# They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.

10 Who would form a god or mold an image

# Thatprofits him nothing?

11 Surely all his companions would beashamed;

And the workmen, theyaremere men.

Let them all be gathered together,

Let them stand up;

Yet they shall fear,

They shall be ashamed together.

12 The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals,

Fashions it with hammers,

And works it with the strength of his arms.

Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails;

He drinks no water and is faint.

13 The craftsman stretches outhisrule,

He marks one out with chalk;

He fashions it with a plane,

He marks it out with the compass,

And makes it like the figure of a man,

According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.

14 He cuts down cedars for himself,

And takes the cypress and the oak;

He securesitfor himself among the trees of the forest.

He plants a pine, and the rain nourishesit.

15 Then it shall be for a man to burn,

For he will take some of it and warm himself;

Yes, he kindlesitand bakes bread;

Indeed he makes a god and worshipsit;

He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.

16 He burns half of it in the fire;

With this half he eats meat;

He roasts a roast, and is satisfied.

He even warmshimselfand says,

“Ah! I am warm,

I have seen the fire.”

17 And the rest of it he makes into a god,

His carved image.

He falls down before it and worshipsit,

Prays to it and says,

“Deliver me, for youaremy god!”

18 They do not know nor understand;

# ForHe has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see,

# Andtheir hearts, so that they cannotunderstand.

19 And no oneconsiders in his heart,

Noristhereknowledge nor understanding to say,

“I have burned half of it in the fire,

Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals;

I have roasted meat and eatenit;

And shall I make the rest of it an abomination?

Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”

20 He feeds on ashes;

# A deceived heart has turned him aside;

And he cannot deliver his soul,

# Nor say, “Istherenot alie in my right hand?”

Israel Is Not Forgotten

21 “Remember these, O Jacob,

And Israel, for youareMy servant;

I have formed you, youareMy servant;

# O Israel, you will not beforgotten by Me!

22 I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions,

And like a cloud, your sins.

# Return to Me, forI have redeemed you.”

23 Sing, O heavens, for theLordhas doneit!

Shout, you lower parts of the earth;

Break forth into singing, you mountains,

O forest, and every tree in it!

For theLordhas redeemed Jacob,

# Andglorified Himself in Israel.

Judah Will Be Restored

24 Thus says theLord,your Redeemer,

# AndHe who formed you from the womb:

“IamtheLord, who makes allthings,

# Who stretches out the heavens all alone,

Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;

25 Whofrustrates the signsof the babblers,

And drives diviners mad;

Who turns wise men backward,

# And makes their knowledge foolishness;

26 Who confirms the word of His servant,

And performs the counsel of His messengers;

Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’

To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’

And I will raise up her waste places;

27 Who says to the deep, ‘Be dry!

And I will dry up your rivers’;

28 Who says ofCyrus, ‘HeisMy shepherd,

And he shall perform all My pleasure,

# Saying to Jerusalem,“You shall be built,”

And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’

Cyrus, God’s Instrument

1 “Thus says theLordto His anointed,

# ToCyrus, whoseright hand I have held—

# To subdue nations before him

# Andloose the armor of kings,

To open before him the double doors,

So that the gates will not be shut:

2 ‘I will go before you

# And make the crooked places straight;

# I will break in pieces the gates of bronze

And cut the bars of iron.

3 I will give you the treasures of darkness

And hidden riches of secret places,

# That you may know that I, theLord,

# Whocallyouby your name,

Amthe God of Israel.

4 ForJacob My servant’s sake,

And Israel My elect,

I have even called you by your name;

I have named you, though you have not known Me.

5 IamtheLord, andthereisno other;

Thereisno God besides Me.

# I will gird you, though you have not known Me,

6 That they mayknow from the rising of the sun to its setting

Thatthereisnone besides Me.

IamtheLord, andthereisno other;

7 I form the light and create darkness,

# I make peace andcreate calamity;

I, theLord, do all thesethings.’

8 “Raindown, you heavens, from above,

And let the skies pour down righteousness;

Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation,

And let righteousness spring up together.

I, theLord, have created it.

9 “Woe to him who strives withhis Maker!

Letthe potsherdstrivewith the potsherds of the earth!

# Shall the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’

Or shall your handiworksay,‘He has no hands’?

10 Woe to him who says tohisfather, ‘What are you begetting?’

Or to the woman, ‘What have you brought forth?’ ”

11 Thus says theLord,

The Holy One of Israel, and his Maker:

# “Ask Me of things to come concerningMy sons;

# And concerningthe work of My hands, you command Me.

12 I have made the earth,

# Andcreated man on it.

I—My hands—stretched out the heavens,

# Andall their host I have commanded.

13 I have raised him up in righteousness,

And I will direct all his ways;

# He shallbuild My city

And let My exiles go free,

# Not for price nor reward,”

Says theLordof hosts.

The Lord, the Only Savior

14 Thus says theLord:

# “The labor of Egypt and merchandise of Cush

And of the Sabeans, men of stature,

Shall come over to you, and they shall be yours;

They shall walk behind you,

# They shall come overin chains;

And they shall bow down to you.

# They will make supplication to you,saying,‘Surely Godisin you,

Andthereisno other;

# Thereisno other God.’ ”

15 Truly YouareGod,who hide Yourself,

O God of Israel, the Savior!

16 They shall beashamed

And also disgraced, all of them;

They shall go in confusion together,

Whoaremakers of idols.

17 ButIsrael shall be saved by theLord

# With aneverlasting salvation;

# You shall not be ashamed ordisgraced

Forever and ever.

18 For thus says theLord,

# Who created the heavens,

Who is God,

Who formed the earth and made it,

Who has established it,

Who did not create it in vain,

# Who formed it to beinhabited:

# “IamtheLord, andthereisno other.

19 I have not spoken insecret,

In a dark place of the earth;

I did not say to the seed of Jacob,

‘Seek Me in vain’;

# I, theLord, speak righteousness,

I declare things that are right.

20 “Assemble yourselves and come;

Draw near together,

Youwhohaveescaped from the nations.

# They have no knowledge,

Who carry the wood of their carved image,

And pray to a godthatcannot save.

21 Tell and bring forthyourcase;

Yes, let them take counsel together.

# Who has declared this from ancient time?

Whohas told it from that time?

Havenot I, theLord?

# Andthereisno other God besides Me,

A just God and a Savior;

Thereisnone besides Me.

22 “Look to Me, and be saved,

# All you ends of the earth!

For IamGod, andthereisno other.

23 I have sworn by Myself;

The word has gone out of My mouthinrighteousness,

And shall not return,

# That to Me everyknee shall bow,

# Every tongue shall take an oath.

24 He shall say,

# ‘Surely in theLordI haverighteousness and strength.

To Himmenshall come,

# Andall shall be ashamed

Who are incensed against Him.

25 In theLordall the descendants of Israel

# Shall be justified, andshall glory.’ ”