New Living Translation

New American Standard Bible 1995

1“Listen in silence before me, you lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The court is ready for your case.

1"Coastlands, listen to Me in silence, And let the peoples gain new strength; Let them come forward, then let them speak; Let us come together for judgment.

2“Who has stirred up this king from the east, rightly calling him to God’s service? Who gives this man victory over many nations and permits him to trample their kings underfoot? With his sword, he reduces armies to dust. With his bow, he scatters them like chaff before the wind.

2"Who has aroused one from the east Whom He calls in righteousness to His feet? He delivers up nations before him And subdues kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, As the wind-driven chaff with his bow.

3He chases them away and goes on safely, though he is walking over unfamiliar ground.

3"He pursues them, passing on in safety, By a way he had not been traversing with his feet.

4Who has done such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the LORD, the First and the Last. I alone am he.”

4"Who has performed and accomplished it, Calling forth the generations from the beginning? 'I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am He.'"

5The lands beyond the sea watch in fear. Remote lands tremble and mobilize for war.

5The coastlands have seen and are afraid; The ends of the earth tremble; They have drawn near and have come.

6The idol makers encourage one another, saying to each other, “Be strong!”

6Each one helps his neighbor And says to his brother, "Be strong!"

7The carver encourages the goldsmith, and the molder helps at the anvil. “Good,” they say. “It’s coming along fine.” Carefully they join the parts together, then fasten the thing in place so it won’t fall over.

7So the craftsman encourages the smelter, And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil, Saying of the soldering, "It is good"; And he fastens it with nails, So that it will not totter.

8“But as for you, Israel my servant, Jacob my chosen one, descended from Abraham my friend,

8"But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, Descendant of Abraham My friend,

9I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away.

9You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its remotest parts And said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and not rejected you.

10Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

10'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'

11“See, all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. Anyone who opposes you will die and come to nothing.

11"Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored; Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.

12You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you. Those who attack you will come to nothing.

12"You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them, Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.

13For I hold you by your right hand— I, the LORD your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.

13"For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you.'

14Though you are a lowly worm, O Jacob, don’t be afraid, people of Israel, for I will help you. I am the LORD, your Redeemer. I am the Holy One of Israel.’

14"Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you," declares the LORD, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

15You will be a new threshing instrument with many sharp teeth. You will tear your enemies apart, making chaff of mountains.

15"Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges; You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them, And will make the hills like chaff.

16You will toss them into the air, and the wind will blow them all away; a whirlwind will scatter them. Then you will rejoice in the LORD. You will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

16"You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away, And the storm will scatter them; But you will rejoice in the LORD, You will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17“When the poor and needy search for water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the LORD, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them.

17"The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, And their tongue is parched with thirst; I, the LORD, will answer them Myself, As the God of Israel I will not forsake them.

18I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. I will fill the desert with pools of water. Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground.

18"I will open rivers on the bare heights And springs in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water And the dry land fountains of water.

19I will plant trees in the barren desert— cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine.

19"I will put the cedar in the wilderness, The acacia and the myrtle and the olive tree; I will place the juniper in the desert Together with the box tree and the cypress,

20I am doing this so all who see this miracle will understand what it means— that it is the LORD who has done this, the Holy One of Israel who created it.

20That they may see and recognize, And consider and gain insight as well, That the hand of the LORD has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21“Present the case for your idols,” says the LORD. “Let them show what they can do,” says the King of Israel.

21"Present your case," the LORD says. "Bring forward your strong arguments," The King of Jacob says.

22“Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider the evidence. Or let them tell us what the future holds, so we can know what’s going to happen.

22Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; As for the former events, declare what they were, That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming;

23Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. Then we will know you are gods. In fact, do anything—good or bad! Do something that will amaze and frighten us.

23Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together.

24But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all. Those who choose you pollute themselves.

24Behold, you are of no account, And your work amounts to nothing; He who chooses you is an abomination.

25“But I have stirred up a leader who will approach from the north. From the east he will call on my name. I will give him victory over kings and princes. He will trample them as a potter treads on clay.

25"I have aroused one from the north, and he has come; From the rising of the sun he will call on My name; And he will come upon rulers as upon mortar, Even as the potter treads clay."

26“Who told you from the beginning that this would happen? Who predicted this, making you admit that he was right? No one said a word!

26Who has declared this from the beginning, that we might know? Or from former times, that we may say, "He is right!"? Surely there was no one who declared, Surely there was no one who proclaimed, Surely there was no one who heard your words.

27I was the first to tell Zion, ‘Look! Help is on the way!’ I will send Jerusalem a messenger with good news.

27"Formerly I said to Zion, 'Behold, here they are.' And to Jerusalem, 'I will give a messenger of good news.'

28Not one of your idols told you this. Not one gave any answer when I asked.

28"But when I look, there is no one, And there is no counselor among them Who, if I ask, can give an answer.

29See, they are all foolish, worthless things. All your idols are as empty as the wind.

29"Behold, all of them are false; Their works are worthless, Their molten images are wind and emptiness.

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org