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¹“But now listen, Jacob, My servant, And Israel, whom I have chosen:

²This is what the LORD says, He who made you And formed you from the womb, who will help you: ‘Do not fear, Jacob My servant, And Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

³For I will pour water on the thirsty land And streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, And My blessing on your descendants;

⁴And they will spring up among the grass Like poplars by streams of water.’

⁵This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’S’; And that one will call on the name of Jacob; And another will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to the LORD,’ And will give himself Israel’s name with honor.

⁶“This is what the LORD says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of armies: ‘I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.

⁷Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it; And, let him confront Me Beginning with My establishing of the ancient nation. Then let them declare to them the things that are coming And the events that are going to take place.

⁸Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.’ ”

⁹Those who fashion an idol are all futile, and their treasured things are of no benefit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be put to shame.

¹⁰Who has fashioned a god or cast an idol to no benefit?

¹¹Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up, let them tremble, let them be put to shame together.

¹²The craftsman of iron shapes a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary.

¹³The craftsman of wood extends a measuring line; he outlines it with a marker. He works it with carving knives and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of mankind, so that it may sit in a house.

¹⁴He will cut cedars for himself, and he takes a holm-oak or another oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel tree, and the rain makes it grow.

¹⁵Then it becomes something for a person to burn, so he takes one of them and gets warm; he also makes a fire and bakes bread. He also makes a god and worships it; he makes it a carved image and bows down before it.

¹⁶Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat, he roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.”

¹⁷Yet the rest of it he makes into a god, his carved image. He bows down before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.”

¹⁸They do not know, nor do they understand, for He has smeared over their eyes so that they cannot see, and their hearts so that they cannot comprehend.

¹⁹No one remembers, nor is there knowledge or understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I roast meat and eat it. Then I make the rest of it into an abomination, I bow down before a block of wood!”

²⁰He feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has misled him. And he cannot save himself, nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

²¹“Remember these things, Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant, Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me.

²²I have wiped out your wrongdoings like a thick cloud And your sins like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.”

²³Shout for joy, you heavens, for the LORD has done it! Shout joyfully, you lower parts of the earth; Break into a shout of jubilation, you mountains, Forest, and every tree in it; For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, And in Israel He shows His glory.

²⁴This is what the LORD says, He who is your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb: “I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself And spreading out the earth alone,

²⁵Causing the omens of diviners to fail, Making fools of fortune-tellers; Causing wise men to turn back And making their knowledge ridiculous,

²⁶Confirming the word of His servant And carrying out the purpose of His messengers. It is I who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited!’ And of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built.’ And I will raise her ruins again.

²⁷I am the One who says to the depth of the sea, ‘Dry up!’ And I will make your rivers dry up.

²⁸It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, And he will carry out all My desire.’ And he says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built,’ And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’ ”

¹This is what the LORD says to Cyrus His anointed, Whom I have taken by the right hand, To subdue nations before him And to undo the weapons belt on the waist of kings; To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:

²“I will go before you and make the rough places smooth; I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars.

³I will give you the treasures of darkness And hidden wealth of secret places, So that you may know that it is I, The LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.

⁴For the sake of Jacob My servant, And Israel My chosen one, I have also called you by your name; I have given you a title of honor Though you have not known Me.

⁵I am the LORD, and there is no one else; There is no God except Me. I will arm you, though you have not known Me,

⁶So that people may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is no one besides Me. I am the LORD, and there is no one else,

⁷The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating disaster; I am the LORD who does all these things.

⁸“Drip down, heavens, from above, And let the clouds pour down righteousness; Let the earth open up and salvation bear fruit, And righteousness sprout with it. I, the LORD, have created it.

⁹“Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker— A piece of pottery among the other earthenware pottery pieces! Will the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’ Or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?

¹⁰Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you fathering?’ Or to a woman, ‘To what are you giving birth?’ ”

¹¹This is what the LORD says, the Holy One of Israel and his Maker: “Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons, And you shall commit to Me the work of My hands.

¹²It is I who made the earth, and created mankind upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands, And I ordained all their lights.

¹³I have stirred him in righteousness, And I will make all his ways smooth. He will build My city and let My exiles go free, Without any payment or reward,” says the LORD of armies.

¹⁴This is what the LORD says: “The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush And the Sabeans, men of stature, Will come over to you and will be yours; They will walk behind you, they will come over in chains And will bow down to you; They will plead with you: ‘God certainly is with you, and there is no one else, No other God.’ ”

¹⁵Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, God of Israel, Savior!

¹⁶They will be put to shame and even humiliated, all of them; The manufacturers of idols will go away together in humiliation.

¹⁷Israel has been saved by the LORD With an everlasting salvation; You will not be put to shame or humiliated To all eternity.

¹⁸For this is what the LORD says, He who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it as a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited): “I am the LORD, and there is no one else.

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in a wasteland’; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, Declaring things that are right.

²⁰“Gather yourselves and come; Come together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge, Who carry around their wooden idol And pray to a god who cannot save.

²¹Declare and present your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this long ago? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me.

²²Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.

²³I have sworn by Myself; The word has gone out from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.

²⁴They will say of Me, ‘Only in the LORD are righteousness and strength.’ People will come to Him, And all who were angry at Him will be put to shame.

²⁵In the LORD all the offspring of Israel Will be justified and will boast.”

¹Bel has bowed down, Nebo stoops over; Their idols have become loads for the animals and the cattle. The things that you carry are burdensome, A load for the weary animal.

²They stooped over, they have bowed down together; They could not rescue the burden, But have themselves gone into captivity.

³“Listen to Me, house of Jacob, And all the remnant of the house of Israel, You who have been carried by Me from birth And have been carried from the womb;

⁴Even to your old age I will be the same, And even to your graying years I will carry you! I have done it, and I will bear you; And I will carry you and I will save you.

⁵“To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal, and compare Me, That we would be alike?

⁶Those who lavish gold from the bag And weigh silver on the scale, Hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; They bow down, indeed they worship it.

⁷They lift it on the shoulder, carry it, And set it in its place, and it stands there. It does not move from its place. Though one may shout to it, it cannot answer; It cannot save him from his distress.

⁸“Remember this, and be assured; Recall it to mind, you wrongdoers.

⁹Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me,

¹⁰Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, ‘My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;

¹¹Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man of My purpose from a distant country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, I will certainly do it.

¹²“Listen to Me, you stubborn-minded, Who are far from righteousness.

¹³I bring near My righteousness, it is not far off; And My salvation will not delay. And I will grant salvation in Zion, And My glory for Israel.