God’s Help to Israel 1 DBY Keep silence before me, islands; and let the peoples renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us draw near together to judgment. BSB BSB: “Be silent before Me, O islands, and let the peoples renew their strength. Let them come forward and testify; let us together draw near for judgment.
2 DBY Who raised up from the east him whom righteousness calleth to its foot? He gave the nations before him, and caused him to have dominion over kings; he gave them as dust to his sword, as driven stubble to his bow. BSB BSB: Who has aroused one from the east and called him to his feet in righteousness? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow.
3 DBY He pursued them, he passed on in safety, by a way he had never come with his feet. BSB BSB: He pursues them, going on safely, hardly touching the path with his feet.
4 DBY Who hath wrought and done it , calling the generations from the beginning? I, Jehovah, the first; and with the last, I am HE. BSB BSB: Who has performed this and carried it out, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—the first and the last—I am He.”
5 DBY The isles saw it , and feared; the ends of the earth trembled: they drew near, and came. BSB BSB: The islands see and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They approach and come forward.
6 DBY They helped every one his neighbour, and each said to his brother, Take courage. BSB BSB: Each one helps the other and says to his brother, “Be strong!”
7 DBY And the artizan encouraged the founder, he that smootheth with the hammer him that smiteth on the anvil, saying of the soldering, It is good; and he fasteneth it with nails, that it be not moved. BSB BSB: The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and he who wields the hammer cheers him who strikes the anvil, saying of the welding, “It is good.” He nails it down so it will not be toppled.
8 DBY But thou, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham, my friend BSB BSB: “But you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham My friend—
9 DBY — thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from the extremities thereof, and to whom I said, Thou art my servant, I have chosen thee and not rejected thee, BSB BSB: I brought you from the ends of the earth and called you from its farthest corners. I said, ‘You are My servant.’ I have chosen and not rejected you.
10 DBY — Fear not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. BSB BSB: Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
11 DBY Lo, all that are incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded; they that strive with thee shall be as nothing, and shall perish. BSB BSB: Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish.
12 DBY Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them — them that contend with thee; they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. BSB BSB: You will seek them but will not find them. Those who wage war against you will come to nothing.
13 DBY For I, Jehovah, thy God, hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee. BSB BSB: For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and tells you: Do not fear, I will help you.
14 DBY Fear not, thou worm Jacob, ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith Jehovah, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. BSB BSB: Do not fear, O Jacob, you worm, O few men of Israel. I will help you,” declares the LORD. “Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15 DBY Behold, I have made of thee a new sharp threshing instrument having double teeth: thou shalt thresh and beat small the mountains, and shalt make the hills as chaff; BSB BSB: Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff.
16 DBY thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them; and thou shalt rejoice in Jehovah, thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel. BSB BSB: You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 DBY The afflicted and the needy seek water, and there is none; their tongue faileth for thirst: I, Jehovah, will answer them, I , the God of Israel, will not forsake them. BSB BSB: The poor and needy seek water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18 DBY I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness into a pool of water, and the dry land into water-springs. BSB BSB: I will open rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the middle of the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into flowing springs.
19 DBY I will give in the wilderness the cedar, acacia, myrtle, and oleaster; I will set in the desert the cypress, pine, and box-tree together; BSB BSB: I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees. I will set cypresses in the desert, elms and boxwood together,
20 DBY that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of Jehovah hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it. BSB BSB: so that all may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this and the Holy One of Israel has created it.”
Meaningless Idols 21 DBY Produce your cause, saith Jehovah; bring forward your arguments, saith the King of Jacob. BSB BSB: “Present your case,” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments,” says the King of Jacob.
22 DBY Let them bring them forward, and declare to us what shall happen: shew the former things, what they are, that we may give attention to them, and know the end of them; — or let us hear things to come: BSB BSB: “Let them come and tell us what will happen. Tell the former things, so that we may reflect on them and know the outcome. Or announce to us what is coming.
23 DBY declare the things that are to happen hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods; yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be astonished, and behold it together. BSB BSB: Tell us the things that are to come, so that we may know that you are gods. Yes, do something good or evil, that we may look on together in dismay.
24 DBY Behold, ye are less than nothing, and your work is of nought; an abomination is he that chooseth you. ... BSB BSB: Behold, you are nothing and your work is of no value. Anyone who chooses you is detestable.
25 DBY I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come, — from the rising of the sun, he who will call upon my name; and he shall come upon princes as on mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay. BSB BSB: I have raised up one from the north, and he has come—one from the east who calls on My name. He will march over rulers as if they were mortar, like a potter who treads the clay.
26 DBY Who hath declared it from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, It is right? Indeed, there is none that declareth; no, none that sheweth; no, none that heareth your words. BSB BSB: Who has declared this from the beginning, so that we may know, and from times past, so that we may say: ‘He was right’? No one announced it, no one foretold it, no one heard your words.
27 DBY The first, I said to Zion, Behold, behold them! and to Jerusalem, I will give one that bringeth glad tidings. BSB BSB: I was the first to tell Zion: ‘Look, here they are!’ And I gave to Jerusalem a herald of good news.
28 DBY And 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. BSB BSB: When I look, there is no one; there is no counselor among them; when I ask them, they have nothing to say.
29 DBY Behold, they are all vanity, their works are nought, their molten images are wind and emptiness. BSB BSB: See, they are all a delusion; their works amount to nothing; their images are as empty as the wind.
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