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Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. 15: Isaiah, Part III, tr. by John King, [1847-50], at sacred-texts.com
1 Wo to thee that spoilest, And was not spoiled; Who dealest wickedly, And they dealt not wickedly with thee! When thou shalt have ceased to spoil, Thou shalt be spoiled; When thou shalt have ceased to deal wickedly, They shall deal wickedly with thee.
2 O Jehovah, have pity upon us; We have hoped in thee; Be thou, who hast been their arm in the morning, Our salvation also in the time of trouble.
3 At the voice of the tumult the people fled; At thy exaltation the nations were dispersed.
4 And your prey shall be gathered by your gathering of cater-pillars, Advancing thither, according to the running of locusts.
5 Jehovah is exalted, who dwelleth on high; He hath filled Zion with judgment And righteousness.
6 And the stability of thy times shall be Strength, salvation, wisdom, And knowledge; The fear of Jehovah is his treasure.
7 Behold, their messengers shall cry without; The ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
8 The roads are deserted, The traveler hath ceased; He hath violated the treaty, He hath despised the cities, He hath paid no regard to any man.
9 The earth hath mourned And languished; Lebanon is ashamed And hewn down; Sharon hath been made like a wilderness; Bashan And Carmel have been shaken.
10 Now will I arise, saith Jehovah; Now will I be exalted; Now will I lift up myself.
11 Ye shall conceive chaff; Ye shall bring forth stubble; The fire of your breath shall devour you.
12 And the peoples shall be the burnings of lime; 244 As thorns cut up shall they be burnt in the fire.
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; Ye that are near, acknowledge my power.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; Terror hath seized the hypocrites. 245 Which of us 246 shall dwell with devouring fire? Which of us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
15 He who walketh in righteousnesses And speaketh what is right; Who despiseth the gain from violence And calumny; Who shaketh his hands from accepting a bribe; Who stoppeth his ear, that he may not hear blood; Who shutteth his eyes, that he may not see evil.
16 He shall dwell in high places; Fortifications of rocks shall be his refuge; Bread shall be given to him, And his waters (shall be) sure.
17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty; They shall behold the land (that is) very far off.
18 Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the weigher? Where is he who singleth out the principal houses?
19 The fierce people thou shalt not see, The people of a confused lip, so that thou canst not understand; Of a stammering tongue, so that thou canst not comprehend.
20 Look at Zion, the city of our solemnities; 247 Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a peaceful habitation, A tent which shall not be carried away, The stakes of which shall never be removed, And of which none of the ropes shall be broken:
21 Thus, 248 shall the mighty Jehovah there be to us, A place of streams, of broad rivers, Through which there shall not pass a ship with oars, And through which a splendid ship shall not pass.
22 For Jehovah is our Judge; Jehovah is our Lawgiver; Jehovah is our King; He himself will save us.
23 Thy cords were loosed, So that they did not fasten their mast, Nor spread the sail; Then was the prey of much spoil divided; The lame also seized the prey.
24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick; The people that dwell in it have been freed from iniquity.
1 Draw near, ye nations, to hear; And ye peoples, hearken. Let the earth hear, And its fullness; The world, And all its productions.
2 For the indignation of Jehovah is on all nations, And his fury on all their army; He hath destroyed them; He hath delivered them to slaughter.
3 Their slain shall be east out; And from their carcasses shall come up their stench; And the mountains shall melt on account of their blood.
4 And all the armies of heaven shall fade away, And shall be rolled up as a scroll. The heavens And all their armies shall fall down, As a leaf falleth down from a vine, And as it falleth from the fig-tree.
5 For my sword is made drunken in the heavens. Behold, it shall come down on Edom, Even on the people of my curse to judgment.
6 The sword of Jehovah hath been filled with blood; It hath been made fat with fatness; Even with the blood of lambs And of goats, With the fat of the kidneys of rams; For the sacrifice of Jehovah is on Bozrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
7 And the unicorns shall come down with them, And the bullocks with the bulls; And their land shall be made drunken with blood, And their dust shall be made fat with fatness.
8 For (it is) the day of vengeance of Jehovah, The year of recompenses for the cause of Zion.
9 And her streams shall be turned into pitch, And her dust into brimstone; And her land shall become burning pitch.
10 By night And by day it shall not be quenched; Its smoke shall continually go up; From generation to generation it shall lie waste; Tone shall pass through it for ever And ever.
11 Therefore shall the pelican And the owl take possession of it; The great owl And the raven shall dwell in it; And he shall stretch over it the cord of emptiness, And the plummets of vanity.
12 They shall call her nobles without a kingdom, And all her princes shall be nothing.
13 In her palaces she shall bring forth thorns, And nettles And thistles in her fortresses; And she shall be a habitation for dragons, And an abode for the young ones of the ostrich.
14 And the wild beasts shall meet with the satyrs; And the screech-owl shall cry to his companion; There also shall the fairy dwell, And shall find for herself a peaceful abode.
15 There shall the owl make her nest, And lay, And hatch And gather her young under her shadow; Yea, there shall the vultures be gathered together, Every one with her mate.
16 Inquire at the book of Jehovah, And read. Not one of those shall fail; Tot one shall want her mate; For his mouth hath commanded, And his Spirit hath gathered them.
17 And he hath cast the lot for them; And his hand hath divided it to them for ever, as by a cord. Therefore they shall inhabit it; From generation to generation they shall dwell in it.
1 The wilderness And the desert shall be glad; The loathsome place shall rejoice, And shall flourish like the lily.
2 Flourishing it shall flourish, And shall even rejoice with rejoicing, And shall sing; The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, The beauty of Carmel And Sharon; They shall see the glory of Jehovah, The majesty of our God.
3 Strengthen ye the weak hands, Confirm the tottering knees.
4 Say to them that are trembling in heart, Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; God himself will come with a recompense, 249 And will save you.
5 Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be opened.
6 Then shall the lame man leap like a stag, The tongue of the dumb mall shall sound loudly; For waters shall be digged in the desert, And rivers in the wilderness.
7 The dry place shall be changed into a pool, And the parched country into fountains of waters; And in the habitation of dragons, And in its lair, Shall be a place for the reed And the rush.
8 And a path shall be there, And a way, And it shall be called, The holy way. An unclean person shall not pass through it; And he shall be to them one that walketh in the way, That fools may not go astray.
9 There shall not be there a lion; Nor shall a wild beast go up by it; Neither shall it be found there; That the redeemed may walk.
10 Therefore shall the redeemed of Jehovah return, And shall come to Zion with rejoicing; And everlasting joy shall be on their head; And they shall obtain joy And gladness; And sorrow And sighing shall flee away.
1 It came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib, king of Assyria, came up against all the defended cities of Judah, And took them.
2 Then the king of Assyria sent Rabshakch from Lachish, with a powerful army, to Jerusalem, to king Hezekiah, who stood at the conduit of the upper pool in the way of the fullers field.
3 And there came out to him Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, who was over the house, And Shebna the chancellor, And Joab, the son of Asaph, the secretary.
4 And Rabshakeh said to them: Say now to Hezekiah? Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this in which thou trustest? I have said, (only a word of the lips.)
5 Counsel And strength for war. Now in whom hast thou trusted, that thou hast rebelled against me?
6 Behold, thou hast rusted in that broken staff of reed, on Egypt, on which if one lean, it will go into his hand And pierce it. Such is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to all who have confidence in him.
7 And if thou shalt say to me, We trust in Jehovah our God; is it not, he whose high places And altars Hezekiah hath taken away, And hath said to Judah And Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar?
8 Now, come, give a hostage to my master, the king of Assyria. I will give thee two thousand horses; wilt thou have horsemen to set upon them?
9 And how dost thou despise the face of one captain of the least of my masters servants, And place thy confidence in Egypt for chariots And horsemen?
10 And have I now come up without Jehovah to this land, to destroy it? Jehovah said to me: Go up against this land, to destroy it.
11 Then said Eliakim, And Shebna, And Joah, to Rabshakeh: Speak, I pray, to thy servants, in the Syrian language, (for we understand it,) And speak not to us in the Jewish language, in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.
12 And Rabshakeh said: Hath my master sent me to thy master And to thee to speak those words? Is it not to the men who sit on the wall, that they may eat their own dung, And drink their own urine with you?
13 Therefore Rabshakeh stood, And cried with a loud voice in the Jewish language, And said: Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria.
14 Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah impose upon you, for he will not be able to deliver you.
15 And let not Hezekiah make you trust in Jehovah, saying, By delivering will Jehovah deliver us; this city shall not be given up into the hand of the king of Assyria.
16 Listen not to Hezekiah; for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make with me a blessing, And come out; And let every one eat of his own vine, And let every one eat of his own fig-tree, And let every one drink the waters of his own well.
17 Till I come And take you into a land like your own land, a land of corn And wine, a land of bread And vineyards.
18 Lest perhaps Hezekiah deceive you, saying, Jehovah will deliver us. Have any of the gods of the nations delivered their land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
19 Where is the god of Hamath And Arpad? Where is the god of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?
20 Who is there among all the gods of those lands that hath delivered his land out of my hand; that Jehovah should rescue Jerusalem out of my hand?
21 They were silent, And did not answer him a word; for this was the commandment of the king, Do not answer him.
22 Then came Eliakim, who was over the house And Shebna the chancellor, And Joab, the son of Asaph, the secretary, to Hezekiah, with rent garments, And told him the words of Rabshakeh.
1 Now, it came to pass, that Hezekiah, when he heard this rent his clothes, And covered himself with sackcloth, And went into the house of Jehovah.
2 At the same time he sent Eliakim, who was over the palace, And Shebna the chancellor, and the eldest of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the son of Amoz, the prophet.
3 Who said to him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, And of blasphemy; for the children have come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
4 If, perhaps, Jehovah thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master, the king of Assyria, hath sent to curse the living God, And to rebuke with words which Jehovah thy God hath heard. Thou shalt therefore lift up a prayer for the remnant that is still left.
5 The servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
6 And Isaiah said to them, Thus shall ye say to your master: Thus saith Jehovah, Fear not the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reproached me.
7 Behold, I will bring a wind upon him; for he shall hear a report, And shall return to his own land; And I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.
8 And Rabshakeh, having returned, found the king of Assyria besieging Libnah; for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
9 And hearing concerning Tirhakah, king of Ethiopia, He hath gone out to fight against thee; after having heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying:
10 Thus shall ye say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given up into the hand of the king of Assyria.
11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to at hands, how they have destroyed them; And shalt thou be delivered?
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers destroyed, Gozan, And Itaran, And Rezeph, And the children of Edom, who were in Telassar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arphad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena And Iva?
14 Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, And read it, And went up to the house of Jehovah, and spread it before Jehovah.
15 Then Hezekiah prayed to God, saying:
16 O Jehovah of hosts, God of Israel, who dwellest between the cherubim, thou alone art God over all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven And earth.
17 Incline thine ear, O Jehovah, And hear; open thine eyes, O Jehovah, And see; And hear all the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to reproach the living God.
18 Truly, O Jehovah, the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the nations, And their land,
19 And have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood, And stone; therefore they have destroyed them.
20 And now, O Jehovah our God, save us from his hand; that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou alone art Jehovah.
21 Then Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah, saying: Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Since thou hast prayed to me concerning Sennacherib, king of Assyria;
22 This is the word which Jehovah hath spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee, hath laughed at thee; The daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. Whom hast thou reproached?
23 And whom hast thou blasphemed? Against whom hast thou exalted thy Voice, And lifted up thy hands on high? Even against the Holy One of Israel.
24 By the hand of thy servants thou hast reproached the Lord, And hast said, By the multitude of my chariots I will go up, To the heights of the mountains, To the sides of Lebanon; I will cut down the tallest of her cedars, Her choice firs; Then will I come to the height of his border, And even to his level forest. 250
25 I will dig, And will drink waters; With the sole of my feet I will dry up all the lakes of the siege.
26 Hast thou not heard that I made it long ago, That I formed it from ancient days? And should I now bring it to be a desolation, To be heaps of ruins, like fortified cities?
27 For their inhabitants were maimed, Were terrified And confounded; They were made like the grass of the field And the green herb, Like the grass of the house-tops, which withereth before it is ripe.
28 I know thy sitting down, And thy going out, And thy entrance, And thy indignation against me.
29 Because thou wast angry against me, Thy tumult hath come up into my ears. Therefore will I put my hook 251 in thy nostril, And my bridle ill thy lips, And will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.
30 And this shall be a sign to thee; Thou shalt eat this year that which groweth of itself, And in the second year that which springeth up of itself; And in the third year ye shall sow And reap, And shall plant vineyards, And eat the fruit of them.
31 And that which shall be preserved of the house of Judah, And that which shall be left, Shall vet strike root downward, And shall bear fruit upward.
32 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, And that which shall be preserved of Mount Zion. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will do this.
33 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not enter into this city, Nor throw an arrow into it; And he who is defended by a shield shall not seize it, Nor cast a balister against it.
34 By the way that he came shall he return, And shall not enter into this city, saith Jehovah.
35 And I will be a protector to this city, To save it, for my own sake, And for the sake of my servant David.
36 And the angel of Jehovah went forth, And smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred And eighty-five thousand; And when the people arose early in the morning, behold, they were all corpses of dead men.
37 Then Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed, And went, And returned, And dwelt in Nineveh.
38 And it came to pass, while he was worshipping his god in the temple of Nisroch, 252 that his sons, Adrammeleeh And Sharezar, smote him with the sword, And fled into the land of Armenia; And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.
1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, came to him, And said to him: Thus saith Jehovah, Give charge concerning thy house; 253 for thou shalt die, And shalt not live.
2 Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall, And prayed to Jehovah.
3 And he said, I beseech thee, O Jehovah, remember now that I have walked before thee in truth, And with a perfect heart, And have done what was right in thine eyes. And Hezekiah wept with sore weeping. 254
4 Then was communicated the word of Jehovah to Isaiah, saying,
5 Go, And say to Hezekiah: Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Jacob thy father: I have heard thy prayer, And have seen thy tears: Behold, I add to thy days fifteen years.
6 And I will deliver thee And this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; And I will be a protector to this city.
7 And this shall be a sign to thee from Jehovah, that Jehovah will do this thing, of which he hath spoken:
8 Behold, I bring back the shadow of degrees, by which it hath gone down on the sun-dial of Ahaz, ten degrees. And he sun went back on the sundial ten degrees, by which it had already gone down.
9 The writing of Hezekiah, king of Judah, when he had been sick, And had recovered from his sickness.
10 I said in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates of the grave; I am deprived of the residue of my years.
11 I said, I shall not see God, God in the land of the living; I shall no longer behold man with the inhabitants of the world.
12 Sly habitation is departed, And is removed from me as a shepherds tent; I have cut off; as a weaver, my life: From lifting up 255 he will cut me off; From day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.
13 I reckoned 256 till the dawn; As a lion, so he hath broken my bones; From the dawn till night thou wilt make an end of me.
14 As a crane or a swallow, I chattered; I mourned as a dove. My eyes were lifted up on high, O Lord, it hath oppressed me; comfort me.
15 What shall I say? He who hath spoken to me hath done it. I shall be moved 257 all the days of my life In the bitterness of my soul.
16 O Lord, by all who shall live beyond those (years) Shall the life of my spirit (be known;) And that thou didst cause me to sleep, And didst make me alive.
17 Behold, in peace my bitterness was bitter; And thou hast been pleased (to rescue) my soul from the pit; 258 For thou hast east behind thy back all my sins.
18 For hell shall not confess thee; Death shall not praise thee; They that go down into the pit shall not wait for thy truth.
19 The living, the living, he shall confess to thee, As I (do) this day; The father to the sons shall make known thy truth.
20 Jehovah to save me; And we will sing our songs All the days of our life in the house of Jehovah.
21 Now, Isaiah had said, They shall take a mass of figs, and apply it to the boil, And they shall live.
22 For 259 Hezekiah had said, What is the sign that I shall go up into the house of the Lord?
1 At that time Merodach-Baladan, son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters And a present to Hezekiah, after having heard that he had been sick, And was recovered.
2 And Hezekiah was glad on account of them, And showed to them the house of his treasure, silver, And gold, And spices, precious ointment, And all his armory, And all that was contained in his treasures; there was not anything in his house, And in all his kingdom, which Hezekiah did not show.
3 Then came Isaiah the prophet to king Pezekiah, And said to him, What did those men say. And whence came they to thee. Hezekiah answered, They came to me from a distant country, from Babylon.
4 Then he said, What have they seen in thy house? And Hezekiah said, They have seen all that is in my house; And there is nothing in my treasures which I have not showed to them.
5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, Hear the word of Jehovah of hosts:
6 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thy house, And all that thy fathers have treasured up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon; And nothing shall be left, saith Jehovah.
7 Of thy sons which shall issue from thee, whom thou shalt beget, shall they take; And they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
8 Hezekiah said to Isaiah, Good is the word of Jehovah which thou hast spoken. And he said, At least there shall be peace And permanency in my days.
1 Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, Saith your God.
2 Speak ye according to the heart of Jerusalem; And cry to her, That her warfare is accomplished; That her iniquity 260 is pardoned; For she hath received at the hand of Jehovah Double for all her sins.
3 A voice crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of Jehovah; Make straight in the desert a path for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted, And every mountain And hill shall be laid low; And the crooked shall be made straight, And the rough places shall become a plain.
5 And the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; That the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it.
6 The voice said, 261 Cry; And I said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, And all the goodliness of it as the flower of the field.
7 The grass is withered; The flower is faded; Because the breath of Jehovah hath blown upon it. Surely, the people is grass.
8 The grass withereth; The flower fadeth; But the word of our God shall stand for ever.
9 Go up into the high mountain, O Zion, that bringest tidings; Lift up thy voice aloud, O Jerusalem, that bringest tidings; Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
10 Behold, the Lord Jehovah shall come with strength; And his arm shall be powerful. Behold, his reward is with him, And his work is before his face.
11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs in his arm, And shall early them in his bosom, And shall gently lead those that are with young.
12 Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, And measured the heavens with his palm, And held with three fingers the dust of the earth, And weighed the mountains in scales, And the heavens in a balance?
13 Who hath instructed the spirit of Jehovah, Or hath guided him by counsel, And hath taught him?
14 From whom sought he counsel, that he might advise him? And who taught him the path of judgment, And instructed him in knowledge, And showed to him the way of wisdom?
15 Lo, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, And are reckoned as the small dust of the balance; Lo, he taketh up the islands as a very little thing.
16 And Lebanon would not be sufficient to make a fire, Nor its beasts for a burnt-offering.
17 All nations are as nothing before him, And in comparison of him are reckoned less than nothing, And what hath no existence.
18 To whom then have ye likened God? Or what resemblance will ye appoint to him?
19 The workman prepareth a graven image, The goldsmith overlayeth it with gold, And (casteth) golden chains.
20 The poor man chooseth for his offering wood that will not rot; He procureth a skilful workman. To prepare a graven image that shall not be moved.
21 Do ye not know? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not been instructed from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is he that sitteth on the circle of the earth, The inhabitants of which are as locusts; He stretcheth out heaven as a curtain, And spreadeth it out as a tent to be inhabited.
23 He bringeth the mighty to nothing, The rulers of the earth as if they were not.
24 It is as if they had not been planted; It is as if they had not been sown; It is as if their stock had no root in the earth. Even while he bloweth on them, they wither, And the whirlwind carrieth them away as stubble.
25 And to whom will ye liken me, That I may be like? saith the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high, And see who hath created those things, Bringing out their army by number; He will call to all of them by name; By the greatness of his strength, And by the might of his power, None shall fail. 262
27 Why wilt thou say, 263 O Jacob? And why wilt thou speak, O Israel? My way is hidden from Jehovah, And my judgment passeth away from my God.
28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard That Jehovah is the God of eternity, Who hath created the ends of the earth? He fainteth not, And is not worn out by fatigue; And there is no searching of his understanding.
29 He giveth power to the faint, And to him who hath no might he imparteth strength.
30 The youths are wearied, And they faint; And the young men by falling full.
31 But they who wait upon Jehovah shall gather new strength; They shall raise their wings as eagles; They shall run, And shall not be wearied; They shall walk, And shall not faint.
1 Be silent to me, O islands; And let the peoples collect their strength; Let them draw near; then let them speak; Let us come near together to judgment.
2 Who raised up righteousness from the east, Called him to his foot, Gave nations before him, And subdued kings; Gave them as dust to his sword, And as driven stubble to his bow?
3 He pursued them; he departed in peace, By the way that his foot had not gone.
4 Who hath appointed And done it. He who calleth the nations from the beginning. I Jehovah am the first, And with the last I am the same.
5 The islands saw, And were afraid; The farthest boundaries of the earth trembled; They drew near And came.
6 Every one brought assistance to his neighbor, And said to his neighbor, Be courageous.
7 The carver encouraged the founder, And he that beateth with the hammer him that striketh by turns; And he said, It is good for soldering; And he fastened it with nails, that it might not be moved.
8 But thou, O Israel, (art) my servant, O Jacob, whom I have chosen, Thou seed of Abraham my friend.
9 For I have taken thee from the ends of the earth; From its eminences have I called thee; And I have said to thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, And have not cast thee off;
10 Fear not, for I am with thee; Be not terrified, for I am thy God; For I strengthen thee; yea, 264 I will help thee; Yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
11 Behold, they who provoke thee, Shall be ashamed And shall blush; They who contend with thee, Shall become as nothing, And shall perish.
12 Thou shalt seek them, And shalt not find them; They who contend with thee shall be as nothing, And they who fight with thee shall be as consumption.
13 For I (am) Jehovah thy God, Taking hold of thy right hand, And saying to thee, Fear not, I will help thee.
14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, Ye dead men of Israel. I will help thee, saith Jehovah, And thy Redeemer, 265 the Holy One of Israel.
15 Behold, I have made thee a cart, Like a sharp thrashing instrument having teeth; Thou shalt thrash the mountains, And beat them small; And thou shalt reduce the hills to dust.
16 Thou shalt winnow them; And the wind shall carry them away, And the whirlwind shall scatter them. But thou shalt rejoice in Jehovah; Thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 The needy And poor shall seek waters, Which are nowhere to be seen; Their tongue shall be parched with thirst. I Jehovah will listen to them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers on lofty mountain-tops, And fountains in the midst of a plain; I will make the wilderness pools of waters, And the dry land fountains of waters.
19 In the wilderness I will give the cedar, The sloe, the myrtle, And the pine; I will set in the desert the fir-tree, The elm And poplar together.
20 Therefore let them see And know; Let them likewise think And understand; That the hand of Jehovah hath done this, And that the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
21 Plead your cause, saith Jehovah; Produce your strong reasons, saith the king of Jacob.
22 Let them bring them forth, And let them tell us what is to come; Let them declare the former things which were, And we will lay our heart to them; And we shall know the latest of those things; And declare ye to us what is to come.
23 Tell what shall be hereafter, That we may know that ye are gods; Yea, do good, or do evil, That we may relate And likewise may see 266 it.
24 Behold, you are of nothing, And your work is of nothing; (The man) hath chosen abomination in you.
25 I have raised him from the north, And he hath come; From the rising of the sun shall he call on my name; And he shall come to princes, as to clay; And he shall tread the clay like a potter.
26 Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? Beforehand, And we will say, (He is) righteous. Surely, there is none that declareth; Surely, there is none that causeth (us) to hear; Surely, there is none that heareth your words.
27 The first to Zion; Behold, behold them; And I will give a messenger to Jerusalem.
28 I looked, And there was none; I inquired at them, And there was no counselor; I asked them, And they answered not a word.
29 Behold, all are vanity; And their works are a failure; Their images are wind And confusion.
1 Behold, my servant; I will lean upon him; 267 Mine sleet, in whom my soul is well pleased. I have put my Spirit upon him; He shall exhibit judgment to the nations.
2 He shall not cry aloud; He shall not lift up, Nor cause his voice to be heard in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he shall not break, And the smoking flax he shall not quench; He shall bring forth judgment in truth.
4 He shall not thine, nor be discouraged, Till he set judgment in the earth; And the islands shall wait for his law.
5 Thus saith God 268 Jehovah, The Creator of the heavens, And who stretcheth them out; Who spreadeth out the earth, And its productions; Giving breath to the people who dwell in it, And spirit to them who walk on it.
6 I Jehovah have called thee in righteousness, And will hold thee by thy hand; And will keep thee, And will place thee for a covenant of the people, For a light of the nations;
7 That thou mayest open the eyes of the blind; That thou mayest bring out the prisoners from the prison, And from the house of the prison those who sit in darkness.
8 I am Jehovah, that is my name; And my glory will I not give to another, Nor my praise to graven images.
9 Behold, the former things have come; And new things do I declare; Before they spring up, I will make them known to you.
10 Sing to Jehovah a new song, His praise from the end of the earth; Ye who go down to the sea, And its fullness; Ye islands, And their inhabitants.
11 Let the desert And its cities cry aloud, The villages where Kedar dwelleth; Let the inhabitants of the rock sing; And let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory to Jehovah, And let them declare his praise in the islands.
13 Jehovah shall go forth as a giant; And as a warrior shall he rouse his zeal; He shall cry aloud; he shall shout; He shall strengthen himself against his adversaries.
14 I have kept silence for a long time; I have been silent, And have refrained myself; I will cry like a woman in travail; I will destroy And swallow at once.
15 I will reduce mountains And hills to a wilderness; I will dry up all their herbage; I will make the rivers islands; And I will dry up the pools.
16 And I will lead the blind by a way which they knew not; I will cause them to walk in paths which they had not known; And I will turn darkness before them into light, And crooked ways into a plain. These things 269 will I do to them, And I will not forsake them.
17 They shall be turned back, With shame shall they be ashamed, Who trust in a graven image; And who say to a molten image; Ye are our gods.
18 O ye deaf, hear; And ye blind, be attentive to see.
19 Who is blind but my servant? Who is deaf but my messenger whom I send? Who is blind as he that is perfect, And blind as the servant of Jehovah?
20 By seeing many things which thou observest not; By opening the ears, so that he may not hear.
21 Jehovah is well-pleased on account of his righteousness, That he may honor And magnify his law.
22 But this people hath been robbed And trodden down; They shall all be snared in prisons, And they shall be hidden in caves; They shall be made a spoil, And there shall be none to deliver; A prey, And none shall say, Restore.
23 Who among you will hear this? Who will hearken? Who will attend for the time to come?
24 Who gave Jacob to be a prey, And gave up Israel to the robbers? Was it not Jehovah? Because we have sinned against him, And they would not walk in his ways, And did not hearken to his law.
25 Therefore he hath poured upon him The fury of his anger, And the strength of battle. It set him on fire on every side, And he gave no heed to it; It burned him, But he laid it not to heart.
1 And now thus saith Jehovah, Thy Creator, O Jacob, And thy Former, O Israel; Fear not, for I have redeemed (thee); I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
2 When thou shalt pass through the waters, I will be with thee; Through rivers, they shall not overflow thee; When thou shalt pass through the fire itself, thou shalt not be scorched; And the flame shall not kindle on thee.
3 For I am Jehovah thy God; The Holy One of Israel, thy Savior; I have given Egypt as the price of thy redemption, Ethiopia And Sheba in thy room.
4 Because thou hast been precious in my eyes, Thou hast been honorable, And I have loved thee. I will give a man in thy stead, And peoples instead of thy soul.
5 Fear not, for I am with thee; I will bring thy seed from the East, And I will gather thee from the West.
6 I will say to the North, Give; And to the South, Hinder not; Bring my sons from a distance, And my daughters from the end of the earth.
7 All are called by my name, And I have created them for my glory; I have formed them; yea, I have made them.
8 That I may bring forth the blind people, who have eyes; And the deaf, who have ears.
9 Let all the nations be assembled together, And let the peoples be gathered. Who is there among them to declare this, And to cause us to hear the former things? Let them produce their witnesses, they shall be declared righteous; But let them hear, And they shall says, It is truth.
10 Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, And my servant, whom I have chosen. Therefore ye shall know And believe me; And ye shall understand that I am He; Before me there was no god formed; Nor shall there be after me.
11 I, I 270 am Jehovah; And there is no Savior besides me.
12 I have declared, And have saved, And have made you to heat; And there is no strange (god) among you. Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, That I am God.
13 Even before the day was, I was; And there is none to deliver out of my hand. I will do; And who shall disannul it?
14 Thus saith Jehovah, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel; For your sake have I sent to Babylon, And have made them come down. They are all fugitives; And the cry of the Babylonians is in the ships.
15 I am Jehovah, your Holy One; The Creator of Israel, your King.
16 Thus saith Jehovah, Who maketh a way in the sea, And a path in the stormy waters.
17 When he bringeth (them) out, The chariot And the horse, The army And the power, Lie down together, so that they do not rise. They are quenched; they are quenched like flax.
18 Remember not the former things, And mention not the things that are ancient.
19 Behold, I do a new thing; Now it shall arise; Shall ye not know it? This time 271 I will make a way ill the wilderness, Rivers in the desert.
20 The beast of the field shall honor me; The dragons, And the young of the ostrich; Because I will give waters in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert, To give drink to my people, my chosen.
21 This people have I created for myself; They shall declare my praise.
22 And thou hast not called on me, O Jacob; But thou hast been wearied of me, O Israel.
23 Thou hast not brought to me the cattle of thy burnt-offerings; And thou hast not honored me with thy sacrifices; I have not made thee to serve with offering, Nor to be wearied with incense.
24 Thou hast not bought cane for me with money, And hast not made me drunk with the fat of thy sacrifices; But thou hast made me to serve with thy sills; And thou hast made me to weary with thine iniquities.
25 I, I 272 am He, Who blot out thine iniquities for my own sake; Therefore I will not remember thy sins.
26 Bring to my remembrance; Let us plead together; declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.
27 Thy first father hath sinned, And thy teachers have transgressed against me.
28 Therefore I will pollute the princes of the sanctuary; And I will make Jacob a curse, And Israel a reproach.
1 Yet now hear, O Jacob, my servant, And Israel whom I have chosen.
2 Thus saith Jehovah, thy Maker, And thy Former from the womb; He will help thee. Fear not, O Jacob, my servant, O beloved, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour waters on that which is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit on thy seed, And my blessing on thy productions.
4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, As willows near the streams of waters.
5 One shall say, I belong to Jehovah; And another shall be called by the name of Jacob; Another shall write with his hand, (I belong) to Jehovah, And shall be surnamed by the name of Israel.
6 Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts; I am the first, And I am also the last; And besides me there is no God.
7 And who as I shall call, Shall declare this, And set it in order before me, Since I appointed the people of the age? And let them tell them the things that are coming, And the things that shall come.
8 Fear ye not, And be not terrified. Have I not since then made thee to hear? And have I not declared it? Therefore ye are my witnesses, That there is no God besides me, And there is no strong God whom I know not.
9 The formers of a graven image are all vanity; And their desirable things do no; profit; And they are their own witnesses That they do not see, nor know; And therefore they shall be confounded.
10 Who is the maker of God? And who is it that hath molten a graven image, Which is profitable for nothing?
11 Behold, all his companions shall be ashamed; And the workmen themselves are of men; Though they all assemble, And stand up, They shall tremble, And be ashamed together.
12 The worker in iron shall take the file; 273 He shall work in the coals; He shall form it with hammers; He shall work in it with the arm of his strength; He shall even be hungry, so that his strength shall fail; He shall not drink water, so that he shall faint.
13 The carpenter stretcheth out his rule; He marketh it with a dyed thread; He adjusteth it with planes; He shapeth it with a compass; He maketh it according to the shape of a man, According to the image of a man, That it may remain in the house.
14 He shall cut down for himself cedars; He shall take the pine And the oak; He shall supply himself with trees of the forest; He shall plant a pine which the rain shall nourish.
15 Then shall a man have them for burning; For he shall take of them, And shall warm himself; Yea, he shall heat an oven, And shall bake bread; He shall also make a god, And worship it; He shall make an idol, And shall bow down before it.
16 Part of it he shall burn in the fire; Of a part he shall make ready flesh, And shall cat it; He shall roast roast. And shall be satisfied. Next, he shall warm himself, And shall say, Ah! I am warmed, And have seen the fire.
17 The remainder of it he turneth into a god, Into his graven image; He boweth down before it; He worshippeth And prayeth to it, Saying, Deliver me; for thou art my God.
18 They have not known, nor understood; For he hath smeared their eyes, that they may not see, And their heart, that they may not understand.
19 It cloth not return into their heart; They have not knowledge, nor understanding, to say, Part of it I have burned in the fire; Yea, on the coals of it have I baked bread; I have roasted flesh, And have eaten it; Shall I turn the remainder of it into an abomination? Shall I bow down before the stock of a tree?
20 He feedeth on ashes: A deceived heart turneth him aside, So that he cannot deliver his soul, nor sly, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
21 Remember these things, O Jacob; And Israel, for thou art my servant; I have formed thee; thou art my servant; O Israel, do not thou forget me.
22 I have blotted out, as a cloud, thy iniquities; As a vapor, thy sins. Return thou to me; For I have redeemed thee.
23 Praise, O ye heavens; For Jehovah hath done it; Shout, ye lower parts of the earth; Burst forth into praise, ye mountains; O forest. And every tree that is in it; For Jehovah hath redeemed Jacob, And will be glorified ill Israel.
24 Thus saith Jehovah, thy Redeemer, And thy Maker from the womb: I am Jehovah, who maketh all things, Who stretcheth out the heavens above, Who spreadeth out the earth by my power; 274
25 Who frustrateth the tokens of the diviners; Who maketh the soothsayers mad; Who turneth wise men backward; And who maketh their knowledge foolishness;
26 Who upholdeth the word of his servant, And performeth the counsel of his messengers; Saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; And to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built; And I will raise up her ruins.
27 Who saith to the deep, Be thou dried up; And I will make dry thy rivers;
28 Who saith to Cyrus, Thou art my shepherd; And he shall fulfil all my will; Even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; And to the Temple, Thou shalt be founded.
1 Thus saith Jehovah to his anointed, To Cyrus, whose right hand I have taken hold of, To subdue nations before him; Therefore will I loose 275 the loins of kings; To open the doors before him; Therefore the gates shall not be shut.
2 I will go before thee; And will make straight the crooked ways; I will break asunder the brazen doors; And I will hew down the iron bars.
3 And I will give thee treasures of darkness, And things hidden in secret places; That thou mayest know that I am Jehovah, Who call thee by thy name; Even the God of Israel.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob, And for the sake of Israel, mine elect; I will call thee by thy name; I will surname thee, though thou hast not known me.
5 I am Jehovah, And there is none besides me; There is no god besides me; I have girded thee, though thou hast not known me.
6 Therefore shall they know, From the rising of the sun, And from the west, That there is none besides me. I am Jehovah; And there is none besides me.
7 Forming light, And creating darkness; Making peace, And creating evil; I Jehovah do all these things.
8 Drop down, ye heavens, from above; And let the clouds pour down righteousness; Let the earth be opened; And let salvation And righteousness come forth; Let her bring them forth together: I Jehovah have created it.
9 Wo to him that striveth with his Maker! A potsherd to the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to his maker, Why hast thou made? And, Thy work hath no hands?
10 Wo to him that saith to his father, Why hast thou begotten And to the woman, Why dost thou bring forth?
11 Thus saith Jehovah, The Holy One of Israel, And his Maker; Ask me of things to come; Concerning my sons command ye me, And concerning the work of my hands.
12 I have made the earth, And have created man upon it; It is I, whose hands have stretched out the heavens; And all their army have I commanded.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness, And will make straight all his ways. He shall build my city, And shall release my captivity; Not for price nor for reward, Saith Jehovah of hosts.
14 Thus saith Jehovah; The labor of Egypt, the merchandise of Ethiopia, And the Sabeans of great stature, Shall pass over to thee, And shall be thine; They shall walk behind thee; In chains shall they pass over, And shall reverence And beseech thee. Surely 276 God is in thee; And there is no other besides God.
15 Truly thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior!
16 All of them shall be covered with shame, And shall even blush: With shame shall go away together All the makers of graven images.
17 Israel hath been saved in Jehovah with eternal salvation; Ye shall not be covered with shame; Neither shall ye blush even for ever.
18 For thus saith Jehovah, who createth the heavens; God himself, the Maker of the earth; Who made it, And furnished it; He created it not empty; He formed it to be inhabited; I am Jehovah, And there is none besides me.
19 Not in secret have I spoken, In a place of the darkness of the earth; Not in vain have I said to the seed of Jacob, Seek me; I Jehovah speak righteousness; I declare what is right.
20 Assemble yourselves, And come; Draw near together, ye rejected 277 of the nations. They know nothing, who carry about the wood of a graven image, And who pray to a god who cannot save.
21 Publish ye, And bring forward; Yea, let them consult together. Who hath caused this to be heard from the beginning? And who hath declared it from ancient times? Is it not I Jehovah? And there is no other god besides me; A just God, And a Savior; There is none besides me.
22 Look to me, And ye shall be saved, All the ends of the earth; For I am God, And there is none else.
23 By myself have I sworn; In righteousness hath the word gone out of my mouth, Which shall not return; That to me every knee shall bend; Every tongue shall swear.
24 Surely in Jehovah, will he say, Have I righteousness And strength; To him shall he come; And all who provoke him shall be ashamed.
25 In Jehovah all the seed of Israel Shall be justified, And shall glory.
1 Bel hath bowed down; Nebo is fallen; Their images shall be on the beasts And the cattle; They who carry you are burdened by you; A wearisome burden.
2 They bowed down; they stooped together; And they could not withdraw themselves from the binden; And their soul hath gone away into captivity.
3 Hear me, O house of Jacob; All ye the remnant of the house of Israel; Who are borne from the womb; Who are carried from the breast.
4 And even to old age I am the same; And even to gray hairs I will carry. I have made, And I will bear; I will carry, And will save.
5 To whom will ye liken, And make me equal, And compare me, that I may be like?
6 Lavishing gold out of bags; Weighing silver in a balance; They shall hire a goldsmith, to make of it a god; To bow down before it, And to worship it.
7 They shall carry him on the shoulder; They shall lead him about; They shall put him in his place; There shall he stand; From his place shall he not remove; Moreover, if any one cry to him, he will not answer, Nor deliver him from his trouble.
8 Remember ye this, And blush; 278 Return to your heart, ye transgressors.
9 Remember the former things of old; For I am God, And there is none besides, And there is none like me.
10 Declaring the latest event from the beginning, And from antiquity those things which had not yet been done; Saying, My counsel shall stand, And I will do whatever I wish.
11 Calling a bird 279 from the east, From a distant country the man of my counsel; I have spoken, And accordingly I will accomplish it; I have thought, And I will do it.
12 Hear me, ye that are stubborn in heart, Who are far from righteousness.
13 I will cause my righteousness to come near, And it shall not be delayed; And my salvation shall not tarry; And I will place salvation in Zion, And my glory in Jerusalem.
1 Come down, And sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon; Sit on the ground; There is no throne for the daughter of the Babylonians; For they shall no more call thee tender And delicate.
2 Take millstones, And grind meal; Unbind thy curled locks, make bare the feet; Uncover the limbs, that thou mayest cross the rivers.
3 Thy baseness shall be exposed, And thy shame shall be seen; I will take vengeance, And will not meet a man. 280
4 Our Redeemer, his name is Jehovah of hosts, The Holy One of Israel.
5 Sit thou silent, enter into darkness, O daughter of the Babylonians; For they shall no longer call thee the mistress of kingdoms.
6 I was angry with my people; I profaned my inheritance; And I gave them up into thy hand; Thou didst not show compassion to them; On the old man didst thou heavily lay thy yoke.
7 And thou saidst, I shall for ever be a mistress. Hitherto thou hast not applied thy mind to it, And hast not remembered her end.
8 But now hear this, thou delicate woman, That sitteth confidently; Who saith in her heart, I am, And there is none besides me; I shall not sit as a widow, And I shall not know bereavement.
9 But those two things shall suddenly come to thee, Bereavement And widowhood; In their perfection shall they come upon thee, For the multitude 281 of thy divinations, And for the abundance of thy auguries.
10 For thou trustedst in thy malice; Thou saidst, No one seeth me. Thy wisdom And thy knowledge have led thee astray; And thou saidst in thy heart, It is I, And there is none besides me.
11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee, the dawn of which thou knowest not crushing shall fall upon thee, which thou shalt not be able to avert; Destruction shall suddenly come upon thee, which thou knowest not; 282
12 Stand now amidst thy divinations, And amidst the multitude of thy auguries, In which thou hast wearied thyself from thy youth: If perhaps thou mayest be profited, If perhaps thou mayest prevail.
13 Thou hast wearied thyself with the multitude of thy counsels; Let the binders of the heavens, The watchers of the stars, who predict by the moon, Stand now And deliver thee, From those things which shall come upon thee.
14 Behold, they shall he as stubble; The fire shall burn them; They shall not deliver their soul from the strength of the flame; There shall not be a coal to warm, Nor a light at which they may sit.
15 So shall they be to thee with whom thou weariedst thyself, Thy traders from thy youth. Every one shall wander into his own quarter; There shall be no one to save thee.
1 Hear this, O house of Jacob, Ye who are called by the name of Israel, Who have come forth from the waters of Judah, Who swear by the name of Jehovah, And remember the God of Israel, Not in truth, nor in righteousness.
2 For from the holy city they are called, And they rely on the God of Israel, Whose name is Jehovah of hosts.
3 Long ago did I declare the former things; They went out of my mouth; I published them; I did them suddenly, And they came.
4 For I knew that thou art obstinate; And thy neck is all iron sinew; And thy forehead is of brass.
5 Long ago did I declare them to thee; Before they came, I showed to thee; Lest perhaps thou shouldst say, My idol hath done these things; My graven image And my molten image hath commanded them.
6 Thou hast heard; see all things; And will ye not declare them? Even now have I made thee to hear new things, And hidden things, which thou didst not know.
7 Now for the first time have they been created, And not long ago, nor by a succession of time; Thou hadst not heard them; Lest thou shouldst say, Behold, I knew.
8 Surely thou hadst not heard; Surely thou hadst not known; Surely it is not long since thine ear was opened; For I knew that by transgressing thou didst transgress; Therefore have I called thee a rebel from the womb.
9 For my names sake I will delay my fury; And for my praise I will restrain myself toward thee, So as not to cut thee off.
10 Behold, I have tried thee, And not like silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.
11 For mine own sake, for mine own sake, will I do it; For how shall my name be profaned? And I will not give my glory to another.
12 Hear me, O Jacob, And O Israel, my called; I, even I, am the first; Also I am the last.
13 Surely my hand hath founded the earth; And my right hand hath measured 283 the heavens with the palm; When I call them they stand up 284 together.
14 Assemble yourselves, all of you, And hear. Who among them declareth those things? Jehovah hath loved him, And will execute his pleasure against Babylon, And his arm 285 against the Babylonians.
15 I, I 286 have spoken; Surely I have called him, I have led him; Therefore he shall prosper in his way.
16 Draw near to me, hear this. I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; Since the thing was done, there was I; And now the Lord Jehovah, And his Spirit, hath sent me.
17 Thus saith Jehovah, thy Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel. I am Jehovah thy God, Who teacheth thee profitably, Who directeth thee in the way which thou goest.
18 O if thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! Then should thy peace have been as a river, And thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.
19 Thy seed should have been as the sand, And the children of thy womb as the small stones of it; Her name would not be cut off, And would not be destroyed before my face.
20 Come forth from Babylon; Flee from the Babylonians. With the voice of rejoicing tell this; Publish, And carry it even to the end of the earth. Say ye, Jehovah hath redeemed his servant Jacob.
21 Therefore they thirsted not when he led them through the deserts; He made water to flow to them from the rock; He clave the rock, And the waters flowed out.
22 There is no peace, saith Jehovah to the wicked.
Or, He will come with the recompense of God.
Or, To the forest of his plain.
Or, While he was worshipping in the temple of Nisroch, his god.
“Et Ezechias pleura amerement.” “And Hezekiah wept bitterly.”
Or, Through leanness; or, Through sickness; or, By taking away.
Or, I determined; or, I laid down.
Or, Thou hast loved my soul from the pit of destruction.
“Ce suis-je, ce suis-je.” “It is I, it is I.”
“Ce suis-je, ce suis-je.” “It is I, it is I.”
“Et tu ne sqauras d’ou il viendra.” “And thou shalt not know whence it shall come.”
“Ce suis-je, ce suis-je.” “It is I, it is I”