Isaiah 41 Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the peoples renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

ERV⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the peoples renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment. ² Who hath raised up one from the east, whom he calleth in righteousness to his foot? he giveth nations before him, and maketh him rule over kings; he giveth them as the dust to his sword, as the driven stubble to his bow. ³ He pursueth them, and passeth on safely; even by a way that he had not gone with his feet. ⁴ Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last, I am he. ⁵ The isles saw, and feared; the ends of the earth trembled: they drew near, and came. ⁶ They helped every one his neighbour; and [every one] said to his brother, Be of good courage. ⁷ So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smiteth the anvil, saying of the soldering, It is good: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved. ⁸ But thou, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend; ⁹ thou whom I have taken hold of from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the corners thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant, I have chosen thee and not cast thee away; ¹⁰ Fear thou 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. ¹¹ Behold, all they that are incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they that strive with thee shall be as nothing, and shall perish. ¹² Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contend with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. ¹³ For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee. ¹⁴ Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁵ Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. ¹⁶ Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁷ The poor and needy seek water and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst; I the LORD will answer them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. ¹⁸ I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. ¹⁹ I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, the pine, and the box tree together: ²⁰ that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it. ²¹ Produce your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob. ²² Let them bring them forth, and declare unto us what shall happen: declare ye the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or shew us things for to come. ²³ Declare the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together. ²⁴ Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooseth you. ²⁵ I have raised up one from the north, and he is come; from the rising of the sun one that calleth upon my name: and he shall come upon rulers as upon mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay. ²⁶ Who hath declared it from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, [He is] righteous? yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that heareth your words. ²⁷ [I] first [will say] unto Zion, Behold, behold them; and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings. ²⁸ And when I look, there is no man; even among them there is no counsellor, that, when I ask of them, can answer a word. ²⁹ Behold, all of them, their works are vanity [and] nought: their molten images are wind and confusion.