Isaiah 41 Cross References - ISV

¹ The LORD Comes as Judge “Be silent before me, you coastlands, and let the people renew their strength! Let them come forward, then let them speak together— let’s draw near for a ruling. ² Who has aroused victory from the east, and has summoned it to his service, and has handed over nations to him? Who brings down kings, and turns them into dust with his sword, into windblown stubble with his bow? ³ And who pursues them and moves on unscathed by a path that his feet don’t know? ⁴ Who has performed and carried this out, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—the first and will be with the last —I am the One!”
⁵ Idolators Encourage Each Other“The coastlands have looked and are afraid; the ends of the earth have drawn near together and come forward. ⁶ Each helps his neighbor, saying to each other, ‘Be strong!’ ⁷ The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and the hammersmith encourages the one who strikes the anvil. He says about the welding, ‘It’s good!’ and he reinforces it with nails so that it won’t topple.”
⁸ The LORD Encourages Israel“But as for you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I’ve chosen, the offspring of my friend Abraham— ⁹ you whom I encouraged from the ends of the earth and called from its farthest corners, and told you, ‘You’re my servant, I’ve chosen you and haven’t cast you aside.’ ¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, because I’m with you; don’t be anxious, because I am your God. I keep on strengthening you; I’m truly helping you. I’m surely upholding you with my victorious right hand.”
¹¹ The Coming Defeat of God’s Enemies“Look! All who are enraged at you will be put to shame and disgraced; those who contend with you will all die. ¹² Those who quarrel with you will be as nothing; those who fight you like nothing at all!”
¹³ A Call to Courage“For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I’ll help you. ¹⁴ Don’t be afraid, you little worm Jacob, and you insects of Israel! I myself will help you,’ declares the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.”
¹⁵ A Promise of Victory“See, I’m making you into a new, sharp, and multi-tooth threshing sledge. You’ll thresh and crush the mountains, and make the hills like chaff. ¹⁶ You’ll winnow them, and the wind will lift them up, and a tempest will blow them away. Then you’ll rejoice in the LORD, and you’ll make your boast in the Holy One of Israel.” ¹⁷ “As for the poor, the needy, those seeking water— when there is none and their tongues are parched from thirst— I, the LORD, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, won’t abandon them. ¹⁸ I’ll open up rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I’ll turn the desert into a pool of water, and the parched land into springs of water. ¹⁹ I’ll put cedar trees in the wilderness, along with acacia, myrtle, and olive trees. I’ll plant cypresses in the desert— box trees, and pine trees together— ²⁰ all so that people may see and recognize, perceive, consider, and comprehend at the same time, that the hand of the LORD has done this, and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.”
²¹ Can God’s Enemies Predict the Future?“Put forward your case!” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments!” says Jacob’s King. ²² Let them approach and ask us, ‘What will happen? As to the former things, what were they? Tell us, so that we may consider them and know. Or the latter things or the things to come— let us hear. ²³ Tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods! Yes, do something good or something bad, so we may hear and gaze at it together.’” ²⁴ “Look! You and your work are less than nothing; whoever finds you pleasing is disgusting.” ²⁵ “You are stirring up one from the north, and they are coming from the rising of the sun; and he will be called by his name. Rulers will arrive like mud; just like a potter, he will trample the clay. ²⁶ Who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so we could ask, ‘Is it right?’ Indeed, no one told of this, no one made an announcement, and no one heard your words: ²⁷ First, to Zion: “There is slumber.” And to Jerusalem: “I’ll send a messenger with good news.” ²⁸ But when I look, there is no one— among them there’s no one to give counsel, no one to give an answer when I ask them. ²⁹ See, none of them exist, and their deeds are nothing. Their metal images are only wind and confusion.’”

³ If only I knew where to find him, I would visit him where he has taken his seat. ⁴ I would lay out my case before him; and fill my mouth with arguments. ⁵ I know how he would answer me; I understand what he’ll tell me. ⁶ “Would he use his great power to fight me? No, he’ll pay attention to me. ⁷ In that place, the upright can reason with him; and I’ll be acquitted once and for all by my judge.”

³⁵ Request for A Hearing“Who will grant me a hearing? Here’s my signature—let the Almighty answer! Since my adversary indicted me, ³⁶ I’ll wear it on my shoulder, or tie it on my head for a crown!

³ Stand up like a man! I’ll ask you some questions, and you give me some answers!”

⁷ “Stand up like a man! I’ll ask you some questions, and you give me some answers! ⁸ Indeed would you annul my justice and condemn me, just so you can claim that you’re righteous? ⁹ Do you have strength like God? Can you create thunder with a sound like he can?”
¹⁰ Can You Save Yourself?“When you have adorned yourself with exalted majesty, clothed yourself with splendor and dignity,

¹⁰ Be in awe and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted throughout the earth.

¹⁸ “Please come, and let’s reason together,” implores the LORD. “Even though your sins are like scarlet, they’ll be white like snow. Though they’re like crimson, they’ll become like wool.

⁹ “Band together, you peoples, but be shattered! Listen, all you distant countries! Strap on your armor, but be shattered. ¹⁰ Take counsel together, but it will all be for nothing; go ahead and talk, but it will all be for nothing, for God is with us.”

¹¹ At that time, the LORD will reach out his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people, from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.

¹ Judgment of the Nations “Come near, you nations, to listen, and pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that fills it; the world, and all that comes out of it.

⁶ Each helps his neighbor, saying to each other, ‘Be strong!’ ⁷ The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and the hammersmith encourages the one who strikes the anvil. He says about the welding, ‘It’s good!’ and he reinforces it with nails so that it won’t topple.”

²¹ Can God’s Enemies Predict the Future?“Put forward your case!” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments!” says Jacob’s King. ²² Let them approach and ask us, ‘What will happen? As to the former things, what were they? Tell us, so that we may consider them and know. Or the latter things or the things to come— let us hear.

¹⁶ Draw near to me, and listen to this: ‘From the beginning I haven’t spoken in secret; at the time it happened, I was there.’ And now the LORD God, and his Spirit, has sent me.

¹ The Servant of the LORD “Listen to me, you coastlands! Pay attention, you people from far away! The LORD called me from the womb; while I was still in my mother’s body, he pronounced my name.

⁸ The Servant’s VindicationThe one who vindicates me is near. Who, then, will bring a charge against me? Let’s face each other! Who has a case against me? Let him confront me!

¹⁰ Beat your plow blades into swords, and your pruning knives into spears! Let the frail say, “I am strong!” ¹¹ Hurry and come, all you gentiles! Gather yourselves together!’” “LORD, cause your mighty army to come down.

¹ The LORD’s Indictment against IsraelPlease hear what the LORD says: “Get up and make your case before the mountains, and let the hills listen to your voice. ² Listen, you mountains, to the LORD’s argument! Listen, you strong foundations of the earth, because the LORD has a dispute with his people, and he will set out his case before Israel. ³ “My people, what have I done to you, and how have I offended you? Answer me!

²⁰ The LORD’s Final Counsel to Habakkuk“The LORD is in his holy Temple. All the earth—be quiet in his presence.”

¹³ Be silent, every living thing, in the presence of the LORD, because he is emerging from his Holy Place.”

³¹ Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they journeyed together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they had gone as far as Haran, they settled there,

¹ God Calls AbramThe LORD told Abram, “You are to leave your land, your relatives, and your father’s house and go to the land that I’m going to show you. ² I’ll make a great nation of your descendants, I’ll bless you, and I’ll make your reputation great, so that you will be a blessing. ³ I’ll bless those who bless you, but I’ll curse the one who curses you, and through you all the people of the earth will be blessed.”

¹⁴ When Abram heard that his nephew had been taken prisoner, he gathered together 318 of his trained men, who had been born in his household, and they went out in pursuit as far as Dan. ¹⁵ During the night, Abram and his servants divided his forces, conquered his enemies, and pursued them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.

¹ God Appears to AbramWhen Abram was 99 years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and announced, “I am God Almighty. Live in constant awareness that I’m always with you, and be blameless.

⁴³ I pulverized them to powder, like the dust of the earth; I crushed them, stomping on them like mud on a street.

⁷ For the Aramean king had left only 50 cavalry, ten chariots, and 10,000 soldiers out of the army belonging to Jehoahaz, because the king of Aram had destroyed the others, making them like chaff left over after threshing.

²³ AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM CYRUS, KING OF PERSIA All of the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by the LORD God of Heaven, and he specifically charged me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Therefore, who among the LORD’s people trusts in his God? Whoever among this group wishes to do so may travel to Jerusalem.

² AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM CYRUS, KING OF PERSIA All of the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by the LORD God of Heaven, and he specifically charged me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

²⁴ No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the earth, than he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest sweeps them away like stubble.

¹⁵ A Promise of Victory“See, I’m making you into a new, sharp, and multi-tooth threshing sledge. You’ll thresh and crush the mountains, and make the hills like chaff. ¹⁶ You’ll winnow them, and the wind will lift them up, and a tempest will blow them away. Then you’ll rejoice in the LORD, and you’ll make your boast in the Holy One of Israel.”

²⁵ “You are stirring up one from the north, and they are coming from the rising of the sun; and he will be called by his name. Rulers will arrive like mud; just like a potter, he will trample the clay.

¹ Cyrus: God’s Deliverer This is what the LORD says to his anointed, Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him, as I strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him and gates that cannot keep closed:

¹³ God will Bless Cyrus“I have aroused him in righteousness, and I’ll make all his pathways smooth. It is he who will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price nor reward, ” says the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.

¹¹ I am calling a bird of prey from the east, and from a far country a man with his purpose. Indeed, I’ve spoken; I will certainly make it happen; I’ve planned it; and I will certainly carry it out.

¹ The Messiah is Superior to MelchizedekNow this man Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, met Abraham and blessed him when he was returning from defeating the kings.

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
⁹ By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who also inherited the same promise, ¹⁰ because he was waiting for the city with permanent foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

²⁴ You’ll know that your home is secure; when you search your possessions, and nothing will be missing.

² Then he enters into peace, and they’ll rest on his couches, each one living righteously.

⁷ An Exhortation to Remember God’s WorkRemember the days of old, reflect on the years of previous generations. Ask your father, and he’ll tell you; your elders will inform you. ⁸ When the Most High gave nations as their inheritance, when he separated the human race, he set boundaries for the people according to the number of the children of God.

¹² Who is Like the LORD?“Who has measured the waters of the sea in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens by the width of his hand? Who has enclosed the dust of the earth in a measuring bowl, or weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?

²⁶ “Lift your eyes up to heaven and see who created all these— the one who leads out their vast array of stars by number, calling them all by name— because of his great might and his powerful strength— and not one is missing.”

²⁶ Who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so we could ask, ‘Is it right?’ Indeed, no one told of this, no one made an announcement, and no one heard your words:

²⁴ God Punishes Israel“Who handed Jacob over to looters, and Israel to robbers? Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned? After all, they weren’t willing to walk in his ways, and they wouldn’t obey his instruction,

¹⁰ “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and trust me and understand that I am the One. Before me no God was formed, nor will there be one after me.

⁶ I am the First and the LastThis is what the LORD says, the King of Israel and its Redeemer— the LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name— “I am the first and I am the last, and apart from me there is no God. ⁷ Who is like me? Let him proclaim and declare it, and lay it out for himself— since he made an ancient people. And let him speak future events; let them tell him what will happen.

³ “Listen to me, house of Jacob, and all you remnant of the house of Israel, who have been upheld from before your birth, and who have been carried from the womb. ⁴ Even until your old age, I am the one, and I’ll carry you even until your gray hairs come. It is I who have created, and I who will carry, and it is I who will bear and save.

¹⁰ I declare from the beginning things to follow, and from ancient times things that have not yet been done; saying, ‘My purpose will stand, and he will accomplish everything that I please.’

³ I foretold the former things long ago; it went forth from my mouth, and I disclosed them; Suddenly, I acted, and they came to pass. ⁴ Because I knew that you are obstinate, and because your neck is an iron sinew, and your forehead is bronze, ⁵ I told you these things long ago; I announced them to you before they happened so that you couldn’t say, ‘My idol did them; my carved image or metal idol ordained them.’ ⁶ “You have heard—now look at them all! How can you not admit them? From now on, I’ll make you hear new things, hidden things that you have not known. ⁷ They are created now, and not long ago; you didn’t hear them before today, so you cannot say, ‘Yes, I knew them.’

¹² The LORD Calls Israel“Listen to these things, Jacob, and Israel, whom I have called. I am the One: I am the first, I am even the last.

²³ “See, a virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel,”
which means, “God with us.”

²⁰ teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you. And remember, I am with you each and every day until the end of the age.”

¹⁸ that have been known from long ago.’

²⁶ From one man he made every nation of humanity to live all over the earth, fixing the seasons of the year and the national boundaries within which they live,

⁸ “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” declares the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is coming, the Almighty.”

¹¹ saying, “Write on a scroll what you see, and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”

¹⁷ When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. But he placed his right hand on me and said, “Stop being afraid! I am the first and the last,

⁸ The Letter to the Church in Smyrna“To the messenger of the church in Smyrna, write:
‘The first and the last, who was dead and became alive, says this:

¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.

⁵ from whom the coastal peoples spread into their own lands and nations, each with their own language and family groups.

¹⁴ “The people heard and they quaked, anguish has seized the inhabitants of Philistia.

¹⁰ because we heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Reed Sea right in front of you as you were coming out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan River—to Sihon and Og—whom you completely destroyed.

¹ Israel’s Enemies Become DiscouragedAll the Amorite kings who lived across the Jordan River to the west and all the Canaanite kings by the Mediterranean Sea became discouraged as soon as they heard that the LORD had dried up the water of the Jordan River for the people of Israel until they had crossed it. They no longer had a will to fight because of the people of Israel.

⁸ Those living at the furthest ends of the earth are seized by fear because of your miraculous deeds. You make the going forth of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

³ Say to God: “How awesome are your works! Because of your great strength your enemies cringe before you.”

⁷ May God truly bless us so that all the peoples of the earth will fear him.

¹⁵ Terror at Tyre’s Destruction“This is what the Lord GOD says to Tyre: ‘When your wounded citizens groan while the slaughter takes place among you, the people who live in the coastlands will tremble in terror as they hear about your fall, will they not? ¹⁶ That’s when all the kings of the seafaring nations will abandon their thrones, strip off their fancy clothes, and collapse trembling on the ground. They’ll be so frightened as they observe what has happened to you that they’ll be unable to stop trembling. They will be utterly appalled at you!

⁷ and the Philistines were terrified. “God has come into the camp,” they said. “How terrible for us, because nothing like this has ever happened before! ⁸ How terrible for us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the desert. ⁹ Philistines, be strong and be men, or you will become slaves to the Hebrews just as they have been slaves to you! Be men and fight!”

³ When the people of Ashdod got up the next morning, there was Dagon, lying on the ground in front of the Ark of the LORD. They took Dagon and put him back in his place. ⁴ But when they got up the next morning, there was Dagon, lying on the ground again in front of the Ark of the LORD. Dagon’s head and both of his arms were broken off and lying on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was left intact. ⁵ This is why neither the priests of Dagon nor anyone who enters the temple of Dagon step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.

⁴ Say to those with anxious hearts, ‘Be strong, do not be afraid! Here is your God— he will bring vengeance, he will bring divine retribution, and he will save you.’

¹⁹ To an idol? A craftsman makes the image, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts silver chains.

¹² The blacksmith prepares a tool and works in the coals, then fashions an idol with hammers, working by the strength of his arm. He even becomes hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.

¹ Dedicating the Image to NebuchadnezzarSome time later, king Nebuchadnezzar built a golden statue, making it 60 cubits high and six cubits wide. He set it up in the Dura Valley within the province of Babylon. ² Then King Nebuchadnezzar summoned the regional authorities, governors, deputy governors, advisors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all of the other administrators of the provinces, ordering them to come to the dedication of the statue that he had erected.
³ So the regional authorities, governors, deputy governors, advisors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all of the other administrators of the provinces assembled to dedicate the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had erected. They took their places in front of the statue that he had erected. ⁴ Then a herald proclaimed aloud: “People of all nations, and languages are commanded: ⁵ Whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp, playing together along with various instruments, you are to fall down and worship the golden statue that was set up by King Nebuchadnezzar. ⁶ Anyone who does not fall down and worship is immediately to be thrown into the blazing fire furnace.”
⁷ Therefore, when all of the people “heard the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp, playing together along with various other instruments,” all the “people, nations, and languages” began to fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

⁹ The LORD’s Call to Judgment“Declare this among the nations: ‘Prepare for war! Wake up your elite forces! Let all the soldiers draw near! Call them up!

²⁴ By making silver shrines of Artemis, a silversmith named Demetrius provided a large income for skilled workers. ²⁵ He called a meeting of these men and others who were engaged in similar trades and said, “Men, you well know that we get a good income from this business. ²⁶ You also see and hear that, not only in Ephesus, but almost all over Asia, this man Paul has won over and taken away a large crowd by telling them that gods made by human hands are not gods at all. ²⁷ There is a danger not only that our business will lose its reputation but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be brought into disrepute and that she will be robbed of her majesty that brought all Asia and the world to worship her.”
²⁸ When they heard this, they became furious and began to shout, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

¹⁷ the five men who had gone to scout out the land arrived, entered Micah’s home and confiscated the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the cast image. Meanwhile, the priest stood outside by the entrance to the gate with the 600 men armed with military weapons. ¹⁸ After they went into Micah’s home and took possession of the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the cast image, the priest challenged them. “What are you doing?” he asked them.

²⁴ Micah replied, “You took my gods that I crafted, along with the priest, and left! What do I have left? So what’s with this ‘What’s wrong with you?’”

¹⁹ To an idol? A craftsman makes the image, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts silver chains. ²⁰ To the impoverished person? He prepares an offering— wood that won’t rot— Or to the one who chooses a skilled craftsman and seeks to erect an idol that won’t topple?”

¹² The blacksmith prepares a tool and works in the coals, then fashions an idol with hammers, working by the strength of his arm. He even becomes hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.
¹³ The carpenter measures it with a line; he traces its shape with a stylus, then fashions it with planes and shapes it with a compass. He makes the idol like a human figure, with human beauty, to be at home in a shrine. ¹⁴ He cuts down cedars, or chooses a cypress tree or an oak, and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. Or he plants a cedar, and the rain makes it grow. ¹⁵ He divides it up for people to burn. Taking part of it, he warms himself, makes a fire, and bakes bread. Or perhaps he constructs a god and worships it. He makes it an idol and bows down to it.

⁶ Those who pour out gold in a purse, weigh silver in a balance, hire a goldsmith in order to make a god, and then they bow down and even worship it. ⁷ And they lift it on their shoulders, carry it, set it up in its place, and there it stands. It cannot move from that spot. One may even call to it, but it cannot answer nor save him from his distress.

³ For the practices of the people are worthless. Indeed, a tree is cut down from the forest; it’s the work of the hands of a craftsman with an ax. ⁴ They decorate it with silver and gold. They secure it with nails and hammers so it won’t totter. ⁵ Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They can’t speak! They must always be carried because they can’t walk! Don’t be afraid of them because they can do no harm, nor can they do any good.”

⁹ Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. The idols are the work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith. Their clothing is violet and purple. The idols are all the work of skilled craftsmen.

⁵ And now if you carefully obey me and keep my covenant, you are to be my special possession out of all the peoples, because the whole earth belongs to me, ⁶ but you are to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to me.’ These are the words you are to declare to the Israelis.”

⁴² Since they’re my servants whom I’ve brought out of the land of Egypt, they are not to be sold as slaves.

⁶ because you are a holy people to the LORD your God. The LORD your God chose you to be his people, his treasured possession from all the peoples on the face of the earth.”
⁷ The LORD Keeps His Covenant“It wasn’t because you were more numerous than other people of the earth that the LORD committed himself to you and chose you. In fact, you were the least numerous of all the peoples. ⁸ But the LORD loved you and kept his oath that he made to your ancestors. The LORD brought you out with great power from slavery, from the control of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.

¹⁵ yet the LORD committed himself to love your ancestors—and did so! He chose you—their descendants after them—from all the nations, as it is today.

² because you are a holy people to the LORD your God, and the LORD chose to make you his precious possession from among all the peoples of the earth.”

⁷ You are our God, who expelled the former inhabitants of this land right in front of our people Israel, aren’t you? Then you gave it to your friend Abraham’s descendant forever, didn’t you?

¹² How blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he has chosen as his own inheritance.

⁶ You descendants of Abraham, his servant, You children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

⁴² Indeed, he remembered his sacred promise to his servant Abraham. ⁴³ He led his people out with gladness, his chosen ones with shouts of joy. ⁴⁴ He gave to them the land of nations; they inherited the labor of other people ⁴⁵ so they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Hallelujah!

⁴ It is Jacob whom the LORD chose for himself— Israel as his personal possession.

²² “Therefore, this is what the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, says concerning the house of Jacob: ‘No longer will Jacob be ashamed; no longer will his face grow pale.

¹ The Future Redemption of Israel But now this is what the LORD says, the one who created you, Jacob, the one who formed you, Israel: “Do not be afraid, because I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called you by name; you are mine.

¹ God’s Blessing on Israel “But now listen, Jacob my servant and Israel whom I have chosen: ² This what the LORD says, the one who made you, formed you from the womb, and who will help you: “Don’t be afraid, Jacob my servant, and Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

²¹ A Call to Remembrance and Joy“Remember these things, Jacob, Israel, for you are my servant. I have formed you; you are a servant to me. Israel, you must not mislead me.

³ He said to me: ‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will glorify myself.’

² Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who gave you birth. For when he was only one person I called him, but I made him fruitful and made him many.

¹⁶ But you are our Father, even Abraham does not know us and Israel has not acknowledged us; you are he, O LORD, our Father, from long ago, ‘Our Redeemer’ is your name.

²⁴ “Haven’t you noticed what these people have been saying?—‘The LORD rejected the two families that he had chosen!’ They have contempt for my people and no longer consider them a nation.

⁹ Don’t think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have father Abraham!’ because I tell you that God can raise up descendants for Abraham from these stones!

³³ They replied to him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves to anybody. So how can you say, ‘You will be set free’?”
³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, that everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. ³⁵ The slave does not remain in the household forever, but the son does remain forever. ³⁶ So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!”
³⁷ The Real Children of Abraham“I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. Yet you are trying to kill me because you’ve not received what I’ve told you. ³⁸ I declare what I’ve seen in my Father’s presence, and you’re doing what you’ve heard from your father.”
³⁹ They replied to him, “Our father is Abraham!”
Jesus told them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing what Abraham did. ⁴⁰ But now you’re trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham would’nt have done that. ⁴¹ You are doing your father’s actions.”
They told him, “We’re not illegitimate children. We have one Father, God himself.”
⁴² Jesus told them, “If God were your Father, you would’ve loved me, because I came from God and am here. I haven’t come on my own accord, but he sent me. ⁴³ Why don’t you understand what I’ve said? It’s because you can’t listen to my words. ⁴⁴ You belong to your father the devil, and you want to carry out the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and has never stood for truth, since there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks in character, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

¹⁴ You are my friends, if you do what I command you. ¹⁵ I don’t call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn’t know what his master is doing. But I’ve called you friends, because I’ve made known to you everything that I’ve heard from my Father.

¹² He is also the ancestor of the circumcised—those who are not only circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
¹³ The Promise Comes through FaithFor the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the Law, but through the righteousness produced by faith.

⁴ who are Israelis. To them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the Law, the worship, and the promises. ⁵ To the Israelis belong the patriarchs, and from them, the Messiah descended, who is God over all, the one who is forever blessed. Amen.
⁶ Now it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all Israelis truly belong to Israel, ⁷ and not all of Abraham’s descendants are his true descendants. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that descendants will be named for you.” ⁸ That is, it is not merely the children born through natural descent who were regarded as God’s children, but it is the children born through the promise who were regarded as descendants.

¹⁹ The Purpose of the LawWhy, then, was the Law added? Because of transgressions, until the descendant came about whom the promise pertained. It was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.

²² For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and the other by a free woman. ²³ Now the slave woman’s son was conceived through human means, while the free woman’s son was conceived through divine promise. ²⁴ This is being said as an allegory, for these women represent two covenants. The one woman, Hagar, is from Mount Sinai, and her children are born into slavery. ²⁵ Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to present-day Jerusalem, because she is in slavery along with her children. ²⁶ But the heavenly Jerusalem is the free woman, and she is our spiritual mother. ²⁷ For it is written, “Rejoice, you childless woman, who cannot give birth to any children! Break into song and shout, you who feel no pains of childbirth! For the children of the deserted woman are more numerous than the children of the woman who has a husband.”
²⁸ So you, brothers, are children of the promise, like Isaac. ²⁹ But just as then the son who was conceived according to the flesh persecuted the son who was conceived according to the Spirit, so it is now. ³⁰ But what does the Scripture say? “Drive out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman must never share the inheritance with the son of the free woman.” ³¹ So then, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman but of the free woman.

²³ And so the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” And so he was called God’s friend.

⁶ because you are a holy people to the LORD your God. The LORD your God chose you to be his people, his treasured possession from all the peoples on the face of the earth.”
⁷ The LORD Keeps His Covenant“It wasn’t because you were more numerous than other people of the earth that the LORD committed himself to you and chose you. In fact, you were the least numerous of all the peoples.

² and Joshua told all of the people, “This is what the LORD God of Israel has to say: ‘Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah, father of both Abraham and Nahor, where they served other gods. ³ Then I took your ancestor Abraham from the other side of the Euphrates River and led him through the entire land of Canaan. I multiplied his descendants, and gave him his son Isaac. ⁴ I gave Jacob and Esau to Isaac. And I gave Mount Seir to Esau as his possession, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.

²² Indeed, the LORD won’t abandon His people for the sake of His great name, for the LORD desires to make you a people for himself.

⁷ You are the LORD, the God who chose Abram, whom you brought from Ur of the Chaldeans and to whom you gave the name Abraham. ⁸ You found him faithful in your sight; you made a covenant with him and you gave the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites to his descendants. And you have kept your word, because you are righteous. ⁹ “You took note of the affliction of our ancestors in Egypt, and listened to their cry at the Red Sea. ¹⁰ You sent signs and wonders against Pharaoh, against all of his officials, and against all the people of his land, because you knew they acted arrogantly against your people. So you established your name with them, as it remains to this day. ¹¹ You divided the sea in front of them, and they traveled through the midst of the sea on dry ground. You hurled their pursuers into the depths, as one throws a stone into turbulent waters. ¹² You led them during the day by a pillar of cloud, and by a pillar of fire at night to provide light for them on the path they took. ¹³ “You also came down to Mount Sinai, spoke with them from heaven, and gave them impartial regulations, true laws, statutes, and good commands. ¹⁴ You revealed to them your holy Sabbath, and you mandated precepts, statutes, and laws through Moses your servant. ¹⁵ You gave them food from heaven for their hunger and water from the rock for their thirst. You directed them to enter and possess the land that you had promised to give them. ¹⁶ “But they—our ancestors—became arrogant and stubborn, refusing to listen to your commands. ¹⁷ They would not listen, and did not remember the miracles you did among them. Instead, they became stubborn and appointed a leader to return them to their slavery. “But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in gracious love; therefore you did not abandon them. ¹⁸ Moreover, after they had cast a golden calf for themselves, they said, “This is your god who brought you out of Egypt!” and committed terrible blasphemies. ¹⁹ You, in your great compassion, did not abandon them in the wilderness. The pillar of cloud did not leave them in daylight, in order to provide light for them on the path they took. Nor did the pillar of fire abandon them at night, in order to provide light for them and lead them on the path they took. ²⁰ “You gave your good Spirit to instruct them, not withholding manna from them, and providing water to quench their thirst. ²¹ You sustained them in the wilderness for 40 years. They lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out, and their feet did not swell. ²² You gave them kingdoms and nations, apportioning them as frontier boundaries. They took possession of the land of Sihon, the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, king of Bashan. ²³ “You multiplied their descendants like the stars in heaven and brought them to the land about which you told their ancestors to enter and possess. ²⁴ So their descendants entered and took possession of the land. Before their eyes you subdued those living in the land—the Canaanites— putting them under their control, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, so they could do with them as they pleased. ²⁵ They conquered fortified cities and fertile ground, possessing houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, with vineyards, olive orchards, and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate, were satiated, and were well nourished, delighting themselves in your great goodness. ²⁶ “Then they disobeyed, rebelled against you, and threw your Law behind their backs. They murdered your prophets who had admonished the people to return to you, committing terrible blasphemies. ²⁷ So you delivered them into the control of their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed, they cried out to you, and you heard from heaven. In your great compassion you gave them deliverers who rescued them from the control of their enemies. ²⁸ “But after they had gained relief, they returned to doing evil before you. Therefore you abandoned them to the control of their enemies, who continued to oppress them. But when they came back and cried out to you, you listened from heaven and delivered them in your compassion on many occasions. ²⁹ You admonished them to return to your Law, but they acted arrogantly, and would not listen to your commands. They sinned against your regulations, which if anyone obeys, he will live by them. They turned away, being stubborn and stiff-necked, and they did not listen. ³⁰ You were patient with them for many years, warning them by your Spirit through your prophets. But they would not listen, so you turned them over to the control of people in other lands. ³¹ Nevertheless, in your great compassion you did not completely destroy them or abandon them, because you are a God of grace and you are merciful. ³² “Now therefore, our God, the great, mighty, and awesome God, who keeps the covenant and gracious love, don’t let all of the difficulties seem trifling to you, all of hardships that have come upon us, upon our kings, upon our leaders, upon our priests, upon our prophets, upon our ancestors, and upon all of your people from the time of the kings of Assyria until this day. ³³ You are righteous in all that is happening to us, because you have acted faithfully while we have practiced evil. ³⁴ Furthermore, neither our kings, nor our leaders, nor our priests nor our ancestors have practiced your Law or paid attention to your commands and warnings by which you admonished them. ³⁵ But they in their kingdom— in the midst of your great goodness that you gave them and in the large and fertile land that you provided them— did not serve you or turn away from their evil deeds. ³⁶ “Look! Today we are your servants, along with the land that you gave to our ancestors, so they could enjoy its fruit and its value— behold, in it we are your servants! ³⁷ But now its abundant produce belongs to the kings whom you placed over us because of our sin. They also have power over our bodies and our herds at their pleasure, and we are in great distress. ³⁸ “Because of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our descendants of Levi, and our priests hereby set their seals upon it.”

¹⁴ For the LORD will not forsake his people; he will not abandon his heritage.

² Let those who have been redeemed by the LORD declare it— those whom he redeemed from the power of the enemy, ³ those whom he gathered from other lands— from the east, west, north, and south.

² Who has aroused victory from the east, and has summoned it to his service, and has handed over nations to him? Who brings down kings, and turns them into dust with his sword, into windblown stubble with his bow?

⁸ The LORD Encourages Israel“But as for you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I’ve chosen, the offspring of my friend Abraham—

⁵ The Regathering of Israel“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you; I’ll bring your children from the east, and gather you from the west. ⁶ I’ll say to the north, ‘Give them up’! and to the south, ‘Don’t keep them back!’ Bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the ends of the earth—

²⁵ This is what the LORD says: ‘If I had not established my covenant for day and night and the laws that govern the heavens and earth, ²⁶ then I might reject the descendants of Jacob and my servant David by not taking some of his descendants as rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, I’ll restore their fortunes, and I’ll have compassion on them.’”

²⁹ People will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God.

¹ God’s Love for His PeopleSo I ask, “God has not rejected his people, has he?” Of course not! I am an Israeli myself, a descendant of Abraham from the tribe of Benjamin. ² God has not rejected his people whom he chose long ago. Do you not know what the Scripture says in the story about Elijah, when he pleads with God against Israel?

²⁶ Brothers, think about your own calling. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose what is nonsense in the world to make the wise feel ashamed. God chose what is weak in the world to make the strong feel ashamed. ²⁸ And God chose what is insignificant in the world, what is despised, what is nothing, in order to destroy what is something, ²⁹ so that no one may boast in God’s presence.

⁵ Listen, my dear brothers! God has chosen the poor in the world to become rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who keep on loving him, has he not?

⁹ They sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, because you were slaughtered. With your blood you purchased people for God from every tribe, language, people, and nation.

¹ The Abrahamic CovenantSome time later, a message came from the LORD to Abram in a vision: “Don’t be afraid, Abram. I am your shield. Your reward will be very great.”

¹ Rules of War“When you go to war against your enemies and observe more horses, chariots, and soldiers than you have, don’t be afraid of them, for the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt is with you.

⁶ Be strong and courageous. Don’t fear or tremble before them, because the LORD your God will be the one who keeps on walking with you—he won’t leave you or abandon you.”
⁷ Then Moses called on Joshua and told him in the presence of everyone in Israel, “Be strong and courageous, because you’ll bring this people to the land that the LORD your God had promised to give your ancestors. You will be the one who causes them to possess it. ⁸ Indeed, the LORD is the one who will keep on walking in front of you. He’ll be with you and won’t leave you or abandon you, so never be afraid and never be dismayed.”

²⁷ The God of old is a dwelling place, with everlasting arms underneath. He drove out your enemies before you and said: ‘Destroy them!’ ²⁸ So Israel lives in confidence, isolated as the fountain of Jacob in a land of grain and new wine, where the heavens rain down dew. ²⁹ How blessed are you, Israel! Who can be like you, a people delivered by the LORD, your shield of help and your finely crafted sword. May your enemies cower before you. You will tread down their high places.”

⁹ I’ve commanded you, haven’t I? Be strong and courageous. Don’t be fearful or discouraged, because the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

¹⁸ Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, leader of the Thirty, and he said, “David, we belong to you; we’re with you, son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to the one who helps you! For your deliverer is your God.”
So David received them and assigned them to be officers over troops.

¹⁷ You won’t be fighting in this battle. Take your stand, but stand still, and watch the LORD’s salvation on your behalf, Judah and Jerusalem! Never fear and never be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, since the LORD is with you.’”

⁸ He only has the strength of his own flesh, but the LORD our God is with us to help us and to fight our battles.” So the people were encouraged from what King Hezekiah of Judah told them.

¹ Davidic
Confidence in the LORD The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom will I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom will I be afraid?

¹¹ The LORD will give strength to his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace.

¹⁷ For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

²⁴ Though he stumbles, he will not fall down flat, for the LORD will hold up his hand.

¹² As for me, you will maintain my just cause, and you will cause me to stand in your presence forever.

¹ To the Director: A song by the Sons of Korah, to the tune of “The Maidens”.
God is the Refuge of His People God is our refuge and strength, a great help in times of distress. ² Therefore we will not be frightened when the earth roars, when the mountains shake in the depths of the seas,

⁷ The LORD of the heavenly armies is with us; our refuge is the God of Jacob. Interlude

¹¹ The LORD of the heavenly armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Interlude

⁸ My soul clings to you, even as your right hand supports me.

⁵ With awesome deeds of justice you will answer us, God our Deliverer; you are the confidence for everyone at the ends of the earth, even for those far away overseas.

¹³ Your arm is strong; your hand is mighty; indeed, your right hand is victorious. ¹⁴ Righteousness and justice make up the foundation of your throne; gracious love and truth meet before you.

⁴ A mighty king who loves justice, you have established fairness. You have exercised justice and righteousness over Jacob.

⁸ Their mouths speak lies, and their right hand deceives,

¹¹ Rescue me and deliver me from the control of foreigners, whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hand deceives.

¹⁴ The LORD supports everyone who falls and raises up those who are bowed down.

¹² Glorify the LORD, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion!

² “Look! God—yes God—is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid. For the LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

²⁹ He’s the one who gives might to the faint, renewing strength for the powerless. ³⁰ Even boys grow tired and weary, and young men collapse and fall, ³¹ but those who keep waiting for the LORD will renew their strength. Then they’ll soar on wings like eagles; they’ll run and not grow weary; they’ll walk and not grow tired.”

¹³ A Call to Courage“For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I’ll help you. ¹⁴ Don’t be afraid, you little worm Jacob, and you insects of Israel! I myself will help you,’ declares the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.”

¹ The Future Redemption of Israel But now this is what the LORD says, the one who created you, Jacob, the one who formed you, Israel: “Do not be afraid, because I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called you by name; you are mine. ² When you pass through the waters, I’ll be with you; and through the rivers, they won’t sweep over you. when you walk through fire you won’t be scorched, and the flame won’t set you ablaze.

⁵ The Regathering of Israel“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you; I’ll bring your children from the east, and gather you from the west.

² This what the LORD says, the one who made you, formed you from the womb, and who will help you: “Don’t be afraid, Jacob my servant, and Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

⁸ The Restoration of Israel“This what the LORD says: “I’ll answer you in a time of favor, and on a day of salvation I’ll help you. I have watched over you, and given you as a covenant for the people, to restore the land, to reassign the inheritances that have been devastated;

¹² “I—yes, I—am the one who comforts you. Who are you, that you are so afraid of humans who will die, descendants of mere men, who have been made like grass? ¹³ As a result, you have forgotten the LORD who made you, who stretched out the heavens and laid the earth’s foundations, and you live in constant fear every day because of the oppressor’s fury, since he’s ready to destroy. Now where is the oppressor’s fury?

⁷ “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the one who brings news of peace, who announces good things, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’

¹⁹ “The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness will the moon shine on you by night— for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.

⁹ so the LORD told Hosea, “Name him ‘Lo-ammi,’ because you are not my people, and I will not be your God.

¹² “I will strengthen them in the LORD, and they will march here and there in his name,” declares the LORD.

⁹ And I will bring that surviving third through, testing them as if through fire, purifying them like silver, assaying them like gold. They will call on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is my people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’”

¹³ But the angel told him, “Stop being afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to name him John.

³⁰ Then the angel told her, “Stop being afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God.

¹⁰ Then the angel told them, “Stop being afraid! Listen! I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today your Savior, the Lord Messiah, was born in the City of David.

⁵⁴ Jesus answered, “If I were trying to glorify myself, my glory would mean nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ ⁵⁵ You don’t know him, but I know him. If I were to say that I don’t know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him and keep his word.

³¹ Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s LoveWhat, then, can we say about all of this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

⁹ but he has told me, “My grace is all you need, because my power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most happily boast about my weaknesses, so that the Messiah’s power may rest on me.

¹⁶ I pray that he would give you, according to his glorious riches, strength in your inner being and power through his Spirit,

¹³ I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

⁸ All these officials of yours will come down to me, prostrate themselves to me, and say, ‘Get out, you and all the people following you!’ After that I’ll go out.” Then Moses angrily left Pharaoh.

²² Indeed, if you carefully obey him and do everything that I say, then I’ll be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries,

⁸ as when a hungry man dreams— he eats, but wakes up still hungry; or when a thirsty man dreams— he drinks, but wakes up faint, with his thirst unquenched. So will it be with the hordes of all the nations that fight against Mount Zion.

¹⁷ All the nations are as nothing before him— they are reckoned by him as nothing and chaos.

²⁴ “Look! You and your work are less than nothing; whoever finds you pleasing is disgusting.”

²⁹ See, none of them exist, and their deeds are nothing. Their metal images are only wind and confusion.’”

²⁴ One will say of me, ‘Only in the LORD are victories and might.’ All who raged against him will come to him and will be put to shame.

²⁶ “I’ll make those who mistreat you eat their own flesh, and they will get drunk on their own blood, as with new wine. “Then all mankind will know that I am the LORD your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

¹⁷ no weapon that is forged against you will be effective. This is the heritage of the LORD’s servants, and their righteousness from me,” says the LORD.

¹² For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; those nations will be utterly ruined. ¹³ “He has given you the glory of Lebanon, and it will come to you, the cypress, and the plane tree, and the pine, to adorn the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. ¹⁴ “All the descendants of those who oppressed you will come bending low before you, and all those who despised you will bow down at your feet. They’ll call you ‘The City of the LORD,’ ‘Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’”

³⁵ All who live on the earth are nothing compared to him. He does what he wishes with the heavenly armies and with those who live on earth. No one can hold back his power or say to him, ‘What did you do?’

³ It will come about at that time that I will make Jerusalem a heavy weight; so everyone who burdens themselves with it will be crushed, even though all of the nations of the earth gather themselves against it.

⁸ But Elymas the occult practitioner (that is the meaning of his name) continued to oppose them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith. ⁹ But Saul, also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked him straight in the eye ¹⁰ and said, “You’re full of every form of deception and trickery, you son of the devil, you enemy of all that is right! You’ll never stop perverting the straight ways of the Lord, will you? ¹¹ The Lord is against you now, and you’ll be blind and unable to see the sun for a while!” At that moment a dark mist came over him, and he went around looking for someone to lead him by the hand.

³⁹ So the magistrates came, apologized to them, and escorted them out. Then they asked them to leave the city.

⁹ I will make those who belong to the synagogue of Satan—those who claim to be Jews and aren’t, but are lying—come and bow down at your feet. Then they will realize that I have loved you.

⁷ he’ll perish forever, like his own excrement; those who saw him will ask, ‘Where is he?’ ⁸ He’ll vanish like a dream, and no one will find him; he will be chased away like a night vision.” ⁹ “An eye that gazes at him won’t do so again; and his place won’t even recognize him.

³⁵ I once observed a wicked and oppressive person, flourishing like a green tree in native soil. ³⁶ But then he passed away; in fact, he simply was not there. When I looked for him, he could not be found.

¹⁴ When the evening arrives, watch out—sudden terror! By morning they will be there no longer! So it will be for those who plunder us and what will happen to those who rob us.”

²⁶ Israel’s Defender“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides through the heavens with its lofty clouds to help you.

²³ But now I am always with you, for you keep holding my right hand.

³¹ for he stands at the right hand of the needy one, to deliver him from his accusers.

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, because I’m with you; don’t be anxious, because I am your God. I keep on strengthening you; I’m truly helping you. I’m surely upholding you with my victorious right hand.”

⁶ “I’ve called you in righteousness. I’ll take hold of your hand. I’ll preserve you and appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light for the nations,

⁶ I’ll say to the north, ‘Give them up’! and to the south, ‘Don’t keep them back!’ Bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the ends of the earth—

¹⁸ There is no one to guide you out of all the children she bore, no one to take her by the hand out of all the children she brought up.

¹⁷ However, the Lord stood by me and gave me strength so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the gentiles could hear it. I was rescued out of a lion’s mouth.

⁷ The LORD Keeps His Covenant“It wasn’t because you were more numerous than other people of the earth that the LORD committed himself to you and chose you. In fact, you were the least numerous of all the peoples.

²⁵ “As for me, I know that my Vindicator is alive; And he, the Last One, will take his stand on the soil.

⁶ How much less is man, who is only a maggot, or a man’s children, who are only worms!”

¹⁴ May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

⁶ But as for me, I am only a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by people.

¹⁴ This is what the LORD says, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon, and bring them all down as fugitives. Now as for the Babylonians, their ringing cry will become lamentation.

⁶ I am the First and the LastThis is what the LORD says, the King of Israel and its Redeemer— the LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name— “I am the first and I am the last, and apart from me there is no God.

²⁴ “This is what the LORD says, your Redeemer and the one who formed you in the womb: ‘I am the LORD, who has made everything, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth— Who was with me at that time?—

⁴ “Our Redeemer— the LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name— is the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁷ “This is what the LORD says, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you how to succeed, who directs you in the path by which you should go.

⁷ “This is what my Lord says— the LORD your Redeemer, O Israel, and his Holy One— to one despised by people, to those abhorred as a nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings see and arise, and princes will bow down, because of the LORD who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, the one who has chosen you.”

⁵ For your Maker is your husband; the LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name, and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of the whole earth.

⁸ I hid my face from you for a moment in a surge of anger, but I will have compassion on you with my everlasting gracious love,” says the LORD your Redeemer.

²⁰ “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” says the LORD.

¹⁶ You’ll suck the milk of nations, You’ll suck the breasts of kings. Then you will realize that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

³⁴ Their Redeemer is strong, the LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name. He will vigorously plead their case in order to bring rest to the earth, but turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.

¹⁴ How narrow is the gate and how constricted is the road that leads to life, and there aren’t many people who find it!”

³² Stop being afraid, little flock, because your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.

²⁷ Isaiah also calls out concerning Israel, “Although the descendants of Israel are as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore, only a few will be saved.

¹³ The Messiah redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written, “A curse on everyone who is hung on a tree!”

¹⁴ He gave himself for us to set us free from every wrong and to cleanse us so that we could be his special people who are enthusiastic about doing good deeds.

⁴² I ground them like wind-swept dust; I emptied them out like dirt in the street.

¹⁰ O my downtrodden people, my wall! I’ll tell you what I have heard from the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel.”

²⁷ For caraway is not threshed with a sharp sledge, nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin. Instead, caraway is winnowed with a stick, and cumin with a rod.

¹³ Get up and smash them to pieces, daughter of Zion, because I will make your horn like iron and your hooves like bronze! And you will beat many people to pieces, and I will consecrate their dishonest gain to the LORD and their assets to the Lord of the entire earth.”

¹² You march through the land in righteous indignation; you tread down the nations in anger.

⁷ ‘Who are you, great mountain? You will become a plain in Zerubbabel’s presence, and he will position the capstone, exulting over it, “How beautiful! How beautiful!”’”

⁴ For the weapons of our warfare are not those of the world. Instead, they have the power of God to demolish fortresses. We tear down arguments ⁵ and every proud obstacle that is raised against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive in order to obey the Messiah.

¹ Hannah’s Thanksgiving PsalmThen Hannah prayed: “My heart exults in the LORD; my strength is increased by the LORD. I will open my mouth to speak against my enemies, because I rejoice in your deliverance. ² Indeed, there is no one holy like the LORD, indeed, there is no one besides you, there is no rock like our God.

⁴ But this is not the case with the wicked. They are like chaff that the wind blows away.

⁶ Shout aloud, and sing for joy, you who live in Zion, because great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

¹³ The nations roar like the rushing of many waters, but the LORD will rebuke them, and they will run far away, chased like chaff blown down from the mountains or like thick dust that rolls along, blown along by a wind storm.

¹ Praise to the Victorious God LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for you have done marvelous things, plans made long ago in faithfulness and truth. ² For you have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified city into a ruin; the foreigners’ citadel is no longer a city— it will never be rebuilt! ³ Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will revere you.

²⁴ One will say of me, ‘Only in the LORD are victories and might.’ All who raged against him will come to him and will be put to shame. ²⁵ In the LORD all the descendants of Israel will triumph and make their boast.”

¹⁰ Rejoicing in God’s Deliverance“I will heartily rejoice in the LORD, my soul will delight in my God; for he has wrapped me in garments of salvation; he has arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, just like a bridegroom, like a priest with a garland, and like a bride adorns herself with her jewels. ¹¹ For just as the soil brings forth its shoots, and as a garden makes what is sown within it spring up, so the LORD God will make righteousness and praise spring up before all the nations for Zion’s sake.”

²³ True Wisdom and the Coming JudgmentThis is what the LORD says: “The wise man is not to boast in his wisdom; the strong man is not to boast in his strength; and the rich man is not to boast in his riches. ²⁴ Rather, let the one who boasts, boast in this: that he understands and knows me, for I am the LORD who acts with gracious love, justice, and righteousness in the land. I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.

⁷ I’ll winnow them with a winnowing fork in the gates of the land. I’ll make them childless. I’ll destroy my people, for they didn’t change their ways.

² I’ll send foreigners to Babylon, and they’ll winnow her, and devastate her land. They’ll come against her from every side on the day of her disaster.

¹⁸ as for me, I will rejoice in the LORD. I will find my joy in the God who delivers me.

¹² His winnowing fork is in his hand. He will clean up his threshing floor and gather his grain into the barn, but he will burn the chaff with inextinguishable fire.”

⁴⁶ Mary’s Song of PraiseThen Mary said, “My soul praises the greatness of the Lord! ⁴⁷ My spirit exults in God, my Savior,

¹¹ Not only that, but we also continue to boast about God through our Lord Jesus the Messiah, through whom we have now been reconciled.

³⁰ It is because of God that you are in union with the Messiah Jesus, who for us has become wisdom from God, as well as our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. ³¹ Therefore, as it is written, “The person who boasts must boast in the Lord.”

³ For it is we who are the circumcision—we who worship in the Spirit of God and find our joy in the Messiah Jesus. We have not placed any confidence in the flesh,

¹⁵ Now pay attention! I’m here with you, and I’m going to be watching over you wherever you go. I’m going to bring you back to this land, because I won’t ever leave you until I’ve accomplished what I’ve promised about you.”

³ But the people were thirsty there for water, so they complained against Moses: “Why did you bring us up from Egypt to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?”

⁶ I’ll be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. You are to strike the rock and water will come out of it, so the people can drink.” Moses did this in front of the elders of Israel.

¹⁸ Aferward, he became thirsty, called out to the LORD, and told him, “So, you provided this great deliverance at the hands of your servant, but now I’m to die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” ¹⁹ So God split a hollow place that’s in Lehi, and water sprang out of it. After he had taken a drink, his strength returned, and he revived. That’s why it was named “En-hakkore,” which is in Lehi to this day.

¹⁵ My strength is dried up like broken pottery; my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth, and you have brought me down to the dust of death.

⁶ This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard and delivered him from all of his distress.

² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When may I come and appear in God’s presence?

¹⁵ Call on me in the day of distress; I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.”

¹ A Davidic Psalm, while he was in the Judean wilderness.
Joyful Trust in God God, you are my God! I will fervently seek you. My soul thirsts for you; my flesh longs for you in a dry, weary, and parched land. ² So I have looked for you in the sanctuary, to behold your power and glory.

⁹ God, you poured out abundant rain on your inheritance. When Israel was weary, you sustained her. ¹⁰ Your people live there; you sustain the needy with your goodness, God.

¹² For he will deliver the needy when they cry out for help, and the poor when there is no deliverer. ¹³ He will have compassion on the poor and the needy, and he will save the lives of the needy.

¹⁶ When the LORD rebuilds Zion, he will appear in his glory. ¹⁷ He will turn to the prayer of the destitute, not despising their prayer.

⁵ Hungry and thirsty, their spirits failed. ⁶ Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

¹⁹ Indeed, you people who live in Zion and in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious the LORD will be to you at the sound of your cry! As soon as he hears it, he will answer you.

¹⁶ I’ll help the blind walk, even on a road they do not know; I’ll guide them in directions they do not know. I’ll turn the dark places into light in front of them, and the rough places into level ground. These are the things I will do, and I won’t abandon them.

²⁰ Wild animals, jackals, and owls will honor me because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wilderness to give drink to my people, my chosen ones,

³ For I’ll pour water upon thirsty ground and streams on parched land. So will I pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing upon your descendants.

¹ An Invitation to Life “Come, everyone who is thirsty, come to the waters! Also, you that have no money, come, buy, and eat! Come! Buy wine and milk without money and without price.

¹ Good News of Deliverance “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed and to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners;

² All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came into being,” declares the LORD. “But this is the one to whom I will look favorably: to the one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at my message.

⁴ The nursing child’s tongue cleaves to its palate from thirst. Young children beg for bread, but no one gives them any.

¹¹ A Famine of the Word of God“Look! The days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “when I will send a famine throughout the land— not a famine of food or a thirst for water— but rather a famine of hearing the words of the LORD. ¹² People will stagger from sea to sea, from north to east. They will run back and forth, searching for a message from the LORD, but they won’t find it. ¹³ At that time, the beautiful virgins will faint, as will the strong young men—from thirst.

³ The Blessed Attitudes
“How blessed are those who are destitute in spirit, because the kingdom from heaven belongs to them!

⁶ “How blessed are those who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, because it is they who will be satisfied!

²⁴ So he shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me! Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water to cool off my tongue, because I am suffering in this fire.’

¹⁰ Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who is saying to you, ‘Please give me a drink,’ you would have been the one to ask him, and he would have given you living water.”
¹¹ The woman told him, “Sir, you don’t have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where are you going to get this living water? ¹² You’re not greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it, along with his sons and his flocks, are you?”
¹³ Jesus answered her, “Everyone who drinks this water will become thirsty again. ¹⁴ But whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never become thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become a well of water for him, springing up to eternal life.”
¹⁵ The woman told him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I won’t get thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

³⁷ Rivers of Living WaterOn the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus stood up and shouted, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink! ³⁸ The one who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, will have rivers of living water flowing from his heart.” ³⁹ Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who were believing in him were to receive, because the Spirit was not yet present and Jesus had not yet been glorified.

⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have, for God has said, “I will never leave you or abandon you.” ⁶ Hence we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?”

⁶ Then he told me, “It has happened! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will freely give a drink from the spring of the water of life to the one who is thirsty.

¹⁷ Concluding InvitationThe Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”
Let everyone who hears this say, “Come!”
Let everyone who is thirsty come!
Let anyone who wants the water of life take it as a gift!

⁴ Look! There is a river whose streams make the city of God rejoice, even the Holy Place of the Most High.

¹⁵ He caused the rocks to split in the wilderness, and gave them water as from an abundant sea. ¹⁶ He brought streams from rock, causing water to flow like a river.

⁴¹ He opened a rock, and water gushed out flowing like a river in the desert.

³⁵ He turns a desert into a pool of water, dry land into springs of water.

³ You will draw water joyfully from the wells of salvation. And you will say at that time:

²⁵ And on every lofty mountain and every high hill there will be brooks and canals running with water on the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

² Each one will be like a shelter from the wind and a hiding place from storms, like streams of water in the desert, in the shadow of a great rock in an exhausted land.

⁶ then the lame will leap like deer, and the tongues of speechless people will sing for joy. Yes, waters will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams will run through the desert; ⁷ the burning sands will become a pool, and the thirsty ground fountains of water. In the haunts of jackals there will be a verdant resting place with reeds and rushes.”

¹⁹ Watch! I’m about to carry out something new! And now it’s springing up— don’t you recognize it? I’m making a way in the wilderness and paths in the desert. ²⁰ Wild animals, jackals, and owls will honor me because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wilderness to give drink to my people, my chosen ones,

²¹ They didn’t thirst when he led him through the desolate places. He made water gush from a rock for them; he split open the rock, and water gushed out.

⁹ saying to captives, ‘Come out!’ and to those who are in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “They will feed on all the mountains, and their pasture will be on all the barren hills. ¹⁰ They won’t hunger or thirst, nor will the desert heat or sun beat upon them; for the one who has compassion on them will drive them and guide them alongside springs of water.

¹¹ And the LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in parched places, and they will strengthen your bones; and you’ll be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.

¹ The Vision of the Temple RiverAfter this, he brought me back to the doorway to the Temple. To my amazement, there was water flowing out toward the east from beneath the threshold of the Temple! (The Temple faced eastward.) The water flowed down from beneath the right side of the Temple, that is, from the south-facing side where the altar was located. ² Then he brought me out through the north gateway and around to the one outside that faces toward the east. To my amazement, water was trickling out from that part of the south side, too!
³ As the man went out toward the east, he carried a measuring line in his hand. He measured out 1,000 cubits as he led me through water that was ankle-deep. ⁴ Then he measured out another 1,000 cubits, where he led me through water that was knee-deep. And then he measured out another 1,000 cubits, where the water was waist-deep. ⁵ When he had measured out another 1,000 cubits, the water had become deep enough that I wasn’t able to ford it. Instead, I would have had to swim through it.
⁶ Then, as he was bringing me back along the river bank, he asked me, “Son of Man, did you see all of this?” ⁷ As we were coming back, I was amazed to see that there were many, many trees lining both banks of the river. ⁸ He told me, “This river flows toward the eastern territories all the way down into the Arabah, and from there its water flows toward the Dead Sea, where the sea water turns fresh.

¹⁸ It will come about at that time that the mountains will drip with newly pressed wine, the hills will flow with milk, and the streams of Judah will flow abundantly. A fountain will spring from the Temple of the LORD, to water the Valley of the Acacias.

⁸ At that time, flowing waters will run perennially from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and half to the Mediterranean Sea.

¹⁷ because the lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd. He will lead them to springs filled with the water of life, and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

¹ The Vision of the River of the Water of LifeThen the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal. It was flowing from the throne of God and the lamb.

¹³ Planted in the LORD’s Temple, they will flourish in the courtyard of our God. ¹⁴ They will still bear fruit even in old age; they will be luxuriant and green.

⁶ In times to come, Jacob will take root, and Israel will blossom, sprout shoots, and fill the whole world with fruit.

¹⁵ until the Spirit from on high is poured upon us, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest.”

¹ The Future of Israel’s Land “The desert and the dry land will rejoice; the desert will celebrate and blossom. Like crocuses,

³¹ Then the ones belonging to the house of Judah who have escaped will gather, and those who are found will take root downward and bear fruit upward. ³² For a remnant will come out of Zion, and a band of survivors from Jerusalem. The zeal of the LORD of the Heavenly Armies will accomplish this.

³ For the LORD will have compassion on Zion, have compassion on all her ruins. He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her deserts like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving, and the sound of singing. Sorrow and sighing will flee away.

¹³ Instead of thornbushes, pine trees will grow, and instead of briers, myrtles will grow; and they will be a sign for the LORD, and an everlasting name that will not be cut off.”

¹³ “He has given you the glory of Lebanon, and it will come to you, the cypress, and the plane tree, and the pine, to adorn the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

²¹ Then your people will all be righteous; They’ll possess the land forever. They are the shoot that the LORD planted, the works of his hands, so that I might be glorified.

³ to provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, a mantle of praise instead of a spirit of despair.” “Then people will call them “Oaks of Righteousness”, “The Planting of the LORD”, in order to display his splendor.

¹¹ For just as the soil brings forth its shoots, and as a garden makes what is sown within it spring up, so the LORD God will make righteousness and praise spring up before all the nations for Zion’s sake.”

²² The Transplanted VineThis is what the Lord GOD says, “I’m also going to take a shoot from the top of a cedar and plant it. I’ll pluck off its delicate twigs and transplant it on a high and lofty mountain. ²³ I’ll transplant it on Israel’s land, and it will grow branches, bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. All sorts of birds will rest under it, and they’ll settle down in the shade of its branches. ²⁴ Then all the trees of the fields will know that I, the LORD, bring down the lofty tree and exalt the lowly tree. I dry up the green tree and cause the dry tree to bud. I the LORD have spoken this, and I will fulfill it.”

¹² Lining each side of the river banks, all sorts of species of fruit trees will be growing. Their leaves will never wither and their fruit will never fail. They will bear fruit every month, because the water that nourishes them will be flowing from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves will contain substances that promote healing.”

¹⁶ However, I’ve kept you standing in order to show you my power and to declare my name in all the earth.

²³ No Satanic plan against Jacob nor divination against Israel can ever prevail. When the time is right, it is to be asked about Jacob and Israel, ‘What has God accomplished?’

⁹ Who among all of these doesn’t know that the LORD’s hand made them,

²⁷ Then they will realize that your hand is in this— that you, LORD, have accomplished it.

⁷ everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. ⁸ “Bring out the people who are blind, yet still have eyes, who are deaf, yet still have ears! ⁹ Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled. “Who is there among them who can declare this, or announce the former things? Let them produce their witnesses to prove them right, and let them proclaim so people will say, ‘It’s true.’ ¹⁰ “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and trust me and understand that I am the One. Before me no God was formed, nor will there be one after me. ¹¹ I, yes I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. ¹² I’ve revealed and saved and proclaimed, when there was no foreign god among you — and you are my witnesses,” declares the LORD. ¹³ “I am God; also from ancient days I am the one. And there is no one who can deliver out of my hand; when I act, who can reverse it?”

²¹ the people whom I formed for myself and so that they may speak my praise.”

²³ “Shout for joy, you heavens, for the LORD has done it! Shout aloud, you depths of the earth! Burst out with singing, you mountains, you forest, and all your trees! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob and will display his glory in Israel.

⁶ so that from the sun’s rising to the west people may know that there is none besides me. “I am the LORD, and there is no other.”
⁷ God is Sovereign“I form light and create darkness, I make goodness and create disaster. I am the LORD, who does all these things. ⁸ “Shout, you skies above, and you clouds, and let righteousness stream down. I am the one who says to the earth, ‘Let salvation blossom, and let righteousness sprout forth.’

¹⁸ “But as for me, I know their actions and their thoughts. Come and gather all nations and languages, and they will come and see my glory.

⁶ raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavenly realm in the Messiah Jesus, ⁷ so that in the coming ages he might display the limitless riches of his grace that comes to us through his kindness in the Messiah Jesus. ⁸ For by such grace you have been saved through faith. This does not come from you; it is the gift of God ⁹ and not the result of actions, to put a stop to all boasting. ¹⁰ For we are God’s masterpiece, created in the Messiah Jesus to perform good actions that God prepared long ago to be our way of life.

¹⁰ when he comes to be glorified by his saints and to be regarded with wonder on that day by all who have believed—including you, because you believed our testimony.

³ If only I knew where to find him, I would visit him where he has taken his seat. ⁴ I would lay out my case before him; and fill my mouth with arguments.

³⁷ I’ll give an account for every step I’ve taken; I’ll approach him confidently like a Commander-in-Chief.”

⁷ “Stand up like a man! I’ll ask you some questions, and you give me some answers! ⁸ Indeed would you annul my justice and condemn me, just so you can claim that you’re righteous? ⁹ Do you have strength like God? Can you create thunder with a sound like he can?”

¹ The LORD’s Indictment against IsraelPlease hear what the LORD says: “Get up and make your case before the mountains, and let the hills listen to your voice. ² Listen, you mountains, to the LORD’s argument! Listen, you strong foundations of the earth, because the LORD has a dispute with his people, and he will set out his case before Israel.

⁹ See, the former things have taken place, and I’m announcing the new things— before they spring into being
I’m telling you about them.”

⁹ Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled. “Who is there among them who can declare this, or announce the former things? Let them produce their witnesses to prove them right, and let them proclaim so people will say, ‘It’s true.’ ¹⁰ “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and trust me and understand that I am the One. Before me no God was formed, nor will there be one after me. ¹¹ I, yes I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. ¹² I’ve revealed and saved and proclaimed, when there was no foreign god among you — and you are my witnesses,” declares the LORD.

⁷ Who is like me? Let him proclaim and declare it, and lay it out for himself— since he made an ancient people. And let him speak future events; let them tell him what will happen.

²¹ Explain and present a case! Yes, let them take counsel together. Who announced this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides me, a righteous God and Savior; and there is none besides me.

¹⁴ Let all of them come together and listen: Who is there among them that could declare these things? “The LORD loves me, and he will accomplish my purpose against Babylon; his arm will be against the Chaldeans.

¹⁹ I’m telling you this now, before it happens, so that when it does happen, you may believe that I AM.

¹⁴ He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

⁷ Who is like me? Let him proclaim and declare it, and lay it out for himself— since he made an ancient people. And let him speak future events; let them tell him what will happen. ⁸ Don’t tremble, and don’t be afraid. Didn’t I tell you and announce it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? There is no other Rock— I don’t know of any.”

³ I’ll give you concealed treasures and riches hidden in secret places, so that you’ll know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by name.

⁷ And they lift it on their shoulders, carry it, set it up in its place, and there it stands. It cannot move from that spot. One may even call to it, but it cannot answer nor save him from his distress.

⁹ Remember the former things from long ago, Because I am God, and there is no one else; I am God, and there is none like me. ¹⁰ I declare from the beginning things to follow, and from ancient times things that have not yet been done; saying, ‘My purpose will stand, and he will accomplish everything that I please.’

⁵ Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They can’t speak! They must always be carried because they can’t walk! Don’t be afraid of them because they can do no harm, nor can they do any good.”

²⁶ Don’t bring any detestable thing to your house, because you yourself will be utterly destroyed along with these detestable things. You must absolutely abhor and detest all of it, because it has been devoted to destruction.”

¹⁵ “‘Cursed is the one who makes a sculptured or cast image—a detestable thing to the LORD, the work of a craftsman—and sets it up secretly.’“Then all the people are to respond by saying, ‘Amen!’

⁸ Those who craft them will become like them, as will all those who trust in them.

¹⁹ and have thrown their gods into the fire—but they are not gods, but rather the products of human hands, mere wood and stone. So the Assyrians destroyed them.

⁹ A Rebuke to Idol WorshipNow, all the forming of images means nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their own witnesses cannot see, and they know nothing. So they will be put to shame.
¹⁰ Who would shape a god or cast an image that profits nothing?

²⁴ “Then they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of the people who rebelled against me. For their worm will not die, nor will their fire be extinguished, and they will remain an object of revulsion to all humanity.”

⁸ Everyone is stupid and senseless. They follow worthless instruction from a piece of wood!

¹⁴ Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false. There is no life in them.

¹⁷ Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his own idols, for his images are false, and there is no life in them. ¹⁸ They’re worthless, a work of mockery, and when the time of punishment comes, they’ll perish.

⁴ Now concerning eating food offered to idols: We know that no idol is real in this world and that there is only one God.

⁵ On her forehead was written a secret name:
BABYLON THE GREAT,
THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES
AND DETESTABLE THINGS OF THE EARTH

² AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM CYRUS, KING OF PERSIA All of the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by the LORD God of Heaven, and he specifically charged me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. ³ Therefore, who among the LORD’s people trusts in his God? Whoever among this group wishes to do so may travel to Jerusalem of Judah to rebuild the Temple of the LORD God of Israel, the God of Jerusalem.

⁶ I’m sending my fury against a godless nation, and I’ll command him against the people with whom I’m angry to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets.

² A dire vision has been announced to me: the traitor betrays, and the plunderer takes loot. Get up, Elam! Attack, Media! I am putting a stop to all the groaning she has caused.

²⁸ who says about Cyrus, “He’s my shepherd, and he’ll carry out everything that I please: He’ll say of Jerusalem, ‘Let it be rebuilt,’ and of my Temple, ‘Let its foundations be laid again.’”’”

¹⁰ I declare from the beginning things to follow, and from ancient times things that have not yet been done; saying, ‘My purpose will stand, and he will accomplish everything that I please.’ ¹¹ I am calling a bird of prey from the east, and from a far country a man with his purpose. Indeed, I’ve spoken; I will certainly make it happen; I’ve planned it; and I will certainly carry it out.

³ For a nation from the north will go up against her. It will make her land into an object of horror, and no one will live in it. Both people and animals will wander off, and they’ll leave.

²⁷ Lift up a battle standard in the land. Blow a trumpet among the nations. Consecrate the nations against her. Summon the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz against her. Appoint a commander against her, bring up horses like bristling locusts. ²⁸ Consecrate the nations against her, the kings of the Medes, their governors, their prefects, and every land under their domination. ²⁹ The land quakes and writhes because the LORD’s purposes against Babylon stand firm, to make the land of Babylon a waste without inhabitants.

¹⁰ Then my enemy will observe it, and shame will engulf the ones who asked me, ‘Where is the LORD your God?’ My own eyes will see them, they will be trampled on like mud in the streets.

⁵ They will be like mighty soldiers who trample mud in the streets during battle. They will fight because the LORD is with them, and the opposing horsemen will be confused.

²² Let them approach and ask us, ‘What will happen? As to the former things, what were they? Tell us, so that we may consider them and know. Or the latter things or the things to come— let us hear.

⁹ Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled. “Who is there among them who can declare this, or announce the former things? Let them produce their witnesses to prove them right, and let them proclaim so people will say, ‘It’s true.’

¹⁸ Judgment on the Idol Maker“Where is the benefit in owning a carved image, that motivates its maker to carve it? It is only a cast image— a teacher that lies— because the engraver entrusts himself to his carving, crafting speechless idols. ¹⁹ “Woe to the one who says to a tree, ‘Wake up!’ or ‘Arise!’ to a speechless stone. Idols like this can’t teach, can they? Look, even though it is overlaid with gold and silver, there’s no breath in it at all.”
²⁰ The LORD’s Final Counsel to Habakkuk“The LORD is in his holy Temple. All the earth—be quiet in his presence.”

¹ An Edict to Rebuild the Temple
During the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in fulfillment of the message from the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD prompted Cyrus, king of Persia, to make this proclamation throughout his entire kingdom, which was also released in written form: ² AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM CYRUS, KING OF PERSIA All of the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by the LORD God of Heaven, and he specifically charged me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

⁹ Here is Your God“Climb up a high mountain, you messenger of good news to Zion! Lift up your voice with strength, you messenger to Jerusalem! Lift it up! Don’t be afraid! Say to the towns of Judah, ‘Here is your God!’

⁴ Who has performed and carried this out, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—the first and will be with the last —I am the One!”

²⁸ who says about Cyrus, “He’s my shepherd, and he’ll carry out everything that I please: He’ll say of Jerusalem, ‘Let it be rebuilt,’ and of my Temple, ‘Let its foundations be laid again.’”’”

³ I foretold the former things long ago; it went forth from my mouth, and I disclosed them; Suddenly, I acted, and they came to pass.

¹⁵ The Sure and Certain Deliverance of JudahLook! There on the mountains! The feet of the one who brings good news, who broadcasts a message of peace. Judah, celebrate your solemn festivals and keep your vows, because the wicked will never again invade you. Nineveh will be completely eliminated!

¹⁵ And how can people preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are those who bring the good news!”

¹³ Who has fathomed the Spirit of the LORD, or as his counselor has taught him? ¹⁴ With whom did he consult to enlighten and instruct him on the path of justice? Or who taught him knowledge and showed him the way of wisdom?

² Why is it that when I came, no one was there? Why was there no answer when I called? Was my arm too short to redeem you? Do I lack the strength to rescue you? Look! By my mere rebuke I dry up the sea, I turn rivers into a desert. Their fish stink for lack of water and die of thirst.

¹⁶ He saw that there was no one, and was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm brought him victory, and his righteous acts upheld him.

⁵ I looked, but there was no helper, I was appalled that there was no one to give support; so my own arm brought me victory, and as for my wrath, it supported me.

¹⁰ The Chaldeans answered the king directly, “There’s not a single man on earth who can do what the king has commanded. No king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such a thing from any diviner, enchanter, or Chaldean. ¹¹ Furthermore, what the king is asking is so difficult that no one can reveal it except the gods—and they don’t live with human beings.”

⁷ Then the diviners, enchanters, Chaldeans, and astrologers came in, and I told them the dream. But they could not reveal its interpretation to me. ⁸ Eventually, Daniel appeared before me. (He is called Belteshazzar, in accordance with the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is within him.) I told him my dream:

⁸ Then all the king’s advisors came in, but they were unable to read the writing or tell the king what it meant.

⁴ Their idols are silver and gold, crafted by human hands. ⁵ They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see. ⁶ They have ears, but cannot hear; they have noses, but cannot smell. ⁷ They have hands, but cannot touch; feet, but cannot walk; they cannot even groan with their throats. ⁸ Those who craft them will become like them, as will all those who trust in them.

¹⁵ The idols of the nations are silver and gold, worked by the hands of human beings. ¹⁶ Mouths are attributed to them, but they cannot speak; sight is attributed to them, but they cannot see; ¹⁷ ears are attributed to them, but they do not hear, and there is no breath in their mouths. ¹⁸ Those who craft them— and all who trust in them— will become like them.

⁹ A Rebuke to Idol WorshipNow, all the forming of images means nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their own witnesses cannot see, and they know nothing. So they will be put to shame.
¹⁰ Who would shape a god or cast an image that profits nothing? ¹¹ To be sure, all who associate with it will be put to shame; and as for the craftsmen, they are only human. Let them all gather together and take their stand. Then let them be terrified—they will be humiliated together.
¹² The blacksmith prepares a tool and works in the coals, then fashions an idol with hammers, working by the strength of his arm. He even becomes hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.
¹³ The carpenter measures it with a line; he traces its shape with a stylus, then fashions it with planes and shapes it with a compass. He makes the idol like a human figure, with human beauty, to be at home in a shrine. ¹⁴ He cuts down cedars, or chooses a cypress tree or an oak, and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. Or he plants a cedar, and the rain makes it grow. ¹⁵ He divides it up for people to burn. Taking part of it, he warms himself, makes a fire, and bakes bread. Or perhaps he constructs a god and worships it. He makes it an idol and bows down to it. ¹⁶ Half the wood he burns in the fire, and over that half he places meat so he can eat. He sits by its coals, warms himself, and says, “Ah! I am warm in front of the fire.” ¹⁷ And the rest of it he makes into a god. To blocks of wood he bows down, worships, prays, and says, “Save me, since you are my god.”
¹⁸ They don’t realize; they don’t understand, because their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds, too, so they cannot understand. ¹⁹ No one stops to think. No one has the knowledge or understanding to think—yes to think!—“Half of it I burned in the fire. I even baked bread on its coals, and I roasted meat and ate it. And am I about to make detestable things from what is left? Am I about to bow down to blocks of wood?” ²⁰ He tends ashes. A deceived mind has lead him astray. It cannot be his life, nor can he say, “There’s a lie in my right hand.”

¹³ The prophets are nothing but wind, and the word is not in them. So may the disaster happen to them!’”

² This is what the LORD says: “Don’t learn the way of the nations, and don’t be terrified by signs in the heavens, though the nations are terrified of them. ³ For the practices of the people are worthless. Indeed, a tree is cut down from the forest; it’s the work of the hands of a craftsman with an ax. ⁴ They decorate it with silver and gold. They secure it with nails and hammers so it won’t totter. ⁵ Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They can’t speak! They must always be carried because they can’t walk! Don’t be afraid of them because they can do no harm, nor can they do any good.” ⁶ There is no one like you, LORD. You are great, and your name is great and powerful. ⁷ Who wouldn’t fear you, king of the nations? This is what you deserve! Indeed, among all the wise men of the nations, and throughout all their kingdoms, there is no one like you! ⁸ Everyone is stupid and senseless. They follow worthless instruction from a piece of wood! ⁹ Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. The idols are the work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith. Their clothing is violet and purple. The idols are all the work of skilled craftsmen. ¹⁰ The LORD is the true God; he’s the living God and the everlasting king. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation.
¹¹ Tell this to them: “The gods who didn’t make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from these heavens.”
¹² A Hymn of Praise to GodThe LORD is the one who made the world by his power, who established the earth by his wisdom and stretched out the heavens by his understanding. ¹³ When his voice sounds there is thunder from the waters of heaven, and he makes clouds rise up from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain and brings wind out of his storehouses. ¹⁴ Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false. There is no life in them. ¹⁵ They’re worthless, a work of mockery, and when the time of punishment comes, they’ll perish. ¹⁶ The Portion of Jacob is not like these. He made everything, and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance. The LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name.

¹⁸ Judgment on the Idol Maker“Where is the benefit in owning a carved image, that motivates its maker to carve it? It is only a cast image— a teacher that lies— because the engraver entrusts himself to his carving, crafting speechless idols.