1 L isten in silence before Me, O islands and regions bordering on the sea! And let the people gather and renew their strength! Let them come near, then let them speak; let us come near together for judgment.

¶ Listen unto me, O islands; and let the peoples strengthen themselves; let them come near; then let them speak; let us come near together to judgment.

2 W ho has roused up one from the east, whom He calls in righteousness to His service and whom victory meets at every step? He subdues nations before him and makes him ruler over kings. He turns them to dust with the sword, and to driven straw and chaff with his bow.

Who raised up righteousness from the east, called him that he might follow him, gave the Gentiles before him, and made him rule over kings? He gave them as the dust to his sword and as driven stubble to his bow.

3 H e pursues them and passes safely and unhindered, even by a way his feet had not trod and so swiftly that his feet do not touch the ground.

He pursued them and passed in peace by the way that his feet had never entered.

4 W ho has prepared and done this, calling forth and guiding the destinies of the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—the first and with the last —I am He.

Who has wrought and done it? Who calls the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and I, myself am with those who are last.

5 T he islands and coastlands have seen and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They draw near and come;

The isles saw it and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid; they congregated and came.

6 T hey help every one his neighbor and say to his brother, Be of good courage!

Each one helped his neighbour; and each one said to his brother, Be of good courage.

7 S o the carpenter encourages the goldsmith, and he who smooths with the hammer him who smites the anvil, saying of the soldering, That is good! And he fastens it with nails so that it cannot be moved.

So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smooths with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is well joined and he strengthened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

8 B ut you, Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham My friend,

But thou, Israel, my slave, Jacob whom I have chosen, art the seed of Abraham my friend.

9 Y ou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth and have called from the corners of it, and said to you, You are My servant—I have chosen you and not cast you off.

For I have taken thee from the ends of the earth and called thee from the boundaries thereof and said unto thee Thou shalt be my slave; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.

10 F ear not, for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My right hand of rightness and justice.

¶ Do not fear for I am with thee; do not be dismayed, for I am thy God, who strengthens thee; I will help thee always; I will always uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

11 B ehold, all they who are enraged and inflamed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; they who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish.

Behold, all those that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded; they shall be as nothing; and those that strive with thee shall perish.

12 Y ou shall seek those who contend with you but shall not find them; they who war against you shall be as nothing, as nothing at all.

Thou shalt seek them and shalt not find them, even those that contended with thee; those that war against thee shall be as nothing and as a thing of nought.

13 F or I the Lord your God hold your right hand; I am the Lord, Who says to you, Fear not; I will help you!

For I am the LORD thy God that holds thy right hand saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

14 F ear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I will help you, says the Lord; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

Fear not, thou worm Jacob, ye dead of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 B ehold, I will make you to be a new, sharp, threshing instrument which has teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and beat them small, and shall make the hills like chaff.

Behold, I have placed thee as a threshing instrument, as a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth; thou shalt thresh the mountains and beat them small and shalt make the hills as chaff.

16 Y ou shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest or whirlwind shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the Lord, you shall glory in the Holy One of Israel.

Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them; but thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 T he poor and needy are seeking water when there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

The poor and needy seek the waters that are not; their tongue fails for thirst; I the LORD will hear them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18 I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers in high places and fountains in the midst of the plains; I will turn the wilderness into pools of water and the dry land into springs of water.

19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the wild olive; I will set the cypress in the desert, the plane and the pine together,

I will bring forth in the wilderness cedars, thorns, myrtles, and olive trees; I will set in the desert the fir tree and the pine and the box tree together:

20 T hat men may see and know and consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

That they may see and know and take warning and understand together that the hand of the LORD does this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 P roduce your cause, says the Lord. Bring forth your strong proofs, says the King of Jacob.

¶ Explain your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your foundations, saith the King of Jacob.

22 L et them bring them forth and tell us what is to happen. Let them tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them and know the outcome of them; or declare to us the things to come.

Let them bring forth and declare unto us what shall happen; tell us what has happened from the beginning, and we shall consider it in our hearts; and we shall know what his end shall be, and cause us to understand that which is to come.

23 T ell us the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that you are gods; yes, do good or do evil, that we may stare in astonishment and be dismayed as we behold together!

Give us news of that which is to come hereafter that we may know that ye are gods; or at least do good or do evil that we may have something to tell, and together we shall marvel.

24 B ehold, you are nothing, and your work is nothing! The worshiper who chooses you is an abomination.

Behold, ye are of nothing and your works of vanity; an abomination is he that chooses you.

25 I have raised up and impelled to action one from the north, and he comes; from the rising of the sun he calls upon My name. And he shall tread upon rulers and deputies as upon mortar and as the potter treads clay.

I have raised up one from the north, and he came from the rising of the sun; he called in my name and came unto princes as upon clay and as the potter treads clay.

26 h as declared this from the beginning, that we could know? And beforetime, that we could say that he is right? Yes, there is none who declares it, yes, there is none who proclaims it; yes, there is none who hears you speak!

Who has declared from the beginning, that we shall know? and beforetime that we shall say, He is righteous? yea, there is no one that declares this, yea, there is no one that teaches, yea, there is no one that hears your words.

27 I first gave to Zion the announcement, Behold, behold them! And to Jerusalem I gave a herald bringing the good news.

I am the first that has taught these things unto Zion, and unto Jerusalem I brought the news.

28 F or I look and there is no man among them, and among these there is no counselor who, when I ask of him, can answer a word.

For I beheld, and there was no one; and I asked regarding these things, and there was no counsellor; I asked them, and they did not answer a word.

29 B ehold, these are all emptiness (falseness and futility)! Their works are worthless; their molten images are empty wind (confusion and waste).

Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.