1 ¶ 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.

Keep silent towards Me, O isles, And the peoples pass on power, They come nigh, then they speak, `Together -- to judgment we draw near.'

2 W ho 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.

Who stirred up from the east a righteous one? He calleth him to His foot, He giveth before him nations, And kings He causeth him to rule, He giveth as dust his sword, As driven stubble his bow.

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

He pursueth them, he passeth over in safety A path with his feet he entereth not.

4 W ho 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.

Who hath wrought and done, Calling the generations from the first? I, Jehovah, the first, and with the last I He.

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

Seen have isles and fear, ends of the earth tremble, They have drawn near, yea, they come.

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

Each his neighbour they help, And to his brother he saith, `Be strong.'

7 S o 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.

And strengthen doth an artizan the refiner, A smoother a hammer, Him who is beating an anvil, Saying, `For joining it good,' And he strengtheneth it with nails, it is not moved!

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

-- And thou, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My lover,

9 F or 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.

Whom I have taken hold of, from the ends of the earth, And from its near places I have called thee, And I say to thee, My servant Thou, I have chosen thee, and not rejected thee.

10 ¶ 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.

Be not afraid, for with thee I, Look not around, for I thy God, I have strengthened thee, Yea, I have helped thee, yea, I upheld thee, With the right hand of My righteousness.

11 B ehold, 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.

Lo, all those displeased with thee, They are ashamed and blush, They are as nothing, yea, perish Do the men who strive with thee.

12 T hou 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.

Thou seekest them, and findest them not, The men who debate with thee, They are as nothing, yea, as nothing, The men who war with thee.

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

For I, Jehovah thy God, Am strengthening thy right hand, He who is saying to thee, `Fear not, I have helped thee.'

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

Fear not, O worm Jacob, ye men of Israel, I helped thee, an affirmation of Jehovah, Even thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 B ehold, 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.

Lo, I have set thee for a new sharp threshing instrument, Possessing teeth, thou threshest mountains, And beatest small, and hills as chaff thou makest.

16 T hou 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.

Thou winnowest them, and a wind lifteth them up, And a whirlwind scattereth them, And thou -- thou rejoicest in Jehovah, In the Holy One of Israel dost boast thyself.

17 T he 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.

The poor and the needy are seeking water, And there is none, Their tongue with thirst hath failed, I, Jehovah do answer them, The God of Israel -- I forsake them not.

18 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.

I open on high places rivers, And in midst of valleys fountains, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land become springs of water.

19 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:

I give in a wilderness the cedar, Shittah, and myrtle, and oil-tree, I set in a desert the fir-pine and box-wood together.

20 T hat 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.

So that they see, and know, And regard, and act wisely together, For the hand of Jehovah hath done this, And the Holy One of Israel hath prepared it.

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

Bring near your cause, saith Jehovah, Bring nigh your mighty ones, saith the king of Jacob.

22 L et 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.

They bring nigh, and declare to us that which doth happen, The first things -- what they declare ye, And we set our heart, and know their latter end, Or the coming things cause us to hear.

23 G ive 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.

Declare the things that are coming hereafter, And we know that ye gods, Yea, ye may do good or do evil, And we look around and see together.

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

Lo, ye of nothing, and your work of nought, An abomination -- it fixeth on you.

25 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.

I have stirred up from the north, And he cometh, From the rising of the sun he calleth in My name, And he cometh in prefects as clay, And as a potter treadeth down mire.

26 W ho 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.

Who hath declared from the first, and we know? And beforetime, and we say, `Righteous?' yea, there is none declaring, Yea, there is none proclaiming, Yea, there is none hearing your sayings.

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

First to Zion, Behold, behold them, And to Jerusalem one proclaiming tidings I give,

28 F or 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.

And I see that there is no man, Yea, of these that there is no counsellor, And I ask them, and they return word:

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

`Lo, all of them vanity, Nought their works, Wind and emptiness their molten images!'