1
Thus says the Lord top[ch. 44:28] his anointed, to Cyrus,
q[ch. 41:13] whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
andrJob 12:21; [ver. 5; ch. 22:21] to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
2 “I will go before you
andsch. 40:4 level the exalted places,
tPs. 107:16 I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut through the bars of iron,
3 u[Jer. 50:37; 51:13] I will give you the treasures of darkness
and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel,vch. 43:1 who call you by your name.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
v[See ver. 3 above] I call you by your name,
w[ch. 62:2] I name you, though you do not know me.
5 xSee ch. 44:8 I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
y[Job 12:21; ch. 22:21] I equip you, though you do not know me,
6 z[ch. 37:20; Mal. 1:11] that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being anda[ch. 41:23; Amos 3:6] create calamity,
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
8 b[Deut. 32:2] Shower, O heavens, from above,
andcPs. 85:11; [Hos. 10:12] let the clouds rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit;
let the earth cause them both to sprout;
I the Lord have created it.
9 d[Eccles. 6:10]; See ch. 10:15 Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,
a pot among earthen pots!
ech. 64:8; Cited Rom. 9:20 Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making? ’
or ‘Your work has no handles ’?
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting? ’
or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor? ’ ”
11 Thus saysfEzek. 39:7 the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:
g[ch. 41:23] “Ask me of things to come;
will you command meh[Jer. 31:9] concerning my children andich. 29:23; 64:8 the work of my hands?
12 jJer. 27:5 I made the earth
and created man on it;
it was my handskch. 42:5; 44:24 that stretched out the heavens,
andlGen. 2:1 I commanded all their host.
13 mch. 41:2 I have stirred him up in righteousness,
n[ver. 2] and I will make all his ways level;
oSee ch. 44:28 he shall build my city
pch. 49:25; 51:14; 52:3 and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward, ”
says the Lord of hosts.
14
Thus says the Lord :
q[ch. 43:3] “The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,
and the Sabeans, men of stature,
shall come over to yourch. 14:2 and be yours;
they shall follow you;
they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will plead with you, saying:
‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other,
no god besides him. ’ ”
15 sch. 57:17 Truly, you are a God who hides yourself,
O God of Israel, the Savior.
16 tSee ch. 42:17 All of them are put to shame and confounded;
the makers of idols go in confusion together.
17 But Israel is saved by the Lord
with everlasting salvation;
uch. 54:4 you shall not be put to shame or confounded
to all eternity.
18 vch. 42:5 For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens
(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it
(he established it;
hew[Gen. 1:2] did not create it empty,
x[Ps. 115:16] he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19 ych. 48:16; [Deut. 30:11] I did not speak in secret,
in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
zJer. 29:13, 14 ‘Seek me in vain. ’
I the Lord speakaver. 23 the truth;
I declare what is right.
20 b[ch. 41:1] Assemble yourselves and come;
draw near together,
you survivors of the nations!
c[ch. 44:18, 19; 48:5-7] They have no knowledge
whodch. 46:1, 7; Jer. 10:5 carry about their wooden idols,
e[ch. 44:17] and keep on praying to a god
that cannot save.
21 f[ch. 41:22, 26; 43:9] Declare and present your case;
let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?
Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous Godg[ch. 43:11] and a Savior;
there is none besides me.
22 Turn to me and be saved,
hch. 11:12; 43:5, 6 all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 iSee Gen. 22:16 By myself I have sworn;
from my mouth has gone out injver. 19 righteousness
a word that shall not return:
kCited Rom. 14:11; [Phil. 2:10] ‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear allegiance. ’
24 l[ch. 26:4; 44:8] Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,
are righteousness andm[ch. 26:4; 44:8] strength;
to him shall come and be ashamed
n[ch. 41:11] all who were incensed against him.
25 In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
shall be justified and shall glory. ”