Isaiah 44
44
God’s Blessing on Israel
1“Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant,
And Israel whom I have chosen.
2Thus says the Lord who made you
And formed you from the womb, who will help you:
‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant;
And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,
And floods on the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,
And My blessing on your offspring;
4They will spring up among the grass
Like willows by the watercourses.’
5One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’;
Another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
Another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’
And name himself by the name of Israel.
There Is No Other God
6“Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel,
And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
#Is. 41:4; (Rev. 1:8, 17; 22:13)‘I am the First and I am the Last;
Besides Me there is no God.
7And #Is. 41:4, 22, 26who can proclaim as I do?
Then let him declare it and set it in order for Me,
Since I appointed the ancient people.
And the things that are coming and shall come,
Let them show these to them.
8Do not fear, nor be afraid;
#Is. 41:22Have I not told you from that time, and declared it?
#Is. 43:10, 12You are My witnesses.
Is there a God besides Me?
Indeed #Deut. 4:35; 32:39; 1 Sam. 2:2; 2 Sam. 22:32; Is. 45:5; Joel 2:27there is no other Rock;
I know not one.’ ”
Idolatry Is Foolishness
9#Is. 41:24Those who make an image, all of them are useless,
And their precious things shall not profit;
They are their own witnesses;
#Ps. 115:4They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.
10Who would form a god or mold an image
#Is. 41:29; Jer. 10:5; Hab. 2:18; Acts 19:26That profits him nothing?
11Surely all his companions would be #Ps. 97:7; Is. 1:29; 42:17ashamed;
And the workmen, they are mere men.
Let them all be gathered together,
Let them stand up;
Yet they shall fear,
They shall be ashamed together.
12#Is. 40:19; Jer. 10:3–5The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals,
Fashions it with hammers,
And works it with the strength of his arms.
Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails;
He drinks no water and is faint.
13The craftsman stretches out his rule,
He marks one out with chalk;
He fashions it with a plane,
He marks it out with the compass,
And makes it like the figure of a man,
According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.
14He cuts down cedars for himself,
And takes the cypress and the oak;
He secures it for himself among the trees of the forest.
He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it.
15Then it shall be for a man to burn,
For he will take some of it and warm himself;
Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread;
Indeed he makes a god and worships it;
He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.
16He burns half of it in the fire;
With this half he eats meat;
He roasts a roast, and is satisfied.
He even warms himself and says,
“Ah! I am warm,
I have seen the fire.”
17And the rest of it he makes into a god,
His carved image.
He falls down before it and worships it,
Prays to it and says,
“Deliver me, for you are my god!”
18#Is. 45:20They do not know nor understand;
For #(Ps. 81:12); Is. 6:9, 10; 29:10; 2 Thess. 2:11He has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see,
And their hearts, so that they cannot #Jer. 10:14understand.
19And no one #Is. 46:8considers in his heart,
Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say,
“I have burned half of it in the fire,
Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals;
I have roasted meat and eaten it;
And shall I make the rest of it an abomination?
Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”
20He feeds on ashes;
#Job 15:31; Hos. 4:12; Rom. 1:21, 22; 2 Thess. 2:11; 2 Tim. 3:13A deceived heart has turned him aside;
And he cannot deliver his soul,
Nor say, “Is there not a #Is. 57:11; 59:3, 4, 13; Rom. 1:25lie in my right hand?”
Israel Is Not Forgotten
21“Remember these, O Jacob,
And Israel, for you are My servant;
I have formed you, you are My servant;
O Israel, you will not be #Is. 49:15forgotten by Me!
22#Is. 43:25I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions,
And like a cloud, your sins.
Return to Me, for #Is. 43:1; 1 Cor. 6:20; (1 Pet. 1:18, 19)I have redeemed you.”
23#Ps. 69:34; Is. 42:10; 49:13; Jer. 51:48; Rev. 18:20Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it!
Shout, you lower parts of the earth;
Break forth into singing, you mountains,
O forest, and every tree in it!
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
And #Is. 49:3; 60:21glorified Himself in Israel.
Judah Will Be Restored
24Thus says the Lord, #Is. 43:14your Redeemer,
And #Is. 43:1He who formed you from the womb:
“I am the Lord, who makes all things,
#Job 9:8Who stretches out the heavens all alone,
Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;
25Who #Is. 47:13frustrates the signs #Jer. 50:36of the babblers,
And drives diviners mad;
Who turns wise men backward,
#2 Sam. 15:31; Job 5:12–14; Ps. 33:10; Is. 29:14; Jer. 51:57; 1 Cor. 1:20, 27And makes their knowledge foolishness;
26#Zech. 1:6; Matt. 5:18Who confirms the word of His servant,
And performs the counsel of His messengers;
Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’
To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’
And I will raise up her waste places;
27#Jer. 50:38; 51:36Who says to the deep, ‘Be dry!
And I will dry up your rivers’;
28Who says of #2 Chr. 36:22; Ezra 1:1; Is. 45:13Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd,
And he shall perform all My pleasure,
Saying to Jerusalem, #Ezra 6:7“You shall be built,”
And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’
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Isaiah 44: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.