Isaiah

But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.

1Now the LORD speaks. He is the one who made you, Jacob, and formed you, Israel. He says: "Do not be afraid. I have bought you back. I have called you by your name. You are mine."

2When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

2"When you go through deep water, I will be with you. The rivers will not sweep over you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned. The flames will not set you on fire."

3For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.

3"I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, the one who saves you. I gave up Egypt to set you free. I gave Ethiopia and Seba in your place."

4Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.

4"You are precious to me. I treat you with honor, and I love you. So I will give other people in exchange for you, whole nations in place of your life."

5Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;

5"Do not be afraid, because I am with you. I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west."

6I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth;

6"I will tell the north, 'Give them up!' and the south, 'Do not hold them back!' Bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the ends of the earth."

7Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.

7"Bring every person who is called by my name. I made each one to show how great I am. I formed him. Yes, I made him."

8Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears.

8Bring out the people who have eyes but cannot see, and who have ears but cannot hear.

9Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the people be assembled: who among them can declare this, and shew us former things? let them bring forth their witnesses, that they may be justified: or let them hear, and say, It is truth.

9Let all the nations meet in one place. Let the peoples gather. Which of them told us this ahead of time? Let them bring witnesses to prove they were right, so others can hear and say, "It is true."

10Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.

10"You are my witnesses," says the LORD, "and so is my servant, the one I chose. I want you to know me and trust me and understand that I am the one. No god was made before me, and none will come after me."

11I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.

11"I, I myself, am the LORD. There is no one who saves except me."

12I have declared, and have saved, and I have shewed, when there was no strange god among you: therefore ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, that I am God.

12"I said what would happen, and I saved you, and I made it known. No foreign god among you did this. So you are my witnesses," says the LORD, "that I am God."

13Yea, before the day was I am he; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall let it?

13"From before there was a single day, I am the one. No one can pull anyone out of my hand. When I act, who can stop it?"

NoteThe KJV ends with "who shall let it?" In 1611 English, "let" meant to stop or hold back, the opposite of what it means today. The question means "who can stop it?"

14Thus saith the LORD, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.

14This is what the LORD says, the one who buys you back, the Holy One of Israel: "For your sake I sent an army to Babylon. I brought them all down as runaways, the people of Babylon who shout with pride in their ships."

15I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, your King.

15"I am the LORD, your Holy One, the maker of Israel, your King."

16Thus saith the LORD, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters;

16This is what the LORD says. He is the one who opens a road through the sea and a path through the rushing water.

17Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not rise: they are extinct, they are quenched as tow.

17He is the one who marches out chariots and horses, armies and strong soldiers. They lie down together and never get up. They are put out like a burning wick.

NoteThe KJV says they are "quenched as tow." Tow is the loose fiber used to make a lamp wick. The picture is a flame being snuffed out.

18Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

18"Do not keep thinking about what happened before. Do not dwell on things long past."

19Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

19"Look, I am doing something new. It is starting right now. Do you not see it? I will make a road through the empty land and rivers in the desert."

20The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen.

20"Wild animals will give me honor, even the jackals and the ostriches. This is because I put water in the empty land and rivers in the desert, so my chosen people can drink."

NoteThe KJV says "dragons and owls." The Hebrew words name real desert animals, most likely jackals and ostriches.

21This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.

21"I formed this people for myself, and they will tell others how good I am."

22But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob; but thou hast been weary of me, O Israel.

22"But you have not called on me, Jacob. You have grown tired of me, Israel."

23Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings; neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to serve with an offering, nor wearied thee with incense.

23"You have not brought me sheep for your burnt offerings. You have not honored me with your sacrifices. I did not load you down with offerings or wear you out asking for incense."

24Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices: but thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities.

24"You did not spend your silver to buy me sweet-smelling cane. You did not fill me with the fat of your sacrifices. Instead you loaded me down with your sins. You wore me out with the wrong you did."

25I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

25"I, I myself, am the one who wipes away the wrong you have done. I do this for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins."

26Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.

26"Remind me of what you have done. Let us argue the case together. Say your side, so you can be shown to be right."

27Thy first father hath sinned, and thy teachers have transgressed against me.

27"Your very first father sinned, and your teachers turned against me."

28Therefore I have profaned the princes of the sanctuary, and have given Jacob to the curse, and Israel to reproaches.

28"So I let the leaders of the holy place be shamed. I handed Jacob over to be destroyed, and Israel over to insults."