Isaiah 43
What Happens in This Chapter
The LORD speaks to Jacob and Israel as the God who made them and bought them back. He promises to be with them in danger and to gather his sons and daughters from every direction. He calls them his witnesses that he alone is God and the only one who saves, and he announces something new: a road through the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Then he says they have not brought him offerings but have loaded him with their sins; he wipes out those sins for his own sake, and he names the wrong done by their first father and their teachers.
Plain reading written for kids. Short sentences, everyday words, one idea at a time.
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.
1The LORD made you, Jacob. He shaped you, Israel. Now he says this: Do not be afraid. I bought you back and set you free. I called you by your name. You belong to me.
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.
2When you go through deep water, I will be with you. The rivers will not sweep you away. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned. The flames will not hurt you.
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.
3I am the LORD your God. I am the Holy One of Israel, the one who saves you. I gave Egypt as the payment 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.
4You are precious to me. I treat you with honor. I love you. So I will give other people in exchange for you. I will give whole nations to keep you alive.
5Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
5Do not be afraid. I am with you. I will bring your children back from the east. I will 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;
6I will tell the north, 'Give them back!' I will tell the south, 'Do not hold them!' Bring my sons from far away. Bring my daughters from the far 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.
7Bring every person who is called by my name. I made them to show how great I am. I shaped them. I made them myself.
8Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears.
8Bring out the people who have eyes but cannot see. Bring the people 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 come together. Let all the people meet in one place. Who among them can tell what is coming? Who can tell us what happened long ago? Let them bring people to speak for them. Then others may listen 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.
10The LORD says, "You are my witnesses. You saw what I did. My servant is the one I chose. I want you to know me and trust me. I want you to understand that I am God. No god was made before me. No god will come after me."
11I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.
11I am the LORD, and only I am the LORD. There is no one else who saves.
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.
12I told you what would happen. I saved you. I made it known to you. No god from another land was with you. 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?
13I have been God since before there were days. No one can pull anything out of my hand. When I do something, no one can stop it.
The KJV ends this verse with "who shall let it?" In 1611, "let" meant stop or hold back. It is the opposite of what "let" means today.
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.
14The LORD who buys you back says this. He is the Holy One of Israel. "For your sake I am sending an army to Babylon. I will bring all its important men down. The Chaldeans, the people of Babylon, will run away in the ships they were proud of."
15I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, your King.
15I am the LORD, your Holy One. I made Israel. I am 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 makes a road right through the sea. He makes a path through deep, 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 brings out chariots and horses, armies and strong soldiers. They lie down and never get up again. They are put out like the flame on a candle wick.
18Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.
18Do not keep thinking about the things that happened before. Do not hold on to what is 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.
19Look! I am doing something new. It is starting right now. Can you not see it? I will make a road through the empty land. I will make rivers in the dry 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.
20The wild animals will give me honor. So will the jackals and the ostriches. I give water in the empty land. I make rivers in the desert. My chosen people will have water to drink.
The KJV says "dragons and owls." Those old words stand for wild desert animals: jackals and ostriches.
21This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.
21I made this people for myself. 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.
22But you have not called out to 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.
23You have not brought me sheep to burn as gifts. You have not honored me with your offerings. I did not make offerings a heavy load for you. I did not tire you out asking for incense, the sweet smoke burned as a gift.
"Small cattle" in the KJV means sheep and goats, not cows.
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.
24You did not buy me sweet cane with your silver. Sweet cane is a plant with a good smell. You did not fill me with the fat of your offerings. Instead you loaded me down with your sins. You wore me out with the wrong things you did.
25I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
25I am the one who wipes away the wrong things you did. I do this because of who I am. I will not remember your sins.
26Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.
26Remind me of anything you have done right. Let us argue it out together. Tell your side, so you can show you are right.
"Let us plead together" means let us argue the case, the way people do in a court. It does not mean begging.
27Thy first father hath sinned, and thy teachers have transgressed against me.
27Your very first father did wrong. 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.
28So I took the honor away from the leaders of my holy house. I handed Jacob over to be destroyed. I let Israel be shamed.
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