Isaiah 41

Fear Not, For I Am with You

1 n Listen to me in silence,
o O coastlands;
let the peoples renew their strength;
let them approach, then let them speak;
let us together draw near for judgment.

2 p Who stirred up one from the east
whom victory meets at every q step? 1
r He gives up nations before him,
so that he tramples kings underfoot;
he makes them like dust with his sword,
s like driven stubble with his bow.
 3 He pursues them and passes on safely,
by paths his feet have not trod.
 4 t Who has performed and done this,
calling the generations from the beginning?
u I, the Lord, the first,
and with the last; I am he.

5 v The coastlands have seen and are afraid;
the ends of the earth tremble;
they have drawn near and come.
 6 Everyone helps his neighbor
and says to his brother, "Be strong!"
 7 w The craftsman strengthens the goldsmith,
and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, "It is good";
and they strengthen it with nails x so that it cannot be moved.

8 But you, Israel, y my servant,
Jacob, z whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, a my friend;
 9 you whom I took from the ends of the earth,
and called b from its farthest corners,
saying to you, "You are y my servant,
z I have chosen you and not cast you off";
 10 fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with c my righteous right hand.

11 d Behold, all who are incensed against you
shall be put to shame and confounded;
those who strive against you
shall be as nothing and shall perish.
 12 e You shall seek those who contend with you,
but you shall not find them;
f those who war against you
shall be as nothing at all.
 13 For I, the Lord your God,
hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, "Fear not,
I am the one who helps you."

14 Fear not, you g worm Jacob,
you men of Israel!
I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord;
your h Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
 15 i Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge,
new, sharp, and having teeth;
you shall thresh j the mountains and crush them,
and you shall make the hills like chaff;
 16 k you shall winnow them, and l the wind shall carry them away,
and the tempest shall scatter them.
m And you shall rejoice in the Lord;
in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.

17 n When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them;
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
 18 o I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys.
p I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.
 19 q I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive.
I will set in the desert r the cypress,
the plane and the pine together,
 20 that they may see and know,
may consider and understand together,
that s the hand of the Lord has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.

The Futility of Idols

21 Set forth your case, says the Lord;
bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.
 22 Let them bring them, and t tell us
what is to happen.
Tell us the former things, what they are,
that we may consider them,
that we may know their outcome;
or declare to us the things to come.
 23 t Tell us what is to come hereafter,
that we may know that you are gods;
u do good, or do harm,
that we may be dismayed and terrified. 2
24 Behold, v you are nothing,
and your work is less than nothing;
an abomination is he who chooses you.

25 w I stirred up one from the north, and he has come,
x from the rising of the sun, y and he shall call upon my name;
he shall trample on rulers as on mortar,
as the potter treads clay.
 26 z Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know,
and beforehand, that we might say, "He is right"?
There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed,
none who heard your words.
 27 a I was the first to say 3 to Zion, "Behold, here they are!"
and b I give to Jerusalem a herald of good news.
 28 c But when I look, there is no one;
among these there is no counselor
who, when I ask, gives an answer.
 29 d Behold, they are all a delusion;
their works are nothing;
their metal images are empty wind.

  1. Cross References
    Habakkuk 2:20
    But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.
    Zechariah 2:13
    Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.
  2. Cross References
    Isaiah 11:11
    In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
  3. Cross References
    Isaiah 46:11
    Calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.
    Isaiah 45:1
    Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed:
  4. Cross References
    Judges 4:10
    And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him.
  5. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 36:23
    "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 'The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the Lord his God be with him. Let him go up.'"
  6. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:24
    Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
  7. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:26
    Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know, and beforehand, that we might say, "He is right"? There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed, none who heard your words.
  8. Cross References
    Isaiah 43:10 - 11
    You are my witnesses," declares the Lord, "and ...
    Isaiah 44:6
    Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his ...
    Isaiah 48:12
    Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I calle...
    Revelation 1:8
    "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord G...
    Revelation 1:17
    When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though de...
    Revelation 22:13
    I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the...
  9. Cross References
    Isaiah 11:11
    In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
  10. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:19
    An idol! A craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains.
  11. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:20
    He who is too impoverished for an offering chooses wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skillful craftsman to set up an idol that will not move.
  12. Cross References
    Isaiah 44:1 - 2
    But now hear, O Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen!
  13. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 7:6
    For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
    Deuteronomy 10:15
    Yet the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day.
    Deuteronomy 14:2
    For you are a people holy to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
    Psalms 135:4
    For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his own possession.
    1 Peter 2:9
    But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
  14. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 20:7
    Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend?
    James 2:23
    And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness" - and he was called a friend of God.
  15. Cross References
    Isaiah 43:5 - 6
    Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you.
  16. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:8
    But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend.
  17. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:8
    But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend.
  18. Cross References
    Psalms 48:10
    As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is filled with righteousness.
  19. Cross References
    Isaiah 45:24
    Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength; to him shall come and be ashamed all who were incensed against him.
  20. Cross References
    Psalms 37:10
    In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
  21. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:17
    All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.
  22. Cross References
    Psalms 22:6
    But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
  23. Cross References
    Isaiah 54:5
    For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.
    Psalms 78:35
    They remembered that God was their rock, the Most High God their redeemer.
    Isaiah 43:14
    Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "For your sake I send to Babylon and bring them all down as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships in which they rejoice.
  24. Cross References
    Micah 4:13
    Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze; you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote their gain to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.
  25. Cross References
    Isaiah 2:14
    Against all the lofty mountains, and against all the uplifted hills.
  26. Cross References
    Jeremiah 51:2
    And I will send to Babylon winnowers, and they shall winnow her, and they shall empty her land, when they come against her from every side on the day of trouble.
  27. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:2
    Who stirred up one from the east whom victory meets at every step? He gives up nations before him, so that he tramples kings underfoot; he makes them like dust with his sword, like driven stubble with his bow.
  28. Cross References
    Isaiah 45:25
    In the Lord all the offspring of Israel shall be justified and shall glory.
  29. Cross References
    Isaiah 44:3
    For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
  30. Cross References
    Isaiah 35:6 - 7
    Then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.
  31. Cross References
    Psalms 107:35
    He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water.
  32. Cross References
    Isaiah 35:1 - 2
    The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus.
    Isaiah 55:12 - 13
    For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
  33. Cross References
    Isaiah 60:13
    The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, the cypress, the plane, and the pine, to beautify the place of my sanctuary, and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
  34. Cross References
    Job 12:9
    Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?
  35. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:26
    Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know, and beforehand, that we might say, "He is right"? There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed, none who heard your words.
    Isaiah 44:7
    Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen.
    Isaiah 45:21
    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 God and a Savior; there is none besides me.
    Isaiah 46:10
    Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.
  36. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:22
    Let them bring them, and tell us what is to happen. Tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, that we may know their outcome; or declare to us the things to come.
  37. Cross References
    Isaiah 45:7
    I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things.
  38. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:29
    Behold, they are all a delusion; their works are nothing; their metal images are empty wind.
    Psalms 115:8
    Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.
    1 Corinthians 8:4
    Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that "an idol has no real existence," and that "there is no God but one.
  39. Cross References
    Jeremiah 50:3
    For out of the north a nation has come up against her, which shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; both man and beast shall flee away.
  40. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:2
    Who stirred up one from the east whom victory meets at every step? He gives up nations before him, so that he tramples kings underfoot; he makes them like dust with his sword, like driven stubble with his bow.
  41. Cross References
    Psalms 44:5
    Through you we push down our foes; through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.
  42. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:22
    Let them bring them, and tell us what is to happen. Tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, that we may know their outcome; or declare to us the things to come.
  43. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:12
    I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass.
  44. Cross References
    Isaiah 40:9
    Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!
    Isaiah 52:7
    How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns.
  45. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:21 - 24
    Set forth your case, says the Lord ; bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.
  46. Cross References
    Isaiah 41:12
    You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war against you shall be as nothing at all.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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