No God Besides Yahweh
“But now hear, O Jacob, My aservant,
And Israel, whom I have chosen:
2 Thus says Yahweh who made you
And aformed you from the womb, who bwill help you,
‘cDo not fear, O Jacob My servant,
And you dJeshurun whom I have chosen.
3 For aI will pour out water on the thirsty ground
And streams on the dry land;
I will bpour out My Spirit on your cseed
And My blessing on your offspring;
4 And they will spring up among the grass
Like apoplars by streams of water.’
5 This one will say, ‘I am Yahweh’s’;
And this one will call on the name of Jacob;
And this one will awrite on his hand, ‘Belonging to Yahweh,’
And will name Israel’s name with honor.
6 “Thus says Yahweh, the aKing of Israel and his bRedeemer, Yahweh of hosts:
‘I am the cfirst, and I am the last,
And there is no God dbesides Me.
7 Who is like Me? aLet him call out and declare it;
And let him tell it to Me in order,
From the time that I established the ancient people.
And let them declare to them the things that are to come
And the events that are going to take place.
8 Do not be in dread and do not be afraid;
aHave I not long since caused it to be heard to you and declared it?
And byou are My witnesses.
Is there any God cbesides Me,
Or is there any other dRock?
I know of none.’”
The Futility of Idolatry
9 Those who form a graven image are all of them futile, and their desirable things are of no profit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be aput to shame. 10 Who has formed a god or cast a graven image to ano profit? 11 Behold, all his companions will be aput to shame. The craftsmen themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up, let them be in dread, let them together be put to shame.
12 The aman crafts iron into a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, forming it with hammers and working it with his powerful arm. He also gets hungry and has no power; he drinks no water and becomes weary. 13 aAnother crafts wood, he extends a measuring line; he outlines it with a stylus. He makes it with planes and outlines it with a compass and makes it like the form of a man, like the glory of bman, so that it may sit in a chouse. 14 In order to cut cedars for himself, he takes a cypress or an oak and raises it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the rain makes it grow. 15 Then it becomes something for a man to burn, so he takes one of them and warms himself; he also kindles a fire to bake bread. He also aworks to produce a god and worships it; he makes it a graven image and bfalls down before it. 16 Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat as he roasts a roast and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm; I have seen the fire.” 17 But the rest of it he amakes into a god, his graven image. He falls down before it and worships; he also bprays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god.”
18 They do not aknow, nor do they understand, for He has bsmeared over their eyes so that they cannot see and their hearts so that they will have no insight. 19 No one causes this to return to his heart, nor is there aknowledge or understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I roast meat and eat it. Then I make the rest of it into an babomination; I fall down before a block of wood!” 20 He afeeds on ashes; a bdeceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot deliver his soul, and he cannot say, “cIs there not a lie in my right hand?”
Yahweh Forgives and Redeems
21 “aRemember these things, O Jacob,
And Israel, for you are bMy servant;
I have formed you, you are My servant;
O Israel, you will cnot be forgotten by Me.
22 I have awiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud
And your sins like a cloud.
bReturn to Me, for I have credeemed you.”
23 aShout for joy, O heavens, for Yahweh has done it!
Make a loud shout, you lower parts of the earth;
bBreak forth into a shout of joy, you mountains,
O forest, and every tree in it;
For cYahweh has redeemed Jacob
And in Israel He dshows forth His beautiful glory.
24 Thus says Yahweh, your aRedeemer, and the one who bformed you from the womb,
“I, Yahweh, am the maker of all things,
cStretching out the heavens by Myself
And spreading out the earth all alone,
25 aCausing the omens of boasters to be annulled,
And making fools out of diviners,
bCausing wise men to turn back,
And making foolishness out of their knowledge,
26 aConfirming the word of His servant—
And the counsel of His messengers He will complete—
And being the One who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited!’
And of the bcities of Judah, ‘cThey shall be built.’
And I will raise up her waste places again.
27 It is I who says to the depth of the sea, ‘Be dried up!’
And I will make your rivers adry.
28 It is I who says of aCyrus, ‘He is My shepherd!
And all My good pleasure he will complete.’
And saying of Jerusalem, ‘bShe will be built,’
And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’”