Isaiah 45

¹The Lord says this to Cyrus, his anointed, ^a

whose right hand I have grasped ^b

to subdue nations before him

and disarm ^c kings, ^d

to open doors before him,

and even city gates will not be shut:

²“I will go before you

and level the uneven places; ^e,^f

I will shatter the bronze doors

and cut the iron bars in two. ^g

³I will give you the treasures of darkness

and riches from secret places, ^h

so that you may know that I am the Lord.

I am the God of Israel, who calls you by your name. ⁱ

⁴I call you by your name,

for the sake of my servant Jacob ^j

and Israel my chosen one.

I give a name to you,

though you do not know me.

⁵I am the Lord, and there is no other; ^k

there is no God but me. ^l

I will strengthen ^m you,

though you do not know me,

⁶so that all may know from the rising of the sun to its setting

that there is no one but me. ⁿ

I am the Lord, and there is no other.

⁷I form light and create darkness, ^o

I make success and create disaster; ^p

I am the Lord, who does all these things.

⁸“Heavens, sprinkle from above,

and let the skies shower righteousness. ^q

Let the earth open up

so that salvation will sprout

and righteousness will spring up with it. ^r

I, the Lord, have created it.

⁹“Woe to the one who argues with his Maker —

one clay pot among many. ^s

Does clay say to the one forming it,

‘What are you making? ’ ^t

Or does your work say,

‘He has no hands’? ^u

¹⁰Woe to the one who says to his father,

‘What are you fathering? ’

or to his mother, ^v

‘What are you giving birth to? ’ ”

¹¹This is what the Lord,

the Holy One of Israel ^w and its Maker, says:

“Ask me what is to happen to ^x my sons, ^y

and instruct me about the work of my hands. ^z

¹²I made the earth,

and created humans on it.

It was my hands that stretched out the heavens, ^aa

and I commanded everything in them.

¹³I have stirred him up in righteousness, ^ab

and will level all roads for him.

He will rebuild my city, ^ac

and set my exiles free, ^ad

not for a price or a bribe,”

says the Lord of Armies.

God Alone Is the Savior

¹⁴This is what the Lord says:

“The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush

and the Sabeans, men of stature, ^ae

will come over to you ^af

and will be yours;

they will follow you,

they will come over in chains

and bow down to you.

They will confess ^ag to you,

‘God is indeed with you, ^ah and there is no other;

there is no other God.’ ”

¹⁵Yes, you are a God who hides, ^ai

God of Israel, Savior. ^aj

¹⁶All of them are put to shame, even humiliated; ^ak

the makers of idols go in humiliation together.

¹⁷Israel will be saved by the Lord

with an everlasting salvation;

you will not be put to shame or humiliated

for all eternity. ^al

¹⁸For this is what the Lord says —

the Creator of the heavens,

the God who formed the earth and made it,

the one who established it

(he did not create it to be a wasteland,

but formed it to be inhabited) ^am —

he says, “I am the Lord,

and there is no other.

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret, ^an

somewhere in a land of darkness.

I did not say to the descendants of Jacob:

Seek me in a wasteland. ^ao

I am the Lord, who speaks righteously, ^ap

who declares what is right.

²⁰“Come, gather together,

and approach, you fugitives of the nations.

Those who carry their wooden idols

and pray to a god who cannot save ^aq

have no knowledge. ^ar

²¹Speak up and present your case ^as,^at —

yes, let them consult each other.

Who predicted this long ago?

Who announced it from ancient times?

Was it not I, the Lord?

There is no other God but me,

a righteous God and Savior; ^au

there is no one except me. ^av

²²Turn to me and be saved,

all the ends of the earth.

For I am God,

and there is no other.

²³By myself I have sworn; ^aw

truth has gone from my mouth, ^ax

a word that will not be revoked:

Every knee will bow ^ay to me,

every tongue will swear allegiance.

²⁴It will be said about me, ‘Righteousness and strength

are found only in the Lord.’ ”

All who are enraged against him

will come to him and be put to shame. ^az

²⁵All the descendants of Israel

will be justified and boast in the Lord.