Envoys From Babylon

39:1–8pp—2Ki 20:12–19

39 At that time Marduk-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylonj sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because he had heard of his illness and recovery. 2 Hezekiah received the envoysk gladly and showed them what was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold,l the spices, the fine olive oil—his entire armory and everything found among his treasures.m There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them.

3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, “What did those men say, and where did they come from?”

“From a distant land,n” Hezekiah replied. “They came to me from Babylon.”

4 The prophet asked, “What did they see in your palace?”

“They saw everything in my palace,” Hezekiah said. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.”

5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the wordo of the Lord Almighty: 6 The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon.p Nothing will be left, says the Lord. 7 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.q”

8 “The word of the Lord you have spoken is good,r” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “There will be peace and security in my lifetime.s”

Comfort for God’s People

40 Comfort, comfortt my people,

says your God.

2 Speak tenderlyu to Jerusalem,

and proclaim to her

that her hard servicev has been completed,w

that her sin has been paid for,x

that she has received from the Lord’s hand

doubley for all her sins.

3 A voice of one calling:

“In the wilderness prepare

the wayz for the Lorda;

make straighta in the desert

a highway for our God.b b

4 Every valley shall be raised up,c

every mountain and hilld made low;

the rough ground shall become level,e

the rugged places a plain.

5 And the gloryf of the Lord will be revealed,

and all people will see it together.g

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”h

6 A voice says, “Cry out.”

And I said, “What shall I cry?”

“All people are like grass,i

and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.

7 The grass withersj and the flowers fall,

because the breathk of the Lord blowsl on them.

Surely the people are grass.

8 The grass withers and the flowersm fall,

but the wordn of our God endureso forever.p”

9 You who bring good newsq to Zion,

go up on a high mountain.

You who bring good news to Jerusalem,c r

lift up your voice with a shout,

lift it up, do not be afraid;

say to the towns of Judah,

“Here is your God!”s

10 See, the Sovereign Lord comest with power,u

and he rulesv with a mighty arm.w

See, his rewardx is with him,

and his recompense accompanies him.

11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:y

He gathers the lambs in his armsz

and carries them close to his heart;a

he gently leadsb those that have young.c

12 Who has measured the watersd in the hollow of his hand,e

or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?f

Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,

or weighed the mountains on the scales

and the hills in a balance?g

13 Who can fathom the Spiritd h of the Lord,

or instruct the Lord as his counselor?i

14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,

and who taught him the right way?

Who was it that taught him knowledge,j

or showed him the path of understanding?k

15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;

they are regarded as dust on the scales;l

he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.m

16 Lebanonn is not sufficient for altar fires,

nor its animalso enough for burnt offerings.

17 Before him all the nationsp are as nothing;q

they are regarded by him as worthless

and less than nothing.r

18 With whom, then, will you compare God?s

To what imaget will you liken him?

19 As for an idol,u a metalworker casts it,

and a goldsmithv overlays it with goldw

and fashions silver chains for it.

20 A person too poor to present such an offering

selects woodx that will not rot;

they look for a skilled worker

to set up an idoly that will not topple.z

21 Do you not know?

Have you not heard?a

Has it not been toldb you from the beginning?c

Have you not understoodd since the earth was founded?e

22 He sits enthronedf above the circle of the earth,

and its people are like grasshoppers.g

He stretches out the heavensh like a canopy,i

and spreads them out like a tentj to live in.k

23 He brings princesl to naught

and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.m

24 No sooner are they planted,

no sooner are they sown,

no sooner do they take rootn in the ground,

than he blowso on them and they wither,p

and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.q

25 “To whom will you compare me?r

Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.s

26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:t

Who createdu all these?

He who brings out the starry hostv one by one

and calls forth each of them by name.

Because of his great power and mighty strength,w

not one of them is missing.x

27 Why do you complain, Jacob?

Why do you say, Israel,

“My way is hidden from the Lord;

my cause is disregarded by my God”?y

28 Do you not know?

Have you not heard?z

The Lord is the everlastinga God,

the Creatorb of the ends of the earth.c

He will not grow tired or weary,d

and his understanding no one can fathom.e

29 He gives strengthf to the wearyg

and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,

and young menh stumble and fall;i

31 but those who hopej in the Lord

will renew their strength.k

They will soar on wings like eagles;l

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.m

The Helper of Israel

41 “Be silentn before me, you islands!o

Let the nations renew their strength!p

Let them come forwardq and speak;

let us meet togetherr at the place of judgment.

2 “Who has stirreds up one from the east,t

calling him in righteousnessu to his servicea?v

He hands nations over to him

and subdues kings before him.

He turns them to dustw with his sword,

to windblown chaffx with his bow.y

3 He pursues them and moves on unscathed,z

by a path his feet have not traveled before.

4 Who has done this and carried it through,

callinga forth the generations from the beginning?b

I, the Lord—with the first of them

and with the lastc—I am he.d”

5 The islandse have seen it and fear;

the ends of the earthf tremble.

They approach and come forward;

6 they help each other

and say to their companions, “Be strong!g”

7 The metalworkerh encourages the goldsmith,i

and the one who smooths with the hammer

spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.

One says of the welding, “It is good.”

The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.j

8 “But you, Israel, my servant,k

Jacob, whom I have chosen,l

you descendants of Abrahamm my friend,n

9 I took you from the ends of the earth,o

from its farthest corners I calledp you.

I said, ‘You are my servant’;q

I have chosenr you and have not rejected you.

10 So do not fear,s for I am with you;t

do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthenu you and helpv you;

I will uphold youw with my righteous right hand.x

11 “All who ragey against you

will surely be ashamed and disgraced;z

those who opposea you

will be as nothing and perish.b

12 Though you search for your enemies,

you will not find them.c

Those who wage war against you

will be as nothingd at all.

13 For I am the Lord your God

who takes hold of your right hande

and says to you, Do not fear;

I will helpf you.

14 Do not be afraid,g you wormh Jacob,

little Israel, do not fear,

for I myself will helpi you,” declares the Lord,

your Redeemer,j the Holy Onek of Israel.

15 “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,l

new and sharp, with many teeth.

You will thresh the mountainsm and crush them,

and reduce the hills to chaff.n

16 You will winnowo them, the wind will pick them up,

and a galep will blow them away.q

But you will rejoicer in the Lord

and glorys in the Holy Onet of Israel.

17 “The poor and needy search for water,u

but there is none;

their tongues are parched with thirst.v

But I the Lord will answerw them;

I, the God of Israel, will not forsakex them.

18 I will make rivers flowy on barren heights,

and springs within the valleys.

I will turn the desertz into pools of water,a

and the parched ground into springs.b

19 I will put in the desertc

the cedar and the acacia,d the myrtle and the olive.

I will set juniperse in the wasteland,

the fir and the cypressf together,g

20 so that people may see and know,h

may consider and understand,i

that the handj of the Lord has done this,

that the Holy Onek of Israel has createdl it.

21 “Present your case,m” says the Lord.

“Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.n

22 “Tell us, you idols,

what is going to happen.o

Tell us what the former thingsp were,

so that we may consider them

and know their final outcome.

Or declare to us the things to come,q

23 tell us what the future holds,

so we may knowr that you are gods.

Do something, whether good or bad,s

so that we will be dismayedt and filled with fear.

24 But you are less than nothingu

and your works are utterly worthless;v

whoever chooses you is detestable.w

25 “I have stirredx up one from the north,y and he comes—

one from the rising sun who calls on my name.

He treadsz on rulers as if they were mortar,

as if he were a potter treading the clay.

26 Who told of this from the beginning,a so we could know,

or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?

No one told of this,

no one foretoldb it,

no one heard any wordsc from you.

27 I was the first to telld Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’

I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.e

28 I look but there is no onef—

no one among the gods to give counsel,g

no one to give answerh when I ask them.

29 See, they are all false!

Their deeds amount to nothing;i

their imagesj are but windk and confusion.