Isaiah 43

¹But now, says the Lord your Maker, O Jacob, and your life-giver, O Israel: have no fear, for I have taken up your cause; naming you by your name, I have made you mine.

²When you go through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not go over you: when you go through the fire, you will not be burned; and the flame will have no power over you.

³For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your saviour; I have given Egypt as a price for you, Ethiopia and Seba for you.

⁴Because of your value in my eyes, you have been honoured, and loved by me; so I will give men for you, and peoples for your life.

⁵Have no fear, for I am with you: I will take your seed from the east, and get you together from the west;

⁶I will say to the north, Give them up; and to the south, Do not keep them back; send back my sons from far, and my daughters from the end of the earth;

⁷Every one who is named by my name, and whom I have made for my glory, who has been formed and designed by me.

⁸Send out the blind people who have eyes, and those who have ears, but they are shut.

⁹Let all the nations come together, and let the peoples be present: who among them is able to make this clear, and give us word of earlier things? let their witnesses come forward, so that they may be seen to be true, and that they may give ear, and say, It is true.

¹⁰You are my witnesses, says the Lord, and my servant whom I have taken for myself: so that you may see and have faith in me, and that it may be clear to you that I am he; before me there was no God formed, and there will not be after me.

¹¹I, even I, am the Lord; and there is no saviour but me.

¹²I gave the word, and made it clear, and there was no strange god among you: for this reason you are my witnesses, says the Lord.

¹³From time long past I am God, and from this day I am he: there is no one who is able to take you out of my hand: when I undertake a thing, by whom will my purpose be changed?

¹⁴The Lord, who has taken up your cause, the Holy One of Israel, says, Because of you I have sent to Babylon, and made all their seers come south, and the Chaldaeans whose cry is in the ships.

¹⁵I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Maker of Israel, your King.

¹⁶This is the word of the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, and a road through the deep waters;

¹⁷Who sends out the war-carriages and the horses, the army with all its force; they have come down, they will not get up again; like a feebly burning light they are put out.

¹⁸Give no thought to the things which are past; let the early times go out of your minds.

¹⁹See, I am doing a new thing; now it is starting; will you not take note of it? I will even make a way in the waste land, and rivers in the dry country.

²⁰The beasts of the field will give me honour, the jackals and the ostriches: because I send out waters in the waste land, and rivers in the dry country, to give drink to the people whom I have taken for myself:

²¹Even the people whom I made to be the witnesses of my praise.

²²But you have made no prayer to me, O Jacob: and you have given no thought to me, O Israel.

²³You have not made me burned offerings of sheep, or given me honour with your offerings of beasts; I did not make you servants to give me an offering, and I did not make you tired with requests for perfumes.

²⁴You have not got me sweet-smelling plants with your money, or given me pleasure with the fat of your offerings: but you have made me a servant to your sins, and you have made me tired with your evil doings.

²⁵I, even I, am he who takes away your sins; and I will no longer keep your evil doings in mind.

²⁶Put me in mind of this; let us take up the cause between us: put forward your cause, so that you may be seen to be in the right.

²⁷Your first father was a sinner, and your guides have gone against my word.

²⁸Your chiefs have made my holy place unclean, so I have made Jacob a curse, and Israel a thing of shame.

Isaiah 43

¹But 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.

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.

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.

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.

⁵Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee 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;

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.

⁸Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears.

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.

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.

¹¹I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no saviour.

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.

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?

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.

¹⁵I am the Lord, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, your King.

¹⁶Thus saith the Lord, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters;

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.

¹⁸Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

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.

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.

²¹This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.

²²But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob; but thou hast been weary of me, O 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.

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.

²⁵I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

²⁶Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.

²⁷Thy first father hath sinned, and thy teachers have transgressed against me.

²⁸Therefore I have profaned the princes of the sanctuary, and have given Jacob to the curse, and Israel to reproaches.