Isaiah 44

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE	NEW JERUSALEM
1 Hear then, O Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen.	1 And now listen, Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says the LORD who made you, your help, who formed you from the womb: Fear not, O Jacob, my servant, the darling whom I have chosen.	2 Thus says Yahweh who made you, who formed you in the womb; he will help you. Do not be afraid,Jacob my servant, Jeshurun whom I have chosen.
3 I will pour out water upon the thirsty ground, and streams upon the dry land; I will pour out my spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing upon your descendants.	3 For I shal pour out water on the thirsty soil and streams on the dry ground. I shal pour out my spirit onyour descendants, my blessing on your offspring,
4 They shall spring up amid the verdure like poplars beside the flowing waters.	4 and they wil spring up among the grass, like wil ows on the banks of a stream.
5 One shall say, "I am the LORD'S," another shall be named after Jacob, And this one shall write on his hand, "The LORD'S," and Israel shall be his surname.	5 One person wil say, 'I belong to Yahweh,' another wil cal himself by Jacob's name. On his handanother wil write 'Yahweh's' and be surnamed 'Israel'.
6 Thus says the LORD, Israel's King and redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; there is no God but me.	6 Thus says Yahweh, Israel's king, Yahweh Sabaoth, his redeemer: I am the first and I am the last; thereis no God except me.
7 Who is like me? Let him stand up and speak, make it evident, and confront me with it. Who of old announced future events? Let them foretell to us the things to come.	7 Who is like me? Let him cal out, let him affirm it and convince me it is so; let him say what has beenhappening since I instituted an eternal people, and predict to them what will happen next!
8 Fear not, be not troubled: did I not announce and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses! Is there a God or any Rock besides me?	8 Have no fear, do not be afraid: have I not told you and revealed it long ago? You are my witnesses. Isthere any God except me? There is no Rock; I know of none.
9 Idol makers all amount to nothing, and their precious works are of no avail, as they themselves give witness. To their shame, they neither see nor know anything; and they are more deaf than men are.	9 The makers of idols are all nothingness; the works they delight in serve no purpose. And these are thewitness against them: they see nothing, they know nothing; and so they wil be put to shame.
10 Indeed, all the associates of anyone who forms a god, or casts an idol to no purpose, will be put to shame;	10 Who ever fashioned a god or cast an image without hope of gain?
11 they will all assemble and stand forth, to be reduced to fear and shame.	11 Watch how al its devotees wil be put to shame, and the men who made it too, who are only human.Let them al assemble, let them stand forward and feel both fear and shame!
12 The smith fashions an iron image, works it over the coals, shapes it with hammers, and forges it with his strong arm. He is hungry and weak, drinks no water and becomes exhausted.	12 The blacksmith makes an axe over the charcoal, beats it into shape with a hammer, works on it withhis strong arm. Then he feels hungry and his strength deserts him; having drunk no water, he is exhausted.
13 The carpenter stretches a line and marks with a stylus the outline of an idol. He shapes it with a plane and measures it off with a compass, making it like a man in appearance and dignity, to occupy a shrine.	13 The wood carver takes his measurements, outlines the image with chalk, executes it with the chisel,fol owing the outline with a compass. He makes it look like a human being, with human standards of beauty, sothat it can reside in a house.
14 He cuts down cedars, takes a holm or an oak, and lays hold of other trees of the forest, which the Lord had planted and the rain made grow	14 He has cut down cedars, has selected an oak and a terebinth which he has grown for himself amongthe trees in the forest and has planted a pine tree which the rain has nourished.
15 to serve man for fuel. With a part of their wood he warms himself, or makes a fire for baking bread; but with another part he makes a god which he adores, an idol which he worships.	15 Once it is suitable to burn, he takes some of it to warm himself; having kindled it, he bakes bread. Buthe also makes a god and worships it; he makes an idol from it and bows down before it.
16 Half of it he burns in the fire, and on its embers he roasts his meat; he eats what he has roasted until he is full, and then warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm, I feel the fire."	16 Half of it he burns on the fire, over this half he roasts meat, eats it and is replete; at the same time hewarms himself and says, 'Ah, how warm I am, watching the flames!'
17 Of what remains he makes a god, his idol, and prostrate before it in worship, he implores it, "Rescue me, for you are my god."	17 With the remainder he makes a god, his idol, bows down before it, worships it and prays to it. 'Save me,' he says, 'for you are my god.'
18 The idols have neither knowledge nor reason; their eyes are coated so that they cannot see, and their hearts so that they cannot understand.	18 They know nothing, they understand nothing, since their eyes are incapable of seeing and their heartsof reflecting.
19 Yet he does not reflect, nor have the intelligence and sense to say, "Half of the wood I burned in the fire, and on its embers I baked bread and roasted meat which I ate. Shall I then make an abomination out of the rest, or worship a block of wood?"	19 Not one of them looks into his heart, not one of them has the knowledge and wit to think, 'I burned halfof it on the fire and cooked food over the embers. Am I right to make something disgusting out of what is left?Am I right to bow down before a block of wood?'
20 He is chasing ashes-a thing that cannot save itself when the flame consumes it; yet he does not say, "Is not this thing in my right hand a fraud?"	20 He hankers after ashes, his deluded heart has led him astray; he wil not save himself, he will notthink, 'What I have in my hand is nothing but a lie!'
21 Remember this, O Jacob, you, O Israel, who are my servant! I formed you to be a servant to me; O Israel, by me you shall never be forgotten:	21 Remember these things, Jacob, and Israel, since you are my servant. I formed you, you are myservant; Israel, I shall not forget you.
22 I have brushed away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like a mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you.	22 I have dispel ed your acts of revolt like a cloud and your sins like a mist. Come back to me, for I haveredeemed you.
23 Raise a glad cry, you heavens: the LORD has done this; shout, you depths of the earth. Break forth, you mountains, into song, you forest, with all your trees. For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and shows his glory through Israel.	23 Heavens, shout for joy, for Yahweh has acted! Underworld, shout aloud! Shout for joy, you mountains,forests and al your trees! For Yahweh has redeemed Jacob and displayed his glory in Israel.
24 Thus says the LORD, your redeemer, who formed you from the womb: I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens; when I spread out the earth, who was with me?	24 Thus says Yahweh, your redeemer, he who formed you in the womb: I, Yahweh, have made althings, I alone spread out the heavens. When I hammered the earth into shape, who was with me?
25 It is I who bring to nought the omens of liars, who make fools of diviners; I turn wise men back and make their knowledge foolish.	25 I, who foil the omens of soothsayers and make fools of diviners, who confound sages turning theirknowledge into folly,
26 It is I who confirm the words of my servants, I carry out the plan announced by my messengers; I say to Jerusalem: Be inhabited; to the cities of Judah: Be rebuilt; I will raise up their ruins.	26 who confirm the word of my servant and make the plans of my envoys succeed; who say toJerusalem, 'You wil be inhabited,' and to the towns of Judah, 'You wil be rebuilt and I shall restore the ruins ofJerusalem';
27 It is I who said to the deep: Be dry; I will dry up your wellsprings.	27 who say to the ocean, 'Dry up! I shal make your rivers run dry';
28 I say of Cyrus: My shepherd, who fulfills my every wish; He shall say of Jerusalem, "Let her be rebuilt," and of the temple, "Let its foundations be laid."	28 who say to Cyrus, 'My shepherd.' He wil perform my entire wil by saying to Jerusalem, 'You wil berebuilt,' and to the Temple, 'You wil be refounded.'