Isaiah 41

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Coasts and islands, fal silent before me, and let the peoples renew their strength, let them comeforward and speak; let us assemble for judgement.	1 Let the islands be silent before me, and let the nations take new strength. Let them draw near, and then speak. Let us apply for judgment together.
2 'Who has raised from the east him whom saving justice summons in its train, him to whom Yahwehdelivers up the nations and subjects kings, him who reduces them to dust with his sword, and to driven stubblewith his bow,	2 Who has raised up a just man from the east, and has called him to follow him? He will place the nations under his gaze, and he will rule over kings. He will cause them to be like dust before his sword, like chaff driven by the wind before his bow.
3 him who pursues them and advances unhindered, his feet scarcely touching the road?	3 He will pursue them. He will pass by in peace. No trace will appear after his feet.
4 Who has acted thus, who has done this? He who cal s each generation from the beginning: I, Yahweh,who am the first and til the last I shal still be there.'	4 Who has worked and accomplished these things, calling to the generations from the beginning? “It is I, the Lord! I am the first and the last.”
5 The coasts and islands have seen and taken fright, the remotest parts of earth are trembling: they areapproaching, they are here!	5 The islands saw it and were afraid. The ends of the earth were stupefied. They drew near and arrived.
6 People help one another, they say to each other, 'Take heart!'	6 Each one will help his neighbor and will say to his brother, “Be strengthened.”
7 The woodworker encourages the smelter, the polisher encourages the hammerer, saying of thesoldering, 'It is sound'; and he fastens it with nails to keep it steady.	7 The coppersmith striking with the mallet encouraged him who was forging at that time, saying, “It is ready for soldering.” And he strengthened it with nails, so that it would not be moved.
8 But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham my friend,	8 But you, O Israel, are my servant, O Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of my friend Abraham.
9 whom I have taken to myself, from the remotest parts of the earth and summoned from countries faraway, to whom I have said, 'You are my servant, I have chosen you, I have not rejected you,'	9 For his sake, I have taken you from the ends of the earth, and I have called you from its distant places. And I said to you: “You are my servant. I have chosen you, and I have not cast you aside.”
10 do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be alarmed, for I am your God. I give you strength, truly Ihelp you, truly I hold you firm with my saving right hand.	10 Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not turn away, for I am your God. I have strengthened you, and I have assisted you, and the right hand of my just one has upheld you.
11 Look, al those who rage against you wil be put to shame and humiliated; those who picked quarrelswith you will be reduced to nothing and wil perish.	11 Behold, all who fight against you shall be confounded and ashamed. They will be as if they did not exist, and the men who contradict you will perish.
12 You wil look for them but wil not find them, those who used to fight you; they wil be destroyed andbrought to nothing, those who made war on you.	12 You will seek them, and you will not find them. The men who rebel against you will be as if they did not exist. And the men who make war against you will be like something that has been consumed.
13 For I, Yahweh, your God, I grasp you by your right hand; I tel you, 'Do not be afraid, I shal help you.'	13 For I am the Lord your God. I take you by your hand, and I say to you: Do not be afraid. I have helped you.
14 Do not be afraid, Jacob, you worm! You little handful of Israel! I shall help you, declares Yahweh; yourredeemer is the Holy One of Israel.	14 Fear not, O worm of Jacob, you who are dead within Israel. I have helped you, says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 Look, I am making you into a threshing-sledge, new, with double teeth; you wil thresh and beat themountains to dust and reduce the hills to straw.	15 I have established you like a new threshing cart, having serrated blades. You will thresh the mountains and crush them. And you will turn the hills into chaff.
16 You wil winnow them and the wind wil carry them off, the gale will scatter them; whereas you wilrejoice in Yahweh, will glory in the Holy One of Israel.	16 You will winnow them, and the wind will blow them away, and the whirlwind will scatter them. And you shall exult in the Lord; you shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
17 The oppressed and needy search for water, and there is none, their tongue is parched with thirst. I,Yahweh, shal answer them, I, the God of Israel, shal not abandon them.	17 The indigent and the poor are seeking water, but there is none. Their tongue has been dried up by thirst. I, the Lord, will heed them. I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.
18 I shal open up rivers on barren heights and water-holes down in the ravines; I shall turn the desertinto a lake and dry ground into springs of water.	18 I will open rivers in the high hills, and fountains in the midst of the plains. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the impassable land into streams of water.
19 I shal plant the desert with cedar trees, acacias, myrtles and olives; in the wastelands I shal putcypress trees, plane trees and box trees side by side;	19 I will plant the cedar in a deserted place, with the thorn, and the myrtle, and the olive tree. In the desert, I will plant the pine, and the elm, and the box tree together,
20 so that people may see and know, so that they may all observe and understand that the hand ofYahweh has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.	20 so that they may see and know, acknowledge and understand, together, that the hand of the Lord has accomplished this, and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
21 'Present your case,' says Yahweh, 'Produce your arguments,' says Jacob's king.	21 Bring your case forward, says the Lord. Bring it here, if you have anything to allege, says the King of Jacob.
22 'Let them produce and reveal to us what is going to happen. What happened in the past? Reveal it sothat we can consider it and know what the outcome wil be. Or tel us about the future,	22 Let them approach and announce to us the things that will occur. Announce to us the things that were before. And we will apply our heart to them, and we will know their end. And so, reveal to us the things that will occur.
23 reveal what is to happen next, and then we shal know that you are gods. At least, do something, be itgood or bad, so that we may feel alarm and fear.	23 Announce the things that will occur in the future, and we will know that you are gods. Likewise, accomplish good or evil, if you are able, and let us speak of it and see it together.
24 Look, you are less than nothingness, and what you do is less than nothing; to choose you is anoutrage.'	24 Behold, you exist out of nothing, and your work is from what does not exist; he who has chosen you is an abomination.
25 I have raised him from the north and he has come, from the east he has been summoned by name.He tramples on rulers like mud, like a potter treading clay.	25 I have raised up one from the north, and he will arrive from the rising of the sun. He will call upon my name, and he will reduce magistrates to mud, like a potter working with clay.
26 Who revealed this from the beginning for us to know, and in the past for us to say, 'That is right'? Noone in fact revealed it, no one proclaimed it, no one has heard you speak.	26 Who has announced this from its rising, so that we may know it, or from its beginning, so that we may say, “You are just.” There is no one who either announces, or predicts, or hears your words.
27 First-fruits of Zion, look, here they come! I send a messenger to Jerusalem,	27 The first one will say to Zion: “Behold, they are here,” and to Jerusalem, “I will present an evangelist.”
28 and I look -- no one, not a single counsel or among them who, if I asked, could give an answer.	28 And I saw, and there was no one among any of them to consult, or who, when I asked, could answer a word.
29 Taken altogether they are nothingness, what they do is nothing, their statues, wind and emptiness.	29 Behold, they are all unjust, and their works are empty. Their idols are wind and emptiness.