43a89f8b3f017d0242af2364

1 Thus says the Lord to aCyrus His anointed, Whom I have taken by the right bhand, To csubdue nations before him And to dloose the loins of kings; To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: 2 "I will go before you and amake the rough places smooth; I will bshatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron cbars. 3 "I will give you the atreasures of darkness And hidden wealth of secret places, So that you may know that it is I, The Lord, the God of Israel, who bcalls you by your name. 4 "For the sake of aJacob My servant, And Israel My chosen one, I have also bcalled you by your name; I have given you a title of honor Though you have cnot known Me. 5 "I am the Lord, and athere is no other; bBesides Me there is no God. I will cgird you, though you have not known Me; 6 That amen may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is bno one besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other, 7 The One aforming light and bcreating darkness, Causing well-being and ccreating calamity; I am the Lord who does all these. 8 "aDrip down, O heavens, from above, And let the clouds pour down righteousness; Let the bearth open up and salvation bear fruit, cAnd righteousness spring up with it. I, the Lord, have created it. 9 "Woe to the one who aquarrels with his Maker-- An earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth! Will the bclay say to the potter, 'What are you doing?' Or the thing you are making say, 'He has no hands'? 10 "Woe to him who says to a father, 'What are you begetting?' Or to a woman, 'To what are you giving birth?'" 11 Thus says the aLord, the Holy One of Israel, and his bMaker: "cAsk Me about the things to come concerning My dsons, And you shall commit to Me ethe work of My hands. 12 "It is I who amade the earth, and created man upon it. I bstretched out the heavens with My hands And I ordained call their host. 13 "I have aroused him in arighteousness And I will bmake all his ways smooth; He will cbuild My city and will let My exiles go dfree, Without any payment or reward," says the Lord of hosts. 14 Thus says the Lord, "The products of aEgypt and the merchandise of bCush And the Sabeans, men of stature, Will ccome over to you and will be yours; They will walk behind you, they will come over in dchains And will ebow down to you; They will make supplication to you: 'Surely, fGod is with you, and there is none else, No other God.'" 15 Truly, You are a God who ahides Himself, O God of Israel, bSavior! 16 They will be aput to shame and even humiliated, all of them; The bmanufacturers of idols will go away together in humiliation. 17 Israel has been saved by the Lord With an aeverlasting salvation; You bwill not be put to shame or humiliated To all eternity. 18 For thus says the Lord, who acreated the heavens (He is the God who bformed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a cwaste place, but formed it to be dinhabited), "I am the Lord, and ethere is none else. 19 "aI have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the boffspring of Jacob, 'cSeek Me in a waste place'; I, the Lord, dspeak righteousness, eDeclaring things that are upright. 20 "aGather yourselves and come; Draw near together, you fugitives of the nations; bThey have no knowledge, Who ccarry about their wooden idol And dpray to a god who cannot save. 21 "aDeclare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. bWho has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the Lord? And there is cno other God besides Me, A righteous God and a dSavior; There is none except Me. 22 "aTurn to Me and bbe saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. 23 "aI have sworn by Myself, The bword has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me cevery knee will bow, every tongue will dswear allegiance. 24 "They will say of Me, 'Only ain the Lord are righteousness and strength.' Men will come to Him, And ball who were angry at Him will be put to shame. 25 "In the Lord all the offspring of Israel Will be ajustified and will bglory."