Isaiah 44 :: English Standard Version (ESV)

Israel the Lord’s Chosen

Isa 44:1“But now hear, O Jacob my servant,
Israel whom I have chosen!

Isa 44:2Thus says the LORD who made you,
who formed you from the womb and will help you:
Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
Jeshurun whom I have chosen.

Isa 44:3

Isa 44:3For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring,
and my blessing on your descendants.

Isa 44:4

Isa 44:4They shall spring up among the grass
like willows by flowing streams.

Isa 44:5

Isa 44:5This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’s,’
another will call on the name of Jacob,
and another will write on his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’
and name himself by the name of Israel.”

Besides Me There Is No God

Isa 44:6

Isa 44:6Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel
and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:
“I am the first and I am the last;
besides me there is no god.

Isa 44:7

Isa 44:7Who is like me? Let him proclaim it.[fn]
Let him declare and set it before me,
since I appointed an ancient people.
Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen.

Isa 44:8

Isa 44:8Fear not, nor be afraid;
have I not told you from of old and declared it?
And you are my witnesses!
Is there a God besides me?
There is no Rock; I know not any.”

The Folly of Idolatry

Isa 44:9

Isa 44:9All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame.

Isa 44:10

Isa 44:10Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is profitable for nothing?

Isa 44:11

Isa 44:11Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble, let them stand forth. They shall be terrified; they shall be put to shame together.

Isa 44:12

Isa 44:12The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint.

Isa 44:13

Isa 44:13The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil.[fn] He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house.

Isa 44:14

Isa 44:14He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it.

Isa 44:15

Isa 44:15Then it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it.

Isa 44:16

Isa 44:16Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, “Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!”

Isa 44:17

Isa 44:17And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”

Isa 44:18

Isa 44:18They know not, nor do they discern, for he has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand.

Isa 44:19

Isa 44:19No one considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, “Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and have eaten. And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”

Isa 44:20

Isa 44:20He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

The Lord Redeems Israel

Isa 44:21

Isa 44:21Remember these things, O Jacob,
and Israel, for you are my servant;
I formed you; you are my servant;
O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me.

Isa 44:22

Isa 44:22I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud
and your sins like mist;
return to me, for I have redeemed you.

Isa 44:23

Isa 44:23Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it;
shout, O depths of the earth;
break forth into singing, O mountains,
O forest, and every tree in it!
For the LORD has redeemed Jacob,
and will be glorified[fn] in Israel.

Isa 44:24

Isa 44:24Thus 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,
who spread out the earth by myself,

Isa 44:25

Isa 44:25who frustrates the signs of liars
and makes fools of diviners,
who turns wise men back
and makes their knowledge foolish,

Isa 44:26

Isa 44:26who confirms the word of his servant
and fulfills the counsel of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited,’
and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built,
and I will raise up their ruins’;

Isa 44:27

Isa 44:27who says to the deep, ‘Be dry;
I will dry up your rivers’;

Isa 44:28

Isa 44:28who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,
and he shall fulfill all my purpose’;
saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’
and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’”

See the ESV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

ESV Footnotes

(44:7)

Or Who like me can proclaim it?

(44:13)

Hebrew stylus

(44:23)

Or will display his beauty

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For more information on this translation, see the ESV Preface.