Isaiah 44
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · 700 BC – 539 BC · Exile in Babylon · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
28 verses · 854 words · ~4 min read · ~6 min listen
The LORD Has Chosen Israel
1But now listen, O Jacob My servant,
Israel, whom I have chosen.
2This is the word of the Lord, your Maker,
who formed you from the womb and who will help you:
“Do not be afraid, O Jacob My servant,
Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and currents on the dry ground.
I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants,
and My blessing on your offspring.
4They will sprout among the grass
like willows by flowing streams.
5One will say, ‘I belong to the Lord,’
another will call himself by the name of Jacob,
and still another will write on his hand, ‘The Lordʼs,’
and will take the name of Israel.”
6Thus says the Lord,
the King and Redeemer of Israel, the Lord of Hosts:
“I am the first and I am the last,
and there is no God but Me.
7Who then is like Me?
Let him say so!
Let him declare his case before Me,
since I established an ancient people.
Let him foretell the things to come,
and what is to take place.
8Do not tremble or fear.
Have I not told you and declared it long ago?
You are My witnesses!
Is there any God but Me?
There is no other Rock;
I know not one.”
9All makers of idols are nothing,
and the things they treasure are worthless.
Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend,
so they are put to shame.
10Who fashions a god or casts an idol
which profits him nothing?
11Behold, all his companions will be put to shame,
for the craftsmen themselves are only human.
Let them all assemble and take their stand;
they will all be brought to terror and shame.
12The blacksmith takes a tool
and labors over the coals;
he fashions an idol with hammers
and forges it with his strong arms.
Yet he grows hungry and loses his strength;
he fails to drink water and grows faint.
13The woodworker extends a measuring line;
he marks it out with a stylus;
he shapes it with chisels
and outlines it with a compass.
He fashions it in the likeness of man,
like man in all his glory,
that it may dwell in a shrine.
14He cuts down cedars
or retrieves a cypress or oak.
He lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest.
He plants a laurel, and the rain makes it grow.
15It serves as fuel for man.
He takes some of it to warm himself,
and he kindles a fire
and bakes his bread.
He also fashions it into a god and worships it;
he makes an idol and bows down to it.
16He burns half of it in the fire,
and he roasts meat on that half.
He eats the roast and is satisfied.
Indeed, he warms himself and says,
“Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.”
17From the rest he makes a god, his graven image.
He bows down to it and worships;
he prays to it and says,
“Save me, for you are my god.”
18They do not comprehend or discern,
for He has shut their eyes so they cannot see
and closed their minds so they cannot understand.
19And no one considers in his heart,
no one has the knowledge or insight to say,
“I burned half of it in the fire,
and I baked bread on its coals;
I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make something detestable with the rest of it?
Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”
20He feeds on ashes.
His deluded heart has led him astray,
and he cannot deliver himself or say,
“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”
Jerusalem to Be Restored
21Remember these things, O Jacob,
for you are My servant, O Israel.
I have made you, and you are My servant;
O Israel, I will never forget you.
22I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud,
and your sins like a mist.
Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.
23Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this;
shout aloud, O depths of the earth.
Break forth in song, O mountains,
you forests and all your trees.
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
and revealed His glory in Israel.
24Thus says the Lord,
your Redeemer who formed you from the womb:
“I am the Lord,
who has made all things,
who alone stretched out the heavens,
who by Myself spread out the earth,
25who foils the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,
who confounds the wise
and turns their knowledge into nonsense,
26who confirms the message of His servant
and fulfills the counsel of His messengers,
who says of Jerusalem,
‘She will be inhabited,’
and of the cities of Judah,
‘They will be rebuilt, and I will restore their ruins,’
27who says to the depths of the sea,
‘Be dry, and I will dry up your currents,’
28who says of Cyrus,
‘My shepherd will fulfill all that I desire,’
who says of Jerusalem,
‘She will be rebuilt,’
and of the temple,
‘Let its foundation be laid.’”
Footnotes (3)
- a v2 Jeshurun means the upright one, a term of endearment for Israel.
- b v4 Or poplars
- c v14 Or pine or juniper or fir
Study notes on this chapter · 2
Prophecy & fulfillmentDebated
Cyrus named as God's shepherd
Isaiah names Cyrus as the one who will say that Jerusalem shall be rebuilt and the temple's foundation laid. Ezra records exactly this decree in 538 BC. Scholars debate whether the name was given in advance (Isaiah of Jerusalem, c. 700 BC) or the text was written near Cyrus's time (c. 540 BC).
When: Isaiah 40–55 (c. 700 BC or c. 540 BC); Cyrus's decree, 538 BC.
Where the New Testament applies itEzra 1:1–4
Ways people read this (2)
- Predictive: Isaiah foretold Cyrus by name about 150 years earlier.
- Critical: chapters 40–55 were composed during the exile, addressing a situation already unfolding.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
Prophecy & fulfillmentWidely held reading
The fall of Babylon in a night
Isaiah and Jeremiah say Babylon will fall to the Medes, that its waters will be dried up and its gates will be left open. Daniel records that Belshazzar was killed the night the kingdom passed to Darius the Mede. Greek historians report that Cyrus took the city in 539 BC by diverting the Euphrates, though accounts differ about details.
When: Jeremiah's oracle against Babylon, c. 594 BC; Babylon fell on 12 October 539 BC (by the usual reckoning).
Where the New Testament applies itDaniel 5:25–31
Ways people read this (3)
- The prophecies were fulfilled in 539 BC, as Herodotus and Xenophon describe.
- Some of Jeremiah 50–51 describes a more thorough destruction than occurred in 539 BC, and may refer to later events or to a future fall.
- Darius the Mede's identity is debated (Cyrus under another title, Gubaru/Ugbaru, or another figure).
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.