ISAIAH 45 [†] Thus says the LORD to  p his anointed, to Cyrus,

 q whose right hand I have grasped,

to subdue nations before him

and  r to loose the belts of kings,

to open doors before him

that gates may not be closed:

2[†] “I will go before you

and  s level the exalted places, [1]

 t I will break in pieces the doors of bronze

and cut through the bars of iron,

3  u I will give you the treasures of darkness

and the hoards in secret places,

that you may know that it is I, the LORD,

the God of Israel,  v who call you by your name.

4[†] For the sake of my servant Jacob,

and Israel my chosen,

 v I call you by your name,

 w I name you, though you do not know me.

5[†]  x I am the LORD, and there is no other,

besides me there is no God;

 y I equip you, though you do not know me,

6  z that people may know, from the rising of the sun

and from the west, that there is none besides me;

I am the LORD, and there is no other.

7[†] I form light and create darkness,

I make well-being and  a create calamity,

I am the LORD, who does all these things.

8[†]  b “Shower, O heavens, from above,

and  c let the clouds rain down righteousness;

let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit;

let the earth cause them both to sprout;

I the LORD have created it.

9[†]  d “Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,

a pot among earthen pots!

 e Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’

or ‘Your work has no handles’?

10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’

or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’”

11[†] Thus says  f the LORD,

the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:

 g “Ask me of things to come;

will you command me  h concerning my children and  i the work of my hands? [2]

12  j I made the earth

and created man on it;

it was my hands  k that stretched out the heavens,

and  l I commanded all their host.

13  m I have stirred him up in righteousness,

 n and I will make all his ways level;

 o he shall build my city

 p and set my exiles free,

not for price or reward,”

says the LORD of hosts.

14[†] Thus says the LORD:

 q “The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,

and the Sabeans, men of stature,

shall come over to you  r and be yours;

they shall follow you;

they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.

They will plead with you, saying:

‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other,

no god besides him.’”

15[†]  s Truly, you are a God who hides himself,

O God of Israel, the Savior.

16  t All of them are put to shame and confounded;

the makers of idols go in confusion together.

17[†] But Israel is saved by the LORD

with everlasting salvation;

 u you shall not be put to shame or confounded

to all eternity.

18  v For thus says the LORD,

who created the heavens

(he is God!),

who formed the earth and made it

(he established it;

he  w did not create it empty,

 x he formed it to be inhabited!):

“I am the LORD, and there is no other.

19[†]  y I did not speak in secret,

in a land of darkness;

I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,

 z ‘Seek me in vain.’ [3]

I the LORD speak  a the truth;

I declare what is right.

20[†]  b “Assemble yourselves and come;

draw near together,

you survivors of the nations!

 c They have no knowledge

who  d carry about their wooden idols,

 e and keep on praying to a god

that cannot save.

21[†]  f Declare and present your case;

let them take counsel together!

Who told this long ago?

Who declared it of old?

Was it not I, the LORD?

And there is no other god besides me,

a righteous God  g and a Savior;

there is none besides me.

22[†] “Turn to me and be saved,

 h all the ends of the earth!

For I am God, and there is no other.

23[^][†]  i By myself I have sworn;

from my mouth has gone out in  j righteousness

a word that shall not return:

 k ‘To me every knee shall bow,

every tongue shall swear allegiance.’ [4]

24  l “Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me,

are righteousness and  m strength;

to him shall come and be ashamed

 n all who were incensed against him.

25 In the LORD all the offspring of Israel

shall be justified and shall glory.”