1.  KEEP silence before me, O islands;

and let the people renew their

strength: let them come near; then

let them speak: let us come near to-

gether to judgment.

2.  Who raised up the righteous man

from the east, called him to his foot,

gave the nations before him, and

made him rule over kings?  he gave

them as the dust to his sword, and as

driven stubble to his bow.

3.  He pursued them, and passed

safely; even by the way that he had

not gone with his feet.

4.  Who hath wrought and done it,

calling the generations from the be-

ginning?  I the LORD, the first, and

with the last; I am he.

5.  The isles saw it, and feared; the

ends of the earth were afraid, drew

near, and came.

6.  They helped every one his neigh-

bour; and every one said to his

brother, Be of good courage.

7.  So the carpenter encouraged the

goldsmith, and he that smootheth

with the hammer him that smote the

anvil, saying, It is ready for the

sodering: and he fastened it with

nails, that it should not be moved.

8.  But thou, Israel, art my servant,

Jacob whom I have chosen, the

seed of Abraham my friend.

9.  Thou whom I have taken from

the ends of the earth, and called thee

from the chief men thereof, and said

unto thee, Thou art my servant; I

have chosen thee, and not cast thee

away.

10.  ¶ Fear thou not; for I am with

thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy

God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I

will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee

with the right hand of my righteous-

ness.

11.  Behold, all they that were in-

censed against thee shall be ashamed

and confounded: they shall be as

nothing; and they that strive with

thee shall perish.

12.  Thou shalt seek them, and shalt

not find them, even them that con-

tended with thee: they that war a-

gainst thee shall be as nothing, and

as a thing of nought.

13.  For I the LORD thy God will

hold thy right hand, saying unto

thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

14.  Fear not, thou worm Jacob,

and ye men of Israel; I will help thee,

saith the LORD, and thy redeemer,

the Holy One of Israel.

15.  Behold, I will make thee a new

sharp threshing instrument having

teeth: thou shalt thresh the moun-

tains, and beat them small, and shalt

make the hills as chaff.

16.  Thou shalt fan them, and the

wind shall carry them away, and the

whirlwind shall scatter them: and

thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and

shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17.  When the poor and needy seek

water, and there is none, and their

tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD

will hear them, I the God of Israel

will not forsake them.

18.  I will open rivers in high places,

and fountains in the midst of the

valleys: I will make the wilderness

a pool of water, and the dry land

springs of water.

19.  I will plant in the wilderness the

cedar, the shittah tree, and the

myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in

the desert the fir tree, and the pine,

and the box tree together:

20.  That they may see, and know,

and consider, and understand to-

gether, that the hand of the LORD

hath done this, and the Holy One of

Israel hath created it.

21.  Produce your cause, saith the

LORD; bring forth your strong rea-

sons, saith the King of Jacob.

22.  Let them bring them forth, and

shew us what shall happen: let them

shew the former things, what they

be, that we may consider them, and

know the latter end of them; or de-

clare us things for to come.

23.  Shew the things that are to come

hereafter, that we may know that ye

are gods: yea, do good, or do evil,

that we may be dismayed, and be-

hold it together.

24.  Behold, ye are of nothing, and

your work of nought: an abomina-

tion is he that chooseth you.

25.  I have raised up one from the

north, and he shall come: from the

rising of the sun shall he call upon

my name: and he shall come upon

princes as upon morter, and as the

potter treadeth clay.

26.  Who hath declared from the be-

ginning, that we may know?  and

beforetime, that we may say, He is

righteous?  yea, there is none that

sheweth, yea, there is none that de-

clareth, yea, there is none that heare-

th your words.

27.  The first shall say to Zion, Be-

hold, behold them: and I will give to

Jerusalem one that bringeth good

tidings.

28.  For I beheld, and there was no

man; even among them, and there

was no counsellor, that, when I

asked of them, could answer a word.

29.  Behold, they are all vanity;

their works are nothing: their mol-

ten images are wind and confusion.