1 Luister in stilte na My, o eilande, en laat die volke nuwe krag kry; laat hulle aankom, laat hulle dan spreek; laat ons saam na die gereg gaan.
2 Wie het hom uit die Ooste verwek vir wie die oorwinning tegemoet tree by elke voetstap? Wie gee nasies aan hom oor en laat hom konings vertrap, wie se swaard hulle maak soos stof, wie se boog hulle maak soos 'n dwarrelende stoppel,
3 dat hy hulle agtervolg, ongehinderd verbytrek, die pad met sy voete nie betree nie?
4 Wie het dit gedoen en tot stand gebring? Hy wat die geslagte roep van die begin af; Ek, die HERE, die Eerste, en by die laaste is Ek dieselfde.
5 Die eilande het dit gesien en gevrees, die eindes van die aarde het gebewe; hulle het nader gekom en toegestroom.
6 Die een het die ander gehelp en aan sy metgesel gesê: Wees sterk!
7 En die ambagsman het die goudsmid versterk, hy wat met die hamer plat slaan, hom wat op die aambeeld slaan, terwyl hy van die soldeersel sê: Dit is goed! Daarna slaan hy dit vas met spykers, dat dit nie wankel nie.
8 Maar jy, Israel, my kneg, Jakob, wat Ek uitverkies het, nageslag van Abraham, my vriend,
9 jy, wat Ek gegryp het van die eindes van die aarde en van sy uithoeke geroep het, en Ek het aan jou gesê: Jy is my kneg; jou het Ek uitverkies en jou nie verwerp nie.
10 Wees nie bevrees nie, want Ek is met jou; kyk nie angstig rond nie, want Ek is jou God. Ek versterk jou, ook help Ek jou, ook ondersteun Ek jou met my reddende regterhand.
11 Kyk, hulle almal sal beskaamd staan en in die skande kom wat op jou toornig is; hulle sal word soos niks, en jou teëparty sal omkom.
12 Jy sal hulle soek, maar hulle nie vind nie -- die manne wat met jou twis; hulle sal word soos niks en soos 'n nietige ding -- die manne wat teen jou oorlog voer.
13 Want Ek, die HERE jou God, gryp jou regterhand aan, Ek wat vir jou sê: Wees nie bevrees nie, Ek help jou.
14 Wees nie bevrees nie, wurmpie Jakob, volkie Israel! Âk help jou, spreek die HERE, en jou Losser is die Heilige van Israel.
15 Kyk, Ek maak jou tot 'n skerp, nuwe dorsslee wat baie tande het: jy sal berge dors en fyn maal, en heuwels maak soos kaf.
16 Jy sal hulle uitwan, en die wind sal hulle wegneem en die storm hulle verstrooi; maar jy sal juig in die HERE, jou beroem op die Heilige van Israel.
17 Die ellendiges en behoeftiges soek water, maar daar is nie; hulle tong verdroog van dors; Ek, die HERE, sal hulle verhoor; Ek, die God van Israel, sal hulle nie verlaat nie.
18 Ek sal riviere op die kaal heuwels oopmaak en fonteine in die laagtes; Ek sal die woestyn 'n waterplas maak en die dor land waterbronne.
19 Ek sal in die woestyn gee die seder, die akasia en die mirt en die wilde-olyfboom; Ek sal in die wildernis plant die sipres, die plataan en die denneboom, die almal;
20 sodat hulle almal saam kan sien en beken en opmerk en verstaan dat die hand van die HERE dit gedoen het en die Heilige van Israel dit geskape het.
21 Bring julle regsaak voor, sê die HERE; bring julle bewysgronde aan, sê die Koning van Jakob.
22 Laat hulle aanbring en ons te kenne gee wat gaan gebeur! Gee te kenne die vorige dinge, hoedanig hulle was, sodat ons daarop kan ag gee en van die afloop daarvan kan kennis neem. Of laat ons die toekomende dinge hoor!
23 Gee te kenne dinge wat later sal kom, sodat ons kan weet dat julle gode is; ja, doen goed of doen kwaad, dat ons verbaas kan staan en dit saam kan sien.
24 Kyk, julle is niks, en julle werk is niks; 'n gruwel is hy wat julle uitkies.
25 Ek het uit die Noorde een verwek, en hy het gekom; van die opgang van die son af een wat my Naam sal aanroep; en hy kom oor die owerstes soos oor modder, en soos 'n pottebakker die klei trap.
26 Wie het dit te kenne gegee van die begin af, dat ons daar kennis van kan neem; of vantevore al, dat ons kan sê: Hy het reg? Ja, daar is niemand wat dit te kenne gee, ja, niemand wat dit laat hoor, ja, niemand wat julle woorde hoor nie.
27 As die Eerste sê Ek aan Sion: Hier, hier is dit! En aan Jerusalem gee Ek 'n verkondiger van goeie boodskap.
28 En Ek kyk rond, maar daar is niemand nie; en onder hulle, maar daar is geen raadgewer, dat Ek hulle kan vra en hulle antwoord kan gee nie.
29 Kyk, hulle is almal niks, hulle werke is niks, wind en nietigheid is hulle gegote beelde.
1 Come quietly before me, O sea-lands, and let the peoples get together their strength: let them come near; then let them say what they have to say: let us put forward our cause against one another.
2 Who sent out from the east one who is right wherever he goes? he gives the nations into his hands, and makes him ruler over kings; he gives them as the dust to his sword, as dry stems before the wind to his bow.
3 He goes after them safely, not touching the road with his feet.
4 Whose purpose and work was it? His who sent out the generations from the start. I the Lord, the first, and with the last, I am he.
5 The sea-lands saw it, and were in fear; the ends of the earth were shaking: they came near.
6 They gave help everyone to his neighbour; and everyone said to his brother, Take heart!
7 So the metal-worker put heart into the gold-worker, and he who was hammering the metal smooth said kind words to the iron-worker, saying of the plate, It is ready: and he put it together with nails, so that there might be no slipping.
8 But as for you, Israel, my servant, and you, Jacob, whom I have taken for myself, the seed of Abraham my friend:
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and sent for from its farthest parts, saying to you, You are my servant, whom I have taken for myself, and whom I have not given up:
10 Have no fear, for I am with you; do not be looking about in trouble, for I am your God; I will give you strength, yes, I will be your helper; yes, my true right hand will be your support.
11 Truly, all those who are angry with you will be made low and put to shame: those desiring to do you wrong will come to nothing and never again be seen.
12 You will make search for your haters but they will not be there; those who make war against you will be as nothing and will come to destruction.
13 For I, the Lord your God, have taken your right hand in mine, saying to you, Have no fear; I will be your helper.
14 Have no fear, you worm Jacob, and you men of Israel; I will be your helper, says the Lord, even he who takes up your cause, the Holy One of Israel.
15 See, I will make you like a new grain-crushing instrument with teeth, crushing the mountains small, and making the hills like dry stems.
16 You will send the wind over them, and it will take them away; they will go in all directions before the storm-wind: you will have joy in the Lord, and be glad in the Holy One of Israel.
17 The poor and crushed are looking for water where no water is, and their tongue is dry for need of it: I the Lord will give ear to their prayer, I the God of Israel will not give them up.
18 I will make rivers on the dry mountain-tops, and fountains in the valleys: I will make the waste land a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will put in the waste land the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive-tree; and in the lowland will be planted the fir-tree, the plane, and the cypress together:
20 So that they may see and be wise and give their mind to it, and that it may be clear to them all that the hand of the Lord has done this, and that the Holy One of Israel has made it.
21 Put forward your cause, says the Lord; let your strong argument come out, says the King of Jacob.
22 Let the future be made clear to us: give us news of the past things, so that we may give thought to them; or of the things to come, so that we may see if they are true.
23 Give us word of what will be after this, so that we may be certain that you are gods: yes, do good or do evil, so that we may all see it and be surprised.
24 But you are nothing, and your work is of no value: foolish is he who takes you for his gods.
25 I have sent for one from the north, and from the dawn he has come; in my name he will get rulers together and go against them; they will be like dust, even as the wet earth is stamped on by the feet of the potter.
26 Who has given knowledge of it from the first, so that we may be certain of it? and from the start, so that we may say, His word is true? There is no one who gives news, or says anything, or who gives ear to your words.
27 I was the first to give word of it to Zion, and I gave the good news to Jerusalem.
28 And I saw that there was no man, even no wise man among them, who might give an answer to my questions.
29 Truly they are all nothing, their works are nothing and of no value: their metal images are of no more use than wind.