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Text -- Isaiah 41:1-28 (NET)
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Strongs On/Off
Context
The Lord Challenges the Nations
41:1 “Listen to me in silence , you coastlands ! Let the nations find renewed strength ! Let them approach and then speak ; let us come together for debate !
41:2 Who stirs up this one from the east ? Who officially commissions him for service? He hands nations over to him, and enables him to subdue kings . He makes them like dust with his sword , like windblown straw with his bow .
41:3 He pursues them and passes by unharmed ; he advances with great speed .
41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? Who summons the successive generations from the beginning ? I , the Lord , am present at the very beginning , and at the very end – I am the one .
41:5 The coastlands see and are afraid ; the whole earth trembles ; they approach and come .
41:6 They help one another ; one says to the other , ‘Be strong !’
41:7 The craftsman encourages the metalsmith , the one who wields the hammer encourages the one who pounds on the anvil . He approves the quality of the welding , and nails it down so it won’t fall over .”
The Lord Encourages His People
41:8 “You , my servant Israel , Jacob whom I have chosen , offspring of Abraham my friend ,
41:9 you whom I am bringing back from the earth’s extremities , and have summoned from the remote regions – I told you, “You are my servant .” I have chosen you and not rejected you.
41:10 Don’t be afraid , for I am with you! Don’t be frightened , for I am your God ! I strengthen you– yes , I help you– yes , I uphold you with my saving right hand !
41:11 Look , all who were angry at you will be ashamed and humiliated ; your adversaries will be reduced to nothing and perish .
41:12 When you will look for your opponents , you will not find them; your enemies will be reduced to absolutely nothing .
41:13 For I am the Lord your God , the one who takes hold of your right hand , who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid , I am helping you.’
41:14 Don’t be afraid , despised insignificant Jacob , men of Israel . I am helping you,” says the Lord , your protector , the Holy One of Israel .
41:15 “Look , I am making you like a sharp threshing sledge , new and double-edged . You will thresh the mountains and crush them; you will make the hills like straw .
41:16 You will winnow them and the wind will blow them away ; the wind will scatter them. You will rejoice in the Lord ; you will boast in the Holy One of Israel .
41:17 The oppressed and the poor look for water , but there is none ; their tongues are parched from thirst . I , the Lord , will respond to their prayers; I, the God of Israel , will not abandon them.
41:18 I will make streams flow down the slopes and produce springs in the middle of the valleys . I will turn the desert into a pool of water and the arid land into springs .
41:19 I will make cedars , acacias , myrtles , and olive trees grow in the wilderness ; I will make evergreens , firs , and cypresses grow together in the desert .
41:20 I will do this so people will observe and recognize , so they will pay attention and understand that the Lord’s power has accomplished this , and that the Holy One of Israel has brought it into being.”
The Lord Challenges the Pagan Gods
41:21 “Present your argument ,” says the Lord . “Produce your evidence ,” says Jacob’s king .
41:22 “Let them produce evidence! Let them tell us what will happen ! Tell us about your earlier predictive oracles, so we may examine them and see how they were fulfilled . Or decree for us some future events!
41:23 Predict how future events will turn out , so we might know you are gods . Yes , do something good or bad , so we might be frightened and in awe .
41:24 Look , you are nothing , and your accomplishments are nonexistent ; the one who chooses to worship you is disgusting .
41:25 I have stirred up one out of the north and he advances , one from the eastern horizon who prays in my name . He steps on rulers as if they were clay , like a potter treading the clay .
41:26 Who decreed this from the beginning , so we could know ? Who announced it ahead of time, so we could say , ‘He’s correct ’? Indeed , none of them decreed it! Indeed , none of them announced it! Indeed , no one heard you say anything !
41:27 I first decreed to Zion , ‘Look , here’s what will happen!’ I sent a herald to Jerusalem .
41:28 I look , but there is no one , among them there is no one who serves as an adviser , that I might ask questions and receive answers .
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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Names, People and Places:
Dictionary Themes and Topics:
GODS |
Isaiah, The Book of |
ISAIAH, 1-7 |
Predestination |
Quotations and Allusions |
OMNISCIENCE |
God |
Blessing |
ISAIAH, 8-9 |
GOD, 2 |
Idolatry |
War |
Condescension of God |
Clay |
DIVINATION |
Afflictions and Adversities |
Church |
Myrtle |
Goldsmith |
HELP |
more
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Isa 41:1; Isa 41:1; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:2; Isa 41:3; Isa 41:3; Isa 41:4; Isa 41:4; Isa 41:4; Isa 41:5; Isa 41:5; Isa 41:6; Isa 41:7; Isa 41:7; Isa 41:8; Isa 41:9; Isa 41:10; Isa 41:10; Isa 41:11; Isa 41:11; Isa 41:12; Isa 41:12; Isa 41:14; Isa 41:14; Isa 41:14; Isa 41:14; Isa 41:15; Isa 41:15; Isa 41:15; Isa 41:17; Isa 41:20; Isa 41:20; Isa 41:20; Isa 41:20; Isa 41:21; Isa 41:21; Isa 41:22; Isa 41:22; Isa 41:22; Isa 41:23; Isa 41:23; Isa 41:23; Isa 41:24; Isa 41:25; Isa 41:25; Isa 41:25; Isa 41:26; Isa 41:27; Isa 41:27
NET Notes: Isa 41:1 The Hebrew term מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) could be translated “judgment,” but here it seem...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:2 The point is that they are powerless before Cyrus’ military power and scatter before him.
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NET Notes: Isa 41:3 Heb “a way with his feet he does not come [or “enter”].” One could translate, “by a way he was not [previously] entering...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:5 Heb “the ends of the earth,” but this is a merism, where the earth’s extremities stand for its entirety, i.e., the extremities and e...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:10 The “right hand” is a symbol of the Lord’s power to deliver (Exod 15:6, 12) and protect (Ps 63:9 HT [63:8 ET]). Here צֶ&...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:15 The mountains and hills symbolize hostile nations that are obstacles to Israel’s restoration.
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NET Notes: Isa 41:23 Heb “so we might be frightened and afraid together.” On the meaning of the verb שָׁתָע (shata’),...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:25 The Hebrew text has וְיָבֹא (vÿyavo’, “and he comes”), but this is likely a corruptio...
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NET Notes: Isa 41:26 The words “who announced it” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The interrogative particle and verb are understood by elli...
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