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Text -- Isaiah 44:11-28 (NET)
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Context
44:11 Look , all his associates will be put to shame ; the craftsmen are mere humans . Let them all assemble and take their stand ! They will panic and be put to shame .
44:12 A blacksmith works with his tool and forges metal over the coals . He forms it with hammers ; he makes it with his strong arm . He gets hungry and loses his energy ; he drinks no water and gets tired .
44:13 A carpenter takes measurements ; he marks out an outline of its form; he scrapes it with chisels , and marks it with a compass . He patterns it after the human form , like a well-built human being, and puts it in a shrine .
44:14 He cuts down cedars and acquires a cypress or an oak . He gets trees from the forest ; he plants a cedar and the rain makes it grow .
44:15 A man uses it to make a fire ; he takes some of it and warms himself. Yes , he kindles a fire and bakes bread . Then he makes a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it.
44:16 Half of it he burns in the fire – over that half he cooks meat ; he roasts a meal and fills himself. Yes , he warms himself and says , ‘Ah ! I am warm as I look at the fire .’
44:17 With the rest of it he makes a god , his idol ; he bows down to it and worships it. He prays to it, saying , ‘Rescue me, for you are my god !’
44:18 They do not comprehend or understand , for their eyes are blind and cannot see ; their minds do not discern .
44:19 No one thinks to himself , nor do they comprehend or understand and say to themselves: ‘I burned half of it in the fire – yes , I baked bread over the coals ; I roasted meat and ate it. With the rest of it should I make a disgusting idol ? Should I bow down to dry wood ?’
44:20 He feeds on ashes ; his deceived mind misleads him. He cannot rescue himself , nor does he say , ‘Is this not a false god I hold in my right hand ?’
44:21 Remember these things, O Jacob , O Israel , for you are my servant . I formed you to be my servant ; O Israel , I will not forget you!
44:22 I remove the guilt of your rebellious deeds as if they were a cloud , the guilt of your sins as if they were a cloud. Come back to me, for I protect you.”
44:23 Shout for joy , O sky , for the Lord intervenes ; shout out , you subterranean regions of the earth . O mountains , give a joyful shout ; you too, O forest and all your trees ! For the Lord protects Jacob ; he reveals his splendor through Israel .
The Lord Empowers Cyrus
44:24 This is what the Lord , your protector , says , the one who formed you in the womb : “I am the Lord , who made everything , who alone stretched out the sky , who fashioned the earth all by myself ,
44:25 who frustrates the omens of the empty talkers and humiliates the omen readers , who overturns the counsel of the wise men and makes their advice seem foolish ,
44:26 who fulfills the oracles of his prophetic servants and brings to pass the announcements of his messengers , who says about Jerusalem , ‘She will be inhabited ,’ and about the towns of Judah , ‘They will be rebuilt , her ruins I will raise up ,’
44:27 who says to the deep sea, ‘Be dry ! I will dry up your sea currents,’
44:28 who commissions Cyrus , the one I appointed as shepherd to carry out all my wishes and to decree concerning Jerusalem , ‘She will be rebuilt ,’ and concerning the temple , ‘It will be reconstructed .’”
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Isa 44:11; Isa 44:11; Isa 44:12; Isa 44:12; Isa 44:12; Isa 44:13; Isa 44:13; Isa 44:13; Isa 44:13; Isa 44:13; Isa 44:14; Isa 44:14; Isa 44:14; Isa 44:15; Isa 44:15; Isa 44:16; Isa 44:18; Isa 44:19; Isa 44:20; Isa 44:20; Isa 44:21; Isa 44:22; Isa 44:22; Isa 44:23; Isa 44:23; Isa 44:23; Isa 44:23; Isa 44:23; Isa 44:24; Isa 44:24; Isa 44:25; Isa 44:25; Isa 44:25; Isa 44:25; Isa 44:26; Isa 44:26; Isa 44:26; Isa 44:28; Isa 44:28; Isa 44:28; Isa 44:28
NET Notes: Isa 44:11 The point seems to be this: If the idols are the mere products of human hands, then those who trust in them will be disappointed, for man-made gods ar...
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NET Notes: Isa 44:13 Heb “like the glory of man to sit [in] a house”; NIV “that it may dwell in a shrine.”
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NET Notes: Isa 44:18 Heb “for their eyes are smeared over so they cannot see, so their heart cannot be wise.”
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NET Notes: Isa 44:19 There is no formal interrogative sign here, but the context seems to indicate these are rhetorical questions. See GKC 473 §150.a.
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NET Notes: Isa 44:21 The verb in the Hebrew text is a Niphal imperfect with a pronominal suffix. Although the Niphal ordinarily has the passive sense, it can have a reflex...
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NET Notes: Isa 44:23 That is, by delivering Israel. Cf. NCV “showed his glory when he saved Israel”; TEV “has shown his greatness by saving his people Is...
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NET Notes: Isa 44:24 The consonantal text (Kethib) has “Who [was] with me?” The marginal reading (Qere) is “from with me,” i.e., “by myself.&...
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NET Notes: Isa 44:26 For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
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