ISAIAH 41-44

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Israel Encouraged41:1 “Coastlands, listen to Me in silence,

And let the peoples gain new strength;

Let them come forward, then let them speak;

Let us come together for judgment.

2 “Who has aroused one from the east

Whom He calls in righteousness to His feet?

He delivers up nations before him

And subdues kings.

He makes them like dust with his sword,

As the wind-driven chaff with his bow.

3 “He pursues them, passing on in safety,

By a way he had not been traversing with his feet.

4 “Who has performed and accomplished it,

Calling forth the generations from the beginning?

‘I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am He.’”

5 The coastlands have seen and are afraid;

The ends of the earth tremble;

They have drawn near and have come.

6 Each one helps his neighbor

And says to his brother, “Be strong!”

7 So the craftsman encourages the smelter,

And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil,

Saying of the soldering, “It is good”;

And he fastens it with nails,

So that it will not totter.

8 “But you, Israel, My servant,

Jacob whom I have chosen,

Descendant of Abraham My friend,

9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,

And called from its remotest parts

And said to you, ‘You are My servant,

I have chosen you and not rejected you.

10 ‘Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,

Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

11 “Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;

Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.

12 “You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them,

Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.

13 “For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand,

Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’

14 “Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel;

I will help you,” declares the LORD, “and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

15 “Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;

You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them,

And will make the hills like chaff.

16 “You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away,

And the storm will scatter them;

But you will rejoice in the LORD,

You will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 “The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none,

And their tongue is parched with thirst;

I, the LORD, will answer them Myself,

As the God of Israel I will not forsake them.

18 “I will open rivers on the bare heights

And springs in the midst of the valleys;

I will make the wilderness a pool of water

And the dry land fountains of water.

19 “I will put the cedar in the wilderness,

The acacia and the myrtle and the olive tree;

I will place the juniper in the desert

Together with the box tree and the cypress,

20 That they may see and recognize,

And consider and gain insight as well,

That the hand of the LORD has done this,

And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

21 “Present your case,” the LORD says.

“Bring forward your strong arguments,”

The King of Jacob says.

22 Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place;

As for the former events, declare what they were,

That we may consider them and know their outcome.

Or announce to us what is coming;

23 Declare the things that are going to come afterward,

That we may know that you are gods;

Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together.

24 Behold, you are of no account,

And your work amounts to nothing;

He who chooses you is an abomination.

25 “I have aroused one from the north, and he has come;

From the rising of the sun he will call on My name;

And he will come upon rulers as upon mortar,

Even as the potter treads clay.”

26 Who has declared this from the beginning, that we might know?

Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”?

Surely there was no one who declared,

Surely there was no one who proclaimed,

Surely there was no one who heard your words.

27 “Formerly I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’

And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a messenger of good news.’

28 “But when I look, there is no one,

And there is no counselor among them

Who, if I ask, can give an answer.

29 “Behold, all of them are false;

Their works are worthless,

Their molten images are wind and emptiness.

God’s Promise concerning His Servant42:1 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold;

My chosen one in whom My soul delights.

I have put My Spirit upon Him;

He will bring forth justice to the nations.

2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice,

Nor make His voice heard in the street.

3 “A bruised reed He will not break

And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;

He will faithfully bring forth justice.

4 “He will not be disheartened or crushed

Until He has established justice in the earth;

And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.”

    5 Thus says God the LORD,

Who created the heavens and stretched them out,

Who spread out the earth and its offspring,

Who gives breath to the people on it

And spirit to those who walk in it,

6 “I am the LORD, I have called You in righteousness,

I will also hold You by the hand and watch over You,

And I will appoint You as a covenant to the people,

As a light to the nations,

7 To open blind eyes,

To bring out prisoners from the dungeon

And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.

8 “I am the LORD, that is My name;

I will not give My glory to another,

Nor My praise to graven images.

9 “Behold, the former things have come to pass,

Now I declare new things;

Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.”

10 Sing to the LORD a new song,

Sing His praise from the end of the earth!

You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it.

You islands, and those who dwell on them.

11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voices,

The settlements where Kedar inhabits.

Let the inhabitants of Sela sing aloud,

Let them shout for joy from the tops of the mountains.

12 Let them give glory to the LORD

And declare His praise in the coastlands.

13 The LORD will go forth like a warrior,

He will arouse His zeal like a man of war.

He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry.

He will prevail against His enemies.

The Blindness of the People14 “I have kept silent for a long time,

I have kept still and restrained Myself.

Now like a woman in labor I will groan,

I will both gasp and pant.

15 “I will lay waste the mountains and hills

And wither all their vegetation;

I will make the rivers into coastlands

And dry up the ponds.

16 “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know,

In paths they do not know I will guide them.

I will make darkness into light before them

And rugged places into plains.

These are the things I will do,

And I will not leave them undone.”

17 They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame,

Who trust in idols,

Who say to molten images,

“You are our gods.”

18 Hear, you deaf!

And look, you blind, that you may see.

19 Who is blind but My servant,

Or so deaf as My messenger whom I send?

Who is so blind as he that is at peace with Me,

Or so blind as the servant of the LORD?

20 You have seen many things, but you do not observe them;

Your ears are open, but none hears.

21 The LORD was pleased for His righteousness’ sake

To make the law great and glorious.

22 But this is a people plundered and despoiled;

All of them are trapped in caves,

Or are hidden away in prisons;

They have become a prey with none to deliver them,

And a spoil, with none to say, “Give them back!”

23 Who among you will give ear to this?

Who will give heed and listen hereafter?

24 Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers?

Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned,

And in whose ways they were not willing to walk,

And whose law they did not obey?

25 So He poured out on him the heat of His anger

And the fierceness of battle;

And it set him aflame all around,

Yet he did not recognize it;

And it burned him, but he paid no attention.

Israel Redeemed43:1 But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel,

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by name; you are Mine!

2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,

Nor will the flame burn you.

3 “For I am the LORD your God,

The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

I have given Egypt as your ransom,

Cush and Seba in your place.

4 “Since you are precious in My sight,

Since you are honored and I love you,

I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life.

5 “Do not fear, for I am with you;

I will bring your offspring from the east,

And gather you from the west.

6 “I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’

And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’

Bring My sons from afar

And My daughters from the ends of the earth,

7 Everyone who is called by My name,

And whom I have created for My glory,

Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”

Israel Is God’s Witness8 Bring out the people who are blind, even though they have eyes,

And the deaf, even though they have ears.

9 All the nations have gathered together

So that the peoples may be assembled.

Who among them can declare this

And proclaim to us the former things?

Let them present their witnesses that they may be justified,

Or let them hear and say, “It is true.”

10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD,

“And My servant whom I have chosen,

So that you may know and believe Me

And understand that I am He.

Before Me there was no God formed,

And there will be none after Me.

11 “I, even I, am the LORD,

And there is no savior besides Me.

12 “It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed,

And there was no strange god among you;

So you are My witnesses,” declares the LORD,

“And I am God.

13 “Even from eternity I am He,

And there is none who can deliver out of My hand;

I act and who can reverse it?”

Babylon to Be Destroyed    14 Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,

“For your sake I have sent to Babylon,

And will bring them all down as fugitives,

Even the Chaldeans, into the ships in which they rejoice.

15 “I am the LORD, your Holy One,

The Creator of Israel, your King.”

16 Thus says the LORD,

Who makes a way through the sea

And a path through the mighty waters,

17 Who brings forth the chariot and the horse,

The army and the mighty man

(They will lie down together and not rise again;

They have been quenched and extinguished like a wick):

18 “Do not call to mind the former things,

Or ponder things of the past.

19 “Behold, I will do something new,

Now it will spring forth;

Will you not be aware of it?

I will even make a roadway in the wilderness,

Rivers in the desert.

20 “The beasts of the field will glorify Me,

The jackals and the ostriches,

Because I have given waters in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert,

To give drink to My chosen people.

21 “The people whom I formed for Myself

Will declare My praise.

The Shortcomings of Israel22 “Yet you have not called on Me, O Jacob;

But you have become weary of Me, O Israel.

23 “You have not brought to Me the sheep of your burnt offerings,

Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices.

I have not burdened you with offerings,

Nor wearied you with incense.

24 “You have bought Me not sweet cane with money,

Nor have you filled Me with the fat of your sacrifices;

Rather you have burdened Me with your sins,

You have wearied Me with your iniquities.

25 “I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake,

And I will not remember your sins.

26 “Put Me in remembrance, let us argue our case together;

State your cause, that you may be proved right.

27 “Your first forefather sinned,

And your spokesmen have transgressed against Me.

28 “So I will pollute the princes of the sanctuary,

And I will consign Jacob to the ban and Israel to revilement.

The Blessings of Israel44:1 “But now listen, O Jacob, My servant,

And Israel, whom I have chosen:

2 Thus says the LORD who made you

And formed you from the womb, who will help you,

‘Do not fear, O Jacob My servant;

And you Jeshurun whom I have chosen.

3 ‘For I will pour out water on the thirsty land

And streams on the dry ground;

I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring

And My blessing on your descendants;

4 And they will spring up among the grass

Like poplars by streams of water.’

5 “This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’S’;

And that one will call on the name of Jacob;

And another will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to the LORD,’

And will name Israel’s name with honor.

    6 “Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:

‘I am the first and I am the last,

And there is no God besides Me.

7 ‘Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it;

Yes, let him recount it to Me in order,

From the time that I established the ancient nation.

And let them declare to them the things that are coming

And the events that are going to take place.

8 ‘Do not tremble and do not be afraid;

Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?

And you are My witnesses.

Is there any God besides Me,

Or is there any other Rock?

I know of none.’”

The Folly of Idolatry    9 Those who fashion a graven image are all of them futile, and their precious things are of no profit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be put to shame. 10 Who has fashioned a god or cast an idol to no profit? 11 Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up, let them tremble, let them together be put to shame.
    12 The man shapes iron into a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary. 13 Another shapes wood, he extends a measuring line; he outlines it with red chalk. He works it with planes and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of man, so that it may sit in a house. 14 Surely he cuts cedars for himself, and takes a cypress or an oak and raises it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the rain makes it grow. 15 Then it becomes something for a man to burn, so he takes one of them and warms himself; he also makes a fire to bake bread. He also makes a god and worships it; he makes it a graven image and falls down before it. 16 Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat as he roasts a roast and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” 17 But the rest of it he makes into a god, his graven image. He falls down before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god.”
    18 They do not know, nor do they understand, for He has smeared over their eyes so that they cannot see and their hearts so that they cannot comprehend. 19 No one recalls, nor is there knowledge or understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I roast meat and eat it. Then I make the rest of it into an abomination, I fall down before a block of wood!” 20 He feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot deliver himself, nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”
God Forgives and Redeems21 “Remember these things, O Jacob,

And Israel, for you are My servant;

I have formed you, you are My servant,

O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me.

22 “I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud

And your sins like a heavy mist.

Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.”

23 Shout for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done it!

Shout joyfully, you lower parts of the earth;

Break forth into a shout of joy, you mountains,

O forest, and every tree in it;

For the LORD has redeemed Jacob

And in Israel He shows forth His glory.

    24 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb,

“I, the LORD, am the maker of all things,

Stretching out the heavens by Myself

And spreading out the earth all alone,

25 Causing the omens of boasters to fail,

Making fools out of diviners,

Causing wise men to draw back

And turning their knowledge into foolishness,

26 Confirming the word of His servant

And performing the purpose of His messengers.

It is I who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited!’

And of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built.’

And I will raise up her ruins again.

27 “It is I who says to the depth of the sea, ‘Be dried up!’

And I will make your rivers dry.

28 “It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd!

And he will perform all My desire.’

And he declares of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built,’

And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’”

1 CORINTHIANS 12

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The Use of Spiritual Gifts  12:1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you were led astray to the mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
    4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.
    12 For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
    14 For the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. 19 If they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many members, but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; 23 and those members of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, 24 whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
    27 Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it. 28 And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. 29 All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they? 30 All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they? 31 But earnestly desire the greater gifts.
    And I show you a still more excellent way.