Isaiah 41:10, 1, 3-9, 2, 11-18

Don’t worry—I am with you. Don’t be afraid—I am your God. I will make you strong and help you. I will support you with my right hand that brings victory.

The Lord says, “Faraway countries, be quiet and listen to me! Nations be brave. Come to me and speak. We will meet together and decide who is right.

He chases armies and is never hurt. He goes places he has never been before. Who was able to make all this happen? Who controlled the lives of everyone from the beginning? I, the LORD, am the one. I was here at the beginning, and I will be here when all things are finished. People along the coast saw this, and they were frightened. Nations at the ends of the earth shook with fear. They have come near. They have arrived. “Workers help each other. They encourage each other to be strong. One worker cuts wood to make a statue. He encourages the man who works with gold. Another worker uses a hammer and makes the metal smooth. Then he encourages the man at the anvil. This last worker says, ‘This work is good; the metal will not come off.’ Then he nails the statue to a base so that it will not fall over. And it never moves!” The Lord says, “You, Israel, are my servant. Jacob, I chose you. You are from the family of my friend, Abraham. You were in a faraway country, but I reached out to you. I called you from that faraway place. I said, ‘You are my servant.’ I chose you, and I have not rejected you.

Who woke up the man who is coming from the east? He called Justice to march with him. He uses his sword to crush nations. He uses his bow and conquers kings— they run away like straw blown by the wind.

Look, some people are angry with you, but they will be ashamed and disgraced. Your enemies will be lost and disappear. You will look for the people who were against you, but you will not be able to find them. Those who fought against you will disappear completely. I am the LORD your God, who holds your right hand. And I tell you, ‘Don’t be afraid! I will help you.’ People of Israel, descendants of Jacob, you may be weak and worthless, but do not be afraid. I myself will help you.” This is what the LORD himself says. “I am the Holy One of Israel, the one who saves you. Look, I have made you like a new threshing board with many sharp teeth. You will trample mountains and crush them. You will make the hills like chaff. You will throw them into the air, and the wind will blow them away and scatter them. Then you will be happy in the LORD. You will be proud of the Holy One of Israel. “The poor and needy look for water, but they cannot find any. Their tongues are dry with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer their prayers. I, the God of Israel, will not leave them to die. I will make rivers flow on dry hills. I will make springs of water flow through the valleys. I will change the desert into a lake filled with water. There will be springs of water in that dry land.