Isaiah 44

Isaiah 44 is the forty-fourth chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah, and is a part of the Books of the Prophets.

Isaiah 44
← chapter 43 chapter 45 →
The Great Isaiah Scroll, the best preserved of the biblical scrolls found at Qumran from the second century BC, contains all the verses in this chapter.
Book	Book of Isaiah
Hebrew Bible part	Nevi'im
Order in the Hebrew part	5
Category	Latter Prophets
Christian Bible part	Old Testament
Order in the Christian part	23

Text

The original text was written in Hebrew language. This chapter is divided into 28 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), the Petersburg Codex of the Prophets (916), Aleppo Codex (10th century), Codex Leningradensis (1008).^[1]

Fragments containing parts of this chapter were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls (3rd century BC or later):

• 1QIsa^a: complete
• 1QIsa^b: extant: verses 21-28
• 4QIsa^b (4Q56): extant: verses 19-28

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G}}}$ ^B; 4th century), Codex Sinaiticus (S; BHK: ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G}}}$ ^S; 4th century), Codex Alexandrinus (A; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G}}}$ ^A; 5th century) and Codex Marchalianus (Q; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G}}}$ ^Q; 6th century).^[2]

Parashot

The parashah sections listed here are based on the Aleppo Codex.^[3] Isaiah 44 is a part of the Consolations (Isaiah 40–66). {P}: open parashah; {S}: closed parashah.

{P} 44:1-5 {P} 44:6-20 {S} 44:21-23 {S} 44:4-28 {P}

Verse 1

“Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant,

And Israel whom I have chosen. (NKJV)^[4]

Cross reference: Isaiah 42:1, Jeremiah 30:10

Verse 2

Thus saith the Lord that made thee,

and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee;

Fear not, O Jacob, my servant;

and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.^[5]

The word Jesurun is used in the King James Version; most modern translations use the word Jeshurun.^[6]

Verse 6

"Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel,

And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:

I am the First and I am the Last;

and beside Me there is no God.^[7]

Cross reference: Revelation 1:8:

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come.^[8]

This verse contains the first clear statement of monotheism.^[9]

Verses 9-20

The process of manufacturing idols is "described in minute detail, showing what an expenditure of human strength and contrivance is involved in the production of these useless deities".^[10]

Verses 21-28

Verse 22

I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions, and like a cloud, your sins.^[11]

• "Blotted out": The impact of the past wrongdoing has now been removed completely.^[12]

Verse 28

That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd,

and shall perform all my pleasure:

even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built;

and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.^[13]

The mention of the deliverer of Israel, Cyrus by name in this verse (also in 45:1) becomes one of the main grounds for the theory of two Isaiahs.^[14]

See also

• Alpha and Omega
• Cyrus the Great

•  Bible portal

• Related Bible parts: Psalm 23, Isaiah 40, Isaiah 43, Isaiah 45, Revelation 1

References

1. Würthwein 1995, pp. 35–37.
2. Würthwein 1995, pp. 73–74.
3. As reflected in the Jewish Publication Society's 1917 edition of the Hebrew Bible in English.
4. Isaiah 44:1
5. Isaiah 44:2
6. BibleGateway.com, Translations of Isaiah 44:2, accessed 10 August 2018; also Jeshurun is used in the King James Version of Deuteronomy
7. Isaiah 44:6
8. Revelation 1:8
9. Gnuse, Robert Karl (1997). No Other Gods: Emergent Monotheism in Israel. Continuum. p. 87. ISBN 9781850756576.
10. Skinner, J, Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges on Isaiah 44, accessed 12 August 2018
11. Isaiah 44:22 NKJV
12. Coggins 2007, p. 470.
13. Isaiah 44:28 KJV
14. Exell, Joseph S.; Spence-Jones, Henry Donald Maurice (Editors). On "Isaiah 44". In: The Pulpit Commentary. 23 volumes. First publication: 1890. Diakses 24 April 2018.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

Sources

• Coggins, R (2007). "22. Isaiah". In Barton, John; Muddiman, John (eds.). The Oxford Bible Commentary (first (paperback) ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 433–486. ISBN 978-0199277186. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
• Würthwein, Ernst (1995). The Text of the Old Testament. Translated by Rhodes, Erroll F. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans. ISBN 0-8028-0788-7. Retrieved January 26, 2019.

External links

Jewish

• Isaiah 44 Hebrew with Parallel English

Christian

• Isaiah 44 English Translation with Parallel Latin Vulgate