WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:00.030 --> 00:00:02.840 Nancy: Welcome to Immerse: the daily bible reading experience. 00:00:02.920 --> 00:00:04.270 Day 200 and 55 00:00:04.772 --> 00:00:05.642 comfort. 00:00:06.122 --> 00:00:06.782 Comfort. 00:00:06.782 --> 00:00:11.732 My people says, your God, speak tenderly to Jerusalem. 00:00:12.452 --> 00:00:16.532 Tell her that her sad days are gone and her sins are pardoned. 00:00:17.132 --> 00:00:21.122 Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over for all her sins. 00:00:22.322 --> 00:00:26.972 Listen, it's the voice of someone shouting, clear the way through 00:00:26.972 --> 00:00:28.682 the wilderness for the Lord. 00:00:28.967 --> 00:00:33.557 Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God, fill in the 00:00:33.557 --> 00:00:36.497 valleys and level the mountains and hills. 00:00:36.917 --> 00:00:40.127 Straighten the curves and smooth out the rough places. 00:00:40.817 --> 00:00:44.477 Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all 00:00:44.477 --> 00:00:46.217 people will see it together. 00:00:46.727 --> 00:00:48.167 The Lord has spoken. 00:00:49.247 --> 00:00:51.077 A voice said, shout. 00:00:51.527 --> 00:00:53.657 I asked, what should I shout? 00:00:54.377 --> 00:00:56.717 Shout that people are like the grass. 00:00:57.197 --> 00:01:00.497 Their beauty fades as quickly as the flowers in a field. 00:01:00.947 --> 00:01:05.177 The grass withers and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the Lord. 00:01:05.717 --> 00:01:07.337 And so it is with people. 00:01:07.997 --> 00:01:13.337 The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever. 00:01:14.267 --> 00:01:17.057 Oz Zion, messenger of good news. 00:01:17.267 --> 00:01:18.947 Shout from the mountaintops. 00:01:19.277 --> 00:01:21.407 Shout it louder, O Jerusalem. 00:01:21.887 --> 00:01:23.477 Shout and do not be afraid. 00:01:24.287 --> 00:01:27.707 Tell the towns of Judah, your God is coming. 00:01:28.307 --> 00:01:28.787 Yes. 00:01:29.027 --> 00:01:31.517 The sovereign Lord is coming in power. 00:01:31.727 --> 00:01:33.887 He will rule with a powerful arm. 00:01:34.457 --> 00:01:37.067 See, he brings his reward with him. 00:01:37.067 --> 00:01:40.877 As he comes, he will feed his flock like a shepherd. 00:01:41.057 --> 00:01:45.617 He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. 00:01:46.337 --> 00:01:51.137 He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young, who else 00:01:51.142 --> 00:01:53.267 has held the oceans in his hand? 00:01:54.047 --> 00:01:56.867 Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers? 00:01:57.677 --> 00:02:01.457 Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed the 00:02:01.457 --> 00:02:03.437 mountains and hills on a scale? 00:02:04.457 --> 00:02:08.477 Who is able to advise the spirit of the Lord, who knows enough 00:02:08.477 --> 00:02:10.517 to give him advice or teach him? 00:02:11.387 --> 00:02:14.267 Has the Lord ever needed anyone's advice? 00:02:14.897 --> 00:02:17.297 Does he need instruction about what is good? 00:02:17.837 --> 00:02:22.367 Did someone teach him what is right or show him the path of justice? 00:02:23.372 --> 00:02:28.592 No, for all the nations of the world are, but a drop in the bucket. 00:02:29.492 --> 00:02:32.522 They are nothing more than dust on the scales. 00:02:33.272 --> 00:02:37.652 He picks up the whole earth as though it were a grain of sand. 00:02:38.642 --> 00:02:43.802 All the wood in Lebanon's forests and all Lebanon's animals would not be enough to 00:02:43.802 --> 00:02:46.292 make a burnt offering worthy of our God. 00:02:47.132 --> 00:02:50.162 The nations of the world are worth nothing to him. 00:02:51.047 --> 00:02:55.847 In his eyes, they count for less than nothing mere emptiness and froth. 00:02:56.927 --> 00:02:59.447 To whom can you compare God? 00:03:00.347 --> 00:03:02.927 What image can you find to resemble him? 00:03:03.527 --> 00:03:08.027 Can he be compared to an idol formed in a mold overlaid with gold 00:03:08.032 --> 00:03:10.037 and decorated with silver chains? 00:03:10.907 --> 00:03:14.597 Or if people are too poor for that, they might at least choose wood that 00:03:14.597 --> 00:03:19.337 won't decay, and a skilled craftsman to carve an image that won't fall down. 00:03:20.297 --> 00:03:21.407 Haven't you heard? 00:03:21.857 --> 00:03:23.327 Don't you understand? 00:03:24.047 --> 00:03:26.177 Are you deaf to the words of God? 00:03:26.357 --> 00:03:28.907 The words he gave before the world began? 00:03:29.417 --> 00:03:30.887 Are you so ignorant? 00:03:31.667 --> 00:03:34.337 God sits above the circle of the earth. 00:03:34.757 --> 00:03:37.877 The people below seem like grasshoppers to him. 00:03:38.567 --> 00:03:42.917 He spreads out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them. 00:03:43.637 --> 00:03:48.047 He judges the great people of the world and brings them all to nothing. 00:03:48.617 --> 00:03:51.527 They hardly get started, barely taking root. 00:03:51.677 --> 00:03:56.747 When he blows on them and they wither the wind carries them off like chaff. 00:03:57.887 --> 00:04:00.407 To whom will you compare me? 00:04:00.947 --> 00:04:02.537 Who is my equal? 00:04:02.807 --> 00:04:04.127 Asks the holy one. 00:04:05.177 --> 00:04:08.777 Look up into the heavens who created all the stars? 00:04:09.227 --> 00:04:12.587 He brings them out like an army, one after another. 00:04:12.707 --> 00:04:14.567 Calling each by its name. 00:04:15.317 --> 00:04:18.617 Because of his great power and incomparable strength, 00:04:18.797 --> 00:04:20.417 not a single one is missing. 00:04:21.377 --> 00:04:25.997 Oh, Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles? 00:04:26.777 --> 00:04:30.707 Oh, Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights? 00:04:31.247 --> 00:04:32.567 Have you never heard? 00:04:33.347 --> 00:04:35.207 Have you never understood? 00:04:35.747 --> 00:04:40.307 The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of all the earth. 00:04:40.877 --> 00:04:43.157 He never grows weak or weary. 00:04:43.772 --> 00:04:46.772 No one can measure the depths of his understanding. 00:04:46.922 --> 00:04:51.092 He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. 00:04:51.722 --> 00:04:55.892 Even youths will become weak and tired and young men will fall in 00:04:55.892 --> 00:05:01.952 exhaustion, but those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. 00:05:02.642 --> 00:05:05.252 They will soar high on wings like eagles. 00:05:05.702 --> 00:05:07.982 They will run and not grow weary. 00:05:08.582 --> 00:05:10.652 They will walk and not faint. 00:05:12.257 --> 00:05:14.837 Listen in silence before me. 00:05:15.017 --> 00:05:16.667 You land beyond the sea. 00:05:17.087 --> 00:05:19.007 Bring your strongest arguments. 00:05:19.217 --> 00:05:20.507 Come now and speak. 00:05:20.747 --> 00:05:22.547 The court is ready for your case. 00:05:23.567 --> 00:05:26.387 Who has stirred up this king from the east? 00:05:26.597 --> 00:05:31.577 Rightly calling him to God's service who gives this man victory over many 00:05:31.577 --> 00:05:36.377 nations and permits him to trample their kings underfoot with his 00:05:36.377 --> 00:05:39.017 sword, he reduces armies to dust. 00:05:39.497 --> 00:05:40.307 With his bow. 00:05:40.427 --> 00:05:42.977 He scatters them like chaff before the wind. 00:05:43.727 --> 00:05:46.517 He chases them away and goes on safely. 00:05:46.727 --> 00:05:52.217 Though he is walking over unfamiliar ground who has done such mighty 00:05:52.217 --> 00:05:56.417 deeds summoning each new generation from the beginning of time. 00:05:57.107 --> 00:06:00.947 It is I the Lord, the first and the last. 00:06:01.217 --> 00:06:02.567 I alone am he. 00:06:03.902 --> 00:06:08.222 The lands beyond the sea Watch in fear remote lands, 00:06:08.222 --> 00:06:10.322 tremble and mobilize for war. 00:06:10.952 --> 00:06:15.602 The idol makers encourage one another saying to each other, be strong. 00:06:16.442 --> 00:06:21.152 The carver encourages the goldsmith and the molder helps at the anvil. 00:06:21.782 --> 00:06:22.202 Good. 00:06:22.532 --> 00:06:26.522 They say it's coming along fine, carefully. 00:06:26.522 --> 00:06:31.412 They join the parts together, then fasten the thing in place so it won't fall over. 00:06:32.597 --> 00:06:37.367 But as for you, Israel, my servant Jacob, my chosen one 00:06:37.607 --> 00:06:40.037 descended from Abraham, my friend. 00:06:40.427 --> 00:06:45.047 I have called you back from the ends of the earth saying You are 00:06:45.047 --> 00:06:49.247 my servant, for I have chosen you and will not throw you away. 00:06:49.817 --> 00:06:52.277 Don't be afraid for I am with you. 00:06:52.937 --> 00:06:55.877 Don't be discouraged for I am your God. 00:06:56.507 --> 00:06:58.877 I will strengthen you and help you. 00:06:59.282 --> 00:07:02.342 I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. 00:07:03.422 --> 00:07:08.552 See all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. 00:07:09.122 --> 00:07:12.422 Anyone who opposes you will die and come to nothing. 00:07:13.262 --> 00:07:17.402 You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you, those who 00:07:17.402 --> 00:07:19.862 attack you will come to nothing for. 00:07:19.862 --> 00:07:21.842 I hold you by your right hand. 00:07:22.502 --> 00:07:24.452 I the Lord your God. 00:07:24.722 --> 00:07:27.452 And I say to you, don't be afraid. 00:07:28.052 --> 00:07:32.102 I am here to help you though you are a lowly worm. 00:07:32.102 --> 00:07:32.762 O Jacob. 00:07:33.032 --> 00:07:37.082 Don't be afraid people of Israel for I will help you. 00:07:37.712 --> 00:07:39.932 I am the Lord your redeemer. 00:07:40.532 --> 00:07:42.602 I am the holy one of Israel. 00:07:43.202 --> 00:07:46.712 You will be a new threshing instrument with many sharp teeth. 00:07:47.182 --> 00:07:52.592 You will tear your enemies apart making chaff of mountains. 00:07:53.222 --> 00:07:56.972 You will toss them into the air and the wind will blow them all away. 00:07:57.857 --> 00:07:59.807 A whirlwind will scatter them. 00:08:00.677 --> 00:08:02.717 Then you will rejoice in the Lord. 00:08:02.957 --> 00:08:05.477 You will glory in the holy one of Israel. 00:08:06.527 --> 00:08:10.877 When the poor and needy search for water and there is none and their 00:08:10.877 --> 00:08:15.737 tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the Lord will answer them. 00:08:16.337 --> 00:08:19.517 I the God of Israel will never abandon them. 00:08:20.147 --> 00:08:23.207 I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. 00:08:23.537 --> 00:08:26.147 I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. 00:08:26.582 --> 00:08:29.162 I will fill the desert with pools of water. 00:08:29.912 --> 00:08:33.482 Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground. 00:08:34.442 --> 00:08:40.322 I will plant trees in the barren desert, cedar, acacia, myrtle, 00:08:40.442 --> 00:08:43.412 olive, Cyprus, fur and pine. 00:08:44.102 --> 00:08:48.692 I am doing this so all who see this miracle will understand what it means, 00:08:49.142 --> 00:08:53.642 that it is the Lord who has done this, the holy one of Israel who created it. 00:08:54.767 --> 00:08:57.737 Present the case for your idols, says the Lord. 00:08:58.067 --> 00:09:00.167 Let them show what they can do. 00:09:00.497 --> 00:09:01.997 Says the King of Israel. 00:09:02.477 --> 00:09:07.607 Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider the evidence 00:09:08.297 --> 00:09:12.437 or let them tell us what the future holds so we can know what's going to happen. 00:09:13.007 --> 00:09:16.067 Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. 00:09:16.667 --> 00:09:18.407 Then we will know you are Gods. 00:09:18.587 --> 00:09:21.437 In fact, do anything good or bad. 00:09:22.037 --> 00:09:27.317 Do something that will amaze and frighten us, but know you are less 00:09:27.317 --> 00:09:29.957 than nothing and can do nothing at all. 00:09:30.407 --> 00:09:35.447 Those who choose you pollute themselves, but I have stirred up a leader who will 00:09:35.447 --> 00:09:38.147 approach from the north, from the east. 00:09:38.147 --> 00:09:39.647 He will call on my name. 00:09:40.367 --> 00:09:43.367 I will give him victory over kings and princes. 00:09:43.757 --> 00:09:46.967 He will trample on them as a potter treads on clay. 00:09:47.987 --> 00:09:50.537 Who told you from the beginning that this would happen? 00:09:51.467 --> 00:09:54.737 Who predicted this making you admit that he was right? 00:09:55.547 --> 00:09:57.107 No one said a word. 00:09:57.767 --> 00:10:01.457 I was the first to tell Zion, look, help is on the way. 00:10:02.297 --> 00:10:05.177 I will send Jerusalem a messenger with good news. 00:10:05.777 --> 00:10:07.847 Not one of your idols told you this. 00:10:08.237 --> 00:10:11.237 Not one gave any answer when I asked. 00:10:11.777 --> 00:10:15.287 See, they are all foolish, worthless things. 00:10:16.067 --> 00:10:18.527 All your idols are as empty as the wind. 00:10:20.072 --> 00:10:22.922 Look at my servant whom I strengthen. 00:10:23.612 --> 00:10:26.282 He is my chosen one who pleases me. 00:10:27.092 --> 00:10:29.012 I have put my spirit upon him. 00:10:29.642 --> 00:10:31.772 He will bring justice to the nations. 00:10:32.102 --> 00:10:34.742 He will not shout or raise his voice in public. 00:10:35.342 --> 00:10:38.942 He will not crush the weakest read or put out a flickering candle. 00:10:39.422 --> 00:10:42.452 He will bring justice to all who have been wronged. 00:10:43.052 --> 00:10:47.462 He will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth. 00:10:48.332 --> 00:10:51.992 Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his instruction. 00:10:53.012 --> 00:10:56.942 God, the Lord created the heavens and stretched them out. 00:10:57.662 --> 00:11:00.242 He created the earth and everything in it. 00:11:00.962 --> 00:11:05.042 He gives breath to everyone, life, to everyone who walks the 00:11:05.042 --> 00:11:08.372 earth, and it is He who says I. 00:11:08.377 --> 00:11:12.182 The Lord have called you to demonstrate my righteousness. 00:11:12.962 --> 00:11:15.242 I will take you by the hand and guard you. 00:11:15.962 --> 00:11:21.962 I will give you to my people, Israel as a symbol of my covenant with them, and 00:11:21.962 --> 00:11:24.422 you will be a light to guide the nations. 00:11:25.052 --> 00:11:26.852 You will open the eyes of the blind. 00:11:27.092 --> 00:11:32.192 You will free the captives from prison, releasing those who sit in dark dungeons. 00:11:33.242 --> 00:11:35.282 I am the Lord that is my name. 00:11:35.852 --> 00:11:40.562 I will not give glory to anyone else nor share my praise with carved idols. 00:11:41.372 --> 00:11:46.172 Everything I prophesied has come true, and now I will prophesy again. 00:11:46.862 --> 00:11:49.322 I will tell you the future before it happens. 00:11:50.732 --> 00:11:52.982 Sing a new song to the Lord. 00:11:53.462 --> 00:11:55.952 Sing his praises from the ends of the earth. 00:11:56.432 --> 00:12:02.612 Sing all you who sail the seas, all you who live in distant coastlands. 00:12:03.062 --> 00:12:05.462 Join in the chorus U Desert towns. 00:12:05.762 --> 00:12:08.072 Let the villages of Keter rejoice. 00:12:08.552 --> 00:12:10.832 Let the people of Sila sing for joy. 00:12:11.192 --> 00:12:13.592 Shout praises from the mountaintops. 00:12:14.012 --> 00:12:16.502 Let the whole world glorify the Lord. 00:12:16.682 --> 00:12:18.482 Let it sing his praise. 00:12:19.322 --> 00:12:22.142 The Lord will march forth like a mighty hero. 00:12:22.292 --> 00:12:25.322 He will come out like a warrior full of fury. 00:12:25.622 --> 00:12:29.492 He will shout his battle, cry and crush all his enemies. 00:12:30.572 --> 00:12:33.602 He will say, I have long been silent. 00:12:33.842 --> 00:12:36.242 Yes, I have restrained myself. 00:12:37.022 --> 00:12:41.732 Now like a woman in labor, I will cry and groan and pant. 00:12:42.452 --> 00:12:46.292 I will level the mountains and hills and blight all their greenery. 00:12:46.892 --> 00:12:51.842 I will turn the rivers into dry land and will dry up all the pools. 00:12:52.562 --> 00:12:58.112 I will lead blind Israel down a new path, guiding them along an unfamiliar way. 00:12:58.712 --> 00:13:03.212 I will brighten the darkness before them and smooth out the road ahead of them. 00:13:03.752 --> 00:13:06.782 Yes, I will indeed do these things. 00:13:07.112 --> 00:13:12.812 I will not forsake them, but those who trust in idols who say, you are our 00:13:12.817 --> 00:13:15.632 gods, will be turned away in shame. 00:13:16.982 --> 00:13:21.302 Listen, you who are deaf, look and see you blind. 00:13:21.962 --> 00:13:27.212 Who is as blind as my own people, my servant, who is as deaf as my 00:13:27.212 --> 00:13:32.642 messenger, who is as blind as my chosen people, the servant of the Lord. 00:13:33.542 --> 00:13:37.592 You see and recognize what is right, but refuse to act on it. 00:13:38.492 --> 00:13:44.012 You hear with your ears, but you don't really listen because he is righteous. 00:13:44.342 --> 00:13:48.482 The Lord has exalted his glorious law, but his own people have 00:13:48.482 --> 00:13:52.922 been robbed and plundered, enslaved, imprisoned, and trapped. 00:13:53.672 --> 00:13:57.632 They are fair game for anyone and have no one to protect them. 00:13:58.232 --> 00:14:00.002 No one to take them back home. 00:14:01.112 --> 00:14:05.012 Who will hear these lessons from the past and see the ruin 00:14:05.012 --> 00:14:06.722 that awaits you in the future? 00:14:07.052 --> 00:14:09.872 Who allowed Israel to be robbed and hurt? 00:14:10.712 --> 00:14:13.922 It was the Lord against whom we sinned for. 00:14:13.922 --> 00:14:17.972 The people would not walk in his path, nor would they obey his law. 00:14:18.602 --> 00:14:23.342 Therefore, he poured out his fury on them and destroyed them in battle. 00:14:23.852 --> 00:14:28.052 They were enveloped in flames, but they still refused to understand. 00:14:28.997 --> 00:14:33.047 They were consumed by fire, but they did not learn their lesson. 00:14:34.397 --> 00:14:40.667 But now, O Jacob listened to the Lord Who Created You O Israel, the 00:14:40.672 --> 00:14:46.457 one who formed you says, do not be afraid for I have ransomed you. 00:14:47.027 --> 00:14:48.707 I have called you by name. 00:14:48.977 --> 00:14:52.577 You are mine when you go through deep waters. 00:14:52.967 --> 00:14:56.897 I will be with you when you go through rivers of difficulty. 00:14:57.347 --> 00:15:02.087 You will not drown when you walk through the fire of oppression. 00:15:02.417 --> 00:15:04.007 You will not be burned up. 00:15:04.247 --> 00:15:06.377 The flames will not consume you. 00:15:07.157 --> 00:15:12.497 For I am the Lord your God, the holy one of Israel, your savior. 00:15:13.217 --> 00:15:16.097 I gave Egypt as a ransom for your freedom. 00:15:16.427 --> 00:15:19.487 I gave Ethiopia and Siba in your place. 00:15:20.207 --> 00:15:22.547 Others were given in exchange for you. 00:15:23.237 --> 00:15:26.807 I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me. 00:15:27.107 --> 00:15:29.177 You are honored and I love you. 00:15:30.227 --> 00:15:32.747 Do not be afraid for I am with you. 00:15:33.407 --> 00:15:37.097 I will gather you and your children from east and west. 00:15:37.427 --> 00:15:42.887 I will say to the north and south, bring my sons and daughters back to Israel 00:15:42.887 --> 00:15:44.837 from the distant corners of the earth. 00:15:45.557 --> 00:15:50.057 Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. 00:15:50.882 --> 00:15:52.742 It was I who created them. 00:15:53.852 --> 00:15:58.682 Bring out the people who have eyes but are blind, who have ears, but are deaf. 00:15:59.132 --> 00:16:00.842 Gather the nations together. 00:16:01.292 --> 00:16:03.182 Assemble the peoples of the world. 00:16:03.962 --> 00:16:08.132 Which of their idols has ever foretold such things, which can 00:16:08.132 --> 00:16:10.052 predict what will happen tomorrow? 00:16:10.862 --> 00:16:13.622 Where are the witnesses of such predictions? 00:16:14.072 --> 00:16:16.442 Who can verify that they spoke the truth? 00:16:17.717 --> 00:16:19.397 You are my witnesses. 00:16:19.397 --> 00:16:21.137 O Israel says the Lord. 00:16:21.407 --> 00:16:22.907 You are my servant. 00:16:23.387 --> 00:16:30.077 You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. 00:16:30.677 --> 00:16:31.967 There is no other God. 00:16:32.327 --> 00:16:34.847 There never has been and there never will be. 00:16:35.897 --> 00:16:40.697 I, yes, I am the Lord and there is no other savior. 00:16:41.507 --> 00:16:43.487 First I predicted your rescue. 00:16:44.042 --> 00:16:46.592 Then I saved you and proclaimed it to the world. 00:16:47.162 --> 00:16:49.502 No foreign God has ever done this. 00:16:49.802 --> 00:16:56.102 You are witnesses that I am the only God says the Lord from eternity to eternity. 00:16:56.107 --> 00:16:57.062 I am God. 00:16:57.602 --> 00:17:00.512 No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. 00:17:01.172 --> 00:17:03.812 No one can undo what I have done. 00:17:05.372 --> 00:17:10.112 This is what the Lord says, your redeemer, the holy one of Israel. 00:17:11.477 --> 00:17:16.127 For your sakes, I will send an army against Babylon, forcing the 00:17:16.127 --> 00:17:18.257 Babylonians to flee in those ships. 00:17:18.257 --> 00:17:19.397 They are so proud of. 00:17:20.057 --> 00:17:24.677 I am the Lord your holy one, Israel's creator and king. 00:17:25.457 --> 00:17:31.487 I am the Lord who opened away through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. 00:17:32.027 --> 00:17:36.887 I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses. 00:17:37.532 --> 00:17:41.612 I drew them beneath the waves and they drowned their lives. 00:17:41.612 --> 00:17:46.112 Snuffed out like a smoldering candle wick, but forget all that. 00:17:46.652 --> 00:17:52.352 It is nothing compared to what I am going to do for I am about to do something new. 00:17:52.922 --> 00:17:54.782 See, I have already begun. 00:17:55.052 --> 00:17:56.042 Do you not see it? 00:17:56.882 --> 00:17:59.252 I will make a pathway through the wilderness. 00:17:59.792 --> 00:18:02.342 I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. 00:18:03.542 --> 00:18:08.522 The wild animals in the fields will thank me the jackals and owls too, 00:18:08.702 --> 00:18:10.472 for giving them water in the desert. 00:18:11.042 --> 00:18:15.572 Yes, I will make rivers in the dry wasteland so my chosen 00:18:15.572 --> 00:18:17.222 people can be refreshed. 00:18:17.912 --> 00:18:22.292 I have made Israel for myself and they will someday honor 00:18:22.292 --> 00:18:23.972 me before the whole world. 00:18:25.022 --> 00:18:29.312 But dear family of Jacob, you refuse to ask for my help. 00:18:29.672 --> 00:18:31.922 You have grown tired of me, o Israel. 00:18:32.582 --> 00:18:35.822 You have not brought me sheep or goats for burnt offerings. 00:18:36.452 --> 00:18:40.202 You have not honored me with sacrifices, though I have not burdened 00:18:40.202 --> 00:18:44.372 and weeded you with requests for grain offerings and frankincense. 00:18:45.182 --> 00:18:48.332 You have not brought me fragrant, calamus, or pleased 00:18:48.332 --> 00:18:50.462 me with the fat from sacrifices. 00:18:51.182 --> 00:18:55.772 Instead, you have burdened me with your sins and weed me with your faults. 00:18:56.957 --> 00:18:58.007 I, yes. 00:18:58.007 --> 00:19:03.497 I alone will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. 00:19:04.187 --> 00:19:08.777 Let us review the situation together and you can present your case to prove 00:19:08.782 --> 00:19:11.747 your innocence from the very beginning. 00:19:12.317 --> 00:19:14.747 Your first ancestor sinned against me. 00:19:15.377 --> 00:19:17.357 All your leaders broke my laws. 00:19:17.957 --> 00:19:20.237 That is why I have disgraced your priests. 00:19:20.567 --> 00:19:24.857 I have decreed complete destruction for Jacob and shame for Israel. 00:19:26.162 --> 00:19:33.272 Now listen to me, Jacob, my servant Israel, my chosen one, the Lord who made 00:19:33.277 --> 00:19:37.022 you and helps you says, do not be afraid. 00:19:37.022 --> 00:19:38.642 Oh, Jacob, my servant. 00:19:39.002 --> 00:19:44.612 Oh dear Israel, my chosen one for I will pour out water to quench 00:19:44.612 --> 00:19:48.782 your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields, and I will pour 00:19:48.782 --> 00:19:53.132 out my spirit on your descendants and my blessing on your children. 00:19:53.867 --> 00:19:58.277 They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank. 00:19:58.787 --> 00:20:01.877 Some will proudly claim I belong to the Lord. 00:20:02.297 --> 00:20:05.327 Others will say I am a descendant of Jacob. 00:20:05.987 --> 00:20:09.287 Some will write the Lord's name on their hands and will take 00:20:09.292 --> 00:20:11.267 the name of Israel as their own. 00:20:12.377 --> 00:20:16.637 This is what the Lord says, Israel's king and redeemer. 00:20:16.997 --> 00:20:18.737 The Lord of heaven's armies. 00:20:19.907 --> 00:20:22.307 I am the first and the last. 00:20:22.547 --> 00:20:25.547 There is no other God who is like me. 00:20:26.237 --> 00:20:29.147 Let him step forward and prove to you his power. 00:20:29.957 --> 00:20:34.487 Let Him do as I have done since ancient times when I established 00:20:34.487 --> 00:20:36.527 a people and explained its future. 00:20:37.247 --> 00:20:38.147 Do not tremble. 00:20:38.627 --> 00:20:39.797 Do not be afraid. 00:20:40.517 --> 00:20:43.607 Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago? 00:20:44.537 --> 00:20:45.917 You are my witnesses. 00:20:46.397 --> 00:20:47.957 Is there any other God? 00:20:48.347 --> 00:20:51.047 No, there is no other rock. 00:20:51.167 --> 00:20:52.037 Not one. 00:20:53.147 --> 00:20:55.907 How foolish are those who manufacture idols? 00:20:56.237 --> 00:20:58.727 These prized objects are really worthless. 00:20:59.507 --> 00:21:03.707 The people who worship idols don't know this, so they are all put to shame 00:21:04.307 --> 00:21:09.887 who, but a fool would make his own God and idol that cannot help him one bit. 00:21:10.817 --> 00:21:13.517 All who worship idols will be disgraced. 00:21:13.697 --> 00:21:18.107 Along with all these craftsmen mere humans who claim they can make a 00:21:18.107 --> 00:21:23.507 God, they may all stand together, but they will stand in terror and shame. 00:21:24.587 --> 00:21:28.907 The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool pounding and 00:21:28.907 --> 00:21:30.677 shaping it with all his might. 00:21:31.067 --> 00:21:33.467 His work makes him hungry and weak. 00:21:33.737 --> 00:21:35.507 It makes him thirsty and faint. 00:21:36.257 --> 00:21:39.887 Then the wood cover measures a block of wood and draws a pattern on it. 00:21:40.367 --> 00:21:44.297 He works with chisel and plain and carves it into a human figure. 00:21:44.927 --> 00:21:48.377 He gives it human beauty and puts it in a little shrine. 00:21:48.797 --> 00:21:50.387 He cuts down cedars. 00:21:50.627 --> 00:21:52.967 He selects the Cyprus and the oak. 00:21:53.417 --> 00:21:56.747 He plants the pine in the forest to be nourished by the rain. 00:21:57.527 --> 00:22:01.097 Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire with it. 00:22:01.097 --> 00:22:05.657 He warms himself and bakes his bread then yes, it's true. 00:22:06.047 --> 00:22:10.277 He takes the rest of it and makes himself a God to worship. 00:22:10.607 --> 00:22:13.577 He makes an idol and bows down in front of it. 00:22:14.237 --> 00:22:18.077 He burns part of the tree to roast his meat and to keep himself warm. 00:22:18.317 --> 00:22:21.587 He says, ah, that fire feels good. 00:22:21.962 --> 00:22:26.072 Then he takes what's left and makes his God a carved idol. 00:22:26.612 --> 00:22:31.952 He falls down in front of it, worshiping and praying to it, rescue me. 00:22:31.982 --> 00:22:37.742 He says, you are my God, such stupidity and ignorance. 00:22:38.132 --> 00:22:40.292 Their eyes are closed and they cannot see. 00:22:40.712 --> 00:22:43.442 Their minds are shut and they cannot think. 00:22:44.102 --> 00:22:47.822 The person who made the idol never stops to reflect why? 00:22:48.242 --> 00:22:49.412 It's just a block of wood. 00:22:50.372 --> 00:22:55.262 I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. 00:22:55.682 --> 00:23:01.022 How can the rest of it be a God should I bow down to worship a piece of wood? 00:23:01.832 --> 00:23:04.832 The poor diluted fool feeds on ashes. 00:23:05.042 --> 00:23:08.972 He trusts something that can't help him at all, yet he cannot 00:23:08.972 --> 00:23:13.712 bring himself to ask, is this idol that I'm holding in my hand a lie? 00:23:14.732 --> 00:23:15.542 Pay attention. 00:23:15.542 --> 00:23:18.482 O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. 00:23:19.712 --> 00:23:23.552 I, the Lord made you and I will not forget you. 00:23:24.032 --> 00:23:26.612 I have swept away your sins like a cloud. 00:23:27.242 --> 00:23:30.272 I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. 00:23:30.812 --> 00:23:31.142 Oh. 00:23:31.142 --> 00:23:35.462 Return to me for I have paid the price to set you free. 00:23:36.512 --> 00:23:40.502 Sing oh Heavens, for the Lord has done this wondrous thing. 00:23:41.012 --> 00:23:42.182 Shout for Joy. 00:23:42.182 --> 00:23:45.422 O Depths of the Earth break into Song O. 00:23:45.422 --> 00:23:48.182 Mountains and forests and every tree. 00:23:48.842 --> 00:23:53.222 For the Lord has redeemed Jacob and is glorified in Israel. 00:23:55.292 --> 00:23:58.172 This concludes today's immerse reading experience. 00:23:58.292 --> 00:23:59.522 Thank you for joining us.