Translation: ESV
But now hear, O Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen!
God's choice does not depend on human qualifications.
▸'My servant Jacob'—God again calls Israel his servant.
'My servant Jacob'—God again calls Israel his servant. This title simultaneously indicates the intimacy of the relationship and the bestowal of a mission. Chapter 44 emphasizes the foolishness of idolatry and the uniqueness of God.
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
God revives those who are spiritually parched through the Holy Spirit.
▸'I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring'—this is a prophecy of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: 'I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.'
The LORD is the first and the last, and there is no other god besides him.
▸'I am the first and I am the last'—a declaration of God's eternity repeated in 41:4 and 48:12.
All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame.
Making and worshiping idols is spiritual foolishness.
▸The foolishness of idol-makers begins.
He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, 'Is there not a lie in my right hand?'
Idol worship leads to spiritual emptiness through self-deception.
▸The tragic conclusion of idol worship: 'feeds on ashes'—idols are of no benefit.
I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you.
God blots out sin completely and invites a return to him.
▸'I have blotted out'—God has completely erased sin.
who says of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose'; saying of Jerusalem, 'She shall be built,' and of the temple, 'Your foundation shall be laid.'
God governs history, prophesying even the name of a foreign king.
▸'Cyrus'—God calls a foreign king by name for the first time.