Yahweh, your restorer, has said this
– your former from the womb:
‘I am Yahweh,
maker of everything,
Who stretched out the heavens on my own,
spread out the earth of myself,
Who contravenes the signs of soothsayers,
makes fools of diviners,
Turns the smart back,
makes idiocy of their knowledge,
Implements his servant’s word,
fulfils his envoys’ plan –
Who says of Yerushalaim, “It will be inhabited”,
and of Yehudah’s towns, “They’ll be built up”,
and “I will raise its wastes”,
Who says to the deep,
“Be wasted – I shall dry up your rivers”,
Who says to Koresh [Cyrus], “My shepherd,
he’ll fulfil my every want”,
By saying of Yerushalaim,
“It will be built up”,
and to the palace, “Be founded.”’
Yahweh has said this to his anointed, to Koresh,
‘The one whom I took by the right hand,
Putting down nations before him,
undoing the hips of kings,
Opening doors before him,
so that gateways might not shut:
I will go before you and level walls;
I will break up copper doors,
cut up iron bars.
I will give you dark treasuries
and hidden hoards,
In order that you may acknowledge that I am Yahweh;
Yisra’el’s God is the one who calls you by your name.
For the sake of my servant Ya’aqob,
Yisra’el my chosen,
I called you by your name,
I designate you though you haven’t acknowledged me.
I am Yahweh and there is no other;
apart from me there is no God.
I put the belt on you, though you have not acknowledged me,
in order that people may acknowledge,
from the rise of the sun and from the setting,
That there is none apart from me,
I am Yahweh and there is no other,
Forming light and creating dark,
making well-being and creating bad fortune.
I am Yahweh,
doing all these things.’
Rain, heavens above;
skies are to pour down faithfulness.
Earth is to open so that deliverance may fruit,
faithfulness is to burst out all at once;
I Yahweh have created it.
Goldingay, John; Goldingay, John; Wright, Tom; Wright, Tom. The Bible for Everyone . SPCK. Kindle Edition.
Be thou a bright flame before me,
Be thou a guiding star above me
Be thou a smooth path below me
Be thou a kindly shepherd behind me
Today – tonight -forever
Amen.
St Columba