Isaiah 41:4

41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? ¹ 

Who ²  summons the successive generations from the beginning?

I, the Lord, am present at the very beginning,

and at the very end – I am the one. ³ 

Isaiah 55:5

55:5 Look, you will summon nations ⁴  you did not previously know;

nations ⁵  that did not previously know you will run to you,

because of the Lord your God,

the Holy One of Israel, ⁶ 

for he bestows honor on you.

[41:4]  ¹ tn Heb “Who acts and accomplishes?”; NASB “Who has performed and accomplished it.”

[41:4]  ² tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:4]  ³ tn Heb “I, the Lord, [am with] the first, and with the last ones I [am] he.”

[55:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “a nation,” but the singular is collective here, as the plural verbs in the next line indicate (note that both “know” and “run” are third plural forms).

[55:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “a nation,” but the singular is collective here, as the plural verbs that follow indicate.

[55:5]  ⁶ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.