Isaiah 48
48
God Controls the Future
1The Lord says, “Family of Jacob, listen to me.
You are called Israel.
You come from the family of Judah.
You use the Lord’s name to make promises.
You praise the God of Israel,
but you are not honest or sincere.
2You call yourselves people of the holy city.
You depend on the God of Israel.
He is named the Lord of heaven’s armies.
3Long ago I told you what would happen.
I said these things and made them known.
Suddenly I acted, and these things happened.
4I did that because I knew you were stubborn.
Your neck was like an iron muscle.
It was as if your head were made of bronze.
5So a long time ago I told you about these things.
I told you about them before they happened.
I did this so you couldn’t say, ‘My idols did this.
My wooden and metal statues made these things happen.’
6“You heard and saw all the things that happened.
So you should tell this news to others.
Now I will tell you about new things.
These are hidden things that you don’t know yet.
7These things are happening now, not long ago.
You have not heard about them before today.
So you cannot say, ‘We already knew about that.’
8But you have not heard me. You have not understood.
Even long ago you did not listen to me.
I knew you would surely turn against me.
You have fought against me since you were born.
9But for my own sake I will be patient.
People will praise me for not becoming angry
and destroying you.
10I have made you pure, but not by fire, as silver is made pure.
I have purified you by giving you troubles.
11I do this for myself, for my own sake.
I will not let people speak evil against me.
I will not let some false god take my glory.
Israel Will Be Free
12“People of Jacob, listen to me.
People of Israel, I have called you to be my people.
I am God.
I am the beginning and the end.
13I made the earth with my own hands.
With my right hand I spread out the skies.
When I call them,
they come together before me.
14“All of you, come together and listen.
None of the false gods said these things would happen.
I, the Lord, have chosen someone
to attack the Babylonians.
He will carry out my wishes against Babylon.
15I have spoken. I have called him.# This probably refers to Cyrus king of Persia.
I have brought him, and I will make him successful.
16Come to me and listen to this.
From the beginning I have spoken openly.
From the time it began, I was there.”
Now, the Lord God
has sent me with his Spirit.
17The Lord is your close relative who saves you, the Holy One of Israel.
The Lord says,
“I am the Lord your God.
I teach you to do what is good.
I lead you in the way you should go.
18If you had obeyed me,
you would have had peace like a full-flowing river.
Good things would have flowed to you like the waves of the sea.
19You would have had many children.
They would have been as many as the grains of sand.
They would never have died out.
They would not have been destroyed.”
20My people, leave Babylon!
Run from the Babylonians!
Tell this news with shouts of joy to the people.
Spread it everywhere on earth.
Say, “The Lord has saved
his servants, the people of Jacob.”
21They did not become thirsty when he led them through the deserts.
He made water flow from a rock for them.
He split the rock,
and water flowed out.
22“There is no peace for evil people,” says the Lord.
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Isaiah 48: ICB
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Isaiah 48
48
Israel’s Stubbornness
1“Listen to this, O house of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel,
who have descended from the line of Judah,
who swear by the name of the Lord,
who invoke the God of Israel—
but not in truth or righteousness—
2who indeed call yourselves after the holy city
and lean on the God of Israel;
the Lord of Hosts is His name.
3I foretold the former things long ago;
they came out of My mouth and I proclaimed them.
Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.
4For I knew that you are stubborn;
your neck is iron and your forehead is bronze.
5Therefore I declared it to you long ago;
I announced it before it came to pass,
so that you could not claim, ‘My idol has done this;
my carved image and molten god has ordained it.’
6You have heard these things; look at them all.
Will you not acknowledge them?
From now on I will tell you of new things,
hidden things unknown to you.
7They are created now, and not long ago;
you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot claim,
‘I already knew them!’
8You have never heard; you have never understood;
for a long time your ears have not been open.
For I knew how deceitful you are;
you have been called a rebel from birth.
9For the sake of My name I will delay My wrath;
for the sake of My praise I will restrain it,
so that you will not be cut off.
10See, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
11For My own sake, My very own sake, I will act;
for how can I let Myself be defamed?
I will not yield My glory to another.
Deliverance Promised to Israel
12Listen to Me, O Jacob,
and Israel, whom I have called:
I am He; I am the first,
and I am the last.
13Surely My own hand founded the earth,
and My right hand spread out the heavens;
when I summon them,
they stand up together.
14Come together, all of you, and listen:
Which of the idols has foretold these things?
The Lord’s chosen ally will carry out His desire against Babylon,
and His arm will be against the Chaldeans.#48:14 That is, the Babylonians; also in verse 20
15I, even I, have spoken;
yes, I have called him.
I have brought him,
and he will succeed in his mission.
16Come near to Me and listen to this:
From the beginning I have not spoken in secret;
from the time it happened, I was there.”
And now the Lord GOD has sent me,
accompanied by His Spirit.
17Thus says the Lord your Redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you for your benefit,
who directs you in the way you should go.
18If only you had paid attention to My commandments,
your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like waves of the sea.
19Your descendants would have been as countless as the sand,
and your offspring as numerous as its grains;#48:19 Literally like the sand, and your offspring like its grains
their name would never be cut off
or eliminated from My presence.”
20Leave Babylon!
Flee from the Chaldeans!
Declare it with a shout of joy,
proclaim it,
let it go out to the ends of the earth, saying,
“The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob!”
21They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts;
He made water flow for them from the rock;
He split the rock, and water gushed out.
22“There is no peace,” says the Lord,
“for the wicked.”
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The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.