Isaiah 48
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Israel Must Leave Babylon
48 “Listen to this, house of Jacob—
those who are called by the name Israel
and have descended from[a] Judah,(A)
who swear by the name of Yahweh(B)
and declare the God of Israel,
but not in truth or righteousness.
2 For they are named after the Holy City,
and lean on the God of Israel;(C)
His name is Yahweh of Hosts.
3 I declared the past events long ago;
they came out of My mouth; I proclaimed them.
Suddenly I acted, and they occurred.
4 Because I know that you are stubborn,
and your neck is iron[b]
and your forehead bronze,(D)
5 therefore I declared to you long ago.
I announced it to you before it occurred,
so you could not claim, ‘My idol caused them;
my carved image and cast idol control them.’(E)
6 You have heard it. Observe it all.
Will you not acknowledge it?
From now on I will announce new things to you,
hidden things that you have not known.(F)
7 They have been created now, and not long ago;
you have not heard of them before today,
so you could not claim, ‘I already knew them!’
8 You have never heard; you have never known;
For a long time your ears have not been open.
For I knew that you were very treacherous,
and were known as a rebel from birth.(G)
9 I will delay My anger for the honor of My name,
and I will restrain Myself for your benefit and for My praise,
so that you will not be destroyed.
10 Look, I have refined you,(H) but not as silver;
I have tested[c] you in the furnace of affliction.
11 I will act for My own sake, indeed, My own,(I)
for how can I[d] be defiled?
I will not give My glory to another.(J)
12 “Listen to Me, Jacob,
and Israel, the one called by Me:
I am He; I am the first,
I am also the last.(K)
13 My own hand founded the earth,
and My right hand spread out the heavens;(L)
when I summoned them,
they stood up together.
14 All of you, assemble and listen!
Who among the idols[e] has declared these things?
The Lord loves him;[f]
he will accomplish His will against Babylon,(M)
and His arm will be against the Chaldeans.
15 I—I have spoken;
yes, I have called him;(N)
I have brought him,
and he will succeed in his mission.(O)
16 Approach Me and listen to this.
From the beginning I have not spoken in secret;(P)
from the time anything existed, I was there.”
And now the Lord God
has sent me and His Spirit.(Q)
17 This is what the Lord, your Redeemer,(R) the Holy One of Israel(S) says:
I am Yahweh your God,
who teaches you for your benefit,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18 If only you had paid attention to My commands.
Then your peace would have been like a river,(T)
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.(U)
19 Your descendants would have been as countless as the sand,(V)
and the offspring of your body like its grains;
their name would not be cut off
or eliminated from My presence.
20 Leave Babylon,
flee from the Chaldeans!
Declare with a shout of joy,
proclaim this,
let it go out to the end of the earth;
announce,
“The Lord has redeemed His servant(W) Jacob!”
21 They did not thirst
when He led them through the deserts;
He made water flow for them from the rock;(X)
He split the rock, and water gushed out.
22 “There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.(Y)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 48:1 Lit have come from the waters of
- Isaiah 48:4 Lit is an iron sinew
- Isaiah 48:10 Or chosen
- Isaiah 48:11 DSS, Syr; MT reads it
- Isaiah 48:14 Lit among them
- Isaiah 48:14 = Cyrus
Isaiah 48
New Life Version
Israel Is Not Faithful in Following the Lord
48 “Hear this, O family of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and who come from the seed of Judah. They make promises in the name of the Lord, and call upon the God of Israel, but not in truth or by what is right and good. 2 For they call themselves people of the holy city, and trust in the God of Israel. The Lord of All is His name. 3 I made known the things that would happen long ago. From My mouth My words went out. Then all at once I did what I said I would, and they came to pass. 4 I know that your heart is hard. Your neck is like iron, and your forehead is like brass. 5 So I made them known to you long ago. I told you before they happened, or else you might say, ‘My false god has done them. My objects of worship have made them happen.’ 6 You have heard, now look at all this. And will you say that you will not tell about it? I tell you new things from this time on, even hidden things which you have not known. 7 They are made now, not long ago. Before today you have never heard of them, or you would say, ‘See, I knew them.’ 8 You have not heard. You have not known. Even from long ago your ear has not been open, because I knew that you could not be trusted. You have been known to fight against the law and not obey from birth. 9 Because of My name I hold back My anger. For My praise I keep Myself from cutting you off. 10 See, I have tested you, but not as silver. I have tested you in the fire of suffering. 11 For My own good, for My own good, I will do this. For why should I allow My name to be put to shame? I will not give My shining-greatness to another.
God Will Take Israel Out of Trouble
12 “Listen to Me, O Jacob, and Israel whom I called. I am He. I am the first, and I am the last. 13 My hand put the earth in its place. And My right hand spread out the heavens. When I call to them, they stand together. 14 Gather together, all of you, and listen! Who among them has made these things known? The Lord loves him. He will do to Babylon what pleases him, and his arm will be against the Babylonians. 15 I, even I, have spoken. Yes, I have called him, I have brought him, and he will do well. 16 Come near to Me and listen to this: From the beginning I have not spoken in secret. From the time it came to be, I was there. And now the Lord God has sent me and His Spirit.”
17 The Lord Who bought you and saves you, the Holy One of Israel, says, “I am the Lord your God, Who teaches you to do well, Who leads you in the way you should go. 18 If only you had listened to My Laws! Then your peace would have been like a river and your right-standing with God would have been like the waves of the sea. 19 Your children’s children would have been like the sand. Those born to you would have been like the sand. Their name would never be cut off or destroyed from before Me.”
20 Go out from Babylon! Run from the Babylonians! Call out for joy and let this be known to the end of the earth, saying, “The Lord has bought and set free His servant Jacob!” 21 They were not thirsty when He led them through the deserts. He made water flow out of the rock for them. He broke the rock, and the water flowed out. 22 “There is no peace for the sinful,” says the Lord.
Isaiah 48
The Message
Tested in the Furnace of Affliction
48 1-11 “And now listen to this, family of Jacob,
you who are called by the name Israel:
Who got you started in the loins of Judah,
you who use God’s name to back up your promises
and pray to the God of Israel?
But do you mean it?
Do you live like it?
You claim to be citizens of the Holy City;
you act as though you lean on the God of Israel,
named God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
For a long time now, I’ve let you in on the way I work:
I told you what I was going to do beforehand,
then I did it and it was done, and that’s that.
I know you’re a bunch of hardheads,
obstinate and flint-faced,
So I got a running start and began telling you
what was going on before it even happened.
That is why you can’t say,
‘My god-idol did this.’
‘My favorite god-carving commanded this.’
You have all this evidence
confirmed by your own eyes and ears.
Shouldn’t you be talking about it?
And that was just the beginning.
I have a lot more to tell you,
things you never knew existed.
This isn’t a variation on the same old thing.
This is new, brand-new,
something you’d never guess or dream up.
When you hear this you won’t be able to say,
‘I knew that all along.’
You’ve never been good listeners to me.
You have a history of ignoring me,
A sorry track record of fickle attachments—
rebels from the womb.
But out of the sheer goodness of my heart,
because of who I am,
I keep a tight rein on my anger and hold my temper.
I don’t wash my hands of you.
Do you see what I’ve done?
I’ve refined you, but not without fire.
I’ve tested you like silver in the furnace of affliction.
Out of myself, simply because of who I am, I do what I do.
I have my reputation to keep up.
I’m not playing second fiddle to either gods or people.
12-13 “Listen, Jacob. Listen, Israel—
I’m the One who named you!
I’m the One.
I got things started and, yes, I’ll wrap them up.
Earth is my work, handmade.
And the skies—I made them, too, horizon to horizon.
When I speak, they’re on their feet, at attention.
14-16 “Come everybody, gather around, listen:
Who among the gods has delivered the news?
I, God, love this man Cyrus, and I’m using him
to do what I want with Babylon.
I, yes I, have spoken. I’ve called him.
I’ve brought him here. He’ll be successful.
Come close, listen carefully:
I’ve never kept secrets from you.
I’ve always been present with you.”
Your Progeny, Like Grains of Sand
16-19 And now, the Master, God, sends me and his Spirit
with this Message from God
your Redeemer, The Holy of Israel:
“I am God, your God,
who teaches you how to live right and well.
I show you what to do, where to go.
If you had listened all along to what I told you,
your life would have flowed full like a river,
blessings rolling in like waves from the sea.
Children and grandchildren are like sand,
your progeny like grains of sand.
There would be no end of them,
no danger of losing touch with me.”
20 Get out of Babylon! Run from the Babylonians!
Shout the news. Broadcast it.
Let the world know, the whole world.
Tell them, “God redeemed his dear servant Jacob!”
21 They weren’t thirsty when he led them through the deserts.
He made water pour out of the rock;
he split the rock and the water gushed.
22 “There is no peace,” says God, “for the wicked.”
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