Reflections on Isaiah 48

Isaiah 48 (Contemporary English Version)
1. People of Israel, you come from Jacob's family and the tribe of Judah. You claim to worship me, the LORD God of Israel, but you are lying.
   
2. You call Jerusalem your home and say you depend on me, the LORD All-Powerful, the God of Israel.
   
3. Long ago I announced what was going to be, then without warning, I made it happen.
   
4. I knew you were stubborn and hardheaded.
   
5. And I told you these things, so that when they happened you would not say, "The idols we worship did this."
   
6. You heard what I said, and you have seen it happen. Now admit that it's true! I will show you secrets you have never known.
   
7. Today I am doing something new, something you cannot say you have heard before.
   
8. You have never been willing to listen to what I say; from the moment of your birth, I knew you would rebel.
   
9. I, the LORD, am true to myself; I will be praised for not punishing and destroying you.
   
10. I tested you in hard times just as silver is refined in a heated furnace.
    
11. I did this because of who I am. I refuse to be dishonored or share my praise with any other god.
    
12. Israel, my chosen people, listen to me. I alone am the LORD, the first and the last.
    
13. With my own hand I created the earth and stretched out the sky. They obey my every command.
    
14. Gather around me, all of you! Listen to what I say. Did any of your idols predict this would happen? Did they say that my friend would do what I want done to Babylonia?
    
15. I was the one who chose him. I have brought him this far, and he will be successful.
    
16. Come closer and listen! I have never kept secret the things I have said, and I was here before time began. By the power of his Spirit the LORD God has sent me
    
17. with this message: People of Israel, I am the holy LORD God, the one who rescues you. For your own good, I teach you, and I lead you along the right path.
    
18. How I wish that you had obeyed my commands! Your success and good fortune would then have overflowed like a flooding river.
    
19. Your nation would be blessed with more people than there are grains of sand along the seashore. And I would never have let your country be destroyed.
    
20. Now leave Babylon! Celebrate as you go. Be happy and shout for everyone to hear, "The LORD has rescued his servant Israel!
    
21. He led us through the desert and made water flow from a rock to satisfy our thirst.
    
22. But the LORD has promised that none who are evil will live in peace."

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Isaiah repeatedly compares God to the idols Israel was prone to worship. In this comparison he also repeatedly points to two proofs of God's uniqueness: His creative power and His ability to foretell the future. Of course these abilities go together. One can undoubtedly foretell the future when they are creating those future events. It is the ability to foretell the future, however, that Isaiah gives greatest attention to in this chapter. 

According to this chapter, a key reason God foretold Israel's future was to keep Israel from crediting these events to their idols. Before they occurred, God had already spoken of them. In keeping with this pattern, God declared, "From now on I will announce new things to you, hidden things that you have not known." (48:6) Not only will God announce new things, these new things will be His creation. What new thing does He refer to? It is Israel's deliverance from Babylon at the hands of Cyrus, king of Persia. 

God will do this new thing as much for Himself as for Israel. In an act of restraint, God will deliver Israel from Babylon and not allow her to be destroyed. Rather than destroying Israel, her time in Babylon will serve to refine her - a testing in "the furnace of affliction." (48:10) Though it is for Israel's benefit, it is also for God's praise. God will not give His glory to another. And on this note God reminds them that it was His hand that founded the earth and spread the heavens. Then He challenges them to tell Him who among the idols has "declared these things." (48:14) 

In conclusion, God reminds them that He is the "Lord your God," who teaches them for their benefit. If only they had paid attention to His commands, He says. Then they could have had peace and prosperity. But He reminds them that there is no peace for the wicked. However, they will be given another chance. "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 Jacob!'" (48:20) They can go back to Jerusalem praising God and this time paying attention to His commands.