Isaiah 48

1 Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, Who are called by the name of Israel, And from the waters of Judah came out, Who are swearing by the name of Jehovah, And of the God of Israel make mention, Not in truth nor in righteousness.

Hear this, O house of Jacob! Ye that are called by the name of Israel; Ye that have come forth from the fountain of Judah; Ye that swear by the name of Jehovah, And praise the God of Israel, But not in truth and sincerity!

2 For from the Holy City they have been called, And on the God of Israel been supported, Jehovah of Hosts [is] His name.

For they call themselves of the holy city, And stay themselves on the God of Israel, Whose name is Jehovah of hosts: —

3 The former things from that time I declared, And from my mouth they have gone forth, And I proclaim them, Suddenly I have done, and it cometh.

What hath happened I declared to you long ago; From my mouth it proceeded, and I made it known; On a sudden I effected it, and it came to pass.

4 From my knowing that thou art obstinate, And a sinew of iron thy neck, And thy forehead brass,

Because I knew that thou art obstinate, And that thy neck is a bar of iron, And that thy brow is brass,

5 And I declare to thee from that time, Before it cometh I have caused thee to hear, Lest thou say, 'Mine idol hath done them, And my graven image, And my molten image did command them.

I declared it to thee long ago; Before it came to pass, I made it known to thee; Lest thou shouldst say, My idol effected it, And my graven image, and my molten image ordained it.

6 Thou hast heard, see the whole of it, And ye, do ye not declare? I have caused thee to hear new things from this time, And things reserved that ye knew not.

Thou hast heard it; now see it all! And will ye not confess it? From this time I make you hear a new thing, Even a hidden thing, which thou hast not known.

7 Now they have been produced and not from that time, Yea, before the day, and thou hast not heard them, Lest thou say, 'Lo, I have known them.'

It is produced now, and not long ago; Before this day thou hast not heard of it, Lest thou shouldst say, Behold, I knew it.

8 Yea, thou hast not heard, Yea, thou hast not known, Yea, from that time not opened hath thine ear, For I have known thou dealest treacherously, And 'Transgressor from the belly,' One is crying to thee.

Yea, thou heardest it not; yea, thou knewest it not; Yea, it was not disclosed to thee long ago; For I knew that thou wast wholly faithless, And wast called rebellious from thy birth.

9 For My name's sake I defer Mine anger, And My praise I restrain for thee, So as not to cut thee off.

For the sake of my name I will defer my anger, And for the sake of my praise I will restrain it from thee, That I may not utterly cut thee off.

10 Lo, I have refined thee, and not with silver, I have chosen thee in a furnace of affliction.

Behold, I have melted thee, and found no silver; I have tried thee in the furnace of affliction.

11 For My sake, for Mine own sake, I do [it], For how is it polluted? And Mine honour to another I give not.

For mine own sake will I do it; For how would my name be blasphemed? And my glory will I not give to another.

12 Hearken to me, O Jacob, and Israel, My called one, I [am] He, I [am] first, and I [am] last;

Hearken to me, O Jacob, And Israel, whom I have called! I am He, I am the first, and I the last.

13 Also, My hand hath founded earth, And My right hand stretched out the heavens, I am calling unto them, they stand together.

Yea, my hand hath founded the earth, And my right hand hath spread out the heavens; I called them; they stood forth together.

14 Be gathered all of you, and hear, Who among them did declare these things? Jehovah hath loved him, He doth His pleasure on Babylon, And His arm [is on] the Chaldeans.

Assemble yourselves, all of you, and hear! Who among you hath declared these things? He whom Jehovah loveth will execute his pleasure upon Babylon, And his power upon the Chaldaeans.

15 I — I have spoken, yea, I have called him, I have brought him in, And he hath made prosperous his way.

I, even I, have spoken; yea, I have called him; I have brought him, and his way shall be prosperous.

16 Come ye near unto me, hear this, Not from the beginning in secret spake I, From the time of its being, there [am] I, And now the Lord Jehovah hath sent me, and His Spirit.

Draw near to me, and hear ye this! I spake not in secret from the beginning; And since it began to be, I have been there; And now hath the Lord Jehovah sent me with his spirit.

17 Thus said Jehovah, thy redeemer, The Holy One of Israel, 'I [am] Jehovah thy God, teaching thee to profit, Causing thee to tread in the way thou goest.

Thus saith Jehovah, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am Jehovah, thy God, who teacheth thee what will profit thee; Who leadeth thee in the way thou shouldst go.

18 O that thou hadst attended to My commands, Then as a river is thy peace, And thy righteousness as billows of the sea,

O that thou wouldst hearken to my commandments! Then shall thy peace be as a river, And thy prosperity as the waves of the sea;

19 And as sand is thy seed, And the offspring of thy bowels as its gravel, Not cut off nor destroyed his name before Me.

Then shall thy posterity be as the sand, And the fruit of thy body as the offspring of the sea; Thy name shall not be cut off, nor destroyed before me.

20 Go out from Babylon, flee from the Chaldeans, With a voice of singing declare, Cause ye this to be heard, Bring it forth unto the end of the earth, Say, Redeemed hath Jehovah His servant Jacob.

Come ye forth from Babylon, flee ye from the land of the Chaldaeans with the voice of joy! Publish ye this, and make it known; Let it resound to the ends of the earth! Say: “Jehovah hath redeemed his servant Jacob;

21 And they have not thirsted in waste places, He hath caused them to go on, Waters from a rock he hath caused to flow to them, Yea, he cleaveth a rock, and flow do waters.

They thirst not in the deserts through which he leadeth them; Waters from the rock he causeth to flow for them; He cleaveth the rock, and the waters gush forth.

22 There is no peace, said Jehovah, to the wicked!

There is no peace, saith Jehovah, for the wicked.”