ישעה 48

1 שמעו זאת בית יעקב הנקראים בשם ישראל וממי יהודה יצאו הנשבעים בשם יהוה ובאלהי ישראל יזכירו לא באמת ולא בצדקה׃

[Yahweh says], “You descendants [MTY] of Jacob, who are [also] descendants of Judah and are now called [the people of] Israel, Listen to me! You make solemn promises using my name, Yahweh, and you request that I, the God to whom you Israeli people belong, [will hear you], but you do not do it sincerely.

2 כי מעיר הקדש נקראו ועל אלהי ישראל נסמכו יהוה צבאות שמו׃

You say that you live in the holy city [of Jerusalem], and [you insincerely say] that you are relying on me, the God to whom you [people of] Israel belong, the one who is the Commander of the armies of angels.

3 הראשנות מאז הגדתי ומפי יצאו ואשמיעם פתאם עשיתי ותבאנה׃

Long ago I [MTY] predicted what would happen [DOU]. And then suddenly, I caused those things to happen.

4 מדעתי כי קשה אתה וגיד ברזל ערפך ומצחך נחושה׃

I knew that you people are very stubborn; I knew that your heads are [MET] [as hard as] iron or brass [DOU].

5 ואגיד לך מאז בטרם תבוא השמעתיך פן תאמר עצבי עשם ופסלי ונסכי צום׃

That is why I told you those things long ago. Long before they occurred, I announced that they would occur, in order that [when they happened] you could not say ‘Our idols did it; our statue made of wood and our idol made of metal caused them to happen.’

6 שמעת חזה כלה ואתם הלוא תגידו השמעתיך חדשות מעתה ונצרות ולא ידעתם׃

You have heard those things [that I predicted] and now you have seen that they have all occurred, so why do you not admit it [RHQ]? Now I will tell you new things, things that you have not known previously.

7 עתה נבראו ולא מאז ולפני יום ולא שמעתם פן תאמר הנה ידעתין׃

I am causing them to happen now; they are not things I did long ago. So you cannot say, ‘We already knew about those things.’

8 גם לא שמעת גם לא ידעת גם מאז לא פתחה אזנך כי ידעתי בגוד תבגוד ופשע מבטן קרא לך׃

[I will tell you about] things that you have never heard about or understood before. Even long ago you did not pay attention to me [IDM]. I know that you act very deceitfully/treacherously; you have rebelled against me since you first became a nation [MTY].

9 למען שמי אאריך אפי ותהלתי אחטם לך לבלתי הכריתך׃

But, for my own sake, in order that I will be honored, I will not punish [MTY] you immediately and I will not completely get rid of you.

10 הנה צרפתיך ולא בכסף בחרתיך בכור עני׃

I have purified you, but not the way [people refine] silver. Instead, I have caused you to suffer very much [to get rid of your impure behavior], like [MET] [people put metal in a very hot] furnace [to get rid of the impurities].

11 למעני למעני אעשה כי איך יחל וכבודי לאחר לא אתן׃

But for my [MTY] own sake I will delay punishing you more; I will do it for my own sake in order that my reputation will not be damaged [RHQ]. I will not allow any [person or any idol] to be honored as I [deserve to be] honored.”

12 שמע אלי יעקב וישראל מקראי אני הוא אני ראשון אף אני אחרון׃

“You descendants [MTY] of Jacob, you people of Israel whom I have chosen, listen to me! [Only] I am God; I am the one who begins everything and who causes everything to end.

13 אף ידי יסדה ארץ וימיני טפחה שמים קרא אני אליהם יעמדו יחדו׃

I [SYN] am the one who laid the foundation of the earth. I stretched out the sky with my hand. And when I tell [the stars] to appear, they all do what I tell them.

14 הקבצו כלכם ושמעו מי בהם הגיד את אלה יהוה אהבו יעשה חפצו בבבל וזרעו כשדים׃

All of you, gather together and listen to me. None of your idols has [RHQ] told this to you: I, Yahweh, have chosen [Cyrus] to assist me, and he will do to Babylon what I want him to do, and his army will get rid of [the army of] Babylonia.

15 אני אני דברתי אף קראתיו הביאתיו והצליח דרכו׃

I have said it; I have summoned [Cyrus]. I have appointed him, and he will accomplish everything that he attempts to do.

16 קרבו אלי שמעו זאת לא מראש בסתר דברתי מעת היותה שם אני ועתה אדני יהוה שלחני ורוחו׃

Come close to me and listen to what I say. Long ago [MTY] I told you plainly/clearly [LIT] [what would happen], and when those things occurred, I was [causing them to happen].” And now Yahweh the Lord and his Spirit have sent me [to give you a message].

17 כה אמר יהוה גאלך קדוש ישראל אני יהוה אלהיך מלמדך להועיל מדריכך בדרך תלך׃

This is what Yahweh, the one who saves you, the Holy God of [us] Israelis, says: “I am Yahweh, your God; I teach you what is important for you [to know]; I direct you and lead you to the roads that you should walk on [MET].

18 לוא הקשבת למצותי ויהי כנהר שלומך וצדקתך כגלי הים׃

I wish that you had paid attention to my commands! If you had done that, things would have gone well for you like [SIM] a river that flows gently; you would have been successful again and again, like [SIM] waves that come without ceasing.

19 ויהי כחול זרעך וצאצאי מעיך כמעתיו לא יכרת ולא ישמד שמו מלפני׃

Your descendants would have been [as many as] [MET] the grains of sand [on the seashore] [which no one can count]. I would not have needed to get rid of you; the country of [MTY] [Israel] would not have been destroyed.”

20 צאו מבבל ברחו מכשדים בקול רנה הגידו השמיעו זאת הוציאוה עד קצה הארץ אמרו גאל יהוה עבדו יעקב׃

[However, now I tell you], leave Babylon! Flee from [being slaves of the people of] Babylonia! Proclaim this message joyfully; send it to the most remote/distant places on the earth: Yahweh freed the people of Israel [from being slaves in Egypt].

21 ולא צמאו בחרבות הוליכם מים מצור הזיל למו ויבקע צור ויזבו מים׃

They were not thirsty when he led them through the desert, because he split open the rock and caused water to gush/flow out for them [to drink].

22 אין שלום אמר יהוה לרשעים׃

“But things will not go well [like that] for wicked people,” says Yahweh.