48:1The people of Judah felt confident because they lived in Jerusalem, the city with God’s Temple. They depended on their heritage, their city, and their Temple—but this was false security because they did not depend on God. Do you feel secure because you go to church or live in a Christian country? Heritage, buildings, or nations cannot give us a relationship with God; we must truly depend on him personaily, with all our hearts and minds.
Life Application Study BibleIsaiahChapter 48
Isaiah 48
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 1167, 1168, 1169
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
48Isaiah 48
1whose name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
3Long ago I told you what was going to happen.Then suddenly I took action,and all my predictions came true.
4For I know how stubborn and obstinate you are.Your necks are as unbending as iron.Your heads are as hard as bronze.
5That is why I told you what would happen;I told you beforehand what I was going to do.
Then you could never say, ‘My idols did it.My wooden image and metal god commanded it to happen!’
6You have heard my predictions and seen them fulfilled,but you refuse to admit it.Now I will tell you new things,secrets you have not yet heard.
7They are brand new, not things from the past.So you cannot say, ‘We knew that all the time!’
8“Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely new,things you never heard of before.For I know so well what traitors you are.You have been rebels from birth.
9Yet for my own sake and for the honor of my name,Twill hold back my anger and not wipe you out.
10T have refined you, but not as silver is refined.Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.
11Twill rescue you for my sake—yes, for my own sake!I will not let my reputation be tarnished,and I will not share my glory with idols!Freedom from Babylon
12“Listen to me, O family of Jacob,Israel my chosen one!alone am God,the First and the Last.
13It was my hand that laid the foundations of the earth,my right hand that spread out the heavens above.When I call out the stars,they all appear in order.”
14Have any of your idols ever told you this?Come, all of you, and listen:The LORD has chosen Cyrus as his ally.He will use him to put an end to the empire of Babylonand to destroy the Babylonian* armies.
15“T have said it: am calling Cyrus!I will send him on this errand and will help him succeed.
16Come closer, and listen to this.From the beginning I have told you plainly what would happen.And now the Sovereign LORD and his Spirithave sent me with this message.
17This is what the LORD says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“Tam the LORD your God,who teaches you what is good for youand leads you along the paths you should follow.
18Oh, that you had listened to my commands!Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle riverand righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea.
19Your descendants would have been like the sands along the seashore—too many to count!There would have been no need for your destruction,or for cutting off your family name.”
20Yet even now, be free from your captivity!
Leave Babylon and the Babylonians.*
Sing out this message!Shout it to the ends of the earth!The LORD has redeemed his servants,the people of Israel.*
21They were not thirstywhen he led them through the desert.He divided the rock,and water gushed out for them to drink.
22“But there is no peace for the wicked,”says the LORD.
2. The future Redeemer
The LORD’s Servant Commissioned
49 1 Listen to me, all you in distant lands!Pay attention, you who are far away!The LORD called me before my birth;
Textual footnotes
- 48:14 Or Chaldean.
- 48:20a Or the Chaldeans.
- 48:20b Hebrew his servant, Jacob. See note on 14:1.
Life Application Notes 7 notes
48:9-11There was nothing in the people’s actions, attitudes, or accomplishments to compel God to love and to save them. But for his own sake, to show who he is and what he can do, he saved them. God does not save us because we are good but because he loves us and because of his forgiving nature.
48:10Do you find it easy to complain when your life becomes complicated or difficult? Why would a loving God allow all kinds of unpleasant experiences to come to his children? This verse shows us plainly that God tests us in the “furnace of suffering.” Rather than complain, our response should be to turn to God in faith for the strength to endure and rejoice in our sufferings (see Romans 5:3; James 1:2-4). For without the testing, we would never know what we are capable of doing, nor would we grow. And without the refiring, we will not become more pure and more like Christ. If you are facing adversity or suffering, seek God and his refining work in your life.
48:14,15That the LORD would choose Cyrus as his “ally” must nave shocked his audience. How coutd the LORD choose a pagan king, an enemy? But it was Cyrus whom God wouid use to free his people from their captivity in Babylon. Cyrus’s mission was to set Israel free by conquering Babylon, then to decree that alt Jews could return to their homeland. Who but a prophet of God could predict such an inconceivable but true story almost 200 years before it happened?
48:17,18Like a loving parent, God teaches and guides us. We should listen to him because peace and righteousness come to us as we obey his Word. Refusing to pay attention to God’s commands invites punishment and threatens that peace and righteousness.
48:20Do you see the captives leaving Babylon many years later? No wander they are shouting with joy, as their ancestors shouted joyfully after they crossed the Red Sea, free from slavery at last! What is holding you captive? Be free! The LORD has redeemed his servants from slavery to sin. When you let him free you from your captivity, you will feel like shouting with joy.
48:22Many people cry out for comfort, security, and relief, but they haven't taken the first steps to turn away from sin and Open the channels to God. They have not repented and trusted in him. if you want true peace, seek God first. Then he will give you his peace.