“Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel my called: I am he. I am the first. I am also the last.
Yes, my hand has laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand has spread out the heavens. when I call to them, they stand up together.
“Assemble yourselves, all of you, and hear! Who among them has declared these things? He whom Yahweh loves will do what he likes to Babylon, and his arm will be against the Chaldeans.
I, even I, have spoken. Yes, I have called him. I have brought him and he shall make his way prosperous.
“Come near to me and hear this: “From the beginning I have not spoken in secret; from the time that it happened, I was there.” Now the Lord Yahweh has sent me with his Spirit.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 14, 16 Read Isa. 41:4.
Read Isa. 41:4.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv12–16 Isa 48:12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel,…
Isa 48:12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I [am] he; I [am] the first, I also [am] the last.
Ver. 12. I am he.] Heb., Hu; this the Rabbis make to be one of the names of God. Sanchez here observeth, that by this threefold "I" is meant the holy Trinity: the deity of Jesus Christ is rightly proved from this text, compared with Rev 1:11; Rev 22:13.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv12–16 Israel my called; whom I have called out of…
Israel my called; whom I have called out of the world to be my peculiar people, to serve, and glorify, and enjoy me; and therefore you of all others have least cause to forsake me, or to follow after idols.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v16 Here, as before, Jacob and Israel are summoned to…
Here, as before, Jacob and Israel are summoned to hearken to the prophet speaking in God's name, or rather to God speaking in and by the prophet, and that as a type of the great prophet by whom God has in these last days spoken unto us, and that is sufficient: Come near therefore, and hear this. Note, Those that would hear and understand what God says must come near, and approach to him; let them come as near as they can. Let those that have hearkened to the tempter now come near, and hear this, that they may be confirmed in their resolutions to serve God. Those that draw nigh to God may depend upon this, that his secret shall be with them. Here,
I. God refers them to what he hath both said to them and done for them formerly, which if they would reflect upon, they might thence fetch great encouragement to trust in God at this time. 1. He had always spoken plainly to them from the beginning, by Moses and all the prophets: I have not spoken in secret, but publicly, from the top of Mount Sinai, and in the chief places of concourse, the solemn assemblies of their tribes; he did not deliver his oracles obscurely and ambiguously, but so that they might be understood, Hab 2:2. 2. He had always acted wonderfully for them: "From the time that they were first formed into a people there I am, there have I been resident among them and presiding in their affairs (he sent them prophets, raised them up judges, and frequently appeared for them), and therefore there I will be still." He that has been with his people hitherto will be to the end.
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II. The prophet himself, as a type of the great prophet, asserts his own commission to deliver this message: Now the Lord God (the same that spoke from the beginning and did not speak in secret) has by his Spirit sent me, Isa 48:16. The Spirit of God is here spoken of as a person distinct from the Father and the Son, and having a divine authority to send prophets. Note, Whom God sends the Spirit sends. Those whom God commissions for any service the Spirit in some measure qualifies for it; and those may speak boldly, and must be heard obediently, whom God and his Spirit send. As that which the prophet says to the same purport with this (Isa 61:1) is applied to Christ (Luk 4:21), so may this be; the Lord God sent him, and he had the Spirit without measure.
III. God by the prophet sends them a gracious message for their support and comfort under their affliction. The preface to this message is both awful and encouraging (Isa 48:17): Thus saith Jehovah, the eternal God, thy Redeemer, that has often been so, that has engaged to be so, and will be faithful to the engagement, for he is the Holy One, that cannot deceive, the Holy One of Israel, that will not deceive them. The same words that introduce the law, and give authority to that, introduce the promise, and give validity to that: "I am the Lord thy God, whom thou mayest depend upon as in relation to thee and in covenant with thee."
1. Here is the good work which God undertakes to fulfil in them. He that is their Redeemer, in order to that, will be, (1.) Their instructor: "I am thy God that teaches thee to profit, that is, teaches thee such things as are profitable for thee, things that belong to thy peace." By this God shows himself to be a God in covenant with us, by his teaching us (Heb 8:10, Heb 8:11); and none teaches like him, for he gives an understanding. Whom God redeems he teaches; whom he designs to deliver out of their afflictions he first teaches to profit by their afflictions, makes them partakers of his holiness, for that is the profit for which he chastens us, Heb 12:10. (2.) Their guide: He leads them to the way and in the way by which they should go. He not only enlightens their eyes, but directs their steps. By his grace he leads them in the way of duty, by his providence he leads them in the way of deliverance. Happy are those that are under such a guidance!
2. Here is the good-will which God declares he had for them by his good wishes concerning them, Isa 48:18, Isa 48:19. He had indeed brought them into captivity, but it was owing to themselves, nor did he afflict them willingly. (1.) As when he gave them his law he earnestly wished they might be obedient (O that there were such a heart in them! Deu 5:29. O that they were wise! Deu 32:29), so, when he had punished them for the breach of his law, he wished they had been obedient: O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! Isa 48:18. O that my people had hearkened unto me! Psa 81:13. This confirms what God had said and sworn, that he has no pleasure in the death of sinners. (2.) He assures them that, if they had been obedient, that would not only have prevented their captivity, but would have advanced and perpetuated their prosperity. He had abundance of good things ready to bestow upon them if their sins had not turned them away, Isa 59:1, Isa 59:2. [1.] They should have been carried on in a constant uninterrupted stream of prosperity: "Thy peace should have been as a river; thou shouldst have enjoyed a series of mercies, one continually following another, as the waters of a river, which always last." Labitur, et labetur in omne volubilis aevum - It flows, and will for ever flow; not like the waters of a land-flood, which are soon gone. [2.] Their virtue and honour, and the justice of their cause, should in all cases have borne down opposition by their own strength, as the waves of the sea. Such should their righteousness have been that nothing should have stood before it; whereas, now they had been disobedient, the current of their prosperity was interrupted, and their righteousness overpowered. [3.] The rising generation should have been very numerous and very prosperous; whereas they were now very few, as appears by the small number of the returning captives (Ezr 2:64), not so many as of one tribe when they came out of Egypt. They should have been numberless as the sand, according to the promise (Gen 22:17), which they had forfeited the benefit of: "The offspring of thy bowels would have been innumerable, like the gravel of the sea, if thy righteousness had been irresistible and unconquerable as the waves of the sea." [4.] The honour of Israel should still have been unstained, untouched: His name should not have been cut off, as now it is in the land of Israel, which is either desolate or inhabited by strangers; nor should it have been destroyed from before God. We cannot reckon the name either of a family or of a kingdom destroyed till it is destroyed from before God, till it ceases to be a name in his holy place. Now God tells them thus what he would have done for them if they had persevered in their obedience, First, That they might be the more humbled for their sins, by which they had forfeited such rich mercies. Note, This should engage us (I might say, enrage us) against sin, that it has not only deprived us of the good things we have enjoyed, but prevented the good things God had in store for us. It will make the misery of the disobedient the more intolerable to think how happy they might have been. Secondly, That his mercy might appear the more illustrious in working deliverance for them, though they had forfeited it and rendered themselves unworthy of it. Nothing but a prerogative of mercy would have saved them.
3. Here is assurance given of the great work which God designed to work for them, even their salvation out of their captivity, when he had accomplished his work in them.
(1.) Here is a commission granted them to leave Babylon. God proclaimed, long before Cyrus did, that whoever would might return to his own land (Isa 48:20): "You have a full discharge sent you: Go you forth out of Babylon; the prison-doors are thrown open, and the trumpet sounds, proclaiming a release." Perhaps with this word, as a means, the Spirit of the Lord stirred up the spirits of those that did take the benefit of Cyrus's proclamation (Ezr 1:5): Flee you from the Chaldeans, not with an ignominious stolen flight, as Jacob fled from Laban, but with a holy disdain, as scorning to stay any longer among them; flee you, not silently and sorrowfully, but with a voice, with a voice of singing, as they fled of old out of Egypt, Exo 15:1.
(2.) Here is the news of this sent to all parts: "Let it be declared; let it be told; let it be uttered; make it to be heard by the most remote, by the most remiss; send the tidings of it by word of mouth; send it by writing, from city to city, from kingdom to kingdom, even to the utmost regions, to the ends of the earth." This was a figure of the publishing of the gospel to all the world; but that brings glad tidings which all the world is concerned in, this only that which it is fit all should take notice of, that they may be invited by it to forsake their idols and come into the service of the God of Israel. Let them all know then, [1.] That those whom God owns for his are such as he has dearly bought and paid for: The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob; he has done it formerly, when he brought them out of Egypt, and now he is about to do it again. Jacob was God's servant, and therefore he redeemed him; for what had other masters to do with God's servants? Israel is God's son, therefore Pharaoh must let him go. God redeemed Jacob, and therefore it was fit that he should be his servant (Psa 116:16); the bonds God had loosed tied them the faster to him. He that redeemed us has an unquestionable right to us. [2.] That those whom God designs to bring home to himself he will take care of, that they want not for the necessary expenses of their journey. When he brought them out of Egypt, and led them through the deserts, they thirsted not (Isa 48:21), for in all their removals the water out of the rock followed them; thence he caused the waters to flow, and, since rock-water is the clearest and finest, God clave the rock, and the waters gushed out; for he can fetch in necessary supplies for his people in a way that they think the least likely. This refers to what he did for them when he brought them out of Egypt; when all this was literally true. But it should now be in effect done again, in their return out of Babylon, so well provided for should they and theirs be in their return. God does his work as effectually by marvellous providences as by miracles, though perhaps they are not so much taken notice of. This is applicable to those treasures of grace laid up for us in Jesus Christ, from which all good flows to us as the water did to Israel out of the rock, for that rock is Christ.
(3.) Here is a caveat put in against the wicked who go on still in their trespasses. Let not them think to have any benefit among God's people. Though in show and profession they herd themselves among them, let them not expect to come in sharers; no (Isa 48:22), though God's thoughts concerning the body of that people were thoughts of peace, yet to those among them that were wicked and hated to be reformed there is no peace, no peace with God or their own consciences, no real good, whatever is pretended to. What have those to do with peace who are enemies to God? Their false prophets cried Peace to those to whom it did not belong; but God tells them that there shall be no peace, nor any think like it, to the wicked. The quarrel sinners have commenced with God, if not taken up in time by repentance, will be an everlasting quarrel.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv12–16 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called,....…
Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called,.... Called before out of Egypt, and now out of Babylon, and who had the name of God called upon them, and who called upon the name of the Lord; so such who are called with a holy calling, according to the purpose and grace of God, by the Spirit and grace of Christ, unto fellowship with him, to partake of his grace here, and glory hereafter, are styled "the called of Jesus Christ", Rom 1:6 and who seems to be the person here speaking, as appears from the following clause: and it may be observed, that Jacob and Israel are described here in a different manner from what they are in the beginning of the chapter, since the Lord had declared his designs of grace towards them, and that he had chosen them, and would save them for his name's sake: which they had reason to believe he could and would do, from the account which he gives of himself: and they are called upon to hearken to him, as follows,
I am he, I am the first, and I also am the last; the everlasting I AM, the immutable Jehovah, the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first cause and last end of all things; phrases expressive of the self-existence, supremacy, eternity, and immutability of Christ, Rev 1:8, and what is it that such a sovereign, eternal and unchangeable Being cannot do?
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 14, 16 O Israel - Whom I have called out of…
O Israel - Whom I have called out of the world to be my peculiar people.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 16 Verse 12. O Jacob - "O Jacob, my servant"]…
Verse 12. O Jacob - "O Jacob, my servant"] After יעקב yaakob, a MS. of Kennicott's, two of De Rossi's, and the two old editions of 1486 and 1488, add the word עבדי abdi, "my servant," which is lost out of the present text; and there is a rasure in its place in another ancient MS. The Jerusalem Talmud has the same word.
I also am the last - "I am the last"] For אף אני aph ani, "even I," two ancient MSS. and the ancient Versions, read ואני veani, "and I;" more properly.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 16 Isa 48:12-13. Hearken unto me, Israel, my called —…
Isa 48:12-13. Hearken unto me, Israel, my called — Whom I have called out of the world to be my peculiar people, to serve, and glorify, and enjoy me; and therefore you, of all others, have least cause to forsake me, or to follow after idols. My right hand hath spanned, or doth span, the heavens — Or, hath meted them out with a span, as the phrase is, Isa 40:12; hath stretched them out by an exact measure, as the workman sometimes metes out his work by spans. See also the margin. When I call them, they stand up together — “Nothing can give us a more sublime idea of God than this passage. The idea is taken from servants, who, at the voice of their masters, instantly rise up, and stand ready to execute their commands. The whole creation, at the call of God, arises with prompt obedience, and is ready to execute his sovereign will.” — Dodd.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv12–16 Hearken unto me - This is a solemn call…
Hearken unto me - This is a solemn call on the Jews in Babylon to attend to what he was now about to say. It is the commencement of a new part of the argument, containing the assurance that he would deliver them, and utterly destroy the Chaldeans. He begins, therefore, by asserting that he is the only true God, and that he is able to accomplish all his purposes.
My called - The people whom I have chosen, or called.
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I am he - I am the same; or I am the true and only God.
I am the first - (See the notes at Isa 41:4; Isa 44:6).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv14–16 Things, as I have done respecting Cyrus? (St. Cyril,…
Things, as I have done respecting Cyrus? (St. Cyril, &c.) who was a figure of Christ, ver. 15.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On vv12, 16 12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob
3.THE CONTENTS OF THE NEW THINGS IS REPEATED
Isa_48:12-15
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12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob
And Israel, my called;
I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.
13 Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth,
And 8my right hand hath spanned the heavens:
When I call unto them, they stand up together.
14 All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear;
Which among them hath declared these things?
The Lord hath loved him: he will do his pleasure on Babylon,
And his arm shall be on the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken; yea, I have called him:
I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.
TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL
On Isa_48:14. Expositors have made difficulty about construing זְרֹעוֹ as accusative, because “to perform Jehovah’s or His own arm “is an incomprehensible mode of speech even taken as zeugmatic (Delitzsch), Klostermann, too, (l. c., pp. 7,19) is of the opinion that to translate “He will accomplish his will on Babylon and his punitive work on the Chaldeans” needs a dispensation from Hebrew usus loquendi. זְרוֹעַ does, indeed, not mean “punitive work,” and this is not an instance of mere zeugma, but zeugma and metonymy. It is surely one of the most usual metonymical forms of expression in the Old Testament to put the arm for what is manifested by the arm, i.e., for the power or the might. Comp. Isa_33:2; Jer_17:5; Eze_31:17; Psa_83:9, etc Moreover Isa_44:12 proves that the Prophet conceives of the arm, as also in Isa_45:9 of the hand, as the seat of power. Might not our passage read: יַעֲֽשֶׂה בְּבָבֶל וּנְבוּרָתוֹ כַּשְׂדִּים (or כֹּחוֹ ,חֵילוֹ) חֶפְצוֹ? For one may very well say עָשָׂה נְכוּרָה for “to display strength, power” (1Ki_16:27). Accordingly, if taken strictly, one need not even assume a zeugma, if the slight difference be not urged that exists between עשׂה in עָשָׂה חֵפֵץ and עשׂה in עָשָׂה נְבוּרָה.—There can be no doubt that the prefix בּ should be repeated before כַּשְׂדִּים.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
1. Hearken unto me——up together, Isa_48:12-13. The verses of this section are almost wholly a compilation of the chief elements of chapts. 40–47. The words שׁמע as far as מקראי are only a solemn introductory formula, containing an emphatic summons to give attention, in order to intimate the importance of the subject. Comp. Isa_48:1; Isa_44:1; Isa_46:3.—מְקֹרָא, “the called,” as regards the word, occurs only here; but as regards the sense it is essentially one with what we read Isa_41:9; Isa_43:1. A double calling is spoken of here: Of the ancient and original one which Israel received in the person of its ancestor (Isa_41:9), and of the future one when the Lord calls back His people from the Exile (Isa_43:1; comp. Isa_48:5 sqq.; Isa_44:22). Thus Israel is named מְקֹרָא as the doubly called people. In what follows the Prophet calls to mind first those fundamental facts that are a guaranty that Jehovah can foretell and fulfil the deliverance by Cyrus. They are 1) His absoluteness and uniqueness. As such He is הוּא, the He par excellence, the absolute subject. As such the Prophet has already named Him, Isa_43:10; Isa_43:13; Isa_43:25; Isa_41:4; Isa_46:4. 2) His eternity, by virtue of which He is the first and the last. He has already been so called Isa_41:4; Isa_44:6; comp. Isa_43:13. 3) The creation of heaven and earth, which also has been spoken of in what precedes, in the same sense, viz. that He who created the world can also foretell and fulfil Israel’s deliverance: Isa_40:12 sqq., Isa_40:22; Isa_40:26; Isa_40:28; Isa_42:5; Isa_44:24; Isa_45:12; Isa_45:18.
2. All ye, assemble——his way prosperous, Isa_48:14-15. The words הקבצו as far as אֵלֶּה(“All ye assemble——these things”) represent here all those passages in which the Prophet has variously uttered the thought, that Jehovah, the Creator of heaven and earth, has challenged all idols to a contest in prophesying in order, by exposing their impotency, to prove their nothingness and His divinity. The passages are Isa_41:1 sqq., Isa_41:21 sqq., Isa_41:26 sqq.; Isa_43:9; Isa_44:7 sqq., Isa_44:24 sqq.; Isa_45:20 sqq.; Isa_46:9 sqq. Especially our passage recalls Isa_43:9 and Isa_45:20. In Isa_43:9 the interrogatory clause occurs almost verbatim, except the Niph. of קבץ. For there it reads מִי בָהֶם יַגִּיד זֹאת. In Isa_45:20, as here, the first word is הקבצו. It is self-evident that בָּהֶם in our passage, as in Isa_43:9, is to be referred to the idols, as that אֵלֶּה refers to the things concerning Cyrus. This appears from what immediately follows. For there again we have a collective citation, if I may so express myself. For there all that has been previously said of Cyrus is recalled by the brief words, Isa_48:14 b, 15, that emphasize the chief particulars. Jehovah hath loved him is said first. It is true this statement has not occurred literally before; but it has as to sense. For that the Lord loves Cyrus underlies all those passages that speak of him; Isa_41:2 sq., 25; Isa_44:28; Isa_45:1-7; Isa_45:13 sq.; Isa_46:11. Moreover the words: He will do His pleasure on Babylon, and His arm on the Chaldeans, though not literally, occur as to sense in what precedes (comp. Isa_41:25; Isa_43:14; Isa_44:28, where, moreover, the words כֹּל חֶפְצִי יַשְׁלִים occur; Isa_45:1 sqq.; Isa_46:1 sq., Isa_46:10; Isaiah 47 entire).—In Isa_48:15 the Lord Himself speaks, confirming the word of His Prophet. He, the Lord, has foretold that which concerns Cyrus (Isa_45:21); He called him (Isa_45:4), He brings him on, taking him by the hand (Isa_45:1), and sees to it that he completes his way (Isa_41:3).
Footnotes:
[8]Or, the palm of my right hand hath spread, out.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv12–16 The Almighty, who has founded heaven and earth, can,…
The Almighty, who has founded heaven and earth, can, and will, restore His people.
the first . . . last-- (Isa 41:4; Isa 44:6).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 15, 16 12, 13. Hearken unto me — Renewal of the…
12, 13. Hearken unto me — Renewal of the consolation. The second and brighter part of the message begins here. The chief elements compiled from chapters xl to xlvii, are brought together in these verses, and addressed to Israel with emphasis.
My called — The double-called: from Chaldean Abram, first; the spiritual offspring from Abraham, next. The promise is re-settled by the oath several times before stated in terms. See Isa_41:4; Isa_42:8; Isa_43:11, etc.
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Mine hand… laid the foundation — The prophet urgently impresses on the people God’s eternity, omniscience, and omnipotence, as evidence the highest possible that what he predicts or announces through his prophet is entitled to confidence. The oath can be made by none higher. The greater includes the less. Ability to create certainly implies the lesser ability to foretell. No words can characterize the absurdity and stupidity of doubting divine predictions.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 14, 16 12. I am he] see on ch. Isa_41:4. I…
12. I am he] see on ch. Isa_41:4. I am the first … the last] Isa_44:6.
12–16. The substance of the “new things” (Isa_48:6) is that Jehovah has called Cyrus to execute His pleasure on the Chaldæans (14 f.), and now openly announces His purpose beforehand (16).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 16 (12) Hearken unto me, O Jacob.—The prophet is drawing…
(12) Hearken unto me, O Jacob.—The prophet is drawing near to the end of the first great section of his book, and his conclusion takes the form of a condensed epitome of the great argument of Isaiah 40-47, asserting the oneness, the eternity, the omnipotence, the omniscience of Jehovah.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv12–16 Vers. 12-15. THE SECOND ADDRESS. The tone of complaint…
Vers. 12-15. THE SECOND ADDRESS. The tone of complaint is now dropped. Israel is invited to reflect seriously on the chief points urged in the preceding chapters.
(1) Their near relation to Jehovah (ver. 12);
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(2) Jehovah"s eternity and omnipotence (vers. 12, 13);
(3) the superiority of Jehovah to the gods of the nations, as shown by his prophetic power (ver. 14); and
(4) the near approach of deliverance by Cyrus (vers. 14, 15).
O Jacob and Israel. (comp. Isa_40:27 Isa_41:8, 14 43:1, 22 44:1, 21 46:3 48:1) The figure is used which rhetoricians call hendiadys. The two names designate one and the same object. My called . "Called" and "chosen" from of old, out of all the nations of the earth; (Isa_41:9 Isa_44:1, Isa_44:2, etc.) therefore bound to hear" and to attend. Still more bound, considering who it is by whom they have been called I AM HEi.e. "I am the absolute and eternally unchangeable One, the Alpha and Omega of all history" (Delitzsch). The first, and also the Last, from whom and to whom are all things". (Rom_11:36)
God the First and the Last.
It is readily intelligible, though not by finite minds conceivable, that "God is the First." Something must have existed from all eternity, or nothing could ever have existed. The first existence must either have been matter or spirit, or both. But it could not have been matter alone, since matter could never have produced spirit; and it was not matter and spirit, since the "things that are seen were not made of things that do appear". (Heb_11:3) It was therefore spirit alone; and that primeval Spirit which existed apart from matter, and apart from any created spirit, was God. Thus "God is the First the First Cause before all things the Origin of all things of heaven and earth, and of all things, both visible and invisible." But how is he "the Last"? Eternal life is promised to all created beings who do not fall from their first sinless estate, and also to all who, having fallen, repent and amend, turning to God, and putting their whole trust in the atonement of Christ. They will live on eternally in his eternal glory. Actually, then, God will not ever be in the future a single solitary Being, as he once was, but will always be a King and Governor of innumerable hosts of happy spirits, created by himself. Actually he will never be "the Last." But potentially he is "the Last." He could, if he so pleased, destroy with a word all that he has ever created, and be once more alone, without a second. And further, all things are "to him" and "for him they exist for his sake; he is their Aim and Object; their sole, final telov .
Vers. 12-22. The new revelation.
The verses contain a summary of the contents of Isaiah 40-47. God is the First and the Last the sole Creator. Prophecy is an evidence of his claims; and so is the mission of Cyrus.
I THE REVELATION CONCERNING GOD. First Jacob and Israel, the chosen people, are called to listen. Jehovah is the Alpha and the Omega of the universe. The First Cause and Reason of things; he gave the first impulse to their course, the goal of which will still be himself. Before the earth and the heavens were, his was the creative hand, guided by the creative mind. Then the idolatrous nations are summoned to assemble, and challenged to produce a power of prophecy to rival that of Jehovah.
II CONCERNING CYRUS. "He whom Jehovah hath loved," to whom he hath spoken, whom he hath called, shall have a prosperous career, performing the Divine pleasure on Babylon and on Chaldea. In ver. 20 the prophet sees the destruction of Babylon as an accomplished fact. Thence let a ringing cry go forth to the end of the earth! Jehovah hath redeemed the people! Already they have drunk of the refreshing waters in the desert. And that peace, which is the sum of all blessings, and which can never be the portion of the ungodly, is theirs.
III APPEAL TO CONSCIENCE AND EXPERIENCE. Let the chosen people draw neat. and commune with their God. From the first he has spoken to them, not in dark and ambiguous oracles, but in words of clearness and unmistakable purport. And now he is to speak again by the mouth of his present servant, and to crown his revelations by the greatest of them all. And what of Israel? Doubly tender is the reproach and the expostulation. Why have the people not walked in the straight way in which he would have led them? He is their "Teacher to their profit;" why have they chosen what is unprofitable? and followed after the "not profitable" gods? (Jer_2:11; cf. Mic_6:8 Psa_23:3) He would lead them in the straight path, but Israel has forced him, as it were, to lead them by the circuitous path of affliction. The appeal to experience turns upon this point the profitableness of godliness, which has the promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. "Deep down in human nature lies the idea of a covenant between the worshipper and his god. In return for external service, the god gives help and protection. The prophets, with a generous freedom, retain so much of this theory as matches with the truths revealed to them. Jehovah"s protection is still conditional, but the conditions extend to the inner as well as the outer man" (Cheyne). Obedience alone brings peace and prosperity. If men had but hearkened to God, their peace would have been as the great volume of the Euphrates, and their blessedness, reflecting the favour of Jehovah, as the multitudinous waves of the sea; its posterity as the sand of the sea, or as the fishes that swarm in its waters. Its name would have been imperishable. It is, then, the "hearing ear" and the "perceiving heart" which above all are needed as conditions of true temporal and spiritual well-being. To hear so as to be pricked in heart; to hear so as to follow and prosecute the things we hear; this alone is to hear in the Scripture sense.
And here we are reminded of the need of the Holy Spirit"s influence, without which we may see and never perceive, and hear and never understand. There must be an aptness between the object and the faculty. Things sensible must be known by sense; things mental by the mind; and things spiritual by some principle infused into the soul from above. "Two sit together and hear the same sermon. One finds a hidden spiritual virtue in the Word, by which he lives and grows and thrives. Another finds no such virtue in it; perhaps it pleases his reason, and there is an end. This proceeds from the want of the spiritual, perceiving heart. Why is it that a man is so affected with music that all his passions are moved by it, while brutes are not at all pleased? Because there is in man a principle of reason concurring with his sense, which discovers the sweetness and harmony of the sounds that bare sense is not able to discern." And so of the things of God. Open thou mine eyes and mine ears; let my noblest faculties be ever in communion with the noblest, my spiritual nature be awakened by the Spirit, and again respond to his influence! this should be our prayer. We will hearken unto and obey him who hath the words of eternal life: this should be our resolve. J.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 16 Hearken unto Me, O Jacob
Isa_48:12
Hearken unto Me, O Jacob
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Gods unchangeableness throughout eternity
The eternity and immutability of God are in their own nature inseparable, and are so generally united in the Holy Scriptures that the passages which declare the one declare or imply the other also.
I. GOD IS ETERNAL.
1. Reason itself claims this attribute for God. Nor was it unknown even to the heathens. Proclus, a follower of Plato, proved God to be eternal, because He exists of Himself. Thales defined God to be a being without beginning and end; before all things; and who was never born.
2. What reason teaches, the Scriptures assert. They represent Gods eternity to be--
(1) An eternity of duration.
(2) An eternity of perfection.
From everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God! All that is involved in that great name He always was, and always will be!
II. GOD IS UNCHANGEABLE, eternally unchangeable.
1. Unchangeableness is an essential perfection of God.
(1) In His existence He cannot cease to be (Psa_102:27).
(2) In His nature or essence.
(3) In His purposes (Isa_46:10; Isa_14:24).
(4) In His promises to His people; in His threatenings against the wicked; and in all His predictions (Num_23:19).
2. All these declarations are in harmony with the teachings of Scripture and the conclusions of reason.
(1) Scripture (Mal_3:6; Psa_33:11; Isa_46:10;Jam_1:17).
(2) Reason. As God is self-existent, caused by none, He can be changed by none. As He is infinite in all His perfections, He cannot change, for nothing can be added to or taken from the infinite--any change would make Him less than infinite before or after. The unchangeableness of God is confirmed--
(a) By the stability of His natural government.
(b) By His moral government, and the identity of the several dispensations of grace.
III. PRACTICAL LESSONS WHICH THIS GREAT SUBJECT TEACHES.
1. It assures us of the essential Divinity of the Christ. The application to our Lord of the terms here used by God to describe Himself, places His Deity beyond doubt (Rev_1:8; Rev_1:17; Rev_22:13).
2. It assures us of the fulfilment of God s promises and the accomplishment of His plans.
3. It affords strong consolation amid all the trying changes of this mortal state.
4. It should stimulate us to seek stability of character (Heb_13:8-9).
5. It should alarm the impenitent. (A. Tucker.)
God s eternity a ground of confidence
Who can be too quick for Him that is the first, or prevent Him? Who can be too hard for Him that is the last, and will keep the field against all opposers, and will reign till they are all made His footstool? (M. Henry.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 16 Isa_48:12. I am He; I am the first, I…
GOD’S UNCHANGEABLENESS THROUGHOUT ETERNITY
Isa_48:12. I am He; I am the first, I also am the last
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Having called on the Jews in Babylon to attend to what He was now about to say by His servant the Prophet, God begins by asserting that He is the same, the true and only God, who existed before all things, and therefore was able to accomplish all His purposes and promises of deliverance. The text introduces us to a subject of tremendous import—God’s unchangeableness throughout eternity. “The eternity and immutability of God are in their own nature inseparable, and are so generally united in the Holy Scriptures, that the passages which declare the one, declare or imply the other also.”
I. GOD IS ETERNAL.
1. Reason itself claims this attribute for God. Nor was it unknown even to the heathens. Proclus, a follower of Plato, proved God to be eternal, because He exists of Himself. Thales defined God to be a being that is without beginning and end; before all things; and who was never born (H. E. I. 2253; P. D. 1492, 2536).
2. What reason teaches, the Scriptures assert. They represent God’s eternity to be—
(1.) An eternity of duration, “I am He; I am the first, I also am the last” (Psa_90:2). Not merely everlasting, but eternal! He had no beginning, even as He shall have no end. This is the difference between the eternity of God and that of the angels and of “the spirits of just men made perfect.” They are, by the will of God, never to end; but, by His will also, they came into being. But to His being there was no beginning!
(2.) An eternity of perfection. There has been in Him no development of excellence, as in Him there will be no diminution of it. “From everlasting to everlasting, Thou art GOD!” All that is involved in that great name He always was, and always will be! (See pp. 187, 188, and outlines on Isa_57:15).
II. GOD IS UNCHANGEABLE—eternally unchangeable. “I am He,”—the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever.
1. Unchangeableness is an essential perfection of God. If He were subject to “variableness or the shadow of turning,” He would not be a perfect and eternal being, &c. When, therefore, it is said that God repents or alters His purpose, it must not be supposed that His nature changes, but that the Holy Spirit accommodates His language to the general comprehensions of men, &c. (H. E. I. 2254–2256). He continues always the same—
(1.) In His existence He cannot cease to be (Psa_102:27).
(2.) In His nature or essence—He cannot cease to be what He is in every perfection.
(3.) In His purposes (Isa_46:10; Isa_14:24).
(4.) In His promises to His people; in His threatening against the wicked; and in all His predictions (Num_23:19).
2. All these declarations are in harmony with the teachings of Scripture and the conclusions of Reason.
(1.) Scripture (Mal_3:6; Psa_33:11; Isa_44:10; Jas_1:17), &c.
(2.) Reason. As God is self-existent—caused by none, so He can be changed by none. As He preceded all and caused all, so His sovereign will determined the relations which all things are permitted to sustain to Him. As He is infinite in duration, He cannot know succession or change. As He is infinite in all perfection of knowledge, &c., therefore He cannot change; for nothing can be added to or taken from the infinite—any change would make Him less than infinite before or after.
The unchangeableness of God is confirmed
(1.) by the stability of His natural government;
(2.) by His moral government and the identity of the several dispensations of grace. But it does not exclude the exercise of dispositions and affections, nor involve a stoical indifference to the welfare of His creatures generally, or the character which may be assumed by moral agents. Nor does it involve uniformity of action or relation, much less fatalism, &c. (H. E. I. 3750–3753).
III. SOME PRACTICAL LESSONS WHICH THIS GREAT SUBJECT TEACHES.
1. It assures us of the essential Divinity of the Christ. The application to our Lord Jesus Christ of the terms here used by God to describe Himself, places His Deity beyond doubt (Rev_1:8; Rev_1:17; Rev_22:13; and many other passages which express or imply eternity). Hold fast the vital fact of our Lord’s Divinity. That gone, all is gone. “A divine Christ is the central sun of Christianity; quench it, and all is confusion, worse confounded.” Rev_1:8 did more than any other passage towards preventing Dr. Doddridge from assenting to the Socinian theory, which reduces our Lord to a deified creature.
2. It assures us of the fulfilment of God’s promises, and the accomplishment of His plans. (Jer_10:10; Dan_4:34; Isa_60:19; 2Pe_3:8-9).
3. It affords “strong consolation” amid all the trying changes of this mortal state. To this eternal and unchanging God we may commit ourselves with unwavering confidence, assured that He is both able and willing to sustain, &c.
4. It should stimulate us to seek stability of character. (Eph_5:1; Psa_77:7; Psa_108:1). How reasonable and weighty is the admonition which follows the declaration of our Saviour’s unchangeableness in Heb_13:9.
5. It should alarm the impenitent. What folly and audacity is there in rebellion against God, since an eternal being is offended thereby! How dreadful to lie under the displeasure of an eternal God! (Jer_10:10.) We are charged by this glorious Being with a message of reconciliation to you (2Co_5:18-21).—Alfred Tucker.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v12 An Urgent Invitation to Believe the Lord’s Word
An Urgent Invitation to Believe the Lord’s Word
v. 12. Hearken unto Me, O Jacob and Israel, My called, the form of address once more being in the usual cordial style used by the Lord in speaking to the people of His choice, here identical with His Church; I am He: I am the First, I also am the Last, this fundamental truth being repeated also here, where Jehovah prepares to preach salvation.
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v. 13. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand hath spanned the heavens, stretching them out like a tent; Cf. Isa 40:28; Isa 42:5; Isa 44:24; Isa 45:12; Isa 45:18; when I call unto them, in the work of creations they stand up together, and this same power is evident in all His works.
v. 14. All ye, assemble yourselves and hear, this challenge going forth to the Lord’s adversaries, to the heathen; which among them, among those whom He here calls upon, hath declared these things? Not one of the opponents nor any of their gods could have predicted what the Lord intended to perform through Cyrus. The Lord hath loved him, and therefore chosen Cyrus to carry out His will; He, Jehovah, will do His pleasure on Babylon, and His arm shall be on the Chaldeans, to punish them.
v. 15. I, even I, have spoken, the one true God, who has just described Himself once more as the almighty and eternal Creator; yea, I have called him; I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous, being successful in the undertaking which Jehovah bade him perform. The Lord now once more turns directly to Israel:
v. 16. Come ye near unto Me, hear ye this. I have not spoken in secret from the beginning, revealing His will and intention concerning the mission of Cyrus very plainly, without the slightest ambiguity; from the time that it was, when He first determined upon this course, there am I, the only One able to control the destinies of individuals and nations according to His divine will. And now the Lord God and His Spirit hath sent me, that is, the salvation, the deliverance brought about by Cyrus itself, announces that it is here, ready to be performed and applied. And this salvation, which typifies the final great redemption, is now proclaimed and set before the eyes of all men, being offered in particular, however, to Israel at this time.
v. 17. Thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the names which Jehovah has applied to Himself throughout this section: I am the Lord, thy God, which teacheth thee to profit, imparting the knowledge of that which is beneficial, truly profitable, spiritual advantages, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go, on paths of salvation, Psa 32:8.
v. 18. O that thou hadst hearkened to My commandments, willing now to be attentive; then had thy peace, the harmonious relation between the people and the God of salvation, been as a river, carrying blessings in richest measure, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea, the salvation promised in the Lord’s covenant overwhelming His people by its greatness and power;
v. 19. thy seed also, the spiritual descendants of Israel, the believers everywhere, had been as the sand and the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof, the Messianic idea of the great extent of Jehovah’s kingdom being set forth here; His name, that of Israel, should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before Me. On the basis of all this the Lord now issues an invitation to His people to accept and enjoy the redemption prepared for them:
v. 20. Go ye forth of Babylon, leaving the house of bondage, flee ye from the Chaldeans with a voice of singing, over the deliverance which they received; declare ye, tell this, utter it even to the end of the earth, the expressions being heaped to show the very height of exultant joy; say ye, The Lord hath redeemed His servant Jacob, the people thereby being received once more into the original relation toward Jehovah.
v. 21. And they thirsted not when He led them through the deserts; He caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them, Exo 17:6; He clave the rock also, and the waters gushed out, Num 20:11, the reference to these miracles of Jehovah in the wilderness being intended to emphasize the deliverance out of Babylon, in both the real and the figurative sense; for all believers are led in a similar manner, receiving the spiritual refreshment prepared by the Lord unto the salvation of their souls. Over against their happiness the unhappy condition of the Lord’s enemies stands out all the more glaringly.
v. 22. There is no peace, saith the Lord, in a solemn declaration, unto the wicked. Those who refuse to accept the salvation prepared by Him for all men will never know anything of the peace which passeth all understanding, the joyful assurance of their redemption through the merits of their Savior.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv12, 14, 16 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues speaking to the people of Israel.
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Jacob, and Israel
Both of these refer to the people of Israel. (See: Doublet and Metonymy)
I am the first, I also am the last
This phrase emphasizes Yahweh's eternal nature. Possible meanings are 1) "I am the one who began all things, and I am the one who ends all things" or 2) "I am the one who has always lived, and I am the one who always will live." See how you translated a similar phrase in Isaiah 44:6. (See: Merism)
my hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens
Here "hand" refers to Yahweh. AT: "I laid the foundation of the earth, and I spread out the heavens" (See: Synecdoche)
the foundation of the earth
The word "foundation" normally refers to a stone structure that gives support to a building from underneath. Here it describes a similar structure that was thought to support and hold the earth in place. See how you translated this in Isaiah 24:18.
spread out the heavens
Yahweh speaks of creating the heavens as if they were fabric which Yahweh stretched out. See how you translated a similar phrase in Isaiah 42:5. (See: Metaphor)
when I call to them, they stand up together
Standing up when Yahweh calls is a metaphor for being ready to obey him. Yahweh speaks of the earth and the heavens as if they were able to hear him and obey him. (See: Metaphor and Personification)
when I call to them
Possible meanings are 1) "when I call the earth and the heavens" or 2) "when I call the stars in the heavens."
translationWords
Jacob
call
hand
found
earth
right hand
heaven
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv12, 14, 15, 16 48:12-22 This final trial speech reviews the arguments of…
48:12-22 This final trial speech reviews the arguments of chs 40–48 and announces the final conclusion.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.