Esias 48

1 Hear these [words], ye house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and have come forth out of Juda, who swear by the name of the Lord God of Israel, making mention [of it, but] not with truth, nor with righteousness;

Listen to this, descendants of Jacob, called by the name of Israel, and who come from the lineage of Judah. Listen, you people who swear by the name of the Lord, or who invoke the God of Israel, but not truly or sincerely.

2 maintaining also the name of the holy city, and staying themselves on the God of Israel: the Lord of hosts is his name. The former things I have already declared;

You say you're from the “Holy City,” and claim you're trusting in the God of Israel, whose name is the Lord Almighty.

3 and they that have proceeded out of my mouth, and it became well known; I wrought suddenly, and [the events] came to pass.

I predicted long ago what was going to happen—I said it and let people know. Then suddenly I decided to act, and it all came true.

4 I know that thou art stubborn, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy forehead brazen.

I know how stubborn you are, with necks as unbending as iron and foreheads as hard as bronze.

5 And I told thee of old what [should be] before it came upon thee; I made it known to thee, lest thou shouldest say, [My] idols have done [it] for me; and shouldest say, [My] graven and molten images have commanded me.

I predicted these things to you long ago, before they happened. I explained them to you so that you couldn't say “My idol did this,” or “My image and my metal god ordered this to happen.”

6 Ye have heard all this, but ye have not known: yet I have made known to thee the new things from henceforth, which are coming to pass, and thou saidst not,

You've heard all I predicted, and seen it happen. Won't you admit it? Now I'm going to tell you new things, secrets you don't know anything about.

7 Now they come to pass, and not formerly: and thou heardest not of them in former days: say not thou, Yea, I know them.

These are brand-new, not something from the past. Before today you won't have heard anything about them, so you can't say, “Oh yes, I know about that.”

8 Thou hast neither known, nor understood, neither from the beginning have I opened thine ears: for I knew that thou wouldest surely deal treacherously, and wouldest be called a transgressor even from the womb.

No, you've never heard that, and you've never known that! Nobody's told you about that before! I know how deviously you operate—you're called “rebels from birth”!

9 For mine own sake will I shew thee my wrath, and will bring before thee my glorious acts, that I may not utterly destroy thee.

But because of my nature I am delaying my punishment; and because of my reputation, I'm not going to destroy you.

10 Behold, I have sold thee, [but] not for silver; but I have rescued thee from the furnace of affliction.

Look how I've refined you, but not like silver—I chose you in the furnace of trouble.

11 For mine own sake I will do [this] for thee, because my name is profaned; and I will not give my glory to another.

The reason I'm doing this is because of who I am, yes, because of my very nature. I won't let my reputation be damaged—I won't let anyone else have it.

12 Hear me, O Jacob, and Israel whom I call; I am the first, and I endure for ever.

Listen to me, Jacon, and Israel, the one I called. Only I am God. I am the first, and I am the last.

13 My hand also has founded the earth, and my right hand has fixed the sky: I will call them, and they shall stand together.

I laid the foundations of the earth with my own hands; I personally spread out the heavens. When I call the stars, they all take their positions.

14 And all shall be gathered, and shall hear: who has told them these things? Out of love to thee I have fulfilled thy desire on Babylon, to abolish the seed of the Chaldeans.

Everyone gather round and listen. Which of your “gods” told you anything like this? The one the Lord loves will carry out the Lord's wishes against Babylon—he will attack the Babylonians.

15 I have spoken, I have called, I have brought him, and made his way prosperous.

I myself have spoken. I have called him to do this, and he will be successful in what he does.

16 Draw nigh to me, and hear ye these words; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning: when it took place, there was I, and now the Lord, [even] the Lord, and his Spirit, hath sent me.

Come close to me, and listen to this. From the very beginning I haven't spoken in secret; I am always there right when it happens. Now the Lord God and his Spirit has sent me to tell you this:

17 Thus saith the Lord that delivered thee, the Holy One of Israel; I am thy God, I have shewn thee how thou shouldest find the way wherein thou shouldest walk.

This is what the Lord says, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, I am the Lord your God. I am the one who teaches you what is good for you, who leads you along the way you should go.

18 And if thou hadst hearkened to my commandments, [then] would thy peace have been like a river, and thy righteousness as a wave of the sea.

If you had only listened carefully to what I told you! Then your blessings would have flowed like a river, and goodness would have washed over you like the waves of the sea.

19 Thy seed also would have been as the sand, and the offspring of thy belly as the dust of the ground: neither now shalt thou by any means be utterly destroyed, neither shall thy name perish before me.

Your children, your descendants, would have been like all those grains of sand. They wouldn't have had to be destroyed, wiped out before me.

20 Go forth of Babylon, thou that fleest from the Chaldeans: utter aloud a voice of joy, and let this be made known, proclaim it to the end of the earth; say ye, The Lord hath delivered his servant Jacob.

Leave Babylon! Run away from Babylonia with happy shouts! Let everyone know, telling the whole earth, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!”

21 And if they shall thirst, he shall lead them through the desert; he shall bring forth water to them out of the rock: the rock shall be cloven, and the water shall flow forth, and my people shall drink.

They weren't thirsty when he led them through the desert—he made water come out of the rock for them. He split the rock open and water poured out.

22 There is no joy, saith the Lord, to the ungodly.

The wicked have no peace, says the Lord.