Isaiah 48:12-16 – Be sure to yield to God’s honing.

Earlier, God had already announced that He would deliver Judah from Babylon for His own name’s sake and glory. Here, He again stressed that He alone has the power and capacity to finish all that He had set out to do. Why should God deliver Judah? What made Him want to deliver them? Verses 12-13 answer these questions. First, it was because He was the One who had called them to Himself and they were His covenant people. Secondly, He emphatically pointed to Himself as their Eternal One. He was there at the beginning and would be there at the end. Besides, He is the Creator, the One who stretched out the heaven and gave earth her foundation. And He had designed everything to accomplish His purpose.

So calling Judah to assemble and listen to Him, God in verse 14 further challenged them by declaring that no idol had ever attempted to foretell the future. But He, their God, who alone could reveal the future had accurately revealed to them their captivity and assured them of their deliverance from their captors. Thus, He alone deserved the right to be listened to. Alluding to Cyrus whom He would raise to rescue Judah, God was assuring them of their deliverance from Babylon. The fact that He was behind all that Cyrus would do guaranteed the demise of the Chaldeans and the success of Cyrus.  

 

The last line of verse 16 is tough to interpret. Its ambiguous structure has led some to conclude that this is a prediction of the Messiah. But it seems more likely that Isaiah under the inspiration of God was pointing to God, the Eternal One, who had made known everything, for He had them all wrapped up in His hand from the beginning. Isaiah under the inspiration of God’s Spirit has made known accurately what God was doing.   

 

These verses pointedly tell us that nothing can thwart the purpose of God. It reaffirms what Romans 28:8 tells us. In all things, God is truly working out His purpose in our lives. He is working all things for His glory and for our blessing. In our walk with Him we need to learn to discern His handiwork in every experience we undergo. Do not miss out on the opportunity to advance with Him in every experience. Stay truly blessed!