Isaiah 48

Isaiah 48:1-22 . THE THINGS THAT BEFALL BABYLON JEHOVAH PREDICTED LONG BEFORE, LEST ISRAEL SHOULD ATTRIBUTE THEM, IN ITS "OBSTINATE" PERVERSITY, TO STRANGE GODS ( Isaiah 48:1-5 ).

1. the waters of Judah--spring from the fountain of Judah ( Numbers 24:7 , Deuteronomy 33:28 , Psalms 68:26 ; Margin). Judah has the "fountain" attributed to it, because it survived the ten tribes, and from it Messiah was to spring.
swear by . . . Lord--( Isaiah 19:18 , 45:23 , 65:16 ).
mention--in prayers and praises.
not in truth--( Jeremiah 5:2 , John 4:24 ).

2. For--Ye deserve these reproofs; "for" ye call yourselves citizens of "the holy city" ( Isaiah 52:1 ), but not in truth ( Isaiah 48:1 , Nehemiah 11:1 , Daniel 9:24 ); so the inscription on their coins of the time of the Maccabees. "Jerusalem the Holy."

3. former--things which have happened in time past to Israel ( Isaiah 42:9 , Isaiah 44:7 Isaiah 44:8 , 45:21 , 46:10 ).
suddenly--They came to pass so unexpectedly that the prophecy could not have resulted from mere human sagacity.

4. obstinate--Hebrew, "hard" ( Deuteronomy 9:27 , Ezekiel 3:7 , Margin).
iron sinew--inflexible ( Acts 7:51 ).
brow brass--shameless as a harlot (see Jeremiah 6:28 , 3:3 , Ezekiel 3:7 , Margin).

6. Thou, &c.--So "ye are my witnesses" ( Isaiah 43:10 ). Thou canst testify the prediction was uttered long before the fulfilment: "see all this," namely, that the event answers to the prophecy.
declare--make the fact known as a proof that Jehovah alone is God ( Isaiah 44:8 ).
new things--namely, the deliverance from Babylon by Cyrus, new in contradistinction from former predictions that had been fulfilled ( Isaiah 42:9 , 43:19 ). Antitypically, the prophecy has in view the "new things" of the gospel treasury ( Solomon 7:13 , Matthew 13:52 , 2 Corinthians 5:17 , Revelation 21:5 ). From this point forward, the prophecies as to Messiah's first and second advents and the restoration of Israel, have a new circumstantial distinctness, such as did not characterize the previous ones, even of Isaiah. Babylon, in this view, answers to the mystical Babylon of Revelation.
hidden--which could not have been guessed by political sagacity ( Daniel 2:22 Daniel 2:29 , 1 Corinthians 2:9 1 Corinthians 2:10 ).

7. Not like natural results from existing causes, the events when they took place were like acts of creative power, such as had never before been "from the beginning."
even before the day when--rather [MAURER], "And before the day (of their occurrence) thou hast not heard of them"; that is, by any human acuteness; they are only heard of by the present inspired announcement.