Isaiah 48:3

3 Long ago I told you what would happen. I said these things and made them known; suddenly I acted, and these things happened.

Isaiah 48:3 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 48:3

I have declared the former things from the beginning
From the time of their first ancestors, from the time of Abraham their father, to whom was declared what should befall his posterity; that they should sojourn in Egypt, be afflicted there, and come out from thence with great substance; that they be brought into the land of Canaan, and the inhabitants of it being driven out before them, ( Genesis 15:13-18 ) . And they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them;
they were told to Abraham by word of mouth; they were shown to him in prophecy: I did them suddenly, and they came to pass;
for very quickly these things began to take place, even in Abraham's time; for his seed being a stranger in a land not theirs, and afflicted near four hundred years, must be reckoned from the birth of Isaac; and all which exactly came to pass as was foretold; not one thing which the Lord had spoken of failed; all was punctually fulfilled, ( Joshua 21:45 ) .

Isaiah 48:3 In-Context

1 The Lord says, "Family of Jacob, listen to me. You are called Israel, and you come from the family of Judah. and praise the God of Israel, but you are not honest or sincere.

2 You call yourselves people of the holy city, and you depend on the God of Israel, who is named the Lord All-Powerful.

3 Long ago I told you what would happen. I said these things and made them known; suddenly I acted, and these things happened.

4 I knew you were stubborn; your neck was like an iron muscle, and your head was like bronze.

5 So a long time ago I told you about these things; I told you about them before they happened so you couldn't say, 'My idols did this, and my wooden and metal statues made these things happen.'