1Listen to this, family of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel, and have come from the line of Judah. You swear by Yahweh's name and speak of the God of Israel, but you do it without truth or integrity.
2(For they call themselves citizens of the holy city, and depend on the God of Israel; Yahweh of Armies is his name):
3I announced the old predictions long ago; yes, I spoke them, and I revealed them. I made them happen suddenly, and they came true.
4I did this because I knew you were stubborn, with a stiff neck and a hard forehead.
5That’s why I told you about it long ago; before it happened, I showed it to you. This was so you couldn't say, 'My idol did it!' or 'My carved and molded images commanded it!'
6You have heard it; see all this. And you, will you not declare it? From this time on, I have shown you new things, even hidden things that you didn’t know.
7They are created now, not in the past; you didn’t hear about them before today. This is so you can’t say, ‘Look, I already knew them.’
8No, you didn't hear; no, you didn't know; no, your ears were not open in the past. This is because I knew you would be very disloyal, and you were called a rebel from birth.
9For the sake of my reputation, I will hold back my anger; for my own praise, I will restrain it from you, so I do not destroy you completely.
10Look, I have refined you, though not like silver. I have tested you in the furnace of suffering.
11For my own sake, for my own sake, I will do it; for how would my name be disrespected? I will not give my glory to another.
12Listen to me, Jacob, and Israel, my chosen one: I am he; I am the first, and I am also the last.
13Yes, my hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens. When I call to them, they all stand together.
14Gather yourselves, all of you, and listen: Who among them has predicted these things? The one Yahweh loves will do what he wants to Babylon, and his power will be against the Chaldeans.
15I, yes I, have spoken; yes, I have called him. I have brought him, and he will succeed in his journey.
16Come closer to me and hear this: From the beginning, I have not spoken in secret; from the time it happened, I was there. Now the Lord Yahweh has sent me, with his Spirit.
17Yahweh, your rescuer, the Holy One of Israel says: "I am Yahweh your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the path you should take."
18If only you had paid attention to my commands! Then your peace would have flowed like a river, and your goodness like the waves of the sea.
19Your children would have been as numerous as the sand, and your descendants like its countless grains. Your name would never have been erased or destroyed from my sight.
20Leave Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! Shout this news with joy, announce it to the ends of the earth: say, "Yahweh has rescued his servant Jacob!"
21They were not thirsty when he led them through the deserts. He made water flow from the rock for them; he split the rock, and water gushed out.
22"The wicked will have no peace," says Yahweh.