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Israel's Obstinacy

¹ "^(C1)Hear this, O house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel
And who come from the ^(F1)(C2)seed of Judah,
You who ^(C3)swear allegiance by the name of the LORD
And invoke the God of Israel,
But not in truth (sincerity) nor in ^(C4)righteousness with moral and spiritual integrity.

² "For they call themselves citizens of Jerusalem after the ^(C1)holy city
And ^(C2)depend on the God of Israel;
The LORD of hosts is His name.

³ "I have ^(C1)declared the former things which happened to Israel in times past;
They went forth from My mouth and I proclaimed them;
^(C2)Suddenly I acted, and they ^(C3)came to pass.

⁴ "Because I know that you are ^(C1)obstinate,
And your ^(C2)neck is an iron tendon
And your ^(C3)brow is bronze both unyielding,

⁵ I have declared them to you long ago;
Before they came to pass I announced them to you,
So that you could not say, 'My ^(C1)idol has done them,
And my carved image and my cast image have commanded them.'

⁶ "You have heard these things foretold; look at all this that has been fulfilled.
And you, will you not declare it?
I proclaim to you specific ^(C1)new things from this time,
Even ^(F1)hidden things which you have not known.

⁷ "They are created now called into being by the prophetic word and not long ago;
And before today you have not heard of them,
So that you will not say, 'Oh yes! I knew them.'

⁸ "You have not ^(C1)heard, you have not known;
Even from long ago your ear has not been open.
For I the LORD knew that you Israel would act very treacherously;
You have been called a transgressor and a ^(C2)rebel from birth.

⁹ "^(C1)For the sake of My Name I ^(C2)refrain from My wrath,
And for My praise I restrain Myself from you,
So that I do not cut you off.

¹⁰ "Indeed, I have refined you, but ^(C1)not as ^(F1)silver;
I have tested and chosen you in the ^(C2)furnace of affliction.

¹¹ "^(C1)For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it I refrain and do not completely destroy you;
For how can My Name be defiled and profaned as it would if My chosen people were completely destroyed?
And I will not give My ^(C2)glory to another by permitting the worshipers of idols to triumph over you.

End of Captivity Promised

¹² "Listen to Me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called;
^(C1)I am He, ^(C2)I am the First, I am the Last. ^(VR1)

¹³ "My hand ^(C1)founded and established the earth,
And My right hand spread out the heavens;
When I ^(C2)call to them, they stand together in obedience to carry out My decrees.

¹⁴ "^(C1)Assemble, all of you, and listen!
^(C2)Who among them the idols and Chaldean astrologers has declared these things?
The LORD loves him (Cyrus of Persia); he will ^(C3)do His pleasure and purpose against ^(C4)Babylon,
And his arm will be against the Chaldeans who reign in Babylon.

¹⁵ "I, even I, have spoken; indeed, I have ^(C1)called Cyrus;
I have brought him, and will make his way successful.

¹⁶ "^(C1)Come near to Me, listen to this:
From the beginning I have ^(C2)not spoken in secret,
^(C3)From the time that it happened, I was there.
And now ^(C4)the Lord GOD has sent Me, and His Holy Spirit."

¹⁷ This is what the LORD, your ^(C1)Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says,

"I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit (benefit),
Who ^(C2)leads you in the way that you should go.

¹⁸ "Oh, that you had ^(C1)paid attention to My commandments!
Then your ^(C2)peace and prosperity would have been like a flowing river,
And your ^(C3)righteousness the holiness and purity of the nation like the abundant waves of the sea.

¹⁹ "Your ^(C1)offspring would have been like the sand,
And your descendants in number like the grains of sand;
^(C2)Their name would never be cut off or destroyed from My presence." ^(VR1)

^20 (C1)Get out of Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans who reign there!
Declare with a ^(C2)voice of jubilation, ^(C3)proclaim this,
Send it out to the end of the earth;
Say, "^(C4)The LORD has redeemed His servant Jacob."

²¹ They did not ^(C1)thirst when He led them through the deserts.
He ^(C2)made the waters flow out of the rock for them;
He split the rock and ^(C3)the waters flowed.

²² "^(C1)There is no peace for the wicked," says the LORD.