How does Isaiah 48:12 affirm God's eternal nature and sovereignty? Full Text “Listen to Me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called: I am He; I am the first and I am the last.” — Isaiah 48:12 Immediate Literary Setting Isaiah 48 closes the “Servant‐Conqueror” section (chapters 40–48) in which the LORD repeatedly contrasts His unimpeachable deity with the impotence of idols. Verse 12 sits at the hinge of a final summons to Judah to recognize Yahweh as the sole Author of their past, present, and coming deliverance from Babylon (48:13-22). The verse therefore functions as both a courtroom declaration and a covenant reminder. Eternality: “First and Last” Isaiah employs the same formula twice more (41:4; 44:6), establishing an intertextual triad that proclaims Yahweh’s timeless existence. Philosophically, only an eternal, uncaused Being can ground all contingent reality, an argument later formalized in the Cosmological reasoning and mirrored in Romans 1:20. Revelation 1:17 and 22:13 place the exact wording on the lips of the risen Christ, sealing the Old-and-New Testament unity of the doctrine and identifying Jesus with Yahweh. Sovereignty Over Covenant People (“whom I called”) Calling (qārāʾ) in Isaiah is elective and performative: what God speaks, He effects (46:10-11). Israel’s existence is thus bound to the divine will, not to ethnic persistence or geopolitical fortune. This sovereign election is the foundation for the Apostle Paul’s argument in Romans 9:6-13 that salvation history is driven by God’s purpose, not human merit. Sovereignty Over World History The wider unit (44:28–45:4) had already named Cyrus as God’s “shepherd” 150 years before the Persian’s birth, a prophecy corroborated by the Cyrus Cylinder (British Museum, BM 90920). God rules empires, appoints kings, and topples idols precisely because He is the Alpha of all events and the Omega toward which all history rushes. Christological Echoes Jesus’ self-revelation—“Before Abraham was born, I AM” (John 8:58)—appropriates the Isaianic formula and triggers accusations of blasphemy precisely because His hearers recognized the divine claim. Post-resurrection appearances (Luke 24:39-43; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8) confirm that the One called “First and Last” entered time, died, and rose, proving sovereign mastery even over death. Practical and Devotional Implications Because God precedes and outlasts all things, believers may rest secure amid cultural upheaval. He who called Jacob also calls each follower of Christ (2 Timothy 1:9). Worship, therefore, is not mere sentiment but an alignment with reality: glorifying the eternally sovereign LORD who alone holds past, present, and future. Summary Isaiah 48:12 welds together the declarations “I am He” and “I am the first and I am the last,” asserting that Yahweh alone is self-existent, timeless, and sovereign over His people and all history. Textual fidelity, prophetic fulfillment, and Christ’s resurrection converge to authenticate the claim, inviting every reader to acknowledge and glorify the Eternal King. |
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