Isaiah 48

“‘Come near to Me, hear this: I have not spoken in secret from the beginning. From the time that it was, I was there. And now the Lord GOD and His Spirit have sent Me.’ Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go.’” (Isaiah 48:16–17, NKJV)

Isaiah calls out to the people of Judah to draw near to the LORD. There is a great benefit in doing this.

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” (James 4:8, NKJV)

Now we wonder who is speaking in verse 16. Whoever it is, he has been speaking from the beginning. He has been there from the time the world came into being.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” (John 1:1–2, NKJV)

The LORD and His Spirit have sent Him. Isn’t this a picture of Christ in the Old Testament? The Trinity is beautifully portrayed here. Christ identifies Himself as the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel and the LORD your God. He redeems us from all our sins and failures, and He teaches us to profit. I love this! He does not want us to fail but to succeed! Moreover, if we will follow Him, and not be stubborn or rebellious, then He will lead us in the right way. How does He do this? He leads us by His Spirit and by the word of God.

If we draw near to Him and listen, then He will declare to us hidden things that we do not know and lead us in the way we should go. Blessed assurance from our blessed Redeemer, Jesus Christ!