God has told Israel of her sin just to give her a hard time, He has told her so that she will repent and receive life instead of death. This is true of God's attitude towards everyone.
Yet again God reminds them that He is the one who laid the foundations of the earth. Why does He keep doing this? It is because it can seem impossible to us for our circumstances or lives to change. We become resigned to the situation and lose hope. God needs to remind us who He is. There is no situation that is too difficult for Him to change.
And again He reminds them that the idols of Babylon are useless. We do not need to fear the things that we fear. They have no power over us.
Isaiah had publicly proclaimed the word of God. His words had proved true, and he is now speaking Spirit inspired words. The Lord teaches us how to live and what to do, and He does this in order to bring the best into our lives. If Israel had never turned away from God then none of the defeats and suffering would have come upon her. Instead the promises given to Abraham would have been fulfilled. Instead she had disobeyed, but now she can get back on track.
God shouts at Israel to leave Babylon. We might think it strange that she needs to be shouted at to do this. Yet we become sued to our captivity, we learn to accommodate situations, and can be very afraid of freedom. We must say no to these calls of the flesh, and follow God instead. The road to freedom may look very difficult, but our God can provide water in the desert. He is able to lead us through the roughest of terrain in life.
The only way to find peace is to trust the Lord.
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