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"Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow
brass; I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I
shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, `Mine idol hath done them and my graven image
and my molten image, hath commanded them'. Thou hast heard, see all this; and will
not ye declare it? I have shewed to thee new things from this time, even hidden things,
and thou didst not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning; even
before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, `Behold, I knew
them'." (Isa. 48: 4-7).
So Isaiah emphasizes that the new things that will be declared are entirely new, and
those new things are a creation of God. Israel would like to pretend that they knew those
things from the beginning, but God will keep them secret until the right time comes,
when He will reveal the new things that He will create.
It is in Isaiah that we read that Israel will be given a new name, "which the mouth of
the Lord shall name" (62: 2). We read that God's people will not be called "Forsaken"
neither will the land be called "Desolate":
"... but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the Lord delighteth in
thee, and thy land shall be married" (Isa. 62: 4).
Lastly, there are two references in Isaiah to new heavens and a new earth. The first is
Isa. 65: 17 and the second in Isa. 66: 22. We quote 65: 17:
"For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be
remembered, nor come into mind",
and the following verses describe the blessing and the joy which will be enjoyed. There
will be no more weeping nor the "voice of crying" (19).
In the N.T. we find that the "overcomers" will be given a white stone in which is
written a new name (Rev. 2: 17). In Rev. 3: 12 the overcomers will become pillars of
the Temple, and the name of God and of the city of God (New Jerusalem) will be written
on them. The verse ends "and I will write upon him My new name".
In Revelation we also read of a new song, a new heaven and a new earth, and the last
statement is "Behold, I make all things new". The outline of the use of the word "new"
in Revelation is as follows:
A | 2: 17. A new name (overcomers).
B | 3: 12. New Jerusalem (comes down from heaven).
C | 3: 12. My new name.
D | 5: 9. A new song (Worthy is the Lamb).
D | 14: 3. A new song (144,000).
C | 21: 1. A new heaven and a new earth.
B | 21: 2. New Jerusalem (coming down from God out of heaven).
A | 21: 5. I make all things new (overcomers, verse 7).