Isaiah 48:8-11

Because I knew that you would deal very treacherously; And you have been called a rebel from birth. “For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, And for My praise I restrain it for you, In order not to cut you off. “Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. “For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another. (NASB)

Through the prophet Isaiah, God is speaking to Israel – probably exiled at the time in Babylon. Throughout the book, God recounts and reminds Israel of her obstinacy. Yet God will deliver her and often has delayed His wrath. God makes it clear the primary motivation for His mercy and deliverance – for His name sake. In two verses, we see six occurrences of “My name”, “My praise”, “My own sake”, or “My glory. “ For His reputation among all creation and all the nations, God restrains His wrath. For His praise, God remains faithful and does not cut off Israel. In v. 10, God repeats, “For my own sake,” to add emphasis. God will not allow his reputation to be sullied nor will He allow someone else (or something else) to take His glory. God is quite jealous for His glory.

To some, reading this passage may be unsettling and difficult. Might we dare ask, “Is God an egomaniac?”  “Is He insecure?”  It is understandable in today’s social climate that such questions might arise, that we would find this passage difficult. It seems today we are bent on blurring, if not outright obliterating, any differences in people. The rallying cry is equality. . . we’re all the same. Another factor is our low view of God, seeing God as one of us, but without sin. Yet, God is not one of us nor is He the same (as us). God is the Creator and we are created and the difference between the two is infinite – a chasm bridged only by the infinite Jesus Christ.  

If a person were to repeatedly use the words my name, my praise, my sake over and over, we would be correct if we thought that person to be an egomaniac. But God is not us. In regards to who we are relative to who God is, the only way we can approach God is to fall on our face before Him and plead for mercy and forgiveness.  But because of His great mercy, His great love, we can call Him “Father” and we can approach His throne with confidence. . . all to the praise of His glory.

Isaiah is reminding us who God is, and that He is to be worshiped. All the good around us is to the praise of His glory. That you are saved from the domain of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son is to the praise of His glory. A gorgeous sunset or a view from the mountaintop is to the praise of His glory.