Day 207-11

Isa 46:3  Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb: 

I need to research this further, it is intriguing to me that God (through Isaiah) keeps referring to Jacob/Israel.  As a whole?  Or the fragmented portion that had been taken into captivity?

The remnant of Israel, does HE mean Judah which is still in the land?

Gill - Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob,.... The Jews, the descendants of Jacob: 

and all the remnant of the house of Israel; those that remained of the ten tribes that had been carried captive long ago. These may, in a spiritual sense, design those who are Israelites indeed; the household of the God of Jacob; the chosen of God, and called; the remnant according to the election of grace: 

K & D - (Verses 3-5 - I tried to capture just the commentary on 3) From this approaching reduction of the gods of Babylon to their original nothingness, several admonitions are now derived. The first admonition is addressed to all Israel. “Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel: ye, lifted up from the womb; ye, carried from the mother's lap! And till old age it is I, and to grey hair I shall bear you on my shoulder: I have done it, and I shall carry; and I put upon my shoulder, and deliver. To whom can ye compare me, and liken, and place side by side, that we should be equal?” The house of Jacob is Judah here, as in Oba_1:18 (see Caspari on the passage), Nah_2:3, and the house of Israel the same as the house of Joseph in Obadiah; whereas in Amo_3:13; Amo_6:8; Amo_7:2, Jacob stands for Israel, in distinction from Judah. The Assyrian exile was earlier than the Babylonian, and had already naturalized the greater part of the exiles in a heathen land, and robbed them of their natural character, so that there was only a remnant left by whom there was any hope that the prophet's message would be received. What the exiles of both houses were to hear was the question in Isa_46:5, which called upon them to consider the incomparable nature of their God, as deduced from what Jehovah could say of Himself in relation to all Israel, and what He does say from הָעֲמֻסִים onwards. Babylon carried its idols, but all in vain: they were carried forth, without being able to save themselves; but Jehovah carried His people, and saved them. The expressions, “from the womb, and from the mother's lap,” point back to the time when the nation which had been in process of formation from the time of Abraham onwards came out of Egypt, and was born, as it were, into the light of the world. From this time forward it had lain upon Jehovah like a willingly adopted burden, and He had carried it as a nurse carries a suckling (Num_11:12), and an eagle its young (Deu_32:11). In Isa_46:4 the attributes of the people are carried on in direct (not relative) self-assertions on the part of Jehovah. 

Hearken, echoing in my mind...to give heed, attention, detail.

H8085 - A primitive root; to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience, etc.; causatively to tell, etc.).

I know I have looked at this word before...repetition is good...I wanted a tad more than my usual resources.

From Vines:

"Hearing" can be both intellectual and spiritual.  Spiritually, one may "hear" God's Word (Num 24:4), or "learn" it from god.  Conversely, God told Abraham that He had "heard" his prayer and would act accordingly (Gen 17:20).  In this context, to "hear" means not only to hear what is said, but to agree with its intention or petition (c. Gen. 16:11).  In the case of hearing and hearkening to a higher authority, shâma‛ can mean to "obey."  In Abraham's seed, all nations would be blessed because he "heard" (obeyed) God's voice (Gen. 22:18).

Another nuance of intellectual "hearing" appears in Gen 11:7, in which we are told that God planned to confuse human language, "that they may not understand one another's speech."

To have a "hearing heart" is to have "discernment" or "understanding" (1 Kings 3:9).  Certainly when Moses told Israel's judges to "hear" cases, he mean more than listening with one's ear.  He meant for them to examine the merits of a case, so as to render a just decision (Deut. 1:16).

Which makes me reflect on the message we had yesterday, Mary Models the Meditative Mind.  God expects us to be reflective, inquisitive, wisdom seekers.  One can not grow in godliness without spending time in His Word.  A leisurely walk through Proverbs gives credence again and again to the necessity of seeking wisdom.  Which in my mind translates into "hearing" Him.

Being conformed, not to this world, but transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:1-2).