In verse 10, God says that at the beginning of something, He announces or makes known what will happen at the end. That goes beyond knowing in advance how cause and effect and natural law will play out. He knows that too, but here it means He has determined what that end is. That’s why He follows up by referring to what He will do so His purpose is worked out.
It is evident that God has no problem overriding the will of mankind, especially when mankind rebels against Him and tries to assert self-sovereignty. That is the context here. The nation that God redeemed from Egypt didn’t want Him any longer, and wanted the gods of the surrounding nations instead. So, God declares that the nation will be powerless against what He will cause to occur. If He has said it will happen, or if He has purposed it, He will bring it to pass because He is sovereign, not mankind.
There is no point at which God can know a name this many years in advance, but one more year would be too much for Him. As we saw, He declares the end from the beginning. If He has purposed it, He will also do it. God demonstrated His foreknowledge with Cyrus, and there is no scriptural explanation for why He could not also choose some from the foundation of the world and write their names in His Book. He works all things according to the counsel of His will, and His foreknowledge is beyond our comprehension.
Brethren, what we have in these three verses is a general principle in which God challenges us to consider, to compare, all of the material idols, which are so easily seen, to Him.
Remember is a very important word to a true, spiritual religion. Remember that God's counsel stands. When He says something, it is so. It happens. God gives plenty of evidence to demonstrate that He can be trusted. Being able to see God and have faith is the result of seeing the evidence by which God demonstrated both Himself and His purpose in the former things.
Isaiah 46:9 says, Remember the former things. That is what David did. That is what Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego did. They remembered the former things. God demonstrated Himself in the former things - not only Himself, but also His purpose. We have to remember. But, brethren, it is really reinforced and built through obedience to His counsel in the present and seeing from one's own experience that it truly does stand. And then, one can see God!
