Isaiah 48:4-5

48:4 I did this ¹  because I know how stubborn you are.

Your neck muscles are like iron

and your forehead like bronze. ² 

48:5 I announced them to you beforehand;

before they happened, I predicted them for you,

so you could never say,

‘My image did these things,

my idol, my cast image, decreed them.’

[48:4]  ¹ tn The words “I did this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 4 is subordinated to v. 3.

[48:4]  ² sn The image is that of a person who has tensed the muscles of the face and neck as a sign of resolute refusal.