Isaiah 41:22

bringthem forth and shew It is assumed that the "strong arguments" must be predictions.

the formerthings] i.e. "things past" (from the standpoint of the speaker) as opposed to things still future (things to come). The expression (hâ-rî"shônôth) occurs with great frequency in the first part of this prophecy. Sometimes the stress lies on the event, sometimes on the prediction; but in reality the phrase includes both ideas "past events as predicted." So here the challenge is to produce past predictions which have been already verified by the event. There is no ground whatever for the view of Delitzsch and others that in this verse hâ-rî"shônôthrefers to events still future, but in the immediatefuture, as opposed to the more remote future ("things to come"). See G. A. Smith, Exposition, p. 121, note.

the latter end of them their issue. Sense and parallelism are undoubtedly improved if (with Duhm) we transpose the last two clauses, reading the closing lines thus:

the former things, what they are do ye announce, that we may lay it to heart; or the coming things let us hear, that we may know their issue.