Bible Commentaries
Isaiah

GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH ISAIAH

He has been called “the Prince of the OT Prophets” (Copass), “the Saint Paul of the OT” (Robinson) and “the greatest prophet” (Eusebius). Isaiah son of Amoz was a theologian, reformer, statesman, historian, poet, orator, prince, and patriot. He was “prophet of the gospel before the Gospel” (Robinson), the fifth evangelist. Naegelsbach refers to him as “the great central-prophet.” His ministry was central in time. He walked across the stage of history roughly half way between Moses and Christ. Isaiah was central in the events of history. He lived during the days of the mighty Assyrian Empire. He anticipated the downfall of that empire and the rise of its two successors, viz., the Chaldean and the Persian empires. This prophet was central in theological emphasis. He drove home the great principles of salvation through faith, substitutionary atonement, the kingdom and resurrection.

Isaiah was also central among the prophetic books. According to Payne, he ranks third to Ezekiel and Jeremiah in the most predictions (734 vv), first in the greatest number of separate predictions (111) and second in the amount of material directly anticipatory of Jesus Christ (59 vv). While other prophets were called to illuminate single parts of the near or distant future, Isaiah let the light of his prophetic word fall on the great wide circumference of the entire future of salvation.

MINISTRY OF ISAIAH

The message of Isaiah was heralded by his name which means “Yahweh is salvation.” The name Joshua has the same two components in reverse order. Isaiah is the only person in Scripture to wear this name. Some English versions in NT references to him Anglicize the Greek and Latin spelling of his name as Esaias or Isaias.

Personal information about this prophet is scanty. His father was Amoz, not to be confused with the prophet Amos. According to tradition, Isaiah was from the tribe of Judah. He was a citizen, if not a native, of Jerusalem. Isaiah was married, but the name of his wife is not known. She is simply called “the prophetess” (Isaiah 8:3). His sons were given symbolic names that encapsulated prophecies. The first, Shear-jashub (Isaiah 7:3), means a remnant shall return. The second son has the longest name to appear in the English Bible—Maher-shalal-hash-baz (Isaiah 8:1). Roughly translated this name means swift is the booty, speedy is the prey.

Prior to his call to the prophetic ministry, Isaiah served in the royal court as historiographer. He recorded the acts of King Uzziah “from beginning to end” (2 Chronicles 26:22). Concerning King Hezekiah the record states: The other events of Hezekiah’s reign and his acts of devotion are written in the vision of the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah (2 Chronicles 32:32).

Isaiah was called to the prophetic ministry in the year that king Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1). Scholars compute that year to have been 739 BC. His ministry extended for some sixty years through the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. According to tradition Isaiah died a martyr’s death about 680 BC, early in the reign of the wicked King Manasseh. The last dated event in the book is the fourteenth year of Hezekiah (701 BC). The Assyrian King Esarhaddon (681-699 BC) is, however, mentioned in 37:38. Legend has it that he was sawed asunder by this king (cf. Hebrews 11:37).

Among the Major Prophets, Isaiah was the preacher par excellence. He exhibits a vocabulary considerably larger than either Jeremiah or Ezekiel. He was a masterful writer as well as an orator. Isaianic expressions have found their way into the speech of many who have never read his book. Sarcasm and irony were tools he used with skill. His words reveal great earnestness, boldness and spirituality. He was a man of deep reverence.

Though Isaiah was known more for what he said than for what he did, action parables are not lacking in his ministry. Once he removed his outer garment and shoes and walked about the streets of Jerusalem in the long linen tunic worn next to the skin (ch 20). He thus played the role of one who had been taken captive to warn the citizens of Jerusalem against an alliance with Egypt. When Hezekiah was sick unto death Isaiah ordered a clump of figs to be placed on his “boil” to symbolize the beginning of healing (ch 38). On another occasion he wrote the name of his second son on a large scroll that was serving as a kind of billboard (ch 8).

Valeton evaluated the ministry of Isaiah in these poignant words: “Never perhaps has there been another prophet like Isaiah, who stood with his head in the clouds and his feet on the solid earth, with his heart in things of eternity and with mouth and hand in the things of time, with his spirit in the eternal counsel of God and his body in a very definite moment of history.”

BOOK OF ISAIAH

The Book of Isaiah has been called “the Mount Everest of prophetic literature.” The intrinsic grandeur of this book attracts those who are connoisseurs of great literature. Students of theology find here sublime revelations of God’s character. The evangelical emphasis of the book has made it a favorite of Christian preachers through the ages. Those who defend biblical revelation find in these prophecies abundant evidence of supernatural revelation. Simple believers rejoice in a treasure trove of passages that encourage them in their Christian pilgrimage.

SIZE AND POSITION

Although the Book of Isaiah has more chs than either Jeremiah or Ezekiel, by word count it ranks third in size. Jeremiah contains fifty-two chapters, 42,659 words; Ezekiel has forty-eight chapters, 39,407 words; Isaiah is organized into sixty-six chapter, but contains only 37,044 words. The Book of Isaiah contains sixty-six chs that are a microcosm of the Bible. The first thirty-nine chs, like the thirty-nine books of the , speak mainly of condemnation. The last twenty-seven chs, like the twenty-seven books of the NT, speak mainly of redemption.

Because of the respective sizes of the books, ancient Jewish tradition listed Jeremiah and Ezekiel before Isaiah. The placement of the Book of Isaiah as first among the Major Prophets can be justified, however, on chronological grounds. Isaiah’s ministry ended about seventy-five years before the call of Jeremiah. The pre-Christian Greek Septuagint was guided by the chronological principle in the arrangement of the Major Prophets. The English translators have followed the lead of the Latin Vulgate, which in turn was based on the Septuagint. The Septuagint, however, had the twelve Minor Prophets before the Major Prophets.

UNITY OF THE BOOK

The majority of OT scholars are convinced that the Book of Isaiah is not the product of a single author. According to these critics, chs 40-66 (and several chs in the first half of the book as well) were written by some anonymous prophet living a century and a half after Isaiah. This anonymous prophet is called “Deutero-Isaiah.” Some critics have gone so far as to designate Isaiah as a library of prophetic books compiled by any number of authors over several centuries. One writer refers to the Book of Isaiah as “the garbage can of prophecy.”

On what grounds do the critics deny that Isaiah was the author of the entire book that bears his name? An anti-supernatural bias permeates the writers who advocate the multiple authorship theory. They simply do not believe in pinpoint predictive prophecy. Their bias is camouflaged in the following dictum: circumstances reflected in a book are evidence of the time of composition. The biblical view, however, is that God on occasion revealed to a prophet the circumstances of the future. The multiple authorship theory undercuts the powerful evidence of prediction found in this book.

Critics point to linguistic and stylistic differences between the two halves of Isaiah that they believe support their multiple authorship theory. Yet a writer’s vocabulary and style may vary depending on his age at the time of writing, the subject matter involved, and the audience for whom he is writing. Without question the last chs of Isaiah were written late in the prophet’s life. In these chs he is addressing new subjects.

Again critics point out that certain theological concepts appear in the latter half of the book that are not attested in the days of Isaiah. Yet this argument begs the question. If Isaiah 40-66 is the product of Isaiah, then the theology found in those chs would in fact be attested in the days of Isaiah.

Sometimes critics argue that Isaiah’s name is not found in the last twenty-seven chs of the book. While this is true, it is not decisive in determining the authorship of these chs. A book is presumed to be the product of the person whose name it bears unless overwhelming evidence to the contrary can be produced. Furthermore, most critics who deny that Isaiah wrote chs 40-66 also deny that he wrote ch 13, and that ch does contain his name.

The following factors support the traditional view that Isaiah the son of Amoz authored this book.

(1) The heading of the book and at least thirteen other places within the book claim Isaiah as the speaker/writer.

(2) Jewish and Christian tradition is uniform in attributing this book to Isaiah.

(3) The Septuagint, translated about 250 BC, shows no distinction between the two halves of the book.

(4) Ben Sirach, writing at about 280 BC, knew of one Isaiah.

(5) The two complete Isaiah manuscripts among the Dead Sea Scrolls indicate no break at the end of ch 39. These manuscripts date to about a century and a half before Christ.

(6) Josephus attributes the Cyrus prophecy of Isaiah 44:28 and Isaiah 45:1—the most controversial prophecy in the book—to Isaiah the son of Amoz.

(7) Jesus in the synagogue at Nazareth read from Isaiah 61 and attributed it to Isaiah (Luke 4:16 ff).

(8) In the NT several passages from “Deutero-Isaiah” are quoted and attributed simply to Isaiah.

(9) The literary style of the second half of Isaiah is so similar to the first that even critics admit that “Deutero-Isaiah” must have been a disciple of Isaiah who tried to imitate his master.

(10) A certain circle of ideas appears throughout the book binding it together as the work of one author. The concepts of a highway, Zion, the holy one of Israel, and pangs of a woman in travail are but a few of the many that might be listed.

(11) Many of the passages found in “Deutero-Isaiah” are totally unsuitable to the period of the exile of Judah where they are placed by the critics, but totally appropriate to the days of Isaiah, son of Amoz.

MESSAGE OF THE BOOK

The theme of Isaiah is the same as the meaning of this prophet’s name: Yahweh is salvation. The immediate purpose of the book was to teach the truth that salvation is by grace.⁹ The long-range purpose was to demonstrate the role of Judah in the plan of God as the vehicle through which Messiah would come into the world.

The book consists of two major divisions. Chs 1-35 are concerned primarily with two invasions of Judah. The first invasion was by the combined armies of Syria and Ephraim in 734 BC. This invasion had as its purpose the removal of the reigning representative of the royal house of David. During this crisis Isaiah urged King Ahaz to trust in the Lord. This invasion was to come to nothing (Isaiah 7). A second invasion, however, will be far more devastating. The Assyrians were coming like a flood that will reach all the way to the neck of Judah. The tiny nation will all but be swallowed up by that imperialistic giant. After God had used these foreigners to punish his wayward people he would punish the Assyrians for their brutality, idolatry and pride.

Chs 36-39 form an historical connecting link between the two major divisions of Isaiah. Chs 36-37 document the invasion by King Sennacherib in 701 BC and the dramatic, last-minute rescue of Jerusalem by divine intervention. The judgment predictions of chs 1-35 find fulfillment in these two chs. Chs 38-39, however, lay the foundation for the predictions of the last twenty-seven chs. Here Isaiah announced to King Hezekiah that in years to come his descendants would be carried away to Babylon. Thus the first two chs of this narrative section look backward to the threats pertaining to Assyria. The last two chs of the connecting link look forward to the captivity of Judah in the land of Babylon. Furthermore, a careful study of chs 36-39 indicates that the material is presented in reverse chronological order. The episode recorded in chs 38-39 occurred before the Assyrian invasion of chs 36-37. The author apparently sacrificed chronological considerations in the interest of literary structure. By this arrangement of material Isaiah intended to demonstrate how his entire book fits together logically and theologically.

Chs 40-66 assume that the threat of Babylonian captivity made in chs 38-39 had come to pass. These chs were designed to give comfort to the Jews once they had been deported from their homeland. This comfort took the form of (1) explanations of why that terrible judgment was necessary; and (2) anticipations of a complete restoration of God’s people which will set the stage for the golden age of Messiah.

Ten major units have been identified in the book.¹⁰ These units or “books” are the basis for the commentary that follows.

(1) Book of Mingled Rebukes and Promises (chs 1-6).

(2) Book of Immanuel (chs 7-12).

(3) Book of Burdens (chs 13-23).

(4) First Book of General Judgment (chs 24-27).

(5) Book of Woes (chs 28-33).

(6) Second Book of General Judgment (chs 34-35).

(7) Book of Hezekiah (chs 36-39).

(8) Book of Cyrus (chs 40-48).

(9) Book of the Suffering Servant (chs 49-57).

(10) Book of Future Glory (chs 58-66).

IMPORTANCE OF THE BOOK

For the Christian the Book of Isaiah is extremely important. Forty-seven chs of this book were directly quoted or alluded to by Christ or the Apostles. With more than four hundred allusions, Isaiah stands second only to Psalms as the most cited book in the NT.

According to Payne the book of Isaiah contains 111 separate predictions. Of the 1,292 vv in the book, 754 (59%) deal with future events. Among the more important messianic prophecies in this book are the following:

(1) Future temple that attracts Gentiles (Isaiah 2:2-4).

(2) Glorious Branch (Isaiah 4:2-6).

(3) Virgin birth of Immanuel (Isaiah 7:13-14).

(4) Dawning of a new day in the birth of a child (Isaiah 9:1-7).

(5) Shoot of the stem of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1-10).

(6) Conversion of Gentiles (Isaiah 19:18-25).

(7) New Jerusalem (Isaiah 54:9-13; Isaiah 60:19-22).

(8) Marriage supper of the Lamb (Isaiah 25:6-8; Isaiah 26:19).

(9) Ministry of the Messiah (Isaiah 42:1-4).

(10) Servant as a light to the Gentiles (Isaiah 49:1-13).

(11) Willing obedience of the Servant (Isaiah 50:4-11).

(12) Redemption achieved by the Servant (Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12).

(13) Promises made to David to be fulfilled (Isaiah 55:1-5).

(14) Converted heathen become worship leaders (Isaiah 66:19-23).

Isaiah 1:1

In the light of the headings of the books of Hosea, Amos, Micah, and Zephaniah the first verse is probably best regarded as the heading of the whole book, and not just the first unit in the book. This heading contains three elements.

A. Title (Isaiah 1:1 a): The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz… Vision is a technical term for revelation received from Yahweh. It does not necessarily indicate the mode by which that revelation was received (cf. Obadiah 1:1; Nahum 1:1). On Isaiah and his family, see introductory notes.

B. Subject (Isaiah 1:1 b): that he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem… Isaiah’s prophecies take in Ephraim (Northern Kingdom) and several nations that surrounded Judah. The focus of his revelation, however, is on the Judeans and their capital.

C. Date (Isaiah 1:1 c): in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah kings of Judah. The call of the prophet is dated to the year that King Uzziah died. That Isaiah prophesied prior to his call to be a prophet is unlikely. Therefore, chs 1-6 contain materials that can be dated immediately after the death of Uzziah in 739 BC. The ruler during this period was Jotham, the son of Uzziah. Jotham had actually been serving as co-regent from as early as 750 BC when Uzziah was forced to live in isolation because of an outbreak of leprosy.

Altogether Jotham reigned sixteen years (2 Kings 15:33). The sacred historian declares he did what was right in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 15:34). The Chronicler adds that he grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the Lord (2 Chronicles 27:2). Several military campaigns were waged, including a notable one against the Ammonites (2 Chronicles 27:3-5). These were the times in which Isaiah began his ministry. The economic boom of the preceding reign continued. Major building projects were completed. The rich were getting richer. The poor, however, were being oppressed. The temple was overflowing with worshipers, but the worship was a sham. Pagan customs were influencing their religious rituals.

Author

The book of Isaiah is named for the prophet who composed the book. His name means "The Lord is salvation." The work of the great prophet was to turn the Jews to the Lord as the only hope of their salvation.

Isaiah was married to a prophetess (Isaiah 8:3), and they had at least two sons with prophetic names. The elder was Shear-Jashub (Isaiah 7:3), whose name means "a remnant shall return"; and the younger was Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (Isaiah 8:3), which means "the spoil speedeth, the prey hasteth."

Homer Hailey aptly describes the prophet thus:

Isaiah, a man of strong character, deep faith in God, courage, and conviction, was the man of the hour whom the Lord selected to carry the torch of truth in the midst of spiritual darkness. Able to deal with any class, Isaiah was effective in court circles, among false religious leaders, and among the common people. He had the mission of turning the people back to Jehovah, thereby averting captivity by the Assyrians. He proved true to this call. Jan Valeton the Younger says of him: ’Never has there been another prophet like Isaiah, who stood with his head in the clouds and his feet on solid earth, with his heart in the things of eternity and his mouth and his hands in the things of time, with his spirit in the eternal counsel of God and his body in the very definite moment of history.’Truly, Isaiah may be called the dean of all the prophets (25).

Background

Isaiah’s ministry occurred at a critical time in Judah’s history. The Assyrian power was rising, and in the light of this fact two groups appeared within the nation. One sought alliance with Egypt and the other with Syria. Isaiah, however, forbade human alliances and urged the nation to trust in God (Young, Introduction. 211).

Isaiah’s work as a prophet began in the year King Uzziah of Judah died, 739 BC (Isaiah 6:1). His call was accompanied by an apocalyptic vision of God on His throne which foreshadowed John’s parallel vision in Revelation four (ch. 6). He prophesied during the reigns of "Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah" (Isaiah 1:1). Isaiah outlived King Hezekiah, who died in 686 B.C., for he recorded the death of King Sennacherib of Assyria (Isaiah 37:37-38), who was assassinated by two of his own sons in 681 B.C. As he lived on into the reign of Hezekiah’s wicked son Manasseh, he apparently spoke of his public ministry in Isaiah 1:1. Thus, his public prophetic ministry apparently lasted 53 years (739 B.C. - 686 B.C.), and he lived several years longer. Jewish tradition claims he was sawed in two at the command of King Manasseh (cf. Hebrews 11:37).

Isaiah ministered at a time when both Israel, under Jeroboam II, and Judah, under Hezekiah, had reached their zenith of prosperity and political power. Yet the seeds of destruction had germinated and almost reached maturity in both nations in the form of idolatry and its attendant vices, personal immorality and political corruption.

Assyria was the great power to the northeast, the Nazi Germany of ancient history, which would with incredible cruelty conquer the Middle East, destroying totally and finally the northern Kingdom, Samaria or Israel; and, but for the dependence on the Lord of Isaiah and Hezekiah, would have annihilated Judah as well. Under Tiglath-Pileser III (2 Kings 15:29; 1 Chronicles 5:26), who ruled from 745-727 BC, Assyria reached the height of its power and threatened to overwhelm God’s people, the Jews. This king began the destruction of Israel by deporting the Israelite tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali (Isaiah 9:1-2). Ahaz, King of Judah, submitted to Tiglath-Pileser and became his vassal (2 Kings 16:7).

Tiglath-Pileser’s successor Shalmanezer V conquered the northern kingdom (variously called Israel, Samaria or Ephraim) and killed or deported its upper class citizens in 722 - 721 BC (2 Kings 17:6; 2 Kings 18:9-12). Citizens of pagan countries were brought to Israel (2 Kings 17:24), and an idolatrous mixture of paganism and worship of the Lord was introduced (2 Kings 17:26-33). These people intermarried with the Israelites left in the land, and the resultant people became the Samaritans of Jesus, day. This was the end of the Northern kingdom.

The Assyrian King Sennacherib (705 - 661 BC) besieged Jerusalem, the capital of Judah and godly King Hezekiah This was a crucial time in the history of Israel, and Isaiah was the man of the hour.

Amos (755 B.C.) and Hosea (750 - 725 B.C.) had been sent to warn Samaria, but Israel had not heeded. Isaiah and his younger, less known contemporary, Micah, successfully admonished Judah. Isaiah, in the capital, Jerusalem, prophesied to all classes of people, from kings to commoners. Micah preached to the common people in the villages and countryside.

With Judah’s deliverance from King Sennacherib (ch’s. 36-37), Isaiah turned his attention to the future menace of Babylon (ch. 39) and a future day of glory for God’s people under the reign of Messiah (Christ).

Prophecy

A prophet was one who spoke for God. Each prophet received a divine call or commission (e.g., Exodus 3:2-10). These men and women did not speak their own opinions, but "spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:20-21) Prophecy was not principally foretelling the future but was inspired preaching. The prophets were more "forth-tellers" than "fore-tellers." God revealed His Word and Will to the prophets in several ways, but principally by dreams and visions (Numbers 12:6).

God called and commissioned Isaiah to be a prophet (Isaiah chapter 6). The Lord chiefly made known His Will to Isaiah by means of visions (Isaiah 1:1). In a vision the prophet fell into a trance while awake and saw visible scenes with the mind’s eye (cf. Numbers 12:4; Numbers 12:16). Isaiah, more than most prophets, was blessed with divinely inspired visions of future events.

If we remember that Isaiah described scenes he saw in his mind in visions, we will more easily understand His language. The prophet painted a word picture of the scene in his mind. He described what he saw. Thus, he used the present tense, though what he saw might have been far in the future. Events of His time appeared close to or even touching occurrences separated by centuries, even as in a painting distant mountains seem to touch nearby hills. Intervening events were not seen, just as the valleys between the close up hills and far away mountains are hidden in a painting. Those distant mountains, seen only in dim, hazy outline are Messiah (Christ) and His Kingdom, for Isaiah’s mind in his visions always came to rest in the hope of the Messiah.

Theme

As Isaiah’s name means "salvation is of the Lord," he, far more than any other old Testament prophet wrote of salvation. The word "salvation" is found twenty-six times in Isaiah and only seven times in all the other prophets combined.

Isaiah is preeminently the Messianic prophet. This means he prophesied about the Messiah (Christ). More than any other Old Testament prophet, Isaiah foretold the coming of Christ (Isaiah 2:1-4; Isaiah 4:2-6; Isaiah 7:14-15; Isaiah 11:1 to Isaiah 12:6; Isaiah 24:21-23; Isaiah 25:6-8; Isaiah 26:1-2; Isaiah 27:12-13; Isaiah 30:18-26; Isaiah 32:1-7; Isaiah 32:16-20; Isaiah 33:17-24; Isaiah 35:1-10; Isaiah 42:1-9; Isaiah 49:1 to Isaiah 55:13; Isaiah 60:1 to Isaiah 62:12; Isaiah 66:18-24).

Thus, Isaiah is quoted in the New Testament more than any other prophet. There are about fifty-four New Testament quotations of Isaiah (see Barnes, 31-33).

The great theme of Isaiah is Salvation through Messiah the Servant of the Lord. This theme is preeminently traced in perhaps the greatest prophecy of Christ in the Bible, Isa 53:13-53:13..

Two sub-themes are also of vital importance in Isaiah. The prophet, more than any other old Testament writer, portrays the Holiness of the Lord. The phrase "the Holy One of Israel" is found twenty-six times in Isaiah and occurs only six times in the entire remainder of the Bible. Isaiah especially glorified God over idols, showing the fact that the Lord is the only true God and that it is foolish to worship idols (ch’s. 40 - 48).

The other sub-theme of Isaiah is Humility Before God. Isaiah calls those who do God’s will the Lord’s "servants." He uses this term to describe the nation of Israel (Isaiah 41:8-9), the Lord’s prophets (Isaiah 44:24-26), Messiah (Isaiah 42:1), and the redeemed (Isaiah 65:8-9).

Outline

The book of Isaiah has been called "The Little Bible." As the Bible has sixty-six books, Isaiah has been divided into sixty-six chapters. As the theme of the Bible is salvation in Christ, Isaiah, above all else and more than any other prophet, tells of salvation through the Christ to come. As the Bible has two major divisions, the Old Testament (39 books) and the New Testament (27 books), so Isaiah has two major divisions: the Assyrian Period (ch’s. 1 - 39) and the Babylonian Period (ch’s. 40 - 66). As the Old Testament brought condemnation, and the New Testament brings salvation; the first part of Isaiah primarily contains prophecies of judgment, whereas the second division predominantly consists of prophecies of peace. The historical chapters of Isaiah (ch’s. 36 - 39) serve as a transition from the Assyrian Period to the Babylonian Period, even as the Old Testament prophets serve as a transition from the Old Testament to the New.

Come, Let Us Reason Together (Isaiah 1:1-31)

The prophetic book of Isaiah opens with an extended plea for God’s people to return to him. Outwardly they seem to be close to God, but in reality their hearts have drifted from him, and they have lost any awareness of God in their daily lives. Isaiah forthrightly declares what God plans to do, and he appeals to his brothers and sisters to be part of a spiritual rebuilding.

The Historical Setting (Isaiah 1:1)

Isaiah conducted his prophetic ministry over a period of several decades full of tumultuous events. Since a detailed description of this era would take considerable time, we shall usually discuss background events as they become relevant to the text. For now, we shall take a brief overview of this era in Israel’s history, and then look at some of the major themes in Isaiah.

Isaiah titles his book as a "vision" (from God) concerning Judah and Jerusalem (Isaiah 1:1). Vision involves sharpness of sight, that is, ability to see things clearly. The prophet does not see things as he wishes them to be, but as they truly are. He also sees things that will be, both ’good’ and ’bad’. Isaiah does not daydream or fantasize about God’s people; he always tells them the truth.

Isaiah’s ministry was in Judah, the southern half of God’s people in the divided kingdom era*. It lasted through the reigns of several kings**: Uzziah (or Azariah), faithful for most of his reign but came to a bad end physically and spiritually (2 Kings 15:1-7, 2 Chronicles 26:1-23); Jotham, well-intentioned but often weak (2 Kings 15:32-38, 2 Chronicles 27:1-9); Ahaz, a sinful, idolatrous man and an incompetent ruler (2 Kings 16:1-20, 2 Chronicles 28:1-27); and Hezekiah, often foolish but humble, and very responsive to God’s word (2 Kings 18:1 to 2 Kings 20:21, 2 Chronicles 29:1 to 2 Chronicles 32:33)***.

• ·    After Solomon’s death in 931 BC, the northern tribes rebelled against his son Rehoboam. They established an independent kingdom with its capital in Samaria, and retained the name Israel. The southern kingdom took the name Judah, after the tribe to which its monarchs belonged.

• ·    From roughly 740-690 BC. The exact dates of the reigns of these kings are difficult to calculate with certainty, in part because the monarchs would sometimes promote their heir as co-regent while the parent monarch was still living, resulting in some years being credited to the reign lengths of both rulers.

• ·    Isaiah died sometime during the reign of Hezekiah’s son, the violent and idolatrous Manasseh. Some ancient non-biblical sources state that Manasseh had Isaiah put to death by sawing him in two.

During Isaiah’s ministry, the northern kingdom of Israel fell, conquered by Assyria in 722 BC. While Judah went through a recurring cycle of spiritual decay followed by spiritual reform, followed again by decay, the northern kingdom had begun in idolatry and never changed (except for a brief period of bloody reforms in Jehu’s reign). Isaiah’s original hearers could thus witness firsthand the fall of their idolatrous brothers to the north, and they could know the reasons for it.

This spring, we shall cover Isaiah 1-27, focusing on the theme, "a remnant will return" (Isaiah 10:21-22). This statement implies that God’s people have strayed and must be disciplined. But it also means that, no matter what happens to them as a whole, God will preserve and protect a faithful remnant. In these chapters, prophecies about God’s discipline are interspersed with prophetic images of the Messiah, who will bring redemption. Isaiah thus develops a complete picture of the character of God: he is loving and compassionate, yet also pure and righteous.

In summer, we shall study Isaiah 28-49*, with the theme, "the sure foundation for your times" (Isaiah 33:6; see also Isaiah 28:16). This world is always uncertain and imperfect. Yet in God and his Messiah we have a sure foundation, an assured source of hope and comfort. Isaiah looks both at the crises (spiritual and physical) of his own era and also at the things that God planned for the coming centuries. As he does so, he describes the changes in perspective that God’s people must make. This portion of Isaiah thus calls us to set aside our own agendas and preconceptions so that we can appreciate the security and hope that we can have in God.

• ·    These section divisions are somewhat arbitrary, chosen partially for thematic reasons and partially to accommodate our quarterly schedule. The book of Isaiah has a unified plan, with several themes that tie it all together. Most commentators divide the book into two main sections, chapters 1-39 and chapters 40-66. Other commentators make a further division between chapters 55 and 56. Some modern commentators claim that these ’sections’ are the work of two or three different authors (in part, because they reject the possibility that a prophet could actually foretell the future).

Then, in autumn, we shall look at Isaiah 50-66, which calls us to "arise, shine, for your light has come" (Isaiah 60:1; see also Isaiah 60:19-20). Here, the prophet looks at the Messiah’s nature and ministry. He calls believers to look above their activities in this world, so that they can share in the light that God is about to send into a world of darkness. The contrast between light and darkness dominates these chapters, and we find some of the Old Testament’s most compelling prophetic descriptions of Jesus. We also read some urgent pleas to leave worldly things behind so that we can follow the Messiah, the Christ, with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strength.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Given the historical background, what might Isaiah’s original listeners have been concerned about?

What should they have been concerned about?

Looking at some of the major themes of Isaiah, what might we hope to learn from studying the book?

How is the theme of "a remnant will return" important to us?

The Need To Understand God (Isaiah 1:2-9)

The prophet immediately gets to the heart of the matter. Whatever other problems God’s people may have, the root problem is that they have lost sight of God’s nature and of their relationship with him. They have drifted so far that they do not even realize how much this has hurt them. God has already planned to seek out and raise up survivors (a remnant) to build for the future.

Isaiah indicates at once that God’s people have offered him an unnatural and unnecessary resistance (Isaiah 1:2-6). They are his children, indeed his own creations, yet they have willfully distanced themselves from him. Even the dull-brained ox knows who his master is, and even the stubborn donkey acknowledges the source and location of his food. If beasts can have this awareness, then there is no excuse for God’s people not to seek him and know him.

Moreover, their spiritual sickness has led to self-inflicted harm. Isaiah’s description of wounds and injuries is mainly figurative, since for most of his lifetime the people had what they needed physically. But their hearts were in bad condition, and they paid a price inside themselves even though they would not have been willing to acknowledge their inner misery. Outwardly, they may have looked all right, but there was no "soundness" in them.

Human beings are created with an innate need for God; to deny this is to deny our own nature. Yet even believers try to find other things to play the role that God alone is meant to play. Most things that worldly persons do are attempts to find security, significance, purpose, and love without having to seek God; yet God alone can meet these needs in a genuine and lasting way.

This spiritual desolation, already permeating their lives, will someday give place to physical devastation - yet there will be survivors (Isaiah 1:7-9). When Isaiah foresees invasion(s) by foreigners* that will make the land desolate, this will only be a physical manifestation of the ways that the people have already allowed pagan behavior and perspectives to invade their lives.

• ·    The northern tribes would be invaded and destroyed by Assyria in 722 BC. Judah itself would be brutally invaded by the Assyrians in 701 BC, and saved only by God’s intervention. And, after Isaiah’s lifetime but foreseen by him, Babylon would attack several times, finally conquering and enslaving Judah in 586 BC.

Likewise, when the day comes that the city of Jerusalem is under siege, with the people fearing for their lives, this again will only be a physical parallel of the spiritual siege of pagan values that has already pulled them away from God. Yet, no matter what happens, God promises that there will always be survivors to carry on and to build for the future. This will always be true both physically and spiritually - God will always maintain a remnant of his people.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah contrast the awareness of animals with the spiritual rebellion of God’s people?

What harm have the people suffered (and will they suffer) from their spiritual illnesses?

Why will foreign invasions be appropriate as discipline?

What would the promise of survivors have meant to Isaiah’s listeners?

What should it mean to us?

How is this theme illustrated elsewhere in the Scriptures?

An Opportunity To Choose (Isaiah 1:10-20)

Regardless of how far we may have strayed from God, he is always willing to take us back when we realize and confess our need for him. Here, God graciously invites his people to turn their hearts back to him, for he has compassion on them and he desires to bless them. Yet they must choose this for themselves, and must accept a relationship with him based on his grace.

Though they make frequent offerings and assemble regularly, these have become meaningless (Isaiah 1:10-17). God’s weariness with pointless activity ought to be convicting to us as well, for the church frequently substitutes activity for worship, and substitutes slogans and pat answers for an understanding of God. Physical activities and outward actions of any kind only have significance to God if they are done for the right reasons.

Although they participate eagerly in ’worship’ activities, they live without concern or pity for the poor, the oppressed, and the sorrowful. Like our own society, they either ignore them or patronize them. They seek God and worship God only for the positive feelings that it gives them. They do not have God in their hearts, or else their attitudes towards things around them would be much different. They must learn to do right, and to do right for the right reasons.

The lives of the worldly are filled with meaningless activity. The world deals with everything from sports to commerce to government to education with superficial slogans and faulty logic, a false sense of urgency, distorted values, appeals to selfish desires and selfish ambition, and a host of similar tactics that draw in even the faithful. In the church, we are not meant to use these same fleshly tactics in the name of ministry. Not only should we have different, spiritual goals; we ought also to pursue them by more spiritual, godly means.

It is in this context that Isaiah offers his well-known appeal to reason* (Isaiah 1:18-20). Unlike pagan leaders and authorities, God welcomes our questions, so long as we ask for the right reasons. He does not want or need slaves; he desires loving children whom he in turn can love. So, when we have strayed, he calls us to draw near. He does not call for dramatic demonstrations of our good intentions, nor for self-punishment, but for us to repair our relationship with him. Our extraordinary God will explain, teach, and correct us with all patience, as long as we need it.

• ·    Some versions (such as the NRSV) interpret this verse to say that God offers them the opportunity to ’argue’ or debate with him. The word in the original does imply an exchange of views, but the context makes it clear that the only valid outcome will be for them to accept God’s perspective. God is still being extraordinarily gracious in offering to explain himself, rather than demanding an unreasoning obedience.

As if that were not enough, he also promises forgiveness. The folly and selfishness of our sins glow blood -red as they testify against us, yet God waits to wash them away and make us pure. Here again is the contrast between God’s nature and human logic. He does not expect his people to make up for the things they have done wrong - indeed, this would be absolutely impossible. Not only is he willing to explain patiently why they have wandered from him, but he also will forgive all they have done during that time. It will be forgotten in God’s joy over their return.

Yet there is one thing they must do: they must choose of their own will to return to God on his terms. The prophet cannot do this for them, and God will not do it. Likewise, when we realize our need for God in a new way, we must appeal directly to him for help. Do not wait for a motivational lesson or a ’sign’ or any such thing. We must start with God himself; if we need any of those other things, God can provide them - but we must make the right first step if we want to get the most benefit from the things he uses.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why is God not pleased with their sacrifices and assemblies?

What lessons does this hold for us?

What changes did God want from them?

What does the prophet mean by ’reason together’?

What choices do we have that are similar to those that Isaiah calls his listeners to make?

Purging Away The Dross (Isaiah 1:21-31)

God’s appeal through Isaiah is an urgent one, for he has already made his plans for the future. They have become too degraded in body and in spirit for God to remain inactive, and so no one will be immune from the coming discipline. They must be purged, cleansed, and pruned. But even during this painful process, the faithful will always have God’s promise of restoration.

The once-faithful city of Jerusalem, while outwardly strong, is in spiritual ruin (Isaiah 1:21-26). When it falls physically, it will only be a confirmation of what has long since happened to it inside. It symbolizes all that is wrong with God’s people, with accumulated spiritual pollution ranging from selfishness to greed to indifference and more. The people have become so pre-occupied with their own agendas and desires that they do not realize how hard their hearts have become.

So discipline is now a sad necessity. They must be purged and cleansed, to remove the dross (slag) of spiritual impurity. God will not destroy them, but will withdraw his protective hand a little at a time, giving them numerous chances to see their need for him before once and for all allowing the nation to fall. And even after that there is the promise of restoration.

There will always be some truly faithful believers who must suffer along with the majority who refuse to repent. For them, the promise of a surviving remnant can offer at least the comfort that the sufferings of their generation will not be meaningless. Though they may never see positive results or outward fruit, thy can know that they are part of an important process.

Isaiah’s opening appeal closes on a note of promise and warning (Isaiah 1:27-31). No one should ever doubt that true Zion (God’s people) will be redeemed. There never has been, and never will be, a time when God does not have a faithful remnant on the earth to witness for him and to preserve his truths for a new generation. But this necessitates repeated periods of discipline. The genuine followers of Jesus are never in the mainstream of any society on earth. The values of God and of Jesus will always be a challenge for even the most faithful of believers to put into practice.

When discipline comes, no one is immune, whether strong or weak, rich or poor. The mightiest man will be nothing but tinder for the fire, and his very work, the selfish labor to which he has devoted himself, will be the spark that lights the fire. Let us also take warning from this. In Isaiah’s lifetime, God dealt with his people as a physical nation. Today, he proclaims the same message, presents the same choice, gives the same warning, and offers the same promise of a remnant, to the church of Jesus Christ. Each of us must make his or her own choices, for the remnant is always made up of individuals.

Let us not fall into the error of thinking that God is speaking today to our physical nation, calling it to make him a part of their government or their culture. It is our own priorities, our own values, our own relationship with God, on which we must focus our attention. Your relationship with God is the one thing that you can always have; it will always be your own, and no one can take it from you. Do not wait for or rely upon your congregation or your family or your nation to come to God. Through the prophet Isaiah, God is calling directly to you.

Questions for Discussion or Study: What is the point of Isaiah’s lament over the current condition of the city of Jerusalem? What kind of impurities and dross must be removed? How will the coming discipline do this? What kind of discipline would God use with the church today? What other parallels can we see?

Bibliography

The complexity and breadth of the book of Isaiah has made it the subject of a great many commentaries and other books. Many of these focus mainly on the trivial, but there are also some good references, of which some follow, that aim more for an understanding of the spiritual lessons and themes. These books are at a variety of levels in terms of depth and detail; you are welcome to see me if you would like some thoughts on which may be most useful to you.

Mark W. Elliott, Ancient Christian Commentary On Scripture: Isaiah 40-66

G.W. Grogan, Isaiah, in Expositor’s Bible Commentary Volume 6,

Frank Gaebelein, editor Jim McGuiggan, The Book Of Isaiah

Steven A. McKinion, Ancient Christian Commentary On Scripture: Isaiah 1-39

J.A. Motyer, Isaiah - An Introduction & Commentary (Tyndale Commentaries) J.A. Motyer, The Prophecy Of Isaiah

John N. Oswalt The Book Of Isaiah (New International Commentary, two volumes)

Barry G. Webb, The Message Of Isaiah (The Bible Speaks Today)

Robert Louis Wilken, Isaiah (The Church’s Bible)

Edward J. Young, The Book Of Isaiah (three volumes)

Mark Garner, March 2008

The Lord Almighty Has A Day In Store (Isaiah 2:1 to Isaiah 4:1)

It is characteristic of Isaiah to alternate encouraging visions and messages with stern warnings and admonitions. Here, Isaiah offers his listeners a grand vision of what things can be like, and someday will be like, for God’s people. Then he warns them to stop to trusting in their possessions, their leaders, and other earthly things, or else they instead will face disaster.

Review From Previous Lesson

As we shall do in most weeks, we shall start with a short review of the previous class. Isaiah opens with God’s call for his people to "come, let us reason together" (Isaiah 1:1-31). Isaiah’s ministry took place in the divided kingdom era, when God’s people were divided, with an idolatrous northern kingdom that would soon fall and a southern kingdom (Judah) going through a recurring cycle of reforms followed by spiritual decay.

The prophet stresses the need to know and understand our God, without offering unnecessary resistance to him. God gives his people a gracious opportunity to choose to come back, yet they continue to indulge themselves in meaningless ’religious’ activity, even when God appeals to their reason. God must purge away the dross, for now Jerusalem lies in spiritual ruin. When it one day is attacked by pagans, this will only be a physical enactment of what has already taken place spiritually. Throughout the book, Isaiah combines promise and warning.

The Mountain Of The Lord’s Temple (Isaiah 2:1-5)

Here, Isaiah offers the first of many glimpses into what the future holds for faithful believers. His idealized imagery of the "mountain of the Lord" combines majestic physical sights with an expansive promise of God’s reign being extended throughout the earth. This vision, of course, finds its ultimate fulfillment in the ministry of Jesus and its influence throughout the world.

Both from the content and from the phrase "in the last days"*, we can see that these verses look ahead to the promised Messiah (2:1-5). The imagery of the temple on a mountain calls to mind the physical location of the ancient temple in Jerusalem, which rested on the top of a plateau, so that those traveling towards the city would see it and its temple high above them.

• ·    See also Acts 2:17, 2 Timothy 3:1, Hebrews 1:2, James 5:3, 1 Peter 1:20, 2 Peter 3:3, and Judges 1:18. In the New Testament, ’the last days’ or ’the last times’ refer to the spiritual era that began with Jesus. When the NT refers to the end of the world, it uses ’the last day’ or ’the last time’ (singular), as in John 6:40-54; John 11:24; John 12:48, 1 Peter 1:5.

In this prophetic image, the Lord’s temple is its own mountain, and is higher than all the rest. The natural imagery is combined with a fanciful note, as the nations are "streaming" (literally, uphill) to reach it. The church of Jesus is certainly on a higher level, figuratively and spiritually, than any other place or form of worship. Yet it is not an earthly or physical kingdom, so that those who come to it must go ’uphill’, against the perspectives and inclinations of the world.

This is an expression of the eagerness for God that Isaiah is urging upon his readers. Sensitive listeners in his audience would have been convicted by the thought of Gentile nations streaming so enthusiastically to ’their’ God. Yet it was always God’s plan for his people Israel to serve merely as the seed through which to bless believers from all nations and cultures.

With ’the law’ (God’s word and will) issuing from this new, spiritual, figurative version of Mount Zion*, a lot of things will change. God, and God alone, is judge, mediator, and peacemaker. In the church of Jesus Christ, we have the capability of realizing this kind of harmony despite borders, barriers, and other differences. The goal of world peace** has been eagerly sought for millennia by the world’s leaders and thinkers, but the worldly will never find it. Only in Jesus can those with inherently different interests and perspectives be brought to real harmony.

• ·    The name Mount Zion was the name of one of the hills on which the original city of Jerusalem stood. From the time of David, the name Zion came to stand figuratively for the temple, the city, the nation or people of Israel, or more generally for God’s presence as expressed through any of these.

• ·    A sculpture based on Isaiah’s phrase "they will beat their swords into plowshares" stands outside of the United Nations building. Isaiah described their goal more aptly and succinctly than any politician or diplomat ever could.

This is an idealized vision, for not even in the church do we ever achieve such a state for long. Yet in Jesus we do have everything we need to bring this about, and even if we never attain the ideal, it is well worth making the effort to move beyond our present condition. And so the prophet adds his call to God’s people, "let us walk in the light of the Lord". For while we do so, we can see, at least on a small scale, the kinds of transformations that Isaiah describes here. Yet to realize this, we have much to learn, as Isaiah is about to detail.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does Isaiah mean by "the last days"?

Why does he use the image of a mountain?

How is this vision fulfilled in Jesus?

Can we experience what Isaiah describes here?

Why does Isaiah use figurative images instead of literal descriptions?

What response to this vision did God want from Isaiah’s original listeners?

What response might he want from us?

The Lord Alone Will Be Exalted (Isaiah 2:6-22)

The vivid warnings in this passage strike at a problem that causes many other spiritual ills, both in Isaiah’s day and in our own. God’s people must always strive to place their faith fully in him and in him alone. It will always seem easier to put trust and confidence in our own abilities or in things of this world. But God can put to shame all human pretensions, any time that he wishes.

As the prophet describes a land that is full of both idols and treasures, there is much that sounds familiar (Isaiah 2:6-11). In any time and place, humans tend to trust in everything but God. Here, they eagerly adopt and imitate pagan practices. They bow in worship to human-made things - in a sense, worshiping themselves. They have plenty of silver, gold, and other valuables, but this has made them complacent. Possession of excess wealth is not automatically a sign of God’s favor.

So they will be taught how easily human pride can be brought low. "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (Proverbs 3:34, also quoted in 1 Peter 5:5); this includes all those who foolishly consider themselves to be wiser, stronger, or more righteous than others. Let us not abuse God’s extraordinary patience, for the time will come when nothing of this earth will be left, and "the Lord alone will be exalted", for only he can offer us a way to rise above this world.

When God rises to shake the earth (Isaiah 2:12-22), it is never out of mere human anger or spite. God will always prefer to be patient and compassionate, but our stubborn hearts can eventually make it necessary that he discipline us out of spiritual necessity. When it does come to pass, this announced "day of the Lord"* will have several features, which also characterize any such "day"* when God decides to intervene directly and unmistakably in human history.

• ·    The prophets frequently use "day of the Lord" to refer to any occasion on which, after due warning, God acts decisively among his people. Expressions such as "in that day" or "the Lord is coming" are also used for the same purpose. They rarely if ever refer to the so-called ’end times’. Here are a few of the many uses of such phrases in Isaiah 2:11-12; Isaiah 7:18-23; Isaiah 10:20; Isaiah 13:6; Isaiah 13:9; Isaiah 19:16-24; Isaiah 22:5; Isaiah 27:12-13; Isaiah 34:8; Isaiah 61:2.

This will be a "day" for humbling humanity, for exalting God, and for crushing idols. These are inter-related, since all three emphasize that God alone is worthy of exaltation and worship. God dwarfs all human strength and wisdom - the prophet illustrates this with images of humans diving into caverns and clinging to crags, to escape God’s wrath. Their own devices and ideas cannot stand against God, so they can only take refuge in his creation!

Likewise, the worthlessness of idols has been exposed, and their former devotees are happy to toss them to the rats and bats (who probably have the good sense not to worship the idols!). Even aside from those occasions on which God acts drastically, it is not hard to see how often human-made idols are shown to be worthless and without substance. Yet, unwilling to humble themselves before God, humans often continue to look for new and equally useless idols.

We who believe in Jesus Christ are the only ones who can break out of this vicious circle once and for all, and we are the only ones who can help others to find God as the true source of hope and peace. Let us heed the words of the prophet, set aside our worldly agendas, and withdraw our support and loyalties from things in this world that cannot meet the real needs of humanity.

The prophet advises us to develop a proper reverence and respect for God now, so that we will not have to be overwhelmed with "the dread of the lord" when he comes. Instead, those who have placed their hope fully in him can rejoice in seeing "the splendor of his majesty" displayed.

Human beings were created to seek, serve, and worship God. Other persons ought to evoke our compassion, grace, and empathy, but never worship. We are to love our neighbors, not worship them. If Christians truly want to help others to experience God’s grace and love, then it is imperative that we stop putting so much trust and hope in human beings and in human-made things. Truly the prophet asks us "of what account?" are such things. Valued and sought-after things of this world are often worse than worthless in God’s sight, and at best they are to be appreciated as blessings and as further expressions of God’s grace.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How can the land be full of treasures and full of idols at the same time?

Aren’t their treasures blessings from God?

What kind of a "day" is Isaiah foretelling?

When did it come?

What kind of "day" should we expect?

What other lessons are there in this passage for the church of Jesus?

Images Of Humbling (Isaiah 3:1 to Isaiah 4:1)

The prophet’s vivid imagery in these verses emphasizes two important points that in turn relate back to some of Isaiah main overall themes. First, when God’s discipline comes, no one will be exempt, regardless of strength, position or wealth. Then also, they will be thoroughly humbled, even humiliated. Those who refuse to humble themselves will find that God will do it for them.

Isaiah’s reminder that all will be humbled applies to believers and unbelievers alike (3:1-15). Unlike the world, God does not view persons in terms of position, credentials, talent, or other such things. Unlike the world, God does not consider any human to be more important or less important than any other human. When discipline comes, warriors and judges will be treated no differently from craftsmen. Humility and mercy matter to God more than talent or position.

Isaiah’s images of the people being ruled by youths and women are not meant literally*, but as word pictures that emphasize how pathetic the rulers and "leaders" of God’s people have become. This applies not only to the national leadership, but also to all those who should have been examples and servants to those in need of guidance and spiritual edification. From the most powerful to the most destitute, the people have become pre-occupied with materialism and physical pleasure, and no one wants to be the one to challenge this complacent status quo.

• ·    The one female monarch of Judah, the idolatrous queen Athaliah (2 Kings 11:1-21, 2 Chronicles 22:10 to 2 Chronicles 23:21), came well before Isaiah’s time. There were some subsequent kings who were enthroned as boys, but this does not match the picture Isaiah draws of a society dominated by youths. This, rather, was fulfilled in a figurative sense, by the weak and ungodly persons who filled most positions of authority.

This is how they have "brought disaster upon themselves" (verse 9): not by a sudden decision to leave God, nor by a few dramatically violent or sinful actions, but rather by a long, slow process of allowing short-term fleshly satisfaction to become more important to them than God’s word and God’s will. The judgment God will render on oppressors, plunderers, and the like is a stern reminder of the end results of spiritual laziness and worldly compromise.

Sadly, they have reversed a pattern by going from spiritual riches to worldly rags (Isaiah 3:16 to Isaiah 4:1). Their lives of luxury and finery conceal (and also demonstrate) their inward emptiness and the meaningless nature of their activities. The coming destitution and degradation are graphically depicted in the verses addressed specifically to the women of Judah* (especially Isaiah 3:17-19).

• ·    Note here that Isaiah 4:1 is similar in nature to some of the imagery earlier in the chapter. It depicts the women of Judah as desperate to find husbands, not because God thinks that this is essential for women, but because his people will be reduced to a state of desperate physical and emotional need - again as an outward reflection of their already desperate spiritual condition.

The expensive and ornate objects that they value will not only be taken away, but will themselves be degraded and ruined. The prophet even goes into minute detail in listing all of the objects that they have foolishly valued and enjoyed more than they valued God and his wishes. How convicting would it be to us if God were to list all of the objects and activities that we ourselves prefer to his Word and to helping his people to know him?!

All this will only be a physical demonstration of what has already happened in our hearts. Even in the church of Jesus, we can be more easily motivated by fear and guilt, and we can be more concerned with outward results than with truly knowing and loving God. Thus we also ought to honor and apply the prophet’s call to humility. Let us have done with trying to serve God in the manner of the world, worrying about outward results and fleshly opinion. Let us resolve as Paul did (1 Corinthians 2:2) "to know nothing . . . except Jesus Christ and him crucified".

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What general themes are illustrated in this chapter?

What did Isaiah want his listeners to learn?

What should we learn from them?

What does this chapter say specifically to leaders (whom does this include?) of God’s people?

Mark Garner, March 2008

The Branch & The Vineyard (Isaiah 4:2 to Isaiah 5:30)

Isaiah now uses two images similar in nature but different in their implications. The image of a life-giving Branch is another of the prophet’s idealized visions of a glorious future for God’s people. On the other hand, the image of an unproductive vineyard suggests a life of fruitless disappointment. This picture is followed by a series of specific warnings to God’s people.

Review Of Previous Lessons

The first five chapters of Isaiah* are the prophet’s introductory message and exhortation to God’s people. Many of the themes and ideas in this section will often re-appear later in the book.

• ·    Chapter 6 is a ’flashback’ to the occasion on which God sent Isaiah out to prophesy. Then there is a lengthy collection of messages, most of which are connected with specific events or nations of significance in Isaiah’s lifetime, in chapters 7-39.

Isaiah opens with God’s call to "come, let us reason together" (Isa 1:1-31). Isaiah emphasizes the need for us to know and to understand God, reminds us of the open opportunity to choose to seek God, and explains the need for God to purge away impurities from those who want to know him.

There is severity in the prophet’s call, for "the Lord Almighty has a day in store", when he will intervene decisively in the affairs of this world (Isa 2:1-4:1) . Isaiah will often alternate positive, inspiring images with stern warnings. So here he begins with a vision of "the mountain of the Lord’s temple", an idealized image of the blessings that will come through the Messiah. In their eagerness to know God, the nations are even ’streaming’ uphill in order to be in God’s presence.

Humans worship many things, yet in the end "the Lord alone will be exalted", with all else exposed as meaningless. God is ready to rise and shake the earth, as Isaiah illustrates with images of humbling, from which no human is exempt. We can voluntarily humble ourselves now, or we can have God do it for us later. Isaiah’s generation is warned that their present riches can just as easily become rags. This is, sadly, what has already happened to them spiritually.

The Glorious Branch (Isaiah 4:2-6)

This is another vision with Messianic implications. The image of the Branch is one of holiness and holy living, brought about by God’s gracious cleansing. In the second part of the vision, God also promises guidance, protection, and other blessings. As it looks ahead to the Messiah, this short passage connects several themes and images found in other books of the Old Testament.

The vision of the "Branch of the Lord" ties together several concepts (Isa 4:2-4). The image of a branch is chosen here as an expression of life and growth, blessings that in their truest forms can only come from God. The Branch*, or shoot, is also a prophetic image that is frequently used to represent the Messiah (see also Isaiah 11:1; Isaiah 53:2; Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12)**.

• ·    The name Nazarene is a different form of the Hebrew word for ’branch’ or ’shoot’. So Matthew, referring to Jesus’ home in Nazareth, says the prophets referred to the Messiah as a ’Nazarene’ (Matthew 2:23).

• ·    For an interesting study, compare these Old Testament references with John 15:1-8, in which similar imagery is used in a somewhat different way.

The Branch allows God’s people to experience and benefit from the full, true fruit of the land. God’s people often have a tendency to confuse material blessings with their relationship with God; this was true in the Old Testament era, has been true throughout church history, and is true today. Thus the Messiah makes it possible to perceive and appreciate the more lasting things of God. The real ’fruit of the land’ consists of blessings such as peace, security, grace, mercy, and spiritual contentment. These come in lasting form only through God and his ’Branch’, Jesus.

These important blessings, though, will come only to the "survivors in Israel". Once more we see how essential the remnant is to God’s plans. Cleansing, as Isaiah describes here, must take place before enjoying the blessings that the Branch brings. God’s highest aspirations for his people do not involve material things or earthly privileges, but holiness. True holiness is not a mere absence of sin or dirt, but rather the presence of God living among us in a meaningful way.

This is emphasized in the further blessings that the Branch can bring, blessings that we can have both by day and by night, that is, at all times (Isa 4:5-6). God’s constant presence is promised with a reminder of the ways that God once led his people in the desert*. The prophet is not promising a literal return to the system used in the exodus, but rather a more complete and more spiritual fulfillment of it. Through Jesus the Messiah, we are able to have God’s presence with us at all times. God’s Spirit also provides us with important guidance whenever we have the need.

* Compare verse 5 with, for example, Exodus 13:21-22; Exodus 14:19; Exodus 14:24; Exodus 24:16, and others.

The Branch also provides God’s people with shelter and refuge. Once again, Jesus takes these blessings a step beyond the physical ways in which God promised them to his people under the Old Covenant. Jesus offers us refuge from the cold, meaningless nature of worldly living. He offers a safe place to experience what it really means to be made in God’s image. Jesus also provides shelter and protection from the world’s assaults on our relationship with God. As long as we remain in Jesus, we remain in God’s grace, and the world cannot snatch us away from him.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what ways is a branch or shoot an appropriate image for the Messiah?

Would this image have meant anything different for Isaiah’s original audience?

What "fruit of the land" do we experience through Jesus?

In what way are we ’survivors’?

How do the other images in this passage apply to Christians?

An Unproductive Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7)

This passage also makes use of imagery that is frequently found in the Scriptures. Like the Branch, a vineyard suggests life and growth. But this vineyard has not produced good fruit, despite being given every advantage. The prophet uses this theme both to convict the people of his own time and also to caution us about how easy it is for God’s people to drift away.

In his ’song of the vineyard’ (Isa 5:1-6), Isaiah depicts a farmer or planter, representing God, making careful preparations for his vineyard. The vineyard is given every possible benefit and advantage, so that it has no reason not to be fertile. Yet, despite the care and attention that is lovingly given to it, the vineyard yields only bad fruit.

Since the crop of this vineyard is worse than useless, the farmer decides to destroy the vineyard. He plans even to make clear to passers-by that the land is useless, by removing all hedges and walls, and yanking out all traces of growth. The implication is that it would be less objectionable for the vineyard to be completely barren, rather than to produce disgusting, objectionable ’fruit’.

The meaning of the song is simple and somber (Isa 5:7). God’s people, in Isaiah’s time divided into two rival nations*, should be a source of life, growth, good fruit, and other positive things. They could have produced these things, not because of their own superiority, but because God has lavished upon them his grace, wisdom, and compassion.

• ·    Israel, the northern kingdom, had a history of idolatry and would be destroyed during Isaiah’s lifetime. Judah, the southern kingdom, faced a series of spiritual crises. See the notes from Week One for more.

God hoped for Judah, in particular, to be "the garden of his delight". This makes his disappointment that much worse when they ignore him. His people not only fail to produce good fruit, but even produce wickedness and violence. So too, as believers today we should look honestly at our lives and ministries, so that the fruit we produce can be pleasing to God. Producing some kind of results, at least outwardly, is not difficult in itself - what is a challenge is to produce the kind of fruit that truly pleases God: "fruit that will last" (John 15:16).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why is a vineyard a suitable analogy for God’s people?

How does it connect with the Branch passage above?

Are there other biblical images or analogies that have similar themes?

What was the lesson of the vineyard for the prophet’s original audience?

What is its message to us?

A Series Of Woes (Isaiah 5:8-30)

Isaiah now becomes very specific in detailing the ways that God’s people have turned away from the things that God had told them. Their actions, perspectives, and motivation have become as fleshly, as short-sighted, and as selfish as those of most pagans. The spiritual problems that the prophet addresses can easily be seen today, so its message is no less convicting to us.

Isaiah’s series of pronouncements of "woe to those who . . . " (Isa 5:8-23) can be compared with Jesus’ criticisms of the Pharisees in Matthew 23*. The list of specifics is quite different, yet these passages describe two examples of the false foundations that humans can lay for their lives.

* The prophet’s series of woes also has several points in common with Jesus’ remarks in Luke 6:24-26.

Owners of great houses and fields are admired and envied in this world, but here the prophet pronounces a woe upon them. It is interesting to note that God will not necessarily destroy the houses and fields themselves, but rather will make the houses desolate and the fields unfruitful. After all, it is not these physical locations and objects that are to blame, but rather the attitudes of their ’owners’ towards them.

Seekers of pleasure are also warned that God will deal with them. As they have become pre-occupied with the ways that their bodies can experience pleasing sensations, they have gradually ceased to appreciate the works and wisdom of God. Let us also not be deceived, for even Christians can fall into this error. The belief that we can indulge ourselves in the goodies of this world, while maintaining a genuine love and appreciation for God, is merely a fleshly delusion.

Rationalizing sin also evokes a cry of woe from the prophet. Isaiah aptly describes this mentality as one of arrogance and skepticism, willfully twisting the truth in brazen acts of self-deceit. Those who are wise in their own eyes also come in for their share of ’woe’, for it is prideful to exalt human wisdom above that of God. In truth, there is no such thing as a truly wise human, unless it is one who realizes his or her complete dependence on God’s grace and wisdom.

Finally, Isaiah calls ’woes’ upon those who enjoy boasting and those who practice injustice. It does not matter to God what excuses we have for such sins. Nor does he consider it acceptable to boast about our own achievements as long as we then give God ’credit’ afterwards.

God’s primary interest in ’justice’ in this world is not negative - punishment of the guilty - but rather positive: fair treatment of the innocent and honest, even if they cannot offer money or other incentives in return. Our own country’s system of ’justice’, in which truth and right matter much less than worldly knowledge, courtroom tactics, personal ambitions, and financial resources, is unacceptable by God’s standards. We accept it mainly because we have been told so often that it is ’the best system in the world’ that we are afraid to question its many flaws.

The overall problem with God’s people is that they have "spurned the Word of the Holy One" (Isa 5:24-30). Thus they have no protection from the temptations and attacks of the worldly and the sinful. Like dry grass in the flames, they are defenseless. They are already utterly defeated spiritually, and this will soon be reflected outwardly when they are attacked, defeated, and punished by distant nations. Already the roar of these "lions" can be heard, and the warning has been clearly given.

The call for a return to God’s perspective is just as urgent for believers today as it was during the prophet’s lifetime. Nor is his criticism that they had "spurned the Word of the Holy One" limited to humanity’s prideful disregard for the factual teachings and outward commands of Scripture. It is quite possible even to accept these things and still to have a disregard for the values and perspectives of God.

We believers all too glibly rationalize the pursuit of material wealth, the acceptance of rampant injustices and inequities in our society, and the trendy, consumer-driven approach to the church that reduces ministry to the technique of selling a commercial product. Pursuing ministry with godly methods and with godly expectations is just as important as believing godly facts. Isaiah’s call thus challenges us all to consider our own relationship with God, and to strengthen our devotion to following his will and nothing else.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does the prophet intend to imply by saying "woe to you"?

Why does each of the things he mentions merit this dire pronouncement?

How would each of these woes be applicable today?

What does it mean to ’spurn’ God’s Word?

What consequences does it bring, both in the original context and for us?

Mark Garner, March 2008

Go & Tell This People (Isaiah 6:1-13)

In this chapter, the prophet goes backwards chronologically, to describe the occasion on which God sent him forth on a ministry of prophecy and exhortation. Isaiah’s personal encounter with God was an overwhelming experience that prepared him to do whatever God asked of him. Yet the prophet is cautioned that his listeners will not respond as humbly and as readily as he has.

Review Of Previous Lessons

The book of Isaiah opens with the prophet’s call for God’s people to, "Come, let us reason together" (Isaiah 1:1-31). There is some urgency in this, because Isaiah also says that, "the Lord Almighty has a day in store" (Isaiah 2:1 to Isaiah 4:1), on which God must deal with the sins of his people. The prophet first describes his image of the "mountain of the Lord’s temple", an idealized depiction of what things can be like through God’s Messiah. But at that time, the Lord alone will be exalted. Several images of humbling and even humiliation emphasize this point.

In his visions of the Branch and the vineyard (Isaiah 4:2 to Isaiah 5:30), Isaiah uses symbols of life and growth to contrast God’s will for his people with the reality of their spiritual complacency. The image of the glorious "Branch" looks ahead to the Messiah, who will minister in grace and truth to the survivors in Israel. Like the cloud and fire in Exodus, he will be with them by day and by night.

The prophet’s song of the vineyard tells of a field that is unproductive despite having received the very best of care. The song’s meaning parallels the spiritual condition of God’s people, who have produced bad fruit despite all of the blessings that God has given them. Isaiah then pronounces a series of woes against the things that God’s people are doing. He indicates that these mistakes come from spurning the Word of the Holy One.

Holy, Holy, Holy Is The Lord Almighty (Isaiah 6:1-4)

When Isaiah finds himself before God’s throne, he is overwhelmed with powerful sights and sounds, so that God’s absolute holiness is impressed upon him. Before God sends forth Isaiah to carry out the demanding and important ministry that he has prepared for him, the prophet will first be given an unforgettable demonstration of God’s majesty, dominion, and power.

Isaiah had this extraordinary experience in the year that King Uzziah died* (Isaiah 6:1). To a faithful believer like Isaiah, there was probably an obvious contrast between the late king and God. Uzziah seriously tarnished a generally positive reign with some senseless acts of pride, and thus came to a humiliating and shameful end*. By comparison, God’s absolute purity and overwhelming majesty are now displayed unmistakably for the prophet. The sight of the Lord on his throne gives Isaiah a frighteningly clear picture of spiritual reality.

• ·    Approximately 740 BC.

• ·    See 2 Kings 15:1-7 (Azariah is another name for the same king) and 2 Chronicles 26:1-3.

While it is likely that Isaiah’s description is merely a rough attempt to describe something beyond the ability of our human senses to grasp in its entirety, we get enough from Isaiah’s description to see how extraordinary this scene is. In his description of the seraphs* as they call to each other (Isaiah 6:2-4), just knowing that each of them has six wings tells us a lot! The point of this vision is not for us to attempt to analyze the exact structure and specific purpose of these seraphs, but rather to realize the incredible nature of the true, spiritual realm that God inhabits. We cannot see it now, but someday we shall - and we won’t be disappointed.

* The plural "seraphim" can also be used. The ending ’ - im’ is a common Hebrew plural form.

The seraphs call to one another with the message that God wants to impress upon the humble prophet: that God is absolutely holy, and that whatever glory we see now in our own world comes only from him. No doubt Isaiah already believed this as fact, but this experience will impress it upon him in a much deeper way. It will help him in his ministry, and it is also an act of generosity on God’s part. Isaiah will have to go through some tough times in the course of his ministry, but he will never doubt that God’s power and majesty are overwhelming.

The mere sound of the voices of the seraphs shakes the doorposts and the threshold of God’s throne room. Then also, the temple fills up with smoke. These developments are also appropriate in view of God’s holiness. Even his seraphs have strength and glory that would humble anyone and anything in this world. The entire scene is one of grandeur and power on a scale that makes it laughable for humans to challenge God or to question God.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What relevance does the year of this vision have?

What might be God’s reasons for bringing the prophet before him in such a way?

Of what significance are the seraphs?

What does this scene tell us about God’s nature?

Isaiah’s Sin Atoned For (Isaiah 6:5-7)

Overwhelmed by the circumstance of being in God’s presence, the prophet at once realizes how unworthy he is to be standing before God. Even the process of atonement that he undergoes must have been a fearful experience just in itself. Isaiah thus experiences on a personal level one of the lessons that God wants all of his people to grasp, before it is too late for them.

Isaiah’s spontaneous response to his surroundings is to cry out, "woe to me!", for he cannot help realizing the contrast between his mortal, fallible nature and God’s divine purity (Isaiah 6:5) . Seeing a glimpse of God’s true nature with his own eyes, he feels his own uncleanness, even to sensing that his very lips are unclean in God’s sight.

Thus, when the prophet cries out that, "my eyes have seen the King", this is not a boast or a cry of excitement, but a heartfelt expression of wonder mixed with true, godly fear. Isaiah experiences - and will no doubt never forget - what it is like to be in God’s presence. Likewise, the more that we truly understand what God is actually like, the more we ourselves shall come to feel as Isaiah does here. We ought not to expect the kinds of excitement that the world seeks, but instead ought to seek to understand God in the way that Isaiah is now experiencing.

God did not bring the prophet before him in order to condemn him, and Isaiah is assured that his guilt is taken away (Isaiah 6:6-7). This is accomplished when one of the seraphs takes a live coal from the altar and touches it to Isaiah’s lips, which he has acknowledged to be unclean. Symbolically, his guilt is consumed by fire, in a fashion similar to the burning of sacrificial animals.

Notice that there is no shedding of blood involved, which we might have expected. Isaiah’s sin has been atoned for, not (at least not necessarily) forgiven and forgotten*. The situation called for immediate atonement to be made, so that he could remain in God’s presence long enough to be given the prophetic call. Even so, this is a good illustration of the cost of atonement. Merely reading this passage cannot convey the fear involved in having a burning coal thrust into one’s face! Amongst other things that he learns, Isaiah can now appreciate that atonement for sins does not come easily - and it cannot come at all through his own good works.

• ·    As with all of the persons under the Old Covenant, Isaiah had to look ahead to the Messiah who would remove all sin permanently from those who believed. The Scripture never defines the precise mechanism by which this was done, so that the best we can do (aside from fruitless speculation) is to trust that in some way the blood of Jesus was effective in bringing final and complete forgiveness also to the faithful who lived before he walked our earth.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah react to these surroundings in the way he does?

What might our own reaction be?

What should we learn from his attitude?

How is the seraph’s action of atonement appropriate?

What symbolism is involved?

What does Isaiah gain from the act?

Are there any parallels or lessons for us?

Ever Hearing, But Never Understanding (Isaiah 6:8-13)

God now gives Isaiah the message he is to proclaim. Isaiah’s eagerness to serve God contrasts sharply with the message that he is called to preach. God makes it plain to the prophet that his task will not be an easy one, for he will be speaking to a largely unreceptive audience. Isaiah will have to be motivated by his faith in God, not by outward results or personal popularity.

Only now, with the stage set and the lessons learned, does God ask the rhetorical question, "Whom shall I send?" (6:8-10). Isaiah’s willing response, so often quoted today, is more meaningful in its full context. He is not waving his hand eagerly, thrilled to take on a role that will bring him glory and excitement. Quite the contrary, he is speaking in fear, humility, and respectfulness; in his relief and gratitude he is willing to take on whatever God has in mind.

It is fortunate that Isaiah has this attitude, because God does not send him out on a mission that will bring impressive results or popularity. Isaiah is told from the beginning that his will be the largely fruitless task of calling attention to the people’s spiritual blindness and spiritual deafness. Since our role in this lost world parallels Isaiah’s much more closely than we usually realize, we also should strive for his attitude of humble, reverent responsiveness to God.

Those familiar only with the isolated saying "here am I, send me" may be shocked to read God’s instructions to the prophet, because at first glance it seems as if God wants his people to be blinded and hardened. But the description of them as ’ever seeing, but never perceiving’* is already the case. Isaiah will simply bring out into the open the true spiritual condition of the people, which they have not acknowledged and which they have avoided discussing.

• ·    Verses 9 and 10 are quoted, in whole or in part, in Matthew 13:14-15, Mark 4:12, John 12:40, and Acts 28:26-27. In these New Testament contexts also, it may seem at first as if God is deliberately preventing listeners from understanding his Word. But in each case, the situation is similar to that encountered by Isaiah himself. It is well worth looking up these NT references and comparing their contexts with Isaiah 6.

Isaiah’s preaching will give struggling believers a chance to repent and change, yet it will also have the effect of provoking the prideful and self-righteous to become even more hardened and even less receptive to God’s truth. Like many of the prophets, and like Jesus himself, Isaiah will serve as something of an instrument of self-judgment. Those who call themselves believers and yet reject the Word of God when it does not please them may think that they are passing their own ’wise’ judgment on God’s Word, yet in reality they are rendering judgment upon themselves.

Isaiah grasps the significance of what God is calling him to do, and he cannot help asking how long this ministry of unpopular preaching will last (Isaiah 6:11-13). Whatever personal apprehension he may have is certainly mixed with a greater fear for his brothers and sisters. God does not and cannot tell the prophet anything but the truth: that his message of warning will have to be proclaimed until the cities are ruined, the fields ravaged, and the Lord has sent everyone away.

Thus Isaiah knows from the beginning that his ministry will be directed towards the formation of a remnant; God has already determined that the nation as a whole will not last. Isaiah’s mind is immediately cleared of any delusions that he might be able to prevent what God has already determined must be. Isaiah’s faithfulness is such that he never questions this.

There is, of course, a strong note of hope for the future, with God’s assurance that "the holy seed will be the stump in the land". Here the stump is yet another image of the remnant, the survivors. Isaiah will have to stand by as God chops down the great tree of his people, comforted only by the knowledge that this stump, unlike normal stumps, will one day be regenerated into a better and spiritually stronger generation of servants of the living God.

Isaiah’s experience here furnishes us in the church with a call to faithful preaching. Like Isaiah, we must make sure that our ministry is not motivated by outward results or popularity. We do not know what God has in store for us, either as individuals or as a congregation.

It is all too easy for us to make glib assumptions that "God wants the best for us", and to assume that God wants us to be personally prosperous, to belong to a strong, successful church, and to live in a strong, powerful country. None of these are valid assumptions, and none of them demonstrates true ’faith’. It is not ’faith’ to decide for God what he will do ’for us’, and it is not ’faith’ for us to decide how he will teach, lead, and discipline his people. Isaiah’s call to prophetic ministry is instead something much more challenging, much more intimidating, yet much grander and more worthwhile. It is also much more accessible for the average Christian.

Our worm’s eye view of the universe is so limited, so self-interested, and so short-sighted, that we can never presume to know what is best. The truly faithful believer will be unreservedly prepared to do as God asks, even if we have no guarantees about the results - indeed, even if we know beforehand that nothing ’tangible’ will result. This is true faith: rejoicing in following God’s will because it is God’s will, knowing that his will is perfect in its own way.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does God ask for a ’volunteer’?

What does Isaiah’s response show about the prophet’s faith and state of mind?

Describe what God wants Isaiah to do.

Why did God want him to do this?

Why does God risk discouraging Isaiah by giving him so much negative information?

What goals or expectations should Isaiah have?

How should we learn from Isaiah’s call to ministry?

Mark Garner, March 2008

God With Us (Isaiah 7:1 to Isaiah 8:22)

In the midst of a crisis for God’s people, Isaiah preaches a message of faith in God and hope for the future. He combines symbolic actions with prophecy and explanation, and yet God’s people choose instead to trust in worldly forces. These chapters (Isaiah 7-12) also contain some noteworthy Messianic prophecies, which we can now study in their original context.

Review Of Recent Lessons

The first five chapters of Isaiah introduce the prophet’s message of promise and warning. Some of the themes are seen over and over again throughout the book. Much of his message centers on the need to seek and understand God personally, not relying on activity or on knowledge alone. God’s desire for his people contrasts with the reality of their spiritual complacency. God uses Isaiah to prepare a remnant of spiritual survivors, through whom God will rebuild. God’s people must learn to exalt God and God alone, to humble themselves, and to crush all idols.

Isaiah then recounts the time when God told him to, "Go and tell this people" (Isaiah 6:1-13) the message of God’s holiness. He saw God on his throne, heard the seraphs calling, "holy, holy, holy", and experienced overwhelming sights and other sensations. Isaiah at once realized his uncleanness, saw the need for his sin to be atoned for, and called out "woe to me!" After his guilt was taken away in dramatic fashion, God then gave him the message he was to proclaim.

The prophet was sent to a people who were ever hearing, but never understanding. Isaiah’s willingness to serve God was met with Judah’s reluctance to heed God. Upon asking how long he must proclaim this critical message, the prophet learns that it will continue until the people are disciplined and dispersed. Later, a remnant will arise from the ’stump’ of God’s people.

The next large section of the book of Isaiah consists of a series of messages that are connected with specific events or nations in the prophet’s lifetime. In many cases, the messages serve a dual purpose, in addressing an immediate spiritual need while also looking ahead to an event in the more distant future. Such is the case with this next passage.

The Lord Will Give You A Sign (Isaiah 7:1-17)

The nation of Judah faced a crisis when the Northern Kingdom joined forces with Aram (Syria) to attack their brothers to the south. God sends Isaiah to King Ahaz with a message of reassurance and hope, yet the foolish king has confidence only in worldly sources of strength. This becomes, rather surprisingly, the setting for one of Isaiah’s best-known prophecies about Jesus.

This alliance against Judah causes panic and impatience in the people and in their king (Isaiah 7:1-2). At the time, Assyria dominated the nations and events of the entire area, and the smaller nations would waver back and forth, sometimes seeking Assyria’s favor and sometimes trying to break free from its grip. On this occasion, Aram and Israel join forces, and pressure Judah to join them. Although it is not stated in Isaiah, the two neighboring nations are attempting to build an alliance against Assyria, which has been collecting large amounts of tribute* from them.

• ·    ’Tribute’, in this context, is a euphemism for extortion money paid by a smaller or weaker nation to a larger one, in return for a promise of non-aggression.

The leaders of these smaller nations often boosted their popularity by promising to resist their overlords. Judah was in the more secure position of these smaller nations, as it was the farthest away from Assyrian territory*. Yet Judah’s King Ahaz preferred to ally with Assyria, a brutal empire known for its ruthless treatment both of enemies and of its own people. This in turn has angered Aram and Israel, to the point that they now choose to launch a joint attack on Judah and Jerusalem, precipitating a crisis in Judah**.

• ·    The Assyrian Empire extended a considerable distance off of the area on the map, especially to the east.

• ·    The date of this situation is approximately 734 BC, a few years after Isaiah’s vision in Isaiah 6. Because the ancient nations all used dating systems much different than ours, it can be a difficult task to nail down an exact date. Many events in Isaiah’s lifetime are dated by comparing the Bible’s chronology with references from Assyrian chronicles. For further study of how dates in this era can be determined, see Edwin Thiele’s book, A Chronology Of The Hebrew Kings. For a study of biblical chronology in both Old Testament and New Testament eras, see Jack Finegan’s Handbook of Biblical Chronology.

Into this ungodly situation, God sends Isaiah to King Ahaz with a message of faith and assurance (Isaiah 7:3-12). God instructs the prophet to take his son Shear-Jashub with him, as a symbolic, living message to the king. Shear-Jashub is the Hebrew for ’a remnant will return’; thus Isaiah had named his son for the message he would so often proclaim in his ministry.

Isaiah and Shear-Jashub repeatedly re-assure the king, telling him to, "be careful, keep calm, and don’t be afraid". The king will not have to resort to alliance with the treacherous Assyrians, nor will he have to spend any money or place himself at any risk. He simply needs to trust God, who is already prepared to protect his people. Isaiah goes even further, foretelling the swift ruin of Ephraim (or Israel, or Samaria)*, and emphasizing the relative weakness of Aram**.

• ·    Israel was often called Ephraim, since that was the most dominant in the coalition of the northern tribes. In Isaiah’s era, its capital was the city of Samaria. Only 12 years after this chapter, this northern kingdom would be conquered, and its people enslaved, by Assyria. As Isaiah prophesies in verse 8, within 65 years the survivors of the northern tribes would be too scattered and weakened to retain any sense of national identity. Over the years, their descendents would become integrated with fragments of other nationalities that settled in the area, and the resulting population would eventually be known as the Samaritans.

• ·    Aram is the ancient name for the nation of Syria, which still exists today, with the same capital (Damascus). Thus Isaiah does not foretell its destruction.

God is so gracious that he offers to grant the foolish, weak Ahaz a sign, to give him hope and assurance. Yet the faithless king brusquely rejects this offer of grace, compounding his opposition to God by covering his aversion to (or fear of) God with a pseudo-spiritual excuse. God thus use Isaiah to give the king a sign after all - and a memorable sign it turns out to be.

In the midst of fear and faithlessness, the sign of Immanuel, "God with us", is introduced (Isaiah 7:13-17). In words familiar to us from the gospel (Matthew 1:23), Isaiah states that a "maiden (virgin)* will be with child, and will give birth to a son". Here in Isaiah, there is much more to the prophecy, for it has an immediate importance in addition to its Messianic significance.

• ·    The Hebrew word that Isaiah uses here is similar to our word ’maiden’, in that it can refer literally to a young virgin female, or figuratively to any young female. By contrast, the Greek word for ’virgin’ in Matthew 1:23 can only mean a literal virgin. Jesus’ mother Mary bore him under miraculous conditions.

This is a dual prophecy of the kind that Isaiah often makes, for such a son was born soon after he issued his prophecy (see Isaiah 8:3 below for this short-term, non-miraculous event), and then of course the Scripture finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus*. Since we are already familiar with the Messianic significance, we shall mainly look now at Isaiah’s message for King Ahaz.

• ·    This is one of a number of such dual-level prophecies in Isaiah. It is an interesting, but unanswerable, question to ask how much Isaiah himself understood about the meaning. Certainly he was well aware of its immediate meaning, and he also must have had at least a general awareness of the nature of the Messiah.

The sign for the prophet’s original hearers was a simple challenge to their willingness to trust God. A child will be born soon after these words are spoken, and "before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right" (that is, while he is still very young), destruction will have come upon Aram and Israel*, ending the threat to Judah without the king or people needing to do anything. God is with his people, knows the threats to them, and already has a plan.

• ·    By 732 BC, Assyria had ravaged both countries, had made Aram subservient, and deported many persons of the northern tribes. Israel’s King Pekah was assassinated soon afterwards (e.g., see 2 Kings 15:29-30).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What choices did Ahaz have in dealing with this crisis?

What situations might be similar for us, as individuals or as congregations?

What should we learn from these events?

How is Isaiah 7:14 used in the New Testament?

How is the Immanuel theme relevant to the situation in Isaiah’s era?

Does it have any parallel with Jesus as our Immanuel?

Can the Immanuel (God with us) idea be misused?

Assyria, The Lord’s Razor (Isaiah 7:18 to Isaiah 8:10)

Over all of the secular events of this era hangs the powerful presence of the Assyrian Empire. God had already prepared to use the Assyrians to mete out discipline to his people if they needed it. Although Ahaz and most others see it only as a powerful pagan nation, Isaiah reveals that Assyria has no lasting significance of its own; it is merely a tool, a "razor", which God can use.

Isaiah uses flies and bees to depict the ways that God can use foreign powers like Egypt and Assyria for his ends (Isaiah 7:18-25). These images suggest noise and chaos, foreshadowing what it will be like if God allows these pagan nations to attack. Egypt and Assyria are pre-occupied with their own goals and agendas, but in reality God can use them how and when he pleases.

God has prepared Assyria to be his ’razor’, which he has "hired from beyond the river"* to discipline his people if needed. Their heads, legs, and beards will be ’shaved’ in that the brutal Assyrians need only to be let loose, and they will destroy and seize anything they can.

• ·    This refers here to the Euphrates, the westernmost of the two great rivers in Mesopotamia. Nineveh, the capital and stronghold of Assyria, was on the Tigris River, to the east.

Isaiah adds further imagery to emphasize the peril from Assyria, depicting a landscape devoid of human life and human sustenance, covered only with briers and thorns. Assyria’s power dwarfs that of Israel and Judah, yet its own power is in turn nothing in comparison with God’s. Again the prophet is calling all the peoples of the earth to humble themselves in the sight of God.

The symbolic name Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz connects the Immanuel prophecy with the warning to Ahaz, and warns anyone who would trust the powers of this world rather than God (Isaiah 8:1-10). This name is given to Isaiah’s new son, who is the short-term fulfillment of the promise in Isaiah 7:14*. Isaiah has named two sons for messages that God has called him to proclaim.

• ·    Verse 3’s reference to ’the prophetess’ refers, in context, to Isaiah’s wife. The birth of Isaiah’s son, unlike the virgin birth of Jesus, was not a miracle. It was, instead, a symbol of an important spiritual lesson.

The tongue-twisting name given to the prophet’s newest son means roughly, "quick to the plunder", because not long after he is born, Damascus (Aram) and Samaria (Israel, Ephraim) will be viciously plundered by Assyria. There is warning too to Judah, for in handling this crisis in an ungodly fashion, they have also exposed themselves to future discipline.

In this episode, we can see two aspects of the assurance that God is with us. To the faithful, this is a great encouragement in the midst of trials and danger. To the faithless, it is a warning that nothing is hidden from God. God With Us promises us a blessing we could never earn or deserve. Yet it also confers a responsibility, for it removes any reason for trusting in this world.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What do the images of flies and bees suggest?

Why does God use the image of a razor?

Are these images significant to us?

Why does God tell Isaiah to give his newborn son the name ’quick to the plunder"?

How can this idea be reconciled with "God with us"?

What are the implications of God’s constant presence?

A Call To Remain Faithful (Isaiah 8:11-22)

During this period of crisis, Isaiah is practically alone in relying on God rather than trusting in earthly forces. As God reassures the prophet and exhorts him to remain firm in his faith, his words also encourage us to do likewise. Like Isaiah, the faithful believer today must develop and maintain a perspective on events that greatly differs from the viewpoint of the worldly.

In an ungodly world, it can be a challenge to wait for the Lord (Isaiah 8:11-17). God urges Isaiah not to give in to the worldly perspectives all around him: he should not fear what the worldly fear, but instead remember the awesome nature of God. He should not see conspiracy behind all wrongs, for the worldly are simply following their fleshly natures by living in disorder and conflict.

God’s description of himself as "a stone that causes persons to stumble" (Isaiah 8:14) is also used (with Isaiah 28:16) of Jesus in Romans 9:33. God is glorious beyond the power of humans to understand fully. Yet his nature clashes with our fleshly desires, causing disappointment and rejection from those without faith. Like Isaiah, we must guard against fleshly perspectives, so that we can experience and appreciate the greater blessings that come to the faithful.

Isaiah says, "Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me" (Isaiah 8:18-22), recalling the start of his ministry (6:8) and emphasizing the role of his children as visible signs, living spiritual symbols. Their very names remind the people that they cannot escape God’s eye, nor should they want to do so. Sadly, most of them will stumble just as God has said. Instead of believing God and his prophet, they will consult false, worldly experts, and will be thrust into darkness.

The ’Immanuel’ promise means that God is always with us. God knows when we trust him, and he knows when we trust in the world. God promises to sustain us and protect us in this world, and to share his glory with us in the next. It is up to us whether we prefer to share in his divine nature, or to exchange it for a few fragments of sordid worldly ’fun’ or shabby earthly fame.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What would it be like for someone such as Isaiah to endure a crisis in which no one else is trusting in God?

How might we be able to relate to this?

What can we learn from God’s warnings to the prophet himself?

What role did Isaiah’s sons play in his lifetime?

How can they be symbols to us?

- Mark Garner, April 2008

To Us A Son Is Given (Isaiah 9:1 to Isaiah 10:19)

In the midst of a national emergency, Isaiah has called God’s people to trust in God rather than in worldly forces. The prophet has also warned them that failure to heed this advice will lead only to darkness. Yet, even then there will be hope, as he now explains. The day will come when the darkness of this earth will be swept away by the great light that comes from God.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Isaiah received the call to prophetic ministry when God directed him to "Go and tell this people" (Isa 6:1-13) that they were suffering from spiritual blindness and lack of understanding. Only a few years later, the prophet was deeply involved in God’s plans for teaching his people during a time of national crisis. The six chapters Isaiah 7-12 are all originally set in this same context*.

* The date is approximately 734 BC. See last week’s notes for more detailed historical background.

With Judah facing attack from a coalition of neighbors, God sends Isaiah to King Ahaz to tell him that God is with his people (Isa 7:1- 8:22) . Despite Ahaz’s pride and lack of faith, God promises him a sign - the sign of Immanuel, ’God with us’. The king is warned not to seek help from earthly forces, but to trust instead in God’s presence. The promise is confirmed in the short- term by the birth of a child, and will find its complete fulfillment later in the birth of the Messiah.

God is about to use Assyria as his ’razor’ to discipline both his people and their enemies. Isaiah also uses the imagery of flies and bees to symbolize the noise and confusion that will befall those whom God must humble. Then comes the short-term fulfillment of the Immanuel promise, with the birth of Isaiah’s son Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. This name means "quick to the plunder", because the Assyrians will soon plunder Judah’s enemies, as Isaiah had foretold.

As a faithful believer amidst rampant ungodliness and folly, Isaiah himself is urged by God to remain faithful. Unlike impatient, faithless Judah and its king, Isaiah is willing to wait for the Lord instead of resorting to rash worldly actions. Isaiah also presents himself, and his two symbolically-named sons, to the people as living reminders of God’s promises and his warnings.

A Great Light (Isaiah 9:1-7)

The vivid contrast between darkness and light makes this passage one of the most memorable of Isaiah’s Messianic prophecies. While the description of the Messiah and his qualities is already familiar to most believers, we can gain additional insight from seeing this well-known passage in its original setting, the spiritual and national crisis that takes place during Isaiah’s lifetime.

The promise of "no more gloom" (Isa 9:1-5) would surely have been welcome in the midst of a situation that had suddenly become threatening and demoralizing. But this promise looks far beyond Isaiah’s struggling generation, into the Messianic future. The promise to honor Galilee comes as no surprise to today’s believers, but in Isaiah’s time - and long afterward - it would have seemed more natural to call it, as the prophet does, a place where the people walk in darkness.

As one of the northernmost areas of Israel, Galilee was significantly influenced by Gentile cultures*. It was also on an invasion route used by Assyria and other attackers, and thus suffered more than its share of hardship and loss when the nation was disciplined. While we naturally associate Galilee with Jesus, the choice of it as the place thus honored is interesting, since God deliberately avoided any of the more prosperous or more socially influential areas.

• ·    Much later, in Jesus’ lifetime, the area was even more heavily populated with Gentiles and with Samaritans, who were half-Jewish and half-Gentile.

The image of those walking in darkness suddenly seeing a great light is a metaphor for the light that Jesus brings into all of our lives. He is the one source of genuine light and truth in a world full of lies, frauds, and broken promises. Galilee was not truly more sinful or backwards than other parts of the nation; it only seemed ’darker’ to those who thought more highly of themselves than they should have. Every person in the world always stands in equal need of God’s light.

Isaiah depicts the people rejoicing as they would at the harvest, when a sudden abundance makes months of waiting and working seem worthwhile. God’s people would have to wait several centuries to see the complete fulfillment of this prophecy, yet it is also meant to encourage those in Isaiah’s time with genuine faith. They could know that, no matter what they had to endure, no matter how little progress they saw in their own lifetimes, that their faith was not in vain.

We ought to develop this same attitude. We have seen the Messiah, a blessing not given even to Isaiah himself. So if God does not choose to fulfill our dreams of spiritual ’great things’, we have no reason for complaint. Many believers of great faith - indeed, whole generations of believers - have never experienced the benefits of their labors in the Lord. We have the Messiah Jesus, we have a relationship with God himself, and we have a certain eternal future to look forward to. Let that be enough for us to devote ourselves diligently to whatever ministry he prepares for us.

Isaiah also appeals to the yearning to throw off oppressors*. Only rarely in their history were the ancient Jews not threatened by one or more hostile powers. Ever since the time of Christ, gospel believers have been living in a world hostile to their beliefs. The Messiah does not stop earthly persecutors and tormenters, but he renders them spiritually impotent, incapable of pulling us away from him unless we choose to do so ourselves. He also reveals the useless and deceitful nature of this world’s powers and authorities, so that we need no longer fear them in our hearts.

• ·    Isaiah makes reference to ’the day of Midian’s defeat’, bringing to mind one of their most ancient oppressors. The Midianites regularly attacked and plundered Israel during the era of the Judges.

In this context, we receive the promise that to us "a child is born", and "a son is given" (Isa 9:6-7). Though this will find its complete fulfillment in a Son born to a couple from Galilee, this child is truly given to all of us. Since the need is universal, so is the gift. Thus all can rejoice in the names of praise by which he is called - Wonderful, Counselor, and all the rest.

This child has an everlasting reign*, not on this earth but in eternity. Thus the prophet openly appeals to those who understand God, hoping that they can appreciate the scale on which God is operating. He never had the intention of blessing Israel alone, or of making Israel a dominant fleshly kingdom that would rule others in this world. He had always planned something much more glorious for them, and much more accessible for us - an eternal kingdom.

In a more limited sense, future King Hezekiah brought a similar hope to the faithful in Judah, so some commentators see in Hezekiah a short-term fulfillment of this prophecy. Hezekiah, Ahaz’s son, was probably a small child at the time. There are some points to this, yet Hezekiah, while faithful and humble, did not merit many of the praises this passage. There is also nothing about his reign that would clearly connect him or any blessing with Galilee. Yet in other respects it is not unreasonable to suppose that Isaiah and God saw in the royal son, then still a child, a gracious blessing to suffering believers.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What significance is there here to light and darkness?

Why is Galilee singled out for blessing?

Why is the promise phrased in terms of the birth of a son?

Is it possible that this is a dual-layer prophecy that had both a short-term and a long-term fulfillment?

How are the names given to the child important?

The Lord Has Sent A Message (Isaiah 9:8 to Isaiah 10:11)

Yet the sad truth in the present situation is that almost everyone is acting faithlessly. Northern Israel plots against its own brothers in Judah, while Aram and Assyria are set on violence and plunder. Judah follows the lead of its weak king, panicking and turning to the world for help. God must use Isaiah to reprove all of them and to appeal to those who are still faithful.

The prophet contrasts their human pride with God’s divine anger (Isa 9:8-21). Both are powerful, but our pride is unjustified, while God has the right to be displeased with the refusal to learn what is good for us. Pride is especially destructive to our relationship with God, because our pride blocks out the things he wants to tell us, and blinds us to our sins and our need for grace.

God warns that he will cut off ’both head and tail’ from the people. These are two major sources of false hope and false security: the leaders who mislead, and the prophets who lie. Both are problems we can see in any era. Power corrupts all who desire it, and leaders in every era quickly learn how easy it is to deceive others. False prophets, likewise, abound in any era. Telling the crowd what it wants to hear is the surest way to popularity and privilege.

Because the people of Isaiah’s generation so willingly embraced such things, they are barely aware of their desperate spiritual condition. Even after the first stages of discipline, God’s hand will still be upraised against them, because his goal is not to punish, but to cure. The harder our hearts become, and the more closed our minds are, the more firmly he has to discipline us.

The rampant injustice and oppression in Judah should have been a warning (Isa 10:1-4). Their self-centered pride is manifested in the way that they accept without question the privileges of the wealthy, the abuses of the powerful, and the sufferings of the weak and poor. So too, our own society complacently accepts institutions that are inherently corrupt and dishonest. Only in the church can we - or at last should we - find relief.

God pronounces woe upon his people, for Assyria will provide harsh discipline. But woe to the Assyrians as well (10:5-11), for their time will be much shorter. The Assyrian agenda included world domination and countless acts of brutality and indulgence, but God’s agenda overruled theirs once their usefulness was at an end.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why is pride so destructive spiritually?

How did it lead to other problems in Judah of Isaiah’s day?

What should we learn from this?

Why is God’s anger at them justified?

Why does he single out the leaders and prophets?

Reminder Of God’s Overwhelming Strength & Wisdom (Isaiah 10:12-19)

Regardless of how weak, flawed, or sinful human beings are, God never loses his strength or his wisdom. When we lose sight of God and look only to the world for help, we can never find any lasting source of security or guidance. We should keep God ever at the center of our thoughts and our perspective, so that we can draw confidence from knowing our transcendent Creator.

For a while, the Assyrians will be allowed to rule and dominate without mercy or wisdom, but Assyria’s turn is coming, too (Isa 10:12-14). They are convenient tools for God, but this does not excuse their sins. They are useful only because their own nature, brutish, prideful, and ignorant, makes them so predictable. They and their king are a shocking example of willful human pride that blinds them to their own true nature and to their own limitations.

The Assyrians - as have those of every nation that has enjoyed a time of dominance - were convinced that the ’gods’ had blessed them. They persuaded themselves that they would not be able to enjoy such success unless they deserved it. How ironic that it was not the false gods they worshiped who gave them these ’blessings’, but the living God, who allowed them to rule and dominate in spite of who they were and how they lived, not because of these. They are hardly, of course, the only ones ever to make such a drastic misappraisal of themselves.

Watching the ascendancy of the bestial Assyrians is a challenge for the faithful*, whom Isaiah thus urges to keep the proper perspective (Isa 10:15-19). As an ax cannot raise itself, a nation like Assyria cannot rise to power unless God allows it to. The world is always full of evildoers and liars who gain wealth and power, often without a specific reason. So we always have a reminder of how little hope there is to found in this world’s sources of apparent strength and authority.

• ·    The book of Habakkuk, set in a similar situation shortly before the fall of Judah, provides a detailed look at the dilemmas facing a faithful believer in such times. Habakkuk lived to see the Babylonians destroy and enslave Judah in 586 BC.

The prophet depicts God as an unquenchable fire, with nothing able to stand in his path. This was true in Isaiah’s day, as the time neared for unavoidable discipline that would end only when God willed. It is true now, as the world inches nearer to its final end. Whether we are called to judgment days from now or millennia from now, God’s absolute authority is just as certain.

Isaiah never questioned the futility of opposing God, and he could always remember his memorable personal encounter with God. He knew that events and persons considered important by the world are trivial in God’s sight. Only by keeping a clear-minded focus on spiritual reality could Isaiah look past the dismaying, frightening, and sordid events taking place around him.

Only by developing such a perspective today can believers see how God works in their lives and the lives of others. Only by learning to see with "the eyes of your heart" (Ephesians 1:18) can we appreciate what is truly important, truly glorious, and truly beautiful.

Then, despite everything, we always have God’s promise that there will be "no more gloom".

We can enjoy this assurance now, in knowing that our sins are forgiven and our guilt removed.

And the Day will come when believers will never again have to experience gloom of any kind.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How could God allow Assyria to have such undeserved power and wealth?

Why did he not correct their attitude earlier?

How did God expect someone like Isaiah to endure Assyria’s period of dominance?

How can we develop the attitudes that Isaiah teaches us to have?

Mark Garner, April 2008

From The Stump Of Jesse (Isaiah 10:20 to Isaiah 12:6)

Once again, the prophet follows a message of stern warning with a prophecy of great hope. This time, Isaiah expounds at length on two of the most important aspects of God’s long-term plans for his people. First, he assures the people that there will always be survivors, a remnant, no matter what else happens. Then, it is from this remnant that the great Branch will arise.

Review Of Recent Lessons

In the midst of a crisis in which Judah is threatened with invasion by two of its neighbors, Isaiah warns against taking fleshly action, promising instead the sign of Immanuel, "God with us" (Isa 7:1-8:22). The names of the prophet’s two sons make them living reminders of God’s providence.

Building on this symbolism, the prophet testifies about the Messianic future, when "To us a Son is given" (Isa 9:1-10:19). This great light will appear out of Galilee, a region of figurative darkness. Although Isaiah’s generation will not see it, the child is born to all, and to them too, for he will make worthwhile the faith, the waiting, and the sacrifice of many generations of believers.

Meanwhile, the Lord has sent a message to those who think themselves wiser than God. Human pride is never justified, and when not stopped it inevitably meets with divine anger. Even Assyria, useful tool to God that it will be, faces a future of woe because its pride leads it to inflate its own worthiness and importance. The prophet reminds us all of God’s overwhelming strength and wisdom, which puts to shame all human pretensions. Developing this proper perspective will help us to appreciate what God is doing.

The Survivors Will Return (Isaiah 10:20-34)

There are many times in Scripture when God’s people are disciplined in ways that reduce their numbers. But God always preserves a remnant, a carefully protected group of survivors, which he then uses to build a better future for his people. Isaiah explains how and why this principle works, knowing that God is planning to use the same idea on a broader and more spiritual level.

The return of the remnant (Isa 10:20-23) is of special importance to Isaiah because it ties together several themes that are crucial to an understanding of God’s nature and character. Long before Isaiah, God used remnants to rebuild and strengthen the faithful. Noah, Joshua and Caleb, Gideon, and many others illustrate the many ways and times that God has refocused on a small group of believers when the vast majority went astray. Jesus himself drew a remnant from the people of Israel*, those few who accepted the Messiah as God intended him to be.

* This is a major topic of discussion in Romans 9-11. In those chapters, Paul quotes Isaiah extensively!

One reason for God to use a remnant is to help his people to stop relying on the wrong things. God loves to bless his people, but when blessings come too easily, it too often happens that the people take them for granted, or even demand more. Worse, they have a tendency to put their trust and reliance in the very things that are most dangerous for them, just as Isaiah says here.

Despite it all, God promises Isaiah’s generation both a return to the land and a return to God. The return to the land was a one- time promise, which would not be fulfilled until long after Isaiah’s death*, and it was also the less important of the promised returns. God’s real desire for the nation of Israel was for them to return to him. He knew all along that, though they were as numerous as ’the sand by the sea’, only a remnant - a small fraction - would be truly faithful.

• ·    A series of Babylonian attacks started in 606 BC, when the first group of exiles was captured. Judah fell in 586 BC, with most of the nation then being deported. The remnant began to return in 536 BC (after the 70 year period prophesied by Jeremiah), under Persian rule.

There is a spiritual remnant in any era, as spiritual steadfastness is never easy for mortal beings. Genuine Christianity is never popular with the majority of any nation, era, or culture, because it challenges too many things dear to the flesh. Yet the promise to the faithful always remains: since God will never forsake his people, there will always at least be a remnant* under his care.

• ·    In church history, there are some eras in which all ’mainline’ bodies of believers may seem to have become completely apostate. This does not mean that there were not individual believers who were genuinely seeking the truth. There are also many examples of groups in all eras of history who sought to return Christianity to the New Testament pattern and/or who sought to return the teachings Scripture to a place above human tradition and authority. Even when these groups did not last long, they provide witness of God’s faithfulness. He will always seek out and provide for those whose hearts truly desire him.

But before the promise of the remnant can be fulfilled, there will first be destruction. God prefers to start over with a small remnant, rather than to endure the unending idolatry and pride of a large body, no matter how superficially strong it may be.

Although Assyria will be the instrument of harsh discipline, Isaiah appeals to the faithful not to fear or worry about Assyria in itself (Isa 10:24-34). God has already planned to discipline the Assyrians as soon as his purpose for them is accomplished. The one disciplined last will not be the one who laughs. So the burden is necessary, but it will be lifted, for God has so promised.

Assyria’s strength, wealth, and power will be chopped off like boughs and branches being lopped off from a tree. And here is the crucial difference between God’s discipline and his judgment, for Assyria will never rise again, while God’s people will. The stump of Assyria will remain just a stump, but the stump of Judah will, contrary to all nature, bud and give life to a new and more glorious realization of God’s people - as Isaiah is about to explain.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What other remnants were there before Isaiah’s time?

What did they have in common? What was different about them?

What lessons did they teach?

Why will Assyria be permanently judged, but Judah preserved as a remnant?

A Branch From The Stump (Isaiah 11:1-16)

Even when the people of God may seem to have been reduced to nothing, God can always raise up a remnant. The image of a tree stump is deliberately chosen here, to remind us that it is not our effort, our determination, or our faithfulness that allows God to do this. Only God can bring forth life out of a dead stump, and only God can transform the very nature of our lives.

Isaiah’s prophecy of the fruitful Branch connects the earlier Branch prophecy (from Isaiah 4) with his teaching of the remnant (Isa 11:1-5). The Branch here has a spirit of wisdom and understanding, and a desire to see righteousness and justice prevail. These are exemplified perfectly by the Messiah, the Branch from Nazareth, and they are also the ideals that God hopes to instill in his remnant.

The prophet also emphasizes the contrast between Judah and Assyria. Both will be stumps, but Assyria will simply rot away after being chopped off. The stump of Jesse* will miraculously produce this faithful Branch, after it (the remnant) has undergone the necessary discipline**.

• ·    Jesse was David’s father, so this expression is used metaphorically to refer to the descendants of David. The Messiah would come from David’s physical line, and the remnant from his spiritual heirs.

• ·    For yet another parallel, see the teachings in Hebrews (e.g. Heb 2:10-18, 5:7-10) on the discipline Jesus himself had to endure while living in a human body.

Further, the Branch (the Messiah, the Christ) will be a banner for the peoples* (Isa 11:6-16). With this message originally being proclaimed amidst a tense military confrontation, Isaiah’s images of peace become even more striking than they are in themselves. If the wolf and the lamb can live together, if the calf and lion can co-exist, then by comparison it should be possible for humans or nations to address their problems without resorting to violence and death. As simple as this principle is, it is impossible to realize except through the Branch. Sadly, even many who believe in the Branch find it difficult to trust him, rather than physical force, in times of crisis.

* Note the plural - the entire message in this passage emphasizes that the Branch is for everyone.

Thus the nations will rally to the Branch - not, of course, as geographic or political entities, but as individual believers from every country and culture. This extraordinary gathering of exiles points out the nature of the true church of Jesus. It is, by nature and design, a remnant. The church is no longer a physical remnant, but a spiritual remnant. Every person of every race in every land was created to seek God, but only a few find ’the narrow road’ to God’s grace.

The remnant is made up of individuals, not of groups. The church consists of those who individually have chosen to follow the Branch. You do not become part of the Branch by joining a church; but when you become one with the Branch you are added to the church. It is thus the Branch, not the church, that should be exalted, and that should be preached to the world.

There is always a highway open to the remnant. They can come from anywhere, even hostile nations like Assyria and Edom and Philistia. Our nation, our race, our culture, our gender, all count neither for nor against us; they are all irrelevant when it comes to getting on the highway of the remnant. Genuine Christianity has no connection with or debt to any culture or nation in the world, for it rises above the things of this world to meet needs that this world can never meet.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah call Assyria and Judah stumps?

What contrast is he making?

What significance does the ’Branch’ image have here?

What connection does it have with the remnant?

Why is peace an inherent characteristic of the remnant?

What does the prophet mean with his image of the ’highway’?

God Is My Salvation (Isaiah 12:1-6)

This heartfelt song of praise glorifies God as our one and only source of life and hope. It acknowledges the justice of God’s discipline, and praises God for his comfort and salvation. The imagery of water also makes reference to God as a giver of life, both physical life and spiritual life. In this song, Isaiah also encapsulates for us the ideal attitude towards God.

Isaiah understands the joy of salvation (Isa 12:1-3) as few others have ever done. As his words and his experience both indicate, the joy of salvation is accompanied by the awareness of God’s holiness. Isaiah fully appreciates what it means to be in God’s hands, for he has seen and felt God’s righteous anger and fearful majesty. So too, in our own relationship with God, we only fully appreciate what God has done if we also understand the dangers he has delivered us from.

The prophet’s expression, "the wells of salvation", makes use of the frequent symbolism of water as a source of life and sustenance. Jesus himself would later use the expression "living water" to call the lost to him for a life-giving drink of God’s grace. Isaiah’s image suggests a weary, thirsty traveler who has finally found a source of precious water that can make all the difference.

An appreciation for God’s salvation is followed naturally by a desire to make it known (Isa 12:4-6). Isaiah is moved naturally, not out of compulsion, to "proclaim that his name is exalted". His motivation is similar to that of anyone who has good, exciting, or interesting news to share. It is natural for us to repeat and discuss the things that matter to us or interest us.

When believers feel a need to use coercion or guilt as a motivation to proclaim the gospel, this is a sign that they do not understand the gospel. Even Jeremiah, who found his own message discouraging and unpopular, said, "But if I say, ’I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,’ his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot" (Jeremiah 20:9). Grasping the mere truth of God’s Word was enough to motivate him to teach the truth, regardless of the consequences.

And when we also truly understand, as Isaiah does, that God has done ’glorious things’ for us, how much more willingly we will speak of God without prompting or coercion. It is only because we have such a dim and worldly understanding of what constitutes ’glorious things’ that we so often allow God’s greatest gifts and blessings to pass unnoticed. Isaiah calls us to rise above all that, and he also assures us that it is possible.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How can we better appreciate the joy of salvation, for its own sake?

What qualities of God can help us with this?

What does Isaiah intend to connote with the image of a well?

What motivations to proclaim God’s glory do we see in Isaiah? Can we instill the same motivation in ourselves?

Mark Garner, April 2008

The Day Of The Lord Is Coming (Isaiah 13:1 to Isaiah 14:32)

God’s justice and righteousness are every bit as integral to his character as compassion and grace are. In the next several chapters of Isaiah, the prophet will proclaim God’s judgment against some of Israel’s pagan neighbors. If God gives grace to believers, he also judges unbelievers. The series of oracles starts with one directed at Babylon, then a rising power.

Review Of Isaiah So Far

After setting forth his basic message and main themes (Isaiah 1-5), Isaiah describes his call to prophetic ministry (Isaiah 6), which gave him an unforgettable impression of God’s majesty and righteousness. Later, with Judah under attack, God sends Isaiah with a series of messages to the king and the people (Isaiah 7-12). These served a dual purpose, urging Isaiah’s original listeners to stop panicking and to trust God, while also providing some insight on the Messianic future.

The sign of Immanuel, "God with us" (Isa 7:1-8:22), gave hope to the faithful in Isaiah’s own time, and was fulfilled in a deeper and miraculous way through Jesus. In a period of darkness and fear, Isaiah promised that "to us a Son is given" (Isa 9:1-10:19), providing assurance that God would use the trials and worries of the present as part of building something much better for the future.

Isaiah now turns to one of his key themes, the remnant, stating that it will come from "the stump of Jesse" (Isaiah 10:20 to Isaiah 12:6). Judah would be taken captive, but survivors would return to the land, foreshadowing the even more important return to God by the true remnant of his people. Destruction would have to come first, but then the promise of a remnant would be fulfilled. Therefore the people should not worry about Assyria. Although it seemed at the time to be an overpowering threat, it was just a tool for God to use.

Both Assyria and Judah will be reduced to stumps by the discipline God has in store. Assyria’s ’stump’ will just rot away, but a Branch, the Messiah, will arise from the ’stump’ of Judah. This fruitful Branch will serve as a banner, a rallying point, for those of any nation, any culture, any time, who want to know God. Isaiah thus praises God as his salvation. He feels the joy of salvation even though the present is fearful, and he is eager to make known God and his will to others. He rejoices in God for God’s sake, and rejoices in God’s will just because it is God’s will.

Next, the book of Isaiah moves on to a lengthy collection of messages about the pagan nations surrounding Judah and Israel (Isaiah 13-21).

An Oracle Concerning Babylon (Isaiah 13:1-22)

In Isaiah’s lifetime, Babylon had not yet regained the position of world power that it would have in the days of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. But its proud past and burning ambition were well-known, and the Babylonians constantly dreamed of earthly glory. One irony of this vision is that Babylon’s downfall is foretold even before it attained the superpower status that it sought.

God’s future judgment of Babylon is near by his terms, so that Isaiah already hears "a noise on the mountains" (Isa 13:1-8) as God prepares punishment. Just as Babylon will one day swoop down from the north to discipline Judah and other nations, so also there will be others from faraway lands to bring down Babylon in its turn. Such is God’s transcendence that he says to "wail, for the day of the Lord* is near", though it would not happen for almost 200 years of human time.

• ·    Another example of the prophetic use of the phrase, "the day of the Lord". Here, it refers to the sudden destruction of Babylon in 538 BC. See the week two notes for more on this phrase in the prophetic books.

A brief overview of Babylonian history can help put into context Isaiah’s prophecy about Babylon, as well as the reasons for it. Even in Isaiah’s lifetime, the city of Babylon could trace its history back almost 1500 years, to its founding sometime before 2200 BC*. The city first rose to prominence when Hammurabi, one of its kings, established control over most of the Mesopotamian valley, and declared himself the ruler of a Babylonian Empire; this took place in the first half of the 1700s BC**. Hammurabi’s legal code*** was widely influential, and it is one of the earliest comprehensive set of laws that has been preserved.

• ·    Babylon was thus founded well before the birth of Abraham.

• ·    About the time when Jacob and his family moved to Egypt.

• ·    Skeptical authors often claim that the Law of Moses was inspired by the Code of Hammurabi, but the two sets of laws are different in nature. The Code is largely concerned with civil conduct and property rights, though there are some superficial similarities. Its greatest historical significance lies in it being the earliest known example of a set of unchangeable laws, to which even the king was subject.

In this era, Babylon became a respected and admired source of commerce, culture, and government. But after Hammurabi’s reign ended, his Empire* began slowly to decline and to lose its power over neighboring regions. The city was sacked and raided by the Hittites shortly after 1600 BC, and Babylon’s territory was then ruled by various foreign nations, although the city itself remained an important administrative center.

• ·    Hammurabi’s empire is usually called Babylonia, and the same name is often given to the region during the era in which it was ruled by other nations.

In Isaiah’s era, Babylonia was under the rule of Assyria, as was most of the region. In 626 BC, Babylon’s King Nabopolassar rebelled against Assyria, declaring Babylon to be an independent Empire*. In the ensuing war, Babylon’s military proved superior. When Assyria’s capital, Nineveh, fell in 612 BC, Babylon had completely replaced Assyria as the region’s superpower.

* Usually called the Neo-Babylonian Empire, to distinguish it from the earlier one.

Babylon’s future fall will seem as if the heavens are trembling (Isa 13:9-22). The images of celestial upheaval (e.g. the stars and sun darkened) are not literal, but express the feelings of those who will witness the fall of a mighty and seemingly invincible nation. It will feel much the same to the Babylonians, with their sense of false security. The sudden end to their arrogance will be all the more devastating, for the more pride one has, the greater is the fall when God decides that it is time for humbling. This, in prophecy, is the impact of "the day of the Lord".

God indicates that he plans to stir up the ancient nation of the Medes* to deal with Babylon someday, so that when the time comes there will be no chance for Babylon to survive. The prophet’s imagery depicts a city so desolate that only animals occupy it, as an expression of how complete its fall will be.

* Who, with their allies the Persians, would invade and conquer Babylon in 538 BC.

In all this, God has foreseen and made arrangements for events far into the future. He has not, in so doing, taken away any individual’s free will - quite the contrary, since Isaiah has so clearly invited anyone, anywhere to become part of the remnant. It is simply not that difficult for God to foresee the general direction of human history. Indeed, his people were so fleshly and so complacent that it was only by an outpouring of grace and mercy that he was able to hold off drastically disciplining them for so long.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why would Isaiah prophesy about a country that was not a great power in his era?

Why has God already decided to discipline Babylon?

How much of the future did God foresee?

How much of it could Isaiah understand?

Are there lessons for us in Babylon’s history?

Rejoicing Over The Broken Rod (Isaiah 14:1-23)

From the viewpoint of the people of God, Babylon would turn out to be merely one more rod, one more tool, for God to use. They would have to endure years of oppression from Babylon, but in the end they would have the satisfying experience of watching mighty Babylon fall while little Judah was restored to life. The imagery in these verses illustrates both sides of this.

This warning of doom for Babylon is also an expression of God’s compassion on the house of Jacob*, that is, his people (Isa 14:1-2). Isaiah pictures God’s people turning the tables, being honored and served by other nations, instead of being subservient and persecuted as they so often had been. This would come true in a limited sense in the return from exile, when the powerful Persian government would open up their own resources to help rebuild the nation**. It also became true in an intangible, but even more important, sense through the Messiah. The universe is Jesus’ rightful dominion, and all will bow to him someday, even if they refuse to do so now.

• ·    As so often in the prophets, Isaiah uses a person to stand for a nation. The association of Jacob with the nation of Israel also makes implicit reference to the ways in which the people so often fought against God’s will for them (see the derivation of the name Israel in Genesis 32:22-32).

• ·    See, for example, Ezra 1 and Nehemiah 2. It was Persia’s policy to befriend smaller and weaker nations that posed no threat, in order to gain their goodwill and loyalty.

The future opportunity to "taunt" the fallen Babylonians will allow the people to rejoice over the broken rod of the oppressor (Isa 14:3-21). The relief of the oppressed will be so great that Isaiah portrays even the trees celebrating Babylon’s collapse. This relief and joy is paralleled by the drastic fall of a powerful nation, and both are magnified by the sudden change in fortunes that Babylon’s fall will involve. Yet to God it was certain, at least eventually. As Isaiah grimly but truthfully says, the grave awaits even the world’s leaders and rulers; and when they die, none of their worldly power or privileges will be able to help them at all.

And so their drastic fall will see their arrogant pride and ruthless ambition duly punished. Isaiah’s description of their pride is so vivid that verses 12-15 are sometimes seen as a depiction of Satan himself*. Like all nations who considered themselves to be destined for permanent glory and unparalleled prosperity, all of their boasting and selfishness will come to nothing.

Indeed, Satan has the same kind of pride, to an even greater extreme. Thus the imagery in these verses could in a sense be descriptive of him as well, though that is not their actual context.

God closes the oracle against Babylon with a declaration that reiterates a point Isaiah has made previously (14:22-23). As would be the case with Assyria (see, for example, chapter 10), Babylon’s collapse would be complete and final. It would have no offspring, no descendants, no future. Unlike Judah or Israel, there would be no remnant to carry on the spirit and values of Babylon in a new form - for Babylon was simply a worldly nation that stood only for its own glory and power. God’s people, even when they struggle with sin and idolatry, still stand for something better and lasting. Thus they can know that their sufferings need not be fruitless.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How does the destruction of Babylon show God’s compassion on his people?

Why will the rejoicing over Babylon’s fall be so great?

What made them so terribly prideful?

What should Christians learn from these verses?

Assyria & Philistia (Isaiah 14:24-32)

Assyria and Philistia had also done more than their share to harm God’s people. While they too, like Babylon, often served as God’s agents of discipline, this did not excuse the eagerness with which they also killed, looted, and destroyed. Yet God’s people could know, even in the midst of their own spiritual struggles, that the time of judgment would come also for these foes.

The judgment on Assyria that Isaiah pronounces here (Isa 14:24-27) re-emphasizes what he has already said about the Assyrians. They will be allowed to rule and dominate for a time, but then their yoke will be taken away from Israel, Judah, and all the others they have oppressed. Assyria was not, and never would be, the focal point of history, but only a small part of God’s plans for the whole world. Once they had played their part, it would be time for them to go. Believers and unbelievers alike would do well to accept this humbling truth about time and history.

Isaiah also issues a judgment on the Philistines, Judah’s long -time neighbors and foes (14:28-32). Isaiah’s warning to them not to rejoice prematurely seems to be in response to King Ahaz’s death. The enmity between Philistia and Judah was such that almost any bad news from Judah would likely have been seen as ’good news’ in Philistia. The cloud of smoke from the north is Babylon, which later, under King Nebuchadnezzar, would end Philistia’s independence permanently*.

* The Philistines as a people were scattered, and eventually they ceased to exist.

Though dealing with events of long ago, Isaiah 13-14 has applications for us. While we should caution ourselves that God deals with individuals more so than with nations, the lessons are still significant. Pride, blindness to sin, and earthly ambitions are still deadly to our spiritual well-being. And the promise of compassion on the faithful still stands, for "the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast" (1 Peter 5:10).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah add another condemnation of Assyria here?

(What is added to his previous statements?)

Why does Philistia deserve punishment?

What general lessons should we learn from Isaiah 13-14?

Should we apply them to individuals, to churches, or on a larger scale?

Mark Garner, April 2008

One Who In Judging Seeks Justice (Isaiah 15:1 to Isaiah 17:14)

Continuing his series of pronouncements about the various nations of his era, Isaiah declares that God’s discipline will also come upon Moab and upon Damascus (that is, Aram, or Syria). Moab is brought down by its pride, while the fate of Damascus is connected with that of Israel. All the raging of the nations and their rulers fades to nothing before the power of God.

Review Of Recent Lessons

In Isaiah 7-12, we see an extended example of Isaiah’s prophetic ministry. With Judah under attack from its neighbors Israel (Ephraim) and Aram (Syria), God sends Isaiah to urge the people to trust in God, while also explaining some important teachings about the Messiah who would come in the future. This is the setting of Isaiah’s promise of Immanuel, "God with us" (Isa 7:1-8:22), and his prophecy that "to us a Son is given" (Isa 9:1-10:19). He also promises that from the stump, or ruins, of Jesse (David’s line, that is, Judah), a remnant will be preserved (Isa 10:20-12:6).

Next, Isaiah 13-21 contains a series of oracles, or pronouncements, about the nations of Isaiah’s era. First, the day of the Lord is coming for Babylon (Isaiah 13:1 to Isaiah 14:32). In this oracle, Isaiah predicts the nation’s fall even though it has not yet regained its former status as a great power. Isaiah hears ’a noise on the mountains’, for its punishment is already in preparation. Babylon - once the region’s dominant power in Hammurabi’s day, some 1000 years before Isaiah - was then under Assyrian rule, but it was well on its way to challenging Assyria for dominance.

Babylon is useful to God as a rod of discipline, but soon it too will be broken, in part to show God’s compassion on his people, Jacob. Isaiah describes the degree of rejoicing over Babylon’s fall by depicting even the trees taunting the prideful, overly ambitious nation and its kings. Assyria and Philistia also come in for their share of warning and discipline, for indeed God is the judge of all those who do not humble themselves and exalt him alone. In applying these verses, we should remember above all the danger that pride poses in our relationship with God. For God’s primary concern is not with nations or other faceless groups, but with individual hearts.

Destroyed In A Night (Isaiah 15:1-9)

Like so many nations and individuals, Israel’s neighbor Moab* was filled with pride and self-satisfaction. But Isaiah warns that destruction can and will come upon the country quickly, and without warning. After all, if powerful nations like Babylon and Assyria can exist only by God’s grace, then a smaller nation such as Moab would do well to take warning - but it didn’t.

Using an image we have seen before (see Isaiah 7:20), the prophet depicts Moab as a nation in which every head has been shaved, and every beard cut off, to symbolize complete humbling (Isa 15:1-4) . Destruction will also be sudden: Isaiah says that Ar and Kir, two leading cities, will each be destroyed in a single night. Likewise, he refers to several other locations throughout the country, showing how devastation will sweep suddenly across the whole land.

In secular history, Moab is not as significant as Babylon, Assyria, or even Israel. Yet for centuries its history was closely intertwined with that of God’s people in the Old Testament, and indeed the Moabites were closely related to the Israelites*. Moab occupied most of the portion of land on the eastern shore of the Dead Sea, directly across from Judah. Its territory was relatively stable for hundreds of years.

• ·    The Moabites were descended from Lot, Abraham’s nephew, as is recounted in Genesis 19:30-38. It was not uncommon for Moabites and Israelites to intermarry, with Ruth being the best-known example.

Moab was one of the neighboring nations that David defeated, and he made Moab subject to Israel (e.g. 2 Samuel 8:2, 1 Chronicles 18:2). In the Divided Kingdom era, Moab apparently was subject to the Northern Kingdom until the death of King Ahab, and then Moab’s King Mesha rebelled against Israel and Judah. Moab’s resulting defeat is described in 2 Kings 3:1-27 and 2 Chronicles 20:1-30*. From then on, Moab was hostile to Israel, launching raids when possible (see 2 Kings 13:20-21), and later helping Babylon in an attack on Judah (2 Kings 24:2).

• ·    Moab’s own perspective on some of these events is found on the Mesha Stele (also called the Moabite Stone), a monument discovered at ancient Dibon. As is the case with the records of many ancient nations, it tends to record only Moabite victories, and thus the inscription glorifies Mesha for his revolt, without mentioning what it cost Moab.

Moab passes from history during the sixth century BC, and by the time of the rebuilding of Jerusalem the Moabite people are no more*. While the nation was not prominent enough for ancient historians to record its final fall precisely, the historical record implies that its end came in the same era in which some of Isaiah’s other prophecies were fulfilled.

• ·    Their territory was taken over by various Arab tribes, as is reflected, for example, in Nehemiah 4:7. Today, the territory once held by Moab is part of the nation of Jordan.

Isaiah graphically depicts their flight and lamentation (Isa 15:5-9). With considerable geographical detail, he describes how their cities will be destroyed and important sources of water dried up. Details such as the grass withering, so that “nothing green is left”, are meant more figuratively than literally, reflecting a land in which all signs of life will have been extinguished.

Then too, Moab’s considerable wealth will be carried away (see also below), and the fugitives from Moab’s fall will desperately seek refuge. The harshness of Moab’s fall is shown through Isaiah’s statement that these fugitives will feel as if a lion has come upon them. In the next chapter, the prophet details the reasons why the Moabites will suffer such a dire fate.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Other than the events mentioned here, what other connections were there between Moab and the Israelites?

What general characteristics did Moab have (good or bad)?

What might some of the reasons be for Moab receiving this prophetic condemnation?

What is the meaning of the imagery about their fall?

Moab’s Empty Boasts (Isaiah 16:1-14)

Moab’s values and perspectives clashed sharply with God’s. The nation took great pride in itself and in the things it produced, but God instead looked for justice and righteousness. The Moabites sought to find ’happiness’ in the wrong things and for the wrong reasons. God took no pleasure in punishing them, but nevertheless he disciplined them all the same.

Isaiah also describes the confusion that will accompany the fall of Moab, as the survivors cry out to be given counsel (Isa 16:1- 5). Like birds thrust from their nest, the Moabites do not know what to do, and can think only of finding some kind of shelter. God’s answer is different, for though he has compassion on even the idolatrous, what he seeks is much different.

While the Moabites wonder how this could have happened, and try to think of something to do, God instead seeks faithfulness, justice, and righteousness. Anyone in Moab who wants these things, and who wants to know God, will be welcomed into the remnant, and can share in the blessings that will come from the house of David. But they will first need to realize that God’s priority is spiritual health, not physical strength, earthly security, or material possessions. And we too would do well to learn this same lesson from Moab’s example.

Moab’s pride and conceit were among the main reasons for God’s discipline (Isa 16:6-14), as the numerous expressions in verse 6 emphasize. The nation’s apparently secure position, its material prosperity, and its economic usefulness* made the Moabites feel as if they were special. They did not consider it likely that their nation would ever fall, and they felt as if they deserved to be particularly blessed. As we have seen already in Isaiah, this is always a dangerous delusion.

• ·    Moab’s territory was situated along the ancient King’s Highway, which for centuries was the main trade route connecting the large Mesopotamian nations with nations such as Arabia and Egypt. This lucky position gained Moab considerable economic and diplomatic benefits.

Moreover, even when the worst happens, the Moabites do not lament the human suffering or spiritual decay so much as they care about material things. The loss of the delicious raisin cakes* from Kir Hareseth matters more to them than their unforgiven sin, their non-existent relationship with God, or the suffering of friends and neighbors.

• ·    See Isa 16:7. Some versions translate the phrase as "the men of Kir Hareseth" and others as " the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth". The original is a play on words that seems to contrast their concern for food and material things with their lack of compassion for human suffering.

This concern for the trivial is also a lesson for us. Our culture measures everything in dollars. Our society’s opinion leaders, ’experts’, news media, and educators routinely discuss things in pretentious yet superficial terms. The legal problems, romantic involvements, and political views of brainless celebrities are considered ’news’. The pagan Moabites would fit right in.

Because of this, Moab’s "joy and gladness are taken away", and are turned to mourning. Their ’religious’ rituals gain nothing, and they do not find either the help or the answers they seek, for they are looking for the wrong things. No amount of happiness or security can last for long, unless it is based on the firm foundation that God alone can provide.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Describe the feelings the Moabites will experience when the nation falls.

Are there feelings that we might experience in our relationship with God?

What were the main reasons why God disciplined Moab?

What should we learn from them?

What did God hope to gain by disciplining Moab?

Damascus & Israel (Isaiah 17:1-14)

Isaiah has already discussed Damascus (Aram, or Syria) during the crisis of 734 BC. Because it joined with the idolatrous kingdom of northern tribes to attack Judah, Aram’s punishment will be linked with that of the Northern Kingdom, Israel. Indeed, the prophet now points out a number of unfortunate parallels. Neither nations nor persons can stand on their own without God’s grace.

Since the prophet has previously reproved and warned Aram for its alliance against Judah and its other sins (see chapters 7 -8), his oracle against Damascus is relatively brief (Isa 17:1-3). Here, Isaiah merely emphasizes the ruin that the Arameans and the city of Damascus will face*. Instead of further warnings or imagery of doom, the prophet goes on to connect Aram with their ally Israel. He makes the ironic comment that Aram’s glory will be “like the glory of the Israelites”, when in fact Israel’s glory is just about to disappear.

• ·    Note that Isaiah does not promise permanent destruction for Damascus, as he did with nations like Assyria, but only a period of devastation. The Damascus of today is the same city as ancient Damascus.

So Isaiah returns to Israel, reproaching them for having forgotten God (Isa 17:4-11). This is, again, why discipline will not come only upon pagan nations but upon Jacob (Israel), too. Here, though, there is again the promise of a remnant, illustrated by the image of gleanings, or scraps, taken from a harvested field. God’s people have strayed from him badly, and thus most of the nation will not survive, but God only needs a remnant to ensure the future.

The prophet says that they “have not remembered the Rock”, which is a spiritual danger in any era. They observed sacrifices, assemblies, and other outward activities of their faith, but their minds were focused on temporary earthly things. God’s desire is for us to depend on him, to trust in him, and to act on faith. When we depend on the world to get our needs met, or we trust in this world to give meaning to our lives, we have forgotten God.

The raging of nations, as they plot and scheme for wealth, power, and glory, continues through every century of human history (Isa 17:12-14). Isaiah warns us constantly of the folly of becoming caught up in the controversies, fads, and conflicts that concern the world at any given moment. All of the nations, all of their rulers, all human wealth, all human glory – whether those we see now, or those Isaiah saw – will be driven away like tumbleweeds whenever God wills it. We cannot remind ourselves too often of the illusory and temporary nature of all earthly things.

For us, this is a key application of these chapters and of this part of Isaiah. The folly of trusting in worldly things could not be clearer, yet we all still struggle with it. If we want to understand and appreciate what we have in God, we must give up our worldly sources of hope and purpose. Neither government nor education nor rulers nor celebrities nor athletes nor anything else in this world can meet our truest and deepest needs. But God can, does, and will.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah connect Damascus and Israel in this oracle?

Is there a spiritual parallel that we should note?

What does it mean to forget God?

How can we prevent ourselves from doing this?

How do we see the ‘raging of nations’ today?

How can Isaiah help us with our perspective on it?

- Mark Garner, May 2008

The Reeds & Rushes Will Wither (Isaiah 18:1 to Isaiah 21:17)

Isaiah’s series of oracles about the nations of his era concludes with pronouncements regarding the nations to Judah’s south: Cush, Egypt, Edom, & Arabia. Interspersed with these is an additional reminder about Babylon’s future fall. The prophet knew that even God’s own people had great difficulty putting these nations and their activities into a godly perspective.

Review Of Recent Lessons

After the series of prophecies given while Judah was under attack (Isaiah 7-12), the book of Isaiah then has a series of oracles (pronouncements) about other nations of the time. Isaiah first declares that the "day of the Lord" is coming for Babylon (Isaiah 13:1 to Isaiah 14:32). Along with the oracle about Babylon, the prophet discusses Assyria and Philistia.

The next prophecy emphasizes God as "one who in judging seeks justice" (Isaiah 15:1 to Isaiah 17:14). This time, the smaller nation of Moab is warned that destruction can come in a night if God so wills it. Moab’s history was for centuries intertwined with Israel’s, sometimes on a friendly basis and sometimes on a hostile basis. But flight and lamentation have been decreed for the Moabites.

The main reason for this warning of doom is Moab’s empty boasts. Their pride and conceit are all out of proportion with their status. The nation was small but prosperous, and its concern for the trivial had pulled the hearts of the Moabites far from God. Isaiah also links Damascus (the capital of Aram, or Syria) with Israel, because of their crass military alliance. Unbelievers and God’s own people alike have forgotten God. The raging of nations and peoples may seem important superficially, but the events of this world have little lasting importance in God’s eyes.

Warnings To Cush & Egypt (Isaiah 18:1 to Isaiah 19:15)

The African nations of Egypt and Cush (or Kush*) were two of the world’s oldest civilizations, both with histories that began long before Isaiah’s lifetime. In this era, they were largely sheltered from danger by other nations and natural obstacles. They had thus developed a false sense of security, combined with ambitions of gaining more influence in world affairs.

* Conventionally spelled Cush in most Bible versions, although Kush may be more historically accurate.

Isaiah’s warning to Cush (Isaiah 18:1-7) came when that nation had great ambitions. Cush’s strength was near its height, and (by 715 BC) it had established dominance over its neighbor Egypt. Isaiah’s address to Cush begins with the evocative phrase, "Woe to the land of whirring wings". On a literal level, this refers to the large and numerous insects inhabiting the Nile region, where both Egypt and Cush were located. Though residents of these areas were thoroughly accustomed to them, these insects invariably frightened and intimidated visitors from other countries.

On a more figurative level, the whirring wings are symbolic of the frantic political and diplomatic activity in the region, as human leaders and rulers competed with one another to fulfill their earthly ambitions. The Cushites eagerly sought to play a major role in the diplomatic and military activities taking place in the sensitive areas around Judah. Most significantly, they hoped to equal Assyria in regional influence. All of this seemed vitally important to everyone at the time, but to God it was as insignificant as the loud whirring of insects’ wings.

Cush was one of the nations arising from the ancient Nubian civilizations along the Nile Valley, which are among the oldest known in human history. Over time, the Egyptians came to rule over the Lower Nile (that is, the portion closest to the ocean) while the Cushites established their kingdom along the Upper Nile, to the south*. For centuries, Cush and Egypt battled for dominance in the region, with Cush holding the upper hand during Isaiah’s lifetime. Although it soon lost its dominance over Egypt, Cush continued for several centuries afterward, generally known to history as Ethiopia**, the name given to it by the Greeks***.

• ·    Roughly where the present-day nation of Sudan is located.

• ·    Note that this should not be directly equated with the present-day nation of Ethiopia (known historically as Abyssinia), although there are some historical connections between the two.

• ·    The “Ethiopian eunuch” in Acts 8 is, in fact, a Cushite. The “Candace” referred to in Acts 8:27 as his ruler is more accurately referred to as Kandake. A long-standing Cushite tradition, the Kandake was a queen or empress who ruled over large portions of the Nile region.

During the era when Isaiah lived, the nations of Cush, Egypt, and Assyria had many interactions with one another, while Judah (and, before its fall, Israel) found itself caught in the middle. While Egypt frequently played a prominent role in Israelite history, this is one of the few eras in which Cush was a significant direct influence on the nation*.

• ·    Note, though, that Moses married a Cushite (see Numbers 12:1), and Cush is also mentioned at least in passing in several other books of the Old Testament. In some contexts, Cush came to be used as a general term to refer to the African nations other than Egypt. The Queen of Sheba is also thought to have been a Cushite, and very possibly was the Kandake (see note above) of her era.

The general situation is reflected in these verses by Cush’s eagerness to send envoys abroad, especially to a land “divided by rivers” (referring to Mesopotamia, the region of Assyria and also Babylon). Cush had no ideological position, just ambition, and would have welcomed equally the chance to ally with Assyria or the opportunity to compete with Assyria. God, for his part, is remaining quiet and watching the fruitless strivings and empty ambitions of earthly nations, until the time comes for him to use them for his own purposes.

The prophecy against Egypt (Isaiah 19:1-15) is set in this same situation, but it is much more pointed. God here is pictured as “riding on a swift cloud” as he prepares to deal with Egypt. Even when they were weak, the ancient Egyptians still tended to see themselves as a world power whose name made other nations tremble. As Isaiah’s warning details, Egypt was beset by internal rivalries and external threats, yet its foolish ’wise men’ helped the rest of the Egyptians delude themselves into a false sense of security. God intends to use this to discipline them.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does God warn Cush?

Why is Egypt being warned?

Why is Egypt warned so much more severely?

How might this situation affect Judah?

Are there ways in which this situation can teach us today?

They Will Acknowledge The Lord (Isaiah 19:16 to Isaiah 20:6)

Even when disciplining unbelieving nations, God’s desire is never punishment or destruction for their own sake. In all things, God seeks for us to acknowledge him as the only living God. Because he knows that any nation, any time, can hold souls who seek him from the heart, he therefore gives his attention – including his discipline – to them all, as we now see here.

This next passage is not always easy to interpret*, yet it is an encouraging vision of the ways that God works to bring to him a remnant from the nations. Isaiah describes Egyptians and Assyrians joining Israel in getting on the “highway” that leads to God (Isaiah 19:16-25). Predominately (though not exclusively) Messianic, this passage tells how “in that day” God will bless even those nations he once brought low, for the sake of those among the remnant who come from them.

• ·    The obscure details in verse 18 are probably not meant to be literal. Some commentators think that Isaiah is referencing Joshua 10, where five cities (or kings) symbolized overall conquest. More likely, the number five has no significance, and Isaiah is simply saying that in the Nile region there will be a fair number of persons who come to worship the living God – not necessarily concentrated in any literal place or places.

When Egyptians and Assyrians humbly turn to God, it will of course not be as nations, but as individuals* - yet it is no less wonderful and no less miraculous for that. Here we see the remnant process taking place on a larger scale than the prophet has mentioned previously, as he makes emphatically clear that God’s plans include (and have always included) the salvation and blessing of everyone in the world who seeks him in spirit and in truth.

* Acts 2 mentions both Mesopotamians (Acts 2:9) and Egyptians (Acts 2:10) as being in the crowd at Pentecost.

Historically, Judaism would later become well- established in Egypt, and in particular it would become an important part of the education and cultural sphere in the great city of Alexandria. Christianity too would find fertile ground in Egypt, and in early Christianity the congregation at Alexandria would rise to become one of the strongest and most influential congregations*.

• ·    Note also that the churches in northern Africa tended to be the firmest at resisting both the persecutions and the false teachings that eventually led the New Testament church into spiritual decay.

But before such things can happen, discipline is needed, as Isaiah emphasizes himself by going stripped and barefoot (Isaiah 20:1-6). Isaiah is a living example to Judah, reproaching it for taking a worldly approach to current events, since Judah and its rulers were now looking to Egypt and Cush as their protectors against the increasingly dangerous Assyrians. Even from an earthly perspective, this was a dubious hope, since it would be much easier for Assyria to attack Judah than for the African nations to defend it - yet it was an even bigger mistake spiritually.

God thus will make sure that the weakness of Egypt and Cush is exposed. Just after an Assyrian raid on the Philistine city of Ashdod (in 711 BC), God calls Isaiah to spend the next three years as a humiliating but striking image of the emptiness of the nations in the face of God. This is accompanied by the warning that Cush and Egypt will be of little use against Assyria.

This in turn was proven dramatically in 671 BC (probably after Isaiah’s death) when a brutal Assyrian raid of the Nile region was followed by a long procession of mostly naked prisoners taken captive to Assyria. The procession passed through Judah, so that the Judeans could "see what happened to those we relied on". The same kind of disappointment awaits all who trust in worldly force, leaders, or wealth to solve their problems or to make them feel more secure.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense will Egypt and Assyria turn to God?

Why will God strike them first and then heal them?

What is the meaning of the image of a highway?

How does it compare with the use of the same image in Isaiah 11:16?

Morning Is Coming, But Also The Night (Isaiah 21:1-17)

Once more, we see both sides of God’s nature in these prophecies, as God seeks the kind of spiritual repentance and renewal that often come only after a period of discipline. Along with Babylon, Edom and Arabia are added to the list of nations that Isaiah prophesies about. They too will endure hardships as part of the grim but vital process of calling out a spiritual remnant.

In another oracle about Babylon (Isaiah 21:1-10), the prophet vividly describes the tumult of Babylon’s future fall. Isaiah reviews God’s will for Babylon to fall, the surprise of the decisive attack, and the dramatic change of fortunes that will accompany it. Although he has already thoroughly detailed Babylon’s collapse and the reasons for it, Isaiah repeats the basic message here because it is part of the overall picture he is painting.

Likewise, the oracle concerning Edom (poetically called "Dumah", a play on words*) should be seen in this light (Isaiah 21:11-12). Isaiah gives no specific reasons why Edom should suffer**, yet he portrays the Edomites as anxiously watching events around them, fearing that they too may be harmed in the confusion. The enigmatic answer of the Edomite watchman, in Isaiah’s prophecy, acknowledges simply that they are helpless in the face of larger and more powerful forces. Edom too will have to endure the pain that the entire region is going to suffer, so that God can proceed with the all-important plan of preparing a spiritual remnant.

• ·    Dumah means silent, foretelling how the nation of Edom will one day be silenced forever.

• ·    On the other hand, the entire prophetic book of Obadiah is devoted to Edom’s fall and the reasons for it. As close relatives of the Israelites, they should have sympathized with the troubles of their brothers, but instead they looked for ways to profit from them. Edom was displaced by the Babylonian invasions and then dwindled out as a nation, though their descendants, the Idumeans, remained for some centuries.

The next oracle also warns the Arabians* of trouble (Isaiah 21:13-17). They would not suffer invasion, destruction, or captivity as some of the other nations would, but they would suffer economically because of their reliance on trade with these other nations. So they too needed to get ready for tough times. Isaiah does not ask whether they ‘deserve’ this in human terms, since it is not relevant. As humans, they too have sinned in many ways, and as a nation they, like the others, exist only by God’s grace. Spiritually, any Arabian who sincerely sought God would only benefit from the reminder of how fragile and temporary the things of this world are.

* At the time, a group of independent kingdoms, rather than a unified nation.

These last several chapters summarize for us the ways that God used Isaiah’s ministry to begin laying the groundwork for his remnant. From 740 BC, when Isaiah began his prophecies, until 538 BC, when the first captives began to return to Judah, the world went through a long series of traumatic and often painful series of events. Secular historians analyze many of these events in great detail, but to God they mattered only insofar as they furthered his designs.

We too must learn to let God’s perfect will sustain us. Our pre-occupation with worldly events, worldly crises, and worldly goals – no matter how important they seem to be – keeps us from knowing and loving God. God’s ways often seem incomprehensible or even objectionable to the flesh. If God’s ways were as pleasing to the flesh as they are to the spirit, then we would not need to have faith. But we do need genuine faith, and this is just what God seeks in our hearts.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah again mention Babylon?

Why does he warn Edom and Arabia without detailing their sins?

What overall lessons should we learn from Isaiah 13-21?

How do they apply to the church today?

How can we develop a faithful acceptance of God’s will, no matter what our fleshly natures think?

- Mark Garner, May 2008

The Valley Of Vision (Isaiah 22:1 to Isaiah 24:23)

In the next several chapters (Isaiah 22-27), the prophet calls us to consider what God is doing on an even larger scale. Isaiah calls his hearers and readers to the realization that the entire earth is of a temporary, fragile nature. Indeed, it is this sobering truth that is behind God’s desire to preserve a remnant of spiritual survivors, whose faith can overcome anything in this world.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Isaiah 13-21 contains a series of oracles about the nations of the day. Each one is warned about its pride, for they all tended to see themselves as special and superior, regardless of their actual condition. Babylon (chapters 13 & 14), Moab (Chapters 15 & 16), Damascus (or Aram) and Ephraim (or Israel, Chapter 17), as well as the southern nations of Cush, Egypt, Edom, and Arabia (Chapters 18, 19, 20, and 21), would all face God’s discipline in the near future.

Isaiah warns the nations along the Nile that God will bring upon them a day when their reeds and rushes will wither (Isaiah 18:1 to Isaiah 21:17), implying their decline. In his warnings to Cush and Egypt, Isaiah calls them the "land of whirring wings", since the heavy insect population along the Nile symbolized the noisy, empty nature of their worldly ambitions in Isaiah’s lifetime.

God’s goal is not punishment for punishment’s sake, but to get humans to acknowledge their Lord. Egyptians, Cushites, and Assyrians are all invited to get on the ’highway’ that Isaiah describes. This image calls us to use discernment in looking at the world’s misfortunes, so that we can see our need for God. Isaiah himself spends three years stripped and barefoot, to emphasize the final fate of those who trust in worldly strength. Then, to neighboring Edom and Arabia (and to Babylon as well), Isaiah warns that morning is coming, but also the night.

God is laying the groundwork for the remnant, which will be open to believers from any nation, any time. This is all that truly mattered in Isaiah’s day, and it is all that truly matters in our own. In the next section of Isaiah (chapters 22-27), Isaiah guides us into the change of perspective that will come when we truly understand what God is doing on this earth.

Captured Without Using The Bow (Isaiah 22:1-25)

In this passage, the prophet gives Jerusalem a warning in some respects similar to the warnings in previous chapters, but this one goes deeper. Isaiah calls for no less than a complete adjustment of perspective, urging the people to learn the right lessons from the things they see and know. He even uses two particular individuals as living examples of his message.

The prophet warns the complacent residents of Jerusalem that their self-centered revelry can change to terror before they realize what is happening (Isaiah 22:1-14). They have come to take God for granted as an all-purpose protector, but God can pull the city down in a moment if he wills it; he can arrange for them to be captured and humbled even without weapons, should he so wish.

Jerusalem was on a hill, so Isaiah’s phrase, ’Valley Of Vision’ contradicts the physical facts, just as Jerusalem has taken on an identity opposite of what God intended. It is the valley of vision, because God wishes them to reverse their perspective from the physical and seen to the spiritual and unseen. Even the Israelites have fallen into the same habit of focusing on the temporary and fleshly that afflicts the ’unbelieving’ nations. The only cure is for them once again to start seeing clearly. And, given the condition of their hearts, this will only come about through discipline.

Isaiah uses the city’s water reservoir to illustrate this. King Hezekiah’s aqueduct* had for the first time established an underground connection between the city’s water source and the city itself**, so that Jerusalem no longer had worry about getting cut off from its water supply. No problem in itself, of course, but the prophet describes how this feeling of security had become a self-satisfied feeling, rather than on of gratitude.

• ·    See 2 Kings 20:20, 2 Chronicles 32:2-4. The aqueduct was an impressive engineering feat for the time.

• ·    Jerusalem’s water source was the Gihon spring, east of the city and outside its walls. Earlier, an overhead conduit connected the city with the spring, so that the residents did not have to leave the safety of the city walls to get water. But in times of siege, an enemy might be able to cut off the city’s water by damaging the exposed conduit. Hezekiah’s project eliminated this danger.

Jerusalem’s attitude of "Let us eat and drink . . . ", ignoring or denying their serious spiritual needs, incurs God’s reproach. Their pride in being ’Gods people’, their pride in their ’strong’ city, and their pride in outward appearance were no different, spiritually, than the pride for which Moab, Babylon, and Egypt would also be disciplined. The prophet’s dire warning that their sin would never be atoned for* emphasizes how strongly God opposes pride.

• ·    In saying this, it is implicit that God realizes the impossibility of their repentance. Otherwise they would still have a chance to receive atonement.

To illustrate this on an individual level, Isaiah compares two palace stewards (Isaiah 22:15-25). The steward at the time, Shebna*, is reproved, for his presumption and pride have made him unworthy. He will thus be hurled away, demoted from his position and humbled publicly. We know little else about Shebna, but we do know that God often allows prideful rulers and officials to remain in place for many years. So Shebna must have been particularly hardened in his pride.

• ·    Shebna is mentioned several times in 2 Kings 18-19, and he appears again in Isaiah 36-37. In these passages, he has been demoted to secretary rather than palace administrator, in keeping with the prophecy.

In contrast with this bad example is Eliakim*, who will replace him. Isaiah refers to him as a peg driven into a firm place, the kind of servant who can be counted on to put his responsibilities first, not himself. Yet also Isaiah foresees the day when this ’peg’ will be sheared off, because Eliakim can only protect his own faithfulness in an unfaithful society. He cannot carry anyone by his coattails, and those who think that their association with him can save them are mistaken.

• ·    For more on Eliakim, see 2 Kings 18-19 and Isaiah 36-37 (same passages as above), in which Isaiah’s prediction has come true, and Eliakim is now the palace administrator.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How does the ’Valley Of Vision’ apply to us today?

Why wasn’t Jerusalem treated any differently than unbelieving cities and nations?

What should we learn from this?

How should we apply the contrast between the two stewards?

The Marketplace Of The Nations (Isaiah 23:1-18)

The wealthy, prominent city of Tyre well merited Isaiah’s description of it as "the marketplace of the nations". Amongst all the places that Isaiah’s oracles mention, Tyre held a rather unique position. While all of the other cities and nations competed bitterly with one another, they all wanted Tyre to remain secure, successful, and prosperous, for this would benefit everyone.

Because Tyre was such an important part of the world’s economy, the grief and wailing over its fall (Isaiah 23:1-14) will be considerable. The prophet depicts the anguish as carrying all the way from Tarshish*, on one end of the Mediterranean Sea, to Egypt, on the other, and presumably many places in between. Yet the wailing and grief will be selfish, not compassionate. Those who grieve for Tyre do not care about the dead individuals, but for their own inconvenience and loss.

• ·    Tarshish is familiar to Bible readers for being the place that Jonah was trying to reach instead of going to Nineveh. Known to ancient history as Tartessus, this was a mining region on the eastern coast of Spain. It was rich in metal deposits, especially silver and tin (quite valuable at the time). Because Tartessus was such a long distance from most of the major nations, its prosperity depended on shipping, Tyre’s specialty.

Tyre was the main city of the influential Phoenician civilization. Located on the coast about 100 miles north of Jerusalem*, for centuries it was the center of maritime trade for a large part of the world. It was home to a large harbor and extensive warehouses, and conducted all aspects of international trade. Its geographical situation was secure, for Tyre was in essence two different cities. A strip of settlements along the mainland coast provided a constant supply of timber and fresh water to the main city, which was located on a fortified island. The main city was so secure that it once withstood a 13-year siege at the hands of Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar.

* Today, Tyre is in the southern part of the nation of Lebanon, near Lebanon’s border with Israel.

Tyre was devoted to wealth and prosperity, but Isaiah makes clear that it was Tyre’s pride and complacency (again) that constituted its worst sins. Its residents showed no concern for anything but their own well-being and enjoyment. Like so many other nations Isaiah has mentioned, they took pride in their wealth and felt that they deserved it. But "the Lord Almighty planned it, to bring low the pride of all glory and to humble all who are renowned on the earth" (verse 9).

Tyre began to decline not long after Isaiah’s day, gradually losing its independence, and finally being conquered by Alexander the Great in 332 BC*. It maintained some of its commercial influence for a while, but it eventually dwindled into obscurity. Like so many other powerful leaders, nations, and cities, its relatively brief period of glory turned out to be pretty meaningless.

• ·    Alexander’s famous victory over Tyre was achieved with the use of a causeway that his army built to connect the mainland with the island.

Isaiah also foresaw a figurative ’comeback’ for Tyre (Isaiah 23:15-18). Notice that this is not a welcome or deserved comeback, but instead is described as the return of a prostitute. While Tyre’s wealth alone was not the main reason why God disciplined it, neither was Tyre’s role as the marketplace of the nations pleasing to God.

Historically, Tyre never came close to regaining its former wealth or prominence. Isaiah is not proclaiming a return to fame of the physical city of Tyre, but rather a thematic truth about the human world. With Tyre brought low, the nations simply found other cities and other nations to take its place in finance and commerce. The leading economic pillars of the world come and go, but human nature is such that there will always be these centers of greed and materialism.

When the prophet says that the wealth of the ’new’ Tyre will be set apart for the Lord, rather than being hoarded by the materialistic, this also is not a literal prophecy but a spiritual truth. Those with material wealth in this world do not really own it at all, and in their hearts they know that they cannot enjoy it forever. This is one reason why the wealthy and powerful of the world are so jealous of their possessions and their authority, and why they selfishly and unthinkingly strive for more, even when they already have more than they need or deserve.

It is only the truly faithful who can gratefully enjoy their temporary possessions on this earth, without craving more and without envying others. The faithful believer with a few humble possessions is far richer than an unbeliever with storehouses full of worldly treasures.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What parallels to Tyre might there be today?

What current lessons should we learn from Isaiah’s prophecy about Tyre?

Does it tell us anything about the way God views worldly prosperity and wealth?

The Moon Abashed & The Sun Ashamed (Isaiah 24:1-23)

Isaiah’s series of dire warnings now reaches a climax, as he indicates that God’s discipline is not limited to the finite series of oracles that Isaiah has given. Rather, the entire world is sinful, fragile, and ultimately destined for destruction. This realization puts into proper perspective not only everything Isaiah has said, but a good deal more of God’s Word as well.

It is a sobering but undeniable truth that one day the entire earth will be laid waste (Isaiah 24:1-13)*. We constantly see portions of the earth devastated by wars, natural disasters, accidents, and the like, yet very few humans are discerning enough to learn the real lessons that this holds. Delusional ’leaders’ and opinion makers think that their wisdom and self-righteousness can someday create a safe, perfect world. But in truth, no one, nowhere, no time, is ever safe.

* Chapters 24-27 are sometimes called "Isaiah’s apocalypse" by commentators.

Neither famous nor obscure, neither poor nor rich, are exempted from God’s judgment, just as no one is exempted from physical death. This earth, for all the good things in it, was never meant to be permanent, and the whole earth has long been defiled and cursed by human sin. Even those most intelligent in worldly terms are too blind to see the impermanent, fragile nature of the earth as it really is. They settle for short-term pleasures and gaiety, which disappear in a moment. God wants us to have joy that lasts, not earthly fun or even ’happiness’, which do not last.

Isaiah wants us to see God’s overwhelming glory (Isaiah 24:14-23). The joy of the faithful cannot be complete until this world passes away, and eternal reality is revealed and made known. There is, of course, a cost to this, not least in the terror that the faithless will feel when all is revealed. In truth, though, the faithless live in terror even on this earth, always worried about not getting their way, and knowing that death could at any moment take away all that they live for.

So someday the floodgates will be opened (Isaiah 24:18). All we now see and touch is impermanent, existing for a while by God’s grace. Even the moon and the sun will be overshadowed when God’s glorious light is finally revealed. The upheavals that Isaiah predicts for the nations of his time, as well as the traumas and tragedies of our own era, merely foreshadow the world’s ultimate fate. The faithless groan at the thought of all they desire disappearing at a stroke, but the faithful rejoice in knowing with certainty that something far better than this world awaits us.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How does the earth being laid waste connect with the remnant and other themes Isaiah has taught so far?

Why does he go into such lavish detail about the earth being broken up and destroyed?

How should we respond?

Mark Garner, May 2008

A Shelter From The Storm (Isaiah 25:1 to Isaiah 27:13)

In this part of Isaiah (chapters 22-27), the prophet calls us to realize that the entire earth is of a temporary, fragile nature. Amongst many other implications, this emphasizes the importance of the spiritual remnant that God is preparing. Although Isaiah has just proclaimed some of his grimmest prophecies, he now adds a message that combines exhortation with lasting hope.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Isaiah 13-21 contains oracles about some of the nations of Isaiah’s era. Babylon, Moab, Damascus (Aram), Ephraim (symbolic of the northern tribes), Cush, Egypt, Edom, and Arabia are all warned that there are hard times ahead, as God brings the discipline that is necessary in order to build a highway for the remnant of his people from all over the earth. Isaiah 22-27* then describes the change of perspective that can help us to understand what God is doing.

• ·    Chapters 24-27 are sometimes called "Isaiah’s apocalypse". Recall that the term ’apocalypse’ most correctly means a revealing, an uncovering of the truth.

Isaiah describes God’s people as being in ’the Valley of Vision’ (Isaiah 22:1 to Isaiah 24:23), where they are called to see things more clearly. The complacent residents of Jerusalem are warned that, if God wills it, they can be captured suddenly or face unexpected terror in Jerusalem. The prophet uses two palace stewards, one prideful and the other faithful, as a living illustration.

Isaiah then prophesies against Tyre, the "marketplace of the nations". Anguish over Tyre’s future collapse will be felt in all directions, because of its economic importance. But Tyre is not special to God, and its pride has doomed it to harsh discipline. Yet Isaiah’s warning is not only for the specific nations and cities that he has preached against, but for the whole world.

This entire world is temporary, and even the sun and moon themselves are put to shame by God’s transcendent majesty and might. One day the entire earth will be laid waste, and no one will be exempt. Unbelievers will be terrified and helpless, but the faithful will rejoice forever more in finally having the chance to see God’s overwhelming glory in all its truth.

The Hand Of The Lord (Isaiah 25:1-12)

God’s discipline can be harsh and painful, even for believers, yet it is an essential part of calling out God’s remnant. Those who know and love God cannot be fulfilled by worldly things, yet they are still human, and are tempted by them. God’s sternness in dealing with the unfaithful is part of his compassion on the faithful, who will receive the best and most lasting of his blessings.

Isaiah reminds us that his prophecies present things planned long before his own time (Isaiah 25:1-5). God’s priorities have never changed, and he has known our needs since before we were created. God can foresee the need for disciplining the nations without knowing what a particular individual will do. Whatever Isaiah prophesies about a nation, the individuals of that nation can still choose for themselves whether to follow God or to follow idols.

Humbling the strong and proud has always been part of the way that God deals with humanity. Isaiah says that the fortified town will become a ruin, and that the stronghold will never be rebuilt, to illustrate how God can humble us by taking away the worldly things that give us a false sense of security and meaning. God eventually humbles all of the proud, without playing favorites, giving hope to the faithful no matter who or where they are. Even some citizens of ruthless nations will honor God (Isaiah 25:3) as a result.

God also provides an ever-present refuge for the poor and weak. Once again, though, God does not play favorites; the poor are not automatically safe solely for that reason. But a poor, weak, or outcast person can always be assured that God is the one place where all are loved and welcome. God is also the one judge who judges always on the truth alone. God is consistent in all things: in his values, in his priorities, in his nature, in his purity, in his truthfulness. His eternal consistency is both encouraging and convicting.

Isaiah returns to one of his recurring images, promising that "on this mountain"* the Lord will bless and perfect his people (25:6-12). The rich feast he provides connects back to Isaiah 23:18, where he promised that the wealth of the ’Tyres’ of the world would be reserved for the faithful. This, too, is not a promise of literal feasting, but of the surpassing joys that come with knowing God forever. He will also do away with all tears, both those caused by sadness and those caused by sin. These shrouds of darkness can only be removed permanently for the humble and faithful.

* Compare this passage, in particular, with Isaiah 2:1-4; Isaiah 11:9; Isaiah 18:3. See also the questions below.

Isaiah calls us to sing, "this is our God", for in him we have found a true and lasting hope. Those whose faith is conditional and temporary, and those whose faith is in human righteousness or human wisdom, will inevitably be let down. The prophet once again uses graphic imagery to describe the ultimate faith of the proud. The rising and falling of souls, the same phenomenon that Simeon associates with Jesus in Luke 2:34-35, will take place contrary to all earthly human standards. Humans admire, honor, and imitate the proud, the ambitious, and the self-confident. Such persons might as well enjoy their acclaim now, for their eternal fate will be a grim one.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What New Testament passages describe how God feels towards the proud (and the weak)?

How do they compare with Isaiah’s emphasis?

How else does Isaiah use mountains?

Do they always mean the same thing?

How does the mountain image apply for us?

What kind of ’feast’ does Isaiah promise here?

Your Name Alone Do We Honor (Isaiah 26:1-21)

This song of praise reminds us of the transcendent blessings that the faithful receive from God, while also cautioning us that the remnant must worship God alone. It has ever been God’s nature to bring down the high and mighty, and to lift up the humble and lowly. Those who forget this do so at their own peril. Those who remember it are able to see God as he truly is.

The prophet describes here what we often call ’walking with God’ (Isaiah 26:1-11), that is, the characteristics of a day-to-day relationship with God. He illustrates this first with the image of a city, turning a simple example a direct challenge of the ways that many of his hearers sought security and confidence. Isaiah’s strong and righteous ’city’ is, in fact, not a physical city at all.

Judah was used to thinking of safety and security being represented by the physical city of Jerusalem*, but Isaiah calls them to build a truly strong city based on the spiritual strength that comes with salvation. This lesson was badly needed by Isaiah’s audience, and today’s believers likewise would do well to stop seeking worldly forms of security and to realize how much better it is to have an eternal security that puts the troubles of this world into their proper perspective.

* From David’s time to Isaiah’s, Jerusalem had successfully withstood all foreign attempts to capture it.

When the prophet assures the faithful that they will experience perfect peace and level paths, this too is a spiritual promise, and it too is better than a promise of mere worldly success and ease. There is no shortage of examples, both in history and at the present time, of humans whose earthly lives contain things that everyone else envies, and yet who always feel a need for more.

God’s grace, God’s righteousness, and God’s zeal are the kinds of blessings that cure the soul and the spirit of their longings and their constant sufferings. In his extraordinary patience, God grants us many blessings that we do not really need. But he earnestly hopes that we shall someday realize that his greatest and most defining qualities do not serve the needs of our flesh at all, but the deeper needs of our souls. The activities and struggles of the flesh only have lasting meaning insofar as they help us (and others) to see beyond this temporary world.

Isaiah frequently reminds us that the Lord, or his day, is coming (Isaiah 26:12-21). We have seen, from the ways in which Isaiah uses these phrases, that they can mean a number of things* in earthly terms. But in one sense or another these will always mean one thing: God will make his presence felt in our affairs, in a way that the faithful cannot help but notice. Here, though, Isaiah speaks in a more general and long-term sense, more similar to the ways in which ’the Lord’s coming’ might be used by some believers today.

• ·    Most previous examples in Isaiah have foretold acts of divine discipline. In the notes to week two of this class series, there is a list of selected examples of these phrases in Isaiah, which you can use, if desired, as a basis for further study.

This chapter’s exhortations, then, do not apply to a specific situation so much as they help strengthen our faith and clarify our spiritual perspective. Then, whenever our Lord chooses to make his presence clear, our response will be one of awe and joy, not guilt and fear. As Isaiah so aptly reminds us, in our earthly lives there are many persons who presume to rule over us or to have authority over us, yet only God should receive our honor, our faith, and our reverence.

Right after these observations, the prophet reminds us of the ’departed spirits’, not to threaten us, but to clear our minds of the world’s lies. He depicts the persons of the earth in their restless strivings, comparing their efforts to the pains of childbirth, but with a crucial difference. For the strivings of the worldly are empty; "we gave birth to wind". No amount of education, labor, or sacrifice can give any genuine, lasting meaning to the affairs of this earth. They matter to God only insofar as they help the discerning to see God or to see their need for God. To those who do see through the distractions of the world, God offers a truly new birth.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kind of ’strong city’ is Isaiah describing?

Would this image apply differently for his original hearers?

How ought we honor God alone, and not the earthly ’lords’ who claim to rule us?

Why does Isaiah compare our earthly labors with childbirth?

Why does it give birth to ’wind’?

Purification & Redemption (Isaiah 27:1-13)

In a series of poetic images, Isaiah now recapitulates in brief God’s overall desire. The world - all the nations, all the peoples - will be shaken, disciplined, and humbled. Those who allow God to purify them will become part of God’s remnant. His eyes always see everything, everywhere, and he will gather up the souls in his remnant irrespective of their time, place, or earthly status.

The spiritual struggle that the prophet describes is ongoing, and shall continue as long as this earth exists (Isaiah 27:1-11). While in the flesh, we are only dimly aware of it, and even our small level of interest often leads us only into empty speculations. But it is still real.

This is why Isaiah speaks of God punishing ’Leviathan’, the mythical great beast of the sea*. Once again, the image is a figurative one, which is used a number of times in the Old Testament**. In one sense, Leviathan is an encapsulation of the ancient fears of the sea and its strange creatures. Prophetically, it is used as an image of uncontrollable force - uncontrollable, that is, to humans. It is used here, as the sea itself is used elsewhere, to symbolize the frightening, but ultimately pointless, strivings of worldly nations and rulers***.

• ·    Most often pictured as a giant sea serpent. Contrary to the fanciful efforts of some commentators, Leviathan does not refer to any real animal. Neither crocodiles nor prehistoric reptiles would match the literal details in Scripture (see below).

• ·    See Job 3:8; Job 41:1; Psalms 74:14; Psalms 104:26. (How is the image used in these passages?)

• ·    See, for example, Daniel 7 and Revelation 13.

Isaiah then returns to a previous image, in speaking of the Lord’s vineyard - which (see Isaiah 5) despite God’s lavish care, has not been fruitful. Now, God laments that it would not be nearly so bad if the problem was only briers and thorns, instead of a far sadder spiritual illness. Because of this, it is only through discipline and atonement that God can proceed, as Isaiah has so often said.

But to climax this portion of his book, Isaiah describes the great gathering that will make everything else worthwhile (Isaiah 27:12-13). God was even then threshing the human grain fields to seek out those who longed for his truth. Even in Isaiah’s time, God was looking to draw a remnant from out of all the nations of the world (that is, not only from Israel).

God rejoices in Assyrians, Egyptians, and those of all nations joining the remnant of Israel itself

• ·    along with those of us who remain faithful to the truth - on the holy mountain. This is the fulfillment of what Isaiah has been preaching, and it truly makes trivial all of the world’s noise, lies, and pretensions. We the faithful, the church, can be part of this by God’s grace. We do not need to coerce or manipulate one another, nor need we meet any kind of numerical or result-oriented ’standard’. We need only to stop taking ourselves so seriously, stop listening to the lies of the worldly, and start building more of an appreciation for God’s grace, Word, and will.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What is the point of God’s conquest of ’Leviathan’?

What does the prophet want us to learn from his re-use of the vineyard image?

What kind of gathering is he describing in verses 12-13?

How does this sum up what Isaiah has said in the rest of the book so far?

Mark Garner, May 2008

Grain Must Be Ground (Isaiah 28:1 to Isaiah 29:12)

Now that the prophet has carefully detailed God’s wish to call forth a remnant of believers out of an unbelieving world, he begins to focus more closely on the foundation of faith that God wishes his remnant to have. Since the world will not stop in its efforts to pull us back into its futility, Isaiah’s warnings and exhortations are just as vital to today’s believers as they were originally.

Review Of Isaiah 1-27

Isaiah 1-5 provides an exposition of the book’s main themes, centering on the warning to return to God, and on the promise of grace and blessing for those who do. Then (Isaiah 6), Isaiah describes his call to prophetic ministry. Seeing the Lord was a humbling experience, and it gave him a perspective that transcended the temporary concerns and trivial affairs of this world.

With Judah under attack from the northern tribes of Israel in alliance with Aram, God sends Isaiah to teach both the king and the people to trust in God, not in worldly force (Isaiah 7-12). In so doing, Isaiah also proclaims some significant prophecies about the Messiah. The Immanuel theme (’God with us’) ties together the (then) present and the future.

The emphasis then turns outward (Isaiah 13-21), as the prophet proclaims a series of oracles about the nations of his era. These messages show God’s desire to crush human pride in all its forms, and his desire to build a remnant of persons from every time and place who seek the truth and who wish to know their God.

The prophet exhorts believers to adopt a complete change of perspective (Isaiah 22-27), and to see both worldly things and spiritual things in their true light. The last four chapters of this section are often called "Isaiah’s Apocalypse" because of the drastic change of viewpoint they present. Isaiah describes Jerusalem as ’the Valley of Vision’, for God’s people have become the opposite of what they were intended to be, and now need to see things more clearly. The entire earth is perishable and temporary; it will suffer much discipline and will someday cease even to exist. But God will always provide a shelter from the storm, spiritual safety, for his remnant.

An overriding lesson in this part of Isaiah is the awareness of what really matters to God. From his divine and eternal perspective, his thoughts about earthly events are much different than ours are. If we develop the right point of view, then we can see how everything in this life actually points us to our need for God and for the lasting blessings that only he can give us.

A Wreath For The Remnant (Isaiah 28:1-15)

While worldly persons frantically seek the paltry, perishable rewards (’wreaths’) that this earth offers, God wishes to give truly valuable blessings to his remnant. Those who wish to obtain this world’s rewards willingly engage in bizarre, twisted rites that rot their souls, only to ’gain’ things of little lasting value. How sad, then, for Christians needlessly to follow the same path.

Isaiah thus draws a graphic contrast between the earthly rewards that the world offers and the spiritual promises that God offers, or, as he depicts them symbolically, between wreaths that fade and wreaths* that last (Isaiah 28:1-6). The prophet uses drunkenness to typify the kind of pointless, self-centered behavior that typifies worldly activity of all kinds. Just as a drunkard takes ’pride’ in the infantile applause that his peers award him, so also all worldly awards and distinctions are in reality nothing but fading flowers. If understood as such, then such rewards can be accepted with humility and gratitude. But even the faithful can easily be tempted to over-value them.

• ·    Wreaths were already familiar as a symbol of victory and achievement. The ancient Olympic games (which began in 776 BC, a generation or so before Isaiah began to prophesy) used olive wreaths, while the ancient Pythian Games used wreaths of laurel or other evergreens.

The Lord, though, is a truly glorious crown to believers. Long before Isaiah’s time, God emphasized that he, and a relationship with him, are the greatest rewards he has to offer (“Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward”, Genesis 15:1). It is an occasional stumbling point for Christians that God never details exactly what heaven will be like; he only promises eternal life. This is because, as Abraham was told and as Isaiah teaches, it is God himself that is our ultimate reward. If we have true faith in him, then we realize that this is a sufficient guarantee of anything else we genuinely need.

Isaiah now describes in more detail the degradation and folly of worldly living (Isaiah 28:7-15), touching on several aspects of its futility. Most obvious is the filthiness of sin, and yet even Christians often fail to see sin for what it is. The world relentlessly exalts sin as something fun or sophisticated, or even as something that makes a ’statement’. The world even pretends that some sins, such as pride and selfish ambition, are actually virtues. But the reality is, as Isaiah describes, that all sin is shabby, stupid, pathetic, and ultimately self-destructive.

The next few verses make a different point entirely. The "do and do, rule on rule"* approach to God that Isaiah mocks here is, unfortunately, still common in our own time. It is easy to rely on pat answers to tough questions about God, and it is easy to draw up a list of thoroughly-defined do’s and don’ts in areas where God wants us to use spiritual judgment instead of rules. But the apparent convenience is far outweighed by the superficial understanding that it produces.

• ·    The text in the Hebrew is difficult to translate confidently, and this English phrase is the best attempt of the translators to put what the prophet is saying into English. In any case, he is critiquing the ritualistic, law-oriented approach to God as being inherently mindless and soulless.

These and other forms of worldly living are all what Isaiah calls a “covenant with death”. Whether or not they have a superficial appearance of religion, they are not a covenant with God, but with the mortal and temporary flesh - hence Isaiah’s label for them.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kinds of ’wreaths’ might we pursue today?

Which are worth having, in God’s eyes?

Which ones have apparent appeal but are actually worthless?

What can we do to see sin more for what it truly is?

In what ways ought we to be careful of the ’rule on rule’ approach to God?

A Precious Cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16-29)

In contrast with the pointless aims and flawed foundations of the worldly, God offers us a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation, from which to build and live the rest of our lives. But as grain must be ground before it is useful, so also our hearts must be ready for God to reign in them. This can be difficult, even frightening, for it takes complete humility and trust before God.

The stone laid in Zion is a symbol familiar to us from its New Testament usages (Isaiah 28:16-22). Besides the Messianic implications, it reminds us of the steadfast, permanent nature of God himself. Unlike the flimsy things on which the world relies, God is always trustworthy and sure. Moreover, as the prophet implies, God is a time-tested stone. New Testament references like Romans 9:33; Romans 10:11, 1 Peter 2:6 apply these qualities to Jesus as well.

No matter what sins and worldly follies we have indulged in, God is able and willing to annul what the prophet has called the ’covenant with death’, that is, our worship of worldly things in return for the cheap ’wreaths’ they provide us. Isaiah describes this as the Lord’s ’strange work’, and an ’alien task’ (Isaiah 28:21). The prophet knows what God himself has never denied: God’s ways are completely alien and strange to the fleshly mind. If we wish to understand God’s true will, then we must, like Isaiah, learn to see things from the divine perspective, not the earthly.

Returning to a more straightforward analogy, Isaiah reminds us that there are proper times for spiritual plowing, sowing, and harvesting (Isaiah 28:23-29). The farmer plows (prepares the soil) only as long as necessary. Unless the preparatory stage ends, nothing ever grows. So too the farmer plants the seed in its time and in the right places. There is also a time for spiritual plowing or preparation, and a time for spiritual planting or nurturing. But these are not ends in themselves.

During the next stages of farming, the crop is suddenly treated more harshly, because the good crop must be separated from the useless portions of the plant. But farmers (i.e. in Isaiah’s day) would use only sticks and rods to do threshing; they do not use sledges, cartwheels, or other large implements that would crush and destroy both good grain and useless chaff.

Finally, the grain must be prepared for actual use. Grain must be ground, spiritually as well as physically. God’s good grain, the remnant, must be ground by the hardships and constraints of the world, so that we learn to look beyond the world and appreciate what God truly wants for us.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does the image of a cornerstone signify?

What would it have meant to Isaiah’s original audience?

What should it mean to us?

Why is God’s work ’strange’ and ’alien’?

How should this affect the way we seek his will?

What should we learn from Isaiah’s analogy of plowing, planting, and harvesting?

Nothing But Words (Isaiah 29:1-12)

One of the root problems that Isaiah faces in his ministry is one that believers struggle with in every era: the difficulty of allowing God’s teachings and God’s will to become reality in our minds. God gladly does everything that he can to help us to realize and understand spiritual truths, but our own fleshly resistance can make this much more difficult than it needs to be.

Isaiah’s depiction of the siege of ’Ariel’ makes use of a thought-provoking image (Isaiah 29:1-8). Ariel is used here as a symbolic name for Jerusalem, because the word itself refers to the altar hearth*, the location on the altar where fire consumes an offering. It is thus the symbolic place of direct contact between God’s presence and the physical world. Being ’Ariel’ carries both deep significance and deep responsibility.

* In the original Hebrew, the word is used several times in Ezekiel with its literal meaning of altar hearth.

Closeness with God is a blessed thing to be earnestly desired, but contact between the divine and the unclean can have drastic consequences. If Jerusalem wishes to have a positive relationship with God, then it must heed the prophet’s urgent warnings. Since Judah will not (historically) do so, the people will find themselves besieged, not merely by foreign armies, but by the God who loves them and who needs to purify them through discipline.

Yet despite the harsh discipline that lies ahead - discipline that God regretfully imposes because of their complacency and hardness of heart - it will end abruptly. Thus Isaiah describes the siege of Ariel suddenly being broken; the foreign armies lose their status as a divine tool and become woefully weak. The nations that God allowed to attack the Israelites invariably received their own punishment later. Being useful to God did not excuse their sinful violence and pride.

With this in mind, the prophet turns to a denunciation of spiritual blindness and spiritual illiteracy (Isaiah 29:9-12) . The former refers to those who simply ignore God’s words and truths, while the latter describes those who familiarize themselves with factual things about God, but who then fail to understand what they truly mean.

Isaiah first declares that those who should have been eyes and heads to the community - that is, the prophets and seers, who should have been helping the rest to see and follow God - have been among the worst examples of spiritual blindness. In our own time as well, it is far more common for human religious leaders to pursue worldly goals than it is to find those who proclaim God’s full eternal truth, without apology or rationalizations.

Yet this never excuses anyone else from failing to pursue a genuine knowledge of God. Isaiah satirizes the common excuses for this, which are much the same as the common excuses of our own time. In his depiction, one person lets a seal stop him from reading the elusive words of the scroll, while another claims not to be able to read. The former is illustrative of someone who simply will not take the time to understand God’s teachings, while the latter is representative of someone who stares without understanding at the words God has written.

The implied exhortation to hear, to understand, and to accept God’s truth is one that all believers should consider carefully. The world’s perspectives constantly creep into our minds, causing us to read Scripture with earthly perspectives and expectations, so that they can become nothing but words to us.

Throughout Isaiah, we see an emphasis on a genuine understanding of God that will allow us to serve him without the need for fleshly tactics such as guilt and pride. If Isaiah’s brief view of God on the throne led to a lifetime of proclaiming the truth, then we also have much to gain from a sincere effort to understand what spiritual truth is all about.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How does the Ariel symbol apply to us?

How would the siege and relief of Ariel apply?

What causes spiritual blindness and illiteracy?

How can we help one another to develop a more godly understanding of God’s will, teachings, and nature?

Mark Garner, June 2008

The Wisdom Of The Wise Will Perish (Isaiah 29:13 to Isaiah 31:9)

Since God alone can provide a reliable foundation for our lives and souls, Isaiah wants to help us to allow God to become such a cornerstone. One of the first steps is to recognize all earthly foundations as being unreliable. In this passage, for example, the prophet will discuss the inadequacy of things such as human knowledge, outward worship, and earthly force.

Review

In Isaiah 1-27, the prophet repeatedly reminds us of God’s will for a remnant to return. This will be illustrated later, in a limited sense, when Judah returns from its exile to Babylon. It is fulfilled more completely in the calling out of the remnant from all the nations of the world. Human pride is an enormous obstacle to this, because it blinds us to God and to his will. But there is always a highway made ready through Jesus, for all who wish to know their Creator.

With the idea of the remnant in mind, the book now begins to shift its emphasis, urging us to make God and God alone "the sure foundation for your times". Isaiah will use events and images to impress upon us that God alone can provide us with a foundation that will last, and that will prove trustworthy throughout all of life’s developments. The faithful prophet will also explain some ideas that will help us to begin making this change of perspective.

As Isaiah begins to shift emphasis, he reminds us that "grain must be ground" (Isaiah 28:1 to Isaiah 29:12). God offers himself as a wreath, a symbol of victory, to the remnant. Yet we are constantly faced with the need to choose between worldly ’wreaths’ that fade and the godly ’wreath’ that lasts. God is a precious cornerstone, and the one sure foundation for our lives. So too, the Messiah, laid also in Zion, provides the means to come to God.

The prophet uses the analogy of plowing, sowing, and harvesting to describe how God works with our souls to nurture our faith and to draw us out of the world and into his remnant. As each stage of the farming process has its time and place, so also all of the things that happen in this world are important to God only insofar as they guide us to the awareness of him and the awareness of our need for him. As the grain is threshed only as vigorously as is necessary, so also he will allow us to suffer and to be tempted, but never more so than we can bear.

Even to believers, God’s teachings can remain mere words. Isaiah depicts a symbolic siege of Jerusalem, calling it Ariel, the altar hearth where God’s presence consumes offerings. We too are an altar hearth, where God’s light and presence encounter the common and unclean things of this world. We must guard carefully against spiritual blindness and illiteracy. We should eliminate excuses, and apply ourselves to hearing, understanding, and accepting God’s truth.

The Humble Will Rejoice In The Lord (Isaiah 29:13 to Isaiah 30:7)

Before we can appreciate the lasting blessing, hope, and security that God offers, we must first realize that the world offers only false hope, false security, and temporary blessing. The prideful put their confidence in everything from intelligence to rules to force, but these are never worthy of a believer’s trust. The humble rejoice not in themselves or in worldly things, but in God.

In his time, Isaiah encountered a problem that is chronic in every era: those who ’worship’ God with their mouths but not with their hearts* (Isaiah 29:13-16). Such self-deception is simply false worship, because genuine worship does not consist of actions that we label worship, but rather of acts and words that show what we truly believe to be important and valuable.

• ·    Jesus quoted Isaiah 29:13 (in Matthew 15:8-9 and Mark 7:6-7) regarding the Pharisees. Yet it is important to note that Phariseeism is only one example of the problem Isaiah describes, and by no means the only one.

The prophet also brusquely dismisses the kind of false wisdom that the world values, reminding us of its limitations and its flimsiness in the face of spiritual reality. Earthly intelligence, in itself, is neither a spiritual advantage nor a spiritual disadvantage. If we use our minds to see God, to show him to others, or to understand our need for him, then this is truly wise. But if our education or our knowledge leads us to feel superior, or to feel that we don’t need God as much as someone less intelligent might need him, then this is exactly what Isaiah criticizes.

One of the characteristics of God is that he loves to reverse the fortunes of this world, so that the deaf will hear and the blind will see (Isaiah 29:17-24). Again, it is not a virtue in itself to be deaf or blind, any more than it is to be poor, but neither is it a sign of inferiority or of personal fault. God offers help for the humble, in whatever circumstances they may be. There is never any need to be ashamed before God, no matter who we are in the world’s eyes, and no matter what we have or have not done. To God, no human being is ever superior or inferior to any other.

The negative side of this is illustrated by the kind of ungodly alliance that believers too often seek (Isaiah 30:1-7). In Isaiah’s time, the people and leaders of Judah were afraid of being attacked, and many of them sought to ally with Egypt, hoping this would provide ’shade’ from the ’heat’ of Assyria (in the prophet’s imagery). This dependence on the useless worldly power of Egypt* was driven by a desire to have a fleshly sense of false security, not by faith. And thus it would bring disgrace - and doubly so. Egypt would soon prove worse than useless as a military ally, and this fruitless fleshly alliance also brought spiritual harm and disgrace to Judah.

• ·    Isaiah is also using Egypt in a broader and more symbolic sense. Ever since the Exodus, God often reminded his people of the Israelites’ foolish desire to return to Egypt during times that they endured hardship. See also the notes below on Isaiah 31:1-9.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what ways might we worship God only with our mouths?

What does it mean to worship from the heart?

What forms of ’worship’ is Isaiah discussing?

Why will God deliberately frustrate and oppose earthly knowledge and intelligence?

What are the lessons in this for us? What might ’Egypt’ be to us?

The Lord Longs To Be Gracious (Isaiah 30:8-26)

Isaiah vividly describes the frustration of God towards those who insist on taking the easy, self-serving, temporarily pleasant paths that this world offers them. God’s blessings are so much greater and so much more valuable, but he can give them only to those who want them. Because God’s greatest gifts to us always come by grace, we can obtain them only through humility.

The people of Isaiah’s time were unusually blessed in having a living prophet among them, yet God’s Word was still of no use to most of them, because they were simply unwilling to listen (Isaiah 30:8-17). It is spiritually horrifying to see them reject Isaiah’s teachings with the request that he "tell us pleasant things". Worst of all, they are openly displeased at being reminded of God’s presence. Whenever God’s presence is real to us, we shall always find it convicting. But those whose hearts are humble would always prefer this to the alternative of not having God near.

Isaiah compares their sin with a crumbling wall, a massive pile that looks impressive at first, only to prove in reality to be a useless, dangerous burden. Instead of seeking meaning from worldly accomplishments, instead of seeking security from earthly pleasures and possessions, they should seek true salvation in godly repentance and spiritual rest (verse 15). It is not physical rest that he recommends, but a spiritual rest for the soul*. When we turn from worldly ambitions and allow God’s will to guide us, this relieves our souls of a great unhealthy burden.

* Compare this passage with, for example, Matthew 11:28-30 and Hebrews 4:9-10.

Moreover, all the while God is just waiting for our cry (Isaiah 30:18-26). For all that his wrath is stored up against the ungodly who do not repent, his compassion on those who do humble themselves is far greater than his anger ever is. He is quick to ’rise’ to show compassion every chance he gets. This is one of God’s defining characteristics, but we can only appreciate it if we reject our idols and make the effort to see things from his point of view. When we practice what Paul called ’worldly sorrow’ (2 Corinthians 7:10), or when we ’repent’ only in the hope of receiving short-term worldly benefits, then God cannot show us the true depths of his love for us.

It is in the modest spiritual virtues of humility, repentance, and spiritual rest that we find true life and light. Jesus came to overcome the world by rising above it, not by dominating it, and this is also what he and his Father wish for us. Once we get a taste of God’s gentle hand guiding us into spiritual truth, we can start to see the pathetic nature of our earthly idols. In turn, this shows us even more clearly our need for God. At any time, in any circumstance, God is waiting and hoping for us to start off on this lifelong process of getting to know him in a genuine way.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What motivates even believers to demand ’pleasant things’ instead of the truth?

In what ways are we especially vulnerable to this?

Why is salvation found in repentance and rest?

What does this mean in practice?

Why is God so eager to have compassion on us?

How can this help us to seek and know him?

Return To Him (Isaiah 30:27 to Isaiah 31:9)

It is implicit in much of Isaiah’s teaching that God allows us to have a choice between following the world’s ways and following his ways. The prophet reminds us here of the consequences of each decision. Ultimately, all will honor God as Lord and King, for nothing in this world can stand against him. The prophet thus calls us to resist the temptation to ’rely on Egypt’.

In God’s eagerness to know us, ’he comes from afar’ (Isaiah 30:27-33) to meet us. The prophet reminds us again that God’s presence is a blessing to believers but a horror to the unrepentant. The prophetic imagery here - of smoke, fire, cloudburst, hail, and other symbols of tumult - is as much spiritual as it is literal. The truest challenges to the soul come not from disasters or attacks, but from the clash between spiritual light and spiritual darkness.

As implied in the prophet’s images, everyone will see God and will be forced to acknowledge his power. Even now, while the end of the physical universe lies in the future, this is still true. The mortal and perishable nature of everything that we now see and touch is readily apparent to all, yet most humans fight against this and deny it all of their lives.

This is why Jesus alone is able to fill our truest needs; "since the children are flesh and blood, he too shared their humanity so that by his death he would destroy him who holds the power of death - that is, the devil - and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death" (Hebrews 2:14-15). The inner awareness of our undeniable mortality forces human consciousness to respond. Those who deny such an obvious reality must of necessity adopt some very distorted beliefs in a vain attempt to drive the unpleasant truth from their minds.

But as far as God is concerned, everything is already prepared. It is only his great patience and compassion that causes him to refrain from an immediate, complete revealing, with all the devastating consequences that would hold for the faithless. Using the image of Topheth* to stand for both the horror and the squalor of human sin, God warns that it is indeed "a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31).

• ·    Topheth was the name given to an ancient location in the Valley of Hinnom, just outside Jerusalem’s city walls. It originated as a site where idolatrous Canaanites would burn children as ’sacrifices’. Later it became a refuse dump, where fires burned constantly to prevent the spread of disease. Topheth and Gehenna (Hebrew for Valley of Hinnom) both came to be used by the ancient Jews to stand for their concept of hell. Here it is being used, at least in part, with this association in mind. Topheth is also referenced in 2 Kings 23:10, Jeremiah 7:31-32, Jeremiah 19:6, and Jeremiah 19:11-14.

With all this in mind, Isaiah again reproves his audience for its persistent practice of relying on Egypt rather than on God (Isaiah 31:1-9). Ever since the Exodus, when the foolish Israelites longed for the false security of Egyptian slavery rather than the challenges of entering the Promised Land, Egypt has stood as a symbol of a believer’s ill-considered longing for easily attainable earthly things at the expense of more lasting spiritual blessings, which take more maturity to appreciate.

Both historically and symbolically, Jews and Christians have often longed for ’Egypt’ when they realize how difficult it is to seek and worship God in spirit and in truth. Yet Egypt, both historically and figuratively, offers only false hopes. In history, Egypt invariably proved a weak ally to Israel and Judah, usually leaving them in more trouble than before. On a more figurative level, the things of the world that we so eagerly seek simply can never meet our deepest needs.

The prophet thus pleads for us to return to God and to reject our idols. Regardless of what this world’s authorities and rulers may do to deceive us into thinking that they have all the answers, they can never provide the security, compassion, and grace that God offers. No matter how much we enjoy our earthly possessions, we can have them for only a short time. No matter how popular or loved we are by others, God will not ask for their opinion on Judgment Day.

We do not need to wait until the universe ends to see the fire from the Lord’s furnace (Isaiah 31:9). Just as Isaiah told Jerusalem that it was the furnace and the altar hearth (chapter 29), so too we as believers occupy a point where God’s cleansing fire enters this world. We can decide whether to fan the sparks in our lives into a flame, or we can choose to try to stifle the fire before it spreads and embarrasses us or inconveniences us. This decision is equally important for each one of us, and the decisions we each make could also affect others as well.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense does God ’come from afar’?

What implications does this have for our relationship with him?

Why does Isaiah keep mentioning Egypt?

Why does ’Egypt’ provide only false hope?

How can we avoid continually seeking help from the wrong things?

Mark Garner, June 2008

O Lord, Be Gracious To Us (Isaiah 32:1 to Isaiah 33:24)

As Isaiah continues his comparison of true foundations and false foundations, he emphasizes our need for God and our dependence on God. The inability to appreciate our need for God’s grace is a big reason why we often trust in the world rather than in God. Thus the prophet continually emphasizes that believers and unbelievers alike depend every moment on God’s mercy.

Review

Isaiah begins by explaining that "a remnant will return" (Isaiah 1-27), and then he exhorts us to remember that God is "the sure foundation for your times" (Isaiah 28-49). For several chapters (Isaiah 28-35), he contrasts trusting in the world with trusting in God. To put genuine trust in God is a difficult but important task. Just as grain must be ground for it to be made useful (Isaiah 28:1 to Isaiah 29:12), so also God will prepare us and discipline us as necessary.

The things of this world are inherently flawed and temporary, and so "the wisdom of the wise will perish" (Isaiah 29:13 to Isaiah 31:9). The humble will rejoice in this hope, but the worldly will despair, for they worship with their mouths but not with their hearts. Despite humanity’s pride and sin, the Lord longs to be gracious to us. He waits patiently, and he warns his people persistently as they continue to pursue ungodly alliances with the worldly. God wants only for us to return to him, yet the day will arrive when he comes from afar to render his judgment.

Opening The Eyes & Ears (Isaiah 32:1-20)

When Isaiah was first called to prophetic ministry, God cautioned him that the people he spoke to would be spiritually blind and deaf. Here, the prophet proclaims that the opposite can be true for those in the remnant. God’s wisdom and grace help us to perceive and understand the world around us from a new and more accurate perspective. God opens our eyes and ears to the truth.

The prophet urges us to adopt and embrace a more godly perspective on life (Isaiah 32:1-8), especially since God has enabled us to do so. When a believer is able to look past the false viewpoints that the world promotes, he or she is then like water in the desert (one of Isaiah’s images in verse 2), a source of life in a world of death. No matter how many worldly rationalizations we can come up with to the contrary, God’s Word repeatedly calls us to try to transform the perspectives of the lost, not to cater to them.

We all have a need for our vision and our hearing to be corrected, so that we can see with what Paul called "the eyes of your heart" (Ephesians 1:18) instead of seeing only the superficial physical world. Only a faithful believer who has resolved "to know nothing . . . except Jesus Christ and him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2) can see things for what they truly are.

The values of the world are hopelessly distorted. The world turns sins into virtues and virtues into sins. It teaches us to value the trivial and to trivialize the valuable. The greatest fools are given special honor and power, while the most honorable are treated like fools. So, churches that prattle about ’making the gospel relevant for today’ or that hunt frantically for the most successful human methodologies, are importing the world’s faulty viewpoints into their ’ministry’. They thus produce nothing but a stillborn, blasphemous distortion of the gospel.

If we truly desire to seek God and his truth, then we need to be ready to live by faith, not by sight. Isaiah says that we have to endure many ills and evils in this world, "till the Spirit is poured upon us"* (Isaiah 32:9-20). By this he means that a problem in this earth may remain indefinitely, no matter how much we may wish it to go away, until God himself determines that it serves his purposes to change the situation.

• ·    There is an obvious parallel between Isaiah’s phrasing here and passages such as Acts 2:33; Acts 10:45. But Isaiah is talking about a somewhat different manifestation of the Spirit here, referring to the Spirit’s presence whenever God makes his will or judgment known.

Complacency* and false security were constant problems in Isaiah’s era, just as they are in our own. Putting trust in the forces, riches, or leaders of this earth makes it difficult to see God at work. It is indeed very easy to feel a sense of comfort, even pride, when we look at our physical surroundings and see the works of clever or strong humans who have diligently applied themselves to the goal of making this life more enjoyable or less hazardous. Yet such things are neither good nor bad in themselves. Like so many other things that Isaiah has discussed, they are pertinent to God only insofar as they do or do not point us to him.

• ·    Although Isaiah specifically reproaches the women for being complacent, this should not be construed as an indication that they were more so than the men. The prophets sometimes address women for rhetorical or symbolic effect, as is the case here. Since women would be particularly likely to suffer during times of deprivation, they especially should be on guard against a sense of false security. When they are not doing so, this is an indication of how complacent the community as a whole has become.

God can make the desert fertile whenever he wishes, but it is not always his wish to do so. He does what is most likely to help blind, stubborn humans to seek him, not what those blind, stubborn humans think he ought to do to make them ’happy’ in the short-term present. As the prophet teaches us here, the fruit of righteousness is not fleshly pleasure, but spiritual peace and spiritual confidence.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How can a believer be like water in a desert?

How does this compare with Isaiah’s other images in verse 2?

Why does the world fail to see things for what they really are?

Is this true in all areas of life?

Why are complacency and false security spiritually dangerous?

What reasons might God have for withholding relief from earthly problems?

Will we usually be able to know his reasons?

What spiritual benefits are there to enduring earthly hardships?

Can only believers benefit?

Our Need For God (Isaiah 33:1-6)

The worldly not only deny their own need For God, but also do their best to keep others from seeing the same thing. Even believers often have their spiritual vision clouded by the world’s sin and injustice. In particular, we become discouraged when we value the same things that the worldly do. God’s desire is to be the sure foundation that provides us with what really matters.

In this life, the destroyers and traitors of this world frequently benefit from their sins (Isaiah 33:1). If we expect God to deal with each one so that they are always directly punished now, then we shall be disappointed. But we can be assured that such persons eventually come to an appropriate end. Their own nature punishes them and poisons their lives more than either they or we may realize. Selfish ambition, deceit, violence, and other such sins may be romanticized in popular culture, but in reality they are shabby qualities that degrade and destroy those who practice them.

The more that we are humble enough to see things clearly, the more eager we shall be to call upon God to be our strength (Isaiah 33:2-4). He and he alone is our true strength every morning, indeed every moment. God’s restrained power contrasts sharply with the ways that human authorities so eagerly and willfully exploit any opportunity to call attention to the position that they have. If God were ever to unleash his full power upon this earth, it would be as if the earth were engulfed by a galaxy-sized swarm of locusts*, for nothing physical can stand for a moment against God’s transcendent strength.

• ·    Locusts are often used as a prophetic symbol. They may have a number of literal meanings, but in each case they are used to represent an overpowering and uncontrollable force. The noise of a locust swarm also suggests a force that causes confusion and disorientation.

So God is the sure foundation on which we should build everything else (Isaiah 33:5-6); he is the source of all that we need or will need. He is, as the prophet vividly describes him to be, a rich store in which we can find everything that has real and lasting worth. If God wished to, he could outdo anyone in the world at offering us an unending supply of this world’s treasures. But he cares about us too much to spoil us in such a foolish way.

The key to this treasure that God offers - for it is a treasure, a priceless chance to understand what really matters and to have what we most badly need - is not good behavior or extensive knowledge or human talent, but the fear of the Lord. This is a healthy and humble kind of fear, not the shallow self-interested kind of fear that we see so often in the world. To fear God is to acknowledge him as the transcendent Lord and Creator, on whom we must rely each moment.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kind of punishment does Isaiah promise for destroyers and traitors?

How can we learn to acknowledge God as our constant source of strength?

What kind of treasures does God have for us?

What does Isaiah mean by ’the fear of the Lord’?

Why is this the key to God’s spiritual blessings?

Now Will I Arise (Isaiah 33:7-24)

From time to time, God has risen up in order to intervene directly in the affairs of this world, and has made his presence clear to the discerning. Then also, the time will come someday when God will rise to declare his final judgment on us all. But those who seek God earnestly now, and who allow him to open their eyes and ears, can already see him rise in the hearts of his remnant.

God’s desire for his dear children is not for them to rule this earth, but rather that they can rise above a ruined world (Isaiah 33:7-12). Although the world tries to deny the truth by offering us a constant supply of false hopes, it is a bleak landscape* indeed that we see in the physical world. The prophet’s figurative depictions emphasize the empty nature of life without God as its focus.

• ·    The series of geographical references in verse 9 is meant to portray even the most fertile and desirable regions as becoming wastelands.

God is always exalted by comparison with the world, even if he usually watches unobtrusively instead of demanding immediate recognition. It only takes improved discernment and a dose of humility to appreciate how much more God offers than the world does.

Isaiah promises that "your eyes will see the king" (Isaiah 33:13-24), and this promise still holds true. Humans hold an extraordinary number of contrasting views of God, yet such opinions reflect on those who hold them, not on God, who is what he is. To those who pridefully refuse to accept God as their Lord, he is a consuming fire, whose power is a fearful threat that they cannot deny in their hearts, even if their arrogant lips mock him or curse him.

To those who see things more clearly, the King has great beauty. For those who trust him, he can turn their terror into peace, not by taking away their problems in this earth but by giving them the hope of rising above this world and its troubles. The good fruits of spiritual health and of the forgiveness of sins allow us to see this world from the safer perspective of eternity. Trusting in the heavenly King gives us a foundation that nothing in this world can destroy.

Questions for Discussion or Study: Why don’t most persons in this world want to deal with the problem of their eternal destiny? Can we ever change this? How can God be exalted in a world filled with sin and sorrow? How does our understanding of God affect our feelings about events in this life? What spiritual blessings does Isaiah mention in this passage? How can we learn better to appreciate these kinds of blessings?

Mark Garner, June 2008

A Highway Will Be There (Isaiah 34:1 to Isaiah 35:10)

Isaiah’s contrast between trusting in the world and trusting in God now reaches a climax. Using some of his strongest language yet, the prophet depicts the utter destruction that awaits everyone and everything in this world that presumes to stand against God. Then, he provides us with a vision of the spiritual blessings that God wishes to give to the remnant of his people.

Review Of Recent Lessons

The prophet spends several chapters (Isaiah 28-35) comparing those who trust in the things of this world with those who trust in God. As grain must be ground before it becomes useful, so God must guide the faithful through many things to teach them some difficult but important lessons (Isaiah 28:1 to Isaiah 29:12). The wisdom of those who are wise in this world will perish (Isaiah 29:13 to Isaiah 31:9), but God will teach and provide his faithful remnant with all that they need.

When we are able to see the things of this world for what they really are, the natural response of the faithful is to call out for our Lord to be gracious to us (Isaiah 32:1 to Isaiah 33:24). We need his help to open our eyes and ears (recall the words God spoke to Isaiah when he first called him to prophetic ministry), and to understand that the true fruit of righteousness is found in spiritual blessings that cannot be calculated by this world’s common measures.

Seeing our own need for God is a difficult but all-important step towards spiritual growth, just as the key to God’s spiritual treasures is to develop the healthy kind of fear of God, an awe of his majesty that leads us to love him and respect him at the same time. God will always arise just when he knows that the time is right, never a moment too soon or too late. Just as the prophet saw God on his throne, so our eyes can and will see the King in his full glory.

Judgment Upon All Earthly Nations (Isaiah 34:1-17)

The faithful prophet makes a final, comprehensive statement of the ultimate doom that is in store for all earthly nations and powers. Using language even more harsh and graphic than before, Isaiah emphasizes the certainty and vehemence with which God will bring an end to the things of this world. The nation of Edom is the symbolic object of much of the prophet’s detailed imagery.

In depicting the sky rolled up like a scroll, with similar fates befalling other parts of the physical universe (Isa 34:1-7), Isaiah is expanding on the imagery he used earlier (Isaiah 24) to describe the temporary nature of this earth. Here, though, he places more emphasis on God’s unyielding wrath towards the sin and willful unbelief of the world. God’s decision someday to do away with the physical universe is not an arbitrary one; it is necessary in view of his own righteousness.

The tumultuous end of everything that the prophet describes should not be taken literally in all its details, yet for all that it makes the point without leaving room for doubt. All that we now see and touch is merely temporary, brought into being by God’s will and continuing for a time to exist by God’s grace. We who claim to believe in God should realize that, if he could create the universe, then for him to do away with it would be even easier. Too often, our belief in God as Creator makes us proud, and makes us feel superior to those who refuse to accept the creation. It should instead make us humble, in the knowledge of the overwhelming power of God.

Isaiah spends much of this passage referring specifically to Edom*, which serves here as a stand-in for all worldly nations and rulers. Edom was closely related to Israel, but it held a long-standing antagonism towards its brother nation**. It thus makes an appropriate metaphor for the fate of the unbelievers of this world.

• ·    Edom is the nation descended from Esau, Jacob’s brother. The name Edom, which means ’red’, was one of Esau’s nicknames (Genesis 25:29-30). The nation of Edom was in the hill country of Seir, south of the Dead Sea. The name Mount Seir is also sometimes used metaphorically to refer to Edom.

• ·    Genesis 25:19-34; Genesis 26:34-35; Genesis 27:1-46 explain the origins of the personal rivalry between Jacob and Esau. The hostility between the nations descended from them can be seen in passages such as Numbers 20:14-21 and Judges 11:14-27. See also the previous notes on Isaiah 21:11-12.

We are all created as brothers and sisters, whether we are believers or unbelievers, regardless of time, place, or culture. Yet humanity has always been divided by the presence or the lack of faith in the living God. And, unfortunately, both believers and unbelievers alike have long indulged in the sins of rivalry, anger, and envy towards those who think differently. ’Edom’ thus stands for all such behavior and all such attitudes.

Therefore Isaiah’s prophetic imagery about the ’year of retribution’ (Isa 34:8-17) is not directed only at the literal nation of Edom, but instead is expressive of God’s pent-up wrath against all the sins of the world. God withholds the due punishment for our sins, giving us all the chance to repent and to seek forgiveness. But humans too often use God’s patience as an excuse for complacency. Even most persons who call themselves Christians barely appreciate their need for God’s continual mercy and grace.

Isaiah describes the unleashing of God’s wrath as part of God’s commitment to "uphold Zion’s cause" (Isa 34:8). As with Edom, Zion here stands not for the physical nation of Israel but for the remnant, those from every nation who truly put their faith in God. Since God calls believers to live selflessly, even to the point of abandoning their earthly goals and agendas, those in the remnant must make sacrifices that the worldly would not even consider.

In upholding Zion’s cause, then, God does not give extra earthly rewards to the remnant, but rather makes worthless the ill-gotten gains of the sinful. It is this that Isaiah expresses with his imagery of Edom laid desolate. By no means will the sinful of this world be punished on earth for every sin they have committed. For the sake of those who might someday believe, God defers full punishment until after we each have had every opportunity to turn to him.

Isaiah goes on to depict in some detail the land of Edom being turned into a kingdom of animals. The implication is that only in nature is this earth treated and appreciated as God meant it to be, for every living thing other than human beings lives in exactly the way that God intended. The imagery provides a link with the opening verses of the book, when Isaiah unfavorably compared human faithlessness with the natural faithfulness of nature.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does God emphasize the ultimate devastation of the physical earth?

How ought we to respond?

How are the symbols of Edom and Zion used here?

Why does Isaiah do this?

Explain what Isaiah is saying by depicting Edom (the unbelieving world) being left to the animals after the humans are destroyed.

The Way Of Holiness (Isaiah 35:1-10)

An abrupt change of tone now reflects Isaiah’s desire to help us understand God’s character in its entirety. If God will unleash such devastating discipline upon an unbelieving world, it is only because of the grandeur of what he truly wishes to give to everyone. Isaiah’s depiction of the Way Of Holiness encourages us to appreciate the spiritual blessings that come to the remnant.

The prophet’s imagery of rejoicing in the desert (Isa 35:1 -7) expresses the heart of what God offers to the remnant through his grace, compassion, and mercy. All of these images depict life emerging in unexpected places and in unexpected ways. Deserts and wilderness areas suddenly become full of life, the weak and fearful become strong, and the afflicted become healthy.

These images of renewal, strengthening, and relief illustrate God’s desire to bless those who turn to him in weakness and humility by giving them the kind of spiritual life that the world cannot offer: a real purpose, a real hope, a real opportunity to know what life is like without worship of self and idols. Isaiah depicts a spiritual ’ecosystem’, in which even humanity can live in the harmony that nature does. This contrasts deliberately with the opposite images in chapter 34.

In this spiritual environment (of which Isaiah describes a different aspect in Isa 11:6-9), the things that matter are not material objects, fame, or selfish ambitions, but instead the fruits of the Spirit. Such a way of life is possible only for the remnant in Jesus, for only through the grace and promises we receive from him can we find the faith that allows us to live as he calls us to do.

The prophet’s image of a highway* for the remnant adds emphasis to these ideas (Isa 35:8- 10). On this highway, as with the ’narrow road’ that Jesus described (Matthew 7:14), there is nothing unclean or wicked to tempt or distress the faithful. Likewise, they are safe from danger, with nothing and no one to attack them. There is nothing but singing, gladness, and life.

* On the significance of this image, see Isaiah 11:16; Isaiah 19:23, along with the notes to those passages.

It is worth comparing these images with reality, as both we and God know it. The ideal characteristics of the highway will be realized fully when we are with God in eternity. But they are also true now in a limited but still important sense. Believers do face dangers of all kinds in this world - the same physical dangers as everyone else faces, plus the attacks on our faith. But remember that Jesus said that "no one can snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28-29).

In Jesus, no outside force can take away our faith or God’s grace. Only our own decisions can do so. So too, nothing unclean or wicked can tempt us against our own will. And nothing except our own self-will can prevent us from getting closer to God through prayer and meditation. These may not be the promises that we wanted to get from God, but they are the ones we do have. And, when we are able to pull away from our earthly mind-sets so that we can appreciate what God offers us, we shall see how truly blessed we are that he gives us what we need, and not necessarily what we desire.

Questions for Discussion or Study: In what ways does God provide the faithful with life where it would not normally be expected? How do Isaiah’s images compare with Jesus’ statement in John 10:10 about ’life to the full’? What do Isaiah’s highway images represent (here and earlier)? In what sense can we now experience the characteristics of this highway? In what sense will we experience them later?

Summary & Preview

Isaiah began by explaining to us that, "a remnant will return" (Isaiah 1-27) . This awareness helps us to make sense of the things that God does and does not do in this world. Once we understand that, we are called to make God and God alone "the sure foundation for your times" (Isaiah 28-49). Simply believing in God, and simply accepting without argument his identity as Creator and Redeemer, is hardly enough to give us a relationship with him. So the prophet urges us to build everything in our lives on an understanding and an appreciation of God and his will.

In doing this, one of the significant challenges we face is the choice between trusting in the world and trusting in God (Isaiah 28-35). Whether or not we wish to make a conscious choice, each of us has decided in his or her heart whether to trust fully in God’s values, God’s perspective, and God’s will, or to expect these to share influence with the world’s values and perspectives and will. Fortunately, no matter what we have done in the past, God stands ready at any moment to have compassion on us when we are ready to put our faith and hope in him alone.

Next time, we shall begin a new section of the book (Isaiah 36-39), which focuses primarily on the lessons we can learn from the interactions between the prophet Isaiah and King Hezekiah. Hezekiah was often weak, and sometimes foolish, but his faith and humility made it possible for God to guide and protect him. The situations in these chapters will also furnish some practical illustrations of principles we have seen previously in Isaiah.

After that, Isaiah will focus on one of his best-remembered themes, the relationship between the Lord and his servant* (Isaiah 40-49). In all of these topics, the prophet provides us with some thoughts and ideas that can help us with the lifelong challenge of making God the sure foundation for our lives.

• ·    The ’servant’ is one of Isaiah’s most multi-faceted images. Most prominently, the servant looks ahead to the Messiah Jesus. In other respects, the servant may represent Israel. God’s people in general, Isaiah himself, the ideal believer, or the average believer.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What general lessons or themes stand out in Isaiah 28-35?

Based on the brief summaries above, what might we hope to see or learn from upcoming sections of the book?

How might all these ideas fit together?

Mark Garner, June 2008

The Zeal Of The Lord Almighty (Isaiah 36:1 to Isaiah 37:38)

Isaiah now recounts some historical events in which he played a part. In 701 BC, what many of Isaiah’s fellow citizens had long feared finally took place, when Assyria invaded Judah. The incidents in these two chapters form a deliberate contrast with the crisis Isaiah described in chapters 7-8. Then, faithless King Ahaz ignored God’s prophet, but that won’t happen this time.

Review Of Recent Lessons

In Isaiah 28-35, the prophet contrasts those who trust in this world with those who trust in God. To explain how God works in calling and preparing his remnant, Isaiah reminds us that grain must be ground, in order to be made useful (Isaiah 28:1 to Isaiah 29:12). He also warns that the wisdom of those who are wise in this world will perish (Isaiah 29:13 to Isaiah 31:9).

We who seek God’s will and God’s truth ought thus to call to our Lord, asking him to be gracious to us (Isaiah 32:1 to Isaiah 33:24). He is gracious, and assures us that a highway will always be there for anyone, of any time and place, who wishes to know God (Isaiah 34:1 to Isaiah 35:10). This highway will find its complete fulfillment in the Messiah, who will bring new life to those who believe in him.

Turning from general themes to specific situations, the prophet now describes (Isaiah 36-39) some interactions between himself and King Hezekiah. These historical incidents hold several useful lessons for us, and they also set the stage for Isaiah’s ’servant’ passages in Isaiah 40-49. This week’s study (Isaiah 36-37) is paralleled by 2 Kings 18:17 to 2 Kings 19:37 and 2 Chronicles 32:1-21.

Sennacherib’s Attack & Threats (Isaiah 36:1-22)

Sennacherib has been king of the Assyrian Empire for four years, and has spent most of that time at war*, determined to establish a reputation as a strong ruler who is not to be trifled with. Now it is Judah’s turn to suffer, and the situation will provide a severe test of the faith of its people and of its own king, Hezekiah. The first challenge comes to a group of the king’s officials.

• ·    Sennacherib succeeded his father Sargon II in 705 BC, and soon embarked on a campaign against Babylon, designed to discourage Babylon’s growing ambitions in the region. He also attacked Babylon’s allies Aram and Elam. The attack on Judah came because of Judah’s diplomatic relations with Egypt and Cush, which were an ill-conceived means of defense against Assyria (see the notes to Isaiah 18-20).

The Assyrians start their assault on Jerusalem with a campaign of intimidation (Isaiah 36:1-10). As Isaiah mentions, Assyria had captured several of Judah’s fortified cities*, isolating Jerusalem. But because of Hezekiah’s re-design of the city’s water supply*, Jerusalem could still withstand a lengthy siege. So the Assyrians hoped to demoralize the defenders and get them to surrender.

• ·    Sennacherib’s account in the Assyrian chronicles boastfully claims that he captured 46 cities in Judah, but this has to be an exaggeration. He probably counts many small villages and settlements as ’cities’.

• ·    See the notes to Isaiah 22:9.

So the Assyrian commander makes an aggressive, hostile speech, essentially demanding an immediate surrender, and expressing the certainty that the city will eventually fall anyway. He combines threats and lies, two very common tactics that are used against the faithful in every era.

The Assyrians know that direct assault will be difficult, but also that intimidation can make a foe forget its own defensive resources. Then, when the commander implies that the city might be rewarded for its surrender, this is surely a lie. Also, the commander quotes Hezekiah’s ban on high places* out of its context, making it sound as if Hezekiah doubted God’s power. This time, these tactics failed, but threats and lies are often very effective against Christians.

• ·    See, for example, 2 Kings 18:3-4. The high places were locations outside of Jerusalem where the people made up their own rituals to ’worship’ God, usually mixing together superficial imitations of genuine Levitical practice with idolatrous and/or immoral acts. God consistently called for the removal of the high places, but only on rare occasions did someone like Hezekiah make the effort to do so.

When the world threatens us with unpopularity, we too often scramble to convince them that we don’t take God all that seriously. When the world says that some imagined crisis demands our attention, or that some new product or expert can change our lives, we too often rush to show that we are not ’out of touch’, becoming as absorbed in earthly affairs as any pagan. When self-appointed experts tell us that to be successful we have to make the gospel ’relevant’, we too easily sacrifice truth and integrity for the sake of numerical or financial success.

Here, though, the people are an example to us by standing firm (Isaiah 36:11-22). The king’s officials* begin the task of replying to the Assyrian commander with the request that they converse in Aramaic**, rather than Hebrew, so that the soldiers and residents of Jerusalem would not hear any of the Assyrian threats or demands. Yet it will turn out that these fears are unnecessary.

• ·    Notice (verse 3) that Shebna has been demoted to secretary, and Eliakim has been promoted to palace administrator, in keeping with Isaiah’s pronouncement in Isaiah 22:15-24.

• ·    In Isaiah’s lifetime, Aramaic was used as a diplomatic language, but the average Israelite would not have been familiar with it. By the time of Jesus, though, Aramaic had become the everyday language used by most Jews, and Hebrew had become mostly an academic language.

The Assyrian commander has anticipated their defense, and indeed he is quite well-informed about his intended victims. He knows that Hezekiah will trust in God, and that the king will exhort the people to do likewise. So the commander points out the many ’gods’ of other nations that could not stop the Assyrians from conquering their nations. He adds some graphic images of the horrifying fates that can befall the trapped residents of a besieged city.

It is a clever attack, but the people are ready. The king knew how easily intimidated his fellow Judeans were (perhaps remembering how the nation had mishandled similar situations under his father), so he told them simply to remain silent. If they had tried to reason or debate with the Assyrians, things could have gone wrong. But the king gives them an easy role to play, and they heed his advice. The officials just report everything to the king, and then await his further plans.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Was anything logically wrong with what the Assyrian commander said?

What situations might be similar to the threats and lies that the people face here?

Why do these often work?

Why did the king tell the people to remain silent?

A Day Of Distress (Isaiah 37:1-20)

When Hezekiah hears the report, he is quite shaken, and he fully understands the danger that he and his city are in. Yet, despite his fear, he does not hesitate to do the best thing possible, by turning to God for help. This is a true demonstration of faith, for the king has no idea what will happen or what God will choose to do or not to do, yet he trusts God in any case.

Feeling the weight of responsibility, the king humbly displays his distress and goes straight to the temple. There, he deems it wise to find out what the prophet Isaiah might think (Isaiah 37:1-13). This is quite a contrast to his father Ahaz’s insolent dismissal of Isaiah’s advice (Isaiah 7). Again, we can wonder how much Hezekiah may have learned from his father’s mistakes. In any case, it is clear that God can use even a bad example to teach someone faithful like Hezekiah.

In the request he sends to Isaiah, the king acknowledges his fear, and even asks the prophet to, if necessary, "pray for the remnant that still survives". He is prepared to put his faith completely in God, no matter what God’s will or plans may be*. Isaiah’s reply is simple and encouraging, for he assures the king that he need not be afraid. God will arrange for Sennacherib to be distracted and eventually eliminated for his blasphemies.

• ·    Just 21 years earlier, Hezekiah had seen the Assyrians conquer the kingdom of the northern tribes of Israel, an event widely understood to have happened because of their idolatry and sin. The king seems clearly to have realized that it could someday be God’s will for the same thing to happen to Judah.

Sennacherib is indeed temporarily distracted, needing to deal with a rival from the south, but he never stops making threats against Hezekiah and Judah. Once more he reminds them of the foreign ’gods’ whose nations have been destroyed by Assyria. Notice how both he and his commander use the same arguments over and over again. The world really has very few basic tactics to rely upon, so they use them again and again. Unfortunately, many believers allow these lame methods to intimidate or distract them - an indication of our need for spiritual growth.

Upon hearing back from his messengers, Hezekiah prays (Isaiah 37:14-20), having gained confidence from the prophet’s reply. He honors God as the only God and the only true source of hope and help. He recognizes the danger from Assyria for what it is, not minimizing the earthly danger. But now, after hearing Isaiah’s words of divine assurance, Hezekiah prays in expectation of deliverance, seeing it as a way "that all may know" that God, unlike this world’s idols, is alive.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What expectations does Hezekiah have when he first consults Isaiah?

Why might God have only distracted Sennacherib at this point, rather than destroying him now?

How has Hezekiah’s perspective changed when he prays?

What has caused him to change his expectations?

What should we learn from this?

Who Is It You Have Insulted? (Isaiah 37:21-38)

Even the most powerful and most violent of humans is powerless against God. On this occasion, the dreaded Sennacherib has insulted a being far greater than himself, and he will now experience the consequences. While we should not naively expect evildoers always to be punished on this earth, we can always rest assured that God ultimately will deal with them.

Isaiah now sends an unsolicited message to the king, in which Assyria’s pride is rebuked and judged (Isaiah 37:21-29). In it, God speaks rhetorically to Sennacherib, but the message is just as much for believers like us who need constantly to be reminded to leave matters of judgment and deliverance to God, not to earthly leaders, experts, or governments.

Reprobates like Sennacherib frighten and attack us, but their real offense is against God. We are too easily provoked into emotional responses to attacks on our idols, and too slow to recognize when it is God who is being blasphemed. No earthly institution deserves our emotional allegiance, so we ought not to worry about defending them. God well merits our allegiance, but he is more than capable of defending himself.

Isaiah’s message is best read and considered in its entirety, as over-analysis of details can obscure its poetic force. For example, the prophet’s rhetorical question, "have you not heard?" is directed in part against the unbeliever Sennacherib, but just as much to doubting believers who become unduly intimidated by earthly power. The imagery that accompanies provides further encouragement for us to transform our perspective.

Particularly worth noting is God’s assurance to the proud Assyrian ruler that, "I will make you return by the way you came". The wealthy, the powerful, and the famous invariably deceive themselves into thinking that they have earned their prominence. They do everything possible to promote an image of themselves as more talented, more intelligent, or more righteous than the average person. Human nature being what it is, even believers complacently accept such lies.

But the truth is that no human is of any greater worth to God than any other. Whatever and whoever we may be in this world, we owe it to God’s grace, and to nothing but God’s grace. God can humble any of us at any time. If we are wise, we shall realize this and gladly admit it here on earth, so that we will not have to admit it reluctantly on Judgment Day.

Isaiah also has a message for Hezekiah (Isaiah 37:30-35). God will deliver his people, but they will have to make do by faith. Judah has, after all, contributed to the situation by its foolish worldly alliances. So for two years Judah will need to rely on natural growth, not agriculture, for its food. God often must remind us of how helpless we are without him, because of how easily we become intoxicated by our own ’brilliant’ plans and programs. We are kept safe and are blessed because of God’s zeal (desire) for us, never by our much weaker zeal for him.

The prophet also speaks of a remnant of survivors that will come from this ordeal (Isaiah 37:32).

Although the city will not fall this time, the nation has suffered significant discipline and loss.

And it is a sad fact of history that they still did not really change from the heart, so eventually

God’s discipline would be more complete, with the corresponding remnant much smaller.

The fate of Sennacherib and his army (Isaiah 37:36-38) illustrates the ultimate fruits of ambition and idolatry. The army practically self-destructs*, while Sennacherib goes home in humiliation, later to be killed by his own sons**. While most earthly malefactors will not suffer such direct punishment for their misdeeds, their ultimate fate will be no better. Believers should focus less on God’s timing in rendering judgment, and instead remember the certainty of God’s judgment.

• ·    Skeptics like to criticize the Scripture accounts, because Sennacherib’s chronicle does not acknowledge any such loss. But Assyrian chronicles never acknowledge anything negative! The historical fact of Assyria’s sudden withdrawal is not deniable, and all Isaiah does is to supply the reason for it.

• ·    The assassination actually happened 19 or 20 years later, not immediately afterwards. To God, the time in between was unimportant, since Sennacherib personally would not again be a real threat to Judah.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why would Isaiah now send a message without being asked for one?

Why does he address the Assyrian ruler?

What should believers learn from his remarks to Sennacherib?

What is the prophet’s message to Hezekiah?

What does this message mean to us?

What conclusions should we draw from Assyria’s defeat?

Mark Garner, June 2008

In The Land Of The Living (Isaiah 38:1 to Isaiah 39:8)

In these chapters, Isaiah recounts some events that at first may seem insignificant, especially in comparison with the crisis of the Assyrian attack described in previous passages. But God is always at work, and is always watching our faith at all moments. And his perspective on events on this earth can be quite different from ours, as the incidents in these chapters will illustrate.

After a series of prophetic discourses that contrast trusting in the world with trusting in God (Isaiah 28-35), the prophet turns to a straightforward narrative of several events involving himself and King Hezekiah (Isaiah 36-39). The prophet and the king parallel, on a lower level, the relationship between the Lord and his servant, which Isaiah will discuss later.

When Assyria attacked Jerusalem in 701 BC, the city was saved only by "the zeal of the Lord Almighty" (Isaiah 36:1 to Isaiah 37:38). The Assyrian king Sennacherib began his attack through intimidation, using a combination of threats and lies not altogether different from the assaults that the worldly attempt on believers today. It was easy to discredit Egypt, which Hezekiah had ill-advisedly chosen as a military ally. But when the Assyrians tried to discredit God, the people stood firm and did not react, simply remaining silent as Hezekiah had advised.

Hezekiah himself prays earnestly, considering the situation a day of distress, and knowing that it is beyond his own abilities. So he seeks word from Isaiah, who assures the king that God will protect the city. Hezekiah then prays again, this time with more confidence. Isaiah then sends word again, with a message to both kings. He reminds them that the Assyrians have not insulted Judah, but God, and that God will bring them down. He assures Judah of deliverance because of God’s desire for them, but there will be some hardships for a while. The city is delivered without a fight when God strikes down Sennacherib’s army.

A Personal Request (Isaiah 38:1-22)

The unusual incident in this chapter* is another event in which both Hezekiah and Isaiah participated. But in contrast with the international events that took place in the previous passage, this involves only Hezekiah’s personal interest and well-being. The king’s interactions with God show us some unexpected aspects of God’s viewpoint on our lives in this world.

* See also the account in 2 Kings 20:1-11 and the brief reference in 2 Chronicles 32:24.

We first discover a blunt and surprising prophecy (Isaiah 38:1-3), as Isaiah unexpectedly tells an ailing Hezekiah to prepare for death. With his illness apparently fatal, plus the ongoing threats from Assyria*, Hezekiah is thrown into despair. Regardless of what his exact perspective is - and we can do little more than speculate on that - he again prays before doing anything else.

• ·    Although verse 6 could indicate that the illness took place in the middle of the Assyrian siege, it is equally likely that God was only reassuring Hezekiah about any further threats from Assyria.

In response, a reprieve is announced (Isaiah 38:4-9). God explains only that he has taken note of the king’s prayer and tears, and he grants Hezekiah’s request for a sign of assurance (indicated in verse 22). To confirm his willingness to add fifteen more years to the king’s life, God causes a shadow in the palace hallway to move backwards*. Though Hezekiah often shows weakness of mind, he has a faithful heart that God blesses (as he blessed a similar request from the fearful Gideon in Judges 6:36-40). Both God’s evident compassion and Hezekiah’s sincerity are clear, even if we cannot deduce motives for God’s original pronouncement or for his change of mind.

* The nature of this miraculous sign is explained more clearly in 2 Kings 20:8-11.

In any case, it is Hezekiah’s meditation on his recovery that provides the main lessons of this chapter (Isaiah 38:10-22). His thoughts and feelings about "the land of the living" do not teach rules or methods, but rather cause us to ponder the ways and the reasons that God acts as he does or doesn’t in our earthly lives. When commentators try to deduce why God told Hezekiah he would die, or speculate on what Hezekiah said or did to get the extra fifteen years, they miss the point.

Like much else in Isaiah, this passage reminds us that faithfully searching for the truth is in itself of spiritual benefit, and it can often be as valuable as, or even more than, knowing all the answers. To seek truth in the way God wishes us to do takes humility, a quality whose importance to God has been shown repeatedly throughout Isaiah. In all that Hezekiah does, even his mistakes, he maintains a clear awareness of his dependence on God’s mercy and God’s grace.

Even after his recovery, the king remembers the gloom he felt when he thought he would die. It is interesting to note the things that he would most regret upon leaving the earth sooner than he expected, for it is not sensual pleasures or riches that he would miss. That he could no longer see God "in the land of the living", and that he would "no longer . . . look on mankind" matter more. Hezekiah senses, without even being able to put it into adequate words, something God very much wants us to consider.

The true importance of events, decisions, and developments in this world is found only insofar as they help us to see God, encourage us to seek God, and teach us to put our faith in God. Human activities, whether they involve world leaders or obscure persons, are all of equal unimportance in themselves. But all of them, whether good or bad, important or insignificant from an earthly perspective, offer us the chance to see something about God and about spiritual reality.

Thus Hezekiah is able to feel the benefit even from his physical agony and emotional distress, for he has learned to appreciate life in this world from a new point of view. His comment to God that, "the grave cannot praise you" again points out one of the aspects of faith that we often overlook. He is by no means discounting the hope of being with God after his physical death*, but rather pointing out how special it is to God that some of us love and praise him here, even though we cannot physically see him or tangibly see his hand at work. The kind of faith that living human believers show now is something that cannot, by definition, exist in heaven.

• ·    The ancient Jews had a clear awareness of an afterlife, though they often held differing viewpoints. See also the questions below.

This interaction between Isaiah and Hezekiah shows us that, to God, a personal illness is just as important as a national emergency - but in both cases, not for the reasons we would usually think of. Isaiah’s own role is simply that of a faithful proclaimer of God’s Word and will. Isaiah has no outstanding talents of his own, and the only way he can truly help and love Hezekiah (or anyone else) is by telling the truth, to the best of his ability. Hezekiah, on the other hand, is a faithful servant, yet one still full of weakness, just like us. In all circumstances, he does his best to remember that everything truly is in God’s hands, not his.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kinds of situations might put us in a position similar to Hezekiah’s here?

Can we tell why he was upset at the thought of dying?

Do we know what he may have expected?

What does Hezekiah’s prayer teach us about his view of this world?

What should be important to us about our lives here?

What does Hezekiah mean that, "the dead cannot praise you"?

Guests From Babylon (Isaiah 39:1-8)

Hezekiah’s good-hearted but rather careless nature is particularly clear in this account of him receiving visitors from Babylon. Without meaning any harm, he helps to pave the way for some future problems for Judah. Yet the emphasis of Isaiah’s narrative is not so much on what is or is not a mistake, so much as on the attitudes and perspectives that God wants to teach his servant.

When Hezekiah recovers from his illness and is greeted by envoys from Babylon, he plays the open-handed host, taking them on a complete guided tour (Isaiah 39:1-2). This seemingly simple incident will again take on an unanticipated significance, which is much easier to see from our vantage point many centuries later. Babylon during the reign of Merodach- Baladan (see Isaiah 39:1) was desperately trying to maintain some semblance of independence from Assyria*, and indeed it is probable that Merodach-Baladan himself was in exile** when he wrote to Hezekiah.

• ·    Sennacherib more than once assaulted Babylon, and throughout his reign he strove to destroy Babylonian independence. In this he was generally quite successful.

• ·    Merodach-Baladan was twice deposed as king of Babylon due to Assyrian threats and pressure. In 710 BC, he was driven out of the city by Sargon II (Sennacherib’s father), who then proclaimed himself king of Babylon (in addition to being king of Assyria). After Sargon’s death, Merodach-Baladan successfully reclaimed the city from Sennacherib, but soon afterwards was driven out again in 702 BC. For some years afterward, Merodach-Baladan lived in exile, while an Assyrian puppet ruler governed the city of Babylon.

So, the Babylonians are looking for allies to share the with them the risk of opposing Assyria’s power, but Hezekiah’s (overly) trusting nature seems to make him oblivious to this. He simply enjoys displaying Judah’s treasures to his guests. While not sinful, that doesn’t make it wise. Indeed, despite Hezekiah’s good intentions, it was probably a foolish thing to do.

Therefore Isaiah, learning about the Babylonian visitors, gives Hezekiah a stark look into the future (Isaiah 39:3-8). First he questions the king, and while Hezekiah’s answers confirm the prophet’s fears, the king’s openness and honesty seem also to confirm that he acted out of carelessness, not pride or ego. Yet regardless of the reason, the information that the Babylonian envoys have discovered will one day be used against Judah. The knowledge of Judah’s riches will make its way to Babylon, where it will eventually provide a motive for aggression and conquest.

For, as Isaiah now reveals, the time will come when Babylon, having replaced Assyria as the ruthless dominators of Western Asia, will attack Judah just as Assyria tried to do. But the Babylonian attack will be successful. Instead of divine deliverance, there will be looting and exile. Many of the very same objects that Hezekiah has just so eagerly displayed will be seized and carted off to Babylon, while many of Hezekiah’s own descendants will be enslaved*.

The Babylonians attacked Jerusalem three times, in 606 BC, 597 BC, and 586 BC. Each time, they took larger portions of loot and captives; and the final time they destroyed the city and enslaved all but the oldest and weakest residents.

Hezekiah’s response is rather ambiguous*, at least when we have only the printed word to go on. On the surface, at least, he accepts this news just as he has always accepted whatever God has told him through the prophet. Yet we are also told that he does not mind, at least in part, because he is content in knowing that "there will be peace and security in my lifetime" (Isaiah 39:8).

• ·    See also the comments in 2 Chronicles 32:25-26; 2 Chronicles 32:31. These imply that indeed Hezekiah was to some degree at fault in this series of events, but also that God appreciated Hezekiah’s basic faithfulness enough to make sure that he himself did not have to live through the terrors of conquest and exile. God thus seems deliberately to have chosen to give the king the blessing of peace and security in his lifetime.

It is hard not to suspect that Hezekiah has, to some degree, a sense of false comfort, since he does not seem concerned about the suffering that a future generation will have to endure, and to which he may have contributed in a small way. Yet, again he simply reflects our own nature. When we are honest with ourselves, we realize that only on occasion can we rise above our fleshly desires. Fortunately, God can always enable us to do this when it matters most.

While we are once again faced in this story with some details for which we cannot have the definitive answers that our curiosity desires, we can still see some important points. Hezekiah, in his role as a faithful servant, is reminded that his responsibilities on this earth go beyond the mere avoidance of sin. He has also learned (again) that even the (seemingly) smallest of actions can have unexpected effects. So once again we, like Hezekiah, are reminded of the need to place all things in this world in God’s hands. It is much better to be aware of our weakness than to try to convince ourselves that we are strong enough to stand on our own.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What may have motivated Hezekiah?

Why was he unable to suspect any danger from the Babylonians?

How might we be able to apply what we learn from this passage?

How does Hezekiah take the news from Isaiah?

Can we tell exactly what his perspective was?

What definite lessons can we learn from it?

Summary & Preview

In teaching us about the difference between trusting in God and trusting in the things of this world, Isaiah first discussed these things from a largely poetic perspective (chapters 28-35). Now he has also used a series of historical events (chapters 36-39) to illustrate some of the same principles. The prophet Isaiah and king Hezekiah are also a type of parallel between God (in that Isaiah only speaks what he has learned from God, not his own opinions) and a weak but faithful servant of God.

Next (Isaiah 40-49), Isaiah will expand at great length on the relationship between the Lord and his servant. The prophet hopes to help us to focus on the things that matter the most in our relationship with God.

Mark Garner, July 2008

Comfort, Comfort My People (Isaiah 40:1 to Isaiah 41:29)

Isaiah’s focus now shifts from events in his own lifetime to ideas of a more timeless nature. As he delves into numerous aspects of the relationship that we can have with God, he continues to emphasize God as the only sound foundation for our lives. In these two chapters, he reminds us of God’s transcendent nature and of the folly of putting our hope in the things of this world.

Review Of Recent Lessons

For several chapters (Isaiah 28-35), the prophet contrasted those who trust in the things of this world with those who trust in God’s grace and wisdom. After that (Isaiah 36-39), he described several historical events in which king Hezekiah and the prophet himself both played a part. These incidents and situations illustrate some of the principles that Isaiah spoke of earlier. For example, when Assyria besieged Jerusalem in 701 BC, the city was saved not by the works of Hezekiah or any other human, but only by "the zeal of the Lord Almighty" (Isaiah 36:1 to Isaiah 37:38).

There are also some events of a more personal nature, which help us to see God’s viewpoint on the things that occur "in the land of the living" (Isaiah 38:1 to Isaiah 39:8), that is, on this earth. When Hezekiah is told by God that he will soon die, he prayerfully makes a personal request that God grants. We cannot know the exact reasons for God’s decisions in this case, but we do not need to. Rather, as Hezekiah’s subsequent prayer indicates, the point is to realize that our faith is much more important to God than anything else we can do or say in this life.

After his recovery, the king greets some guests from Babylon in an open-handed but ill-advised fashion. When Isaiah speaks to the king about the ways that careless actions can affect things in the future, Hezekiah accepts what Isaiah says, but he also takes some false comfort in knowing that no disasters will befall the nation in his own time.

Faithful but fallible, honest but often lacking in judgment, Hezekiah in many ways represents believers in general. While we may often wish to think of ourselves as spiritual ’warriors’ or some other such silly thing, the truth is that none of us ever really stays on the right track for very long at all - and that is all right, because God does not need our grace and favor; we always need his. In the next section of the book* (Isaiah 40-49), Isaiah will provide us with further insights into the relationship between the Lord and his servant.

• ·    Commentators usually view Isaiah 40 as bringing about a significant change of emphasis. To some degree this is warranted, because after this point the prophet largely leaves behind the events of his own era. But many commentators fail to appreciate the continuity of main themes throughout the book. Some ’modern’ writers even claim that a different author wrote chapters 40-66. There are even those who like to say that there were three different ’Isaiahs’ (seeing another division between chapters 55 and 56).

Prepare The Way For The Lord (Isaiah 40:1-11)

God desires nothing more than to comfort us in our distress, strengthen us in our weakness, and teach us in our confusion. But he can only do this if we prepare our hearts to receive him. If we can clear our minds of the world’s lies and distractions, and if we can take the time to appreciate God’s unlimited capacity for helping us, then we can enjoy the blessing of his presence.

Setting aside his concerns about specific problems in his own lifetime, Isaiah looks ahead to a time of redemption, when God can tell his people that their hard service is now completed, and their sin paid for (Isaiah 40:1-5). This is one of Isaiah’s dual-level prophecies, looking ahead both to the return from Babylonian exile* and also to the time when Jesus the Messiah would once for all pay the penalty for the sins of the world.

• ·    As Isaiah has alluded to earlier, Judah would be conquered, Jerusalem destroyed, and most of the people enslaved by the Babylonians in 586 BC. Soon after Babylon itself fell in 538 BC, the remnant of Judah was allowed to return home, in fulfillment of the literal level of Isaiah’s ’remnant’ prophecies.

In expressing God’s desire to make a highway straight and smooth for his people, the prophet inter-connects several ideas. Isaiah has often mentioned the idea of a ’highway’, a means of coming to God, both for those who belong to God and for those who want to come to God. For those in his own time, he spoke of God’s will to provide a highway extending even to the likes of Egypt and Assyria, so that no one would be denied the chance to come to God. This promise of universal opportunity is a crucial aspect of the comfort that God offers.

We are most familiar with Isaiah 40:3 from its application to John the Baptist, as it is quoted in Matthew 3:3, Mark 1:3, and Luke 3:4-6 (which quotes all of Isaiah 40:3-5). God never intended either the old law or the physical nation of Israel to be the permanent way to him or the only way to him, because they were so imperfect. John’s ministry proclaimed the final preparations that were then being made to provide perfect once-for-all cleansing of sins through the Messiah. God’s highway is now open to all, and God’s glory can be seen by all who look for it.

In contrast to the everlasting highway that God has laid for us to follow to him, all human-initiated activity is like the grass that withers, or the flowers that bloom for a time only to fall later (Isaiah 40:6-8). Human wisdom of all kinds has at best a limited and temporary value, because it is geared to achieving things within the short time that we live on this earth. Thus it always comes to nothing in the long run. Even human institutions that last for hundreds of years can never outlast the ultimate end of this world, an end that is certain, because God has said that it is.

But the Word and will of our God will stand forever. And if his Word and will stand forever, then also his compassion, his mercy, and his majesty will stand forever. Unlike the authorities and experts of this world, who can promise us little in this life and nothing in the next, God can guarantee all of his promises, because he will always be alive, and he will always be God. Jesus likewise will always be there to provide the grace that believers so desperately need, "because he always lives to intercede for them" (Hebrews 7:25).

The combination of God’s power and God’s tenderness (Isaiah 40:9-11) can be hard to grasp, but it is an essential aspect of his nature, and thus of our relationship with him. So, Isaiah encourages us to accept and praise God as he truly is, not as we wish him to be and not as we might be if we were God. He calls us not to be ashamed or reluctant to proclaim God in all his truth, but to call out eagerly, in words that give comfort to the soul, "here is your God!"

Thus the prophet says that "his reward is with him", for God himself is the reward for our faith. His wisdom and his compassion enable him to meet all of our truest needs. He does not always give us the things that we think we need, but instead the things that meet our real needs, the needs that can never be filled by the world.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kind of comfort does God bring to his people?

In Isaiah’s time, how did God want to make the ’highway’ straight?

How does he make it straight for us?

What qualities of God does Isaiah call us to accept and to proclaim?

To Whom Will You Compare Me? (Isaiah 40:12-31)

Since God’s full nature is far greater than anything that we can see or imagine in this world, we often shy away from trying to understand it better. We can perhaps find a sense of false comfort and security by ’believing in’ the kind of ’god’ who concerns himself with the same things that consume our attention. But genuine faith comes only from seeking a living, transcendent God.

As basic as the idea is, Isaiah reminds us at length that God is not of this world (Isaiah 40:12-26). When he asks questions like, "who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand?", these are in part rhetorical, since the answer is clear at once. But it bears thinking about, for we can easily forget that God lives beyond our entire universe, and that his nature is beyond our power fully to comprehend or even describe. Indeed, to God all the nations of the earth, or for that matter all the galaxies in the universe, are no weightier than dust on a scales.

Contrast this with the idols in which humans so often put their hope. As Isaiah will detail later at greater length (e.g. chapter 41 and chapter 44), idols are merely false ’gods’ created in our image, rather than the other way around. Every idol - whether the metal and stone kind that Isaiah often faced, or the variety of idols so popular in our own society - needs its human worshipers not only to create it, but also to sustain it. How different from the living God!

God is not just a powerful force on our earth; he is above and beyond the earth and its rulers. He is not just very large, but is beyond our physical dimensions. He calls the stars by name, and he knows our every thought and action. Yet even statements such as these can communicate only a small portion of God’s full majesty and transcendence. If our "knowledge" of God makes us feel more intelligent than or morally superior to others, then we have no true knowledge of God. Every true glimpse of God or of his nature produces one response: a humble plea for his grace.

Contrary to what we often might feel, God does know everything (Isaiah 40:27-31). Neither our ways nor our needs nor our sins are hidden. It is foolish to think that he does not know what we are doing, it is foolish to think that he does not know what we are suffering, and it is foolish to think that he does not know what we are thinking.

To those who are proud, he offers humbling, but to those who are weary, he gives strength and comfort. The beautiful poetic images in verse 31 can provide us with hope whether our weariness is of the body, the mind, or the soul.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What other Scriptures contain imagery similar to that in verses 12-14 and 20-24?

What are these meant to teach us?

Why is it hard for us to understand how far beyond us God is?

How can we gain more understanding of God?

To Prop Up Or To Topple (Isaiah 41:1-29)

Things other than God from which we expect what God should supply (such as security, purpose, significance, or hope) can become idols. The flesh loves idols, because they seem to promise results we desire without the humility that it takes to seek and understand God. So, we have two choices: we can prop up and defend our idols, or we can expose them and topple them.

God’s offer "let us meet together" (Isaiah 41:1-7) returns us to his plea in Isaiah 1:18. But now Isaiah has demonstrated at length that God has proven his power and his wisdom. God has proven his transcendence, while earthly leaders and experts have repeatedly shown their inability to deal with the most important questions of our existence, especially that of death.

God once more reminds us that he knows all the answers, while the world doesn’t even know enough to ask the right questions. All we need to do is to come to him in humility and sincerity. Only pride stops us from doing this, but it is the sad truth that many persons would rather hold onto their pride. It is because of this that humans are always so determined to make idols.

The desperation of the idolatrous may not always be obvious, but it is only thinly hidden. Isaiah once more reminds us that an idol’s own worshipers have to work to keep it from toppling over. Those who worship money have to keep gaining more, for no amount of money can ever bring lasting security. Those who worship a human being (whether a celebrity, a leader, an athlete, or anything else) have to defend their hero or heroine’s most obvious flaws and sins, to maintain the pretense of their idol’s perfection. When we give in to such things, it should serve as a warning.

You and I were created to be servants of God (Isaiah 41:8-20), not of idols or of any earthly things. Humans choose their idols, but God has chosen us. And he has not rejected those whom he has chosen; in fact, the only way not to belong to God is to choose not to do so. God will not forsake us: he will not withdraw his offer of grace, and he will not turn away anyone who responds to it.

With this in mind, the prophet exposes idols and idolaters for the silly things they are* (Isaiah 41:21-29). In a rhetorical combination of sarcasm and confrontation, he challenges us all to "bring in your idols", and see how they look in comparison with God. Indeed, we Christians can be as bad as pagans when it comes to putting our faith and hope in worldly things, because it seems so much easier than putting our hope in God alone.

• ·    In chapter 44, Isaiah will have some insights into how and why we create idols. In this present chapter, he is primarily interested in pointing out that they cannot deliver anything of genuine or lasting value.

Human idols ranging from successful athletes to popular entertainers to powerful politicians to wealthy businessmen all receive great attention and admiration here on earth, but if you put them next to God, then they all look like fools, slackers, or worse. Common desires such as material things, popularity, fame, and sensual enjoyment may seem wonderful to the flesh, but if you put them next to an eternity of peace, joy, and security, then they look shabby and pointless.

Used properly, some of these things are harmless or even mildly helpful in the right situations. But when our gullibility or short-sighted perspective turns them into idols, they not only lose whatever minimal value they may have had, but they can even become dangerous to our spiritual health. Expose your idols and topple them now, before God has to do it for you.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does God mean in inviting us to meet together (or reason together)?

What should our response be?

Why does God not forsake us even when we act faithlessly?

What kinds of things do we allow to become idols?

How can we tell what our idols are?

How does Isaiah help us put them in the proper perspective?

Mark Garner, July 2008

Here Is My Servant (Isaiah 42:1-17)

The idea of ’the servant’ is one of the major themes in Isaiah, especially in the later part of the book. This passage looks at the ideal of a godly servant, a concept that finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. The servant of God is called to live a life that truly reflects the things that God himself values, and to adopt a viewpoint very different from that of the worldly.

Review

Isaiah 28-35 examines the contrast between trusting in the things of this world and trusting in God. Then (Isaiah 36-39), the prophet recounts several incidents involving himself and King Hezekiah, to illustrate some of these same principles. Isaiah serves as the one who proclaims God’s Word, while Hezekiah is fallible yet always quick to listen to God. Their interactions illustrate on a small level the next main topic of the book, the relationship between the Lord and his servant (Isaiah 40-49).

When God calls out "comfort, comfort my people" (Isaiah 40:1 to Isaiah 41:29), he offers true, lasting comfort, not the false comfort offered by the world. He prepares the way for us to come to him, and he smoothes out the highway. This passage refers to the future return from Babylonian exile, and also to its ultimate fulfillment in John the Baptist, who heralded the coming of the Messiah Jesus.

Isaiah also continues to emphasize the foolish nature of seeking idols or earthly things instead of God. God asks rhetorically, "to whom will you compare me?", and he challenges idolaters to see how their idols stack up against him. Not only do idols (both then and now) need to be created by their own worshipers, but they also must continually be propped up to keep them from falling. When we, by the grace of God, have our idols exposed, we ought simply to let them topple over.

God’s Chosen One (Isaiah 42:1-7)

This portrait of God’s servant reminds us how different God’s viewpoint is from that of the world. The things God most looks for in his servant are not talent, ambition, self -confidence, or other qualities that bring success in earthly matters. God’s servant is above all humble before God and understanding of others. Jesus*, our perfect example, calls us to walk in his steps.

This passage is quoted of Jesus in Matthew 12:18-21.

The nature of God’s servant emphasizes what matters to God (Isaiah 42:1-4), even if it is not considered valuable by those around us. To know that God already has chosen us (compare 41:8-9) can wound the pride of the self-important, since they cannot be in control. Yet it is encouraging to the humble, for we know that we do not have to impress God or persuade him to accept us; he already wants us to know him, and we are a delight to God when we respond to him. We often become so accustomed to the competitive nature of this world that we tend not to appreciate things that are freely available to all - yet these are usually the best and most important things.

The Lord’s servant is characterized by gentleness and a sense of justice*, and these things show in the ways that he or she treats others. Isaiah uses analogies such as a smoldering wick** to describe the kinds of challenges that God’s servants will meet. The image depicts the servant gently reviving a flickering candlestick, instead of snuffing it out in annoyance. Likewise, God hopes that his servants will deal gently and patiently with those who need grace and mercy.

• ·    As Isaiah’s messages have previously illustrated, this concern for justice is not the negative, punishment-oriented kind of ’justice’ that is impressed upon our minds by our nation’s medieval legal system. To the prophet (and the servant), justice is a positive concept, the desire to see that everyone has a fair chance at the things that matter.

• ·    Isaiah’s other analogy here is similar in meaning. Those who needed assistance walking, and who were unable to obtain a sturdy walking stick, would often use a type of stiff reed that was common in the area. But these reeds would soon start to crack, making them of little use for support. The expression ’a broken reed’ was a thus common way of referring to someone weak or unhelpful. Note the use of this expression by the Assyrians in 2 Kings 18:21 and Isaiah 36:6.

Then too, the servant will not falter or be discouraged, either in ministering to others or in faithfulness to God. There is, of course, nothing wrong with having feelings of dismay, disappointment, or hurt. Indeed, one would have to be brutally de-sensitized to human suffering never to feel such things in this world. But Isaiah means that we ought never to allow this world’s pains and tragedies to cause us to waver in our devotion to the truth. The more we are aware of the bad things in this life, and the more we agonize over them, the more firmly we should devote ourselves to God. Once again, Jesus is our perfect example in this.

The calling of God’s servant also reflects God’s priorities (Isaiah 42:5-7). Just as God gave life and breath to humanity in the beginning, so now it is his voice and his breath (see also the questions below) that call the servant to follow him. It is not our will for our lives that ultimately determines our purpose, but it is God’s will that determines the path on which we should go. And his path, the highway, always leads to the truth.

The Lord’s servant is then called to be a covenant and a light. We have a covenant with God, promising our salvation and redemption, and our faith is a covenant with him. Our faith upholds the justness of his covenant, as a testimony of God’s righteousness. His truth upholds the certainty of his covenant, as a testimony of our eternal security. In so doing, we also become a light to the world around us, showing the way to the truth and convicting the world of its need for God. Believers in Jesus who live what they believe are a source of light in a dark world.

As Isaiah has so often stressed, the servant’s ministry is to the blind and captive, not the strong and powerful. God’s servant ministers not only to the literally blind or captive or ill, but rather to all those who are blinded by the world’s lies or who are captive to sin. This includes, of course, everyone, though not all realize it. Like Jesus himself, the Lord’s servant is to help those who know their need, and who humbly desire to know their God.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why are the qualities Isaiah mentions here so important for the Lord’s servant to have?

How do they relate to the qualities of God himself?

Why does God emphasize the act of breathing in passages like Isaiah 42:5, Genesis 2:7, and 2 Timothy 3:16?

How can we be a covenant?

How can we be a light?

Sing To The Lord A New Song (Isaiah 42:8-17)

The evocative exhortation in verse 10 is no less than a call to rise above all of this world’s distractions and discouragements, so that we can see matters from a more godly perspective. Since God sees things differently and values things differently, his servant can understand God’s ways only by listening for God’s voice amidst the pointless chattering of the worldly.

God speaks through the prophet to say, "new things I declare" (Isaiah 42:8-13), for it has always been God’s intent to redeem believers from this perishable, sin- flawed world, and ultimately to provide them with a new home. In all this, the glory belongs to God, and this is the new song that we sing. In a world that promises much but delivers nothing of lasting value, in God and in Jesus we have found the one source of hope and truth.

Everyone wants to be able to engage in praise and rejoicing, for even the worldly find things to rhapsodize about. The issue is not whether we praise and rejoice, but whether we are praising the right God and rejoicing for the right reasons. Evil persons rejoice, but for the wrong reasons. The ungodly praise other humans, wealth, or sensual pleasure, but such praise is misdirected.

The God who has created so many things with the capacity to give us enjoyment, not the things themselves, should be given the praise. And if he can create things that bring earthly delight to such benighted and benumbed creatures as we are, then he can prepare an eternal spiritual paradise that is beyond our present ability to describe.

God’s patience is extraordinary, yet there comes a time when he remains silent no longer (Isaiah 42:14-17). He compares his patient forbearance of sin and folly to a woman in the pains of childbirth*, going through an ordeal in the hope that new life will come of it. This also helps explain why God now speaks as he does.

* Compare this with New Testament passages such as John 16:20-22 and Galatians 4:19-20.

To the blind (i.e. to those who know they are blind) he promises to bring light; it is for the sake of the humble that he endures those who do not admit they are blind. But to idol worshipers he will bring only shame, and a darkness even greater than that in which they live already. For they have rejected his patience and compassion in order to worship pointless and useless things, which can never give life. In giving them nothing, God only gives them what they asked for.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What are the ’new things’ God speaks of here?

Why is the song we sing ’new’?

Can we know when we are praising and rejoicing for the right reasons?

Why is childbirth used as an analogy here?

In what sense does God give light to the spiritually blind?

Looking Ahead

As we continue in this section of Isaiah, it is helpful to keep in mind the identity or identities of the servant. Jesus is, of course, the perfect servant, and most of Isaiah’s ’servant’ passages refer at least in part (or on one level) to Jesus*. So it is often helpful to see how the prophet’s descriptions of the servant apply to Jesus, and how the servant exemplifies Jesus’ ministry.

• ·    Notice, however, that passages such as Isaiah 42:19-20 could not possibly refer to Jesus, and in other passages like Isaiah 44:1-2; Isaiah 44:21, the emphasis is clearly on human servants. Then, on the other hand, in places like Isaiah 52:13 and Isaiah 53 the prophet is obviously talking foremost about the Messiah. See also the questions below.

The ’servant’ often represents believers, both in Isaiah’s day and now. For believers in Isaiah’s day, the Lord’s servant represented the call to remain faithful despite the faithlessness of so many Israelites. Believers in Isaiah’s day also needed to be aware that their era represented just one stage in the unfolding of God’s Messianic ministry. Many of Isaiah’s original listeners would have children or grand-children who would be taken captive to Babylon, but they could also know that a later generation would return to Judah, spiritually stronger and ready to be more devoted servants.

Believers today have the great benefit of seeing the Messianic ministry in its completed entirety. We are able to enjoy its spiritual benefits in part because other generations long ago endured discipline and hardship. Thus we have even more reason to emulate the kind of servant that Isaiah describes. Note also that, in any time frame, the ’servant’ might represent individual believers, believers as a group (the church, or the nation of Judah), or both.

The theme of the Lord and his servant will also be at the center of the next several chapters. Isaiah will discuss the redemption of the servant (Isaiah 42:18 to Isaiah 44:5), to remind us of our complete dependence on God’s grace. He will reproach the idolatrous and call us to acknowledge that for the Lord’s servant there is no other God but the one living God (Isaiah 44:6 to Isaiah 45:25), so that we must expose and renounce our idols.

The servant should remember that God’s purpose will stand (Isaiah 46:1 to Isaiah 47:15), both against physical attacks from Babylon and other forces, and also from the spiritual attacks of the ungodly. Through it all, the servant can and should be a light for the Gentiles - that is, for unbelievers (Isaiah 48:1 to Isaiah 49:26). Those who know and seek God have the only true light that this world will see, and God hopes that we shall let that light shine.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah use the term ’servant’ in so many ways?

Should we always determine one meaning for it in any given passage?

Select some of the ’servant’ passages in Isaiah 40-66, and see if you can tell whether they apply to Jesus, believers in Isaiah’s day, believers today, or more than one of these.

Mark Garner, July 2008

The Redemption Of The Servant (Isaiah 42:18 to Isaiah 44:5)

Isaiah has described for us the ideal servant of the Lord, but he is well aware that only the Messiah himself will fulfill this perfect depiction. God knows that even faithful servants will always need his grace and redemption. Before we can hope to understand the true nature of God and of God’s will, we first must accept how completely dependent we are on him.

Review Of Recent Classes

In this section of the book (Isaiah 40-49), the prophet talks about one of his key themes, the relationship between the Lord and his servant. God calls out to "comfort, comfort my people" (Isaiah 40:1 to Isaiah 41:29), as he looks ahead to the future. Although he will later send Judah into exile, he will also arrange for their return* . These verses are even more significant in foretelling the ministry of John the Baptist, which in turn helped prepare the way for Jesus the Messiah.

• ·    All of these events took place after Isaiah’s lifetime, but he foretold the entire sequence of events in his prophecies. Besides previous notes, see also the notes below to Isaiah 43:14-21.

God’s proclamation, "here is my servant" (Isaiah 42:1-17) leads into a characterization of the ideal follower of God. These qualities are most fully realized in Jesus, and they are also the things God wants to find in all of his servants. The nature of the servant is to value gentleness, justice, and perseverance. The calling of the servant is to be a light and a covenant for others to see.

The servant can also sing "a new song" to the Lord, for the old values and perspectives are left behind when we are able to see God as he is. The servant of God no longer follows idols, and gives glory only to God. The servant does not by himself or herself decide what is true or right, but rather seeks out the path, the highway, that God has already prepared and made smooth.

The Servant’s Spiritual Struggle (Isaiah 42:18-25)

As long as we live in the flesh, we shall struggle against sin, weakness, and folly. God’s servants face the same problems as everyone else, with the only difference being that they know where to turn for grace and mercy. There is no need for believers to hide their faults - indeed, those who understand grace realize that God asks only that we humbly acknowledge our need for him.

The problem of spiritual blindness and deafness has arisen before in the course of Isaiah’s ministry (Isaiah 42:18-22), since it was a common and persistent problem he faced. His plea, "you have seen many things, but have paid no attention" echoes other things Isaiah has proclaimed during his ministry, all the way back to God’s warning that the people he faced would be "ever hearing, but never understanding" (Isaiah 6:9). Such problems were also quite familiar to Jesus*.

* Isaiah 6:9-10 is quoted in Matthew 13:14-15, Mark 4:12, Luke 8:10, John 12:40, and Acts 28:26-27.

Such difficulties can discourage faithful believers who cannot help but notice how little the world truly understands about God. That is why Isaiah reminds us that God proclaims and explains his will for the sake of his own righteousness - that is, because he knows that he alone is truly righteous, and that humans can never arrive at the truth solely through their own efforts.

In this world, we each become lost quite quickly when we try to tackle things alone. The distractions and temptations of the world are stronger than our will, and Satan is far stronger than we ever shall be. Indeed, when humans persuade themselves that they are following their own will, and that they are the ones making the decisions in their lives, this merely indicates just how enslaved they really are to fleshly desires. There is no one on this earth who can rescue us from its greatest dangers; only God is a true Savior and a true Lord.

So, which of us (or which of you, as the prophet says) will choose to listen to God? (Isaiah 42:23-25). That has always been God’s question. He cares not whether human governments choose to implement superficial aspects of his laws, and he cares not whether popular culture acknowledges his glory. Governments and other human institutions can never produce, enact, or purchase the things that God actually desires, and we simply delude ourselves when we look to these pagan institutions for spiritual comfort or hope.

It is God’s ways that we should seek, and God’s will and law that we should learn and follow. We should neither ask for nor expect help from pagans in our spiritual struggle. Nor should we waste time lamenting over the symptoms of the world’s lost condition, but instead should at all times remind ourselves of their real problems and their real needs. It is also God’s discipline - not ours, not a government’s, and not an expert’s - that will deal with spiritual disorders that truly must be corrected now. Those with faith will rejoice in allowing God to reign in all these things.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How can God’s own servant be blind and deaf?

Why is this such a persistent problem?

Find where passages like these are quoted in the New Testament.

What common themes are there?

What can we learn from this passage about the way God uses his discipline?

Precious In His Sight (Isaiah 43:1-13)

Those who willingly choose to become servants of God are a delight to him, and are precious in his sight. God’s presence is always with his servants, even in the most dire or extreme situations. We, in return, are witnesses to God’s righteousness and wisdom, by the faith we place in him. Our hope and confidence are in him, not in ourselves, and thus our hope can always be sure.

God says to his remnant, "fear not, for I have redeemed you" (Isaiah 43:1-7). God does not promise that we shall not face trouble, but rather that he will always be with us, at all times and in every circumstance. Isaiah’s imagery of passing safely through water and fire is not literal, but it is still a great encouragement. God may well ask us to pass through something unpleasant, and may even allow some outward harm to occur at the hands of a cruel and unbelieving world. But he will never permit us to undergo any spiritual trial that we cannot get through safely.

God has also willed to gather together his servants (the remnant). This pleases to God in itself, and it also provides a source of strength and encouragement to those who are part of the remnant. God has always known - and we cannot change the fact - that the vast majority of persons he created will travel along the ’broad road’ to spiritual death. That means that those who seek the ’narrow’ road to life will do well to seek each other out, to travel together on God’s highway.

Yet Isaiah hardly means for us to withdraw from the world, for God says to us, "you are my witnesses" (Isaiah 43:8-13). This refers to something much more important than verbal assertions of belief or invitations to church functions. He is, instead, describing how our entire lives and even our souls can be a testimony to God’s righteousness and justice.

All humans are, in actuality, witnesses to the type of life and perspectives that they have chosen. The materialistic are witnesses to the things that materialism produces. The hedonistic are witnesses to the ways that pleasure-seeking affects one’s life. Those who desire power are witnesses to the effects of egomania and selfish ambition. And we, as believers, are witnesses to the effects that belief has - or does not have - on our lives.

No one but God could have known, or can know, all the things that have taken place in this world. It is not possible for even the wisest or best-educated human to see into the future in any detail at all. As Christians, we are no different in that respect*, but instead we know that we can have complete faith in God’s guidance us through anything and everything that happens. Even when we do talk to others about God, what God desires is for us to testify for him naturally, as the result of a love and appreciation for him, not as a planned method or program.

• ·    Since the time of Jesus, God has revealed next to nothing in terms of the details of what will happen in the future, even as it applies to the end of this physical world. It is a misconception to think that we can figure out the ’end times’ or other world events. What God wants now is, instead, our faith in his ability to work in any and all circumstances, and our faith in his ultimate victory.

Our witness, then, is to the wisdom and the inevitability of God’s will. This does not mean that every person will act as God wishes him or her to do, but rather that those who follow him will receive the things he has promised them, no matter what those who oppose God may try to do. Nor should we expect God to bless us all the time, so that others view Christianity as a means to earthly prosperity. We instead should show them that faith allows us to accept both good and bad things, in the knowledge that there is greater, eternal reality ahead of us.

So, the question for us is, do we believe all this? If so, then it cannot help but affect our thinking, our words, and our actions. If we do not, then we should spend more time with God, so that we can learn to believe it. Otherwise, any witness that we may offer to the world will merely be a testimony to church activities or to personal desires, not on behalf of God himself.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kind of confidence and fearlessness does God want believers to have?

What practical situations would parallel Isaiah’s images of passing through fire or water?

In what ways or on what occasions do our lives give witness to others?

Is this something that we should consciously think about?

Belonging To The Lord (Isaiah 43:14 to Isaiah 44:5)

The servant has been called to belong to God, not simply to follow God or even to serve God. To belong to God is both a blessing and a responsibility. The Lord’s servant knows that he or she has been chosen, so that to belong to God means no less than to fulfill the purpose of one’s life. These truths have many significant implications, as Isaiah now details.

God has always desired to clear the way (Isaiah 43:14-21), to create the highway to him that Isaiah has so often spoken of. Here, he combines a promise for the future with a reminder of the past. Concerning the future, Isaiah again openly speaks of the return from exile that will begin after a period of Babylonian captivity, which itself will happen only after Isaiah’s lifetime*. Though (then) well in the future, it was important even to Isaiah’s original audience, for God wanted them to understand that events in their lifetimes would have an impact far into the future.

• ·    As was noted earlier, Babylon would invade Judah in 606 BC, 597 BC, and 586 BC. In the last invasion, they would destroy Jerusalem and enslave most of its people. Shortly after the Medes and Persians conquered Babylon itself in 538 BC, Cyrus the Great of Persia decreed that the Jews could start returning to Jerusalem and rebuilding it, a process described in Ezra and Nehemiah.

The reminder of times in the past when God delivered his people is accompanied with the appeal to "forget the former things; do not dwell on the past" (Isaiah 43:18). This is not a contradiction, but an insight into human nature. We invariably tend either to dwell on the past (making superficial or emotional comparisons between present-day experiences and the past), or to reject the past as irrelevant. Both are foolish attitudes.

God says that he has chosen to do ’a new thing’ (Isaiah 43:19), not to be compared with the old, but to replace the old. But we are to remember his faithfulness from the past, so that we can put our trust in him in the preset and in the future.

Despite all the assurances from both past and present, God reproaches his people that, "you have not called upon me" (Isaiah 43:22-28). Although they would be quick to identify themselves as ’God’s people’, their lackadaisical ’worship’ and worldly perspectives bear witness (compare with Isaiah 43:10-12) that they have no real faith in God and no genuine relationship with him.

Because of God’s own patience and reason, though, they will always have the highway to truth and repentance open to them. We, just like they did, tend to look at God’s patient forbearance and mistakenly conclude that we have a privileged position that has motivated him to bless us. We should always watch ourselves so that we do not mistake God’s nature for our goodness.

What God really offers is not rewards for the spiritually wonderful, but water for the thirsty land (Isaiah 44:1-5). He seeks not those who do great deeds for him, but those who acknowledge their great need for him. Once again the prophet looks back to the time each of his people* was created, and then looks ahead, showing how our lives to God are always part of a more glorious whole.

* ’Jeshurun’, which Isaiah uses in Isaiah 44:2, is a poetic name for Israel. Literally, it means ’upright one’.

Thus Isaiah adds more promises for the future, in spite of all the faithlessness and sin that he has described. Even the times of discipline will be the prelude to blessing later. And most importantly, the spiritual blessings that God is preparing will be enjoyed for many generations after the prophet and his original hearers have passed from the earth.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In Isaiah’s time, how had God cleared the way for his people?

How would he do so later? How has he done so for us?

How should we view what God has done for us in the past?

Why did God tell Isaiah’s generation that they had not called on him?

How might we do the same thing?

How do we benefit from the promises in Isaiah 44:1-5?

Mark Garner, July 2008

There Is No Other God (Isaiah 44:6 to Isaiah 45:25)

Idolatry was one of the root causes behind many of the spiritual problems in Judah during Isaiah’s ministry. Today, too, it is the source of many of the ills in the lives and ministries of believers. The only real difference is that today’s most popular idols are usually not made out of wood or clay or stone, and so it can be a bit harder for us to recognize them and deal with them.

Review Of Recent Lessons

One of the major themes in Isaiah, given particular emphasis in this section (Isaiah 40-49), is the relationship between the Lord and his servant. As the prophet sees God’s plans for the future, he calls out to "comfort, comfort my people" (Isaiah 40:1 to Isaiah 41:29), which looks ahead to the return from exile and also (or especially) the Messiah. Then God declares through the prophet, "here is my servant" (Isaiah 42:1-17), as he describes the nature and calling of the ideal servant of God.

Another important aspect of this relationship is the redemption of the servant (Isaiah 42:18 to Isaiah 44:5). The servant should not be surprised by spiritual struggle, because even believers often fall into the world’s mistake of seeing and hearing without understanding. Isaiah often describes this problem as spiritual blindness or spiritual deafness.

Yet believers are always precious in God’s sight, not for what we do or accomplish, but for the faith we place in him. On this lost planet, we are witnesses that it is possible to seek and to trust God, despite all of this world’s suffering, violence, and distractions. Belonging to the Lord brings with it spiritual responsibility, but it also means that we are assured of his presence always. At all times, we have him as a source of light and water in a dark and thirsty world.

The Prophet’s Description Of Idol Worship (Isaiah 44:6-20)

As Isaiah describes the process by which idols are created, we can see both the folly of worshiping them and also the motivation behind them. To worship an idol essentially allows humans to worship themselves, under the convenient pretext of worshiping a ’god’. Yet human nature is such that idolaters usually end up being caught in a trap of their own making.

The prophet depicts God as issuing an open challenge to idols and to their creators (Isaiah 44:6-11). In actuality, the idols themselves are not the problem*, so the real challenge is to those who create and worship them. Isaiah has previously pointed out that God is the true Creator, and thus is superior to all idols. He now selects two additional grounds on which God is ready to be compared with any idol. Only God has shown his ability to know and to foreknow everything of importance; and only God is an eternal, unchangeable Rock who will always be there for us.

• ·    This is true whether we apply it to the cast and carved idols of Isaiah’s time, or to the things idolaters worship today. There is nothing inherently wrong with sculpture or woodworking, but it becomes a problem when someone exalts a physical object to the status of a ’god’. Likewise, many of the popular idols of today (examples below) can be relatively harmless if viewed properly. It is when we expect such things to ’change our lives’ or to provide things like security, hope, or purpose that they become idols.

One of the world’s hobbies is to predict things. Plenty of so-called experts earn a living from predicting everything from the weather to sports championships to political elections to the stock market. Most of them do no better than random guessing could have done, so they rely on slick techniques or arbitrary credentials to retain their status. Even the few competent prognosticators can do only a bit better than the average person. God is not even comparable to such silliness.

Likewise, God’s eternal, immortal status means that he, unlike a person or a human organization, will always be there to provide the things we count on - not just in this world, but also in eternity. He also will be the final judge of all that we have done, said, and believed. The world has a wide array of tactics for persuading us to accept the authority of those no better than ourselves, but in the end it matters little. Those who now presume to sit in judgment or to exercise authority will someday be confronted with God’s true authority and his permanent judgment.

But idols (whether they are material, financial, human, or intangible) are merely the creations of human beings. For example, even the celebrity or hero status that is accorded to so many public figures is merely a creation of public opinion, playing upon common insecurities or ambitions, or perhaps on the desire to get something from such persons. Since idols are created things that were in turn created by beings who themselves were created, they are doubly inferior to God.

The prophet’s description of an idolater’s ’ministry’ applies directly to idols of wood or stone (Isaiah 44:12-20), but the same principles can apply to the idols we ourselves worship. Notice the sacrifice of time, effort, and resources* that the idolater makes, thinking that this will make his idol more valuable. Persons today lavish their own resources on their careers, their possessions, their favorite celebrities, and the like, thinking that this gives value to these idols. In reality, it proves how foolish and pointless it is to give our hearts so fully to anything other than God.

• ·    Note that merely putting time and effort into something does not mean that it is an idol. Many persons must spend a good deal of their lives on jobs or other responsibilities that they know to have low spiritual importance. The idolater’s error is that he thinks that his time and effort can take something inherently unimportant and transform it into something of special value.

Isaiah then proceeds to point out some of the idolater’s most obvious mistakes. These are easy to see in regards to someone making a ’god’ out of a hand-crafted figurine, but it is more important to realize how closely they describe our own idol worship. Whether it involves bowing down to a bronze carp, sacrificing one’s integrity or spiritual well-being to acquire material things, or gushing over the persona of a celebrity, most idol worship* generally involves these same errors.

• ·    Worship is not limited to acts that we label ’worship’ (nor is everything that we call ’worship’ actually worship in any meaningful sense). Worship (and, for that matter, idolatry) is the kind of spiritual concept that cannot be adequately defined with a dictionary-style definition. But, at least in a general sense, worship refers to acts or attitudes that reveal our belief that the worshiped object is vital to our existence or our well-being, and/or that it can provide for our important needs.

Everything in the physical universe is made of common material, which someday will perish. This applies to human beings, organizations, governments, sports teams, material things, money, and much else besides. Neither tangible objects nor earthly accomplishments nor pleasures will last beyond this world. Thus none of them can ever hope to fulfill our spiritual needs.

Another central mistake of idol worship is that idolaters make a desperate, illogical plea (either explicitly or implicitly) to their idols. Humans worship idols because they expect to get something from them. We worship money because we think it brings security and happiness. We worship athletes and entertainers because we want to share in the glory of their successes. Such expectations, along with things that humans expect of their careers, political leaders, popularity, authority, or pleasure, are all either irrational, selfish, or both.

Acts of idolatry are willfully ignorant in many ways, but most of all in that they inevitably involve worship of self. The idolater chooses his or her ’gods’, rather than accepting the God who actually lives. The idolater wants to ’be in control’ rather than humbly to accept the will of a God that the idolater did not create. The idols we choose reveal what is important to us and what we most desire. If we value the right things and desire things that truly matter, then we shall be quite content to worship God alone. To worship anything other than God is idolatry*.

• ·    Notice that it is inadequate to define an idol as "something we put ahead of God". God does not wish merely to be first on the list of our ’gods’. The main point of Isaiah’s discussion is that God wishes to be the only object of our worship. There are many idols in our lives that are not ’ahead of God’ in terms of our attention, but that nevertheless receive an inappropriate level of devotion or worship.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does it mean to worship an idol?

Is this an idea that we can describe concisely?

Did Isaiah have in mind the kinds of idols that are more common now?

Identify some idols that you/we/others worship today.

How do they illustrate the points Isaiah makes in this passage?

How can this help to expose our idols?

The True Source Of Redemption & Salvation (Isaiah 44:21 to Isaiah 45:8)

Unlike idols, God can give us the things that we need the most. He alone can redeem us and save us, and he alone can give us a worthwhile purpose in this world. This is because God made everything in our universe. No human or group of humans created or constructed the living God, and he towers above even the most prominent of humans and even the greatest of natural forces.

Isaiah asks idolaters why they will not simply return to God (Isaiah 44:21-28). God demands no explanations or defenses from those who return to him, even of idolaters. He graciously sweeps our sins away, in his joy that we have come to our senses. He asks only for us to acknowledge him as the one true God and Creator, and to accept his grace (i.e. by the power of Jesus’ blood).

It is in this context that the prophet speaks at length about Cyrus of Persia, who in a future era will be the human instrument to bring about Judah’s return from exile*. He refers to this powerful secular leader as the Lord’s ’shepherd’. Cyrus is one of the most prominent figures in secular ancient history**, yet to God his only real significance was the way God would use him to bring about an event that was relatively minor from a secular perspective.

• ·    As king of Persia, Cyrus led the coalition that overthrew the Babylonian Empire in 538 BC. Since Persian policy towards smaller nations was more benevolent than Babylon’s, soon after taking Babylon’s territories Cyrus allowed the captives to return to Judah. See 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1:1-4.

• ·    Known to history as Cyrus ’The Great’, he had also previously defeated the Median Empire (Media then became his ally against Babylon). He established the Persian (Achaemenid) Empire and the ruling dynasty of this empire. His generous treatment of smaller nations was not so much out of goodness as out of the realization that this could be more effective than intimidation as a way to build and maintain an empire.

Speaking to this future (from Isaiah’s perspective) leader*, God promises, "I will go before you" (Isaiah 45:1-8); that is, all that Cyrus accomplishes will be by God’s grace. Cyrus himself would naturally have found this either amusing or insulting, but it was God who would ’level the mountains’ to make sure that this ’great’ leader would be in the right place at the right time.

• ·    Many commentators consider it impossible for Isaiah to have predicted Cyrus by name. They think that these verses are ’proof’ that the Isaiah of the 8th century BC could not have written this part of the book.

God was not concerned about the other policies or accomplishments of Cyrus or his successors. Likewise, if he cares about today’s issues or leaders, it is generally not in the ways that would interest the world. Instead, he wishes for salvation to spring up (Isaiah 45:8), and for the clouds to rain righteousness from above. This, too, is where he hopes his servants will learn to focus.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah keep reminding us that God created all things in our world?

Why does he mention Cyrus of Persia so prominently?

What do these things teach us about our own perspective?

Don’t Quarrel With Your Maker (Isaiah 45:9-25)

Amongst other things, idolatry is unnecessary, for we already have a living God, our Creator, who is willing to save us. There is no good reason to challenge God or to compete with God, either directly or through idols. The more clearly that we are able to see God, the more willing we shall be to discard our idols, and to give up our attempts to substitute idols for God.

Isaiah uses the common biblical analogy of the potter and his clay (Isaiah 45:9-13) to emphasize the absurdity of worshiping idols. The proper form of worship is for the created beings to bow in humility before their Creator, but idolaters try to reverse this, and thus distort this relationship. As before, idolaters want to take control themselves, rather than letting God be in control.

The prophet also expresses God’s disdain for human attempts to implement works salvation, which is an implicit feature of many idols and false religions. God promises to free the exiles, and to free all who are captive to sin, but "not for a price or a reward" (Isaiah 45:13). No one paid or rewarded Jesus for dying on the cross. All of our attempts to earn or deserve salvation count for nothing at all with God. He forgives and blesses us because of his nature, not ours.

The truth has thus been made plain (Isaiah 45:14-25). God gives us all that we need in order to seek him, and instead we turn to cheap, perishable idols. Yet God knew the struggles we would have in turning to him. This earth was formed to be inhabited by thinking beings. God wishes not only for us to see his greatness and brilliance, but also to see his grace and compassion. The only way to do this is for him to allow each of us to have the free choice of whether to seek him.

In the Lord alone are to be found the things we most truly need. All of the things that we hope to receive from idols are just a substitute for our real needs. Our surface desires merely reflect our deeper needs, and these deeper needs all reflect our innate need for God.

Thus the most significant application of these chapters is Isaiah’s implicit exhortation for us to expose the idols in our lives. To do so is not easy or pleasant, but it will bring us spiritual rewards that will last much longer than any idol will.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What other Scriptures use the analogy of a potter and his clay?

What common lessons do they hold?

How does the prophet use the analogy here?

Why is it significant that God accepts no price or reward for redeeming us?

What motivations does Isaiah give us for confronting and exposing our idols?

How can we recognize them? What further steps could we then make?

Mark Garner, August 2008

My Purpose Will Stand (Isaiah 46:1 to Isaiah 47:15)

Humans have always persisted in worshiping idols, and they will continue to do so as long as this earth exists. But God alone reigns, and God alone will judge, despite the world’s efforts to install its idols in his place. While it can be difficult for us to cast off our idols, when we do so it allows us to see, understand, and appreciate God much more clearly.

Review

Much of this section of the book (Isaiah 40-49) centers on the relationship between the Lord and his servant. God desires to comfort his people, especially in their souls. He wishes to present his servants to the world as a light and as a living covenant. As Isaiah has often told us, God wishes to redeem his servants from this lost world, and to draw them together as a remnant.

God calls us to accept that there truly is no other God (Isaiah 44:6 to Isaiah 45:25), so he calls us to expose and discard all idols. The prophet’s description of idol worship applies to the physical idols of his own era and to the less obvious idols that are popular now. In God’s challenge to idolaters, he points out that he is the Creator, whereas idols are created; that he alone knows and foreknows all things; and that only he will live forever to help those who worship him.

In describing an idolater’s ’ministry’, Isaiah points out some things to help us to expose our own idols for what they are. The idolater erroneously thinks that his time and effort can transform common material into a ’god’. Idolaters also make a desperate plea to their idols, asking the idols to save them and make their life meaningful, instead of asking God for these things. Idolatry is an act of willful ignorance that ultimately involves worshiping self. Idolaters wish to seize control by choosing and worshiping their own ’gods’, rather than accepting the living God.

They do this because they value the temporary things of this world more than they value God’s spiritual blessings. But only God is the true source of redemption and salvation. Only he can give true purpose to our lives, only he can meet our deepest needs, and only he will always be there to protect us, even when this life is over. Isaiah says that even Cyrus of Persia, the greatest secular ruler of his time, was to God a mere tool, and was completely dependent on God.

We, then, should not quarrel with our Maker by setting up idols in our hearts. As the prophet illustrates with the common biblical analogy of the potter and the clay, believers should be content to see God’s will done - and they should take care to distinguish his will from theirs. We cannot choose our Creator, but we can choose to love him and to appreciate his blessings.

From Beginning To End (Isaiah 46:1-13)

The idols that humans worship are a terrible weight that wearies the soul, blocks the light, and torments the heart. It is only our pride and our inertia that prevent us from taking the initiative against our accumulated pantheon of idols. Through Isaiah, God appeals to us, urging us to see how unnecessary it is to live in idolatry. For God is always ready to give us what we truly need.

Idols are a heavy burden, but they are an entirely avoidable burden (Isaiah 46:1-7). Isaiah’s description of idol worshipers laboriously dragging around their idols* is quite humorous in its way, yet it reveals an important truth about idols. Even if they are not made of heavy material like stone or metal, our own idols are also a dead weight, needlessly consuming our energy and our time.

• ·    Isaiah specifically mentions the names of Bel and Nebo. ’Bel’ is an ancient Semitic title, meaning lord or master (note its similarity to Baal), and the name was used at one time or another to refer to a number of different pagan ’gods’. During Isaiah’s lifetime, it most commonly referred to Marduk, the supreme ’god’ of Babylon. ’Nebo’ is another name for Nabu, who was Marduk’s son in Babylonian mythology.

When we place too high a value on the temporary things of this world, we risk going through this same kind of painstaking process, to keep our idols propped up and to try to obtain the rewards we seek from them. We then constantly rationalize the shortcomings of our idols, and can deliberately ignore any indications that they might not bring the lasting blessings we seek from them. Just as these poor, foolish idolaters (in Isaiah’s description) should simply have left their idol behind to take care of itself, so also we should let go of our burdensome idols.

Idols distort our perspective. Once an idol takes root in our hearts, we no longer think of it objectively. When we put hope in an idol, and our hope is frustrated, we can end up blaming others instead of accepting that the idol did not deserve our devotion to begin with. When others do not accept our idol, or do not think as highly of it as we think they should, we may start finding fault with them, because we cannot see our idol in objective terms.

God is different, because God sustains us, rather than the other way around. God does not need our sacrifices, and he asks us to sacrifice very little - and that only for our own spiritual benefit. God does not need our approval, but he enjoys it, so he tolerates disdain from the vast majority of humans just because the few who sincerely praise him mean so much to him. God’s majesty and immortality do not depend on our money, our actions, our votes, our knowledge, or anything else that we supply.

On the contrary, God supplies what we very much need, and he does this in so many ways that we invariably take them for granted. We depend on God every moment of every day, both to continue to supply our physical needs, and also to provide the grace and mercy that we constantly need. Contrast this with our idols - whether human, material, or intangible - that constantly need us to prop them up, or else they lose their exalted status.

Moreover, God promises us eternal rewards, and his salvation will not be delayed (Isaiah 46:8-13). He does not promise mere earthly rewards the way our idols do. Even when our idols actually provide us with some of the benefits they promise, they never last. There is none other like God, for no idol compares with him, neither in promising things of real value nor in the certainty that we shall receive what he promises.

And, unlike idols, it is God’s main desire to bless us. He comes to us only to bring us salvation, righteousness, and splendor; he comes to bring us blessings that we cannot afford and can never earn. He needs nothing in return, and he desires only faith in return. He is not like our idols, which require us to give them power, money, and privilege in return for their vague and unreliable promises of blessings, which in turn usually end up being trivial in nature.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does Isaiah want us to learn from his description of the idolaters lugging their idol around?

Review the things that are worshiped as idols today.

What burdens do each of them place upon us?

Are they physical burdens, spiritual, or both?

How can we learn to see this more clearly?

What new contrasts between God and idols does Isaiah give us in this passage?

How can they help us to turn aside from our idols?

Warning Against False Security (Isaiah 47:1-15)

In Isaiah’s lifetime, both Babylon and Judah suffered from the delusion of false security. The Babylonians felt that their size and strength would always keep them safe, while the residents of Judah felt certain that "their" God would never allow anything bad to happen to them. Today, though our reasoning may on the surface be different, we can easily fall into this same delusion.

Isaiah personally experienced one of the major disappointments that God has always faced in his relationship with his people: despite proclaiming the truth, no one will listen (Isaiah 47:1-7). While this passage is especially directed at the Babylonians, there is also a deliberate parallel between unbelieving Babylon and believing Judah. Both of them were guilty of disregarding God, and of valuing short-lived earthly blessings above deeper and more lasting needs.

The prophet thus depicts Babylon as a forlorn woman who has lost all her earthly security, and who must wander aimlessly in misery and shame. God would, in time, bring about such a fate in a literal fashion, first for Judah and later for Babylon. Yet the point is that this physical deprivation parallels the spiritual desolation that God already sees in both Judah and Babylon.

Thus Isaiah also stresses the need for spiritual reflection. From our perspective, as believers, it is easy for us to assume that the good things we have are proof of God’s approval of us, rather than an expression of his grace and compassion upon the erring. When believers in God begin to think that they have arrived at maturity, and that they no longer need to ask questions or to re-evaluate their beliefs and perspectives, then this kind of spiritual dullness can set in quickly.

The prophet also warns against hidden weaknesses and misconceptions (Isaiah 47:8-15). Any form of earthly security is at best fragile and short-lived. We tend to take for granted things as they are, so that we are more likely to lament something we lose than to give thanks for what we have. Because it is frightening to realize just how vulnerable we are in earthly terms, even believers often put confidence in the wrong things.

The Babylonians thought that they had prosperity and safety because their astrologers and sorcerers* were doing a good job, and we also can give credit to ourselves, to our government, or to our culture for things that God has given us by his grace. It is easy to misunderstand God’s patience, but he will someday call us all to account, and we cannot determine when that will be. It is human nature to wait until there is no choice before making unpleasant changes, but God’s servants should not allow themselves to fall into this worldly habit.

These were not the kinds of comical ’astrologers’ that we encounter in our own time (though there are many who take even these fakes seriously). Babylonian astrologers and sorcerers combined the best scientific knowledge of the time with their own tactics of showmanship and self-promotion, and they attained positions of considerable influence. They were similar, in certain respects, to many of today’s media figures or public opinion experts.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does Isaiah convey with his image of the desolate, wandering woman?

To whom does this apply?

What kinds of consideration or reflection (verse 7) does God want?

What parallels are there today to the Babylonians’ confidence in their astrologers and sorcerers?

Are these idols, or an aspect of worshiping other idols?

What is the right way to understand and respond to God’s patience?

Summary & Preview

This section of Isaiah is a transition from the theme of the middle of the book, that God is "the sure foundation for your times", to the theme of the last portion, God’s appeal for us to "rise, shine, for your light has come". Before we can fully understand or embrace what he calls us to, and before we can be the servants he seeks, we must expose, confront, and topple our idols.

Next (Isaiah 48), the prophet will urge us to choose God’s peace instead of the false hope offered by our idols. Although idols seem to promise rewards, they always end up holding us back, since we have to sustain them. Idols also ruin our spiritual focus, since they cause us to emphasize the wrong things and to create the wrong expectations. This is just as much a danger for Christians as it is for the overtly worldly, and this is also why the church tends to rely on methods or slogans more than on God and on Jesus.

The worldly tend to rely on change in the world around them, rather than trying to change themselves from the inside. So too, in the church we can become too dependent on the spiritual environment around us, and we convince ourselves that our spiritual growth is someone else’s responsibility. This is why Isaiah has so often stressed the nature of the remnant, for the servants God seeks are those who seek and love God even when those around them do not.

We are called (Isaiah 49) to be a light for the nations*, to be a living covenant of faith. We cannot do this as God desires until we discard our idols, whether they are overtly secular or whether they seem to be religious. The servant of the Lord does not set forth his or her own expectations for the church, but allows God’s will to be done, whether it pleases our flesh or not.

* Or, "for the Gentiles", as some versions translate Isaiah 49:6.

When we can face up to our own weaknesses, and can acknowledge how deeply we must rely on God’s grace, and can see our idols for what they are, then we can see much more clearly how God is guiding us. We can accept the blessings of this life without becoming distracted by them or engrossed in them. We can know real security through God’s constant presence, rather than worrying about worldly circumstances that we cannot control. We can be grateful when things go well, and hopeful when they do not. We can become the servants God calls us to be.

Mark Garner, August 2008

Choose God’s Peace (Isaiah 48:1-22)

One of God’s most outstanding characteristics is his willingness to let each one of us freely choose whether we will follow him, or whether we will take the things he gives us but then live for this world instead. God is always ready to warn us, to help us, to plead with us, to discipline us, or to reason with us. But the choice between him and the world will always be ours to make.

Review

In the relationship between the Lord and his servant (Isaiah 40-49), the prophet particularly emphasizes that there is no other God (Isaiah 44:6 to Isaiah 45:25) . It is an important step to realize that there is a God who lives and who created all things, but it is just as important to realize that only the one living God, not any of our man-made idols, is able to provide for our deepest needs.

We can be certain that God’s purpose will stand (Isaiah 46:1 to Isaiah 47:15). From beginning to end (of our lives, and of the world’s history) he knows all about us and sustains us in every necessary way. Idols, in contrast, are a burden. They constantly require our protection to keep from toppling, and they are dependent on human worshipers to retain even the appearance of being ’gods’. God creates and sustains us, while we create and sustain idols.

Moreover, it is always God’s desire to bless, even when he disciplines us or corrects us. Although we often struggle to place the proper value on God’s blessings, we never need to doubt that it is always his wish to know us, to forgive our sins, and to reserve a place for us in eternity.

Isaiah issues a warning against false security, directed at Babylon but implicitly cautioning believers as well. Both unbelievers and believers can indulge in flesh-pleasing misconceptions that cause them to ignore hidden weaknesses. Babylon took false security in its size and power, while Judah took false security in its identity as God’s people. Both thought that nothing bad could happen, and both took God’s patience for granted. Both thus serve as a caution to us.

God Refines His Servants (Isaiah 48:1-11)

God understands both the limitations and the potential of human nature. So, when he refines us or examines us, he is well aware of our shortcomings, and he is well aware of the obstacles and temptations that we face. He asks us above all to have faith in him and in his ways, because then he can guide us wherever we are needed, and he can teach us whatever we need to learn.

God has encountered the obstacle of stubbornness (Isaiah 48:1-6 a) in every era of history. Like ancient Judah, we want to be called God’s people, and we invoke the name of the living God when we wish to establish something beyond doubt on his authority. Yet with our own desires or plans, we become reluctant to entrust everything fully to God. Christians praise the Bereans for comparing all that they heard with God’s Word* to see whether it was true. Yet we do not like to accept the possibility that we, too, may need to re-examine our own opinions and beliefs.

In Acts 17:10-12, Paul’s audience in the city of Berea listened to his proclamation of the gospel, and then took considerable time examining the Scriptures (i.e. the Old Testament) to see if what Paul had told them about the Christ (the Messiah) was in accordance with Scripture.

This is why Isaiah describes his listeners as having iron sinews and bronze foreheads. They claim to have been taught nothing but the truth, and they see no need to think about the things they have chosen to believe. Today, the church of Christ also does not like to re-consider many of its own assumptions about God. Yet such complacency can destroy a relationship with God.

In our fellowship, a great many of the things we commonly believe do come from God’s authority, yet others come from far less worthy sources. Many New Testament believers and congregations accept teachings that were actually proposed by denominational leaders, theologians, or writers. We can even eagerly believe things told us by secular leaders who have little genuine understanding of God. Because we are eager to satisfy our "itching ears", we often overlook the opportunism of those who use God’s name for mere personal advantage,

Yet, just as God left no doubt that Isaiah’s generation received no benefit from their idols, so too today’s believers would do well to remember that neither secular leaders nor religious authorities have special standing or validity in God’s eye. The truth is never decided by human experts or universities or elections or conclaves or councils, whether they claim to be religious or not.

God tests his people in a ’furnace’* (Isaiah 48:6-11). He wants us to see and experience new and ’hidden’ things, since he will give us blessings and joy that cannot be obtained using this world’s methods. But to appreciate the things God offers us, we first have to perceive the comparative emptiness of this world’s rewards. In practice, the only way that God can help us to learn such lessons is by allowing us to endure hardships - hence the seemingly grim analogy of a furnace.

• ·    This analogy, also used by other inspired writers, refers to the practice of using extremely high temperatures to purify metals by burning off impurities, leaving the more durable (and more valuable) pure metal intact. God’s ’furnace’ burns off our faults and impurities, but leaves our more godly qualities intact.

Yet this is not meant to suggest punishment or even discipline, but rather purification. Many of the struggles we go through can help us develop godly qualities like perseverance, compassion, gentleness, and other qualities that the fleshly either ignore or disparage. The furnace of affliction that believers must enter is not really much different from the things that all humans on this planet must endure. But believers can know that even the most difficult times of their lives allow God a chance to refine and purify them in ways that ultimately will be of great value.

It is interesting to see Isaiah mention that God does these things ’for his own sake’* (Isaiah 48:11). The phrase is somewhat ambiguous, for the main idea is not so much that God is seeking some kind of personal advantage, but rather that God always acts (and, in a sense, must act) according his own nature. It is not his nature to watch those he loves wallow in worldly folly without trying to strengthen them spiritually. He cares about our long-term spiritual well-being more than he cares about how we feel towards him at the present moment.

* At least one version translates the phrase as, "because of who I am", rather than "for my own sake".

And, as God openly tells us, he wishes to receive proper appreciation for who he is and for how he treats us. The glory he seeks is only what he deserves. God is not merely a brilliant Creator, but also a caring Father who loves us enough to endure our anger or displeasure when we don’t understand the ways he acts for our own good. He is so patient with the insults and neglect he receives from the world - may we allow our lives (not just our lips) to praise his name.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why is God not satisfied with our willingness to be his people in name only?

What does this show about God’s priorities?

How did God make sure that the people of Isaiah’s time could not honestly give credit for their blessings to idols?

How has he done this for us? What kinds of ’furnaces’ might we face?

What impurities would God want to remove?

What does this process show about God?

God’s Plea For Faith (Isaiah 48:12-22)

Isaiah has emphasized at length the nature of idols, in order to encourage us to leave our own idols behind, and thus to place our faith completely in God. He knows that this is difficult, and so he reminds us of what God offers us. The peace God promises to our souls is deeper and more lasting than the temporary or superficial forms of peace that this world can offer.

Isaiah now makes a final ’challenge’ to idols and idolaters (Isaiah 48:12-15), as a way of calling his readers to realize the spiritual benefits that will come if they are willing to turn away from their idols once for all. God is the first and last, the only Creator. How can a human, an object, or any other created thing ever attempt to compare with God in meeting our soul’s needs? Which of our idols would not look silly stacked up against God? These are truly obvious questions, but Isaiah has dealt with them at length because he knows that idolatry is deeply rooted in the flesh.

Everything that God plans, and all who stand with God, will succeed - as God defines success. God has already chosen his future ’ally’ (or instrument), Cyrus*, and has already decided on a course of action for the purpose of purifying his people. This purpose will succeed, and so too God’s ultimate purposes in Jesus have succeeded and will succeed. The only uncertainty lies in our decisions, for each of us can decide whether or not to join God in his will and his purpose.

• ·    Cyrus of Persia was the ruler who (after Isaiah’s lifetime) would conquer Babylon and allow Judah to return home. He is mentioned by name in Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1; Isaiah 45:13. See also last week’s notes.

God’s promise of peace, then, is a promise that we can be at peace with him (Isaiah 48:16-22). This is a peace that will last forever, and it is a much deeper peace than the kind of fragile, surface peace that the world pursues. The leaders and experts of this world attempt to keep the world’s real problems hidden behind a shallow veneer, and even this they do with very limited success. In the church, unfortunately, we tend to do much the same thing. We analyze minor problems in detail, to distract attention from the real needs in our souls. We try to produce quick, outward results to re-assure ourselves that we can avoid dealing with the really difficult questions of faith.

God always teaches us what is best for us (Isaiah 48:17). Yet this is really what lies at the heart of so many of our spiritual struggles, because we have a hard time accepting it - rather, our flesh has a hard time accepting it, because our souls rejoice in knowing that God’s direction is always trustworthy. Our spirits know that the world has led us astray countless times, so knowing that God can be trusted is a great relief. But to enjoy this relief, we often must say ’no" to the flesh.

Here (Isaiah 48:18) is where the song phrase, "peace like a river", comes from. The world’s peace is just an absence of conflict or pain, and it never lasts long. God’s peace is not the absence of something, but the presence of something: God himself. And his peace flows like a river, for it never runs dry, and it gives life. Note, though, that this great promise is phrased in a cautionary way - Isaiah’s original audience did not receive it, for they sought worldly things instead.

Isaiah gives yet another glimpse of the future, foreseeing the day when the captives from Judah would leave Babylon with shouts of joy. Throughout several chapters (44-48), Isaiah ties together the dangers of idolatry with the promise of future renewal and recovery. Isaiah appeals to us to realize our need to turn away from our idols if we want to have the kind of lasting, fulfilling renewal that God wishes us to have. "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs" (Jonah 2:8).

Isaiah reminds us of the time that God provided water in the desert* for his people, and in doing so he implies that God will give us, too, a flow of living water in the middle of the spiritual ’desert’ on this earth. Isaiah is reiterating God’s promise of life and peace in several different ways, because the choice is ours to make; God will not force us to choose the right path.

• ·    Isaiah is referring to Exodus 17:1-7, and possibly also Numbers 20:1-13. The second passage describes the incident that led to Moses being prohibited from entering the Promised Land in person.

With his warning that there is no peace for the wicked, the prophet reminds us that there is a choice to make. Idolaters of all kinds seek peace from their idols, but if they find any peace at all, it will not last. The only lasting peace is to be found in God.

God has made a deliberate and irrevocable choice that shows his compassion and his righteousness at the same time. True to his nature, he will not have fellowship with those who are guilty of sin. But also true to his nature, he gives everyone a fair chance to receive his grace. He himself made a great sacrifice in order to provide us with the access to his grace that we need. Grace, by definition, cannot be attained by our own power, knowledge, or effort.

Now it is up to us to make a choice. Will we see the creation and the cross, and yet decide that we prefer the false promises of this world’s idols? Or will we turn aside from the world’s distractions and lies, so that we can know the true peace and lasting hope that God gives us? We can choose whatever we wish, for God will not force us to do his will. He has made clear both the promises of acceptance and the consequences of rejection.

Isaiah does not want us to worry about what to ’do’, or how to prove ourselves to God. Instead, he calls us to "reason together" spiritually. If we can accept in our hearts that God alone has what we truly need, and can honestly tell God that we are willing and ready to trust in him alone, then he can teach us and guide us from there.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense does God want us to compare our idols with him?

What decisions does he wish us to make?

How much time does he allow us for these decisions?

What kind of peace does God offer us?

How does it compare with the world’s peace?

What does it show about God that he allows us freely to choose between him and this world?

Mark Garner, August 2008

A Light For The Nations (Isaiah 49:1-26)

God realizes how easily we can become pre-occupied with our own plans. The blessings and the ministries that he has in mind for us are often much different from the ones we are thinking about. This was true in ancient Judah, and it is equally true today. Thus, Isaiah now tries to help us to adjust our perspective, so that we can see how much better it is to follow God’s will.

Review of Recent Lessons

This section of Isaiah (chapters 40-49) focuses on the relationship between the Lord and his servant. The servant knows that there is no other God (Isaiah 44:6 to Isaiah 45:25), and thus rejects all idols. God’s purpose alone will stand (Isaiah 46:1 to Isaiah 47:15), since all idols (whether tangible or intangible) are incapable of providing lasting blessings that can satisfy the needs of the soul.

The prophet thus exhorts us to choose God’s peace rather than the world’s false promises (Isaiah 48:1-22) . God refines his servants in the furnace of affliction, in order to purify them. To do this, he must face the obstacle of human stubbornness. The human wish to create our own ’gods’ causes us often to resist or misunderstand God’s will and Word. Even believers may sometimes refuse to give up their self-will, and God does not force us to believe in him or to trust in him.

God’s plea is that we put our faith in him alone. Isaiah thus makes a final challenge to those who worship idols, pointing out how much more God has to offer. God promises us peace, and his promise is certain. He does not offer the kind of fragile, surface -only peace that the world aims for, but a lasting peace that comes from knowing who we are and what we are called to be.

God Calls To His Servants (Isaiah 49:1-7)

God has known each of us from the time of our birth, and perhaps even before. God knows all of our needs and all of our limitations. Since no worldly purpose or goal would be truly worthy of the souls he has created, he allows us to share in his own work of salvation. Far from intending this as a burden, God wishes the lives of his children to have lasting meaning and purpose.

Isaiah considers how God had called him from his birth (Isaiah 49:1-4), and he urges his audience* to ponder upon the implications of this. God has prepared him and also has protected him, giving him all that he would need to seek and serve God. In his own time, Isaiah might be something of a special case, since he was called to prophetic ministry during the era of the Old Covenant. Now, though, God gives each person life with the hope that he or she will come to Jesus, and will allow Jesus’ blood to provide complete cleansing and forgiveness.

Isaiah’s exhortation, "listen to me, you islands; hear this you distant nations" is a rhetorical way of saying that the coming statement is applicable to everyone, everywhere. It does not refer to any literal islands - this is just an expression, meaning that even those in remote and obscure places should listen.

As we strive to understand what it means to be called by God, the right expectations are crucial. This is the meaning of the interchange in Isaiah 49:4 - the servant feels at first that his labor in the Lord is in vain, but then reconsiders the kinds of rewards God promises. We can easily identify with this kind of internal struggle. Who does not wish to see his or her sacrifice and devotion pay off in tangible results? What believer doesn’t long to see others come to know God?

Yet even the great examples of faith often had very limited success in their earthly ministries*, and many of them also underwent some painful experiences. Often their greatest effect came after they themselves had died (consider also how this applies to Jesus). As hard as this can be to realize, it is the way God wills it, for he wants to know that we minister and serve because it is the right thing to do, not because we are counting on positive results.

• ·    Isaiah himself is an example of this. Except during the reign of Hezekiah, he was out of favor with the leaders of Judah, and his message was not popular. Jeremiah is an even more extreme example. For a possible study topic, consider also how other prophets were received in their lifetimes.

Because churches so often give in to our secular society’s fleshly emphasis on competition and results, many believers find such thoughts confusing or even disturbing. This is because, as the prophet says, many of the plans and goals we set are in actuality "too small a thing" (Isaiah 49:5-7) to be truly worthy of those who have been called by the living God, of those who have been "honored in the eyes of the Lord" by receiving his grace, his compassion, and his Spirit.

Even one of Isaiah’s own prophecies is given as an example of this. The prophet has repeatedly foretold that there will be a coming exile because of Judah’s idolatry and pride, but that God has already planned for the nation to return home at the appropriate time. The promise of physical restoration was held dear by some later generations, but to God it was only the start of something much larger, only one step in a much broader design.

Although it is considered ’normal’ for Christians to take passionate positions on current events or political issues, such matters are in truth "too small a thing" to merit deep concern from believers. Likewise, the light and salvation that come through Christ are too transcendent to be measured by attendance or contribution numbers. Focusing on outward results, hawking Christianity as if it were a commercial product, using worldly methodologies or models for the church - these things trivialize the calling God has given us. The power is in the gospel, and this power can override any and all worldly distractions when it is proclaimed simply and truthfully.

God wishes his truth to be taken to the ends of the earth, but outward results are neither guaranteed nor demanded. Instead, this is a promise of the suitability of the Messianic ministry, for God and his Messiah are always the answer, the message, and the way. We do not need to doubt either the validity or the importance of the gospel of grace. To be sure, teaching such a message to a sinful world is a difficult task. But anything else is indeed "too small a thing".

Questions for Discussion or Study: In what sense is everyone called by God? What implications does this have? Why are our expectations important? Why was the physical restoration of Judah "too small a thing"? How should we adjust our own perspective? In what sense does God want his salvation brought "to the ends of the earth"? What kind of responsibility does this give us? In what various ways might different believers fulfill it?

The Time Of God’s Favor (Isaiah 49:8-13)

God grants salvation, spiritual strength, and eternal promises to those he holds in his favor. Yet the way into his favor is found only through grace, not through works or knowledge. Our faith in his promise of forgiveness allows us to glimpse the full measure of the spiritual blessings he wants to give us. Living in God’s favor benefits us in ways that are hard for the flesh to grasp.

Once more, Isaiah makes the curious statement that God’s servant is called not merely to enter into a covenant with God, but actually to ’be’ a covenant* (Isaiah 49:8-9 a). As the prophet has implied in the previous verses, God’s idea of ministry is not a mere numbers game, but a revelation of light to a dark world. We thus enjoy the blessing of living in God’s favor, since there is an importance to godly living that transcends any results that it brings.

* Compare Isaiah 49:8 with Isaiah 42:6 (and see also the notes to that passage).

To live as God asks us to live means that we must at times sacrifice worldly pleasures, we must often ignore worldly criticism and hostility, and we must sometimes readjust viewpoints we have held strongly. The willingness to do such things makes us a living covenant that pleases God.

Isaiah’s phrase, "the day of salvation" carries some stirring connotations*. Yet he is not referring to one particular day, but to any day in which we as believers can know that God has saved us. As a living covenant, we can see how God’s light penetrates anyplace that we allow it to. We can come out of our worldly prisons of sin and self, and we can also offer help to others who want to be free of these things.

* For example, this verse is quoted in 2 Corinthians 6:2. (Compare the contexts there and here.)

All this has nothing to do with our merit or personal qualities, but comes because God himself is clearing the way for those who wish to come to him (49:9b-13) . Once more (verse 11), we see Isaiah’s imagery of a highway built by God to enable anyone, anywhere, any time to come to him. Note how the prophet in this passage emphasizes the ways that God meets our spiritual and physical needs, and how persons will come to him from far off and from many directions*. All this is made possible because of the spiritual highway that God has built.

• ·    The latter is emphasized in Isaiah 49:12. The reference to ’Sinim’ is ambiguous, and commentators try to associate it with a variety of nations. Some versions translate it ’Aswan’, referring to the ancient location in Egypt now known by that name. In any case, Isaiah’s reference indicates a far-off, (then) obscure location.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What or when is the time of God’s favor?

Is this the same as the day of salvation?

How does God clear the way for us to come to him?

How does this also enable him to meet our needs?

How do the needs mentioned in these verses apply to us?

What responsibility do we have in this area?

God Never Forgets (Isaiah 49:14-26)

When we look at all the violence, injustice, and suffering in this world, it can be easy to feel that God has forgotten about us. But God never forgets, and he always knows exactly what is going on. Yet his purposes are different from ours, and so it is only when we adopt his perspective that we can begin to understand what he is doing, and can be more fully comforted by his promises.

God promises not to forget us (Isaiah 49:14-18), any more than a mother would forget her child. God’s bond with us is even stronger than that of a mother, since he created us. He knows how easy it is to feel that he has forsaken us; indeed, even Jesus expressed exactly this while on the cross*. So it is not a ’sin’ if we feel that God has forgotten us - as long as we realize that it is only a feeling, and that it is a feeling we can deal with through prayer and meditation on God’s Word.

• ·    Clearly, if Jesus said this, then it cannot be a sin. It is simply a reflection of the natural effect of sin on our relationship with God (Jesus was innocent of his own sin, but bore the sins of others on the cross). Thus, to feel that God has forgotten us reflects only that our spirits are clouded by sin; it is not in itself a sin. Likewise, Jesus’ tearful prayer in Gethsemane suggests that being fearful or discouraged are not sins.

It is actually a divine impossibility for God to forget those he has created. The real obstacle to our understanding is that God focuses on the spiritual side of life, and on the long-term good, not on the things that usually matter the most to us. When we can remember this (which is, indeed, difficult to accept), then God’s will is not quite so frustrating, and his presence is less distant. God often asks us to do something solely because it is the right thing to do, even if he knows that no positive ’results’ will come about. Isaiah’s own ministry provides some examples of this.

We live under God’s "banner" (Isaiah 49:19-26); that is, our allegiance should be first, last, and always to God. This echoes Isaiah’s remark that anything else is "too small a thing". God does not ’win’ every battle on this earth, nor does he claim to. But the prophet implies different and better promises. No matter what the present holds - whether good, bad, or a mixture of both - we can know with certainty that there is a better future awaiting us. Those who live for this world must constantly worry about their future, since nothing they have is ever guaranteed to last.

The prophet reiterates that God’s wish is for all to know the true Lord. God wants us to know him, himself, not simply to acknowledge his ’existence’ or even his power. God’s use of his power is thus directed towards this end. It would be a simple matter for God to exert his power in drastic, unmistakable ways that would immediately convince everyone in the world of his existence and his power. But God does not want this.

Therefore, when Isaiah speaks of kings and queens eagerly giving believers all of their devotion and possessions, this is not going to occur in a literal fashion. As Paul told the Corinthians, all things on earth already belong to our Father, and thus to us (1 Corinthians 3:21-23), so that competition or ambition are unnecessary. This does not mean that we can lay claim to anything we desire - rather, because all things are God’s, we can be sure that he is able to give us anything that we need. Those who have this hope will not be disappointed.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kinds of things make us feel that God has forgotten us?

How can this passage help us in such situations?

How can we be sure that God remembers us?

What does God want the world to know about him?

How can this influence our lives and ministries?

What kind of hope does God want us to put in him?

Mark Garner, August 2008

Lift Up Your Eyes To The Heavens (Isaiah 50:1 to Isaiah 51:6)

In the climactic section of Isaiah, the prophet becomes increasingly direct in appealing to his hearers. He calls them - and us - to embrace the purpose and the calling that God has given us, even if this means turning from things that we once valued highly. To the prophet’s previous points, this passage also adds some new aspects of the ministry to which God calls his servant.

Review/Overview Of Isaiah So Far

The book of Isaiah explains at length God’s desire to call out a remnant of believers from an unbelieving world. The idea of a remnant was a frequent theme in the history of ancient Israel, and it has often been a part of God’s plans since then. Isaiah’s promise that "a remnant will return" is meant for his original listeners as well as for future generations (Isaiah 1-28).

In the middle portion of the book, the prophet emphasizes and explains that God is "the sure foundation for your times". God is the only true Creator, only God can meet our deepest needs, and only God will always be there for us. But it is up to us to choose between God’s peace and the world’s idols (Isaiah 29-49).

The last portion of this section (Isaiah 40-49) examines in detail the relationship between the Lord and his servant. The calling and the nature of the Lord’s servant are much different from the things that the worldly live by. In Isaiah 49, the prophet describes the blessedness of the time of God’s favor, which he also calls the day of salvation. In Jesus, we have these blessings waiting for us any time that we humbly turn to God.

Now (Isaiah 50-66), Isaiah will call his readers to "arise, shine, for your light has come". When we can see the contrast between this world’s values and God’s priorities, when we take a good look at the implications of each of them, then there is no reason not to welcome the opportunity God has given us for grace, new life, and salvation.

Sold Because Of Sin (Isaiah 50:1-3)

Sin is the central problem in our relationship with God. This is true on every level, both individually and collectively. Yet our fleshly nature is such that we persist in blaming our problems and struggles on other things, instead of recognizing that sin always has been, and always will be, the main issue. Thus we need to understand it and to accept God’s cure for it.

Many of our spiritual struggles arise from not understanding that sin is the basic problem that underlies so many other difficulties (50:1)*. Our earthly human nature leads us to think of sin in terms of what is or is not a sin, or in terms of how bad a particular sin might be, rather than in terms of what sin does to our relationship with God.

* Also compare Isaiah 50:1-2 with Isaiah 59:1-2, which is perhaps better-known.

The rhetorical questions in verse 1 point out that our separation from God did not come about by a mother’s divorce (that is, that no one is separated from God by circumstances out of their control), nor is it the result of debt (that is, our problems with God are not simply a matter of trying to follow rules, of trying to do more ’good’ things than ’bad’ things). Rather, our struggle to know God is caused by our own transgressions and sins - not one or two particularly bad or spectacular sins, but the uncleanness before God that any and all sin causes.

To put it another way, God’s opposition to sin is neither an arbitrary attitude nor an authoritarian command. It is God’s very nature that makes it impossible to allow the unclean in his presence. Thus, if we wish to know him, it does not help to try to do enough ’good’ things that they might cancel out the ’bad’. We can come to him only if all of our sins have been completely forgiven.

This helps explain why, when Isaiah’s generation called to God, there was no answer (Isaiah 50:2-3). And it explains why God may seem not to answer us sometimes. Does God lack the strength to take care of any need or question, whether serious or trivial? Does God not see or understand the many problems in our world? Does he not know how to help or how to solve the problems?

God does have the strength, and the hearing, and the eyesight, and the wisdom*, to help us in any way that he knows to be appropriate. He can change things or ’fix’ problems any time, whether in our own lives or in world affairs. When he does not do so, it is because he knows that the real problems and needs are not the mere symptoms that we concern ourselves with. His desire is not to keep patching up the external problems, but to heal us from the inside.

• ·    This is the point of the illustrations at the end of verse 2 and in verse 3. God can exercise absolute control over all life, over all natural forces, and over all events. He often chooses not to intervene directly in our affairs, but this is not due to inability - it is instead a reflection of his priorities.

The application of this passage, then, is for us to accept a basic change of perspective from the viewpoint of the world. The problem of sin, and the need for grace, will always be the crucial considerations in our relationship with God. When we see sin the way God does, then we can realize how equal we all truly are before God, and we can also appreciate how blessed we are to be able to receive his grace.

Questions For Discussion or Study:

What is the point of the questions in Isaiah 50:1?

How do they answer some common questions about our relationship with God?

What feelings or questions of ours might parallel the questions in Isaiah 50:2?

What applications do these verses have for us?

What differences do we see between God’s concept of sin and ours?

The Lord Has Opened My Ears (Isaiah 50:4-11)

This is one of a very few passages in which Isaiah shares personal thoughts about his life and ministry. Yet even here, the importance of these thoughts goes far beyond Isaiah himself. There are clear connections with the ministry of Jesus, as Isaiah leads up to some of his best- known Messianic prophecies. These verses also reflect what God desires from all of his servants.

The spiritual awakening that Isaiah describes here (Isaiah 50:4-5) is somewhat different from what humans often expect from renewal or revival. Most obviously, the prophet focuses not on activity or accomplishments, but on attitude and perspective. But perhaps even more important is Isaiah’s firm emphasis on God, not any human plan or agency, as the driving force behind spiritual growth and change.

Notice that in these verses it is the Lord who acts and initiates. The Sovereign Lord gives the prophet* an ’instructed tongue’ (Isaiah 50:4), the Sovereign Lord wakens the prophet to his responsibilities (verse 4), and the Sovereign Lord opens his ears** and heart to the truth (Isaiah 50:5). Later (Isaiah 50:7, below), it is also the Sovereign Lord who helps and protects him spiritually. The prophet must simply make sure not to draw back from God. He knows very well that it is God who is able to guide him where he should go and to enable him to fulfill his responsibilities.

• ·    Literally, this whole passage describes Isaiah’s own relationship with God, which in his own time may have included aspects (e.g. an instructed tongue) that were not given to all of his brothers and sisters. From our perspective, there are some even closer parallels with our own relationship with God. See also below.

• ·    One of Isaiah’s recurring images, going back to when he was called to prophetic ministry in chapter 6.

Along with the blessings come the realities of spiritual awakening (Isaiah 50:6-11). Spiritual renewal is not granted us for the sake of short -term pleasure, but for the sake of lasting spiritual growth. Therefore the willingness to endure abuse and ridicule is an inherent part of the renewal Isaiah describes. The servant of God does not willfully provoke or invite the mocking and opposition of others, but as Isaiah indicates (beginning in Isaiah 50:6), the servant knows that these will come to anyone who consistently proclaims the truth of God.

The servant also does not feel disgraced by the opposition of the worldly. When such abuse is directed at us solely because we speak the truth, then it is really directed at God - and it is to God that the mockers eventually have to answer. It can help to remember that our accusers* are stirring up much worse trouble for themselves than they are for us. We may not, like Isaiah, be able to ’set my face like flint’, but we can learn not to let the world intimidate us so badly.

* Recall also that in the New Testament the very meaning of the name ’devil’ is ’slanderer’ or ’accuser’.

Notice the parallels with the ministry of Jesus, whom we as Christians are called to imitate. Even more so than Isaiah, Jesus endured constant opposition and persecution, climaxing in one of the most painful deaths imaginable. The sin of others is also a cause of the suffering of the faithful. God often allows this to continue in the hope that more souls will take advantage of his patience, be convicted by the endurance of the faithful, and turn to God in repentance.

Isaiah reminds us (as he frequently will in the concluding chapters) that God brings light for those in darkness. If we feel out of place in this world, if we feel ignored by those of this earth, if we fear that no one will help us, then we are merely perceiving the true nature of this world. The right thing to do is to look up, not look around, for real help.

But to this promise Isaiah adds a warning. Those who are wise and strong in their own eyes will not accept their need for God (this is the meaning of ’those who light torches’ - they do not want the great light of God, but prefer to create their own light), to their own considerable detriment.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What does it mean to allow God to initiate spiritual renewal?

Does it mean that we literally do nothing?

What does spiritual awakeningmean to God?

How does a genuine renewal help us to face opposition and adversity?

In this respect, explain the parallels between Isaiah, Jesus, and a Christian today.

Salvation Is On The Way (Isaiah 51:1-6)

These verses explain and emphasize the importance of the change of perspective that Isaiah is urging us to adopt. Each of us has been called from creation to seek and follow God. We either accept this with all of its implications, or else we are putting our faith in things that some day will vanish completely. No amount of wishful thinking or worldly logic can change this.

Using another familiar image, Isaiah appeals to us to “look to the rock” (Isaiah 51:1-3). He adds, though, the observation that we ourselves were cut from this ‘rock’. We are not random beings, by nature distant from God and desperately trying to locate him. Rather, we used to be part of him, and were ‘cut’ from him, in that we all were made in his image. But through our sin we have created a barrier that now must be overcome.

The prophet uses Abraham and Sarah as an example of what he is saying. They are often held up as our spiritual ancestors, and they were ‘cut’ from the same rock that we were. Their blessings came by faith, not works, for they made some significant mistakes*. But because they had faith, God looked past their sins and blessed them in ways that still affect the world through their descendants (both physical and spiritual).

• ·    See, for example, the story of Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis 16 and Genesis 21, or Abraham’s deceitful dealings with Abimelech in Genesis 20.

Isaiah reprises one of his own favorite images, as he speaks of how God can make wastelands bloom. Abraham and Sarah experienced this, when they were able to start a family despite apparently insurmountable physical obstacles. All who share in their faith can also experience spiritual growth, change, and blessing no matter how barren the spiritual ‘landscape’ looks.

Those with the faith God seeks thus wait in hope (Isaiah 51:4-6). God promises that he will bring us righteousness, salvation, and justice. As for the things we want in this life, we should always ask him, and he will always give us what we truly need. We do truly need, now and forever, his grace, his righteousness, his salvation, and his wisdom. These kinds of blessings can always be ours, whenever we see our need and ask in faith.

The prophet appeals to us again, asking us just to take a look around, and then to take a look upwards. There is no lasting hope in this world, just a great variety of empty promises from lost souls trying to find their own way. There is hope and much more in heaven, where the eternal God lives, and where Jesus our brother has gone ahead of us with his own blood, so that we too can enter by being cleansed and sanctified.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah ask us to ‘look to the rock’?

Is this the same as asking us to look up to the heavens (Isaiah 51:6)?

What changes of perspective are involved?

What is it about Abraham and Sarah that serves as an example to us?

What are the things that only God can provide?

Mark Garner, September 2008

Depart, Depart, Go Out From There (Isaiah 51:7 to Isaiah 52:12)

Isaiah has just appealed to us to remember some important characteristics of our relationship with God. He has urged us to make basic changes in our perspective, so that God will bless us with true spiritual awakening. Now, he begins to emphasize the importance of turning our focus away from mere earthly affairs and concerns, so that we can concentrate on what matters most.

Review

Isaiah proclaims God’s intention for a remnant to return (Isaiah 1-27). Judah will return from captivity in Babylon, and a remnant of believers from all over the world will be brought together by the Messiah. God is the sure foundation for our times and our lives (Isaiah 28-49). None of our idols can provide for our deepest and truest needs. Thus Isaiah exhorts us to "arise, shine, for your light has come" (Isaiah 50-66).

In particular, the prophet urges us to lift up our eyes to the heavens (Isaiah 50:1 to Isaiah 51:6), so that we can see things as God wants us to see them. Our spiritual problems arise because we have sold away our souls through our sin. Any barrier between God and us does not come from mere circumstance or ineffective performance (expressed in the prophet’s analogies of divorce and debt). This means that every one of us can only be saved by God’s grace and forgiveness.

Isaiah then observes how God has opened his ears, and has given him a true spiritual awakening. This awakening or revival has made Isaiah more humble and more willing to endure opposition and hardship. He then reminds us that salvation is already on the way. We need only take a look at the perishable world around us, with all the lost souls trying so hard to find a worthwhile purpose in their lives, and then look above where God reigns forever.

Do Not Fear The Reproach Of Humans (Isaiah 51:7-16)

One big obstacle that believers face is our tendency to fear the opposition of other humans. This includes ridicule, hostility, reproach, name -calling, and many other unpleasant things. But Isaiah wisely points out that the real problem is not the ways that unbelievers treat us, but rather our fear of what they think of us. Once we accept this, it becomes easier to change our perspective.

The prophet addresses his audience now as, "you who know what is right" (Isaiah 51:7-8), for indeed we already have the Word in our hearts to testify to the truth. Thus the problem is not with what we know to be true, but with what we want to be true. Sometimes the things God reveals to us are a source of relief, joy, and hope; but at other times he exposes the grim realities of the world we live in now. It should not matter whether he tells us what we want to hear; it should only matter to us that he tells us the truth. The truth sets us free from many types of chains, and in particular it sets us free from the fear of ridicule or criticism.

For this reason also, Isaiah appeals to us to remember the fate of all who live on this earth. The moth, the worm, the elements, and other such forces will someday consume all that we have. Our physical bodies are not our eternal home, so it is wiser for us to prepare as best we can for a more permanent residence. Even the earth itself, for all that it may seem permanent, will only be here as long as God wishes it to be*. So let us not become self-deluded like the worldly - for none of these truths need frighten a believer in the gospel.

• ·    Note that current scientific theories also predict the ultimate destruction of life on earth, many years in the future when the sun’s energy is exhausted. As large, complex, and fascinating as our universe is, it is by its nature a temporary creation.

Consider also God’s everlasting salvation and righteousness. We do, of course, have to wait for a while before we can see these in their eternal glory. But we can already glimpse enough of them to realize how much more valuable and important they are than the things of this life. No amount of money, power, popularity, or fame can equate with the eternal blessings of God.

Isaiah thus calls out for us to "Awake, awake!" (Isaiah 51:9-16)*. Just as he experienced a spiritual awakening that has guided him in all he does, so now he urges us to allow God to renew and waken us spiritually. He does not want to manipulate us with guilt or other emotions - he just asks us to allow God’s truth and God’s strength to overcome our fear and our fleshly resistance.

* See also Isaiah 51:17 and Isaiah 52:1 (and the notes on these below).

God’s past deeds remind us convincingly of his immense power, which allows him to rule even over the forces of nature*. By comparison, human affairs are even easier for him to master. And his promises for the future offer us the kinds of blessings and lasting joy that the world cannot match. Isaiah 51:11 (which parallels Isaiah 35:10) reminds us that God’s blessings are greater and last longer than the things of this world.

• ·    The use of the name ’Rahab’ forms a poetic connection between nature and humanity. In this context, it does not refer to the resident of Jericho who helped Joshua’s spies. Rahab is an ancient name for a mythical dragon or sea demon associated with the Red Sea, and for this reason Rahab was a common name amongst the Canaanites. So the Rahab of the book of Joshua was named after this mythical beast. The name Rahab was also frequently used poetically to symbolize the nations of this area, particularly Egypt, and particularly in contexts that emphasized the pride and folly of human ambitions. (See, e.g., Isaiah 30:7.)

Isaiah shows us (Isaiah 51:12-13) that God realizes how easy it is for us to forget who God really is. We can come to take the creation itself for granted, and we can come to take his blessings for granted. Moreover, the world is always quick to take credit away from God, so we must often make a conscious effort to remember what we know, in our hearts, to be true.

God may not have singled us out as he did Isaiah, but he has still put words in our mouths (Isaiah 51:16). As Paul said, "I believed, therefore I have spoken" (2 Corinthians 4:13, which quotes from Psalms 116:10), so also Isaiah continually speaks what he believes. And so also God wants us to acknowledge and proclaim the God who rules the seas, the lands, and the heavens.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How far should we go in not fearing the worldly?

Should we ever respond to their ridicule?

In what sense does Isaiah ask us to awake?

Can we do this by ourselves?

What is God’s role?

How can God’s strength and promises help?

What words has God put in our mouths? How should we use them?

Shake Off Your Dust (Isaiah 51:17 to Isaiah 52:6)

Isaiah continues his appeal for us to awaken, to rise up, and to accept God’s call to us. It matters not how long we have been spiritually dozing; what matters is only our willingness to shake off the accumulated dust, so that we can resume seeing and appreciating God’s hand at work. For it is God’s strength, not our own, that brings grace and spiritual renewal.

For a second time, Isaiah calls out for us to "Awake, awake!" (Isaiah 51:17-23). His emphasis is a bit different this time, as he now presents this awakening as an appropriate change after a period of suffering. His statement that "you have drunk the cup of God’s wrath*" is a reminder that a time of struggle should not induce us to give up, but rather should motivate us to seek a stronger and renewed relationship with God.

• ·    In its context, this seems to look ahead to the generation that experienced captivity and slavery in Babylon. Thus it would be another of Isaiah’s reminders that "a remnant will return". In a broader sense, it could also refer simply to the spiritual suffering - even when not accompanied by outward harm - that can come from a period of faithlessness.

When God knows that we need discipline, he will sometimes allow us to drink such a ’cup’* even if he could have prevented it. But God will also ’take it out of our hands’ - that is, he will relieve our pain, whether spiritual or physical - when the lessons are learned and the changes are made. We cannot predict when this will happen, nor can we necessarily influence God’s decisions. Our role is, instead, to trust God’s judgment and to remember his compassion, so that our struggles can be used to build faith, not weaken it.

• ·    The use of a ’cup’ to symbolize suffering or discipline is a common image in the prophetic books. Jesus used the same image on several key occasions to make similar points.

We then hear the prophet’s call to "Awake, awake!" for the third time* (Isaiah 52:1-6). Once more, he varies the message to give it a somewhat different emphasis. This time he uses the image of garments with which we would dress ourselves, to suggest the closeness to God’s strength and splendor that is available to us if we respond to his call. One of the sad ironies of human nature is that we tend to be so persistent in seeking glory and honor through worldly things or fleshly privileges, but then do little to draw closer to the true source of power and splendor.

• ·    Note also the repetition of "clothe yourself with strength", as was said also in Isaiah 51:9. Compare also the other similarities and differences in the three "awake, awake!" passages.

Another of Isaiah’s key ideas is echoed in verse 3: just as we were sold for nothing, solely because of our own sin (as noted in Isaiah 50:1), so also it is not with money that God will redeem us. Once again we are reminded that we cannot purchase or earn either a relationship with God or the forgiveness of our sins. Grace is the foundation of all we have or can have from God.

And so, one way or another, God’s people will know his name. Even God’s own people often hinder his plans or undermine his reputation. But as sad as this may be, it is also a choice God has made. The time will come when the reality and authority of God will be clear to all. But for now, God gives every one of us the chance freely to choose him and his will.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah repeat his call to "awake, awake"?

What should we learn from this?

What all does this call to awake include?

What does it mean that we were sold for nothing?

In what sense are we redeemed for nothing?

Bringing Good News (Isaiah 52:7-12)

These verses form a transition between Isaiah’s repeated calls for awakening and his memorable prophetic description of the Messiah in the passage that follows. Thus Isaiah emphasizes the importance of a more spiritual, eternal perspective; and he urges us to leave behind our earthly entanglements. For we must do these if we wish fully to appreciate the Christ and his ministry.

To Isaiah, it is a stirring thought that the ends of the earth will see God’s salvation (Isaiah 52:7-10). The faithful prophet has lived through all kinds of events and times, and he has long since realized the temporary, unreliable nature of everything in this world. He has devoted his life to the only lasting, truly valuable things he knows of: the things that come from God.

Many believers in Jesus are familiar with the phrase, "how beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news" (Isaiah 52:7 is also quoted in Romans 10:15) . Yet we too often try to convince one another that we are ’supposed to’ believe this, instead of struggling against our fleshly preoccupations so that we can appreciate how truly good the gospel is, whether the world realizes it or not. If we would make the effort to do so, then we would not have to try to sell the church like a mere human organization or commercial product.

The Lord’s wish is to comfort us and to redeem us - not in a temporary, worldly sense, but in an eternal and lasting way. He does not take us away from this world’s problems now, but instead assures us that they will come to a permanent end, and sooner than we realize. But for now, he calls us to set aside our reservations, our fears, our earthly desires, and our doubts, so that we can see what he is really doing on this earth. His holy arm can already be seen by those with discernment. His salvation has already been proclaimed, and those of every nation can see it if they wish to.

It is in this context that the prophet urges us to "touch no unclean thing" (Isaiah 52:11-12), and says that we also should "depart, depart, go out from there". That is, when we can clearly see God’s grace and God’s compassion, we will not respond by taking liberties or claiming blessings in this world; rather, we shall willingly set aside earthly things whenever we have better ways to make use of our time and energy. The attitude of the Christian towards this world should neither be love nor hate - it should be the desire to come out and be pure.

Yet there is no need to go in haste (Isaiah 52:12); that is, God does not want us to act in a panic or to make spiritual decisions because we have been pressured into them. He just wants us to stop being so obsessed with the affairs and objects of this life, so that he can open our eyes and ears to what truly matters.

God even promises that, if we do this, he will make himself our rear guard*. He himself will protect us whenever we are making an honest attempt to change or grow in a way he has called us to do. What a striking contrast to the impatient, deceitful persons of this world who always try to stampede us into acting as they wish us to. And what a gracious, patient God to give us so much extra, underserved protection and help.

• ·    ’Rear guard’ is originally a military term, signifying a small defensive force stationed at the back of a larger, less mobile force that is trying to retreat. The rear guard risks their own interests in order to make it possible for the others to escape from danger in safety.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What is really so beautiful about the good news that God sends us?

Is this statement of Isaiah’s meant to tell us to do something, or to understand something?

In what sense can the ends of the earth see God’s salvation?

In what sense does the prophet call us to depart from this world?

What does it mean for God to be our ’rear guard’ as we attempt to turn away from the world’s impurities?

Mark Garner, September 2008

He Took Up Our Infirmities (Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12)

After his appeal for spiritual awakening, Isaiah gives us a vivid portrayal of Messianic ministry. Though this well-known passage is certainly predictive, it is much more than that. The prophet describes the Messiah’s suffering, the reasons for it, and the blessings that it brings. In context, this passage also has additional significance in connection with Isaiah’s servant theme.

Review

Isaiah proclaims God’s intention for a remnant to return (Isaiah 1-27): first as Judah returns from captivity in Babylon, and then as a remnant of believers from all the world is brought together by the Messiah. God is the sure foundation for our times and our lives (Isaiah 28-49), while no idol can provide for our deepest and truest needs. Thus Isaiah exhorts us to "arise, shine, for your light has come" (Isaiah 50-66) . In particular, the prophet urges us to lift up our eyes to the heavens (Isaiah 50:1 to Isaiah 51:6), so that we can see everything as God wishes us to.

Isaiah then urges us to “depart, depart, go out from there" (Isaiah 51:7 to Isaiah 52:12). We are not called to leave human society physically, but rather to take our focus off of this world’s affairs, so that we can be a light and a covenant to others. Thus the prophet urges us not to fear the reproach or mocking of humans. Several times he calls us to "awake, awake!", to take a new look at things from God’s viewpoint. He also uses the image of shaking off our ’dust’, the accumulated inertia and folly that has kept us from God.

We have the opportunity to bring good news to a world that needs it, but we must first appreciate it ourselves. We are exhorted to "touch no unclean thing" as we strive to disentangle ourselves from the world. God understands that this is never easy for us. So he promises to be our ’rear guard’, to give us the help and protection we need, as we learn to focus on what truly matters.

Who Has Believed Our Message? (Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:3)

Isaiah’s description of the servant (or Servant) combines high praise of his character with a deprecation of his external appearance. Each one of the prophet’s observations matches Jesus perfectly, while also setting us an example of the ideal servant of the Lord. Both the Messiah and the servant are at their best when it comes to things that are little appreciated by the world.

God says that his Servant* will act wisely (Isaiah 52:13-15), and then he explains what this means - with some surprising implications. The Servant Messiah will be raised up and exalted, but we soon see that it is only God who exalts him, for this world will fail to appreciate him. His appearance is said to be ’appalling’ and even ’disfigured’. (In its Messianic meaning, this would in large part refer to the trial and crucifixion.)

For a full discussion of the ways that Isaiah uses the ’servant’ concept, see the notes to Week Eight of the summer class, which covered Isaiah 42:1-17 (see the last section, under ’Looking Ahead’). In Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12, the meaning is predominantly (some commentators would say exclusively) Messianic. The paradoxical nature of the Servant is also seen in his effect on those who encounter him. For all that they may find the Messiah* discomforting, they will have no real answer for him; "kings will shut their mouths because of him"**. From his mouth will come teachings unlike any they have heard before, so that "what they were not told, they will see". The Servant will not speak to concerns or issues on the surface, but to things that matter to the soul, to questions and needs that we are barely able to put into words.

• ·    Messiah and Christ are the same, with both of them meaning "Anointed One". Messiah is the Hebrew word, and Christ is the Greek word. Hence the New Testament refers to Jesus as Christ or as ’the Christ’ - but Messiah or ’the Messiah’ can be used as exact synonyms.

• ·    The first phrase in verse 15, usually translated as something like, "he will sprinkle many nations", is probably a reference to the Levitical practice of sprinkling or dabbing blood on instruments of worship, to sanctify them. But it can also be translated (as in the Good News Bible/Today’s English Version) to say that the nations will marvel at him (the Servant), which would have a more straightforward meaning.

From this passage comes the name "Man Of Sorrows" that is sometimes used to refer to Jesus (Isaiah 53:1-3). While such a title would not meet with the approval of most marketing departments, it is still appropriate. More than anyone else in history, Jesus saw and experienced firsthand the full range of trials, frustrations, and tragedies that plague human lives.

Such sensitivity is implied in Isaiah’s description that he grew* up "like a tender shoot" (Isaiah 53:2), for Jesus was pure and innocent to an unparalleled degree. But his pure, tender nature and his beauty are all on the inside - his outward appearance shows none of the superficial beauty or majesty that gains popularity and acclaim. Thus, to love the Servant Messiah we have to appreciate and value the things that lie beneath the surface.

• ·    The past tense is used often in this passage, even though it refers to future events. This is a poetic device to imply the certainty of the Messianic ministry, and to depict God’s more eternal perspective. Thus chapter 53 reads almost like a eulogy of the Servant.

The Messiah neither seeks nor obtains success in the way that the world measures it, but instead is "familiar with suffering". This ties in with much that is written about Jesus in the book of Hebrews, for this is essential to the Servant’s nature. Jesus shared in our humanity, our mortality, and even in death. When Isaiah says that, "we esteemed him not", his choice of words is deliberate. It is not only pagans who fail to give Jesus the proper respect for who he truly is, because Christians do this as well.

Too many churches preach a success-loving, prosperity-bringing Jesus or a fun-loving, always-happy Jesus instead of the real thing. The usual excuse is that the world won’t accept a suffering Messiah, but the truth is that it is we believers ourselves who often want a substitute. It is we ourselves who do not want to walk in his steps. All of this explains why Isaiah asks, "Who has believed our message?" (Isaiah 53:1), for even those who believe in the resurrected Christ are often reluctant or even unwilling to accept him as he really is.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

List the various qualities Isaiah mentions here.

How does Jesus exemplify each one?

Which ones would we expect or find easier to accept?

How can we learn to appreciate the other qualities more?

Which of them should be a part of our own lives and ministries?

Transgression & Suffering, Death & Life (Isaiah 53:4-12)

To those who live for this world, the nature of the Servant is contradictory and even disturbing. But to those who seek God from the heart, the very nature of the Messiah and his ministry provides the answers that our souls long for. Isaiah explains the link between our transgressions and the Servant’s sacrifice, and he also helps us to see things from the Servant’s point of view.

It is the fate of the Messiah to be crushed for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:4-9). Although this was in truth a glorious victory for him, Isaiah points out that we are prone to consider the Suffering Servant to be stricken by God. And in a sense he was, but not in the way that the fleshly mind might think. Isaiah confirms that it was God’s will (see also verse 10) that he would be crushed, burdened, pierced, and punished. But the prophet also explains the reason for this.

The ordeals of the servant are not the result of his own sin, but of ours. If we are to know God, then our iniquities and our transgressions* have to be paid for - and we are powerless to pay. Nor could the many Levitical sacrifices bring final forgiveness and lasting healing - they merely obtained an atonement allowing God to have an ongoing relationship with the community. Only the Christ was a willing, perfect sacrifice. We do not and cannot understand the gospel until we accept and understand how completely we are dependent on the grace of the Christ.

• ·    The various words for sin that Isaiah uses are not meant to suggest different shades of severity or guilt. This is instead a poetic device, intended to emphasize how many sins and kinds of sins each of us commits.

Thus the Servant Messiah was led like a lamb to the slaughter, silently and humbly enduring unjust suffering on behalf of others - and on behalf of others who often barely appreciate what he has done. Here again is a characteristic of the Christ that we are most reluctant to emulate. He was cut off from the land of the living (verse 8) in a literal sense. While most of us will never have to emulate this in a literal fashion, the prophet has repeatedly urged us to leave behind our worldly allegiances and entanglements so that we can live entirely for God.

The Servant does not merely endure all these things from fatalistic viewpoint, for he will receive a most satisfying reward (Isaiah 53:10-12). And God’s servant is rewarded in the ways that matter most to God and to those who love him. To Jesus the Messiah, even his sufferings brought something positive, since he knew that it was his Father’s will for him to go through such things. Because he rejoiced in God’s will for its own sake, and at all times, the will of the Lord could prosper in his hand (verse 10). No matter what happened to him, his faith allowed God to use it positively.

After the Servant’s suffering comes the light of life. This basic perspective can really apply to a great many areas of life, for it is a sad feature of human nature that we invariably rush to do whatever we can to relieve a perceived problem in the present, no matter what the long-term costs turn out to be.

In the context here, it is even more important to accept present sorrow or pain for the sake of future blessing, for the Servant’s ministry is one of making intercession. "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness". Shedding blood is never pleasant, but forgiveness of sins is a glorious blessing that lasts forever.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What teachings in this chapter are reflected in the New Testament?

How does Jesus exemplify them?

Which of these qualities or characteristics should be part of our own lives and ministries?

Reflections On The ’Suffering Servant’

The ideas in this passage are at the heart of Isaiah’s message, and they have significant implications in our own relationship with God. When we can appreciate what Isaiah teaches us about the Messiah, it puts to rest a great many doubts and questions. When we understand the nature of the servants that God seeks, it eliminates a great many excuses and rationalizations.

Most obviously, this passage helps us to grasp the nature of the Messiah. He does not come to conquer or to rule on this earth, and he never intended to. His intent was always to suffer and die to make intercession for our sins, and he always expected to find his reward in spiritual blessings, not in earthly things. (Consider how paltry this world’s wealth and pomp would seem to God’s Son, who has seen heaven itself.)

These ideas also teach us about the nature of the servant - any servant - of God, since we are called to live like Jesus. "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps" (1 Peter 2:21). "Rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed" (1 Peter 4:13).

This means that we should learn to understand how, or in what ways, we are to emulate Jesus - that is, not in specific outward actions so much as in attitude, perspective, and faith - and then accept the call to put this into practice. We shall always do this imperfectly at best, but the willingness to do so is in itself of great spiritual value.

All of this also helps to clarify the nature of our relationship with God. We will do well always to remember that forgiveness of sins is the underlying blessing that makes it possible for God to have fellowship with us, and thus to bless us and teach us in so many other ways. When we say that we are saved by grace, we admit our complete reliance on the crucified and resurrected Messiah. Not only do we acknowledge our inability to save ourselves, but we also rejoice in it.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Find passages in the New Testament that quote from or parallel one or more verses from Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12*.

By comparing contexts, explain what these passages teach us about the Christ, about the qualities that God desires in all of his servants, and about our relationship with God.

·    Verses from this passage are quoted directly in Matthew 8:17, Luke 22:37, John 12:38, Acts 8:32-33, Romans 10:16, Romans 15:21, and 1 Peter 2:22.

Mark Garner, September 2008

God’s Faithful Love (Isaiah 54:1 to Isaiah 55:5)

When Isaiah portrays the Messiah as a servant who suffers for our transgressions, he also reminds us of God’s love and compassion. The prophet now details other implications of God’s faithful, unfailing love. Yet, as with so many aspects of God’s nature, we need to adjust our perspective before we can appreciate the ways that God shows his care and concern for us.

Review Of Recent Classes

In the last portion of Isaiah, the prophet encourages us to "arise, shine, for your light has come" (Isaiah 50-66). He tells us to lift up our eyes to the heavens, so that we see the temporary, fragile nature of this earth and the lasting glory and grace of God (Isaiah 50:1 to Isaiah 51:6). God wishes to bring us a spiritual awakening, so that we "depart, depart, go out from there" (Isaiah 51:7 to Isaiah 52:12). We are not told to leave this world physically, but to pull our hearts away from worldly attachments.

The Servant Messiah took up our infirmities (Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12) . Yet Isaiah rhetorically asks whether anyone has believed the message he has proclaimed. For, though God raises up his Servant, he does not do so in a worldly sense. The Messiah was a man of sorrows, who laid down his life out of compassion for the weak and sinful. Our transgression led to his suffering, and his death gave us new life. His suffering and pain were not in payment for his own mistakes, but for our iniquities. Yet he has a reward in knowing that he has allowed God’s will to prevail, and also in the fruits of mercy and righteousness that flow to us because of his blood.

The qualities of the true Messiah are altogether different from the things that the world seeks in its false heroes. Likewise, the servants God seeks will reflect the same priorities. The Messiah’s ministry reminds us that our relationship with God centers on and utterly depends on his grace, not on our goodness. Instead of focusing on outward things such as methods or issues, the Lord’s servant should strive to understand, accept, and appreciate the things that matter most to God. Truth and love, not ambition, guilt, or pride, bring the most lasting fruit of the Spirit.

Sing, O Barren Woman (Isaiah 54:1-10)

Both in history and through his nature, God shows his willingness to work for and to work through persons who are forgotten, ignored, rejected, or patronized by human society. Isaiah’s song of encouragement for the barren woman is an illustration of this theme, and it also emphasizes our complete dependence on God for his grace, his compassion, and his strength.

God can provide joy for those who are deprived of the things this world values (Isaiah 54:1-3). Isaiah’s image of a childless woman is chosen for several reasons. It is, first, a historical reminder of the origins of the nation of Israel. When the barren wife Sarah was convinced that her husband’s lineage would go through her maid*, God provided Isaac, in fulfillment of a promise. Both Old and New Testament writers describe her descendants as being as numerous as the sands on the sea or the stars in the sky. God can work and bless in spite of all natural or scientific conditions.

* See also Paul’s use of this analogy in Galatians 4:21-31.

Isaiah’s message contains a spiritual promise that applies on an even broader level. The things of this world are not divided equally or fairly, and God has chosen not to change this. But spiritual blessings, those that have real value, are equally available to all. Grace, forgiveness of sins, eternal security, and many others are always freely available to those who desire them. Humans with power and wealth in this world often use it to prevent others from sharing them - but no human can ever prevent another from finding and enjoying God’s blessings. Whenever anyone in the world wishes to seek and know God, God makes sure to provide the opportunity.

Acceptance for the rejected is another promise that comes only from God (Isaiah 54:4-8). This world’s self-important authorities and self-appointed opinion makers constantly defend their privileges by dividing the rest of us against each other. Unfortunately, the average person is too afraid and vulnerable to question society’s norms, and as a result even the most sincere of believers can end up failing to show the kind of unconditional personal acceptance that Jesus practiced.

But for those who believe in God and in his Anointed One, there need be no more disgrace, humiliation, or reproach. We shall still face these things from unbelievers*, but we need no longer allow them to intimidate or discourage us. When we are forgiven of our sins and devoted to living godly lives, we know that we have God’s approval and blessing. We can see worldly persons as lost, hurting souls, so that their reproaches evoke pity, not anger or fear.

* Isaiah has already warned us to be prepared for them, e.g. Isaiah 51:7.

Such blessings are possible when our relationship with God is restored (the point of Isaiah’s image of a rejected wife in Isaiah 54:5-7). It is implied in the prophet’s exposition that our relationship was once damaged by our sin, but has now been made good as new. It is God’s grace that brings this about. We do not need to make up for our sin, and we do not need to ’prove ourselves’ by some great accomplishment. As Isaiah has told us earlier, we need only wake up, "shake off our dust", and accept God’s mercy and grace. With the relationship restored, he then can guide us and teach us however he knows best.

Likewise, with the relationship restored, God has sworn not to be angry (Isaiah 54:9-10). It is true that God’s wrath is a fearful thing, which unbelievers will someday discover to their great dismay. But the prophet reminds us of Noah (Isaiah 54:9) to show how quickly God’s anger can be replaced by his unfailing love. Even his anger comes only because he always knows what is truly good for us, while we so stubbornly refuse to accept it because we prefer this world’s playthings.

Along with God’s unfailing love comes his covenant of peace (Isaiah 54:10). The world will always seek peace but never find it. The believer in God can have a peace of mind that will last even when there is turmoil in this world. This kind of peace is not a lack of concern, for indeed we shall care even more about the sadness and unfairness of the world when we come to see things as Jesus did. But we have a greater peace from knowing where our reward is. This frees us from our restless striving to gain things for ourselves, so that we can patiently serve and teach others.

Questions For Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah use images of a barren woman and a rejected wife?

In what ways are we like these?

What should we learn from them?

How can we help one another to appreciate the blessings of God’s love?

What is God’s covenant of peace?

What do we receive from it?

What must we give him under it?

Established In Righteousness (Isaiah 54:11-17)

Under the Old Covenant, God established his people as an earthly nation. When they were faithful, he kept them safe from attack and harm, while they gave witness to him through their allegiance (at least outwardly) to him as their God. But this arrangement was imperfect and temporary. Isaiah describes the deeper and more spiritual protections God really desires for us.

Since Isaiah lived well before the time of Jesus, his promise of a new foundation was in part looking ahead to the Messiah (Isaiah 54:11-12). It also referred to the physical remnant, which would return from Babylon with a stronger faith and a keener awareness of their need for God. The promise also means something for us, because even believers often have a need to step back, look honestly at their relationship with God, and ask God to give them a stronger foundation.

The image of a city built with sparkling jewels* is a figurative way of pointing out the huge difference between basing our life on God’s grace and basing it on our own abilities or on things of this world. Earthly accomplishments, fleshly righteousness, or human ’role models’ might hold up for a while in the world’s eyes, but they make a poor foundation. Even if they manage to hold up fairly well for a few decades in this world, they are not going to support us in eternity.

By contrast, God’s grace and compassion are precious jewels. His grace can take away all of the guilt from every sin that we have committed. His compassion will remain strong even when our faith or our enthusiasm lags. His strength and wisdom renders worldly power and intelligence trivial by comparison. Why would we not want to base our lives, our relationship with God, and our eternal hope on such a sure foundation?

This sure foundation enables us to be taught and protected by God (Isaiah 54:13-17) . Isaiah promises, "great will be your children’s peace" - not that they will live in a perfect world any more than we can, but that we can pass along the peace and love of God to those we care about, whether children, friends, or family. Likewise, the generation sent into exile would know that they could, by returning to faith in God, help build a better, more peaceful future for their children.

The promise that tyranny and terror would be removed (Isaiah 54:14) also brings this kind of dual assurance. When Babylon conquered Judah, the people would learn what it was like to live under tyrannical, violent rulers. During their exile, they could then come to realize how peaceful and gentle God really was, despite his righteous nature. When they had come to appreciate this, they would be able to return home, relatively free of oppressive rule by pagans*.

• ·    They would still live under Persian rule after the return, but the Persians were much less oppressive to smaller nations like Judah. The Persians realized that it was in their own best interests to gain the good will of small nations that would never be a threat to them. This is often reflected in Ezra and Nehemiah.

Today’s remnant of believers lives in a world in which tyranny and terror are all too familiar. And they are not going to go away, no matter how faithful Christians may be. Yet we know that these things can never harm us spiritually; so, as Isaiah said previously, "do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it" (Isaiah 8:12). God creates all, directs all, and protects all. He creates the blacksmith and the king, the warrior and the prophet. He directs events whenever he deems it appropriate, and refrains whenever it is appropriate. He protects our souls, spirits, minds, and hearts. Why would we ever trust the worldly to do God’s job?

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah promise a new foundation?

Do we also need one?

What are the images of jewels supposed to represent?

How does a new foundation bring peace?

How does it defeat tyranny and terror?

Can we know to what degree God protects and guides us?

How should this realization affect us?

Come To The Waters (Isaiah 55:1-5)

Isaiah now makes yet another appeal to reason. When we see things clearly, we know that God and God alone has the answers to our deepest needs and problems. Worldly persons, groups, and objects may grab our attention and devotion, but they keep us thirsting and hungry so that we cannot escape from their control. But God’s blessings bring genuine relief and comfort.

The prophet simply calls us to take an honest look at our labor and toil on this earth. Does it ever give us lasting satisfaction? Do we ever reach a point when we have permanent health and prosperity? Do we ever cease to worry? If not, why labor on what does not satisfy? (Isaiah 55:1-2). God invites us to drink and eat at his spiritual feast. Our bodies will still feel physical hunger and thirst, but if we drink the waters of his Spirit*, they will meet our deepest needs.

* Compare this passage with John 7:37-39. Can you find other parallels?

This spiritual nourishment can be ours without money or cost, in this world’s terms. The hard work has been done, and the price has been paid. We accept it by grace, knowing that we cannot afford its true worth. In contrast, this world demands continual payment without lasting return. We surrender our money in return for goods that bring fleeting satisfaction. We surrender our integrity and purity in return for shameful pleasures that don’t even last. We give pagan rulers power and authority over us, and they hold us captive through our own fear and self-interest.

God’s everlasting covenant (Isaiah 55:3-5) rises above all this. God does ask us to surrender some things: pride, selfish ambition, prejudices, and our allegiances to worldly groups that feed on such things. Is this really a sacrifice? God calls us to hear him so that our souls may live. "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?" (Matthew 16:26).

Invoking the love and covenant that he shared with David, God recalls how that faithful servant was a witness to the peoples of this world (both in his lifetime and to future generations) and much else besides. And, as glorious as David and other biblical examples may have been, God has endowed us with the same splendor, if not more. We have the same transcendent God that David and Isaiah knew, and we also benefit from seeing how the foundations they laid were built up into the completed and perfect ministry of the Messiah Jesus.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense does God invite us to eat and drink?

In what sense does the world offer us to do so?

Why is God’s offer superior?

How is David used in this passage, and what does Isaiah want us to learn from his example?

How has God ’endowed us with splendor’?

Mark Garner, September 2008

Call On Him While He Is Near (Isaiah 55:6 to Isaiah 57:13)

As Isaiah describes all of the things that God has done to enable us to come to him, he also reminds us that we must make an active choice to take advantage of the opportunity God offers. We should not take God’s patience for granted, because this can only lead to spiritual decay. God has given us more than enough reasons why we should heed his message of salvation.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Isaiah tells us to lift up our eyes to the heavens, to see and compare the temporary, fragile nature of this earth with the lasting glory and grace of God (Isaiah 50:1 to Isaiah 51:6). God wishes to bring us a spiritual awakening, so that we "depart, depart, go out from there" (Isaiah 51:7 to Isaiah 52:12), that is, to pull our hearts away from worldly attachments. The Servant Messiah took up our infirmities (Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12). His ministry is misunderstood by the world, but precious and glorious to God.

God’s faithful love defines and explains many other aspects of our relationship with him (Isaiah 54:1 to Isaiah 55:5). The prophet calls out, "sing, O barren woman", reminding us of Sarah’s historical example as well as the joy that Jesus can bring for the deprived. God also brings acceptance for those who are rejected, ignored, or patronized by this world.

God has established his covenant with us in righteousness, and it thus provides a new and sure foundation for our lives, replacing our attempts to earn salvation on our own strength. Isaiah’s imagery of precious jewels suggests how God’s qualities of grace, compassion, and immortality are of infinite value. Thus the prophet invites us to "come to the waters" for spiritual nourishment. Why, as he then asks, should we labor on what does not satisfy? The world demands our allegiance, our money, and our integrity; and it then gives us little of lasting value. God take away our sin, our shame, and our fear; and then gives us life, purpose, and security.

My Thoughts Are Not Your Thoughts (Isaiah 55:6-13)

So many things in life come down to a matter of perspective. And so many souls have missed God or strayed from God because they persisted in looking at God with human logic. We are afraid to see things from God’s point of view, because we sense that he does not always value the things we desire. But in reality, God offers us joy of a kind that cannot be found by the worldly.

Isaiah’s reminder of God’s greater perspective (Isaiah 55:6-9) contains some well-known phrases. One of Isaiah’s recurring themes is encapsulated in his call to "seek the Lord while he may be found" (Isaiah 55:6). The prophet has painstakingly detailed the spiritual blessings and assurances that God offers us, yet he has just as earnestly cautioned us not to use God’s great patience as an excuse to delay our response.

He also does away with another common excuse, when he reminds us that God’s blessings come by grace, not by merit. Therefore there is no degree of sinfulness or folly that prohibits us from coming to God. The sinner who repents will find God ready to grant him or her a free pardon. Our relationship with God depends on his goodness, not on ours. To the self-righteous, this is an outrage, but to the humble and sincere, these are words of life.

God’s grace is just one of many aspects of his character that confirm the familiar statement that "my thoughts are not your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8). Truly does God say that, "As the heavens are higher than the earth*", so his thoughts are far beyond ours. This does not mean merely that God’s information or computational ability is better than ours - it means that his perspective and point of view are much different, more eternal, more spiritual. Once we see this, and can stop offering fleshly resistance to it, we are then able to appreciate many things of God in a new way.

* This is a poetic expression, using ’heavens’ in reference to the physical universe.

Likewise, the life and joy that God offers us are of a sort that transcends this world’s pleasures (Isaiah 55:10-13). As Isaiah depicts later (see below), careless indulgence of our senses brings ever-diminishing satisfaction. On the other hand, obsessive concern about events in this world creates a prison of fear and insecurity. The worldly often find themselves powerless as they bounce back-and-forth between these two spiritually empty conditions.

But Isaiah reminds us that there is a way out. His imagery of the rain and snow, producing life and nourishment as they fall to earth unplanned and unasked, reminds us of our inability to create or sustain life on our own. None of our world’s technological wonders can produce life out of nothing, and none of them could create enough energy to supply a whole planet. And then, this world with its self-proclaimed marvels is even less effective at solving our inner needs.

But the mere Word Of God is enough to provide us with life, for it comes from the mouth of God. Just as he alone gives and preserves physical life, so also he and he alone can give and preserve spiritual life. The images of singing mountains and clapping trees (Isaiah 55:12) are not literal, of course, but they remind us of the close connection between God and his creation.

This world was created with us in mind; God made it in order to fill it with creatures made in his own image*. Though humans usually rebel against God or ignore God, they are still what matters the most to him. Therefore, when we walk with him, the creation itself sings and rejoices in a figurative sense, for then at last things are in harmony as God wills them to be**.

• ·    Other implications of this are discussed in Romans 8:18-23

• ·    Recall how Isaiah’s earlier imagery reminded us that we, uniquely in his creation, may choose whether or not to accept the purpose for which he created us.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense is God currently near?

Will there be a time when he is not?

When Isaiah says that God’s thoughts are higher than ours, does he have specific beliefs or teachings in mind?

How does God’s Word bring life?

Does this refer only to Scripture?

How is the nature imagery in Isaiah 55:12 fulfilled in our lives?

Gathering The Exiles (Isaiah 56:1-8)

Isaiah reminds us that God offers everyone on this earth the same chance of salvation that he offers to us. This should matter to us in several ways. It helps us to see how truly equal all of us are in God’s eyes, and it reminds us to love and appreciate the others whom God has created. Above all, it teaches us about the justice and righteousness that are so integral to God’s nature.

The assurance that foreigners and eunuchs* are welcome in God’s presence (Isaiah 56:1-3) would surprise any of Isaiah’s listeners who knew the old law but failed to understand its purpose. To know that salvation is close at hand, ready for everyone who calls on God, should help us to pull our focus away from personal differences, arbitrary rules, human methods, and the like. Many of us have a fondness for one or another of these distractions, and thus we ought frequently to examine ourselves, so that God’s salvation does not become a competition instead of a blessing.

• ·    Foreigners were excluded from many aspects of ancient Jewish society. Some of these restrictions were based on Levitical law, but many were added by human initiative. Eunuchs, as well as those with many types of physical imperfections, were excluded from the priesthood and/or certain other privileges (see Leviticus 21:16-23). The purpose for this, though, was and is widely misunderstood (see below).

No one is excluded arbitrarily from God’s grace. Every condition for approaching God involves something over which we have complete control: humility, faith, repentance, and the like, are within the capacity of everyone who has free will. Just as many of the Israelites erroneously believed that they had a privileged standing with God, so also many Christians today have inaccurate beliefs about the spiritual status of the ancient Jews.

A full discussion of the proper application and understanding of the old (Levitical) law is, of course, beyond the scope of our present study. But the example that Isaiah uses is a good illustration of what the law did and did not mean. The law is not a list of arbitrary rules for rules’ sake, nor is it a standard of competition to determine who is or is not ’spiritual’.

Rather, the guiding principle behind the law is God’s presence. God’s goal for every person, then and now, Jew or Gentile, is that each of us might live in his presence*. The actual laws then deal with a small number of specific concepts - most notably, the contrast between clean and unclean, and the contrast between the holy and the common. These concepts are important because of what they allow or do not allow in terms of contact with God’s presence.

• ·    We are more likely to use the phrase ’relationship with God’. Used correctly, this should refer to living in God’s presence, not merely to the mechanical actions that we perform as a result.

Eunuchs and those with other deformities were not permitted to serve at the altar, for the same reason that only perfect animals could be sacrificed: because in God’s presence the standard is perfection. Being a priest (or not being a priest) meant nothing to God in terms of status or privilege - it was all an illustration of what it took to live in his presence. This in turn taught (or was meant to teach) how important it is to be completely purified and completely holy. Isaiah, then, is simply pointing out something that was always true but rarely realized: everyone is welcome in God’s presence, but on the same terms of holiness and grace.

Thus God’s house can truly be a house of prayer for all nations (Isaiah 56:4-8), as well as for all eras and all cultures. It is not those who meet certain demographic characteristics who may live in God’s presence, but rather those who choose what pleases God - that is, those who desire to be with God and to value the things he values. Thus God assures us that it is not only the exiles of Israel who will be gathered into the remnant, but that "I will gather still others to them besides those already gathered" (Isaiah 56:8). Indeed, he is still gathering today.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah use foreigners and eunuchs as an example?

What misunderstandings was he addressing?

What similar misconceptions might we have?

What other Old Testament laws might we similarly misunderstand?

What implications does this have for ministry today?

Some Things To Think About (Isaiah 56:9 to Isaiah 57:13)

It is time for Isaiah’s hearers to take an honest look at their spiritual condition. They have drifted far away from God, have abused the blessings he gave them, and have forgotten the things he had carefully taught them. Though their relationship with him is in ruins, it does not have to continue like this. But they must be willing to see both God and their idols as they truly are.

The spiritual landscape of Isaiah’s time was full of rubble and wreckage, displaying at every point the results of the people’s disregard for God (Isaiah 56:9 to Isaiah 57:10). Isaiah’s depiction of gluttons and drunks is partly literal, and partly illustrative of careless and self-indulgent attitudes in general. Being overly caught up in making money or accumulating power or popularity is no different, in God’s eyes, from the craving for ’fun’ or sensual pleasure.

The prophet points out two of the causes for spiritual decay, and both of them are timeless problems that afflict today’s church as much as they affected ancient Israel. One of these is the lack of thoughtful meditation on the events of this world. As Isaiah says, "no one ponders it in his heart" (Isaiah 57:1) what is really happening around us. Instead we react just as the pagans do - with fear, anger, and other unconstructive emotions.

The world does everything it can to keep us in this state, because it is in the best interests of the news media, politicians, and other powerful persons to keep us in this state. Some of them, in truth, simply do not know better; but those who know better are not able to be honest with us, because they prefer instead to manipulate us for their own advantage. This is why the people of Isaiah’s day were still worshiping idols*, despite all the warnings they had received. We will never have genuine faith in God until and unless we are willing to lose our faith in the world.

• ·    Isaiah gives several examples of idol worship and its consequences, most of them self-explanatory. But Molech (verse 9) was a notorious Canaanite God whose ’worshipers’ sacrificed infants by burning them alive inside a cast iron idol. That some Israelites followed Molech shows how bad their spiritual condition had become - just as many of the idols that Christians worship today can point up our spiritual needs.

When we cry out for God’s help, what will we find (Isaiah 57:11-13)? If we have neither remembered God nor pondered the real meaning of things in this life, then we are likely to end up calling to God only for selfish reasons. Taking God’s patience for granted (note the end of Isaiah 57:11) is a dangerous game. It can lead us to approach God insincerely, hoping for him to give us what we desire instead of what we need.

Those who approach God selfishly or self-righteously will be exposed before him for what they are (Isaiah 57:12). But those who approach him humbly and gratefully will find refuge, a spiritual shelter of unconditional love, unquestioned acceptance, and eternal security. Will we show him that we appreciate these priceless blessings more than we love the things of this world?

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah go into such detail here about the behavior and attitudes of the worldly?

What root issues does he want them to deal with?

How does this behavior compare with struggles that Christians face today?

How do our temptations compare with theirs?

How can we avoid taking God’s blessings and patience for granted?

What is Isaiah telling us about how to approach God?

Mark Garner, October 2008

Prepare The Road (Isaiah 57:14 to Isaiah 58:14)

Isaiah has frequently described God’s desire to create a ’highway’ that will enable us to come to him. This figurative image implies that God has done the construction, so that this road is now ready and waiting for us. So, it is up to us make the choice to travel on his highway. Isaiah will now address some of the problems that can hinder us on our spiritual journey.

Review Of Recent Lessons

God’s faithful love, different in so many ways from what the world calls ’love’, defines and explains many other aspects of our relationship with him (Isa 54:1-55:5). Because the choice between God and this world is so clear and so important, Isaiah exhorts us to "call on him while he is near" (Isa 55:6-57:13), so that we do not miss the opportunity to know our Creator.

When God tells us that, "my thoughts are not your thoughts", he is not merely claiming to have more perfect factual or predictive knowledge. God’s entire perspective is greater and more eternal than ours is. He desires not to bless any particular physical nation or culture, but to gather the exiles (the remnant) from all over the earth. Foreigners and eunuchs are just as welcome as any Israelite priest would be.

Isaiah’s thoughts are intended to give us some things to think about. No one can have a second-hand relationship with Jesus; each of us must decide personally to follow him. The worldly spend their time either indulging themselves without thought for the future, or else being obsessed with accumulating wealth, power, or other worldly goods that will not last. God calls us to see the emptiness of their ways, not to be influenced by them. It is up to us to see the things of this life from a more godly perspective*.

• ·    Isaiah gives an especially provocative example in Isa 57:1-2, which suggests that we look even at death from a viewpoint totally different from the perspectives of unbelievers.

When we call on God’s name, when we cry out for help, what are we asking for? Are we asking for him to accommodate our wishes, or do we earnestly desire to do his will? His response will depend on which of these is the case.

Remove The Obstacles (Isaiah 57:14-21)

Most of the obstacles to knowing God are of our own making. Although this world can make it more difficult for us to seek God and to put our faith in him, it is our own pride, selfishness, and willfulness that are the greatest hindrances. Thus each one of us must choose whether we prefer to cling to our pride and our idols, or whether we shall set them aside so that we can know God.

As he speaks of God’s constant desire to clear the way for us to come to him, Isaiah also makes an interesting observation on where God lives (Isa 57:14-15). Note once more that God’s presence is at the heart of Isaiah’s message. God’s purpose in building up his road, his highway, is not for us merely to enjoy the scenery, and not for us to race one another towards him. It is no more and no less than to allow us to be with him forever.

We know, even without the prophet telling us, that God lives in a high and holy place*. Yet Isaiah says that God also lives somewhere else, much closer, for he lives with those who are contrite and lowly in spirit**. God is always most pleased with those who acknowledge their need for him through humble faithfulness. Those who aspire to personal greatness cannot please God; to please him we must accept our inadequacy in the face of God’s true greatness.

• ·    This passage deliberately ties together several ideas about God’s presence. Under the Levitical system, the Most Holy Place of the temple (and previously of the tabernacle) was the most visible reminder of God’s presence. The Holy Place was a further reminder, being only one room (or curtain) away from God’s presence. Access into both was, of course, severely restricted - not to demonstrate the superiority of those allowed to enter, but to point up how awesome and fearful it is to come before God.

• ·    This is not really meant as a prediction of the Holy Spirit coming to live in the hearts of Christians, although that is one implication. Isaiah speaks here in a somewhat more general sense, implying that humility and contrition are necessary conditions for living in God’s presence. This, in turn, does in part explain how those who repent and are baptized into Jesus are able to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The prophet again reminds us of the kind of peace God offers to those who seek him (Isa 57:16-21). While in this world peace means an absence of war or violence, the peace God offers is not just an absence of conflict with him, but the presence of "God with us", Immanuel. Yet on one level an analogy with earthly peace is helpful: to achieve any kind of earthly peace, it is necessary first to understand the reasons for conflict, and thus to understand how to find peace in God we must first understand the reasons for God’s anger.

Pride, selfishness, greed, and stubbornness have been identified over and over again by Isaiah as particularly dangerous obstacles to God’s presence in our lives. God is able and willing to forgive any sin, no matter how disgusting or depraved, but we must first acknowledge our need. The prideful and the stubborn often feel that they do not need forgiveness as badly as others do, while the greedy and selfish are too busy chasing worldly things to notice their need.

God promises first and foremost a healing of our relationship with him, which has been damaged by our sin. What he brings to us will not solve all of our problems in this world, but it will help us to put this world into its proper perspective. This is why the prophet speaks of "praise on the lips of the mourners" (Isa 57:19). They will mourn in this world, but they can praise God because they will not have to endure this world’s sadness and fear much longer.

By "those who mourn", Isaiah means (as did Jesus in Matthew 5:4) not only those who have lost loved ones, but also those who feel sorrow and grief* over the lostness of this world and the futility of the things that most humans spend their lives seeking. Indeed, how can any believer not feel something of this kind of sorrow? On this earth, the humble and the faithful are vulnerable and exploited, while aggressive and self-absorbed sinners often get what they desire. But there is no lasting peace for the wicked. Their trivial worldly winnings will not save them, and their temporary victories will one day be long forgotten.

* For a more elaborate prophetic parallel, compare these Scriptures with Ezekiel 9:1-11 (note verse 4).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How does God build up the ’road’ to him?

Is there anything we can do to help?

How can God live in a high, holy place, and also with the lowly?

In what sense does God ’live’ in these places?

What other Scriptures talk about where God lives, and how do they compare with this passage?

What kind of healing does God promise, and why do we need it?

How can those who mourn still praise God?

The Kind Of Fasting I Have Chosen (Isaiah 58:1-9 a)

The prophet uses the example of fasting in order to contrast different ways of trying to seek and serve God. Neither fasting nor sacrifice nor anything else in itself ever makes someone more worthy of God or closer to God. It is only when we accept God’s priorities and perspectives that our acts of worship and ministry can bring the kinds of blessings that God really values.

Isaiah confronts his audience over the frustration they feel because their fasting and other efforts to obtain God’s blessings have apparently been fruitless (Isa 58:1-5). They have been both diligent and persistent in undergoing fasts, making sacrifices, and praying, yet they are unfulfilled and even disappointed with God. Indeed, day after day they performed these actions, but their eagerness for God was in appearance only (Isa 58:2) . They sought God so that he would fulfill their own wishes, rather than getting closer to him so that they could learn his ways.

So, when they want to know why all of this ’worship’ activity has not worked, God tells them that the activities do not reflect their hearts. They deprive themselves and exert themselves only in the hope of getting something in return. Therefore, even while they fast and pray, they mistreat others and quarrel with one another. A "day acceptable to the Lord" (Isa 58:5) has less to do with the physical actions than with the intent behind them. Neither fasting nor praying nor any other kind of worship has any meaning to God if we are expecting something in return, or if we feel superior to others because of performing these actions.

Spiritually fruitful fasting is much different (Isa 58:6-9a) . It, or any other kind of activity, must be accompanied by a godly attitude in order to have any spiritual value. Depriving oneself of food is neither a positive nor a negative in itself; it can be either, depending on one’s attitude. But sharing food (or anything else) is always a helpful thing to do. This is a simple principle, but it helps us to see what God considers to be fruitful worship.

Thus the Lord will answer us when we call out to him with the right attitude and the right expectations. He knows that it is tough for us to turn away from this world’s idols, and again he promises to be our ’rear guard’ (see also Isa 52:12). God’s will is always for us to pull our hearts out of this world, so that we can live in his presence. He will always be ready to help anyone and everyone who willingly chooses to do so.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What was Isaiah’s audience doing wrong with their fasting?

What problems now might be parallel with this situation?

What was the result of their fasting and worship?

How can they correct the situation?

In what areas of our relationship with God can we apply these principles?

Like A Well-Watered Garden (Isaiah 58:9-14)

Our expectations can either help or hinder us as we travel along the highway that leads to God. If we expect God only to supply whatever worldly things that our flesh desires, then we shall often be disappointed. But if we have faith that God will supply us with all the things that we truly need, then we shall find him eager to give us spiritual blessings in even greater measure.

When we adopt God’s values and perspectives, he then can include us in his precious ministry of rebuilding and restoring (Isa 58:9-12). A discerning believer recognizes that merely doing nice things for others is only a limited blessing if they never come to know God. While we must accept that many of the things we do in ministry will have no tangible results, at the same time we should always remember what matters the most.

Consider Jesus’ own life. When he was on this earth, he had the ability to heal, bless, or change anyone, any time, in almost any manner. Yet he spent roughly 90% of his life as a purely private individual, and then willingly allowed himself to die after addressing only a tiny fraction of the physical needs around him. He did this because the various healings, miracles, and other blessings were not the main goal of his ministry.

So too, we are a light in the midst of the thick darkness of this world*. We know the answers (only because God in his grace has told them to us) to the things that matter the most. We need never worry about eloquence, intelligence, methodology, or popularity, as long as we stick to the truth. God is just, for this is something we are all capable of doing.

• ·    This becomes a constant image in the next few chapters of Isaiah. If you have a chance, browse through chapters 59-62, and note how many times Isaiah uses light/darkness or seeing/blindness as images.

Isaiah describes this ministry using prophetic imagery of raising age-old foundations, repairing broken walls, and restoring streets and buildings. What God wants from us is neither a new theology nor a new methodology, but rather a return to him. When God made the very first humans, for a short time they lived in his immediate presence without sin. But ever since sin entered the world, God’s presence has been obscured by clouds of sin, selfishness, pride, and doubt. He offers us the extraordinary blessing of helping his light to shine through all this.

Finding joy in the Lord (Isa 58:13-14) is a different and more blessed thing than merely receiving nice things from God. It means to enjoy and appreciate the reality of knowing God and of living in his presence. Isaiah expresses these in terms of the Sabbath*. "If you call the Sabbath a delight" obviously refers to more than merely following rules about avoiding work. The reason for these commands was never a matter of obedience for obedience’s sake, but in order that the people might experience what God values most: the reality of him living among them.

The Christian’s Sabbath rest also centers on being with God. It is a misconception that Sunday has replaced Saturday as the Sabbath, because the idea of Sabbath is fulfilled in a more complete and spiritual way by the whole of the Christian life, which no longer centers on self but on God. See Hebrews 4:1-11 for further thoughts.

The prophet’s promise that we can ride on the heights of the land (Isa 58:14) illustrates God’s hope that his believers can rise above this world, and live for something more important than this world’s cheap toys and vain competitions. It is a calling hard for us to accept, and even harder for us to put into practice. Fortunately, with God all things are possible.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what ways do we bring light to this world?

What implications does this have?

In what ways can believers rebuild and restore old structures and foundations?

How do we learn to find joy in the Lord?

What does God promise in return?

What does it mean to "ride on the heights of the land"?

Mark Garner, October 2008

His Own Arm Worked Salvation (Isaiah 59:1-21)

Returning to a key issue in our relationship with God, Isaiah discusses our problem of sin and God’s solution to it. If we are to appreciate the glorious blessing of God’s grace, then we must first understand that the problem of sin is unsolvable by human means. Then, if we are not to despair because of our sin, we need to ponder what is involved in God’s amazing offer of grace.

Review Of Recent Lessons

God’s faithful love, quite different from what the world calls ’love’, defines and explains many other aspects of our relationship with him (Isaiah 54:1 to Isaiah 55:5). Having explained the choice between God and this world, Isaiah exhorts us to "call on him while he is near" (Isaiah 55:6 to Isaiah 57:13), so that we do not miss the opportunity to know our Creator.

Isaiah has often mentioned God’s desire to build a highway that leads to God’s presence, and the prophet now explains God’s plan to prepare this ’road’ (Isaiah 57:14 to Isaiah 58:14). God wishes to remove the obstacles from our path, yet most of the obstacles are things like pride, selfishness, and other hindrances that come from ourselves. Thus, as Isaiah reminds us, God lives in his own holy place, yet he also comes and makes his home with those who are humble and contrite.

Then the prophet contrasts fruitless worship and fruitful worship, using fasting as an example. The kind of fasting that God has chosen is that centering on God and on others. After all, it pleases God more for us to share with others than for us to deprive ourselves. It is not the physical actions in themselves that matter, but the attitude and expectations behind them.

God enables his people to be like a well-watered garden, full of life and able to share that life with others. He equips his people for a ministry of rebuilding and restoring. We do not have to build anything new, but only to seek and strengthen the spiritual foundations that God has laid.

Your Sins Have Hidden His Face (Isaiah 59:1-8)

Isaiah has repeatedly reminded us that our own sin is the main (and, in a sense, the only) obstacle to knowing God and living in his presence. Because this can be so difficult for us to accept, he deliberately exaggerates human sinfulness, as a way of helping us to see what it looks like to God. The intention is not to harm us, but to bring us to a spiritually healthy sense of conviction.

We know that the arm of the Lord is not too short to save (Isaiah 59:1-2); that is, God can overcome any obstacle that keeps us from him. Any separation in our relationship with him is due to our own sin. We are familiar with Isaiah’s statement that, "your iniquities have separated you from your God", and the concept is not a complicated one. Yet it can be difficult to remember this when we most need it. When the prophet tells us that God will not hear us, he does not mean that God ignores us, but rather that our sins damage or even destroy our communication with God - something to consider when we struggle with doubt or confusion.

Because we live in a world full of sin, and are subject to temptations and weaknesses ourselves, we can easily become hardened by human sinfulness (Isaiah 59:3-8). This is why Isaiah goes into such vivid detail (here and elsewhere) about the disgust and revulsion that God feels towards our sin. He knows that it is not encouraging or pleasant, but he also knows that we cannot appreciate his greatest blessings unless we understand what sin does to our relationship with him.

The shedding of blood is displeasing to God, yet we may not realize how hardened we can be to the violence of the world. Many persons are outraged by war or disaster, yet turn a blind eye to suffering in their own communities, caring only about their own safety and well-being. Guilt may be obvious for sins we would never commit, yet the lies we tell, or the selfish ambitions in our hearts, are just as deadly as drug abuse or sexual immorality. All sins are like vipers’ eggs or cobwebs in God’s sight, for they hide God’s righteousness and pull our eyes away from him.

Isaiah also convicts us of our tendency to rush into sin (Isaiah 59:7)*, which we can do through catering to our fleshly desires, through approving of the sins of others, or through worshiping idols of our own making. It matters not to God whether we take stands that are applauded by the world, or even in the church. We are still sinners, and all sin keeps us (and others) from knowing the peace of God. Thus the prophet says, "the way of peace they do not know" (Isaiah 59:8)*. "There is no difference, for all have sinned . . . " (Romans 3:22-23).

• ·    Isaiah 59:7-8 are quoted in Romans 3, a passage in which Paul emphasizes the universal nature of sin. Romans 3:9-18 also includes quotations from several Psalms (and from Ecclesiastes 7), with a number of them using images and terms similar to those in Isaiah 59. It is a good study to compare these passages, looking of course at their contexts, for they are written to make some similar points.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How do we know that God’s ’arm’ is not too short to save?

In what sense does he hide his face because of our sin?

Does he have to do this?

Why do Isaiah and other biblical writers stress how much God hates our sin?

What response does God want?

Are the characterizations in verses 3-8 true of every human?

We Look For Justice, But Find None (Isaiah 59:9-15 a)

The desire for justice is one of our strongest impulses, as indeed it should be, for we were made in the image of a just and righteous God. Yet our search for justice on this earth usually ends in disappointment and frustration. At some point, we must come to realize that genuine justice is found only in God - for his justice is of a different type altogether from that of this world.

We can sympathize with Isaiah’s statement that "we look for light, but all is darkness" (Isaiah 59:9-11). We all want light: truth, justice, love, righteousness, and hope. But if we look for it in the wrong places, we never find it. Even our most foolish or sinful desires are actually a desire for God and his light, a desire that gets distorted by the world’s lies and our own fleshly limitations. Thus we can find ourselves unfulfilled even when we get exactly what we thought we wanted and needed.

To look to the world for the things that only God can provide is a fruitless search, yet it is one that every human nevertheless wishes to try. This is the point behind Isaiah’s depiction of all humanity as blind and groping, stumbling around as if darkness had come upon the earth at midday*. Recall Isaiah’s attacks on idols - we turn to idols because they seem to promise the same things God promises, only more quickly and easily. Yet eventually we find that our idols only enslave us, demanding more and more allegiance while giving us less and less in return.

• ·    There is an interesting, though no doubt incidental, parallel with the darkness at noon that occurred during the crucifixion of Jesus (Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33, Luke 23:44). Though the contexts and implications are dissimilar, both suggest God’s dislike of sin and the power of sin to confuse and disorient. The crucifixion passages are usually considered to be fulfillments of, or connected with, Amos 8:9.

There is an insurmountable obstacle that will always make it impossible for us to find justice, safety, or light in this world: sin (Isaiah 59:12-15 a). Our sins testify against us, and indeed they will always testify against us. Even when we deny them or try to rationalize them away, they are always testifying in our hearts. Further, others around us struggle with sin and desire. We thus fall into competition with one another for the world’s apparent prizes, to no one’s lasting gain.

Sin induces us to take our natural and healthy desire for God’s love and turn it into immoral sensual desires. Sin provokes us to take our natural and healthy desire for eternal security and turn it into a foolish, self-destructive desire for temporary ’fun’ and excitement that makes us forget spiritual responsibilities. In many such actions, we turn our backs on God, because the sin in our hearts pushes us away from him, and causes us not to want to live in his presence*.

• ·    Consider the reaction of Adam and Eve when they committed their first sins: they immediately preferred to hide from God’s presence rather than seeking it (Genesis 3).

Sin makes justice impossible in this world, because we are all guilty. When we claim to want ’justice’, what we really desire is for ourselves to be rewarded for all the good things we have done, and for others to be punished when they do wrong. This is not justice that we desire - what we really want is for things to be unjust in our favor. Indeed, whole nations and cultures indulge themselves in this delusion, which is behind some of the world’s most persistent problems. Even on a small scale, this desire for false ’justice’ aggravates many other problems.

The things we so desperately seek in this world are, at best, Freudian substitutes for God’s greater blessings. Paradoxically, when we confess and acknowledge our sin and folly, it takes away sin’s power. Without the weight of denial and excuses, we can turn to God eagerly, not reluctantly, for the grace we need. "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

From what worldly sources do we seek justice and other things only God can give us?

Why do we ask the world for these things?

Do we get anything at all from the world?

How can we learn to prevent guilt from keeping us from turning to God?

Why is confession and repentance healthier than denial or excuses?

God Intervenes Through Grace (Isaiah 59:15-21)

There are no worldly resources or methods sufficient to bring forgiveness of sins, or effective in producing complete justice. So we are all the more blessed that God himself both understood our need and chose to meet it. In Jesus the Messiah, God’s compassion, justice, grace, and wisdom are all brought together. Isaiah looks ahead to this in humble, grateful anticipation.

As Isaiah has so often reminded us, it is God’s righteousness, not our own, that brings salvation (Isaiah 59:15-17). Though he has no obligation to do so, God chooses to redeem us and to forgive us by grace. Isaiah describes God’s attitude with a rather curious figure of speech. He depicts God observing the complete lack of justice* on this earth, and being ’appalled’ (or astonished**) that there was no one to intervene or intercede for us.

• ·    Remember that when God speaks of justice, especially in the prophetic books, ’justice’ usually means giving everyone a fair chance (in this case, to have one’s sins forgiven and to know God). He usually does not mean justice in a punitive sense.

• ·    The NASB uses ’astonished’, while the NIV uses ’appalled’. The original word probably combines both of these ideas. The King James Version reads, "he wondered that there was no intercessor", using the word ’wonder’ in its older sense, connoting surprise.

God knew all along that sin would separate humanity from him, and that no human savior could bring effective spiritual healing. So Isaiah’s depiction is a purely rhetorical device, for it is in fact we, not God, who should be appalled and astonished by our desperate need for God’s grace. When we take an honest look at the things we desire and compete for, it should astonish and appall us to realize how distorted our priorities are.

The prophet portrays God as dressing himself in symbolic garments of salvation and zeal, to suggest that these are the things that matter most to him. Paul may well have had this in mind when he used similar imagery* in urging Christians to arm themselves with the fruit of the Spirit.

• ·    The best-known example is probably Ephesians 6:13-17. Notice the exact (and probably deliberate) parallels of the ’helmet of salvation’ and the ’breastplate of righteousness’.

God’s patience is extraordinary, yet there will come a time when "like a pent-up flood" he will make his final will clear to all (Isaiah 59:18-19). He delays releasing his wrath upon his enemies, in order to give them every chance to repent and to turn to him. This means that he also must delay (in our timeframe) fulfilling his final promises to believers. But while pagans enjoy themselves for a short time, and then must face eternal separation from God, those who trust in Christ face a short period of struggle on this earth, but can look forward to an eternity revering God’s glory.

Isaiah’s original audience did not know exactly when Zion’s Redeemer would come, but they could be certain that he would someday (Isaiah 59:20-21). Likewise, we do not know when he will return, but we know that he will. To those who repent and who humble themselves, this provides a hope that can last through all of this world’s turmoil. God has made a covenant that he will not break, and he has left his living Word to guide both us and those who come after us.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense is God ’displeased’ (Isaiah 59:15 b) that there is no justice on this earth?

Did he expect better?

In what sense was he ’astonished’ or ’appalled’ that there was no source of redemption or intercession in this world?

What is Isaiah teaching us with these images?

Why does the prophet describe God ’dressing himself’ with spiritual weapons?

What expectations should this passage give us?

Mark Garner, October 2008

The Glory Of The Lord Rises Upon You (Isaiah 60:1-22)

Those who come to God’s Messiah, and who believe in him, are able to see God’s glory and his light. Only believers in the Christ are able to understand the reasons why they were created, and only the faithful can experience the greatest of God’s blessings. We are also able to reflect God’s light to the rest of the world, which still lives in darkness, despair, and death.

Review Of Recent Classes

Isaiah has exhorted us to call on God while he is near (Isa 55:6-57:13), and he has often told us of God’s wish to prepare the road, or highway, for us to come into his presence (Isa 57:14-58:14). Because we are powerless to save ourselves, God’s own arm worked salvation for us (Isa 59:1-21).

Struggles in our relationship with God arise because our sins hide his face from us. God’s arm (strength) is not too short to save anyone, but he requires us humbly to accept and confess our need for him. In this world, we look for justice and light, but we find none that will last. Sin is the insurmountable obstacle to earthly justice. Since we all stand equally convicted of sin, there can never be true justice between us. Only God’s overflowing grace can provide relief from the endless competition and conflict here on this earth.

So, when God intervenes, it is through grace. By his own righteousness he brings salvation and grace, and by his own righteousness he brings his true justice. It is not justice of a kind that would be recognized by any of the world’s governments or leaders. God justly and righteously gives everyone on earth the chance to repent and humbly turn to God. All who do this are saved by God’s grace through the blood of Christ.

The Light Shines In The Darkness (Isaiah 60:1-9)

Isaiah often contrasts the light that comes from God with the darkness of sin that covers this earth. He also assures us that we have every opportunity to live in the light, through our faith and God’s grace. Here, the prophet uses numerous images to describe the spiritual blessedness that comes from God’s light, as well as the opportunity to reflect this light to the world.

God’s will and Word allow us to bring light into a world that needs it (Isa 60:1 -3). The prophet’s plea for us to rise and shine echoes his earlier comments that God intends us not only to see the light and accept his covenant, but actually to be a light and a covenant*. God’s call to humanity has always been much more than a mere insistence on intellectual belief and outward action, for these things mean little to him without our hearts. He has always wished for his creations to seek him eagerly, one-by-one, with a humble appreciation for the light he brings.

* See, for example, Isaiah 42:6; Isaiah 49:8.

The thick darkness on the earth is metaphorical, but still quite real. The world’s bright lights, loud noises, and constant self-promotion cannot hide the emptiness, the lack of wisdom, or the lack of direction that characterize humanity, from the lowly and forgotten to the most powerful and wealthy persons on the planet. There is talk everywhere, but insight nowhere. There is factual knowledge in abundance, but no wisdom. There is activity everywhere, ministry nowhere. Even in the church, there is often little effort to understand the things God values most, because we are too concerned with methodologies, personalities, or earthly events.

Seeking the light involves risk and fear. Even many believers will be afraid to leave behind their preconceptions and personal goals for the sake of finding a deeper closeness with God. Sacrificing the known and tangible for the unknown and intangible is not easy, and so God offers great blessings to those willing to try. But those who take this step are blessed by knowing God’s glory, in a way that those who conform to this world will never know. All who truly wish to know God - whether kings or beggars - will be able see the reflection of this living light.

The radiance of the faithful (Isa 60:4-9) depicts what God wants for those who love and unceasingly seek him. The joyful assembly that Isaiah describes helps us to understand the blessings that matter the most. The gathering of the exiles, the remnant, of which Isaiah has so often spoken, combines joy and hope. The numbers involved are not as important as the awareness that each soul is priceless, and that each soul who returns to God is a great victory.

The prophet also depicts believers being the recipients of the earth’s riches, which are brought to them by a willing world. This parallels some of Isaiah’s own teachings*, and it also has numerous other parallels in Scripture, especially in the Old Testament**. But notice carefully what such passages teach. The wealth is brought to the believers without them expending any effort - that is, God by grace is supplying them with what they need (or with blessings he chooses to give them); they are not actively seeking wealth.

• ·    See, for example, Isaiah 23:17-18; Isaiah 32:18-20; Isaiah 61:6-9; Isaiah 66:12. The emphasis is on God deciding how to bless his people, which may or may not be in the ways they expect. Our part is to trust that God will provide us with anything we need, and then to be grateful for his blessings - especially when he gives us ’extra’ things that we did not truly need to have, just to show us that he loves us

• ·    Leviticus 26:1-12 is a characteristic example. Again, it promises that God will look after believers and provide them with anything they need, as well as providing extra blessings of his choosing. Their part is not to seek these blessings, but to be thankful for what they have. New Testament parallels would include passages such as Matthew 19:29 and Luke 6:38 (as well as their parallels in the other gospels). Notice again that God is always the chooser and initiator of the kinds of blessings he gives to his people.

The Scriptures constantly emphasize how generously God cares for his people, even in this brief life. He supplies by grace the things we need, even though we barely notice or appreciate many of them. He also allows us to possess many undeserved and unnecessary things, simply to help us get through this life by remembering his compassion for us. But it is a far greater blessing to be endowed with his splendor (Isa 60:9), for this is what foreshadows our eternal home with him. And this small touch of his splendor allows us to experience something of his presence, even as we still inhabit this perishable world.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense does God ask us to ’rise’?

What is the darkness that covers the earth?

In anyplace not covered by it? What wealth does the world bring us?

Does the world realize this?

What kinds of blessings should believers expect from God?

How do we obtain them? What is the splendor God gives us?

The Redeemed Life (Isaiah 60:10-22)

The life of God’s redeemed reflects the calling and grace of the Christ himself. The things of this world all belong to our Father, who gives us as much as we need. He expects us to trust him and to be grateful for what we have, rather than demanding more. Since God himself provides an unending source of light and truth, he calls us to follow him instead of trusting in the world.

Isaiah’s assurance that "your gates will always stand open" (Isa 60:10-14) is both a blessing and a responsibility. The basic figure of speech, which includes a depiction of foreigners rebuilding the walls* of believers, is both a promise and a responsibility. God has always intended his believers to continue in their natural, daily roles as inhabitants of this earth, rather than physically withdrawing**. Our faith is precious to God, and those who live amongst the distractions and trials of this world can bring God great joy simply by remaining faithful.

• ·    Here there is at least a hint at the future rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls that Nehemiah would guide, with considerable help from the Persians. This may also be true, though to a lesser extent, of Isaiah 58:12 (there the focus is primarily on spiritual restoration).

• ·    Compare this with Isaiah’s frequent exhortations to come out of the world (for example, Isaiah 52:11). It is our responsibility to focus our hearts and spirits on heavenly and eternal things, even while our bodies must remain for a time on this physical earth. Consider also Paul’s thoughts in 2 Corinthians 5:1-10.

There are a number of consequences that come with remaining in the world physically. While we still live in this world, God uses the persons and objects of this world to take care of us - this is the meaning of Isaiah’s image of the faithful being served by kings (verse 10). On the other hand, we must expect that we shall often be despised by those who live for this world and who thus do not want to have their idols exposed. Yet, if we are living by true faith, rather than by mere religious routine or rhetoric, then even those who despise us will respect us (Isa 60:14)*, for they will know in their hearts that we are living for something greater and better.

• ·    This was demonstrated in many ways by the experiences of the earliest Christians. They were hated almost everywhere, but they were also feared and grudgingly respected, because it was almost impossible to motivate them by this world’s selfish, short-term means.

God promises the faithful that he will replace their iron with silver, and their stones with iron (60:15-22). The meaning of the images in these verses is that believers can experience an entirely new standard of living. Unlike the world’s goals for their standards of living, this is not a physical change, but rather a new set of spiritual perspectives on the world. Walls of salvation and gates of praise (verse 18) will replace the earthly things in which we once put our security. A new light source, God himself, will illuminate our minds and our hearts, so that we are no longer led by this world’s ’lights’ (e.g. experts or rulers, symbolized here by the sun and moon)*.

Ultimately, these images will also be fulfilled in an even more complete way. Compare verses 19-20 with Revelation 21:23-24; Revelation 22:5.

The least of us is like a thousand (Isa 60:22), not in physical strength, but in the ability to withstand the world’s lies and temptations. Everything is transformed spiritually, even though our daily lives may go on as they have before. The greatest changes and the greatest blessings both take place on this level. To experience them, we need only to overcome our fear of not getting the things we thought we wanted and needed on this earth. We shall soon discover how much better it is to have God’s truth, God’s grace, and God’s hope.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What are the implications of our ’gates’ always being open?

Why does God want believers to remain for a time on this earth?

What does this passage tell us about our relations with unbelievers?

What should change in our perspective on the world?

How is this like receiving silver instead of iron?

Summary & Preview

In a sense, the prophet’s open appeal in Isaiah 60 is the climax and conclusion of the book. Beginning with his prophecies about God’s remnant, Isaiah has carefully detailed our opportunity to live in God’s light. In the remaining chapters, the prophet re-emphasizes some important points, while providing a glimpse of God’s perspective as he observes our efforts to seek him.

Isaiah’s promise that a remnant will return (Isaiah 1-28) encapsulates the main thrust of God’s plans and wishes for this earth. The promise of the remnant also helps to explain or clarify many of the prophet’s other teachings. Once we remember that God truly sees each soul as equal in his eyes, and that he stands ready to grant every willing soul an opportunity to know him, then many of our questions and doubts become far less troublesome.

Having emphasized that God is the sure (and only) foundation for our times (Isaiah 29-49), the prophet has continually urged us to turn to God with all our hearts, and to reject or ignore the false teachings of the world’s idols, no matter how loud they get or how desirable they seem. Once we understand what God offers, it is time to "rise, shine, for your light has come" (Isaiah 50-60). The New Testament makes frequent use of similar images, because light is a perfect metaphor for the change in perspective and values that comes to those who turn to Jesus in faith.

Isaiah’s book of prophecy concludes with several exhortations that reinforce his message (Isaiah 61-66). He proclaims "the year of the Lord’s favor", another figure of speech that describes our redeemed status (Isa 61:1-62:5). The redeemed of the Lord are those who live in true awe of God and of what God has done (62:6-63:19).

Isaiah points out that, in a sense, God was found by those who did not seek him, for only those who seek him by grace find him, not those who try to earn a relationship with him (Isa 64:1-65:16). The book closes with a reminder that our intended home is not here, but rather is in the new heavens and the new earth that God will prepare (Isa 65:17-66:24).

Mark Garner, October 2008

The Year Of The Lord’s Favor (Isaiah 61:1 to Isaiah 62:5)

After reaching the climax of his appeal for us to turn our hearts completely to God, Isaiah now offers some additional thoughts that reinforce his message. Living in God’s favor is one of the great blessings of being in his presence. If we can understand properly what God’s favor involves, then we can begin to experience spiritual blessings that transcend this earth’s troubles.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Isaiah has exhorted us to call on God while he is near (Isa 55:6-57:13), and he has often told us of God’s wish to prepare the road, or highway, for us to come into his presence (Isa 57:14-58:14). Because we are powerless to save ourselves, God’s own arm worked salvation for us (Isa 59:1-21). All of these things remind us that we are a remnant chosen by grace.

When the glory of the Lord rises upon us, it is able to change our perspectives as well as our lives (Isa 60:1-22). God’s glory is a light that shines in the darkness of this world. This world needs his light, to find its way out of the darkness of sin and lies, and ultimately to receive forgiveness of sins. While we are on this earth, God will use the persons and things of this world to supply our needs. Our part is to trust him in faith, knowing that he will give us even more than we need.

The redeemed life brings us new hope and new attitudes. We do not leave this world physically, for we are to be a light and a covenant in it. As for us, God promises silver in place of iron, and iron in place of stone. This ’upgrade’ is a spiritual upgrade, for God takes away old, fleshly viewpoints and replaces them with a more spiritual set of priorities. By seeing things from God’s viewpoint, and by leaving behind the obsessions and passions of the worldly, we can experience a peace and security that transcend this world.

Freedom For The Captives (Isaiah 61:1-3)

God offers us a spiritual freedom that allows us to overcome the troubles of this world. He can transform us, even while we still live in these frail mortal bodies, so that we can turn mourning and despair into joy and praise. To experience this, we must first understand and acknowledge our need for him, so that we realize that he alone can give us what we truly need.

Isaiah speaks for us too when he says that, "the Lord has anointed me" (Isa 61:1). In Jesus, we also are able to tell the good news to those who need it, and to help those who suffer. The term ’anointed’ is chosen deliberately, for it establishes a parallel between the Anointed One*, the Christ, and the anointed ones**, his followers. The prophet makes clear to us that the Messiah will not come seeking passive adherents, but rather will call believers to follow in his own steps.

• ·    The Hebrew word çéùî ("Masiyah" or "Mashiyah") and the Greek word ׳סיףפןע ("Christos") both literally mean ’anointed one’. Thus the Hebrew name Messiah and the Greek name Christ are the same.

• ·    In this sense, compare Isaiah’s thoughts with 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 and 1 John 2:20; 1 John 2:27.

Meeting needs characterizes Jesus’ own ministry, and it is the ideal of Christian ministry. The captive, the broken-hearted, and the prisoners could certainly include those who are literally in these situations, but they also refer to those who are captive to sin or broken-hearted by the emptiness of the world. There are always such persons around us, and the world can help them only by temporary means. Believers in the Christ are able to show others first, that someone cares about their sufferings, and then, that the gospel meets needs that are even more important.

Much of Jesus’ ministry was spent in relieving the sufferings, sorrows, and anxieties of daily life; yet he also knew there were other priorities even more important. By healing and serving, he could call attention to deeper, spiritual needs. He dealt with only a tiny fraction of the sufferings and injustices around him, because his Father cared even more urgently about forgiveness of sin. Even those who have no significant earthly needs still desperately need God’s mercy and grace.

This is what Isaiah means in proclaiming a ’year’ of spiritual blessings (Isa 61:2-3). The year he means is not a fixed time period in our earthly chronology*, but a condition or era brought by the Messiah Jesus. Through him Isaiah’s ’highway’ was completed, allowing universal access to God’s grace, and with him a new ’year’ of God’s favor began.

• ·    Isaiah and Jeremiah often speak of literal years, but they also often use terms like ’year’ in a metaphorical sense: to refer to a time period, usually with a distinct beginning but not always with a well-defined end. Some other examples would include Isaiah 34:8; Isaiah 63:4, and Jeremiah 11:23; Jeremiah 23:12; Jeremiah 48:4. Both prophets, as well as other Old Testament writers, also use ’day’ in this same metaphorical sense.

So this ’year’ will bring both vengeance and comfort. It will bring comfort to those who long for mercy and grace, but vengeance to those who do not turn to God because of their pride. No excuse remains, for by removing every obstacle on the highway (recall Isaiah 57:14), God has done all he can. The responsibility to seek him is now ours. "In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30).

Spiritual transformation will allow us to experience the blessing of God’s presence even while we remain in this physical world. The ’oil of gladness’* is a testimony that God is with us, confirming God’s Immanuel promise (Isaiah 7-8). This replaces the mourning that our souls undergo when their longing for God goes unsatisfied, just as in Jesus the ’garment of praise’ will replace the gloom that inevitably comes at some point from selfish living.

• ·    Isaiah’s use of this term is a deliberate reference back to being anointed. Literal anointing (such as an anointing of a king or a priest) would have been done with oil. See also Psalms 45:7 and Hebrews 1:8-9.

To "be called oaks of righteousness" implies that our spiritual strength is both sufficient to keep us safe and also evident to those around us. The Messiah’s devoted anointed ones will never be mistaken for adherents of anything other than God and his Anointed One.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How have we been anointed?

How should this influence our relationship with God?

How should it affect our interactions with others?

What kind of ’favor’ do we have with God?

Why does Isaiah refer to a ’year’?

What are the oil of gladness and the garment of praise?

In what sense are we ’oaks’?

Rebuilding The Ancient Ruins (Isaiah 61:4-11)

Long ago, sin entered this world, and it did irreparable damage to God’s relationship with the people he had created. Only when the Christ came was the highway to God completely rebuilt, and even then most persons still chose to live amidst darkness and spiritual rubble. Yet we who believe, when we embrace what God has given us, can offer a helping hand to lift them out.

Isaiah’s promise that "you will be called priests of the Lord" expands on these ideas (Isa 61:4-7). Under the Levitical system, priests were anointed with oil* as part of their preparation for service. Thus they too were anointed ones, in the lesser sense. When Isaiah proclaims that someday all believers will become priests, he no doubt shocks many in his original audience, who associated priesthood with exclusivity in a way that God did not intend.

• ·    Indeed, there was a specially blended anointing oil for the priests and the items they used; this oil is described in Exodus 30:22-33. For examples of its use, see Exodus 29-31, 35, 40, and Leviticus 4, 8.

Many Israelites misunderstood the Old Testament priesthood, thinking it was designed to confer special honor and privilege on those who were worthy to minister in or near God’s presence. But instead, the real purpose of the priesthood (and of its many rituals) was to demonstrate how exclusive God’s presence is, to show that no one is worthy to be in the presence of the divine. In Jesus we each have the chance to enjoy the presence of God, for this comes by grace alone.

Isaiah has often spoken of rebuilding and renewing, because once again this combines different aspects of his ’remnant’ message. His imagery of places long devastated and of ruined cities foretells the coming fall of Jerusalem, but more importantly it describes the spiritual ruin and devastation that sin causes to all who indulge in it. By God’s grace both ’ruins’ are repairable.

The prophet’s call to ministry also has a dual significance. The people of Isaiah’s day had to be ready for Israel’s future, and today’s anointed believers are called to be priests in a new sense. Our anointing in Christ brings God’s presence into our lives, so that we can help other souls to find his mercy and his grace. Just as the ancient nation of Israel would be ravaged because of sin, but later restored and rebuilt, so also the disgrace of our sin will be replaced with a double portion of blessing (Isa 61:7), as we are blessed both with salvation and with ministry.

Like ancient Israel, we are a people the Lord has blessed (Isa 61:8-11). But, just as Israel never appreciated the greatest blessings God gave them, so also we must learn to look past the material and fleshly to see the spiritual and eternal things. God wants our souls to rejoice, not necessarily our flesh. And he wants us to become fruitful soil (verse 11) that he can use as he wishes, not as our fleshly desires would dictate. Believers in Isaiah’s day and believers in our own time both wish for God to concern himself with the present, though both its pleasures and its pains will quickly pass away. God loves us too much to sacrifice our eternal well-being for anything.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What kinds of ruins and devastation can we repair?

In what sense are we priests?

(What did the Levitical priests do in their ministry?)

What kind of ’double portion’ do we receive?

How does our soul rejoice?

What things make it rejoice?

How can we learn to value these things more highly?

A Diadem In God’s Hand (Isaiah 62:1-5)

The prophet declares that the world will notice both the blessings and the ministry of believers. When believers appreciate the righteousness and salvation they have, and then live for these things rather than for the fleshly blessings that the worldly desire, they can be like a torch or a beacon. Developing this kind of perspective also increases our own joy and contentment in God.

For Zion’s Sake - that is, for the sake of spiritual Israel - the prophet will not keep silent (Isa 62:1-2). His message is probably unpopular, but the aim of his message is right and is worthwhile. Only by repeatedly hearing the message will the people learn humility and faith, and only through a humble faith can God make their righteousness (which is really his righteousness) shine forth as he wishes it to. Isaiah’s anointing (as above) leaves him no choice but to continue to proclaim the truth, because God’s favor is of greater worth than any earthly privilege or reward.

The new name* that Isaiah promises is symbolic of the transformation that God brings about when believers turn back to him. The difference between a complacent, lazy faith and a humble, seeking faith is so large that God will not use the same name for both. Through Jesus, we are to shed our earthly identities and loyalties, so that we can embrace the new call to ministry that we receive through Jesus. Though we continue in the same bodies, we are new creations.

* Compare the use of this image in Isaiah 56:5; Isaiah 62:2; Isaiah 65:15 with Revelation 2:17; Revelation 3:12. See also verse 4.

The prophet combines the ’new name’ idea with some joyful images that express God’s delight in the faithful (Isa 62:3-5). We can become a crown or diadem of splendor only in God, by reflecting his glory, not by trying to attain glory ourselves. It is another of God’s paradoxes that those who seek glory will not find it, while those who know themselves to be inglorious will be glorified.

The symbolic names Hephzibah (roughly, ’my delight’) and Beulah (’married’) connote God’s closeness, his presence, to those who heed Isaiah’s message. Paul and John (in Revelation) had similar ideas in mind when comparing the faithful with a bride and Jesus as the bridegroom. This imagery is not meant to make a parallel with specific marriage responsibilities so much as it is meant to suggest closeness and oneness. We all desire these things, but we often forget that the best and most rewarding way to experience them is through God himself.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How can our righteousness ’shine’?

What brings this about?

What kind of ’new name’ does God give us?

What kind of transformation brings it about?

Why does God consider us to be like a crown or a diadem?

In what ways does marriage parallel the relationship God wants with us?

Mark Garner, November 2008

The Redeemed Of The Lord (Isaiah 62:6 to Isaiah 63:19)

Through God’s Messiah, we receive a new name - that is, a new identity. This is true both as individuals and as a body. In Jesus, we are the Redeemed of the Lord, the Holy People, the Sought After. The prophet does not teach us these terms in order to exalt us to a new and privileged status. Rather, he proclaims them because they confer upon us new responsibilities.

Review Of Recent Lessons

Because we are powerless to save ourselves, God’s own arm worked salvation for us (Isa 59:1-21), making us a remnant chosen by grace. When the glory of the Lord rises upon us, it is able to change our perspectives as well as our lives (Isa 60:1-22). Thus Isaiah calls us to ’arise’, to respond to God’s invitation to travel on the ’highway’ that leads to his presence.

When we respond to God’s call, we can experience the ’year’ of the Lord’s favor (Isa 61:1-62:5). We ourselves can be freed from sin, and we can also proclaim freedom for others who are captive, whether figuratively or literally. This ‘year’ of spiritual blessings brings a transformation of our perspectives, so that we can learn true, lasting joy and security that transcend this world.

Isaiah often speaks of rebuilding ancient ruins. Later generations rebuilt Jerusalem, but more importantly, through God and his Messiah we rebuild the closeness with God that was destroyed when sin entered the world. In this sense, all believers are ’priests of the Lord’. No one is worthy to be in God’s presence, but by grace we can tell others that the highway to God is open to all.

The prophet describes us as being like a diadem in God’s hand, something of great value to God. We are (figuratively) called by a new name, because the transformed perspective effectively makes us new creations. God’s delight in the faithful is so strong that he is willing to endure the ingratitude and rebellion of the rest of the world, for the sake of those few who turn to him.

Watchmen On The Walls (Isaiah 62:6-12)

God’s promise to watch over the faithful is one of our most valuable blessings. Yet we too often misunderstand what this assurance really involves. As a result, we can find ourselves failing to appreciate the promise, or even questioning God’s willingness (or his ability) to fulfill it. But all the same, it is one of the keys to realizing just who we are in the eyes of God.

To emphasize the importance of assembling God’s remnant, the prophet calls for there to be no silence and no rest until all is finished (Isa 62:6-7). The image of watchmen lined up along the city walls implies that God never ceases to search human hearts, to see which ones are seeking him in truth. God is always present, yet it is our responsibility to seek and to acknowledge him.

God’s wish is to ’establish Jerusalem’, that is, to bring together a remnant of believers from the whole earth, to be "the praise of the earth". The creation speaks in many ways of God’s power and majesty, but it is the presence of the faithful - no matter how few they may be - that testifies to God’s righteousness, justice, and mercy. These are the things that matter to God the most.

The Sought After is one of the new names* that will be given to the faithful (Isa 62:8-12), in describing their new identity through the Messiah. New names and a new identity are also accompanied by new assurances of spiritual guidance and care for those who value them.

• ·    See also Isaiah 62:4. All of these names are figurative, concentrating on the relationship that the faithful have with God. The names in Isa 62:4 focus on a believer’s closeness with God (relationship with God, contact with the presence of God), a blessing in which each of us shares individually. The names in Isa 62:12 emphasize the nature of God’s people (as a whole) as a visible testimony to his presence on this earth.

God often disciplined ancient Israel by allowing them to be plundered by neighboring pagan peoples*, so his assurance that "those who harvest (grain) will eat it" signals a welcome change. Of course, God gives this its most precious fulfillment in a spiritual sense - he is less concerned about protecting those who sow physical seed than he is with guiding those who sow spiritually.

• ·    This was particularly frequent during the time of the Judges, but it also happened at times during the kingdom era. The prophets sometimes used these occasions as a warning or a reminder.

Isaiah emphasizes this by repeating some of his recurring imagery about God preparing the road, the highway (Isa 62:10). God promises to keep this highway clear of external obstacles, so that those who seek him (who plant spiritual seed) can always find him (reap the harvest). At the same time, this is purely an act of grace on God’s part, since we are incapable of making seed grow, and we are incapable of clearing the road for ourselves. All he asks us to do is to pass through the ’gates’ that he has so graciously opened.

His recompense is with him (Isa 62:11; see also Isa 40:10), because God’s presence is itself the best reward that he gives us. When we are finally able to be with God in his own realm, it will outshine earthly pleasures and earthly pains alike. Even now, in those occasional moments when we can see through the fog of this world and glimpse God’s presence, we can gain more genuine wisdom and encouragement than we would receive from untold hours of earthly effort.

The new names in Isa 62:12 reflect our blessed opportunity to rise above the obsessions and entanglements that rule the lives of the worldly*. This makes the faithful a Holy People, for we are no longer trapped in the world’s futile viewpoints. We have been Redeemed from the world’s emptiness. We are the Sought After, for we have obtained by grace what the world fruitlessly seeks by its own effort and goodness**: not the trivial things that they think they need, but the security, contentment, purpose, and true hope that they really need. These blessings may seem ’intangible’ to the worldly, but for this very reason they are more lasting and more valuable.

• ·    Compare these names with, for example, Peter’s descriptions of believers in 1 Peter 2:9-10.

• ·    Paul offers a similar perspective in passages like Romans 9:30-33 (note the quote from Isaiah!).

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What are the ’watchmen’ for (verse 6)?

In what sense are we not to rest or be silent?

In what sense do we enjoy the results of our ’sowing’?

What does each of the names in verse 12 tell us?

How do they compare with Hephzibah and Beulah (verse 4)?

How can we be more appreciative of God’s ’intangible’ blessings?

An Ominous Interlude (Isaiah 63:1-6)

The flesh tends to be complacent about spiritual reality and responsibility, and to be unthankful for spiritual blessings. So Isaiah accompanies his joyful message with a dire forewarning. This brief conversation with God reminds us not to use God’s patience and compassion as an excuse to deny spiritual truth. God’s wrath towards the impenitent is real, it is justified, and it is certain.

Though the answer to the question, "Who is this . . . with his garments stained crimson?" is obvious, we may find ourselves trying to deny it (Isa 63:1-2). The prophet depicts God coming from Edom*, where he has just rendered dire judgment on unbelievers. God identifies himself both as "speaking in righteousness" and also as "mighty to save". When the prophet naively (but clearly rhetorically) asks him why his garments are so red, God answers in graphic fashion.

• ·    Bozrah is chosen simply as a representative location in Edom. As Israel’s close relations and oldest rival, Edom is used here in a figurative sense, to represent those who make no claim to believe in God. . So God comes from Edom to represent his judgment of the unrepentant. The implication here is the same as that in 1 Peter 4:18, "If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" Believers should not be complacent about judgment, but should be especially aware of its sobering reality.

God is depicted as ’treading the winepress’ as an image of judgment (Isa 63:3 -6). The stains from crushed grapes are a vivid symbol for the flowing blood that alone can pay for sins against God. In calling this process a ’day’ of vengeance and a ’year’ of redemption, Isaiah implies two crucial realities. God’s vengeance lasts only a ’day’, meaning it is rendered swiftly and then is over, with all future relationship severed; his redemption lasts a ’year’, for its blessings remain for a long time*. Yet both are part of God’s character, and both will one day be eternal realities. If we have genuine compassion for others, then we shall make sure that they also are aware of both.

* Compare these thoughts with Psalms 30:5 (be careful to note the context),

It is God’s own arm at work in all these things (compare Isa 63:5 with Isa 59:16). No one compels him to render judgment, and no one forces him to dispense mercy; he does both freely of his own will, because of who he is. And no human has the right to critique or question his will, for it is we who are subject to his judgment, not the other way around. If we remember that and accept it, then God by grace grants us more spiritual blessings than we can count.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah format this passage as if it were a conversation?

Why does he place so much emphasis on images of blood?

What response does God want from believers?

Why do we need to be reminded of his readiness to judge and destroy those who do not humble themselves before him?

An Unprovoked Rebellion & A Humble Return (Isaiah 63:7-19)

This passage recaps the spiritual cycle of rebellion and return that the prophet often describes. Despite owing our very existence to God’s grace, the weakness of our flesh leads us astray, and we seek to rule in God’s place. We are all guilty of doing this, so the crucial question is not whether we are innocent, but whether the awareness of our guilt leads us to repentance.

In the history of ancient Israel, there were many times when God’s kindness to his people was repaid with grief (Isa 63:7-10). This has also been true on many occasions throughout subsequent history. It is not possible for the human mind to grasp, or even to notice, all that the Lord has done for us (Isa 63: 7). Yet if we could at least get a better idea of what matters to him, it would give him great joy. Of all the ways he blesses us, it is his love, mercy, and redemption, not any material things or sensual pleasures, that best show how he feels toward us. Of all the things we can give him, it is humble hearts, not great deeds or noble words, that mean the most to him.

Sadly, a good portion of the rebellion and conflict that Isaiah describes comes not from deliberate evil, but simply from our misunderstandings of what pleases God. He does not want us to force others to obey him, nor does he want us be ashamed of his Word and will. But because we invariably prefer fleshly actions to spiritual perspectives, we involve ourselves in irrelevant squabbles about ministry methods, secular affairs, or personal prominence. We ought instead to focus our energies on knowing God, and then he could easily enlighten us on those particular occasions when such things do matter to him in some small way.

It is better still to ponder, whenever we sense our soul’s needs, where (and who) is our redeemer? (Isa 63: 11-19). Even in Isaiah’s now-distant era, those with perception often recalled the days of old, as a time when God’s presence was more of a reality to them*. The presence or absence of God (that is, whether or not we perceive his nearness) affects all that we do, think, and say, even if we do not realize this consciously.

• ·    That is, Isaiah is encouraging us to look back at times when we were closer to God. He is not advocating the fruitless indulgence of decrying how much better things were at some imaginary point in the past. If some time in the past truly was better for us (rather than only being better in our minds), then it is because we were closer to God, not because that former time was in itself ’better’ in some absolute sense.

When we come to a genuine realization of our need for God, this leads naturally to a plea for God’s zeal, might, tenderness, and compassion. These qualities will be effective in our souls when we are close to him, but they will be mere words when our hearts are far away. When we foolishly ask God why he has made us "wander from your ways" (Isa 63:17), the answer is that it is our own self-will that causes such problems. Yet even this awareness is good news, for it shows us that we do not need to (and indeed cannot) earn our way back into his presence.

Everything about the new sense of identity that Isaiah has discussed - the new names, the new perspectives, the new sense of purpose - is available by grace to all who desire it. No matter why or how we may have strayed, we need only turn back humbly to him, and all is forgiven.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why didn’t ancient Israel appreciate what God had done for them?

In what ways did they rebel?

What misunderstandings of God did they have?

In what ways are we similar to Isaiah’s original audience?

What kindnesses has God shown us?

How can we be more grateful for them?

What misunderstandings of God do today’s believers have?

How can we tell which ones are important?

Mark Garner, November 2008

Found By Those Who Did Not Seek (Isaiah 64:1 to Isaiah 65:16)

The awareness that salvation truly is by grace, not by knowledge or works, is necessary to any understanding of God. To his earlier discussions of this idea, Isaiah now adds the paradoxical proclamation that God has been found by those who did not seek him. This is a figurative (and deliberately provocative) way of saying that no one is ever saved by merit of any kind.

Review Of Recent Lessons

When the glory of the Lord rises upon us, it changes our perspectives (Isaiah 60:1-22). Isaiah asks us to arise, and to travel along the highway that leads to God’s presence. We then can experience the ’year’ (time, era) of the Lord’s favor (Isaiah 61:1 to Isaiah 62:5). We ourselves can be freed from sin, and we can also proclaim freedom for others who are captive, whether figuratively or literally.

As a body, we then constitute the Redeemed of the Lord (Isaiah 62:6 to Isaiah 63:19). The prophet depicts us being encircled by watchmen on the walls - but these are not ordinary watchmen, for their purpose is to observe neither silence nor rest as God assembles his remnant. Then the assurance that those who harvest will eat promises that, while in this world we are often denied the fruits of our own labor, in seeking God we can be assured that our efforts and sacrifices are never in vain.

In an ominous interlude, Isaiah portrays God ’treading the winepress’ of his wrath. God’s salvation and his judgment are equally essential to his character. His feelings are in part explained by the cycle of unprovoked rebellion and humble return that the prophet once more reviews. We are never justified in repaying God’s kindnesses with sin and grief, nor can we ever earn our way back into his presence when we rebel. But this is actually good news. For once we humbly call out, asking where our Redeemer is, he himself restores our relationship with him.

Please Come Down (Isaiah 64:1-12)

It is an important step in our spiritual development to realize our need for God. Yet we must not stop with a simple acknowledgement. Because this world is devoid of meaning or security, our dependence on God is absolute. When we find ourselves waiting impatiently for God to act as we wish him to, he himself may be waiting for us to accept the depth of our need for him.

In those moments when we feel our need for God particularly keenly, we might plead with God that he "would rend the heavens and come down" at once to take care of us (Isaiah 64:1-7). This honest expression of the soul’s yearning encapsulates complete dependence on God with an absolute faith in whatever course of action God chooses to take.

Although God will actually come down only when he judges that the time is right, this is nevertheless an attitude that he can use in our hearts. Those times when God has done ’awesome things’ quite naturally give us the desire for him to perform even greater works. But this is not his aim, for those who find him must still stay for a time on this perishable earth.

Instead of indulging our understandable but myopic desire for him to fix all of this world’s problems, God instead wants us to look more deeply into his character. Although he is pleased when we recognize his omnipotence and omniscience, he does not wish to be a mere cartoon superhero character who goes around making things right in this world.

No human eye or human ear has seen anything else like God (Isaiah 64:4), and no human mind has conceived of a God like the living God*. The gospel does not cater to the nature or wishes of any individual, any nation, any culture, or any race; it contradicts the pretenses and claims of every philosophy, every political system, every religion. Isaiah’s provocative assertion that "all our righteous acts are like filthy rags**" (verse 6) immediately makes this clear.

• ·    Paul quotes this verse in 1 Corinthians 2:9, in a slightly different context that emphasizes the inability of the human mind to understand God unless he himself teaches us through his Spirit.

• ·    That is, our actions and thoughts, no matter how righteous or desirable in themselves, are worthless for earning salvation, deserving grace, or making God love us. To do right and to believe the truth are valuable for other reasons, of course - in fact, it is when we realize how impossible it is to earn God’s favor that we can understand why he actually does wish us to pursue purity, faith, goodness, and spiritual wisdom.

In reminding us that we are but the clay, not the potter who forms the clay, Isaiah returns to a familiar prophetic image* (Isaiah 64:8-12). For the clay to boast of its own glory would be an obvious absurdity, as would any attempt by the clay to assume authority or judgment over the potter.

• ·    See also, for example, Isaiah 29:16; Isaiah 45:9-10, Jeremiah 18:1-12, and Paul’s use of the image in Romans 9:19-24. At first glance, 2 Corinthians 4:7 may seem to be unconnected with these, but a careful review of the context will show that Paul is using a similar idea there also.

Instead, whatever security the clay might have comes only from the potter remembering that the various clay vessels are the works of his own hand, so that they matter to him. When the clay creations reveal their defects, they thus cannot defend or explain themselves, but can only hope that the potter is not "angry beyond measure", so that he does not destroy what he has created.

God wishes for us to realize the depth of our need for him and his grace. Each of us has the responsibility to seek God, and to respond to him in humble faith. Your relationship with God depends on his grace and on your acceptance of it, not on your congregation’s teachings or accomplishments, and certainly not on the nation or culture in which you live your earthly life.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

When might we feel thoughts like those in verse 1?

What does God want us to do when we feel this way?

What does he want us to learn? In what way has no eye, ear, or mind perceived anything like God?

What response to this idea does Isaiah want?

What should we learn or realize from our position as God’s ’clay’?

Here Am I, Here Am I (Isaiah 65:1-7)

When Isaiah quotes God saying, "Here am I", it echoes the prophet’s own earlier statement. This parallel also has a point: after centuries of fruitless waiting for ancient Israel to acknowledge him, God finds that he can attract Gentile believers just by making himself known. In this passage, Isaiah looks at some ideas that will be developed more fully in the New Testament.

Some apparent paradoxes involved in seeking and finding God reinforce some key points Isaiah has made (Isaiah 65:1-5). In a figurative manner of speaking, it was to a ’nation’* that did not call on his name that God eagerly and deliberately made himself known. That is, God often found the Gentiles quicker to appreciate the things that matter most to him, because their view of God was unhindered by traditions and false teachings. Their own idols were so obviously inferior to the living God that it was less difficult for them to see the truth when they met the true God.

• ·    The Gentiles were often referred to as ’the nations". The grammatical usage here is singular for poetic purposes, but it still refers to the Gentiles in general.

The Gentiles of earlier times did not seek God, in the sense that they never tried to prove themselves worthy of the living God; they only joined the crowd in following the rites associated with their own cultural ’gods’. Today, it is ourselves who risk becoming like the Israelites, if we try to build a case for being better or ’more Christian’ than someone else. The true gospel still often finds readier acceptance among those who do not think themselves ’religious’ in any way.

In contrast with the enthusiastic responses he occasionally received from the Gentiles, God’s efforts with the Israelites were giving him mostly frustration*. In saying, "all day long I have held out my hands" (that is, without response), God highlights the constant resistance that their pride and undue emphasis on tradition had produced.

• ·    The contrast is not numerical, for indeed a very large proportion of Gentiles did not and do not believe. The important distinction is that the Israelites had so much more that could have helped them to find God, yet most considered it unnecessary to seek God in any meaningful way - just as many persons today take false security in being part of a nation or culture that is superficially ’Christian’.

Their shocking claim that, "I am too sacred for you"* (Isaiah 65:5) was probably never stated aloud, yet it revealed the truth about many hearts. When they claimed the right to bind their own rules and traditions on others, or when they felt spiritually superior to others, it was the same thing. And it is the same thing if we indulge in such things today.

* The King James translates the phrase as, "(I am) holier than thou", which is where this expression arose.

Thus God speaks of paying them back in full (Isaiah 65:6-7). The vivid expressions in these verses declare a simple truth that still holds true: if we don’t want to be close to God, then he will not force us to be. This form of judgment is not hostility or hatred; it is just God’s nature.

The warning that they will pay for "your sins and the sins of your fathers" does not mean that they will have to pay for individual sins that others have committed. Rather, because each successive generation has unquestioningly adopted the fleshly viewpoints, spiritual complacency, and false security of its predecessors, they all share in the guilt for the pride and stubbornness that have prevented Gods message from taking root.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

In what sense have some who found God not ’sought’ him?

What mistakes were made by those who thought they were seeking him?

In which position would we find ourselves, most of today’s believers, or most of today’s congregation?

What kinds of punishment might be implied in Isaiah 65:6-7?

There Is Yet Some Good (Isaiah 65:8-16)

No human sin is in itself too horrible for God to forgive, and no person or group of persons is ever too lost for God to help. If there is the slightest hope for some person to return to God, then God will not give up on that soul. At the same time, God will not force anyone to choose him - he honestly and clearly sets forth the options we have available, and then he lets us choose.

Isaiah’s generation can count on God preserving descendents from Jacob*, despite their spiritual collapse (Isaiah 65:8-10). The people are like half-crushed grapes, nearly worthless but with a little ’juice’ left. Again, God persistently offers opportunities to those whose hearts drift far from him.

• ·    In this case, God is in part promising that the Jews of Isaiah’s era would have physical descendants who would be faithful to God. This was essential to God’s plans for the Babylonian exile and return.

When we stray from God, we often feel that we must follow an arduous path to return to him - but he has stayed close by all the time. It is not for those who are perfect in God’s eyes, but "for my people who seek me" (verse 10) that God provides such protection, patience and grace*.

• ·    The point is similar to the meaning of parables like Luke 13:6-9, or to a lesser extent Matthew 13:24-30 (explained in Matthew 13:36-43). In all cases God assures the wavering that he will give them every reasonable chance, but also warns them that at some point (unknown to them) the opportunities will cease.

For those who forsake the Lord outright, there is no more hope (Isaiah 65:11-12). God called each of them, too - whether by speaking to them through a believer or by one of the many other means available to God - but they did not answer. If they refuse to heed the living God, then there is no alternative way to have their sins forgiven, to save themselves, or to earn God’s favor.

The blessings and warnings that follow (Isaiah 65:13-16) encapsulate some of the prophet’s previous teachings in a more specific manner* . It is a recurring theme that those who trust God and who accept what they have by grace will usually be much more thankful for what they have, while those who reject grace, and who think that they have earned what they have, will often find even their good things to be a curse to them, since they always feel that they have earned even more.

• ·    Passages like Leviticus 26, Deuteronomy 28, and Deuteronomy 30 contain more detailed versions of these teachings. They have the same general meaning, and the same basic points here apply to them as well.

Isaiah’s promise, then, is not that the faithful are guaranteed extra material things or are exempt from some misfortunes, but rather that faith allows us to appreciate what we have. Likewise, those who reject God do not usually need extra punishment, as they cannot long enjoy even the most lavish blessings. Faith allows us to have and do all things "by the God of truth". It does not always alter the circumstances in our lives, but it always helps us to respond to them.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does God give ’extra chances’?

Is this a motivation to take God less seriously?

What is the difference between those addressed in Isaiah 65:8-10 and those in Isaiah 65:11-12?

How do the blessings and warnings in Isaiah 65:13-16 take effect?

How can we better understand them and notice when they happen?

Mark Garner, November 2008

New Heavens & A New Earth (Isaiah 65:17 to Isaiah 66:24)

Isaiah closes his book of prophecy - as well as his appeal for us to call on God - with a depiction of a new world that God plans to bring about. In his imagery of new heavens and a new earth, the prophet ties together the many promises he has made, as well as the different levels on which they apply: in the return from Babylonian exile, in the Messiah, and in our eternal home.

Review Of Previous Lesson

In a sense, God has been found by those who did not seek him (Isaiah 64:1 to Isaiah 65:16). Isaiah describes a feeling that the faithful may experience, when we recognize the full extent of this world’s emptiness and sin, and we plead with God to come down and fix everything. Although it is not God’s intention ever to do so on this earth, this attitude of longing for God and dependence on God is nonetheless a necessary stepping-stone towards understanding God’s will and perspective.

Neither human logic nor human perception has ever found or imagined anything like God. We are merely the clay with which he works, so that we may stand before him only because we are his own creations, and thus dear to him. When God says, "Here am I, here am I", it echoes Isaiah’s own words*, and it re -emphasizes the theme of God’s presence. The paradox in seeking and finding God is that many who think they are zealously seeking him are doing so with their own goodness and wisdom: thus they will not find him, while the humble and poor in spirit will.

• ·    This connects both with Isaiah’s offer "Here am I, send me" in Isaiah 6:8, and also with his statement "Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me" in Isaiah 8:18. The first time, he speaks to God, humbly acknowledging his glory and righteousness. The second time, he tells the people that he and his sons (to whom he gave symbolic names) are signs to them, reminding them of God’s presence among them, with all of its implications. Here in chapter 66, it is God who declares his own presence, which he reveals not to those who think themselves worthy of him, but to those who humbly confess their need for him.

Despite all the ways that Isaiah has criticized the spiritual shortcomings of those in his audience, he assures them that God still wants them for his own. Just as crushed grapes may have a little juice left in them, so also there is yet some good in anyone who realizes that God lives. God will continue to grant opportunities to all who do not reject him outright. Isaiah follows this message with a series of blessings and warnings: blessings of life promised to the faithful, and warnings to others not to use God’s patience as an excuse to take him lightly.

Before They Call, I Will Answer (Isaiah 65:17-25)

This idealized description of our relationship with God reminds us of the spiritual blessings that God most wants to give us. Despite different eras, different circumstances, and different places, God’s highest priorities and greatest desires are always the same. The more that we appreciate what matters to God, the more that we can overcome the tumults and distractions of this world.

Isaiah once again expresses God’s hope that we will be a delight to him (Isaiah 65:17-19). This cannot happen if we pursue only our earthly goals and activities, for these usually matter to God only insofar as we put them into the proper perspective. It is when we allow God to make all things new that we can fully appreciate him and can please him by our faith. When we delight ourselves in God*, we also become a delight to him**.

• ·    Some examples of God’s desire for us to delight in him would include Isaiah 11:3; Isaiah 58:13; Isaiah 61:10. (See also if you can find others, in Isaiah and elsewhere.) Compare these with the examples in the next note.

• ·    See also Isaiah 5:7; Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 62:4.

Two of the things that happen when God makes "new heavens and a new earth" are: first, "the former things will not be remembered" (Isaiah 65:17); second, his people’s joy will be lasting (last part of Isaiah 65:19). These apply in several ways. First, when the exiles return from Babylon, the idolatry and disasters that led to exile will no longer trouble them, and they will experience a period of spiritual and physical rebuilding that brings lasting blessings from God.

Likewise, the new life in Jesus allows us to erase the sin and folly of the past - we can learn from these, but no longer have to be weighted down by them. The truest joys in Jesus - the spiritual blessings - these are ours as long as we wish them to be. The world can damage or take away many of our earthly things, but it can never deprive us of our spiritual birthrights. "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28). In eternity, of course, the past will forever be left behind, and all joys will be lasting.

God promises the faithful a life of peace and security, not necessarily as to the external events of life, but on the inside (Isaiah 65:20-25). The assurances here go along with the promises given just above (Isaiah 65:13-15). Isaiah reiterates that, once things are made new, the faithful will never again toil in vain (compare Isaiah 61:8-9). Whether or not their earthly labors and efforts are adequately rewarded or recognized, everything they do in seeking God will be worthwhile*.

• ·    Contrast this with the times Isaiah told his hearers that their actions of ’worship’ have become worthless or even annoying to God, when their outward acts were not done for the right reasons. It was one of the prophet’s first points (see Isaiah 1:11-15), and it will be repeated once more in Isaiah 66:3.

Isaiah adds the assurance that each person will be able to live out a natural lifespan (Isaiah 65:20). This is partially literal, in that those who return from exile will for a time be free from the threats of invasions and deprivations to which the people of Isaiah’s era were exposed. Figuratively, it promises the chance for us all to know God. And (recall 11:6-9) the wolf and the lamb (that is, persons very different from one another) will live in harmony. Only in God will we ever find a purpose and a calling strong enough and high enough to transcend the divisions and selfishness of this world. Only in God and his Messiah are we all equally humbled and equally treated.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

What was new about the heavens and earth when God led the captives back from Babylon?

What about when Jesus came to this earth?

In each case, how are the promises of Isaiah 65:25 fulfilled?

What should we learn from them?

Heaven Is My Throne (Isaiah 66:1-11)

God’s promises (and warnings) are all the more powerful because he unquestionably has the ability to fulfill them. God’s own home is not on this earth, and thus he is not limited by the laws, constraints, or limitations of our physical universe. Isaiah now reminds us of some of the most important implications of this idea, both to caution us and to encourage us.

To exhort us not to be obsessed or pre-occupied with the things of this world, God reminds us that his hand has made all these things and more (Isaiah 66:1-2). Even if this point does nothing more than to help us remember who God is, then it is still well worth considering. Living in a world full of noisy distractions, it is not always easy to keep an awareness of the Creator in our hearts. Whatever claims the worldly think they have on us, and whatever responsibilities we think we may have on this earth, God’s claim is superior and greater. He granted us existence itself.

When Isaiah talks of hearing an uproar taking place in the city, this is an image of judgment upon those who have not heeded God’s call to humility (Isaiah 66:3-6). All of their outwardly zealous ’worship’ has proved pointless. There is nothing wrong with sacrifice in itself or with offering in itself, but when they are done in hopes of gaining God’s favor by works, then they are of no value. The indication of this was that none of them listened when God called, for they thought they could stand on their own righteousness without help from God.

Isaiah uses an apparently illogical image, that of childbirth coming before labor pains*, to help us develop the perspective that God seeks (Isaiah 66:7-11). The literal impossibility of this image parallels the nature of salvation by grace, which can be so confusing to the flesh. The prophet rhetorically asks, "Who has ever seen such things?", because God’s grace and mercy are unique to him; human languages cannot even provide them an adequate definition.

• ·    Compare Isaiah 66:7 with Isaiah 54:1. On the other hand, contrast these verses with the more usual ways that Isaiah and other inspired writers use the imagery of childbirth and labor (e.g. Isaiah 42:14, John 16:20-22, and Galatians 4:19-20).

This analogy calls us to consider the source of our identity in God. If the ’child’ comes before the labor pains, then there is no doubt that the birth occurred at the hand of God. Our relationship with him - our right to be in his presence - often comes in spite of our own efforts, not because of them. God has done the preparations, has made the sacrifice, and has offered the grace.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

How aware should we be of God as the Creator of all things?

How aware should we be of our dependence on him?

How should these affect our worship of him?

In what sense were we ’born’ without labor pains?

How literally should we take this analogy?

God’s Lasting Glory (Isaiah 66:12-24)

The book fittingly closes with a declaration that God’s glory will be universally proclaimed and acknowledged. As before, this will be fulfilled in multiple ways. From our perspective, many centuries after the Christ’s earthly ministry, we can see all of the promises that he has fulfilled, and we have every reason to believe that God can and will fulfill the promises that remain for us.

Isaiah describes the alternatives of peace from God or fire from God (Isaiah 66:12-17). This choice has appeared in different contexts and under different images throughout the book, because the choice is entirely up to us. We can come into God’s presence whenever we humbly call on him, and he will provide comfort for his servants. He may not shield us from all of the world’s pains, but he will always comfort us, and he will not let us face more than we can bear.

No one is forced to believe or to desire God, yet all must ultimately face the truth. "The Lord is coming with fire" (Isaiah 66:15) to rebuke those too foolish to believe in him or to heed his Word. Isaiah has given many such warnings, so that we can be assured of judgment on those who do not repent of sin. Yet this is by no means a call for us to judge or condemn them; indeed, we have no standing to do such a presumptuous thing. Rather, God wishes us to be assured that they will be punished in full. If anything, we thus should pity sinners, not hate and condemn them.

The book closes with a gathering from all nations*, as God pulls together the remnant of believers from all times and places (Isaiah 66:18-24). This fulfills so many of the promises** that Isaiah has given about the remnant, about God, and about God’s glory. Several times, God himself assures us that "they will come and see my glory". God’s glory will shine upon us, as Isaiah has also promised. It will make even the brightest of earthly lights, even the greatest of earthly heroes, seem dim and weak by comparison.

• ·    Isaiah 66:19 provides a brief list of far-flung places, not as literal boundaries, but as representatives of the many distant locales that one day will be home to believers.

• ·    Note, for example, the reference to God’s holy mountain (Isaiah 66:20), a recurring theme going back to Isaiah 2:2.

Enduring life and a lasting, fruitful ministry of praise are also characteristic of the new heavens and the new earth. As before (see notes to Isaiah 65:17-19, above), these apply to the return from exile, to the coming of the Messiah, and to our eternal home.

At first, it may seem inappropriate that a book of such sweeping prophecies and transcendent scale would finish with a vision of believers observing the gruesome fate of those who rebelled against God (Isaiah 66:24). Yet this is neither a vengeful display nor an indulgence in gloating. It is simply important, as the prophet has often reminded us, for us to realize what it means to reject God, and to remind ourselves of our own need for his grace. These rebels suffer the fate that could have been ours.

We have now seen Isaiah’s message come full circle. God created a world and filled it with billions of humans, yet only a remnant of them seeks him in humility and faith. God’s perspective provides us with the only way to find security and a purpose that will endure beyond this fragile life. God promises those who believe that they will receive the grace, compassion, strength, and wisdom that they need to overcome this world. Then he calls us to arise, to shine, because the true light that gives light has come into the world, and it is shining on us.

Questions for Discussion or Study:

Why does Isaiah so often draw a sharp contrast between the fates of those who believe and those who do not?

Is there a ’middle ground’?

Why is it important that the gathering in this passage draws persons from all nations?

What are life and ministry like after each of the ways that God has made new heavens and a new earth?

What overall lessons does Isaiah want to leave with us?

Mark Garner, November 2008

The Weight of Sin

Isaiah 1:1-9

By Brent Kercheville

The message of Isaiah begins with a declaration about who Isaiah is prophesying toward and when the prophesies were occurring. Isaiah was prophesying to Judah, the southern nation of the divided kingdom, and toward Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah. The reign of the listed kings gives us the approximate time frame of 767-686 BC. Isaiah likely began his prophetic work around 740 BC. Isaiah declares that he has received direct revelation from the Lord. This book is the recording of the things he heard and saw from the Lord.

Lost In Sin

The Lord begins by calling the heavens and earth to bear witness to the actions of the people. The Lord has spoken and has laid his charge. The people are not what they are supposed to be. The Father has reared his children. He nurtured and cared for them only to have them rebel against him. The construction speaks the audacity and pain of what the people of done. One literal translation is: “Sons I have nurtured and reared and they — they! — have rebelled against me!” (Motyer’s translation). The audacity of turning against your own father. How painful it is to have your children rebel against you, after all you have done to rear and care for them. This is unbelievable for these people to have done in the face of God’s gracious acts of adoption, election, and rearing. This is inexcusable rebellion!

God cannot understand why his people do not know him or have a relationship with him. He describes two animals known for their stubbornness and speaks about how these stubborn animals have more sense than his people. The ox knows it owner and the donkey knows where he is fed and who feeds him. But God’s people do not know their master and do not know who has been caring for them. They are more foolish than these stubborn animals. Our sins make donkeys look like geniuses. Unreasoning, stubborn beasts show more sense and appreciation than these people. We wander from false master to false master and are unmoved by God’s love.

Unbelievably, it seems that the people are unaware of their condition. They are unable to see who they are and what they have done. Verse 4 exposes the depths of their sinfulness. God declares his woe upon this sinful nation. Sadly, they had been called to be God’s holy nation (Exodus 19:6). But they are not the holy people of God. They are the sinful nation. They are weighed down by sins. They are loaded down with their wickedness. Their sins are so great that God calls them children of evildoers and corrupted children. They have forsaken the Lord, despised/spurned the Holy One of Israel, and turned their backs on him, making them utterly estranged. They are like foreigners before God rather than his children. Friends, our sins are no small thing before our God. We frequently do not see our sins with the gravity with which God sees our sins. We do not see our sins as offending the holy character of God. “What is the big deal?,” we think in our hearts. When someone approaches us about our sins, we become defensive and can’t understand what the issue is. Listen to what you have done. You have forsaken the Lord, despised the Holy One of Israel, and are no longer his child but a stranger who is cut off from him. What is the big deal about sin? Everything! Sin is everything! Sin breaks fellowship with God. Rather than walking with God, we are worn down by our sins. God takes our sins seriously because it is an offense against him. It is a separation from him. Sin is the same as children rejecting and rebellion against their parents. We are telling God that what he has done for us as our Father is insufficient and unacceptable. Therefore we will turn to the world to find our joy and declare that there is no joy in the Lord. What an awful declaration our sins make!

Look At Yourself!

If this were not enough, then God tells us to look at ourselves and see our spiritual condition. God asks why we are so stubborn that we continue to experience punishment. Why do you continue to feel the consequences of your sins and yet stubbornly maintain your sinful ways? We are so stubborn in our sinfulness! We continue in sexual immorality and wonder why our marriages are suffering. We continue to act outside the boundaries of how husbands and wives are supposed to act with God as their head and can’t figure out why we have problems. We do not raise our children as God teaches and experience the consequences from it. We do not turn our hearts completely to the Lord and wonder why worship seems dry and why spiritual disciplines seems boring. We do wrong, act wrong, think wrong, and speak wrong and wonder why everything is wrong in our lives! There is only one reason why things are not going right: sin. Sin is the cause. There is sin somewhere and that is why nothing is right.

Listen to the words in Isaiah 1:6 as God describes how sick we are. We are like a bruised and wounded body that has been left untended. We are disease-ridden from the top of our heads to the bottoms of our feet. We have wounds that are untreated, unbandaged, and unsoothed with healing ointment. Can you imagine if we truly did this physically? Can you imagine walking around with large open, festering wounds without any bandages, antibiotics, or medicines to heal? Do you see the picture? People would by asking us why we are not doing something about it! You are loaded down by sins, disease-ridden, and yet you cannot see that your sins are killing you. You do not see what sin has done to you.

The consequences of sin are further described in Isaiah 1:7-8. The people cannot put two and two together. They cannot see that they are experiencing devastation in their lives and as a nation because they have chosen sins rather than choosing God. Their land is left to them desolate. Their cities are burned. Foreigners are consuming their land. If they would turn back God would restore the blessings he was previously giving to them. How sad to see the depths of our rebellion. Even with judgment falling all around them, the people will not turn back to God. We need to listen carefully to what God is teaching: rebellion has consequences. We will pay for our sins. Our lives will collapse under the weight of our sins.

God of Grace

What should God do with these people? What would be right and just for God to do to a people that are stubbornly steeped in sins? They refuse to turn to the Lord. They are openly declaring that their joy is not in the Lord but in the things of the world. They have forsaken the Lord, despised the Holy One of Israel, and are like strangers before the Lord. What should God do about these things? Listen to the words of verse 9:

If the LORD of hosts had not left us a few survivors, we should have been like Sodom, and become like Gomorrah. (Isaiah 1:9 ESV)

It would have been right for the nation, particularly Jerusalem, to have been consumed in judgment just like Sodom and Gomorrah. The contextual reference is likely 722 BC when the Assyrian nation came in and captured the northern nation, called Israel, and captured all of Judah also, except for the city of Jerusalem. Do you remember what happened so that Jerusalem was spared? Read 2 Kings 19:32-37.

“Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it. 33 By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the LORD. 34 For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.”

And that night the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. 36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh. 37 And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer, his sons, struck him down with the sword and escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his place. (2 Kings 19:32-37 ESV)

Grace comes when there should have been utter destruction. If God had not intervened with grace, there would have been nothing left and no one left. But we see the faithfulness of the Lord to preserve a remnant. God said he would defend the city for his own sake and for the sake of David (implied is because of the promises he made to David). So God sends an angel of the Lord who kills 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in the night, causing the permanent retreat of Assyria. When Sennacherib returns to Ninevah, God’s hand move again and Sennacherib is killed by his sons. God in his grace brings deliverance and victory.

Conclusion

Which master do we want to be with? Do we recognize God is our master, provider, and caregiver and therefore seek him, love him, and follow him? Or are we dumber than a donkey, rebelling against our master and refusing to enjoy what God has to offer his children?

Repentance Driven Worship

Isaiah 1:10-20

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah’s prophecy began with a declaration of the sinfulness of the people. God has charged them with rebellion, which is foolish rebellion because God had provided for the nation. Therefore the nation of Judah is experiencing judgment for rejecting the Lord. But in his grace, God has not allowed the nation to completely consumed like Sodom and Gomorrah. Survivors remain because God’s grace continues to shine in the face of rejection and sin.

The Lord’s Displeasure (Isaiah 1:10-11)

The declaration begins with a serious insult to the nation, calling them spiritually Sodom and Gomorrah. The rulers and the people have a Sodom-like offensiveness to the Lord. In verse 11 the Lord describes his displeasure with these people. God does not call them “his sacrifices” but “your sacrifices.” God says these sacrifices are not for me but for yourselves. Listen to the threefold decrying of these sacrifices: “What are the multitude of these sacrifices to me?” — “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams” — “I do not delight in the blood of bulls.” These sacrifices mean nothing to God, add nothing to God, and do nothing for God. We must be amazed by this because God commanded these sacrifices. Page after page through the book of Leviticus we read the commands for the sacrifices that God required. Consider what God is saying: you are giving the sacrifices I’ve commanded and I do not want them and have had enough of them. I have no joy in these sacrifices you are bringing. The Lord is about to explain why he has had enough of their sacrifices and has no delight in them. But we before we explore those verses we need to consider that there is worship that God does not accept. There is worship that God does not delight in, does not want, and will not accept.

What The Lord Has Not Asked (Isaiah 1:12-15)

All of their coming to worship with their animals is nothing more than the noise of shuffling feet and clacking of hooves on the pavement. There is plenty of religious activity, but God is not pleased with what is happening. All of this activity is just an incessant noise to the Lord. This is not what God wants. Therefore, do not bring any more of your vain offerings. The incense is an abomination. The Lord cannot endure iniquity and solemn assemblies. Isaiah now explains to us the problem. The people are coming to God in worship while their lives are happily continuing in sinful living. Their unconfessed, unrepentant sins make their worship intolerable to God. God is offended by hollow worship. We often do not think that God hates our worship when we are not in repentance to him. Listen to verse 14: “Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates.” The equivalent statement in our time would be, “I hate with all my heart.” God cannot stand their worship. He hates it with all of his heart. All that God sees is their blood stained hands. God cannot stand our worship when we are full of unrepentant sin. Further, notice that God declares that our prayers are blocked and we are out of relationship with God when we have unrepentant sins. The Lord declares the withdrawal of divine favor. Their prayers are ineffective because their prayers are not matched with godly lives. Even though we make many prayers God says he will not listen because our unrepentant sins block our relationship with God.

What The Lord Requires (Isaiah 1:16-17)

First, wash to make yourselves clean. There is cleansing of the heart that needs to occur. God is calling us to repent in obvious ways. Clean up your lives. Stop thinking that you can continue to practice your sins and still remain in God’s favor. God does not want our worship if it does not come from repentant hearts. Further, God calls for the people to “remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes.” The literal rendering is important here because Isaiah is not simply saying to remove your evil deeds. He is calling us to remove the evil of our deeds. The acts may already be done, but the evil remains. Repentance is not simply the removing of evil deeds. Repentance means that after the deeds are past we go back and clean up the residual evil and damage that we caused. True repentance tries to make things right again. This is why Zacchaeus is held up to us as an example of repentance that leads to salvation in Luke 19. He did not just stop the evil acts. He cleaned up the evil of his deeds. He decides from the heart to repay fourfold anyone who he has defrauded. That is the cleaning up the evil of our deeds that God is looking for. God wants to see hearts that try to clean the evil we have done. Our worship becomes beautiful to God when we work to set right the evil we have done. This is exactly what Jesus taught in the teaching we call The Sermon On The Mount.

So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5:23-24 ESV)

God wants repentance driven worship. God wants our hearts to desire clean hearts and clean hands. Second, God wants us to abandon the old life. The Lord instructs the people to stop what they doing. Stop the old lifestyle because God will not accept us if we continue in the old life. Third, we must develop a new mind. “Learn to do good” (Isaiah 1:16). God’s people need to adopt a new way of thinking, not conforming their minds to the pattern of this world (cf. Romans 12:2). Fourth, we must set new objectives for our lives and have a complete change of priorities. “Seek justice” (Isaiah 1:17). Jesus commands us to seek first the kingdom of God (cf. Luke 12:31). God’s people must change their pursuit from worldly things to godly things. Fifth, God specifies what needs to be put back to right. They need to correct oppression, bring justice to the fatherless, and plead the widow’s cause. Right the wrongs and do what God has called you to do!

The Lord’s Invitation (Isaiah 1:18-20)

As always, God is ready to meet us with grace and mercy. Listen to his beautiful invitation:

“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18 ESV)

This is not an aggressive call to a legal matter. This is a compassionate call. Let us resolve our differences. Let us settle the matter. There is hope. But the hope is found in God’s way, not in our ways. Your sins which are like blood stained scarlet can be made as white as snow. You can be made pure. You can be made clean. If you will present your blood-red hands to God in confession and repentance, he will wash you clean and your worship will be acceptable again.

Further, notice the choices that lay before us. If we will be willing and obedient, we will receive life and blessings. But if we refuse and rebel, then we will receive death and judgment. God is very clear about what is going on here. The only thing that keeps us from renewal with God and cleansing of sins is our own stubbornness. The path is not difficult to understand. God has not hidden the means for cleansing. God’s appeal is not unreasonable. God is asking us to be open and responsive to him. Stop the old life (cease), develop a new mind (learn), and set new objectives and priorities (seek). This is what makes worship acceptable to God. Our worship is unacceptable when it does not come from the overflow of repentance. Our hope is found in God’s way.

Restore Us Again

Isaiah 1:21-31

By Brent Kercheville

The Need For Purification (Isaiah 1:21-26)

The first section of this part of Isaiah’s prophecy is about the nation’s need for purification. Isaiah 1:21-23 paints the sad picture of a righteous nation becoming full of sin. The faithful city has become a prostitute. The nation full of justice and righteousness is full of murderers now. The Lord is praising the past but lamenting the present. The Lord contrasts what he intended and what he received. He intended faithfulness but received prostitution. He intended righteousness but received murder. One of the interesting observations we need to make is how infidelity to God leads to infidelity toward people. When we are not faithful to the Lord and his commands the result is the mistreatment of other humans. People become self-serving and live for their own personal advantages. Isaiah 1:23 reflects the social situation in the nation. The princes are rebels. They are friends with thieves. All the people love a bribe and run after gifts. There is no concern about others but the financial impact for ourselves. If I can make more money then I will do it without any regard for the impact it has on other people. Isaiah 1:23 continues to describe the lack of justice to the orphans and the failure to uphold the cause and needs of the widows. They are seeking possessions and wealth at any cost. There is a blatant disregard for the innocent. They ignore the needs of the people and do not care about who is hurt.

We must feel the similarity of circumstances from Isaiah’s day to our day. When we reject God as our ethical standard, there is nothing to stop us from committing all kinds of atrocities against each other. This is the critical failure of atheism or any removal of God from our society and from our government. If God is not the reason for constraining my actions, then what reason is there to constrain my desires? If there is no God or judgment, then why can’t I rip you off? Why can’t I steal from you? Why can’t I mistreat you? Why can’t I harm you? Moral and ethical degeneration explodes when we reject the will of the Lord. If I do not answer to the Lord, then I answer to myself and I will do whatever I want. Government, corporations, and businesses will exploit people because they consist of people. People run these things. Neighbor will raise his hand against his neighbor because there is no ethical or moral standard. Therefore, as Isaiah 1:22 describes, there is total degeneration. The people are not pure but are completely tainted by sin. Their silver has become dross. Their best wine has been mixed with water. There is nothing good. There is nothing pure or right in their actions. Social justice cannot take place through legislation. Social justice will only be effective when hearts and lives are faithful to the Lord.

Isaiah 1:24-26 describes the coming purification. God is determined to have a purified people. Notice the powerful self-declaration of the Lord in Isaiah 1:24 : “The Lord, the Lord of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel.” The word translated “hosts” in most translations refers to a host of armies. This is a declaration of the power of the Lord, the Lord who commands heaven’s armies, the Mighty One of Israel. The powerful Lord is going to act. He is going to get relief from his enemies and avenge himself on his foes. Please consider who the enemies of God are in this prophecy: the people of God! Judah and Jerusalem are the foes. They are the enemies of the Lord because of their sinfulness. They were supposed to be God’s people but they have become God’s enemies.

After reading the charges of Isaiah 1:21-23 and reading the firm, angry resolve of the Lord in Isaiah 1:24, what would expect God to do? Rather than total annihilation for sins, God promises redemption. Rather than turning his hand against the people in hostility, the Lord describes the coming restoration. The Lord is going to thoroughly purge his people of the dross that has corrupted their silver. God has the cleansing agents needed to remove the deep stains of our long-standing sins. God is able to recreate our lost purity, removing the dross, and making us pure again. The removal of dross from metal implies putting the metal through extreme fire to melt away that impurities. What we see is that in one act God is able to accomplish two things. The discipline of the Lord brings purification and restoration. The declaration of judgment also brings the proclamation of salvation. God will restore the people so that they can be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city again. They will be restored to what they were at the first, likely a reference to the Davidic kingdom and Davidic promises. Amazingly, even though the people had become his enemies at this point, this fact had not changed God’s ultimate purpose. God is going to refine the people and remove their impurities. We learn that God is not pleased with the current condition. We are a mess. We are faithless. We have acted in self-serving and self-satisfying ways rather in godly ways. Listen to what God is going to do and what God expects of his people. This is how the Lord will restore Zion.

The Restoration of Zion (Isaiah 1:27-31)

God does not redeem his people by lowering his holy standards. This is important to recognize. There has been far too often a false dichotomy made between the nature of the Lord in the Old Testament and the New Testament. God was not full of wrath under the law of Moses but full of grace under the covenant of Christ. I hope that we have seen in our study of the prophets that God has always been full of grace. The apostle John made the same point in John 1:16 that we have received grace upon grace already given. Grace had been given before Moses and under the Law of Moses. A greater overflow of grace has been poured out by our Lord through Jesus. God does not change his standards in his effort to restore his people. The people are going to be redeemed by justice and by righteousness. God is going to redeem the people and the people are going to respond with repentant hearts. This is an awesome promise. God is going to pay a ransom price for his people. He is going to buy back the people from their sins and make them his own.

Who are those who will be redeemed by the Lord? Isaiah 1:27 tells us that those who return to the Lord will be redeemed. The ones who come back to the Lord are those who repentant hearts are the redeemed of God. Isaiah 1:28 tells us who are not the redeemed. Rebels are not going to the redeemed. Those who forsake the Lord are those who will be consumed in judgment. Then time went by as Israel waiting for the Lord’s redemption. Listen to the prophetic words of Zechariah who was filled with the Holy Spirit when the forerunner to Jesus was born:

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old…” (Luke 1:68-70 ESV).

When Jesus died, we read about two men who are walking who are disappointed because, “we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel” (Luke 24:21). Hope of redemption and the restoration of a relationship to the Lord was the long awaited hope of the people.

As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 17 Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. (1 Peter 1:14-20 NIV 2011)

The scriptures call us to holy living because you were redeemed from this sinful, futile life through the blood of Jesus. We are redeemed at a cost to God that we can hardly understand. God has paid a tremendously high price to set us free from our sins. The people of God would be redeemed by the Lord. Restoration would be offered to the people through the blood of Jesus. Therefore, the apostle Paul would write this clear instruction:

You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV)

Peter and Paul are communicating the message of Isaiah in this part of his prophecy. God has come with restoration to those who will return to him. He has paid the price to set us free from our sins. Therefore, we have been purchased by God and belong to him. This is a glorious blessing. If we refuse to be God’s possession then the word of the Lord has spoken in Isaiah 1:28. Those who forsake the Lord will be consumed. Rather than be consumed, we can belong to the Lord. He has paid an enormous price so that we can be restored to him and belong to him. Therefore, glorify God with your body.

This call to restoration is to turn away from false gods. False gods are like a tree with withering leaves and like a garden without water (Isaiah 1:30). There is no strength in them. There is no life in these gods. They cannot provide for you. They cannot redeem you. They cannot give you the life you need. There is no reason to rely on them. The mighty think they are strong because of their gods they rely upon. But they are tinder and a spark. God can buy you back from the useless, empty way of life. He can take the dross from your life and refine you into silver. He can restore us to the relationship we were meant to have, but was severed because of our sins. Turn back to God and find forgiveness. Forsake your reliance on false gods. Through Jesus you will be redeemed if you will give your life to him.

Glory To God And His Kingdom

Isaiah 2:1-22

By Brent Kercheville

The Arrival of a Glorious Kingdom (Isaiah 2:1-5)

Isaiah begins a new prophecy describing the coming of the glorious kingdom, offering hope to the people of God. God describes his future kingdom to present a vision of what God would ultimately do in Zion so the people can choose to either be part of the plan or not. The “last days” or “latter days” point to the arrival of the Messianic age, a new era, when God’s glorious kingdom would arrive. In this new era God will bring about a new relationships with Israel and with the world. Isaiah says that the mountain of the house of the Lord will be established as the highest of the mountains. The mountain carries a symbolism of a kingdom or power (cf. Jeremiah 51:25). Therefore, there will be a time when the kingdom of the Lord will be greater than all other kingdoms. This is what Daniel prophesied also.

31 “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. 32 The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. (Daniel 2:31-35 ESV)

40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these. 41 And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, 45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.” (Daniel 2:40-45 ESV)

Notice that the vision is of a stone striking and shattering the statue. Then the stone becomes a great mountain that fills the whole earth. Isaiah continues to picture the nations flowing to this glorious kingdom. Isaiah pictures streams of people coming to Zion. People from all the nations and many peoples will be thronging to Zion. Why are they going there? The people will go to Zion because they will have the desire to be taught by God and walk in his paths. This is a contrast to current Israel in the day of Isaiah who are rebelling against him. When this restored kingdom comes, the people will desire to participate in it. People will flow to this kingdom (Zion) because it will be the place where instruction goes out. God will teach the people so that they can obey and have proper conduct in the ways of God. God will be the teacher and people will flow to him to listen to him. When the people come to him, they will trust God and submit to his just decisions. God’s word will be the standard by which all matters are judged. This kingdom would not be defended or extended by fleshly warfare (cf. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians 6:10-17). Rather, the kingdom is defended and extended by the preaching of the message of peace and reconciliation (cf. Ephesians 2:17). We see Luke record the arrival and fulfillment of this great prophecy.

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:44-49 ESV)

The name of Jesus would be proclaimed to all the nations beginning from Jerusalem. In Acts 2 we read about devout men from every nation at Jerusalem (Acts 2:5) as the Holy Spirit falls upon the apostles and the instruction of the Lord is preached (Acts 2:14-41). So the call is made: “Come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.”

When Glory Is Misplaced (Isaiah 2:6-11)

Unfortunately, we glorify the wrong things. Rather than glorify God and his kingdom, we glorify ourselves. Isaiah 2:6 begins with the solemn, sorrowful words that the Lord has rejected the people. God tells us why he rejected his people.

The people are filled with worldliness (Isaiah 2:6).

Verse 6 describes the people acting like the surrounding nations. They are embracing the pagan customs of the nearby nations. The scriptures repeatedly warn against conforming to the thinking and actions of the nations. Do not be like them. Do not act like them. Do not adopt their practices. We are called to be a holy people, which by definition means that we are separate and different from the world. The apostle Peter says that we will be different to such a degree that the world will think we are strange for not doing the same things they are doing (1 Peter 4:3-5).

The people are filled with wealth (Isaiah 2:7).

Isaiah declares that the land is full of silver and gold and there is no end to their treasures. Their hearts had been stolen away from the Lord. They have found their satisfaction in their wealth.

The people are filled with armies (Isaiah 2:7).

Isaiah also notes that the people have put their trust in their military might rather than the Lord. God warned of these problems in Deuteronomy knowing that when we have such physical security we lose our reliance on the Lord.

“When you come to the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, ‘I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,’ 15 you may indeed set a king over you whom the LORD your God will choose. One from among your brothers you shall set as king over you. You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. 16 Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the LORD has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’ 17 And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold. (Deuteronomy 17:14-17 ESV)

So the very warning that God gave to avoid these things because their hearts would turn away from the Lord had happened. Their trust was to be in the Lord and not in the power of the country in which they lived (cf. Psalms 33:17).

The people are filled with idols (Isaiah 2:8).

The people are not seeking the Lord. Their hearts have turned to idols and they worship them. How foolish to put our trust and confidence in things that humans have made! Therefore God is going to humble the people through judgment. There is no forgiveness because the people will not change. I want us to notice what God attributes these idolatrous ways. Verse 11 points out that the problem is pride. It is arrogance to think that acting like the world is going to bring us the happiness and joy that we are seeking. It is arrogance when we trust in our wealth, as if we have any way to control our prosperity. It is arrogance when we trust in our nation’s armies, as if this nation will last forever or has matchless power. It is arrogance when we trust in idols, which is any object or any pursuit that takes our attention away from the Lord. It is arrogance because we think these idols will bring us satisfaction. Sadly, we fill ourselves with everything but God! God says he is going to take our pride and shatter it. The Lord alone will be exalted in that day! (Isaiah 2:11)

God Must Be Exalted (Isaiah 2:12-22)

Isaiah 2:17 declares this truth again to drive it into our hearts. “The Lord alone will be exalted in that day!” No one is in this promised glorious kingdom who does not exalt the Lord alone. God declared that he will judge against all these physical false gods. God will show everything that we put our trust in to be false hope and a false deliverer. These idols always disappear; they always let us down. The promises of our idols always turn out to be empty and lacking. Cast away these idols from your lives.

Finally, what value do humans have as an object of trust? You are worshiping the gods you have made rather than the God who made you. Relying on ourselves and our works does not make any sense since all that we have is the last breath we took. Glory belongs to the Lord, not to ourselves. There is nothing within us deserving of glory or attention. Why would we ever trust in ourselves or in others? We do not have control over anything in this world.

Conclusion

The writer of Hebrews tells us that we are living in that glorious kingdom now if we will choose to not be filled with false gods.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24 ESV)

As Isaiah pleaded with his people, we must put God’s ways into practice in our lives. The people who come to glorious kingdom come wanting to be taught the ways of the Lord and thus walk in the paths of the Lord. “When we cherish his word, the Lord will teach us Christlike ways” (Motyer). Then put your trust in Jesus. It is easy to say we trust in Jesus. But does it look like we trust in Jesus in practice? Whose wisdom do we trust? Where do we turn for guidance? What do we value? What matters most to us in this world? These questions test the truthfulness of our words.

The Branch

Isaiah 3:1-26 and Isaiah 4:1-6

By Brent Kercheville

In chapter 2 we saw Isaiah cry out to the people to put away their idols and no longer trust in themselves. Humans are just a breath and there is nothing within a human to trust. Humans have no control over anything in this life. Isaiah continues describing the coming judgment of the Lord and reason for these judgments.

Judgments Decreed (Isaiah 3:1-7)

Isaiah pictures the total upheaval of their society as the hand of the Lord in judgment. Supplies of food and water will be taken away. Further, the heroes and warriors, judges and prophets, fortune tellers and elders, captains and ranked officials, counselors and magicians will also be taken away. The whole support system to the nation and its capitol will be removed. The governmental system will be so shattered that boys will become rulers and infants will be asked to take charge. God uses a humorous picture to depict how much loss there will be in the coming judgment. You will suffer such loss that you will be asking for children to take leadership roles. With this lack of government security there is will be an increase of defrauding and oppression (Isaiah 3:5). The judgment will be so extensive that if a person has a cloak, he will be called upon as a ruler and he will rule over a pile of rocks. Things will be so bad that people will refuse to take any roles in leadership.

Reasons For Judgment (Isaiah 3:8-12)

Isaiah 3:8 gives the first reason in this section as to why the Lord is crippling the nation. Judah has fallen “because their speech and their deeds are against the Lord.” The Lord declares that the look on the people’s faces testifies against them. They do not care about their sins. In fact, shamefully, they proclaim their sins like Sodom. It is not that they are practicing sin but that they openly proclaim their sins. There is no effort to hide their sins. Please notice the comparison to Sodom, a city that was judged its sexual sins to our nation now. No longer do Americans hide their sins like they did before. There has been a shift in our society from covering over sins to openly proclaiming sins. All of these sins have been going on for thousands and thousands of years. But the Lord notes the shift of no longer hiding their sins. There is no shame in what they are doing. They are proud of their sinful ways.

Therefore they have brought this evil upon themselves. This will be a repeated theme in this chapter: the boomerang effect of sin. The sinner has his own paymaster. The judgment is coming because of their own actions. You have done this to yourselves. Listen to the repetition: “For they have brought evil on themselves” (Isaiah 3:9), “For they shall eat the fruit of their deeds” (Isaiah 3:10), and “For what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him” (Isaiah 3:10). Your practice of sins and glorification of those sins is God’s reason for the nation’s doom. It will go well for the righteous but not for the wicked. For the sins committed God will judge. Their leaders have led them astray. The people have bought into the foolish proclamations of the nation concerning sins that have led the people off the path of the Lord.

In Isaiah 3:12 Isaiah notes that the leaders are guiding the people down the wrong paths and the people are following them. Rather than leading the people in the ways of the Lord, they are guiding you down the paths of confusion leading to destruction. The boomerang effect of sin have powerful outcomes according to the scriptures, neither of which we often consider. The first boomerang effect of sin is dealing with the consequences now for our poor choices and sinful decisions. “The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin” (Proverbs 5:22 ESV). Sin has very powerful consequences to our lives today and to the lives of those we know and do not know. The second boomerang effect of sin is the eternal consequence. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23 ESV). We must let the concept of the wages of sin sink deeply into our hearts. There are very real consequences to our actions. You going to receive payment for sins and that payment is eternal separation from God (death).

The Sentence (Isaiah 3:13 to Isaiah 4:1)

The Lord enters the verdict in the trial. The charges have been made and the Lord enters his judgment against the people. The people have ruined God’s kingdom. They have ripped off the poor and put those possessions in their homes. They are crushing the people, hurting the poor, and full of oppression all in an effort to make themselves rich. Their positions of privilege have fostered a concern for self-interest rather than the good of others. The Lord makes the point that this is their own doing. “It is you who have devoured the vineyards” (Isaiah 3:14). Once again God tells the people that they have caused this judgment.

The arrogant pride of the rulers is also seen in the women of the nation. Picture the riches and extravagance that is described in Isaiah 3:16 and Isaiah 3:18-24. They take pride in their riches. They show off their wealth. They do not care about those who are hurting and lacking. They simply strut around without regard for others. Therefore God is going to take that wealth away. How foolish we are for trusting in our wealth! The Lord is going to strike the people down with affliction and lay bare their shameful parts. The Lord does not tolerate our misuse of wealth. God expected a social concern for the people in his nation. Instead of the joys of life there will be rottenness and lack. How frequently we take the blessings of God and ruin them through our misuse! God has given us the blessings of wealth and prosperity and we ruin it by not being thankful, not helping others with our wealth, not using our wealth to advance the kingdom, using our money selfishly hoarding our possessions instead. We take the blessing of family and ruin it by sacrificing it for more wealth. We forfeit time with our family to play with our toys and possessions. We place a higher priority on maintaining our wealth rather than enjoying our family. We ruin the blessing of sex by perverting into pornography, premarital sex, adultery, divorce, and the like. God has tried to give us good and useful things and we take what is good and misuse these blessings in selfish ways. We are reading in Isaiah God’s thoughts on the people who took ruin to his graciousness. The judgment on Judah is described in severity that they would fall by the sword so that the people would live in desperation and difficulty. As we noted earlier, Isaiah said that it was their own actions and words that brought this upon themselves.

The Lord Will Create True Beauty (Isaiah 4:2-6)

Once again, rather than ending the message in doom and judgment, the prophecy offers hope for a future time. There will be the coming of the Branch of the Lord. Scholars note that the Hebrew word semah which is consistently translated “branch” is a difficult concept to translate. It is “a growing thing” such as from a plant, vine, or tree. The word carries with it the idea of new things to come and renewal. It seems to be similar to what we think about with the new growth that comes in springtime after the deadness of winter. We can see this idea in the second verse where the branch of the Lord being beautiful and glorious equals the fruit of the land. So there is this renewal and regrowth.

The Jewish people understood this phrase, “the Branch of the Lord” to be a reference to the coming Messiah. The Aramaic translation of the Hebrew scriptures (the Targum) translates this phrase as referring to the Messiah. The imagery is that of the Messiah sprouting up from among his people, bringing salvation, renewal, and restoration to the nation. In that future day the Christ is going to be beautiful and glorious, according to the prophet Isaiah. This is not referring to his physical appearance but to the work he will do among the people. The desolation and rubble because of the people’s sins (chapter 3) is now described as becoming a fruitful land that will become the pride and honor of the remnant (survivors of the nation). This is an interesting reversal. In Isaiah 2 we read the condemnation of the people for having pride in their idols, wealth, armies, and worldliness. The Lord gave the repeated declaration that the Lord alone will be exalted in that day (Isaiah 2:11; Isaiah 2:17). Isaiah now declares that the remnant, the survivors, will have pride and honor in the Messiah, the branch of the Lord, the fruit of the land. The remnant are the people who put glory in the right place — the Messiah.

Listen to the beauty of Isaiah 4:3. “Holy” shall be said to each person. Somehow each person of the remnant is going to be declared holy. They will each be made fit to be in the presence of the Lord. Isaiah 4:3 continues that these people are those who have “been recorded for life in Jerusalem.” This reflects a well-known concept of a registry of citizens for a city. Moses recognized that God had a book of life (Exodus 32:32-33). The remnant is the people whose names are inscribed in the Lord’s book of life. How can this happen? How can sinful people one day each be called holy and recorded for life? Verse 4 explains what God is going to do. The Lord will wash away the filth and will cleanse the bloodstains. Isaiah leaves us with a disgusting image of people who are covered in blood, vomit (cf. Isaiah 28:8), and excrement (cf. Isaiah 36:12). God is going to wash that filth away. God is going to call each person holy and record their names for life because he is going to wash the filthiness and bloodiness away. Isaiah paints a picture of us that we do not want to see. We do not want to see ourselves covered in the filth of sins. We fail to see how grossly sins taints us and why we are an abomination to the Lord in our sins. Who would want to touch people covered in this mess? God does. God wants to cleanse the people. But the cleansing will come through judgment and burning. God’s holiness and justice are not set aside. A blast of judgment and a blast of fire was coming. Salvation would come through judgment. The nation of Israel would be judged. But those who would be God’s remnant by listening and seeking the Lord, would be called holy and be recorded for life.

Now the Lord will create a new Zion. The Hebrew word translated “create” is the same word used in Genesis 1:1 which is used in the Old Testament only of divine action. Listen to what is special about this Zion, this new kingdom. The Lord will create over Zion and her assemblies “a cloud by day and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night.” This invokes powerful imagery from the time of the exodus (Exodus 13:21-22). When the Lord led the people from Egyptian slavery, he led them in a visible pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. This pictured God leading his people and protecting his people, as the pillar protected the people from the Egyptians as the Israelites crossed the Red Sea. This protection imagery is amplified in verse 6. There is be a shelter for shade from the heat and a refuge from the storm and rain. God is going to dwell with his people that he has cleansed, declared holy, and recorded for life in his book.

But listen to the end of Isaiah 4:5. “Over all the glory there will be a canopy.” The canopy in the Hebrew always denotes a marriage pavilion (cf. Psalms 19:5; Joel 2:16). This Zion will be purified and cleansed for a wedding. This image gives a small taste of a marriage covenant between God and his people. The glory of the Lord will return to this recreated Zion and there will be a wedding pavilion there where God is joined to his people and protects them from all external forces.

Conclusion

This first section of Isaiah concludes with the arrival of the branch of the Lord, the Christ, who will become the glory of the remnant. Those who belong to the Lord will be washed of their filth and be pronounced holy and recorded for life. God will dwell with his people and protect them in this new covenant, symbolized by the wedding pavilion. God will be joined to his people again. Will we take the blessings and grace of God and glorify him or misuse the blessings on our selfish ways? The wages of sin is death. But the branch of the Lord has come bringing cleansing and grace. Do not glory in our sins. Glory in the Lord by turning away from wealth and idols and yielding to the ways of the Lord.

Receiving The Grace of God In Vain

Isaiah 5:1-30

By Brent Kercheville

It is a frightening statement. It is possible to receive the grace of God in vain. The apostle Paul gave such a warning to the Corinthians: “Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.” (2 Corinthians 6:1 ESV) The image Paul uses is that of receiving this amazing gift of salvation from the Lord only to throw it away. This is exactly what the people of God, as the nation of Israel, did. God had chosen them and blessed them. Look at the description of God’s goodness and blessings to the people in Isaiah 5:1-7.

The Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7)

Isaiah sings a song concerning God and his vineyard. As we read this song you will notice how Israel is being described as the vineyard. It is a love song that God has for the vineyard. Listen to the loving actions of the Lord. The Lord cleared the stones, planted choice vines, and built a watchtower in its midst. Building a watchtower in the midst of the vineyard depicts permanent residence. God was living among his people. He also cut out a wine vat in the vineyard, suggesting a permanent storage place as God expected abundant fruit from his vineyard. So the Lord looked for his vineyard, with which he had made every provision and given every opportunity, to yield grapes. But it yielded wild grapes instead. It yielded sour, worthless grapes. All of God’s work and loving actions for the vineyard has not produced good fruit, but sour, stinking fruit.

So now God asks the question: what more could he do for his vineyard? What more can I do that I have not already done to ensure that fruit would come from this vineyard? There was no reason for this vineyard to yield worthless grapes. What can be done for the people of God when a total work of grace has been lavished on them and yet they remain as if grace never touched them? To illustrate this another way: what would you do if you plant a fruit tree or plant and it did not bear the fruit you were looking for it to bear? No matter how much work you put into that plant or tree, no matter how much fertilizer you put on it, no matter how much you cared for it, it simply would not produce good fruit. What you do? You would rip it out! God has done all he could for the vineyard. He is not responsible for the sour grapes that were produced. So what is God going to do?

Listen to what God says he would do in Isaiah 5:5-6. He will tear the vineyard down. The abandonment of an unprofitable venture was to be expected. If the vineyard had born true fruit, no hand could have touched it. All the blessings, all the provisions, all the protection, and all the grace was going to be removed. The only thing worth doing to the vineyard is ripping it out and demolishing it. Notice how verse 7 gives the explanation of this song. The vineyard is the house of Israel and the people of Judah were the Lord’s pleasant planting. The Lord looked for justice and found bloodshed. He looked for righteousness and found outcries of distress. So what were the people doing such that they had received the blessings and grace of God in vain?

Receiving Grace In Vain (Isaiah 5:8-30)

They do not regard the works of the Lord (Isaiah 5:12).

Isaiah 5:8-11 reveals a people who are consumed by worldliness. Their hearts do not regard the works and the ways of God. Instead, the people are consumed with adding fields and homes to their possessions. They are feasting and partying and do not pay attention to the ways of God. Verse 11 shows people are chasing after alcohol rather than pursuing the Lord. Their efforts to seek after the desires and pursuits of this world cause them to be blind to the work of God’s hands. This is a useful lesson to us. We are unable to see the hand of God working in our lives when our focus is on this life. The scriptures explicitly tell us to not be consumed with the affairs of this life, but to be consumed with the life we have in God.

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit…” (Ephesians 5:18 ESV) We cannot be consumed with wine. We cannot be consumed with seeking wealth and possessions. We cannot become consumed by our work. We cannot be consumed by our pains and past. Life, with all of its challenges and difficulties, can cause us to miss seeing the mighty hand of God because our focus is diverted away from the Lord and from spiritual things. What we are doing is taking the grace of God and rather than focusing on God who gave us these blessings, we focus on the blessings and how they affect us.

They do not understand their sin or know God (Isaiah 5:13).

God is judging the people because they are darkened in their understanding. They lack a knowledge of the Lord and do not comprehend their sins. This is a teaching that cannot be emphasized enough: we must get to know God. How often God decries the situation of his people because they do not truly know him. They do not have a relationship with the Lord to know what God wants and know how to seek him.

Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. (1 John 2:4-5 ESV) There is no other way to know God than to know what God has revealed about himself. This is what makes God’s laws so beautiful. Through God’s laws we know the mind, nature, and character of God. Take time every day to get to know God. Make it a priority every day to learn more about him so that the we will not have received the grace of God in vain.

Reject that there are consequences for sins (Isaiah 5:18-19).

Isaiah describes the people as dragging around the burdens of their sins. They have become slaves to their sins. We reject the grace of God when we continual drag these sins with us. It is amazing that people picture sin as “freeing” and “liberating.” How we need to see our sins as the Lord sees them: burdensome and enslaving. The writer of Hebrews called for us to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily entangles us (Hebrews 12:1). Notice the picture Isaiah describes. The longer we remain slaves to sin, the more the rebellion in our heart grows. The habit of sin is a very difficult habit to break. Habit turns into vice and vice into addition. Overcoming sinful behaviors only grows in difficulty and draws us further from the Lord the longer we remain practicing it. We are only making life harder on ourselves when we maintain a sinful life. We make it more difficult on our growth in holiness when we choose to weaken ourselves by staying away from Christian gatherings. We simply keep making decisions that are not beneficial for our spiritual health. Just as there are consequences for our physical health for the decisions we make, we must see the problems and difficulties we are causing for ourselves when we choose to have poor spiritual health. We reject the grace of God when we think that we can remain in sinful situations and activities and not have our hearts turned away from the Lord.

Moral perversion (Isaiah 5:20-21).

We throw away the grace of God when we choose to redefine God’s moral standards. Woe to those who declare evil acts to be good and good acts to be evil. Woe to those who substitute light for darkness and darkness for light. We see this problem running amuck in our world today. We are told it is good to live with your boyfriend/girlfriend when God says sexual relations before marriage is sin. Our world tells us that divorce is fine and that it is good for the children when God says that he hates divorce and anyone who divorces and remarries commits adultery. We are told that marriage is an outdated, Puritan system rather than listen to God who says that he created marriage and that it is one man and one woman for life. We are told that homosexuality is acceptable when God condemns as unnatural and as sin. We are told it is good to assert yourself and think about your self first, when God has called us to put the interests of others ahead of ourselves. Verse 21 expresses the problem: we are wise in our own eyes. Rather than humbly submitting to God’s laws as being right and good for us, we think we need to update God’s laws to the 21st century, as if we are the ultimate arbiter and standard of morality. We have received the grace of God in vain if we take God’s grace and blessings and choose which laws we will keep and which we will discard.

Reject God’s laws and God’s words (Isaiah 5:24).

The most obvious way we throw the grace of God away is when we simply reject what God is telling us to do and telling us to be. This is what Israel had done. Though they were the people of God, they had turned their hearts away from his word. Verse 24 declares the problem. They have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. They did not want to receive his instructions. They did not want to listen. They would rather read other things and listen to other things than listen to the voice of the Lord. David described the law of the Lord as sweeter than honey. Jesus described his disciples as those who would hunger and thirst for his teachings and his ways. What are you listening to in your life to guide you? Who are you listening to? Are you listening to friends and family? Are listening to what people say about the scriptures or are you listening to the scriptures themselves?

Remaining In His Grace

The apostle Paul wrote, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1 ESV) What an amazing grace to know what when we come to Jesus we are free from the condemnation of our sins. But the warning remains to not throw away that grace, that God’s grace will not be in vain for our lives. “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” (Romans 8:3-4 ESV) We cannot now walk according to the sins of the flesh. We are to walk according to the fruit of the Spirit.

5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:5-8 ESV)

To set our minds back on the flesh is death to us. The condemnation returns and we are separated from the Lord yet again. In fact, he says that our minds are hostile to God and we are not pleasing to God when we return to the life of sin. Listen to the song of the vineyard. God has done everything he can for us so that we will bear fruit. God is looking for fruitful, godly lives in service and love to him. What else can do if we bear sour, worthless fruit than uproot our lives and judge our souls? What have we chosen to do with the outpouring of God’s grace?

I Saw The Lord

Isaiah 6:1-13

By Brent Kercheville

The first five chapters of Isaiah have revealed the sinfulness of the people of Israel. Chapter 5 showed that the people had received the grace of God in vain. God had graciously blessed the people but the people did not bear fruit from that grace. God has described the people as covered in filth and bloodstained. Therefore judgment has been decreed against the people for casting away the grace of God and being consumed by the ways of the world. It is at this point that Isaiah places the Lord’s commission to call him to be a prophet to the people. This is a strange location for this commission. Most prophets have their commission from the Lord to prophesy in the very first verse. But Isaiah is not a book in chronological prophetic sequence. Isaiah has a purpose for holding his commissioning story to this point in the book. We will consider this as we read the call of the Lord for Isaiah.

Seeing the Holiness of the Lord (Isaiah 6:1-5)

Isaiah notes that it is the year that King Uzziah died. This is noted not simply because the death of a ruler is a sad occasion, but because it symbolically represents the end of the good times for the nation. Uzziah had reigned an unprecedented 52 years, an amazing duration in that world. King Uzziah has died and listen to the words of Isaiah: “I saw the Lord.” Isaiah is being allowed to see something majestic, amazing, and great. Listen to what Isaiah saw.

“I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.” This is a declaration of power. God’s train fills the whole temple. I was too young, a boy, and did not care, but when Princess Diana was married, do you remember how long the train of her dress was? It was ridiculously long. That is not an accident but a picture of power and majesty. Further, no king rules on the level of his subjects. The throne is always on a platform so that the king is higher than all who approach him. God is seen as on the throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe fills the whole temple. Look at what is going on around this throne room scene. Above the Lord sitting on the throne stood seraphim. We do not know what seraphim are except some kind of spiritual beings. The word “seraph” literally means “burning ones” and is the same word used for the fiery serpents in the wilderness. All that we know about these seraphim is what we read in Isaiah 6:2 : they have six wings, two cover the face, two cover the feet, and they fly with the other two. The seraphs say to each other, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” The foundations of the thresholds are shaking at the voice of him who called and the house was filled with smoke. The holiness of God is the focal point of this scene. God’s name is qualified by the adjective “holy” in the Old Testament more than all other qualifiers combined. God’s voice is booming. The foundations are shaking. Smoke has filled the room. The train of his robe has filled the temple. The seraphim are calling out to each, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.”

What is Isaiah’s response to this whole scene? Is his response that this is a pretty cool thing to see? Does he stand in amazement and awe? Please hear the words of Isaiah: “Woe is me! I am ruined!” Combining the other translations, “I am lost, undone, doomed, ruined, and destroyed!” Isaiah thinks that it is over for him! This is what the holiness of God looks like. We cannot approach God. We cannot be near God. We cannot come to God. We can have nothing to do with God. We are ruined and doomed before the majestic Lord Almighty. When we see people fear God, the fear is not because humanity is in the presence of the divine. People fear God because they are conscious of their sinfulness in the presence of his purity. God is holy. He is unapproachable. He is separate.

We see this in the very words of Isaiah. Isaiah does not say, “Woe is me because I am finite and you are infinite.” He does not say, “Woe is me,” because he is human and God is divine. Listen to what Isaiah exclaims. “For I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.” Here is the problem with what is happening. I am sinful and I live among sinful people, and I have seen the King, the Lord Almighty! What separates us from God is moral corruption and such corruption cannot co-exist with God. This was symbolized through the Law of Moses. The people could not approach God. Priests had to be authorized to stand between the people and God. No one approaches God. When God came to Mount Sinai, no one was allow to even come close to that mountain, not even animals. No one can come to God. No one can approach God. No one can be near God. We are ruined because of our moral corruption.

God’s Gracious Response (Isaiah 6:6-7)

There is nothing Isaiah can do here. What else can he possibly say? But notice the graciousness of God. Isaiah 6:6 tells us that one of the seraphim flew to Isaiah with a burning coal from the altar. He touches Isaiah’s mouth and listen to these glorious words: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away; and your sin atoned for.” God does not want Isaiah to be destroyed. God does not want anyone to be destroyed. Therefore God acts to atone for our sins. God’s purpose is not annihilation but grace, and to see our need for grace. You cannot come to God. But God can come to you through atonement.

Now we made the observation at the beginning that this is an unusual location for Isaiah’s commission to sit in the book. Why doesn’t the book start with this chapter? But Isaiah has set up for us an amazing teaching moment. How can the present corrupt, rebellious Israel, defying God’s instruction, ever become the promised clean, obedient Israel from whom all the nations will learn instruction? The location of Isaiah’s commission sets itself up as the pattern. Isaiah wants the people to see what God has done for Isaiah and will do for his people. You are ruined but God will save. You are doomed but God will atone for our sins. Now we would have the tendency to want to the stop the story now. In fact, many times the story gets interrupted and the full picture is not seen. But God does not leave Isaiah alone at this moment. The commission of the prophet must continue.

God’s Call (Isaiah 6:8-13)

The voice of the Lord (which we heard in Isaiah 6:4 causes the shaking of the foundations of the thresholds of the temple) now asks, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Immediately, Isaiah responds, “Here am I! Send me.” Isaiah has the desire to go. Now that I have seen my condition and I have seen what the Lord has done for me, then I have the desire to do whatever the Lord asks. Isaiah does not even know what he is getting into. There is no job description given. The Lord just asked who would go for them. Who should the Lord send? Isaiah does not know what he has to do but he will do whatever the Lord asks because rather than being ruined, doomed, and destroyed, Isaiah has been lifted up. His sin has been atoned for and his guilt has been taken away. I will do anything you ask, Lord! What is the job? In verse 9 the Lord tells Isaiah what he has volunteered to do.

“Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:9-10 ESV)

Isn’t this a shocking mission that Isaiah is sent on? What Isaiah is going to do is make the hearts of the people dull, their ears heavy, and their eyes blind. Otherwise they would see, hear, and understand so they would turn and be healed. The Lord tells Isaiah to go preach to the people. Tell them that they can keep on hearing but won’t understand. Keep on seeing but you are not going to see and understand. The message that Isaiah is given are words that will harden the people’s hearts and keep them from being healed. When God’s word is proclaimed, people either move closer to God or further from him. This is how hearts are hardened. God is not saying that he is directly causing their hearts be darkened so that they will not turn and be healed. God is saying that the continual proclaiming of the Lord’s word is causing the people turn their hearts dull, ears heavy, and eyes blind. Preach to the people but they are not going to turn.

So there is a call for faithfulness to evangelism. Keep on proclaiming so that they will keep on hearing and keep on seeing. But understand that though you expose them to the gospel, they are not going to understand. They are not going to turn to be healed. These people in Isaiah’s day had their hearts hardened and would not listen to the saving message that God would heal them of their sins if they would only turn to him. They will not respond. Isaiah then asks how long this condition will remain on the people (Isaiah 6:11). The Lord’s answers that they will continue to reject until the day of judgment. Judgment is coming and they are not going to turn before it is too late. It is a sad message. God wants to save but the people will not turn.

Isaiah 6:9-10 is one of the most frequently quoted scriptures in the New Testament (Matthew 13:14-15; Mark 4:12; Luke 8:10; John 12:39; Acts 28:26-27). Jesus and the apostles are going around the earth proclaiming this very message from Isaiah: listen to the word of the Lord and do not harden your hearts. God’s word is being proclaimed to you. Do not shut off your ears to the message and as such be lost! How can we make sure that we do not fall into this trap of having dull ears and hard hearts?

(1) See God. The more clearly we see the Lord as he is, the more we will be crushed by our own sinfulness and corruption. See the holiness of the Lord. See his majesty. See his power. See that he rules over all things and must be honored and served.

(2) See yourself. Only when we see God in his holiness can we see ourselves for who we are. We cannot approach God. We cannot come near God. We have no avenue for which to request anything from God. We are ruined. We are doomed. We are utterly lost.

(3) See grace. God has acted for us while we were doomed from our sins. We have nothing to give to God but our sinfulness and corruption. But God has acted through the sacrifice of Jesus to atone people of their sins of those who will turn to him in faith.

(4) See your task. When we see God’s grace at work in our lives we will desire to serve him. We will desire to share the good news. We will be compelled to raise our hands and say that we will go and declare the glory of God to the world. Our task is to be faithful to the message of God and faithfully proclaim the message of God, whether the people accept or reject.

The word of God is being proclaimed. What is happening in your heart? Are you coming closer to God and turning to him? Or is your heart being hardened and you are turning away from him. God is trying to draw you time him. Listen to his words and turn so that you can be healed.

The Lord Will Give A Sign

Isaiah 7:1-25

By Brent Kercheville

The Situation

Though there are a number of chapter breaks, Isaiah 7-12 is one unit of prophecy concerning a number of signs that will take place. The scene is presented for us in verse 1 of Isaiah 7. Ahaz is the king over Judah. Rezin, the king of Syria and Pekah, the king of Israel, allied together to go to war against Judah. When Ahaz learns that Syria and Israel have allied to conquer Judah, Ahaz and the people become very afraid. God tells Isaiah to take his son, Shear-Jashub (whose name means, “a remnant will return”) and prophesy to Ahaz. Here’s the message to Ahaz: don’t be afraid of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands. Rezin and Pekah are nothing more than two smoldering stubs of firewood. Their fire is about to go out. Verse 6 shows that their plan was to depose of Ahaz from being king and set up their own king over Judah. It is important to consider what this means. The threat is the destruction of the Davidic dynasty. So there are a couple implied questions as we examine this situation which leads to the prophecies given in this chapter. First, what would happen if their plot succeeded? What will become of Judah if Ahaz is deposed and they put their own king on the throne. Second, what about the covenant God made with David, recorded in 2 Samuel 7, that a son of David will reign on the throne eternally? Does God’s word have no power?

Isaiah 7:7 begins the message of the Lord: “It shall not stand.” The reason it will not come to pass is that these rulers are only human beings. They are nothing before the Lord Almighty. In fact, within 65 years Ephraim (that is another name for the nation of Israel) will be shattered from being a people. We know historically that the nation of Israel was wiped out by the Assyrians in 722 BC.

But I want us to notice what is not happening. Ahaz is not trusting in God. Ahaz is not praying to God. Ahaz is not looking for God to deliver. In Isaiah 7:3 we are told that Ahaz is examining the water supply as he prepares for the coming invasion. God declares in Isaiah 7:7 that it is not going to happen. But Isaiah 7:9 is the critical call to Ahaz and the people. “If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.” The word “you” is plural, so Isaiah’s message is to all the people. Be firm in your faith. Do not act with the normal response of fear but rest in God’s promises.

This is an important message for us. We have God on our side. Do not act like God is not with you. Ahaz is facing a big decision: will he trust God or will he trust in himself? The people are facing the same big decision. It is during challenging times that we are to respond in faith. It is easy to say we have faith in God when life is going the way we want. But faith is revealed during difficult times.

The Sign of Immanuel

To prove himself, the Lord tells Ahaz to ask for a sign. Ask any sign that you want, as high as the heaven or the deepest depths. The Lord stands ready to show Ahaz any proof so that he will put his trust in the Lord and not in himself. Ahaz’s response is that he will not ask for a sign or put the Lord to the test. This response is a reference to Deuteronomy 6:16 that commanded the people were not to put the Lord to the test. The irony is that we are putting the Lord to the test when we do not believe in God’s promises. Ahaz’s response is not a statement of faith or righteousness, but a statement of rebellion. Ahaz has no interesting in trusting God. He has his own plan. When we turn to 2 Kings 16:8-9 we find out that Ahaz has called for Assyria to help him defend against the coalition between Syria and Israel. Ahaz gave the gold and silver from the temple and the palace to the king of Assyria, and the king of Assyria went to Damascus, fought Syria, and killed Rezin the king. You will notice in verse 13 that the Lord is angry with Ahaz’s response. God does not respect what he says because it is not a statement of faith, but a statement of rebellion and rejection. His lack of faith is going to bring about judgment in the following prophecy. But what is interesting is that God is going to triumph with grace in spite of Ahaz and in spite of the nation’s failures.

The Lord says he will give a sign anyway. The “you” in Isaiah 7:14 is a plural “you” and fits the reference back in Isaiah 7:13 to the house of David. Now Ahaz represents the house of David (cf. Isaiah 7:2) but the plural “you” indicates that this sign is not only for Ahaz, but all the future kings to rule over Judah, that is, the Davidic dynasty. As we read this we must make sure we take the prophecy as a unit, in a similar way that we did in 2 Samuel 7 when we looked at the promise given to David. The unit about the son and the events surrounding his coming is from Isaiah 7:14-17. The virgin will conceive, bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel, which means, “God is with us.” Further, the son will eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse good and choose evil (Isaiah 7:15). Also, before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the two kings that Ahaz dreads will be deserted. Notice that Isaiah 7:17 continues that context. The Lord will bring upon you (Ahaz) and your people such days that have not come since Israel rebelled: the king of Assyria. Since Ahaz did not trust the Lord for deliverance but Assyria, the Lord will give a sign to show the end of the two nations that he feared and will use the nation that he trusted to bring destruction against him.

The prophecy is very easy to understand except for two problems. First, the word virgin in Isaiah 7:14. Second, that Matthew quotes this verse as being fulfilled at the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1:22-23. The problem becomes clear because Isaiah is certainly speaking about events in his own lifetime. The point of the sign is to show that Ahaz’s fear is misplaced. God is going to destroy these two nations before the boy knows how to refuse evil and choose good. Isaiah is saying that in just a few years these nations that you fear will not even exist anymore, much less, bother the nation. Further, by making this pronouncement to the house of David, the point is that the lineage of kings from David’s descendants will continue. Ahaz will not be deposed and a new king placed on the throne. God is holding the nation and the lineage intact, therefore maintaining his covenant promise to Abraham. Because history does not point to two virgin births, we must examine this Hebrew word more closely to see what Isaiah is promising.

I will not spend much time on this, but would certainly encourage you to pick up some reference works for studying the Hebrew word “almah.” I believe I can accurately sum up the arguments about this word. There is a separate Hebrew word that means “virgin” which Isaiah does not use. Also, there is a separate Hebrew word for “young woman” which Isaiah also does not use. Isaiah uses a very versatile word which refers to a young, unmarried woman who is of the marrying age. By implication, the woman is a virgin, if she is a young woman who is not married. This is why translations have difficulty at this point because that is a long description for one word. “Virgin” is a little too narrow and does not state all that the word means and in the Hebrew the emphasis is not on the fact that the woman is a virgin. But “young maiden” also is too narrow because it does not communicate the fact that she is a virgin. Further, when the RSV translated the word as “young maiden” in 1952, it caused such an uproar that mainstream Christianity rejected the translation as heresy and some even burned the translation.

If we understand that the woman is one who is young, unmarried woman of the marrying age then the prophecy fits what Isaiah is telling Ahaz. By the time this particular woman bears a child and begins to raise that child, your enemies that you fear will already be deserted. This is a powerful sign, even if it were not miraculous. If we were to say that by the time a young woman in this congregation bears a child, the threat of North Korea will no longer exist would be a very powerful, predictive sign. Don’t worry about that nation. It is no threat, even though it looks like a threat now.

To validate this understanding, look at Isaiah 8. I submit to you that these are terrible chapter breaks in Isaiah 7-12 because the prophecy is a singular message. After declaring this prophecy, notice that Isaiah is supposed to do. He writes on the tablet, “Maher-shalal-hash-baz.” Now notice how Isaiah 8:3-4 sound the same as Isaiah 7:14-16. The prophetess conceives and bears a son. His name means, “The spoil speeds, the prey hastens.” Before the boy knows how to cry my father or my mother, the two nations that Ahaz fears will be carried away. The sign is the same. Maher-shalal-hash-baz becomes the prophetic fulfillment in the days of Ahaz, a sign to show that he should have trusted in the Lord who was going to destroy those two nations. Continue reading Isaiah 8:5-10 and you will notice that the prophecy continues just like in Isaiah 7. Assyria is coming to overflow the nation of Judah like a river overflows its banks. It will sweep through Judah and overflow the land. Notice the end of Isaiah 8:8, “O Immanuel.” Your land will be filled with the Assyrian invasion. But verses 9-10 proclaim hope in God because the nations will be broken and shattered. Their counsel will come to nothing because, according to the end of verse 10, Immanuel – for God is with us. God will not utterly consume the nation because Immanuel. God is with us.

Now this does not deny the virgin birth of Jesus at all. I want to make very clear that the scriptures teach and I believe that Jesus was born of a virgin. But I want us to see the unique duality of language that Isaiah is using in this prophecy which allow for a fulfillment in Isaiah’s day as well as a future fulfillment. Listen to the unique dual verbiage that Isaiah uses.

Shear-jashub:A remnant will return. Consider how that is good news and bad news. The name has a double meaning. A remnant returning means that they will be taken off of the land and destroyed. But it also signifies hope that all is not lost. A remnant will return to the land and not all will perish.

Maher-shalal-hash-baz:The spoil speeds, the prey hastens. Is this a prophecy for Judah or against Judah? Does this mean that Judah will be swiftly victorious, or does it mean Judah’s enemies will be swiftly victorious against them?

Curds and honey:We have not had the time to examine the statement about curds and honey in this text. Curds and honey is sometimes used in a positive sense of much good food. But it also can used to refer to having very little, the food of poverty. The NET Bible reads, “sour milk and honey.” Again, we see dual possibilities. Is this a time of poverty or a time of plenty?

Almah:We have already mentioned the curious nature of the word “almah.” Isaiah does not use the word that directly means “virgin” nor a word that directly means “young woman.” It is a word that pictures a young woman of the marrying age but implies one that is a virgin because she has never been married.

Immanuel:The name means “God is with us.” However, the name is being applied to all kinds of people and situations. Jesus is going to be given this expression, God is with us, but he is never actually called “Immanuel” by name in the gospels. Consider, how can it be said that “God is with us” when Assyria is going to come and wipe out the nation of Judah?

I want us to see the dual imagery that Isaiah is conjuring with this prophecy. In fact, this whole prophecy is a declaration of hope to the people in the midst of destruction. You have nothing to fear from these two nations. But you have judgment coming because you did not trust me, but trusted in Assyria. But God is still offering hope for the future, though they reject his help now.

The second question we have not answered is concerning Matthew. What was Matthew doing when he quotes Isaiah 7:14 as being fulfilled with the birth of Jesus? We will examine the answer that question closely in the next lesson in two weeks.

Application

Faith in the seen or the unseen.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 ESV)

The apostle Paul reminds us that faith is about putting our hope in that which is not seen. A few verses later he would declare that we walk by faith and not by sight. We cannot put our hope in the physical. We cannot make decisions by what we see. We must have faith and make decisions based upon the knowledge that our hope is on the eternal, unseen things.

The enemy is doomed because God is with his people.

It is a powerful hope that we have that since God is with us and will not forsake us, that through that faith we can overcome any obstacle. Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is found in Christ. The great thought that when Jesus came to the earth, it was truly God with us. Because he came to this earth and died for us, God can be on our side and fight for us, which is exactly what he did through the cross. His death brings us to life and Satan is now doomed because of the victory that is found in Jesus. The book of Revelation revealed that victory, as Christ rides on the white horse conquering Satan, sin, and death. God fights for his people.

To Fulfill What Was Spoken By The Prophet

Matthew’s Usage of OT Prophecies

In our lesson from Isaiah we noticed the curious way that Matthew uses Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 7:14. In particular we saw that Isaiah is giving a sign to King Ahaz because he will not trust in the Lord to deliver him and his nation. The sign is that a young woman would bear a son and by the time that son knows right from wrong, the two nations (Israel and Syria) who he feared would conquer them would be deserted. But Matthew comes along in Matthew 1:22 and says that this prophecy of the young woman bearing a son is fulfilled in Jesus. How can Matthew say this? In this lesson we are going to examine three of Matthew’s quotations from the prophets and look for the methodology of Matthew’s use of the Old Testament prophecies.

Hosea 11:1 — Matthew 2:15

1 When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my Song of Solomon 2 The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols. 3 Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk; I took them up by their arms, but they did not know that I healed them. (Hosea 11:1-3 ESV)

It is obvious by reading Hosea that Hosea is not referring to a coming Messiah at all. Israel is the son. The reference is to when Israel was enslaved in Egypt and God called them out of Egypt to be his son. However, the nation turned away from the Lord to worship idols. So what is Matthew doing by quoting this passage? In particular, notice what Matthew says: “This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet.” But this is not what the Lord was referring to through the prophet!

I want us to clearly see that Matthew cannot mean that the prophecy is directly fulfilled in Jesus when he as a child left Egypt because Herod had died. Hosea is not talking about that at all. Hosea has no concept about Jesus in his prophecy. This has led a number of writers and scholars to be critical of the New Testament authors in how they use the Old Testament. It led scholar David Kupp to say, “Matthew shows little awareness that the prophets might actually have been delivering oracles of crucial relevance to their original audiences” (Matthew’s Emmanuel: Divine Presence and God’s People in the First Gospel, 167). Many have concluded that Matthew’s exegetical methods are illegitimate. As Bultmann charges, “The writers of the New Testament do not gain new knowledge from the Old Testament texts, but read from or into them what they already know” (Prophecy and Fulfillment, 54).

So how is Jesus coming out of Egypt the fulfillment of the Hosea prophecy? Is Matthew using the prophecy from Hosea because he has no better proof-text? Is it because Matthew went concordance surfing and found that Hosea speaks of Egypt and just went with it? Obviously these are not acceptable answers if we hold the Bible to be the very words of God. The answer we must consider is typological fulfillment. First, let’s describe what typological fulfillment is not. Typological fulfillment is not dual fulfillment. Dual fulfillment carries the idea that the prophet spoke not only of his own time but also of a future time. I do not believe we can read Hosea 11:1 and suggest that Hosea is not only referring to his own time but also to the time of Jesus. I believe this answer was created because they are somehow trying to reconcile how Matthew could say that this even fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet. Typological fulfillment sees in biblical narratives a divinely intended pattern of events. It is a view that events of the Old Testament are not merely repeated or continued, but enhanced, intensified, and escalated.

You may have a number of examples immediately jump your mind. Our study of the Gospel of John has been built on this premise. John is teaching us that Jesus is God because he not only repeats events in the history of Israel but escalates them. For example, Israel received bread from heaven. In John 6 Jesus is the bread from heaven but his bread gives true life and those who eat from him will never die. Jesus declares himself to the serpent on the pole in John 3, intensifying the event found when Israel was in the wilderness. Moses expected this kind of typological treatment when he said that a prophet like him would rise up to lead the people. But he was speaking of someone greater than himself, not equal to himself who would lead a greater exodus. John the Baptizer is called the Elijah. Events of the Old Testament are not just repeated but intensified and escalated. Therefore what Matthew is doing is declaring that Jesus is the escalated fulfillment of a pattern, teaching, or event in the Old Testament. We do not have time to show it in this lesson, but consider the typological fulfillment of the first four chapters of Matthew, paralleling the history of Israel from persecution, killing of the baby boys, the flight to Egypt, the deliverance from Egypt, the baptism of Jesus, and the time in the wilderness. Jesus is the intensified fulfillment of Israel’s history. The concept of typological fulfillment helps us understand what Matthew is declaring when he says that these things spoken by the prophet were fulfilled.

Matthew uses Hosea 11:1 because just as Israel, which was called God’s son, was led out of Egypt by pillar of fire and cloud into failure in the wilderness, so Jesus, the true Son of God, was called out of Egypt and led into the wilderness by the Spirit where he succeeds against temptation. The pattern is not merely repeated, otherwise Jesus would have failed in the wilderness like Israel. The typology is enhanced because Jesus succeeds where Israel failed, and thus the prophecy is fulfilled typologically.

Jeremiah 31:15 — Matthew 2:18

Jeremiah 31 is an interesting chapter because it is a strong message of hope. Jeremiah 31:15 is a note of gloom in a chapter of joy. Jeremiah is prophesying how God will bring his people back from exile. The good news necessarily entails the bad news, which is that an exile is coming. Jeremiah 31 speaks about those who will survive the sword, return to to the land, and rebuild (Jeremiah 31:1-6). The God who scattered them will gather them as a shepherd (Jeremiah 31:10) and their mourning will turn to songs of joy and comfort (Jeremiah 31:13). However, Jeremiah 31:15 reminds them that judgment and destruction are coming. Rachel is pictured as wailing for her offspring because they are going to killed in this coming judgment. The promises of future restoration are also promises of judgment and destruction in the present as Jeremiah prophesies. Though judgment and death, the future is hopeful.

The connection that Matthew is making is not difficult to see with typological fulfillment. The devastation that is brought about by God’s enemies (in the case of Jesus’ day, Herod) is going to be reversed by the coming hope and restoration. Though the wicked king is calling for the murder of the baby boys, hope is proclaimed because the Messiah escapes to Egypt so that salvation can be brought in the future. Despite the tears of the Bethlehem mothers, there is hope because the Messiah has escaped Herod and will ultimately reign.

Isaiah 7:14 — Matthew 1:23

This typological fulfillment is occurring in Matthew 1:23 where Matthew quotes from Isaiah 7:14. Ahaz did not believe that God would deliver. Therefore a sign was given to Ahaz. A son would be born to a young woman and by the time the son knows right from wrong, the two kings that Ahaz feared would be deserted. This was the sign of Immanuel, that is, God is with us. God is showing the people that God is with them through this sign. This is the proof that God keeps his word and delivers his people.

The coming of Jesus is the perfect typological fulfillment with dramatic escalation. Now it will not be merely a young woman who bears the child, but it will be a virgin. A miraculous birth is going to bring about this great sign. This sign is the proof that God keeps his word and delivers his people. But the escalation is that not only does the sign show that God is with us, but it is God himself that comes in the flesh. God not is with us because he is faithful to his word and loves his people, but it was actually God who dwelled among us. Jesus is the greater Immanuel. Further, the deliverance that this Immanuel brings is not only from worldly powers, but from spiritual powers and forces of darkness. Jesus escalates the image because we are set free from our sins. This fulfillment is reflected in the change that Matthew makes to the prophecy. In Isaiah 7 it is the young woman who will call the son Immanuel. Notice what Matthew says. It is the world that is going to call Jesus “Immanuel.” They will call him “God is with us.” This is what Matthew is driving at. Look at Matthew 1:21, “She will bear a son, and you shall call him name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Conclusion

I hope that we see that we read about fulfillment of prophecy that there is more than one way for prophecy to be fulfilled. Some prophecies are direct prophecies about Jesus. Micah 5:2 is a direct prophecy concerning the future birth place of the ruler over Israel. But there are other prophecies where the prophet was speaking only about his day and time. However, in the divine foreknowledge of God, this pattern and event would be repeated and enhanced by the coming of the Christ. The New Testament authors see this enhanced pattern being culminated in the life of Jesus.

From Darkness To Light

Isaiah 8:11 to Isaiah 9:7

By Brent Kercheville

The Way We Ought To Walk (Isaiah 8:11-18)

Not like the world (Isaiah 8:11-12).

The Lord comes to Isaiah and warns him not live like these people. In chapter 6 we saw Isaiah declare that he was a man of unclean lips and lived among an unclean people. God had purified him and charged him to preach God’s message to the people. Part of this charge is to not return to the lifestyle of the people you were called out from. They walk in the way of darkness and you cannot belong to that way. Don’t fear what the people fear. God tells Isaiah to honor the Lord and fear him. In fact, there is nothing else to fear. The life of those who are God’s children is to honor the Lord and fear him alone.

Honoring God (Isaiah 8:13-15)

Those who treat God as holy do not ignore his words, dishonor his name, or fail to trust him. They bow in awe to the Lord. They give the Lord his due reverence. In faith they obey what the Lord says. God is showing that we do not honor God when we fail to trust him. Those who follow God will do things differently than the world because their trust is in God and they fear no one but God. God’s call to not living like the world is not a call to isolated, monastic living. Physical separation is not going to be the factor that keeps us from acting like the world. You can live alone and still be just like the world in thought and action. Obedience to God’s word is what keeps us from acting like the world. Honoring God is what keeps us from acting like the world. A fear and reverence for God is what keeps us from acting like the world.

Isaiah 8:14 describes what God will be for the people. He will either be a sanctuary or he will be a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling. We see the picture of God as the holy place, the sanctuary, in Exodus 25:8 where God says that he will dwell among his people. If Isaiah and the people will fear God, then he will be a sanctuary, a place of solid strength and refuge, a blessing, and a comfort. God is telling us that he will be with us and be a blessing to us if we will trust him and not live like the world. However, to those who will not trust him, the Lord will become a stone of offense and rock of stumbling. The rock will lead to ruin rather than refuge. There are strong consequences when we refuse to treat the Lord as holy. Notice that this is the very connection that the apostle Peter makes in his teaching, pulling this context into his own day. In 1 Peter 1:15 Peter called for Christians to be holy in all their conduct. Peter continues in chapter 2.

7 So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (1 Peter 2:7-12 ESV)

The rock was put in the road to block the traveler from danger. But in carelessness or rebellion, he refuses the warning and stumbles to his death. How you respond to God determines whether he is your sanctuary or your stumbling stone.

Treasuring God’s Word (Isaiah 8:16).

God tells Isaiah to preserve this neglected teaching for a later generation who will listen (Isaiah 8:16-18). Treasuring God’s word and finding hope in God are inseparable. Faith in God is waiting for the arrival of that hope.

Trusting and hoping in God (Isaiah 8:17-18).

Further, Isaiah says that while he waits for the Lord and puts his hope in God, his children are signs of that hope to the people. Recall that their names reflect the coming judgment and the coming hope. This phrase in Isaiah 8:18 is quoted in Hebrews 2:13. In Hebrews the quotation is used of Jesus talking and speaking about his children that God had given him, referring to us his followers. Jesus put his hope and trust in the Father in experiencing the sufferings that flesh and blood experience. In doing so, we are able to be called his brothers and sisters (Hebrews 2:12), his congregation (Hebrews 2:12), and his children (Hebrews 2:13). This means that we have become signs to the world of the hope that is in Christ because he has suffered for us. Not only are we signs to the world and into him we place our hope and trust, but Christ is able to help us because we have put our trust in him. Since we are his children and he experienced flesh and blood, Christ is able to help us when we are being tempted (Hebrews 2:18).

The Way We Walk (Isaiah 8:19-22)

Unfortunately we fail to put our trust in God just as they did. Verse 19 reveals that rather than asking God and trusting God, we walk in darkness. We live like the world. We do not put our trust in the Lord. Isaiah reveals that the people were trusting mediums and sorcery. It is a good thing that people today don’t try to figure their lives out by trying to talk to the dead, chasing ghosts, getting palms read, seeking paranormal experiences, or trusting in psychics. God asks why people are not asking him. Why are people not asking of the Lord? Why would anyone ask the dead about the affairs of the living? It does not make any sense. Yet we seek answers in everything but the Lord which causes us to be worthy of judgment.

God says that if you want answers, then see the teaching and the testimony of the Lord! (Isaiah 8:20). Don’t go to the dead. Go to the word of God! Anyone who does not speak according to the word of the Lord is completely in the dark and does not have the light of dawn. God’s words are the only source of light. We are rejecting God when we look in other places for guidance and hope.

We become practical atheists. We say that we trust God but in practice we do not trust him at all. We do not believe that we can place our hope firmly in him. So we live our lives in distress and anguish. We live in emptiness and futility of life. Further, we become jaded and disenchanted with life, not finding the answers we are looking for. Then we become angry at God and blame him for the problems and difficulties in our lives, not recognizing that it is because we have rejected the teaching and the testimony of the Lord that we are in anguish. So we turn and look back to the earth. We look back at this world trying to find answers only to find more distress and more darkness. Therefore, God describes the people and the land as covered in distress and darkness. It is the gloom of anguish and the people will be thrust into thick darkness — judged, exiled, separated, and lost. Isaiah 8:17 tells us that God is hiding his face from his people. It is a time of darkness and gloom. The scene ends with a picture of darkness and gloom over the people and over the land.

The Way of Light (Isaiah 9:1-3)

But the future is written as if it has already occurred. It is spoken of in prophetic certainty. These seven verses of Isaiah 9 describe these events as completely. Therefore the people are to look forward to it with great certainty. Now there is a triumph of grace. “But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish.” The land of Naphtali and Zebulun brought contempt, but in latter times God will make the way glorious. God is going to give his people light again in the latter time. Zebulun and Naphtali are chosen because these were parts of the northern nation which were conquered and added to the Assyrian Empire. But this would be the land where the light would shine first. The region of Galilee is where Jesus’ ministry began!

13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.” 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:13-17 ESV)

Now the people and the nation have multiplied. The fulfillment of the covenant made with Abraham is arriving. The nation is multiplied and the joy of the people has multiplied. The triumph of God’s grace brings joy. The people are rejoicing like it were harvest time and are pictured as victorious as the spoil is divided. Isaiah speaks in great amazement. Of all people God has increased their joy. Isaiah 9:4-7 will describe the joy that we have.

Why We Have Joy (Isaiah 9:4-7)

Verse 4 reveals that the people have joy because God is breaking the power of the oppressors. The imagery pictures how God broke the power of the oppressors in the days of the judges. The rod of the oppressor will be broken just like on the day of Midian. The day of Midian refers to the days of Gideon when, with only three hundred men, God wiped out the Midianites. There is going to be another Liberator who will come and deliver the people, but he will be greater than Gideon. The victory will not be accomplished by our power or might, but by God’s power, just like in the days of Gideon.

But there is no need to get ready for battle. Verse 5 reveals that the battle is over. The victory is accomplished. Every boot and every garment has already been in battle and are now burned as fuel for the fire. The king has won the battle. God has accomplished his victory and we simply walk in after the battle has finished and the battle clothes are being burned. Why has the victory come? How has the victory come? Isaiah 9:6-7 explains how.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.” When the son is given, all that results from his coming is at once secured. It is the announcement of the birth of a son who would reign forever as a righteous Davidic ruler, a ruler very different than wicked Ahaz. God is going to graciously give a child and he will be the ruler of this glorious kingdom. Who is this child? Who is this son that God will give so that darkness will be turn to light, that anguish will be turned to joy, that the rod of the oppressor will be broken, and through whom the victory will be achieved? Isaiah is noted for its significant names. The King has a fourfold name.

Wonderful Counselor. We use the word “wonderful” in a way that evokes emotions that is really not intended here. “Wonderful” does not mean that he is delightful. We sometimes use the word “wonderful” in that way. For example, my meal was wonderful. The idea of the word is “full of wonder” or “full of miracles.” He is doing something extraordinary and miracles with the skill of giving wise advice, plan, and counsel. He is going to exhibit the miraculous acts of God. God will be working through the son to demonstrate his extraordinary wisdom to plan miraculous things.

Mighty God. There is something special about this son because he carries the power of God. Some want to deny the aspect of deity here, suggesting that a verb must be supplied so that this reads, “God is mighty” or “God is a mighty warrior.” However, no other person is called by God’s name and God is never called by a human name. There is something special and amazing because this son is able to carry God’s name.

Everlasting Father. Everlasting is a title that does not apply to any human ruler, except the promise made to David that one would rule on his throne forever (2 Samuel 7:16). Father depicts the tenderness of this ruler and king. He leads his people as a father leads his children.

Prince of Peace. Many kings came and brought peace to their subjects. But this king does something that other kings cannot do. He brings peace between God and humans. This is important to the context of the prophecy because Isaiah 8:17 revealed that God was hiding his face from the people. When this son is born, then peace will be reestablished between God and the people.

Isaiah 9:7 continues to explore what this child will do so that joy is increased to the people. His rule will continue to increase and his kingdom continue to expand. No one will be able to successfully oppose his authority or destroy his government. This reign will consist of righteousness and justice and his reign will always be that way. Unlike the reign of Solomon, the son of David, whose reign began in righteousness, wisdom, and justice but then eroded as Solomon turned away from the Lord, this son of David will rule in righteousness, wisdom, and justice now and forevermore.

Finally, the Lord’s zeal will see to this. It will happen because God is passionately involved with his people.

Conclusion

We are the people that Isaiah is speaking about that will experience great joy. We are the ones who have had the power of the oppressor broken. Sin no longer has to have its enslaving power over us through Jesus. The victory was decisive. The battle is over. The child was born, was killed by his enemies, but raised from the dead three days later where he established his throne. Now his kingdom is growing and expanding and no one will be victorious against it. To put the image into something we can relate to, if you knew the outcome of a war, which side would you be on? If we had known the outcome of the Vietnam War we likely would have never entered into it. Knowing the outcome of World War II, would you choose to be on the side of the Germans or of the allies? Obviously we would choose the winning side. Here is the picture for us. The outcome is already determined. Christ wins. He won on the cross. Now the kingdom is moving throughout the earth. Resist the king and be judged. Serve the king and find joy and peace. The light of the Lord has come into the anguish of our gloom. Our Lord will deal with every enemy and bring joy to every follower of his. We are to have joy! Look at what God has done to our sinful circumstances! Come to the Lord Jesus and enjoy the blessings of his victory.

His Anger Has Not Turned Away

Isaiah 9:8 to Isaiah 10:19

By Brent Kercheville

In many ways our generation has completely lost sight of the wrath of God. We live in a time where it is popular to suggest and teach that God will not judge people. God is love and not full of wrath is the popular way of thinking. But grace and salvation do not make sense without wrath. What are we be saved from if there is no wrath? How can there be grace when God does not have wrath against sin? This kind of thinking about God is not new. It existed in the days of Isaiah when the people did not expect that God was going to execute judgment against them. In this section of Isaiah, Isaiah 9:8 to Isaiah 10:4, we are going to notice that Isaiah four times declares that the anger of God has not turned away and his hand is still stretched out.

God’s Word Falls (Isaiah 9:8-12)

The picture that Isaiah declares is God’s word being sent against Judah (Jacob) and falling like a hammer or stone against Israel. Judgment on both the northern nation of Israel and the southern nation of Judah is coming. What is the problem? The people are speaking in their pride and arrogance. They think so highly of themselves that these decrees of judgment do not phase them, cause fear, nor bring about repentance. Listen to what they are thinking in their arrogant hearts. “The bricks have fallen, but we will build with dressed stones.” Not only are they seeing themselves as so powerful that they can rebuild whatever has been destroyed, but they will rebuild so that it is better than ever. They express such great self-confidence. But this is the very problem. God does not want us to have our confidence in ourselves. God wants us to have confidence in him. Why should there be confidence in ourselves? This is the problem of self-reliance: we think we do not need God. God is doing something against the people and the people think they are strong and will endure. They are failing to rely on their God. Perhaps we need to hear again the words of Paul that our salvation is “not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:9 ESV). We do not do this ourselves. We cannot complete this ourselves. We need God. We are not supposed to try to do it ourselves. We are supposed to rely on God for everything in our lives. We are not to have self-confidence. We are to have the confidence that God supplies because we are relying upon his power and his working.

Therefore, even in all of this judgment God is not done. His anger has not turned away. His hands is stretched out still. The hand of the Lord to still be stretched out pictures God’s power and strength standing against a person or group of people (cf. Exodus 15:12; Deuteronomy 4:34; Deuteronomy 5:15; Deuteronomy 7:19). God’s hand is still moving. He has not rested from judgment against them.

Did Not Turn To God (Isaiah 9:13-17)

Because of their self-confidence and arrogance, the people did not turn to God. God has struck the people in judgment, but this judgment has not provoked the people to turn to the Lord. They are not inquiring of the Lord for direction or for obedience. They are not looking to God in their lives. Therefore God will bring even more judgment against them. God is going to cut off those who are leading the people astray, the elders and the prophets. They are leading the people astray in their teachings. The people are being swallowed up by listening to their teachings. This is why textual preaching and teaching is so important. If teachings are not built directly from the scriptures, then you are not learning the word of the Lord but the word of a human. Teaching must be rooted directly in God’s word or it has the power to lead people astray.

Seeking God is to purposefully look for assistance from the Almighty. Turning to God requires people to admit they need help and causes them to rely on someone stronger than themselves. A heart’s desire for God means a willingness to ask God for guidance, make a commitment to turn toward that direction, and follow God’s answer and will. Prayer is the means of our inquiry of the Lord. Reading God’s word is another means of inquiring of the Lord. However, God will not show compassion because everyone is godless and an evildoer. Every mouth speaks folly and disgraceful things. But in all this, God is still not done. His anger has not turned away and his hand is still stretched out.

The Spreading Flame of Sin (Isaiah 9:18-21)

Isaiah describes what is happening because the people are self-confident and do not turn and inquire of the Lord. “Wickedness burns like a fire.” Isaiah describes the destructive power of sin. Burning is an accurate description for the destructive power of sin. Sin wrecks lives and causes pain. People are destroying each other, rather than pursuing good for others. Society turns into a place where it is “every man for himself.” But the spreading flame of sin is followed by the fire of God’s judgment. Wickedness spreads like fire but the ultimate destructive power is the wrath of God. The punishment of God will fit the crime of humanity. If we light up the world with wickedness, then God will light us up in judgment.

Isaiah 9:20-21 shows that as wickedness spreads the internal disintegration of society accelerates. They begin to destroy each other. Remember that these are supposed to be the holy people of God. Yet they are acting just like the world because they are not relying and depending on the Lord. In the same way, the apostle Paul warned against Christians biting and devouring one another (cf. Galatians 5:15). You have probably seen this happen in churches where Christians are fighting with other Christians. This can only happen because our focus is not on God but on ourselves. Wickedness does not contain itself to our hearts. It spreads. It leaks out. It attacks. It hurts family. It attacks friends. It devours other Christians. James wrote that this was the very problem: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?” (James 4:1 ESV). The spread of wickedness is what causes our fighting. We will turn on each other when we are not keeping our hearts and eyes turned toward God. Even in all of this, God’s judgment is not complete against the people.

Social Injustice (Isaiah 10:1-4)

Isaiah continues to describe God’s judgment. Notice that God exercises his wrath against social injustice. Justice is a very important thing to God. The scriptures teach us that the purpose of the government is to justice on those who practice evil (cf. Romans 13:1-5). Notice the list of the condemnations in verses 1-2 of Isaiah 10. They pass immoral laws and pass decrees that press for more oppression of the people. The needy who need justice are turned aside. The people are robbed of their rights because they are poor. Widows and orphans are taken advantage of. We cannot look at our government as it passes immoral laws, laws that violate God’s law, and think that God does not care. God is angry when nations pass immoral laws. God demands justice and righteousness out of his creation and out of the governments. God institutes all governments and causes governments to rise up and fall. Isaiah decrees a woe to the nation that passes immoral laws for God will bring his punishment.

Isaiah 10:3-4 pictures God’s coming wrath. Where will you run when God’s judgment falls? God will bring his judgment for social injustices that occur within a nation. And yet, his anger has not turned away and his hand is still stretched out.

Your Pride Is Your Downfall (Isaiah 10:5-19)

Isaiah now reveals that Assyria is being used by God as an instrument of judgment on Israel and Judah. Assyria’s actions are God’s fury and judgment. God sent Assyria to take the spoil and tread the nations down. But there is a problem. The king of Assyria wants to go beyond what God has decreed for judgment. His heart says that he can destroy all the nations. He wants to utterly desolate them, never to rise again. In particular, the king of Assyria thinks in his heart that his gods are greater and his power is greater that he can conquer Jerusalem like the other cities he has conquered. Notice verse 11 that the king of Assyria decides he will wipe out Jerusalem like he wiped out Samaria, the capital of the northern nation, Israel. So when God allows this judgment to sweep the through the land up the neck of Jerusalem, God is going to punish the arrogant heart of the Assyrian king. Listen to his arrogance.

“By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I have understanding; I remove the boundaries of peoples, and plunder their treasures; like a bull I bring down those who sit on thrones” (Isaiah 10:13). The king thinks that this is all by his own power and not by the power and purpose of God. Therefore, God asks an important question: “Shall the axe boast over him who chops with it?” (Isaiah 10:15). Further, can “the saw magnify itself against him who wields it?” They are simply the axe. But they think that they are conquering by their own might. They think all that they are doing is by their own power. How can the axe glorify itself? The glory goes to the one who swings the axe. No one looks at the chopped tree and says that you have an awesome axe! When you go to the state fair and see the handiwork that is crafted with wood, no one says that the chainsaw or the chisel is phenomenal! It is the person who used the tool, not the tool, that receives the glory. Pride causes us to forget that we are simply instruments in the hand of the Lord. Judgment comes on those who forget that they are simply tools in God’s hands.

Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. (Romans 6:13 ESV)

We are to present our bodies as instruments in the hands of God to work in this world. Yet we glorify ourselves. We look at our own works and think we are great, rely upon ourselves, and place our confidence in ourselves. Our pride blocks our recognition of what God is doing in our lives. We attribute these things to ourselves rather than seeing God’s hand moving in our lives. So judgment must all on those who take glory to themselves. We need to see ourselves as glory thieves. We are stealing the glory that God should rightly receive, and we take that glory on ourselves, acting like we are important instruments. We are simply axes and saws in the hands of our great God.

So God says that though the king of Assyria thinks he will conquer Jerusalem, he will fail. The light of Israel will become a fire for he will save Jerusalem because of his own graciousness. God will save, not because the people are worthy of saving. They are worthy of judgment. But God’s graciousness is so amazing that even in our wickedness and pride, God will act to save so that he will be glorified throughout the world. Let us put aside our pride and wicked ways. Let us develop God-confidence and extinguish self-confidence. Let us present our bodies as instruments of righteousness in the hands of the Lord.

The Root of Jesse

Isaiah 10:20 to Isaiah 11:16

By Brent Kercheville

In Isaiah 9-10 we read that the anger of the Lord will still stretched out against Israel and Judah for their various sins. Assyria, in whom they put their trust, would be their demise and God would use them as an instrument of his judgment against them. However, Assyria will become prideful and go too far by thinking that their power resides in themselves rather than seeing themselves as instruments in the hand of God. Therefore God will judge Assyria as well. We pick in prophecy in verse 20 of the tenth chapter of Isaiah. Isaiah now describes what the future holds for Israel and Judah.

Creating A Remnant (Isaiah 10:20-34)

Isaiah declares that there will be a remnant to come. Verses 21-22 drives home this truth to the hearers. “A remnant will return” is the name of the son of Isaiah, Shear-Jashub. It will not be all of Israel that will be delivered. Notice Isaiah 10:22, “For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return.” This is a direct reference to the Abrahamic promise. Recall that when God made a covenant with Abraham that through his offspring all the nations of the earth would be blessed, declaring that he would multiply Abraham’s offspring like the stars of heaven and the sand of the sea (Genesis 22:17). God is recalling his covenant promise by not destroying the nation, but only a remnant will return to the mighty God. Isaiah 10:20 tells us that the remnant will be those who no longer depend on outsiders, but will faithfully depend on the Lord alone. This dependence is a picture of weakness resting on strength. They will not simply say that they rely and depend on the Lord. They will rely on the Lord in truth. They will truly do this and they will do so faithfully. This is what it means to return to the mighty God (Isaiah 10:21). Now, do not forget that the “mighty God” was described in Isaiah 9:6 as the child born and son given to the world that will sit on David’s throne and rule in righteousness and justice. The truthfulness of the nation’s faith will be demonstrated by their action of choosing to trust the Holy One of Israel, the Mighty God, rather than someone else or something else. So Isaiah states an important truth: the Abrahamic promises are not an absolute guarantee of blessing for people who fail to trust God.

Turn to Romans 9:27-28 where the apostle Paul quotes this verse and makes the same application. In Romans 9:6 Paul declared that the word of God has not failed. Not all who are descended from Israel are truly Israel. Paul spends the ninth chapter of Romans proving this point. In Romans 9:27-28 Paul uses Isaiah to prove his point. Though the number of Israel is great, only a remnant will find salvation. The true people of God, Israel, are known by their faith in the mighty God, not by ethnicity.

I think we have the right to make the same application today. Not all “Christians” are Christians. Just because you were baptized does not mean that you are part of God’s faithful remnant. Just because you accepted Jesus and confessed him as the Son of God does not mean you are part of his glorious kingdom. The remnant are those who go past the external acts of obedience (while obeying those commands, of course) and faithfully put their hope and reliance on God. The remnant is a group of people who obey the Lord because they are faithfully relying on God, not by merely accomplishing some list of acts.

What God will do to keep his covenantal promise is do something that seems to be impossible. First, God is going to end his wrath against Judah (Isaiah 10:25). Second, God will attack Assyria (Isaiah 10:26). Third, God will remove the yoke the Assyrians from the neck of Judah (Isaiah 10:27). God uses two examples to show how he can accomplish the seemingly impossible in Isaiah 10:26. First, God will act like he did “when he struck Midian at the rock of Oreb.” This is a reference to Judges 7:25 in the days of Gideon when God was victorious with only 300 soldiers. Second, God will act like he did when “he lifted his staff over the sea in Egypt.” This refers the miracle of the parting of the Red Sea to deliver Israel from Egyptian oppression. Verses 28-34 picture the cutting off of the Assyrians, cutting off their power and ending their rule. The key image is in verses 33-34 where Assyria is pictured as a mighty tree with great height being cut down. Impressive Assyria will be cut down.

The Reign of the Branch (Isaiah 11:1-9)

In contrast to the mighty, impressive tree of Assyria, Isaiah prophesies that a shoot will come from the stump of Jesse. A branch from the roots of Jesse will bear fruit. This is an amazing image. Judah is pictured as having been cut down, a mere stump. There are no branches, no trees, no life, no hope, and no sound. Just a stump as a reminder of the life and power that previously existed. But from that stump a shoot grows. Life is now seen. Notice that this is not the stump of David. Rather, a shoot from Jesse is going to come. The point is that this not just another failed king from the lineage of David, but another David. This is the son of Jesse, David is going to come. This is the Davidic king who rules with justice and gathers people from the far reaches of the world. He will replace the proud Assyrian tyrant who destroys and scatters many nations. Further, the Spirit of the Lord will empower and guide this new king. The Spirit of the Lord coming upon this king shows us again that this is David ruling. Listen to what happened when Samuel came to anoint David as the future king.

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. (1 Samuel 16:13 ESV)

He will not depend on his own strength or wisdom like the king of Assyria did. Having the Spirit of the Lord means that he is going to exhibit different behavior than other kings. The unimpressive shoot will be the hope of the world. God is going to use the unimpressive, foolish things to put to shame the wise of this world. God is in the business of demonstrating his own glory by using the seemingly unimpressive to accomplish his plans.

This “king David” will not make the foolish mistakes like Ahaz did during his rule. This king will delight in the fear of the Lord. His mouth will contain the royal decrees and execute his will. Everything will be guided by justice, upright behavior, and faithfulness. He will perfectly display God’s character like clothes on him. Inwardly, he delights in the Lord. Outwardly, he commits himself to righteousness. He is the king after God’s own heart. The second half of Isaiah 11:4 comes from Psalms 2:9, reminding us that this is the Messiah and his rule will be the striking down of the enemies.

Isaiah 11:6-9 describe the nature of the kingdom of this new David. The imagery is amazing as it is beautiful. Read those words from Isaiah 11:6-9 about this glorious kingdom. There are at least three aspects of this new Davidic kingdom that Isaiah pictures. First, there is reconciliation, an ending of hostilities (Isaiah 11:6). Wolves lying down with lambs, leopards lying down with goats, and fattened calves lying down with lions shows that there is an end to hostility in this new kingdom. Second, there is a change of nature (Isaiah 11:7). Cows and bears are eating the same food. The ox and the lion are both eating straw. There is a total change of nature that will occur in the creation during the reign of the new David. Third, the curse is removed (Isaiah 11:8). The hostility and enmity that existed between humanity and serpents ends. The infant has nothing to fear from the cobra and the viper.

Now, here is the sad thing. So many people read this text and think that this is talking about the end of the world or the second coming of Christ. They think that the earth will be made completely different and we will live on an earth where animals no longer fight or eat each other and children will no longer be bitten by snakes. I submit to you that these conclusions are drawn because we do not study through Bible books. We swoop into a text like this one, read Isaiah 11:6-9 out of its context, and draw conclusions that do not fit the message of the prophecy. This amazing imagery is not concerned with fixing the world order around us as if it is God’s great concern that lions eat calves. Let’s put these verses back into their prophetic context. The people are in hostility with God. Isaiah 9-10 declared that the anger of the Lord is still stretched out against the nation as judgment after judgment comes crushing against them. There is only a remnant that will saved and God is describing what life will be like for the remnant when the Davidic king arrives. When the King comes, there is going to be an end of the hostility between God and his people. Reconciliation is going to occur with God, and perhaps even picturing reconciliation between Israel and Gentiles as Ephesians 2 describes. God’s people will dwell in peace with God. Second, there is going to be a change of nature and change of order. Isaiah already declared this in Isaiah 10:20 as well as in Isaiah 4:2-3. The people under this King’s reign will faithfully depend on the Lord, the Mighty God, and no other. They will put their glory and honor in the Branch of the Lord. They will be called holy and have their filth and bloodstains cleansed (Isaiah 4:2-3). Finally, the curse will be removed. Isaiah pictures the breaking of the curse. God’s people will not be hurt by the power of the serpent. The cobra and the viper will not hurt or destroy any of those in his holy mountain. The coming of the Davidic king is going to be crushing of the power of the serpent. Satan will be held powerless against those who are God’s faithful remnant. How is all this going to happen? Isaiah 11:9 elaborates that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord.” When the Messiah comes the knowledge of the Lord is going to spread throughout the earth as the nations will come to the holy mountain of the Lord (Isaiah 2:2). We see the apostles instructed to carry out the message of the new Davidic king, preaching the gospel beginning in Jerusalem and to the ends of the earth. Isaiah pictured that hopeful, glorious kingdom where our hostility with God would end, we would have a nature that seeks him, and have the curse of sin removed.

The Gathering of the Nations to God (Isaiah 11:10-16)

The chapter concludes by elaborating the result of the earth being full of the knowledge of the Lord. The nations are going to be gathered to God. Isaiah 11:10 shows we are on the right track of our understanding. The root of Jesse will be the banner and signal to the nations to come to the Lord. The apostle Paul quotes this in Romans 15:12. We will start in verse 8 to see the context of Paul’s point.

8 For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.” 10 And again it is said, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.” 11 And again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him.” 12 And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.” 13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:8-13 ESV)

The nations are going to come in for instruction. The Gentiles are going to have equal opportunity to receive instructions and live in the glorious kingdom of David. Gentiles will not have to live in hostility with God. They will not be part of the curse of sin any longer. They can also be joined in the kingdom if they will put their faithful dependence on God.

Now consider this point: if Isaiah was not fulfilled when Jesus came his first time to the earth, but pictures a future time yet to come, then Gentiles cannot and are not in the kingdom for salvation now. The text has a cause and effect. When the root of Jesse comes, he will establish a kingdom that will end hostility and remove the curse of sin. During that same time, the root of Jesse will bring the nations to himself and his rest will be glorious. Jesus would be the banner to rally around. Jesus will promise a glorious place of rest. Trusting in Jesus will not bring disappointment. Listen to Jesus’ commentary on this prophetic concept.

31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. (John 12:31-33 ESV)

The cross is the banner we will rally around. The cross and the resurrection are the signal to the world that will draw all the nations to him. Isaiah 11:14 shows the kingdom of Christ expanding beyond its promised borders of Canaan out into the surrounding nations. Further, a new exodus is going to occur (Isaiah 11:15-16). Jesus is going to remove every obstacle and bring about the salvation and deliverance of his people. The cross is the obstacle remover. The cross is the means by which we are redeemed from the curse of sin and walk on dry ground through the sea to the Davidic king and his glorious rule. As we study the death of Jesus we must keep in mind that this is the signal to the world that is reconciling them to God, taking them out from under the curse of sin, and making it possible to belong to the remnant that finds grace. Return to the Mighty God, lean on the Lord with all your heart, and find rest in him.

The Wells of Salvation

Isaiah 12:1-6

By Brent Kercheville

The apostle Paul ended a glorious section of his inspired writing in Romans 8:31, “What shall we say to these things?” Isaiah comes a similar conclusion at the end of this great theme of how God will send a new David, who will not rule like the kings before him, will bring reconciliation for the people to God, and call for the nations to come and inquire of the Lord. Isaiah speaks about what will happen “in the day.” In particular, Isaiah is prophesying what people will do once the Davidic ruler arrives to lead Israel and the nations to Zion and establish his kingdom of justice and peace. We noted in our last lesson from Isaiah that Isaiah is speaking about the coming of Jesus the Messiah and King. We also noticed that the apostle Paul quotes Isaiah 11:10 in Romans 15:12 and makes the point that this prophecy had been fulfilled in the first century because Jesus had come, conquered death, and was ruling in his kingdom. Therefore Gentiles and Jews alike are called into this kingdom as one new body. In particular, “in that day” would have its nearest connection to Isaiah 11:16 where we see Isaiah declaring that there will be a highway for remnant to come to God, like when God led Israel out of the land of Egypt. There is going to be a new exodus as God will lead his people out of slavery from sin and hostility to God and bring them into his glorious resting place (Isaiah 11:10). Knowing that God is going to do all these things for the world and that only a remnant will belong to the Lord, Isaiah now presents for us those who belong to the remnant will do.

Before we move into this song, there is another note of parallelism. When Israel was led by God out of Egyptian slavery in the glorious exodus, Exodus 15 records the song of the people, also called the song of Moses. Isaiah has predicted the new exodus of God’s people from sin’s slavery, and Isaiah 12 records the song of the people, the song of Isaiah. So what shall we say then since God has sent his new David to rule the world?

I Will Thank The Lord For Grace (Isaiah 12:1)

The first picture he gives of what his remnant people will do is they will offer thanksgiving. The “you” in verse 1 is singular. He is speaking to one individual of the saved remnant and declares to that person what he will do. You as an individual believer, this is what you will do. You will offer thanksgiving to God because his anger has turned away. We saw this pictured for us in the sixth chapter of Isaiah. Isaiah is taken into the throne room of the Lord in a vision where he is able to see the glory of God. The reaction of Isaiah was that he was completely ruined because he was a man of unclean lips and lived among an unclean people. We cannot be in fellowship with God because of our sins. We are ruined and utterly lost. We are deserving of the anger of God for our disobedience. But now the Lord’s anger is turned away. Recall the repeated refrain in Isaiah 10-11 : “his anger is not turned away; his arm is still outreached.” This pictured a continuing judgment against the people for their sinfulness. But Isaiah 12:1 gives us precious words of comfort: “your anger turned away that you might comfort me.” We learn something very valuable from Isaiah: reconciliation is not about our willingness to have God but God’s willingness to have us. Deserving wrath is turned to undeserved comfort. There is no reason for God to make this change. What had Israel done in Egypt so that God would save the people and deliver them from the Egyptians? Absolutely nothing. They had done nothing but God acted in their favor. This is the idea of propitiation that we read about in the New Testament (Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 1 John 4:10). Jesus is the means by which God is able to show us undeserved comfort. Jesus is our propitiation so that we do not receive the wrath we deserve but receive the comfort we do not deserve. Each person that belongs to the Lord will say words of thanks for receiving comfort rather than anger.

I Will Trust In The Lord (Isaiah 12:2)

The second thing the individual who belongs to the Lord will do is trust the Lord and not be afraid. The believer in the Lord has nothing to fear and has every reason to trust. But is this true of us? Isaiah is going to tell us how we can have this. He begins with the declaration: “God is my salvation.” This is why the individual will trust in the Lord. God has saved me so I will trust in him. I didn’t deserve that the Lord would do anything for me! Since the Lord has acted on my behalf, I will trust in the Lord. Listen to how Isaiah describes what trusting in the Lord looks like.

“I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” This is the same words that Moses and the people sang after the exodus. Listen to the similarity of their words of praise to God.

Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the LORD, saying, “I will sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him. (Exodus 15:1-2 ESV)

Notice the same three words: strength, song, and salvation. These are the three things we will have so that we will trust in the Lord and not be afraid. To sum these things up, Isaiah is saying that the Lord will be everything to us. To every individual in this relationship with God, the Lord will be everything to him or her. God is my salvation. He is enough. He is all I need. Listen to these three characteristics.

The Lord is my strength.

The people of God find their strength in the Lord. Listen to what the apostles taught for Christians to be.

Whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 4:11 ESV)

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. (Ephesians 6:10 ESV)

God’s people are not people who are strong in themselves. They are not people who rely on themselves. They are not people to trust in themselves. We are able to live, breathe, teach, serve, act, and move through the strength that God supplies. Our strength is found in God’s grace to give us comfort rather than wrath. Now I am free from fear to love and serve. My strength is found in God’s goodness towards me.

The Lord is my song.

Do you feel that this is out of place in the list? I can understand the Lord as my strength and salvation. But the Lord is my song? The scriptures frequently speak of his people bursting into song. Exodus 15, which we have been looking at as a parallel, was a song. In Revelation 14 we see the sealed of God, the redeemed of the earth, singing a song around the throne of God. In Revelation 15 they are singing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. We even have a song in our songbook proclaiming how we will sing the song of Moses and the Lamb. The spiritual beings in heaven sing a new song in Revelation 5 when the Lamb takes the scroll to open it. The prophets repeatedly describe God’s people singing songs of praise and thanksgiving. In fact, there is a whole book in the inspired scriptures that are exclusively songs, 150 of them. What is going on with all of this singing?

Singing comes from joy welling up within us. It is not that God wants music to make a differentiation in our worship. It is not that words are insufficient so God wanted our words put to music. Singing is the outward flow from an inner joy. Is this not why when God speaks of singing he says that it is to be “making melody in our hearts to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19)? God’s people will see his salvation and be moved with an inner joy to express to the Lord. Singing is tied to the heart of the people rejoicing. I think it is important to consider the words of the songs that we sing, that we are not bound to singing songs only about us. We want to sing about God and about what he has done for us. Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 tell us that we are teaching one another when we sing. So what are we teaching each other? I hope we are teaching each other about God and how awesome he is and how I need him. When we sing, God is not asking for you to be musically inclined. Many people are not musically inclined nor are moved by music. But what God wants is those words, in whatever tune you carry, to pour out of the heart. Take your eyes of the songbook. Don’t worry about the notes. You know the words to most of the songs we sing. Let your heart pour out your words.

The Lord has become my salvation.

The third way we trust in the Lord is recognizing that he has become my salvation. The Lord has rescued us from death. He has rescued us from wrath. The Lord without any obligation or necessity besides his own love and goodness has rescued. I will give my everything to him because he has rescued me from disaster.

These are the reasons that we will not be afraid in this life. My family does some pretty extensive road trips. Last year we drove all the way to California and back. April and I take turns driving and napping on these kinds of trips. Why is it that neither of us panic when we hear thumps while driving? You know that when you change lanes you hit those bumps that sound like you are going into the shoulder. Or why is there not panic when the cars suddenly slows down? The reason is because I trust the driver and she trust me to drive. There is no fear because we know who is driving and have put our trust in that person. How is it possible to not fear what tomorrow holds or how the problems of today will be resolved? The answer is because we know who is in charge and are totally relying upon him for what we need. We have had a disaster with Grace and her medicine that she needs for Prader-Willi syndrome that last four months or more. Why are we not panicking about the insurance problems and doctor issues? I do not fear and do not grow anxious and I will not worry because I know who is in control and I will rely on him.

We Will Draw Water From The Wells of Salvation With Joy (Isaiah 12:3)

In verse 3 there is a shift from the individual to the group. The “you” in verse 3 is plural. Isaiah now speaks of the community of God’s people. We are going to joyfully draw waters from the wells of salvation. The context of Isaiah’s prophecy is useful in this imagery. In Isaiah 7 we read about Ahaz not trusting in the Lord but trusting in himself by checking the water supply as he prepared for the invasion of Syria and Israel. In Isaiah 8:6 God declared that the people had rejected the gentle waters of Shiloh. The image is that the people did not find their hope or their satisfaction in the Lord. Isaiah says that the new community of people will find all their satisfaction in the Lord. Their thirst will be only for the Lord. They will not try to satisfy their thirst by the world’s broken cisterns. David said it like this:

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. (Psalms 63:1 ESV) This will be the heart of the new community that God will create.

We Will Make Known God’s Deeds To The World (Isaiah 12:4-6)

God’s people will embrace their mission to make known the ways of the Lord to the world. This is a quote from Psalms 105:1. We will tell each other and the world to give thanks. We will tell each other and the world to call on the Lord. We will proclaim the glory of the Lord, celebrating with joy like Israel and Miriam did after the exodus. The apostles reflected this very message. As they preach, they identify Jesus as Lord and then connect the need to call upon the name of the Lord for salvation (Acts 2:21; Acts 2:33; Acts 3:13-16; Acts 22:16). The whole world must know what God has done and his name must be glorified throughout the earth. Therefore the apostles and the first century Christians are recorded as proclaiming the name of the Lord Jesus throughout the earth. Isaiah 12 P5 amplifies this truth. “Let this be made known in all the earth.” What should be made known throughout the earth? The Lord has done glorious things. That is why we are singing praises to the Lord and why the Lord must be known throughout the earth. The Lord has done wonderful, glorious things.

Listen to the greatest thing the Lord has done: For the Holy One of Israel is among you in His greatness. (Isaiah 12:6 HCSB) The Lord has come to his people. The Holy One of Israel is in your midst. The pardoning grace of God brings so many blessings. But the greatest blessing is his presence with his people. God will be with his people, no longer separated and no longer hostile toward his sinful creation. The Gospel of Matthew declares that Jesus is Immanuel, which means “God is with us” (Matthew 1:23). The Gospel of John declares that God became flesh and tabernacled among us (John 1:14). Give thanks, shout for joy, sing praises, and put your trust and hope in God because God is with us and has come to comfort his people.

We began our lesson by quoting the apostle Paul and we will end with the very same quote: What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32 ESV)

God Will Swallow Up Death Forever

Isaiah 13-25

By Brent Kercheville

The Supremacy of God Over The Nations (Isaiah 13-23)

Chapters 13-23 of Isaiah’s prophecy picture the sovereignty and supremacy of God over the nations. The world nations are described one by one as God decrees his judgment over them. We will explore in further detail many of the points declared by Isaiah in our Wednesday Bible study. But I want to give you a flavor of what Isaiah is doing as he pronounces doom upon all the nations of the earth. Chapters 13-14 are a declaration of judgment against Babylon. The thing that should be amazing to us about this prophecy is that Babylon is not yet the world power yet. As we have seen in our study of Isaiah, Assyria is the world power. In time, Babylon will conquer the Assyrian Empire. But Isaiah prophesies that once Babylon rises, it too shall fall.

Yet in the midst of this judgment declaration, notice two verses of hope for God’s people in Isaiah 14:1-2. While on the surface we may conclude that this is talking about the return of Judah to its land from Babylonian captivity in 536 BC. However, read the last line of Isaiah 14:2 and we will quickly realize that Isaiah cannot be talking about the return from Babylonian captivity. Isaiah says that the nations are going to come and attach themselves to Israel in verse 1. Then Isaiah says that Israel will possess the nations like slaves. Further, Israel will take captive those who were their captors and rule over those who oppressed them. For those of you familiar with history will know that this never happened in any physical sense. While Israel was allowed to return to the land, they were still under the rule of the nations: first Persia, then Greece, then Rome. Israel never ruled over its captors. So Isaiah is not speaking in a physical sense but in a spiritual sense and the rule of God will extend over the nations of the earth. Keep this spiritual rule of God in your mind as we traverse these prophetic chapters in Isaiah.

Isaiah 19:19-25 show this spiritual call of the nations to the Lord. Verse 19 shows an altar to the Lord in the midst of Egypt and a pillar to the Lord at Egypt’s borders. Egypt sounds like they are the people of God. They have an altar to the Lord and God protecting them. Verse 20 sounds like the days of the judges of Israel such that when an oppressor came, God would deliver them when the people called out to him. Egypt will become the Lord’s land. In fact, not only Egypt but also Assyria as a highway is made between the two nations, which would have run through the nation of Israel. All three nations will worship the Lord, a blessing in the midst of the earth. Verse 25 declares Egypt to be God’s people, Assyria to be the work of God’s hands, and Israel to be God’s inheritance. The nations are pictured as joining together as one people on earth under God’s rule. In Isaiah 23:18 we read that even the merchandise and wages of Tyre will become holy to the Lord and given to the people of God. The message is that God rules over the nations. God rules over the peoples. He will bring his judgment on the nations that do not yield to his rule. However, Isaiah 22 records that Jerusalem is included in these national judgments. Previously, God declared that Jerusalem would survive the Assyrian invasion. But Jerusalem will not survive the next invasion. Here is what the Lord said, “Surely this iniquity will not be atoned for you until you die” (Isaiah 22:14).

The Supremacy of God Over The Earth (Isaiah 24)

The struggle with the upcoming chapters is trying to determine what time Isaiah is speaking about coming. I am going to keep the context that we have been following through these chapters, which is that Isaiah is speaking about the current conditions of judgment and the future hope and deliverance that will arrive with the Messiah, the new Davidic king (cf. Isaiah 11:1). I am not able in this lesson to continue through chapter 28, but feel free to study ahead and notice the messianic language found in each of those chapters, describing what will happen when the Messiah comes to rule.

Isaiah 13-23 has been a global judgment. All the nations, even Judah and Jerusalem, are under the condemnation of God. No one has been righteous. All of the nations are full of pride and worthy of judgment. Therefore, Isaiah 24:1-3 declares that the Lord will judge all the peoples equally. The Lord will empty the earth and scatter the inhabitants. The prophecy has a tone that comes from the scene at Babel when the people were full of arrogance and pride and God had to scatter them over the face of the earth (the word “scatter” is the same Hebrew word in Genesis 11:9 as here in Isaiah 24:1). God does not play favorites in judgment. All the earth will be scattered in judgment again.

Isaiah 24:4-6 describe the earth as mourning, withering, and languishing. The curse is devouring the earth. Isaiah 24:5 pictures something interesting. “The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants.” The earth is defiled because of the people who are walking on it. The people have transgressed the laws, the statutes, and the everlasting covenant. Everything that God has given to the earth has been broken by the people, Israel and the nations alike. But I want us to see the language of the earth mourning and being defiled because of the sin that is being committed on the earth. Romans 5 argues that everything changed through Adam’s sin. Turn to Romans 8:18-22 and notice that Paul speaks with the similar language of Isaiah 24.

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. (Romans 8:18-22 ESV)

Isaiah pictures the earth languishing, mourning, and under the curse because of the sins of the people. Sin has caused the earth to mourn. Paul pictures the earth, therefore, looking forward to the redemption of the inhabitants of the earth, the sons of God. Creation was subjected to futility because of the sins of humanity, as exemplified in Genesis 3 when the ground was cursed because of Adam’s sin. So the earth in a metaphorical sense looks forward to being set free from corruption. Therefore, we are looking forward to our redemption and glorification. The earth is also looking forward to our redemption because it is ruined by our sinful ways. So God is bringing judgment to the earth in Isaiah’s prophecy.

Isaiah 24:7-13 shows the result of God’s judgment. God equally judges each city and each nation. The wasted city represents world culture and human civilization that rejects God’s will and wastes its potential for God. But in Isaiah 24:14-16 there is a glimmer of hope in the cascade of doom. There will be a worldwide chorus from all the nations. Praise naturally flows from those who know God and observe what he has done. But there is hopelessness to the inhabitants of the earth. Their doom is certain. Isaiah 24:17-18 uses images to show there is no escape. Those who try to run will fall into the pit. Those who try to climb out of the pit will fall into a snare. No one will escape the deserved and right judgments of the Lord. Further, Isaiah 24:18 comes from the language used to describe Noah’s flood (Genesis 7:11). The windows of heaven are opened and the foundations of the earth shake. But after the destruction of the nations, God is pictured as reigning gloriously, outshining the sun and the moon (24:19-23). The destroying of the nations is the rule of God. God punishes all enemies and rebels, whether in heaven or on earth. The message is similar to the prophecy of Daniel, who saw the kingdom of God as a stone smashing and shattering the nations, represented by the statue. David also prophesied that the enthronement of the Messiah would be the shattering of the earth.

I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” (Psalms 2:7-9 ESV)

There are many other passages that speak of the Messiah shattering the earth (Revelation 19:11-16; Isaiah 11:4; Zechariah 14:8-19). Rather than continuing the images of destruction, Isaiah turns and praises God by describing the victory that is found in the acts of God. This victory note is found in Isaiah 25.

What The Messiah Will Accomplish (Isaiah 25)

Personal knowledge of God marks the people of God in the coming age. Notice the personal relationship that is described: “You are my God!” People will come to him and desire him because of the wonderful things he has accomplished for his people. The worldly, wasted city is made a heap. When human strength and pride are removed, many will turn from their old ways and glorify God. God is pictured as all that any person needs (Isaiah 25:4-5). A stronghold, a shelter, and shade for all people. Those who are hostile to God are subdued by the Lord.

There are two great victory blessings afforded to the people who belong to the Lord. We have seen this phrase, “on this mountain” a couple times in this prophecy (Isaiah 2:2; Isaiah 11:9). The mountain pictures the kingdom rule of the coming Messiah. Here are the things the Messiah is going to do, the blessings the Messiah will issue, as he establishes the nations under his rule.

First, there is a covenant banquet pictured in Isaiah 25:6. Notice that the covenant banquet is extended to “all peoples,” Jews and Gentiles alike. Everyone can come to the banqueting of the Messiah. Notice it is a rich banquet with the best food and best wine. He will not give bread and water. He will not offer meager rations. He will give his people the very best. Jesus tells his parables driven off of this kingdom banquet imagery (cf. Matthew 22:1-14; Luke 14:15-24). Both parables speak of the nations coming in off of the highways and hedges because the invited refused to enter and eat of the glorious banquet. Do you see the contrast in Isaiah? Chapter 24 pictures the wreckage and judgment of the earth. The land is desolate and cursed. But there is this mountain where banqueting is occurring. Will we choose the emptiness and desolation that the world offers or will we choose the rich food and wine of the kingdom of God? Why would we look for joy and pleasure in this world that is described as empty and wasted? Why would we think we can find anything lasting in the earth that is being laid waste by God? But there is a mountain you can come to that is offering all you need for eternal joy and eternal satisfaction.

Second, there is yet another blessing to those who come to the mountain of the Lord. God will swallow up the covering that is cast over all the peoples. What is the covering that hangs over us? The Lord says that it is the covering of death. God is going to swallow up death forever and will wipe tears from all faces. The apostle Paul quotes the first part of Isaiah 25:8 in his first letter to the Corinthians:

50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:50-57 ESV)

Notice that verse 54 is the quotation from Isaiah 25. Paul says that this prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled with our perishable, mortal bodies are changed to imperishable, immortal bodies. This is the second promise to those who belong to the mountain of the Lord. The power of death is broken. We sing the song of victory because though our flesh dies, resurrection is promised and eternal life is given to us. Notice how Paul began this in verse 50. This is what it means to inherit the kingdom of God. The mountain of the Lord stands in victory for all who will come to him.

Further, God will wipe every tear from our eyes. This is quoted in Revelation 21:4. The loud voice declares that there is no more death, no more crying, and no more pain for we have gone home to be with the Lord. Therefore we must declare the words of Isaiah 25:9. We trust and God saves. God has accomplished our victory and we will rejoice in the salvation he has given us. But listen to verse 9. We must wait for the Lord. Trusting in God is about waiting for him. Those who confidently wait on the Lord must not depend on instant gratification! God’s greatest victory is over death and we must confidently wait for the redemption of our bodies.

And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:23 ESV)

Put your trust in the Lord. Wait for the Lord. Praise the Lord for his mighty deeds. Do not turn back to the desert wasteland of this world, parched, empty, and dry. Come to the mountain of the Lord. Find eternal joy and satisfaction in the kingdom of the Lord, knowing that we are awaiting the redemption of our bodies and the deliverance of our souls from death. Creation is eagerly waiting. Are we eagerly waiting or have we returned to the wasted city, seeking the futility of the world?

Kept In Perfect Peace

Isaiah 26:1-21

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah is prophesying about the way things will be in the future. In our immediate context, Isaiah has spoken about a coming time when all peoples will come to the mountain of the Lord for banqueting and feasting with the Lord. Rather than putting their trust in the wreckage of the world, people are going to find rich food and wine when the Messiah comes. In the kingdom of the Messiah people will find their satisfaction and joy. The twenty-sixth chapter of Isaiah continues to picture what will happen when the Messiah comes and establishes his kingdom, the mountain of the Lord.

Security (Isaiah 26:1-6)

In that new kingdom there is going to be a song that is sung in the land. Listen to the words of this song. “We have a strong city.” In the Lord we have a strong city. We don’t think of the need for strong cities today. Back then you needed a strong city, high walls, large towers, and powerful armies to protect and defend the inhabitants of the city. Otherwise your city would be conquered and you would be captured or killed by the enemy. Isaiah has pictured the devastation of every city on the earth. No city will stand. Not even Jerusalem will stand (cf. Isaiah 22). No earthly city is strong enough to withstand the judgments of the Lord for sins. But there will be a time when people will have a strong city to turn to. What makes this city strong? Notice that the walls are made of salvation. The strength of this city is the salvation the Lord offers. Isaiah 24:10 described a city laid waste. Now there is a strong city and its strength is in the salvation God offers. Who are the people that get to go into this city? Verse 2 tells us that there is a group of people who are allowed to enter. It is a nation that is allowed to come in. Not just an individual but a whole nation can enter. What nation is allowed to enter? What group of people is this? It is the righteous nation. It is the people that are faithful to the Lord. They are the ones who can enter this strong city.

God keeps each individual in that nation who enters through that city in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3). We will have real peace and stability in our lives because our thoughts are fixed on the Lord. Those who have their minds resting on God, a mind dependent on God are those who live in perfect peace. There is true peace in life that people can have if they will enter the strong city. There is no peace living outside of the strong city. Living outside the strong city means that we are open to attack. We have no defenses against those who would desire to wreck and ruin our lives. True peace, perfect peace can only be found in the strong city. The Lord God is the everlasting rock. Everything else is movable and shakable in life. The Lord is our rock and we can put our trust in him forever.

Those who enter the strong city must be free of pride. They cannot think to themselves that they can protect or defend themselves. The proud are humbled before the Lord. Only the righteous wise will recognize that they need to get inside the strong city of God, relying upon the walls of salvation for their protection. Real security and peace comes from resting in the salvation that God gives to those who are his. Trust in the Lord forever because he is our immovable foundation.

The Way of Life of the Faithful (Isaiah 26:7-9)

This is the path of the faithful. The faithful see their path in life as the divinely smoothed path. The path leads us in the way we must go and God blesses those who walk down that righteous path. Jesus said that this path was narrow and difficult, and few find it (cf. Matthew 7:14). But it is the path we must travel to belong to the strong city. Isaiah 26:8 further pictures the lifestyles of the faithful. First, we walk in the ways of God’s laws (NIV). Second, God’s name and God’s renown are the desires of our hearts. His honor, his glory, his worship, and his celebration are the deepest desires of our hearts. We want to see God praised. We want to see God celebrated. We want to see God worshiped. We do not want anything more than God receiving what he ought. Those who enter the strong city and find peace are those who look on their earthly path as God-given, cling to God in faithful expectation and desire, and remain steadfast in their obedience to him.

Blind to God’s Blessings (Isaiah 26:10-11)

The faithful are not blind to the blessings of God, but the world is. When grace and favor are shown to the wicked, they do not go and learn righteousness. The wicked continue in their wickedness and do not see the majesty of the Lord. God’s blessings and grace were to cause the wicked to turn to righteousness. This is the reason we have turned from wickedness to righteousness. God’s goodness is supposed to drive our change from evil toward walking in the laws of the Lord. They do not see how God is ready to act for his people. Let them see the zeal that the Lord has for his people!

You Alone Are Our God (Isaiah 26:12-15)

Isaiah 26:12-15 pictures how God has done for us everything that we need. His people will choose the Lord because of all that he has done. Notice verse 13: we have let other masters rule over us but they are nothing. There is no life in them. They are worthless. The faithful recognize that there is no life in false gods and false masters and therefore reject them. We will reject the false god of sexuality. The world tells us that you can find joy and fulfillment in better sex or with different partners. Every magazine promotes this idol on the cover. Five ways to have better sexual relations tonight. Ten movies to drive your partners wild. These are false gods that do not bring fulfillment. The faithful recognize the emptiness of pornography and sexual immorality and reject it because of all God has done for us. The faithful reject the false gods of power and success. Even if we have charge over a few people or a few thousand people through our work or business, it does not solve the inner void that you are seeking to be fulfilled. The faithful recognize that having more power will not bring satisfaction. The faithful recognize that wealth is not the answer to this life. The more wealth we acquire, the more wealth we need. More just births the need for more. The faithful do not find their identity in their careers. You are not somebody just because you work hard or think you have an important job. Everyone thinks they have an important job and yet each of us are replaceable. The faithful desire God to be honored, not themselves. The faithful will do anything so that glory will belong to the Lord. We will not sit idle. We will not serve the idol of comfort. We will act for the glory of God because God has richly blessed us.

The Self-Sufficient Are Destroyed (Isaiah 26:16-21)

Self-sufficiency is like giving birth to the wind. We cannot save ourselves. We cannot bring to our souls the satisfaction that we are yearning for. The writer of Ecclesiastes called such self-sufficiency, “chasing after the wind.” Our self-sufficiency only brings about two things: (1) God’s judgment and (2) senseless suffering. Notice the language returns to the present. The nation has tried the road of self-sufficiency. They tried to live on their own wisdom by turning to the Assyrians for protection. It was a foolish venture. They have invoked the anger of the Lord for not listening and trusting in the Lord. They have also brought about their own suffering for now Assyria will be the instrument of their judgment. These things did not have to happen. But the people failed to trust in the Lord.

What a thought for us today! Our self-sufficiency is pointless. It is like chasing the wind. All that we think in the world that can provide for us what we need is empty and futile. Further, seeking those things invokes God’s deserved wrath upon us. Not only this, we experience all kinds of consequences and suffering when we pursue these other masters. We are enslaving ourselves to false gods, empty masters who will not bring us satisfaction. Only God frees us from these empty ways and gives us the joy we are seeking.

Conclusion

Only God can bring true, complete peace and stability for life. God’s people look to him and wait with hope. Our hope is found in the walls of salvation. We are safe in God’s strong city. They were wrong for seeking other masters and were judged for it. But God is making the offer of new life to the world again (Isaiah 26:19). God is coming out of his chambers and executing his wrath upon all peoples, nations, and cities (Isaiah 26:20-21). But those who turn to the strong city of the Lord will find salvation. They will find new life. They will experience a new Passover, as the wrath of God will pass by those who are faithful, belonging to the strong city of God. Life will be offered again to the nation, not the physical nation, but those who put their trust in the Lord. Revelation 21:22-27 describes the beauty of this city where only the pure are allowed in to be with the Lord forever in glory.

New Exodus

Isaiah 27:1-13

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah is in the midst of describing life in the new kingdom when the Messiah arrives. In Isaiah 26 we saw that those who are faithful enter into the strong city of God whose walls are salvation, where perfect peace is experienced. Isaiah continues to describe the new life when the Christ comes in his kingdom. We see the clues for this in Isaiah 27:1-2 and Isaiah 27:12-13 in which each of these four verses begin with, “In that day.” In these images we are seeing a new exodus that the Christ will accomplish, for Moses declared that a prophet like himself would rise up and lead the people.

Your Enemy Defeated (Isaiah 27:1)

The first image is found in the first verse. The Lord is pictured with a strong, great, and hard sword and wielding that sword against Leviathan, the serpent and dragon. The Leviathan is used in a few places in the scriptures and it is used to describe an immensely powerful enemy (Job 3:8; Job 41:1-32; Psalms 74:14; Psalms 104:26). Psalms 74 is notable because Leviathan is used as a description of the power of Egypt, which enslaved the people of God in the days of Moses. The use of the dragon image is rather rare in the scriptures. Ezekiel uses the dragon image to speak about the Pharaoh over Egypt (Ezekiel 29:3; Ezekiel 32:2). Isaiah also refers to Egypt as the dragon in Isaiah 51:9. So the Leviathan is the powerful enemy of God’s people, enslaving them and harming them. God is described as slaying the dragon when the people were released from the power of Egypt. Now Isaiah looks forward to the days of the Christ and expects the powerful enemy of God’s people to be destroyed again. What is Isaiah looking for the Christ to do that will be the slaying of the dragon, the punishing of Leviathan?

In Revelation 19 we see the Christ riding in victoriously his white horse, destroying all the enemies that are in his path. His robe is covered in blood and from his mouth comes a sharp sword to destroy the enemies (Revelation 19:13-15). Listen to what Christ’s power accomplished:

And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. (Revelation 20:2-3 ESV)

Why is Satan called the dragon in Revelation? Satan is the great dragon, the ancient serpent, because he is the great enemy of God’s people. Satan is the power behind these nations harming and destroying God’s people. Satan being called the great dragon is not a random image choice. The dragon has always been oppressing and attacking God’s people. But Isaiah prophesied of the days when the Christ would come and he would slay the dragon. Isaiah sees a new exodus coming, when the people of God would be released from their great oppressor, the dragon, who has enslaved them because of their sins. The ultimate enemy of God’s people will be slain and God’s people will be set free. Isaiah sees it and John in the Revelation saw it also. Christ will defeat the ancient serpent, the great dragon, Satan and set his people free.

Vineyard Reversal (Isaiah 27:2-6)

The next prophetic image shows that we have understood Isaiah’s dragon image properly. Isaiah now sees a pleasant vineyard and is going to sing of it. This is a notable image in Isaiah. Go back to Isaiah 5 and recall that Isaiah described Israel. God had planted a beautiful, expensive vineyard and looked for it to bear grapes. But instead of producing good fruit the vineyard produced wild grapes. Therefore, the Lord said he would destroy the vineyard and lay it waste. Isaiah now looks to the coming of Christ that would happen “in that day.” Now Isaiah sees a vineyard that is pleasant and fruitful. Listen to how God describes himself concerning the vineyard now. The Lord is the keeper of the vineyard. He waters it every moment. He guards it day and night so that no one may harm it or damage it. Listen to the beginning of Isaiah 27:4 : “I have no wrath.” What a contrast to chapter 5 where the vineyard was being destroyed for its sinfulness. Now there is no more wrath. God is keeping his people, caring for them day and night, moment by moment. In fact, God desires to prove himself toward his people. Just let a weed grow up! If any thorns or briers come up, God is happy to battle against them. Any opponent to God’s people will be fought, trampled, and burned. Wrath is not toward his people but toward those who would come against his people. The enemies have an opportunity to come to the Lord and find peace. If they will not, then they will be destroyed for standing against God and his people. God is at peace with his people, watering and caring for his people. This leads to the vineyard blossoming and filling the whole world with its fruit (27:6). In Isaiah 5 the Lord looked at his vineyard and he did not find the fruit he was expecting. Now the Lord sees fruitfulness in his vineyard.

Those who participate in this exodus from sin and are kept and cared for by the Lord bear fruit throughout the world. In John 15 Jesus speaks of his disciples abiding in him and bearing fruit. Those who do not bear fruit are taken away. Jesus said that whoever abides in him bears fruit. Notice how the imagery is the same. Those who belong to this new vineyard bear fruit throughout the earth. Jesus went on to say:

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. (John 15:8 ESV)

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. (John 15:16 ESV)

God is glorified by our fruit bearing. We were appointed to go and bear fruit for Jesus. Isaiah is looking forward to this time when the new Israel in Christ is fruitful. We must see this as our joyful task. What God has cultivated in our lives is to produce something in our hearts and in our actions. Those who experience the new exodus from sin and belong to God’s vineyard are producing fruit to the glory of the Father. Our fruitfulness verifies our place in the vineyard of the Lord.

Saved With Purpose (Isaiah 27:7-11)

Isaiah turns back to his present audience and wants them to observe and recognize the grace of God. God has not struck Judah like he struck the world nations. The other nations were totally annihilated. They were brought to a complete end. But not so with Judah. God is remaining faithful to his covenant promises by not utterly destroying the nation as it deserved. The people were removed from the land so that their sins could be removed (Isaiah 27:8-9). Exile was needed to make them remorseful for their sins and develop penitent awareness of their place before God.

Part of the Egyptian exodus and entering the promised land was the eradication of their idols (Exodus 34:13). In the new exodus Isaiah pictures the people being exiled for their sinfulness so that the fruit they will bear in the future will be the ending of their idolatry. They will not have idols in their hearts or altars in their lands. There will be nothing that pulls their heart away from the Lord this time. This is some of the fruit that we are to be bearing for the Lord. We must examine what idols reside in our hearts and homes and remove them with great diligence. Notice verse 9 where God declares that the idol removal is the fruit of atonement. Understanding the atonement that God is making for us means that we will shatter the idols in our lives. If we are keeping our idols, then we do not understand the atonement that God has made for us through his Son. We will not want idols anymore because we have a penitent awareness of sin and are so thankful for the atonement offered to us. We will see our idols as broken cisterns that hold no water and do not satisfy. Your idol is what you trust. If your only hope and trust is not in the Lord, then you have idols that must be destroyed for his atonement.

The Lord’s Harvest (Isaiah 27:12-13)

Isaiah 27:12 begins by taking us back to the time of the coming Christ, “In that day.” Isaiah pictures in the day of the coming Christ that the Lord will thresh out grain between the river Euphrates and the brook of Egypt. These rivers were the traditional geographical boundary lines of the promised land. God will go through and gather his people, like a harvest. Those that are false are threshed out of the grain and his people will be gleaned one by one. Further, the lost of the world are going to come into this harvest time and they will worship the Lord on the holy mountain. When Christ sets up his kingdom the world is going to gather to him for worship. A worldwide exodus from sin will occur and all the lost can be harvested to salvation. All the peoples of the earth can be brought in through the atonement offered by God. Thus they will come together in this kingdom full of praise and worship.

Conclusion

God is transforming people into beautiful, fruitful plants through his atoning and conquering work and placing them in his vineyard. Christ would set people free from sin by slaying the Leviathan. God would not have wrath but will protect and defend his people who are those who bear fruit. Part of our fruitfulness is removing the idols from our hearts and lives because of the new exodus we have experienced. In spite of our rebellion, God is gathering all that are his into kingdom so that he will be glorified and worshiped by all the earth.

A Sure Foundation

Isaiah 28:1-29

By Brent Kercheville

What Is Your Crown? (Isaiah 28:1-6)

Isaiah turns back to the problem of pride in the hearts of the people. Notice the imagery in verse 1: “the proud crown.” The image is repeated in verse 3. God had blessed the nation of Israel only for them to take the blessings and use them for their own selfish pride and desires. Isaiah calls them “the drunkard of Ephraim” and says they are “overcome with wine.” Israel has done what the world tells us to do: get all you can out of this life. Live life to the fullest and max out every want and desire. There is no restraint. There is no control. There is no telling ourselves “no.” So their crown is their own glory, their own wealth, and their own lives. I do what I want. I will do things that make myself happy and when I am not happy, then it is someone else’s fault. They exult in themselves and their crown is their own happiness. These people are overcome with wine. The result of this pride and this lifestyle is that Israel will be trampled underfoot. They will be like ripe figs, plucked, and gulped down with ease.

In Isaiah 28:5-6 Isaiah looks out to the future and speaks of a new people that will come “in that day.” We have observed repeatedly in Isaiah’s prophecy that the phrase “in that day” has reference to the events surrounding the arrival of the Messiah and his kingdom. In that day the Lord will be the crown of glory to the remnant of his people. There is a better day that has yet to dawn when the Lord will be true crown of his people and their city will be impregnable. The gate symbolizes the defense structure of the city. Listen to what Isaiah is picturing. There is a day when the remnant, the people of God when Christ comes, will find their pride, glory, value, and esteem in the Lord and not in the ways of the world. The people who are with Christ will find the Lord to be their crowning beauty. They will make decisions and judgments based on the justice of the Lord, not the morals of the world. They will find their strength in the Lord and not in themselves. God will be their pride and joy. God will be their glory and crown. The people will find in God all they need. God will be their foremost and their uttermost. They will not be a nation under God that is consumed in pursuing their own pride and joy, comfort and desires. God is going to be their treasure and God will be more delightful to them than anything in this world. This is exactly what Jesus taught in a very short parable:

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” (Matthew 13:44 ESV)

Do you see the same idea here? Those who belong to the kingdom of God, this new family in Christ, see Jesus as a great treasure that they have found. In joy they give us everything and sell everything to have the treasure. They will see through the world’s deception and emptiness and prize Jesus above all else. God’s people will not be distracted by alcohol and other pleasures of life. Let me illustrate the idea. Suppose you have a treasure. You have found one million dollars. Will you give me your million dollar treasure in exchange for my old 2002 truck? Of course not? Will you trade your treasure for all the money I have in my wallet? No chance. You recognize the high value of your treasure and you will not trade it for anything else because nothing is as valuable. Seeing Jesus as the great treasure means we reject anything else that is not the pursuing of him.

What Rules Your Life? (Isaiah 28:7-13)

After getting the people of Judah to listen to and agree with condemnation against Israel, Isaiah turns to Judah and says that they are no better than those in the northern nation. “These also reel with wine.” They are no better for they are also consumed by alcohol. Listen to the graphic description in verse 8: “For all tables are full of filthy vomit, with no space left.” (Isaiah 28:8 ESV) They also are indulging the body. They are giving in to their desires.

Isaiah 28:9-10 recounts the criticisms of the people against Isaiah. Being filled with worldliness, the people are mocking Isaiah. The first mockery is against the simplicity of the message. The content is just too simple. Verse 9 reveals how the only people who need to explanation of Isaiah’s words are those who have just been weaned from nursing. Isaiah’s teachings are only suitable for those in the earliest stage of learning. Isaiah’s message has been fairly simple: trust God. Stop trusting in other things. This is not very deep teaching according to the priests and the false prophets. They have some dazzling teachings and can really spin the scriptures. We must take care that we do not become like these people or like the Athenians in Paul’s day who were simply looking for something new to hear. Sometimes the word of God is complicated and requires work to understand its meaning. Sometimes the meaning is straightforward. Either way, if it is the word of God, the message is powerful, deep, and life changing. If the words are from the mouth of God, then simple, straightforward teachings are just as needed for life and godliness.

The second criticism of Isaiah’s teaching is found in verse 10. They do not like the way he teaches. Seeing and hearing the words in Hebrew will help us see the criticism clearly: sav lasav sav lasav qav laqav qav laqav. Isaiah preaches law by law, line by line, and it is just “blah, blah, blah, blah.” To put it in our language, they hate that Isaiah preaches verse by verse, line by line, law by law, rule by rule. They do not want to hear it! They do not want to hear the word of the Lord. They have no desire for the law of God. They have no taste for hearing the word of the Lord. We may be shocked by this. But brethren, we must recognize that there are people and there are churches that do not want to hear the word of God line by line, law by law. It is a sad state of affairs. If studying a book of the Bible and reading it and teaching from it line by line is blah, blah, bald, then we have a serious heart problem.

Listen to the consequences to Judah for having this attitude toward God’s word. In Isaiah 28:11 God says that he will speak to the people with a foreign tongue from now on. You don’t want to hear the word of the Lord, then you are going to hear the word of the Lord in a foreign language because you are going to be taken from your land and exiled in another country. God does not take lightly our lack of desire to hearing God’s word. Our lack of maturity is a serious offense to God. In fact, the apostle Paul quotes Isaiah 28:11 in 1 Corinthians 14:21. Paul is comparing the Corinthian Christians to these people. Recall that they were glorifying themselves for speaking in tongues, that is, foreign languages. He tells them that they are acting sinfully by elevating one of God’s miraculous spiritual gifts above another. In 1 Corinthians 14:20 Paul told the Corinthians to stop thinking like children and mature in their thinking. The Corinthians’ distain for plain speech and plain teaching condemned them like it did in Isaiah’s day. Their usage of tongues will cause unbelievers not to listen to the Lord, but to just hear, “Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.”

Further, listen to the message they are condemning. They are condemning God’s message of grace. The message of rest and grace of God is what is boring to them (Isaiah 28:12). But notice Isaiah 28:13. God does not change his message. We can find his message as boring as we want, but God is not going to change the message and no teacher of God should change the message. The message will not change and we will be judged for our treatment of God’s word.

The Covenant of Death (Isaiah 28:14-15)

Isaiah now summarizes what they have done. The security they have signed up for has turned out to be the covenant of death. They thought they were finding security and hope in Egypt to save them. But by not placing their trust in the Lord to deliver them but trusting in themselves and making alliances with other nations they have signed their own death warrant. Outside of trusting in the Lord and his promises there is only death. Trusting in anything else but God is to sign our own death warrant. Any shelter other than God is a shelter of lies. So what is God going to do about this? The answer is shocking.

The Sure Foundation (Isaiah 28:16-29)

God is going to lay a sure foundation. God is going to act and his going to save you from yourselves. God acts and will save us from our foolish and sinful ways. God is going to lay a foundation in Zion and whoever does not act in haste. The idea is that the one who believes in this foundation will not act out of panic. They will not frantically try to save themselves but put their trust in the sure foundation of God. Isaiah 28:18 again speaks to the grace of God as God says he will annul the covenant of death. They should die for trusting in someone else but the Lord. But God is going to offer them a new foundation to put their trust in rather than utterly destroying Judah. In the foundation of God there is true rest. Trusting in ourselves offers as much rest as a bed that is too short or as much comfort as a blanket that is too narrow (Isaiah 28:20). The foundation that God will lay will bring true rest and true comfort and those who believe in that foundation will not panic or act out of thoughtless haste.

Isaiah tells the people why they do not need to panic and why they can put their hope and trust in the Lord. The purpose of plowing is the sowing of a carefully planted crop (Isaiah 28:24-26). A farmer does not plow without purpose. The purpose of overturning the soil is to bring a crop. God is pictured as purposefully plowing, thoughtfully threshing, and crushing with calculated care. Listen to Isaiah 28:29. The counsel of the Lord is wonderful and his wisdom is magnificent. That is why the righteous do not panic. God is calculated in his works and purposeful in his activities. God’s foundation is the place we put all our hope in trust. The apostle Peter quotes this text and shows us what this means for us as Christians.

4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” 7 So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” (1 Peter 2:4-7 ESV)

The foundation that God would lay is Jesus. He is the reason we do not panic in life. He is the sure foundation. To trust in anything else is to make a covenant of death and sign our death warrant. Our glory and honor is found in the Lord Jesus and not in ourselves. People will find in Jesus all that they need. Jesus will be the foremost and uttermost. He will be the foundation of our lives because he is our treasure and we will prize Jesus above everything else. Do not let God’s offer of grace through Jesus on whom to build your life be to you, “Blah, blah, blah, blah.” His message of salvation will become a message of doom if we do not build our lives on Jesus.

Don’t Go To Church: The Eyes of the Blind Shall See

Isaiah 29:1-24

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah has been prophesying about the sins of the nation of Judah and the impending judgment due for their sins. However, with each pass of prophetic judgment, Isaiah also declares the great graciousness of God who will not give his people what they fully deserve. Chapter 28 described the perpetual wickedness and constant debauchery of the people. They hate listening to God’s word being proclaimed, they are full of drunkenness, and they are putting their trust in other nations for their deliverance rather than the living God. The layout of this chapter may seem backward to what we are used to. We are used to the problem being stated and then the resolution to the problem being declared. However, in this chapter we are going to see the outcome to the problem first (Isaiah 29:1-8), then we are going to hear what the problem is (Isaiah 29:9-16), and conclude with how the problem will be resolved (Isaiah 29:17-24). In the end we will be blown away by the generosity of God’s grace.

The Outcome to the Problem (Isaiah 29:1-8)

The first four verses describe the judgment that is going to occur against Jerusalem. Notice that Jerusalem is called, “Ariel,” which most scholars believe means “altar hearth.” Therefore the first verse begins with a sarcastic tone. Jerusalem is the altar and they keep performing their feasts and sacrifices year after year. But distress and judgment is falling on the city. God is going to encircle the city, besiege it, and raise siege works against it. The city is going to come under attack and be surrounded. The proud nation will be brought low.

But Isaiah 29:5-8 describes a radical reversal. With the city surrounded and under attack, the multitude of the foes will be like small dust and passing chaff. Those who are going to fight against Jerusalem will suddenly be nothing, like a dream or vision in the night (Isaiah 29:7). The throng of foes will turn to dust. God will come as the Lord of armies against these foes. It is going to look hopeless and devastating. But it will be more like a bad dream. You will wake up and it will all over and gone. This is an amazing declaration about what is going to take place. Jerusalem is going to be under attack. But suddenly it will all end, just like a dream. The enemies that thought they would have their fill will end up empty-handed (Isaiah 29:8). What we see is God is trying to wake his people up by bringing a judgment against them, but at the last hour taking the judgment away so that they will see the glory of God and turn to him. This prophecy appears to be speaking about the future event when Assyria would surround Jerusalem, but one night an angel of the Lord would drive back the 185,000 soldiers (2 Kings 19:35) without the inhabitants of Jerusalem doing anything. It would be the gracious work of God. Why is all of this happening? What are the people doing that God is bringing severe distress and judgment?

The Problem Declared (Isaiah 29:9-16)

The problem is that the people are blind. Isaiah utters this as, “Shock yourselves and be shocked!” You have blinded yourselves. Isaiah says that you want to be blind and that is your problem. This is astonishing and appalling. Who would want to not see? Who would want to remain in the dark? Humans do! Listen to what the apostle John records:

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. (John 3:19 ESV)

We love the darkness. We have blinded ourselves and do not want to see the light. It truly is an astonishing thing. Rather than seeing, knowing, and comprehending the truth, we would rather remain in the darkness, not knowing, not seeing, not comprehending but simply living in a delusion. They are staggering and behaving foolishly, but not because they have drunk wine. It it because they walk in the darkness. Further, the Lord has contributed to this. The Lord is described as pouring out on them a spirit of deep sleep. God has given them the urge to sleep by withholding prophets and seers. If you want to walk in darkness, then you will walk in darkness. If you want to be blind, then stay blind. God has sent them word and prophet only for the people’s rejection to blind them further. Why would God send more prophets? You have rejected the word of the Lord. You have chosen your path.

Isaiah 29:11-12 explain further their foolishness. The one who cannot read does not exert himself to open the scroll. It is too hard! It is too much work! God is trying to give the people a message, but the people are saying that it is too hard to figure out. It is not worth the effort. Imagine the picture Isaiah is painting. Read this scroll from the Lord and the response of the people is that the scroll is sealed. They do not want to put forward any effort to find out the will of the Lord. It would be like giving a person a Bible and the response being that the book is closed and therefore he won’t read it. Isaiah 29:12 condemns the people even further. The one who cannot read does not bother to learn how so as to learn the message from God. It would be like saying the book of Isaiah is a little difficult and I don’t wan’t to learn it. The people are indifferent to God’s word. They are lazy and disinterested.

But Isaiah 29:13 is the kicker to the story. The people are acting like they do care. They draw near to God with their mouths and honor God with their lips. They say all the right things. Their words suggest they are not indifferent or lazy toward God. But their hearts show otherwise. This condemnation is very real and something we need to pay careful attention to. The people do not care to get to know the Lord. They do not want to put in the effort to know what God has to say. So how do the people know what to do? Listen to the rest of Isaiah 29:13 : “Their fear of me is a commandment taught by men.” The NIV renders this idea well also, “Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught” (Isaiah 29:13 NIV). The point is that they do not seek to know the Lord and put forth the effort to study and listen to God’s word. Rather, their fear of the Lord and their worship are based on what others have taught them, and not their own passion for him. They do not desire to know the Lord. They do not give all their effort to seek him. They are doing what they are doing simply because they have been told to do what they are doing. They are doing these things to do these things. It is just habit or ritual. It is just doing what they have been told to do. There is no passion. Their hearts are far from the Lord. They are lazy and disinterested toward the things of God. Jesus quoted this text and made the same application to the people while he walked the earth. Jesus condemns the Pharisees for going through the motions, keeping the rules, and knowing their own commands, but not caring for and passionately pursuing the words of God (Matthew 15:1-14; Mark 7:1-13). There are so many points that God is trying to teach us in this prophecy and in the way Jesus applied this prophecy.

1. Do we seek to know God or just receive what others have told us about God? The people were unwilling to learn the ways of God. They simply relied upon what they knew. This is the trigger that turns an enjoyable, exciting relationship with our Lord into a boring, ritualistic religion that has no meaning or power. My purpose as a teacher is not merely to impart to you information about God’s word. Nor am I to preach so that you will just “follow the rules.” My preaching is to show you the glory of God through his word so that you will want to know God for yourself. If my teaching is all you receive from the scriptures, then you have not tasted that the Lord is good and worth your time and effort. Is it too much work to turn off the television and open your Bible? The people were lazy and indifferent toward the word of God.

2. Notice the outcome of not seeking to truly know God through his word: we are blinding ourselves. This should be a scary proposition for us to consider. We keep ourselves from walking in the light and knowing the truth and, perhaps the most important, from knowing the glory of God when we do not seek him. We are missing out on experiencing an unbelievably deep relationship with God. I cannot express to you the joy and strength I have from spending time in the word of God every day. Seeing the glory of God is absolutely life changing.

3. This is the method by which God operates. Jesus would tell parables to see who would spend their time thinking about what he said and come to him for an explanation for his teachings (cf. Matthew 13:13-17). God did not reveal his message on a kindergarten level. He revealed himself in such a way to cause people to seek after him, to learn about him, and explore the depths of his glory. Understanding God does not just come to you. You must engage him and exert to find him to enjoy the riches of his grace. These people in the days of Isaiah are indifferent and will not give the effort to seek the greatness of God.

Even though the people act with great indifference, God would continue his great love and do something astonishing and wonderful that will put down the wisdom of the world (Isaiah 29:14). The cross is the mind-blowing act that will be the wonderful act of God for the world. However, before Isaiah explores what God will do, he interrupts himself with the final condemnation of this chapter concerning the people in Isaiah 29:15-16.

Isaiah exposes the wickedness of our hearts. The people say within themselves, “Who sees us? Who knows us?” This is the lie of sin. We think that no one knows what we are doing. We think that our sins will have no effect on ourselves nor on others. This thinking reveals our determination to be our own masters. We want to live in our sinful ways thinking that there will be no consequences. We want to be in charge of our lives. We want to rule our ways. But listen to Isaiah’s words in verse 16. We have life completely upside down. Who do you think you are! “Shall the potter be regarded as the clay?” Do we have the right to be our own masters and live our own ways? Listen to the arrogant declarations of our wicked hearts. First, can the thing made say to the maker, “He did not make me?” Of course the created cannot deny the creator. The made cannot deny the maker. Yet we are people who are created by our Almighty God and still deny our Creator. How we have life upside down! We are blinding ourselves, not seeking the Lord, and acting like we are masters over our lives. Second, can the thing formed say to the one who formed it, “He has no understanding?” Who do we think we are to suggest that our Creator does not know what he is doing! Do we have more wisdom than God? But we act like it when we do not seek to learn the ways of God and trying to be masters over our lives.

How The Problem Will Be Resolved (Isaiah 29:17-24)

But God is going to do something when he sends Christ “in that day” (Isaiah 29:18). The deaf will hear the words of the book. Also out of the gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The meek and humble will obtain fresh joy in the Lord. The poor will glory in the Holy One of Israel. The great reversal will occur. God’s true people will hear the words of the Lord. God’s book will not be “blah, blah, blah” to them and they will desire to read his words. They will not blind themselves by ignoring God’s message. They will come out of the darkness and their blind eyes will see the glory of the Lord. God’s people will not be arrogant in their knowledge or their ways. They will not act like they are masters of their lives. They will find joy after joy in the Lord and glory in the living God. These people will not be put to shame and have nothing to fear (29:22). These are the works of God’s hands. We have been molded and formed by our Creator to be his workmanship that he called us to be. We will honor God and keep his name holy. We will respect the holiness of God and stand in awe of who he is. His holiness will be central to our lives.

This is what God has called us to be. So how have we done? The final verse gives us great hope since we have been wicked in our hearts like these people. Those who go astray in spirit will come to understanding and those who complain will accept instruction. It is not too late. We can come to understanding and no longer be darkened and blind. Christ is the light which is shining into this world and into our hearts. Repent and receive the instruction of the Lord. Listen to his words and walk in the light of the Lord (Ephesians 5:8-14).

Faithless People, Faithful God

Isaiah 30:1-33

By Brent Kercheville

The twenty-eighth chapter of Isaiah summoned the people to recognize that there is only one sure foundation for life in this uncertain world. There is no security in placing our trust in human wisdom, worldly wealth, or physical power. In the context of our story, the nation of Assyria has wiped out the northern nation called Israel and has conquered the fortified cities of Judah except the capitol city of Jerusalem. Will the people trust in their God or not? This sets the scene for the thirtieth chapter of Isaiah.

Sin: Your Plans Are Not God’s Plans (Isaiah 30:1-7)

Isaiah begins his woe by decrying the people for making plans that are not in line with God’s plans. Isaiah calls them stubborn, rebellious children for doing this. Rather than relying on God who has promised to deliver them, they are turning to Egypt for an alliance to save them from Assyria. Notice what God says in Isaiah 30:2 : “Who set out to go down to Egypt without asking for my direction.” The people are not considering God’s plans. They are not looking for the direction of God. God had told them that he would deliver them but out of unbelief they are making their own plans. The people fail to understand that relying on anyone but God brings shame and no help at all. Notice that God says this in Isaiah 30:7. “Egypt is worthless and empty; therefore I have called her “Do-Nothing” (Rehab) who sits still.” Going our own way and seeking our own life direction leads to failure.

How often we ask all the wrong questions when we make plans for our lives! The most important questions for life are often never asked at all. Do we ask if taking a particular job or having a particular occupation is good for the kingdom of God? Is my choice good for my family’s spirituality? Is this decision good for my spirituality? Will my actions negatively impact other Christians? Will my effort cause the work for God’s kingdom to be hurt in this area? We don’t ask those questions first typically. We ask how much money we can make. We ask if it is something we want to do. We ask if it is something that we like and will make us comfortable. We often do not ask the hard questions. We do not think with spiritual intention. We do not think about how our decision will impact the future faith of our children. We must think so much more carefully about the spiritual impact we are making on other people. Are you disrupting people’s learning or a stumbling block to their faith? Are you causing an obstacle to spiritual growth? It is possible to believe all the right things but still act just like the world. God is concerned with your faith. Do you trust him to make decisions based on him and not on yourself? What a wonderful foundation and comfort to know that you can turn over your life into the hands of God.

The Problem Explained (Isaiah 30:8-17)

Here is the problem: “They are children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord” (Isaiah 30:9). They have no interest in hearing what God has to say. They do not want the truth of God’s word. Listen to verse 10: “Who say to the seers; ‘Do not see,’ and to the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy to us what is right.’” Do not tell us what God has to say. We do not like his message. Instead, tell us what we want to hear. “Speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, leave the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel.” What shocking words! Leave the path of God’s revelation. Go your own path. Tell us things we want to hear. Tell us lies. Don’t tell us things we do not like. God condemns this attitude that does not want to hear all of the words of God but only the things they want to hear. Christians and preachers are under this kind of pressure today. With the concern for having a high attendance, lessons are often given that only pat us on the back and give false assurances rather than teaching all that God has to say. Since the preacher’s income is based on the congregation, it is so easy to listen to that pressure. We must make sure that we demand to hear every verse from God’s word. We want to hear the easy things and the hard things. We want to hear well-known texts and obscure texts. We want to hear words of comfort and words of correction. If God said it, we must want to hear it no matter how difficult the words are and no matter what the consequences of the teachings are. The truth of God’s word must always be valued above teaching messages that are not textually based from scripture.

Notice the condemnation that God proclaims in Isaiah 30:12-14. If you do not want to hear the word of the Lord then your sins will crush you. If we are not seeking to learn all God has to say, how can we ever think we will be saved from our sins? If there is a chance of a wealthy inheritance being left to you, then you will listen to every word of that final will to know if there is anything for you, wouldn’t you? God is offering the greatest blessings yet where is our intense to desire to learn every word he has said about it?

So God extends the offer of salvation. “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength” (Isaiah 30:15). Look at what God is asking the people to do. They are not merely to return to him. Notice the words, “rest,” “quietness,” and “trust.” God wants your strength to be in trusting in God. Your life will rest on God’s way. We can be saved if we trust in God as our strength. What difficulty are you facing that you are unwilling to trust God to handle? Think about the situation in Isaiah. Assyria has swept through Judah conquering their fortified cities. The armies have come up to the gates of Jerusalem. God is telling the people to trust him. So this call for trusting in the Lord is not a theoretical faith or a faith for the small decisions of life. God wants you to trust him during the greatest crisis of your life. Resting in God does not mean inactivity. It means that we will not panic but trust in God whatever the outcome is. April and I have come to learn this over and over again with all of the medical difficulties we face with Grace. We will do what we can. We will not sit on our hands. But we will look for solutions that show we believe in God and rest in him to take of anything that comes our way. God wanted Judah to look to him for assistance, not themselves.

Gracious God (Isaiah 30:18-26)

Now some amazing words are declared in Isaiah 30:18. “Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.” The grace of God cannot be presently given for judgment is going to arrive first. But God does not write off his people all together. God waits to be gracious to you. It is God’s desire to dispense grace to those who seek it. But God will not pour out his blessings on stubborn people who will not listen to him. If they will return to the Lord then God is more than willing to pour out his grace.

Further, the Lord exalts himself to show mercy to you. God shows mercy to people for his own exaltation. Have we thought about this purpose of God? The mercy and grace of God are not to terminate on ourselves. The dispensing of God’s mercy is to cause us to exalt him. Further, the display of his mercy is an exaltation of his glorious character because he has acted benevolently toward rebellious people. The exaltation of God brings about our good. The exaltation of ourselves brings about evil. This is one aspect that makes God different from humans. When we are exalted, things usually go wrong in pride and arrogance to selfishness. But the exaltation of God is just and right because he acts for the good of his creation.

In the following section, Isaiah pictures what God will do for the new people of God who will come in the future. As we stand 2700 removed from this prophecy, it is important for us to recognize that Isaiah is looking forward to Christians, the new people of God when the Christ comes. Verse 19 shows another aspect of what makes God exalted. In the future, the people will dwell in Zion and will no longer weep. When his people cry, God will surely be gracious. As soon as he hears your words, he will answer. What a tremendous promise! God listens to your prayers. He hears your prayers and he answers. Notice the next promise is that a Teacher is coming and their eyes will see him even though they are going to put through a time of judgment. God is waiting to be gracious and after the judgment of the nation God will be gracious. A Teacher is coming and they will see him and he will teach them which way to go (Isaiah 30:21). What a wonderful promise that the Lord will come and be a teacher to the people! This promise was fulfilled in Jesus who taught us the ways of the Lord and many people saw him. The first chapter of John’s gospel presents Jesus as God who reveals the glory and teachings of the Father. When Jesus comes with the graciousness of God being revealed, notice that people will reject their idols (Isaiah 30:22). God’s mercy and grace drives us dump our idols and renovate our idolatrous hearts. Our trust will not be in anything else but the Lord himself. This is what the new people of God will look like. We will not seek the broken cisterns of idolatry. When the idols are cast out, then God will pour out his blessings even more (Isaiah 30:23-26). Isaiah 30:26 sums up the great blessings of God. “…in the day when the Lord binds up the brokenness of his people, and heals the wounds inflicted by his blows.” The Christ is going to come to heal the people of its sins and brokenness. What Christ will do for the world will bring the healing that every person needs to stand whole and repaired before God. The scriptures speak of us as being broken by sin. The solution is Jesus. The solution is not the world. The solution for fixing your life is Jesus. Isaiah speaks of that hope.

Faith In God’s Purposes (Isaiah 30:27-33)

At the same time the Lord will come in powerful judgment against the world (Isaiah 30:27-28). From Isaiah 30:27-33 God is describing what he will do in the future against the Assyrians. Though the present is grim, the future is bright. We learn a great lesson from this final paragraph of this chapter. Faith in God’s long term plans prepare us for his short term purposes. I do not know what is going on now but I will trust because I believe in God’s long term plan. God repeatedly calls on his people to believe in him. This is the call of faith. Habakkuk was to believe in the long term purposes of God to get through the short term difficulties he was presently facing. Job was to believe in the long term purposes and wisdom of God to get through the present suffering and lack of understanding. Illustration: When we were building our house, the foundation was laid and it looked like the house was far too small. April and I walked on the concrete pad and thought that there had been a terrible mistake made. Dan told us to trust him that it was plenty big. But it just did not look like it. As the house continued to be built we began to see that he was right. It was the house that we wanted to build even though there was a time when it looked like everything was all wrong. In a similar way, we cannot look at our circumstances now and pass judgment that the future is all a mess and things are not going to work out. God’s purposes are going to be accomplished and we are to put our full trust in that knowledge. Job was to trust God. Habakkuk was to trust God. The righteous live by faith not by what they see right now. Do we walk by faith or do we walk by sight (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:7)?

Conclusion

Isaiah teaches us what true faith looks like before God.

1.    True faith does not rely on human strength, other people, or other physical things (Isaiah 30:1-7). We will not look the ourselves but always look to God to help in all situations.

2.    True faith desires the word of the Lord and nothing else (Isaiah 30:9-12).

3.    True faith repents of rebellious acts (Isaiah 30:15). If we truly love God and truly believe in his plan for our lives, then we will stop seeking our sinful ways and turn our hearts to him.

4.    True faith rests securely in God’s salvation (Isaiah 30:15). There is no need to panic. We will find our strength in relying on the purposes and strength of God.

5.    True faith believes in the purposes of God (Isaiah 30:18-19).

Until The Spirit Is Poured Out

Isaiah 31-32

By Brent Kercheville

The thirty-first chapter of Isaiah continues the woes from the thirtieth chapter. The nation of Judah has decided to put their trust in Egypt to save them from the Assyrian invasion rather than trusting in the Lord to deliver them. What is God going to do with these people who have failed to trust him? What is God’s message to people who will not put their lives in the hands of their God? This is what we will see in Isaiah 31-32.

Trusting In False Gods (Isaiah 31:1-9)

The woes for relying on Egypt continue. The condemnation is that they are trusting in what they can see, physical things like chariots and horses, rather than trusting in the unseen, the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 31:3 contains the powerful teaching of this chapter: “The Egyptians are man, and not God, and their horses are flesh, and not spirit.” You are relying on nothing! You are relying on horses when you could be relying on God! Egypt is not God but you are acting like they are God.

Therefore, Egypt stands for anything that I think I need outside of the promises of God. Judah was wrong for going to Egypt for help because it was turning somewhere else than God. This is our condemnation as well when we are not living by faith in the Lord. There are so many ways in which we do this. When we believe that our lives are incomplete because we are not married, are not dating, do not have children, did not have a good childhood, do not have a job which is satisfying, are not making a lot of money, do not have a big house, or whatever it is that we find discontentment, we are declaring that God is insufficient. Our hope and joy is being placed in something else but God.

But God is so good even in the face of our idolatry. Listen to what God says he will do. He is going to defend Jerusalem (Isaiah 31:4-5). But it is going to be God himself. Assyria will fall by the sword, but it will not be the sword of man (Isaiah 31:8). God was going to accomplish his purposes despite the faithlessness of his people. This leads us into Isaiah 32 where God will describe the coming judgment of Judah and the future hope to come because of God’s faithfulness.

The Righteous King (Isaiah 32:1-8)

There is going to be a new administration. A righteous king is going to come who will rule rightly and justly. Notice what this new administration will cause for those who belong under his rule (in his kingdom). In verse 2 we see that those who are in this king’s kingdom are protected. They are given shelter from wind and storm. They also are given rich blessings and provisions. They are like streams of water in a dry place and like the shade of a great rock in a weary land. There will be refreshment for people when the righteous king establishes his rule. Further, there will be a transformation that occurs on the people, as seen in Isaiah 32:3-5. Notice the four areas of transformation: eyes, ears, heart, and tongue. Listen to these words of hope. The eyes will not longer be closed. The people will not be blinded anymore. The ears will listen to what God has to say. The heart will now understand and know. The tongues will speak distinctly. In summary, now the people will pay attention to the Lord and act responsibly in faith. They will know how to act. Now the people will have high moral standards, give wise counsel, and exhibit honorable motives. The people will be commendable in this new, righteous administration. Wickedness and foolishness will not be praised. The people will not follow or respect foolish leaders and scoundrels. The Messiah will rule his subjects and they will want to know his will and obey it.

New Society (Isaiah 32:9-20)

Isaiah 32:9-14 now describe what is going to happen in the next year. Devastation is going to occur. There is going to be great mourning and destruction. Their hope is lost. So the picture is that God is going to ultimately deliver Jerusalem from the Assyrians but the devastation to the nation will be overwhelming. The land is desolate, the palace is forsaken, and the cities deserted. It is important to consider what these images mean. We must remember that when these kinds of judgments came, it reflected that God was not in a relationship with his people. God was stepping aside and allowing destruction and judgment to fall on the people. Deuteronomy taught that very point.

The LORD will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have forsaken me. (Deuteronomy 28:20 ESV)

“All the nations will say, ‘Why has the LORD done thus to this land? What caused the heat of this great anger?’ Then people will say, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.’” (Deuteronomy 29:24-25 ESV)

The Lord pictures a severing of the blessings and a severing of the relationship with the Lord. You will be cast away and perish in a foreign land is the repeated refrain by Moses. So the desolation of the nation is the visible mark to know that they have abandoned their covenant with God and have forsaken the Lord.

But there is a critical time marker to this prophecy. Notice in verse 15 that God says this will remain “until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high.” Before we get into the meaning of this, I want us to observe the imagery. It is a water image. The Spirit was not going to be sprinkled, dribbled, or drizzled out. The Spirit was going to be poured out. It is a picture of a deluge.

Notice also that it is a declaration of reversals. The wilderness will become a fruitful field. The fruitful field will become the forest. The severing of blessings and the severing of the relationship with the Lord will be completely reversed. The subsequent blessings of this reversal will not be dribbled out on them, but poured out on the people. The people will be swimming in the blessings of the Lord. Consider also why the Spirit as used as the entity for the distribution of these blessings. The Spirit represents life and pictured as the life-giver. We see the Spirit, or also translated breath of God, being put back into Israel in Ezekiel 37 and giving them life. So here we have the same image. Life is going to be brought back to his people. The purpose of the Spirit is not indwelling. That is not the prophecy nor the imagery. The imagery is a flood of blessings returning to the people at that time. Israel will be restored to peace, quietness, and security eternally (Isaiah 32:17). Notice that these are the results of the rule of Christ. This language in Isaiah 32:17 also parallels the fruit of the Spirit that the apostle Paul spoke of in Galatians 5:22-23. Isaiah is teaching that the richness and fullness of life come from what is spiritual, not earthly.

Go forward in the scriptures to Acts 1:6 and notice that this is exactly what the apostles are asking Jesus about. They want to know when this is going to happen. Jesus is the Christ who is establishing his rule. So when is the kingdom going to be restored to Israel? Listen to Jesus’ answer:

He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:7-8 ESV)

Jesus ties the restoration of the covenant blessings to Israel with the coming of the Holy Spirit. Isaiah makes that connection. The arrival of the Holy Spirit is the great reversal when God will bless his people again and be in covenant relationship with them again. So when we turn to Acts 2 we see the Holy Spirit arrive, signaling this restoration and why Peter preaches repentance and baptism to be joined with Christ and be reconciled to God with the forgiveness of their sins. Isaiah is looking forward to a renewal and restoration of God’s people who will act completely differently when the Spirit is poured out.

Conclusion

What does this mean for us? Here we are living our lives nearly 2000 years after when the Spirit was poured out. So what effect is this to have for us?

(1) Jesus is your hiding place from the storm (Isaiah 32:2). Jesus has come to be the refuge for your life. Jesus is to be the shade for your life. Jesus is the streams of water in the desert of your life. You will find refreshment in Jesus. God’s people will find Jesus as their rest and refuge for life.

(2) Residents of this kingdom exhibit the fruit of the Spirit (Isaiah 32:16-17). Paul gave the description of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives in Galatians 5:22-24.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. (Galatians 5:22-24 ESV)

Consider those final words. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. I want us to consider the order that is given. When we find our refuge, shade, rest, and thirst in Christ, then the fruit of the Sprit will develop in our lives. When I rest in Christ, then I will be able to love the way God wants me to. When I find by help in Jesus then I will be able to have the self-control God is calling us to have. We will want to kill the desires of the flesh because we find our satisfaction in Christ alone. See the glorious kingdom you belong to and enjoy the blessings on the restored relationship. Then put away the works of the flesh and become transformed to the fruit of the Spirit.

Finding God After Failure

Isaiah 33:1-24

By Brent Kercheville

One of the aspects of Isaiah’s prophecy that has been of interest to our study through this book is that God uses typological fulfillment. We explained typological fulfillment to mean that while a particular prophecy had a particularly immediate fulfillment, there would be a greater, fuller reality to come to pass when the Messiah arrived. The first time we encountered typological fulfillment was in chapter 7 where a sign was given to the people that God would deliver them. A young woman would have a son and call his name Immanuel for God is with them. But Matthew comes along, moved by the Holy Spirit, and says that this was fulfilled not only in the days of Isaiah, but in a greater way when Jesus was born to the virgin Mary. As we come to Isaiah 33 we see this typological fulfillment occurring again. There is serious foreshadowing occurring in this text and to keep one’s eyes strictly on a near-term fulfillment with Judah and Assyria leads to serious interpretive problems (which we will notice later in the study). So as you read this chapter, watch for this typological fulfillment. Look for the meaning to the people who heard Isaiah but also look for how Jesus is the greater fulfillment.

The problem for our prophecy is that Judah is under attack and threat from the world power of the day, the Assyrian Empire. The year is about 701 BC. God said that he would deliver Judah if they would put their faith and hope in him. However, they have not done. They have decided that they would rely on their own might and their own power. As they attempt to rely on their own power and the alliances made with other nations, Assyria is sweeping through Judah and is successfully attacking the nation’s fortresses and cities. This oracle is a message against Assyria in Isaiah 33. Assyria is the “destroyer” and this is what God has to say about them and what it means for God’s people.

When Self-Reliance Fails (Isaiah 33:1-9)

The oracle begins with the problem that Assyria has treacherously acted against Judah. This event that the prophecy is referring to is likely that which is recorded in 2 Kings 18:13-17. The king of Assyria attacked Judah and Hezekiah, the king of Judah, asked to pay tribute to Assyria for them to stop attacking. So Hezekiah paid 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold and all the silver and gold in God’s temple and the king’s palace. But after taking the tribute, Assyria continued its attack on Judah. Verse 1 identifies this moment as a betrayal. But once they are done betraying others, they themselves will be betrayed.

Yet again Judah thought that they could solve their problem. This time they thought they could find relief by paying their way out of this mess. Once again, it did not work. Self-reliance always fails. The failure of self-reliance leads to next response: “Uh, oh! Help us, Lord!” In verse 2 we see Isaiah leading the prayer of the people for God to be gracious and to be their salvation during this time of trouble. Now that they have exhausted all their options, the king and nation are crying out to the Lord for deliverance. Why do we make this mistake so often? We want to look to our own power rather than the power of the Lord. We make the Lord the God of last resort. Only when all my power and efforts fail, then will I make my prayer to the Lord. The Lord hates this for we are showing our lack of faith in him.

Isaiah 33:5-6 records how the Lord is able to deliver. The Lord is exalted. He dwells on high. He will fill Zion with justice and righteousness. He will be your stability. Knowledge, wisdom, and the abundance of salvation will be your stability. If you want stability in your life then you need to seek the knowledge of the Lord, the wisdom of the Lord, and the abundance of salvation that the Lord offers. The fear of the Lord is the treasure. This matches how the writer of Proverbs begins: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7 ESV). The fear of the Lord must be the treasure of our lives if we want stability in life. The fear of the Lord is the start of everything yet how few people make it their treasure, their utmost desire and pursuit. Why do we have to be devastated in life before we come to this truth? This devastation and brokenness is described in verses 7-9. The heroes are crying in the streets. The roads are empty and destroyed. The areas described in verse 9 were renown places for futility but now have become desert.

God Responds To Brokenness (Isaiah 33:10-13)

Notice that the change happens in Isaiah 33:10. “Now I will arise.” The Lord says that now he will arise and be exalted. God is going to act. Why now? Why is it now that God will act? Why not act earlier before Assyria had come through and destroyed the nation? I believe Isaiah 33:7-9 are the answer. The people had not been broken in heart yet. They thought that they could save themselves. They thought they could rely on themselves. Now in Isaiah 33:2 they are calling out to the Lord for his grace because they are broken. God responds to our brokenness. Listen to the words of the psalmist: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psalms 51:17 ESV). We must never outgrow the humility of brokenness before God. God receives our brokenness, not our self-sufficiency and self-reliance. Now God will act! God will act for his own exaltation. Now he will be exalted by his own actions. Stand back and watch the Lord at work!

Listen to how God views our efforts. “You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble; your breath is a fire that will consume you.” God says to Jerusalem that their actions were futile. Your payments to Assyria did nothing. Your plans did not save you. Your strength did not deliver you. God says that all you did was burn yourself with your efforts. If you have children, you know this truth. Children think they can do things themselves, and hurt themselves trying, even though you are offering to help. In their stubborn independence, they hurt themselves. God tells Judah that their efforts did nothing and now God will act so that the people are like thorns cut down and thrown into the fire. All people need to hear what God has done, both near and far, Jews and Gentiles. The might and strength of the Lord is to be acknowledged! Only God can deliver. Stop relying on yourselves!

Responding To The Consuming Fire (Isaiah 33:14-16)

Rightly, the sinners are afraid and the godless are trembling (Isaiah 33:14). They now ask a very important question: “Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire?” Who can stand in the presence of our awesome God? Now the people recognize their lowliness. This is a healthy fear of the Lord when we see the holiness and might of the Lord. Sinners must be aware of their situation before the Lord. Sinners deserve the wrath of God and are powerless before him. God’s fire of holiness is a threat to sinners. Our efforts give birth to nothing. At the mere voice of the Lord people flee, nations are scattered (Isaiah 33:3), and the peoples are destroyed (Isaiah 33:12). The people recognize that they cannot control, oppose, or manipulate the glory and power of the consuming fire. Just submit! Who can live with the consuming fire? We expect the answer to be that no one can dwell with the Lord as a consuming fire. But listen to the gracious answer in Isaiah 33:15.

God declares that change must happen. Here is the call to deep repentance. The one who walks righteously and speaks uprightly can dwell with the consuming fire. God says that those who live transformed lives can be in my presence. The answer is not worship God more or offer more sacrifices. The answer is repentance. Live a changed life in keeping with God’s law. Listen to what God has to say and practice it. Listen to how practical God is in Isaiah 33:15. The one who can dwell with the consuming fire “stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil.” Refuse evil. Stop looking at the things you are looking at that are sinful. Stop watching filth on television and in movies. Stop listening to sinful things. Get away from those things! Those who do so can expect God to be their refuge rather than the source of their wrath. Now you can come into fellowship with God where he will give you your sustenance. Now God will be there for you.

God Responds With Grace (Isaiah 33:17-24)

The remainder of this section speaks to what God is going to do with grace. The hope is to a glorious future in the Messiah, not to their present circumstances. Isaiah begins, “Your eyes will behold the king in his beauty.” Listen to the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). You will see the king in his beauty and the land will be vast. It is interesting to me that commentators do not know what to do with this part of the prophecy. The reason why is that the land was never vast. The land of Judah never came close to the vastness of the land possessed under the reign of Solomon. This is because Isaiah is not speaking about the physical boundaries of the political nation of Israel. Isaiah is speaking about the physical boundaries of the glorious kingdom of God, whose rule is over all the earth with Jesus as the king (cf. Isaiah 32:1). Now the people of God will live in security. Those who stand against you will be removed (Isaiah 33:18-19). We noted at the beginning of the lesson that this prophecy has typological fulfillment. Yes, Isaiah is prophesying that the terror of Assyria will disappear and they will not speak against Judah and Jerusalem any longer. But we just noted that verse 17 was not fulfilled. Isaiah 33:20 was also not fulfilled. Zion is described as a habitation that is untroubled, immovable, and never plucked up. Yet we know that 130 years later, Jerusalem was invaded and destroyed by the Babylonians. So we must understand this prophecy like we understand 2 Samuel 7 and Isaiah 7. It is a prophecy with typological fulfillment. Yes, Assyria will be removed but it is looking toward a greater fulfillment to come when the king of righteousness arrives. When the king comes, Zion will be liberated. The city will stand like an indestructible, permanent tent. The king will come and free his people to live permanently with God the consuming fire.

Notice the unusual image in Isaiah 33:21. There (that is, Jerusalem/Zion) the Lord in his majesty will be a place of broad rivers and streams. There are no rivers in Jerusalem. So we are affirming that this prophecy is looking for its fulfillment in the coming of Christ the King. The image mirrors Ezekiel 47 where streams would flow from Zion when Christ came. The picture is the blessings of God pouring out to his people so that no one can come against them. God is there. Nothing can harm them. Zion will be sufficient in God. We have the Lord and are therefore sufficient. Isaiah 33:22 is the basis for this promise. We will be protected and sustained because the Lord is our judge, our lawgiver, and our king. He will save us. Helpless Zion are now pictured taking the spoils of the enemies. Even the lame will take the plunder and prey (Isaiah 33:23)! God will ruin your enemies. God is saying that when we stop relying on ourselves and trust him completely, he will be our strength and supply our needs. God will defend those who come to him with a broken spirit.

The final verse is powerful for those who are God’s people. No one in Zion will say, “I am sick.” The people who dwell in Zion will be forgiven their sins. Judgments will not need to fall upon us because we will be forgiven of our sins. The consuming fire dispenses abundant grace. Turn to God as your refuge. Refuse the urge for self-sufficiency and independence. Trust in the Lord. Experience a transformed life. Listen to what God says. Then there is nothing to fear. Find God after your failure and receive salvation and grace.

The Highway of holiness

Isaiah 34-35

By Brent Kercheville

The book of Isaiah presents to the audience the same two decisions that affect each of us each day. It is a decision that we must make at every moment, every day we breathe. Will you follow the world or follow God? Will you follow yourself and trust in yourself or will you follow God and put your trust in God? Isaiah’s prophecy is going to proclaim the reasons why we must follow the Lord. Isaiah pictures the final outcome for those who trust in the Lord and the final outcome for those who trust in themselves and the things of this world. Isaiah 34-35 stand together as one unit of prophecy concerning the outcome for these two groups.

Fear God, Not This World (Isaiah 34:1-17)

The thirty-fourth chapter of Isaiah begins by describing the judgment that is going to fall upon the world. This chapter reveals graphic images of national judgment. As we have been studying through the book of Isaiah we have seen the main enemy of Judah is the nation of Assyria. Assyria is the world power at the time and Isaiah has been calling on the people to turn their trust and hearts to the Lord for deliverance from Assyria’s hand. Assyria is attacking Judah and surrounding Jerusalem, yet the people seem to refuse to turn to the Lord. Chapters 34-35 are the final prophecy before the narrative section of this book where we see what God does for Judah. This final prophecy is to convince the people to turn to God with full trust in him. But notice what is unusual about this prophecy. Notice who the object is of this divine judgment. Isaiah 34:5 reads, “For my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens; behold, it descends for judgment upon Edom, upon the people I have devoted to destruction.” This is unusual because Edom has not been the problem in this book. Yet Edom, not Assyria, is the one devoted to destruction.

The call for Edom’s fall is a powerful image by God because Edom is a symbol of the enemies of God’s people. Historically, Edom has always been an enemy for Israel. The two nations represent two groups of people in the world: Israel/Judah represents the people of God and Edom represents the enemies of God’s people. Homer Hailey sums the idea up well, “Esau symbolizes the impious mind giving vent to its earthly character and its hatred of God, his people, and everything which is spiritual. … Isaiah is picturing the day of Jehovah’s vengeance against all that Edom represents” (Hailey, A Commentary on Isaiah, 286-287). In another book Hailey wrote, “Also, it was more than the expression of one nation or people; in Edom was expressed the contempt of this world for God and his righteousness. Edom symbolized the world and all the nations of which it was composed” (Hailey, The Edomites: Symbol of the World, 21). Isaiah is not suddenly turning his attention to Edom completely out of context of the prophecy. Rather, by speaking of Edom, God is declaring doom, not only against Assyria, but any nation or people or threat against God’s people. From the very beginning, Esau and Jacob were at odds with one another. The nations that come from these men were always enemies of one another. This ultimately became a symbol for the people who stand with God and the people who stand with wickedness.

Therefore, as we read Isaiah 34 we must see the imagery against all who stand against God, his purposes, and his people. Listen to Isaiah 34:8 : “For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Zion.” Verses 9-10 describe the judgment as a burning pitch, a burning night and day that will not be quenched and whose smoke goes up forever. Does that sound familiar to the imagery used in the New Testament for the judgment on the wicked whose fire is not quenched (cf. Mark 9:48)? God is going to act for the cause of Zion, representative of the people of God.

There is one more point of significance we must consider about Edom before we leave this image of judgment. In Numbers 20:14-21 we see an active hostility of Edom against Israel. In 1 Samuel 14:47 we see Saul going to war against Edom and the other enemies that surrounded him. David also attacked Edom but this time he was victorious against Edom (2 Samuel 8:14; 1 Kings 11:15). This was the first and only conquest of Edom. David was the only king who was able to conquer Edom and keep this unruly foe in subjugation. But that changed when Solomon took the throne and Edom rebelled against him (1 Kings 11:14). So keep this history in your mind: only David was able to conquer Edom and maintain its subjugation. Only David can conquer Edom.

Hope In God, Not This World (Isaiah 35:1-10)

Instead of hoping in this world, God describes what he will do so that you will put your hope in him. The first two verses of chapter 35 picture new life and renewal. The wilderness and dry land are going to blossom. Why is there going to be new life? Why is there going to be blessings? Why is there going to be renewal? Listen to the words of Isaiah 35:2 : “They shall see the glory of the Lord, the majesty of our God.” You are going to see something that is going to change everything. The Lord is going to come and you will see his glory. God is coming! His glory will be on display!

Therefore, Isaiah 35:3-4 becomes a truth to the audience. “Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not!’” God’s people must be encouraged and strengthened because the Lord is coming and his glory will be seen. God is coming and he is coming with vengeance (which we saw in Isaiah 34). Judgment is coming against the enemies of God, represented by Edom. Listen to the beautiful words of verse 4: “He will come and save you.” Your strength comes from the knowledge that the Lord is coming with vengeance, with the recompense of God. You can endure because God is going to come and save you. You are going to see the glory of God.

The writer of Hebrews quotes Isaiah 35:3 in Hebrews 12:12. Though crushed by difficulties, we are to be strengthened by hope. Our strength comes from hearing the salvation oracle. The writer of Hebrews speaks of hostility and difficulty as the discipline of the Lord which yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it (Hebrews 12:11). Though God allows painful circumstances in our lives, its purpose is training that “we might share his holiness” (Hebrews 12:10).

Isaiah describes the results of the coming of the Lord in Isaiah 35:5-7. The eyes of the blind shall be opened. The ears of the deaf will be unstopped. The lame will leap like a deer. The mute will sing for joy. Water will flow in the wilderness. The parched, dry, abandoned ground will become pools, springs, and lush land. These would be the signs of liberation and redemption. God was going to come and give spiritual life to his people, exemplified by the miracles of Jesus. Jesus’ miracles were to give sight to the blind, cause the lame to walk, cause the mute to speak, and cause the deaf to hear. What did these miracles mean? God has come! God has come and he will save you. God has come and he will come with vengeance. Who was the only person who conquered Edom? David was the only king who conquered Edom. Now the new David has come, King Jesus, and he conquers Edom. He conquers the enemies that stand against his people. Therefore, strengthen weak hands and feeble knees. God has come! When John the Baptist is imprisoned and sends messengers to Jesus to ask if Jesus is truly the one, do you remember the answer Jesus sends back to John? The answer is the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear and so forth (Luke 7:18-23). The message is not merely that Jesus does miracles. The message is God has come! Strengthen weak hands because God has come and he will bring his vengeance.

There is something else that will be in this transformed desert. Verse 8 tells us that a highway is going to be there. The name of the highway is Holiness. No one unclean that walk on this road. No fools will wander on it. Those who belong to that road will stay on that road. There is no danger on this road. There is nothing to threaten us on this journey. The redeemed will walk on this road. Those who have been delivered from the legal obligation of their sins will walk on it. The ransomed of the Lord will return. Those who have had a payment made on their behalf to deliver them from their debt or obligation shall come home with singing. Notice the character of these redeemed, ransomed people of the Lord. “Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads. They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” The Lord’s people will be overwhelmed with joy. That which your soul seeks will be given to you: everlasting joy. You will wear that eternal joy like a crown on your head. This is your joy: God comes for his people, destroys those who come against them, gives them salvation, and places them on the highway of holiness. God says that he will come, you will see him, and make a way for you to come home to him. The road has been paved for you to come to God. God is with you as you walk this road. Listen to how the Gospel of John opens concerning the arrival of God to this world.

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:14-18 ESV)

Jesus came. Your hope is in him. Walk on the highway of holiness with joy and gladness to the eternal Father.

Faith Against All Odds

Isaiah 36-37

By Brent Kercheville

The thirty-fifth chapter of Isaiah concludes the first section of prophecy. Chapters 36-39 contain the account of what occurred concerning the Assyrian invasion. Up to this point we have been reading about the coming of Assyria and the attack of the fortified cities in Judah. Now Assyria is turning its sights on Jerusalem, ready to bring the demise of the nation. Now is the moment of truth. Isaiah has been calling for the nation and its king to put its trust in God for deliverance. Assyria has taken all the fortified cities of Judah. Notice Isaiah 36:1 declares that the king of Assyria has taken them all. All that remains is Jerusalem. Will you have faith against all odds that the Lord will deliver? The first verse of Isaiah 35 tells us that it is 701 BC, for it is the 14th year of Hezekiah’s reign.

The Challenge of Faith (Isaiah 36:2-10)

Rabshakeh leads a great Assyrian army up against Jerusalem. He cries out to Hezekiah’s royal administrators: “On what do you rest this trust of yours?” If you think you can trust in Egypt, they are nothing more than a broken reed that pierces your hand when you lean on it (Isaiah 36:6). If you are trusting the Lord, we have destroyed his altars throughout the land (Isaiah 36:7). If you are trusting in yourselves, you do not have enough soldiers to field an army, even if I gave you 2000 horses (Isaiah 36:8). Finally, he declares that God told him to take this land (Isaiah 36:10), which seems like based on Isaiah 10:5-6. What Rabshakeh is saying looks absolutely true. Egypt was unsuccessful in helping. They sent some armies but were repelled by the Assyrian army. If you think you are trust in the Lord, it does not look like the Lord is going to help you at all because we have taken conquered the whole nation. You certainly do not have power to defend yourselves. You do not even have 2000 soldiers to fight us. Why do you trust in the Lord?

This historical event stands an illustration for what happens in our lives. What voice is tempting you to second guess God’s commitment? There is daily pressure to not take God at his word. There is a voice that whispers to us that God is not our help or resource, but is our problem. Yesterday’s faith is yesterday’s. What do you trust in today? Every day your faith is tested and challenged. The commander of the army wants to know why they would still have faith today. His assertion is that there is no basis for such faith. There is a voice calling out to the people that their faith in the Lord is irrational and unfounded.

The Difficulty of Faith (Isaiah 36:11-21)

Further, acting in faith is a difficult decision. Making the faith-filled decision is never the easy path. The commander of the Assyrian army refuses to make it easy for the people. The government officials ask him to speak in Aramaic, which was the language of the diplomats so that the rest of the people would not comprehend the negotiations (though Aramaic became the language of the Jews 600 years later). But Rabshakeh refuses to speak in Aramaic because he wants to strike fear in the hearts of all in Jerusalem. In Isaiah 36:12 he declares that the people are doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine. Listen to the three “do not’s” in Isaiah 14-16. Do not let Hezekiah deceive you for he will not deliver you (Isaiah 36:14). Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord (Isaiah 36:15). Do not listen to Hezekiah to stay in the city (Isaiah 36:16). Listen to the offer Rabshakeh makes. “Each one of you will eat of his own vine, and each one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern, until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards” (36:16-17). We have you surrounded is the declaration. We are going to cause you to eat your own dung and drink your own urine. If you surrender, we will feed you richly and give you prosperity (notice the language mirrors the language in the days of Solomon’s reign in 1 Kings 4:25). They are tempted to give in to the offer of comfort and prosperity. Satisfy your own desires. Do not rely on the Lord. Rely on the king of Assyria. Let him be your god to give you prosperity. False deliverance is offered. The way of faith is not an easy option. Trusting in the Lord to deliver is not the easy path. We must hear the call for faith in the midst of trials. The chapter ends with Rabshakeh mocking their current circumstances and God’s inability to deliver them. What will Hezekiah do? Have faith in God or surrender to the Assyrians?

True Faith Turns To God (Isaiah 37:1-13)

Listen to what Hezekiah does in Isaiah 37:1 : “He tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the Lord.” With a sign of humility and mourning, Hezekiah goes to the temple of the Lord. Hezekiah appears to be following the prescription given by Solomon at the dedication of the temple.

“When your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and if they turn again to you and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to their fathers.” (1 Kings 8:33-34 ESV)

Isaiah 37:3-4 contains Hezekiah’s admission of total failure. His policies have brought Judah into this moment. Notice that Hezekiah does not merely proclaim this as a day of distress. It is a day of rebuke and disgrace. There is a confession of failure being made by the king. The human attempts for deliverance have been foolish. In Isaiah 37:4 the king admits that these decisions have led to the mocking of the living God. Hezekiah’s only hope is that the Lord will rebuke the mocking words these Assyrians are declaring. Therefore Hezekiah calls upon Isaiah to pray on behalf of the people, the remnant. It seems that the problem finally sinks into Hezekiah. True faith must turn to God. Relying upon yourself ends in disaster and causes the name of the Lord to be mocked. Our lives truly mirror the words of verse 3. We have brought our lives to this point, thinking we have done well, only to realize that our strength is insufficient.

We must be ready and willing to confess our insufficiency and weaknesses to God. God has not called for us to pretend that we are strong. He has called for us to admit our weakness and rely upon his strength. He has called us to confess our weakness and let God be the one to accomplish great things. Why do you think God commands us to confess our sins to him? It is certainly not because he does not know our sins. What is God looking for in our hearts to confess our sins? God wants us to admit our insufficiency and our need for God’s power and strength. What other purpose is there but to humble ourselves before our God? True faith confesses sins, weaknesses, faults, errors, and difficulties.

But notice that our confession of sins and weakness does not mean that the threat to trust in others or ourselves will disappear. Hezekiah makes his confession but Rabshakeh is still threatening Hezekiah. Look at verse 10, “Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” The temptation still comes to Hezekiah and to each of us: your trust is misplaced. Your trust is unfounded. This is the temptation that Satan throws at us: Your dependence on God will only end in failure. So how should we handle this temptation? Look at what Hezekiah does.

True Faith Prays (Isaiah 37:14-20)

Hezekiah prays to the Lord. Notice what he prays. No idol can help and no idol can save. There is no other deliverer but the Lord. Also notice the basis of Hezekiah’s call to the Lord for deliverance in verse 20. “So now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the LORD.” (Isaiah 37:20 ESV) True faith not only prays, but prays for the glory of God so that the world may know that he is the only God. The only thing that matters is the glory of God and that the world proclaim that glory. Don’t let these enemies blaspheme your name because you are the awesome, gracious, and powerful Lord of Hosts! Even when it appears that all hope is lost by physical metrics, Hezekiah places his trust in the Lord, praying for his intervention.

When Peter and John are thrown in prison and then are released and return to the brethren, what do the group of Christians do? They pray for boldness to continue to speak about Jesus. Prayer is the response for difficulties. What does James say to do when you are suffering? Pray (James 5:13). Friends, we must engage in regular discussions to our Lord. We must desire prayer. I believe our desire for prayer will increase the more we recognize our weaknesses and utter dependence on God. The other reason I believe we would increase our prayer life more is if we saw the success of prayer. Prayer is difficult when we do not necessarily see the immediate results of our prayers. This is why the end of Isaiah 37 should powerful build our faith and time in prayer.

The Power of Prayerful Faith (Isaiah 37:21-38)

The key is found in Isaiah 37:21 as we listen to what God says. “Because you have prayed to me…” We must consider the stunning impact prayer can make. We must consider how true this can be in our lives. How many times have we prayed and God has acted because we prayed to him! I have no doubt that we hardly know how often God has acted on our behalf because we prayed to him.

Listen to all that God is going to do, an overwhelming response to Hezekiah’s prayer. Jerusalem is going to mock Sennacherib (Isaiah 37:22). God had determined Assyria’s conquests long ago (Isaiah 37:26), thus they should have been in submission to the Lord. God will send Assyria into captivity (Isaiah 37:29). Isaiah 37 P33 gives an amazing summary of what will occur. The king of Assyria will not come into the city of Jerusalem. He will not shoot an arrow into Jerusalem. He will not build up a siege ramp against it or lift a shield. He will return the way that he came. What a staggering declaration! What a powerful response to prayer by the Lord? Do you think this is what Hezekiah expected for a response? What a powerful expression of the truth of God’s word which declares: “Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly beyond all that we ask or think!” (Ephesians 3:20). The Assyrians will not even fire a shot on to Jerusalem. Jerusalem would not only survive the Assyrian invasion, the Assyrians would not attack the city at all. God will save for his own sake and for the covenant that he made with David. Isaiah 37:36 records exactly what God did. The angel of the Lord strikes down the army of the Assyrians, sending the king back home. Can you imagine that scene? The people of Jerusalem wake up the next day and saw 185,000 dead bodies, according to the text (Isaiah 37:36). What did the people do to win the battle? Nothing but confession and prayer which led God to act for his own name and glory. Pray for God to act in your life for his own glory. Pray for his glorification not our glorification.

Our faith in God will be challenged. It will be difficult to maintain our deep faith in the Lord through difficulties. When your faith struggles, confess it to God. Confess your difficulties. Cry out to the Lord, “Help my unbelief!” and “Increase my faith.” Then pray to God to act in your life for his purposes, his plan, and his glory. May we be faithful instruments in the hand of our gracious God. God will save you. Will you trust him?

Renewing Our Commitment

Isaiah 38-39

By Brent Kercheville

Hezekiah’s Illness (Isaiah 38:1-3)

Imagine if you knew when you were going to die. What would you do? If the doctors came to you and said to get your affairs in order for you are about to die, what would you do? This is the very thing that happens to the king of Judah, Hezekiah. Isaiah comes to Hezekiah and tells him to prepare for his death. Hezekiah does not go into depression. Hezekiah does not complain. Hezekiah does not lock himself in his room. Hezekiah does not do the things that we typically do when we receive bad news. Isaiah 38:2 tells us that Hezekiah prayed to the Lord. Notice further that his prayer is not really about his physical life yet. He asks the Lord to remember how he has served the Lord. I have been living for you I have walked before you faithfully and with all my heart. I have done what you have said. Lord, remember that I have given you my whole heart and have been faithful to you.

God’s Answer (Isaiah 38:4-8)

God answers the prayer and the heart of Hezekiah bountifully. Hezekiah is told that 15 years will be added to his life. Further, the city of Jerusalem will be delivered from the Assyrian attack. Also, God will give a sign to show he will do this by casting a shadow ten steps back on the dial.

Hezekiah’s Response (Isaiah 38:9-22)

Now we are given information that we do not usually see in the scriptures. Rather than the narrator writing about the events that occurred, verse 9 tells us that this is the writing of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, after he had been sick and then healed. We get to go inside the mind of Hezekiah and what he experienced during this time of difficulty.

Isaiah 38:10-14 describe the weight of this news for Hezekiah. Hezekiah begins by recognizing that he is in the prime of his life. He will no longer see people or his Lord because he is going to the grave. As we read this event we recognize that Hezekiah did not receive the answer to his prayer immediately. It is tempting to read the account and think that Hezekiah prayed after hearing this news of his death and God suddenly and immediately answered him. This is not the case. We are seeing the pain in Hezekiah’s heart. Notice the pain of this information to him. “Like a lion he breaks all my bones.” He is just full of pain. It is hard to receive the news that your day is done. He is sorrowful over the loss of his life and his eyes have been toward the Lord in repeated prayer over his life. Prayer is where we must immediately turn in such times. When your life is being crushed and you receive horrible news, you must turn to the Lord. We can ask for God for more life. We do not have to accept that this is the end. Pray to God for healing. Pray to God for more life. May the basis of our prayer not be a selfish cling to this world, but so that we can continue to faithfully serve and worship the Lord. We love being faithful to God and want to show more people that we are faithful because God is good and faithful.

Now Hezekiah specifies his desire. “Oh restore me to health and make me live!” (Isaiah 38:16). Then God answered his prayer. This time was a time of learning for him. This was good teaching for Hezekiah. He was reminded of three things that we must all be reminded of regularly. First, we do not have control over the days of our lives on this earth. We must accept this reality as much as we try to deny or ignore this truth. We must take advantage of what we have today and enjoy what God has blessed us with today. We cannot assume that we will have these blessings tomorrow or next year. God is in control. We have no control. This must compel us to a greater commitment because you do not have control over today. You do not have control over tomorrow. We have no control over what will happen in 2014. It may be a great year, full of blessings and comfort. It may be a miserable year, full of pain and anguish. So we commit ourselves to God who has charge over these things. You have something special today. Appreciate what you have.

Second, Hezekiah learned to appreciate God’s forgiveness of sins. “For you have cast all my sins behind your back.” What a beautiful hope! God cannot see your sins when he puts them behind his back. He has moved forward. We must move forward with Christ. Will you meditate on this hope? Will you consider the amazing blessing that your sin today is behind God? Your sin yesterday is behind God. Your sin last week is behind God. Your sin last year is behind God. We serve a gracious God. These things help us renew our commitment to the Lord.

Third, Hezekiah learns that he must praise God today and all his days (Isaiah 38:18-20). The living must take advantage of the time to praise the Lord and give thanks to the Lord. I hope we will do that this week. I hope you will see the blessings and joy that God has given you this year. I hope you can think over your life and see that God has been good to you, no matter how difficult things have been for you this. It may have been a hard year for you and your family. But God has been faithful and good to us. No matter what happens, God has been faithful and good to us. Therefore, we will live life knowing that we do not have control, that God has forgiven my sins, and we will praise him every day that he gives us breath.

Hezekiah’s Error (Isaiah 39:1-8)

After reading about the great faith and hope of Hezekiah, we will now read about a great fall. The king of Babylon sent envoys to Hezekiah with letters and gift because Hezekiah had recovered from his illness. But Isaiah 39:2 tells us of a grave sin. Hezekiah shows off. He shows the Babylonians how great he is. He shows them his power, his wealth, his nation’s prosperity, and his nation’s strength. Hezekiah falls to pride. He falls to flattery. He falls for receiving attention. He enjoys the recognition he receives and likes thinking that he is someone important. It is hard to believe. He goes from his death bed to a “look at me” attitude. His sense of self-importance is causing him to forget about God’s importance. He willingly takes the attention to him and away from God.

Not only is the problem of selfishness an issue, but the greater issue is that the glory of the Lord has been subverted. What a great opportunity Hezekiah had to send a message to Babylon about his sickness, prayer to the true and living God, and the healing that came by God’s hand. What a lost opportunity to be able to point to God about this great healing God had accomplished! This is the problem of selfishness. We take the glory God deserves and try to apply it to ourselves.

The account in 2 Chronicles 32:31 tells us that God did this to test Hezekiah. God had extended great grace to Hezekiah. Now what will you do with it? Will you turn back to selfish living? Will you turn to pride? Will you turn back to the way you were living before, forgetting God and taking his blessings for granted? After grace, we must not fall back into arrogance and self-absorption. What will we do with our new life? We cannot live shortsightedly. We cannot survive the difficulties of life and then think that we are standing on our own. We cannot forget the grace and mercy of God, disregarding the Lord who saved us. This is a great test given to each of us also. Will we lose our commitment or renew our commitment? Every day is a new day to renew our commitment to the Lord.

Conclusion

Renew your commitment to the Lord. First, recognize that you have no control over today, tomorrow, or next year. Take your life to the Lord who rules over all things. Second, renew your commitment by appreciating the forgiveness of sins. See your guilt but know that God has put those sins behind his back. This gives us new hope and fresh lives going forward. Third, renew yourself to praise the Lord every day. Tell people about how God has been working in your life. Finally, don’t turn the attention to ourselves. Direct our heart and attention to the Lord. Let him be the guide for your life.

The Herald of Good News: God Desires To Save

Isaiah 40:1-11

By Brent Kercheville

The prophecy of Isaiah concluded in chapter 39 with devastating words. Everything will be carried away to Babylon. “Nothing shall be left, says the Lord” (Isaiah 39:6). Your sin has brought this disaster. Your rebellion toward God has caused your devastation. Your lack of faith has led to your ruin. Isaiah 39 ends with depressing words. “Nothing shall be left.” Fellowship with God is now severed. God will no longer be with his people. The covenant with God has been broken by the people. Sin has ruined everything. The book of Lamentations is written by the prophet Jeremiah as he wails for the fall of Jerusalem and the loss of the nation because of their sins. In the first chapter of Lamentations the author declares four times that there is no comfort for the people (Lamentations 1:2; Lamentations 1:9; Lamentations 1:17; Lamentations 1:21). There is no comfort for our sins. There is nothing that we can do for our sinful condition. What will God do now? What will God do with a people steeped in their sins and deserving of wrath? What will God say now?

Comfort (Isaiah 40:1-2)

“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.” God is going to comfort his people despite the disaster they have brought on themselves. Notice two declarations. Comfort my people says your God. God says that he has a people. He has not forever forsaken them. God is willing to be their God. God is willing to take possession of these people. This is covenantal language. “I will be your God and you will be my people” (cf. Exodus 6:7; Genesis 17:7-8).

God says to speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Literally this reads to speak to the heart of Jerusalem. God wants an important message to be delivered to the heart of his people. There are three aspects of this tender message. First, the time of their service is fulfilled. The time of punishment is ended. Second, their iniquity is pardoned. Forgiveness has now been obtained by the people. Third, their sins have received double. This does not mean that they received twice the punishment they deserved. Rather, this is an idiom to say that God has matched sin with payment. Every sin has been doubled or matched by God. This is an amazing declaration because the people hear that God’s purpose is not their destruction but their redemption. Notice that these three points are stated in the past tense though it has not occurred yet. This is another example of the prophetic perfect, where a prophet speaks of an event that has not yet happened as if it already has happened. There is such security in a coming future event that it is spoken of in the past tense. God will comfort his people because the people’s sins have been pardoned and paid. Now we will see three heralds that will cry out what God is doing to validate this comfort.

Herald #1 – “A Voice Cries” (Isaiah 40:3-5)

The cry is amazing. God is coming! God is coming! Prepare the highway for our God! Remove the obstructions. Get ready! God is coming! This herald has a historical reference. When a king was going to visit an area, it was customary to send a herald in advance to command the local residents to repair the royal route. Roads then were not properly maintained so a cry went forward to prepare for path for the coming of the king. The Lord God, our King is coming.

The wilderness recalls chapter 35. Wilderness portrays the land that has suffered the divine judgment for its sin. The Christ was not coming during the good times but when the nation of Israel was in the wilderness, lacking the blessings of God and separated from God. There are remaining obstacles that must be attended to for the arrival of the Lord. The preparation the people are to make is a spiritual preparation, namely, repentance. All spiritual obstacles and every spiritual obstruction must be removed from the hearts of the people. God is the king. He does not make himself ready for us. We are to make ourselves ready for him by getting spiritually ready.

Now we understand the exciting message of John the Baptizer when he arrived. Matthew connects this prophecy to John the Baptizer (Matthew 3:3) and he preached “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). John is proclaiming that God the King is coming and everyone must get their hearts ready for his arrival. Remove the spiritual hindrances! God is coming. Repent! Bear fruit in keeping with repentance!

Notice the result of the coming of the King in Isaiah 40:5. When he comes, “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.” This is what the Gospel of John affirms in John 1:14-18, “We have seen his glory!” Get ready for God is coming and his glory will be seen!

Herald #2 – “A Voice Says, ‘Cry!’” (Isaiah 40:6-8)

A second herald occurs in Isaiah 40:6. The command of a voice says to cry out. The question returns, “What shall I cry?” The message to cry out follows in the rest of Isaiah 40:6-8. People are like grass which fade and wither. People are like the flower whose beauty passes away. But the word of our God will stand forever.

The point is everything earthly is temporary. But the word of God is permanent. Now there is something unique about Isaiah 40:6. God is saying something about us. The ESV reads, “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.” Some translations read similarly. But the word translated “beauty” is the Hebrew word “hesed” which is translated throughout the Old Testament as “faithfulness, loyalty, and devotion.” The NIV therefore reads, “All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.” The NRSV reads “constancy” and the NET reads “promises.”

Here’s the point: We are unreliable but God is not. This is why we must never depend on ourselves but rely on God’s promises. Only God is worthy of trust because his words never fade. Our confidence belong in God’s words alone. No human force can prevail against God’s promise. Therefore, these words are a message of hope. God says, “Comfort!” God says that the Lord is coming. God’s message is that he does not desire the people’s destruction but their redemption. The word of the Lord will stand forever! God keeps his covenant! This is massive. We are unfaithful. We are not dependable. We fail. We do not keep our word. We perish. Humans fail. This has been the message of the first half of Isaiah’s prophecy. Physically and in moral character, humans are a failure. Our moral steadfastness is unreliable. Humanity can neither save itself nor hinder the one who determines to save.

Listen to the Lord: God does not fail! God is faithful. God is dependable. God keeps his word. God does not perish. Though we fail our joy is not extinguished because God’s promise is secure. Our hope cannot rest on our own actions but on the certainty of God’s word.

Now Peter quotes this text in his first letter. He tells the Christians who are going through trials and suffering that they have been born again, not from something perishable, but from the imperishable word of God. “The word of our God will stand forever.” Our hope in God is grounded in the fact that God keeps his word. We have been born again because of the certain, unchangeable nature of God’s word. God is coming. God brings comfort. God will save.

Herald #3 – “Herald of Good News” (Isaiah 40:9-11)

Zion is called to go up on a high mountain and shout out the good news. Lift up your voice with strength to the ends of the earth and tell people to, “See your God!” Do you see your God? Look, God comes with might. His reward and his recompense is with him. God has power and God has reward. Now listen how God is coming. “He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are young.” God is coming with compassion and care. He is coming as a shepherd to tend his flock. God is coming to save. God desires to save like a shepherd for his sheep. Listen again to the words of Jesus:

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. (John 10:14-16 ESV)

Spiritual comfort cannot truly exist without an adequate understanding of the character of God. We must see his tender care toward his people. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3). Get on a mountain and shout it from the rooftops that God is the God of all comfort who gathers his sheep like a shepherd and carries them in his bosom.

We are faithless and unreliable but God is faithful and reliable. He has promised to carry you in his bosom and gently lead you. I learned of the Lord as one to be terrified of. I saw him as a God of wrath alone, ready to destroy at any moment. God desires to save, not destroy. God desires our redemption. Prepare your heart for the Lord. Remove your spiritual obstacles. Purge from your life anything that in hindering you from trusting Jesus. Confess your sins. Be cut to the heart. Let Jesus lead you in right paths to the promised eternal reward.

The Herald of Good News: God Is Able To Save

Isaiah 40:12-31

By Brent Kercheville

The fortieth chapter of Isaiah has begun a prophecy of good news to the people. They will be carried away into Babylonian captivity and nothing will be left. But it is not over for everyone because of their sins. God will forgive their sins, speaking words of comfort. God is coming so he can be with his people. The glory of the Lord will be revealed. God will tend his flock like a shepherd, gathering them into his arms. The declaration of the gospel is beautiful and exciting: the Lord is coming with compassion to save his people from their sins. God does not set his heart on our destruction but on our redemption. Now God has made the promise to save. But can God do it? Will God keep his promise of deliverance? Consider that this question is critically important because people who are taken captive do not go home. It is a large claim for God to say that he will deliver them and renew the covenant with them. God is going to prove himself by declaring how great he is. By understanding God’s greatness, we will be able to have confidence in God’s promises for us today and appreciate the God we worship.

The Wise God (Isaiah 40:12-14)

The first point God makes for his ability to save is his vast wisdom. Isaiah 40:12 begins by describing the massive nature of God. God is able to measure the waters of the earth (the oceans) with his hand! How big is God to hold the oceans in his hand? God is able to measure the heavens with the span of his hand. A span is the distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger when the hand is extended. Again this describes the immensity of God. God is able to measure the mountains on a scale. The earth is massive yet to God these measurements are easily manageable. If we cannot take the measure of the physical world, how can we take the measure of God?

Isaiah 40:13 continues with that very thought. Who can tell the Lord what to do? Who can inform God? Who can be his advisor or counselor? Who is going to teach the Lord anything? God does not consult with anyone. He does not need assistance. The reason this has power to this audience is that god of the Babylonians, Marduk, had to consult with “Ea, the all-wise.” Think about the pantheon of Greek and Roman gods. They always consult each other and work in tandem. God does not need anyone. He does not need to be informed. Remember that this includes us. We are in no position to teach God. We are not God’s counselor. God does not need our advice.

The Powerful God (Isaiah 40:15-17)

Not only is God wise and massive, he is also incomparably powerful. The nations are like a drop in a bucket or dust on a scale to the Lord. They are totally insignificant in God’s presence. Lebanon was renown for its cedar forests. You could not cut down all the trees in Lebanon and all the animals of the earth for it to be worthy enough for a burnt offering to God. How much less our worship if all the trees and animals are not worthy of God. Solomon understood the massive power of God when he completed the temple, declaring that the highest heavens cannot contain God. The temple certainly could not house the Lord (1 Kings 8:27). The nations are nothing before the Lord. Who do the nations and peoples think they are before the presence of the Almighty God? Any opposition to God is as nothing. It is like an ant trying to stop the movement of a human. It is ridiculous.

The Only God (Isaiah 40:18-20)

There is no comparison to God. He is completely unique. God cannot be explained because there is nothing like him. He certainly cannot be compared to an idol. There is no image that can represent God. This is one reason why Israel was commanded not to make images of God. Nothing can represent him. Any image is an insult to the greatness of God. Further, idols are nothing and do nothing. God is everything and he does whatever he wills. Idols had to be created and moved by the one who made it. In fact, Isaiah says people make idols so that they will not fall over. We must delight in the Lord because he is able to act. He is able to accomplish his purposes. He is able to do great things of his own mind and power. Nothing else can say that.

The Active God (Isaiah 40:21-26)

Do you not understand what God is about? This is the question in verse 21 that is answered in Isaiah 40:22-26. God is not of this world. He is above the earth, as if the earth were a stool to him. The inhabitants are like grasshoppers. When you are about to land from flying, it is amazing to look out the window and see how small everything looks. People and houses look so small. This is the idea with God. God looks at the earth and the people on it and they are like little grasshoppers to him. The heavens of the sky are nothing more than like a curtain to the Lord. As such, God brings the leaders of the earth to nothing. The leaders are insignificant before the Lord. They are not everlasting like the Lord. Scarcely does a leader rise up that the Lord removes him. The most powerful people in the world are nothing to the power of the Lord. There is no comparison (Isaiah 40:25)! God is so massive he is able to number the stars and call them out by name. By his great power and strength he maintains the stars of the sky. Can you speak and make a star come out? Can you speak and make a star be extinguished? There is no comparison to the Lord. Because of God, not one star is missing.

The Everlasting God (Isaiah 40:27-31)

With all these things in mind, consider the foolishness of this statement that humans make. “My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God.” How can anyone say that God does not know what I am going through? How can anyone say that God is not aware of what is happening to me? How can people say that God does not see our troubles? How can anyone think that we are being ignored by God? It is false thinking to believe that God does not see you nor care about what you are going through.

Are we going to suggest that God tires out (Isaiah 40:28)? Are we suggesting that God is exhausted by his creation and no longer pays attention to us? “The Lord is the everlasting God!” We wear out but God does not! God gives power to the faint. He gives strength to those who have no might. Even those who think they have power and strength like the young wear out and fall exhausted. God does not wear out which means that God is always at work. We stop working because we are weary. God never grows weary. The Lord is the everlasting God means that he is not bound by time. We think in such short amounts of time. We live for right now. But God does not have to do that. His promises do not have to come right now because he is everlasting. He will do his work as he sees fit when it is good for him and we are in no position to argue or counsel God.

Listen to Isaiah 40:29. God gives power to the weak and faint. Notice that the weak and faint are those who in Isaiah 40:27 think that God does not see or care about their circumstances. Israel is going into exile. But do not think that God does not care about your condition. God gives strength to the weak. God is going to act for them. Human strength is not the power we need. Human strength fails. Human strength always becomes weak at some point. God does not get weary or weak. God gives strength.

Verse 31 contains the beautiful promise. “But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31 ESV).

The people are called upon to wait for the promises of God to be fulfilled. They were not to look at their current condition of exile and think that God did not know their plight or think that God would not deliver them. Wait for the Lord. Wait for God to accomplish his purposes. Delight in knowing that God will accomplish his plan. This is how our strength is renewed. God will do as he said. He has the power do fulfill his purpose. Nothing can stop him. Wait for the Lord and you will have strength in the Lord. You will soar on wings like eagles. You will run and not be weary or grow faint. When your strength and hope is found in the Lord, you do not grow weary. You do not lose heart or grow faint because you know God will do it. Let me state this strength in another way:

A correct perspective on human problems can only be achieved by having an adequate understanding of who God is. We must see the glory of God to be able to deal with our short term difficulties and disappointments. By seeing the majesty of God, we then have confidence that God knows our situation and will deliver us in the end.

God’s understanding is limitless. Therefore complaints are misguided because they are based on incomplete information. We do not live by having all the answers or explanations. We live by his promises. We don’t have to figure God out. We submit to him in faith. God gives strength to those who wait for the Lord to fulfill his promises. We do not need a quick fix. We need a clearer vision of God and a greater passion for his glory. What we need is to find rest and hope in his promises and faithfulness. Christianity is not a way to cut a deal with God for an easier life now. In fact, we are doing the opposite. Following Christ is what renews us to live for our real payoff in the future that God has promised. Waiting is what faith does before God’s answer shows up.

God has promised that Christ will bring us salvation with his overwhelming glory. Is that where I have staked my happiness? Is my loyalty of heart to the coming of the Lord or the false glory of this earth? It will not work to put my faith in God while I keep my heart in this world. In fact, doing such shows we have no faith in God. “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you” (Psalms 73:25). Can we say that all I want out of life and what I’ll be happy to walk away with is God and God alone? Whatever other gifts he gives me I will enjoy with thanks to him and for his glory. God is my salvation and everything else in my existence will find its meaning and reference to God or it will have no meaning for me at all.

Idle Idols

Isaiah 41:1-29

By Brent Kercheville

The message of Isaiah 40 was for the people to see the greatness of God and no longer question whether God knows his people’s difficulty and plight. God is greater than all things and those who wait for the Lord will have their strength renewed. Isaiah 41 is call for the peoples to be brought near for judgment. The first verse tells every person on the earth to enter into the courtroom for judgment. But God is not asking for a defense from the people. Rather, God calls for their silence. This is a “listen and learn” moment. What does God want the peoples of the earth to know and why are they put on trial in this court scene? Let us consider the rest of Isaiah 41 to learn why judgment falls and how we can avoid being the object of God’s wrath.

God Reigns (Isaiah 41:2-4)

The first declaration from the Lord is to ask the people who is in control of the things that are going on in the world. God is the one raising up a ruler who will trample the nations and kings before him. God is the one who is empowering the events of the earth. This prophecy is likely looking to the future when Cyrus would arise as the king of Persia and conquers the nations of the earth. But this is not really important. What is important is that it is God who has done this (Isaiah 41:4)! God reigns. God is the ultimate authority. God is at the beginning and the end of the generations. God rules with eternal power over the generations of the earth. Consider that this never stops and never will. Who is doing this from the beginning to the end of the generations? “I, the Lord. I am he.” This is our first basis for faith in the Lord. God reigns and he does not stop reigning no matter how great the wickedness may increase around us. God is not nervous about what is going on in North America or on the earth. From the very first generation of people to when the very last generation of people comes, God rules over the affairs of the earth.

Foolish Response (Isaiah 41:5-7)

So what do most humans do when we understand that we are not in control of what is going on in this world? We try to find another way to grab control! Humans turn to other humans for strength and turn to their idols for strength rather than turning to the one who is ruling over the earth. Isaiah 41:5-7 describes the foolishness of looking to human strength or material things for control or help. Notice in Isaiah 41:6 that the people try to encourage each other to have strength. We try to trust in other people. We try to trust in a new president who will run the world the way we think it ought to be run. We try to trust in a new government who will do what we think will help us. We try to trust in people to give us what we think we need to feel secure and in control. So we turn to our children, our spouse, our job, our money, our home, our pleasure, our hobbies, our comfort, or something else to give us feeling of control and security we need. But putting our hope in anything or anyone is idolatry. This is what the nations do. They accumulate more gods and more idols to try to feel protected and safe. How often we try to do the same thing! We make something and look at it and think it is good and now we are safe (Isaiah 41:7). God is in control and ruling over the affairs of the earth, and we look to politics, governments, people, wealth, and everything else for security. But it is false security if our trust is not fully in the Lord.

The Blessings of the Chosen (Isaiah 41:8-13)

Notice the contrast at the beginning of Isaiah 41:8. “But you, Israel, my servant.” God’s chosen people, the offspring of Abraham, are not going to be like this. They will not think the way the people of the earth think. As we read, I do not want us to think that God is speaking to the physical nation of Israel. God is speaking to his true Israel, those who faithfully follow the Lord. God is speaking about his spiritual remnant. In Ephesians 1:4 the apostle Paul says that Christians are God’s chosen. In Galatians 3:25 the apostle Paul says that Christians are the offspring of Abraham. So as we read, let us make sure that we have the proper lens on this prophecy. Though Israel is being judged for its sins, God has not cast off the people or the promises (Isaiah 41:9). Now we have the five fold words of hope. Do not fear because I am with you, I am your God, I will strengthen you, I will help you, and I will uphold you. God will give you the strength you need. Do not look to yourself. Do not look to material things. Do not look to other humans. God is with his people. He does not cast off his chosen.

Notice the words of hope in Isaiah 41:11-13. Those who strive against you will be put to shame and shall be nothing. God will strive with your enemies. God will deal with those who stand as enemies of his people. This is such a powerful and hopeful promise that is reiterated many times in the scriptures.

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19 ESV)

Think about the message of the book of Revelation. The people of God have been killed for the cause of Christ and are crying out for judgment against their enemies. The book of Revelation pictures God moving in judgment against all of our enemies, even down to Satan himself who is cast into the lake of fire. I am your God. I am with you. I will hold you up. I will strengthen you. I will help you. We must put our faith in these words. God will deal with our enemies and will vindicate those who trust in him. God holds your right hand. “It is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you’” (Isaiah 41:13).

God Will Do It (Isaiah 41:14-20)

But this promise is not to cause us too think highly of ourselves or to now forget the Lord and rely upon ourselves. Listen to Isaiah 41:14 : “Fear not, you worm Jacob.” Know who you are! Know that you are powerless and insignificant. You are mere men but the Lord is God. You are men and not everlasting like God. Your Redeemer is the Lord alone! You are nothing. But listen to these glorious words. You are nothing but God will make you something. This is a great message that we will see through the rest of Isaiah’s prophecy. You are nothing, but God is will make you something.

God will redeem you and make you a threshing sledge (Isaiah 41:15). A threshing sledge was a large wooden platform weighed down with heavy stones. Underneath the wooden platform was attached sharp objects so that it would be dragged over the reaped corn to chop up the stalk into stubble ready for winnowing. God says I am going to make you a threshing sledge and you will be so strong that you will thresh mountains and crush them and turn the hills into chaff. The mountains represents all the obstacles and problems of the people. But God is with his people and though you are nothing, a worm, God will make you able to make stubble any obstacles that come against us. God has given the strength to overcome. God will make his people a powerful instrument though they seem to be insignificant. Notice what this strength is supposed to cause in us. “And you shall rejoice in the Lord; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory” (Isaiah 41:16).

In Isaiah 41:17-20 God describes a reversal of the fortunes of his people. We are poor and needy. We are parched with thirst and seek water. God will answer and not forsake his people. God is going to richly pour out his blessings on his people. Israel is a desert because of sin. God will going to change that. God will give restoration, renewal, and life. Why will God cause this great reversal? Why is God going to take sinful people who rebelled against the Lord and trusted in their idols and make them a threshing sledge against the mountains? Why is going showing his loving kindness and mercy? Isaiah 41:20 is the answer. God wants all to know that God has done this. God wants to cause a radically transformed life so that you and others will see what God has done. God has created a radically transformed people that are able to conquer any obstacle through the power of God who is with us and strengthens us. Our lives are nothing and are just a vapor. But God wants to use our lives for his glory. There are countless people that I know who came from terrible circumstances and were raised in lives of pain and suffering. Broken homes and abusive families. But these people came to the Lord and truly surrendered their lives to Jesus. They began to follow the ways of the Lord and their lives have radically changed. God has blessed them with wonderful families. God has given them a new legacy and a new hope for the future. A total reversal has occurred because they are walking in the ways of the Lord. God is creating a group of people, the offspring of Abraham, collected from the brokenness of the world, and displaying his glory through our lives. There are many people here who can look to the wreckage of sin in their lives in their past and how God as strengthen them and caused them to overcome the devastation. God is an amazing God who has the power to change your life if you will give your life to him. God is making us living stones being built up into a spiritual house for the glory of God throughout the earth (1 Peter 2:5).

Your Idols Cannot Do What God Offers (Isaiah 41:21-29)

God wants the case presented for the idols. Can your idols do what God says he can do for you? Let your idols show what they can do. No, our idols are worthless and useless. Why would we turn to anything else when God has promised to be with you and to strengthen you? Trust in God to change your life and to change your family. Pursue the Lord and follow his ways. God says he will plant you like a tree beside the waters, immovable in the storms of life (Psalms 1). God says he will be with you as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalms 23). God’s offer to you is glorious. For those of us who have experienced this reversal and restoration, then let us know with all confidence that God has done it. Let us glory in the Lord for what he has done.

The Saving Servant

Isaiah 42:1-17

By Brent Kercheville

God has promised that the offspring of Abraham, the true people of God, will be made by God to be a threshing sledge to shatter any obstacles and enemies that stand before them (Isaiah 41:8-16). God is going to take people who are broken by sin and bless them and reverse their fortunes. Isaiah 41 ends asking the people to tell him if their idols can do this. Can your idols reverse your fortunes and change your life? No, but God who rules over the earth has the power to change your life. Those who trust in the Lord will have nothing to fear for God is with them, strengthening them, helping them, and upholding them. The natural question is this: how is God going to accomplish this? How is God take these broken people and radically change their lives and bless them? Isaiah 42 is the explanation of how God will do this.

The Work of the Servant (Isaiah 42:1-4)

The message of the Lord begins with God saying that he will have a servant who is his chosen one, whom he upholds and in whom he delights. This is an amazing statement. First, the servant is upheld by the Lord which means that he will not fail. This servant will do what Israel failed to do. Second, the Lord delights in this servant. If the Lord delights in the servant, then we must also. If the Lord finds joy in the servant, how can we not do likewise? The Lord also says that he will put his Spirit on him. When we read this in the Old Testament it is a reference to be anointed by God to be king (1 Samuel 10:6; 1 Samuel 10:10; 1 Samuel 16:13) or prophet (Ezekiel 2:2; Ezekiel 3:24; Micah 3:8). This servant will speak and act with the authority of God. With this authority, the servant will bring justice to the nations.

But the means by which he will bring justice is surprising. The servant is not going to smash and destroy to bring about justice. His justice will not be through aggressive or violent means. Notice Isaiah 42:2. “He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice.” The servant will not be a self-promoter. He will not act like an oppressive, demanding king. He will not launch a propaganda campaign. He will not act in selfishness or attempt to elevate himself.

Further, notice Isaiah 42:3. “A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.” The servant will not destroy the weak and rejected people. He will care for the weak and oppressed. Kings often cared more about the accomplishment of a task, like getting a road built, and were minimally concerned about the those who suffered in the process of fulfilling the king’s wishes. This servant will be a king like no other. He will not destroy the weak. He will not crush people. Broken people will not be destroyed by him. Rather, he will bring justice to them. We must stop and consider this for ourselves. Do we care for people in such a spiritual condition? Are we careful and helpful with spiritually bruised reeds and faintly burning wicks or do we break bruised reeds and quench faintly burning wicks? We see Jesus showing his tender love and concern for the people who have been broken by sin and broken by the false teachings of the Law of Moses in his day. Matthew 12:18-20 records this text in Isaiah as fulfilled in Jesus as he showed compassion on the crowd and healed them of their diseases.

Isaiah 42:4 shows that the servant will accomplish his mission. He will be faithful to the task given to him by the Lord and will not grow faint in his effort to accomplish it. No obstacle will stop him. He will be able to utter the powerful words, “It is finished.” The work will be done. All will wait in anticipation and hope for his instructions. Notice whole earth is waiting for the servant’s law. Again, the point is that the servant speaks for God and instructs in the way of God. The hope of the world lies in the servant of the Lord, not in themselves or their policies or governments.

The Call of the Servant (Isaiah 42:5-9)

The powerful Lord who gives life to people is about to make a decree (Isaiah 42:5). The Lord will support the work of the servant. Now the call is given. First, the servant is called by the Lord in righteousness. The servant is called at the right time, in the right place, and for the right purpose. He is called according to the righteous purposes of God.

Further, the Lord will give the servant “as a covenant for the people, a light to the nations.” The servant is the means by which the people will enter a covenant relationship with God. The servant will mediate a new covenant with the people. Notice what this covenant will do as the servant performs the work of God. He will be a light to the nations. Consider the implications of the servant as a light to the nations. “To open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness” (Isaiah 42:7). Think about what this says. The people are declared by God to be blind, imprisoned, and in darkness. This is picturing people in slavery to sin, living in spiritual darkness and ignorance. The servant is given a worldwide task. He will deliver people from our own idolatry to which we have enslaved ourselves. The servant’s work and the servant’s covenant with the people will set the people free from their spiritual enslavement.

The actions of the servant will bring glory to the Lord (Isaiah 42:8). The glory and the credit belongs to the Lord alone for this liberation. The servant will open the eyes of the blind so people will glorify God as they ought. Nothing else is to receive our honor or praise, according to Isaiah 42:8. God will not share that glory. Our praise and faith does not go to idols because idols have accomplished nothing for us. It is our idols that have enslaved us. God sets us free through the servant so that the glory will go to the Lord. Therefore, a glorious hope lies ahead and God speaks of these things in advance, before they occur (Isaiah 42:9). We have been set free by God the Father through Jesus. Yet we then glorify our idols and put our hope in humans and material things. It is irrational and it is an abomination to the Lord. The servant is the alternative to the idols. Put your trust in the servant, commissioned by God with the task of your salvation.

What God Will Do (Isaiah 42:10-17)

The call goes to all the people to sing to the Lord a new song. They are to sing a new song for a new work that God is about to do. We see in the scriptures that a new song often has reference to a song of victory (cf. Psalms 96, 98, 149; Revelation 5:9; Revelation 14:3). A new display of victory will be revealed. A new display of God’s goodness will be shown. The servant will be victorious, setting people free from the dungeon of darkness and opening the people’s eyes to the light. Therefore, let the people give glory to the Lord. All the people are to praise him for what he has accomplished. Praise the Lord because the servant will bring justice (Isaiah 42:1-3), grace (Isaiah 42:6-7), and glory (Isaiah 42:8).

Notice how God pictures himself now in Isaiah 42:13-17. God goes out like a mighty warrior. The Lord is powerful and will deliver. But for a time there will be silence. There is a time of God’s silence but then the enemies will be destroyed (Isaiah 42:14-15). This may be a picture of divine restraint finally unleashed. This may also be picturing God’s silence to his people in 400 BC before the sending of his servant who destroys the enemies.

But notice what changes in Isaiah 42:16. The destroyer becomes the rescuer. Then God will lead the spiritually blind. They will be led in a new path. God will shine the light before them so that they know the new way to the Lord. These are pictures of what will happen with the coming of the servant. The enemies of God and of his people will be destroyed, most notably sin and death. The servant will bring a new covenant that brings us to the Father. Not only does the servant bring the covenant, but he shows the new path as the light of the world to the Father. God will remove all obstacles that stand between us and God (Isaiah 42:16).

God’s great work is to turn compulsive idolators into glad worshipers of him alone. The work of the servant will be the decisive act to cause the hearts of the people to turn in worship and praise to the Lord alone. God will not share honor and glory with any other. He alone deserves our praise and glory for all he has done. Notice what will happen to those who do not experience this change. Isaiah 42:17 declares that the Lord will turn back and completely put to shame those who trust in idols.

The calculation to worship and trust God is obvious. So why do we continue to trust in idols? The answer is that idols promise a more immediate satisfaction than what we seem to receive from the invisible God. We do not see the satisfaction of serving God. But there is an immediate satisfaction to doing what we want. What a tragic decision we make! What fools we are when we exchange the eternal for the temporary! How foolish we act when we choose happiness now rather than true lasting joy and satisfaction that is found in the servant, Jesus! Remember what we learned from God and from our own experiences: these idols cannot help and do not provide the joy we are seeking. We must train ourselves to recognize that we are forfeiting joy now and joy in eternity. It is not just a now or later proposition. The decision is between empty happiness now or true joy now and true joy in eternity. We are not providing ourselves joy with these idols now. We must tell ourselves that we not getting the joy out of sin that we think we are getting. The joy of obedience to God is so much greater than it is for sin as we train our minds toward righteousness. Jesus is the way God will radically transform our lives. The Lord delights in Jesus. We must delight in Jesus, enjoying life in him. Jesus accomplished everything we need, setting us free and opening our eyes. Let us come to love Jesus and serve him.

None Can Compare

Isaiah 42:18 to Isaiah 43:21

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah 42 has declared that God will send his servant who will save the people. He will establish justice and set the people free in a way that is unlike any ruler before. After declaring God’s intention to deliver his people, the rest of chapter 42 describes the current condition of the people. God wants to make a very important point: though Israel is God’s servant, Israel is not the servant that will redeem the world. Israel is not sufficient for the task.

Blind Israel (Isaiah 42:18-25)

God begins with human insufficiency. How often God wants us to see who we really are! God has to keep putting us in our place because we allow our pride and self-image to run wild. So God says that his people are the deaf and blind ones (Isaiah 42:18-19). Here is Israel, the people entrusted with the message of God and they are blind! They have a privileged position and yet they are deaf and blind. It is unbelievable. This is our problem. We look but we do not observe. We hear but we do not listen (Isaiah 42:20). We so easily do this when we read the scriptures and when we worship. We look but we are not seeing the glory of God in his words. We do not even see the true meaning of the scriptures’ teaching. God’s people are to be careful listeners and observers, looking into his word and listening to his teachings, so that we will see the glory of the Lord. This is what God is declaring through Isaiah: open your eyes and see what God is doing.

Listen to Isaiah 42:21. The Lord was pleased to glorify, magnify, and exalt his law, making it glorious for his own righteousness. The law of the Lord was to be praised throughout the earth. He gave his law to reveal his own character of love and faithfulness to show what is good, right, and true. The purpose of God’s word is for us to praise him. The purpose of his words is so that we would desire him and see his faithfulness and glory. Further, Israel’s mission was to make God’s law glorious to the world by showing how beautiful it is to live according to his word. But Israel failed as the servant. Israel rejected the glorious law of God and its given purpose. Therefore, rather than showing the glory of God they themselves need deliverance. They are helpless due to their sinful ways.

I want us to consider that we may also be failing at this purpose. Do we show God’s words to be our delight? Is it our delight because we are desiring to read it? Is it our delight because we show the world that we want to obey it? Is it our delight because we show the world that listening to the word of God is our joy?

After describing this problem, notice that God asks if anyone is going to listen (Isaiah 42:23). Will they learn from their sinful ways and go a new path that the Lord directs? Or will they continue to see but not observe and hear but not listen? Unfortunately, humans typically do not learn and do not listen. Israel did not learn from its punishments and judgments (Isaiah 42:25). The Proverbs teach us that only fools do not listen. “Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, yet his folly will not depart from him” (Proverbs 27:22 ESV). Will we learn from the error of Israel? Will we learn from our own errors?

God Is Your Savior (Isaiah 43:1-7)

So we are blind and return to our foolish ways repeatedly. What is God going to do? We have failed to be what God desires of us. God offers hope. Isaiah 43 begins, “But now,” indicating a contrast between the terrible judgment of sin now and the future grace that God gives. “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine” (Isaiah 43:1). Though Israel was in difficult circumstances because of their sins, this judgment did not nullify God’s faithfulness to his covenant promises. Israel was going to suffer for their sins but this did not negate the faithfulness and loving kindness of God. Listen to this truth in Isaiah 43:2.

The first truth is that through flood and flames God will not let you be overwhelmed. God remains with us even when trials and suffering for sins comes against us. Now this is an important truth that is to establish our faith. Even when we are dealing with consequences for our foolish or sinful decisions, this does not mean that God has abandoned us. Further, when we are hit by waves, we do not have to be swallowed up by the waters of difficulty. Even when we are scorched by the flames of life, we do not have to be consumed because God is with us. Think about how powerful these words would have been for these people. They are going to be in Babylon, suffering as prisoners and exiles for their sins. Yet God is with them and they are not consumed.

The second truth we observe in Isaiah’s prophecy is the intensity of what God will do for his people. Look at Isaiah 43:4. “Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you…” This is God’s stance toward his rebellious people. You are precious in my eyes and honored in my eyes. I love you. Therefore, because this is how God sees us, he will redeem his people. In the past God gave up Egypt to destruction to redeem Israel from slavery. God will pay again. No price is too high for God to pay for his own people. The price to be paid will be his own Son, which will be revealed in Isaiah 53.

There is a third critical truth to establish our faith. The Lord has not redeemed us for enjoying pleasures and luxuries. Rather, the Lord has redeemed us so that we are prepared to endure all kinds of evil. See how Isaiah 43:1 and Isaiah 43:2 work together? The Lord has redeemed you and calls you by name. So when you pass through waters and fire, you will not be overwhelmed or consumed. There is nothing too great or too difficult that you cannot endure because God is with you and has redeemed you (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 13:5-6). Therefore we have nothing to fear because the Lord is our God and Savior. We are his children, those who are called by his name, and God does not forsake his children.

No Other God (Isaiah 43:8-13)

God has done this for a simple purpose: to show all people throughout the world the Lord is the only God and there is no other Savior or Deliverer but him. Our false gods do not help. They do not deliver us. They do not save us. Our idols enslave us. God challenges all rivals. Glory belongs to the Lord and no other because only he is able to save. We have defied the true God and what does God do? God saves us to show his goodness. He is like no god or idol that humans create. This goodness is to cause us to stop and believe. God is not only good but he is the only goodness that can be experienced.

The New Exodus (Isaiah 43:14-21)

God now reveals what he is going to do. God tells the people that he will intervene against Babylon who God has caused to take them into slavery as punishment for their sins. God will intervene because he is the Redeemer, the Holy One, and the King (Isaiah 43:14-15). God recalls the victory of the first exodus, when God led Israel out of slavery from Egypt to the promised land (Isaiah 43:16-17). But after recalling that great act of salvation, God says not to remember that event in verse 18. Why? The point is that the people must not look to the past with such focus that they fail to see what God is able to do now to deliver. God can go before them and lead them again, but do it in an entirely different way. Just because he delivered one way in the past does not mean that this is the only way he delivers his people. Before he made a way through the sea (Isaiah 43:16). Now God will make a way through the desert (Isaiah 43:19). Nothing is too great of an obstacle for God. Nothing can hold God back from accomplishing his purposes. God will do something great again. The past confirms that God will do it but we must look forward to his acts of help and deliverance. God will help you through the waters and the fires in life. God will take away your sins no matter how significant or grave they are. God has come to save his people. Why is God reversing our fortunes and blessing us despite our sins? Look at Isaiah 43:21. “The people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise.” Your salvation was accomplished by God so that you would tell the world how great God is. God keeps you from being destroyed by trials so that you will proclaim the glory of God. You were created for God’s glory (Isaiah 43:7). You were made to praise him and he has given you every reason to praise him.

I Will Not Remember Your Sins

Isaiah 43:22 to Isaiah 44:5

By Brent Kercheville

We are studying the great prophecy of Isaiah. Presently, Isaiah is declaring the glorious gospel message of how God will send a servant who will bring about the forgiveness of sins. But God wants us to appreciate this salvation message. God says that he is the only God. “There is no other God— there never has been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the LORD, and there is no other Savior” (Isaiah 43:10-11 NLT). In Isaiah 43:2 God promised to be with his people when they pass through the floods and flames of life. Now God describes our condition.

Weary of God (Isaiah 43:22-28)

But the people did not call on the Lord. The people did not look to the Lord to be their God in their lives. Instead, they are weary of God. They did not want to bring sacrifices to God and they did not want to give honor to the Lord. They did not want to give their money or bring their gifts to God. Their worship was not centered on praising or honoring God. This is the whole point of worship. Instead, the people thought God was exhausting. It is just so exhausting and a weariness to honor God. Yet God asks why the people feel burdened and wearied (Isaiah 43:23). This is the only God who says he will help us and carry us through life. Yet we listen to this offer and say that we are exhausted by God. God says I am here to help you, love you, and save you. But we look at God as a weariness.

Notice that God says that is anyone is wearied and burdened, it is not us but God (Isaiah 43:24). All that we have brought to God is our sins. We have not brought him the honor that he deserves. We have not given him the worship that the only Sovereign ought to receive. Instead, we brought the enormous weight of our sins.

But notice that God says he can handle those burdens. Listen to the promise God makes in Isaiah 43:25. “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” First, notice why God will blot out the sins of the people. He does so for his own sake. We offer nothing that God deserves or demands. Instead, we have offered God our sins. But for his own sake God promises to wipe away our sins. Second, God will not remember your sins. All that we have given to God is our sins. God says he will not remember those sins. God is going to act for the sins of the world so that those sins will not be remembered. The forgiveness of our sins cannot be based on our lives (Isaiah 43:27-28). We have no case before God. We should be judged for our actions. We are guilty of these sins. All have sinned and continue to sin. All are worthy of judgment and judgment is coming for sins.

God’s Renewal (Isaiah 44:1-5)

But God says to not fear. Though judgment is coming there is no reason to fear. Why? Why should the people not fear? God says in Isaiah 44:2 that yet again he will help. Verse 3 describes what God is going to do.

For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. (Isaiah 44:3 ESV)

God promised this in Isaiah 32:15-16. God brings this imagery back to the minds of the people. God is going to bless his people in such a way that it will cause a great reversal of their condition. We observe again that the pouring out of the Spirit in this prophecy has no reference to miracles. Notice the parallel in the second clause. “My offspring” is the same as “my descendants” and “my Spirit” is the same as “my blessing.” The pouring out of the Spirit on the people is the same as God pouring out his blessings on the people. God uses imagery like that of refreshing rain in a dry, hot place. Our rains in the Mid-West are often very refreshing, cooling us down from the heat of the afternoon sun. God is refreshing and renewing his people. This is what means for the Spirit to be poured out. God will bless his people which will lead to their refreshing and renewal.

Notice Isaiah 44:4 continues this image. When the Spirit has been poured out, “They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams.” God is going to pour out his blessings so that we will be like trees growing among the grass next to flowing streams of water. Do you see the renewal that would happen? The crushed will become trees. The devastated will be renewed. People broken by sin are given the offer of new life that is greater than what existed before. Instead of being scorched grass God will plant us as trees. Isaiah 44:5 describes the result. People are going to say to others, “I am the Lord’s.” They will have the mark on their hand, “The Lord’s” and be called as one belonging to God’s people, Israel. These people will belong to God and to God’s community of saved people. Consider that before the people were weary of the Lord (Isaiah 43:22). Now God’s people will claim to belong to God and want to belong with his people.

This is describing what we as Christians are supposed to be. Isaiah is prophesying about when Christ would come and bless the world with his sacrificial death and resurrection. Jesus ascended to the Father and sent the Holy Spirit to be poured out on all flesh (Acts 2:17-21; Acts 2:32-33). Christians are not people that sound like those in Isaiah 43:22-23. Rather, Christians are people who sound like those in Isaiah 44:4-5. Isaiah is picturing what we are able to experience in Christ now. Those who have experienced the grace of God are those who lives are owned by the Lord and find their identity with Christ and his people. To put this point another way, notorious sinners will become notorious believers. God’s grace will break into the lives of people with renewing power. This is amazing! Our sins are not too much for God. God does not walk away from our wretched sinful condition. God says that he will no longer remember our sins and renew our lives so that we can belong to the Lord and be part of his group of saved people. But the thought goes further. God’s grace is strong enough to change your thirst and your desires toward him. God’s grace is great enough to no longer see the Lord as a weariness and burden and now see him as a joy and an honor. God is able to cause a radical transformation of the dry, parched heart and make it fertile and fruitful for God’s glory. Please notice that God’s grace does not mean that our sins are overlooked and we keep sinning. The arrival of God’s grace means there is going to be a renewal of the heart and reformation of lives so that we will want to belong to him. The pouring out of the Spirit, the pouring out of God’s blessings of grace, will cause a radical transformation.

Conclusion

God can take our burden of sins and overwhelm those sins with grace. You don’t have to be a good person to come to Christ. Here is the secret: no one is a good person (cf. Romans 3:12). You do not come to the Lord with your righteousness. You come to the Lord with your sinfulness. God promises to wipe out those sins because of his own righteousness and goodness, not ours. Where are you in your relationship with the Lord? Is the Lord a burden to you? Does giving him honor weary you? God tells us that we are missing out on something if that is the case. We are not seeing what God wants us to see if we see the Lord as a burden. We have not experienced God. We have experience religion. We have experienced ritual. We have experienced duty. But we have not experienced the Lord.

When we experience the Lord, then we will want to be owned by the Lord. We will see the Lord as our master and we will let our lives by marked by his name. We will identify ourselves with God’s people and worship together with them, honoring the Lord in our words and actions. When we experience the Lord, there will be radical life change. We will want to change. We will not look at the laws of the Lord as a burden. We will desire the transformation because of the grace of God that we have experienced. This is the pouring out of the Spirit as our hearts are transformed by God’s work of grace. The result will be seen as God takes our broken, damaged lives and plants us by the streams with strength and renewal. How different is your life now that you have experience the grace of God? How has God changed your life since you have Jesus as your master? Do not stop experiencing that grace. This is not a one time act, moment in time, never to be experienced again. The grace of God changes us every day to be honoring God and not ourselves. Listen to how Paul explained this very picture:

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. (Titus 2:11-14 ESV)

Tearing Out Our Idols

Isaiah 44:6-23

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah has repeatedly spoken out against the people’s idolatry based on the uselessness of idols. In Isaiah 41 we saw Isaiah denigrate idols because of the idols’ inability to explain the meaning of the past and tell the future. In Isaiah 43 Isaiah criticized trusting in idols because idols are unable to save the people. Isaiah is going to focus on these two criticisms again in chapter 44. Why is this so important to God? Why does God want to persuade us to tear out our idols? God has declared a coming transformation of the people’s heart so that they will no longer see their worship as a burden but will desire to called by the Lord’s name and identify themselves with God’s people (Isaiah 43:22 to Isaiah 44:5). God is going to pour out his Spirit on their descendants. A time of renewal and refreshing is coming. To experience this pouring out of God’s renewal and refreshing, the people had to tear out their idols. God is going to give us the motivation to have the renewal of mind and heart that God requires to belong to him.

God Is Unique (Isaiah 44:6-8)

The first point God makes is that he is unique. There is nothing and no one like him. God is the King of Israel. God is the Redeemer. God is the Lord of Armies. God is eternal and therefore his works span the whole scope of human history, from beginning to end (Isaiah 44:6). God knows their past problems and will be available for future help. There is no other god (Isaiah 44:6). No one is like God (Isaiah 44:7). No one can do what God can do (Isaiah 44:7). There is no rock (Isaiah 44:8). God is the only stability for life. “In an always changing, unstable world, there is One who does not change, a ‘Rock’ to which beaten, battered people may cling” (Oswald, 502). God does not have to say much about himself because the alternatives are utterly absurd.

The Absurdity of Idolatry (Isaiah 44:9-20)

Isaiah begins with an excellent picture of idolatry. “All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit.” We too easily dismiss instructions concerning idolatry because we only think of images of stone, metal, or wood as an idol. We look at our lives and since we do not have some graven image in our house, we believe we are immune from the commands concerning idolatry. Isaiah shows what idolatry truly is. Idolatry is what we delight in. The NIV and HCSB read, “The things they treasure.” The things or people that we treasure and delight in are our idols. Isaiah is going to tell how foolish it is to place our hope and treasure in anything else but God. Now notice the irony of idolatry. The things that we value have no value. The things we treasure do not profit. Isaiah declares in verse 10 that only a fool fashion a god that has no value and cannot help one bit!

In Isaiah 44:12-17 Isaiah illustrates the foolishness of idolatry. In verse 12 Isaiah shows how absurd idolatry is. The ironsmith does all of this work to fashion his idol but the idol does not help him. Rather, the idolater becomes hungry, thirsty, and faint. If these idols truly helped, then why is the idolater not supported in his work? The point is that God gives strength to the weak, but the idolater is weakened further by making the idol. Idolatry does not make us stronger but weak. Pursuing things other than the Lord wastes our time, wastes our strength, and wastes our effort, leaving us worse off than we were before we began the pursuit.

The absurdity of the idolater continues in Isaiah 44:13. The idolater shapes his god after what he knows and after what he sees. The idol reflects us with all our weakness and limitations. Idolatry is not just making a god but it is making the god that we want it to be. All that an idol can do is reflect our limited knowledge and limited glory. The finished product is nothing higher than what we know — ourselves in all our feeble glory.

Isaiah 44:14-17 further describes the foolishness of idolatry. How can you trust in something that you have power over? Isaiah points to the trees. You may cut down the trees, or let the trees grow, or plant the trees. Then with some of the wood you burn it for a fire. With the rest of the wood you make an idol and worship it. How can a log save you when the log can’t save itself? How can we be delivered by something that we must save or plant or conserve? This is the present problem with the idol worship of the earth and the creation that we see today. If you have to save it, why are you worshiping it? If you have to protect it, then why do you find your life meaning in that pursuit? Here is what God wants us to understand: if something depends on you, you cannot depend on it. How can something that needs your help ever save you? If something needs you, then you cannot depend on it to be your help in time of need.

Yet this is exactly what humans do. We put our treasure in the things of this world and in the cares of this world. We find our value in new cars, new houses, new toys, and the like yet we have to protect and preserve these items. How can we submit ourselves to these things that cannot help or save us but we must protect and save them? I have to put a car cover over my car to protect it from the sun since it sits outside. How foolish to find my treasure or value or meaning in a car that I have to save! There is only person that does not depend on you. God does not depend on you. This truth is what qualifies him to be our God. If he needed us, then this would not do us any good. Consider another idol, the idol of sex. People are giving themselves into pornography, sex before marriage, promiscuity, adultery, homosexuality, and the like because they are looking for true joy, pleasure, and escape. But the problem is the same. If it depends on you, then it cannot give you what you are looking for. The moment ends and now you are back to the same position what you were before. You are no better off for all your work and waste of time. If you have to do it, then it is not to be depended on. If you have to save it, then it is not worth your life pursuit. If you have to help it, then you should not treasure it.

This truth includes other people. I saw on social media recently someone pose the question, “What is your passion?” This question was from a Christian who wanted to know what others, including other Christians, thought. One Christian man said his wife is his passion and is the reason he gets out of bed in the morning. This sounds so wonderful and sounds like a good answer, but I submit to you that it simply is idolatry. What will you do if your spouse dies and your reason for getting out of bed is your spouse? What will you do when family crisis strikes? What will you do when your hope is in another person and things do go like you want? Our passion is Christ alone. We get up in the morning for Jesus. That is what makes us live, not our children or spouse. Friends, I am greatly concerned that we have been blinded by Satan concerning these things because these idols are not immoral. However, immorality was not the only reason for the condemnation of idolatry. God must be our desire and treasure. This is what the scriptures teach. I received an email from a Christian who had unexpectedly lost her husband to a disease. She wrote in her email that she is angry at God and does not know how see can live without him. The problem is that she had her treasure in the wrong person. God is the treasure. Even our society pressures people to be married as if there is something wrong or something lacking if you are unmarried. Do not buy this lie. All you need in life is Christ.

Unfortunately, we simply do not see this. Isaiah tells us that the third problem with idolatry is that it blinds our hearts and our minds. Notice verses 18-20 as he tells us the delusion that we fall under when we treasure anything else but God. Idolatry darkens our hearts, destroying our power to think rightly and rationally. Have you talked to someone and thought, “Wow, that person is crazy in the way they look at life?” Isaiah agrees. What happens is that the longer we keep thinking in this idolatrous way, the more our minds are darkened. I believe I told you a story about an experiment on television where a hunter would live with an animal lover. Could they teach each other? Would they learn from each other? The hunter had a dog that he loved. The animal lover thought she was going to make a great point to him. If the hunter had to choose between saving his dog and saving her, which would he do? The hunter said to the animal lover, “Even though I don’t know you, I would save you.” The animal lover argued with the hunter, “Oh no. You don’t even know me. You would have to save your dog.” This reveals the darkened thinking that comes from idolatry. You can love your animals and love your pets all you want. But the life of a human is vastly higher than that of an animal, which God teaches from the time of the flood forward in the scriptures. We become so blinded by our idolatry that we cannot ask the right questions.

We get so blinded by our idolatry that if our spouse does not make us happy, we look for sex or companionship with someone else. The problem is, what will you do when that person does not make you happy anymore? This is why divorce is ever increasing. We are putting our treasure in the wrong people and in the wrong things. This is why we become entangled in vices and habits that cannot be broken. We are placing our comfort and joy in something other than God. As Isaiah 44:20 says, we cannot see that there is a lie in our right hand. Our idol is a lie that does not satisfy and does not save. All the promises of an idol are a lie.

God Alone (Isaiah 44:21-23)

Thus God calls to the world to return to the Lord because he has redeemed us. God has made us and therefore we are his servants. Further, God sent Christ as the redemption price to pay for our sins. He has bought us and we belong to him. Sing for joy for the Lord is our God. We can depend on him. We can rely on him. God forgives of our idolatry. He is the rock of our hope and he is all that we need in life. Seeing God and what he offers us is to cause us to tear these idols out of our hearts and lives, and declare that we belong to the Lord alone.

The Lord’s Surprising Shepherd

Isaiah 44:24 to Isaiah 45:25

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah has prophesied that Israel has two needs to be delivered from: national slavery as they will be carried away into Babylonian captivity and spiritual sinfulness. From Isaiah 44:24 to Isaiah 48:22 God is announcing how he is going to save Israel from Babylonian captivity. Then in chapter 49 God will begin to describe in details how he is going to save Israel, and the world, from its sins. God is going to show that all the earth can trust in his promises by predicting exactly how Israel will be delivered from the Babylonians. Learning about God’s faithfulness and trustworthiness of his word will encourage us to rely on the promises of God for us today.

The Strength of God’s Word (Isaiah 44:24-28)

God begins by calling for the people to believe in his words. He is calling for people to trust in him and his declarations. In Isaiah 44:24 God says that he is the Lord. He validates his divinity, wisdom, and might in Isaiah 44:24-25. He is the Lord and he made all things. He alone stretched out the heavens. He stretched out the earth by himself. He frustrates liars and makes diviners look like fools. He makes the wise and the knowledgeable look foolish. In Isaiah 44:26 God says that he “confirms the word of his servant and fulfills the counsel of his messengers.” When God’s prophets speak, those words come true. When God’s servant make a declaration, those words happen by the power of God. Even when the declarations are seemingly impossible, God says that he will make it happen because he is the Lord. Now God will go ahead and make some seemingly impossible declarations for that time.

The first declaration is in Isaiah 44:26. Jerusalem will be inhabited and cities of Judah will be rebuilt. God is going to raise up the ruins of these destroyed cities. The nation of Judah and the capital city of Jerusalem will have been laid to waste and ruins by the Babylonians. But it is not over for the nation. God says that Jerusalem will be inhabited and the cities rebuilt. Further, God says that he will dry up the rivers. This image has a picture of when Israel was in Egyptian slavery and God dried up the Red Sea so that the people could be set free. But this may also refer to the means of Babylon’s demise. The great city of Babylon sat on the Euphrates River. When the Persian army came against Babylon, the army diverted the Euphrates River so they could climb under the walls and attack the city. God may be describing the means of Babylon’s fall. Finally, God says it will be Cyrus that he will use for the fulfillment of these declarations. Cyrus will fulfill God’s purposes. Cyrus will say that Jerusalem will be rebuilt and that the temple will be rebuilt.

The last date we were given concerning when Isaiah is prophesying is around 701 BC. What is amazing is that the Persian conquest of Babylon took place in 539 BC, approximately 160 years later. God predicted the fall of a world empire, names the conqueror, and describes the decrees this conqueror will give. I will challenge anyone to perform the same kind of powerful declaration today that God accomplishes in the scriptures. This is what true prophecy looks like. Please predict who the world power will be in the year 2174. Name the new world power that will conquer that nation. Name the conqueror who will lead the victory. Name the decrees he will make when the conqueror begins his rule. It is staggering prophecy. Skeptics may ask how we know that these things truly happen. The Cyrus Cylinder was an amazing archeological find, detailing Cyrus and his conquest over Babylon and his subsequent decrees. God knows the future. God knows what is happening and will happen on this earth. God’s plan will be achieved and humans will be made to look foolish. Listen to the first words of the book of Ezra about what historically occurred.

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: 2 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. (Ezra 1:1-3 ESV)

Cyrus, God’s Shepherd (Isaiah 45:1-7)

God now speaks directly to Cyrus, as if he were alive, about what he will cause Cyrus to do. Why is God doing this? Why is God raising up Cyrus to destroy Babylon? Isaiah 45:4 says that God is doing this for his people. God has called Cyrus by name even though Cyrus does not know the Lord so that he will set Israel free. The world is supposed to know this truth so that they will know that there is one Lord and there is no other. God rules. Notice verse 7. God makes well-being and calamity. God is watching over all the affairs of the earth. Nothing on earth is outside of his power or his control.

Do Not Contend With God (Isaiah 45:8-13)

Here is the issue: as God’s people we may not like how God operates in the world. We think that God should do things differently. One can imagine how Israel did not like the idea of their deliverance coming at the hands of a Persian conqueror. They did not want to go into Babylonian captivity and remain there for 70 years. In the same way people today often complain about how God rules in this world or operates in their lives. Worse, we will even resist the Lord in our lives because of various life circumstances. Listen to what God says about this in Isaiah 45:9-10.

Does the clay speak back to the potter? Can the clay tell the potter that the potter does not know what he is doing? Can the clay tell the potter that it does not like what the potter is making? In the same way, verse 10 says that the parents cannot be questioned either. Here is the point: the potter has every right to form the clay in any manner the potter sees fit. The clay does not talk back to the potter. The child does not talk back to the parent. Listen to verse 11: “Will you command me concerning my children or the work of my hands?” We must come to a critical truth: to love God means we must let him be God. We cannot tell God the way it is or the way it is supposed to be. When we insist that God do things our way, then we are not allowing God to be our God. It’s an obvious reality yet a concept that is so easily neglected. Everything God does is right. He is our God and therefore we yield to him. God does not do things according to human wisdom. God acts in his wisdom which defies human wisdom requiring us to put our faith in him.

The Message of Salvation (Isaiah 45:14-25)

An important shift in the message takes place in Isaiah 45:14. Notice in Isaiah 45:14 we are told that the wealth of the nations are going to be Israel’s. People will follow Israel and come over in their chains and bow down. So we must ask if God is speaking about the something that happened after the Babylonian captivity to the physical nation of Israel. Do we see this happen in history? I believe the answer is no. Rather, God is looking to the new Israel that will arise after the captivity, not the physical nation. There are a number of reasons to understand that the new, spiritual Israel is what God has in view. First, as we noted, physical Israel never experienced this. Second, this message is given again in Isaiah 60 which is in the context of the future glory of Israel with the Christ. Third, Paul refers to this text in 1 Corinthians 14:24. Paul describes the lives of the Christians in Corinth and the worship of the Corinthian church will cause the outsiders to come in and worship God. What Paul says sounds just like Isaiah’s message in Isaiah 45:14.

24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you. (1 Corinthians 14:24-25 ESV)

Therefore, we will look at this text as referring to the future, glorious Israel, the people of God, when Christ comes. Notice what the world will see in Israel, the true people of God. They are going to look at God’s people and declare, “Surely God is in you” and “There is no other god.” People will see us and that will cause them to worship God, just as Paul instructed the Corinthians. God promises that his people will experience salvation (Isaiah 45:17). God has not called for people to seek him for no reason (Isaiah 45:19).

The salvation offer would not be limited to physical Israel. The whole world would be given the opportunity to seek the Lord and receive salvation. This is the message of Isaiah 45:20-25. God calls to them to turn to the Lord for salvation (Isaiah 45:22). What a picture! The salvation of the Jews was to cause the Gentiles to desire the same salvation. God promises that all who come to him will be saved and belong to Israel. “In the Lord all the offspring of Israel shall be justified and shall glory” (Isaiah 45:25). The cycle continues. God’s people glorying in the Lord will cause others to know that there is no other god. They will put away their idols and seek the Lord. We will tell people that righteousness and strength are only found in the Lord (Isaiah 45:24). The hope for the world is found in the Lord. This is a message the world needs to hear.

Conclusion

Let’s put these pieces together. God has proven to keep his word. When God says it, it happens because he rules over the earth, created the earth, and knows what is happening on the earth. The history of Cyrus, Babylon, and the release of Israel from captivity are the basis for our trust in the word of the Lord. Now God has promised that he will wipe out your sins and not remember them. God has promised that if we seek him, he will save us. God has promised that if we will not resist him but trust him, we will receive justification and strengthening. Our glory and our hope must be found in the Lord.

Our Burden Bearing God

Isaiah 46-47

By Brent Kercheville

When I was young, there were some really great looking cars. Datsun had some pretty nice sports cars. Honda put out a CRX, which was a small, sporty car. Even Ford released the Probe which was pretty nice looking for Ford at the time that generally had boxy cars up to that point. The Mazda Miata became quite the rage. Do you remember when everyone wanted to own a Hummer? Why don’t young people want a Hummer now? Why do young people today not want a Ford Probe? Why don’t they want a CRX? I looked on AutoTrader online and found a 1991 CRX. I mean, it had a tape deck and manual roll up windows. It looked terrible. No one wants these now because they were unsustainable. There are new things now. No one younger than me knows what a Datsun is. In the same way, who cares about the gods Baal and Asherah? Who has heard of worshipers of Bel? Who has heard of worshipers of Nebo? These were the gods of Babylon. But no one cares because all idolatry fails. All idolatry is unsustainable. There is nothing of this creation that is sustainable. Everything fails. Everything perishes. Everything dies. Everything breaks down.

At the time, Israel was tempted to turn from the true and living God to the idols of Babylon. Babylon as the world power seemed to be the nation to which to align oneself. Since Babylon is the world power, maybe the people should worship their gods. Isaiah prophesies to the people why they must stay with the Lord and not turn to other gods.

False Gods Are Burdens But God Bears Burdens (Isaiah 46:1-7)

God describes the fall of Bel and Nebo. God pictures them being carried away as burdens on the backs of the animals when Babylon falls. Babylon is not to be trusted and faith was not to be placed in the gods of Babylon. Their doom was coming. Their gods are nothing. Idols cannot save. Rather, idols become a burden to those who worship them. The people must carry their idols that do not help.

This is the nature of idolatry. We think that if we will give our lives to these various pursuits in this world that they will carry us and help us. But it happens every time: the thing that we think will carry us, we end up carry it. The thing that we think will alleviate our burden now becomes the burden of our lives. People think sexual immorality will be ease their burden only to find the wrecked life and heavy burden that comes from such sins. People think alcohol and drugs will ease their burdens only to find these things to become addictions, burdens, and scourges upon their own lives.

But God says he will carry us. God has carried his people in the past and will carry them again (Isaiah 46:3-4). There is no moment that God is not carrying us along. This is exactly what God wants. God does not want us to become independent. Rather, God wants us to rely on him. God says even to our gray hairs he will carry us. He will carry and he will save. Yet we turn to idols to carry us which end up become our burdens. The world makes these idols look desirable. They seem to be delightful and the answer to our lives. But they are living with the pain of their decisions and are in need of rescue. We must not look at their decisions longingly. We must see that they need help and their foolish actions are a cry for deliverance.

Notice the sad picture of idolatry in Isaiah 46:6. We take the wealth given to us by God and use it to make idols. We take the rich blessings of God and use them against God. We take the blessing of sex and turn it into sinfulness. We take the blessing of wealth and use it for sinful things. We take our wealth and make it our god, becoming that which matters most to us. We take the joys of life and make them the ultimate, rather than seeing these blessings as given to us from God and worshiping the giver of these gifts. As Hosea prophesied as a contemporary with Isaiah, “With their silver and gold they made idols for their own destruction” (Hosea 8:4 ESV).

The Patient, Faithful God (Isaiah 46:8-13)

God cries out to remember his covenantal faithfulness, you rebels and violators (Isaiah 46:8-10)! Our idols do not help us but burden our lives. Yet God patiently waits for us to recognize this reality and return to him. Isaiah focuses our hope on the sovereignty of God. God’s plans are always accomplished. This is why we can trust in the Lord to bear our burdens. This is why we must go to the Lord with our pain, suffering, and difficulties. God is sovereign. God accomplishes his plans and purposes. Notice our problem in Isaiah 46:12. We have stubborn hearts. We refuse to listen and refuse to yield our lives to his purposes. God wants to carry us and help us. God will work his purposes through our circumstances. Consider Israel when they are in Babylonian captivity. God is going to use their capture to purify their hearts and create a remnant people for himself. God had not given up on his people. God is working his purposes through the difficulties they were going through. We know this is true on an individual level also. The books of James and 1 Peter tell that the purpose of suffering is to refine us for God’s glory. God can use any circumstance to bring about his own glory and plan.

Collapse of a Sinful Nation (Isaiah 47:1-15)

Now God reminds us that we do not want to be like Babylon because Babylon will be judged for its sins. Do not look longingly at the behavior of the world because God’s wrath will come upon their wickedness. God says that he will take vengeance for their sins and spare no one (Isaiah 47:3). In doing so, God is redeeming his people again. Depending on the Lord means not acting like the world. This message is alluded to in Revelation 18:4 when God calls for his people to come out from Babylon (the Roman Empire is the meaning of the symbol) lest we take part in their sins and take part in the judgments that fall. The warning is to look at God’s judgment, to come out from the world, and live differently. Let’s notice what sins Isaiah identifies in Babylon that God’s people must avoid that we our full dependence is on the Lord.

Lovers of pleasure (Isaiah 47:8). One of the sins of the nation is that the people are lovers of pleasure. How true is this label today! Everything people do today is all about pleasure. Pleasure and happiness is all that matters. People use God so that they can have happiness now. If we do not like it, then we will not do. If it is not enjoyable, then we will not participate. We spend our money so heavily on the pursuit of pleasure. Do we love the Lord or do we love pleasure? Which dictates the decisions of our lives? Which will we spend our time on money on — the Lord or pleasure? Our goal is to find the pleasure in serving Christ so that even the things that do not sound enjoyable become enjoyable because it is our service and worship to him.

Pride (Isaiah 47:8). The people are also full of pride. They say in their hearts, “I am, and there is no one besides me.” Notice that they are speaking as if they are gods. This is what God says about himself. God is the I AM and there is no one else but him. But we set ourselves up as gods. This is humanity’s downfall and the downfall of every nation. We have a saying that is increasing in popularity “The rules apparently do not apply to that person.” In other words, you are god. This is pride. All that matters is me and things that are important to me. Nothing else matters. The increase of selfishness is the increase of pride. We cannot allow ourselves to be consumed with thinking about ourselves. God teaches to think about others, not ourselves (Philippians 2:3-4).

Secure in sin (Isaiah 47:10). Thinking that we can commit sins and not receive consequences for our decisions. This is a symptom of pride. We think we can do what we want and be lovers of pleasure but not deal with the consequences of our choices. We feel secure in our sins. We think that we will not caught in sin. We think we that we are getting away with what we are doing. We think that we will not pay consequences now nor in the final analysis on the day of judgment before the Lord. How foolish we are to think that our sins will not catch up to us. Our sins always catch up to us, becoming burdens in our lives which only can be alleviated by God. God is our burden bearer.

Conclusion

What decision will we make for our lives? We can either continue to create more burdens for our lives, believing that decisions are going to help us and save us when they are hurting us. We can look to the Lord as the true Savior who relieves our burdens. The Lord is sovereign has rules over all the earth. We must put our lives in his hands. Let us not be sucked into these sins that bring the judgment of God. Pleasure is not the goal of life. Pride is not acceptable to our God. Our sins are not hidden from God’s eyes.

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. (2 Corinthians 5:10 ESV)

We need to return to the Burden Bearer. Let him carry you in your suffering. Let him forgive your sins. Let him be the hope for your life.

Refined For God’s Glory

Isaiah 48:1-22

By Brent Kercheville

The sinfulness of people is the proof of God. This statement sounds counterintuitive but it is true. God proves that he is God by his grace to sinners. Grace was never an afterthought or a plan B in the mind of God. The obvious expectation of God is to ferociously judge transgressors. Historically false gods did such. An angry volcano god wipes out the inhabitants of the island. An angry rain god would not let in rain and the people would suffer from a lack of food and crops. These concepts come from the mind of man. False gods vengefully destroy disobedient people. For God to welcome sinners into a relationship with him through his grace is staggering. The scriptures teach us that the throne of God is a throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). Christianity stands completely different from world religions because only God would save sinners. God draws people to himself. This shows the God of the scriptures to be alive and true for no one human could conjure or invent such amazing grace.

Unfortunately, God’s people sometimes place on the true and living God the characteristics of these false gods that are invented by humans. In Isaiah 48 we learn more about God and his purposes. What God shows about himself is amazing and sets him apart from all creation.

Our Stubbornness (Isaiah 48:1-8)

As we have grown accustom to read in Isaiah’s prophecy, God begins by describing the wretched condition of his people. The first two verses speak of a terrible evil. The people claim to be the people of God, Israel, and take oaths by the name of the Lord and confess the Lord, but they do not do so in truth or righteousness. They consider themselves to be God’s people, but they do not live up to their name as Israel nor live up to their confession in God. The people think their name is enough. Notice in Isaiah 48:2 that they have put their hope in Jerusalem, naming themselves after the holy city. This is a fascinating charge. The people think they have put their hope in the Lord and believe they are confessing his name, but in truth they are not.

We must stop and think about what our Lord is declaring. Claiming to go to the right church does not mean that we are justified by God. These people claimed the city of Jerusalem as their holy city, yet God condemned them. Claiming to be a Christian does not mean that we are justified by God. These people claimed to be God’s people also, yet God condemned them. Faith is far more than a name or a claim. I find verse 2 the most jarring declaration. They think that they rely or lean (“stay”; ESV) on God. They believe that are relying on him. The truth is that they are stubborn and obstinate, failing to listen and rely on the Lord (Isaiah 48:4). The declaration must cause us to look in ourselves and consider if we are really depending on God, clinging to his name, and seeking him completely. Are we really listening to God? Do we want to hear what God says? In seeking the will of the Lord do we long to do what he says? These are important questions that we must always ask of our heart to make sure we have not slipped into claiming to be a follower but we are not following him at all.

God is so concerned about showing their condition because God is acting on their behalf and he knows that his people will attribute the works of God to their false idols (Isaiah 48:5). How easy it is to fall into this trap! How many times will something good happen in our lives and we fail to attribute it to God? We forgot to attribute our prosperity to God. We fail to attribute our health to God. We fail to attribute our spirituality to God. We fail to attribute our jobs to God. We have the tendency to look to our own hands as believe that we have done it. God says that he was caring for Israel. Therefore to prove it to them, he says that he will declare future events and future blessings specifically so they will not attribute those blessings to anyone else but God. God says that he is working in your life. Do not give that glory to another. Do not give that glory to yourself. Do not attribute the works of God to yourself or to others. But we deal treacherously with the Lord and act rebelliously, never giving to God the glory he deserves in this world and in our lives (Isaiah 48:8).

Amazing Grace (Isaiah 48:9-11)

So what will God do for people who refuse to acknowledge his glory and refuse to trust in the Lord and follow him? What will God do with people who like to claim to belong to the Lord but do not? Will God strike them down like false gods that we see in world religions. No, God shows grace. Isaiah 48:9-11 reveals what God will do. God will show amazing grace for his own purposes. Israel would not be sent into destruction as it deserved, but would be sent to captivity for purification. God would allow a limited punishment against his people so that they would be purified. God does not fully punish people for the sake of his own glory. God put limits on Israel’s punishment and suffering, though the full wrath of God was deserved. God wanted to refine his people so that they could belong to him. God gives his people another opportunity to belong to him.

I want us to consider how this is to change our worldview. When we look around at all the evil in our country and the evil in this world, we are supposed to see the glory of God in that evil. How? We are seeing the grace of God on display as he desires for every person to repent and come back to him. God does not immediately punish a person for sin for his own glory, to show the amazing love and grace of God. This is the only reason you and I are not dead yet. Every person could experience what Nadab and Abihu experienced. Rebel against God and die. Instead, people continue to live in evil and wickedness and it shows the glory of God. The people did not merit this grace. God did this because that is what makes our God who he is.

Friends, how often we fail at this moment of crisis in our own lives. God limits Satan and allows the terrible things that happen in this world so that we would be refined for his glory. God allows these things so that we will stop dealing with our God treacherously and stop rebelling against him. God is trying to purify us. This is how much God loves us. He does not wipe us out for our hypocrisy. Rather, he prepares us through difficulty so that we can found to the praise of his glory. We need refining and God is exalted through that refining. Do not give up on God when going through difficulties. Recognize that this difficulty is another moment for refining and it is a blessing so that we can be reconciled to God.

God’s Appeal (Isaiah 48:12-22)

God calls for all people to trust in his sovereignty. God always sees his purposes through to completion. God will do what he sets out to do and nothing will stop him. God is the eternal God and sees everything through (Isaiah 48:12). This is the hope we have in the powerful God we serve. If he has the power to lay the foundations of the world and stretch out the heavens and the skies, then he has the power to accomplish all that he desires (Isaiah 48:13). What can God not accomplish?

God tells Israel that he is sending a servant who will deliver them (Isaiah 48:14-16). God’s servant will set Israel free from Babylonian slavery. Cyrus was identified by name as God’s servant in Isaiah 44:28 to Isaiah 45:1. Cyrus will accomplish God’s purpose. Israel must not be in despair for nothing will stop God’s plan. Cyrus is anointed by the Lord to be their deliverer. God will set the people free. He will be their God and he will be their teacher, showing them the way they ought to go (Isaiah 48:17). Because of the people’s sins they had lost out of so many of God’s blessings. They could have enjoyed continuing peace and righteousness (Isaiah 48:18). They would have enjoyed being God’s people who were like the sands of sea, just as God had promised to Abraham (Isaiah 48:19). Their sins kept them from being an enduring people who would never be cut off (Isaiah 48:19). Cyrus will cause the people to go out from Babylon with joy because God has redeemed his people (Isaiah 48:20). A new exodus has come (Isaiah 48:21).

Do you hear the echo of what God is doing? In Isaiah 7 we saw an amazing echo of the power of God. Isaiah 7 promised a sign to King Ahaz to show that his people would be delivered from the Assyrians. A young women would have a child and before the child knew right or wrong, the people would be delivered (Isaiah 7:14-16). But we learn from Matthew that this prophecy was an echo of a greater event to come. Jesus would be born of a virgin and he would deliver the people from their sins. Isaiah 48 is an echo of an event to come. God is going to send a Servant, send with the Spirit of the Lord, anointed by God to set the people free from their enslavement to sin. He would be our Teacher and show us the way we are to live our lives.

This Servant will reverse all that we have ruined due to our sins. Because of our sins we lost the right to peace and righteousness. But Jesus is the Prince of Peace. He reverses our condition so that we can enjoy true peace and righteousness in him. Because of our sins we could not be called children of God. Our sins destroyed the relationship we could have with the Lord. But Jesus comes and through his atoning sacrifice Christians are the offspring that are like the sands of sea, innumerable to count. Listen to the amazing words of John from his gospel:

He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:11-13 ESV)

Finally, our sins mean that we must be cut off and be cast from the presence of the Lord. But Jesus reverses our condition and gives us an enduring name. Listen to the words of Jesus that he promised to his followers:

The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. (Revelation 3:12 ESV)

God sends us out of our slavery to sin through Jesus for the Lord has redeemed us through his blood (Ephesians 1:7). A new exodus has come leading us out of the domain of darkness and into the light of Christ’s kingdom (Colossians 1:13-14). What a glorious picture and what a glorious hope! But do not be deceived. Listen to the last words of this chapter: “There is no peace for the wicked” (Isaiah 48:22). We are not getting away with our sins. We will not have peace unless we give our lives to Christ. God is attempting to draw us to him. Let your hearts be refined and see the glory and grace of God working in your life. Give him the praise as you change your ways to be his servant.

Light Your World

Isaiah 49:1-6

By Brent Kercheville

The second servant song is recorded in Isaiah 49. Isaiah 49-55 is a special section in the prophecy as it records the amazing redemption God will accomplish through his servant for the world. Chapter 49 contains another unique aspect in that we read the speech of the servant. The servant now speaks, declaring his purpose and reciting what the Lord told him. The servant’s message tells us about what God has planned and what his servant will do.

The Servant’s Message (Isaiah 49:1-4)

The servant begins by calling for the world to listen to him. God is the one who calls for the world to listen to his message (cf. Isaiah 48:1; Isaiah 48:12). For the servant to speak with a command for the world to listen to him not only indicates that his work will affect the world but also indicates that he is divine. He is allowed to speak like God, calling the world to listen to him. The calling of the servant mirrors the same description of Cyrus’ calling in Isaiah 44:2. The plan of this servant has been in the mind of the Lord long before the arrival of the servant.

But this is where the similarities to the servant Cyrus end. Notice in verse 2 that the sharp sword comes from his mouth. Unlike Cyrus, the weapon of this servant’s warfare comes from his mouth. This becomes the reference point for the description of Christ in the book of Revelation.

In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. (Revelation 1:16 ESV)

From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. (Revelation 19:15 ESV)

There is another interesting image used concerning the work of the servant. Isaiah 49:2 says that the servant was hidden in the shadow of the Lord’s hand and is a polished arrow hidden in the Lord’s quiver. This seems to picture that the servant is protected by the hand of God and is concealed by God for a purpose to be revealed later. He is God’s chosen vessel who will suddenly appear on the scene to accomplish God’s plan.

But here is the strange thing. Notice in Isaiah 49:3 that the servant is called Israel. “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” So have we misunderstood the identity of the servant? We will speak more to verse 5-6 in a moment, but notice that the servant’s task is to gather Israel (49:5) and bring back the preserved of Israel (49:6). Therefore, the servant is not the nation of Israel because the servant’s task is to gather the people of Israel. The purpose of the servant is to reconcile Israel to God. So how can the servant, who we have noticed from verse 2 is the Christ, be called Israel?

The gospel of John seems to relate to this prophecy directly in the descriptions that are given to Jesus.

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and exclaimed, “Look, a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” (John 1:47 NET) Notice that Jesus is not just simply an Israelite without sin, but he is a true Israelite.

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. (John 1:9 ESV) Jesus is not simply the light of the world, but he is the true light. Israel was supposed to be a light to the world as Isaiah 49:6 observes.

John 15 is perhaps the clearest usage by John to show that Jesus is the true Israel where Jesus says, “I am the true vine.” The vine represented Israel. Jesus is not just the vine but he is the true, genuine vine. The message, therefore, is that the coming servant sent by God, the Christ, will be the true Israel. Jesus will be everything that Israel was not. Where Israel failed, Jesus will succeed. This servant is the ideal Israel, represented and seen in this one person. Israel was supposed to be a model of God’s standards to the nations by living according to God’s law. The prophets point out that Israel’s disobedience caused the nations to blaspheme God. The sinful nation failed but the servant will succeed. Notice the declared success in Isaiah 49:3. The servant will bring God glory. The nation of Israel failed to bring God glory. This servant will do it.

Isaiah 49:4 is rather shocking. Notice the point of view of the servant. The servant utters sad words. The servant has labored in vain and spent his strength for nothing. His work appears to have come to nothing. His ministry appears to be full of discouragement. There will be resistance in accomplishing the mission. However, the servant will rest in the Lord. His work will be vindicated by the Lord. God will be the one to show the value of the work of the servant. By all human calculations, the work will appear to be have been a waste. The ultimate outcome will be success and the servant will be vindicated. What a thought that Isaiah predicts the coming of the servant whose work will appear to have been for nothing but whose work will be vindicated by God!

The Servant’s Mission (Isaiah 49:5-6)

Now we read God’s charge to his servant. We have already summarized the mission as the reconciliation of Israel to God. The servant will work to gather his people back to the Father. This is an important message. It is not possible for humanity to reconcile themselves to God. The servant is sent to be the one who accomplishes the reconciliation. This fits the very words of Jesus. “No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). We cannot come to the Father. We need the servant to bring us to him. This work is given to this servant because he is honored by the Lord and his strength is in the Lord alone. This is all that matters to the servant. He is honored by the Father and finds his strength in the Lord. This should be all that matters to us as we pattern our lives after Jesus. The glory of the Lord, not the glory of people, is all that matters and we live by the strength of God alone, not our own might.

But then God says something amazing in Isaiah 49:6. This task is too small of a task for the servant. It is not enough for the servant to bring back the people of Israel to God. Therefore another task is given to the servant. God will make the servant a light to the Gentiles (the nations) and bring the salvation of the Lord to the ends of the earth. Not only will the servant restore and save Israel, but he will also restore and save the world. This is an appropriate task for the servant. Restoring Israel was too small. Restoring the world is a fitting task for him. Jesus becomes the light to the world. Jesus is the light to the Gentiles. Jesus would be the means of bringing salvation to the ends of the earth. This seems like a great finale and yet there is something more. Turn to Acts 13:44-49.

Light Your World (Acts 13:44-49)

Paul and Barnabas have been preaching in the synagogue in Antioch. The people beg them to stay and preach to them again the next Sabbath. We pick up the reading in Acts 13:44. Carefully read Acts 13:47. “The Lord has commanded us” and then he quotes this passage from Isaiah 49:6. How can Paul and Barnabas, one who is an apostle and one who is not, say that they were given the command of Isaiah 49 when clearly the servant received this command which was referring to Jesus?

Isaiah 49:3 is the answer to this dilemma. Christ represents the ideal Israel. Those who belong to Christ are the true Israel and have also received this command from the Lord. This is why John 15 records Jesus as the true vine and we are the branches that bear fruit. To belong to Christ means that we bear fruit consistent with being the people of God. The charge given to Christ as the servant to be a light to the Gentiles and bring salvation to the ends of the earth becomes our mission as well, and the first century Christians understood this. The Christians in the first century did not need Matthew 28 to know that they were to go into all the world to preach the gospel and make disciples. Isaiah declared it would happen and Jesus emphasized it when he said that we were the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Israel was to be a light to the world, bringing people to God. Israel failed in its role, causing the world to reject and blaspheme God. Jesus is the true Israel and functions perfectly as the light of the world and brought salvation to the world. Those who believe in Jesus and join themselves to him become branches in the vine, belonging to the true Israel, the true people of God. Therefore we are agreeing to adopt the mission given to Christ when we join ourselves to him and become his people. We have been commanded to take the message of Jesus to the world.

Further, we must not be discouraged or dissuaded from sharing the gospel because of rejection. As Isaiah 49 indicates, we may feel that we have labored in vain and spent our strength for nothing. We do a lot of work to invite people to services. We may have invited people to our latest gospel meeting. You may ask people for Bible studies. Perhaps you are directing people to the website. You may try hard to connect to our guests that join us for worship. But poor results must not cause us to give up on the task given to us. We must do what we can to bring the message of salvation to our community. We must be willing to try different things and not give up when success is not immediately visible. Remember what God told Isaiah in the sixth chapter. God told him that the people would not listen but he must continue to preach to them anyway. We never know who is interested in the gospel. Take the message of Jesus to them. Ask them questions about God. Invite them to our Bible studies in the community. Send them to the website. Find your way to fulfill your purpose of bringing God glory by taking the gospel to the people in your sphere of influence.

You Are Not Forgotten

Isaiah 49:7 to Isaiah 50:3

By Brent Kercheville

It is easy to believe that God has forgotten us. When we go through great difficulties and trials the temptation is to believe that we are forsaken and forgotten by God. Israel would be susceptible to this belief as well. They have been invaded by the Babylonian Empire, taken off the land, and sent into slavery. Does God no longer care? Has God forgotten us? Even though the judgment of the Lord is just because of our sinfulness, has God neglected his people? Notice Isaiah 49:14, “But Zion said, ‘The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.’” So has God forgotten or forsaken his people? This is the question that Isaiah answers in the rest of Isaiah 49.

The Despised Servant (Isaiah 49:7)

In the first six verses of Isaiah 49 we read about the Servant who will bring Israel and the whole world to God, bringing salvation to the end of the earth. The sending of the Servant is God’s primary answer for us to know that we are not forgotten or forsaken by him. Notice what will happen to the Servant (Christ) when he comes, according to Isaiah 49:7. He will be deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, and the servant of rulers. Isaiah pictures the Servant being rejected by the people and hated by those he came to save. Notice how shocking it is to declare that the Servant will be a servant of rulers. He will not be a king when he arrives. He is not going to be like Cyrus who rules over a nation. He will be the subject of rulers. But the rest of Isaiah 49:7 points out that this condition of being a rejected, despised, and subjugated Servant will be reversed. Kings and princes will bow down to him because of the Lord. Though rejected by the world, the Lord will exalt him. He is not forgotten by God.

The Time of Favor (Isaiah 49:8-13)

God continues to speak to the Servant. God will give the Servant as a covenant to the people to establish the promises of God given to Abraham. The Servant will call people out of darkness and out of the prisons. Isaiah pictures a new exodus led by the Servant. The Servant is pictured as a new Moses and a new Joshua who calls the prisoners out of their imprisonment. They will be fed along the way to the promised land just as God did when he brought Israel out of Egypt. They will even been fed in the most unexpected places. The Servant embodies all that is intended with the covenant God gave to the people. All the obstacles will be cleared for a return (Isaiah 49:11) and every person throughout the earth is called (Isaiah 49:12). Therefore sing for joy because God has comforted his people and he has compassion on the afflicted (Isaiah 49:13).

Know You Are Not Forgotten (Isaiah 49:14 to Isaiah 50:3)

Even though God has declared the coming of the time of favor and the day of salvation, the people still think that God has forgotten and forsaken them (Isaiah 49:14). Therefore God will go even further to prove that he has not forgotten his people. Listen to the beautiful imagery God gives to show that he cannot forget us.

Can a woman forget a nursing child? Is it possible for a mother to lack compassion on her child and forget her nursing child? The answer is that this would never happen! But God amplifies the answer in the rest of Isaiah 49:15. “Even if these may forget, yet I will not forget you.” Even if you can produce a horrible mother that forgets her nursing child, God is better than that. The second image is found in Isaiah 49:16. God’s people are engraved on the palms of his hands. Many of you may write notes on your hands so that you do not forget to do something. God says that you are written on his hands. We are always before the eyes of the Lord. What a precious, comforting thought!

God further promises that the enemies of God’s people will be destroyed (Isaiah 49:17-19). The city of God, Zion, is not forgotten. Lift up your eyes and see that God will beautifully adorn you with ornaments as if on a bride. Now do not read this and think that this is referring to Israel’s physical return from Babylonian slavery under Cyrus. Isaiah 49:19-23 show that this is not the case. God says that so many people are going to return to the Lord that there will not be room in the city for all the people. God says that he will build a city of people so great and so numerous that the people coming in are going to wonder where they are going to live. The point is that the restoration that God is promising was far more than just putting the Jews back in Jerusalem. God is picturing glorious Zion, the people of God, coming from all over the earth to the Lord to live with him and worship him. The destroyed physical city of Jerusalem will be turned into the glorified spiritual city of God, Zion.

Notice Isaiah 49:22-23. Earlier in this chapter we saw the Servant despised and rejected later receiving honor and worship from princes and kings (Isaiah 49:7). That promise is now shared with God’s people. Israel will be given a special place and recognized as the Lord’s special people. Verse 23 gives the people the clear message: wait for the Lord to do this. “Those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” Wait for the Lord means to trust in him to act. These things will happen according to God’s time and purpose. God is stronger than any of our enemies and judgment will come upon them (Isaiah 49:24-26). Every person must acknowledge the Lord or be counted as enemies to be destroyed. The imagery of Isaiah 49:26 is similar to the imagery in Revelation 19:21 where Christ is pictured utterly destroying his enemies and the enemies of those who belong to him. Those who choose their own way leads to destruction. Our wrecked lives are supposed to point us to God and bring him glory as we acknowledge him.

The final image to confirm that God has not forsaken his people is in the first three verses of chapter 50. God says that nothing is permanent. The divorce papers have not been given. They have not been irrevocably sold. The door is still open to reconciliation. How can anyone think they are forsaken by the Lord? Look at all that God is doing on behalf of his people.

Conclusion

God promised that the day of salvation and the time of favor. In that time God will help, answer, and restore. When the Servant comes in that day, then the fortunes of God’s people will be reversed. Listen to the apostle Paul concerning this passage.

20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 1 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. (2 Corinthians 5:20 to 2 Corinthians 6:2 ESV)

God promised that he would not forget his people and even made the point that it was not possible for him to forget his people. His people are engraved on his hands. God will give the Servant in the time of favor and in the day of salvation as a covenant to the people. The apostle Paul takes this passage and says, “Now is the favorable time; now is the day of salvation.” Just as Isaiah 49:7 pictured the Servant being rejected, he is not forgotten by God. Though we may suffer and deal with various trials, we are not forgotten by God. Jesus is our example that God was with him even though he was mistreated while he lived on the earth. God uses the amazing sacrifice of Jesus as proof that we are not forgotten by God.

Although a person’s circumstances may seem difficult or hopeless at times, there are reasons to put one’s hope in God. There are reasons to believe that God has not forgotten you nor has he forsaken you. God is less likely to forget you than a mother is to forget her nursing child. God cannot forget you because you are engraved on his hands. God has not divorced his people, even though we have broken his laws, but has created the day of salvation and the time of favor. God does not forsake his people.

5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:5-6 ESV)

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. (John 10:27-29 ESV)

Now come back to Paul’s charge to us in 2 Corinthians 6:1, We appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. (2 Corinthians 6:1 ESV)

You are known by God, cared for by God, and loved by God. He is a compassionate God who comforts the afflicted. Do not let the grace of God be received in vain. Do not live your life thinking God has left you. Do not let your faith be weakened by adversity. Do not fail to wait for the Lord and trust in his promises. If we think that God has forgotten us, then we have received his grace in vain. We are failing to believe in the promises of God. Hold on to the promises of God. It is part of his grace to us who believe.

The Lord God Helps Me

Isaiah 50:4-11

By Brent Kercheville

In the previous paragraph, God has explained to his people how they can know that they are not forgotten or forsaken by him. God used imagery of a nursing child, a lack of divorce papers, and their names engraved on his hands to illustrate how impossible it is for God to forsake or forget his people. But the ultimate proof that God loves his people, has not forgotten his people, and will not forsake his people is his Servant, Jesus the Christ. God described the coming of the Servant in Isaiah 49:1-13. Now God returns to describing the coming of the Servant. We notice that the language just like what we read in Isaiah 49:1-6. The Servant again speaks and in his speech we see three pictures of who he is and what he will do.

Skilled In God’s Word (Isaiah 50:4)

The first picture of the Servant is that he is skilled in God’s word. The Servant declares that he has a trained tongue and trained ear. The Servant possesses the words of wisdom because he is taught and instructed by the Lord. His words reflect the message of the Lord. This means that when the Servant speaks that his words will help the weary. The words of this Servant will comfort and sustain those who are broken and tired by sin. Further, the Servant is pictured as the ideal disciple for he listens to the Lord. Every morning he is listening to God. This is a beautiful picture of what a disciple of the Lord is to do. Support for God’s weary people comes by his words. Therefore we must listen to the words of God every day.

Submissive To God’s Will (Isaiah 50:5-6)

The second picture of the Servant is found in Isaiah 50:5-6. The Servant declares that he is listening to the will of the Lord. He was not rebellious to God’s will and did not turn his back on God’s plan. The Servant does what he is asked to do. Notice what he volunteers to do in Isaiah 50:6. “I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard.” The Servant did not rebel but submissively suffers. I want to emphasize that the Servant voluntarily did this because the text says, “I gave.” He was not forced or made to give his back. He chose to take the beating he would receive. He would not hide his face from the disgrace, the shame, and the spitting that would happen to him. The scriptures record this sorrowful prophecy was fulfilled many times during Jesus’ final hours.

What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?” (Matthew 26:66-68 ESV)

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him. (Matthew 27:27-31 ESV)

God sends the Servant to reconcile the world to God and prove that God does not forget or forsake his people. The response of the people will be to strike his back, pull out his beard, and spit in his face. The path of suffering would be the path for the Servant.

Secure In God’s Help (Isaiah 50:7-9)

The third picture we see of the Servant is that the Lord will be with the Servant despite the despicable treatment of the people. The Lord helps the Servant and will vindicate the Servant. The picture is not that the Lord forsakes the Servant. Rather, the Lord helps the Servant. The predicted suffering of the Servant does not mean God withdraws his support. The Servant is not a disgrace in God’s eyes. Therefore, in spite of the suffering, the Servant perseveres in the mission (Isaiah 50:7; cf. Luke 9:51). Throughout his time, no one is able to declare the Servant guilty. This was the amazing part of the trials of Jesus. No one could bring up a charge against him. The Sanhedrin trials, Herod’s examination, and Pilate’s examination all yield that this Servant was not guilty of any wrongdoing and was not deserving of death. Can you imagine a prophecy of a person who would come in the future who would not be guilty of violating any of God’s laws? Yet this is what Isaiah has done. The Servant will be amazing when he comes, and Isaiah was speaking of the Christ. All who oppose the Servant will fall apart like a garment. To oppose the Servant will only end in one’s own demise.

The Call To The People (Isaiah 50:10-11)

Now that we have seen three more pictures concerning the coming of the Servant, Isaiah now has a call to make to the people. First, a question is made. “Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant?” We immediately notice that the Servant is equated to the Lord. To fear the Lord is to obey the voice of the Servant. This is a shocking declaration for the Servant is described with the same authority as the Almighty God. Therefore, no one would should have been surprised with Jesus spoke with the authority of God. By listening to the Servant, a person is showing reverence for the Lord. Therefore, here is what is required.

First, we must recognize that we are walking in darkness and have no light. Until a person grasps their condition before God and their condition without God, then a person will never seek the Lord and never find salvation. This is the problem people have today. People do not know they are in the darkness and do not know that they need the Lord. They think they are in the light. This is why Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount that it was the poor in spirit who were blessed. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3 ESV) We have to know that we are nothing and without strength before we can be granted the grace to belong to God’s kingdom. Jesus had to expose this problem throughout his whole ministry.

Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. (John 9:39-41 ESV)

We are at a great risk to being blind to our condition, just as Israel was blind to its condition. We must never forget that Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12). The light does not begin with us nor does it come from within us. Any goodness or righteousness we practice comes only because we are looking at the light of Christ.

Second, trust and rely on the Lord. Consider how this parallels the work of the Servant in this text. The Servant is rejected by the people, disgraced, and mocked. However, God helps him and he is not disgraced before him. The Lord later vindicates the Servant. Through all of these things, the Servant maintains his trust in the Lord. He was not rebellious and did not turn his back (Isaiah 50:5). The picture is for us to follow the Servant with the trust that he has exhibited in the Lord. What we must see is faith offsets the darkness. We need faith because we are in the dark. Trusting the Lord is the only way to be in the light. Trusting in ourselves always leads to disaster.

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. (Proverbs 16:25 ESV)

This is the point made in Isaiah 50:11. Those who continue in their own way, trying to deal with their darkness with some sort of self-reliance are doomed. We consumed by our own efforts. Notice the picture in Isaiah 50:11. They are trying to equip themselves with burning torches and walk by the light of their fire. But doing so brings judgment from the hand of God that those who do such will lie down in torment.

So what will it be for us? Christ has become our leader and trailblazer showing us the result of trusting in the Lord. We are able to see the vindication of the Servant. We are able to see the victory given to Christ. Who among us will fear the Lord and obey the voice of the Servant? Then trust in the Lord even when we do not understand and even when we go through suffering and difficulty. Lighting our own path and trusting in our own wisdom and paths will only cause our own doom. It is from the hand of God to experience the consequences for failing to walk in the light of Christ.

You God Reigns

Isaiah 51-52

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah has been prophesying to the people explaining why they can put their hope and trust in the Lord during their time of suffering and disaster. God is proving to his people that they are not forgotten. God will send the Servant to be light to the nations, reconciling the peoples to him. The Servant will be disgraced by the people but vindicated by the Lord. God continues to offer messages of hope describing what his future kingdom and people of that kingdom will be. This becomes instructive for us since we are the people of God in that kingdom now. So the promises given are the hope we have in the Lord. In these two chapters God is going to give three promises, two pictures of comfort, and a call to action.

Promise 1: God Will Restore (Isaiah 51:1-3)

The three promises are delineated by the three calls for the people to listen to the Lord. Isaiah 51:1; Isaiah 51:4; Isaiah 51:7 all begin calling for the people to listen to what God has to say. The first promise is that the people must be comforted by looking at how God is able to restore. In Isaiah 51:2 God tells the people to look at what he did for Abraham. Abraham was only one person and it was physically impossible for him to have a child. But God turned that one person into a mighty nations with thousands of descendants. God tells the people to not forget the miracles that he is able to accomplish on their behalf. When God determines to do something, nothing can stop him. Even the obstacle of Abraham and Sarah being too old to have children is not an obstacle at all. Therefore, it is no obstacle to God to restore the covenant to his people.

Promise 2: God Will Teach The World (Isaiah 51:4-6)

The second promise is that God will instruct the world. God’s revelation and instructions would not be limited to the physical nation of Israel any longer. Rather, God would reveal his laws and teach his ways to the whole world. Everything else can pass away around them, but God’s faithfulness (righteousness) and salvation to the world will not vanish or disappear.

Promise 3: God Will Give Lasting Salvation (Isaiah 51:7-8)

The third promise is that those who have the teachings of the Lord in their hearts will experience lasting salvation. God is faithful to his people and he has promised salvation to those who know him. What glorious promises God has given that we can find our hope in today! God would restore his covenant so that he would have a covenant people who would belong to him and he would bless. God would teach the world so that those who could belong to this covenant would not be Jews only, but anyone who listened to God’s instructions and put their instructions in their hearts. This is a picture of the true people of God. We have hope in salvation knowing that we have put the teachings of God in our hearts and made active those teachings in our lives.

Prayer and Response (Isaiah 51:9-16)

Between the three promises of God and the two comforts for his people, we read a prayer to God (Isaiah 51:9-11) and a response from God (Isaiah 51:12-16). It appears that Isaiah, speaking on behalf of the people, is calling for the Lord to act now based on those very promises. The call is for the arm of the Lord to be awaked. The arm of the Lord is a symbol of God’s power (cf. Exodus 6:6, Deuteronomy 4:34). As God destroyed Egypt (Rahab is a symbol in the Old Testament for any group of people who oppose God) and set his people free from slavery, so do it again so “the ransomed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with singing.”

God responds that there is no reason for his people to fear others. Never forget the power of God who has chosen you to belong to his covenant. God will destroy the wrath of your oppressors. God says that he has covered his people in the shadow of his hand. But then the most beautiful words. God says to Zion, “You are my people.” The bunch of sinners are allowed to hear the gracious words from God, “You are my people.” This transitions the reader into the three comforts God gives to his people. These are statements so that his people will have hope and know that they truly are God’s people.

Comfort 1: God’s Wrath Has Ended (Isaiah 51:17-23)

The two comfort declarations are delineated by the call to wake up (Isaiah 51:17; Isaiah 52:1) and then there is a call to go (Isaiah 52:11). The first comfort is that God has decreed an end to God’s wrath.

Thus says your Lord, the LORD, your God who pleads the cause of his people: “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering; the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more; and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, ‘Bow down, that we may pass over’; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to pass over.” (Isaiah 51:22-23 ESV)

This is a great truth for us to recognize and consider. The only escape that can be found from the wrath of God is in the mercy of God. The only reason we are able to escape God’s wrath is because he says that there is mercy to be received. There is nothing we can do to move ourselves away from the condition of deserving the wrath of God. God does not turn his wrath away from Israel because of their righteousness. The people are steeped in wickedness. Rather, God simply provides mercy. Comfort is found, not by looking at ourselves for all that we do reminds us of how the wrath of God is deserved, by looking at the Lord who decrees mercy on those who do not deserve mercy. The more we try to look at our actions for comfort, the more we will be discomforted. But when we look to the God of all comfort, only then are we able to have hope of mercy for our sinful condition.

Comfort 2: You Are Holy (Isaiah 52:1-10)

The second comfort is God decreeing that Zion is no longer polluted and defiled. Awake and wear your beautiful garments. The imagery is similar to Zechariah 3 where Joshua as the high priest representing Israel is now given clean clothes rather than the filthy clothes stained with sins. The imagery sounds like the saints in the book of Revelation who are wearing white robes because they have overcome with the Lamb. This is a God-given holiness, not an intrinsic holiness. God is cleaning his people up from the mess of their sins and setting them free. God has no trouble setting his people free. They went into slavery without price. God will redeem them without cost. God saved his people from Egypt and saved them from Assyria (think of the angel of the Lord saving Jerusalem from the 185,000 soldiers of Assyria). Babylon is nothing before God.

In fact, the salvation of his people is so determined by the Lord that Isaiah 52:7-10 pictures the messengers going out with the good news of salvation. The news is that the salvation is already accomplished (even though it had not occurred yet). But this is another instance of prophetic certainty. God has determined that salvation will come so it will come. God pictures the message of deliverance going throughout the earth, declaring the good news of peace. Notice what the message of the gospel is: “Your God reigns.”

Now it is easy to read this and think that this is about Israel’s release from Babylon. But listen to what the apostle Paul says in Romans 10:13-17.

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:13-17 ESV)

The good news is not release from Babylon. The good news is that your God reigns. Now God’s wrath has ended and we are declared holy as his people. That is the proclamation that must be advanced throughout the earth. As Paul says: how can people believe if they do not hear this message that God reigns? And how can they hear without someone preaching? And how are they going to preach unless people are sent. Therefore, faith comes from hearing the message of Christ for Christ is the answer to how God’s wrath has ended and we are declared holy. Our comfort and strength are in this gospel message.

Notice what the people are doing when they receive this message. They are breaking out with singing (Isaiah 52:8-9) because God has comforted his people. God has redeemed his people. God reigns and has acted on behalf of his sinful creation. Isaiah predicted it with certainty. The apostle Paul says that we see the fulfillment of these prophetic words in Jesus, not in the return to Babylon. In Jesus, God has shown his holy arm to the world and has sent salvation to the ends of the earth (Isaiah 52:10). We have been set free. We are to constantly rejoice in that message and then send that message out because others cannot believe unless they hear the message of Jesus proclaimed.

Go Out In Freedom (Isaiah 52:11-12)

The final two verses of this declaration of hope describes what we are to do now that we have been set free through Jesus from our sins. The call is for his people to live in holiness. God has set you apart and purified you to belong to him. The last thing we are to do is go back into our sinful ways that enslaved us. We have been purified and set apart to walk away from the ways of the world. Do not act like the world. Do not think like the world. Do not look like the world. The apostle Paul used this prophecy when he wrote to the Corinthians.

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 ESV)

God has called us to be light. We must live like our calling and not go back to the world of darkness. Purify yourselves (Isaiah 52:11). Look at verse 12 for it is an amazing picture. When God’s people were to leave Egypt, they were to leave in haste (cf. Exodus 12:11). Not so with our exodus. Our exodus is not like then with a physical nation chasing us out of the land. So there is no need for haste. But notice what we do have from that exodus in our exodus from sin. The Lord will go before us and will be our rear guard. This is what God did for his people in the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 14:19). God lead them and protected them from behind. God is leading us and protect us spiritually as we go. So the pilgrimage life as begun. We are not acting like the world but are walking to the goal of the promised land with God leading us and protecting us, proclaiming the good news that our God reigns as we go. Take comfort. God’s wrath has ended. You are set apart for a holy life. Live as children of light with the confident hope that we are his children, secure in his grace.

The Successful Servant

Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:1

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah 52 has beautifully pictured the deliverance of Zion, the people of God. A message is being proclaimed throughout the world. The message is of peace, happiness, and salvation (Isaiah 52:7). The declaration is made: “Your God reigns.” It is not over because of our sins. God is going to redeem (Isaiah 52:3; Isaiah 52:9). Every eye is going to see the return of the Lord to his people, Zion (Isaiah 52:8). “The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God” (Isaiah 52:10). We are left with a looming and important question. How? How will these things happen? How is God going to redeem his people? How is God going to bring comfort to his people? How will every eye see the return of the Lord? How will people see the arm of the Lord and see salvation to the ends of the earth? Isaiah’s prophecy will give the explanation.

Exalted (Isaiah 52:13)

Isaiah declares, “Behold!” Look at this! See this and understand. Notice this is God himself speaking at this point about his servant. “My servant shall act wisely.” When God sends his servant, the Christ, he will act wisely. This is not simply saying that the servant possesses wisdom. The point is that the servant will know exactly what to do to accomplish this result. He will succeed when he arrives. The servant will accomplish the salvation of his people.

When the servant comes there will be a threefold exaltation. He will be high, lifted up, and exalted. We know in the scriptures when we read a threefold declaration that it is to emphasize the characteristic with a superlative. For example, when the spiritual beings around the throne speak of the Lord as “Holy, holy, holy” this is to make the point that he is the holiest. When the servant arrives he is going to be exalted. High, lifted up, and greatly exalted is the picture for the Lord’s servant. He will possess an extraordinary exalted position. The servant accomplishing this Lord’s task will bring about extraordinary exaltation. The apostles taught about this glorious exaltation concerning the resurrection of Jesus.

“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. (Acts 2:29-33 ESV) Jesus received the greatest exaltation when God raised him from the dead and sat him at his right hand with all power and authority. Jesus would be successful and be greatly exalted.

Astonished (Isaiah 52:14-15)

Further, many are going to be astonished at the servant. The Lord speaks directly to the servant so that the servant knows exactly what is going to happen. People are going to be astonished by this servant. By the way, the NASB adds “you people” completely without warrant. This description is about the servant, not about the people. Now when we think of astonishment we have in our language of thinking about that in a good way. I can say that I am astonished that the Dolphins came back from a significant deficit and won the game. But the root of this Hebrew word is connected with acts of destruction, desolation, and total obliterations (Smith, New American Commentary, 437). So this is not a positive astonishment but a negative reaction of astonishment by the people. Some translations read, “Many were appalled at you” (HCSB, NIV), which communicates the idea well. People will be appalled at this servant. Why? The Lord gives two reasons for the astonishment of the many.

First, they are astonished and appalled by his appearance. This verse is a shocking declaration. “His appearance was so disfigured that He did not look like a man, and His form did not resemble a human being” (Isaiah 52:14 HCSB). This is a good functional translation of this passage. Please just think about what this is saying. When I was 18, I came down with the chicken pox. I was so sick that when I looked in the mirror I cried because my face was so disfigured by the chicken pox that I was unrecognizable. Regarding the servant, the Lord says that people will be appalled at him because of his appearance being so marred and his body so crushed that it will be beyond recognition. It is difficult for us to appreciate the horror of what Jesus endured on our behalf so that we would receive salvation and redemption. One of the reasons for our difficulty appreciating what Jesus enduring is that we do not see the same kind of punishment used today on people that Jesus endured. It is even more difficult for us to comprehend because of the brevity of the scriptures concerning what happened. Here is what the gospel records.

Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified. (Matthew 27:26 ESV)

According to the Expositor’s Bible Commentary, “The whip was the dreaded flagellum, made by plaiting pieces of bone or lead into leather thongs. The victim was stripped and tied to a post. Severe flogging not only reduced the flesh to bloody pulp but could open up the body until the bones were visible and the entrails exposed (cf. TDNT, 4:510-12; Jos. War II, 612 [xxi.5]; VI, 304 [v.3]). Flogging as an independent punishment frequently ended in death.”

Isaiah is picturing the horror of the suffering that would come through his scourging and subsequent crucifixion. This is a shocking contrast to the previous sentence where we learned that the servant would succeed and be highly exalted. The suffering of Jesus would be the means of his success in accomplishing the will of the Father and the salvation of the world. This is exactly what Jesus taught while on the earth.

Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. (John 12:31-33 ESV) Satan is cast out and people are drawn to Christ by him being lifted up and killed on the cross.

But there is something else that is astonishing or appalling which is described in Isaiah 52:15. The servant will sprinkle many nations through his suffering. Most translations read “sprinkle” but a couple of translations read “startle.” But to use the word “startle” requires emending the text, which we simply should never do unless absolutely required. Difficult readings should not compel us to change the reading, especially because sprinkling works very well with what is being prophesied. Kings are also going to be astonished by what the servant does.

Why are the kings astonished and why are the many appalled? The rest of verse 15 explains: “For that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand.” The nations and kings are going to see and understand what previously had not been told to them. The hope of life and covenant blessings, which were proclaimed only to Israel, are now given to the Gentiles. This is how Paul uses this text when he quotes it in Romans 15:21.

In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else’s foundation, but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand.” (Romans 15:17-21 ESV)

Thus, the servant sprinkling the nations makes sense here because sprinkling in the scriptures is both cleansing and covenantal. For the sake of time we will consider just one text but this one text shows how sprinkling is for cleansing and for belonging to the covenant.

For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. (Hebrews 9:13-22 ESV)

The suffering of the servant will bring the Gentiles into covenant relationship with God and they will find cleansing from their sins. This will cause the many (physical Israel) to be appalled. They were appalled at the suffering of Jesus How could he be the Savior of the world and the Messiah and suffer in such a fashion? They were appalled at the suffering of Jesus because they would not accept that the Gentiles would enter into the promised covenant blessings.

Rejection (Isaiah 53:1)

Consider that this is exactly what the next sentence declares. “Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” This is a rhetorical question. The answer is that Israel has heard but has not believed. They have seen the arm of the Lord revealed but will not believe. This report contains such astonishing factors that would be hard to believe. The servant is the unveiling of the arm of the Lord. This will be the way that God will heal and restore his people and the nations. Notice that this again is quoted by Paul to prove the rejection of Israel.

But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:16-17 ESV)

Jesus said the same thing when he quoted this passage from Isaiah:

When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Therefore they could not believe. (John 12:36-39 ESV)

Conclusion

Many will be appalled at the servant and reject him, even though he would succeed in his redemptive work. The question comes to us. When we look at Jesus who succeed through his suffering, will we believe the message of Christ? Will we believe the astonishing message? We must consider the suffering of the cross and be moved by the fact that this was the way for him to succeed! Jesus succeeded through suffering. Jesus succeeded through sacrifice. Believing the message means following Jesus to the cross. We belong to Jesus and succeed in Jesus through suffering and sacrifice for the Lord. Love the Lord Jesus for what he has done for you.

The Suffering Servant

Isaiah 53:1-6

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah is describing the coming servant of the Lord in Isaiah 52:13 to Isaiah 53:12. In Isaiah 52:13-15 we learn that the servant will be successful but many will find him appalling because of the work he would do (extreme suffering of the cross) and the effect of his work (cleansing and covenant to the Gentiles). The first verse of Isaiah 53 is a hinge verse. The response of the people will be the rejection of the servant. Though they have seen the arm of the Lord they will not believe the message proclaimed about Christ (Romans 10:16-17; John 12:36-39). Isaiah continues to describe the work of the servant in Isaiah 53:2-6. Isaiah 53:1 is a hinge verse because it speaks about why the people will reject the servant (his work and the effect of his work) in Isaiah 52:13-15 but also about the rejection in Isaiah 53:2-6. We see the first word of Isaiah 53:2 is “for” which shows that the prophecy is continuing to describe the rejection that the servant will experience.

The Servant’s Appearance (Isaiah 53:2)

The second verse contains some interesting details about the beginnings and the life of the servant. The prophecy declares that the servant will grow up before the Lord like a young plant. First, this pictures the close relationship between the servant and the Lord. God is giving careful attention to what is happening in the life of the servant. The servant grows up before the sight of the Lord.

Further, to grow up like a young plant speaks to humble and even contemptible beginnings. The servant will not grow up before the Lord like a grand stately oak tree. Rather, he will be like a young plant. Remember that the beginnings of Jesus are also contemptible to the people of Israel. People rejected Jesus because he came from Galilee (cf. John 7:41; John 7:52). Nathaniel declared that nothing good could come from Nazareth (John 1:46). So even the servant’s beginnings will cause people to reject the revealing of the arm of the Lord.

The servant will be a root out of dry ground. The image of a root and shot are used previously in Isaiah (Isaiah 11:1; Isaiah 11:10). The image is to remind the reader that this is a messianic prophecy. The servant is the prophesied Christ. Notice also that the servant will grow out of dry ground. Isaiah has used the dry ground imagery as a reference to the condition of Israel (cf. Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 35:1; Isaiah 35:6; Isaiah 40:3). Israel is a spiritual wilderness but the servant will come in the time of spiritual destitution and bring peace, joy, salvation, and redemption. Remember that the prophecy of John the Baptizer was that he would be a voice crying out in the wilderness. This was not geographic (though we read John in the wilderness during his ministry) but a description of the spiritual condition of Israel. So during this spiritual darkness the servant will come with the Lord watching him and will be in close relationship with him even though his beginnings will be considered contemptible.

Now the author describes the appearance of the servant. We were already told that what the servant will experience will cause his appearance to be “marred beyond human semblance.” His physical body will be wrecked by accomplishing the Lord’s task. Notice in the second half of verse 2 that three times the point is made that he will not look like royalty. He had no form, no majesty, and no beauty that we would desire him. There is nothing impressive about looking at Jesus. This is where every television show and movie goes wrong. Jesus always looks physically better than everyone else in the movie. But this was not the reality. He was no different looking than the average person in that time. He did not have the glorious look of earthly kings. He certainly had no royal look that characterized the splendor of who he truly was: God in the flesh. He is the opposite of King Saul. He did not look like a king.

The Servant’s Reception (Isaiah 53:3)

Though he is the servant of the Lord revealing the salvation and power of the Lord to the world, he was considered contemptible, despicable, and revolting. Instead of following the servant, they shunned him. The servant will be forsaken and rejected by the people. Further, he is called a man of sorrows. This does not mean that he went around sad. The point is that he experienced suffering, pain, and sickness. These things were familiar to him. He was not immune to suffering, sickness, and pain but experienced them also.

Then we read even a more troubling response in the second half of Isaiah 53:3. We treated him as “one from whom men hide their faces.” This is a picture of people shunning him like he had a horrible disease. Not only this, we did not think he mattered at all. We considered him as amounting to nothing. We considered him insignificant and did not value him. This is truly amazing. The servant of the Lord who has come to bring peace, joy, salvation, and redemption would be rejected by people and deemed insignificant by people.

The Servant’s Actions (Isaiah 53:4)

The servant is successful in his work. He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. The words for “griefs” and “sorrows” are the same Hebrew words in verse 3. The servant bore our pains, sufferings, and sicknesses. We are going to see the servant “bear” many things in this prophecy. We need to know what this means. What does it mean that the servant “bore” our griefs?

First, bearing our griefs does not mean that he had pain and suffering in our place (we will see this more clearly in Matthew in a moment). No one would think of using the word “bore” in this way. Please keep this in mind when we see that the servant bore other things in this prophecy.

Second, notice the Hebrew parallelism in Isaiah 53:4. “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.” Griefs and sorrows are synonymous terms. Also, borne and carried are synonymous terms. The text itself tells us that bearing our griefs means that he carried our griefs.

Third, this is why some translations read this way. “But he lifted up our illnesses, he carried our pain” (NET). “Yet is was our weaknesses he carried” (NLT). “Surely he took up our pain” (NIV). These English translations are rightly expressing the mean of “bore.”

Finally, the Hebrew word “bore” is nasa which means “to carry, to lift up.” The Hebrew word for “carry” is sabal which means “to bear, carry, drag along a burden, to shoulder.”

Please get this firmly into your mind. When we read that Jesus bore something we must think that he carried something. It is like saying that a donkey bore the wood. It simply means that the donkey was carrying something. When the apostle Paul writes to the Galatians to, “Bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:1) it simply means that we help carries their load. If there is nothing else you get from the lesson please get this idea that when Jesus bore something, it means he carried it or lifted it up. So the picture is beautiful in Isaiah 53:4. Jesus came to take away/carry away our pains, our weaknesses, and illnesses. We see Jesus doing this in Matthew 8:17 when he was healing the people of their sicknesses and diseases. He did not take those diseases on himself. He simply took those diseases and sicknesses away.

Even though Jesus was going around healing the people and forgiving their sins, notice how we considered him. We saw the servant as being stricken, beaten, and afflicted by God. This is the essence of what we see the people saying when Jesus is on the cross. They declared that God rightly sent suffering and afflictions. The people thought it was right that Jesus was on that cross and that God had put Jesus on that cross for his own sins and errors. The work of the servant will not be recognized by the people as the work of God.

For Us (Isaiah 53:5)

But the prophet wants to clear up this misunderstanding. When the servant comes and is marred beyond human semblance, people are going to think that this was the punishment of God against him. Even though he came to take away our diseases and sicknesses, the people would say that the servant was cursed by God. But that is not what the servant experienced what he did. It was not the punishment of God against him. Notice the first word of Isaiah 53:5 is contrasting. “But he was wounded for our transgressions.” It was not his own sins that put him on the cross. It was our sins. The word translated “transgressions” is literally “rebellion,” as the NLT and NET reflect in their translations. He was wounded and slain for our rebellion.

The NKJV reads that he was “bruised for our iniquities.” However, “bruised” is not a strong enough word for this Hebrew word. The Hebrew word means “to break in pieces.” Thus, most translations read, “He was crushed for our iniquities.” Our rebellion to God is the reason the servant must be wounded and crushed. Our rebellion caused there to no longer be peace between us and our God. Peace was lost by our disobedience. But what the servant would experience in this suffering/chastisement would bring us peace again. This suffering was designed to secure our peace with God. By his wounds we received healing. The relationship with God could be healed through the suffering the servant would endure. We considered him nothing and thought he was punished by God when in fact he suffered because of our rebellion.

Our Guilt, Not The Servant’s (Isaiah 53:6)

Thus, the prophecy continues to emphasize that the guilt is with us, not with the servant. We went astray like wandering sheep. We deliberately turned from the path. Notice that we did not do this by accident. “We have turned.” We made the conscious decision to turn from the Lord. There is no one who is not under this condemnation. All have gone astray like sheep. Everyone has turned from the way of the Lord to his own way. The point is that we are reason for the suffering of the servant. It is our guilt, not the servant’s guilt. His death was for our sins. Notice the carrying imagery that is used. The consequences of our sins have arrived at the servant. Our sins have fallen on him so that he carried them. God chose the servant to be the answer for our sins. Jesus will bear the sins. Jesus will take up our sins. Jesus will carry away our sins. We rebelled. Jesus did not. Yet Jesus will suffer so that we can have peace with God and be healed from our sins.

So what will you do with Jesus? Will you despise and regard him as nothing as many others have? Will you not value his suffering and death that he did for your healing? Or will his act of sacrifice and love cause you to give your life completely to him?

The Saving Servant

Isaiah 53:7-12

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah is prophesying the means by which salvation would reach to the end of the earth and how the arm of the Lord would be revealed. Peace, redemption, salvation, and joy would be accomplished through the arrival of the Lord’s servant. The servant would be successful in accomplishing the task given to him. He would be highly exalted but rejected by the people because of his suffering. Further, the servant came to take away our pains and sicknesses so that we could be healed, but we considered him struck down by God. But he was not rejected by God. The servant’s suffering was not for his own transgressions but because of our rebellion. We turned to our own way and rejected the Lord’s path. Thus, God had the servant carry away our sins, allowing him to be crushed so that we could be healed. In this lesson we are going to examine Isaiah 53:7-12 and read about the servant who saves.

Humble Submission (Isaiah 53:7)

Isaiah continues his description of the work of the servant by looking at his humble submission. The servant would yield to the oppressive acts made against him. The servant did not fight to defend himself nor raise his voice in protest. This is an amazing thought. Jesus is experiencing oppression and affliction but is not protesting against these events. He does not defend himself even though the oppression is unjust and even though he is falsely accused. Jesus is innocent in every way and yet he does nothing and says nothing. Jesus allows everything to happen to him. Therefore, he willingly went to his own slaughter. The scriptures highlight this idea like in Luke 9:51 when Jesus set his face toward Jerusalem. Jesus willingly goes to the city that will be the place of his death. He is the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

Further, consider the contrast that Isaiah is picturing. We were described as sheep in Isaiah 53:6. Like sheep we were in rebellion to God and turned from the Lord’s way. Jesus, the servant, is like a lamb who does not turn from the way of the Lord, but submits completely to the Lord’s will. Thus, he is silent before his oppressors. He allows everything to happen to him because this is the will of the Lord. In Jesus we see what humble submission looks like.

A Miscarriage of Justice (Isaiah 53:8)

The next point that is made is that the servant will experience a miscarriage of justice from start to finish. This miscarriage of justice will lead to his death. He will be cut off out of the land of the living. Notice the point is made that no one will care. No one would pay attention to this mistreatment and miscarriage of justice. No one is going to care to stop what is happening to the servant. They would not understand what he is doing.

Further, Isaiah wants to make sure that though the servant is being condemned, he is not dying for his own transgressions. He is stricken because of the people’s rebellion. The NASB is far too interpretative and does not literally render the sentence here. The sins of the people are still the reason for the servant’s suffering. “Because of the rebellion of his own people he was wounded” (NET). Yet the people fail to consider what was really happening.

His Burial (Isaiah 53:9)

We now come to a rather amazing prophecy. It was the common practice for the Jewish people in the first century to bury all the family members in a large family tomb. This prophecy declares that something very different is going to happen. The prophecy is even more curious because of the change of subjects. The sentence looks to be in parallel: “Made his grave with the wicked” and “with a rich man in his death.” But there is something here in the Hebrew that the English reflects. If this was only a description of his burial then we would read that they made his grave with a wicked man and with a rich man in his death, making “the wicked man” and “the rich man” to be synonymous. But “the wicked” is plural and the “rich man” is singular. So there is a contrast being made.

The point then is that the servant’s burial was appointed to be with wicked men, but he ends up being with the rich man in his death. The NET reveals this idea in its rendering: “They intended to bury him with criminals, but he ended up in a rich man’s tomb…” (Isaiah 53:9 NET). The Gospel of John records this unusual ending for Jesus. Jesus is crucified with criminals (the wicked) but does not end up with the burial of the wicked (which likely would have been to have his body dumped in the Valley of Hinnom). Rather, Joseph of Arimathea requests the body of Jesus and buries Jesus in his own tomb, and he was a rich man (cf. Matthew 27:57).

This leads to the rest of the prophecy in Isaiah 53:9. Though Jesus was associate with the criminals, there was no hostility or sins charged against him. He is the Lamb of God without sin or blemish (cf. Luke 23:41). Jesus is killed without cause.

The Will of God (Isaiah 53:10)

But God wants us to know something. This miscarriage of justice against his servant was not an accident. This was not outside of the sovereign will of God. “It was the will of the Lord to crush him.” It was God’s desire to do this. It was not against his will, his plan, or his desire. God is behind this crushing of the servant! God’s desires and plans are being accomplished. God put him to this suffering. God made his life the guilt offering.

Now a number of translations change this from “guilt offering” to “sin offering.” But I think we should be careful in doing so because the “guilt offering” or “restitution offering” has a reference to the sacrificial system in the Law of Moses. The servant will function as this guilt offering, restitution offering, compensation offering, like we read about in Leviticus 5:14 to Leviticus 6:7. The guilt offering was when the offerer paid compensation for the sins committed. Consider this carefully. Rather than calling the servant a substitute for us, the servant is described as the guilt offering. His offering made restitution for our sins. He does not bring the offering. Jesus is the offering. This is where the scriptures repeatedly describe the work of Jesus as the work of redemption and calling him the ransom for the world.

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45 ESV)

For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. (1 Timothy 2:5-6 ESV)

And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. (1 Peter 1:17-19 ESV)

And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10 ESV)

…Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. (Titus 2:14 ESV)

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. (Ephesians 1:7 ESV)

We could continue to show all the scriptures that describe Jesus as the redemption price, the ransom price, and the work Jesus did to redeem us. This fits what Isaiah is picturing. Jesus is the compensation price, the guilt offering, that pays our sins so that we could be healed.

The Reversal (Isaiah 53:10-11)

After pointing out that the servant will be killed by a miscarriage of justice, we now read of an amazing, shocking reversal. The servant will be the guilt offering. But notice the next sentence in verse 10: “He will see his offspring; he shall prolong his days.” How is this possible? How is it possible to see the offspring and have his days prolonged when he is going to be oppressed, afflicted, and like a lamb led to the slaughter? Isaiah 53:11 continues the amazing reversal. “Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied.” The servant will live a long life after his death and have the blessings of God. He will live and see many spiritual children. God’s will and purpose will continue through him even after his death. This had to be a puzzling prophecy for the readers. We know now how this would be true. Resurrection is being prophesied concerning the servant. Though killed, he will accomplish the mission, see his spiritual offspring (which is the result of his work), and his days will continue before the Lord. He will have satisfaction in his work even though he has experienced anguish and suffering.

The result of the suffering has made the many to be accounted as righteous. The sheep who have turned from the Lord’s path and gone their own way can now be justified, righteous, and declared innocent before the Lord. How could this be? Isaiah 53:11 reminds us what has occurred. The servant has borne/carried the sins away. He is the guilt offering. He redeems us. He carries our sins away leading to our justification. The apostle Paul makes the same summary concerning our justification.

For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:22-26 ESV)

The Victorious Result (Isaiah 53:12)

God now declares what he is going to do for the servant. The Lord will divide for the servant a portion. There are two ways to understand what God will do. One way to understand this prophecy is how the HCSB reads that we are the portion (the inheritance) that the servant receives and his conquest of the mighty are his spoils. The HCSB renders the verse in this way.

Therefore I will give Him the many as a portion, and He will receive the mighty as spoil. (Isaiah 53:12 HCSB)

This fits what Jesus himself would say in the Gospel of John.

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. (John 6:37 ESV)

Another way to understand the prophecy is that the servant is sharing the victory with the many (which is those who are accounted as seen in Isaiah 53:11) and now we are the strong and powerful with him because of his victory (cf. Ephesians 4:8). The point is to picture the servant as victorious and receiving the spoils of victory. He is given the spoils of victory because he willingly submitted to death and he was numbered with the transgressors. Though he was numbered with the transgressors, he lifted up and carried away the sins of many. He accepted the load of their guilt so that he could make payment for those sins. He made intercession for the rebels by giving his life.

Intercession is pleading on behalf of another. We are sinners who left the path of God. But Jesus intervened. Jesus is the guilt offering making compensation for our sins when wounded and slain. What will be our response to the one who made intercession and paid the price for our sins?

The Covenant of Peace

Isaiah 54:1-17

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah 53 is well known by Christians as a text prophesying the arrival of the suffering servant. Isaiah describes what will happen to Jesus. Jesus will offer his life as a guilt offering so that many will be accounted righteous before the Lord. Isaiah 53:10 declared that the servant would see his offspring and Isaiah 53:11 said he would see and be satisfied by the work he accomplished. But the picture does not end. Just because there is a chapter break does not mean that Isaiah’s message concerning his servant and his work is over. Isaiah 54 records one of the works that Christ accomplished by giving his life for us.

Numerous Offspring (Isaiah 54:1-3)

The prophecy continues by calling for the people to sing. Burst into song and cry aloud! Notice that it is the “barren one” who is to break forth into singing. There is to be joy because the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married. Isaiah has pictured Zion, the people of God, as being made desolate by their sins. Sin has crushed the nation so that there seems to be no hope. In Isaiah 49:14 the people of Zion believe that God has forgotten them because they are judged by God and left desolate. But the desolate are not forgotten. The Lord has acted in his servant to bring the desolate children. Now the barren are having children. This has a reference to the miracle that God gave to Abraham and Sarah. Sarah was barren and without children. But Sarah’s handmaid, Hagar, had a child named Ishmael. But hope was not lost. Sarah would bear a child and the children through Abraham and Sarah would be more numerous than Hagar.

However, the arrival of Isaac as the child given by God to Abraham and Sarah was not the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise. Something greater was going to happen. Children are coming! These children are a reference to God’s covenant people, those who will belong to the family of God. While there was no expectation of offspring at the time of Isaiah’s prophecy, God predicted a change of circumstances which will cause children to come. So the people are to rejoice for God is going to bring children. Remember Isaiah 53:10 pointed out that the servant would see his offspring. Offspring are coming! Not only are offspring coming, but it will not be just a couple of children. In Isaiah 54:2 Zion is instructed to enlarge the tents and make more room because the offspring will be numerous. Further, there will be so many children that they are going not only possess Zion, but they are going to possess the nations. The servant’s death and resurrection has made it so that his offspring, the people of God, will be so numerous that they will be spread throughout the nations. This prophecy will explain more about how this will come about.

But before he explains how this miracle of the barren one will bring forth offspring spread throughout the earth, God tells them that there is no need for fear (Isaiah 54:4-8). Listen to God’s words in Isaiah 54:8 : “But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you.”

The Covenant of Peace (Isaiah 54:9-10)

Now God makes an amazing promise. In fact, God says he will make a promise with his people like he did with Noah. Remember the promise made to Noah was that he would not destroy the world by water again (Genesis 8-9). God so passionately loves his people that he makes a covenant of peace with them. The steadfast love of the Lord will not depart from you. This covenant of peace with God will not be removed. The servant would come and bring a covenant that would never be removed. In Ezekiel 37:24-28 this covenant of peace is described as an everlasting covenant. This is truly amazing! Sinful people are going to break this covenant repeatedly. But God will not revoke his steadfast love. God will not remove this covenant of peace. There is never a point when we will sin too many times that we cannot return and belong to this covenant again. God never says, “No, you cannot be in my covenant.” There is nothing that we can do that moves God to reject our plea for forgiveness and belonging to him if we truly desire him.

The Blessings of Belonging to the Covenant of Peace (Isaiah 54:11-17)

Isaiah goes on to describe why you would want to belong to this covenant of peace that God has established. These are some of the blessings that come from being in God’s covenant of peace. Isaiah 54:11-12 describe a transformation of God’s people. The afflicted will now be set with precious stones. The imagery is similar to that given in Revelation 21:10-21. What makes the afflicted beautiful is that they have the glory of God (cf. Revelation 21:11).

Let me try to illustrate this idea. Each year at the South Florida Fair they have a very large sand sculpture. It is amazing to see the details and gravity defying designs that are made out of sand. Now sand by itself is not very glorious. If you went to the fair and all that was inside the expo building was a big tower of sand, no one would say that it is amazing. Everyone would simply walk past it. It is just sand. But when the big pile of sand is made into something glorious, now people pay attention. This is the idea that Isaiah is presenting. Without God, we are just some people who walk the earth for a short amount of time doing things that in the scheme of the world are fairly insignificant. But when you are joined with God in his eternal covenant, now you are beautiful stones being built into a spiritual house reflecting the glory of the Lord. The afflicted and oppressed have beauty and purpose in the temple of the Lord. This is what God is picturing for us. You can belong to something beautiful and glorious: the kingdom of God through his covenant made available through the death of Jesus.

The second blessing is that all the children are taught by the Lord. This is a description of those who are truly children of God. Throughout the book of Isaiah the prophecy has noted how the people have not listened to the Lord (Isaiah 6:9-10; Isaiah 29:9-10; Isaiah 30:9). We saw when Isaiah was commissioned by the Lord to preach to the people that they would not listen, that seeing they would not see and hearing yet they would not listen. We read about the people saying that Isaiah’s teaching were simply “blah, blah, blah.” The words were just line upon line and rule upon rule. No one wanted to listen to the words of the Lord. God lamented in Isaiah 48:17-18 that they would have listened so that judgment would not have fallen on them. But now the people who belong to this glorious covenant will be taught by the Lord. The children will listen to God.

Jesus quoted this passage of Isaiah in John 6:45. The Jews were grumbling that Jesus said he had come from heaven. Listen to Jesus’ response:

Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— (John 6:43-45 ESV)

No one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws that person. Isaiah says that you come to the covenant of God by being taught by God. Jesus confirms this in his explanation. The children are taught by God. If you are drawn by the Father, have heard and learned from the Father, then you will come to Jesus. Those who are in the covenant with God want to learn from God. They want to hear the scriptures. They want to read what God has to say. They are listening to the calling of the Father. Being taught by the Lord will bring great peace to the children. Peace with God will be received when we are taught by the Lord.

What does it mean to be taught? Being taught is more than listening. I had many college classes where I was there but I was not being taught. Being taught means that you hear what is said, you learn what is said, and you become proficient in the material. Why did your teachers give you tests? They wanted to see if you have been taught! Yes, you were present in class and you heard the teacher’s words. But were you taught by the teacher? In the same way, are we taught by God? Are we absorbing what God is declaring and letting it change us? What a glorious blessing to be in the covenant of peace that we are taught directly by God through the words you hold in your hands this morning! Let these words change your life! Verse 14 says that we will be established in righteousness. God’s words will make our lives completely different, living for right and not for sin.

Finally, God says that you are protected spiritually when you are part of his covenant. Isaiah 54:15 says that those who stir up strife against you will fall. God is going to deal with those who stand against you spiritually. Listen to Isaiah 54:17 : “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed.” God has us in his hand, no matter what they may do to us. No attack will stand. Think of Paul’s glorious exclamation:

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. (Romans 8:31-34 ESV)

Conclusion

Christ has brought us a new, everlasting covenant through his guilt offering for our sins. The children of the Lord are spread throughout all the earth now. We are enjoying the blessings of being in relationship with the Lord now. God is building us up into this glorious kingdom, each of us as a precious stone in the structure (cf. 1 Peter 2:5). We are secure in the hand of the Lord as we are taught by God. We enjoy such a blessing in the covenant that we can say with Paul:

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. (Philippians 1:21-23 ESV)

People of God’s covenant understand that our possession beyond the grave is better and more precious than anything or anyone on this side of life. This covenant changes everything. Come to the covenant of peace and let God change everything.

Come, and Live

Isaiah 55:1-13

By Brent Kercheville

Invitation to Covenantal Promises (Isaiah 55:1-5)

Isaiah 54 described the covenant of peace that God had established through the sacrificial offering of his servant, Jesus. Through Jesus we can have peace with God and be accounted as righteous. So now an exclamation is given so that people will pay attention to the speaker. “Ho!” or “Pay attention!” Everyone who thirsts needs to listen to the offer that is being made. There is water that is available. “Come to the waters” highlights the existence of the need and the ample provision available. Before we can move forward we must recognize that all of us are thirsty. We may try to suppress this thirst. We try to ignore the thirst. But the emptiness that every human experiences is the thirst. The desire to understand our lives, why we are here, and how we can be happy and satisfied is the thirst. We mask this thirst by drinking the false waters of the world. We try sinful behaviors thinking these things will quench the thirst we have. There is a desire in us for something lasting, something deeper, and something satisfying.

This hunger that God gives us is a grace of God yet also a danger. It is the grace of God so that we will continue to seek after him who truly satisfies. However, the danger is that we will try to satisfy this hunger and thirst with all the wrong things. Now the invitation given is amazing. The call is even to those who do not have money. Poverty is no barrier. You can receive what you need. God is offering what we need for life. “Come, buy wine and milk.” These are the necessities of life and picture the blessings of God in the scriptures. God is inviting us to come and he will give us the life we need, which is the rich blessing of God to us. Come and have the all-satisfying waters without money and without price.

Now God asks us a question that we must consider carefully. Why are we wearing ourselves out for the things in this life that do not satisfy? We are looking for satisfaction in all the wrong places. Stop wasting your time! Stop wearying yourself! We are looking at the wrong things for satisfaction. You are not going to find it in sex, relationships, money, power, occupation, career, possessions, marriage, children, other people, or anything else you think might be the answer. Stop what you are doing and listen! If we will listen to what God has to say, we will eat what is good and we will delight ourselves in rich food. True food and drink are available. Satisfaction is available.

So this is important for us. To have what is good, we must listen. If you will listen then you will have what is good. If you will listen then you will have true delight. We are not apt to listen. We think we have life all figured out. We think we are happy and satisfied. Satan is blinding us from seeing the riches and delights that God has to offer. So stop and listen. Verse 3 says that if we will listen we will come to God himself. You will have God himself before you. Listen and you will come to him. Listen and your soul will have life. You will be able to receive what your soul needs without cost. We cannot have closed ears. Failure to stop and listen is why Israel was condemned throughout this book (cf. Isaiah 6:9-10).

But there is the offer of a new covenant which promises God’s unfailing love and compassion. In Isaiah 55:3 God recalls the covenant made with David. David was promised that one of his descendants would establish God’s kingdom and reign on the throne eternally. Further, the steadfast love of the Lord would never depart from him (2 Samuel 7:12-16). God is asking us to remember this promise and invites us to join in the covenant. Notice, “I will make with you an everlasting covenant.” The “you” is a plural “you.” Everyone is given the offer of joining in this covenant of enjoying God’s steadfast love permanently. Those invited to the feast come to enjoy the blessings of David — citizenship in the eternal kingdom.

But the “you” in Isaiah 55:5 is singular. God is no longer talking to the peoples about what they will have in the covenant made to David. God is speaking to one particular individual, the servant. The servant is fulfilling the role of the Davidic witness to the world. The whole world is receiving the call, not just Israel. God has glorified the servant, Jesus, causing the world to run to him.

How to Accept the Invitation (Isaiah 55:6-9)

So the invitation has been given. Come and buy the life satisfying food that God is giving for free. So how can we accept this amazing invitation of true life and satisfying joy?

Seek the Lord! In Isaiah 55:6 the call is for the people to seek the Lord. Come with commitment and dedication to him. Seek him while he is near. This is a limited time opportunity! Now Isaiah will tell us what seeking the Lord looks like.

Forsake your ways and thoughts (Isaiah 55:7-9).Our ways, thinking, decision making, and thought processes are completely corrupted. Do not go with your thoughts! We are to make a decisive break from our past beliefs, assumptions, priorities, plans, culture, values, and the like. We are casting these things aside. Forsaking our ways and our thoughts is how we are going to seek the Lord. We come to the Lord as we are, but we cannot stay as we are. I want us to also recognize that this is repentance. This is what repentance looks like: forsaking our ways and our thoughts. Now see this: when we truly forsake our way of thinking and our paths, then we will find compassion. The wicked will find compassion. Not only this God “will abundantly pardon.” He will multiply pardon, forgiveness, and compassion on us, even though we have been wicked. But our ways and thoughts must be forfeited.

Now, we may ask why we must do this? Why must we forsake our ways and forsake our thoughts? God explains in Isaiah 55:8. God’s thoughts and ways are not the same as ours. His ways and thoughts are higher than ours. Isaiah is not saying that we cannot know what God’s ways are and what God’s thoughts are. That is not the point at all. The point is that his ways are far better than ours. The point is we do not do naturally what God wants. The gracious and compassionate ways of God are greater and better than our depraved ways. We are not God and we do not think like God or act like God. We are being told to exchange our ways for his ways. His ways are knowable and we are exchange our ways for his. God’s thoughts are knowable for he has revealed them. We are to exchange our thoughts for his thoughts. In fact, the only way we can forsake our ways is by knowing what the way of the Lord is.

Friends, this is what makes God’s ways so glorious. We would not forgive rebels who harmed us. But God says he will abundantly pardon. It is a wonderful thing that his ways are not our ways and his thoughts are not our thoughts or we would be doomed. Further, his ways are glorious because God keeps his promises and covenant and does not nullify them due to our rebellion.

Before we move on, we must stop and ask: What ways are your ways but are not God’s ways? What things are you doing in your life that are not the ways of God that you are unwilling to forsake? Whatever we will not change and whatever thinking we will not give up shows that we are not seeking the Lord. We are still trying to be satisfied by false waters rather than coming to the true waters to receive life.

Why Receive the Invitation (Isaiah 55:10-13)

God now gives us even more reasons why we should accept this wonderful invitation to life and satisfaction. In verse 10 God draws on the imagery of rain. Rain gives life and sustains. The rain does exactly does God intends for it to do. It waters the earth bringing life. Plants sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater. God’s word is like this rain. The word of God is reliable for it accomplishes God’s purpose. The word of God is effective for it brings life, sustains, and causes growth. Rain always fulfills the role God gave it and so it is with his word. This is why we must forsake our ways. His words give life, not our words. His teachings will give us growth, not our teachings.

Listen to the promise of Isaiah 55:11 : “So shall my word be that goes out of my mouth; it shall not return to me empty.” Forsaking your ways and plunging yourself into God’s word will not leave you empty. God’s word has power for life, for sustenance, and for growth. God will change your life! God’s word will work if you will listen to him and forsake your ways!

There is a glorious result in listening to the word of the Lord. We will be set free. Isaiah 55:12 says that you will go out which is a metaphor for an exodus from exile. You are going to be set free from the curse of sin and enslavement to the false ways of this world. You are going to find joy and peace. You are going to have the waters that give life, joy, and satisfaction. The transformed people will be in a transformed relationship with the Lord that will be an everlasting sign. Our transformation as we enjoy this new covenant relationship with the Lord will stand as a monument to the world. God can radically change your life. He can take it from a curse and turn it into a blessing. Then people are going to see our changed lives which gives glory to the Lord.

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:37-38 ESV)

Do you hear the same message in the words of Jesus? Come and receive the waters that truly satisfy. Jesus is the place that we must turn to for life and satisfaction. But he needs your heart. Your heart is the source of this change so that rivers of living water will flow from it. Forsake your ways and open your heart to listen to the Lord. Exchange your thoughts for his thoughts. Exchange your ways for his ways. Come to Jesus and receive life.

Who Will Experince God’s Salvation?

Isaiah 56:1-8

By Brent Kercheville

In Isaiah 53 we read the prophecy of the coming Servant, the Christ, who will come and be an offering for the sins of the people. The effect of his coming will be to make his children numerous through the covenant of peace he will establish (Isaiah 54). Thus, God offers a glorious invitation to come to the waters and receive life and satisfaction from the all-satisfying God (Isaiah 55). Now God is going to identify who are the people who will enjoy these blessings. Who will experience the salvation of our God?

Salvation’s Arrival Changes How We Live (Isaiah 56:1-2)

Notice that the call is for the people to keep to the covenant God made with them. Keep justice and do righteousness. Isaiah 56:2 sums up the idea with the description: “who keeps his hand from doing any evil.” This message was how the prophecy of Isaiah opened.

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. (Isaiah 1:16-17 ESV)

But Isaiah offers the reason why the people are to make these changes to their lives. “For soon my salvation will come, and my righteousness be revealed” (Isaiah 56:1 ESV). Salvation is coming so change the way you are living. Keep the covenant God has made with you because his righteousness is on the way. Consider how this message was repeated by John the Baptizer. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Salvation and righteousness were coming quickly and it was time for the people to change their ways and draw near to the Lord. God’s righteous purposes were coming and would be fulfilled. This salvation was to be life changing. We desire to live different because God’s salvation has come through Jesus and now we wait eagerly for its full consummation. To say this another way, obedience is to be lived out in response to this salvation that has been revealed.

The Glorious Offer (Isaiah 56:3-6)

But God wants to make it clear that this invitation and glorious offer is not extended only to Israel, but to all people. The foreigner is not to think that he will be kept separate from the family of God. No one will be distinguished or separated among God’s people. There are no second class citizens. There will not be Jews and Gentiles. There will only be God’s people. There are not clergy and laity or any other sort of distinction. Notice also that the eunuch was not to think that he is a dry tree. The eunuch would be rich with family, even though his reproductive organs were removed. According to Deuteronomy 23:1-6 these people were not allowed to enter the assembly of the Lord. But this would be completely changed with the coming of the Servant, Jesus. Now full admission would be granted to all people.

These outsiders who hold to covenant are going to be offered rich blessings. Notice that Isaiah 56:4 emphasizes the keeping of the Sabbath again. Why does God keep going to this point? We must understand the purpose of the Sabbath and what the Sabbath was commemorating. Deuteronomy gives us clarity as to the purpose of the Sabbath rest and memorial.

Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. (Deuteronomy 5:12-15 ESV)

The purpose of the Sabbath was to remember that they were slaves in Egypt and that God brought them out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Now the eunuchs are told to keep the Sabbath (Isaiah 56:4) and the foreigners are commanded to keep the Sabbath (Isaiah 56:6). Why? What is the point of picking out this law from among so many found in the Law of Moses? The Sabbath observance represents well the covenant relationship of God with his people. The command for the outsiders to keep the Sabbath makes the point of how fully adopted these people will be in God’s covenant family. They were not physically slaves in Egypt when God brought the great exodus through Moses. But they will be counted like that family, fully belonging to the covenant of God, receiving equal blessings and equal portion in God’s kingdom. To say this another way, it is as if the foreigners and eunuch are full Israelites by birth and they are treated as such.

To these who keep God’s covenant and choose to do the things that please the Lord (Isaiah 56:4) God says he will give something far better than a physical family. Far better than sons and daughters, God will give all people in the house of God and within the walls of his kingdom a monument and name that is everlasting and will never be cut off. I want us to think about what is being offered and described here. We have a better family in Christ. This is the family that matters most! We know that Jesus taught this wonderful truth.

While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:46-50 ESV)

The person without a family now has a family in Jesus. Perhaps your parents have passed away. Perhaps you are estranged from your parents. Perhaps your parents have rejected you because you are following Jesus. You have a new family in Christ. Maybe you are unmarried, or you are divorced, or you cannot have children, or cannot be married, you have a glorious family. Let not the eunuch say he is a dry tree, that is without family or children (Isaiah 56:3). You have something better and greater than physical family. You belong to God’s family. This places an emphasis upon us to act like family and to commit ourselves to one another more than we would our physical family. We have been adopted as children in the family of God and now are each others brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, and children in the Lord. We are given an eternal family and lineage that will never be cut off. The book of Revelation speaks this way of those Christians would persevere through persecution and remain faithful to the Lord.

The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. (Revelation 3:5 ESV)

The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. (Revelation 3:12 ESV)

Now, who are these people who are enjoying these privileges and blessings in the Lord? Notice Isaiah 56:6. These are people who join themselves to the Lord, serve the Lord, love the name of the Lord, will be the Lord’s servants, hold fast to God’s covenant, and keep the Sabbath. Remember that keeping the Sabbath was the time when the people joined together to worship God and keep his laws. This is not a list of minimums to belong to the Lord. This is just what God’s people will do. They love the name of the Lord. They do not have to be told to love the name of the Lord. They just love it. They want to serve the Lord. They want to keep the covenant. They want to worship the Lord. This is what God’s people do. This is the picture of those who will experience the salvation of our God.

The Result (Isaiah 56:7-8)

“These I will bring to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer.” Notice that by coming into relationship with the Lord, belonging to his covenant of peace, and choosing to do the things that please the Lord his people will be joyful in the house of prayer. What a powerful picture! The people of God will enjoy coming to the house of prayer for worship. God would not tell his people that they have to worship him. They desire it. In fact, God says that his people will enjoy God’s house. Their sacrifices are accepted for they enjoy giving themselves to the Lord. Notice that this is what the rest of Isaiah 56:7 offers as the explanation. “For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

God’s house was to be the place where people wanted to come and enjoy God. They wanted to speak to the Lord. They desired to worship the Lord. Consider that God’s house was not to be called a house of pain. God’s house is not the house of suffering. God’s house is not the house of requirements or house of duty. God’s house would not be called the house of obligation. What a beautiful picture of what it means to worship the Lord: God’s house will be called a house of prayer for everyone! Every person can come into fellowship with God, reconciled by the blood of Jesus, and experience God. If worship is the house of duty, pain, obligation or suffering to you, then there is something wrong. We have not received God’s glorious invitation (Isaiah 55) if this is how we feel. God already described this change when Jesus came at the beginning of this book.

It shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. (Isaiah 2:2-3)

They want to go so that they may be taught the ways of the Lord and walk in the Lord’s paths. The house of the Lord would be called the house of prayer because people will desire to seek the Lord, have fellowship with the Lord, worship the Lord, and converse with the Lord. Consider that Jesus quotes this sentence from Isaiah when he overturns the moneychangers’ table when he enters the temple courts (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46). What is Jesus’ saying? The Jewish leaders had turn the place of joy to come and worship the Lord into a burden. These leaders were hindering the people from coming to the Lord so that they could make money by exchanging money and selling animals. God is opening the door for everyone to come to him and we are not to hinder them from coming. We will not hinder them simply because they wear clothes we do not like, act strange, look funny, smell bad, have different ideas, vote differently, have different values, come from different cultures, or anything else. God is still calling for more outcasts to come to him (Isaiah 56:8). Woe to us if we do not present to every person the opportunity to hear the gospel and come into a joyful relationship with our God. God has made a new family in Christ and those who choose to do the things that please the Lord enjoy being in this family. And God is calling more people to come into his family. Let us be the family of God that represents the house of prayer joyfully communing with God, not the house of pain desiring anything and everything else but our Lord.

Seeing Who We Are

Isaiah 56:9-57:21

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah has offered a wonderful invitation of life and satisfaction to those who will choose to do things that please the Lord (Isaiah 56:3) and find joy in worship of the Lord (Isaiah 56:7). God’s invitation is to stop working for the things in this life that do not satisfy and come to the waters for true joy, life, and satisfaction (Isaiah 55). But Isaiah told us that the key to accepting the invitation to life is to forsake our ways and thoughts (Isaiah 55:7). Our ways lead to destruction, but God’s ways lead to life. Our thoughts are false and bring about our death. But God’s thoughts leads us to righteousness. God needs to impress upon us who we are. We cannot just come to the Lord. We cannot simply think that we can keep our ways and keep our thoughts and serve the Lord. Isaiah is going to show us why by showing us who we truly are. By doing so, God will show us what we must do and what God will do for us.

Selfish Leaders (Isaiah 56:9 to Isaiah 57:2)

The first problem that is described is that leaders are selfish. I do not think that anyone in this room is surprised by this. We have all experienced this truth in our occupations and careers. People are looking out for themselves, not for those who they are supposed to lead. The sad thing is that this is true with spiritual leadership also, and this ought not be. Isaiah 56:9 to Isaiah 57:2 describes the leaders of Israel and their total disregard for the spiritual welfare of the people. Rather than seeing the spiritual threat, they are only concerned about their own welfare and comfort. Verse 11 says that they have turned to their own gain. They lead for money, not for the good of others. Verse 12 reveals that they are consumed by their physical appetites. The first verse of chapter 57 shows that the righteous are being devoured, but no one cares. No one tries to do something about it.

Further, in Isaiah 56:10 he describes these spiritual leaders as silent dogs that cannot bark. They provide no warning of the coming dangers. They are simply lazy and thus are completely useless. One of the important roles of spiritual leaders is to warn of spiritual dangers. A shepherd is of no value if he is not protecting the sheep. It is his primary duty. Shepherds warn through their teaching, rebuking, correcting, and encouraging. Spiritual leaders cannot be concerned for their own welfare first, but for the welfare of others. These people had failure to be shepherds to Israel. It is a reminder to us that we need leaders to follow. We need shepherds who will lead us in the right direction and watch over our souls.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. (Hebrews 13:17 ESV)

Idolatrous People (Isaiah 57:3-13)

But the problem does not end with the leaders of Israel. The people are just as condemned as the leaders. God wants us to see our spiritual condition before him. We must see the idolatry that resides in our hearts. So God takes the mirror and attempts to penetrate into our very heart. Verse 3 begins by simply noting that we are not righteous. We are completely sinful before our God. Thus, God asks the question: who do you think you are? “Whom are you mocking?” We practice our sins so blatantly as if we are mocking or ridiculing God. Isaiah 57:5-8 describes the idols that they are serving: the idol of sex. They were seeking after physical fulfillment and serving their sexual desires rather than seeking the joy and satisfaction that comes from the Lord. These verses graphically describe the people committing these sins all over the land. Thus God asks the question, “Whom are you mocking?” Do you think that you are getting away with something? Do you think that your quest to satisfy your physical desires is not going to come in judgment upon you? “Shall I relent for these things?” (Isaiah 57:6). Does our behavior suggest that we are in right standing before God?

This is important for us to consider today because so many Christians have succumb to this same sinful behavior and thinking. We are mocking God by continuing in pornography, watching nakedness on tv and movies, having sexual relations before marriage, having affairs, committing sexual immorality, seeking to fulfill our fleshly desires, and pursuing our pleasures. The reason God draws this out is because we are showing a devotion to a love other than God. We are showing our devotion and love for our flesh and our desires rather than a devotion and love for God. When we know that these things are sin yet we continue to plunge ourselves into lust, then we are showing where our hearts and where our love truly is. Our hearts are not with God but with ourselves. Thus we are unfaithful to God’s covenant and worthy of judgment.

We are condemned because we will not stop and consider our need for the Lord who will give us true satisfaction. We are wearied by our activities yet we will not consider the hopelessness of pursuing anything that is not God himself (Isaiah 57:10). Though wearied by our sinfulness, we find new strength the next day and continue in our sinful ways. We did not remember the Lord and we did not take to heart that God has relented from bringing judgment upon us. Yet we do not fear him as we ought (Isaiah 57:11).

Please listen to Isaiah 57:12….

I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, but they will not profit you. (Isaiah 57:12 ESV)

All of your righteous deeds that you think you stand on will not help you. Whatever good you think you have done amounts to nothing when we stand under judgment for our actions. You can pile up all the good deeds you want. You can try to make your list of righteous acts all day long. There is no profit in these things because we love the darkness and we love our sins. God needs us to see ourselves for who we are. This leads to the conclusion of this paragraph with God telling us to call out to our idols and see if they will help us. There is no substance to our idols. If we truly knew the Lord then we would not value our physical lusts and desires higher than the ways of our God. When we are held accountable for our sins, let us see if our idols are there to help us. When we come to the judgment seat of Christ, how will we explain our uncontrolled lust for the things of this world?

God Revives the Humble (Isaiah 57:14-21)

There is the offer of something better from the hand of God. The one who takes refuge in the Lord will inherit the Lord’s holy mountain (Isaiah 57:13). Isaiah 57:14 is amazing. God prepares the way for his people to come to him. In Isaiah 40:3 pictured the removal of obstacles from our lives because the Lord is coming. In Isaiah 57 God pictures himself as the one who will remove the obstacles in our hearts so that we can come to him. This is a glorious truth. If rescue depends upon me, then I am lost. I am trying to remove the obstacles of sin and the idols of the heart, but it seems like obstacles continue to rise up within me. God knew this and needed us to see that we have a problem and we are not the solution. God is the solution. “Remove every obstruction from my people’s way!” Friends, Jesus is the obstacle remover. The suffering servant of Isaiah 53 came to take down every barrier that keeps us from coming to him. We cannot appreciate God removing the barriers to him until we see ourselves for who we truly are — sinners with a serious sin problem.

Yet the message only becomes more glorious. Listen to Isaiah 57:15. God describes himself as high and lofty. He is holy. He is pure. He is exalted. He is glorious. His name is Holy. The apostle Paul would say, “He alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light” (1 Timothy 6:16). See God for who he is. Then see yourself for who you are. Then listen to verse 15. “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit.” The holy, righteous, exalted Lord who dwells in holiness, high in the heavens, will also dwell with the person who has a contrite, lowly heart. This is unbelievable mercy and grace. God does not say that he will only dwell with the perfect person. He does not say that he will dwell with the pious or religious. He will not dwell with the righteous, for there is no one who is righteous. God will dwell with the humble. It is the humble that God will revive (Isaiah 57:15). Those who will be humbled by their sins and see themselves for who they are, dead in their sins, they will receive life from God.

Listen to Isaiah 57:18. “I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners.” The humble will receive healing. The contrite will be led by the Lord. Those who see the truth of who they are as dead in sins, God will restore that person. God is going to act through Jesus in such an amazing way that it will “create the fruit of the lips.” His acts will change our rebellious sinful hearts so that our lips will praise the Lord and no longer mock the Lord. This is the strength God supplies to overcome our sinful ways and tear out the idols in our hearts. We are steeped in our sinfulness. But God will dwell with those who are broken by their sins. God will heal you, lead you, and restore comfort to you when you are crushed by your wicked ways. Those who are not broken by their sinfulness, but continue in their wicked ways, there is no peace for them (Isaiah 57:21).

Can you believe that the high, exalted, and holy Lord will dwell with us rebels and transgressors? Let us be broken by our sins and amazed at the grace and glory of God to save us. This will lead us to desire to submit our will to the Lord and change our affections from the things in this world to the Lord who saved us.

Practical Atheist

Isaiah 58

By Brent Kercheville

Our Lord is relentless in loving his people and calling his people back to himself. Isaiah 58 is going to observe a problem that the people of Israel have that is common to many. These people put forward by their actions that they love God and are religious but their hearts lack a passion for the Lord. They look like they love the Lord but their actions do not reveal anything more than simple ritualistic worship practices.

False Devotion (Isaiah 58:1-5)

The message begins for Isaiah to declare loudly to the people their sins. He is to cry out to them about their sins like a trumpet, warning them of their sinful condition before God. The warning is necessary because the most dangerous spiritual condition to be in is one where you think you are pleasing God, yet your life is nowhere near God.

In Isaiah 58:2 the Lord notes that the people show outward evidence of desiring God’s will. By all appearances they delight in the Lord. They seek the Lord daily and seem to delight in the ways of the Lord. They are even fasting, according to verse 3. Keep in mind that in the days when Jesus walked the earth we read about another group of religious people, the Pharisees, who were doing the same thing with an outward show of devotion and love for God, even fasting and praying on the street corners. Jesus condemned them in his well-known Sermon on the Mount. So the people are doing all of these religious acts. They are worshipping. They are fasting. They look like lovers of God. Therefore, they cannot understand why the Lord is not listening to them. God is not responding to their external acts (Isaiah 58:3). So they are asking why God is not seeing their fasts and not acknowledging the “humbling” of themselves.

God answers them in the middle of Isaiah 58:3 and in verse 4, giving them the reasons that God does not accept their outward devotion and acts of godliness. In Isaiah 58:3 he says that it is because you continue to pursue your own pleasures and not the pleasures of God. They are interested in their own business but not God’s business. They would oppress others so that they could look religious. They fight and stir up strife (Isaiah 58:4). They are not truly desiring God. Therefore God does not hear them or care about their works.

Isaiah 58:5 drives this truth even further. God asks if this is the kind of fast that he would want from his people. Is fasting just bowing the head? Does God just want a few external acts? I fear this idea has been taught all too frequently within Christianity. Just come to church and God is happy. Just make sure you take the Lord’s Supper and you have pleased God. Make sure you have performed the “five acts of worship” and you have sealed your duty to God. God says you are nothing but a reed nodding in the wind. You are just doing these acts but you do not care about the Lord. Your pleasure is not in God. Notice that the people were even spreading sackcloth and ashes. This was considered an extravagant expression of humility. Yet God did not care about this act either. Coming to worship, taking the Lord’s Supper, bowing your head, and being friendly — is this really what you think God wants? The Lord says that we do not belong to him if we have this kind of “mail it in” attitude. Just get here whenever you feel like, do some perfunctory acts, look like you are godly, and go home. God is pleased, right? Not at all! These acts of worship are supposed to move our hearts closer to God and impact our relationship with God. We pray, not as an act, but because we want to talk to our Father and Master. We sing, not as an act, but because we want to praise the Lord for all he has done. We partake of the Lord’s Supper, not as a weekly ritual, but we desire to remember the sacrifice of Jesus. We read the scriptures and listen to teaching, not as an act, but because we want to know more about our Lord. Activity alone is spiritually fruitless to God. If we just mailed in our singing without engaging our hearts to the Lord and participated in the Lord’s Supper without loving our God for what he gave to us, we have done nothing. Don’t forget what Isaiah was told to do. Loudly proclaim these sinful deeds. Looking like you love God is nothing to God. So what does God want from his people? The rest of the chapter is going to explain in three movements what to do and what will be the result.

This Is What God Wants (Isaiah 58:6-14)

Stop wickedness (Isaiah 58:6-9 a).

The Lord declares that we loose the bonds of wickedness. God sees how we are dealing with people on Monday. Monday matters to God. God sees our business practices. God sees what we do on the job. God sees what we do in the home. We are not to just say that we are giving ourselves, but to truly give ourselves and of what we have to others. The New Testament parallel of this instruction would be Jesus’ teaching in the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Jesus called for his people to be a neighbor. Do not ask who is our neighbor so that we can try to get out of doing what is right by other people. Rather, we are to be the neighbor to other people, doing good by them, behaving like Christians to everyone we interact with.

A few weeks ago we had a woman who attended for a few weeks and so many of helped her by giving her things that she needed. This is exactly what the scriptures are speaking about us doing. We cannot say, “Be warmed and filled” and do nothing to help with that desire. So many of you did do this and I want us to see that God wants us to take these opportunities, not to avoid them or ignore them. Be the neighbor.

Notice the result in Isaiah 58:8-9 a. Now we will be able to rest on the promises of God. We will not be acting like practical atheists. God answers these actions because they are driven by a desire for God’s ways and God’s love. God will hear our cry and provide healing and righteousness. “The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard” is a reminder of the days of the exodus when God lead them and protected them from behind as they traveled. Our light will break forth like the dawn because we are reflecting the light of Jesus to the world. This is what God wants from his people. God’s people following God’s ways.

Stop oppression and evil speaking (Isaiah 58:9-12).

Again God is calling for his people to give themselves. Do not oppress. Do not speak evil. The New Testament parallel is to love our neighbor as ourselves (Galatians 5:14).

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:27 ESV)

There is a great need for us to open our hearts to people during this time when it is so easy to become isolated and uncaring. It is easy to be isolated to each other. We will just see each other once or twice a week and not share ourselves or our lives with each other. People are isolating themselves from others. We need open hearts to people. We must care about the souls of others, not speak evil of others or mock them. Instead, give ourselves to them.

The result of loving our neighbor as ourselves is described in verses 10b-12. Again we see our light shining in the darkness. This pictures us reflecting the glory of the Lord and salvation of our God to the world. Listen to the blessings God is offering in these verses. God will guide us, satisfy our souls, and give us strength. We will flourish like a watered garden before the Lord. Isaiah 58:11 describes us not only as a watered garden, but like a spring of water. We will not only be blessed by God but will become a blessing to the rest of the world. This is the wonderful picture of what it means to be light in the world. We are becoming a blessing to the world. This is what Jesus described in John 7:38.

Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:38 ESV)

Out of our hearts will also flow the rivers of living water. We are like springs of water to the world such that we are pictured as builders of God’s kingdom (Isaiah 58:12). We are spreading the message of God and expanding its borders and constituents. God has enabled us to be an instrument useful to God. This is not a self-reliant, independent task. We are the light of the world because Jesus is the light of the world. We are springs of water because Jesus is the spring of living water. Turn from evil and we will be used as God’s blessing to others.

Stop living for your personal pleasures (Isaiah 58:13-14).

The final picture is a change of heart in worshiping and serving the Lord. He calls for the people to delight in the Lord’s day. God did not want ritual or habit. He calls for Israel to honor his Sabbath day. Delight in the day, not for personal pleasures, but for the joy of honoring God. It is important to note that Sunday is not the Christian Sabbath. The Sabbath was a day of rest when the people honored and worshiped the Lord by remembering how God saved them from Egyptian slavery. It became a day of worship as the Jews would go to the temple and the synagogues. While Sunday is not the Sabbath, the application of enjoying worshiping God cannot be missed. God wants people who want to be here. God wants us not worry about getting out of here as if we are punching a clock with God. God wants hearts who want to honor him and honor his Son by our songs, with the Lord’s Supper, through our prayers, and listening to the word of God. We are to want this time. We do not want to miss it. We do not want to be late for it. It is our delight and joy. There is nothing else that we would rather be doing. God did not expect his people to worship him with a “let’s get this over with” attitude. This is what Israel desires. They just want to get back to doing their own work and their own pleasures. God wants our delight to be in him. Delight in worship! Perhaps you started with God as duty and requirement. I encourage you to engage your heart in these activities and you will learn to love and enjoy these things.

Notice God says this in Isaiah 58:14. “Then you shall delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth.” Then you will enjoy the covenant blessings and riches of God. Jesus made this point when he said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Learn to treasure these things and the heart will follow. When I first watched football on Sunday as a child, I did not think that it was the most wonderful thing ever. But I invested time into it and watched it again and again. As I watched, I began to appreciate what I was watching and then I began to enjoy it. The first time I read the scriptures, my first response was not that this was the greatest thing I ever read. But I invested time into reading them again. I read more and as I read more I began to appreciate what I was reading. Then as I would read more I would enjoy it more and more. Now I desire to read the word of God. When I first attended worship services on Sunday as a child, it was duty. My parents made me go. But I invested my heart and paid attention to what was happening. Over time I appreciated what was happening and grew to enjoy worship. Now there is nothing else I would rather do. I do not want to do anything else. I would love to come here more. I would love to study with you more. It is a joy. If you started with God as a duty and responsibility, I tell you these things so that you can see that you can have this joy and excitement for God, his word, and his worship. But you must invest yourself. You must give your heart. You must give your time. You must try. Otherwise, nothing will happen and you will despise these times. Now these acts of prayer, reading, Lord’s Supper, study, sermons, singing, and more draw our hearts closer to God. We are not bowing our heads like reeds nodding in the wind. We are submitting our contrite hearts to God as we engage him and encounter him through these things. Experiencing this joy will strengthen us to stop the wickedness and live as disciples of God every day. We will not be practical atheists, looking like Christians on Sunday but there is no other fruit. Now we will be neighbors to all, love them as ourselves, and delight in it as we love our Lord.

Sin Separates

Isaiah 59

By Brent Kercheville

The Lord continues to show his passionate pursuit of his people and jealousy for them. God has made the offer to come to the waters to receive life (Isaiah 55). God is calling for his people and pleading with his people to come to him. In Isaiah 58 he called for the people to delight in him and delight in worshiping him. The more they worship him, the more they will enjoy and delight in him. Now God wants to emphasize something to our hearts. God is not the problem in the relationship. The reason for judgment is not because of God. We are the problem.

This is how God begins his next declaration to the people. The problem is not with God. God is not too weak to save. The problem is not that God’s ears are too dull to hear. Remember in Isaiah 58 the people think they are being righteous and religious and cannot understand why God is not responding to them. God says the problem is not with him. He is not too weak to deliver them or too deaf to hear their pleading. So what is the problem if the issue is not with God?

Sin Separates (Isaiah 59:2-8)

The sins of the people have made the separation between God and them. This is a concept that God has to teach us because it is something that we do not understand and often forget. Sin separates us from God. Sin creates a barrier between God and us. Sin is not a small thing to God. To us, we do not see the gravity of sin. God from the very beginning was showing us the weight of sin. When Adam and Eve sinned, separation occurred. They could not be in the presence of God any longer nor be in the paradise of God. Sin separates. Further, God used the Law of Moses to teach us about the weight of sin by having an animal killed and sacrificed for the sins of the people. Even in this picture, separation was an important picture that was shown to the people. The people did not approach God with their animal to sacrifice for their sins. They only could approach a priest. The priest had to be ceremonial undefiled and purified to offer the animal to God on behalf of the people. Sin separates.

In Isaiah 59:3-8 God describes what humanity looks like to him. We want to think of ourselves as “good people.” But listen to how God views the world. Our hands are defiled with blood and our fingers with iniquity (Isaiah 59:3). Our lips have spoken lies. Our tongues utter wickedness. No one cares about being fair or honest. Lawsuits are based on lies. People conceive of doing evil and then carry out their evil plans (Isaiah 59:4). All that people produce are harmful to others (Isaiah 59:5-6). People are not apprehensive to do evil, but run to do evil. They only think about sinning and destruction and misery follow their paths. They do not know how to be peaceful or how to be just or good. Their paths are completely crooked and those who follow in their ways do not know peace either. What a graphic depiction of how God sees people! We might be tempted to think that this is only a description of the nation of Israel. We might pity God because Israel was to be the people of God and look how far they had fallen from God’s glory and laws.

However, the apostle Paul quotes some of these verses in Romans 3:15-17. Paul began that section in Romans 3:9 declaring that all people, Jews and Gentiles, are under sin. No one is righteous, no, not one! No one understand; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one (Romans 3:10-11). These declarations and quotations from scripture lead into Paul quoting this passage from Isaiah 59 to prove his point that no one is righteous before God. Every person has a sin problem. Every person is separated by God from their sins. What we are reading in Isaiah 59 is not just Israel; it is every one of us!

We must accept this important truth: the only reason we do any good in lives is because we have seen the light of God and are changing our corrupt ways into the ways of God. No one is good naturally. All do evil naturally. We naturally do wrong and evil and must fight to do right. The only reason we do any good is because God told us to and we are submitting to his commands.

Accepting Our Condemnation (Isaiah 59:9-15 a)

The first eight verses describe God’s view of us. But in Isaiah 59:9 the text shifts from “they” and “your” to “we” and “our.” God has described our condition before him. We are not to ignore these truths about our sinfulness. Instead, we are to admit our sinfulness to God. This is what we see as Isaiah on behalf of the people confesses their sins.

We are far from justice and righteousness. We know nothing about right living when left to our own paths. We would not live right without God’s intervention. Now we admit that we are not in the light. We are living in the darkness hoping for the light to shine on us. There is no hope in ourselves. There is no hope in our actions. There is no hope in anything that we think we might be able to do. This is the point that God wants us to come to. We are in darkness. We do not have light. We do not do right. We cannot bring ourselves to any sort of salvation. We cannot save ourselves.

Further, our sins are piled up before our God and every sin testifies against us (Isaiah 59:12). Our actions are hopeless. We cannot point to our acts and think that this is going to be helpful. Our actions testify against us, not for us. We know our sins. We know that we have rebelled and denied the Lord (Isaiah 59:13). We know that we have done all of these evil deeds. We speak evil and we do evil. Justice, righteousness, and truth are nowhere near us. The middle of Isaiah 59:15 sums up everything: “The Lord saw it, and it displeased him.”

The Lord’s Response (Isaiah 59:15-21)

The Lord is absolutely displeased by what he sees in his creation. There is no justice. There is no righteousness. Everyone has turned away from him. No one does what he says. Now the problem is stated. There is no one to intercede on our behalf. We cannot save ourselves. We cannot approach God. We cannot reconcile ourselves to God. No one is able to address the serious sinfulness of humans.

Isaiah 59:16 is one of the most amazing pictures of God. First, we are told that God “wondered that there was no one intercede” (ESV, NKJV). Trying to get a handle on this word is difficult as seen by the variety of translations. “Shocked” (NET), “appalled” (NIV; NRSV), “astonished” (NASB), and “amazed” (HCSB, NLT). It is important that we do not read this to think that God saw our sinful condition was surprised that no one could intercede. God is not surprised at this. History exists to show this truth that no deliverer, prophet, or king can save the people from their sinful ways. Rather, the situation is appalling or astonishing. The Hebrew word is used for devastation and I wonder if this also helps capture the idea. God is devastated and appalled by the situation. God is not pleased that all humanity is separated from him and captured in their sins. This is a displeasing situation to God. We must appreciate this because God could decide not to care. He could leave us in our condition since it is our fault that we have completely rebelled against him. God is moved by this situation and God determines that he will do something. Since no one can intervene and intercede for us, God will intercede for us! Amazing!

Notice that the imagery reminds of what we read concerning the armor of God in Ephesians 6. In Ephesians 6 we were instructed to put the armor on to stand against the attacks of the devil. Here we see God putting the armor on and going to war against sin to bring the righteousness we need. God goes to war against his adversaries and repays his enemies.

Then we read the wonderful words of Isaiah 59:20 : “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression.” Who wants to stop sinning? Who wants to get rid of their sinfulness? A Redeemer is coming to those who turn from their sinful ways. Those who want a solution for their sins, God has sent the Redeemer to intercede for us because of our sins. This leads to God’s promise in Isaiah 59:21. This is the covenant God makes with us. God’s Spirit that is upon the Redeemer (the “you” is masculine singular, therefore not referring to us) and the words that God has put into the Redeemer’s mouth will never leave his mouth. God’s word would always be on his lips and his desire would be for accomplishing God’s will, not his own.

But notice that there is more to the promise. Not only is God’s Spirit promised to remain with the Servant, but also the Servant’s offspring. We saw in Isaiah 53:10 that the work of the Servant would accomplish the salvation of people who would be called the Servant’s offspring or children. Here we see that our Servant Redeemer will come and his work of intercession will take ungodly people and cause them to be his children/offspring. The result of the Redeemer’s work will result in the transformation of people from ungodly sinners under God’s wrath to being his children under God’s redemption. The apostle Paul understood this to be Isaiah’s point when he quotes this in Romans 11:27. The Redeemer will come, banish ungodliness, and take away their sins in this new covenant (Romans 11:27). To receive this blessing and belong as children of the Redeemer, we must have the words of the Spirit that are on the lips of Christ on our lips also.

This was the very argument Paul presented to the Christians at Rome. Notice that Paul draws the same connections for our understanding of what it means for us to belong to Christ and have the Spirit.

9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:9-17 ESV)

God’s Spirit and God’s words on our lips and in our hearts transforming our lives so that we have been redeemed from our sinful ways. We have received the Spirit of adoption and do not fall back into fear as we put to death the deeds of the flesh. This is how the Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. How amazing that God chose to redeem us because he was disturbed over our sinful condition. Then God makes an everlasting covenant with us that the Redeemer will save us from our sins and put his law on our lips and in our hearts, transforming us to be his children forever. How God loves his creation! Will we submit our lives to Jesus, seeing his love and sacrifice for us?

God Is Your Glory

Isaiah 60

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah is telling us about who we are and what God has done for us. In Isaiah 59 the Lord reminded us of our total sinfulness and the redemption God supplies by his own arm. The Redeemer will come to Zion (Isaiah 59:20), making a covenant with them and forgiving their sins. We learn in Isaiah 59:21 that Zion is a picture of the redeemed people of covenant. These are the one who desire to be set free from their sins. Isaiah 60 describes who we are because of what God has done for us. As we read this chapter we must read looking at who we are supposed to be now that we have been redeemed.

Hope For The World (Isaiah 60:1-3)

Isaiah begins with hopeful words, “Arise, shine, for your light has come!” Isaiah 59:9-10 confessed that we are looking for light but remain in the darkness, living like the blind spiritually. But now that will change. Darkness will lift suddenly with the arrival of the Lord. Your light has come! Verses 1 and 2 describe that it is the Lord that is shining as the light. “The glory of the Lord has risen upon you” (Isaiah 60:1) and “the Lord will arise upon you” (Isaiah 60:2). What does it mean for us to arise and shine? Listen to how the apostle Paul describes what this looks like in our lives.

Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (Ephesians 5:7-14 ESV)

Notice that we are the light of the Lord because Christ has come and is shining on us. Therefore we are to walk as children of light, discerning what is pleasing to the Lord. We expose the unfruitful works of darkness rather than participating in them. This is how we awake, arise, and shine because the light of Christ has arrived. We are supposed to shine like the sun. The effect is described in verse 3 that the nations will come to your light. We are reflecting the glory of the Lord to the world. We are shining as followers of Christ. The redeemed of God do not simply enjoy being redeemed for selfish purposes. We are to arise and shine as the light to the nations.

Nations Will Come To Zion (Isaiah 60:4-9)

The picture is that the people of God, Zion, will be restored. The nations are shown as coming to Zion. But they are not coming to attack or destroy. They are coming to you in joy bringing the wealth of the nations. This is a restoration image. The nations had attacked Jerusalem in the days of Isaiah. Isaiah predicted that the Babylonians would attack and take everything from Jerusalem. Now the nations are going to come and they are not going to come to take anything. Rather, they are bringing wealth. They are not stripping the people of their wealth. Not only are they coming in with wealth, verse 6 says they will bring good news, the praises of the Lord. They are coming to honor the Lord. Now when people come to Zion, they will be coming to the city of God to praise it, not destroy it. They will support it, not steal from it. But we see that a spiritual shift is occurring in Isaiah’s prophecy as God continues to describe what will happen when the Lord comes. The nations are bringing the wealth. But this is not the physical temple being built. The nations are coming and God “will beautify my beautiful house.” God will make Zion beautiful. Isaiah 60:9 drives this point home even further, describing the coming in of the nations “because he has made you beautiful.” The beautiful house and the beautiful temple is the people of God. God will make them beautiful. Previously, the people were not beautiful. Isaiah has seen them full of their sins. Isaiah had to confess for himself and for his people concerning their uncleanness when the Lord commissioned him to preach to the people (Isaiah 6).

Isaiah 60:9 pictures how we are made beautiful. There is a change of desire. There is a change of hope. “For the coastlands will hope for me.” Those who have seen the light of the Lord hope in God alone. God takes our filthiness and makes us beautiful. We cannot beautify ourselves. Christ cleanses and beautifies. Our hope shifts away from this world. Our desire is not for this life. Our citizenship is not in this world. Our hope is in God. Our desire is now in God. This is how we are made beautiful. Hope in God through the light of Jesus.

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV)

We are looking at Jesus and we are being transformed into a new person, matching the image of Jesus. Remember that John 1 told us that we are looking at the Lord and the glory of the Lord when we see and examine Jesus (cf. John 1:14-18). We have spent much time asking about where our hope lies and examining our hearts. Our hope cannot be in our careers, in our spouses, in our families, in our children, in our parents, in any person or any object. The people of God hope in God.

Nations Will Glorify Zion (Isaiah 60:10-16)

Isaiah returns to the picture of restoration. The nations are not destroying the city, but are rebuilding the walls of the city. We cannot read verse 10 as a reference to the return that occurred in the days of Nehemiah, as he came to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls. While the Persians allowed for the rebuilding of the Jerusalem walls, they did not build those walls themselves. Instead, our context has been when the Lord comes and brings light to the world, which refers to the coming of Jesus. Further, Isaiah 60:11-12 shows that this is not referring to physical Jerusalem. The gates of physical Jerusalem were not continually open and there were many nations that did not serve Jerusalem and did not perish. No nation served Jerusalem or physical Israel from its restoration in 445 BC to its destruction by the Romans in 70 AD. Isaiah is picturing a glorious kingdom, not the physical city. We will note the connection to Revelation 21 shortly.

God is reversing the fortunes of his people. We cannot reverse our fortunes. We deserve punishment for our sins. Israel deserves its punishments and judgments for its rebellion to the Lord. Notice Isaiah 60:14. “The sons of those who afflicted you shall come bending low to you, and all who despised you shall bow down at your feet.” See the reversal/restoration imagery. Those who harmed you are now bowing down to you. God reversing the judgment. God is solving our sin problem. The Redeemer has come, the covenant has been established, and the curse of sin is removed so that restoration can occur.

Therefore God gives another picture. “For the nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste” (Isaiah 60:12). Be part of the city of God that glories and hopes in the Lord, or perish. This is hope for God’s people. Ultimate justice will come from God’s hand. Those who are against God’s people will be judged. Therefore, the people of God wait for the Lord, putting their trust and hope in him for restoration. God will vindicate his people by judging those who do not come to him, turning away from sin. How could we not want to belong to the Lord? Not only has God acted on our behalf to save us, but the enemies will receive the wrath of God. We want to be on the right side of his victory. Belong to God and be the victors. Our God shows grace to us and extends blessings to us, making us beautiful and glorious before him (Isaiah 60:15-16). God is providing our needs, our satisfaction, our nourishment, and loving care. God meets our longings and our lasting needs. This is another reason that we hope in God. “I will make you majestic forever, a joy from age to age” (Isaiah 60:15). God offers far more than the world could ever offer. Hope in God.

The Transformation of Zion (Isaiah 60:17-22)

God continues to picture the radical transformation of his people. God will transform you inside and out (Isaiah 60:17-18). We are being made perfect in his grace, belonging to a new kingdom under a new rule as his citizens. Isaiah 60:18 describes our new identity as Salvation and Praise. Salvation and praise is who we are. We are the saved who are continually praising God for his mercy.

The chapter concludes with beautiful imagery. God’s people are not ruled by the times and seasons of this world. Night and day control everything we do. Light and darkness of the earth affects everything we do. But now our lives will be affected by something else. God is their light. God rules their lives. God gives them their direction. The Lord shows us how to live and we follow his path. This imagery is used again beautifully in the book of Revelation.

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. (Revelation 21:22-27 ESV)

Notice how this is summary of Isaiah’s prophecy. The nations are coming into the city of God. The Lord is the light. More specifically, the Lamb is the lamp. Remember that Jesus declared, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). A whole different life because of Jesus, who we follow as our new light.

Look at what the people of Zion are doing now. Another picture is given to us in Isaiah 60:19. “Your God will be your glory.” This is our problem. This is the human problem. We are glory thieves. We steal glory away from God. We glory in everything but God. We take pride in all the wrong things. What was the problem at Babel? Pride and glory were the problems. They wanted to make a name for themselves. They wanted recognition. Why was Moses unable to enter into the promised land? We must certainly assume that Moses had sinned many times during the 80 years he had been with these people. But why now can he not enter the promised land? He stole the honor and glory that belong to God and took it to himself when he struck the rock rather than speaking to it. What is the sin in the garden of Eden? Pride as Adam and Eve eat because they are only concerned about themselves, rather than the way of the Lord. We could go on and on that the problem with humanity is we glory in all the wrong things. We take pride in our children. We glory in temporal, worldly things. We fail to glory in God. God says his people will glory or boast in one thing: God. The apostle Paul said this very thing, perhaps even calling to mind this prophecy.

“Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:31; cf. 2 Corinthians 10:17; Galatians 6:14)

Look at the other picture in Isaiah 60:21. “Your people shall all be righteous.” How are we going to be righteous? We are wicked and ungodly! But Isaiah 59 told us that those who would turn from their sins would be redeemed by the Redeemer and be counted as his children. This leads to the transformation of our lives and hearts, as we look into the face of Jesus, seeing the glory of the Lord. Isaiah has emphasized that transformation will occur because God’s Spirit is on Christ and on his lips which will then be on our lips and heart. The result is the glorification of God (Isaiah 60:21). No one is excluded from experiencing this joy (Isaiah 60:22).

Conclusion

Awake! Rise up because the light of Jesus is shining on every one of you. Jesus is our light, changing our ways and changing our lives. God has reversed our fortunes so that we now have our hope in the Lord and our glory is in him alone. Turn from your sinful ways and love the Lord your God today!

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

Isaiah 61

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah 61 gives us another opportunity to hear from the Messiah/Servant/Redeemer. Repeatedly through this section of Isaiah’s prophecy we have heard the prophesied Messiah speak of his work that he will accomplish upon his arrival. Let us read another beautiful picture concerning the work of Christ and what he will do for those who belong to him.

The Anointed’s Task (Isaiah 61:1-3)

The very first words of this chapter point out that the Servant is the Anointed One. The Lord has anointed him to a particular work. The Servant is pictured as a messenger of good news. He goes on to describe who is receiving the good news. The poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the prisoners, and the mourners are those who will benefit from the coming of the Servant. The good news of healing, liberty, and comfort will be proclaimed. As we have seen in these last few chapters, Isaiah’s prophecy is using physical concepts to describe spiritual realities. Isaiah 55 describes the mountains singing and the trees clapping. Isaiah 58 pictured God’s people being made into a watered garden. Isaiah 59 described our sins like snakes’ eggs and spiders’ webs. Isaiah 60 described the wealth of the nations coming into Zion. The point is that Isaiah continues to use physical imagery to describe the spiritual realities of the people. The same is happening in Isaiah 61. The message of good news is not to those who are really in jail or who are physically poor. This is a picture of our sin problem. The Servant is coming to address our sin problem. The Servant is not coming to deal with depression or poverty. He comes bringing good news because we are poor because of our sins. We are brokenhearted because of our hopeless condition from our sinfulness. We are captives and imprisoned because we are enslaved to sin. We are mourning because of our sins. This is the picture God is giving us through Isaiah. These chapters have contained messages from God wanting us to see our spiritual condition. When we see this spiritual condition, then we look for the Servant to free us from our condition.

This imagery has its roots in the year of jubilee that we read about in Leviticus 25. The freedom that is described here is the same Hebrew word used in Leviticus 25:10. It is not a commonly used word in the scriptures, found only in Jeremiah 34 and Ezekiel 46:17. Listen to the declaration concerning the year of jubilee: “And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants.” Leviticus 25 goes on to talk about how this was the year of redemption. The people could redeem their property and land that they had lost because of their debts they incurred. It was a year of harvest. It was the year of redemption. It was the year of restoration. Isaiah calls this time “the year of the Lord’s favor” (61:2). In Isaiah 49:8 we read similar imagery which was also called “the time of favor” and “a day of salvation.” The prisoners will be released and those in darkness will be brought out (Isaiah 49:9).

At the same time, the Servant also declares that he will be proclaiming a day of vengeance. Vengeance has a more positive connotation in the Old Testament than how we use it today. When we read about vengeance we should think about God’s justice. Of course, there is a picture of wrath when God brings his justice on the unjust. But it is important that we read this as good news. Justice is coming against God’s enemies and the enemies of God’s people. The coming of the Lord will be the proclaiming of comfort. The Servant will grant to those who mourn in Zion a beautiful crown (headdress), the oil of gladness, and a garment of praise. This is why the scriptures record people like Simeon and Anna who were “waiting for the consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25) and “waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38). Luke is using the language of Isaiah 61. The Servant will come and console his people, redeeming them from their sinfulness. The apostle Paul also used this imagery, declaring that we have been rescued from the dominion of darkness (Colossians 1:13). Those who mourn in Zion, who are in spiritual distress, will be comforted. Jesus said these very words in Matthew 5:4 in the Sermon on the Mount. The people hope for restoration and redemption and their hope will be confirmed with Christ arrives. How powerful this day was when Jesus came to the synagogue in Nazareth:

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:16-21 ESV)

The Result of the Year of the Lord’s Favor (Isaiah 61:3-7)

Why is God doing all of this for us? Notice the result of the Servant’s work in the middle of Isaiah 61:3. These who are brokenhearted, captives, in darkness, and mourning are now going to be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, so that God is glorified. We are a planting of the Lord to display God’s honor and splendor. We exist to show the glory of God. Even better, our transformation from blind, mourning, captives to oaks of righteousness is to show the splendor of our God.

God’s radical transformation of our lives empowers us participate in the work of the kingdom. This is not merely a call to get to work in God’s kingdom. Isaiah is picturing something glorious. The work of the Servant of redemption and liberty will cause such a dramatic change in our lives that we will be workers in God’s restored kingdom. We are given the privilege of working for the cause of Jesus. This is not about us. This is about what God has done for us. We are thrilled to be allowed to find our part of the work in God’s kingdom. The apostle Paul had a sense of this as he wrote to the Corinthians.

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. (1 Corinthians 3:5-9 ESV)

We are joyful to do our part, all of us doing what we can as different members of God’s body, to bring glory to our God. We reach the lost, encourage the broken, strengthen the weak, teach one another, worship with each other, serve one another, and do all we can in this work because we are so overjoyed that God has taken us from captivity and made us oaks of righteousness. How amazing it is that God has enabled us to be his workers! Our work is not a duty but represents the favor of the Lord to make us workers of righteousness.

But there is even more. Outsiders are joining in the life of the people in working for the Lord. We saw this image in Isaiah 60:10 where outsiders/foreigners were building the walls of Zion. God gives us another amazing picture of who we are. First, he said that he will make us oaks of righteousness. Now God says that we will “be called the priests of the Lord.” “They shall speak of you as the ministers of our God” (Isaiah 60:6). This is staggering! God’s people were always intended to be priests of God. When God brought Israel out of Egyptian slavery, listen to how he commissioned them.

Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” (Exodus 19:5-6 ESV)

Now we are the true Israel, Zion, the people of God in Christ Jesus who have been redeemed from sins. We are the kingdom of priests. We are called priests of the Lord and ministers of our God. The apostle Peter uses the same imagery.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9 ESV)

As priests we are serving the Lord by proclaiming the excellencies of the Lord to the world. We are set apart from the world, not living like the world, because we are priests to the Lord. We are bringing people closer to the Lord and bringing the Lord to the people of the world.

The Lord’s Response (Isaiah 61:8-9)

Now the Lord speaks. Because of his love for justice, he will faithfully act. The Lord is completely committed to bringing justice and making an everlasting covenant. We saw this promise of the covenant earlier in Isaiah 54:10; Isaiah 55:3, and Isaiah 59:21. God is faithful and his expects his people to be faithful.

Our Response (Isaiah 61:10-11)

Now the ball is back in our court. What will we do now that the Servant will come bringing the year of the Lord’s favor? “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord! My soul shall exult in my God!” (Isaiah 61:10). God will be our joy. God will be our rejoicing. Why? Why should we find our joy in the Lord now? “For he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness.” This is why we rejoice. God has made us beautiful. God has covered our sins with his salvation and with his righteousness (cf. Isaiah 60:17; Isaiah 60:20).

I continue to be amazed at how often Isaiah declares that God’s people will find their joy in the Lord and rejoice in God. God’s people will love God, hope in God, desire God, and live for God. The proclamation of the good news of Jesus is to move us to this response. He has taken us, who were captured by our sins, and set us free to be oaks of righteousness and priests of the Lord. With joy let us give our lives to the Lord.

The Lord Delights In You

Isaiah 62:1 to Isaiah 63:6

By Brent Kercheville

The end of Isaiah 61 described God’s people rejoicing in the Lord and finding there joy as workers in God’s kingdom because God has set us free from our sins (Isaiah 61:1-3). We rejoice in the Lord because he has clothed us with the garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness. God takes sinful people and makes them beautiful, planting them as oaks of righteousness for his own glory. This idea continues in Isaiah 62.

The Transformation of Zion (Isaiah 62:1-5)

God is pictured as being restless for his people. He will not keep quiet and will not stop until Zion has righteousness and salvation going forth in brightness like a burning torch. Zion represents God’s people in this section of Isaiah (see Isaiah 59:20 “those who turn from transgression”). When the Servant/Redeemer comes bringing salvation, Zion will be completely changed. Rather than being full of sins, they will possess righteousness and salvation. This is not a deserved righteousness. We have not seen any picture that Zion would be righteous by their efforts and works. Through the work of the Servant, God will declare the status of God’s people to be righteous. This is the righteousness and glory that the nations will see. They will not see our perfect works, for that cannot happen. Rather, the nations are going to see people who are transformed and living different lives because God has called them righteous and saved them from their sins. The people will be so radically transformed that God says that these people will be called by a new name (Isaiah 62:2). This indicates the people have a new character and a new relationship with the Lord. In Christ we are new creatures with a new relationship with God.

The picture continues in Isaiah 62:3. We will no longer be defiled and filthy because of our sins. God has saved us so that we are pictured as a beautiful crown in the hand of the Lord. We are possessed by God. We belong to him and are in his hand. A beautiful picture of God’s relationship with us. The point is that God has made us glorious. We have been transformed from filthy sinners to a beautiful crown in the hand of the Lord. Verse 4 continues to describe this new relationship that we will have with the Lord because we have been forgiven. We will not longer be forsaken or desolate. Think about how God would make this promise to his people that he would not leave them and would be with them wherever they went. This was visualized when the people were in the wilderness and God led them with a pillar of fire and cloud. God was with his people for their journey to the promised land. In the same way, we see this same promise given to us.

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:5-6 ESV)

Rather than being forsaken, we will have two new names. The land will be called “Married.” This is a picture of the covenant relationship we are in with our Lord. We are possessed by God. It is useful to note that the Hebrew word for married is “Beulah.” If you grew up in the pews you might have sung the song “Beulah Land.” As a kid, I never understood what we were singing about. It was a nonsensical song to me to sing about Beulah Land. But this song comes from Isaiah 62:4. The land will no be desolate or forsaken because we are married to the Lord.

The other description for us is also found in verse 4. “You shall be called My Delight Is In Her.” How amazing that the Lord will find his delight and joy in us! Do we grasp this? Do we recognize this? God delights in you! The New Testament says the same thing about us, though we may have missed this important truth.

Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. (Luke 15:7 ESV)

The Lord delights in his people, not because we are perfect or sinless, but because he has clothed us salvation and righteousness which is transforming us into his image. Notice that Isaiah 62:5 drives this thought home even deeper. “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.” Marriage is a joyful, glorious day. This is the joy God has for us to belong to him and be his people. How amazing it is that the all-sufficient God finds joy in us!

Call On the Lord To Do It (Isaiah 62:6-9)

The Lord says that watchmen are set up in Jerusalem. But they are not to be watching for enemies to attack. This was the usual function of the watchmen. They would sound the alarm when armies would approach. But this is not the purpose for these watchmen. These watchmen are pictured as calling on the Lord day and night until God accomplishes this promise of salvation and righteousness. Keep calling on the Lord to accomplish his promises. God will do but give him no rest until he does. What a great picture that God offers us! God will do it because he promised it. But pray for it anyway! Pray for God do accomplish his promises. Do not give God rest until he does. Think about how often God tells us to be persistent in prayer (cf. Luke 18:7; Philippians 4:6; Romans 12:12; Colossians 4:2). Keep praying because it will keep us hopeful in the promises of God. Keep praying because it will call to our minds the promises of God. Friends, we are given authority by God to wear him out in prayer. God tells us to persist in prayer and not lose heart. Even though we believe that God will do, keep praying about it day and night. Pray to the Lord to do it! What hope we have in prayer! How amazing that God calls on us to pray, pray, and pray even more!

Your Salvation Comes (Isaiah 62:10-12)

Again the call goes through the land to the people to get ready. Prepare the way for the people to come to the Lord because salvation is coming. God is removing our sin obstacles so that we can come to him. Salvation is coming. You shall be called “The Holy People,” “The Redeemed of the Lord,” and “Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.” This is a picture of God’s love. God went after us. God was not going to give us up even though we were enslaved in our sins. You are not forsaken. God has come to your rescue. God has redeemed you. God has made you holy and you belong to him. Lift up your eyes and see that your Savior comes. Here comes your salvation!

Here He Comes! (Isaiah 63:1-6)

Isaiah 63 opens with the arrival of the Savior who brings salvation to his people. Here he comes in splendid, glorious apparel (63:1). Notice that he comes from Edom. Bozrah is the capital city of Edom. Recall back in Isaiah 34 that Edom was the symbol for the world, the enemies of God, and the people opposed to God’s people. So observe the picture. The Savior, the one who speaks in righteousness and is mighty to save, comes from Edom, where the enemies of God and his people dwell, wearing splendid apparel. But also notice that his clothing is red. The question is asked in Isaiah 63:2, “Why is your apparel red?”

His answer is that he has trod the winepress alone. He trampled them in his anger and wrath and their lifeblood has splattered on his garments, staining his apparel. The reason why is that it was the day of vengeance (cf. 61:2) and the year of redemption (Isaiah 61:2). Remember in Isaiah 61:2 we saw that the Spirit of the Lord is on Christ and he was bringing the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance. This year of favor is the fulfillment of the year of jubilee shadow where the people were released from their debts and their inheritance restored. Isaiah 63 pictures the Christ doing this very thing. We noted in Isaiah 61 that the day of vengeance was not negative to the people of God, but the good news. God’s enemies would be judged and God’s justice would arrive. The day of vengeance is bad for God’s enemies, but for God’s people the day of vengeance is the day of God’s deliverance.

Isaiah 63:5 parallels what the Lord declared in Isaiah 59:16. Notice the similarity:

I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold; so my own arm brought me salvation, and my wrath upheld me. (Isaiah 63:5 ESV)

He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no one to intercede; then his own arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him. (Isaiah 59:16 ESV)

Remember in Isaiah 59 the Lord looks and was amazed that there is no one to save, so he himself used his own might and brought salvation to his people. In the same way, the Lord looks and see that there was no one to help his oppressed people. Therefore, he himself used his own might and brought salvation by destroying the enemies of God’s people. The situation before the Lord demanded a divine response. God’s people were oppressed and God desired to do something. No one else could do anything about it but God himself. Only God can save, which inevitably involves divine judgment. For there to be salvation, there must also be divine justice and judgment. Think about the history of Israel which is a picture of this truth. When God saved Israel from Egyptian slavery, the nation of Egypt was judged and destroyed. When God saved Israel from Babylonian captivity, the nation of Babylon was judged and destroyed. When God saved his people from the persecution of the Jewish nation, Jerusalem was judged and destroyed in 70 AD. When God saved his people from the persecution of the Roman Empire, God judged and destroyed the Roman Empire. This is the hope for God’s people! God judges our enemies and brings his vengeance for our salvation. This is why the book of Revelation uses this exact image of our Savior that is found here in Isaiah 63 over in Revelation 19.

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. 17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, 18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great.” 19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. 21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. (Revelation 19:11-21 ESV)

Jesus our Savior went to war against the Roman Empire in that image and pictures its judgment and destruction because they stood against God’s people. God did this because he promised that he will never forsake his people. The Lord delights in us and we are not called desolate or forsaken.

Here’s the great picture. Jesus has gone to war against our greatest enemy: Satan. This is pictured in Revelation 20 where Jesus casts him into the abyss to no longer deceive the nations. Then he will cast him in the lake of fire where he will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Jesus has gone to battle and won on our behalf. Jesus is Faithful and True and he makes war and judges in righteous. But there is more to this picture. Jesus goes to war against all of our enemies. Isaiah 63 predicts it and Revelation 19 validates this promise for us. Jesus will strike down the nations and rule them with a rod of iron (Revelation 19:15). He is King of kings and Lord of lords. Think about this: he rules the nations in righteousness. This is our hope for the future. God will deal with the armies of wickedness and darkness. As we look throughout the world and see the growth of evil, God has promised that the Savior will bring justice and have his day of vengeance. Evildoers are always judged. We may suffer at the hands of evildoers. But God has promised vengeance on those who harm us. This knowledge is what frees us to be oaks of righteousness and shine as lights in this dark world.

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:17-21 ESV)

God delights in you and fights for you. He has solved our greatest need by saving us from our sins. Trust in the Lord through suffering and difficulties. Trust in the Lord through mistreatment and evil. Be watchmen praying day and night to bring salvation to his people. God will do. Every evildoer will receive justice. Hope in God.

The Lord of Mercy

Isaiah 63:7 to Isaiah 64:12

By Brent Kerchevville

Isaiah has described the sinfulness of the people and hope of the salvation to come. Isaiah has pictured the Spirit of the Lord coming upon the Servant who will set the people free from sin by offering himself up for us. When he comes with his reward, he will also come with judgment against his enemies. We learned from Isaiah 62-63 that our enemies are God’s enemies. Salvation comes through judgment. But how are the people to have hope until the time of vindication? As the people must deal with their enemies and suffer for their sins, what should the people of God do? This is an important question for us to answer in our lives today as we suffer at the hands of evildoers and must deal with the pain and difficulties of this life. What is the prescription for God’s people as they wait for the vindication of the Lord?

Remember God’s Compassion (Isaiah 63:7-9)

The first answer for our difficulties is to recount the steadfast love of the Lord. How important it is to continue to count the blessings of God’s love for us that we have experienced in our lives. Notice how Isaiah pictures this in Isaiah 63:7. He will speak of the great goodness of God toward the house of Israel. He will speak of the compassion and steadfast love of God. We learn something very important for our lives from Isaiah. When in turmoil and distress, we do not regain our vision and hope by focusing on self. We need to look outside of ourselves to the immensity and greatness of God’s goodness, compassion, and loving commitment that is seen in Jesus. Oh, how the world misleads us in telling us that we should become introspective and become self-oriented during times of difficulty. The answer to our dark days is to look to God’s blessings in our lives. They are easy to see and many to count when we will stop to reflect on all that God has doing and continues to do for us. The book of Jude end with the words, “Keep yourself in the love of God” (Judges 1:21). I believe this is one practical way that we do this. We will not walk out of God’s love when we are spending our hours focusing on that love.

Isaiah 63:8 pictures God’s people this way. Being God’s people means that we are not disloyal to him. We will remain faithful to him as we observe and remember God’s faithfulness toward us. Isaiah 63:9 continues to reveal the love that God has for us. “In all their affliction he was afflicted.” Our distress causes God distress. God cares about us. God cares about our spiritual condition. How amazing it is that all-sufficient and all-powerful God is afflicted when we are afflicted! This describes the care and compassion of our God. Our God is truly a Father that cares for his children. Notice what God does in verse 9. God saved them, redeemed them, and carried them. God saves, God redeems, and God carries us through.

Our Failure Through Forgetfulness (Isaiah 63:10-14)

“But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit” (Isaiah 63:10). This reflects our attitude and disposition. God is pouring out his love and blessings, yet we forget all he has done, thus turning and rebelling against him. I want us to consider why our sins are so terrible. Consider what God says here. They rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. What an idea that we are able to grieve God! Think about this for a moment. You only grieve over people you care about. You would not start grieving if I told you that some person you never met died today. We hear of people dying in the news every day. The obituaries list numbers of people who die each day. No one is crying over the newspaper. We are grieved when it is someone we know and love. We grieve God with our rebellion. The apostle Paul gave the same command in Ephesians 4:30 that we do not grieve the Holy Spirit. When we reject God’s love, his revelation, his rule, and his transformation of us, we are grieving God! God is showing abundant love and blessings and we are rejecting him. Sin is rejecting God!

Even more amazing is what God does. From verses 11-14 Isaiah points out that God keeps his promises even though his people rebelled. Verses 11-14 remind us of the wilderness wanderings in the days of Moses. Please think about the amount of rebellion and complaining that occurred on that journey. The way Exodus and Numbers record their journeys, it sounds like they were complaining and rebelling nearly every day. But God still led them and still led them to rest in the land of Canaan so that God’s name would be glorious to Israel and to the nations. God is glorified by his faithfulness in the face of our unfaithfulness. We are to be amazed by our God, amazed at his steadfast love and compassion, which gives us faith and strength through our times of distress and difficulty.

Prayer For Mercy (Isaiah 63:15 to Isaiah 64:4)

Now Isaiah turns to God in prayer. This is the second thing we must do during times of distress and turmoil. Prayer must happen. Too often prayer become neglected when we are hurting and suffering. But prayer must become our new natural and immediate response for anything that comes our way in life. Isaiah calls for the Lord look down from heaven, from his mansion of holiness and beauty, and see. Isaiah asks to see the Lord’s zeal and might on display. Then we see another confession of sin. “For you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us” (Isaiah 63:16). Isaiah is saying that God is their Father, even though they are unrecognizable to the patriarchs because of their sinful ways. Their conduct has been so perverse that they have forfeited the right to be recognized as the family of Israel. But consider Isaiah’s point. Even disobedient children still have a father who responds when they cry out to him. You are our Father! You are our Redeemer! So consider what Isaiah says in Isaiah 63:17.

O LORD, why do you make us wander from your ways and harden our heart, so that we fear you not? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage. (Isaiah 63:17 ESV)

What does Isaiah mean by this? I think this question is particularly useful for us to understand how God handles our rebellion. We are to recognize that the effect of disobedience is that the heart progresses further against the way and will of God. Disobedience will never draw us closer to God. Doing what we know we must not do and not doing what we know God desires us to do will never draw us closer to God. Instead, our hearts will move further and further away from God. This is the nature of the hardening of the heart and how God deals with us. As our hearts move further from God in our disobedience, God does not stop us. In fact, the separation is supposed to cause us to desire God and come back to him. Think about how God commanded this truth to be practiced in the local church. When a person is rebellious and will not respond to correction, the church is told to withdraw from that person (Matthew 18; 1 Corinthians 5). Withdrawal is not punishment but the loss of fellowship is to draw us back to God. In the same way, this separation that we are causing by our disobedience is supposed to draw us back to God. However, many people do not repent but only go further into their sinfulness. The book of Revelation makes this observation.

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk. (Revelation 9:20 ESV)

The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds. (Revelation 16:10-11 ESV)

Notice that the actions of God can cause people to move further and further away from God. Obviously, this is not God’s intention, but it is the effect of how God operates. Consider that Jesus taught this in the parable of lost things in Luke 15. What did the actions of the father toward the prodigal son do to the older son? The older son’s heart was hardened and he would not enter into the Father’s house and join in the feast. Was this the intention of God? No, but the way God operates drives people away from him. People ultimately leave the Lord because of his character. Remember how Jonah complained at the Lord because he is a compassionate God that was going to forgive Ninevah! Jonah was angry at God’s character and though God called for him, Jonah was driven away.

Isaiah is observing this truth. God has separated himself from sinful Israel, so that Israel is treated like they are not God’s people at all (Isaiah 63:18-19). Isaiah sees that the people are separated from God, and deservedly so, because of their sins. But the separation is only hardening the people’s hearts further. People are not repenting. People are not turning back to the Lord. So God is going to need to act to break through these darkened hearts. This is what Isaiah calls for in chapter 64.

Isaiah, in powerful and beautiful language, calls for God’s presence to come down on them. Come and deliver your people again! Let people know who you are! Make your name known! Come down like you did at Sinai and cause the mountains to quake at your presence! Do something amazing so that people will realize that there is no God like you. No one can act in a manner like God can and no one has seen what God can do. Consider that Isaiah 64:4 is quoted by the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:9 to show that God has put to shame the wisdom of this world and that the only way to know the depths of God is by the Holy Spirit revealing it.

Meeting Our God of Mercy (Isaiah 64:5-12)

The final verses of this cry to God describes how we are able to meet God. He is the Father and we are his children. He has shown us faithful love. Who gets to be with this loving God? We see this question asked in the middle of Isaiah 64:5.

“Behold, you were angry, and we sinned; in our sins we have been along time, and shall we be saved?” Who does not feel this way. We have been in our sins so long, how can we be saved? We know that God is wrathful toward sin. How can we ever be saved? How can we ever meet God?

First, God meets those who joyfully work righteousness, who remember the Lord as they live life (Isaiah 64:5). This is the first beautiful picture. The point is not just to do righteousness, as we will see Isaiah point out in Isaiah 64:6. The point is that the work we do is done joyfully to the Lord. God wants your joy. God wants you to want to remember him when you walk in your ways. Joyfully consider the way of the Lord. Joyfully obey your God. He has shown you steadfast love. This love is what breaks through our darkened hearts and corrupted, sinful, selfish thinking. This is what Jesus is supposed to be for us. As God broke into history and brought his awesome presence to Mount Sinai, so God has heard the prayer of Isaiah and has broken into the history of the world again, bringing his awesome presence in Jesus. Seeing Jesus is what changes us. The character of God’s people is that they gladly follow God’s ways.

Second, recognize our sinfulness. We are to be poor in spirit. We are to mourn from our spiritual condition. We are to be hungering and thirsting for righteousness. Listen to the words of Isaiah 64:6.

We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. (Isaiah 64:6 ESV)

This is the heart God wants from us. This is what repentance looks like. This is what our confession should look like each day in heart and words to God. We are unclean. Our righteous deeds are like filthy rags before you. Our sins have captured us, causing us to wither and fall. We are doomed by our sins. But thank you God for Jesus who saves us from our wretched condition.

Third, recognize our position. In Isaiah 64:8 we read that we come to God helpless and broken. We are the clay and you are the potter. We are all the work of God’s hands. I love the first sentence of Isaiah 64:8 : “You are our Father!” What else should we say? You are our Father. You are our Master. You are the potter. Mold us as you desire. We will not resist your will but will be transformed into your image. You are the Lord of mercy. Look upon our condition, be merciful, and save us. We know you care about us, Lord! Isaiah asks the Lord to look at their condition (Isaiah 64:10-12). We know you will act because of your name and your steadfast love.

Beloved, we are sinful. We fall short so badly of what God wants us to be. But listen to Isaiah and listen to the words of hope from the writer of Hebrews.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16 ESV)

New Heavens and New Earth

Isaiah 65

By Brent Kercheville

Isaiah 64 records the prophet Isaiah calling for God to break into history as he did at Sinai so that the darkened hearts of Israel would return to the Lord. Presently, Isaiah observes that the land is a desolation because of their sinfulness and God’s righteous judgment has fallen on them. But this separation because of their sins has caused the people to run further from God, rather than turn back to him. After Isaiah has prayed for the Lord to act, Isaiah 65-66 records God answer which describes what he is going to do with his sinful creation. In this lesson we will look at Isaiah 65 as God begins to describe the great things he will do.

Return To Me (Isaiah 65:1-12)

God begins his answer to Isaiah by declaring that he is ready to be sought after by those who did not seek him or ask for him. He will now call a nation that was not called by his own name. God’s first answer is that he is going to avail himself to the Gentiles. The people not called by his own name and did not seek after him, God will now tell them, “Here I am, here I am.” The apostle Paul quoted this statement in Romans 10:20 to prove the inclusion of the Gentiles was always the plan of God. We have seen this point made by God many times, like in Isaiah 60:10 where God will raise his banner to the nations. God will no longer only reveal himself to Israel, but also to the nations who are not seeking him.

Further, God has not rejected Israel in this decision. In Isaiah 65:2 God says that he is spreading out his hands to a rebellious people. The apostle Paul again notes for us in Romans 10:21 that God is speaking of the nation of Israel. Israel has become the rebellious people, just as Isaiah had also observed. God reviews his dealings with Israel from Isaiah 65:2-7. God held out his hands, a call for his people to return to him. But they were rebellious and obstinate. They decided to walk in the way that is not good, rather than walk according to God’s way. They decided to follow their own plans and devices. They pursued their own thoughts and desires. The people of Israel continually provoked God to his face, showing a brazen disregard for God by worshipping idols. They rejected God’s law regarding clean and unclean foods, adopting the pagan practices instead (Isaiah 65:4). Yet as they reject the ways of the Lord and walk according to their own paths, they think they are still holy (Isaiah 65:5). This is the problem of not seeing ourselves for who we are. We are to view ourselves as sinners saved by God’s grace. But these people look at their own actions and consider themselves good and holy.

The people’s sins are written before God (Isaiah 65:6). Their sinful acts are recorded in the book before him and God will judge them for their sins. God will repay in full for their sinful behavior. They have insulted the holy God (Isaiah 65:7). Therefore, the wages of their sins will be paid in full to them (cf. Romans 6:23).

But our gracious God will not bring the nation to total destruction. Isaiah 65:8-10 describes a remnant that will remain. God will not destroy all of them. There will be a reversal that will occur as the desolation will be changed to pastures from the western borders to the eastern borders (from Sharon to the Valley of Achor). Before speaking about this reversal, God speaks of his own vindication for this judgment. The people have forsaken the Lord (Isaiah 65:11). Rather than trusting in the Lord, they trust in the pagan gods, Luck and Fate. So God will show them their fate. They are doomed for judgment because when God called, they did not answer and did not listen. They did not choose to do what the Lord delights in (Isaiah 65:12).

My Servants (Isaiah 65:13-16)

The Lord presents a simple contrast in Isaiah 65:13-16. The servants of God will experience the blessings of God. But these people, who are not God’s servants, will experience wrath and shame. I tell my children this truth repeatedly: only obedient children receive the blessings of the family. Rebelling against the family will cause you pain, hardship, and suffering from the family. God says the same thing to his people. Listen and obey and you will experience the life that God desires you to have in him. Follow his ways and enjoy the riches that are found in God.

New Heavens and New Earth (Isaiah 65:17-25)

Isaiah 65:16 is very important to observe since Isaiah 65:17 is an explanation of God’s prior declaration. God said in verse 16 that there was going to be a reversal. God said that there would be a change. His people will be called by another name (cf. Revelation 2:17; Revelation 3:12). They will be blessed by the God of truth “because the former troubles are forgotten and are hidden from my eyes.” God is able to set aside the former sins and troubles so that they no longer will come into his reckoning. What is God going to do?

This is how Isaiah 65:17 begins. God is going to create a new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. A radical change is pictured so that the former ways will not come to mind again. The former things must include the former troubles that we read about in Isaiah 65:16, which were a summary of the trouble we see Israel involved in from Isaiah 65:2-12. God says there will be total renewal so that this mess is now forgotten. God will create a new order, a new heavens and new earth. The imagery that God goes on to use in this paragraph shows the dramatic reversal that will occur. God’s people, Jerusalem (Zion), will be a joy and gladness now. They will not be people who cause the Lord to grieve (cf. Isaiah 63:10). God will now rejoice in his people (Isaiah 65:19). They will not be brought under distress for their sinful ways. Verse 20 describes something amazing. The power of death will be destroyed. Further, the covenant curses will be removed (Isaiah 65:21-22). In Deuteronomy 28 God is pronouncing the curses for disobedience and sinful living. Listen to one of the curses:

You shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it. You shall plant a vineyard, but you shall not enjoy its fruit. (Deuteronomy 28:30 ESV)

The people will no longer be uprooted because of their sins. God will not have to do this anymore. Remember that God promised as much in Isaiah 62:8-9.

The LORD has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm: “I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary.” (Isaiah 62:8-9 ESV)

Thus, the people will be blessed by the Lord and their work will not be for nothing (Isaiah 65:23). God will hear their prayers, even before they are praying, and will answer while they are speaking. Things will be so different in this new world that God says, “The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox” (Isaiah 65:25). What a total change in this new world! Further, the dust shall be the serpent’s food. This imagery comes from Genesis 3:15 where we read about the offspring of the woman crushing the head of the serpent. For the serpent to eat the dust for food means that the serpent, which represents Satan (cf. Revelation 12:9), has been defeated and God’s people are victorious! This is seen in the powerful finale, “They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, says the Lord.”

So we must stop at this moment and ask what God is describing? Is God saying that in eternity he will create a new heaven and new earth and all God’s people will live on a perfect earth with God? Often this is the interpretation given. The primary reason I believe this interpretation is made is because what is described in this paragraph is not seen today. It is argued that the wolf and the lamb do not graze together today and the lion does not eat grass like the ox. Further, infants still do die today and God’s people do not necessarily have long lives (Isaiah 65:20). Then they will finish with Revelation 21 which describes a new heavens and new earth after the final judgment in Revelation 20. Therefore, the new heavens and new earth are pictures for our eternity on earth, according to their arguments.

However, to start looking for a literal fulfillment of these images would miss all that Isaiah has done throughout this book. We have repeatedly observed that Isaiah uses physical imagery to speak of spiritual realities. In Isaiah 55:12-13 we read that mountains and hills are going to sing for us and the trees will clap their hands for us. The cypress will replace thorns and the myrtle shall replace the briar. Does it mean that Isaiah 55 has not happened because we still have thorns on our plants? Are we actually rebuilding the ancient ruins of the city of Jerusalem (Isaiah 58:12)? Will camels cover us (Isaiah 60:6)? Will strangers tend our flocks and we will literally eat the wealth of the nations (Isaiah 61:6)? The point I want us to see is that we are never intended to read this images as physical realities. Rather, these images point us to great spiritual realities that God is doing for his people. In the same way, when we read about God creating a new heavens and new earth, we should not think of eternity with a new place to live. Rather, if God is creating a new heavens and new earth, then everything is completely different. There has been a massive change that has occurred. Things are going to be so different that the heavens and earth are considered new.

Further, the descriptions that are given are consistent with the arrival of the messianic age. God will have joy in his people when Christ comes (Isaiah 65:18-19). The power of death will be destroyed in Christ comes (Isaiah 65:20; 1 Corinthians 15:54-56). The curses of the covenant will be nailed to the cross when Christ comes (Isaiah 65:21-22; cf. Colossians 2:14; Galatians 3:10-14). Our prayers will be heard by God and not blocked by our sins (Isaiah 65:24; cf. Philippians 4:4-7). Satan has been defeated and subdued (Isaiah 65:25; cf. Revelation 12:7-9; Revelation 20:1-3). The wolf and the lamb imagery was used earlier by Isaiah in Isaiah 11:1-10 to describe the kingdom Christ will bring. When Christ comes, things will be radically different. When Christ came into the world in the first century, everything completely changed. Isaiah is picturing this new order and massive restoration and renewal that occurs when Christ comes. He will change everything!

Think about how often the New Testament uses this very imagery of renewal and re-creation that has occurred because Christ has come!

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-19 ESV)

Notice the clear language of the arrival of the new creation. The old creation has passed away and the new creation has come. Christ came and it is a new creation. Obviously, the apostle is not speaking of the earth, but of us. We are the new creation. Christ has brought in a new order that has completely change, re-created, and renewed us.

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. (Galatians 6:14-15 ESV)

How is “a new creation” an explanation for circumcision and uncircumcision not counting for anything? The answer is what Isaiah prophesied. This is a new order. Christ has come and things are changed. The former things are no longer remembered. The former troubles have passed away. This is why Paul could say that the answer is a new creation. Christ has come and a new order has arrived with him. This new order is the renewal or re-creation of his people.

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5 ESV)

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:2 ESV)

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7 ESV)

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. (2 Corinthians 4:16 ESV)

Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator (Colossians 3:9-10 ESV)

But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:20-24 ESV)

When Christ came it was renewal. It is a new creation. It is a new heavens and new earth. Christ has come and we are being changed. We live under a new covenant with new privileges and new joys in the Lord. Behold, the Lord is making all things new just as Isaiah prophesied. Renewal is not about you making yourself a better person. Renewal is about God changing his creation through Jesus to be found in his image. Jesus came and the former things have passed away. A new order is in place and he is making all things new, changing each person from one degree of glory to another as they look upon their Savior Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18). God is holding his hands out to you. Your former life will be forgotten and you will be restored to your loving Father. Submit your life to Jesus today.

Tremble At My Word

Isaiah 66

By Brent Kercheville

God has answered Isaiah that things are going to be radically different when Christ comes. The people need the Savior and when he arrives it will be a whole new order and system, like it were a new heavens and new earth. God continues to give his answer about this new covenant system and how radically different it will be for God will have people who will love and worship him.

New Covenant Heart (Isaiah 66:1-2)

When Christ comes things will be so radically changed that his people will recognize the immensity of God. In this new covenant, people are not going to think of the physical temple as the dwelling place of God. Solomon had said this at the temple’s dedication (1 Kings 8:27). God’s throne is not in Jerusalem. God’s throne is not in the Holy of Holies inside the temple. Think about the immensity and majesty of God! Heaven is God’s throne. Earth is where God rests his feet. God rules over all and cannot be localized or contained. What house will be built for the Lord? Things will be so different in this new covenant that people will not go to a physical location to find God. God’s throne is in heaven, not in Jerusalem. Stephen quotes this passage from Isaiah when he preached to the Sanhedrin. He ends his sermon on this quotation (Acts 7:49-50). Stephen was arrested because he “never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us” (Acts 7:13-14). Isaiah predicted the end of the temple and its worship. This is what Isaiah is saying and this is how Stephen is using this text. This is the new heavens and new earth when Christ comes. This is part of the new creation. The temple is not your hope. The new covenant will make all things new and the former things and ways and worship will be forgotten.

If temple worship would be set aside when Christ comes and establishes his covenant, what is the new worship going to look like? God explains this is Isaiah 66:2. “But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.” It is not people who come to the temple. It is people who come to the throne of God who lives in heaven with humility. God will look with favor on those who come with a contrite spirit. God will accept people who tremble at his word. God wants people who sense their inability in spiritual matters. Isaiah declared this earlier in Isaiah 57:15. God also wants people long to obey. They want to hear the word of the Lord and submit to his authority. God’s people are people who are deeply concerned about the ways of God. What a disaster if we do not want to hear and tremble before God’s word! The people who find the favor and grace of God do not perfectly keep God’s word, but they tremble before it. They long to obey it. They are deeply concerned about God’s word and yield their will to God’s revelation.

The Heart of False Worshipers (Isaiah 66:3-6)

God returns to examining the sinful hearts of the people. The problem can be boiled down to the simple statement in Isaiah 66:3 : “These have chosen their own ways.” The people delight in sin rather than delighting in God. Remember that in Isaiah 55 we read that those who come to the Lord must forsake their ways and forsake their thoughts (Isaiah 55:7). God’s ways are better and his thoughts are higher. False worshippers choose to do what God does not delight in (Isaiah 66:4). When God calls through his word, they do not listen. Therefore God will judge them for their sins.

Listen to the encouragement God gives his true worshippers. God tells those who do tremble at his word to listen to what he has to say. Your brothers will hate you for trembling at his word. You will endure sarcasm, mockery, and shame because you love the scriptures. We may think that our suffering will come from outsiders and unbelievers. But notice that this shame comes from those who claim to be followers of God. Isaiah 66:5 says that they are going to mock your love for God. These people fit what we see in Isaiah 28 who mock because you care about line upon line and precept upon precept. But the Lord will bring recompense on them for God knows they are his enemies (Isaiah 66:6).

God Has The Power and Will Keep His Promises (Isaiah 66:7-17)

God now speaks of human impossibility. Listen to the image of Isaiah 66:7. “Before she was in labor she gave birth. Before her pain came upon her she delivered a son.” As God asks in Isaiah 66:8, “Who has heard such a thing?” This does not happen! But the land and the nation will be brought forth in a moment (Isaiah 66:8). There will be the suddenness of many children. The Lord will instantly bring about his nation, fulfilling his covenant promises. God has maintain his covenant promises thus far and he will bring them to completion (Isaiah 66:9). This is a prophecy fulfilled in the book of Acts. When Christ comes, dies, raises from the dead, and ascends, the gospel message is proclaimed. In an instant 3000 souls now belong to the Lord (Acts 2). As we move through the book of Acts we are reading about multitudes coming to the Lord. This is divine certainty. God has pledged it and it will happen. God’s people will be blessed. Those who belong to him will receive his blessings and inherit the promises (Isaiah 66:10-14). Only God could do this.

Just as their is divine certainty about God’s salvation to those who are contrite in heart and tremble at his word, there is also divine certainty concerning God’s enemies. Isaiah 66:15-17 describes the Lord coming in fire to render his anger in fury. Fire always equals judgment. Fire is never a positive, joyful experience but a time of testing, refining, or judgment. God speaks of judgment that is coming. This message was proclaimed immediately by John the Baptizer that there would be the baptism of the Holy Spirit for those who repent and the baptism of fire who do not (Matthew 3:11-12). These who do not tremble at God’s word and choose what God delights in will be brought to an end.

Gather The Nations (Isaiah 66:18-24)

Isaiah 66:18 reminds us that we are not looking at eternity, but the new order that will be created when Christ comes. The time was coming with the nations would be gathered and they would see the Lord. God’s glory will be declared among the nations (Isaiah 66:19). The book of Acts continues to record the growth of God’s kingdom. By the time we get to Acts 10 we now see the nations become part of God’s people. Then we read about Paul, Silas, Timothy, Barnabas, and more going to the nations preaching the glory of the Lord. This is what Jesus declared to his apostles after his resurrection in Acts 1:8. The apostles would be witnesses of the Lord to the ends of the earth. But Isaiah 66:21 says something amazing. As God brings in the nations as an offering to the Lord, some of them will be taken by the Lord for priests and Levites. We are reading about the total elimination of a distinction between Israelites and non-Israelites. God will have priests and Levites from all the people that will come in. Now think about how amazing and befuddling this thought would be to the people of Israel. Not even the people of Israel could be priests. Only people from the tribe of Levi could minister to the Lord and priests came only from the sons of Kohath. Now anyone from any tribe, and even people who were not even Israelites, could be priests for the Lord! How is this possible? Listen to God’s explanation in Isaiah 66:22.

“For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall you offspring and your name remain.” God’s answer is the new heavens and the new earth. Obviously, God is not speaking about eternity at the end time. God is saying that Gentiles will have equal access and equal privileges before the Lord, even to be priests for God. How can this be? The new heavens and new earth image means that there is going to be radical change. The former things will be forgotten and God is going to recreate so that there is a new creation. There will be a new order, new system, and new way of living when Christ comes. When Christ comes anyone will be able to be chosen as priest for the Lord.

We are living in this glorious time that Isaiah predicted as God is renewing and restoring all things to him. Thus, the opportunities that we are reading about in this prophecy is available to us. All flesh shall come to worship before me (Isaiah 66:23). Again we see equal access to the Lord. All people will come to him. No one is excluded. No one has to be left out. Notice the length of the worship that will happen. “From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath.” Worship will not stop. God’s people will tremble at his word and they will never want to stop worshiping him. They will not look at their watches and hope for other things to do. They want to serve the Lord. They want to pray to the Lord. They want to read his word. They want to worship the Lord. They want to gather to praise the Lord. We see a true change of heart, people who humbling love everything about God and desire all that he is and all that he offers.

But there are eternal consequences for those who rebel against the Lord (Isaiah 66:24). Those who do not have a contrite heart, tremble at the word of the Lord, come to worship him, or choose what God delights in will experience eternity severed from the Lord in punishment. This image is used by Jesus himself when he describes eternal punishment.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’” (Mark 9:42-48 ESV)

Jesus quotes the last sentence of Isaiah. Jesus has come and brings with him salvation from this eternal judgment. God has changed everything through Jesus. We can enjoy an eternal salvation that will not be forfeited for those who tremble at his word and humble themselves before him. We do not have to receive this judgment but are enabled to worship the Lord day and night as his priests. God has done what is impossible for humans to accomplish. At the coming of Christ everything changed so that we can be in the presence of the Lord. We can receive his blessings. We can enjoy fellowship in his presence. Do you want to enjoy these rich blessings? Submit your life to the will and word of God today.