Assyria and Philistia Broken

Isaiah 14:24-32 

24 The LORD of hosts has sworn, saying,

"Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass,
And as I have purposed, so it shall stand:

25 That I will break the Assyrian in My land,
And on My mountains tread him underfoot.
Then his yoke shall be removed from them,
And his burden removed from their shoulders.

26 This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth,
And this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.

27 For the LORD of hosts has purposed,
And who will annul it?
His hand is stretched out,
And who will turn it back?"

28 This is the burden which came in the year that King Ahaz died.

29 "Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia,
Because the rod that struck you is broken;
For out of the serpent's roots will come forth a viper,
And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.

30 The firstborn of the poor will feed,
And the needy will lie down in safety;
I will kill your roots with famine,
And it will slay your remnant.

31 Wail, O gate! Cry, O city!
All you of Philistia are dissolved;
For smoke will come from the north,
And no one will be alone in his appointed times."

32 What will they answer the messengers of the nation?
That the LORD has founded Zion,
And the poor of His people shall take refuge in it.

After the fall of Babylon of old and to come, the word of the Lord through Isaiah turned to the enemies of His people who had oppressed them, Assyria and Philistia.  God’s sovereign work against both is a picture of all who oppose Him through His chosen people, of Israel and the Nations alike called in Christ, the Branch of Jesse and Messiah prepared as announced.  As God thinks, it will certainly happen.  As He purposes, so it shall stand so nobody can alter it (Isaiah 43:13).  This is His sovereign predetermined purposes as He plans, which holds for world events we call history as well as personal lives called eternally to Himself which cannot be snatched from His almighty hand.  There is absolute certainty in God’s purposed plans and work from beginning to end which we only see the edges of as He chooses to show us in the scriptures (Ecclesiastes 3:11, Isaiah 46:10, Job 26:14, Deuteronomy 29:29).  He broke Assyria and took His people out from under their cruel and oppressive rule and dissolved the Philistine rule even as they rejoiced in being set free themselves from other oppressors.  God’s purposes are in all the earth for His people and against His enemies who are set in opposition to the people He calls to Himself.  He is absolutely sovereign over all nations by the power of His outstretched hand.  What He says will happen will.  Nobody can turn His hand back.  The enemies of the people of the Lord are protected eternally, but the enemies who find another enemy removed according to God’s plan can become as those of Philistia, turning from vipers to dragons to their demise.  He ended them through starvation and destruction of their remaining numbers in His sovereign purposes, and will do it again in the ultimate end of the rule of all evil in the judgment day (1 Corinthians 15:24-25).  Just as Philistia was burned up and its smoke rose from the destruction, so will the spiritual Babylon in judgment (Revelation 18:8-10).  All these things happen by God’s will in His times as planned from before time itself in His sovereignty.  Yet God has prepared a refuge in Zion for His people, a picture and type of the New Jerusalem where all in Christ will find eternal refuge from sin and death in God’s very presence forevermore.  Nobody can snatch us out of the hand which lead us through the narrow gate into those streets of gold; our victory is in Christ according to His work which we trust is true (John 6:28-29)!  The nations of the world will all be broken as Assyria and Philistia, but our Kingdom is an everlasting one (Psalm 145:13, Daniel 4:3, 2 Peter 1:11) and we are not broken.  Hallelu Yah! 

Fall and Destruction of Satan and Babylon

Isaiah 14:12-23 

12 "How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!

13 For you have said in your heart:
I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.'

15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol,
To the lowest depths of the Pit.

16 "Those who see you will gaze at you,
And consider you, saying:

'Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
Who shook kingdoms,
17 Who made the world as a wilderness
And destroyed its cities,
Who did not open the house of his prisoners?'

18 "All the kings of the nations,
All of them, sleep in glory,
Everyone in his own house;
19 But you are cast out of your grave
Like an abominable branch,
Like the garment of those who are slain,
Thrust through with a sword,
Who go down to the stones of the pit,
Like a corpse trodden underfoot.

20 You will not be joined with them in burial,
Because you have destroyed your land
And slain your people.
The brood of evildoers shall never be named.

21 Prepare slaughter for his children
Because of the iniquity of their fathers,
Lest they rise up and possess the land,
And fill the face of the world with cities."

22 "For I will rise up against them," says the LORD of hosts,
"And cut off from Babylon the name and remnant,
And offspring and posterity," says the LORD.
23 "I will also make it a possession for the porcupine,
And marshes of muddy water;
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction," says the LORD of hosts.

The fall and destruction of Babylon is a prophetic picture of Satan’s demise as well as the earthly kingdom at the time of Isaiah’s message from the LORD.  The aspirations of the earthly ruler of Babylon to rise against God in rebellion and in blasphemy call himself God as His equal while destroying the nations are all driven by the Angel of dark light who once burned brightly in God’s creation in heaven.  Yes, the earthly king followed his master and became like him instead of God, just as the cult of the Mormons does by their blasphemy of rising to become gods themselves and rule worlds as if replacing the one true God with their dark lies acting as light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).  Such arrogance in pride to assume to ascend to God’s level and then take over as Him!   The earthly kings as in Babylon who follow this fallen Angel of light will all meet the same end in the lake burning with the unending fire of everlasting death (Revelation 20:10, 15), while we who are in Christ find everlasting life in humility and subservience to the only wise King (1 Timothy 1:17).  In that Day all will gaze at the dragon of old (Revelation 12:9) who is cast down for good and wonder at how he had deceived so many with fear and trembling and destruction, and how he aspired arrogantly to assume he could become God and replace Him, just as the king of Babylon did on earth in a microcosmic way in comparison!  Other rulers have died and sleep in glory as verse 18 says, but the type of the Adversary here is cast out of the grave, most likely meaning he will not rest in peace but suffer forever with no respite.  The earthly king destroyed and killed and so his children, those following him, will also be taken down and go to the place of eternal unrest with him.  This is true both for the king of Babylon and Lucifer.  Just as the LORD promised to cut off the name and remnant of that earthly kingdom so will He cut off the followers of destruction and their posterity in the lake of fire we call Hell (Revelation 12:10, 15).  There is nothing left of the kingdom of Babylon where life is found, and there will likewise only be the dead in spirit who will inhabit that place of everlasting destruction (2 Thessalonians 1:9) with the deceiver of all mankind and destroyer of God’s good creation (Genesis 3:4, 13, 2 Corinthians 11:3).  This is the forewarning and lessons from the fall and destruction of Babylon and Satan.  May we all hear the gospel and escape God’s wrath which we all deserve by trusting His work in Jesus Christ alone for deliverance from this certain fate and serve God alone by the trusting and humble obedient worship of our lives (Romans 12:1-2) and not in pride or arrogance to assume we can rule instead of Him.  Amen and amen! 

Mercy and Judgment

Isaiah 14:1-11

1 For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will still choose Israel, and settle them in their own land. The strangers will be joined with them, and they will cling to the house of Jacob. 2 Then people will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them for servants and maids in the land of the LORD; they will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors.

3 It shall come to pass in the day the LORD gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, 4 that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say:

"How the oppressor has ceased,
The golden city ceased!

5 The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked,
The scepter of the rulers;
6 He who struck the people in wrath with a continual stroke,
He who ruled the nations in anger,
Is persecuted and no one hinders.

7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet;
They break forth into singing.

8 Indeed the cypress trees rejoice over you,
And the cedars of Lebanon,
Saying, 'Since you were cut down,
No woodsman has come up against us.'

9 "Hell from beneath is excited about you,
To meet you at your coming;
It stirs up the dead for you,
All the chief ones of the earth;
It has raised up from their thrones
All the kings of the nations.

10 They all shall speak and say to you:
'Have you also become as weak as we?
Have you become like us?

11 Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,
And the sound of your stringed instruments;
The maggot is spread under you,
And worms cover you.'

The Lord promised mercy on Jacob but judgment on the King of Babylon and all that he pictures for us.  After all the gloom and doom concerning the Day of the Lord in the previous chapter, God assures the remnant of His chosen people that they will find mercy and a home still.  Others of the surrounding nations will come to join them as a picture of the Gentiles joining them in Christ when He comes in His church of all whom He calls to Himself.  Then those were made servants to Israel and Rule over them, but in the Messiah we are all made servants of Christ and not subservient in service to each other (Galatians 3:28).  The Lord was to bring rest from sadness, fear, and bondage, which Christ Jesus does for us as well.  He will wipe away every tear (Revelation 7:17, 21:4), take away our fear of eternal torment as our due punishment for sin (1 John 4:18), and release us from sin’s bondage (Romans 8:15, Hebrews 2:14-15).  Israel was able to pronounce the Lord’s judgment against the king of Babylon who is symbolic of the ultimate oppressor in the form of the Antichrist and his rule in the latter days.  We have the Lord Jesus Christ who has pronounced that one’s demise of judgment in the lake of fire and can rest assured that we will have justice in the end over the oppressor of our souls and wicked rulers under the sway of the wicked one who is Lucifer and the devil of old (1 John 5:19, Revelation 12:9, 20:10).  That is in the next part of this chapter to be spoken of tomorrow.  We do know that just as the king of Babylon of old was judged and then cut down and called from the place of the dead known as Hell and Sheol, so will the Adversary and enemy of all God’s creation be cast down in the final judgment to a lake of everlasting eternal fire that does not consume as it enacts justice through suffering.  All pride against the Lord will end up there along with all in the world who led others astray and away from the Lord in their temporal dominance over others.  The whole earth will rejoice with singing praise to our Redeemer’s victory in that day of judgment and mercy! 

The Judgment Day of the Lord

Isaiah 13:1-22 

1 The burden against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.

2 "Lift up a banner on the high mountain,
Raise your voice to them;
Wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles.

3 I have commanded My sanctified ones;
I have also called My mighty ones for My anger—
Those who rejoice in My exaltation."

4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains,
Like that of many people!
A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together!
The LORD of hosts musters
The army for battle.

5 They come from a far country,
From the end of heaven—
The LORD and His weapons of indignation,
To destroy the whole land.

6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is at hand!
It will come as destruction from the Almighty.

7 Therefore all hands will be limp,
Every man's heart will melt,
8 And they will be afraid.
Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them;
They will be in pain as a woman in childbirth;
They will be amazed at one another;
Their faces will be like flames.

9 Behold, the day of the LORD comes,
Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger,
To lay the land desolate;
And He will destroy its sinners from it.

10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations
Will not give their light;
The sun will be darkened in its going forth,
And the moon will not cause its light to shine.

11 "I will punish the world for its evil,
And the wicked for their iniquity;
I will halt the arrogance of the proud,
And will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold,
A man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.

13 Therefore I will shake the heavens,
And the earth will move out of her place,
In the wrath of the LORD of hosts
And in the day of His fierce anger.

14 It shall be as the hunted gazelle,
And as a sheep that no man takes up;
Every man will turn to his own people,
And everyone will flee to his own land.

15 Everyone who is found will be thrust through,
And everyone who is captured will fall by the sword.
16 Their children also will be dashed to pieces before their eyes;
Their houses will be plundered
And their wives ravished.

17 "Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them,
Who will not regard silver;
And as for gold, they will not delight in it.

18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces,
And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb;
Their eye will not spare children.

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,
The beauty of the Chaldeans' pride,
Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 It will never be inhabited,
Nor will it be settled from generation to generation;
Nor will the Arabian pitch tents there,
Nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there.

21 But wild beasts of the desert will lie there,
And their houses will be full of owls;
Ostriches will dwell there,
And wild goats will caper there.

22 The hyenas will howl in their citadels,
And jackals in their pleasant palaces.
Her time is near to come,
And her days will not be prolonged."

This prophecy against old world Babylon is symbolic of the new, and points to a day of judgment for the temporal world then and the final battle at His coming to pour out His wrath on sin and judge the world in righteousness.  Isaiah was called to warn the sinners and assemble His people who are set aside as His to wage war against Babylon.  He even used the enemies of Babylon for this purpose, for God uses all to bring His sovereign plans and purposes to pass.  Verse 6 is against that ungodly Babylon but is also pointing to the final Day of the Lord when everlasting destruction will be meted out (Revelation 6:17, 18:21) to end her ungodliness forever.  When this battle happens men’s hearts will fail in fear and painful sorrow at their impending doom as their faces show some sort of surprise over what was happening.  This was true for the corrupt city empire then and will be again in the final judgment against all who reject the Lord and His Anointed.  The Lord came then to destroy sinners in His wrath as the stars fall from the heavens and the sun diminished along with the moon (Matthew 24:29-30, Mark 13:24-25).  This clearly pointed past the destruction of the old Persian empire to the world at large for the Lord’s judgment against sinners, for the world and its evil as mentioned in verse 11.  Yes, the proud and haughty will be humbled and laid low by God’s mighty hand.  In the day of that anger of God He will shake the heavens and earth out of its place of sinful rebellion against His sovereignty from which nobody can escape (Haggai 2:6-7, Hebrews 12:25-28) except the redeemed through the Son of God in His word alone.  All the kingdoms of the earth will be thrown down and be seen no more, just as Babylon was annihilated.  There was desolation then, but the Hope now is a new heaven and earth where righteousness will dwell (Revelation 21:1k 2 Peter 3:12-13, Romans 8:21).  There is hope in the Judgment Day of the Lord only for the redeemed, but what a certain hope! 

Praise God for Becoming our Salvation!

Isaiah 12:1-6 

1 And in that day you will say:
"O LORD, I will praise You;
Though You were angry with me,
Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me.

2 Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
For YAH, the LORD, is my strength and song;
He also has become my salvation.'"

3 Therefore with joy you will draw water
From the wells of salvation.

4 And in that day you will say:
"Praise the LORD, call upon His name;
Declare His deeds among the peoples,
Make mention that His name is exalted.

5 Sing to the LORD,
For He has done excellent things;
This is known in all the earth.

6 Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion,
For great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!"

Praise the Lord for tour salvation!  Though His justified strong anger was on us, yet He turned that anger away because it was satisfied by Himself by becoming our salvation in the Messiah.  He sacrificed His Son in our stead to pour out that wrath on the perfect and blameless sacrifice who never sinned as we have from Adam to ourselves.  This is more than enough reason to praise the Lord who comforts us in that forgiveness which never ends nor can be taken away!  Yes, God is my salvation and that truth realized takes away my fear of death and punishment of deserved judgment.  What should we who have obtained this heavenly state then do?  We begin as Isaiah wrote here from God’s pen, trusting with an unshakable faith to once and for all time put aside fear of unending torment (Matthew 25:46) for our rebellious sins (1 John 4:18) which we have been pardoned from by God’s work to save us.  He has quite literally become our salvation to deliver us from the kingdom of darkness in that of His marvelous light of His countenance (1 Peter 2:9, Acts 26:18).  We can therefore draw living water from Him who lives in us of that salvation (John 4:14, 7:38-39), which is His very and Holy Spirit in every regenerated one called to trust and receive Him and His work for that deliverance (John 1:12).  We can draw out of Him to satisfy our thirst and revive us when we fail again (1 John 1:9).  The promise is that we can not only praise Him as His due for all these things, but we can also call on His name in times of joy or trouble alike and then tell others of all His wonderful works, especially the gospel which we find from Genesis 3:15 to this passage in Isaiah to the fullness of time when Jesus the Christ came as God among us, Emmanuel.   We speak to others not only to make disciples but also to lift up His name in praise to give the Lord the glory due to Him.  We make much about Jesus to make much about the Father by the working of His Spirit in us.  This is our declaration of God’s work to the world.  We can also sing these praises to Him because of all the excellence of His working to show the world and remind ourselves of His worthiness which drives the direction of our new life in Him.  Like these children of God long ago, we also cry out with a shout of the greatness of the God who is with and among us.  Let us therefore praise Him and tell of all His wondrous deeds among the people!  Praise God for becoming our salvation! 

The Remnant’s Branch of Righteousness

Isaiah 11:1-16 

1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse,
And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.

2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him,
The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and might,
The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

3 His delight is in the fear of the LORD,
And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes,
Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor,
And decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.

5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins,
And faithfulness the belt of His waist.

6 "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.

7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
Their young ones shall lie down together;
And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole,
And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den.

9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
As the waters cover the sea.

10 "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse,
Who shall stand as a banner to the people;
For the Gentiles shall seek Him,
And His resting place shall be glorious."

11 It shall come to pass in that day
That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time
To recover the remnant of His people who are left,
From Assyria and Egypt,
From Pathros and Cush,
From Elam and Shinar,
From Hamath and the islands of the sea.

12 He will set up a banner for the nations,
And will assemble the outcasts of Israel,
And gather together the dispersed of Judah
From the four corners of the earth.

13 Also the envy of Ephraim shall depart,
And the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off;
Ephraim shall not envy Judah,
And Judah shall not harass Ephraim.

14 But they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west;
Together they shall plunder the people of the East;
They shall lay their hand on Edom and Moab;
And the people of Ammon shall obey them.

15 The LORD will utterly destroy the tongue of the Sea of Egypt;
With His mighty wind He will shake His fist over the River,
And strike it in the seven streams,
And make men cross over dry-shod.

16 There will be a highway for the remnant of His people
Who will be left from Assyria,
As it was for Israel
In the day that he came up from the land of Egypt.

As Isaiah 9:1–7 foretold of the coming Messiah, here it continues as the Branch of the rod from Jesse as the son of David.  He would have the Spirit of God on Him as Jesus when baptized by John, He would have wisdom, understanding, counsel, power, and bring the knowledge and fear of the Lord with Him to His people.  We see all these attributes fulfilled in Jesus the Christ of that same lineage of Jesse spoken here.  He is the Branch of God’s promise fulfilled who was born of a virgin as promised and who brings righteousness to the remnant of His people who are called and chosen for Himself, first of Israel and then from out of all nations as promised to Abraham (Genesis 17:5, Romans 4:16-17).  He judges rightly because He knows our hearts and upholds the meek while judging the wicked who have rejected His righteousness and forgiveness in the Anointed One.  He has only to speak a word and they are judged or released from judgment with everlasting atonement.  He is clothed with righteousness and faithfulness, meaning that we can trust Him to be true to every word of promise because there is no sin found in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:22).  Ultimately He will being peace with Him and each other in the fullness of time, in the resurrection.  All the hate and destruction will vanish away as the knowledge of Him permeates the earth and all who remain in it as it is made new.  This root of the promise of Jesse is our banner whom we follow in victory (1 Corinthians 15:57) over sin, death, and hell of deserved eternal punishment.  Resting in Him is ever so glorious!  He has recovered His remnant of Israel and now has added in the remnant of the few who are called out of every nation, people, and tongue for His promises to fulfill.  He will destroy those opposed in disbelief and who reject His promised Branch but has provided a highway to heaven for we who He calls to the narrow path through the gate of His Son to escape bondage to sin as Israel was led out of their enslavement in Egypt.  He is the remnant’s Branch of righteousness who rules with a rod of iron (Revelation 2:27, 19:15) as Lord of all, just as promised.  Yes, we find all the promises of God in Jesus Christ answered as yes and amen (2 Corinthians 1:20), certain and true.  Praise and thanks be to God who has done all these things! 

Pruning for the Remnant

Isaiah 10:16-34

16 Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts,
Will send leanness among his fat ones;
And under his glory
He will kindle a burning
Like the burning of a fire.

17 So the Light of Israel will be for a fire,
And his Holy One for a flame;
It will burn and devour
His thorns and his briers in one day.

18 And it will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field,
Both soul and body;
And they will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19 Then the rest of the trees of his forest
Will be so few in number
That a child may write them.

20 And it shall come to pass in that day
That the remnant of Israel,
And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob,
Will never again depend on him who defeated them,
But will depend on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21 The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob,
To the Mighty God.
22 For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea,
A remnant of them will return;
The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.

23 For the Lord GOD of hosts
Will make a determined end
In the midst of all the land.

24 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD of hosts: "O My people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of Egypt. 25 For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction." 26 And the LORD of hosts will stir up a scourge for him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt.

27 It shall come to pass in that day
That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder,
And his yoke from your neck,
And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.

28 He has come to Aiath,
He has passed Migron;
At Michmash he has attended to his equipment.
29 They have gone along the ridge,
They have taken up lodging at Geba.
Ramah is afraid,
Gibeah of Saul has fled.

30 Lift up your voice,
O daughter of Gallim!
Cause it to be heard as far as Laish—
O poor Anathoth!

31 Madmenah has fled,
The inhabitants of Gebim seek refuge.
32 As yet he will remain at Nob that day;
He will shake his fist at the mount of the daughter of Zion,
The hill of Jerusalem.

33 Behold, the Lord,
The LORD of hosts,
Will lop off the bough with terror;
Those of high stature will be hewn down,
And the haughty will be humbled.
34 He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron,
And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.

The pruning of God’s people was like clearing the forest and burning away the chaff of the harvest.  He used the Assyrians to do some of that work by invading Israel, but also promised to draw them back to Himself as He drew the attackers away.  He would prune with fire to consume the horns and useless briars that only cause pain and chocked out the good growth of His people.  In the process both soul and body of His people would be consumed in that refining fire, the ‘glory of his forest and of his fruitful field.’  Ah, but the remnant who passed through the trial by fire learned not to depend on the powerful conquerors like Assyria but on ‘the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.’  God desires that His people worship in spirit and truth and rely on Him alone for life and godliness (John 4:23-24, 2 Peter 1:3) and not lean on worldly powers for security, provision, or fruitfulness.  This was the lesson to the remnant of Israel and also to we who are the remnant of all called through the gospel to the narrow road which few find (Romans 11:5, Matthew 7:13-14, Luke 13:23-24).  The remnant of Israel is abut a small group determined by God out of the larger nation numbered as the sand of the sea as promised to Abraham as descendants.  This elect group includes the nations of that number outside of Israel but still within the nations through Abraham through the same faith in the Lord.  Together we are the remnant who are chosen and called out by and to Himself.  Like God’s people then, we are also not to fear the enemy because they will be destroyed in the final judgment where righteousness will overflow the destruction by grace.  We are called to trust in God alone through Christ alone by His grace alone in that certain hope of His calling (Ephesians 1:18).  Our spiritual yoke of sin has been broken and the yoke of our oppressors will follow as pictured in the Lord’s dealing with the Assyrian onslaught.  He will humble the haughty and bring them down but lift up the humble who have trusted in Him.  Such is the case with those now trusting in the Branch, the Messiah who we now know as Jesus.  Our victory is in Him alone (1 Corinthians 15:57), not the chariots and horses of a nation or government.  Here is the pruning of the remnant in hope.  Amen. 

Arrogant Pride is Judged

Isaiah 10:1-15

1 "Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees,
Who write misfortune,
Which they have prescribed
2 To rob the needy of justice,
And to take what is right from the poor of My people,
That widows may be their prey,
And that they may rob the fatherless.

3 What will you do in the day of punishment,
And in the desolation which will come from afar?
To whom will you flee for help?
And where will you leave your glory?
4 Without Me they shall bow down among the prisoners,
And they shall fall among the slain."

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

5 "Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger
And the staff in whose hand is My indignation.

6 I will send him against an ungodly nation,
And against the people of My wrath
I will give him charge,
To seize the spoil, to take the prey,
And to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

7 Yet he does not mean so,
Nor does his heart think so;
But it is in his heart to destroy,
And cut off not a few nations.

8 For he says,
'Are not my princes altogether kings?
9 Is not Calno like Carchemish?
Is not Hamath like Arpad?
Is not Samaria like Damascus?

10 As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols,
Whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 As I have done to Samaria and her idols,
Shall I not do also to Jerusalem and her idols?'"

12 Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, "I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks."

13 For he says:
"By the strength of my hand I have done it,
And by my wisdom, for I am prudent;
Also I have removed the boundaries of the people,
And have robbed their treasuries;
So I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man.

14 My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people,
And as one gathers eggs that are left,
I have gathered all the earth;
And there was no one who moved his wing,
Nor opened his mouth with even a peep."

15 Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it?
Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it?
As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up,
Or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood!

Not only did the Lord pronounce certain judgment on Israel by unleashing just wrath for their sin on their heads without relenting, but He also judged the proud and arrogant of Assyria who imagined their power which went to their heads would destroy God’s people as well.  The unjust of both could not escape the divine judgment allowed to them as spoken by Isaiah.  God had used Assyria as a tool to enact judgment on disobedient Israel out of Samaria, but there were limits set and accountability for their actions as well.  God recompenses evil unless grace consumes it.  He sent the Assyrians to overcome the ungodly under His wrath on their sin, but their pride made them assume it was all their ability and strength instead of the Lord’s.  He used them to take out the idols in Jerusalem as they had in Samaria, but then He was done with that unwieldy sword of justice and punished its holder for the arrogance and proud countenance against Him and His people that had been disciplined by that punishment.  Yes, the Assyrian king lifted himself up by claiming the wisdom and strength for himself instead of giving the glory to God who gave these for a higher purpose.  The Assyrian king imagined himself to be valiant and wise, but became a fool as he robbed the nest of the helpless.  Isaiah passed the judgment of God to him by parables of tools supposing that they did the work like an ax or saw, a rod or a staff, not understanding that it was the hand (God’s) which wielded the tool (Assyria) and not the tool itself.  This principle applies not only to enacting God’s work of justice in judgment but also in any work He gives us to do.  Only our arrogance and pride assume that it is our doing by our wisdom or strength which works through us.  We can do all things appointed for us through Christ who strengthens us, but it is His work in and through us and not our own.  We do well to learn these things, especially when we endure discipline (Hebrews 12:5-6) to correct us by the love of God and in his goodness of grace.  May we yield as willing instruments of grace with humility and not claim his work as our own or boast in the wisdom and power which are the Lord’s (Philippians 2:13).  May we be instead used by God in all humility according to His word and in His strength.  We will be lifted up by His mighty hand in lowering ourselves (1 Peter 5:6).

God’s Anger against Pride and Arrogance

Isaiah 9:8-21 

8 The Lord sent a word against Jacob,
And it has fallen on Israel.
9 All the people will know—
Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—

Who say in pride and arrogance of heart:

10 "The bricks have fallen down,
But we will rebuild with hewn stones;
The sycamores are cut down,
But we will replace them with cedars."

11 Therefore the LORD shall set up
The adversaries of Rezin against him,
And spur his enemies on,
12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind;
And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth.

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

13 For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them,
Nor do they seek the LORD of hosts.

14 Therefore the LORD will cut off head and tail from Israel,
Palm branch and bulrush in one day.
15 The elder and honorable, he is the head;
The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err,
And those who are led by them are destroyed.

17 Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men,
Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows;
For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer,
And every mouth speaks folly.

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

18 For wickedness burns as the fire;
It shall devour the briers and thorns,
And kindle in the thickets of the forest;
They shall mount up like rising smoke.

19 Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts
The land is burned up,
And the people shall be as fuel for the fire;
No man shall spare his brother.

20 And he shall snatch on the right hand
And be hungry;
He shall devour on the left hand
And not be satisfied;
Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.

21 Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh;
Together they shall be against Judah.
For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

The message of the punishment of Samaria where Israel the northern kingdom ruled from is given here through Isaiah.  They imagined that God’s punishment as a consequence for their rebellion could not stop them from rebuilding even more lavishly and continuing in sin, so He pronounced judgment on such foolishness of arrogant pride.  He called them to account after repeatedly offering forgiveness and finding that they did not want to turn from their sin to follow Him according to His word.  The Lord sent their enemies to deal with them as instruments of His hand.  This judgment is repeated three times in verses 12, 17, and 21 where it is written, “For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.”  Unfortunately, they did not repent in turning to the one who struck them nor did they seek the Lord as the people of God should.  This is the rebellion of unrepentant sin which brings judgment.  We are all under this curse of sin unless it is removed by being taken on by another in our place as we all deserve justice and divine judgment.  Only in the promised deliverer, the Messiah, mentioned in the previous verses can we find judgment’s justice satisfied once for all (Hebrews 7:27, 9:12, 10:10).  Without an eternal atonement for sin, we find His hand stretched out to judge us in divine wrath against our sin, both in our thoughts and deeds as well as in our inheritance from Adam (Romans 5:12-13) with the only hope being in Christ our Messiah, the Son given to bring the light of reconciling hope (Romans 5:18-19).  Israel refused to listen as the leaders led the people to sin more and the prophets brought false promises which tickled their ears but was not truth from God, just as false self-proclaimed ones continue to do today (2 Timothy 4:3) and lead many to destruction instead of hope in forgiveness through the simplicity of the gospel of truth.  These hypocrites and evildoers were judged then and will be until the final judgment.  His hand brings wrath to bear on unrepentant sin against Himself.  Just as wickedness burns and consumes men and women, so will there be many as fuel for the fire of this judgment by God’s just anger against sin by all consumed in arrogant pride who refuse to turn from sin to Him.  That is the warning to the people of God then and now.  He calls all to turn and live as in the passages of Ezekiel 18:23, and Ezekiel 33:11.  The people who refused to repent then consumed one another in the shadow of impending judgment, just as many continue to do today as they eat, drink, and appear to be merry while ignoring the call to Himself, the good news of deliverance through Christ.  May we never stop telling this story of warning and of hope. 

God’s Promised Wonderful Working

Isaiah 9:1-7

(Is. 11:1–9)

1 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed,
As when at first He lightly esteemed
The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
And afterward more heavily oppressed her,
By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
In Galilee of the Gentiles.

2 The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great light;
Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,
Upon them a light has shined.

3 You have multiplied the nation
And increased its joy;
They rejoice before You
According to the joy of harvest,
As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

4 For You have broken the yoke of his burden
And the staff of his shoulder,
The rod of his oppressor,
As in the day of Midian.

5 For every warrior's sandal from the noisy battle,
And garments rolled in blood,
Will be used for burning and fuel of fire.

6 For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

What wonderful things God had promised in the Messiah to come!  Out of the darkness and distress of God’s people Israel who He had heavily disciplined for their continual rebellion and disobedience He offered hope and light of redeeming grace!  He seemingly lightly esteemed them and heavily oppressed them for their sin, but now offered a light to illuminate their darkness of the shadow of death hanging over them, both physical and spiritual.  This is the gospel with a future king and Christ we now know from this side of His coming into the world as our joy and hope.  The Lord would break the yoke of bondage on His people as from out of Egypt and the power of the oppressor of of our souls, that old serpent of old called the devil and Satan (Revelation 12:9).  He has won the battle as at Midian and delivered us all in the promised Messiah from the battle that was against us.  This Child was born as King to rule as God’s only Son which gives Him that right of government over all nations, tribes, peoples, and languages.  He is truly wonderful, our counselor, the mighty God in the flesh (John 1:14), our eternal Father (2 John 1:3), and our prince of peace with God (Romans 5:1).  Yes, His kingdom has no end as our Lord and King.  He has and will establish His kingdom rule from the throne of New Jerusalem to come down from heaven to earth.  His justice and righteousness of judgment will replace our sinful dabbling of government and nations which we now endure.  God’s zeal has done all these things.  Such planning and design for eternal hope in Jesus the Christ who is the promised Messiah to bring His chosen people out of sin’s bondage in darkness into such marvelous light of His indwelling presence until we see His face!  This is God’s promised wonderful working I doing great things to increase our joy in Him as a new and everlasting nation of His people, the invisible church! 

Fear God and Do His Word

Isaiah 8:11-22 

11 For the LORD spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying:

12 "Do not say, 'A conspiracy,'
Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy,
Nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.

13 The LORD of hosts, Him you shall hallow;
Let Him be your fear,
And let Him be your dread.

14 He will be as a sanctuary,
But a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense
To both the houses of Israel,
As a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

15 And many among them shall stumble;
They shall fall and be broken,
Be snared and taken."

16 Bind up the testimony,
Seal the law among my disciples.
17 And I will wait on the LORD,
Who hides His face from the house of Jacob;
And I will hope in Him.

18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me!
We are for signs and wonders in Israel
From the LORD of hosts,
Who dwells in Mount Zion.

19 And when they say to you, "Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter," should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? 20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

21 They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward. 22 Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness.

The conspiracy here is an alliance with the wrong side, not necessarily as conspiracy theories today, though they have much in common.  Both align with those not following God and His word, and neither trusts Him as they seek to rely on someone else for truth and deliverance.  Yes, that is why the Lord commanded the prophet Isaiah not to align with the way of the people who had lost sight of the fear of God and obedience in humility to follow His words.  They sought to establish themselves by themselves and not according to His word.  The people of God were told not to fear the threats of those trying to make them align with them but to fear God as holy and dwell in Him as a sanctuary and worship Him in spirit and truth.  Those who failed to do these two things were to be crushed as they stumbled (Matthew 21:44) because they were offended by aligning and identifying themselves with the LORD.  That was the trap they walked into by fearing man and circumstances instead of Him.  That was their downfall.  May we not be aligned with any other who does not fear and trust God above the world events and conspiracies set against His word and with men’s fears instead.  Followers of God have His word inscribed on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33, 2 Corinthians 3:3, Romans 2:15) to guide and follow by faith in Him according to His word.  We are His children whom He has given to Himself! How then can we align with the world to fight its battles instead of God’s?  We should never consult conjurers of any kind, from the occult to leaders of misleading like QAnon who do not honor or serve our Lord.  If anyone does not align with God’s words written in the scriptures, it is anathema of darkness and not truth of His light which we are to follow.  Those who follow the dark paths only find themselves empty and always hungry for what they do not possess apart from Him.  They curse their leaders and God in the heavens as they pursue troubles while flailing around in the darkness which God will drive them further into if they continue to reject Christ and His word.  May we never align with these conspiracies, brothers and sisters!  We are of the light and fear God.  We do not follow those who hate and fight against the leaders which the Lord set over us (Romans 13:1-2); we are to pray for our leaders instead (1 Timothy 2:1-4) as we trust only our Lord.  Amen. 

God is With We His People

Isaiah 8:1-10

1 Moreover the LORD said to me, "Take a large scroll, and write on it with a man's pen concerning Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. 2 And I will take for Myself faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah."

3 Then I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the LORD said to me, "Call his name Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz; 4 for before the child shall have knowledge to cry 'My father' and 'My mother,' the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be taken away before the king of Assyria."

5 The LORD also spoke to me again, saying:

6 "Inasmuch as these people refused
The waters of Shiloah that flow softly,
And rejoice in Rezin and in Remaliah's son;

7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord brings up over them
The waters of the River, strong and mighty—
The king of Assyria and all his glory;
He will go up over all his channels
And go over all his banks.

8 He will pass through Judah,
He will overflow and pass over,
He will reach up to the neck;
And the stretching out of his wings
Will fill the breadth of Your land, O Immanuel.

9 "Be shattered, O you peoples, and be broken in pieces!
Give ear, all you from far countries.
Gird yourselves, but be broken in pieces;
Gird yourselves, but be broken in pieces.

10 Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing;
Speak the word, but it will not stand,
For God is with us."

With Assyria set to invade the land, the message from God’s word is ultimate victory.  God is with us, we who are His people, then and now.  A child was born called Speed the Spoil, Hasten the Booty, to demonstrate as a witness against the invaders how quickly it would be over in their defeat.  The witnesses to this word of God to Isaiah were Uriah and Zechariah, faithful and true.  This child of the prophets was named appropriately to show how quickly the enemy would lose their riches as well as the spoils taken.  It would be a quick defeat at the LORD’s hand and Isaiah gave a verbal and physical message to all that it was God’s doing, that the people who had God with and among them would be protected and delivered.  But this was also a rebuke to those of God who refused God’s healing waters of Shiloah (also known as Siloam - John 9:7, 11) and looked up to unrighteous leaders instead for protection and guidance.  God allowed the Assyrian army to pass through the river to invade the land but find themselves almost over their heads, leading to being broken by God in their imagined victory in their pride.  Their counsel against God’s children would come to nothing.  Because God’s was with His people the words of the enemy would not stand, but God’s word stands firm forever.  There is the victory in Immanuel as a hope for us in the Messiah to come for them and who we know has come as our Christ, Jesus, living in and among us (1 Corinthians 15:57, Colossians 1:27).  God is certainly with us, we His people, Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female (Romans 10:12-13, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Colossians 3:11, Galatians 3:28).  Praise be to Immanuel, God with us!  Who can oppose we who are His church (Romans 8:31, 37-39)?  We must therefore speak His word and trust in Him in the face of the enemy because of His promises and examples of the scriptures giving us an everlasting hope (Romans 15:4). 

God With Us, Among Us

Isaiah 7:10-25

10 Moreover the LORD spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 "Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above."

12 But Ahaz said, "I will not ask, nor will I test the LORD!"

13 Then he said, "Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. 15 Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings. 17 The LORD will bring the king of Assyria upon you and your people and your father's house—days that have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah."

18 And it shall come to pass in that day
That the LORD will whistle for the fly
That is in the farthest part of the rivers of Egypt,
And for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

19 They will come, and all of them will rest
In the desolate valleys and in the clefts of the rocks,
And on all thorns and in all pastures.

20 In the same day the Lord will shave with a hired razor,
With those from beyond the River, with the king of Assyria,
The head and the hair of the legs,
And will also remove the beard.

21 It shall be in that day
That a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep;
22 So it shall be, from the abundance of milk they give,
That he will eat curds;
For curds and honey everyone will eat who is left in the land.

23 It shall happen in that day,
That wherever there could be a thousand vines
Worth a thousand shekels of silver,
It will be for briers and thorns.

24 With arrows and bows men will come there,
Because all the land will become briers and thorns.

25 And to any hill which could be dug with the hoe,
You will not go there for fear of briers and thorns;
But it will become a range for oxen
And a place for sheep to roam.

This is the Immanuel Prophecy telling in advance of our Messiah the Christ planned to come to us in the fullness of God’s time.  God tested the king by telling him to ask for a sign from the LORD God from heaven or earth, but he refused in a way that on the surface appears to have been the right response to not test God by demanding anything from Him to do as an Arabian Jinn out of a magic bottle.  He actually was hiding the fact that he did not trust in God, but himself.  It does however teach us that we should only ask for a sign from God after He first offers it, not as Ahaz who did not trust in God but in worldly strength for deliverance.  May we not pay such lip service in false humility when God offers to do something and cover it with scriptures out of context and misapplication to appear righteous and hide from faith and reliance on our Lord to do as He wills.  Of course, we are still not to demand signs and miracles from God as if He is a mere genie to meet our wants and desires of how things should be and leave out His sovereign grace of divine predetermined plans worked for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28) in all types of situations, pleasant or unpleasant to us.  God’s eternal plan since Genesis 3:15 after our fall from God’s good pleasure was to provide a Redeemer who is Christ our Lord, the Branch and Anointed One, the Messiah.  He would come and take on flesh as you and I to walk among us (John 1:1, 14).  This is Emmanuel, God who is with us, just as planned and told to us here!  He is God’s sign given by Him to us and not demanded by us, whose entrance came seemingly impossibly through the virgin birth.  Only God can create life just as He breathed His Spirit into Adam at creation (Genesis 2:7), and that same Spirit created life in the virgin Mary as a sign that it was He, the I Am (John 8:58, 10:30) doing the miracle and as the baby made inside, to make a union of the divine and flesh of His creation.  That was the sign Isaiah told Ahaz who refused to ask for it to believe in.  We also try to work our way to God and seek signs and wonders for proof when He has already given the greatest sign by rising from death to life on His own power (Matthew 16:4, Luke 11:29-30, 24:46-47, John 2:19, 21-22).  He teaches us he knowledge of good and evil which we took it on ourselves to futilely attempt at Eden in disbelief and disobedience; instead we are to be taught by God by Him (Hebrews 5:14) as foretold here by example (Isaiah 7:15).  He alone can deliver a nation or an individual just as the prophecies against God’s rebellious people under Ahaz were pronounced in the rest of this chapter.  There is only deliverance in and through the Anointed Messiah, Jesus the Christ.  Trust the sign given by God and do not demand another to prove or test Him.  God has come among us and is still with us.  Amen. 

Trust God when Facing Trouble

Isaiah 7:1-9

(2 Kin. 16:5; 2 Chr. 28:5–15)

1 Now it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to make war against it, but could not prevail against it. 2 And it was told to the house of David, saying, "Syria's forces are deployed in Ephraim." So his heart and the heart of his people were moved as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.

3 Then the LORD said to Isaiah, "Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-Jashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller's Field, 4 and say to him: 'Take heed, and be quiet; do not fear or be fainthearted for these two stubs of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have plotted evil against you, saying, 6 "Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, and let us make a gap in its wall for ourselves, and set a king over them, the son of Tabel"— 7 thus says the Lord GOD:

"It shall not stand,
Nor shall it come to pass.

8 For the head of Syria is Damascus,
And the head of Damascus is Rezin.
Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be broken,
So that it will not be a people.

9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
And the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son.
If you will not believe,
Surely you shall not be established."'"

God sent Isaiah the messenger to King Ahaz of Judah to encourage him and God’s people as Syria and Israel were set to attack Judah.  When Uzziah reigned the prophet was cleansed from sin and called to preach righteousness even to those whose eyes and ears closed the way to their hearts of belief and trust in God and His word.  King Ahaz was Uzziah’s grandson who now sat on Judah’s throne and was fighting off the invaders.  The heart of Ahaz and the people were blown about with doubt and worry as the forest trees wave in the strong winds, and so the Lord sent Isaiah to the king for encouragement to believe and trust God’s deliverance over the desperate situation he saw.  God told him as He did Joshua (Joshua 1:6-8) when entering the land promised to His people whom He delivered as a reminder of His ability to do so.  He reminded Ahaz to be calm and trust on.  Ahaz should not fear or lose heart in the face of the threat, but believe the deliverance to come because of God’s wrath against the sinful attackers.  The enemy wanted to trouble God’s people and replace Ahaz with a puppet king to control them, but the Lord clearly told Isaiah to speak the message of deliverance.  The attack would not stand up or happen even!  God sets the rulers in place (Daniel 2:20-21, Romans 13:1) and can just as easily take them down.  That was the promise given to Ahaz and his people by the Lord’s servant Isaiah.  Ahaz was called to trust Him as Isaiah trusted and was preaching God’s words faithfully according to his own calling.  But if Ahaz disbelieved and did not trust the message of God’s word, he would not be established as king in the scheme of things.  Yes, if we disbelieve and distrust God’s word and refuse to act as we know, He can surely raise up another in our place to do His will which will certainly be done in earth as it is in heaven.  Like Ahaz,we are called to trust God when facing trouble and act according to His word in the faithfulness of obedience because we have His word and His promises as our foundation to still the trees from being blown about in doubt.  We are then to only trust Him and not allow the circumstances and situations rule or override our faith in God’s sovereign rule. 

Isaiah’s Cleansing and Calling

Isaiah 6:1-13 

(cf. Ezek. 1:4–28)

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. 2 Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one cried to another and said:

"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory!"

4 And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.

5 So I said:

"Woe is me, for I am undone!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King,
The LORD of hosts."

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said:

"Behold, this has touched your lips;
Your iniquity is taken away,
And your sin purged."

8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

"Whom shall I send,
And who will go for Us?"
Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

9 And He said, "Go, and tell this people:
'Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.'

10 "Make the heart of this people dull,
And their ears heavy,
And shut their eyes;
Lest they see with their eyes,
And hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart,
And return and be healed."

11 Then I said, "Lord, how long?"
And He answered:

"Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant,
The houses are without a man,
The land is utterly desolate,
12 The LORD has removed men far away,
And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

13 But yet a tenth will be in it,
And will return and be for consuming,
As a terebinth tree or as an oak,
Whose stump remains when it is cut down.
So the holy seed shall be its stump."

Isaiah’s cleansing from sin and calling to preach the forerunner of the gospel was a calling for the remnant of sinful Israel out of the majority who had hardened hearts, deaf ears, and blind eyes.  We see this in Jesus’s words explaining to His disciples why He spoke in parables in Matthew 13:10-11, 13-15 to those who were not chosen (elect) and to the remnant called out and given understanding (Matthew 13:16-17).  The call of Isaiah began with him seeing God’s heavenly glory with surrounding angels praising Him around His throne.  The seraphim sang God’s glory and honored Him with words of holy, holy, holy (Revelation 4:8) because all of creation was full of His glory to behold as incentive to worship the worthy One.  As that place shook from His omnipotent power and presence, the prophet admitted and confessed his sinfulness and that of all God’s people.  Their holiness simply was nonexistent in light of God’s standard of the word which is defined by Himself.  This is our fallen state to this date as well.  We all fall short of His standard of righteousness and holiness.  When we are given a glimpse of His glory by the opening of the eyes of our hearts and our ears to hear the truth of His word, we too are undone and hit the ground in awe and submission to that glory.  This is our conversion experience in varying degrees when He reveals Himself to us in order to deliver us from the bondage of sin under our deaf, dumb, and blind souls from birth.  The LORD took away the sin of the prophet and the iniquity of sin from him by His own righteousness and willful act to save him.  As soon as Isaiah heard and saw he knew he had been released from the bondage of sin and given senses to know and see God, he answered the call to go with the message to tell those being delivered who would hear and as a testimony against those who had been hardened by God to remain in their already existing sin.  Hineni!  Here am I, and send me!  That was the response to his deliverance.  It should be ours as well.  The message was one of judgment given to Isaiah, that the people who had continued to reject God and His word would not be able to hear or see His glory and truth because God had judged already and chosen not to undo their sin as a consequence.  It was not given to any but those chosen by God to hear and understand to turn from sin to Him.  That is true always, for salvation is not by the will of the flesh or man’s choice but of God’s working (John 1:13) and His choice of the remnant of sinful man to be able to hear and see and follow as called out (John 6:44, 65).  The question of Isaiah is as ours today, how long will this go on?  For Israel, it meant further suffering of judgment to prepare the remnant with a holy seed, which is a picture of Christ coming in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4) and then the church called out as that remnant of Israel and the nations as promised to Abraham long ago.  We have been given understanding and vision; may we tell that to those who can hear and see by God’s working of grace! 

Woes to those Rejecting the Lord

Isaiah 5:18-30

18 Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of vanity,
And sin as if with a cart rope;

19 That say, "Let Him make speed and hasten His work,
That we may see it;
And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come,
That we may know it."

20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
And prudent in their own sight!

22 Woe to men mighty at drinking wine,
Woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink,
23 Who justify the wicked for a bribe,
And take away justice from the righteous man!

24 Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble,
And the flame consumes the chaff,
So their root will be as rottenness,
And their blossom will ascend like dust;
Because they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts,
And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25 Therefore the anger of the LORD is aroused against His people;
He has stretched out His hand against them
And stricken them,
And the hills trembled.
Their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets.
For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

26 He will lift up a banner to the nations from afar,
And will whistle to them from the end of the earth;
Surely they shall come with speed, swiftly.

27 No one will be weary or stumble among them,
No one will slumber or sleep;
Nor will the belt on their loins be loosed,
Nor the strap of their sandals be broken;
28 Whose arrows are sharp,
And all their bows bent;
Their horses' hooves will seem like flint,
And their wheels like a whirlwind.

29 Their roaring will be like a lion,
They will roar like young lions;
Yes, they will roar
And lay hold of the prey;
They will carry it away safely,
And no one will deliver.

30 In that day they will roar against them
Like the roaring of the sea.
And if one looks to the land,
Behold, darkness and sorrow;
And the light is darkened by the clouds.

Woes are pronounced against the people who reject God here and pull sin like a cart behind them along the path because it is what they value.  They taunt and tempt the Lord to do some miracle or tell some great revelation in order to prove Himself to them because of their purposeful disbelief.  God used Isaiah to pronounce these woes, beginning with those who call evil things good and good evil, calling God a liar and setting up their own standards of right and wrong, even though upside down and backwards from the pronounced truth revealed already according to His word.  These who reject Him also call darkness light and light darkness, as well as reversing sweet and bitter tastes in rejecting His creation made good and right.  They are contrary to God and His word.  They also are full of the pride of life as if they had wisdom of their own making and God has none; this rebellion is at the heart of sin (Genesis 3:1, 17) in rejecting the word of God.  Woes are also given to those living in antithesis to righteousness and holiness, such as the drunkard and one who bribes to pervert justice at other’s expense.  The expected and just result of this rejection and stand against the Lord begins with His wrath as a consuming fire burning the useless chaff (Luke 3:17) and utter loss of fruitfulness in their lives.  This is spelled out in verse 24 as a result of rejecting His word and actually despising God Himself!  God’s wrath was aroused against Israel as a nation then, but extends to everyone born on this earth who continues to reject and despise Him and His word.  His anger will not be turned away from those who do these things now, but will face a certain judgment (Hebrews 10:27) forevermore.  He will call the nations against these in the final battle as well on the earth before His coming as a last warning to repent and submit their pride in stopping their disbelief and disobedience of rebellion.  His judgment will put down the rebellion of sin once and for all forever as His enemies are devoured and defeated along with their darkness.  God will certainly call all to account and judge fairly in righteousness.  The ultimate woe to those rejecting Him and His word is eternal punishment.  Are we ready for the final judgment, or will we ignore the warning as Isaiah gave to Israel?  Wise people will heed the gospel call to unearned forgiveness and reconciliation instead of face the consequence of pride and resulting rejection from God’s presence eternally in the New Jerusalem.  Turn to Him and live!