Isaiah 50:1-11

Isaiah 50:1-11 NIV

This is what the Lord says: “Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce with which I sent her away? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Because of your sins you were sold; because of your transgressions your mother was sent away. When I came, why was there no one? When I called, why was there no one to answer? Was my arm too short to deliver you? Do I lack the strength to rescue you? By a mere rebuke I dry up the sea, I turn rivers into a desert; their fish rot for lack of water and die of thirst. I clothe the heavens with darkness and make sackcloth its covering.”

The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears; I have not been rebellious, I have not turned away. I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame. He who vindicates me is near.

Who then will bring charges against me? Let us face each other! Who is my accuser? Let him confront me! It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me. Who will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment; the moths will eat them up.

Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the word of his servant? Let the one who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on their God.

But now, all you who light fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go, walk in the light of your fires and of the torches you have set ablaze. This is what you shall receive from my hand: You will lie down in torment.

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Isaiah 50 is personal testimony from the prophet. By way of example, the servant of the Lord reveals how one ought to respond to the guidance of God and the kind of faith a witnessing nation should carry.

The chapter begins by the Lord speaking through God's prophet to the exiled Jews. God challenges them with questions about their situation. Who wrote a certificate of divorce? God did to separate Himself from wayward Israel through exile. He sent them away to Babylon because when He called, no one answered. Israel was distracted by the lure of idol worship.

At the same time, God wants Israel to know that He will rescue them from exile. Just as He has the power to banish them, He has the power, as creator, to bring them back home.

Isaiah then testifies to His own personal experience with God. It's a picture of faithful obedience and unshakable faith. Isaiah hears God each day and he does God says. He proclaims the Lord's message no matter the consequences or unpopularity. The Lord gave Isaiah knowledge with which to share the word of the Lord. It is a word that sustains us, a word that revives the weary soul. When He shared the Lord's message Isaiah was beaten, abused and criticized. He did not let violence and rejection deter him. He remained faithful to his calling to witness to the word of the Lord. Because of Isaiah's faith in God, he trusted that God would vindicate him. Because God was with him, Isaiah believed none could judge him or stand in his way. With God he will prevail against all attacks.

Then Isaiah invites Israel to faith In the Lord.

Isaiah 50:10 NIV

Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the word of his servant? Let the one who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on their God.

Faith in the Lord means reverence, utter allegiance to the Lord. It means listening to the Lord's prophet and obeying his message. Faith means walking out of the darkness of lies and idolatry and walking into the light of God's truth.

But those who think they've got their own light, their own truth, will find themselves tormented and frustrated. Though they think they see, they are only walking in darkness stumbling along through life.

Isaiah 50 challenges me today to consider my faith. Do I listen to the word of the Lord? Do I heed instruction from his teachers and preachers? Do I obey the Lord's direction? Am I afraid of the consequences if I follow the way the Lord commands? Will I lose friends or influence? Will I become a joke? Will I be persecuted or abused? Do I believe that God is with me and that He will lead me through any and all obstacles. Do I have faith God will rescue me when I am threatened? And finally, how have I lit my own torch and walked by my own counsel, to the neglect of divine guidance through His word?

These questions are good to ask ourselves with some frequency. I trust that He who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it. (Philippians 1:6)

Isaiah 49:1-10, 14-16, 22-23, 25

Isaiah 49:1-10, 14-16, 22-23, 25 NIV

Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the Lord called me; from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver. He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.”

But I said, “I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing at all. Yet what is due me is in the Lord ’s hand, and my reward is with my God.”

And now the Lord says— he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord and my God has been my strength— he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

This is what the Lord says— the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel— to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings will see you and stand up, princes will see and bow down, because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

This is what the Lord says: “In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances, to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill. They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.

But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.

This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I will beckon to the nations, I will lift up my banner to the peoples; they will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their hips. Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.”

But this is what the Lord says: “Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce; I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.

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Isaiah 49 reads like it's a personal witness of the prophet himself, but it's not. It's the prophet portraying the nation of Israel as an individual. The first person voice is that of the chosen people of God.

Isaiah begins by witnessing that God formed Israel, calling him from the womb to be the vessel of His glory. God will shine through the nation of Israel that keeps God's laws and commands. But Israel admits he has failed at his calling. He has labored in vain. Yet Israel has hope in God's faithfulness.

God answers their hope voiced by the prophet. They will not only bring the Israelite exiles back to the Lord and to the land God gave them, Israel shall also be a light to the gentiles. The rest of the world will be drawn to worship the God of Israel, the Holy One of Jacob.

Isaiah 49:6b NIV

"I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

God will cause kings to favor Israel and honor the once disgraced and despised nation. Indeed the Persians send Israel back to Judea and fund the rebuilding of Jerusalem and of the temple. One Persian king marries a Jewess, Esther. Jews serve in royal positions in the Persian government like Nehemiah, the king's cupbearer and future governor of Judea. The Lord will lead the Israelites home to Judea and provide for them along the way. They will not thirst or hunger, nor will the heat of the desert scorch them. They will find the Lord has made a way for them home. He is their salvation and reward.

Though Israel may doubt this good news and say the Lord has forgotten them, the prophet tells them the Lord can no more forget them than a mother could forget her own child. God has written their name on the palms of His hands. He remembers Jerusalem, always looking upon its walls. Though it may seem impossible for the Israelites to be freed from the grip of Babylon, the Lord will accomplish it. They will be freed and returned to Judea. Then they will know that God is the Mighty One of their ancestor Jacob.

Isaiah 48 can be read as a description of what God will do through the church of Jesus Christ. He will make the new Israel a light to the gentiles, for Israel is not simply about bloodlines but about faithfulness. Through Christ the new Israel will be made holy by His blood and enabled by His grace to remain faithful. The church will be the people of a new covenant, a new relationship with God through faith in God's Son. Certainly the original message is to exiled Jews, but read Isaiah 48 as if it were written about you.

You were called to be God's witness, even from your mother's womb. God intends to display His splendor through your life. Your faithful living will point to God's glory by your words and deeds. You may not think you have it in you, but it is the Lord who provides the grace needed to be His faithful witness. All through life's journey, you will have what you need for this holy mission as His witness. Just rely on God and you will find whatever you lack will be provided. God has made a way for you as you journey to His embrace. You will call out with confidence to others, "Come out of the darkness. Come out of your captivity." "The Lord has freed you from the grip of sin and the fear of death and placed you on the path to eternal life through Jesus Christ."

You are Israel if you belong to Christ, God's Anointed One. You are His beloved child and special messenger. Be filled with hope and grace for your holy mission to shine the light to others and lead them to the embrace of God.

Isaiah 48:1-22

Isaiah 48:1-22 NIV

“Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and come from the line of Judah, you who take oaths in the name of the Lord and invoke the God of Israel— but not in truth or righteousness— you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city and claim to rely on the God of Israel— the Lord Almighty is his name: I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.

For I knew how stubborn you were; your neck muscles were iron, your forehead was bronze. Therefore I told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, ‘My images brought them about; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’ You have heard these things; look at them all. Will you not admit them? “

From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you. They are created now, and not long ago; you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, ‘Yes, I knew of them.’ You have neither heard nor understood; from of old your ears have not been open. Well do I know how treacherous you are; you were called a rebel from birth.

For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath; for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to destroy you completely. See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another.

“Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last. My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together. “Come together, all of you, and listen: Which of the idols has foretold these things? The Lord ’s chosen ally will carry out his purpose against Babylon; his arm will be against the Babylonians. I, even I, have spoken; yes, I have called him. I will bring him, and he will succeed in his mission. “Come near me and listen to this: “From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret; at the time it happens, I am there.”

And now the Sovereign Lord has sent me, endowed with his Spirit. This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sand, your children like its numberless grains; their name would never be blotted out nor destroyed from before me.” Leave Babylon, flee from the Babylonians! Announce this with shouts of joy and proclaim it. Send it out to the ends of the earth; say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob.” They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he made water flow for them from the rock; he split the rock and water gushed out. “There is no peace,” says the Lord , “for the wicked.”

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Isaiah 48 is a message from the Lord delivered to Israel in exile among the Babylonians. Israel claims to be the people of God, the chosen of Yahweh, yet they turned to false gods and bowed to idols in worship. They even sacrificed their children and participated in fertility rites with shrine prostitutes. God confronts their unfaithfulness and thick-headedness. Therefore God handed them over to Babylon.

God calls Israel to listen for once. "I told you so!" The Lord tells them. "I warned you long ago this was going to happen. If you turn away to other gods and ignore my commands, you will lose." "Everything I said would happen has happened."

The Israelites were stiff-necked and stubborn. They did not listen. They did not heed the many warnings they received. God wants to know if they will listen now, for He has good news to share. For God's own reputation, for His own sense of integrity, God will redeem Israel and begin again His holy mission among them. God is so invested in His project with Israel, He will not give up and scrap the whole thing. They have a history together. He is not willing to break His bonds with Israel. For through them God will bless the world. God has refined Israel through the affliction of losing Jerusalem and being taken into exile. They will emerge more intent upon keeping the covenant of the Lord. They will not turn to idols again. They won't be perfect, but they will serve the Perfect One, the One and Only God.

God is the creator of heaven and earth. When He speaks the creation stands to attention. Why didn't Israel listen? If they had heeded His voice and kept God's laws they would have peace like a river and beyond measure. Their children would be numerous, too many to count. Perhaps they will listen now to the good news that they should prepare to flee Babylon because God is sending the Persians, His chosen ally, to attack. Just as the heavens and earth do as God commands, Persia will do what He has sent them to do. Under King Cyrus' leadership they will destroy Babylon and send the Jews back to Judea.

Can God's message to the exiles be trusted? He cared for Israel in the wilderness for 40 years. When they were thirsty in the desert He provided water gushing out of a rock. God can be trusted to do what He has promised. And you can bet the wicked will not go unpunished. For the Lord is just.

This message to Israel builds up faith in me. Though I am not Israel, I am a part of God's family through Christ Jesus. Therefore I can trust God just as the Jews were called to trust in Him. I must ask myself if there are lesser things that have become idols in my life that keep me from fully serving the Lord. I have to ask if I'm thick-headed too and not listening to the Lord's voice or heeding His word. And when I am afflicted will I turn to the Lord for refinement or will I wallow in despair? I take great joy in knowing God is faithful to His mission to bless the world with the knowledge of His love and truth through the grace of the Lord Jesus who rose from the people of Israel. May all who claim the name of the Lord be faithful too.

Isaiah 47:1-15

Isaiah 47:1-15 NIV

“Go down, sit in the dust, Virgin Daughter Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, queen city of the Babylonians. No more will you be called tender or delicate. Take millstones and grind flour; take off your veil. Lift up your skirts, bare your legs, and wade through the streams. Your nakedness will be exposed and your shame uncovered. I will take vengeance; I will spare no one.”

Our Redeemer—the Lord Almighty is his name— is the Holy One of Israel. “Sit in silence, go into darkness, queen city of the Babylonians; no more will you be called queen of kingdoms. I was angry with my people and desecrated my inheritance; I gave them into your hand, and you showed them no mercy. Even on the aged you laid a very heavy yoke. You said, ‘I am forever— the eternal queen!’ But you did not consider these things or reflect on what might happen.

“Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure, lounging in your security and saying to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or suffer the loss of children.’ Both of these will overtake you in a moment, on a single day: loss of children and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and all your potent spells. You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you.

“Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror. All the counsel you have received has only worn you out! Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you.

Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves from the power of the flame. These are not coals for warmth; this is not a fire to sit by. That is all they are to you— these you have dealt with and labored with since childhood. All of them go on in their error; there is not one that can save you.

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Isaiah 47 is an oracle directed at Babylon, the queen city of Babylonia, the empire that conquered much of the Near East. Babylon holds captive the Israelites along with many other conquered peoples. Now God is going to deliver Israel from their captivity by sending Persia to defeat Babylon.

Isaiah attacks Babylonian arrogance, sorcery and astrology in this chapter. The prophet seems to know how the Babylonians have been boasting about themselves. They say they are queen of the kingdoms. God is about to rape and ravage this unmolested city with Cyrus' Persian armies. Babylon will be cast down.

God is angry with how the Babylonians have treated the Jews. They've been harsh captors, cruel even to the elderly. In their arrogance they think themselves untouchable. The eternal queen is about to learn that no mortal is untouchable. Everyone is accountable to the creator.

Babylon feels self secure in all of its wealth and power. They think of themselves as unmatched in all the world. In their wealth they live for pleasure. They are confident no harm will ever come to them. They have powerful sorcerers casting magic spells on their behalf. Astrologers guide their leaders, predicting good for Babylon. Their magic will not save them. Their reading of the stars will only fill them with lies.

Isaiah 47:11 NIV

Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you.

The astrologers and sorcerers cannot save Babylon from what is coming. The Lord Almighty has commanded their destruction. There is nothing they can do to stop it, though they may try. Their efforts are useless. Like stubble before a blazing fire, they will be blown away.

This chapter speaks to me as if I belonged to Babylon. Do I not live in a country that thinks of itself as the only superpower in the world? Until 9/11 we thought we were untouchable. Even with the threat of ISIS we are told by our leadership that there is nothing to worry about. Perhaps they are right, but I wonder if their intel comes from modern technological sorcery. Are reports from the intelligence community crafted to satisfy our need to be assured of relative safety? I'm pretty sure no one in national leadership is seeking God's guidance or asking what God has planned. It would be nice to be wrong.

Do I not live in a country that seeks pleasure in our pastime? Are not our decadent choices part of the reason our Islamic enemies hate us? I don't like to think of myself in these terms and I don't enjoy criticizing my country, but the word of God has me asking these questions today.

Rome was the Babylon of Jesus' day. They killed the Prince of Peace, but God raised Him from death and set Him at the right hand of the Majesty. From there He shall judge the whole earth, both the living and the dead. The book of Revelation speaks of the fall of Rome by referring to the capitol city of the Roman empire as a whore.

Revelation 18:2-5, 7-9, 11 NIV

With a mighty voice he shouted: “ ‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a haunt for every impure spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal. For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.” Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “ ‘Come out of her, my people,’ so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. Give her as much torment and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. In her heart she boasts, ‘I sit enthroned as queen. I am not a widow; I will never mourn.’ Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her. “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore—

So the question with which I wrestle is, "Am I guilty of adultery with the pleasure living culture of America?" How might I respond to the call of God to come out of such a culture so as not to share in its sin? Though I serve God, am I faithful to Him alone, or do I flirt and fiddle with other lovers like fine dining, entertainment and travel? There's inherently nothing wrong with these, but have I remembered the poor and lifted the burden of the elderly? Have I honored God appropriately with my wealth? Has my heart stayed true to His call to holiness?

Will I suffer the fall of today's Babylon, or will I be saved among those who cry out to the Lord? I trust in His mercy and grace, but I do not wish to test God's patience or assume security while acting a playboy. Sobering thoughts this morning can't be a bad thing. Unpleasant, yes, but it's always good to be challenged by the word of God.

God, grant us wisdom and courage for the living of these days. Amen.

Isaiah 46:1-13

Isaiah 46:1-13 NIV

Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are borne by beasts of burden. The images that are carried about are burdensome, a burden for the weary. They stoop and bow down together; unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity.

“Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

“With whom will you compare me or count me equal? To whom will you liken me that we may be compared? Some pour out gold from their bags and weigh out silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, and they bow down and worship it. They lift it to their shoulders and carry it; they set it up in its place, and there it stands. From that spot it cannot move. Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer; it cannot save them from their troubles.

“Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels. Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do.

Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted, you who are now far from my righteousness. I am bringing my righteousness near, it is not far away; and my salvation will not be delayed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel.

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Isaiah 46 is a message delivered toward the Israelites in exile in Babylon. To borrow an old phrase, some Israelites when in Babylon do as the Babylonians do. They worshiped the idols of the people who held them captive. The reason Israelites are exiled in Babylon is for similar behavior in Judea. They began to provoke God by worshiping the gods of the neighboring nations. Isaiah 46 announces deliverance, but at the same time confronts Israel's idolatry.

Isaiah first looks to the behavior of the Babylonians. They carry their gods into battle or in festival parades. BEL (also known as Marduk) and NEBO (also known as Nabu) are Babylonian gods. The prophet says they are cumbersome to carry about, but the Babylonians do it. By implication, Isaiah contrasts the Babylonians handling of their gods to the way Israel was handle the Ark of the Covenant. The ark was carried on long poles, specially designed for this sole purpose, on the shoulders of Levites, holy to this task. The idols of the Babylonians are carried by cattle or horses, even donkeys. The wobble of the cart causes the idol to potentially topple. The gods stoop and bow during their transport, which a true God would not likely do. Now Babylon will stoop and bow. They will be humbled by God's servant, Cyrus, the Persian ruler who will conquer Babylon. This means liberty for captive Israel.

God calls out to Israel. Remarkably God says, "I carry you." The Babylonians carry their gods on carts drawn by oxen, but Israel is carried by their God! What a beautiful comparison! Idol worshipers make their gods, but God made Israel and carries them their whole life long!

God asks who compares, which god is anything like Yahweh? Idols are dumb. They do not speak as The Lord does. They cannot move on their own, but God led Israel through the wilderness for 40 years, appearing as a pillar of cloud by day, and of fire by night. Will Israel not remember? Will they not acknowledge that none compare to Yahweh?

"Listen to me", God implores. Remember who God is! Yahweh is the One and only God. There is no other. He makes known the future, even from the beginning of time.

Isaiah 46:10 NIV

I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’

The omniscient God can't be challenged. Whatever He decrees will come to pass. And The Lord decrees liberty for His captive people. Though they have broken God's covenant, and His heart, by worshiping idols, the Lord will rescue His chosen. From the east God sends a bird of prey, a man named Cyrus, king of Persia. He will conquer Babylon and the Israelites will be sent back to Judea, free to serve the Lord in righteousness. Though the idol-worshiping, stubborn-hearted Israelites are far away from practicing the righteous laws of the covenant, God is bringing His righteousness to them and will save them.

The beauty of these comparisons in Isaiah 46 cannot be understated. The mercy of God is tremendous. While other nations carry their gods, God carries Israel and sustains them. While Idolaters make gods shaped from gold, God made a nation to worship and serve Him. While Israel ignores God by turning to Babylonian idols, God is ever more attentive to wayward Israel and brings them salvation from their captors. Clearly Israel doesn't deserve such a love as this, yet God has chosen Israel and is faithful.

God is the same today, yesterday and forever. Just as He acted to save unworthy and rebellious Israel, God acted to save us while we were sinners.

Romans 5:8 NIV

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Can you think of any other who compares to such a love? Then bow down and worship the One true God who made you, carries you and saves you.

Isaiah 45:1-13, 15-17, 20, 22-25

Isaiah 45:1-13, 15-17, 20, 22-25 NIV

“This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting people may know there is none besides me.

I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things. “You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it.

“Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to a mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’ “This is what the Lord says— the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands? It is I who made the earth and created mankind on it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts. I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the Lord Almighty.”

Truly you are a God who has been hiding himself, the God and Savior of Israel. All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together. But Israel will be saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting.

“Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are deliverance and strength.’ ”

All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But all the descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the Lord and will make their boast in him.

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Isaiah 45 speaks directly to Cyrus the ruler of Persia. Cyrus is called God's anointed, which is very unusual for a pagan king. Normally such a distinction is for kings of Israel, priests and prophets. It is true, however, that the bible says God places all men of authority in power to carry out His justice. God raised up Nebuchadnezzar Babylon to rule. How God is raising Cyrus to conquer Babylon and many other nations. God used Babylon to chastise wayward. Now God is using Persia to save Israel from Babylon. All this is part of His mission to bless the world with the knowledge of God through holy community. Israel will return to Judea and begin again as God's holy covenant keeping people.

God tells Cyrus of Persia, a pagan king who does not worship or acknowledge Yahweh, the God of Israel, that He has chosen to him. The Lord will go out before him giving him victory as He wages war. God is doing this for Israel, so that all people will know Yahweh is God and there is no other.

Verse 5 says,
"I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God."

That same message appears five times in this chapter in verses 5, 6, 18, 21 and 22. Since this oracle was given to Cyrus, man who worships idols, Yahweh wants to make sure he hearts the message that there is only one God and He is the God whom Israel serves. Now God is sending Cyrus, and aiding Cyrus, to set the Hebrews free from Babylonian oppression.

An interesting passage tells of all God is doing for Cyrus to make him successful in battle. Verse three says, "I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places." The King James version renders this verse differently. It says God will give Cyrus the "treasures of darkness." It could be wealth that God speaks of. It could be hidden truth God intends to reveal. I have a different thought.

In the beginning God made heaven and earth from darkness. God separated darkness from the earth with the firmament or sky. The darkness of space and the darkness of the depths of the oceans hide many secrets, but I think the symbolic purpose here is to unleash the chaotic powers of darkness for Cyrus, that he might destroy every foe. God is letting darkness loose from its prison to wreak havoc on the earth through the Persian war machine. It makes sense in the context. The Hebrew word for darkness in Genesis 1:2 is the same one used here in Isaiah 45.

Isaiah 45:7 KJV

I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.

The NIV translation, the one I use most often, exchanges the word disaster for the KJV's evil in verse seven. God created the darkness from which they universe was made. There is no other before Him. God makes peace and brings war, all for His sovereign purpose. Cyrus is hearing that Yahweh is ruler over all, even Persia.

Then God turns His attention to Israel. Does Israel have a problem with God's choice too tartar up a pagan king to deliver Israel? Shouldn't it be a Jew, a son of David who leads Israel to victory over their captors? God asks those in the nation of Israel who think such thoughts, "Who are you to question me?" Can a pot challenge the actions of the potter? That's an absurd notion!

God calls His chosen and all pagans to be done with idols and turn to Him for only He is God. One day, by His sovereign and authoritative word as creator and ruler of the universe, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that He is God, and only He. For the ultimate Anointed One, Christ Jesus, will bring the knowledge of God to the entire globe and all the universe.

I am most moved by the nation of God's sovereignty and my silly attempts to argue with my creator. Life does not often go as I would like. Instead of complain, fret and suffer more pain, why don't I accept that God is in control and whatever is happening is within God's plan? I think I'd have much more inner peace if I surrendered to faith In God's leadership and choices. Yet I have made a career out of wresting with God. I even have a music project by the name Wresting The Stranger, which is about my struggle with letting God have complete control. Will I wise up?

Isaiah 45:9a NIV

“Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker..."

Isaiah 44:1-9, 14-15, 19-22, 24, 28

Isaiah 44:1-9, 14-15, 19-22, 24, 28 NIV

“But now listen, Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen. This is what the Lord says— he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. Some will say, ‘I belong to the Lord’; others will call themselves by the name of Jacob; still others will write on their hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and will take the name Israel.

“This is what the Lord says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come— yes, let them foretell what will come. Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. He cut down cedars, or perhaps took a cypress or oak. He let it grow among the trees of the forest, or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow. It is used as fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it. No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, “Half of it I used for fuel; I even baked bread over its coals, I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?” Such a person feeds on ashes; a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?” “Remember these things, Jacob, for you, Israel, are my servant. I have made you, you are my servant; Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.”

“This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the Lord, the Maker of all things, who stretches out the heavens, who spreads out the earth by myself, who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.” ’

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Isaiah 44 is much like Isaiah 43. Both reveal God's intimate feelings of love and commitment to Israel. Both announce redemption. Both warn about idol worship. While there is repetition Isaiah 44 has its own beauty, specifically the lengthy description of an idol maker in verses 9-20.

The chapter begins by calling Israel to listen to the voice of the One who made them, who formed them in the womb. God tells the Hebrew exiles not to fear, referring to Israel as Jacob and Jeshurun.

Jacob was Israel's original name. God have Jacob the new name and new identity when He blessed Jacob at the Jabbok.

Genesis 32:28 NIV

Then the man (the Lord) said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”

But Jeshurun is not as prevalent. The name appears only four times in the Bible, once here in Isaiah and three times in Deuteronomy. The name means upright or beloved righteous. The appearance of Jeshurun in Deuteronomy is part of a song of Moses, just prior to His death, his last words recorded for Israel. They are like final instructions and blessings upon the 12 tribes of the sons of Jacob. Only one of the references uses Jeshurun as subject. The other references has God as the subject and Jeshurun as the object.

Deuteronomy 32:15

Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; filled with food, they became heavy and sleek. They abandoned the God who made them and rejected the Rock their Savior.

In this verse we notice an odd pairing. Jeshurun, which means upright, is shown as unfaithful to God, not righteous at all. Moses prophesied that Israel would become complacent and turn to idolatry. And now in Isaiah Moses' words are revisited.

There are many ideas in the song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32 which appear in Isaiah 44. God is referred to as Rock in both. God gives birth to Israel in both. Idolatry is denounced in both. The Jews who know the law, the first five books of the bible, would catch these references. Isaiah, by using the name Jeshurun is pointing to Moses' song in Deuteronomy. The other references to the name say that God is king over Jeshurun and there is no one like their God. Isaiah certainly uses the latter idea in chapter 44.

Just the very use of the name Jeshurun opens up a searching of Moses and we find an implied message. The upright nation has failed to be so and God their king has chastised them, but now He is forgiving them, just as Moses predicted.

It's ironic to use the name for upright when Israel has not been righteous. Their idol worship is a glaring contradiction. And that is the rhetorical purpose. The odd pairing of Jeshurun to Jewish Idolaters makes the painful point that Israel was called to be holy and worship only Yahweh, but has not. The ten commandments specifically say don't worship other gods and don't make idols to represent God. But Israel has not listened.

Now God addresses Israel in exile. Will they listen as He calls to them? He comforts them with the notion that He will pour out His Spirit on their children. They will be revived and numerous. Israel will rebound and become faithful to the Lord once more. They will carry His name on their lips and hearts. They will inscribe His name on their hands, acknowledging that they belong to God alone.

God, their Rock, describes how a man foolishly makes an idol to worship from a piece of wood. Even if they overlay the wood with gold foil it is still wood. That piece of wood came from a tree. Part of the tree was used for firewood. What makes the wooden idol godlike?

Isaiah 44:9 NIV

All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame.

The idolater makes an idol from wood to worship, but God made Israel to worship Him. I love how the prophet turns the idea of fashioning an idol to the fact that God is fashioning Israel to be His holy people through the exile.

Now the Ruler of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things, is bringing them back to Jerusalem and Judea. Will they listen? Will they remember the lesson? Will we?

Isaiah 43:1-1

Isaiah 43:1-19 NIV

But now, this is what the Lord says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life.

Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth— everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf.

All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of their gods foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, “It is true.” “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord , “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord , and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord , “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”

This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride. I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King.”

This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

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Isaiah 43 is a wonderful chapter in the ongoing prophecy to the Hebrew exiles in Babylon, which began in chapter 40. I love it because it features God's intimate relationship with Israel, it announces their deliverance, and it draws on the Exodus story to highlight God's new actions to save Israel.

The first four verses comfort with words of love and assurance. You can sense God's deep commitment to His exiled people. He is now going to bring them back home across deserts and rivers, even through fire. God is redeeming Israel, giving a ransom for them to buy them out of captivity, to purchase their freedom. God is giving nations like Egypt, Ethiopia (Cush) and Seba (an ancient nation in northern Africa) as the ransom price.

This section reminds me a bit of Valentine cards with messages like, "You are mine." God created and formed Israel. He did so for the purpose of blessing the world with the knowledge of God through them. As they live out holy lives in community with God and one another, they are blessed with peace and prosperity, health and wholeness. They are blessed to become a blessing to the rest. God is not about to abandon His mission through them. The exile is part of what He must do to refine Israel. Now they are ready to resume covenant faithfulness in Judea.

God promises to be with them and protect them on their journey home. Twice God tells them not to fear. He calls to His children from the four corners. He leads them home, even though they have lived as if they were blind and deaf to the holy ways of God.

God challenges the pagan nations to witness to which of their gods prophesied this new exodus from Babylon? Would any have predicted it? But Israel can witness to God. They could imagine such a day, for the Lord led them out of bondage in Egypt centuries before. They know that Yahweh is God alone and there is no other. All the nations worship false gods and lesser spirits.

Isaiah 43:10b-11 NIV

Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.

The sovereignty of God cannot be challenged for he has no equal. The Israelites can trust that His choice to return them from exile in Babylon to Judea will happen. God will bring down Babylon. They will sink like broken ships on the sea. God is the One who split the Red Sea to lead the Hebrew slaves out of slavery in Egypt. Now He will split the desert with a highway leading straight to Jerusalem.

God reminds His people that He is not simply a God of some famous past. He is a God who will bring fame to His name now, for His deliverance of the exiles will shock the world with awe. Who would've believed it? Jerusalem lay in waste. Israel ceased to be a sovereign nation. And yet under the blessings and provision of the Persian government they will rebuild Jerusalem and reestablish worship at a new temple.

The message that speaks most profoundly to me is the notion to forget about the past because God is doing a new thing to celebrate. How often do we read our bibles and marvel at the stories of God's miraculous acts and wondered why we have never witnessed such things? Some say the age of miracles is past. God no longer does such things. Perhaps we are in an exile of our own waiting for God to act. Before we get to thinking God is helplessly tied to the past, to old stories in an ancient book, let us remember that God is not the product of ancient imagination. God is alive and with us. You are His witnesses that the Spirit of Christ lives in you. In Christ there is life and peace, grace and abundance. All you need is in Him and among God's people in the kingdom of Christ. Do not get hung up on the idea that God will not act to deliver you in any situation. You are His witnesses. He is forming you through every experience in which you walk with Him. God is working for our redemption every day as He makes all things new. Do not fear, but know that the Lord is He, the One and only. God is with us. Immanuel!

Isaiah 42:10, 12-25

Isaiah 42:10, 12-25 NIV

Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them. Let them give glory to the Lord and proclaim his praise in the islands. The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.

“For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools. I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame.

“Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one in covenant with me, blind like the servant of the Lord ? You have seen many things, but you pay no attention; your ears are open, but you do not listen.”

It pleased the Lord for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious. But this is a people plundered and looted, all of them trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder, with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot, with no one to say, “Send them back.” Which of you will listen to this or pay close attention in time to come? Who handed Jacob over to become loot, and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned?

For they would not follow his ways; they did not obey his law. So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.

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Continuing Isaiah 42, beginning at verse 10 the prophet invites praise. He calls the people to sing a new song because God is about to do something new, that being delivering Israel from exile through the Persian king Cyrus. The prophet acknowledges it's been a long time since the Lord has acted to deliver Israel. He had good reason. The exile lasted 70 years, traditionally speaking. But now Yahweh can't wait any longer to be reunited with His beloved nation. He rouses for war against Babylon. There will be a complete reversal of status. Babylon, which is high and mighty, ruler of the ancient middle east, will be decimated and Israel, which is brought low in captivity and oppression, will be exalted high.

The Lord speaks of leading the blind in paths they don't yet know. Imagine being blind and having to find your way in unfamiliar territory! Israel has been unfaithful to Yahweh for so long that they do not know His ways. Like the blind God will have to lead them in how to behave as His holy people. They will be retrained in the paths of righteousness.

God addresses Israel directly, reminding them of their sinful rebellion when they turned to idols. Israel, the Lord's servant and messenger is blind and deaf to the truth. Idol worship has made them so. God made a righteous set of laws that are great and glorious. Those who live by them shall share in this great glory through the blessings of the Lord. But Israel turned to idols instead and are now refugees and captives. They are exiled and forlorn. The Lord did this to them as promised in the law. Now will they see? Now will they hear? Will any understand why they suffer as they do? Even in their bondage some remain ignorant.

The tragedy of Israel will also become their defining moment as the people of God. They lost everything, but through this 70 year exile they learned obedience once more. They turned to their scrolls. They learned again the law of Moses. They listened to teachers. They complied their history and wrote psalms and recorded the words of prophets. They held onto their identity as the chosen people of God. In the midst of their oppressors they maintained a hope that the Lord would one day send deliverance.

When you face times of challenge, when you don't understand why things are going poorly, turn to the Lord. Find out by searching His word if you've been blind and deaf to Him. The Lord is like a refiner's fire. He means to make you holy and burn off from your soul all that is not of Him. Will you be compliant and gain understanding or will you remain in the darkness? Take heart. The Lord is a deliverer. He has purpose in everything. If you suffer indignity or are trapped in some way, use that to turn ever more deeply to the Lord. You will find Him and find release.

Isaiah 42:1-9

Isaiah 42:1-9 NIV

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

This is what God the Lord says— the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.”

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One of the difficulties in reading the prophets is that I never quite know who they are talking about. Without commentaries at my side I'm a little lost, having to guess or follow my gut. I have to remember the historical situation in which these writings occurred if I'm going to even begin to understand them. But there is another aspect to reading the prophets that is not bound by historical setting. It is the voice of the living God speaking anew through the same material that the Jews heard so long ago.

The early church were all Jews living under the oppression of Rome and the corruption of King Herod and the high priest Caiaphas, both puppets of the Romans. The Jews were living as exiles in their own country. They were searching for hope in deliverance from their bondage. They searched the scriptures and saw promise of messiah, a holy anointed one from God to lead Israel and bless the gentiles with the knowledge of God. The early church understood Jesus of Nazareth to be the messiah. That's why the church knows Him as Jesus Christ, more literally Jesus the Anointed One.

The early verses in Isaiah 42 seem to point so clearly to Jesus it's hard for me to read it any other way. Jesus told his disciples that the scriptures testify to him. This has got to be one of those places. But historically speaking Isaiah 42 is part of a larger oracle concerning the rise of Persia as a world power. Later Isaiah will name the king of Persia as the one from the east whom God has raised up.

Remember these words from the previous chapter?

Isaiah 41:2-3 NIV

“Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow. He pursues them and moves on unscathed, by a path his feet have not traveled before.

Isaiah is talking about Cyrus, king of the Persians. I believe Cyrus is the subject of Isaiah 42:1-9. Of course all these oracles are delivered for Israel's benefit. I think the latter portion of this oracle is about Israel. It could still be about Cyrus but the distinction between Jews and gentiles makes me think Israel is the subject.

Of course all of this material could be about Israel, the servant of the Lord. Cyrus is a warrior so it's hard to see a warrior as gentle. Isaiah describes the servant of the Lord as one who won't raise his voice or shout. He won't harm those who are beaten down like a bruised reed or a smoldering wick. This messianic figure is hard to pin down historically speaking. If Cyrus is the one Isaiah is speaking about in verses 1-9, then I think of the Hebrew exiles in Babylon as the bruised reed and smoldering wick. If Israel is the subject, then the bruised reed and wick are the poor and oppressed.

Since I'm not certain, I'm going to jump to Jesus as the servant, for the church has read these words in Isaiah speaking a fresh word centuries later. We do the same today. Reading these verses as predicting the appearance of Jesus makes the clearest sense. For I can see clearly how Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Jesus is called by God. When He was baptized in the Jordan River the Lord said, "This is my son with whom I am well pleased." That sounds like delight to me. When Jesus began His ministry He referred to another section of Isaiah that said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me to bring good news." Here in verse 1, God is placing His Spirit on God's chosen servant to bring justice to the earth.

The islands will put their faith in His teachings. (Isaiah 1:4) That means the Greeks or Greco-Roman culture will embrace Christianity. Check! Jesus is the fulfillment of that prophecy. I'm not sure Cyrus fits that description. The Greeks conquered Persia and oppressed Israel, so I'm not sure Israel fulfilled this prophecy either.

Jesus was certainly gentle. He was compassionate about the sick, lame, bind and the outcast.

When verse 6 says that God will make His chosen servant a covenant to the people and a light to the gentiles, I certainly see how Jesus fulfilled this prophecy. The people are Israel. The gentiles are everyone else who are not Jews. Jesus came first to the lost sheep of Israel. Only after establishing the church within Israel did the church begin to spread the gospel to the gentle nations. Of course Israel or a king from the line of David could fit this description too. Even Cyrus might be the servant who becomes a covenant to the people, metaphorically speaking. But Jesus Christ is the fullest expression and the one who clearly fulfilled this passage of prophecy.

This word was delivered first to Jewish exiles. They would have hope in deliverance from their exile in Babylon, or as refugees in Egypt and other places. But today I read these words as truth already accomplished and being accomplished. Jesus every day brings justice by restoring right relationships between believers. He helps the spiritually blind to see and the spiritually deaf to hear God's voice. He set lives free that are bound up in fear and sin. Jesus is the new covenant for the whole world, both Jews and gentiles. When I take the bread and drink the cup, I participate in the covenant in the body and blood of Jesus Christ. And I am continually transformed by His teachings and liberated by His power.

Thanks be to God for His chosen servant Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 41:1-10, 12-15, 17-18, 20-29

Isaiah 41:1-10, 12-15, 17-18, 20-29 NIV

“Be silent before me, you islands! Let the nations renew their strength! Let them come forward and speak; let us meet together at the place of judgment.

“Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service ? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow. He pursues them and moves on unscathed, by a path his feet have not traveled before. Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord —with the first of them and with the last—I am he.”

The islands have seen it and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They approach and come forward; they help each other and say to their companions, “Be strong!” The metalworker encourages the goldsmith, and the one who smooths with the hammer spurs on the one who strikes the anvil. One says of the welding, “It is good.” The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.

“But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend, I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, little Israel, do not fear, for I myself will help you,” declares the Lord , your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff. “The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

“Present your case,” says the Lord . “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King. “Tell us, you idols, what is going to happen. Tell us what the former things were, so that we may consider them and know their final outcome. Or declare to us the things to come, tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods. Do something, whether good or bad, so that we will be dismayed and filled with fear. But you are less than nothing and your works are utterly worthless; whoever chooses you is detestable.

“I have stirred up one from the north, and he comes— one from the rising sun who calls on my name. He treads on rulers as if they were mortar, as if he were a potter treading the clay. Who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’? No one told of this, no one foretold it, no one heard any words from you. I was the first to tell Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’ I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news. I look but there is no one— no one among the gods to give counsel, no one to give answer when I ask them. See, they are all false! Their deeds amount to nothing; their images are but wind and confusion.

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Isaiah 41 is addressed to the Greek islands. Ancient Greece was a grouping of city states, each with their own king or government. The Greeks were idol worshipers like most of the nations at that time. Now Persia is on the rise as a world power. Babylon which conquered Assyria is the current champion and ruling power of the east, but soon Persia will conquer all.

This oracle is directed to the Greeks and their idols to shame them, while the Hebrew exiles listen in on God's message to the pagans through the prophet. But the oracle also directly communicates a message of hope to the Hebrews themselves. God will lead them out of Babylonian captivity! He will do this through Persian dominance.

Isaiah 41 first begins with God calling to the Greeks who live on their islands to come and meet with Him. The Lord asks them who has called up a leader from the east, who conquers every nation and continues his march westward? God answered His own question: "I, the Lord, the first and last, I am he."

The Greeks are alarmed by Persia's power and they band together, the many sovereign city states of the Greek isles, to prepare for war. They pray to their idols trusting the pagan gods they represent.

In contrast God suddenly speaks directly to the Hebrew exiles. They do not worship idols anymore. They were called out of the nations to worship the Lord who cannot be adequately represented by any graven image. God's message is kind and greatly encouraging. "I chose you. I haven't forgotten you. I will help you. I will strengthen you. I will restore you, and you will become a mighty nation. The poor within you will be cared for. The restoration of beaten and enslaved Israel will be a wonder to the rest of the world. When the Hebrew exiles return from Babylon and rebuild Jerusalem, again a sovereign power, the nations will hear and know that the Lord did this.

God turns His attention back to the Greeks. “Present your case,” says the Lord. Now God is belittling the idol worshiping Greeks by addressing their dumb idols. God wants the pagan gods to predict the future or instruct about things long forgotten so that the Greeks might be informed as to how to respond to the Persian threat. But alas the idols cannot. They are nothing. Whoever worships these worthless idols are fools.

So God informs them that He is responsible for Persia. Through His prophet He informs them about what will happen. The Lord was the first to bring the news of Persia's rising power. The idols have said nothing. Those who seek counsel from idols will find themselves misdirected and confused. The Greeks will be unprepared for Persia. They should learn to seek the living God who has established Persia as the new world power.

If I were an idol worshiping Greek concerned about the security of my people and I heard this message, I'd likely be irritated. None of us like having our beliefs challenged or our way of life belittled. But I wouldn't forget what was said either. So when Persia does conquer and Israel is restored as a vassal state under Persian rule, I would remember that the prophet said Yahweh, the God of Israel, accomplished this. If I'm wise I might turn from idol worship to serve the God of the Jews.

If I listen to Isaiah 41 as an exiled Jew, I might be filled with hope at the encouraging news. I might also harden my heart against the prophet's words because my suffering under Babylon has been long. Perhaps I have given up on God.

To apply this word I ask myself which group am I most like today? Am I more like the Greeks who seek direction and strength from something less than God? Do I trust in alliances with friends, but neglect a relationship with the Lord? Do I look for wisdom to guide my life in the self help section of the bookstore, but never open my bible? Do I listen to Oprah, or some other television personality, to counsel me? Am I feeling threatened that my life is somehow soon to be attacked? Am I rallying to meet some challenge to my future? How am I prepared for the test? Will my friends be able to sustain me? Do my sources for guidance, wisdom, and counsel truly help? Will today's horoscope hold the answer? If not, then why not turn to the God of the bible, the living God who still speaks through His word. There I will find direction that will not fail me. Through faith in Him I will be able to face any threat with confidence in the Lord.

Am I more like the Hebrews? Do I feel as if I am cut off from God? Do I feel like I am trapped in a life far away from home and everything good? Don't fall for the lies. If I'm being challenged it is for my benefit under God's guiding hand. If I'm humbled by circumstances it does not mean God has abandoned me. I must listen to the word of hope. God will strengthen me. God will restore me. The promises to Israel are promises I can believe in, because I am I included now with Israel as a child of God through faith in Christ. God speaks through His ancient word. The living God speaks afresh through the prophet and my heart is renewed with courage and strength through the hope He gives.

Whatever your situation, whether you are looking for counsel in all the wrong places, or you're feeling cut off from God and goodness, hear the word of the Lord and let your eyes be opened and your heart be filled with hope. God is good and He is at work in our world bringing about the blessed knowledge of God. Watch for His wonders and come to know Him.

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