Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come

Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come

Isaiah Chapters 58-66

A New Heaven and a New Earth

The book of Isaiah ends quite abruptly with very severe imagery. In order to emphasize the coherent structure of these final chapters, which is somewhat difficult to grasp in the face of the sudden ending, we will consider the chapters out of their normal order, starting with the ending and backtracking to previous chapters to establish the context of the final statements.

The final comment (66:22-24) provides a statement of hope in the new heaven and new earth, but at the same time speaks in uncompromising terms of the eternal fate of those who rebel against God. These are eternally separated from God (so that the righteous must “go out” to look upon them), they suffer eternal torment of the fire that is never quenched, and they are eternally bound to the decay that is the nature of this world. Our Lord warned us against our attachment to such corruption, advising us to invest ourselves in heaven, rather than treasures of this world (Matthew 6:19-21) and, in a passage that should cause concern for almost all of us in the Western world, pronounces blessing on those who are poor and woe to those of us who are rich, because we have already received our reward (Luke 6:20-24).

In contrast to the unrighteous, who depend on their own resources and are doomed to that dependence, the redeemed are shown a new heaven and a new earth that is in eternal harmony with the Lord (65:17-19). Jeremiah also preached a message of renewal (Jeremiah 31:31-33) through a new covenant, and Christ brought us a new covenant (or “testament”) in his blood (Mark 14:24). The call to a new covenant relationship echoes throughout the Bible. In each case, the promise is that we will be God's people, and the Lord will be our God. What, then, is new about these new covenants? The answer was revealed to John on the Isle of Patmos: it is God who makes all things new (Revelation 21:1-5). God is the same, the covenant is the same, but we are renewed as we reenter the covenant with God.

Declare to My People Their Great Rebellion

Backing up, now, to Chapter 58 to begin establishing the context for this final separation of the righteous and the unrighteous, we find a surprising accusation: the rebellious people are not some foreign, pagan people, but the very people of God who were in fact carefully observing their religious practices, of which “fasting” is used as a metaphor for all their ritual observances (58:1-4). These people are surprised themselves of the ineffectiveness of their religious expressions. The charge of the Lord was that their worship was empty. They did not allow the way they worshiped to affect the way they lived, and the way they lived their lives rendered their worship meaningless.

The Lord delivered a similar message through Hosea (Hosea 6:6). God expects our worship to be expressed through real concern toward those around us, not through meaningless words or deeds. What Isaiah identifies as proper “fasting” (58:6-8) is the same attitude and action that James identifies as true religion (James 1:27).

As Chapter 58 identifies this lack of real compassion as “rebellion” against God, Chapter 59 explains that our failure to be godlike in our interaction with others is counted as open rebellion to God (59:1-4). But while we may fail to be God's people (Jeremiah 5:23-25) God never fails to be our God (Deuteronomy 7:9).

Favor and Vengeance

We have been noting that we know many of the passages of Isaiah from their New Testament setting. The beginning verses of Chapter 61 (61:1-2) contain the passage most closely with the “good news” of the New Testament. It is the passage Christ used to announce his ministry (Luke 4:16-21) and to define himself as “the one” – the long-awaited Messiah (Luke 7:19-22). The unsettling combination of favor and vengeance that is mentioned in this passage is returned to more emphatically in Chapter 63 (63:3-6). While the strong language of this passage seems intentionally designed to foster the “Fear of the Lord”, the idea that the judgment of God is never separate from the love of God is not a new idea for Isaiah, where Christ has already been presented as both a sanctuary and a stumbling stone (8:14).

Chapter 64 begins (64:1-4) from a position we often find ourselves: ready for the Lord to open the heavens and come down upon the enemies of God. We make that sort of statement when we feel certain we know who those enemies are. As the chapter progresses, however, it includes the confession that we are all enemies of God (64:5). How, then, can we be saved? Only the Lord can save us: he who is our Father, who made us, and can make us whole (64:8).

Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come

In the middle of this struggle of redemption and wrath, the conflict between our love of God and our infatuation with ourselves, emerges the call from a God who is intent on our salvation, and calls us to participate in the salvation of the world (59:21-60:3). We have been shown a light that darkness cannot overcome (John 1:1-5) and we are expected to carry that light to the rest of the world (Matthew 5:14-16).

Come to the Waters

Come to the Waters

Isaiah Chapters 54-57

A Brief Moment

Chapter 54 begins (54:5-6) by reminding us of the intended relationship between ourselves and God as God calls himself our “redeemer”. We think of this word as synonymous with “savior” as, in fact, it is, but in Hebrew the word is a metaphor with a specific meaning. When Naomi tells Ruth that Boaz is their “kinsman-redeemer”, she used this same word. A woman in the time of Isaiah had no legitimate income or authority and in these depended solely on her husband. If her husband died, then she was lost, but could be redeemed by a brother-in-law or another male relative. This is the way it is with our redeemer: we have no worth of our own and no rights but what our redeemer offers us.

Though our sin causes of to be briefly separated from our God, it is not the will of God that we suffer for ever (54:7-8). In contrast to the brief anger we bring upon ourselves, there is the everlasting love of God (Jeremiah 31:3-4). Though our sin hides from us the face of our God, the same God who sees all our sin sees also our affliction (Psalm 10).

Thoughts and Ways

Our thoughts could not be further from the thoughts of God (55:7-11). If we think we are gods, we deceive ourselves (1 Corinthians 3:18-20). Our words are week, changeable things, but the word of God is a powerful thing that will not return without affecting its redemptive intent. Jesus himself is the Word (logos) of God , the human expression of Divine thought (logos) (John 1:1-3).

Where our ways are petty and self-serving, the ways of God are completely just (56:1-2). Even the justice of God is far removed from our own: where we seek punishment, the Love of God seeks forgiveness (57:16-18). We want at least an eye for an eye (Matthew 5:38-45) but the love of God requires that we love others as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:35-40).

Come

Early in Isaiah, God calls us in an amazing way. In the midst of a catalog of sins, we are called to come together with the Lord, the very measure of good, so that not only are our sins forgiven, but there are washed away as if they never existed (1:18). In these later chapters we have another clarion call to come to the presence of God, to the waters of redemption (55:1-5). What must we do, how can we qualify for the waters of life? Nothing but the to thirst after righteousness (Matthew 5:6). The Lord our God says “Come.”

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. (Revelation 22:17 KJV)

By His Wounds We Are Healed

By His Wounds We Are Healed

Isaiah Chapters 49-53

The Servant of the Lord

The book of Isaiah does not, as other prophetic works do, begin with a statement of commission. Instead, it is Chapter 6 (6:1;8) that is generally accepted as the commission of Isaiah. But there is in Chapter 42 (42:1-4) a new statement of commission for one identified as the Servant of the Lord. As we have previously discussed, there are those who believe that after Chapter 39 we hear a new prophetic voice; if that were the case, then a new statement of commission would not be out of place. This is not the only explanation, however, as evidenced by the “recommission” of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 15:19-21).

However, the idea Servant of the Lord, introduced in Chapter 42 and referred to again in 49:1-3, is more mysterious than the simple commission of a new prophet or the recommission of one that has begun to falter. To begin with, in the manner of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:5) and Paul (Galatians 1:14-16) the Servant acknowledges the eternal call of God who knew him from before his birth. But, in the face of this most personal confession, the Servant identifies himself as “Israel”, the priestly nation of God. We must add to this multiplicity of identity the New Testament viewpoint that claims this Suffering Servant as our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 12:17-21).

Who, then, is this servant? Is it Isaiah? Is it Israel? Is it Christ? The prophet seems purposely to suspend, rather than resolve, this enigma as he speaks for the Servant in the first person, attributes to the Servant the hoped-for recovery of the remnant of Israel, and further names the Servant as the as yet unimagined redeemer of the ends of the earth (49:5-6).

I Will not Be Disgraced

Through the rest of Chapter 49 and into Chapter 50 the voice of the Servant continues in dialogue with the voice of the Lord. In the second section of the latter chapter (50:4-9) we again see the Servant's prefiguration of Christ, who taught in word and deed that we must submit ourselves to our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48; 27:27-31). Here, the Servant says a surprising thing: it is the power of men to beat us, mock us, and spit upon us, but not to disgrace us; our help is in the Sovereign Lord, and we cannot be insulted or put to shame.

The words of Paul to the Romans are not only in agreement with the command to submit ourselves to those who would abuse us, specifically (Romans 12:14) and to all earthly authorities in general (Romans 13:1-6) but in the idea that these powers cannot cause us eternal harm because our trust is in the Christ of God (Romans 9:33). Our God gave us his own Son to redeem us; there is no one who can condemn us (Romans 8:31-34).

Awake, Awake!

In the middle of Chapter 51 we find the first of three calls to “Awake, Awake!” This first call (51:9-11) goes out to the arm of the Lord to act as in former days; the strength that was of old still is and will always be. The second call (51:17) is to Jerusalem, to shake off the drunkenness of the cup of the wrath of God. In the Bible, the image of the cup is used both to symbolize the salvation of God (Psalm 116:13; Matthew 26:27-28) and the wrath of God (Jeremiah 25:15-16; Revelation 14:10). There is no ambiguity in this image. The same dichotomy is attributed the the stone that was rejected by the builders (Matthew 21:42-44). The same word of God will fall upon those who reject it and uphold those who accept it. Israel had become drunk on their own devices – the cup of wrath – and was invited to put away that cup and drink the cup of salvation. It is this escape of ourselves to which we, with Jerusalem, are invited in the third call (52:1-2). The chains around our neck are of our own making, but we are invited to shed the chains and clothe ourselves in strength, to put on the armor of righteousness (Ephesians 6:10-11).

By His Wounds We Are Healed

It is the nature of all prophecy that it has meaning not only in the setting in which it was originally proclaimed, but in all later times, as well. There are passages in Chapter 53 that are so familiar to us in their New Testament recapitulation that it is now hard for us to imagine what they might have meant in their Old Testament setting (53:1-7). Was there an Old Testament servant of whom this passage speaks, or was Isaiah, as John implies, completely caught up in the glory of Jesus (John 12:37-41)? If not Christ, who was it who took our infirmities and carried our sorrows (Matthew 8:16-17)? If not the Son of God, whose are the wounds that heal us (1 Peter 2:23-25)?

The Advent of Christ now seems to us frozen in time. What Isaiah looked forward to with such fervent anticipation as to ease the suffering of his day, we look back upon as our foundation of faith. But this is the nature of the Word of God: it is in this world never a thing achieved, but a goal before us and a help beside us. The sacrificial death of Christ was, in fact, an event in time which became for us the propitiation of our sin. By his wounds we are healed. Yet we are each in our own time called to take his wounds upon us – to lose our very lives in order to find them (Matthew 10:38-39). By his wounds we are healed.

 

There Is no Other

There Is no Other

Isaiah Chapters 44-48

Jeshurun

The initial verses of Chapter 44 (44:1-8) set the tone for the chapters we now approach. However, there are two side issues we must consider before we address the focus of this passage. The first is question of what it means to write “the Lord's” on one's hand. The answer is somewhat disappointing, because we really do not know what it means, though it seems to be some sign of ownership (Revelation 13:16-18).

The next issue we must address is the name “Jeshurun”. This word means “the upright one” and it is a name used for Israel here in this passage and in only one other place in the Bible. In the closing chapters of Deuteronomy, Moses uses this name both in his song (Deuteronomy 32:15-18) and also in his blessing (Deuteronomy 33:26). In that context, the name itself is a tender rebuke: at the same time Moses calls Jeshurun “the upright one” he portrays the nation as a people not evil by intent – not as those who considered and rejected their God – but as a people fatted and indolent who simply ceased to care for anything but their own bellies.

Isaiah¹ is intentionally invoking that same context tender rebuke (love and judgment) here as the same God who will not share glory with idols (42:8) will pour out blessing as water in a dry, thirsty land.

As the chapter progresses, the notion of idolatry is completely unmasked. In verses 16-20 the Lord says plainly that idols are nothing but wood and stone. Though the people may have believed that the idols they fashioned were indwelled by the gods they evoked, the Lord exposes them as simple, inanimate objects that can have no power because there is no other God. We may think ourselves more advanced than those who would worship simple things, but surely this prophetic message prefigures our consumer society where we have not only the wood we need for the fire, but much much more. The accumulation of things entraps us, and we make detestable what should be good. We cannot save ourselves from our things, because it is not the things themselves that enslave us. Our ultimate idolatry is our enslavement to ourselves.

I, the Lord, Do all these Things

Chapter 45 begins (verses 1-8) with astonishing pronouncements. First, the Lord calls Cyrus, king of the Persians (or the Medes, depending on whom you read) “his anointed one.” Surely this idea would have been astounding to the people of Israel, who saw themselves as the only anointed of the Lord. It is an idea that continues to trouble us to this day. Though Paul tells us that there is no authority except that which God has established (Romans 13:1-6) we act as though it is our right to establish such authorities, and to disregard or actively subvert authorities which do not measure up to our standards of Christian morality (never mind that we may not meet those standards ourselves). Certainly, this is a hard saying, and we would wish to qualify this instruction. Surely God does not intend for us to support by our inaction an oppressive regime! Did our Lord himself not come to set at liberty those who are oppressed (Luke 4:16-21)? We must remember, however, that even as Paul wrote us this instruction, the Roman authority was actively hostile to Christians, and further that the Jews expected a political or even military Messiah who would overthrow the Roman Empire and establish the superiority of the Jews. As it turned out, this was not the sort of Messiah we were given, and not the sort of Lord we serve.

But what kind of God do we serve? One who is the source of both light and darkness and of prosperity and disaster. In the Hebrew, the word translated “prosperity” is shalom, the word we know well from the blessing in Numbers 6:24-26. The second word, translated “disaster” is ra; we know it from the 23^rd Psalm (Psalm 23:4). How can we serve a God who allows bad things to happen to good people or (perhaps more to our exasperation) allows good things to happen to bad people? Can we accept a God that sends rain and sun on both the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:43-45)? As Isaiah knew (and Paul, after Isaiah) we have no right even to ask this question – no right to quarrel with our Maker (45:9-11; Romans 9:20-21).

Still, we ask.

There Is no Other

The answer we form for ourselves is that the God we cannot explain must not exist. Like the Babylonians we fill the void we imagine with the gods we create. We no longer fashion gods from wood and stone; our idols are more abstract and more insidious. Ultimately, we want no god other than ourselves (47:8).

The answer we form for ourselves is nothing but illusion, but the voice of God rings throughout these chapters with an answer that is very real: God is God, there is no other (44:21-24; 45:5-6, 18-19; 46:8-10; 48:12-13). This is the essence of faith: the world is good because God is God.

 

1As we have discussed previously, there is good scholarship which suggests that the chapters after 39 are from a different author (or perhaps a different editor) than those before. It is not uncommon for this individual to be referred to as “Second Isaiah”. You author is not a scholar, and chooses not to affect scholarly terminology, but instead uses the term “Isaiah” to refer to the word of the Lord as recorded in the book of Isaiah.

Comfort, Comfort

Comfort, Comfort

Isaiah Chapters 40-43

 

Deutero-Isaiah

Many scholars find evidence that the book we now know as “Isaiah” is composed of at least two parts. The second section, which begins with Chapter 40, was called “Deutero Isaiah”. The root “deutero” is familiar to us from “Deuteronomy” which could be translated “second law”. As with each of the other books of the Pentateuch (five scrolls) the Hebrew name, Devarim, which means “words” is taken from the opening verse of the book. There is some mystery as to the origin of the phrase “second law”, but it is worth noting that, in the order of our canon,Deuteronomyt does provide the second setting for the deliverance of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:1-21).

So “Deutero-Isaiah” is simply a scholarly way of saying “Second Isaiah”. Originally, the first section was referred to simply as “Isaiah” (because it seemed to have the closest association with the prophet) and the second section was referred to with the prefix “Deutero”. There is now even discussion that there is yet a third division of the book, but the name “Trito-Isaiah” never caught on, and the more common nomenclature is now “First”, “Second”, and “Third”.

While scholars see differences in style, nomenclature, and setting that indicate separate sections provided by different authors or editors, such matters are beyond the scope of our discussion and we need only concern ourselves with the way such considerations would affect our understanding and interpretation of the scripture. With that in mind, we can certainly see that, at least with our present chapters, there has been a considerable change in viewpoint from the previous section. Before this section, the major theme was one of Judgment. Though the message was never without hope (Isaiah 35:1-4) the major theme was the outstretched hand of the Lord that brings judgment which cannot be escaped (Isaiah 29:13-15). These latter chapters see the other side of the same coin and it is the love of God which cannot be escaped (Isaiah 40:27-31).

God Is God

An important theme of our present chapters is the never-changing truth and never-failing comfort that God is God. It may take a lifetime to learn an art or a skill, or many lifetimes to learn the sum of human knowledge, but God never learned to be God (Isaiah 40:12-14). There are gods we make with our hands or our minds, but the True God was not made and has always been (Isaiah 40:18-24). The Lord is the Lord, there is no other God; there is no other Saviour (Isaiah 42:8; 43:10-13). The unique God is the creator and sustainer of the universe (Isaiah 40:25-31). The source of all things is our only source of comfort (Isaiah 40:1-2; 41:13; 42:5-7; 43:1-7). From the New Testament, we are familiar with the idea of the searching, comforting, protective God (Matthew 9:36; John 10:14; Hebrews 13:20-21; 1 Peter 2:25; Revelation 7:17) but God has always been God (Isaiah 40:11; Genesis 49:24; Psalm 23; Jeremiah 31:10; Ezekiel 34:11-16; Amos 3:12).

A New Thing

God is God and has been and will be, but men are like grass (Isaiah 40:6-8). We are mere grasshoppers before the throne of God (Isaiah 40:21-22). When we depend on ourselves or the works of our hands, we will surely fail (Isaiah 41:21-23). How can we escape this dependence on ourselves? This is how it has been from the beginning; is it as it always shall be?

Only our God stands for us between past and future (Isaiah 41:8-10). We hear the voice of one crying out “prepare the way for our God” but who can prepare the way? Who can raise valleys and lower mountains (Isaiah 40:3-5)? God alone can prepare the way; only God can cross the divide between our Lord and ourselves (Isaiah 43:16-19). The new thing is the new covenant, foretold of old (Jeremiah 31:31) and fulfilled in the blood of Christ (Luke 22:19-20). But what is the new covenant? The covenant of God has been established from prehistory (Genesis 9:12-15). What is new about the new covenant?

God has always been; the covenant has always been. On our own we have no way to turn from the idolatry of our past to the salvation of our future, but it is the desire of God, the God who loves to love us, that we ourselves be made new.

And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. (Revelation 21:3-5 KJV)

Therefore… Go!

Therefore… Go!

Matthew Chapter 28

Many Accounts

As far as the world is concerned, Christmas is much more important than Easter. The commercialization of Christmas is such that it seems as though the push for the next Christmas begins before we have cleared away the boxes and bows from the last. As far as the world is concerned, Easter is not so important. Easter sells no more candy than Halloween; it sells no more cards than Valentines Day, and the After Easter Sales are no bigger than the After President's Day Sales. Easter always comes on Sunday, so we do not even get a day off out of the deal.

But, as commonly occurs, the emphasis of the Bible is much different than the emphasis of the world.

The Easter story as we know it is pieced together from separate accounts. Unlike the Christmas story, which we know almost entirely from Luke (Luke 1:26-2:20) with some events from Matthew (Matthew 1:18-24), each of the Gospels contains the Easter story and each contributes to the story in a unique way. Even Paul tells the story. His account is very brief (1 Corinthians 15:1-8) but, since his letters were written before the Gospels, this is probably the first written record of the death and resurrection of our Lord.

In this lesson we will consider the Gospel origins of each of the familiar elements of the Easter story: the women, the stone, the guards, the tomb, the angels, the messengers, the disciples, Jesus himself, and the commission Jesus gave to his disciples. With each element, we will find that each Gospel presents differences in detail, but that they are in agreement in the truth and significance of the death and resurrection of Christ.

The Women

All of the accounts begin with women coming to the tomb immediately when the sabbath had ended. In the Jewish reckoning, a day begins at sunrise and continues to the next sunrise. As soon as they legally could, the women came with their spices for the grim task they expected, the preparation of the body they believed they would find, which would have lain dead for three days.

Who were these women? They are identified differently in the different gospels. According to Matthew (Matthew 28:1) they included Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary”, the sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus (John 19:25) not the sister of Martha (John 11:1) Mark identifies this “Mary” as “Mary the mother of James” and also includes Salome (Mark 16:1, 9). Luke (Luke 24:10) includes These two “Marys” and also Joanna (Luke 8:1-3) and “others”. The Gospel of John focuses only on Mary Magdalene (John 20:1).

The Stone

There are also some differences in detail that each gospel to the stone that closed the tomb. As we understand it, the stone would have been too heavy for the women to move, and in addition it was sealed and guarded (Matthew 27:65-66). Matthew gives us the detail of the angel who moved the stone with a violent earthquake (Matthew 28:2-3). From his account, it sounds as though the women witnessed this event, but it does not say so definitively. Mark tells us that as they approached the tomb, the women wondered how they would gain access, but when they arrived they found the stone mysteriously moved away (Mark 16:3-4). Luke and John (Luke 24:2; John 20:1) simply mention that the stone had been removed.

The Tomb

Matthew does not mention any particular encounter with the empty tomb. Mark tells us that “the women” entered the tomb and encountered an angel (Mark 16:5). Luke tells us that the women entered the tomb and found it empty. Immediately, perhaps while they were in the tomb, they were joined by two angels (Luke 24:3). John gives us the wonderful account of the footrace between Peter and the other disciple who came to the tomb first, but did not enter, then entered and believed.

The Guards

Only Matthew mentions the guards (Matthew 28:5; 11-15). As we have mentioned earlier, Pilot instructed that the guard be placed at the tomb, and that the tomb be sealed. It is unclear whether these were Jewish guards, as indicated by their immediate report the the chief priests, or whether they were of the Roman guard, as indicated by their concern for how “the governor” would view their failure to adequately guard the tomb. In any event, the priests responded to their report by “throwing money at the problem” – an approach that worked as well then as it does today.

The Angles

We have already mentioned the record in Matthew of the angel the women encountered at the tomb (Matthew 28:2-7). Mark tells us of a “young man” who is seen inside the tomb (Mark 16:5-7). In Luke, we are told that the women encounter two “men” (Luke 24:4-7). John tells us of two “angels” but as we have already noted, John's account is focused entirely on Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-13).

The Messengers

In the unbelievable excitement which follows the encounter with the empty tomb, the Gospel accounts fragment even further in the people and events they choose to report. The basic story is that some of the women rush back to the disciples to tell them what they have found. In Matthew, these women are on their way back to the disciples when they encounter Jesus on the road (Matthew 28:8-10). Mark, perhaps providing two separate accounts, first tells us that the women went away afraid and told no one, then tells us that Mary Magdalene encountered Christ and went and told those who were mourning his death (Mark 16:6-10). In Luke, it appears the the entire group of women, the list of which have already seen, return from the tomb to tell the disciples (Luke 24:9-10). As we have mentioned John only identifies Mary Magdalene as the one who initially tells at least some of the disciples of the empty tomb, then later tells them of her encounter with the Lord.

The Disciples

For the most part, the disciples represent themselves very poorly in this story. Matthew tells us that even when they encountered the risen Lord, some doubted (Matthew 28:16-17). Mark simply tells us that they did not believe (Mark 16:11). Luke, the doctor, tells us that the disciples did not believe the women because they sounded “delirious” as if they were in the throws of illness (Luke 24:11-12). John tells us that the disciples were overjoyed, but only after Jesus appeared to them and showed them his wounds (John 20:19-20).

Jesus

Neither Matthew nor Luke give us any record of the actions of Jesus on the Day of Resurrection itself. Mark, as we have already seen, tells us that the Lord appeared to Mary Magdalene on that day, but does not provide any detail of the encounter (Mark 16:9). We have already mentioned that John records an encounter with the disciples that occurred on the Day of Resurrection. Before that, he also gives us a moving, personal account of Jesus and Mary Magdalene outside the tomb (John 20:14-18).

Commissions

Each of the Gospels gives us a unique account of the way in which Jesus commissioned his disciples (which include ourselves). In Mark, the commission includes mysterious references to snakes and poisons (Mark 16:15-18). Luke tells us that Jesus opened the minds of the disciples and simply declared them to be witnesses (Luke 24:45-49). John gives us an account of the very personal commission “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (John 20:21-23).

What we now know as The Great Commission is found in Matthew (Matthew 28:16-20). In it Jesus tells us that we have the authority to do the will of God (Matthew 16:17-19, John 17:1-10). Further, we have the assurance that, as Jesus says “I am with you” – a reminder that Jesus is both the Great I Am and “God with us” (Exodus 3:14; Matthew 1:22-23).

The authority and assurance are given to us. It remains to us to go.

 

The Plumb Line of Desolation

The Plumb Line of Desolation

Isaiah Chapters 32-39

 

The Fear of the Lord

The chapters we are given for this lesson can be divided into two sections, each with their own mystery. The first section (chapters 32-36) continues from previous chapters the theme of the Day of the Lord. Already this day has been described as a cruel day (13:6-9) and a day of redemption (25:8-9). These chapters resonate with that idea of a combined day of destruction and salvation, almost continually switching back and forth in the stark contrasts of that day.

Chapter 32 begins (verses 1-8) with the renewed theme of the coming king who will restore order and bring new life to the people of God. As we have noted previously in our study of Isaiah specifically and in our approach to prophecy generally, we must remember that these words of hope where originally preached to a people in real need of hope in their daily lives. The idea of a secure future for Israel would have appealed to them, but they were human, and were therefore almost certainly more concerned for their own future in their own time. The final section of Chapter 32 (verses 14-20) speak directly to this concern as it offers comfort in a time of anguish and safety in a time of insecurity.

Chapter 33 recalls (in verses 5-6) the previous idea of the stone that is both a sure foundation (28:16) and a stumbling block (8:14-15) but adds to it the mystery of the fear of the Lord. We may be comfortable with the notion that sinners should be in terror of everlasting fire (33:14) and may even encourage God to send that fire on our enemies, who must certainly be the enemies of God. It is not so comfortable an idea when in a rare moment of perspective we remember that we are sinners ourselves (Romans 3:23). Such reflection may cause us to think more carefully about the mystery of a God who is both a loving God of creation and an angry God of destruction.

In answer to this question, the prophecy of Isaiah adds to the notion of the stone which is both the cornerstone of our salvation (Psalm 118:22) and the crushing stone of our demise (Luke 20:17-18) by introducing the the measuring line of chaos and the plumb line of destruction (34:11b). Normally, the stone, the measuring line, and the plumb bob are for constructive use, but in Isaiah and elsewhere they (2 Kings 21:13) are presented as tools of destruction as the Lord measures the earth with justice and righteousness (28:17).

Is our God then at times a loving God desiring our salvation and at other times an angry God bent on our destruction? No, our God is the One Who is (Exodus 3:14) and in whom there is no shadow of turning (James 1:17). How, then, can we understand this mystery? As we are told by Job (Job 28:20-28) that the fear of the Lord is wisdom and to depart from evil is understanding. This couplet is not intended to suggest a distinction between wisdom and understanding. Just as the opening phrase “where can wisdom be found and where is the place of understanding” contains two ways of asking the same question, the ending phrase provides two ways of expressing the same answer. To fear the Lord is to depart from evil. So, in our pursuit to understand the fear of the Lord, and we have found that the fear of the Lord is wisdom itself.

The Splendor of Our God

Chapter 35 is a beautiful, moving, calming psalm of hope. I can do no more than to urge to approach it with an open heart.

Remember, O Lord

Chapters 36-39 are largely, but not completely verbatim with 2 Kings 18:13-19:37 (See, for example Isaiah 36:1-4 and 2 Kings 18:13-17). In this, it is similar to the book of Jeremiah, the ending of which is also almost verbatim with 2 Kings (See Jeremiah 52:1-3 and 2 Kings 24:18-20). In the case of Jeremiah, it seems this more historical (as apposed to prophetic) section is appended to show the way in which the prophecy was fulfilled. This may also be the case for Isaiah. It whether the 2 Kings account is taken from Isaiah, the Isaiah account is taken from 2 Kings, or the two accounts are taken from the same common source which is now lost to us. The placement of this account roughly in the middle of the book seems surprising when compared to the Jeremiah account. There are a number of Biblical scholars who believe that our modem book of Isaiah should be divided into two or three book. The first book (by this understanding) ends in chapter 39, which would make the placement of this historical section constant with the placement in Isaiah.

Whether this section is historical or prophetic, whether it is the end of a book or the middle, it is in any case a passage of scripture and is therefore provides us “instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). Though it may be instructive of other topics as well, the passage clearly speaks to us of the power and nature of prayer.

The passage records for us three situations in which Hezekiah turns to the Lord in prayers. The entirety of Chapter 36 tells of the emissary sent by the king of Assyria who ridicules Hezekiah, the nation of Israel, and even the living God. In response to this, Hezekiah prays to God through the prophet Isaiah (37:1-4). In the second instance, Hezekiah receives a taunting letter from the king of Assyria. Hezekiah's response is literally to lay it before the Lord in prayer as he brings it into the temple and lays it before the Lord. Finally, when Hezekiah is Ill and on his deathbed, he prays to God and is given fifteen more years (38:1-6).

The example we are given, then, is to bring our every need to the Lord in prayer. We must be careful, however, in our interpretation of these examples. What do we say when people we know, and also we ourselves, continually go to the Lord in earnest supplication, but do not receive from God that which they desire? We are often happy to attribute this to some fault in the supplicant; this is easy to believe in our own case and convenient to believe in the case of others. Often we pray but do not listen, other times we ask and cannot believe that the answer comes from God. But if we must be perfect in order to pray, then who among us can come before the Lord? The usual alternative to blaming ourselves is to blame the Lord. “It is the Lord's will.” Do we, then, serve a capricious God who arbitrarily hears the prayer of some and not the prayer of others?

There is no easy answer to this question. We could note that these three payers are surely not an exhaustive list of the prayers Hezekiah prayed in his lifetime, and may only be those prayers in which the response of the Lord was evident and immediate, but this is not a idea that gives us move encouragement. In the end I must confess that I have no idea how prayer works, and why there is at least the appearance that it works differently for some than for others; I only know that it works for me. I have through prayer experienced the power of the presence of the Living God. I do not think myself special in this regard. Just as I have faith that prayer will work for me, I believe it will also work for you.

Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. (Psalms 37:3-7 KJV)

 

The Bread of Adversity

The Bread of Adversity

Isaiah Chapters 24-31

 

The Day of the Lord

In the previous lesson we introduced the concept of the “Day of the Lord” and acknowledged the extensive influence of the idea throughout the Old Testament prophets and even into New Testament discussions. In the previous lesson, the concept was introduced to us as a cruel day of wrath and fierce anger (13:9). These words do not fit the idea we have established for ourselves of a God who dispenses wrath with dispassion and with a reluctance we will gratefully accept for ourselves and hatefully reject for others. Yet even when we are calling forth the wrath of God on those we believe most deserve it, we would shy away from the idea that God could be cruel. We began to move towards an understanding of this “cruel day” by acknowledging that descriptions of God in human terms always miss the mark. Just as the power, majesty, and love of God are beyond human description, perhaps our ideas of anger and wrath fail even more.

The Day of the Lord continues as a dominant theme in the chapters we are given for the current lesson. As before, the day is described as completely devastating. The introductory passage of Chapter 24 (24:1-3) tells us quite plainly that the devastation of that day will be for all the inhabitants of the earth, with exception for no one. Introduced in that passage and elaborated in the following verses (24:4-6) is the idea that the earth itself will be stricken This is the first of several connections between our passage and the book of Romans, where Paul tells us that the entirety of creation is afflicted by our sin, and eagerly awaits redemption as we do ourselves (Romans 8:19-22).

The devastation of that day is further described in verses 17-23, which tell of the judgment of God on both heaven and earth. The beginning verses of that section, which describe the dual threat of the pit and the snare, are similar in spirit to the the verse in Amos (Amos 5:19) where the afflicted will escape one danger only to be captured by another.

A Covenant with Death

There are in our passage a number of references to the guilt of the people which justified the wrath of their God. There is, to begin with the “covenant with death” that the people have established by making a lie their refuge (28:15). The explanation of this strange covenant is seen in later verses (31:1-3) where we find that some of the people had put their trust in the wealth and power of Egypt. It is the wisdom of this world to trust the things of this world, but there is only one source of Truth, and one source of Life (John 14:6).

As the people put their faith in the passing things of this world, they continued to “give lip service” to the Lord (29:13-16). While they worshiped the Lord with their mouths, they had their own plans in mind. Though there are those who claim that God is an invention of the human mind, God knows this is not true. It is ridiculous (though not uncommon) for us to raise ourselves to the place of God (Romans 9:20-21) or to lower God to the place of men (Jeremiah 23:23-24).

In words which more plainly denounce the people's trust in the ways of this world, the Lord also establishes an interesting connection between the people's guilt and their punishment (30:12-17). The very oppression and deceit on which the people had relied would be turned upon them. Their punishment for reliance on the things of this world was that they only had the things of this world on which to rely.

To add to this idea, there is the idea of the “precious cornerstone” (28:16). This is the stone that is both the sanctuary and the stumbling block (8:14-15). It is the stone the builders reject, which has become the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22-24). It is the stone that may cause us to stumble or make us secure (Romans 9:32-33). It is the stone we can build upon or be crumbled under (Matthew 21:42-44).

The Bread of Adversity

In much the same way that the sin becomes the reward of the sinner, and the stone is both the stumbling block and the head of the corner, in these chapters the Day of the Lord is both a day of devastation and a day of redemption. The refrain “in that day” introduces both terror and comfort. It is the day when death will be swallowed up in victory (25:6-9; 1 Corinthians 15:54; Revelation 21:4). It is a day when God has heard our murmured prayers and all memory of the former day is gone (26:12-17; Romans 8:26). It is a day when a new song is sung for the vineyard (5:1-7; 27:2-6). It is a day when all of creation will be redeemed (30:23-26). It is not only a day that is to come, but a day that has always been (25:1-4).

Whenever any one of us is separated from God, the Lord God Almighty, the Creator of all the earth and everyone who walks the face of it, that same God longs to be reunited with us. This is the justice of God (30:18-20) who in our adversity gives us the Bread of Life (John 6:51) and in our affliction gives us Living Water (Revelation 7:17).

Isaiah and the Nations

Isaiah and the Nations

Isaiah Chapters 13-23

Against the Nations

The psalm found in Isaiah Chapter 12 marks the end of a major section of the book which dealt directly with the fate of the people of Judah. The section assigned for the current lesson deals most directly with the nations surrounding Judah. Whereas in the previous section the nations were tools employed in the plan of God for Israel (8:6-8, for example) the overt theme of the current chapters is one of the inescapable plan of God for all nations.

The nations specifically mentioned in these chapters are Babylon (13:1;17-19) Assyria (14:24-25) Moab (15:1-3) Damascus (17:1-3) Cush (18:1) Egypt (19:1) and Tyre (23:1). This collection of prophecies regarding the enemies of Israel is similar to that found in Jeremiah (Jeremiah 46:1-3; 47:1-3; 48:1, etc.) and in Ezekiel (Ezekiel 25:1-2, 8, 12, 15, etc.). In fact, the word of God through Isaiah concerning Moab (16:6-11) is very similar to the word sent through Jeremiah (Jeremiah 48:29-36). In addition to these three extended passages in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel there are shorter passages in Amos (Amos 1:1-3, 9-13) and in Zephaniah (Zephaniah 2:9-13).

It is unlikely that these sections represent chronologically-connected prophecies. That is, they do not represent a phase in the ministry of the prophet that was directed to the nations. Instead, these prophecies are grouped thematically to indicate the role the nations will play in the coming “Day of the Lord.”

A Cruel Day

The concept of the “Day of the Lord” is central to Jewish prophecy. The idea is spoken of in Jeremiah (Jeremiah 46:10) Ezekiel (Ezekiel 30:1-3) Joel (Joel 2:1-2) Amos (Amos 5:18-20) Obadiah (Obadiah 1:15) Zephaniah (Zephaniah 1:14) and Malachi (Malachi 4:5-6). Though he does not use the title “The Day of the Lord” Jesus also speaks of that day (Mark 13:1-8). His answer to the disciples who ask when the day will come seems paradoxical, for he says that there are obvious signs for us to read (Mark 13:28-29) but on he also says that no one, not even he, knows when it will happen (Mark 13:32).

In our passage on the nations, the prophet speaks of this day as a cruel day of wrath and fierce anger (13:9). We have no trouble with the concept of the wrath of God (as long as it is directed to someone else) but there is something theologically troubling with the anger of God. As we understand anger, it is an emotional state that might be justified and that is used to justify behavior that would otherwise not be acceptable. Further, if you are the one who made me angry, then I can blame my unacceptable behavior on you.

If wrath might be somewhat understandable and anger somewhat troublesome, the idea of God being cruel goes beyond all our understanding. In fact, the Bible itself decries cruelty. When Jacob was an old man near death, he called his sons to him to offer then his blessings and to speak prophecy to them. The words Jacob offered to Simeon and Levi (Genesis 49:5-7) are striking in their similarity to the description Isaiah gives of the Day of the Lord – that is, behavior which the Bible says is unacceptable in us is acceptable in God. That difference in itself (the difference between human behavior and divine behavior) is the key to understanding the “cruelty” of the Day of the Lord.

Strike Them and Heal Them

In earlier chapters we noted the motif of the outstretched hand of the Lord (see 5:25, for example). Amid the prophecy against Assyria, the motif reappears (14:26-27) along with the statement that the judgment of the Lord is not just for Assyria (the current context) or Judah (the previous context) but part of a plan for the entire world. We hear more of this plan in the oracle against Egypt, where the refrain of “in that day” abruptly shifts from one of judgment to one of salvation (19:19-25). In this passage, the prophet says of God's interaction with Egypt “He will strike them and he will heal them.” This is not the capricious action of a fickle god, but the inseparable judgment and love of the Lord God Almighty.

The words of this passage are worth particular consideration. The word translated “turn” in the NIV and “return” in the KJV is the same root word which is elsewhere translated “repent”, and it is one half of an illustrative word pair. The word for translated as “sin” means, roughly, “to miss the mark”. This is powerfully simple: we know what is right, but we fail to do it. The word for “repent” means to turn around, or to return. As such is more than admission of sin, more than being sorry for the sin, but to turn away from the sin and toward God.

Another word we must consider is the one (and, yes, it is only one word) translated “will respond to their pleas” in the NIV and “shall be entreated of” in the KJV. The verb is the same verb which is elsewhere interpreted as “pray” or “entreat” but in this case the verb is applied to the Lord, indicating that the Lord will respond to the prays of the people. The ESV makes the point even more strongly when it says that the Lord “will listen to their pleas for mercy…” The word “mercy” is important here because it is what is missing from the more disturbing passages regarding the Day of the Lord. The most disturbing word applied to that day is “cruel” but we must understand the meaning of the word in this context. We may understand cruelty as something sadistic, taking pleasure in the cruel treatment of others, but the word also means to act without mercy. When we speak of mercy in human terms, their may be little difference between those who show mercy and those who do not, but to be separated from the love of God is a terrible thing.

This is the Plan

In Romans (11:11-12) Paul tells us that even the rejection of God by the people of Israel did not alter the plan of God. Israel is still not beyond redemption, and God has used their rejection to benefit the entire world. Isaiah preaches a similar message: there are bad things happening, and horrible things to come, but no situation is beyond the redemption of God.

In a lesson of what it means to turn the other cheek, when Joseph's brothers had sold him into slavery, Joseph could not be angry with them, because what they intended for evil, God intended for good (Genesis 50:18-20).

Immanuel

Immanuel

Isaiah Chapters 7-12

 

The Nature of Prophecy

The chapters we are given for our lesson today contain many powerful passages with which we are very familiar, even though we are more familiar with them in the context of their New Testament fulfillment, rather than their Old Testament origin. We are, for instance very familiar with the prophecy of the birth of Christ:

Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14b KJV)

The Old Testament context, however (Isaiah 7:10-15) is less familiar to us. For those of us who are familiar with the New Testament context, it is very striking that in its original context, the prophecy is very clearly given as a sign to Ahaz as a sign which would be fulfilled in his lifetime. In the context of Isaiah, the term that is translated “virgin” simply means “young woman.” It is not until the sign is interpreted in the New Testament context (Matthew 1:18-25) that the idea of “virgin birth” is applied.

What, then, is the nature of prophecy? A prophet is one who speaks to us the word of God to us, and sometimes one who speaks to God on our account. This dual role began with Abraham (Genesis 20:1-7) who spoke freely with God and in whom God established tradition for many generations to come. But how does prophecy work? If Isaiah's prophecy of the child that was to be born is so important to us today, why is it that the prophecy of the Lord whistling for flies and using a hired razor almost meaningless to us? (Isaiah 7:18-25)

Today we are called a people of the Book. We believe in that scripture is the true word of God, sufficient for salvation. But we cannot limit God to this book, and certainly not to our understanding of it (John 21:25). Even the Bible is a thing of this world which came into being and may pass away, but the Word of God always been and will always be (John 1:1-5; Isaiah 40:8; Mark 13:31). Who knows if we may see the prophecy of the hired razor fulfilled in our lifetime, either to all of us as a nation or to any of us individually? The word of God is not letters on a page which are printed today and discarded tomorrow, but as active, unchanging presence in our lives.

The Zeal of the Lord Almighty

Chapter 9 also begins with a very familiar passage (9:2-7). And again, the Old Testament context of the passage, as expressed in the middle section, is not so familiar to us. In this passage, the prophet speaks with such confidence in the word of the Lord that he presents his message in the present tense, so that a child is born, and a son is given. A word from the Lord is a deed already done. But the zeal of the Lord is a sword which cuts both ways, and though the prophet speaks with assurance the blessings that are already real, he speaks as assuredly of the judgment which is at hand. This judgment is expressed in the refrain of a motif introduced in Chapter 5 (verse 25) and repeated throughout Chapter 9 and into Chapter 10 (9:12; 9:17; 9:21; 10:4).

Chapter 11 begins with more familiar passages (11:1-9) which reemphasizes the inseparable nature of the love of God and the judgment of God. The same righteousness that condemns the powerful will redeem the needy and the judgment which destroys the wealthy will support the poor. In that day, the balance of the earth itself, destroyed in the Garden of Eden will be restored by the full knowledge of the Lord, as waters that cover the sea (Romans 8:22).

Immanuel

The entirety of Chapter 12 is a psalm to the Lord, whose anger has become comfort This is a reminder that the unchanging love of God is a terror to those who reject it, and the strength of those who accept it. This chapter also speaks of the power of the very name of God, which in Old Testament time was held in such high regard that it did not even have a spoken form. In consideration of the import placed on names in the time of Isaiah, we should consider the way names are used in the book of Isaiah.

In Chapter 8 we are given a reminder of the earlier statement “Here am I. Send me!” (6:8) as Isaiah says “Here I am, and the children the Lord has given me. We are signs and symbols…” (8:18) And so we have the name “Isaiah” which means “Yahweh is Salvation.” Isaiah's two sons also have symbolic names: the name of the older son (which means “a remnant will”) is symbolic of the prophecy that a remnant of the people will turn again to God and be saved. The name of the younger son (quick plunder, swift spoil) is more enigmatic and not so easily understood.

Then, of course, there is the name “Immanuel” which means “God is with us”. In fact, in the passage in Isaiah 8:6-10 we see the same word used first as a name and then as a benediction. As we have already seen, the Gospel of Matthew (1:22-23) tells us that the birth of Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of the one who will be called Immanuel.

There is some similarity in the names, even though they do not sound at all alike to us. “Jesus” is the English form of the Latin rendering of the Greek translation of the Hebrew name that is spelled (in English letters) “Yehoshua”. The name “Joshua” is the English version of the same name. That is, “Jesus” and “Joshua” are both English forms of the same name. The former is used in New Testament settings (which come to us by way of Greek and Latin) and the latter in Old Testament settings (which come to us more directly from the Hebrew). In any case, the name (“Jesus” or “Joshua”) means “The Lord Saves.”

Was Matthew simply stretching the point a bit by telling us the name “Jesus” and the name “Immanuel” had meanings similar enough that the former name could fulfill the prophecy in regard to the latter? I think not. Matthew was well-acquainted with Old Testament prophecy, as evidenced by the more than forty references found in his gospel to the way Jesus fulfilled the prophecy concerning the Christ. Instead, I think Matthew was telling us something new. We have already mentioned that, in the setting in Isaiah, the reference to the “virgin” was not intended to indicate virgin birth. Further, the Jewish scholars and teachers did not (and still do not) see the passage in Isaiah as having messianic import.

However Isaiah may have understood his own prophecy and however it may have been understood until the time of Christ, it is through the witness of Matthew that we understand the prophecy of Isaiah as fulfilled in the life of Jesus, and we are able to call our Lord “Immanuel, Wonderful Counselor, the Prince of Peace.”