Sneak Preview (Isaiah 24:1-23)

Introduction

Have you ever watched a movie preview or a movie trailer and think it's going to be a great movie only to find out that all the good elements of the movie were found in the trailer? That everything else was just filler in order to make it last 90-120 minutes?

Trailer: 3. (Movies) A short film consisting primarily of one or more short portions of a film, used in promotions or advertisements shortly before initial release of a film.

God's prophecies are not at all like that. In fact, the details of the actual events depicted in the prophecies are far more graphic and detailed than the previews ever could be.

A Recurring Theme (Isaiah 24:1-13)

Chapter Summary: The Earth Laid Waste; Peoples Scattered; No Distinction of Rank (1-3)

In chapters 13-23, Isaiah has prophesied about every conceivable nation in the vicinity of Judah. All were going to see devastation and destruction.

Even Judah would be exiled for 70 years and their land utterly devastated.

But even these events were mere shadows of what was to come.

They were brought about by the same principal – the Lord Almighty. But they pale in comparison to something yet to come.

In fact, there is a pattern that we see from history, don't we. We see that nations, even those that have God-honoring beginnings, but who reject God and His commands, eventually come under judgment by God and are no longer powerful forces in the world.

And we saw that cyclically with Israel. From our vantage point, the final blow came when Rome stepped in and sacked Jerusalem in 70 AD.

But all this to say that these were mere previews with common elements.

Man in rebellion to God and His laws becomes steeped in sin and turning to every form of self-gratifying acts corrupts the land that God has graciously given to live. The result is a continual furthering from the things of God until God brings about the natural consequences through His judgment.

And the pattern goes on until the end of time. The players are often different and most times think that their ideas are somehow novel.

But as Solomon said, “...there is nothing new under the sun.”

Sin is still sin and man still falls prey to the deceitfulness of his own sin and corrupts all that he comes in contact with.

So whether this chapter has one or more fulfillment in history, there are varied opinions on that. The point is that ultimately this cycle of rebellion, corruption, retribution, and renewal will eventually come to an end.

And only God knows the time. It may be this year or it may be in 1000's of years. It is not for us to know the time, we are just here to heed the warnings.

We have the privilege of learning (hopefully) from the disasters of others.

And so in this beginning 3 verses, Isaiah lays out a summary of the remainder of the passage.

1. The earth will be devastated and ruined.

2. People of all rank in life will be affected.

3. And it is the Lord's utterance so it is a sure thing.

The reasons behind all this become evident as the chapter unfolds.

The preceding chapters were a whirlwind of calamitous events but shadows of a final calamitous event. They were localized to the nations, but there is coming an event that is broad and all-inclusive.

The previews match the pattern but only on a smaller scale.

So, unlike a movie preview that leaves you guessing, God has spelled out the events and throughout He has been clear in pointing out what He was judging and why it was such an offense.

In verses 4-6, the prophet moves into some language that begins to explain, in descriptive terms, the apocalypse to come.

Earth Dries Up; Exalted Languish; Earth Defiled By Disobedient People; Earth Cursed; People Bear Guilt (4-6)

[Read 4-6]

The drying up of the earth gives the idea that it is wilting and wasting away.

Genesis 1:11-13:

11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

What had once been created to produce all types of vegetation is now beginning to shrivel.

Whether global warming is real or political at this point, in the future the condition of the earth will be decidedly less conducive to yielding crops.

In fact, the end of this created order will be “a burning up by fire” and then a recreation of this creation, but without the curse that exists.

And so he uses this word languish for both the earth as well as the exalted of the earth.

Languish means to wilt, become weak, to lose strength or animation, become dull, feeble or spiritless.

In other words, it loses the vibrancy it was created with.

The same will be true with the “exalted of the earth”, those who were of high rank. Or the great things of the earth will become as nothing.

One might ask, why is this? What is the root cause? Is there anything that can be done to prevent this from happening?

Those responsible for these calamities and the condition of the earth are the people of the earth.

Ah ha, one might say, exploitation of natural resources. Over mining. Clear-cutting. Reduction in the rain forests. Etc., etc., etc.

I am not going to excuse the misuse of what God has created. But that is not the concern here.

It was never God's intention that man mistreat His creation or use it in any way he desires. We were given the task of tending the land and caring for it.

And Christians should be the best stewards of what God has created.

But the issue is not exploitation but sin.

Disobeyed The Laws, Statutes, Everlasting Covenant

And more specifically it is disobedience to God's laws, violation of statutes, and breaking the everlasting covenant.

Certainly Judah was sent into exile due to their disregard for God's laws and statutes. They had broken the covenant God had made with them. One in which He said if you fail to keep everything written in the law, the land will spew you out.

Leviticus 18:24-28:

24 “‘Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. 25 Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. 26 But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, 27 for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. 28 And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

But not just Israel. All humanity, whether they were under the Old Covenant or not, are subject to God's law.

The laws may well depict what Paul talks about in Romans 2:14-15:

14 For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.
15 They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them

So whether Jew or Gentile, all people are responsible for the defilement of the land in this passage.

All the coming destruction was due to a disregard of God.

As verse 6 points out, the people of the earth are consumed and burned up. They must bear their guilt.

We as humans are moral creatures. We are the only creatures on the face of this earth capable of sinning.

And we bear the responsibility for the corruption of the created order by disregarding God and His law.

And so, like there were in 586 BC, so there will be at the end of time – very few left. Very few survivors.

This theme at the end of verse 6 is reiterated in verse 13. In that verse he points out that like shaken olive trees or gleanings after a harvest, so will the remaining peoples be.

It's as if the coming calamity was to shake the tree or harvest the grapes and put them into the winepress of God's wrath as Revelation 14:19 says:

So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

Who's to blame? The moral agents of this created order, humanity.

Not only is the earth going to be devastated, but the things that man found pleasure in will all come to a halt.

Wine Dries Up; No Merrymaking or Joyous Singing (7-9)

He goes back to this theme that showed up back in chapter 5, “The song of the Vineyard”. The idea that man's pleasure and enjoyment was wrapped up in hedonistic pursuits. And if that is where happiness is found, there will be no happiness or joy in that day.

In Jeremiah 7:34, he is prophesying about the coming exile to Babylon and he writes these words:

And I will silence in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, and the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, for the land shall become a waste.

How can joy exist apart from God? Lasting joy cannot. Those who find their happiness in what this world offers will be sorely disappointed. If not now, one day.

Where is your happiness found? Is it bound up in things that will eventually decay, dry up, and blow away?

City Ruined; Houses Barred; No Joy Only Gloom; Gates Battered (10-12)

The city is in question. There are those who believe this refers to Jerusalem and that this pictures the destruction under Babylonian captivity.

Some believe it is also a picture of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Others believe this is a depiction of just some generic city representative of the state of rebellious human civilization.

It may be a bit of all these. As I mentioned at the beginning of this lecture, the themes in this chapter are repeated over and over throughout history.

The idea is that either all houses are empty or they are barred due to fear.

Whatever the case is, there is a lack of normality. What used to be a city that thrived and was filled with throngs of jubilant people is now like a ghost town.

There is no joy to be found. Their is gloom in its place.

The end of verse 11 says that gaiety is banished from the earth. All reason to celebrate and party no longer exists. And even the ability is no longer there.

The city is in ruins and there are no gates. The very fortresses that made this a secure place to live and enjoy life are not present anymore.

Few Olives Few Gleaning – So the Earth (13)

He wraps up this section with a synopsis restating that this applies to the earth and the nations.

Principle: Everything corrupted by sin is subject to God's devastation.

Illustration:

Common cold. Caused by a number of different viruses, rhinovirus being the most common. Not a bacteria so anti-bacterial soaps are not better than normal soap. Best prevention, don't come in contact with the virus.

There are seasons and places where the virus is more common. Enclosed in places where others have the virus raises the likelihood of exposure.

Frequent hand washing reduces the likelihood of contamination by 20%.

Applications:

1. How are you exposing yourself to things that lead you into sin?

2. What do you need to do in order to “keep you hands clean” from the contaminants that are so pervasive in our culture?

   
   

A Fitting Intermission (Isaiah 24:14-16a)

True to form, this chapter has a section that glimmers hope. In the midst of all the destruction, corruption, and devastation, there is rejoicing.

Like most of the preceding 23 chapters, Isaiah brings out this elevated theme of the Lord and His salvation. He is the exalted and there is no other.

Singing and Rejoicing to the Lord – Widespread (14-16a)

This joy is coming from the voices of those referred to as “they”. The they is not pointed out specifically, but it certainly is not the ones destroyed by the previous destruction.

The subject of their joy is not of the same type depicted earlier. This is not induced by wine or beer.

This is rejoicing to acclaim the Lord's majesty (v 14), to give glory to the Lord (v 15), to exalt the Lord God of Israel (v 15) and to sing “Glory to the Righteous One.” (v 16).

Smack in the middle of this chapter filled with defilement and sin and corruption, God emerges exalted, glorious, and righteous.

This is a celebration, not of the glory of man or just the enjoyment of life, it is a celebration of the Lord.

It is giving acclaim to the one due acclaim. This is the enthusiastic approval of people who truly revere the Lord.

The motive is to exalt God who is by definition the exalted One. This is truth being spoken in the truest sense.

This is fulfillment of what Jesus said, “A time is coming and is now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth”.

Worship is giving God his due for who He is.

As is the usual custom, the previous section talked about the exalted of the earth languishing. Withering and fading.

But here is the One who is truly exalted. Not because of man's acclaim, but because of the reality of things.

Glory will be given to the Righteous One.

Who are the 'they' being referred to?

Well certainly this could be the remnant of Israel after the exile. They would fall into this general category of they. They certainly had a different view of the Lord than those idolatrous people prior to the exile.

They rejoiced in the Lord when they returned to Zion to rebuild the temple and later the wall.

But it could be those who have experienced new life in Christ. It most certainly includes them (and those of us who are in Christ). Who are a new creation.

Those who have entered through the narrow gate as Jesus said. For he is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father but through Him.

He is the door through which all must enter in order to draw near to the Father.

Only in him can anyone truly rejoice in the Father and give glory to the Righteous One.

And one day, when Christ returns in all his glory. The heavens will melt away. The elements will be burned up by fire. Then the redeemed of God will forever rejoice in the salvation wrought by the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Will you be in that number, exalting the Righteous One? Giving glory to God alone?

Are you giving glory where glory is due now? Has anyone heard you acclaim God lately?

How are you leading your family to see God as high and exalted?

Principle: True and lasting joy can only be found in the Lord.

An Action-packed Conclusion (Isaiah 24:16b-23)

It almost seems as though Isaiah is taking these deep breaths. As he proclaims the judgment, he is exhaling for a long period of time and then suddenly he inhales and their are these glimmers of hope. People are actually responding to God in a proper way. Giving Him what is rightfully His – praise and adoration.

But then, as we come to the end of verse 16, it seems that he is faced with the scene around him. He comes back to the present and begins to live out what the message previously had been portraying. He is wasting away.

Terror, Pit, and Snare Await the Treacherous of the Earth (16b-18a)

The reality for Isaiah, as it is for all generations, the wickedness of man continues on.

The treacherous betray. That is what they do. But so is the natural consequence of that sin.

He uses this idea that there is a payment coming and he uses the word, terror, pit and snare.

As if it was just a matter of time and they would be just like a hunted animal. First terrified by something. Essentially scared into a pit.

And just when they think they are safely out of danger because they got out of the pit, they are ensnared.

In other words, it is only a matter of time before the wicked will meet their end. They will face judgment.

Floodgates Opened; Earth Split, Shaken From Guilt of Rebellion (18b-20)

In verses 18b-20, Isaiah uses apocalyptic language that sounds similar to what happened when God judged the wickedness of man with a flood.

When he wiped out the human race – all but 8 – Noah and his family.

At the end of verse 20 he talks about it falling never to rise again. It will be utterly destroyed.

And why? Due to the guilt that is upon it. The rebellion of man against God is so great that God will destroy the earth and everything in it.

And it will never rise again. It is not a temporary thing.

Jesus says, in Matthew 24:37, “As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”

He goes on to talk about man's attitudes will be the same. He will think he is okay. The increase in wickedness will begin to crescendo toward the end of the age.

But it will certainly not go unaccounted for.

You know, it's amazing to me that God puts up with things as long as He does. It is hard to conceive of One so long suffering as He is.

But that long suffering, patience of God should not be misconstrued as indifference toward the happenings in this world. Nothing goes unnoticed and all will taken into account eventually.

Listen to the words of the Apostle Peter from 2 Peter 3:2-7:

2 I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.

3 First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

Heavenly and Earthly Powers Punished (21-22)

Not only will human wickedness come to an end, but God will judge the “prince of the power of the air”.

The one Paul describes in Ephesians 6:10-12:

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

The day of the Lord will bring judgment both to humanity as well as to Satan and his demons. When Christ returns, they will be cast into the place that God prepared for them, “the lake of fire”.

And there they will be bound for eternity, never to deceive mankind again.

For when God recreates the heaven and earth, nothing will exist that is corruptible. And there will be no defilement or anything to defile or deceive every again.

No temptation or remembrance of evil will exist.

Which leads to the last verse.

Sun and Moon Ashamed; The Lord Reigns on Mount Zion (23)

The sun and moon will be ashamed.

In other words, their light will be no comparison to the light of life.

They will not be needed when the Lord Almighty reigns gloriously.

Revelation 22:1-5 puts it like this:

1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

This anthropomorphism is befitting. The One who created these “great lights” is now the light. And they are ashamed of their light in his presence.

This will be a time of endless rejoicing. A time of continual fulfillment and satisfaction. A time when true completeness is realized. The way we were created will be realized when we are in the new heaven and new earth. When we are clothed in incorruptibility. And our human nature is no longer influenced by our fallen Adamic nature.

Principle: Where the Lord reigns, there is no room for sin or corruption.

Illustration:

How ought we to live?

2 Peter 3:10-13:

10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.[b] That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

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We must spur each other on, love and good works; don't forsake gathering together – no “Lone Ranger” Christians. We need to put "feet" on the gifts that the Holy Spirit gives those who belong to Christ.

Hebrews 10:19-24:

19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Our Lord could return at any moment. Are you ready for His return?

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18:

13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18Therefore encourage each other with these words.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11:

1 Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Applications:

1. In light of God's soon return, how are you living? For whom are you living?

2. How are you encouraging other believers to live as you fellowship with them in your Church?

3. Are you involved in a local church? If not why not? We all need accountability, godly leadership, feeding, fellowship, etc.

Conclusion

We don't know the day or hour of our Lord's return. But we have a preview of the events.

We know history and it's fulfillment, showing God to be true to His word.

The end will come. Are you ready?

How can anyone be ready for such destruction?

Rejoice

As I was reading this week's text, Isaiah 24:1-23, I couldn't help but think of Psalm 107 where the repeated refrain reminds the redeemed of the Lord to give thanks to the Lord for His love endures forever.

Requirements Analysis (Isaiah 15-23)

Introduction

Software requirements and requirements analysis is an important aspect of any software project. Requirements define what the software is suppose to do. Without them, there is no way of knowing when a project is complete or whether a completed project does what it is supposed to do.

I have written fair amount of communication protocol software. The protocol specification defines, down to the bit level, what is required to successfully interface to a remove system. Certainly I can ignore some of the specs, but sooner or later, something catastrophic will result. An application will crash. Employers will be irked or worse.

There is always an end user of every software application and often they are also the ones that specify the initial requirements of the project. And they are the ones most interested in the end results as well.

As I was reading through this section of Isaiah this week, I wished I had completed the application that I keep wishing I had -- "lecto-generator". It provides a text box for entering a Scripture reference, a couple of check boxes (one labeled “Good Illustrations” another labeled “Applicable to Life”) and then a single button labeled “Render” which, when pressed, generates a great, practical, and easy to remember
lecture.

Instead, I moved and fertilized the lawn and when I came inside had this requirements idea.

Ultimately, you and I are responsible to One primary customer for our lives. That One is the Lord, the Lord Almighty. He is the primary one from whom we receive instructions for life. We have the technical specification in the Scriptures. And certainly there are dynamics that we will come across throughout the pathways of life. But always we must keep in our sights the fact that He is the one we are working for as His people.

And so I have taken this long passage and chosen to look at God and how this passage portrays certain characteristics of Him.

Then I move on to look at Isaiah as the man called by God to go with God's message. I want to use his attitude and example to illustrate similar things that God's people should consider today.

And finally I want to look at the message that God gave to His servant and how that message is relevant even today.

The Lord, the LORD Almighty (Isaiah 15-23)

When in doubt, look for descriptions of God in Isaiah. Above all else, the Bible is a book in which God reveals himself to mankind. It is the only place we see that plan of God to redeem his covenant people – both in the Old and New Testaments. We come face to face with a Loving, Righteous, Holy, Sovereign, Just and Compassionate God. Slow to anger and abounding in mercy.

So that's where we will begin tonight, with the Lord, the LORD Almighty.

This will be three-pass lecture in an effort to point out three interdependent aspects of this lesson. (I apologize to those who were interested in a geography lesson or a lesson on the fulfillment of prophecy)

1) Faithful

[Read 17:4-6, 7]
In spite of the unfaithfulness of God's covenant people, God remains faithful to that covenant.
V6, The LORD, the God of Israel. He still identifies himself with his own.
That is true with His covenant people in the Old Testament and it is true with His covenant people in the new.
There are times when we ask, “Where is God in this? Why is He silent? Why do I feel so alone?”
But God has not moved. Verse 7 tells us that in that day they will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel.
It wasn't that God had moved, but that man was not looking to Him.
He is faithful to His word and to all His promises.
In verse 10, God points out that YHWH is their God, their Savior, their Rock and fortress.
[Prudential commercial]
But they had forgotten God, not the other way around.
God is often silent and His silence can have two effects. One is that man might seek him diligently. The other is that man becomes
complacent or doubtful and completely forgets God.
18:4 points this aspect of God's silence out. [Read 18:4]
But He, above all things is always faithful in every aspect to His divine nature. He will never do anything (and cannot do anything)
that is contrary to His divine nature.

2) Sovereign

When we think about sovereignty we think about someone who has all control over the events that are under his authority.

This is no less true when we speak of God except that there is nothing that is not under His divine authority.

This does not mean that God causes all things to happen. But this does mean that God causes all things to work according to His divine purpose and plan.

He is in control. He is not a reactive God but the LORD Almighty. The Most High.

He is All-wise and All-knowing. He is Omniscient.

When we talk of His power we use the term 'omnipotent'. Omni meaning all and potent meaning power. And in fact all power in creation is derived from Him.

He is the creator of all things and in Him all things hold together.

So how do these passages point out the Purposeful Plans of God and His divine Authority and Omnipotent Power to carry them out?

I suppose a better (and easier) question would be, how do they not show these things?

But we will look at a couple of the ways they do point this out.

First of all, from chapter 15-23, every one of these disastrous outcomes for the nations are a direct result of God's hand at work in judging these peoples.

None of the foretelling was some form of vague probabilistic predictions. Instead they are clearly pointed out as acts of God, planned and carried out to His specification.

Over and over we see the ending of sections, “declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.”

This is the signature and seal of the King of the universe. It is His edict and it bears His divine signature.

We also see over and over how God takes the things that each of the nations had relied upon, i.e., their gods, and He confounds them.

Take Egypt for example.

Verse 19:1 says that the “idols of Egypt tremble before him, and the hearts of the Egyptians melt within them.

This is a description of God's supreme authority even over the godless.

God is not sovereign merely over those who acknowledge Him, He is sovereign over all of His creation.

In verse 2, God stirs up the people in the nation so that there's infighting. I am not sure how much unity their had been in that nation, but certainly their civilization had survived for 1000's of years. They had such advances that there must have been a sense of unity, but not when God says otherwise.

They were a people that prided themselves in their wisdom and their wise men. But God will confound that in verse 3.

You see, all that man sets up as a god is subject to destruction because God is the only God. He is Sovereign and cannot allow another to take His place.

And no other can!

Every chapter of this 9-chapter collection is filled with examples of God's sovereign will being accomplished in His way and according to His timing.

3) Grace & Mercy

Grace and mercy don't mean the same thing although they are related. They both deal with what man does and does not deserve.

Mercy is God not giving what is deserved. Without God's mercy, we all would be consumed. Sin deserves immediate and complete condemnation.

So God's patience with sinful man is a merciful thing. Many of these nations had lived for 100's of years in rebellion and obstinacy toward God. And He withheld the punishment due.

And He also shows mercy in these chapters toward those that turn in repentance to Him. There's a remnant of Jews and Gentiles that ultimately come by faith to the One who saves.

And Grace is God giving something that is undeserved. We see that in the beginning of chapter 16, offering the invitation to Moab to bring lambs to Zion.

But His grace is often rejected.

We see the Lord providing for His people, Jew and Gentile, one from the house of David to judge in justice and righteousness.

You and I know that to be Jesus Christ. The One who rules and reigns in the hearts of His covenant people.

He is the one through whom his covenant people obtain mercy. For the punishment for our sin was upon him.

And God's grace to his people is made available only through this One who fulfilled the righteous requirements of the the law.

In Him we have redemption through his blood.

In 17:7,8 we see men looking to their Maker once again and repenting of idolatry. God's grace at work.

In 18:7, Cush will bring gifts to Mount Zion. Figurative of a people entering into a covenant relationship with God. Not by their goodness or own righteousness, but due to God's grace to them.

19:18-25, Shows a beautiful picture of the unity found in Christ. These nations who had undergone such judgment by God will cry out to God.

His judgment was an act of mercy to drive them to the only One who could save them by His grace.

Egypt being a place where an alter to God is set up. Symbolizing the true worship of YHWH.

And in addition, two nations who were hostile to each other are at peace (3 nations actually), Egypt, Assyria, and Israel.

This evokes to me a picture of what God has brought about in Christ. He has fulfilled this promise in that in Him their is neither Jew nor Greek, Slave nor Free, Male nor Female. All human distinctions and hostilities are done away with at the cross of Jesus Christ.

God's grace and mercy in bringing about the salvation of His people.

Larenelle Harris wrote a song, “Were It Not For Grace.” It is a song of thanks to the Lord for His unspeakable gift:

Time measured out my days

Life carried me along

In my soul I yearned to follow God

But knew I’d never be so strong

I looked hard at this world

To learn how heaven could be gained

Just to end where I began

Where human effort is all in vain

Chorus

Were it not for grace

I can tell you where I’d be

Wandering down some pointless road to nowhere

With my salvation up to me

I know how that would go

The battles I would face

Forever running but losing this race

Were it not for grace

So here is all my praise

Expressed with all my heart

Offered to the Friend who took my place

And ran a course I could not start

And when He saw in full

Just how much His love would cost

He still went the final mile between me and heaven

So I would not be lost

4) Just

God is Just. His character demands justice.

He is not carrying out judgments against man because He likes to see the wicked suffer. He is bringing about the just payment due all who reject Him.

God's just judgments have at least two consequences. They stop the schemes of the wicked.

Many of these calamities brought down world powers that were propagating wickedness and peddling it to other nations.

God puts a stop to it. But also it affords an opportunity for man to stop and ponder the consequences of sin. The reflect on life when all of its distractions are stripped away.

When all the things that man had put his hopes in are gone there is only one way to look and that is up.

Up to the One who sovereignly brought about a time of pruning.

And many who look up will see a Just and Righteous God, their own sinfulness, and God's Mercy and Grace. That this Judge is also the Justifier.

That I deserve no less than the full force of His wrath. But He offers life and redemption.

Is there anything in life like God? Is hope found in anything else you and I have around us?

I hope that your hope is found only in this Faithful, Sovereign, Merciful, and Just One – The Lord, the LORD Almighty.

He is the only Rock. The only Salvation. The only Fortress. There is none other!

Principle: Hope can only be found in the One who has the power and authority to give it.

Illustration:

If hope is found only in this life, what kind of hope can the doctor provide if there's only bad news? Where does hope come from when I have no resources to address the issue? Can I assume I ever have the resources to address any issue in life? Or must I always look to my Maker?

Applications:

1. What hope do you find in God's justice?

2. How have you experienced the mercy of God? If you are here tonight, you have experienced it for however long you've been

alive. Have you thanked the Lord lately for being a God of mercy?

3. How has the grace of God impacted your life? How has His grace sustained you lately?

4. In what way are you resisting God's grace?

The Lord's Messenger: Isaiah (Isaiah 15-23)

Just as God is faithful, as we saw in this text this week, He also demands that His messenger remains faithful. Faithful to God's purpose, to His leading, and to the message that He gives. God never gives His messenger liberty to “fly by the seat of the pants” so to speak. He is called to carry out his calling with glorifying the Lord as His primary objective. And secondly seeking to lead others to the Lord through a message of hope and a message of warning.

1) Faithful to His Calling

First, let's deal with the idea of faithfulness to his calling.

At least 8 times in these 9 chapters Isaiah begins a section with the words, “An oracle concerning...”

This word oracle means a burden.

That this was not a light thing that he was bearing. It was not something that was easy for him to do.

But is was his calling and he knew the One who gave him the vision and the message.

It was his cross to bear, so to speak. He did not like being the bearer of bad news but this was what he was called to do.

And I am certain that their was joy in his heart knowing that he was being obedient to the Lord.

And their was joy as well when he was able to point out the hope of salvation found in Messiah.

Of this coming kingdom in which injustice would be forgotten and righteousness would be the characteristic of all who entered in.

And so the oracular message was a burden but a blessing and Isaiah was compelled to faithfully bear this burden.

What has God called you to do for Him? Do you know? If not, when will you begin seeking?

If you know, how faithful are you in that calling? Who are you serving God or people?

2) Faithful to God's Message

[Like a developer doesn't have liberty to alter or deviate from a protocol specification, so God's messenger must be true to God's message]

If you read through this at least once, you could not help but notice that there were some common patterns that emerged as Isaiah presents this material.

Judgment is coming and it will reveal man's false hopes and false gods.

That the Lord, the LORD Almighty has spoken. These are His words and His alone.

There was no deviation from the truth of the message no matter how uncomfortable the message and how dangerous it might have been for the messenger.

There was no lessening the impact in order to draw in the audience. He did not mince words. This is God's word and God has spoken.

These are not my words, they are my burden to bear, but they are the words of my Master.

And they bear the full weight of the Name of God.

They are not valid because I am a renowned prophet. They are valid solely on the basis of God's authority.

And I must not add to or remove from these words of God! Period.

What message has God given you to share with your neighbor, or co-worker, or family? Are you maintaining the integrity of that message?

If you are God's child, then you have a message of hope for this world. That message is that God is Holy, Righteous, and Just. That sin separates man from God. That sin results in death and separation from God. That there is no hope found in any other than the person of Jesus Christ. That no other way can be found to the Father but the one provided in His Son, Jesus Christ. That man is destined to die once and after that face judgment. But that by grace, through faith, comes salvation. It is not a salvation that man can attain. No works can achieve it. That would be unjust. Not by works of righteousness but according to his mercy He saved us by the washing and regeneration of the Holy Spirit.

God Saves!

3) He Lived the Message

The next thing I would like us to consider is the fact that he lived out the message that he brought.

Isaiah is seen weeping with those that weep. Filled with compassion for those who seek salvation in their own devices.

He bears this message to a world who largely will reject that message. And this causes him to weep.

I can't help but think that he may also be recalling his first encounter with God, back in chapter 6. He was confronted with the consuming presence of Almighty God. And he was undone! He could do nothing to respond but fall on his face and confess his wickedness and the sin of his own people.

He saw this same scenario for these people, but without hope. Once their life on earth was over, they were going to face the wrath of God and miss the grace of God that He offers in Messiah.

So there was no attitude of you are sinners and I am not. He didn't partake in their debauchery, but he wept for their lost estate.

He also was called on by God to live out the prophecies in some cases.

If you ever think it is hard to share the gospel with a friend or co-worker, keep Isaiah in mind.

He bore the humiliation of baring himself for 3 years. This is not what God will ever call us to do in our day. But it had a purpose to picture the humiliation that would be upon Cush and Egypt when they were carried into captivity.

We are called by God to be in the world but not of it. We do not have to become like the world, and must not, in order to bring the truth of the gospel message.

Those that you and I talk with should know that we are not perfect. That we have come out of a life of rebellion and animosity toward God. But that by God's grace we saw who He was and what we are and were reconciled to God.

Were it not for grace, you and I would be headed in the same direction as any lost person. Without a care in the world, or so we think.

And so it was with Isaiah, compassion and sympathy for the lost. Those who could care less for the message he had to bring. But he bore it just the same.

4) Faithful to God's Leading

This last section I wanted to cover briefly.

It's the idea that all those that God calls will have the same work to do. That is not true.

It's clear in Scripture that God is the one who plans and sets out the work for us to do.

Isaiah had a unique ministry. There were not many in his day called to a similar task. But that didn't mean he was the only one obeying God.

Each servant of God is answerable to God for what he has done.

I will be answerable for how and what I teach. For the way I have raised my kids. For the way I have witnessed for Christ.

For the way I conduct all the affairs of my life.

And so will you if you are a child of God.

No two servants of God are called to exactly the same task in exactly the same way.

And each better ensure that he is following God and God alone. Not what those around are saying he should do.

This is not to say that we don't seek Godly counsel, but that ultimately we can never say, well so and so was doing this so that's what I did.

Just as Jesus called Peter to follow Him at the end of John. He called the Apostle John to something quite different. Peter was ultimately called to martyrdom. John had another path.

Equally valid. Equally God honoring. But as unique as the person being used by God.

Principle: God's messenger must be faithful to God and His message.

Applications:

1. Where is God leading you? Are you being hesitant?

2. What are you more interested in, winning an argument or winning a soul?

The Lord's Message: Judgment and Salvation (Isaiah 15-23)

Just as the faithfulness of the messenger was essential, without the message, the messenger would be unemployed.

There are two aspects to this message. I will begin by dealing with the aspects of Judgment and why this was important and how it is an essential aspect to the message of Salvation. Then we will move on to Salvation and highlight the hope of this part of the message.

1) Judgment

This message of judgment and impending doom is something that mankind needs to hear. This must never be our only message. And we should not have a cavalier attitude about this aspect of the message.

But Judgment points out fundamental problem with all of humanity. Namely that we are under a sentence of death due to sin.

And that we compound that sentence by seeking to find our hope in created things rather than in our Creator.

All throughout these 9 chapters, Isaiah points out the folly of false gods, false alliances, human wisdom, human ingenuity, personal planning, etc.

The problem for man is that sin has so corrupted us that we think we have the solution to our greatest need but we don't. Our sin causes us to use the good things that a Good God has given to generate sin.

Our minds become a god: wisdom, learning, self-actualization, planning, plotting, etc.

Our ability to reason and think is from God but we use it the scheme and plot and sin against God.

Our wealth becomes a god: God gave man work, the ability to make money, the resources to create stuff.

But often our hope is in what we have and what we can buy rather than in the Giver of every good and perfect gift.

Our nation or leaders become a god: we entrust ourselves to a national identity, to a leader or party, to military might.

But we don't realize that they are placed where they are by the One who can also bring them down.

The list could go on and on. Even those with the most light in their day, Israel, was turning every way but Up to solve their crisis.

It was as if they were saying, we can handle this. But God judges such arrogance and pride.

He does this to take the rightful glory that is due Him and had been squandered on frivolous things. Things that are created rather than the Creator.

And some of us have had to feel the heavy hand of God upon us before we came to our senses. Before we realized what a mess a life of sin yields. But what a gracious and merciful Savior or Lord is.

When He strips away all the trimmings of life that we place our hopes in, suddenly there is clarity. Suddenly the distractions are gone.

Suddenly all hope is lost but the true Hope that is God Himself.

Which leads us to salvation.

2) Salvation

This God who Saves is a God of salvation.

Until man comes to grips with the reality of God, man's sin, and God's wrath, the news of salvation doesn't seem too necessary.

After all, aren't we all pretty good people.

The common message of our day is often seek the Lord for all of His blessings.

If you have marital problems, he will fix your marriage.

If you have illness, he will heal you.

If you have bad self-esteem, he will give you purpose and meaning in life.

If you have [fill in the blank], he will give it.

All these things, God is able to do and more.

But never ought a message about Christ be a message of fulfilling my felt needs.

The message of Salvation deals with man's greatest need. And it is the only message that brings hope to people under God's judgment.

It is the hope of Salvation that God alone has authored and completed.

It is not a multi-step plan. It is a complete surrender under the authority of God alone.

All these nations around Israel were alienated from God. And most of the descendants of Abraham at this time were as well.

But in the middle of each of these sections of God's judgment, He offers a picture of other nations entering into a covenant relationship with God too.

The good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is that we are under God's wrath in our sin. But in Jesus we are made righteous before God. It is a righteousness, not our own, but Christ's righteousness that makes us right before God.

Here is the message of Hope: Christ died for our sins according the Scripture, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scripture.

In Him we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sin.

Even while we were dead in our trespasses and sins, Christ died for us.

If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. The old is gone. Behold the new has come.

Acts 4:12: Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Principle: God's message of hope is found only in Messiah.

Applications:

1. Which aspect of God's message, judgment or salvation, applies to you?

2. How well are you doing at sharing the complete message with those God puts in your path?

Conclusion

We all know who the customer is in this life. Every one of us will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of what we did in this life. We all know what God requires of us. But will we deliver what He requires? That is the question.

Next Post

Though technically this IS my next post, it really is intended to set the timing expectations for my next post. My intention is to write on Isaiah 15-23 some time tonight. In the mean time, I know that some were asking me where the maps I use in my lectures came from. I use a site called Bible Atlas dot org. I hope it is helpful in studying the geography recorded in Isaiah's prophecies.

Checkmate (Isaiah 13:1-14:32)

Introduction
Spiritual aspects of playing chess.
Knights, bishops, rooks, king, queen, pawns
There's a dark kingdom and a light kingdom.
The object of the game is to pursue the opponent until you are able to put the king in checkmate. No further moves are achievable by the opponent.
As the king goes, so goes the kingdom in chess.
Imagine playing chess against a master chess player. One who is always thinking several moves ahead. Anticipating your moves and strategizing how he will respond.

A Pattern Of Judgment (Isaiah 13:1-22)
Brief Babylonian History
[Put up first map]
Babylon is the Greek name of the city. In Semetic languages if means “the gate of god.”
The Hebrews called the country and city Babhel which comes from the root, balal, meaning “to confound.”
Ancient center of civilization.
After the flood, many peoples migrated there.
Land is fertile: Tigris and Euphrates run through that area.
Nimrod, the descendant of Ham (son of Noah) founded the area.
He was known as a great warrior. Probably a violent sort. Maybe a hunter of men.
And then we have the famed gathering of people in that area. Creating a Ziggurat (Zik ku rat) in an effort to reach to the heavens.
Desiring to make a name for themselves.
Well that didn't work out so well. It resulted in confusion and dispersion.
Abrahm, as you recall, was called by God to leave Ur of the Chaldea.

Timing of This Prophecy
The probably timing of this prophecy was during the reign of Ahaz.
Babylon was not a mighty power at that time.
They were certainly not a threat to Judah.
This was about 115-120 years before Nebuchadnezzar initially attacks Jerusalem (597BC).

God's Wrath Against Sin
The overarching theme of chapter 13 is God's wrath against man's sin.
Babylon specifically here.
Wrath is mentioned in 4 verses.
Fierce anger in verse 9 and burning anger in verse 13.
What is being described in these verses is the natural response of a Righteous and Holy God to moral corruption.
This is God being completely consistent with His nature.

Purposeful and Planned
The fact that Isaiah is pointing this out long before the actual event indicates that God is decisive in His actions.
He will not tolerate sin indefinitely – there is a point of reckoning.
[Look at the language used to describe the lengths to which God goes to mete out His judgment]
I have commanded those I prepared...
I have summoned my warriors...
The LORD Almighty is mustering...
They come from faraway lands – this is something unexpected.
The sinner generally thinks there's more time to change.
To cleanup my act.
To become acceptable.
But with that type of arrogant, prideful attitude, one will never repent.
[Take a look at the results of God's wrath on Babylon]

The Affect of Judgment
Verses 7-8:
Helplessness, terror, anguish.
They will look aghast at each other – there will be no consolation.
There will be disbelief that this is really happening.
There will be no remedy.
Verses 10-13:
Darkness of the sun and moon and stars:

• smoke from the burning of Babylon or
• the darkness associated with God pouring out His wrath (e.g., when Jesus was on the cross) or
• judgment against the gods of the Chaldean

Whatever this is referring to specifically, it is an enormous affect.
There are overtones of the final judgment of sin, aren't there.
When Christ returns and God's enemies are finally vanquished.
This very well could be an inference to the elements being burned up by fire and a new heaven and new earth being created.
But it certainly has a near-term application.
Nothing that man does in regard to sin is in a vacuum.
The affects of sin are far reaching.
All of creation is under the curse of man's sin and awaiting God's liberation.
But let's move on.
Verses 14-22:
All those who were part of the empire, even foreigners, will be affected by this judgment from God.
They will flee for their native lands at risk of their own lives.
And even women and innocent babies are not safe.
Sin is never an isolated incident, there are far-reaching consequences. Even to our children.

Take Away
So what can we make of this chapter? Why is this placed here in this section of Scripture?
Certainly this would have shown that God is in complete control of world events. He does not sit back and wait for man to act so He can respond. He sees everything from an eternal perspective and has a set purpose for nations and peoples. He is patient with man but there will come a time that he has set when justice will be served.
He says thus far and no further. There is no nation, ruler, or any other authority that can oppose God and His divine plans. And any opposition will be met with the full force of the fury of God's wrath in due time.
Yes, Babylon was a prototype of humanity in all of its glory. Ingenuity. Unity. Ability. Prosperity. Authority. Arrogance. Pride. Self-rule. Self-will. Sinful. Rebellious. And much much more.
They were not the first to fall under the mighty hand of God. Consider Sodom and Gomorrah to whom they are compared in regard to destruction. And they were not the last.
Many kingdoms have risen to power. Many nations have had noble beginnings. But most follow a similar course. Once good, they become filled with pride and self-sufficiency. They forget God. They reject and scorn God. They shake their fist at God. Just before they turn to dust.

A Warning For Humanity
This judgment is not just a warning for nations. It is a warning for mankind in general.
God never changes. There are not tolerable and intolerable sins in the eyes of God.
All sin will one day be judged. And God's wrath awaits all who are enemies of God.
You may think this chapter was graphic, and it was. But words will not be able to express the real thing. Those who are under the wrath of God

What Hope Is There In This Passage?
1.God is in control. He is the Almighty One and nobody else is.
2.God is completely just and good. Vengeance is His and it belongs to no other.
3.Evil cannot win. No matter how evil a person, or a nation, or the world gets, there is an end coming.
4.God never changes. He is immutable. Everything in this life changes only God is consistent and cannot change.
5.God is faithful. He will do what he says he will do. Babylon is no more. But God is!
6.Finally, God warns us about what's to come.

Principle: God's wrath is inevitable.
Applications:

1. What standard are you using to determine the acceptability of things that you allow in your life? It's easy to become complacent and begin to take on characteristics of the culture and forget who you belong to.
2. How are you encouraged by the fact that God will not let sin go unpunished?
3. How are you disturbed by that same fact?

Compassion Or Condemnation (Isaiah 14:1-21)
When you look at the character and nature of God, it is healthy not to fixate on one aspect of Him to the exclusion of all others. It's healthy to strike a balance in one's view of God's character.
The last chapter pointed out God's omnipotence, omniscience, justice, anger at sin, and the way He views those who oppose him. But this chapter starts out with God and his compassion for his people.
Once again the Lord will have compassion on Jacob. And this compassion will also include foreigners, Gentiles as well.

The Lord Has Compassion on His Own (14:1-2)
This passage deals with the time period around 538 BC. Just after the Medo-Persian invasion of Babylon, Cyrus made a decree that allowed Judah to return to their land.
One more time the Bible gives us a picture of God freeing his people from bondage. From slavery.
Certainly Isaiah's name is appropriate, “God is Salvation”.

The Taunt
In football, I believe there is a penalty for taunting.
And certainly this poem in verses 4-21 is not meant to be a model that you and I pick up and use when an enemy is defeated.
This taunt is a song that rejoices in God. It is similar to many of the Psalms of David where he delights in the Lord and awaits the day when those who oppose the Lord will be punished. For the Lord's sake, not David's.
His desire was for God to be glorified and man to be humbled.
That's the sense that we get in this passage. It is a taunt aimed at the king of Babylon, whoever that might be.
Or perhaps it is aimed at the personification of the arrogance of the Babylonian empire itself and what it stood for.
Whatever the case may be, there is strong language presented here.
And the taunt is aimed at pointing out the folly of man “thinking more highly of himself than he ought.”

Pride?
The ironic thing about pride is that it is an attempt to seek significance in myself.
As if all that I am and am able to do are due to myself – my being.
It disregards the fact that my abilities, talents, worth, etc. are all bound up in the One who gives life and gives life meaning.
[Consider Satan]
[Consider Satans's temptation of Eve: “you will be like God...”]
The irony is that pride resists the very One able to give a person a sense of significance and tries to take the place of that One.
It ultimately makes the proud one his own god.
You might think that's strong language, but it is true.
The one who takes the opportunity to acknowledge God and begins to get a glimpse of God cannot help but also get a realistic view of himself.
And we will look at one such person later in this division.

Oppressor, Angry, Relentless Aggressor (4b-8)
The Lord is responsible for breaking the rod of the wicked and scepter of the rulers.
This again points to similar language God used in relation to Assyria a few weeks back – Babylon, like Assyria, was a rod in the hand of God.
They took Judah into captivity at God's command.
But like Assyria, they were overly cruel and oppressive.
But that's not all.
Like all men, they are laid low. They die. There will be an end to their tyranny.

A Level Playing Field (9-11)
These verses are ironic.
Whatever man makes of himself in this life – it's left behind when he die.
Those who had gone before these ruler (some of whom may have been sent to the grave by these rulers) all acknowledge their weakness.
Only in life does man think he's invincible.
Afterwards, we all will realize how very weak we really were.
Verse 11 is rather graphic, but it points out that nobles and peasants alike will all decay in the same way.
Worms and maggots are no respecter of persons.
And really, this is trying to point out that all the pomp of real life boiled down to nothing in the long run – it was futile.

Pride, Arrogance, and Narcissism (12-13)
Although these words were not spoken by the rulers of Babylon, their attitude spoke it.
Look at what the description God gives of pride in mankind:
“I will ascend to the heavens;
I will raise my throne
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon.
I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.”
Have you ever wondered what pride looks like to God? Any wonder God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble?
Who does this sound like to you? Many of you probably thought this sounded much like Satan when he fell.
In fact this is the original sin. Satan was a perfect created angel.
He was beautiful and served before the Lord. There was nothing he lacked. He had no defect.
But something happened. It's a mystery to me and may always be.
Perfect environment. Face to face with his Creator. And he say his authority and God's authority and power and he wanted to be God.
Unbelievable! Yes, but that same root of pride was saying the same thing in the heart of the Babylonian.
He wanted to be like his father, the devil. He desired to have God's place in the universe. To determine his own destiny. To run his own life.
To have authority over all people.
And he may not have even seen it that way. Perhaps it came along with the territory. He was a successful king, conqueror and ruler.
In his mind he had earned it.
Look at the contrast between this godless attitude of pride and the attitude of a man who was a captive and yet he was a prince in Babylon.
He was one of the exiles who had seen over and over the faithfulness of God and was himself living a life of faith in God.
Look at this contrast from Daniel chapter 9 (starting in verse 4):
“O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands, 5we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
7“Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. 9The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you.12You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15“Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17“Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

This was a man who had 3rd highest ranking in the nation at the time of his prayer.
He prayed this prayer during a fast. He wore sackcloth and ashes. None of this was for show or any such thing.
He was but a wee boy when Jerusalem was sacked. He wasn't responsible, but his confession included his sin and the sin of his people.
He acknowledged that God owed absolutely nothing to him. But for the sake of God he pleaded.
His desire was not that he might gain a better, more comfortable home (he probably died in Babylon). He was concerned about God and his reputation.
God's purpose and plan were what Daniel was interested in.
See the stark difference between the attitude of pride and humility.
Pride says that I deserve it all. Humility says I deserve condemnation.
Pride receives condemnation and humility receives mercy and grace.

The End Of the Wicked (18-21)
This is a sad ending to the taunt.
But here he contrasts a normal king's burial to that of this wicked king.
He will not have the dignity of lying in state but will instead be part of a mass burial.
Again, his pride got him nothing of value, not even a remembrance for the future.
Even his offspring are marked for the grave.
In contrast, the beginning of this section is a time of rejoicing for those whom the Lord saves.
They return to their land. The Babylonian's offspring will die so as not to cover the land again.

Principle: Every man will die once.
Illustration:
[Billy Joel, “Only the Good Die Young.”]

Principle: Pride's attempt to be my own god ultimately results in alienation from God.
Applications:

1. What do you suppose would happen if Christians honestly started praying for our country like Daniel did for his?
2. What attitude would you say you more closely align with, that of Daniel or the Babylonian kings?
3. What areas of pride are you harboring? Will you ask God to show you tonight?

The Inthwartable One (Isaiah 14:22-32)

Babylon Thwarted (22-23)
The final statement from God regarding Babylon: ruin.
There will be complete destruction. It will be after Assyria's destruction, but none the less, it will happen.
Desolation.
3 times God uses this formula: “declares the LORD”.
2 of those times he adds Lord Almighty.
This is no idle threat by a has been. This is a promise by the Almighty. It will come to pass! Guaranteed.

Assyria Thwarted (24-27)
Back to Assyria, in case they thought they were forgotten.
In verse 24 he starts with “The Lord Almighty has sworn.”
There is nothing that can stop me, I have sworn this will happen.
The last two verses relate the idea that God has purposed, planned, and determined these things will happen.
They are not knee-jerk reactions, but part of His sovereign plan.
These nations were representative of world powers in their day. They were the super powers.
And yet, the Lord's outstretched hand would bring them down.
Be warned all you nations. You 21st century nations.

Philistia Thwarted (28-32)
King Ahaz died around 715 BC.
His grandfather Uzziah had won battles against the Philistines.
So had David and Solomon for that matter had authority over them.
Now they see the death of Ahaz as the end of a dynasty.
But Hezekiah will rule in his father's place and he will strike Philistia.
And beyond that, out of the line of Hezekiah would come Messiah, the Christ.
The Philistines were inhabitants of the land that Israel had failed to drive out.
They represented corruption in the land of Sabbath rest.
In Christ, he has become our Sabbath rest. The land was a type or shadow of the rest found in Christ.
Those who came to Zion to seek God found him. Likewise, those who come to Christ to seek God find him.
Their will be no Philistine corruption found in the new Jerusalem.
“The LORD has established Zion,
and in her his afflicted people will find refuge.”
Our Zion rest is found in Jesus Christ.
All those who are afflicted can find refuge in him.
All humanity is afflicted. We all have the same disease – sin.
Have you taken your affliction to the cross? To the only refuge offered to mankind.

Principle: Nothing can or will thwart the plans of God.
Illustration:
The plan of God throughout Scripture is the salvation of His people. And he continues to fulfill that plan until the end of time.

Applications:

1. What part are you playing in the plans of God?
2. What are you doing to ensure our nation does not go the route of Babylon, Assyria, or Philistia? Are you praying for our leaders? Are you living a God-honoring life? Are you spreading the truth of the Gospel unashamedly?

Conclusion
Who is it that's pushing your chess pieces around the chess board of life?

Tools In the Hand of a Sovereign God (Isaiah 10:5-34)

Introduction
Some of you have undergone surgery or some type of treatment for a serious illness or disease. You know how painful the treatments can be. How difficult recovery is. How weak you feel. None of us would ever volunteer for that type of treatment as a preventative measure. We would not go in to the surgeon and ask him to open us up and have a look under the hood. We would not go to the cancer treatment center and ask to go through chemotherapy as a preventative, just in case there are some cancer cells of a certain type. But neither would we ask God to bring upon us some of the things that we need in order to make us more dependent upon him. Things that would make us more like Christ. Things that would change our course in life. Reveal the incorrect thinking we might be engaging in. Move us off the path to disaster.

The Good and The Evil (Isaiah 10:5-19)
The Good God Uses an Evil Nation (5-6)
He starts by proclaiming the, now familiar, woe against Assyria.
God calls them his “rod of anger”.
He says that they carry the club of God's wrath. In other words, this is God's business they are on. They are on a mission from God.
Their mission is a “godless nation” whom God is angry with.
There are a number of questions that come to mind as we ponder these two verses.
1. They are coming against a godless nation, Israel, but isn't Assyria more godless?
Good question, glad you asked. Yes and yes. They are a godless nation and they are more godless.
And we will see, as we already did this week, that God was not going to leave Assyria's wickedness unaccounted for.
But the godless nation, Israel, had been given a special privilege. They were a nation brought out of slavery by God, given a covenant
with God, given His law to obey, given a land, not their own. All of this by God. They were a people who were supposed to be a
light to the world, but that light had long before gone out.
God uses the same standard of morality to judge all moral creatures (namely humans).
In Luke 12:48, Jesus says, “To whom much is given, much is required.”
Israel had been given much as a nation. But unfaithfulness was the result.
God's righteous indignation against the people of Israel was long in coming, but it had arrived. And God chose to use a nation that
was no better than Israel to accomplish His judgment.
2. How could God use an evil nation to accomplish His will without being responsible for their evil deeds?
Once again, good question. First of all, God did not force Assyria to do evil.
He merely used a nation who was evil to enact a sentence against a people who had rebelled against him.
God is not responsible for the wickedness of men. But the wickedness of men does not somehow tie Gods hands from accomplishing His divine purposes.
God will always accomplish what He wills to accomplish in spite of man's choice to do evil.
God often uses what men intend for evil to accomplish His own good purposes:
[An Example from Job]
[An Example of Jesus life & death as sacrifice]

2) What the Proud Says About Himself (7-14)
Intend to Destroy (7)
My purposes are what matters.
What I want goes.
It's my choice and I don't have to answer to anyone.
I am the commander of my own destiny.
What God Says:
• You are a rod and club of my anger and wrath
• I dispatched you to loot, snatch plunder, and trample like mud

King of Kings (8)
Exalted view of himself.
He is the supreme authority and even his commanders have more authority than kings of other nations.
What God Says:
• You have authority ONLY because I have given it
• The extent of your authority is as far and for however long I allow it and no farther!

Greater Than All Gods (9-11)
In essence he's saying there are no gods, or at least none that have too much to do with man.
All gods are the same and I am greater than they are.
Jerusalem's God is not different.
What God Says:
• You are my instrument to conquer the nations and judge the people and their gods.
• I alone am God whether you acknowledge me or not.

I Have Done...And I Went Unchallenged (13-14)
It is my strength.
It is my wisdom.
It is my understanding.
Like stealing abandoned eggs – nothing there to even resist me.

3) What God Says to the Proud (15-19)
A Fitting Metaphor (15)
Wasn't verse 15 a fitting metaphor to describe reality to Assyria.
You are like an ax, a saw, a rod, or a club.
Try setting on of those down on a table and getting any good use out of them.
These tools serve the purpose of the one that wields them.
They have a use that fits the task at hand but the power is in the one that wields them, not in the tool itself.
To think that my significance to God is in what I do for Him is a wrong perspective.
If anything good comes out of what I do, it comes out of him working through me to will and to do of His good pleasure.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. But either I submit to His will or He can use me in spite of myself.

A Fitting Description of God (16-17)
Lord (Adonai) – Master, Sovereign – you think you are king over kings, I am The Sovereign One.
LORD Almighty (YHWH) – I AM that I AM, I am self-existent, and I am all powerful and all power is derived from me.
Result: I will use a wasting disease against his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a blazing fire kindled
Light of Israel – He gives guidance and direction to his people; they are His; but that Light is also a blazing fire.
Their Holy One – He is unlike any other; there is no comparison; He is otherly; He is morally pure and separate from sin.
Result: What He will do will occur in a single day.

A Fitting Destiny for the Wicked (18-19)
Everything you took pride in, your strength, your ability to conquer, all of it will be completely destroyed by the act (and ax) of the Almighty.

4) Conclusion For Today
We probably don't make exactly the same boastful remarks as the king of Assyria.

Pride At Home
Pride can adversely effect the way I treat my wife. I can think that it's my way or no way.
My needs are what matters.
Forgetting that God made the woman as a helper for man. As the complement of the man. I need my wife's counsel.
I need her insights. I need to value who she is as a person, her feelings, dreams, and aspirations.
Pride is too focused on me.

Pride At Work
Pride can adversely effect working relationships. It can think that I am always right.
Or I can be wrong but not willing to ask others' opinions.
Or I might not know something and be to proud to admit that I don't have it all together and could use some help.

Pride Before God
Pride is not possible in approaching God.
When I have pride, I approach him on my terms, with my agenda, and expect him to respond in the way I want him to.
My pride can (and will) keep me from acknowledging my sin. From seeing that I cannot save myself.
That I am broken and need God. My pride can keep me thinking that I just need to do one more thing for God in order for him to accept me.
When in reality I need to fall humbly before God and acknowledge my lost condition. Acknowledge His unapproachable moral purity. And that the only remedy for my condition is found in God's perfect provision in Jesus Christ.

Humility A Must
Humility is not an option, it is a must.
Scripture speaks of it so often.
It also speaks of pride as the original sin and the thing that God resists.
He will not accept man's pride.
But humility, that is a different story. It is something that God responds to with grace.
The ultimate example is the example of Christ.
The example of him, the Mighty God, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace, becoming a man.
Taking on the frailty of humanity. Being sinless in a sinful environment.
Being misunderstood, maligned, harassed.
Enduring pain and suffering. Enduring temptation.
And remaining always submissive to the Father's will. Yielding to his every direction throughout life.
To the point of being crucified for godless people.
In Jesus, we see the paradox of God, the exalted One, being humble and meek.
Of the sinless One being the sin-bearer.
Of the wickedness of man being the instrument the Father used to lay the spotless Lamb upon the alter of sacrifice.
Can I go on in life thinking more highly of myself than I should?
Yes I can. But I have not warrant for it. There is no excuse for it. And there are serious consequences for it.

Principles
Man is responsible for his own evil intentions but God can use them for His divine purpose.
To be used by God is no assurance of a right relationship with God.

Applications
How has God been using you lately? Has it been cooperative or is He using you in spite of yourself?
How have you seen man's evil intent used by God to bring about good and reveal His glory?

The Fruit of Discipline (Isaiah 10:20-27)
Discipline is never pleasant but it is necessary
What have you learned from God's discipline in your life and what were the results?
How do you generally respond to God's discipline? How should you respond, knowing God disciplines out of the best
motives possible?
3. What does resistance to God's discipline say about my view of God's authority and His divine purposes?

The Consequences of Pride (Isaiah 10:28-34)
Apparently Assyrian had no allegiance with foreign nations. In spite of the fact that Ahaz had sent word to them, and relied upon them, they still had their eye on Judah's defeat.
This last section hones in on their march toward their final conquest. They perceive this as the end of Judah. But God declares that it will be the end of Assyria, even without Judah raising a finger against them.

1) Assyria's Offensive (28-32)
The Assyrians will move like a well trained army.
Nothing will get in their way.
And as Isaiah foretells, they bring great fear to the people. So much so that it appears as though there really isn't a battle or at least it's
one-sided.
They are moving in toward Jerusalem from the north.
It looks as though their plans are to remain there until the siege is complete.
They lay aside supplies at Micmash.
They work their way from the northeast [show the map] until they are just north of Jerusalem.
And they will shake their fist at Zion, at the hill of Jerusalem.
Still confident in their ability to take that city.
What they really are doing is shaking their fist at the defenses of Jerusalem – God with Us.
And mocking His ability to save his people.

2) The Lord's Offensive (33-34)
The ax that was raised by God to discipline the nations will now feel the ax of God's wrath against them.
He uses the tree metaphor to describe them.
Often trees are used to describe the haughty and arrogance of men. But that will be brought low.
They were so sure of their own ability and their own strength, but in a moment, God will reveal who has the power.
He will leave them like a forest cut down.
Notice how this thought is a completion of what Isaiah had started back in verses 18 & 19.

3) The Full Circle
God had called Assyria to accomplish His task of disciplining His people.
Assyria saw this act as an assertion of their own will.
God's people were chastened by this heathen nation, leaving only a remnant.
And now God completes His work by humbling the proud and evil nation.

4) Conclusion
There was nothing in the course of this transaction that precluded Assyria from acknowledging God.
Their pride had made it very difficult. But there was no determinism working here that destined them to certain doom.
They came to the very gates of Zion. And rather than seeking God there, they sought to overthrow him. They did not acknowledge
His sovereignty over all nations.
And they reaped the consequences of a person who shakes his fist at God.

Principle
God's plans override the plans of men.

Applications
What plans are you making that don't include God?
How might your attitude be like shaking a fist at God?

Conclusion
God can do what He needs to in our lives in spite of what you and I want.
But when we resist His good discipline, we miss the lesson and the opportunity to bring God glory.
We assert our own will and in essence say, "I am sovereign of my life."
If God is Sovereign, ought we not submit completely to Him? He knows the end from the beginning. His plans are perfect. He knows just what you and I need to become what He has predestined us to be -- conformed to the image of the Son that He loves.