Some From Isaiah

I started on a study of The Book of Isaiah when I was first thrust into the world of Covid, so here is a little of it from a couple of years ago...

Isaiah In Our Isolation

Isaiah In Our Isolation

Isaiah 1 King James Version (KJV)

“The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider. Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward. Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers. And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah. Hear the word of the Lord, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah. To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers. Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water:Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them. Therefore saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the mighty One of Israel, Ah, I will ease me of mine adversaries, and avenge me of mine enemies: And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin: And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city. Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness. And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the Lord shall be consumed.For they shall be ashamed of the oaks which ye have desired, and ye shall be confounded for the gardens that ye have chosen. For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water. And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them.

-Isaiah 1(KJV)

“The vision of Isaiah.” This is the book of the prophecies of “Isaiah, the son of Amoz,” who ministered from about 740 to 680 B.C.. For about 20 years, he spoke to both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. After Israel's fall to the Assyrians in 722 B.C., Isaiah continued to prophesy to Judah.

By this time, Israel had been in the Promised Land for almost 700 years. The first 400 years in Canaan, Israel was ruled by judges, spiritual, military, and political leaders God raised up as the occasion demanded. Then, for about 120 years, three kings reigned over all Israel: Saul, David, and Solomon. But in 917 B.C. Israel had a civil war, and remained divided into two nations, Israel (to the north) and Judah (to the south) up until the time of Isaiah.

Up until the time of Isaiah, the northern nation of Israel had some 18 kings - all of them bad, and rebellious against the LORD. The southern nation of Judah had some 11 kings before Isaiah's ministry, some good and some bad.

In the time of Isaiah, Israel was a little nation often caught in the middle of the wars between three superpowers: Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon.

As Isaiah's ministry began, there was a national crisis in the northern nation of Israel. The superpower of Assyria was about to engulf the nation of Israel. During the span of his ministry as a prophet, the southern nation of Judah was faced with repeated threats from the larger surrounding nations.

Many modern scholars think that there was more than one author to the book of Isaiah. They throw about terms like "Deutero-Isaiah" and "Trito-Isaiah" or the "Isaianic School." The New Testament quotes Isaiah by name more than all the other writing prophets combined. The Apostle John quotes from both the "first" part of Isaiah and the "second" part of Isaiah, the parts supposedly written by two or more different Isaiahs, and specifically says it is the same Isaiah in the following scripture:

“But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him: That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.”

-John 12:37-41 (KJV)

“Isaiah the son of Amoz.” The name Isaiah means Salvation is of the Lord. There are at least seven men by the name of Isaiah in the Bible, but only one is” Isaiah, the son of Amoz.”

Some have thought that Amoz and the prophet Amos were the same person, but this seems unlikely. Some ancient Jewish traditions say that Amoz was a brother of king Amaziah, but there is no biblical way to prove this.

“Isaiah was a great man of God who has the courage of a Daniel, the sensitivity of a Jeremiah, the pathos of a Hosea, and the raging anger of an Amos; and moreover he leaves all of them far behind in the unique art of holy mockery. His courage is of such a nature that he never, not even for a moment, shows himself to be weak or timid."

-S. Bultema

The prophecy of this chapter probably took place in the time of Ahaz, king of Judah. Ahaz was an evil king who was invaded many times by surrounding nations.

“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth!” God is calling heaven and earth as witnesses against Judah. The leaders and people of Judah have resisted His will, and God will state His case against them. We might think of heaven and earth as a "jury" God will present the case before.

Creation is waiting for the deliverance that will come when the Messiah rules directly over all creation. When God's people disobey, we might say there is a sense in which they "delay" that resolution of all things. So, heaven and earth have an interest in our obedience! Consider these words in The Book of Romans:

“For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.”

-Romans 8:22 (KJV)

“I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me.” The leaders and people of Judah are like rebellious children, who never appreciate all that their parents have done for them.

As parents, we can appreciate how frustrating and galling it is for our children to disregard and disobey us. It fills us with righteous indignation, and we think, "After all I have done for them, they treat me like this?" But we have treated God even worse than any child has treated their parents.

“The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know.” The leaders and people of Judah are not like dumb animals, such as the ox or the donkey. They are dumber than dumb animals. The ox at least “knoweth its owner,” but Judah doesn't know who owns them. The donkey knows who takes care of him, but Judah doesn't know who takes care of them.

No animal has ever offended or resisted or rejected or disobeyed God the way every human being has. Any animal is a more faithful servant of God than the best human!

“Ah sinful nation.” God clearly and strongly exposes their sin. They are “laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers,” and they have provoked the Lord to anger.

Despite their sin, God does not wish evil upon Judah. Instead, He longs for them to repent and make it easy on themselves: “Why should ye be stricken any more?” God has been chastising Judah, and they have not responded. They will continue to be stricken as long as they rebel.

“The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores.” Because of their rebellion against God, Judah was in a bad place. This is where their disobedience and lack of submission has brought them!

“Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence.” During the reign of Ahaz, king of Judah, they were attacked and pillaged by Israel, Syria, Edom, the Philistines, and Assyria. It was written of this period in The Second Book of Chronicles”

“For the Lord brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the Lord.”

-2 Chronicles 28:19 (KJV)

For all this, Judah would not repent. Their sin brought them great trouble, but they still preferred their sin, with all of its trouble, than submitting to the Lord God as we again see in The Book of Chronicles:

“And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz.”

2 Chronicles 28:22 (KJV)

“Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.” As bad as Judah's state was because of their sin, it could have been worse. It was only by the mercy of God that they survived at all. Sodom and Gomorrah were both totally destroyed, with not even a very small remnant to carry on. Even in the midst of judgment, God showed His mercy to Judah.

“Ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.” God is obviously trying to get the attention of the leaders and people of Judah, by associating them with two cities synonymous with sin and judgment.

“To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me?” Even in the midst of their rebellion, Judah continued its religious ceremony and ritual. They continued the sacrifices, they continued the burnt offerings, they continued offering the “fat of fed beasts.” They continued burning incense, they continued their assemblies and their sacred meetings, and God was sick of them all!

See how the LORD describes His reaction to these religious rituals: “Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.”

What a sobering thought! We can offer God all kinds of religious rituals and ceremonies, all kinds of religious service, and He may hate it and consider it an abomination! Perhaps, in the midst of all their calamity, Judah thought the answer was in religious ceremonies, in their ancient version of "church attendance" and a few dollars in the offering. But if their heart wasn't changed, and humbled, and surrendered to the Lord, it made no difference. Without the right heart, God hated their religious ceremony and service!

"When sinners are under the judgments of God they will more easily be brought to fly to their devotions than to forsake their sins and reform their lives."

-Matthew Henry

“When ye spread forth your hands:” this was the posture of prayer in that ancient culture. Instead of praying with heads bowed and hands folded, they would pray with the face turned towards heaven and the hands spread out to heaven. So, when they prayed, the LORD says, "I will hide my eyes from you … I will not hear."

We may be certain, that in the midst of all this religious ceremony, there were many fine prayers offered. Many eloquent, stirring, and emotional prayers were said. But they were empty, hollow, useless prayers, because God looked at Judah and said, "Your hands are full of blood."

“Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.” The corruption of Judah's leaders and people was shown in their bad treatment of one another.

Many centuries later, the apostle John would repeat Isaiah's message:

“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”

-1 John 4:20 (KJV)

The leaders and people of Judah wanted to say they loved God by their religious ceremonies, but the LORD cared more about how they treated other people, especially the weak; “the fatherless, plead for the widow.”

"Come now, and let us reason together," saith the Lord:” The Lord God invites His people to come reason with Him. What He offers us isn't just offered because He is "bigger" than us and has the right to dictate whatever terms please Him. God's direction for us is reasonable. It is smart. It is the best way to live.

What madness it is reject and resist a God of infinite wisdom, infinite love, infinite grace, and infinite power! True reason will drive any honest man to the most humble adoration and submission towards God.

The angels surrounding the throne of God are covered with eyes, which speaks of their great ability to perceive and know as we see in The Book of Revelations:

“And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.”

-Revelation 4:6-8 (KJV)

These are perhaps the most intelligent, rational beings God ever created, and they spend every moment of their existence lost in total praise, total adoration, and total surrender to God. That is where the highest reason will drive us!

It is just plain reasonable to follow God. Have you ever once heard of an old Christian, on their deathbed, gathering their children and friends around, and saying: "Now friends, watch out for that Christianity! I've followed Jesus my whole life and I'm so sorry I did! What was waste that was!" What nonsense! Quite the contrary, we find that Christians on their deathbed are trusting and loving God more than ever. It's just plain reasonable!

“Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” The Lord offers a repentant, humbled Judah true and complete cleansing from sin. Their condition of sin can be transformed from deeply stained to completely white.

In this passage, Isaiah says nothing about how this cleansing comes. But we know that it comes because Jesus took upon Himself our stain of sin, and God judged sin perfectly and completely in Jesus, so we can be accounted “white as snow” and as white as wool.

What tremendous hope there is in God's forgiveness! We really can be clean from the stain of sin. Our good works can't clean the stain. Our best intentions or promises can't clean the stain. Our suffering or pain can't clean the stain. Time can't clean the stain. Death can't clean the stain. Only the work of Jesus can make us “white as snow!” We really can have a break with the past, and a new beginning in Jesus Christ. The power of sin, the shame of sin, the guilt of sin, the domination of sin, and terror of sin, and the pain of sin can all be taken away in Jesus.

"The Lord does not deny they truth of what the sinner has confessed, but he says to him, 'Though your sins be as scarlet, I meet you on that ground. You need not try to diminish the extent of your sin, or seek to make it appear to be less than it really is. No; whatever you say it is, it is all that, and probably far more. Your deepest sense of your sinfulness does not come up to the truth concerning your real condition; certainly, you do not exaggerate in the least. Your sins are scarlet, and crimson; it seems as though you have put on the imperial robe of sin, and made yourself a monarch of the realm of evil.' That is how a man's guilt appears before the searching eye of God."

-C.S. Spurgeon

You may be "a wicked old wretch who has taken his degrees in Satan's college, has become a Master of Belial, a prince and chief of sinners - a Goliath amongst the Philistines - yet, to such a man, is this word sent today. Your hands are bloody with the souls of the young, you have kept a hellhouse; you have grit up public entertainments which have debauched and depraved the young; you have gold in your pocket to-day, which you have earned by the blood of souls; you have the fool's pence, and the drunkard's shillings, which have really come into your hands from the hearts of poor women, you have heard the cries of the starving children, and you have tempted their husbands to take the drink, and ruined their bodies and their souls. You have kept a place where the entertainment was so low, so grovelling, that you awoke the slumbering passions of evil in the minds of either young or old, and so you shall sink to hell with the blood of others on your head, as well as your own damnation, not with one millstone about your neck, but with many." (Spurgeon) Yet you can still be white as snow!

When we consider the greatness of God's cleansing and pardon, it is all the more reason for us to come now. God wants the separation between you and He to be gone now. He doesn't want you to continue in your destructive path another moment. He wants the best for us now!

"Come now, no season can be better. If ye tardy till you're better, ye will never come at all. Come now; you may never have another warning; the heart may never be so tender as it is to-day. Come now; no other eyes may ever weep over you; no other heart may ever agonize for your salvation. Come now, now, now, for tomorrow you may never know in this world. Death may have sealed your fate, and the once filthy may remain filthy still. Come now; for to-morrow thy heart may become harder than stone, and God may give thee up. Come now; it is God's time; to-morrow is the devil's time. 'To-day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, when your fathers tempted me and proved me in the wilderness and saw my works.' Come now. Why delay to be happy? Would you put off your wedding-day? Will you postpone the hour when you are pardoned and delivered? Come now: the bowels of Jehovah yearn for you. The eye of your father sees you afar off, and he runs to meet you. Come now; the church is praying for you; these are revival times; ministers are more in earnest."

-C.S. Spurgeon

“If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword.” Here God offers Judah a choice. They can find hope in the midst of their chastisement, relief from empty religious ritual, and cleansing from their sin. But they must surrender their heart before God, and not “refuse and rebel.” Instead, they must be “willing and obedient.”

No one perfectly matches either phrase, but which phrase better describes your life? Is it “willing and obedient” or “refuse and rebel”? There is a consequence for either course: “eat the good of the land,” or “be devoured with the sword.” No wonder the Lord said "Come now, let us reason together!"

“How is the faithful city become an harlot!” The faithful city is Jerusalem, the city once known for its faithfulness to the LORD. Now, Jerusalem has become a harlot - spiritually speaking, they have forsaken the their "marriage" to the LORD, and are committing spiritual adultery with their idolatry.

“It was full of judgement.” The days of justice and righteousness are long past in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was filled with murderers, political corruption: “Your princes are rebellious,” thieves, fraud: “Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water:” bribes, and favoritism against the weak: “they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.”.

The Lord's accusation against Jerusalem shows, by contrast, what God values among political and civil leaders. God expects them to keep the peace (against murderers), have integrity (instead of being rebellious and the companion of thieves), and to defend the weak (the fatherless and widows).

“Thy wine mixed with water." The Lord Jesus made water into wine; sinners make wine into water."

-S. Bultema

The spiritual adultery of Judah showed itself in this kind of sin. In a sense, the corruption among the leaders of Judah was a symptom of an even deeper spiritual problem.

“The Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel.” God now addresses Judah, introducing Himself with titles showing His power and majesty. He is “The Lord of hosts,” "hosts" referring to the armies of heaven. He is the “Mighty One of Israel,” whom it is futile to oppose. The title itself is a wake-up call.

"Describes Him as the Warrior who has all the angels as mighty soldiers at His disposal in the battle against the wicked. This is God's battle name and as a rule it signifies little good when He uses it in reference to His people, as is the case here. It usually implies that He considers and deals with His people as His enemies."

-S. Bultema

“I will ease me of mine adversaries.” The problem with the leaders and people of Judah was that they had set themselves as adversaries of the Lord. They were acting like His enemies. They were putting themselves in the path of judgment. They would find the hand of the LORD against them, instead of for them.

“And purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:” Dross and tin are impurities in manufacturing certain types of metal. God promises to "turn up the heat" and refine Judah, taking away their impurities. His goal is not to destroy; instead He says, "I will restore." God will purify Jerusalem, to the point where “afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city.”

“Zion shall be redeemed with judgement.” God's redemption and restoration are always done with justice and righteousness. He never saves or redeems at the expense of His justice and righteousness.

“They shall be ashamed of the oaks which ye have desired.” These trees were sites of pagan worship which idol-loving Judah kept among them. When Zion is “redeemed with judgement,” they will be ashamed of their former idolatries.

It is good to be ashamed and embarrassed over sin. There is something wrong with us when we are shameless or beyond embarrassment. God promised He would give Judah the gift of shame and embarrassment over sin again.

"Sacred trees played an important part in the Canaanite fertility cult … for deciduous trees like the oak or terebinth may well have symbolized the death and rebirth of the god. The 'gardens' may be groves of these trees, or, alternatively, places of sacred springs or wells."

-S. Grogan

“As an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water. And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together.” The Lord here speaks of the spiritual dryness of Judah. Though they continued their religious ritual and ceremony, they were still spiritually dry. And as dry trees, dry gardens, and dry tinder are ready to burn, so is an unrepentant Judah ready to feel the fires of God's refining judgment.

Christian brothers and sisters, with all the trials and tribulations going on in the world, has your spiritual belief become a little dry? Rewet that passion with prayers and reading God’s Holy Word!

-God bless!

--------------

Isaiah 2

Good afternoon! Today I am starting to look at The Book Of Isaiah, Chapter Two, using text from The King James Version (KJV) of The Holy Bible. It is my prayer that I allow The Lord to guide me, not my own evil heart. I also pray that you find something that you can use to share The Gospel with others!

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord. Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low: And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan, And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up, And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall, And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures. And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?”

-Isaiah 2 (KJV)

“The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.” This was revealed to Isaiah in some kind of vision, because this was a word that he saw.

This prophecy is directed towards the southern kingdom Judah and its capital Jerusalem.

We will see many of the same words here repeated in The Book of Micah:

“But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

-Micah 4:1-3 (KJV)

Since Isaiah and Micah were contemporary prophets, it isn't surprising that the same Spirit of the Lord could give these two prophets the same word, to establish and emphasize His Word.

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

“In the last days:” In context, the term last days refers to the "time of the Messiah," when the Anointed of the Lord reigns over the earth. This speaks of the time many refer to as the millennium, the thousand-year reign of Jesus on this earth as we see in the following scripture:

“Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king's son. He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness. He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor. They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations. He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth. In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him. For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper. He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight. And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised. There shall be an handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: and they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth. His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen. The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

-Psalm 72 (KJV)

“But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth: with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den.They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”

-Isaiah 11:4-9 (KJV)

“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord Our Righteousness.

-Jeremiah 23:5-6, (KJV)

“He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

-Luke 1:32-33 (KJV)

“He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities. And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury? And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.)For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him. But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.

-Luke 19:12-27 (KJV)

“For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”

-Matthew 5:18 (KJV)

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.” During the millennium, Israel will be the "superpower" of the world. It will be the leading nation in all the earth, and the center of Israel will be “the mountain of the Lord's house.” The temple mount, which will be the "capital" of the government of the Messiah. “All nations shall flow” to the capital of the government of Jesus.

“O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord.” During the millennium, the citizens of earth will acknowledge and submit to the Lordship of Jesus. It will be a time of perfectly administrated enforced righteousness on this earth.

“They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks.” During the reign of the Messiah, there will be no more war. There will still be conflicts between nations and individuals, but they will be justly and decisively resolved by the Messiah and those who reign with Him. “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people.”

It isn't the reign of the Messiah itself that will change the heart of man. Citizens of earth will still need to trust in Jesus and His work on their behalf for their personal salvation during the millennium. But war and armed conflict will not be tolerated.

“Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore:” It is important to see that this is not the peace of capitulation. This is the peace of enforced righteousness. There is no more war, and no more need for swords and spears, so why not make them into plowshares and pruning hooks? But there is no more war because there is a new ruler on earth, Jesus Christ. As we see in Psalm 2:9:

“ Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”

- Psalm 2:9 (KJV)

We long for the day when there is no more need for a military budget, when the money that goes for weapons and armies can go to schools and parks. But we are only safe doing that when the Messiah reigns among us!

"Men yearn for peace, but they will not acknowledge the hopelessness of their own efforts to achieve it. It is only when the word of the Lord goes forth from Jerusalem, when He Himself is reigning over the nations, that lasting peace will come."

-J. Martin

After painting the picture of the glory of the Messiah's reign, Isaiah then challenges Judah, “house of Jacob,” to live in the Messiah's reign right now.

To “walk in the light of the Lord,” means to order your life after God's truth and God's ways. The ultimate reign of the Messiah may be many years away, but Jesus can reign in our lives, in our minds, and in our hearts right now. We don't have to wait for the enforced righteousness of the millennium to have the blessing of Jesus' righteousness in our lives right now.

To “walk in the light of the Lord,” means you enjoy the blessings of the Messiah's reign right now. You don't have to live a dark, depressing, discouraged Christian life. You can “walk in the light of the Lord!”

What is it that gets you down, that brings darkness into your life? What can it compare to the “light of the Lord?” Is the darkness of spiritual attack, of unfaithful friends, of bad circumstances, of shame, of guilt, of anything greater than the “light of the Lord?” We think not!

"You know that, if you were to go to Australia in a good sound ship, you would get there even if you were always to lie down in the hold among the luggage and the rats; but I should like to go in a first-class cabin, and I do not see why you and I, if we are going to heaven, should not go first-class."

-C.S. Spurgeon

“They be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.” Judah had allowed the false gods of foreigners to captivate their attention.

This was not an anti-immigrant statement. God is not against the cultures and customs of other peoples, except where those customs and cultures honor and worship false gods. Perhaps in the name of "diversity," the leaders and people of Judah were allowing the worship of false gods.

“Their land also is full of silver and gold.” Judah had allowed the false gods of wealth and materialism to captivate their attention. Because Judah was in a time of economic prosperity; “full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots,” they were far more prone to economic idolatry.

This was not an anti-wealth statement. God is not against wealth and riches, and may choose to bless some with significant resources. This is a rebuke of the love of riches, and any trust in wealth.

“Their land also is full of idols.” Judah had allowed idols to captivate their attention. Because everyone has an innate tendency to worship themselves: “the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.” We are tempted to worship what we have made and accomplished instead of worshipping the One who made us.

This was not an anti-work statement. God wants us to work hard, and show forth the work of our own hands, and to see the accomplishments that our “own fingers have made.” This is a rebuke of the worship of what we have made and what we have done.

“The mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself.” There was plenty of worship in Judah, and plenty of people humbling themselves. They were simply worshipping the wrong things, and humbling themselves before the wrong things!

We know how to bow down, we know how to humble ourselves; we just don't find it easy to direct it properly towards the Lord. We are more than happy to bow down and humble ourselves for something of our choosing, but often find it difficult to do it for the Lord.

The application is sobering: “Therefore forgive them not.” Their worship of foreign gods, of riches, and of idols was sincere. It may have been ennobling or helpful to society. But it rejected the Lord God, and was therefore unforgivable.

The term “day of the Lord,” which was used more than 25 times in the Bible, does not necessarily refer to one specific day. It speaks of "God's time." The idea is that now is the day of man, but the day of man will not last forever. One day, the Messiah will end the day of man and bring forth the “day of the Lord.”

In the “day of the Lord,” men will be terrified: “Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty.” In the “day of the Lord,” men will be humbled: “The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.” In that day, there will be no more idolatry; “the Lord alone shall be exalted.” In that day, God will be glorified, and all will see; “for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty.”

“Upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall, And upon all the ships of Tarshish” all are expressions of the “loftiness of man” and the “haughtiness of men.” “In the day of the Lord,” every proud, arrogant achievement of man will be humbled, and “the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.”

"Man in all matters of religion, and in all his dealings with God, is proud. It is wonderful how apparently humble men will be when they worship false gods. They will cut themselves with knives, and roll themselves in the mire. We have known some votaries to kneel before the representation of the Virgin Mary and lick the very pavement with their tongues by way of penance, and perform the most degrading rites in honor of their false gods. Man seems to be humble enough in his dealings with a false deity, but as soon as ever he comes to deal with the true God, the first things that have to be got out of him are his pride, his high looks, his haughtiness."

-C.S. Spurgeon

“Cease ye from man.” Because the days of idols and human pride are numbered, why associate with those who cling to what will certainly be defeated? We should see that such men are of no account, and walk in the light of the Lord instead.

What strange sin in us, to make us give more account to men who can only hold as much breath as their nostrils will contain - who depend on every breath for life - than to the Lord God who will shake the earth mightily! It simply makes sense for us to honor and obey God than to follow men into sin.

“Wherein is he to be accounted?” If men are only men, why do we give so much attention to the opinions of men? Why rise so high on the praise of men, and get so low at their disapproval? We have something - Someone - better to live for.

"'But they say.' What do they say? Let them say. It will not hurt you if you can only gird up the loins of your mind, and cease from man. 'Oh, but they have accused me of this and that.' Is it true? 'No, sir, it is not true, and that is why it grieves me.' That is why it should not grieve you. If it were true it ought to trouble you; but if it is not true let it alone. If an enemy has said anything against your character it will not always be worth while to answer him. Silence has both dignity and argument in it."

-C.S. Spurgeon

"Brethren in Christ, let us think more of God and less of man. Come, let the Lord our God fill the whole horizon of our thoughts. Let our love go forth to him; Iet us delight ourselves in him. Let us trust in him that liveth for ever, in him whose promise never faileth, in him who will be with us in life, and in death, and through eternity. Oh that we lived more in the society of Jesus, more in the sight of God! Let man go behind our back, and Satan too. We cannot spend our lives in seeking the smiles of men, for pleasing God is the one object we pursue. Our hands, and our heads, and our hearts, and all that we have and are, find full occupation for the Lord, and therefore we must 'Cease from man.'"

-C.S. Spurgeon

Christian brothers and sisters, block out the world and focus on Jesus. He has you in mind, so keep Him in mind every day!

-God bless!