ISAIAH
The prophet Isaiah is considered as one of the 4 ‘major prophets’ of the Old Testament, (the others being Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel). His ministry started around 740 B.C. and ended about 686 B.C.
ISAIAH 1:1
1 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.
Isaiah’s prophetic ministry seems to have covered a period of about 54 years.
ISAIAH 1:2-4
2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O Earth! For the Lord has spoken: “I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me;
3 The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, My people do not consider.”
4 Alas, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who are corrupters! They have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of Israel, they have turned away backward.
God laments that even domesticated beasts of burden know their owners and know the place of their rest, yet Israel has forsaken and forgotten Him, forgetting that He brought them into the Land.
ISAIAH 1:5-6
5 Why should you be stricken again? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints.
6 From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; They have not been closed or bound up, or soothed with ointment.
God compares Judah to a body, wracked with disease from head to foot. No one seeks to correct them or turn them from their sinful ways. Note that God asks why they risk Him striking them again, a subtle reminder for them to remember past punishments.
ISAIAH 1:7-9
7 Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire; strangers devour your land in your presence; and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.
8 So the daughter of Zion is left as a booth in a vineyard, as a hut in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.
9 Unless the Lord of hosts had left to us a very small remnant, we would have become like Sodom,we would have been made like Gomorrah.
It was during the reign of king Ahaz of Judah that Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III in 734 B.C. took cities in Gilead east of the Jordan, in Galilee and all the land of the tribe of Naphtali (west of the Sea of Galilee) as recorded by God in verse 7 above.
Judah was surrounded by hostile nations, the idolatrous Northern Kingdom of Israel to the north, the Assyrians to the north, northeast and east , the Edomites to the south and the Philistines to the west.
Isaiah plainly states that unless God had reserved some people who remained faithful to Him Judah would be as bad as Sodom. During the time of Elijah, all Israel was deeply into Ba’al worship. Wicked Queen Jezebel had murdered many of God’s prophets and Elijah thought he was the only one left to worship God.
He told God;
1 KINGS 19:14
14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”
God in turn had said;
1 KINGS 19:18
18 Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
ISAIAH 1:10-15
10 Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; give ear to the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah:
11 “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats.
12 “When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts?
13 Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.
14 Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.
God is sick and tired of their hypocritical approaches to worshiping Him. They follow the precepts of the Law and appointed feasts but they had become boring, meaningless rituals to them.
As God would later say of them;
ISAIAH 28:13
13 But the word of the Lord was to them, “Precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little,” that they might go and fall backward, and be broken and snared and caught.
They followed the Law In practice but in their hearts they followed Ba’al. God had said through the prophet Jeremiah;
JEREMIAH 7:8-11
8 “Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit.
9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know,
10 and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’?
11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the Lord.
ISAIAH 1:16-20
16 “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil,
17 Learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.
18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;
20 But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword”; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
God sets down simple rules for righteousness and forgiveness of sins as well as warnings for continued disobedience.
ISAIAH 1:21-23
21 How the faithful city has become a harlot! It was full of justice; righteousness lodged in it, but now murderers.
22 Your silver has become dross, your wine mixed with water.
23 Your princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves; everyone loves bribes, and follows after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, nor does the cause of the widow come before them.
The inhabitants of Jerusalem have compromised their beliefs and perform all sorts of wickedness, from the rulers on down. There is no justice and the course of justice is determined by bribes.
ISAIAH 1:24-26
24 Therefore the Lord says, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, “Ah, I will rid Myself of My adversaries, and take vengeance on My enemies.
25 I will turn My hand against you, and thoroughly purge away your dross, and take away all your alloy.
26 I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.”
Precious metal ores such as silver are rarely found in pure form, they are usually mixed with lead or some other baser metal or impurity. Refining at high temperatures burns away these impurities and God plans to put Jerusalem through the fires of judgment to refine and purify His people.
ISAIAH 1:27-31
27 Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and her penitents with righteousness.
28 The destruction of transgressors and of sinners shall be together, and those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed.
29 For they shall be ashamed of the terebinth trees which you have desired; and you shall be embarrassed because of the gardens which you have chosen.
30 For you shall be as a terebinth whose leaf fades, and as a garden that has no water.
31 The strong shall be as tinder, and the work of it as a spark; both will burn together, and no one shall quench them.
Terebinth trees were sacred oak trees used to worship the pagan goddess Asherah (Ashtoreth, also known as Astarte or Ishtar), a consort (companion) of Ba’al, worshiped by the Sidonians of Lebanon. The worshipers created lush gardens in which to practice their rituals to the goddess.
ISAIAH 2:1-4
1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it.
3 Many people shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
This will occur when Jesus Christ returns to Earth to set up His Earthly kingdom. Mount Zion will be elevated above the other surrounding mountains. Such a violent tectonic change might be what has been described in prophecy as happening during the last days before Jesus returns;
ISAIAH 42:19-20
19 The Earth is violently broken, the Earth is split open, the Earth is shaken exceedingly.
20 The Earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again.
REVELATION 16:17-18
17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!”
18 And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great Earthquake, such a mighty and great Earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the Earth.
According to the above prophecies this Earthquake will be greater than even those that must have happened during the Flood!!!
ISAIAH 2:5-9
5 O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord.
6 For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled with eastern ways; they are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they are pleased with the children of foreigners.
7 Their land is also full of silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures; their land is also full of horses, and there is no end to their chariots.
8 Their land is also full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.
9 People bow down, and each man humbles himself; therefore do not forgive them.
God has greatly blessed His people with abundance, yet they credit those blessings to Mesopotamian gods, worshiping idols while rejecting the God who gave everything to them. They eagerly seek military and economic alliances with their pagan neighbors and adopt their ways and customs of worship.
ISAIAH 2:10-22
10 Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For the day of the Lord of hosts shall come upon everything proud and lofty, upon everything lifted up— and it shall be brought low—
13 Upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan;
14 upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up;
15 upon every high tower, and upon every fortified wall;
16 upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all the beautiful sloops.
17 The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day,
18 but the idols He shall utterly abolish.
19 They shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the Earth, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the Earth mightily.
20 In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which they made, each for himself to worship, to the moles and bats,
21 to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the crags of the rugged rocks, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the Earth mightily.
22 Sever yourselves from such a man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for of what account is he?
This event refers to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ when He returns to rule and judge the Earth. It will be both a glorious and a terribly frightening event and one which will fulfill the prophecy of;
REVELATION 6:12-17
12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great Earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
13 And the stars of heaven fell to the Earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
15 And the kings of the Earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,
16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
The prophet Zephaniah pretty much summed it up when he said;
ZEPHANIAH 1:14-18
14 The great day of the Lord is near; it is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter; there the mighty men shall cry out.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 a day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers.
17 “I will bring distress upon men, and they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like refuse.”
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy, for He will make speedy riddance of all those who dwell in the land.
ISAIAH 3:1-7
1 For behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stock and the store, the whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water;
2 the mighty man and the man of war, the judge and the prophet, and the diviner and the elder;
3 the captain of fifty and the honorable man, the counselor and the skillful artisan, and the expert enchanter.
4 “I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.
5 The people will be oppressed, every one by another and every one by his neighbor; the child will be insolent toward the elder, and the base toward the honorable.”
6 When a man takes hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying, “You have clothing; you be our ruler, and let these ruins be under your power,”
7 in that day he will protest, saying, “I cannot cure your ills, for in my house is neither food nor clothing; do not make me a ruler of the people.”
God is about to strike Judah with drought and famine; He is also going to set the inhabitants against each other. Things will be desperate enough that anyone with decent clothing will be asked to rule over the ruins of the land, but they will refuse for they are no better off than anyone else.
ISAIAH 3:8-12
8 For Jerusalem stumbled, and Judah is fallen, because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of His glory.
9 The look on, their countenance witnesses against them, and they declare their sin as Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves.
10 “Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11 Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
12 As for My people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.”
The inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem openly perform their wickedness as did the inhabitants of Sodom and are not ashamed of their actions, much like today. Radical women and rebellious children seek to control and rule over their elders, despite God’s commandment of;
LEVITICUS 19:32
32 ‘You shall rise before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and fear your God: I am the Lord.
ISAIAH 3:13-26
13 The Lord stands up to plead, and stands to judge the people.
14 The Lord will enter into judgment with the elders of His people and His princes: “For you have eaten up the vineyard; the plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15 What do you mean by crushing My people and grinding the faces of the poor?” says the Lord God of hosts.
16 Moreover the Lord says: “Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with outstretched necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, making a jingling with their feet,
17 Therefore the Lord will strike with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will uncover their secret parts.”
18 In that day the Lord will take away the finery: the jingling anklets, the scarves, and the crescents;
19 The pendants, the bracelets, and the veils;
20 The headdresses, the leg ornaments, and the headbands; the perfume boxes, the charms,
21 and the rings; the nose jewels,
22 the festal apparel, and the mantles; the outer garments, the purses,
23 and the mirrors; the fine linen, the turbans, and the robes.
24 And so it shall be: instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-set hair, baldness; instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty.
25 Your men shall fall by the sword, and your mighty in the war.
26 Her gates shall lament and mourn, and she being desolate shall sit on the ground.
God expresses His fury with the rich, haughty, arrogant, promiscuous women of Jerusalem. He promises to take away their finery, beauty products, perfumes, ornaments and luxuries which they have attained from plundering the poor.
He will replace their riches with disease, sackcloth, rope belts, slave brands on their skin and the stench of unwashed, diseased bodies. Jerusalem will be utterly devastated by the end of the upcoming war.
ISAIAH 4:1
1 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, “We will eat our own food and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by your name, to take away our reproach.”
The male population will be greatly reduced by the coming war, and widows and unmarried women will abound. They will seek a man to provide for them and will modestly work around the home for their living rather than enjoy the plunder extorted from the poor as they did formerly.
ISAIAH 4:2-6
2 In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious; and the fruit of the Earth shall be excellent and appealing for those of Israel who have escaped.
3 And it shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem.
4 When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning,
5 then the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a covering.
6 And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.
This seems to refer to the status of Jerusalem after Jesus Christ returns. Jesus has been referred to as The Branch in Scripture;
ISAIAH 11:1-2
1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
2 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
This prophecy states that the coming Messiah will come from the descendants of Jesse, king David’s father and will be of the lineage of David whose forefather was Jacob’s son Judah from whose line the Messiah would come.
The pillar of cloud and fire spoken of in verse 5 was seen when Israel wandered the wilderness for 40 years indicating Gods’ presence (Exodus 13:21) but has not been seen since Israel entered Canaan. When Jesus returns, the pillar will again be seen, this time above Jerusalem.
ISAIAH 5:1-7
1 Now let me sing to my well-beloved a song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard: My well-beloved has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill.
2 He dug it up and cleared out its stones, and planted it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, and also made a winepress in it; so He expected it to bring forth good grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes.
3 “And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge, please, between Me and My vineyard.
4 What more could have been done to My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, did it bring forth wild grapes?
5 And now, please let Me tell you what I will do to My vineyard. I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; and break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down.
6 I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned or dug, but there shall come up briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain on it.”
7 For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are His pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.
God compares Israel and Judah to a pleasant vineyard which was planted with a choice, cultivated vine. He built a wall of protection about it, blessed it with abundant rains expecting a rich crop of quality grapes for fine wine. Instead it became a degenerate vine with poor quality grapes despite His efforts.
In His wrath He will remove His protection, break its walls, consume it with drought, burn it with fire and will leave it desolate for a period of time. As king David would prophesy;
PSALMS 80:8-13
8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt; You have cast out the nations, and planted it.
9 You prepared room for it, and caused it to take deep root, and it filled the land.
10 The hills were covered with its shadow, and the mighty cedars with its boughs.
11 She sent out her boughs to the Sea, and her branches to the River.
12 Why have You broken down her hedges, so that all who pass by the way pluck her fruit?
13 The boar out of the woods uproots it, and the wild beast of the field devours it.
ISAIAH 5:8-10
8 Woe to those who join house to house; they add field to field, till there is no place, where they may dwell alone in the midst of the land!
9 In my hearing the Lord of hosts said, “Truly, many houses shall be desolate, great and beautiful ones, without inhabitant.
10 For ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and a homer of seed shall yield one ephah.”
God condemns the rich who gain land far beyond their needs, either by confiscation, swindle or other illegal means so that they alone own all available property. He promises that they will not profit from the planting and harvests.
10 acres of grapes will yield only 6 gallons of wine; and 6.5 bushels of planted seed will yield about 21 dry quarts, or 1/10 of a bushel of harvest.
ISAIAH 5:11-17
11 Woe to those who rise early in the morning, that they may follow intoxicating drink; who continue until night, till wine inflames them!
12 The harp and the strings, the tambourine and flute, and wine are in their feasts; but they do not regard the work of the Lord, nor consider the operation of His hands.
13 Therefore my people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge; their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.
14 Therefore Sheol has enlarged itself and opened its mouth beyond measure; their glory and their multitude and their pomp, and he who is jubilant, shall descend into it.
15 People shall be brought down, each man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled.
16 But the Lord of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God who is holy shall be hallowed in righteousness.
17 Then the lambs shall feed in their pasture, and in the waste places of the fat ones strangers shall eat.
God condemns the idle rich who drink wine all day and night, partying and rejoicing in their sinful behavior. Their leaders and teachers do not teach or follow God’s laws and as a result the people are starving spiritually and Sheol (Hell) is swallowing them in hordes.
God is about to bring judgment on Jerusalem and invaders will eat the fruit of the land while the owners are slaughtered or sent into captivity.
ISAIAH 5:18-19
18 Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as if with a cart rope;
19 That say, “Let Him make speed and hasten His work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, that we may know it.”
The sheer arrogance of the people is displayed as they mock God’s dire warnings of coming judgment, essentially saying, “Oh yeah? Prove it, show us what you mean!”
ISAIAH 5:20-23
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!
22 Woe to men mighty at drinking wine, woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink,
23 Who justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away justice from the righteous man!
The wicked will always try to justify their actions as being “their right” to do what they do, or to elevate wickedness as righteousness while condemning true righteousness. A good example is the rioters who loot, burn and destroy everything they can, while saying that it’s “their time” and they “have the right” to do so as an “expression of their rage”.
It is an open secret in Congressional politics that if you want favorable legislation passed, be prepared to heavily donate to your representative’s campaign coffers. In other words, they will sell their influence for a suitable bribe.
ISAIAH 5:24-25
24 Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble, and the flame consumes the chaff, so their root will be as rottenness, and their blossom will ascend like dust; because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25 Therefore the anger of the Lord is aroused against His people; he has stretched out His hand against them and stricken them, and the hills trembled. Their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
God’s wrath is about to fall on Jerusalem in full measure. He has warned them, but they mocked Him and kept on doing their wicked works. Therefore He will bring destruction on them.
ISAIAH 5:26-30
26 He will lift up a banner to the nations from afar, and will whistle to them from the end of the Earth; surely they shall come with speed, swiftly.
27 No one will be weary or stumble among them, no one will slumber or sleep; nor will the belt on their loins be loosed, nor the strap of their sandals be broken;
28 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent; their horses’ hooves will seem like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind.
29 Their roaring will be like a lion, they will roar like young lions; yes, they will roar and lay hold of the prey; they will carry it away safely, and no one will deliver.
30 In that day they will roar against them like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks to the land, behold, darkness and sorrow; and the light is darkened by the clouds.
In 586 B.C. the Babylonians, the dominant empire of the time along with the remnants of the Assyrians and other allied nations would destroy Jerusalem, killing over 9,000 people in the city, laying waste to all of Judah and deporting the survivors to Babylon as captives for 70 years.
ISAIAH 6:1-4
1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.
2 Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.
3 And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole Earth is full of His glory!”
4 And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.
The book of Isaiah is the only book in the Bible where Seraphim are mentioned. They differ from Cherubim in that they have 6 wings and Cherubim have only four; Seraphim seem to have one face whereas Cherubim have four each. And with Seraphim they cover their bodies with two wings, their face with two wings and they fly with the last two, whereas Cherubim use all four for flight.
King Uzziah died in 739 B.C.
ISAIAH 6:5-10
5 So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.
7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.”
8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”
9 And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
10 “Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.”
Note several things here. God asks “Who will go for US” showing that God is speaking in plural form, indicating that God is speaking for others equal to Himself. This supports the concept of a triune (3 member) Godhead as enshrined in the Christian faith, namely the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit. Each are equally God, yet One.
The concept of the Son is not new in Scripture. Consider the following;
ISAIAH 9:6
6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
PROVERBS 30:4
4 Who has ascended into heaven, or descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the Earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name, If you know?
PSALMS 2:10-12
10 Now therefore, be wise, O kings; be instructed, you judges of the Earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
Note that in all three cases the Son is referred to as deity, Someone equal with God Himself.
The concept of God’s plurality is also not new. In Genesis, before Man was created, God said;
GENESIS 1:26
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the Earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the Earth.”
Angels are created beings themselves and have no power to create anything. Therefore God is speaking to others equal to Himself.
God Himself said, concerning the King;
PSALM 45:6-7
6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.
And king David, referring to Someone greater than himself said;
PSALM 110:1-2
1 The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
2 The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!
This whole idea supports the words of the apostle John who in the New Testament spoke of the Trinity, saying;
1 JOHN 5:7
7 For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.
Note: Jesus also carries the title of being “The Word of God” in that He has given us the Father’s commandments in the New Testament.
In His last prayer to His Father, He said of His disciples;
JOHN 17:8
8 For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.
ISAIAH 6:11-13
11 Then I said, “Lord, how long? And He answered: “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, the houses are without a man, the land is utterly desolate,
12 The Lord has removed men far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
13 But yet a tenth will be in it, and will return and be for consuming, as a terebinth tree or as an oak, whose stump remains when it is cut down. So the holy seed shall be its stump.”
In 586 B.C., approximately 100 years after Isaiah’s death the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and laid waste to all of Judah. The surviving Jews were deported to Babylon and for 70 years all of Judah lay in ruins. When the 70 years were finished, a remnant returned to Judah as prophesied above.
ISAIAH 7:1-2
1 Now it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to make war against it, but could not prevail against it.
2 And it was told to the house of David, saying, “Syria’s forces are deployed in Ephraim.” So his heart and the heart of his people were moved as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.
10 of the 12 tribes of Israel had split from Judah and Benjamin to form the Northern kingdom of Israel in about 930 B.C. after the death of Solomon. (1 Kings, chapter 12) and there had been frequent wars between the Northern kingdom and Judah afterward.
In 732 B.C. the Northern kingdom of Israel allied with Syria to overthrow king Ahaz and set up a vassal king in his place.
ISAIAH 7:3-9
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-Jashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller’s Field,
4 and say to him: ‘Take heed, and be quiet; do not fear or be fainthearted for these two stubs of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and the son of Remaliah.
5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have plotted evil against you, saying,
6 “Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, and let us make a gap in its wall for ourselves, and set a king over them, the son of Tabel”—
7 thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, nor shall it come to pass.
8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be broken, so that it will not be a people.
9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.” ’ ”
The “Fuller’s Field” was where raw wool was bleached and washed to get rid of the lanolin (oils) normally found in freshly-sheared wool. The field contained very fine clay which was scrubbed into the wool to remove the oils and roughen the fibers slightly. The wool was then thoroughly washed in a solution of saltpeter and lye which bleached the wool in preparation for spinning into yarn.
Isaiah was told to bring his son Shear-Jashub (Hebrew: “a remnant will return”) and was told to tell Ahaz that the attack against Jerusalem would not only fail, but that within 65 years the Northern kingdom of Israel would be destroyed.
In 701 B.C. the pagan, idolatrous Northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians under Tiglath-Pileser III and its population deported to Assyria and lands eastward. Within a generation they had assimilated into their host cultures and vanished from history. Thus Ephraim as a people was broken and disappeared.
ISAIAH 7:10-17
10 Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying,
11 “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above.”
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!”
13 Then he said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also?
14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
15 Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and choose the good.
16 For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings.
17 The Lord will bring the king of Assyria upon you and your people and your father’s house—days that have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah.”
This is interesting in that God tells Ahaz, described as an evil king, to ask for sign to prove God’s words. Oddly enough, Ahaz refused, probably out of unbelief as he then stripped the Temple of its gold and silver and hired the Assyrians to conquer Syria which they did, annexing Syria, deporting its population and executing king Rezin (2 Kings, chapter 16)
Verse 14 prophesies of the famous “virgin birth”, foretelling the birth of Jesus Christ. For 2,000 years the rabbis have tried to interpret “virgin” as meaning “unmarried”, arguing that an unmarried woman could be a widow or divorced woman, trying to prove that Jesus is not the promised Messiah.
I won’t go into the translation arguments, but the Dead Sea Scrolls and other pre first-century manuscripts correctly translate “virgin” as being an unmarried woman who has never been intimate with a man. The Jewish leaders and teachers started the “unmarried woman” argument after Jesus’ death.
People claim that a “virgin birth” is impossible but there is a process called “parthenogenesis” in which female animals can have offspring without male interaction. Recently a shark who had been in an isolated aquarium for years suddenly had a baby.
God allowed this to happen to humans only once, when Jesus Christ was born. And true to the prophecy, by the time Jesus was born the Romans had conquered the territories of Syria and the former Northern kingdom, placing them both under direct Roman rule, administrated by Imperial governors.
And also according to the prophecy, the king of Assyria would attack Jerusalem during the reign of king Ahaz’ son, king Hezekiah (2 Kings, chapter 18).
ISAIAH 7:18-25
18 And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord will whistle for the fly that is in the farthest part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
19 They will come, and all of them will rest in the desolate valleys and in the clefts of the rocks, and on all thorns and in all pastures.
20 In the same day the Lord will shave with a hired razor, with those from beyond the River, with the king of Assyria, the head and the hair of the legs, and will also remove the beard.
21 It shall be in that day that a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep;
22 So it shall be, from the abundance of milk they give, that he will eat curds; for curds and honey everyone will eat who is left in the land.
23 It shall happen in that day, that wherever there could be a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels of silver, it will be for briers and thorns.
24 With arrows and bows men will come there, because all the land will become briers and thorns.
25 And to any hill which could be dug with the hoe, you will not go there for fear of briers and thorns; but it will become a range for oxen and a place for sheep to roam.
God promises to bring the Assyrians and their allies in Egypt against Judah because of their sins. History shows that Assyrian king Sennacherib conquered all of Judah except for Jerusalem, which was saved by God’s miraculous intervention (2 Kings, chapters 18 and 19).
In an interesting note, the Sennacherib prism (6-sided clay obelisk) uncovered by archaeologists has an inscription by Sennacherib listing the cities of Judah that he’d conquered and states that he’d “trapped Hezekiah in Jerusalem like a caged bird”, but he never mentions having conquered the city! Again the accuracy of Scripture is verified by history.
NOTE: Shaving the body with a razor was a sign of mourning in ancient times.
ISAIAH 8:1-4
1 Moreover the Lord said to me, “Take a large scroll, and write on it with a man’s pen concerning Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.
2 And I will take for Myself faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.”
3 Then I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the Lord said to me, “Call his name Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz;
4 for before the child shall have knowledge to cry ‘My father’ and ‘My mother,’ the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be taken away before the king of Assyria.”
As was discussed in the last chapter, the Assyrians under Tiglath-Pileser III destroyed Syria in732 B.C. and the Northern kingdom of Israel in 701 B.C.
Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz - (Hebrew: rush to the spoils - referring to the Assyrians plundering Syria and Israel.)
ISAIAH 8:5-8
5 The Lord also spoke to me again, saying:
6 “Inasmuch as these people refused the waters of Shiloah that flow softly, and rejoice in Rezin and in Remaliah’s son;
7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord brings up over them the waters of the River, strong and mighty— the king of Assyria and all his glory; he will go up over all his channels and go over all his banks.
8 He will pass through Judah, he will overflow and pass over, he will reach up to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings will fill the breadth of Your land, O Immanuel.
“Shiloah” was another name for the spring of Siloam, a spring of waters outside the walls of Jerusalem. During the reign of king Hezekiah in 701 B.C. the Assyrians under Assyrian king Sennacherib invaded Judah and captured all but Jerusalem, thus flowing through Judah “up to the neck”.
Carvings from Assyria show Assyrian rulers as winged bulls with the wings showing their speed of conquest and the body of a bull symbolizing their power and might. Thus by conquering all of Judah, the Assyrian ruler’s “wings” filled the land.
ISAIAH 8:9-15
9 “Be shattered, O you peoples, and be broken in pieces! Give ear, all you from far countries. Gird yourselves, but be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, but be broken in pieces.
10 Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing; speak the word, but it will not stand, for God is with us.”
11 For the Lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying:
12 “Do not say, ‘A conspiracy,’ concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.
13 The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow; let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.
14 He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken, be snared and taken.”
God speaks of the conspiracy concerning the coalition of Assyrians and their allies, saying that even though they gather against Jerusalem, it will avail them nothing for He will protect Jerusalem. Even so, He will also be an enemy to the wicked and corrupt Jews in both the idolatrous Northern Kingdom of Israel and those in Judah as well.
ISAIAH 8:16-22
16 Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.
17 And I will wait on the Lord, who hides His face from the house of Jacob; and I will hope in Him.
18 Here am I and the children whom the Lord has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells in Mount Zion.
19 And when they say to you, “Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living?
20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
21 They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward.
22 Then they will look to the Earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness.
God condemns those who rely on spiritists, mediums, fortunetellers, sorcerers, etc, those who seek to consult the dead for advice and foretelling of future events.
God will never allow the dead to communicate with the living! Any such appearances (including supposed appearances by the ‘virgin Mary’) are demonic spirits masquerading as dead people.
God will drive such people from the Land, and starving and in despair, they will be pursued by enemies and will be driven to destruction.
ISAIAH 9:1
1 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, as when at first He lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward more heavily oppressed her, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in Galilee of the Gentiles.
This refers to Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser’s invasion of Northern Israel around 722 B.C. in which the people of Zebulun and Naphtali were deported to Assyria and lands east.
ISAIAH 9:2
2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.
This refers to the future prophecy concerning the Earthly ministry of Jesus Christ who started His public ministry in Galilee.
NOTE: This was a future prophecy, as Zebulun and Naphtali were Jewish lands until their deportation in 701 B.C. After their deportation Gentiles occupied the territories (especially the Galilee area), fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 9:1-2 above.
The apostle Matthew wrote;
MATTHEW 4:13-16
13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali,
14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:
16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”
ISAIAH 9:3-5
3 You have multiplied the nation and increased its joy; they rejoice before You according to the joy of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
4 For You have broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.
5 For every warrior’s sandal from the noisy battle, and garments rolled in blood, will be used for burning and fuel of fire.
God will spare Jerusalem from the Assyrians, allowing them to spoil their enemies, praise their Lord for deliverance. The bloody clothing and sandals of the enemy will be burned to cleanse the land of blood.
“The day of Midian” refers to the story of Gideon who with a small number of men destroyed an innumerable army of Midianites who attacked had Judah (Judges, chapter 7).
ISAIAH 9:6-7
6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
This is a prophecy of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ when He returns to set up His Earthly kingdom at the End of Days. The biggest stumbling block for people is not realizing that He first had to come, teach the New Testament, and then seal that covenant with His atoning death for sin. For as a perfect life (Adam) was destroyed by sin, a perfect life (Jesus) had to be freely given to destroy sin.
The problem is that people isolate verses 6 and 7 above and claim that He could not be the promised Messiah because He did not bring peace to the world. However they ignore the “suffering Servant” passages speaking of His atonement for sin by His death, and the future prophecies speaking of His return to destroy the wicked and bring peace to the Earth. ALL of the prophecies need to be understood as a whole to understand God’s plans for Mankind.
After His resurrection, He was taken back into Heaven where He must wait for His Father’s permission to return to set up His Earthly kingdom and bring peace to the Earth.
ISAIAH 9:8-12
8 The Lord sent a word against Jacob, and it has fallen on Israel.
9 All the people will know— Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria— who say in pride and arrogance of heart:
10 “The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with hewn stones; the sycamores are cut down, but we will replace them with cedars.”
11 Therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and spur his enemies on,
12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
God has had enough of the Northern kingdom of Israel’s arrogance, idolatry and mockery of Him and His laws. God would have the Assyrians destroy Syrian king Rezin and the subjugated Syrians would join Assyria in destroying Samaria and the rest of the Northern kingdom of Israel. And although history is silent on the Philistines attacking Samaria at this time, it is very likely they took advantage of Samaria’s fighting the Assyrians to “attack from the rear” so to speak.
ISAIAH 9:13-17
13 For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them, nor do they seek the Lord of hosts.
14 Therefore the Lord will cut off head and tail from Israel, palm branch and bulrush in one day.
15 The elder and honorable, he is the head; the prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err, and those who are led by them are destroyed.
17 Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men, nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
Even though God has stricken them, trying to gain their attention the people still continue in their sinful ways. Even their widows and children are corrupt, and while the elders may seem honorable to the people, they are not righteous before God.
Therefore He will destroy them as a people and will remove the survivors from His sight.
ISAIAH 9:18-21
18 For wickedness burns as the fire; it shall devour the briers and thorns, and kindle in the thickets of the forest; they shall mount up like rising smoke.
19 Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts the land is burned up, and the people shall be as fuel for the fire; no man shall spare his brother.
20 And he shall snatch on the right hand and be hungry; he shall devour on the left hand and not be satisfied; every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.
21 Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; together they shall be against Judah. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
Famine and starvation were two major scourges in besieged cities. No food came into the city and with major populations to feed, food stocks dwindled rapidly despite rationing. It was not uncommon for starving people to resort to cannibalism in order to survive.
As Moses had warned Israel;
DEUTERONOMY 28:52-57
52 “They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the Lord your God has given you.
53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you.
54 The sensitive and very refined man among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the rest of his children whom he leaves behind,
55 so that he will not give any of them the flesh of his children whom he will eat, because he has nothing left in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and sensitivity, will refuse to the husband of her bosom, and to her son and her daughter,
57 her placenta which comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of everything in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
Such practices may seem barbaric and disgusting to us today, but starvation can drive people to desperation. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus recorded that during the Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. starving people were sifting through cattle, sheep and donkey dung looking for undigested grain particles to eat.
ISAIAH 10:1-4
1 “Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, who write misfortune, which they have prescribed
2 to rob the needy of justice, and to take what is right from the poor of My people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless.
3 What will you do in the day of punishment, and in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? And where will you leave your glory?
4 Without Me they shall bow down among the prisoners, and they shall fall among the slain.” For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
There are always those who who devise schemes to enrich themselves at the expense of others. They are scourges and parasites, whose consciences are so calloused that they do not perceive their actions as wrong, but instead rejoice in their wickedness. Politicians and tyrants are infamous for this, passing harsh laws that impoverish their people while they themselves revel in luxury.
Venezuela’s Socialist President Maduro was recently filmed eating a $200 steak dinner even as his constituents were eating from dumpsters and killing and eating rats just trying to survive.
Our Congress has become infamous for this, giving themselves tax cuts and pay raises while increasing taxes on the general population and denying cost-of-living increases in pensions for the elderly and veterans who need it most.
ISAIAH 10:5-11
5 “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation.
6 I will send him against an ungodly nation, and against the people of My wrath. I will give him charge, to seize the spoil, to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7 Yet he does not mean so, nor does his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and cut off not a few nations.
8 For he says, ‘Are not my princes altogether kings?
9 Is not Calno like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus?
10 As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 as I have done to Samaria and her idols, shall I not do also to Jerusalem and her idols?’
Note several things here. Assyria is called by God “the rod of My anger” and the “staff of My indignation”. God numerous times used the pagan Gentile nations to punish the Jews when they abandoned Him. Yet the Jews condemn and hate the Gentiles for their persecutions and woes when the Gentiles were actually weapons used by God as a punishment!
Even today, many Rabbis are trying to make Israel a strictly Jewish State with no Gentiles allowed in the country. They either ignore or have forgotten the terrible curses that Moses warned would come upon them if they turned away from Him (Deuteronomy, chapter 28), blaming others for their woes rather than understanding the real reasons for their destruction.
ISAIAH 10:12-19
12 Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks.”
13 For he says: “By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent; also I have removed the boundaries of the people, and have robbed their treasuries; so I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man.
14 My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathers eggs that are left, I have gathered all the Earth; and there was no one who moved his wing, nor opened his mouth with even a peep.”
15 Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up, or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood!
16 Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts, will send leanness among his fat ones; and under his glory He will kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.
17 So the Light of Israel will be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame; it will burn and devour His thorns and his briers in one day.
18 And it will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19 Then the rest of the trees of his forest will be so few in number that a child may write them.
The king of Assyria thinks that he has conquered the surrounding nations by his own strength and power, but God states that he is performing God’s will in punishing the nations for their wickedness. And when He is finished, God will in turn punish the Assyrians for their arrogance and wickedness, destroying them and leaving them few in number.
ISAIAH 10:20-27
20 And it shall come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel, and such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, will never again depend on him who defeated them, but will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21 The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God.
22 For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them will return; the destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
23 For the Lord God of hosts will make a determined end in the midst of all the land.
24 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: “O My people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of Egypt.
25 For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction.”
26 And the Lord of hosts will stir up a scourge for him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt.
27 It shall come to pass in that day that his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.
Judah had a habit of allying with stronger, wealthier surrounding nations (Assyria, Babylon, Egypt) for trade and protection instead of relying on God, to their detriment. They usually began following their pagan gods and religious practices as a result, angering God and causing their destruction.
Such alliances were unstable and allegiances frequently changed. King Hezekiah paid Assyrian king Sennacherib to stop his attacks against Judah. Sennacherib took the money and attacked Judah anyway (2 Kings 18).
When the Egyptian armies were assembled to attack, the Pharaoh at the head of his army would raise his staff of office high to ready the attack. Then he would point it at the enemy giving the signal to attack.
God promises that as soon as the Assyrians have accomplished His will, He would destroy them and spare the remnant of Israel.
ISAIAH 10:28-34
28 He has come to Aiath, he has passed Migron; at Michmash he has attended to his equipment.
29 They have gone along the ridge, they have taken up lodging at Geba. Ramah is afraid, Gibeah of Saul has fled.
30 Lift up your voice, O daughter of Gallim! Cause it to be heard as far as Laish— O poor Anathoth!
31 Madmenah has fled, the inhabitants of Gebim seek refuge.
32 As yet he will remain at Nob that day; he will shake his fist at the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
33 Behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, will lop off the bough with terror; those of high stature will be hewn down, and the haughty will be humbled.
34 He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the mighty one.
The cities listed were all north of Jerusalem and shows the thoroughness of the Assyrians in their attacks, namely to isolate Jerusalem from receiving help from other cities. The Assyrians will seem unstoppable as Lebanon had already fallen to the invaders.
ISAIAH 11:1
1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
The word “Branch” is an interesting term as the Hebrew word for “branch” or “sprout” is ne-ser; and the Greek translation used in the books of Matthew and Luke is nazara. Linguists have linked ‘nazara’ to the term Nazarene, a term applied to Jesus Christ.
This solves a long-standing issue where Matthew quotes concerning Jesus;
MATTHEW 2:23
23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”;
The problem critics have had with this is that this quote does not occur in the Bible. BUT, if you consider ‘Nazarene’ to be linked linguistically with the Greek word nazara, it means that Jesus would be called “the Branch or Sprout”. Thus Matthew would have been referring to Isaiah’s prophecy in verse 1 above.
ISAIAH 11:2
2 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
The apostle John saw seven lamps of fire burning before the throne of God in his vision in Revelation. John said;
REVELATION 4:5
5 And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
The seven spirits are:
Spirit of the Lord (Holy Spirit)
Wisdom
Understanding
Counsel
Might
Knowledge
Fear (respect) of the Lord.
ISAIAH 11:3-9
3 His delight is in the fear of the Lord, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the Earth; He shall strike the Earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.
6 “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.
9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the Earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
When Jesus returns, His rule will be strict but fair. He will destroy the wicked at His return and will subdue the Earth;
REVELATION 19:15
15 Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
At that time, the curse put on the Earth by God because of Adam’s sin (Genesis 3:17) will be removed;
REVELATION 22:3-5
3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.
4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads.
5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.
Animals will lose their predatory and carnivorous natures and will become harmless.
ISAIAH 65:25
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” says the Lord.
Note however, that while serpents will lose their predatory nature, they will continue to eat dust as God commanded in Genesis 3:14.
ISAIAH 11:10
10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious.”
This refers to Jesus Christ, God’s Son, the descendant of king David who will return in glory to rule the Earth. Although the Jews are God’s chosen people, He will also bring salvation and hope of eternal life to Gentiles who believe in Him.
ISAIAH 11:11
11 It shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people who are left, from Assyria and Egypt, from Pathros and Cush, from Elam and Shinar, from Hamath and the islands of the sea.
This is a fascinating prophecy, as God promises to regather Israel from the ends of the Earth where they have been scattered the second time. This scattering would happen in 70 A.D., some 755 years after Isaiah’s death, when the Romans destroyed Judah.
What is so fascinating is that Israel (Judah in this case) had yet to be destroyed the first time by the Babylonians which would happen in 586 B.C., 100 years after Isaiah’s death. In other words, God prophesied of a second destruction and scattering of the Jews by the Romans before the first destruction of the nation by the Babylonians!
And true to the prophecy, Jews from around the world returned to the Land to establish the modern State of Israel in 1948, and are still being regathered to their ancient homeland.
ISAIAH 11:12-16
12 He will set up a banner for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the Earth.
13 Also the envy of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14 But they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west; together they shall plunder the people of the East; they shall lay their hand on Edom and Moab; and the people of Ammon shall obey them.
15 The Lord will utterly destroy the tongue of the Sea of Egypt; with His mighty wind He will shake His fist over the River, and strike it in the seven streams, and make men cross over dry-shod.
16 There will be a highway for the remnant of His people who will be left from Assyria, as it was for Israel in the day that he came up from the land of Egypt.
Verse 13 has been fulfilled as Jews today have no idea from which tribe they are descended from but are all considered as ‘Israelis’.
When Jesus returns, the Jew living outside of Israel will return to the Land from all corners of the Earth and their surrounding enemy nations will be subdued under their rule.
Verse 15 is somewhat difficult as the location of the “Sea of Egypt” varies among scholars, but the general consensus refers to the western arm of the Red Sea called the Gulf of Suez which lies between Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula.
In some fashion, God will dry up the Gulf of Suez and will also dry up the Nile River, famous for its division into 7 streams at the Delta where it empties into the Mediterranean Sea. An extended drought in central Africa, the source of the Nile could cause this.
When Israel came out of Egypt there was a major highway called “the King’s Highway” which stretched from Egypt northward, east of the Jordan River up into Mesopotamia and was a major economic route for caravans and invading armies. When Jesus returns, hostile nations will not interfere with any returning Jews from Mesopotamia and lands northward.
ISAIAH 12:1-6
1 And in that day you will say: “O Lord, I will praise You; though You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me.
2 Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; ‘For Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song, He also has become my salvation.’ ”
3 Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
4 And in that day you will say: “Praise the Lord, call upon His name; declare His deeds among the peoples, make mention that His name is exalted.
5 Sing to the Lord, for He has done excellent things; this is known in all the Earth.
6 Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”
This is one of the few cases in the Bible where God’s name is actually mentioned. The name “Jah” (Yah) means “The Everlasting”. The full term YHWH (pronounced Yahweh) has been translated to mean “To Be” as in eternal, and also as “I AM”, referring to all-encompassing eternal divinity.
The full name YHWH is considered by Jews to be too holy to speak, so they shorten it to “YAH”, just as they spell “God” as “G-d”, feeling that the name “God” is too holy to pronounce.
My question is, if these names are too holy to pronounce, why did God give them to us if He never meant for us to use them?
ISAIAH 13:1-5
1 The burden against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.
2 “Lift up a banner on the high mountain, raise your voice to them; wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded My sanctified ones; I have also called My mighty ones for My anger— those who rejoice in My exaltation.”
4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like that of many people! A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together! The Lord of hosts musters the army for battle.
5 They come from a far country, from the end of heaven—the Lord and His weapons of indignation, to destroy the whole land.
God has had enough of Babylon’s wickedness and the time of its destruction has come. The Babylonians accomplished His purpose, ruthlessly destroying the nations of the Middle East for their evil and idolatry, but attributed their victory to their pagan gods.
God is about to bring adversaries against Babylon who will treat them as they treated others.
NOTE: In ancient times, a prophecy was called “a burden”.
ISAIAH 13:6-10
6 Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore all hands will be limp, every man’s heart will melt,
8 And they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; they will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; they will be amazed at one another; their faces will be like flames.
9 Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and He will destroy its sinners from it.
10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its going forth, and the moon will not cause its light to shine.
Babylon had grown soft, with no more conquests since king Nebuchadnezzar conquered Judah in 586 B.C. He died in 561 B.C. and Babylon fell into decline under the rule of usurper Nabonidus who decided to live in Saudi Arabia, leaving his weak son Belshazzar to rule the city.
As Babylon had been the terror of the nations, even so would God send terror on Babylon. The description of the “day of the Lord” matches that proclaimed by the prophet Amos, who said;
AMOS 5:18-20
18 Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord! For what good is the day of the Lord to you? It will be darkness, and not light.
19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him!
20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light? Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?
The prophet Zephaniah also said;
ZEPHANIAH 1:14-16
14 The great day of the Lord is near; it is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter; there the mighty men shall cry out.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 A day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers.
ISAIAH 13:11-22
11 “I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold, a man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the Earth will move out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts and in the day of His fierce anger.
14 It shall be as the hunted gazelle, and as a sheep that no man takes up; every man will turn to his own people, and everyone will flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found will be thrust through, and everyone who is captured will fall by the sword.
16 Their children also will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be plundered and their wives ravished.
17 “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who will not regard silver; and as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces, and they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye will not spare children.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 It will never be inhabited, nor will it be settled from generation to generation; nor will the Arabian pitch tents there, nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there.
21 But wild beasts of the desert will lie there, and their houses will be full of owls; ostriches will dwell there, and wild goats will caper there.
22 The hyenas will howl in their citadels, and jackals in their pleasant palaces. Her time is near to come, and her days will not be prolonged.”
In 539 B.C. a coalition of Medes and Persians destroyed Babylon. The city had straddled the Euphrates River and in a remarkable feat of engineering, the river had been diverted and the attackers had come up under the walls as king Belshazzar and his court partied.
It was during this time that Belshazzar and his court saw the famous “writing on the wall” in which the fingers of a man’s hand wrote a message in the plaster prophesying the end of his kingdom, a message interpreted by the prophet Daniel (Daniel, chapter 5).
Although the city was destroyed as a regional superpower, it was occupied in turn by the Persians, then the Greeks and never again rose to prominence. In about 320 B.C. after a long protracted war between Alexander the Great’s generals after his death, Babylon was pretty much abandoned and became a dust-covered heap of ruins by about 305 B.C..
It may seem harsh that children would not be spared, but the children would learn the sins of their parents and would continue their abominable ways. Destroying the children would also ensure that they would not rise later to avenge their parents.
God had also prophesied that Babylon would never be rebuilt;
JEREMIAH 50:38-40
39 “Therefore the wild desert beasts shall dwell there with the jackals, and the ostriches shall dwell in it. It shall be inhabited no more forever, nor shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors,” says the Lord, “So no one shall reside there, nor son of man dwell in it.
In 1982 Saddam Hussein, dictator of Iraq decided to rebuild Babylon in order to move the capital from Baghdad to Babylon. He even minted gold coins showing his and king Nebuchadnezzar’s face on one side and the famous ‘Hanging Gardens’ on the reverse side.
Remembering God’s prophecies above, I had watched with great interest to see what would happen.
President George W. Bush sent troops into Iraq to overthrow Saddam and in 2003 Saddam was overthrown, the rebuilding was stopped and has never been restarted. Prophecy fulfilled.
ISAIAH 14:1-2
1 For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will still choose Israel, and settle them in their own land. The strangers will be joined with them, and they will cling to the house of Jacob.
2 Then people will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them for servants and maids in the land of the Lord; they will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors.
This will happen when Jesus Christ returns to Earth. He will rule the Earth from Israel and many nations will come to serve Him and His people. This also fits with the prophet Zechariah’s prediction;
ZECHARIAH 8:13
13 And it shall come to pass that just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you, and you shall be a blessing. Do not fear, let your hands be strong.’
ISAIAH 14:3-8
3 It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve,
4 that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: “How the oppressor has ceased, the golden city ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers;
6 He who struck the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he who ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted and no one hinders.
7 The whole Earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing.
8 Indeed the cypress trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, ‘Since you were cut down, no woodsman has come up against us.’
God promises that Judah will rejoice with the nations when Babylon is finally destroyed. The city seems impregnable, but God has called for its destruction. The reference to cypress and cedar trees refers to the people both great and small, of the nations under Babylonian rule.
ISAIAH 14:9-11
9 “Hell from beneath is excited about you, to meet you at your coming; it stirs up the dead for you, all the chief ones of the Earth; it has raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.
10 They all shall speak and say to you: ‘Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us?
11 Your pomp is brought down to Hell, and the sound of your stringed instruments; the maggot is spread under you, and worms cover you.’
God speaks to the king of Babylon, in this case Belshazzar, the same idolatrous king Belshazzar who saw the famous “writing on the wall” predicting the destruction of the city. The night that he saw the writing, he was killed by a coalition of Medes and Persians who attacked the city and overthrew it. (Daniel chapter 5)
There are no actual thrones in Hell, God is speaking of the previous rulers of great city-State empires (Assyria, Sumer, Egypt, etc.) who were great and terrible in their times but are now imprisoned in Hell. They mock Belshazzar who has become as weak as they are despite his former power on the Earth.
The reference to maggots and worms is reinforced by Jesus’ words describing Hell;
MARK 9:42-44
42 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.
43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to Hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched—
44 where ‘Their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
ISAIAH 14:12-15
12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations!
13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’
15 Yet you shall be brought down to Hell, to the lowest depths of the Pit.
This is a fascinating account of the reasons for Lucifer’s fall from Heaven, causing his name to be changed from Lucifer (Light-bearer) to Satan (Adversary, Accuser). This is called the “five I wills”, in which he, a created being of limited power, tried to be equal with His Creator who possesses infinite power. No created thing can be equal with its creator.
As God said;
ISAIAH 42:8
8 I am the Lord, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to carved images.
After his rebellion, God took away his position of authority and sentenced him and the angels who participated in his rebellion to be cast into the deepest (and worst) part of Hell at the end of time.
And after the Judgment, they will be cast into the Lake of Fire for eternity joining the Antichrist (called ‘the Beast’) and his False Prophet who will already be there;
REVELATION 20:10
10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
ISAIAH 14:16-21
16 “Those who see you will gaze at you, and consider you, saying: ‘Is this the man who made the Earth tremble, who shook kingdoms,
17 who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners?’
18 “All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house;
19 but you are cast out of your grave like an abominable branch, like the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot.
20 You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named.
21 Prepare slaughter for his children because of the iniquity of their fathers, lest they rise up and possess the land, and fill the face of the world with cities.”
God mocks the king of Babylon, and although it is not known what happened to Belshazzar’s body after he was killed, God alludes that he would not be buried with honor, seeming to indicate that he would not be buried at all.
A similar event would take place at the death of wicked king Jehoiakim of Judah. God said;
JEREMIAH 22:18-19
18 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: “They shall not lament for him, saying, ‘Alas, my brother!’ or ‘Alas, my sister!’ They shall not lament for him, saying, ‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, his glory!’
19 He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey, dragged and cast out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
And;
JEREMIAH 38:30
30 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: “He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and the frost of the night.
Jewish historian Flavius Josephus records that Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar had king Jehoiakim killed and ordered that his body be thrown over the walls of Jerusalem and left outside to rot.
ISAIAH 14:22-23
22 “For I will rise up against them,” says the Lord of hosts, “and cut off from Babylon the name and remnant, and offspring and posterity,” says the Lord.
23 “I will also make it a possession for the porcupine, and marshes of muddy water; I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” says the Lord of hosts.
Babylon was destroyed by the Medes and Persians in 539 B.C. It remained but in a reduced capacity under the Persians and later the Greeks, being finally abandoned about 320 B.C. after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.
With the Persian overthrow of Babylon, the Euphrates riverbed was no longer dredged as it was under King Nebuchadnezzar and over time it tended to form marshes and swamps of reeds and weeds in some areas.
ISAIAH 14:24-27
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying, “Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass, and as I have purposed, so it shall stand:
25 That I will break the Assyrian in My land, and on My mountains tread him underfoot. Then his yoke shall be removed from them, and his burden removed from their shoulders.
26 This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole Earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?”
The Assyrians under king Sennacherib attacked Jerusalem in 701 B.C. Judean king Hezekiah prayed to the Lord and the prophet Isaiah told him that God Himself would destroy the Assyrians (2 Kings, chapters 18-19).
That night 185,000 Assyrians were killed by God and the siege was broken. Greek historian Herodotus wrote that a plague of mice (or rats) ate the bowstrings and shield straps of the Assyrians, disarming them. Rodents are notorious carriers of disease, especially Yersinia Pestis, otherwise known as bubonic plague which could have destroyed the Assyrian army.
A prism (6-sided clay pillar) made by Sennacherib records the siege in which he brags about all of the cities of Judah that he had conquered and that he had “trapped Hezekiah in Jerusalem like a bird in a cage”, but he never mentions destroying or capturing the city. Thus Bible accuracy is confirmed by ancient Assyrian royal records.
ISAIAH 14:28-32
28 This is the burden which came in the year that King Ahaz died.
29 “Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia, because the rod that struck you is broken; for out of the serpent’s roots will come forth a viper, and its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.
30 The firstborn of the poor will feed, and the needy will lie down in safety; I will kill your roots with famine, and it will slay your remnant.
31 Wail, O gate! Cry, O city! All you of Philistia are dissolved; for smoke will come from the north, and no one will be alone in his appointed times.”
32 What will they answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord has founded Zion, and the poor of His people shall take refuge in it.
King Ahaz died in 716 B.C.
The Assyrians were broken in 701 B.C. as explained previously, apparently causing jubilation among the Philistines. Scholars think that the ‘serpent” mentioned here is Assyrian king Sargon II (762 - 705 B.C.) , the “viper”, his successor Assyrian king Sennacherib (705 - 681 B.C.). The “fiery flying serpent” is Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar who destroyed Assyria in 612 B.C.
In 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and shortly afterward totally destroyed the Philistines, as God prophesied through the prophet Amos;
AMOS 1:7-8
7 But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza, which shall devour its palaces.
8 I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon; I will turn My hand against Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,” says the Lord God.
ISAIAH 15:1-9
1 The burden against Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste and destroyed, because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste and destroyed,
2 He has gone up to the temple and Dibon, to the high places to weep. Moab will wail over Nebo and over Medeba; on all their heads will be baldness, and every beard cut off.
3 In their streets they will clothe themselves with sackcloth; on the tops of their houses and in their streets everyone will wail, weeping bitterly.
4 Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out, their voice shall be heard as far as Jahaz; therefore the armed soldiers of Moab will cry out; his life will be burdensome to him.
5 “My heart will cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee to Zoar, like a three-year-old heifer. For by the Ascent of Luhith they will go up with weeping; for in the way of Horonaim they will raise up a cry of destruction,
6 For the waters of Nimrim will be desolate, for the green grass has withered away; the grass fails, there is nothing green.
7 Therefore the abundance they have gained, and what they have laid up, they will carry away to the Brook of the Willows.
8 For the cry has gone all around the borders of Moab, its wailing to Eglaim and its wailing to Beer Elim.
9 For the waters of Dimon will be full of blood; because I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him who escapes from Moab, and on the remnant of the land.”
Moab was destroyed by the Babylonians sometime around the same time that Judah was destroyed (586 B.C.), and its destruction was also prophesied by the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah, chapter 48).
God lists the cities and places that will be destroyed and tells of men shaving their heads and beards in expressions of sorrow at their misfortunes.
ISAIAH 16:1-5
1 Send the lamb to the ruler of the land, from Sela to the wilderness, to the mount of the daughter of Zion.
2 For it shall be as a wandering bird thrown out of the nest; so shall be the daughters of Moab at the fords of the Arnon.
3 “Take counsel, execute judgment; make your shadow like the night in the middle of the day; hide the outcasts, do not betray him who escapes.
4 Let My outcasts dwell with you, O Moab; be a shelter to them from the face of the spoiler. For the extortioner is at an end, devastation ceases, the oppressors are consumed out of the land.
5 In mercy the throne will be established; and One will sit on it in truth, in the tabernacle of David, judging and seeking justice and hastening righteousness.”
God commands Moab to be a temporary shelter for the outcasts of Judah, more than likely for those escaping the invasion of the Assyrians under Assyrian king Sennacherib during his failed assault of Jerusalem during the reign of king Hezekiah.
God prophesies of the coming Messiah, a descendant of king David who will rule the world from Jerusalem, putting an end to evil.
ISAIAH 16:6-14
6 We have heard of the pride of Moab— he is very proud— of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath; but his lies shall not be so.
7 Therefore Moab shall wail for Moab; everyone shall wail. For the foundations of Kir Hareseth you shall mourn; surely they are stricken.
8 For the fields of Heshbon languish, and the vine of Sibmah; the lords of the nations have broken down its choice plants, which have reached to Jazer and wandered through the wilderness. Her branches are stretched out, they are gone over the sea.
9 Therefore I will bewail the vine of Sibmah, with the weeping of Jazer; I will drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh; for battle cries have fallen over your summer fruits and your harvest.
10 Gladness is taken away, and joy from the plentiful field; in the vineyards there will be no singing, nor will there be shouting; no treaders will tread out wine in the presses; I have made their shouting cease.
11 Therefore my heart shall resound like a harp for Moab, and my inner being for Kir Heres.
12 And it shall come to pass, when it is seen that Moab is weary on the high place, that he will come to his sanctuary to pray; but he will not prevail.
13 This is the word which the Lord has spoken concerning Moab since that time.
14 But now the Lord has spoken, saying, “Within three years, as the years of a hired man, the glory of Moab will be despised with all that great multitude, and the remnant will be very small and feeble.”
History is silent concerning who will destroy Moab but it is assumed that either Assyrian king Shalmanezer V (727 - 722 B.C.) or Sargon II (722 - 705 B.C.) conquered Moab. Moab disappeared from history during the reign of Persia over the region, and the region later became overrun by nomadic Arab tribes.
God states that their god Chemosh won’t be able to help them when they are conquered.
ISAIAH 17:1-3
1 The burden against Damascus. “Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city, and it will be a ruinous heap.
2 The cities of Aroer are forsaken; they will be for flocks which lie down, and no one will make them afraid.
3 The fortress also will cease from Ephraim, the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria; they will be as the glory of the children of Israel,” says the Lord of hosts.
This seems to refer to Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III’s destruction of Syria and the deportation of its inhabitants in about 740 B.C., and later conquering and deporting the idolatrous Northern kingdom of Israel (2 Kings, chapter 17).
God promises that Damascus would suffer ruin and deportation like that ofthe Northern kingdom of Israel.
ISAIAH 17:4-9
4 “In that day it shall come to pass that the glory of Jacob will wane, and the fatness of his flesh grow lean.
5 It shall be as when the harvester gathers the grain, and reaps the heads with his arm; it shall be as he who gathers heads of grain in the Valley of Rephaim.
6 Yet gleaning grapes will be left in it, like the shaking of an olive tree, two or three olives at the top of the uppermost bough, four or five in its most fruitful branches,” says the Lord God of Israel.
7 In that day a man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel.
8 He will not look to the altars, the work of his hands; he will not respect what his fingers have made, nor the wooden images nor the incense altars.
9 In that day his strong cities will be as a forsaken bough and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel; and there will be desolation.
God promises that the Northern Kingdom of Israel will be like a harvested field of grain, or as an olive tree shaken causing it to drop its ripe olives. God had commanded that when harvesting grain or picking fruit that some be left for the poor to glean (gather);
LEVITICUS 23:22
22 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.’ ”
God promises to spare some of the people, saying that the remnant would turn from their idolatry to serve Him
ISAIAH 17:10-11
10 Because you have forgotten the God of your salvation, and have not been mindful of the Rock of your stronghold, therefore you will plant pleasant plants and set out foreign seedlings;
11 In the day you will make your plant to grow, and in the morning you will make your seed to flourish; but the harvest will be a heap of ruins in the day of grief and desperate sorrow.
God’s judgments may seem harsh, but He usually warned His people for many years, begging them through the prophets to turn from their wickedness. But they usually mocked Him and grew even worse until He was forced to bring them to judgment.
ISAIAH 17:12-14
12 Woe to the multitude of many people who make a noise like the roar of the seas, and to the rushing of nations that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13 The nations will rush like the rushing of many waters; but God will rebuke them and they will flee far away, and be chased like the chaff of the mountains before the wind, like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14 Then behold, at eventide, trouble! And before the morning, he is no more. This is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who rob us.
Israel as a whole can take comfort in the fact that while mighty nations may attack Israel, if they remain faithful to the Lord, He will drive them away and will in turn destroy the oppressors.
ISAIAH 18:1-2
1 Woe to the land shadowed with buzzing wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia,
2 Which sends ambassadors by sea, even in vessels of reed on the waters, saying, “Go, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth of skin, to a people terrible from their beginning onward, a nation powerful and treading down, whose land the rivers divide.”
Although the reference to “buzzing wings” is unknown, the land referenced is the land of Cush, ancient Nubia which encompassed southern Egypt, all of Sudan and the western part of Ethiopia. The name “Cush” means “burnt” probably referring to the skin color of the natives of Nubia.
They made sea-going vessels of bulrushes which were very light and could easily navigate the cataracts of the Nile river along with the Niger, Astapus (Sobat River) and Astaboras (Atbarah - Black Nile) rivers. These boats were also collapsible allowing them to be transported by land if needed.
The land that “the rivers divide” whose people were “terrible from their beginning” could be the Assyrians whose land is divided by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. They were known and greatly feared throughout the Middle East for their power and unrivaled brutality.
The ambassadors sent by the Cushites refers to the emissaries of the powerful warlord Tirhaka (ruled from 690 - 664 B.C.) who cultivated alliances with Phoenicia and the Philistines and who came to the aid of Judah in 701 B.C. (before Tirhaka became Pharaoh) when king Sennacherib of Assyria was besieging Jerusalem during the reign of king Hezekiah. (2 Kings, chapter 19).
Tirhaka actually became one of the “black Pharaohs”, the son of a Cushite king who had conquered southern Egypt sometime around 730 B.C. Apparently the Assyrians thought Tirhaka to be a big enough threat that they briefly lifted the siege of Jerusalem to fight him.
ISAIAH 18:3-7
3 All inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the Earth: when he lifts up a banner on the mountains, you see it; and when he blows a trumpet, you hear it.
4 For so the Lord said to me, “I will take My rest, and I will look from My dwelling place like clear heat in sunshine, like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
5 For before the harvest, when the bud is perfect and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, He will both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks and take away and cut down the branches.
6 They will be left together for the mountain birds of prey and for the beasts of the Earth; the birds of prey will summer on them, and all the beasts of the Earth will winter on them.
7 In that time a present will be brought to the Lord of hosts from a people tall and smooth of skin, and from a people terrible from their beginning onward, a nation powerful and treading down, whose land the rivers divide— to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, to Mount Zion.
This seems to occur after the destruction of the armies of Armageddon when Jesus returns as depicted in Revelation chapter 16. As Isaiah prophesied during this time;
ISAIAH 2:4
4 He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
And;
ISAIAH 19:23-25
23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians.
24 In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land,
25 whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”
ISAIAH 19:1-2
1 The burden against Egypt. Behold, the Lord rides on a swift cloud, and will come into Egypt; the idols of Egypt will totter at His presence, and the heart of Egypt will melt in its midst.
2 “I will set Egyptians against Egyptians; everyone will fight against his brother, and everyone against his neighbor, city against city, kingdom against kingdom.
Scholars are uncertain when this occurred but it seems to refer to one of several civil wars between Upper (southern) Egypt and Lower (northern) Egypt when competing Pharaohs fought for domination.
ISAIAH 19:3-10
3 The spirit of Egypt will fail in its midst; I will destroy their counsel, and they will consult the idols and the charmers, the mediums and the sorcerers.
4 And the Egyptians I will give into the hand of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them,” says the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
5 The waters will fail from the sea, and the river will be wasted and dried up.
6 The rivers will turn foul; the brooks of defense will be emptied and dried up; the reeds and rushes will wither.
7 The papyrus reeds by the River, by the mouth of the River, and everything sown by the River, will wither, be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishermen also will mourn; all those will lament who cast hooks into the River, and they will languish who spread nets on the waters.
9 Moreover those who work in fine flax and those who weave fine fabric will be ashamed;
10 and its foundations will be broken. All who make wages will be troubled of soul.
The identity of the “cruel master” in verse 4 above has been debated with Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar, Persian ruler Cambyses II (son of Cyrus the Great) or Pharaoh Psamtik III as possibilities.
In any case, God seems to indicate that there will be a severe drought, which usually results in social upheaval and war. In 2150 B.C. a severe drought caused the collapse of the Old Kingdom dynasty of Pharaohs ending with Pepi II. After numerous civil wars, in 2055 B.C. Pharaoh Mentuhotep II reunited both Upper and Lower Egypt, starting the Middle Kingdom dynasty.
ISAIAH 19:11-17
11 Surely the princes of Zoan are fools; Pharaoh’s wise counselors give foolish counsel. How do you say to Pharaoh, “I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings?”
12 Where are they? Where are your wise men? Let them tell you now, and let them know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan have become fools; the princes of Noph are deceived; they have also deluded Egypt, those who are the mainstay of its tribes.
14 The Lord has mingled a perverse spirit in her midst; and they have caused Egypt to err in all her work, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
15 Neither will there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, palm branch or bulrush, may do.
16 In that day Egypt will be like women, and will be afraid and fear because of the waving of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which He waves over it.
17 And the land of Judah will be a terror to Egypt; everyone who makes mention of it will be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts which He has determined against it.
Again this passage is uncertain as to time-frame. It may refer to Assyrian king Sennacherib’s failed assault on Jerusalem in 701 B.C. during which Assyrian field commander Rabshakeh stood outside Jerusalem’s walls and mocked Pharaoh as a “broken reed” (2 Kings, chapter18).
God destroyed 185,000 Assyrian troops overnight and the attack failed. Word of the destruction of the Assyrian army undoubtedly reached Egypt more than likely stirring memories of the 10 plagues of Exodus (chapters 7-12)
ISAIAH 19:18-25
18 In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear by the Lord of hosts; one will be called the City of Destruction.
19 In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the Lord at its border.
20 And it will be for a sign and for a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the Lord because of the oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Mighty One, and He will deliver them.
21 Then the Lord will be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day, and will make sacrifice and offering; yes, they will make a vow to the Lord and perform it.
22 And the Lord will strike Egypt, He will strike and heal it; they will return to the Lord, and He will be entreated by them and heal them.
23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians.
24 In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land,
25 whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”
This speaks of when Jesus returns to rule the Earth from Jerusalem. Egypt will have suffered under the reign of the Antichrist and the worldwide disasters spoken of in the book of Revelation. They will seek the Lord and He will save them and heal their land.
In ancient times there was a desert highway which ran from Egypt to Assyria called “The King’s Highway” which was a major trade route for merchant caravans. When Moses led Israel into Canaan, they had to pass through Amorite country east of the Jordan River.
Scripture says;
NUMBERS 21:21-22
21 Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,
22 “Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into fields or vineyards; we will not drink water from wells. We will go by the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.”
This route still exists today as a low-speed, curvy scenic highway. When Jesus returns, this will again become a major highway.
ISAIAH 20:1-6
1 In the year that Tartan came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it,
2 at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and remove the sackcloth from your body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia,
4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
5 Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory.
6 And the inhabitant of this territory will say in that day, ‘Surely such is our expectation, wherever we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?’ ”
The Egyptians and Ethiopians had allied themselves with the Philistines, seeking to overthrow Assyrian domination of the region. Between 705 - 701 B.C. Assyrian king Shalmanezer, son of Sargon II defeated the Philistine cities of Ashkelon and Ekron and drove the Egyptians and Ethiopians out of Palestine.
In 671 B.C. Assyrian king Esarhaddon, son of Sennacherib invaded Egypt forcing Nubian Pharaoh Tirhaka to flee, although he captured the Pharaoh’s family and nobles, taking them to Assyria as hostages.
NOTE: in ancient times prisoners being deported by conquering nations were marched naked to their destinations as a mark of deepest shame and to reinforce that they were a conquered people.
ISAIAH 21:1-5
1 The burden against the Wilderness of the Sea. As whirlwinds in the South pass through, so it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
2 A distressing vision is declared to me; the treacherous dealer deals treacherously, and the plunderer plunders. Go up, O Elam! Besiege, O Media! All its sighing I have made to cease.
3 Therefore my loins are filled with pain; pangs have taken hold of me, like the pangs of a woman in labor. I was distressed when I heard it; I was dismayed when I saw it.
4 My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me; the night for which I longed He turned into fear for me.
5 Prepare the table, set a watchman in the tower, eat and drink. Arise, you princes, anoint the shield!
This particular prophecy refers to the coming destruction of Babylon by the Medes and Persians which occurred in 539 B.C.
NOTE: shields were many times made of wood covered in leather and rubbing the leather with oil kept the leather from drying out and cracking.
ISAIAH 21:6-10
6 For thus has the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he sees.”
7 And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen, a chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels, and he listened earnestly with great care.
8 Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord! I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night.
9 And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!” Then he answered and said, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground.”
10 Oh, my threshing and the grain of my floor! That which I have heard from the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I have declared to you.
The chariot of donkeys refers to the Persians who used them instead of horses, as mules or donkeys were better suited for traveling over harsh, stony desert terrain. By the same token, the Medes used swift camels with their chariots for the same reason.
The reference to “a lion” may refer to the ferocity of the attacking Medes and Persians. God had previously prophesied regarding Babylon;
ISAIAH 13:17-19
17 “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who will not regard silver; and as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces, and they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye will not spare children.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
ISAIAH 21:11-12
11 The burden against Dumah. He calls to me out of Seir, “Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?”
12 The watchman said, “The morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire;
Return! Come back!”
The meaning of this prophecy is obscure. Scholars agree that it deals with the Edomites, frequent enemies of Israel and is tied to Babylon’s destruction, but even that is uncertain.
ISAIAH 21:13-17
13 The burden against Arabia. In the forest in Arabia you will lodge, O you traveling companies of Dedanites.
14 O inhabitants of the land of Tema, bring water to him who is thirsty; with their bread they met him who fled.
15 For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow, and from the distress of war.
16 For thus the Lord has said to me: “Within a year, according to the year of a hired man, all the glory of Kedar will fail;
17 and the remainder of the number of archers, the mighty men of the people of Kedar, will be diminished; for the Lord God of Israel has spoken it.”
The time frame of this prophecy is uncertain. Kedar refers to modern day Saudi Arabia which at that time was controlled by the Arab tribe of Dedan. They had been conquered by the Assyrians and Babylonians at various times so the time set for this prophecy is unknown.
ISAIAH 22:1-14
1 The burden against the Valley of Vision. What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops,
2 You who are full of noise, a tumultuous city, a joyous city? Your slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle.
3 All your rulers have fled together; they are captured by the archers. All who are found in you are bound together; they have fled from afar.
4 Therefore I said, “Look away from me, I will weep bitterly; do not labor to comfort me because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.”
5 For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the Valley of Vision— breaking down the walls and of crying to the mountain.
6 Elam bore the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield.
7 It shall come to pass that your choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.
8 He removed the protection of Judah. You looked in that day to the armor of the House of the Forest;
9 You also saw the damage to the city of David, that it was great; and you gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 You numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses you broke down to fortify the wall.
11 You also made a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the old pool. But you did not look to its Maker, nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago.
12 And in that day the Lord God of hosts called for weeping and for mourning, for baldness and for girding with sackcloth.
13 But instead, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating meat and drinking wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!”
14 Then it was revealed in my hearing by the Lord of hosts, “Surely for this iniquity there will be no atonement for you, even to your death,” says the Lord God of hosts.
This prophecy refers to the coming Assyrian attack by king Sennacherib which occurred during the reign of Judean king Hezekiah in 701 B.C. (2 Kings, chapter 18).
Jerusalem had double walls around the city to protect against battering rams. During sieges,the space between the walls was filled with packed dirt and rubble from broken down houses to absorb the impact of battering.
When Hezekiah knew the Assyrians were coming, he blocked off the Spring of Siloam which was outside the walls of Jerusalem and carved a tunnel through 1,749 feet (533 m) of solid rock, (called Hezekiah’s Tunnel) directing the spring’s waters into the city and depriving the attacking Assyrians of a water supply. (2 Kings, chapter 20).
The tunnel was first rediscovered in 1625 and is a remarkable piece of engineering as the tunnelers started at opposite sides and when they met there was only a 12 inch difference in the height of the tunnel floor.
While God would spare Jerusalem, He would allow the Assyrians to lay waste to the rest of Judah (the prism (clay obelisk) of Assyrian king Sennacherib lists 46 cities and villages conquered) because of their sins.
ISAIAH 22:15-25
15 Thus says the Lord God of hosts: “Go, proceed to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the house, and say:
16 ‘What have you here, and whom have you here, that you have hewn a sepulcher here, as he who hews himself a sepulcher on high, who carves a tomb for himself in a rock?
17 Indeed, the Lord will throw you away violently, O mighty man, and will surely seize you.
18 He will surely turn violently and toss you like a ball into a large country; there you shall die, and there your glorious chariots shall be the shame of your master’s house.
19 So I will drive you out of your office, and from your position he will pull you down.
20 ‘Then it shall be in that day, that I will call My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah;
21 I will clothe him with your robe and strengthen him with your belt; I will commit your responsibility into his hand. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
22 The key of the house of David I will lay on his shoulder; so he shall open, and no one shall shut; and he shall shut, and no one shall open.
23 I will fasten him as a peg in a secure place, and he will become a glorious throne to his father’s house.
24 ‘They will hang on him all the glory of his father’s house, the offspring and the posterity, all vessels of small quantity, from the cups to all the pitchers.
25 In that day,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘the peg that is fastened in the secure place will be removed and be cut down and fall, and the burden that was on it will be cut off; for the Lord has spoken.’ ”
Shebna was an official who presided over the Temple of the Lord and may have been the scribe spoken of in 2 Kings, chapters 18-19. He apparently favored an alliance with Egypt against the Assyrians despite the mocking assessment of Nubian Pharaoh Neferkare Shabaka by an Assyrian field commander sent to demand Hezekiah’s surrender, who said;
2 KINGS 18:19-21
19 Then the Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: “What confidence is this in which you trust?
20 You speak of having plans and power for war; but they are mere words. And in whom do you trust, that you rebel against me?
21 Now look! You are trusting in the staff of this broken reed, Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
In ancient times the rich and powerful carved themselves tombs in the limestone hills as private burial sites, although some were for burial of whole families. God prophesied that Shebna would not be interred in his tomb but would be stripped of his position and would die in shame elsewhere probably because of his efforts to ally Jerusalem with Egypt.
His office would be given to Eliakim, son of the High Priest Hilkiah and he would have charge (as a steward) over all of the affairs and treasures of the Temple and of the city until his death.
ISAIAH 23:1-3
1 The burden against Tyre. Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no harbor; from the land of Cyprus it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whom those who cross the sea have filled.
3 And on great waters the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the River, is her revenue; and she is a marketplace for the nations.
Tyre was one of the major Lebanese seaports and trading centers of the ancient Middle East. The Phoenician ships from Tyre traveled the Mediterranean Sea and traded all along southern Europe, Britain, Spain and all of North Africa.
Tyre is most famous for it’s production of rare and very expensive purple dye (called Tyrian purple) made from Murex (Venus Comb) snails. It took several thousand pounds of snails to extract 1 pound of dye, so that only royalty and the very rich could afford it.
Although the location of Tarshish is unknown, it is well known as a place where ores were smelted into pure metals and sold as ingots. These ingots were imported to Tyre for sale to the rest of the known world.
This prophecy refers to the future 13 year siege and destruction of Tyre by the Babylonians under king Nebuchadnezzar II in 585 B.C. Although he destroyed the mainland port of Tyre, he couldn’t destroy the twin city located on an island about a half mile offshore as he had no ships to attack with. Mainland Tyre would remain desolate for 70 years, until the fall of Babylon to the Persians.
ISAIAH 23:4-12
4 Be ashamed, O Sidon; for the sea has spoken, the strength of the sea, saying, “I do not labor, nor bring forth children; neither do I rear young men, nor bring up virgins.”
5 When the report reaches Egypt, they also will be in agony at the report of Tyre.
6 Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you inhabitants of the coastland!
7 Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is from ancient days, whose feet carried her far off to dwell?
8 Who has taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honorable of the Earth?
9 The Lord of hosts has purposed it, to bring to dishonor the pride of all glory, to bring into contempt all the honorable of the Earth.
10 Overflow through your land like the River, O daughter of Tarshish; there is no more strength.
11 He stretched out His hand over the sea, He shook the kingdoms; the Lord has given a commandment against Canaan to destroy its strongholds.
12 And He said, “You will rejoice no more, O you oppressed virgin daughter of Sidon. Arise, cross over to Cyprus; there also you will have no rest.”
Sidon and Tyre were both major cities in the kingdom of Phoenicia. Sidon lay to the north of Tyre and was nearly equal in sea power and prosperity to Tyre. It was an idolatrous city, worshiping Baal and during the reign of Phoenician king Ethba’al (940-908 B.C.) Sidon controlled part of the island of Cyprus. Ethba’al was also the father of wicked queen Jezebel who led the Northern kingdom of Israel into Ba’al worship during the time of Elijah (1 Kings, chapter 16).
God prophesies that like Tyre, Sidon will be destroyed by the Babylonians.
ISAIAH 23:13-18
13 Behold, the land of the Chaldeans, this people which was not; Assyria founded it for wild beasts of the desert. They set up its towers, they raised up its palaces, and brought it to ruin.
14 Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For your strength is laid waste.
15 Now it shall come to pass in that day that Tyre will be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king. At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot:
16 “Take a harp, go about the city, you forgotten harlot; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that you may be remembered.”
17 And it shall be, at the end of seventy years, that the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her hire, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the Earth.
18 Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the Lord; it will not be treasured nor laid up, for her gain will be for those who dwell before the Lord, to eat sufficiently, and for fine clothing.
Babylon was sacked by Assyria in 1225 B.C. and was long under Assyrian domination until 612 B.C. when Babylonian crown prince Nebuchadnezzar II conquered Assyria’s capital city of Nineveh. This happened in accordance with the prophecy of Nahum (Nahum, chapter 2) who said that the Euphrates River would dissolve the palace.
True to prophecy, the Babylonians diverted the Euphrates River against the city walls and palace which dissolved the mud bricks allowing the Babylonians to invade the city.
After the fall of Babylon, an influx of Jews gradually returned the prosperity of Tyre and Sidon and turned the city away from idolatry. During Jesus’ time on Earth, many came from Tyre and Sidon to see and hear Him;
LUKE 6:17
17 And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,
ISAIAH 24:1-3
1 Behold, the Lord makes the Earth empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface and scatters abroad its inhabitants.
2 And it shall be: as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.
3 The land shall be entirely emptied and utterly plundered, for the Lord has spoken this word.
When the Lord brings judgment on a land for the sins of its people, He shows no partiality, all are affected equally.
ISAIAH 24:4-6
4 The Earth mourns and fades away, the world languishes and fades away; the haughty people of the Earth languish.
5 The Earth is also defiled under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore the curse has devoured the Earth, and those who dwell in it are desolate. Therefore the inhabitants of the Earth are burned, and few men are left.
The sins of the people don’t just affect the populace, the very land suffers too. Remember, God cursed all of Creation because of Adam’s rebellion and God’s perfect Universe began to become corrupted because of a single sin of disobedience.
ISAIAH 24:7-12
7 The new wine fails, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted sigh.
8 The mirth of the tambourine ceases, the noise of the jubilant ends, the joy of the harp ceases.
9 They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink is bitter to those who drink it.
10 The city of confusion is broken down; every house is shut up, so that none may go in.
11 There is a cry for wine in the streets, all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.
12 In the city desolation is left, and the gate is stricken with destruction.
13 When it shall be thus in the midst of the land among the people, it shall be like the shaking of an olive tree, like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done.
God describes famine afflicting the land because of judgment, and the fact that people are hiding in their houses because of oppression, more than likely from being besieged by an enemy army or by internal strife.
When the Romans were besieging Jerusalem in 70 A.D. contemporary Jewish historian Flavius Josephus described armed gangs breaking into houses, murdering the inhabitants and stealing their food because of famine in the city.
But even so, in verse 13 God states that He will always spare a remnant of the people after Judgment so that they can teach their children to obey the Lord.
ISAIAH 24:14-16
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing; for the majesty of the Lord they shall cry aloud from the sea.
15 Therefore glorify the Lord in the dawning light, the name of the Lord God of Israel in the coastlands of the sea.
16 From the ends of the Earth we have heard songs: “Glory to the righteous!” but I said, “I am ruined, ruined! Woe to me! The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously, indeed, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.”
While there are those who sing and praise the Lord, Jerusalem mourns for the wickedness of the people within it, and the oppression for which it suffers.
ISAIAH 24:17-20
17 Fear and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the Earth.
18 And it shall be that he who flees from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit, and he who comes up from the midst of the pit shall be caught in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the Earth are shaken.
19 The Earth is violently broken, the Earth is split open, the Earth is shaken exceedingly.
20 The Earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again.
This refers to God’s Judgment on the Earth when Jesus returns to destroy the armies of the Antichrist at Armageddon and to reign over the Earth at the end of time. Scripture states;
REVELATION 16:17-18
17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!”
18 And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great Earthquake, such a mighty and great Earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the Earth.
ISAIAH 24:21-23
21 It shall come to pass in that day that the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones, and on the Earth the kings of the Earth.
22 They will be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and will be shut up in the prison; after many days they will be visited.
23 Then the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before His elders, gloriously.
At the end of time when Jesus returns, Satan and his demons and all of the wicked of the Earth will be cast into Hell for the entire thousand year reign of Jesus on the Earth. After the thousand years are finished, the dead in Hell will be resurrected and will stand before Jesus at the Great Judgment, after which they will be cast into the Lake of Fire forever.
Verse 21 refers to the following;
REVELATION 12:7-9
7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought,
8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.
9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the Earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
When Jesus returns, Satan will be bound and cast into Hell and the one known as the Antichrist (also called the Beast) and his religious leader (called the False Prophet) will be cast alive into the Lake of Fire for eternity.
Verses 22-23 above refers to;
REVELATION 20:1-3
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
REVELATION 19:20
20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.
And finally;
REVELATION 20:11-15
11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the Earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hell delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
ISAIAH 25:1-5
1 O Lord, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
2 For You have made a city a ruin, a fortified city a ruin, a palace of foreigners to be a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.
3 Therefore the strong people will glorify You; the city of the terrible nations will fear You.
4 For You have been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; for the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.
5 You will reduce the noise of aliens, as heat in a dry place; as heat in the shadow of a cloud, the song of the terrible ones will be diminished.
Isaiah praises God in a manner reminiscent of the Psalms of David, in what appears to be the future destruction of mighty Babylon, at that time the scourge of the entire Middle East, which occurred in October of 539 B.C. by the Persians under Cyrus the Great.
ISAIAH 25:6-8
6 And in this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees.
7 And He will destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations.
8 He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; the rebuke of His people He will take away from all the Earth; for the Lord has spoken.
This speaks of when Jesus returns and the curse placed on the Earth by God in the Garden of Eden because of sin is finally removed. The Earth will be healed and will again produce bountifully. As God prophesied through Amos;
AMOS 9:13
13 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; the mountains shall drip with sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.
NOTE: The “lees” is yeast sediment left after wine has finished fermentation. Some wines are left alone for a while after fermentation ceases (champagne, Chardonnay and others), where the “lees” can add a distinctive flavor to the finished product.
ISAIAH 25:9-12
9 And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”
10 For on this mountain the hand of the Lord will rest, and Moab shall be trampled down under Him, as straw is trampled down for the refuse heap.
11 And He will spread out His hands in their midst as a swimmer reaches out to swim, and He will bring down their pride together with the trickery of their hands.
12 The fortress of the high fort of your walls He will bring down, lay low, and bring to the ground, down to the dust.
Interestingly enough, the former territory of Moab comprises the present day State of Jordan. From 1948 when Israel became a nation to 1994 when a peace treaty was signed, Jordan was a bitter enemy of Israel.
During the 1948 Arab - Israeli War the dreaded Jordanian Arab Legion conquered and in 1950 annexed the West Bank and East Jerusalem, expelling the Jews there and forbidding them to return.
In the 1967 Arab - Israeli war Israel took back the West Bank and East Jerusalem but Jordan did not renounce its claim to the territory until 1988. Present day relations are strained between the two countries due to the agitation of the “Palestinians”, Jordanian citizens who adopted the term “Palestinians” in 1964, and who demand that all of the land of Israel be given to them as a homeland.
By the sounds of it, Jordan may again become an enemy of Israel during the Last Days.
ISAIAH 26:1-6
1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.
2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in.
3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
4 Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.
5 For He brings down those who dwell on high, the lofty city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He brings it down to the dust.
6 The foot shall tread it down— the feet of the poor and the steps of the needy.”
This is one of the few times in the Bible where the name of the Lord (Yah or Jah) is used. Normally it is seen in the term YHWH or JHWH (pronounced roughly as ‘YAHWEH’); oddly enough the term YHWH is considered to be too sacred for the Jews to utter, but apparently the shortened term JAH (YH) is fine.
When Jesus returns He will rule the Earth from Jerusalem which will become a holy city in truth. He will only allow the righteous to enter into it. God will lay waste to proud, sinful cities such as Babylon and will do so even in modern times.
ISAIAH 26:7-11
7 The way of the just is uprightness; O Most Upright, You weigh the path of the just.
8 Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O Lord, we have waited for You; the desire of our soul is for Your name and for the remembrance of You.
9 With my soul I have desired You in the night, yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; for when Your judgments are in the Earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
10 Let grace be shown to the wicked, yet he will not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness he will deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord.
11 Lord, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see. But they will see and be ashamed for their envy of people; yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them.
God watches the actions of people and considers their works. As the book of Proverbs says;
PROVERBS 5:21
21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths.
God rewards people according to their works, peace and blessings to the upright, evil to the wicked. As the apostle Paul prophesied;
ROMANS 2:5-11
5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God,
6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”:
7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality;
8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness — indignation and wrath,
9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek;
10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
11 For there is no partiality with God.
NOTE: the term “Greek” is a loose term referring to Gentiles.
Jesus promised that at His return;
REVELATION 22:12
12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.
ISAIAH 26:12-19
12 Lord, You will establish peace for us, for You have also done all our works in us.
13 O Lord our God, masters besides You have had dominion over us; but by You only we make mention of Your name.
14 They are dead, they will not live; they are deceased, they will not rise. Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.
15 You have increased the nation, O Lord, you have increased the nation; You are glorified; You have expanded all the borders of the land.
16 Lord, in trouble they have visited You, they poured out a prayer when Your chastening was upon them.
17 As a woman with child is in pain and cries out in her pangs, when she draws near the time of her delivery, so have we been in Your sight, O Lord.
18 We have been with child, we have been in pain; we have, as it were, brought forth wind; we have not accomplished any deliverance in the Earth, nor have the inhabitants of the world fallen.
19 Your dead shall live; together with my dead body they shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; for your dew is like the dew of herbs, and the Earth shall cast out the dead.
Isaiah praises God for His mighty works, confessing that while men have ruled over the nation, only God is their true Master. When Israel sinned, God punished them and when they confessed their sin and turned back to Him, He blessed them and caused them to prosper.
Isaiah expresses his hope that at the resurrection he will rise with the righteous when God raises all of the dead for the Great Judgment.
ISAIAH 26:20-21
20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past.
21 For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the Earth for their iniquity; the Earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.
At the End of Days Jesus will return to judge the world and destroy the sinners in it. Then at the Great Judgment all will be resurrected and stand before Him for judgment.
God warns the righteous to maintain their faith and integrity that they might be hidden in the day of His wrath against the world and its sin.
ISAIAH 27:1
1 In that day the Lord with His severe sword, great and strong, will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan that twisted serpent; and He will slay the reptile that is in the sea.
When Jesus returns He will defeat Satan (called Leviathan and a serpent) and will cast him into Hell for a thousand years.
REVELATION 20:1-3
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
References to the sea have been used numerous times to describe multitudes of people. The apostle John in his vision of the rise of the Antichrist saw him as rising out of the sea;
REVELATION 13:1
1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name.
In this case, Isaiah describes Satan as hiding in the masses of humanity, but God will find and punish him.
ISAIAH 27:2-6
2 In that day sing to her, “A vineyard of red wine!
3 I, the Lord, keep it, I water it every moment; lest any hurt it, I keep it night and day.
4 Fury is not in Me. Who would set briers and thorns against Me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together.
5 Or let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with Me; and he shall make peace with Me.”
6 Those who come He shall cause to take root in Jacob; Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.
In the regeneration when Jesus returns, Israel will be a blessing to the world, protected by God Himself. He will rule the Earth from Jerusalem and the world will at last be at peace.
ISAIAH 27:7-13
7 Has He struck Israel as He struck those who struck him? Or has He been slain according to the slaughter of those who were slain by Him?
8 In measure, by sending it away, you contended with it. He removes it by His rough wind in the day of the east wind.
9 Therefore by this the iniquity of Jacob will be covered; and this is all the fruit of taking away his sin: when he makes all the stones of the altar like chalkstones that are beaten to dust, wooden images and incense altars shall not stand.
10 Yet the fortified city will be desolate, the habitation forsaken and left like a wilderness; there the calf will feed, and there it will lie down and consume its branches.
11 When its boughs are withered, they will be broken off; the women come and set them on fire. For it is a people of no understanding; therefore He who made them will not have mercy on them, and He who formed them will show them no favor.
12 And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord will thresh, from the channel of the River to the Brook of Egypt; and you will be gathered one by one, O you children of Israel.
13 So it shall be in that day: the great trumpet will be blown; they will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, and they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem.
Isaiah prophesies of the coming destruction of Judah by the Babylonians (the east wind) because of their wickedness. The Babylonians would lay waste to all of Judah and would deport the survivors to Babylon for 70 years. Like a great threshing machine the Babylonians would conquer all of Mesopotamia from the Euphrates River to the Nile in Egypt.
The Jews who fled to Egypt to escape the Babylonians would not escape as the sword would follow them there. As the prophet Jeremiah told those who sought to flee to Egypt to escape the Babylonians;
JEREMIAH 42:15-17
15 Then hear now the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah! Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you wholly set your faces to enter Egypt, and go to dwell there,
16 then it shall be that the sword which you feared shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt; the famine of which you were afraid shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there you shall die.
17 So shall it be with all the men who set their faces to go to Egypt to dwell there. They shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. And none of them shall remain or escape from the disaster that I will bring upon them.’
After 70 years would pass, the Jews would be freed from Babylonian captivity and would return to Judah.
ISAIAH 28:1-8
1 Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower which is at the head of the verdant valleys, to those who are overcome with wine!
2 Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one, like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, like a flood of mighty waters overflowing, who will bring them down to the Earth with His hand.
3 The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, will be trampled underfoot;
4 And the glorious beauty is a fading flower which is at the head of the verdant valley, like the first fruit before the summer, which an observer sees; he eats it up while it is still in his hand.
5 In that day the Lord of hosts will be for a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty to the remnant of His people,
6 For a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment, and for strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7 But they also have erred through wine, and through intoxicating drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink, they are swallowed up by wine, they are out of the way through intoxicating drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
8 For all tables are full of vomit and filth; no place is clean.
God speaks of the Northern Kingdom of Israel which split from Benjamin and Judah in 930 B.C. after the death of king Solomon. They were frequent enemies of Judah and quickly fell into idolatry, worshiping Ba’als, Ashtoreth, and golden calves.
After many warnings, God finally sent Assyrian king Sargon II who destroyed the Northern Kingdom in 701 B.C. and deported the survivors to Assyria and lands eastward.
ISAIAH 28:9-10
9 “Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just drawn from the breasts?
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”
God speaks to the Jews of the Northern Kingdom as if they were babies, needing to be taught the rudiments of proper behavior (milk) rather than being mature enough to be taught and understand the strong laws of God.
ISAIAH 28:11-13
11 For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people,
12 To whom He said, “This is the rest with which you may cause the weary to rest,” and, “This is the refreshing”; yet they would not hear.
13 But the word of the Lord was to them, “Precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little,” that they might go and fall backward, and be broken and snared and caught.
They hated God and willfully turned away from Him, saying to the righteous;
ISAIAH 30:11
11 Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, cause the Holy One of Israel To cease from before us.”
The Law of Moses had become a meaningless ritual to the Northern Kingdom, something they performed without heart. As God accused both Houses of Israel;
MALACHI 1:13
13 You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ and you sneer at it,” says the Lord of hosts. “And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; thus you bring an offering! Should I accept this from your hand?” says the Lord.
And;
MALACHI 1:8
8 And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it then to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably?” says the Lord of hosts.
The Jews for 2,000 years have rejected Jesus as their Messiah, but that is slowly changing mainly due to the Gentiles preaching to them, showing that Jesus fulfilled the prophecies written of Him of the Old Testament, fulfilling God’s words through Isaiah 28:11-12 above.
ISAIAH 28:14-15
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men, who rule this people who are in Jerusalem,
15 Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, and with Hell we are in agreement. When the overflowing scourge passes through, it will not come to us, for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood we have hidden ourselves.”
God speaks in His wrath to the wicked rulers of Jerusalem who feel that their position, wealth and cleverness will cause them to be spared when destruction comes.
ISAIAH 28:16-22
16 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; whoever believes will not act hastily.
17 Also I will make justice the measuring line, and righteousness the plummet; the hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters will overflow the hiding place.
18 Your covenant with death will be annulled, and your agreement with Hell will not stand; when the overflowing scourge passes through, then you will be trampled down by it.
19 As often as it goes out it will take you; for morning by morning it will pass over, and by day and by night; it will be a terror just to understand the report.”
20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on, and the covering so narrow that one cannot wrap himself in it.
21 For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim, He will be angry as in the Valley of Gibeon— that He may do His work, His awesome work, and bring to pass His act, His unusual act.
22 Now therefore, do not be mockers, lest your bonds be made strong; for I have heard from the Lord God of hosts, a destruction determined even upon the whole Earth.
This seems to be a collective prophecy covering a long period of time, from the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry in 23 A.D. to the future time of His return. God essentially says that Man’s cleverness and self-righteousness will not cause him to be spared when calamity strikes.
And considering the disasters that have come upon the Jews since the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. , God’s words have been fulfilled.
ISAIAH 28:23-29
23 Give ear and hear my voice, listen and hear my speech.
24 Does the plowman keep plowing all day to sow? Does he keep turning his soil and breaking the clods?
25 When he has leveled its surface, does he not sow the black cummin and scatter the cummin, plant the wheat in rows, the barley in the appointed place, and the spelt in its place?
26 For He instructs him in right judgment, his God teaches him.
27 For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin; but the black cummin is beaten out with a stick, and the cummin with a rod.
28 Bread flour must be ground; therefore he does not thresh it forever, break it with his cartwheel, or crush it with his horsemen.
29 This also comes from the Lord of hosts, who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance.
God speaks of the benefits of understanding His teachings, versus the self-taught wisdom of Man. All of the right things that Man does have been taught to Him by God for his benefit and instruction.
Cummin (cumin) seeds are used as a spice in foods and are hand processed by beating the stalks with a stick to remove the seeds and are many times eaten whole. Wheat kernels however must be ground into flour by crushing and grinding.
ISAIAH 29:1-8
1 “Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! Add year to year; let feasts come around.
2 Yet I will distress Ariel; there shall be heaviness and sorrow, and it shall be to Me as Ariel.
3 I will encamp against you all around, I will lay siege against you with a mound, and I will raise siegeworks against you.
4 You shall be brought down, you shall speak out of the ground; your speech shall be low, out of the dust; your voice shall be like a medium’s, out of the ground; and your speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 “Moreover the multitude of your foes shall be like fine dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones like chaff that passes away; yes, it shall be in an instant, suddenly.
6 You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and Earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire.
7 The multitude of all the nations who fight against Ariel, even all who fight against her and her fortress, and distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision.
8 It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams, and look—he eats; but he awakes, and his soul is still empty; or as when a thirsty man dreams, and look—he drinks; but he awakes, and indeed he is faint, and his soul still craves: so the multitude of all the nations shall be, who fight against Mount Zion.”
The term ‘Ariel’ used here literally translates as ‘lion of God’. This could be a reference to Jerusalem as being the capitol of Judah where God chose to put His name and the lion was the symbol of the tribe of Judah as named by Jacob in Genesis 49:9. The Messiah, Jesus Christ, was of the tribe of Judah and was called “the Lion of Judah” in Revelation 5:5.
God is going to bring the Babylonians against Jerusalem to burn and destroy it because of the wickedness of its people which happened in 586 B.C., and which would remain in ruins for 70 years. God also prophesies that the attacking peoples, though innumerable, will soon pass away and will not benefit from Jerusalem’s destruction.
ISAIAH 29:9-12
9 Pause and wonder! Blind yourselves and be blind! They are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with intoxicating drink.
10 For the Lord has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; and He has covered your heads, namely, the seers.
11 The whole vision has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is literate, saying, “Read this, please.” and he says, “I cannot, for it is sealed.”
12 Then the book is delivered to one who is illiterate, saying, “Read this, please.” and he says, “I am not literate.”
God has given Judah according to their works; they have refused to heed His warnings, therefore He has caused them to become spiritually blind so that they cannot understand that their destruction approaches.
ISAIAH 29:13-16
13 Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,
14 Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work among this people, a marvelous work and a wonder; for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”
15 Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, and their works are in the dark; they say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?”
16 Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; for shall the thing made say of him who made it, “He did not make me”? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?
The people follow the rituals of the Law, but in their hearts they follow abominations, feeling that God does not see or know what they think and do. As God accused through the prophet Jeremiah;
JEREMIAH 7:8-11
8 “Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit.
9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know,
10 and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’?
11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the Lord.
ISAIAH 29:17-21
17 Is it not yet a very little while till Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be esteemed as a forest?
18 In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
19 The humble also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the terrible one is brought to nothing, the scornful one is consumed, and all who watch for iniquity are cut off—
21 who make a man an offender by a word, and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate, and turn aside the just by empty words.
Verses 18-19 were fulfilled when Jesus Christ walked the Earth. He healed the blind and the deaf, something that had never been done before and this healing could only be performed by God through the Messiah.
ISAIAH 29:22-24
22 Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now grow pale;
23 But when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, they will hallow My name, and hallow the Holy One of Jacob, and fear the God of Israel.
24 These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding, and those who complained will learn doctrine.”
The time will come that those who rejected God will come to understand and respect Him when they see and consider His works through the prosperity He will bring upon them .
ISAIAH 30:1-7
1 “Woe to the rebellious children,” says the Lord, “who take counsel, but not of Me, and who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin;
2 Who walk to go down to Egypt, and have not asked My advice, to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!
3 Therefore the strength of Pharaoh shall be your shame, and trust in the shadow of Egypt shall be your humiliation.
4 For his princes were at Zoan, and his ambassadors came to Hanes.
5 They were all ashamed of a people who could not benefit them, or be help or benefit, but a shame and also a reproach.”
6 The burden against the beasts of the South. Through a land of trouble and anguish, from which came the lioness and lion, the viper and fiery flying serpent, they will carry their riches on the backs of young donkeys, and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people who shall not profit;
7 for the Egyptians shall help in vain and to no purpose. Therefore I have called her Rahab-Hem-Shebeth.
Judah, in order to escape the coming Assyrians in 701 B.C. had sent to Pharaoh Neferkare Shabaka, hoping to establish an alliance against Assyrian king Sennacherib. Sennacherib in turn sent a field commander (called Rabshakeh) to Jerusalem where he stood outside the walls and mocked king Hezekiah’s hope in Egypt, calling Pharaoh “a broken reed which pierces the hand that leans on it”. (2 Kings, chapter 18)
God had previously warned Israel about relying on Egypt, telling them;
DEUTERONOMY 17:14-16
14 “When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, ‘I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,’
15 you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother.
16 But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’
The “fiery flying serpent” in verse 6 above is called a “saw-scale serpent” or “Carpet viper”. It leaps at its prey (recorded by the Romans as leaping as high as a man’s waist) when striking (thus “flying”) and its bite is extremely painful, causing death through internal bleeding. These are the same serpents that attacked Israel in the desert (Numbers, chapter 21)
NOTE: “Rahab-Hem-Shebeth” means “Rahab who does nothing”.
ISAIAH 30:8-14
8 Now go, write it before them on a tablet, and note it on a scroll, that it may be for time to come, forever and ever:
9 that this is a rebellious people, lying children, children who will not hear the law of the Lord;
10 who say to the seers, “Do not see,” and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits.
11 Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.”
12 Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: “Because you despise this word, and trust in oppression and perversity, and rely on them,
13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach ready to fall, a bulge in a high wall, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant.
14 And He shall break it like the breaking of the potter’s vessel, which is broken in pieces; He shall not spare. So there shall not be found among its fragments a shard to take fire from the hearth, or to take water from the cistern.”
God declares Judah to be an actively rebellious people who deliberately turn from the Lord and pursue sinful ways. As such, He will destroy all of Judah by the hand of the Assyrians, sparing only Jerusalem.
ISAIAH 30:15-26
15 For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” But you would not,
16 And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses”— therefore you shall flee! And, “We will ride on swift horses”— therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
17 One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain and as a banner on a hill.
18 Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him.
19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will be very gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you.
20 And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner anymore, but your eyes shall see your teachers.
21 Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.
22 You will also defile the covering of your images of silver, and the ornament of your molded images of gold. You will throw them away as an unclean thing; you will say to them, “Get away!”
23 Then He will give the rain for your seed with which you sow the ground, and bread of the increase of the Earth; it will be fat and plentiful. In that day your cattle will feed in large pastures.
24 Likewise the oxen and the young donkeys that work the ground will eat cured fodder, which has been winnowed with the shovel and fan.
25 There will be on every high mountain and on every high hill rivers and streams of waters, in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.
26 Moreover the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the Lord binds up the bruise of His people and heals the stroke of their wound.
This seems to refer to the future restoration of Israel when Jesus returns to destroy the forces of the Antichrist at His return. The description of the light of the sun and Moon appear to most scholars as a description of the spiritual righteousness that will accompany Jesus’ return. The sun shining 7 times brighter would burn up everything on Earth in reality and according to the apostle John’s vision in Revelation, the sun will burn out just before Jesus returns.
REVELATION 6:12
12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great Earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
And after Jesus’ return, He will provide light for the whole Earth. As the prophet Zechariah recorded;
ZECHARIAH 14:7
7 It shall be one day which is known to the Lord— neither day nor night. But at evening time it shall happen that it will be light.
ISAIAH 30:27-33
27 Behold, the name of the Lord comes from afar, burning with His anger, and His burden is heavy; His lips are full of indignation, and His tongue like a devouring fire.
28 His breath is like an overflowing stream, which reaches up to the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of futility; and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err.
29 You shall have a song as in the night when a holy festival is kept, and gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute, to come into the mountain of the Lord, to the Mighty One of Israel.
30 The Lord will cause His glorious voice to be heard, and show the descent of His arm, with the indignation of His anger and the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, tempest, and hailstones.
31 For through the voice of the Lord Assyria will be beaten down, as He strikes with the rod.
32 And in every place where the staff of punishment passes, which the Lord lays on him, it will be with tambourines and harps; and in battles of brandishing He will fight with it.
33 For Tophet was established of old, yes, for the king it is prepared. He has made it deep and large; its pyre is fire with much wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, kindles it.
Isaiah speaks of the coming destruction of mighty Assyria which happened in 612 B.C. when the Babylonians diverted the Euphrates River against the mud brick walls of Nineveh, the capital. The bricks melted and the city was conquered.
All of Mesopotamia rejoiced at its fall, but it quickly led to a massive power struggle for dominance between Egypt and Babylon.
NOTE: Tophet was another name for the Hinnom Valley outside of Jerusalem which was a garbage dump where trash and cadavers were burned. It was also a place of human sacrifice where worshipers of the demon god Molech would cast live children into furnaces as a sacrifice to their god (called in Scripture “passing through the fire”).
ISAIAH 31:1-3
1 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong, but who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
2 Yet He also is wise and will bring disaster, and will not call back His words, but will arise against the house of evildoers, and against the help of those who work iniquity.
3 Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out His hand, both he who helps will fall, and he who is helped will fall down; they all will perish together.
God condemns those who would rely on alliances with Egypt to help defend Jerusalem and who do not rely on the Lord. The prophet Jeremiah would also relate the same condemnation when God spoke through him saying;
JEREMIAH 17:5-6
5 Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord.
6 For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land which is not inhabited.
ISAIAH 31:4-9
4 For thus the Lord has spoken to me: “As a lion roars, and a young lion over his prey (when a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him, he will not be afraid of their voice nor be disturbed by their noise), so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight for Mount Zion and for its hill.
5 Like birds flying about, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem. Defending, He will also deliver it; passing over, He will preserve it.”
6 Return to Him against whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted.
7 For in that day every man shall throw away his idols of silver and his idols of gold—sin, which your own hands have made for yourselves.
8 “Then Assyria shall fall by a sword not of man, and a sword not of mankind shall devour him. But he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall become forced labor.
9 He shall cross over to his stronghold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the banner,” says the Lord, whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
This prophecy was fulfilled in 701 B.C. when Assyrian king Sennacherib invaded Judah (2 Kings, chapters 18 and 19) and laid waste to all but Jerusalem. He sent a field commander to Jerusalem who stood outside the walls and mocked king Hezekiah, his reliance on God and tried to get the city to surrender.
In fulfillment of verse 8, that night God killed 185,000 Assyrian troops and Sennacherib returned home shamed and humiliated. Greek historian Herodotus wrote that the Assyrians were plagued by an invasion of mice or rats who gnawed through bowstrings and shield straps.
Mice and rats are notorious carriers of bubonic plague as the Philistines found out when they captured the Ark of the Covenant during the time of Samuel (1 Samuel, chapter 5). It is suspected that the Assyrians died of a vicious strain of the plague.
.
ISAIAH 32:1-8
1 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice.
2 A man will be as a hiding place from the wind, and a cover from the tempest, as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
3 The eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4 Also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.
5 The foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful;
6 For the foolish person will speak foolishness, and his heart will work iniquity: to practice ungodliness, to utter error against the Lord, to keep the hungry unsatisfied, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7 Also the schemes of the schemer are evil; he devises wicked plans to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaks justice.
8 But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand.
This refers to the future reign of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who will rule over the Earth with justice and righteousness. No longer will right actions be condemned and wrong actions be praised, but each person will be known their own actions.
ISAIAH 32:9-20
9 Rise up, you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech.
10 In a year and some days you will be troubled, you complacent women; for the vintage will fail, the gathering will not come.
11 Tremble, you women who are at ease; be troubled, you complacent ones; strip yourselves, make yourselves bare, and gird sackcloth on your waists.
12 People shall mourn upon their breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
13 On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers, yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city;
14 Because the palaces will be forsaken, the bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks—
15 Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is counted as a forest.
16 Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
17 The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
18 My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places,
19 Though hail comes down on the forest, and the city is brought low in humiliation.
20 Blessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out freely the feet of the ox and the donkey.
This prophecy is somewhat obscure and seems to refer to the current spiritual state of Israel in which a spiritual famine will afflict the nation until the coming of the righteous reign of the Messiah and the curse on the Earth is lifted at last.
ISAIAH 33:1
1 Woe to you who plunder, though you have not been plundered; and you who deal treacherously, though they have not dealt treacherously with you! When you cease plundering, you will be plundered; when you make an end of dealing treacherously, they will deal treacherously with you.
Babylon is a prime example of the fulfillment of this prophecy. Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II had terrified and conquered all of Mesopotamia and the Middle East from Assyria to Egypt, and in 586 B.C. had conquered and deported the people of Judah to Babylon for 70 years.
After conquering Judah scholars believe that Nebuchadnezzar ceased campaigning and died peacefully in 562 B.C. In 539 B.C., 23 years after Nebuchadnezzar’s death, mighty Babylon fell to a coalition of Medes and Persians and never again rose to prominence.
ISAIAH 33:2-9
2 O Lord, be gracious to us; we have waited for You. Be their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.
3 At the noise of the tumult the people shall flee; when You lift Yourself up, the nations shall be scattered;
4 And Your plunder shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpillar; as the running to and fro of locusts, He shall run upon them.
5 The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, and the strength of salvation; the fear of the Lord is His treasure.
7 Surely their valiant ones shall cry outside, the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
8 The highways lie waste, the traveling man ceases. He has broken the covenant, He has despised the cities, He regards no man.
9 The Earth mourns and languishes, Lebanon is shamed and shriveled; Sharon is like a wilderness, and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
Isaiah speaks of the Lord when He rises in wrath to punish the wicked of a land. Peace treaties will fail, cities will be destroyed and the people scattered; drought and famine will stalk the land.
He doesn’t break a covenant that was not first broken by men.
NOTE: Verse 8 states that God regards no man, but this does not mean that God despises men, it means that God does not respect any man above another in reward or judgment;
2 CHRONICLES 19:7
7 Now therefore, let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take care and do it, for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, no partiality, nor taking of bribes.”
ISAIAH 33:10-16
10 “Now I will rise,” says the Lord; “Now I will be exalted, now I will lift Myself up.
11 You shall conceive chaff, you shall bring forth stubble; your breath, as fire, shall devour you.
12 And the people shall be like the burnings of lime; like thorns cut up they shall be burned in the fire.
13 Hear, you who are afar off, what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge My might.”
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness has seized the hypocrites: “Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15 He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, he who despises the gain of oppressions, who gestures with his hands, refusing bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil:
16 He will dwell on high; his place of defense will be the fortress of rocks; bread will be given him, his water will be sure.
God speaks as to how the sinners and hypocrites will be consumed from the land while the righteous will be preserved. The righteous will exalt and praise God for His righteous judgment while the wicked will see and fear Him.
NOTE: “The burnings of lime” refers to heating of limestone to create white lime powder, used to make whitewash for monuments and wall coverings.
ISAIAH 33:17-19
17 Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; they will see the land that is very far off.
18 Your heart will meditate on terror: “Where is the scribe? Where is he who weighs? Where is he who counts the towers?”
19 You will not see a fierce people, a people of obscure speech, beyond perception, of a stammering tongue that you cannot understand.
God again warns Judah of a coming attack by a foreign enemy (Babylon) and prophesies that they will see a far-off city (Babylon) when they are deported. The scribes, merchants and defenders will perish in the coming battle.
“Seeing the King in His beauty” refers to seeing God’s judgment on the wicked and understanding why He has risen in judgment against His people.
ISAIAH 33:20-24
20 Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a quiet home, a tabernacle that will not be taken down; not one of its stakes will ever be removed, nor will any of its cords be broken.
21 But there the majestic Lord will be for us a place of broad rivers and streams, in which no galley with oars will sail, nor majestic ships pass by.
22 (For the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; He will save us);
23 Your tackle is loosed, they could not strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail. Then the prey of great plunder is divided; the lame take the prey.
24 And the inhabitant will not say, “I am sick”; the people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity.
This is a prophecy concerning Jerusalem when the Messiah, Jesus Christ returns to rule the Earth. He will make Jerusalem His royal city and at that time two broad rivers of water will flow from the Temple, one to the east, down the Jordan River valley to the Dead Sea, and the other westward to the Mediterranean Sea.
The prophet Ezekiel spoke of this water (Ezekiel chapter 47), saying that the waters flowing through the Jordan Valley will heal the Dead Sea which will then become a prime place for catching fish.
The prophet Zechariah also said;
ZECHARIAH 14:8-9
8 And in that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea; in both summer and winter it shall occur.
9 And the Lord shall be King over all the Earth. In that day it shall be— “The Lord is one,” and His name one.
NOTE: the eastern sea is the Dead Sea and the western sea is the Mediterranean Sea.
ISAIAH 34:1-4
1 Come near, you nations, to hear; and heed, you people! Let the Earth hear, and all that is in it, the world and all things that come forth from it.
2 For the indignation of the Lord is against all nations, and His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter.
3 Also their slain shall be thrown out; their stench shall rise from their corpses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.
4 All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; all their host shall fall down as the leaf falls from the vine, and as fruit falling from a fig tree.
This is a prophecy concerning Armageddon, the final war when God gathers the armies of the nations to fight against Satan and the Antichrist at the return of Jesus Christ. The vision given to the apostle John in the book of Revelation echoes that of Isaiah above.
John saw Jesus standing before the Throne of God the Father, breaking seven seals on a scroll in Heaven with each seal bringing disaster on the Earth. When the 6th seal was broken, John saw;
REVELATION 6:12-17
12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great Earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
13 And the stars of heaven fell to the Earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
15 And the kings of the Earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,
16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
ISAIAH 34:5-7
5 “For My sword shall be bathed in heaven; indeed it shall come down on Edom, and on the people of My curse, for judgment.
6 The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, it is made overflowing with fatness, with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
7 The wild oxen shall come down with them, and the young bulls with the mighty bulls; their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust saturated with fatness.”
God continues His condemnation of the wicked, especially referring to Israel’s enemies in Edom (Idumea, south of Judah) the descendants of the house of Jacob’s brother Esau who were bitter enemies of Israel. He uses an allegory of bulls, lambs and rams to describe the leaders and armies who will be destroyed in His wrath.
ISAIAH 34:8-17
8 For it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, the year of recompense for the cause of Zion.
9 Its streams shall be turned into pitch, and its dust into brimstone; its land shall become burning pitch.
10 It shall not be quenched night or day; its smoke shall ascend forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; no one shall pass through it forever and ever.
11 But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it, also the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. And He shall stretch out over it the line of confusion and the stones of emptiness.
12 They shall call its nobles to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all its princes shall be nothing.
13 And thorns shall come up in its palaces, nettles and brambles in its fortresses; it shall be a habitation of jackals, a courtyard for ostriches.
14 The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the jackals, and the wild goat shall bleat to its companion; also the night creature shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.
15 There the arrow snake shall make her nest and lay eggs and hatch, and gather them under her shadow; there also shall the hawks be gathered, every one with her mate.
16 “Search from the book of the Lord, and read: not one of these shall fail; not one shall lack her mate. For My mouth has commanded it, and His Spirit has gathered them.
17 He has cast the lot for them, and His hand has divided it among them with a measuring line. They shall possess it forever; from generation to generation they shall dwell in it.”
God uses an allegory (fanciful description to describe or reinforce a point) in describing the fate of Edom. The land will be like Sodom, a barren, dry, salt-blasted desert where no man will live, just as it is today.
As the prophet Obadiah said;
OBADIAH 1:17-18
17 “But on Mount Zion there shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.
18 The house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame; but the house of Esau shall be stubble; they shall kindle them and devour them, and no survivor shall remain of the house of Esau,” for the Lord has spoken.
ISAIAH 35:1-2
1 The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;
2 It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, the excellency of our God.
The desert is a fascinating place as after a rare rainstorm the land explodes in an abundance of flowers as long-dormant plants take advantage of the moisture to bloom and create new seeds.
When Jesus returns it appears that the desert places of Israel will receive abundant rainfall and will become as fertile as the base lands of Mount Carmel and the Plains of Sharon.
ISAIAH 35:3-10
3 Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.
4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you.”
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.
7 The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water; in the habitation of jackals, where each lay, there shall be grass with reeds and rushes.
8 A highway shall be there, and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for others. Whoever walks the road, although a fool, shall not go astray.
9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it; it shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk there,
10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
When Jesus returns the Jews worldwide will return Israel to meet their Messiah. There will be a highway established for their return, possibly the one described by Isaiah;
ISAIAH 11:16
16 There will be a highway for the remnant of His people who will be left from Assyria, as it was for Israel in the day that he came up from the land of Egypt.
In ancient times this was called “The King’s Highway” and was a major caravan road stretching from Egypt northward east of the Jordan River Valley to Assyria in northern Mesopotamia.
Only the righteous will walk on it, and God’s words to the prophet Ezekiel will be fulfilled;
EZEKIEL 34:25
25 “I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.
ISAIAH 36:1-10
1 Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
2 Then the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. And he stood by the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller’s Field.
3 And Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came out to him.
4 Then the Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: “What confidence is this in which you trust?
5 I say you speak of having plans and power for war; but they are mere words. Now in whom do you trust, that you rebel against me?
6 Look! You are trusting in the staff of this broken reed, Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
7 “But if you say to me, ‘We trust in the Lord our God,’ is it not He whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and said to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar’?” ’
8 Now therefore, I urge you, give a pledge to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses—if you are able on your part to put riders on them!
9 How then will you repel one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?
10 Have I now come up without the Lord against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”
The 14th year of king Hezekiah’s rule would have been about 701 B.C. Assyrian king Sennacherib had laid waste to all of Judah except Jerusalem and now planned to destroy it as well and would deport the survivors as prisoners to Assyria.
He sent a field commander called the Rabshakeh to Jerusalem to try to intimidate Hezekiah into surrendering without a fight. The Rabshakeh mistakenly believed that God, like the idol gods of other lands had multiple altars for worship. Hezekiah had destroyed all of the “high places” (pagan altars dedicated to various idol gods), the sacred pillars dedicated to the female goddess Asherah and the altars dedicated to the Canaanite god Ba’al (2 Chronicles, chapter 31).
The Rabshakeh mistakenly felt that these actions had offended God and that God backed the Assyrians against Judah. The Rabshakeh also mocked Hezekiah’s hope for Egyptian help saying that Pharaoh was weak and unreliable at best.
EZEKIEL 36:11-22
11 Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; and do not speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”
12 But the Rabshakeh said, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, who will eat and drink their own waste with you?”
13 Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in Hebrew, and said, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria!
14 Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you;
15 nor let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, “The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ’
16 Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make peace with me by a present and come out to me; and every one of you eat from his own vine and every one from his own fig tree, and every one of you drink the waters of his own cistern;
17 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.
18 Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” Has any one of the gods of the nations delivered its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?
19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Indeed, have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
20 Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’ ”
21 But they held their peace and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.”
22 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.
The Rabshakeh sought to dishearten the Jews by speaking to them in Hebrew, knowing that the common people could understand him. He mocks God as being no better or more powerful than the demon gods of other countries and promises that if a tribute payment is made the Jews will be deported to a land better than their own. He fails to mention that the normally brutal Assyrians would deport them as slaves to Assyria.
ISAIAH 37:1-7
1 And so it was, when King Hezekiah heard it, that he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord.
2 Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz.
3 And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This day is a day of trouble and rebuke and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to bring them forth.
4 It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’ ”
5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
6 And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Do not be afraid of the words which you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.
7 Surely I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.” ’ ”
In ancient times tearing of clothing was a sign of anguish and mourning. Clothing was all hand-woven and dyed and cloth was quite expensive, so tearing of clothing was quite an expression. Wearing coarse sackcloth was also a visible sign of grief or mourning.
Isaiah the prophet reassures Hezekiah that Jerusalem will be delivered by miraculous intervention.
ISAIAH 37:8-20
8 Then the Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed from Lachish.
9 And the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, “He has come out to make war with you.” So when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
10 “Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
11 Look! You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by utterly destroying them; and shall you be delivered?
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers have destroyed, Gozan and Haran and Rezeph, and the people of Eden who were in Telassar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?’ ”
14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord.
15 Then Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, saying:
16 “O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the Earth. You have made heaven and Earth.
17 Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God.
18 Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their lands,
19 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them.
20 Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the Earth may know that You are the Lord, You alone.”
Tirhaka was an Ethiopian (Nubian) warlord who cultivated alliances with the Philistines and the Phoenicians to try and counter Assyria’s dominance in the Middle East. There are vague references to a battle between the Assyrians and Tirhaka’s forces in Philistine territory temporarily lifting the siege of Jerusalem, but nothing clear.
Tirhaka later became one of the rare Nubian (black-skinned) Pharaohs who ruled Egypt for nearly a century.
ISAIAH 37:21-29
21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Because you have prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria,
22 this is the word which the Lord has spoken concerning him: “The virgin, the daughter of Zion, has despised you, laughed you to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head behind your back!
23 “Whom have you reproached and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised your voice, and lifted up your eyes on high? Against the Holy One of Israel.
24 By your servants you have reproached the Lord, and said, ‘By the multitude of my chariots I have come up to the height of the mountains, to the limits of Lebanon; I will cut down its tall cedars and its choice cypress trees; I will enter its farthest height, to its fruitful forest.
25 I have dug and drunk water, and with the soles of my feet I have dried up all the brooks of defense.’
26 “Did you not hear long ago how I made it, from ancient times that I formed it? Now I have brought it to pass, that you should be for crushing fortified cities into heaps of ruins.
27 Therefore their inhabitants had little power; they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field and the green herb, as the grass on the housetops and grain blighted before it is grown.
28 “But I know your dwelling place, your going out and your coming in, and your rage against Me.
29 Because your rage against Me and your tumult have come up to My ears, therefore I will put My hook in your nose and My bridle in your lips, and I will turn you back by the way which you came.” ’
God mocks Sennacherib, saying that He Himself had caused Sennacherib’s successes in conquering sinful lands and peoples. God had previously said of Assyria;
ISAIAH 10:5-7
5 “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation.
6 I will send him against an ungodly nation, and against the people of My wrath I will give him charge, to seize the spoil, to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7 Yet he does not mean so, nor does his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and cut off not a few nations.
This shows that God will use brutal nations to punish other sinful nations. Notice how He calls Assyria “the rod of My anger.”
God then promises to force Sennacherib to go back to his own land empty-handed.
ISAIAH 37:30-32
30 “This shall be a sign to you: you shall eat this year such as grows of itself, and the second year what springs from the same; also in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them.
31 And the remnant who have escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
32 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and those who escape from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Because of the siege extended though the time of planting, there would not be time to sow new seed, therefore Judah would reap the harvest of what had grown that year before the siege and would harvest the second generation crops which would grow from the remnants of the first year’s sowing.
In the third year they would sow and plant new crops and vineyards.
ISAIAH 37:33-38
33 “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: ‘He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor build a siege mound against it.
34 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return; and he shall not come into this city,’ says the Lord.
35 ‘For I will defend this city, to save it for My own sake and for My servant David’s sake.’
36 Then the angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead.
37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went away, returned home, and remained at Nineveh.
38 Now it came to pass, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. Then Esarhaddon his son reigned in his place.
Greek historian Herodotus wrote that the Assyrians were plagued by a horde of mice (or rats) which ate the Assyrians’ bowstrings and shield straps. Rodents such as rats and mice are notorious carriers of bubonic plague as the Philistines found out (1 Samuel, chapter 5) and it is speculated that the Assyrians were destroyed by a vicious strain of plague.
The prism of Sennacherib (a 6-sided clay obelisk) created in 689 B.C. and unearthed at Nineveh in 1830 A.D. lists Sennacherib’s campaigns against Judah and lists the cities and innumerable villages he conquered.
The prism also states, "As for the king of Judah, Hezekiah, who had not submitted to my authority, I besieged and captured forty-six of his fortified cities, along with many smaller towns, taken in battle with my battering rams. ... I took as plunder 200,150 people, both small and great, male and female, along with a great number of animals including horses, mules, donkeys, camels, oxen, and sheep. As for Hezekiah, I shut him up like a caged bird in his royal city of Jerusalem. I then constructed a series of fortresses around him, and I did not allow anyone to come out of the city gates. His towns which I captured I gave to the kings of Ashod, Ekron, and Gaza."
However, he never mentions conquering Jerusalem, again verifying the accuracy of Scripture.
Sennacherib’s oldest son, slated as his successor and Crown Prince died before his father, and Sennacherib designated the next son in line, Arda-Mulissu to be his successor. But for unknown reasons he abruptly replaced him as Crown Prince with another son, Esarhaddon. Arda-Mulissu repeatedly petitioned his father to reinstate him, but was rebuffed.
In 681 B.C. Arda-Mulissu and another son murdered their father in an attempt by Arda-Mulissu to gain the throne but Esarhaddon raised an army, drove the brothers out and took the Assyrian throne for himself.
NOTE: The royal clay seal (called a “bulla”) of king Hezekiah of Judah was found in 2015 in the ruins of ancient Jerusalem. The inscription says,”“Belonging to Hezekiah, son of Ahaz, king of Judah.”
And in 2018 the seal of the prophet Isaiah was found at the base of the Temple Mount. The seal reads, “ISAIAH, NAVI” (“NAVI” means ‘prophet’ in Hebrew).
These seals join those belonging to other Biblical people, namely that of queen Jezebel of Samaria (discovered in 1964) and the seal of Baruch, son of Neriah who was the scribe of Jeremiah the prophet (discovered in 1975).
ISAIAH 38:1-8
1 In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ ”
2 Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord,
3 and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying,
5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.
6 I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city.”
7 And this is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing which He has spoken:
8 Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.
This is a miracle much like when Joshua commanded the sun to remain in the sky for 24 hours (Joshua, chapter 10) when Israel fought the Canaanites. God listened to him, stopped the planet’s rotation and the sun remained fixed in the sky.
But in this case, God turned the planet’s rotation backward 10 degrees!!!
In both cases, God not only stopped the Earth’s natural rotation on its axis with no adverse effects, but He reversed its rotation!! Normally the eastward radial velocity of rotation at the equator is about 1,000 miles (1,609 km) per hour and about 700 miles per hour (541 km) at the higher latitudes.
If the Earth were to suddenly stop rotating, everything on the surface would continue moving eastward at the same speed as it did when rotating. When a moving vehicle suddenly stops, anything inside is suddenly thrust forward at the same velocity, as people involved in a car crash have experienced.
The atmosphere would continue to move eastward at hundreds of miles per hour scouring the Earth’s surface and creating storms of unimaginable ferocity. The oceans would rush eastward creating tsunamis of titanic proportions, in some cases sweeping over entire continents.
The Earth’s liquid core would continue spinning, exerting tremendous friction and torque on the overlying mantle and crust. The result would be tremendous heating and stirring of the mantle, causing gigantic volcanic eruptions and Earthquakes of incredible violence. Mantle rock expansion due to frictional heating would cause continental plates to shatter like dropped glass, causing huge cracks to form in the crust while thrusting up mountain ranges within minutes. The seas would boil and the heat and moisture transferred into the atmosphere would cause continent-sized hurricanes to sweep the planet.
In other words, all life on Earth would cease to exist within hours.
But none of this happened. God stopped the Earth’s rotation, rotated it westward 10 degrees, stopped it again and returned it to it’s natural eastward rotation without any ill effects!! Only an omnipotent God could do this!!!
ISAIAH 38:9-22
9 This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10 I said, “In the prime of my life I shall go to the gates of Sheol; I am deprived of the remainder of my years.”
11 I said, “I shall not see Yah, the Lord in the land of the living; I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world.
12 My life span is gone, taken from me like a shepherd’s tent; I have cut off my life like a weaver. He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make an end of me.
13 I have considered until morning— like a lion, so He breaks all my bones; from day until night You make an end of me.
14 Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered; I mourned like a dove; my eyes fail from looking upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; undertake for me!
15 “What shall I say? He has both spoken to me, and He Himself has done it. I shall walk carefully all my years in the bitterness of my soul.
16 O Lord, by these things men live; and in all these things is the life of my spirit; so You will restore me and make me live.
17 Indeed it was for my own peace that I had great bitterness; but You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
18 For Sheol cannot thank You, death cannot praise You; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
19 The living, the living man, he shall praise You, as I do this day; the father shall make known Your truth to the children.
20 “The Lord was ready to save me; therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”
21 Now Isaiah had said, “Let them take a lump of figs, and apply it as a poultice on the boil, and he shall recover.”
22 And Hezekiah had said, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”
Hezekiah in his extreme depression prays and praises the Lord, hoping that God will spare him from death. While a boil may seem to be merely a painful nuisance they can be quite deadly. Most of the time they heal on their own over time.
But in some cases, they can produce a sac in the flesh filled with bacteria at which time they become large, quite painful and are warm or hot to the touch. In severe cases the sac ruptures, flooding the body with poisons overwhelming the immune system and resulting in severe illness and even death.
In such cases today, the boil is lanced (pierced), drained, and a heavy regimen of antibiotics is administered to combat infection. The fig poultice was apparently an early example of antibiotic administration.
ISAIAH 39:1-8
1 At that time Merodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered.
2 And Hezekiah was pleased with them, and showed them the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?” So Hezekiah said, “They came to me from a far country, from Babylon.”
4 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”
5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord of hosts:
6 ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord.
7 ‘And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”
8 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”
Merodach-Baladan was a Babylonian warlord who briefly seized the throne from Assyrian control in 703 B.C. and is considered by historians as an illegitimate ruler who usurped the throne from Assyrian ruler Shalmanezer V. He reigned for 9 months before being driven out by Assyrian ruler Sargon II.
While Hezekiah probably meant well, he should have known better than to display his wealth to the envoys of a powerful foreign ruler. Alliances change with changes of kings and greedy rulers throughout history have often attacked other nations for their wealth.
In about 115 years (586 B.C.) Jerusalem would be sacked by the Babylonians and everything would be taken to Babylon just as Isaiah prophesied.
It was a common practice to castrate captured nobility of a conquered kingdom, making them court advisors and functionaries to the conquering king and to prevent them from having children who could rise in rebellion against the conqueror.
ISAIAH 40:1-2
1 “Comfort, yes, comfort My people!” says your God.
2 “Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned; for she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.”
This is a prophecy of when the 70 year Babylonian captivity would be finished, which event occurred when Persian king Cyrus the Great conquered Babylon and released the Jews in 539 B.C.
ISAIAH 40:3-5
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth;
5 the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
This is the famous prophecy concerning the coming ‘forerunner’ (herald) to the Messiah, who would proclaim His coming to Israel as later prophesied by Malachi approximately 200 years later, who said;
MALACHI 3:1
1 “Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts.
This prophecy was fulfilled in 23 A.D. when John the Baptist appeared in Roman-controlled Judea proclaiming the appearance of Jesus Christ as the Messiah. There had previously been several men proclaiming themselves as the Messiah as recorded by both Jewish historian Josephus and in the New Testament.
But Jesus was the only one who had a forerunner who proclaimed Him, as prophesied.
After Jesus’ crucifixion, death and resurrection His followers openly proclaimed Him as the Messiah. The Jewish Sanhedrin (high council), frightened that the people would blame them for their railroading Jesus to the cross, plotted to kill the disciples to shut them up.
But Joseph ben Gamaliel, a highly respected member of the Council advised caution;
ACTS 5:35-39
35 And he said to them: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men.
36 For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing.
37 After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed.
38 And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing;
39 but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.”
Gamaliel’s words were prophetic as Christianity has grown to be the most profound belief system in history and the New Testament has been translated into virtually every spoken language in the world.
ISAIAH 40:6-8
6 The voice said, “Cry out!” and he said, “What shall I cry?” “All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
This reinforces the eternity of God, and the momentary life span of Man. Man and his works return to the dust from which they were formed, but the words and works of God last forever.
ISAIAH 40:9-17
9 O Zion, you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, you who bring good tidings, lift up your voice with strength, lift it up, be not afraid; say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him.
11 He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, measured heaven with a span and calculated the dust of the Earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or as His counselor has taught Him?
14 With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the scales; look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.
16 And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
17 All nations before Him are as nothing, and they are counted by Him less than nothing and worthless.
This denotes the power and wisdom of God as compared to Man. Those who don’t believe in God or who believe in ‘evolution’ willfully ignore the evidence all about them which points to a divine, all-powerful Intelligent Creator having made all of it.
Isaiah asks rhetorical questions (questions not expecting an answer, but used to start a discussion) concerning the intelligence and power of God to that of Man. As God would later tell us through Isaiah;
ISAIAH 55:9
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the Earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.
ISAIAH 40:18-24
18 To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him?
19 The workman molds an image, the goldsmith overspreads it with gold, and the silversmith casts silver chains.
20 Whoever is too impoverished for such a contribution chooses a tree that will not rot; he seeks for himself a skillful workman to prepare a carved image that will not totter.
21 Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the Earth?
22 It is He who sits above the circle of the Earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
23 He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the Earth useless.
24 Scarcely shall they be planted, scarcely shall they be sown, scarcely shall their stock take root in the Earth, when He will also blow on them, and they will wither, and the whirlwind will take them away like stubble.
Isaiah portrays the foolishness and futility of Man and his works, who rather than worshiping the true God, makes for himself idols of lifeless wood and metal and declares them to be his gods. Israel and Judah both, even after God had revealed Himself to them still worshiped Moloch, Ba’al, Chemosh, Milcom, Ashtoreth and other gods of the surrounding nations.
Note that Isaiah, who lived about 600 B.C. knew that the Earth was a globe, whereas Eratosthenes, a Greek polymath only figured out that the Earth was round and calculated the circumference of the Earth approximately 400 years later.
Ancient people are considered “primitive” by people today, but were actually surprisingly intelligent. Job, for example is estimated to have lived about 2200 B.C. knew that the Earth hung in space;
JOB 26:7
7 He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the Earth on nothing.
The author of the book of Hebrews (written between 26-70 A.D.) knew of the planets when much of the world believed them to be stars or gods watching over the affairs of men. He told his readers;
HEBREWS 1:1-2
1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;
ISAIAH 40:25-31
25 “To whom then will you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things, who brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name, by the greatness of His might and the strength of His power; not one is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel: “My way is hidden from the Lord, and my just claim is passed over by my God”?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the Earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.
God speaks of His power and the benefits of relying upon Him. Note the incredible power of His mind in that He has named all of the stars in His universe!!!!
ISAIAH 41:1-7
1 “Keep silence before Me, O coastlands, and let the people renew their strength! Let them come near, then let them speak; let us come near together for judgment.
2 “Who raised up one from the east? Who in righteousness called him to His feet? Who gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? Who gave them as the dust to his sword, as driven stubble to his bow?
3 Who pursued them, and passed safely by the way that he had not gone with his feet?
4 Who has performed and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? ‘I, the Lord, am the first; and with the last I am He.’ ”
5 The coastlands saw it and feared, the ends of the Earth were afraid; they drew near and came.
6 Everyone helped his neighbor, and said to his brother, “Be of good courage!”
7 So the craftsman encouraged the goldsmith; he who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil, saying, “It is ready for the soldering”; then he fastened it with pegs, that it might not totter.
God speaks of His eternal nature and greatness, showing how He chooses rulers and conquerors and declares the future before it has come to pass. He also mockingly speaks of the lifeless idols created by the surrounding nations which must be carried and supported to keep them from falling over.
God uses several examples here. The “one from the East” referred to in verse 2 is Abraham who came from Haran in Mesopotamia (on the southern border of present-day Turkey), God making him great and making him, as promised, the father of many nations;
GENESIS 17:3-8
3 Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:
4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.
5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.
6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.
7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
The reference to pursuit recalls that Abraham pursued and defeated the armies of a coalition of four powerful Mesopotamian kings with only 318 trained servants (Genesis, chapter 14).
God’s speaking of a tottering image I believe refers to when the statue of Dagon, the Philistine fish-god, fell down twice before the Ark of the Covenant after the Philistines had captured the Ark and had put it in Dagon’s temple as a votive offering to Dagon (1 Samuel, chapters 4 and 5). The fact that God speaks of “the coastlands” in verse 1 supports this idea as the Philistines dwelt on the coastlands of Palestine.
ISAIAH 41:8-20
8 “But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham My friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the Earth, and called from its farthest regions, and said to you, ‘You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you shall be ashamed and disgraced; they shall be as nothing, and those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them— those who contended with you. Those who war against you shall be as nothing, as a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
14 “Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I will help you,” says the Lord and your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and beat them small, and make the hills like chaff.
16 You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them; you shall rejoice in the Lord, and glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy seek water, but there is none, their tongues fail for thirst. I, the Lord, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers in desolate heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree, the myrtle and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine and the box tree together,
20 That they may see and know, and consider and understand together, that the hand of the Lord has done this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it.
God comforts Israel, again stating that He will never abandon them even though they sin against Him. Some Christians believe that the Christians have replaced the Jews as God’s chosen people but they need to remember God’s proclamation through the prophet Jeremiah;
JEREMIAH 31:35-37
35 Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar (The Lord of hosts is His name):
36 “If those ordinances depart from before Me, says the Lord, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.”
37 Thus says the Lord: “If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the Earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, says the Lord.
While many people view Israel as a desert land it is actually quite fertile. Granted, the southern portion is desert but much of it is quite good for crops. Before the Jews returned to the Land in 1948 the whole area was dry and dusty but has since bloomed into a thriving land as promised by God.
NOTE: “oil trees” are wild olive trees. Note also that cypress trees only grow in areas where there is abundant water. God promises to plant cypress trees in the desert, showing that even the deserts will be well-watered.
ISAIAH 41:21-29
21 “Present your case,” says the Lord; “bring forth your strong reasons,” says the King of Jacob.
22 “Let them bring forth and show us what will happen; let them show the former things, what they were, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare to us things to come.
23 Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that you are gods; yes, do good or do evil, that we may be dismayed and see it together.
24 Indeed you are nothing, and your work is nothing; he who chooses you is an abomination.
25 “I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come; from the rising of the sun he shall call on My name; and he shall come against princes as though mortar, as the potter treads clay.
26 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know? And former times, that we may say, ‘He is righteous’? Surely there is no one who shows, surely there is no one who declares, surely there is no one who hears your words.
27 The first time I said to Zion, ‘Look, there they are!’ And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.
28 For I looked, and there was no man; I looked among them, but there was no counselor, who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 Indeed they are all worthless; their works are nothing; their molded images are wind and confusion.
Again God mocks the lifeless idols of the nations, challenging them to do something, anything, to prove that they are gods.
In verse 21 He also gives us a clue as to how the Judgment will be conducted.
He will first have us state our case before Him and will then judge us according to our works; the righteous will be judged according to their quality of service to Jesus (or the Law of Moses up until Jesus’ death and resurrection) and their adherence (or lack of adherence) to His commandments; the condemned will be judged for every word spoken and every act performed, both good and bad.
As Jesus Himself said;
MATTHEW12:36-37
36 But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.
37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
And as the apostle John saw in his vision of the Judgment in Revelation;
REVELATION 20:12-15
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hell delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
I met a man named Howard Pittman, a “luke-warm” Christian who had died from a ruptured aneurism and was resuscitated and he had an amazing and frightening story to tell.
He said that just before he died he begged God to for an opportunity to plead his case for an extension of life. When he died, angels carried him to Heaven and set him outside the walls. He watched people entering the gates and wanted to enter but was told that God was waiting for him to speak.
He began pleading his case as to why God should allow him an extension of life based on the good works he had done for Him. He said that God was silent the entire time.
He said that when he was finished, the wrath that came over the wall hit him knocked him on his face as God went back over his life showing that the works he had done had been done through selfish motives and how dare he call that service to Him? Howard said he lay on his face, his mind desperately denying God‘s words while his spirit agreed with what God was saying.
To make a long story short, God granted his request and sent him back to tell of his experience.
But before he was allowed to return, he was given an escorted tour through Satan’s realm, seeing demons as they really appear and watched as a young man became demon-possessed.
(For those interested in reading about his death experience and his tour of Satan’s kingdom I have included information on his books “Placebo” and “Demons, An Eyewitness Account” in the Recommended Reading section of this site.
ISAIAH 42:1-9
1 “Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.
2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.
4 He will not fail nor be discouraged, till He has established justice in the Earth; and the coastlands shall wait for His law.”
5 Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread forth the Earth and that which comes from it, Who gives breath to the people on it, and spirit to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles,
7 to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house.
8 I am the Lord, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to carved images.
9 Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.”
The Lord speaks of the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who would give Himself as a ransom for the salvation of those who accept and believe in Him. He would be God’s anointed Savior of all Mankind, both Jew and Gentile, adopting both into His family and giving their spirits eternal life.
He would heal the blind, and would release the righteous dead from The Pit where the souls of all went after death. The Pit was divided into Paradise on one side and Hell on the other, separated by a huge uncrossable gulf as depicted by Jesus in Luke, chapter 16.
Those who had died in obedience to God and His commandments, even though righteous, were still sinners. Their sins had been covered, but had not been removed, therefore even though righteous they were not cleansed of sin and were not yet able to enter Heaven.
Jesus referred to this when He said;
JOHN 3:13
13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.
But with Jesus’ atoning death the righteous dead had their sins removed and were now worthy to enter Heaven. And when Jesus ascended back into Heaven after His resurrection, He took the spirits of the righteous dead with Him. So now when we die we either go to Heaven or Hell to await the Great Judgment.
ISAIAH 42:10-13
10 Sing to the Lord a new song, and His praise from the ends of the Earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you coastlands and you inhabitants of them!
11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord, and declare His praise in the coastlands.
13 The Lord shall go forth like a mighty man; He shall stir up His zeal like a man of war. He shall cry out, yes, shout aloud; He shall prevail against His enemies.
A song of praise to the Lord for His greatness and power.
NOTE: Kedar is the area of north and central Saudi Arabia. Sela is in southern Judah, just above Edom.
ISAIAH 42:14-20
14 “I have held My peace a long time, I have been still and restrained Myself. Now I will cry like a woman in labor, I will pant and gasp at once.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills, and dry up all their vegetation; I will make the rivers coastlands, and I will dry up the pools.
16 I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. These things I will do for them, and not forsake them.
17 They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, who trust in carved images, who say to the molded images, ‘You are our gods.’
18 “Hear, you deaf; and look, you blind, that you may see.
19 Who is blind but My servant, or deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who is blind as he who is perfect, and blind as the Lord’s servant?
20 Seeing many things, but you do not observe; opening the ears, but he does not hear.”
This is a combination of physical and spiritual expressions. On one hand God promises to unleash His wrath against the land for the wickedness of its people. On the other, He promises to open the eyes of the spiritually blind, the ears of the deaf and to lead them in the pathways of righteousness.
He also promises that those so enlightened will be ashamed of their idols. As Isaiah had previously prophesied;
ISAIAH 2:20-21
20 In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which they made, each for himself to worship, to the moles and bats,
21 to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the crags of the rugged rocks, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the Earth mightily.
And;
ISAIAH 30:22
22 You will also defile the covering of your images of silver, and the ornament of your molded images of gold. You will throw them away as an unclean thing; you will say to them, “Get away!”
As for the blind and deaf servant, God is speaking of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. He would not be physically or spiritually blind or deaf in that He would not judge by what He saw or heard while on Earth. As Isaiah prophesied of Him;
ISAIAH 11:1-5
1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
2 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
3 His delight is in the fear of the Lord, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the Earth; He shall strike the Earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.
ISAIAH 42:21-25
21 The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness’ sake; He will exalt the law and make it honorable.
22 But this is a people robbed and plundered; all of them are snared in holes, and they are hidden in prison houses; they are for prey, and no one delivers; for plunder, and no one says, “Restore!”
23 Who among you will give ear to this? Who will listen and hear for the time to come?
24 Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers? Was it not the Lord, He against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in His ways, nor were they obedient to His law.
25 Therefore He has poured on him the fury of His anger and the strength of battle; it has set him on fire all around, yet he did not know; and it burned him, yet he did not take it to heart.
God wonders at the willful blindness of Israel, who, even though beset by disasters and destroyed by conquerors still persist in their wicked ways and refuse to turn back to Him.
ISAIAH 43:1-7
1 But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.
3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
4 Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honored, and I have loved you; therefore I will give men for you, and people for your life.
5 Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west;
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’ Bring My sons from afar, and My daughters from the ends of the Earth—
7 Everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”
God reaffirms His choice of Israel as His Chosen People, His inheritance. No matter how much they sin before Him, He will never completely abandon them. As He told the prophet Jeremiah;
JEREMIAH 31:35-37
35 Thus says the Lord,Who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar (the Lord of hosts is His name):
36 “If those ordinances depart from before Me, says the Lord, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.”
37 Thus says the Lord: “If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the Earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, says the Lord.
ISAIAH 43:8-15
8 Bring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears.
9 Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the people be assembled. Who among them can declare this, and show us former things? Let them bring out their witnesses, that they may be justified; or let them hear and say, “It is truth.”
10 “You are My witnesses,” says the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me.
11 I, even I, am the Lord, and besides Me there is no savior.
12 I have declared and saved, I have proclaimed, and there was no foreign god among you; therefore you are My witnesses,” says the Lord, “that I am God.
13 Indeed before the day was, I am He; and there is no one who can deliver out of My hand; I work, and who will reverse it?”
14 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon, and bring them all down as fugitives— the Chaldeans, who rejoice in their ships.
15 I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.”
God declares His deity, eternal nature and everlasting power, showing that He existed before time began and asking who can be compared to Him? He promises to destroy mighty Babylon, which occurred on October 12th, 539 B.C. when a coalition of Medes and Persians destroyed the city in a sneak attack.
The Babylonians didn’t have a Navy, but they did build barges to carry goods up and down the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
ISAIAH 43:16-21
16 Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea and a path through the mighty waters,
17 who brings forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power (they shall lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):
18 “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.
19 Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
20 The beast of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My people, My chosen.
21 This people I have formed for Myself; they shall declare My praise.
I have seen pictures and videos of waterfalls and streams in the Judean desert after a rainstorm, proof of God’s words above.
Several years ago Australia was plagued with a heavy drought followed by massive wildfires which burned thousands of acres of land and killed a huge number of animals. After several weeks of fires, a heavy rainstorm swept through and a photographer took a picture of two kangaroos dancing together for joy in the rain, which I felt fulfilled God’s words in verse 20 above.
ISAIAH 43:22-28
22 “But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob; and you have been weary of Me, O Israel.
23 You have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings, nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices. I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings, nor wearied you with incense.
24 You have bought Me no sweet cane with money, nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices; but you have burdened Me with your sins, you have wearied Me with your iniquities.
25 “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.
26 Put Me in remembrance; let us contend together; state your case, that you may be acquitted.
27 Your first father sinned, and your mediators have transgressed against Me.
28 Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary; I will give Jacob to the curse, and Israel to reproaches.
God does not require sacrifices for food, neither did He eat what was offered on His altar. The sacrifices were symbolic of the terrible price to be paid for sin which would satisfy God’s justice, namely the giving of a sinless, innocent life to atone for the sins of the guilty.
Animals cannot sin, therefore while imperfect, their sacrifice would cover the sins until the perfect sacrifice, Jesus Christ came and offered Himself as the only sacrifice which removed sin completely.
God wanted the sacrifices made to remind the Jews of the price of sin and to put them under obedience to His commands. Sacrifices made as a thoughtless ritual were useless as their hearts were not in it, nor did they regard its purpose.
As He spoke through Isaiah earlier;
ISAIAH 1:11-15
11 “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats.
12 “When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts?
13 Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.
14 Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.
ISAIAH 44:1-8
1 “Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant, and Israel whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says the Lord who made you and formed you from the womb, who will help you: ‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant; and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring;
4 They will spring up among the grass like willows by the watercourses.’
5 One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.
6 “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the First and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God.
7 And who can proclaim as I do? Then let him declare it and set it in order for Me, since I appointed the ancient people. And the things that are coming and shall come, let them show these to them.
8 Do not fear, nor be afraid; have I not told you from that time, and declared it? You are My witnesses. Is there a God besides Me? Indeed there is no other Rock; I know not one.’ ”
God again declares that He is the only God from one end of eternity to the other and there will be no other God to succeed Him. He also lays out proof of His deity by declaring things that will happen before they do so, with prophecies coming true to the letter thousands of years after they were made.
ISAIAH 44:9-20
9 Those who make an image, all of them are useless, and their precious things shall not profit; they are their own witnesses; they neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.
10 Who would form a god or mold an image that profits him nothing?
11 Surely all his companions would be ashamed; and the workmen, they are mere men. Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, they shall be ashamed together.
12 The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals, fashions it with hammers, and works it with the strength of his arms. Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint.
13 The craftsman stretches out his rule, he marks one out with chalk; he fashions it with a plane, he marks it out with the compass, and makes it like the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.
14 He cuts down cedars for himself, and takes the cypress and the oak; he secures it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it.
15 Then it shall be for a man to burn, for he will take some of it and warm himself; yes, he kindles it and bakes bread; indeed he makes a god and worships it; he makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.
16 He burns half of it in the fire; with this half he eats meat; he roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He even warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm, I have seen the fire.”
17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, his carved image. He falls down before it and worships it, prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”
18 They do not know nor understand; for He has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand.
19 And no one considers in his heart, nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire, yes, I have also baked bread on its coals; I have roasted meat and eaten it; and shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?”
20 He feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has turned him aside; and he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”
God relates a somewhat amusing characterization of the ignorance of a typical idol worshiper who debases himself and worships lifeless inanimate objects that he has made, from the same tree burning part for heat and cooking, the rest he declares to be a god and worships it. It is amusing, but also tragic as such a person will not find out the truth until after death, when it is too late to change.
ISAIAH 44:21-28
21 “Remember these, O Jacob, and Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me!
22 I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions, and like a cloud, your sins. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.”
23 Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it! Shout, you lower parts of the Earth; break forth into singing, you mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and glorified Himself in Israel.
24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, and He who formed you from the womb: “I am the Lord, who makes all things, who stretches out the heavens all alone, who spreads abroad the Earth by Myself;
25 who frustrates the signs of the babblers, and drives diviners mad; who turns wise men backward, and makes their knowledge foolishness;
26 who confirms the word of His servant, and performs the counsel of His messengers; who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’ to the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’ and ‘I will raise up her waste places’;
27 who says to the deep, ‘Be dry! And I will dry up your rivers’;
28 who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” and to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’
God begs Israel to abandon their sinful ways and return to Him. He again relates His works and declares His sovereign will in commanding what will happen.
Verse 28 is fascinating in that He mentions Persian king Cyrus the Great by name over 100 years before Cyrus conquered the city of Babylon, freeing the Jews from their prophesied 70 year captivity.
ISAIAH 45:1-7
1 “Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held— to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings, to open before him the double doors, so that the gates will not be shut:
2 ‘I will go before you and make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron.
3 I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, that you may know that I, the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel.
4 For Jacob My servant’s sake, and Israel My elect, I have even called you by your name; I have named you, though you have not known Me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other; there is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me,
6 That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting that there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other;
7 I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the Lord, do all these things.’
It has been reported that Cyrus was greatly astonished and impressed when the Jews showed him the prophecies made of him by name approximately 100 years before he was born. This is what probably led him to proclaim after conquering Babylon and freeing the Jews from their 70 year captivity;
2 CHRONICLES 36:23
23 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the Earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. Who is among you of all His people? May the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!
ISAIAH 45:8-10
8 “Rain down, you heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness; let the Earth open, let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together. I, the Lord, have created it.
9 “Woe to him who strives with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the Earth! Shall the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ Or shall your handiwork say, ‘He has no hands’?
10 Woe to him who says to his father, ‘What are you begetting?’ Or to the woman, ‘What have you brought forth?’ ”
Verses 9 and 10 bring to mind the “wrongful life” lawsuits in the 1980's in which disabled children sued the doctors who concerning possible genetic defects in their children, didn’t counsel their parents to either abort the fetus or urge them against pregnancy.
God took full responsibility for defective births when He angrily told Moses;
EXODUS 4:11
11 So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?
ISAIAH 45:11-14
11 Thus says the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker: “Ask Me of things to come concerning My sons; and concerning the work of My hands, you command Me.
12 I have made the Earth, and created man on it. I—My hands—stretched out the heavens, and all their host I have commanded.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways; he shall build My city and let My exiles go free, not for price nor reward,” says the Lord of hosts.
14 Thus says the Lord: “The labor of Egypt and merchandise of Cush and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over to you, and they shall be yours; they shall walk behind you, they shall come over in chains; and they shall bow down to you. They will make supplication to you, saying, ‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other; there is no other God.’ ”
When Cyrus conquered Babylon, he inherited the huge Babylonian empire which encompassed most of the Middle East. And God’s words in verse 13 above came true when Cyrus declared;
EZRA 1:1-4
1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,
2 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: “All the kingdoms of the Earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah.
3 Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.
4 And whoever is left in any place where he dwells, let the men of his place help him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, besides the freewill offerings for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.
God’s words in verse 14 above were confirmed when the Persian Empire stretched into Egypt (including Cush) and parts of Saudi Arabia (Sabeans).
ISAIAH 45:15-25
15 Truly You are God, who hide Yourself, O God of Israel, the Savior!
16 They shall be ashamed and also disgraced, all of them; they shall go in confusion together, who are makers of idols.
17 But Israel shall be saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; you shall not be ashamed or disgraced forever and ever.
18 For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens, who is God, who formed the Earth and made it, who has established it, who did not create it in vain, who formed it to be inhabited: “I am the Lord, and there is no other.
19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the Earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in vain’; I, the Lord, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.
20 “Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you who have escaped from the nations. They have no knowledge, who carry the wood of their carved image, and pray to a god that cannot save.
21 Tell and bring forth your case; yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, a just God and a Savior; there is none besides Me.
22 “Look to Me, and be saved, all you ends of the Earth! For I am God, and there is no other.
23 I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that to Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath.
24 He shall say, ‘Surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength.’ To Him men shall come, and all shall be ashamed who are incensed against Him.
25 In the Lord all the descendants of Israel shall be justified, and shall glory.’ ”
God again speaks of His supremacy, having by Himself created all things in Heaven and Earth, foretelling the end of a matter before its beginning. He also condemns those who worship man-made gods and lifeless idols as fools, declaring that He, alone is God.
The apostle Paul speaks of the future fulfillment of verse 23 when he said;
PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on Earth, and of those under the Earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
God, because He could not swear by anyone higher than Himself, swore by Himself that all will bow to His Son at the great Day of Judgment.
ISAIAH 46:1-2
1 Bel bows down, Nebo stoops; their idols were on the beasts and on the cattle. Your carriages were heavily loaded, a burden to the weary beast.
2 They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but have themselves gone into captivity.
Bel (also known as Marduk) and Nebo (wisdom) were Babylonian gods worshiped throughout the Babylonian empire. When the Persians conquered Babylon, the golden idols of Bel and Nebo were carried away as treasure, their weight burdensome to the beasts of burden (donkeys) pulling the treasure-laden carts.
ISAIAH 46:3-13
3 “Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been upheld by Me from birth, who have been carried from the womb:
4 even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.
5 “To whom will you liken Me, and make Me equal and compare Me, that we should be alike?
6 They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith, and he makes it a god; they prostrate themselves, yes, they worship.
7 They bear it on the shoulder, they carry it and set it in its place, and it stands; from its place it shall not move. Though one cries out to it, yet it cannot answer nor save him out of his trouble.
8 “Remember this, and show yourselves men; recall to mind, O you transgressors.
9 Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’
11 Calling a bird of prey from the East, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.
12 “Listen to Me, you stubborn-hearted, who are far from righteousness:
13 I bring My righteousness near, it shall not be far off; My salvation shall not linger. And I will place salvation in Zion, for Israel My glory.
God again proclaims His everlasting dedication to Israel, promising to carry them from birth to death.
As Moses had assured Israel just before his death;
DEUTERONOMY 31:8
8 And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
This is also the same promise that Jesus gave to us after His resurrection when He said;
MATTHEW 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on Earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
He must remain in Heaven until the Father gives Him permission to return, so in order to maintain His promise He sent the Holy Spirit of the Father to dwell within us until He can return for us.
And his Godhood is proven in that prophecies made hundreds and even thousands of years ago are coming true to the letter, showing that God knows all of history from beginning to end.
God mocks the idols and their ignorant worshipers who worship lifeless images. This would be like men worshiping their televisions, cars, (and especially their cellphones!) as gods. Unfortunately, even today people worship statues of people, pagan gods, fetishes representing gods, departed ancestors, animals, etc. so even today the practice of idol worship continues.
The “bird of prey” from the East spoken above in verse 11 refers to Persian king Cyrus.
ISAIAH 47:1-3
1 “Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans! For you shall no more be called tender and delicate.
2 Take the millstones and grind meal. Remove your veil, take off the skirt, uncover the thigh, pass through the rivers.
3 Your nakedness shall be uncovered, yes, your shame will be seen; I will take vengeance, and I will not arbitrate with a man.”
God compares Babylon to a royal haughty woman, rich and dressed in finery who will be stripped bare and forced to do menial labor. In ancient times captives were stripped naked and put in chains as they were deported to bring deepest shame upon them.
As they have done to others, so will it be done to them.
ISAIAH 47:4-15
4 As for our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts is His name, the Holy One of Israel.
5 “Sit in silence, and go into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans; for you shall no longer be called the Lady of Kingdoms.
6 I was angry with My people; I have profaned My inheritance, and given them into your hand. You showed them no mercy; on the elderly you laid your yoke very heavily.
7 And you said, ‘I shall be a lady forever,’ so that you did not take these things to heart, nor remember the latter end of them.
8 “Therefore hear this now, you who are given to pleasures, who dwell securely, who say in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me; I shall not sit as a widow, nor shall I know the loss of children’;
9 but these two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day: the loss of children, and widowhood. They shall come upon you in their fullness because of the multitude of your sorceries, for the great abundance of your enchantments.
10 “For you have trusted in your wickedness; you have said, ‘No one sees me’; your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you; and you have said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’
11 Therefore evil shall come upon you; you shall not know from where it arises. And trouble shall fall upon you; you will not be able to put it off. And desolation shall come upon you suddenly, which you shall not know.
12 “Stand now with your enchantments and the multitude of your sorceries, in which you have labored from your youth— perhaps you will be able to profit, perhaps you will prevail.
13 You are wearied in the multitude of your counsels; let now the astrologers, the stargazers, and the monthly prognosticators stand up and save you from what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, they shall be as stubble, the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame; it shall not be a coal to be warmed by, nor a fire to sit before!
15 Thus shall they be to you with whom you have labored, your merchants from your youth; they shall wander each one to his quarter. No one shall save you.
The promised destruction of ancient Babylon mirrors that of future “Mystery Babylon” which God will punish in similar fashion at the soon-coming End of Days. Just as ancient Babylon was destroyed overnight because of its sins, its spiritual successor will be destroyed in a day.
(To understand the identity of “Mystery Babylon”, please go to the Revelation study, chapters 17 and 18).
ISAIAH 48:1-5
1 “Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah; who swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth or in righteousness;
2 for they call themselves after the holy city, and lean on the God of Israel; the Lord of hosts is His name:
3 “I have declared the former things from the beginning; they went forth from My mouth, and I caused them to hear it. Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.
4 Because I knew that you were obstinate, and your neck was an iron sinew, and your brow bronze,
5 even from the beginning I have declared it to you; before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you, lest you should say, ‘My idol has done them, and my carved image and my molded image have commanded them.’
God condemns Israel for their deceptive worship, giving Him lip-service while worshiping their idols also. God reminds them that only He declares a matter before it happens so that they cannot give credit for the event to their idols after it has come to pass.
ISAIAH 48:6-11
6 “You have heard; see all this. And will you not declare it? I have made you hear new things from this time, even hidden things, and you did not know them.
7 They are created now and not from the beginning; and before this day you have not heard them, lest you should say, ‘Of course I knew them.’
8 Surely you did not hear, surely you did not know; surely from long ago your ear was not opened. For I knew that you would deal very treacherously, and were called a transgressor from the womb.
9 “For My name’s sake I will defer My anger, and for My praise I will restrain it from you, so that I do not cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; for how should My name be profaned? And I will not give My glory to another.
God reminds Israel of His divinity by relating how He creates events suddenly, events which neither men nor their idols have foreseen so that they cannot say that they knew of an event before it came to pass.
God understood their rebellion from the beginning and at times afflicted them after warning them when they refused to listen and obey. History shows that when He brought disasters upon them they finally turned back to Him for salvation, understanding that their idols could not save them.
God would not destroy them as that would violate His promise to never abandon them or destroy them as a people.
ISAIAH 48:12-22
12 “Listen to Me, O Jacob, and Israel, My called: I am He, I am the First, I am also the Last.
13 Indeed My hand has laid the foundation of the Earth, and My right hand has stretched out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand up together.
14 “All of you, assemble yourselves, and hear! Who among them has declared these things? The Lord loves him; He shall do His pleasure on Babylon, and His arm shall be against the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken; yes, I have called him, I have brought him, and his way will prosper.
16 “Come near to Me, hear this: I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, I was there. And now the Lord God and His Spirit have sent Me.”
17 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go.
18 Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.
19 Your descendants also would have been like the sand, and the offspring of your body like the grains of sand; his name would not have been cut off nor destroyed from before Me.”
20 Go forth from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! With a voice of singing, declare, proclaim this, utter it to the end of the Earth; say, “The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob!”
21 And they did not thirst when He led them through the deserts; He caused the waters to flow from the rock for them; He also split the rock, and the waters gushed out.
22 “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
God reminds Israel that He alone is God who has redeemed them from troubles and there is no other God in existence. Verse 16 is interesting in that it seems to speak of the Messiah 600 years before He came to Earth in the form of Jesus Christ. This shows that it is He who has shepherded Israel throughout its history under the direction and authority of the God the Father.
Verse 21 seems to indicate that God provided water for Israel when they returned from Babylon, reminiscent of His splitting the rock during Israel’s wandering the desert after leaving Egypt. (Exodus, chapter 17)
ISAIAH 49:1-6
1 “Listen, O coastlands, to Me, and take heed, you peoples from afar! The Lord has called Me from the womb; from the matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.
2 And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, and made Me a polished shaft; in His quiver He has hidden Me.”
3 “And He said to me, ‘You are My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’
4 Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain; yet surely my just reward is with the Lord, and my work with my God.’ ”
5 “And now the Lord says, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel is gathered to Him (for I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and My God shall be My strength),
6 Indeed He says, ‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the Earth.’ ”
This passage is obviously speaking of the Messiah, the servant of God whom God the Father would empower to redeem the tribes of Israel. His teachings would be like a spiritual sword cutting to the heart of Man, bringing conviction of sin and wickedness.
Some Rabbis have argued that this is an allegory to the nation of Israel however the text clearly speaks in the singular as in a person, not a nation. And how can Israel as a nation rescue itself?
It portrays the frustration and weariness of the Messiah when His teachings and admonishments were vehemently opposed by the religious authorities and the people. This is witnessed by Scripture when Jesus said;
JOHN 6:63-69
63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.
65 And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.”
66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”
68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Even His own brothers didn’t believe in Him at first;
JOHN 7:1-5
1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.
2 Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.
3 His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.
4 For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.”
5 For even His brothers did not believe in Him.
However they believed in Him later when they saw Him after His resurrection.
While He may have been frustrated by the Jews’ rejection of Him, God said that His work would not be for nothing, that the Gentiles would come to believe and trust in Him as well. As God had promised;
ISAIAH 42:6-7
6 “I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles,
7 to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house.
Jesus healed the blind while He was on Earth and upon His resurrection He released the righteous dead who were confined to the Pit who were awaiting their redemption.
ISAIAH 49:7-13
7 Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One, to Him whom man despises, to Him whom the nation abhors, to the Servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel; and He has chosen You.”
8 Thus says the Lord: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, and in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You as a covenant to the people, to restore the Earth, to cause them to inherit the desolate heritages;
9 that You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ “They shall feed along the roads, and their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
10 They shall neither hunger nor thirst, neither heat nor sun shall strike them; for He who has mercy on them will lead them, even by the springs of water He will guide them.
11 I will make each of My mountains a road, and My highways shall be elevated.
12 Surely these shall come from afar; Look! Those from the north and the west, and these from the land of Sinim.”
13 Sing, O heavens! Be joyful, O Earth! And break out in singing, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted His people, and will have mercy on His afflicted.
God speaks of the coming of the Messiah, one who would be first rejected by His own people. As Isaiah would later prophesy of Him;
ISAIAH 53:1-6
1 Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.
3 He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Yet the prophet Daniel saw a vision of the Messiah’s glorification;
DANIEL 7:13-14
13 “I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.
ISAIAH 49:14-21
14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, and my Lord has forgotten me.”
15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you.
16 See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are continually before Me.
17 Your sons shall make haste; your destroyers and those who laid you waste shall go away from you.
18 Lift up your eyes, look around and see; all these gather together and come to you. As I live,” says the Lord, “You shall surely clothe yourselves with them all as an ornament, and bind them on you as a bride does.
19 “For your waste and desolate places, and the land of your destruction, will even now be too small for the inhabitants; and those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20 The children you will have, after you have lost the others, will say again in your ears, ‘The place is too small for me; give me a place where I may dwell.’
21 Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has begotten these for me, since I have lost my children and am desolate, a captive, and wandering to and fro? And who has brought these up? There I was, left alone; but these, where were they?’ ”
God promises to never forget or abandon Israel, despite their frequent rejection of Him and His laws.
The reference to engraving Israel on the palms of His hands refers to Jesus’ having had nails driven through the palms of His hands when He was crucified for the sins of the world. When He returns in glory, the prophet Zechariah said;
ZECHARIAH 12:10
10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.
In that day, Israel will at last understand that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah.
ISAIAH 49:22-26
22 Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will lift My hand in an oath to the nations, and set up My standard for the peoples; they shall bring your sons in their arms, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders;
23 Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers; they shall bow down to you with their faces to the Earth, and lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”
24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of the righteous be delivered?
25 But thus says the Lord: “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible be delivered; for I will contend with him who contends with you, and I will save your children.
26 I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh, and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine. All flesh shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
God promises that at the return of the Messiah, Israel will be delivered from its troubles, any captives will return and Israel will rule over its enemies.
Note that God says that kings will be their foster-fathers, as God the Father is our true Father.
ISAIAH 50:1-3
1 Thus says the Lord: “Where is the certificate of your mother’s divorce, whom I have put away? Or which of My creditors is it to whom I have sold you? For your iniquities you have sold yourselves, and for your transgressions your mother has been put away.
2 Why, when I came, was there no man? Why, when I called, was there none to answer? Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver? Indeed with My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness; their fish stink because there is no water, and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.”
God wonders at the continual rejection of Him by Israel, especially with their reliance on other, stronger nations such as Egypt and Assyria for alliances rather than relying on Him for protection. He again relates His power and majesty over both the heavens and the Earth in hopes that they will remember and return to Him.
ISAIAH 50:4-6
4 “The Lord God has given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to hear as the learned.
5 The Lord God has opened My ear; and I was not rebellious, nor did I turn away.
6 I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.
This is an undoubted reference to the future sufferings of the Messiah who suffered the full wrath of the Father, Satan, the Jews and the Romans before, during and after His trial. As Isaiah prophesied;
ISAIAH 52:13-14
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you, so His visage was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men;
Isaiah says that the Messiah’s face and body would be beaten beyond recognition and the very beard would be ripped from His face. Scripture says that when He stood before the Sanhedrin at His trial;
MATTHEW 26:62-67
62 And the high priest arose and said to Him, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?”
63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!”
64 Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
65 Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!
66 What do you think?” They answered and said, “He is deserving of death.”
67 Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands,
68 saying, “Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”
Spitting in the face was a supreme insult in ancient times, and slapping the face was a punishment reserved for slaves. The term “beat” in verse 67 above refers to a Greek custom (adopted by the brutal Romans) of repeatedly striking a person hard on the temples with a clenched fist.
Even worse, Scripture records that Jesus was blindfolded and beaten while He stood helpless, having been previously bound by the mob who brought Him to trial. The apostle John who was an eye-witness to His arrest, said;
JOHN 18:12-13
12 Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus, and bound him,
13 and led him away to Annas first; for he was father in law to Caiaphas, which was the high priest that same year.
The Sanhedrin in their hatred for Jesus violated their own laws against mistreatment of prisoners on trial;
LUKE 22:63-65
63 Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him.
64 And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, “Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?”
65 And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.
Matthew 26:63 above also states that the forced Jesus to testify against Himself, which was also forbidden by Jewish law.
Isaiah 50:6 above speaks of the Messiah giving His back to those who beat Him. The Romans were masters of cruel, barbaric punishments. In ancient times, condemned prisoners were punished by beating with a leather whip or with thin rods. God allowed a maximum of 39 lashes;
DEUTERONOMY 15:1-3
1 “If there is a dispute between men, and they come to court, that the judges may judge them, and they justify the righteous and condemn the wicked,
2 then it shall be, if the wicked man deserves to be beaten, that the judge will cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence, according to his guilt, with a certain number of blows.
3 Forty blows he may give him and no more, lest he should exceed this and beat him with many blows above these, and your brother be humiliated in your sight.
Out of respect for the Law, the Jews always stopped at 39 lashes. The Romans had no such restrictions.
They in their usual efficient and brutal fashion developed scourging in which a prisoner was whipped from neck to ankles with a whip (called a flagrum) that contained anywhere between 3-6 thongs and the leather straps were tipped with lead dumbbells, metal hooks or sharp pieces of bone.
The tips would strike with great velocity tearing skin, muscle, and causing deep internal bruising and hemorrhaging of tissues. Many victims died of shock and blood loss from a scourging and even battle-hardened Roman soldiers would beg not to be scourged as a punishment.
The Shroud of Turin, proving more and more to being Jesus’ burial shroud shows that the victim buried in the Shroud was whipped with at least 120 lashes. Pictures of the whip marks visible on the Shroud show that He was whipped both front and back from neck to ankles.
In performing a forensic investigation of the Shroud an expert pathologist remarked, “It wasn’t a miracle that Jesus died on the cross, it’s a miracle that He made it to the cross at all.”
By all rights Jesus should have died during the beating but the Holy Spirit within Him kept Him alive so that He could die in agony on the Roman cross for the sins of the world as prophesied.
ISAIAH 50:7-11
7 “For the Lord God will help Me; therefore I will not be disgraced; therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed.
8 He is near who justifies Me; who will contend with Me? Let us stand together. Who is My adversary? Let him come near Me.
9 Surely the Lord God will help Me; Who is he who will condemn Me? Indeed they will all grow old like a garment; the moth will eat them up.
10 “Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys the voice of His Servant? Who walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely upon his God.
11 Look, all you who kindle a fire, who encircle yourselves with sparks: walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks you have kindled— this you shall have from My hand: you shall lie down in torment.
The Messiah asks who will accuse Him of sin? As Jesus asked the scribes and Pharisees;
JOHN 8:45-47
45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.
46 Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?
47 He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”
He, even though sinless, took our sins within Himself so that when He hung on the cross He literally became the image of sin in the eyes of His Father. As the apostle Paul wrote;
2 CORINTHIANS 5:21
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
The Law of Moses had no provision for the removal of sin, it could only identify and cover sin. The Law also cursed anyone who did not follow all of its commandments to perfection all the days of their lives;
DEUTERONOMY 27:26
26 ‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law by observing them.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ”
So no matter how hard they tried, because of sin Mankind could never be perfect under the Law, therefore all of Mankind was cursed. Jesus Christ lived a perfect life under the Law, fulfilling its purpose and giving Him the right to replace the Law with a better, eternal Covenant which could remove sin.
And in taking the curse of the Law upon Himself, He became cursed in the eyes of His Father;
GALATIANS 3:13-14
13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”),
14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
By taking the sins of the entire world into Himself, both Jews and Gentiles could come to God and be adopted into His family together.
In the Old Testament God cursed anyone who hung on a tree;
DEUTERONOMY 21:22-23
22 “If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree,
23 his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.
Jesus therefore became the visible image of sin and a curse in the eyes of His Father when He hung on the cross. As such when Jesus hung on the cross the Father had to turn His back on His own Son when His Son needed Him the most. As the prophet Habakkuk said;
HABAKKUK 1:13
You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness.
This caused Jesus to cry out in agony while on the cross;
MATTHEW 27:45-46
45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
ISAIAH 51:1-8
1 “Listen to Me, you who follow after righteousness, you who seek the Lord: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the hole of the pit from which you were dug.
2 Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who bore you; for I called him alone, and blessed him and increased him.”
3 For the Lord will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places; He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.
4 “Listen to Me, My people; and give ear to Me, O My nation: for law will proceed from Me, and I will make My justice rest as a light of the peoples.
5 My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, and My arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands will wait upon Me, and on My arm they will trust.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look on the Earth beneath. For the heavens will vanish away like smoke, the Earth will grow old like a garment, and those who dwell in it will die in like manner; but My salvation will be forever, and My righteousness will not be abolished.
7 “Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, you people in whose heart is My law: do not fear the reproach of men, nor be afraid of their insults.
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment, and the worm will eat them like wool; but My righteousness will be forever, and My salvation from generation to generation.”
God reassures Israel that in time to come He will keep His promises of restoration and salvation. We must wait however for His timing as there is much more going on than what we can see with human eyes.
He stresses His eternal existence and power and reminds us that what we see will someday vanish away like smoke in the wind and that men, no matter however powerful they are will grow old and die and their evil and terror will perish with them.
God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel concerning two of the ancient city-State empires that terrorized the Middle East whom He cast down to Hell;
EZEKIEL 32:22-25
22 “Assyria is there, and all her company, with their graves all around her, all of them slain, fallen by the sword.
23 Her graves are set in the recesses of the Pit, and her company is all around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who caused terror in the land of the living.
24 “There is Elam and all her multitude, all around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who have gone down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the Earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living; now they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit.
25 They have set her bed in the midst of the slain, with all her multitude, with her graves all around it, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit; it was put in the midst of the slain.
ISAIAH 51:9-16
9 Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord! Awake as in the ancient days, in the generations of old. Are You not the arm that cut Rahab apart, and wounded the serpent?
10 Are You not the One who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep; that made the depths of the sea a road for the redeemed to cross over?
11 So the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness; sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
12 “I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid of a man who will die, and of the son of a man who will be made like grass?
13 And you forget the Lord your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the Earth; You have feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he has prepared to destroy. And where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 The captive exile hastens, that he may be loosed, that he should not die in the pit, and that his bread should not fail.
15 But I am the Lord your God, who divided the sea whose waves roared— the Lord of hosts is His name.
16 And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, that I may plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the Earth, and say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’ ”
When ‘Rahab’ is mentioned we immediately think of Rahab the harlot who hid the spies that Joshua sent to scope out the Canaanite city of Jericho (Joshua, chapter 2).
However the word ‘rahab’ (Hebrew: broad space) can also refer to a large place or country. In this case the term refers to Egypt, which worshiped the serpent-god Set. The serpent was also the protector-god of lower Egypt and crowns in the shape of a coiled serpent have been depicted on hieroglyphics worn by Pharaohs of the Northern (lower) Kingdom before Egypt was unified.
God tells us to not be afraid of men who are only on the Earth temporarily, but reminds us that we should fear Him who is eternal and who is more powerful than any man. As Jesus said;
LUKE 12:4-5
4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
5 But I will show you whom you should fear: fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into Hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!
Verse 14 above refers to the practice of incarcerating prisoners in a deep pit in the ground which was covered with a grating.
ISAIAH 51:17-23
17 Awake, awake! Stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of His fury; you have drunk the dregs of the cup of trembling, and drained it out.
18 There is no one to guide her among all the sons she has brought forth; nor is there any who takes her by the hand among all the sons she has brought up.
19 These two things have come to you; who will be sorry for you?— desolation and destruction, famine and sword— by whom will I comfort you?
20 Your sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, like an antelope in a net; they are full of the fury of the Lord, the rebuke of your God.
21 Therefore please hear this, you afflicted, and drunk but not with wine.
22 Thus says your Lord, the Lord and your God, who pleads the cause of His people: “See, I have taken out of your hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; you shall no longer drink it.
23 But I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you, who have said to you, ‘Lie down, that we may walk over you.’ and you have laid your body like the ground, and as the street, for those who walk over.”
God speaks to the inhabitants of Jerusalem who have survived His punishment for their sins. The ‘dregs’ spoken of is the residue left at the bottom of a cup of unrefined (unfiltered) wine. These dregs were bitter in taste and was an allegory for the bitterness of God’s punishments.
The inhabitants lay in the streets, not drunk with wine but collapsed from starvation and disease. As the prophet Jeremiah would describe during the Babylonian siege and destruction of Jerusalem;
LAMENTATIONS 4:4-11
4 The tongue of the infant clings to the roof of its mouth for thirst; the young children ask for bread, but no one breaks it for them.
5 Those who ate delicacies are desolate in the streets; those who were brought up in scarlet embrace ash heaps.
6 The punishment of the iniquity of the daughter of my people is greater than the punishment of the sin of Sodom, which was overthrown in a moment, with no hand to help her!
7 Her Nazirites were brighter than snow and whiter than milk; they were more ruddy in body than rubies, like sapphire in their appearance.
8 Now their appearance is blacker than soot; they go unrecognized in the streets; their skin clings to their bones, it has become as dry as wood.
9 Those slain by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger; for these pine away, stricken for lack of the fruits of the field.
10 The hands of the compassionate women have cooked their own children; they became food for them in the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11 The Lord has fulfilled His fury, He has poured out His fierce anger. He kindled a fire in Zion, and it has devoured its foundations.
Nazarites were men who had taken a vow to the Lord and were not to cut their hair or consume any form of grape products the entire time of their vow (Numbers, chapter 6). They are NOT to be confused with Nazarenes, inhabitants of the Galilee city of Nazareth.)
During the Roman siege and destruction of Jerusalem the contemporary historian and eyewitness Flavius Josephus described starving citizens as sifting through animal dung looking for undigested grains to eat. He also described women killing and eating their own children as Moses had promised;
DEUTERONOMY 28:53-57
53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you.
54 The sensitive and very refined man among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the rest of his children whom he leaves behind,
55 so that he will not give any of them the flesh of his children whom he will eat, because he has nothing left in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and sensitivity, will refuse to the husband of her bosom, and to her son and her daughter,
57 her placenta which comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of everything in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
ISAIAH 52:1-12
1 Awake, awake! Put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city! For the uncircumcised and the unclean shall no longer come to you.
2 Shake yourself from the dust, arise; sit down, O Jerusalem! Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion!
3 For thus says the Lord: “You have sold yourselves for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.”
4 For thus says the Lord God: “My people went down at first into Egypt to dwell there; then the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.
5 Now therefore, what have I here,” says the Lord, “that My people are taken away for nothing? Those who rule over them make them wail,” says the Lord, “And My name is blasphemed continually every day.
6 Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore they shall know in that day that I am He who speaks: ‘Behold, it is I.’ ”
7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
8 Your watchmen shall lift up their voices, with their voices they shall sing together; for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord brings back Zion.
9 Break forth into joy, sing together, you waste places of Jerusalem! For the Lord has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has made bare His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the Earth shall see the salvation of our God.
11 Depart! Depart! Go out from there, touch no unclean thing; go out from the midst of her, be clean, you who bear the vessels of the Lord.
12 For you shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight; for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
This was a prophecy concerning Judah’s future release from Babylon after the Lord cast them out of the Land for 70 years in 586 B.C. because of their sins. They would return unmolested through the long desert trip back to Judah 70 years later and would rebuild Jerusalem in spite of fierce opposition from the surrounding nations.
ISAIAH 52:13-15
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you, so His visage was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men;
15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; for what had not been told them they shall see, and what they had not heard they shall consider.
This is a prophecy concerning the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As was discussed in chapter 50 of this study, as prophesied Jesus was savagely beaten and whipped almost beyond recognition for our sins and then He was crucified.
Having destroyed our sins and having satisfied God’s justice against sin by means of the cross, God the Father elevated Him to be equal with Himself and made Him King, Savior and Judge of all Mankind. As the author of the New Testament book of Hebrews wrote;
HEBREWS 1:1-4
1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;
3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
ISAIAH 53:1-6
1 Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.
3 He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
This is one of the clearest prophecies concerning the Messiah in the entire Old Testament. He would be the true Passover Lamb, the only sacrifice whose blood could remove sins forever. He would appear to be no different than any other Jew of His time and He was vilified, denounced, ostracized, mocked and persecuted during the 3 ½ years of His ministry here on Earth.
The Pharisees, scholars and self-appointed teachers of the Law of Moses were so desperate to discredit Him that they concocted outrageous lies to oppose Him. An example;
MATTHEW 12:22-28
22 Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.
23 And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
25 But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.
26 If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.
28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Beelzebub was the disgusting demon “dung god” (Aramaic: Ba’al ze bub - “Lord Of The Flies”) worshiped in the Philistine city of Ekron.
Note: being called ‘the Son of David’ labeled Jesus as the promised Messiah, a descendant of king David who would rule Israel forever. As God prophesied to king David through Nathan;
2 SAMUEL 7:12-16
12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
While David’s physical throne would not last forever, the Messiah will set up an eternal throne which will last forever as prophesied by Daniel who saw the Messiah receive His kingdom;
DANIEL 7:13-14
13 “I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.
ISAIAH 53:7-8
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
This was fulfilled when Jesus stood before Roman governor Pontius Pilate at His trial, Scripture records;
MATTHEW 27:11-14
11 Now Jesus stood before the governor. And the governor asked Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.”
12 And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He answered nothing.
13 Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?”
14 But He answered him not one word, so that the governor marveled greatly.
ISAIAH 53:9
9 And they made His grave with the wicked— but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.
Jesus was crucified between two convicted thieves;
LUKE 23:32-43
32 There were also two others, criminals, led with Him to be put to death.
33 And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left.
34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” And they divided His garments and cast lots.
35 And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.”
36 The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine,
37 and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.”
38 And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.”
40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”
43 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
And;
MATTHEW 27:57-60
57 Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus.
58 This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him.
59 When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,
60 and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.
ISAIAH 53:10-12
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.
11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
This set of verses sums up the entire purpose and ministry of the Messiah, namely bearing the full weight of our sins, suffering the Father’s wrath and punishment for our sins, satisfying the justice demanded by the Father against sin and buying our eternal salvation with His life.
Many Rabbis have serious problems with this chapter of Isaiah and they skip over it during Synagogue Scripture readings as in their words “it engenders too many arguments” and poses questions that they don’t want to answer.
While it clearly points to what Scripture (including eyewitness accounts) and history record as having happened to Jesus, some Rabbis try to explain this chapter as referring to the nation of Israel.
But there is too much in this chapter that does not fit that argument. Some examples;
1. Nowhere in Scripture does God offer Israel as a nation as an offering for sin.
2. While no deceit was found in the Messiah, God has punished and destroyed both Israel and Judah for their sins numerous times. A reading of the terrible curses promised by Moses against Israel will prove this (Deuteronomy, chapter 28).
And remember, Israel wandered for 40 years in the wilderness and could not enter the Promised Land until the entire generation that was 20 years and older died because of their sins after coming out of Egypt (Numbers, chapter 14).
King David alluded that entire generation went to Hell, as Canaan was not God’s rest, for God still spoke of a rest long after Israel entered Canaan. Those who go to Heaven rest from their works, as the author of Hebrews stated;
HEBREWS 4:8-10
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day.
9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God.
10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.
3. Israel never made their graves with the wicked and the rich in their deaths.
It has been 2,000 years since Jesus’ death and the Rabbis are still shunning Him and are trying to hide Him from their own people. On them comes the same condemnation that Jesus leveled against the scribes, Pharisees and religious lawyers of His day;
MATTHEW 23:13
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
And;
LUKE 11:52
52 “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”
ISAIAH 54:1-17
1 “Sing, O barren, you who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, you who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.
2 “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; do not spare; lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.
3 For you shall expand to the right and to the left, and your descendants will inherit the nations, and make the desolate cities inhabited.
4 “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.
5 For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole Earth.
6 For the Lord has called you like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, like a youthful wife when you were refused,” says your God.
7 “For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you.
8 With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer.
9 “For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer cover the Earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.
10 For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has mercy on you.
11 “O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of crystal, and all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me. Whoever assembles against you shall fall for your sake.
16 “Behold, I have created the blacksmith who blows the coals in the fire, who brings forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the spoiler to destroy.
17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from Me,” says the Lord.
God promises to bless Israel and restore them in the future and will never again destroy them. This will occur when the Messiah returns to rule the Earth from Jerusalem. He will restore all that Israel has lost, including children. As He had previously said through Isaiah;
ISAIAH 49:19-23
19 “For your waste and desolate places, and the land of your destruction, will even now be too small for the inhabitants; and those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20 The children you will have, after you have lost the others, will say again in your ears, ‘The place is too small for me; give me a place where I may dwell.’
21 Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has begotten these for me, since I have lost my children and am desolate, a captive, and wandering to and fro? And who has brought these up? There I was, left alone; but these, where were they?’ ”
22 Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will lift My hand in an oath to the nations, and set up My standard for the peoples; they shall bring your sons in their arms, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders;
23 Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers; they shall bow down to you with their faces to the Earth, and lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”
Verse 12 above is reminiscent of the description of the New Jerusalem which God will create. In his vision in the book of Revelation, the apostle John said;
REVELATION 21:10-21
10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
11 having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.
12 Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.
14 Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 And he who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall.
16 The city is laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed: twelve thousand furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height are equal.
17 Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
18 The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.
19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,
20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
The color of the walls;
Jasper - a clear stone, like clear quartz
The colors of the foundations are;
Sapphire - deep blue
Chalcedony - a striped stone, with colors of brown, blue and black in bands; a form of an agate
Emerald - deep green
Sardonyx - a combination of sardius (deep red) and onyx (by ancient description, soft gray color, usually in banded layers)
Sardius - deep red
Chrysolite - described in old texts as a deep golden yellow color
Beryl - described as a pale green or bluish color, possibly an aquamarine
Topaz - described as having a pale green color, unlike the yellow or blue topaz of today
Chrysoprase - a light to grass-green colored gem, chemically similar to Chrysolite, but with nickel impurities which gives it its color
Jacinth - deep blue color, thought to be possibly a form of zircon
Amethyst - deep purple
ISAIAH 55:1-2
1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance.
God is referring to faith and obedience which while costing nothing monetarily can bring an abundance of good things, both physical and spiritual. For as God instructed Moses and Israel;
DEUTERONOMY 8:1-3
1 “Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers.
2 And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
3 So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.
Jesus reiterated this after He had fasted for 40 days in the wilderness and Satan tempted Him;
MATTHEW 4:1-4
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.
3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
People naturally think of physical bread while Jesus was referring to spiritual bread. The spirit needs to be fed just as much as the body does and people too many times try to feed their spiritual hunger with drugs, alcohol, partying, illicit sex, and so on. These affect the physical body but the spirit is still not satisfied.
A starving spirit can manifest itself in deep depression, suicidal thoughts, out-of-control behavior and excessive indulgence in physical things. Only the spiritual bread of God’s Word can satisfy the spiritual hunger and bring peace and contentment.
ISAIAH 55:3-13
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you— the sure mercies of David.
4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people, a leader and commander for the people.
5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, and nations who do not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and the Holy One of Israel; for He has glorified you.”
6 Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the Earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the Earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
12 “For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
God urges Israel and everyone else to repent, turn to Him, obey His commandments and receive forgiveness for their sins.
God asserts His supremacy in that as God, His thoughts are infinitely higher and deeper than sinful Man’s thoughts. And just as a finite mind cannot truly comprehend eternity, neither can we understand the power and magnitude of an eternal God and His ways.
ISAIAH 56:1-8
1 Thus says the Lord: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, for My salvation is about to come, and My righteousness to be revealed.
2 Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who lays hold on it; who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3 Do not let the son of the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord speak, saying, “The Lord has utterly separated me from His people”; nor let the eunuch say, “Here I am, a dry tree.”
4 For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My covenant,
5 even to them I will give in My house and within My walls a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.
6 “Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants— everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant—
7 Even them I will bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on My altar; for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
8 The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, says, “Yet I will gather to him others besides those who are gathered to him.”
God shows His mercy in the fact that any Gentile who seeks Him will be accepted as if they were natural born Israelites and will inherit the promises and blessings given to Israel. Eunuchs in turn are not to consider themselves rejected before God because they cannot have children in support of the nation.
We must all remember what God told the prophet Samuel when God commissioned him to select Israel’s next king from the sons of Jesse. As Jesse’s eldest son Eliab was the first to pass before Samuel;
1 SAMUEL 16:6-7
6 So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
God then chose David, the youngest of Jesse’s seven children to be king.
In the book of Acts of the Apostles, a devout Roman Centurion had seen a vision of an angel who directed him to seek Peter and listen to the words of salvation from him. Peter and several Jews came and as Peter was preaching salvation though Jesus to him, the Holy Spirit was given to the Centurion and his family, astounding Peter and those with him.
Later, believing Jews accused Peter of visiting and eating with Gentiles;
ACTS 15:6-12
6 Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter.
7 And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: “Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.
8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us,
9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
10 Now therefore, why do you test God by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.”
God in Isaiah 56:8 above says that he will gather others besides Israel to be His people. Of this the apostle Paul wrote when he told the Gentile believers of the Roman colony of Ephesus;
EPHESIANS 2:11-18
11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands—
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,
15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,
16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.
17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.
18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
ISAIAH 56:9-12
9 All you beasts of the field, come to devour, all you beasts in the forest.
10 His watchmen are blind, they are all ignorant; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
11 Yes, they are greedy dogs which never have enough. And they are shepherds who cannot understand; they all look to their own way, every one for his own gain, from his own territory.
12 “Come,” one says, “I will bring wine, and we will fill ourselves with intoxicating drink; tomorrow will be as today, and much more abundant.”
This could very well describe many of our political and religious leaders today, leaders who are blind to what is happening around them, greedy for only their own gain, feasting on the flock instead of feeding the flock.
God invites the neighboring nations to come and plunder the land because of the sins of His people which would indeed happen at the hand of the Babylonians in less than 100 years.
ISAIAH 57:1-2
1 The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart; merciful men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous is taken away from evil.
2 He shall enter into peace; they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.
People often wonder why good people die young and the wicked lead long lives. God says that the righteous are taken in peace so that they won’t suffer under the evil times to come.
ISAIAH 57:3-10
3 “But come here, you sons of the sorceress, you offspring of the adulterer and the harlot!
4 Whom do you ridicule? Against whom do you make a wide mouth and stick out the tongue? Are you not children of transgression, offspring of falsehood,
5 inflaming yourselves with gods under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks?
6 Among the smooth stones of the stream is your portion; they, they, are your lot! Even to them you have poured a drink offering, you have offered a grain offering. Should I receive comfort in these?
7 “On a lofty and high mountain you have set your bed; even there you went up to offer sacrifice.
8 Also behind the doors and their posts you have set up your remembrance; for you have uncovered yourself to those other than Me, and have gone up to them; you have enlarged your bed and made a covenant with them; you have loved their bed, where you saw their nudity.
9 You went to the king with ointment, and increased your perfumes; you sent your messengers far off, and even descended to Sheol.
10 You are wearied in the length of your way; yet you did not say, ‘There is no hope.’ You have found the life of your hand; therefore you were not grieved.
God compares Israel to an adulterous woman who gives herself to whoever she fancies or who can enrich her. Israel worshiped pagan gods and idols, sacrificing on mountaintops to be closer to their ‘gods’, murdering their children in human sacrifices, worshiping wooden pillars that were symbolic of the goddess Ashteroth (Asherah) and made unholy alliances with pagan nations.
ISAIAH 57:11-13
11 “And of whom have you been afraid, or feared, that you have lied and not remembered Me, nor taken it to your heart? Is it not because I have held My peace from of old that you do not fear Me?
12 I will declare your righteousness and your works, for they will not profit you.
13 When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you. But the wind will carry them all away, a breath will take them. But he who puts his trust in Me shall possess the land, and shall inherit My holy mountain.”
God asks of whom they are afraid that they turn to alliances with other nations rather than trust in Him? He accuses Israel of losing their fear of Him because of His restraint from afflicting them or destroying them because of their sins.
He cynically tells them to cry out to their idols and gods for deliverance when destruction comes, promising through the prophet Ezekiel;
EZEKIEL 8:18
18 Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.”
ISAIAH 57:14-21
14 And one shall say, “Heap it up! Heap it up! Prepare the way, take the stumbling block out of the way of My people.”
15 For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
16 For I will not contend forever, nor will I always be angry; for the spirit would fail before Me, and the souls which I have made.
17 For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was angry, and he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead him, and restore comforts to him and to his mourners.
19 “I create the fruit of the lips: peace, peace to him who is far off and to him who is near,” says the Lord, “and I will heal him.”
20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
21 “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”
God understands the magnitude of His wrath in that if He vented the full measure of His anger the spirit of a Man would cease to exist. He refers to Israel collectively as ‘Jacob’ by calling Israel ‘him’ and explains His actions in punishing the nation for their sins.
God however promises restoration, peace and healing to the people who mourn for the fallen state of the nation. But the wicked will not cease to do wickedly as their wickedness will not allow them to be satisfied with anything.
The wicked will find no rest after death but will follow Satan into his final punishment along with the Antichrist and the False Prophet;
REVELATION 20:10
10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
And;
REVELATION 20:11-15
11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the Earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hell delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
ISAIAH 58:1-5
1 “Cry aloud, spare not; lift up your voice like a trumpet; tell My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet they seek Me daily, and delight to know My ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and did not forsake the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching God.
3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?’
“In fact, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, and exploit all your laborers.
4 Indeed you fast for strife and debate, and to strike with the fist of wickedness. You will not fast as you do this day, to make your voice heard on high.
5 Is it a fast that I have chosen, a day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?
God accuses Israel of seeking Him and His laws to His face, but performing wickedness in private. Then they hypocritically ask why He does not bless them for their efforts.
God showed the prophet Ezekiel some of Judah’s abominations;
EZEKIEL 8:12-16
12 Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”
13 And He said to me, “Turn again, and you will see greater abominations that they are doing.”
14 So He brought me to the door of the north gate of the Lord’s house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz.
15 Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.”
16 So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.
Note: “Tammuz” (also known as Dumuzi) was a Babylonian god of agriculture who was supposedly murdered by demons but was later ‘resurrected’. The Babylonians equated Fall / Winter with the ‘death’ of Tammuz and Spring with his ‘resurrection’ and would “weep for Tamuz” in sorrow for his murder.
Sun worship was long an Egyptian religious practice and it, like many other pagan rites had been adopted by Israel and Judah.
ISAIAH 58:6-8
6 “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
At the great Judgment Scripture says;
MATTHEW 25:31-46
31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.
32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.
33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in;
36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?
38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?
39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink;
43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’
45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’
46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
ISAIAH 58:9-14
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
10 If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
12 Those from among you shall build the old waste places; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.
13 “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words,
14 Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the Earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
God again reiterates the benefits of following His commandments and refraining from wickedness.
ISAIAH 59:1-8
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.
2 but your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue has muttered perversity.
4 No one calls for justice, nor does any plead for truth. They trust in empty words and speak lies; they conceive evil and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch vipers’ eggs and weave the spider’s web; he who eats of their eggs dies, and from that which is crushed a viper breaks out.
6 Their webs will not become garments, nor will they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their ways; they have made themselves crooked paths; whoever takes that way shall not know peace.
The apostle Paul spoke of Man’s sinful ways when he wrote;
ROMANS 3:10-18
10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.”
13 “Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have practiced deceit”; “The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
ISAIAH 59:9-14
9 Therefore justice is far from us, nor does righteousness overtake us; we look for light, but there is darkness! For brightness, but we walk in blackness!
10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes; we stumble at noonday as at twilight; we are as dead men in desolate places.
11 We all growl like bears, and moan sadly like doves; we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before You, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 in transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.
Isaiah sadly recounts Israel’s sins and fully understands why God’s grace has been withheld from Israel.
ISAIAH 59:15-17
15 So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Then the Lord saw it, and it displeased Him that there was no justice.
16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor; therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him; and His own righteousness, it sustained Him.
17 For He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head; He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
Apparently it is from this quote that the apostle Paul made his famous quote concerning the full Armor of God for the protection of the spirit;
EPHESIANS 6:10-20
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—
19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,
20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
For those wanting to know more about the Armor of God and its uses please see the Armor of God study in the Spiritual Warfare Training section of this Web site.
ISAIAH 59:18-21
18 According to their deeds, accordingly He will repay, fury to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies; the coastlands He will fully repay.
19 So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun; when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.
20 “The Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” says the Lord.
21 “As for Me,” says the Lord, “this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,” says the Lord, “from this time and forevermore.”
God has reserved vengeance as being His domain to administer. As He told Moses;
DEUTERONOMY 32:35
35 Vengeance is Mine, and recompense; their foot shall slip in due time; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things to come hasten upon them.’
The apostle Paul stated the same when he wrote;
ROMANS 12:17-21
17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.
18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
ISAIAH 60:1-18
1 Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the Earth, and deep darkness the people; but the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.
3 The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
4 “Lift up your eyes all around, and see: they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be nursed at your side.
5 Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.
6 The multitude of camels shall cover your land, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and incense, and they shall proclaim the praises of the Lord.
7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall ascend with acceptance on My altar, and I will glorify the house of My glory.
8 “Who are these who fly like a cloud, and like doves to their roosts?
9 Surely the coastlands shall wait for Me; and the ships of Tarshish will come first, to bring your sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, to the name of the Lord your God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because He has glorified you.
10 “The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls, and their kings shall minister to you; for in My wrath I struck you, but in My favor I have had mercy on you.
11 Therefore your gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day or night, that men may bring to you the wealth of the Gentiles, and their kings in procession.
12 For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish, and those nations shall be utterly ruined.
13 “The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, the cypress, the pine, and the box tree together, to beautify the place of My sanctuary; and I will make the place of My feet glorious.
14 Also the sons of those who afflicted you shall come bowing to you, and all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of your feet; and they shall call you The City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no one went through you, I will make you an eternal excellence, a joy of many generations.
16 You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles, and milk the breast of kings; you shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 “Instead of bronze I will bring gold, instead of iron I will bring silver, instead of wood, bronze, and instead of stones, iron. I will also make your officers peace, and your magistrates righteousness.
18 Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.
God speaks of the future of Jerusalem after the return of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The nations of the world will bring their Jews to Jerusalem and will bring gifts and treasures to the Lord. The nations that oppose Him will de destroyed. David spoke prophetically of Him when he said;
PSALM 110:5-6
5 The Lord is at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.
6 He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill the places with dead bodies, He shall execute the heads of many countries.
And as the prophet Zechariah wrote concerning the reign of the Messiah;
ZECHARIAH 14:16-19
16 And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
17 And it shall be that whichever of the families of the Earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain.
18 If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
ISAIAH 60:19-22
19 “The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; but the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory.
20 Your sun shall no longer go down, nor shall your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended.
21 Also your people shall all be righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified.
22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.”
Zechariah prophesied of God Himself being the light of the world in place of the sun when he said;
ZECHARIAH 14:6-7
6 It shall come to pass in that day that there will be no light; the lights will diminish.
7 It shall be one day which is known to the Lord— neither day nor night. But at evening time it shall happen that it will be light.
ISAIAH 61:1-9
1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn,
3 to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
4 And they shall rebuild the old ruins, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the ruined cities, the desolations of many generations.
5 Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the foreigner shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.
6 But you shall be named the priests of the Lord, they shall call you the servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory you shall boast.
7 Instead of your shame you shall have double honor, and instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double; everlasting joy shall be theirs.
8 “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery for burnt offering; I will direct their work in truth, and will make with them an everlasting covenant.
9 Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the posterity whom the Lord has blessed.”
Verses 1 and 2 speak of the Messiah’s mission here on Earth and were the words that Jesus Christ used to announce His ministry here on Earth.
LUKE 4:16-21
16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.
17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed;
19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.
21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Scripture records that Jesus fulfilled this prophecy as He preached the Gospel, healed the blind, comforted the sorrowful, freed those oppressed by demons and disease and much more. And at His resurrection He freed the righteous dead from ‘the Pit’ where they awaited the promised redemption from their sins which would allow them to enter Heaven.
Even His enemies admitted to His miracles but spitefully attributed them to sorcery and the power of Satan rather than the power of God.
When Jesus returns Israel will be a glory to the nations and their enemies will become their servants. The faithful Jews and believing Gentiles will serve Him as priests and they will rule the world with Him.
ISAIAH 61:10-11
10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the Earth brings forth its bud, as the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.
The Messiah speaks of the glories of His future reign on the Earth.
ISAIAH 62:1-12
1 For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns.
2 The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will name.
3 You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
4 You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate; but you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married.
5 For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.
6 I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent,
7 And give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the Earth.
8 The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by the arm of His strength: “Surely I will no longer give your grain as food for your enemies; and the sons of the foreigner shall not drink your new wine, for which you have labored.
9 But those who have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; those who have brought it together shall drink it in My holy courts.”
10 Go through, go through the gates! Prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway! Take out the stones, lift up a banner for the peoples!
11 Indeed the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the world: “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Surely your salvation is coming; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him.’ ”
12 And they shall call them The Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.
God’s promises for the future restoration and glorification of Jerusalem from where Jesus will rule the Earth when He returns. Jerusalem will receive a new name and will never again be conquered or destroyed by its enemies.
And as He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself to make this happen.
NOTE: “Hephzibah” - (Hebrew: ‘My delight is in her’); “Beulah” - (Hebrew: meaning unknown)
ISAIAH 63:1-6
1 Who is this who comes from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah, this One who is glorious in His apparel, traveling in the greatness of His strength?— “I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save.”
2 Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like one who treads in the winepress?
3 “I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with Me. For I have trodden them in My anger, and trampled them in My fury; their blood is sprinkled upon My garments, and I have stained all My robes.
4 For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed has come.
5 I looked, but there was no one to help, and I wondered that there was no one to uphold; therefore My own arm brought salvation for Me; and My own fury, it sustained Me.
6 I have trodden down the peoples in My anger, made them drunk in My fury, and brought down their strength to the Earth.”
This speaks of the triumph of the Messiah, Jesus Christ upon His glorious return. The reference to Edom is a collective term for His enemies, as Edom ceased to be a nation around 125 B.C.
When Jesus returns He will destroy the armies of the Antichrist at Armageddon, symbolically shown in the apostle John’s vision in Revelation;
REVELATION 14:14-20
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle.
15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Thrust in Your sickle and reap, for the time has come for You to reap, for the harvest of the Earth is ripe.”
16 So He who sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the Earth, and the Earth was reaped.
17 Then another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
18 And another angel came out from the altar, who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud cry to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the Earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.”
19 So the angel thrust his sickle into the Earth and gathered the vine of the Earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
20 And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs.
The first ‘reaping’ is the gathering of the resurrected righteous dead and living believers to meet Jesus in the air, known as ‘the Rapture’.
The second ‘reaping’ is the destruction of the Armageddon armies by Jesus in which blood will run up to the height of horse bridles for about 185 miles!! Sound impossible? Considering that at Armageddon the ‘kings of the East” (more than likely the armies of China) coming to attack the forces of the Antichrist (called ‘the Beast’) will number 200 million men, it puts verse 20 above in the realm of possibility.
The apostle John in his vision of Armageddon wrote;
REVELATION 9:13-18
13 Then the sixth angel sounded: and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14 saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”
15 So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind.
16 Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.
17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision: those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone.
18 By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths.
And;
REVELATION 16:12-16
12 Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared.
13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the Earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
15 “Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”
16 And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
NOTE: the ‘Dragon’ is another name for Satan.
ISAIAH 63:7-14
7 I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which He has bestowed on them according to His mercies, according to the multitude of His lovingkindnesses.
8 For He said, “Surely they are My people, children who will not lie.” So He became their Savior.
9 In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His Presence saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bore them and carried them all the days of old.
10 But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; so He turned Himself against them as an enemy, and He fought against them.
11 Then He remembered the days of old, Moses and his people, saying: “Where is He who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of His flock? Where is He who put His Holy Spirit within them,
12 who led them by the right hand of Moses, with His glorious arm, dividing the water before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
13 who led them through the deep, as a horse in the wilderness, that they might not stumble?”
14 As a beast goes down into the valley, and the Spirit of the Lord causes him to rest, so You lead Your people, to make Yourself a glorious name.
Isaiah recounts God’s dealings with Israel, speaking of His love for the nation and that He also suffered during their afflictions. He also recounts how God punished them for their rebellion but turned again to bless them when they repented and obeyed.
ISAIAH 63:15-19
15 Look down from heaven, and see from Your habitation, holy and glorious. Where are Your zeal and Your strength, the yearning of Your heart and Your mercies toward me? Are they restrained?
16 Doubtless You are our Father, though Abraham was ignorant of us, and Israel does not acknowledge us. You, O Lord, are our Father; our Redeemer from Everlasting is Your name.
17 O Lord, why have You made us stray from Your ways, and hardened our heart from Your fear? Return for Your servants’ sake, the tribes of Your inheritance.
18 Your holy people have possessed it but a little while; our adversaries have trodden down Your sanctuary.
19 We have become like those of old, over whom You never ruled, those who were never called by Your name.
Isaiah speaks on behalf of Judah, wondering what happened to God’s promises to Israel. He freely acknowledges God as their Father and Savior, even though Abraham and Jacob never met them as they were born hundreds of years after their deaths.
He asks why God has turned them over to the wickedness of their own hearts, causing them to be like the pagan nations around them.
The martyr Stephen recounted an instance of Israel’s rebellion and disobedience against God in the book of Acts when he was railroaded to trial before the Sanhedrin because of his faith in Jesus;
ACTS 7:37-43
37 “This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’
38 “This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us,
39 whom our fathers would not obey, but rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt,
40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’
41 And they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
42 Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets: ‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
43 You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, images which you made to worship; and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’
ISAIAH 64:1-12
1 Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! That the mountains might shake at Your presence—
2 As fire burns brushwood, as fire causes water to boil— to make Your name known to Your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Your presence!
3 When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down, the mountains shook at Your presence.
4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, nor has the eye seen any God besides You, who acts for the one who waits for Him.
5 You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, who remembers You in Your ways. You are indeed angry, for we have sinned— in these ways we continue; and we need to be saved.
6 But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
7 And there is no one who calls on Your name, who stirs himself up to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and have consumed us because of our iniquities.
8 But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our potter; and all we are the work of Your hand.
9 Do not be furious, O Lord, nor remember iniquity forever; indeed, please look—we all are Your people!
10 Your holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.
11 Our holy and beautiful temple, where our fathers praised You, is burned up with fire; and all our pleasant things are laid waste.
12 Will You restrain Yourself because of these things, O Lord? Will You hold Your peace, and afflict us very severely?
This section provides some confusion as it seems to refer to the time when Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and burned Solomon’s Temple in 586 B.C.. However Isaiah had died before this happened leading some scholars to speculate that it was added after his death.
However I believe that as Isaiah was one of the Major Prophets, he was speaking prophetically of events to come.
ISAIAH 65:1
1 “I was sought by those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am,’ to a nation that was not called by My name.
God speaks of how the Gentiles are more readily willing to accept and believe in Him based on stories about His works than His own people who saw His works and still turned from Him.
ISAIAH 65:2-7
2 I have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, according to their own thoughts;
3 a people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face; who sacrifice in gardens, and burn incense on altars of brick;
4 who sit among the graves, and spend the night in the tombs; who eat swine’s flesh, and the broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
5 who say, ‘Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am holier than you!’ These are smoke in My nostrils, a fire that burns all the day.
6 “Behold, it is written before Me: I will not keep silence, but will repay— even repay into their bosom—
7 your iniquities and the iniquities of your fathers together,” says the Lord, “Who have burned incense on the mountains and blasphemed Me on the hills; therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.”
God expresses His wrath as He has pleaded time and again for Israel to turn from their selfish, wicked ways and follow His commandments but they consistently refused, turning from Him and doing their own wills instead.
God had earlier told Isaiah;
ISAIAH 30:8-11
8 Now go, write it before them on a tablet, and note it on a scroll, that it may be for time to come, forever and ever:
9 That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children who will not hear the law of the Lord;
10 Who say to the seers, “Do not see,” and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits.
11 Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.”
ISAIAH 65:8-12
8 Thus says the Lord: “As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for a blessing is in it,’ so will I do for My servants’ sake, that I may not destroy them all.
9 I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah an heir of My mountains; My elect shall inherit it, and My servants shall dwell there.
10 Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the Valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down, for My people who have sought Me.
11 “But you are those who forsake the Lord, who forget My holy mountain, who prepare a table for Gad, and who furnish a drink offering for Meni.
12 Therefore I will number you for the sword, and you shall all bow down to the slaughter; because, when I called, you did not answer; when I spoke, you did not hear, but did evil before My eyes, and chose that in which I do not delight.”
God promises to deplete but not completely destroy Judah for their sins. The name ‘Gad’ here does not refer to the tribe of Gad but scholars have tentatively identified it as the planet Jupiter. And Meni was a Babylonian idol god whose attributes are unknown.
ISAIAH 65:13-25
13 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, My servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; behold, My servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; behold, My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed;
14 behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, but you shall cry for sorrow of heart, and wail for grief of spirit.
15 You shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen; for the Lord God will slay you, and call His servants by another name;
16 so that he who blesses himself in the Earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he who swears in the Earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hidden from My eyes.
17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new Earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people; the voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
20 “No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; for the child shall die one hundred years old, but the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for trouble; for they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.
24 “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” says the Lord.
During the reign of the Messiah lifespans will be greatly increased and people whom the Lord considers righteous and who survive Armageddon and the frightful destruction prophesied in the book of Revelation will live into the Millennium, the 1,000 year reign of Jesus on Earth.
During that time Satan will be cast into Hell and while evil and sin will still be in the world, Satan and his demons won’t be here to excite wicked actions in men. Those who follow Jesus’ commandments will prosper and live long lives and willful sinners will die young.
Predatory animals will eat grass and straw and serpents will no longer have poisonous bites. As God prophesied through Isaiah earlier;
ISAIAH 11:6-9
6 “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.
9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the Earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
When the Millennium is finished, the present heavens and the Earth will be destroyed and the Great Judgment will occur. The wicked will be cast into the Lake of Fire and God will create a new heaven and Earth which will never have suffered evil.
ISAIAH 66:1
1 Thus says the Lord: “Heaven is My throne, and Earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest?
God asks that if Heaven itself is His dwelling place, where and what manner of house would Man build for Him? Anything we could build would be at best an imperfect house for Him. The Law and Temple were imperfect representations of Heavenly things, made to give Man an idea of perfect Heavenly things to come.
The Law was imperfect in that it had no provision for salvation, it merely listed what was considered sin and righteousness in God’s eyes and was a law of condemnation. The animal sacrifices could only cover sin, they could not remove them.
The Temple was an imperfect representation of God’s perfect Temple in Heaven and like the Law was meant to be only temporary, a visible reminder of the invisible God. Being a temporary copy, they pointed to a more perfect replacement to come.
The author of Hebrews faced the issue squarely when he wrote;
HEBREWS 8:1-13
1 Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,
2 a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.
3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this One also have something to offer.
4 For if He were on Earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law;
5 who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, “See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”
6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second.
8 Because finding fault with them, He says: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—
9 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord.
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
11 None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
13 In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
God promised through the prophet Jeremiah that He would create a new, permanent Covenant with Israel, one which would replace the Law;
JEREMIAH 31:31-33
31 “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—
32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord.
33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
With a new, eternal Covenant there must also be a new, eternal High Priest to mediate between God and Man which position God chose for His Son Jesus Christ, of whom He prophesied;
PSALM 110:4
4 The Lord has sworn and will not relent, “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
With a new, eternal Covenant the Law had to be taken away which happened at Jesus’ death. As He was the One who gave the Law to Moses at Mount Sinai, He also had the right to replace the Law with the New Covenant.
And with the replacement of the Law and its ordinances, the Temple and priesthood needed to be removed which happened in 70 A.D. when the Romans destroyed Judah.
ISAIAH 66:2-4
2 For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist,” says the Lord. “But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.
3 “He who kills a bull is as if he slays a man; he who sacrifices a lamb, as if he breaks a dog’s neck; he who offers a grain offering, as if he offers swine’s blood; he who burns incense, as if he blesses an idol. Just as they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations,
4 so will I choose their delusions, and bring their fears on them; because, when I called, no one answered, when I spoke they did not hear; but they did evil before My eyes, and chose that in which I do not delight.”
God’s anger and disgust is clearly shown in that He equates their sacrifices and offerings as abominations. As God furiously spoke through Isaiah earlier;
ISAIAH 1:11-15
11 “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats.
12 “When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts?
13 Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.
14 Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.
ISAIAH 66:5-13
5 Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at His word: “Your brethren who hated you, who cast you out for My name’s sake, said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified, that we may see your joy.’ but they shall be ashamed.”
6 The sound of noise from the city! A voice from the temple! The voice of the Lord, who fully repays His enemies!
7 “Before she was in labor, she gave birth; before her pain came, she delivered a male child.
8 Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the Earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, she gave birth to her children.
9 Shall I bring to the time of birth, and not cause delivery?” says the Lord. “Shall I who cause delivery shut up the womb?” says your God.
10 “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all you who love her; rejoice for joy with her, all you who mourn for her;
11 that you may feed and be satisfied with the consolation of her bosom, that you may drink deeply and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.”
12 For thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream. Then you shall feed; on her sides shall you be carried, and be dandled on her knees.
13 As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.”
God equates Israel’s troubles as being like a woman in labor, but in this case Israel gave birth to the Messiah before ‘labor pains’ developed, meaning that Israel’s major troubles would begin after Jesus’ birth. And as history shows from 70 A.D. when the Romans destroyed Judea until 1948 when Israel again became a nation, the Jews have been savagely persecuted and killed, fulfilling this prophecy.
But God promises that He will glorify Israel and fully repay its enemies and will bring peace at last to the city.
ISAIAH 66:14-24
14 When you see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like grass; the hand of the Lord shall be known to His servants, and His indignation to His enemies.
15 For behold, the Lord will come with fire and with His chariots, like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire.
16 For by fire and by His sword the Lord will judge all flesh; and the slain of the Lord shall be many.
17 “Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, to go to the gardens after an idol in the midst, eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and the mouse, shall be consumed together,” says the Lord.
18 “For I know their works and their thoughts. It shall be that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see My glory.
19 I will set a sign among them; and those among them who escape I will send to the nations: to Tarshish and Pul and Lud, who draw the bow, and Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands afar off who have not heard My fame nor seen My glory. And they shall declare My glory among the Gentiles.
20 Then they shall bring all your brethren for an offering to the Lord out of all nations, on horses and in chariots and in litters, on mules and on camels, to My holy mountain Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord.
21 And I will also take some of them for priests and Levites,” says the Lord.
22 “For as the new heavens and the new Earth which I will make shall remain before Me,” says the Lord, “So shall your descendants and your name remain.
23 And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,” says the Lord.
24 “And they shall go forth and look upon the corpses of the men who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, and their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”
This is a hard prophecy to interpret for it seems to mix futures. God speaks of the return of the Messiah in which He will destroy the wicked and call for the return of His people from the nations of the world.
Note: Tarshish - location unknown; Pul - another name for Libya; Lud - a barbarian tribe living in Turkey; Tubal - Caucasus region of Europe (Ukraine); Javan - Greece.
He also speaks of time after the great Judgment when He will create new heavens and a new Earth free of the taint of evil which will remain forever. The apostle John saw this in his vision of the end of all things in the book of Revelation;
REVELATION 21:1-5
1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new Earth, for the first heaven and the first Earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.”
Verse 24 seems to indicate that at some point the righteous will be able to see into Hell and see the sinners imprisoned there, although a timeframe is not given. Jesus spoke of this as being Hell when He said;
MARK 9:42-48
42 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.
43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to Hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched—
44 where ‘their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into Hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched—
46 where ‘their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire—
48 where ‘their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
NOTE: Jesus didn’t mean to literally cut off a hand or gouge out an eye, He meant to show the seriousness of sin, saying that it would be better to lose a body part to avoid sinning and go to Heaven, rather than to keep sinning and have your whole body cast intact into Hell.
Questions? Comments? Email: watchmen_777@yahoo.com