Isaiah The God Who Is There Isaiah 37

Transcription

1 Isaiah The God Who Is There Isaiah 37 A mericans enjoy a degree of religious freedom unknown in most of the rest of the world, and they take full advantage of it: the United States is home to more than 1,500 different religious bodies and 360,000 churches, synagogues, mosques and temples. The right of each and every American to practice his or her own religion, or no religion at all, is among the most fundamental of the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. The Constitution's framers understood very well that religious liberty can flourish only if the government leaves religion alone. The free exercise clause of the First Amendment guarantees the right to practice one's religion free of government interference. The establishment clause requires the separation of church and state. Combined, they ensure religious liberty. Yet assaults on the freedom to believe continue, both in Washington and in state legislatures around the country. Sounds appropriate doesn t it? The ACLU will continue working to ensure that religious liberty is protected by keeping the government out of the religion business. LOS ANGELES - A federal appeals court today upheld a lower court s ruling that the presence of a large Christian cross on the federal Mojave Desert Preserve is an unconstitutional government endorsement of religion. There is more than one way to strike out against God. Sennacherib had his ways, as we will see this morning, but in the modern world, these attacks still continue, just in more subtle ways. And just like the Jews, some Christians become frightened by these attacks. But these fears are groundless, which we shall also see. I Introduction II Hezekiah s Message for Isaiah Verses 1-4 III Isaiah s Response Verses 5-7 IV Assyrian Arrogance Verses 8-13 V Hezekiah s Prayer Verses VI God s Answer Verses VII God s Action Verses VIII Conclusion When we left Jerusalem last time, the armies of Assyria were at the gates. Rabshakeh, the representative of the king of Assyria, Sennacherib, had come to meet with king Hezekiah. Instead he was given the opportunity to speak to a delegation at the front gate. The delegation was made up of Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph.

2 The speech boiled down to a series of threats against Jerusalem and insults to God. It was a typical political speech. God is the one who sent us, so there is nothing you can do. Your God will no more be able to protect you than the gods of other nations could protect them. No contradiction there, right? There are two nations involved here, and each has their own problem. A. Judah/Israel: Here we have children of God who are in rebellion, who are trying to live autonomously, and so they have gotten themselves into trouble. And Assyria was part of that trouble. B. Assyria: has her own problems. Like many pagan nations she suffers from extreme arrogance. She believes the enemies she defeats may have their own gods, but so what. She has no understanding of who God is and while He may be using Assyria for His own reasons, the nation will not escape the consequences of their actions. Which leaves us with Rabshakeh standing at the front Gate of the city and the delegation going to king Hezekiah to tell him of the demands of the Assyrian king. Meanwhile the people, having heard the threats, are thinking who knows what, but they are keeping their mouth shut per orders from the throne. So last week the curtain came down on the three man standing before the king, updating him on what was occurring. Now it comes up Verses 1-4: on the response of Hezekiah. He takes two steps. First, demonstrating humility by tearing his garments and putting on sackcloth, he goes to the temple to pray to God. Second, he sends two of his delegation, Eliakim and Shebna, to Isaiah. Hezekiah knows there is no strength in the nation to bring about its own salvation. He may also realize the sin of the nation is a factor in their situation. Consequently, he appeals to God on the basis of the arrogance and sin of Assyria. Maybe God will judge Assyria, not because of Judah but because of Assyria itself. Somewhere along the line, Hezekiah appears to have had a change of heart; where once he tried solving the problem himself, now he depends on God. So Hezekiah king of Judah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: I have done wrong. Withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand of me. The king of Assyria exacted from Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the temple of the LORD and in the treasuries of the royal palace. At this time Hezekiah king of Judah stripped off the gold with which he had covered the doors and doorposts of the temple of the LORD, and gave it to the king of Assyria (2 Kings 18:14-16). Verses 5-7: And God s response is consistent with how Hezekiah read the situation. God identifies the words and actions of Assyria as being blasphemous. But the words of men are ) 266(

3 just that, words. God is in control. And so He sends a spirit of confusion. Buksbazen describes it this way as we move into 8 and 9 which : explain the circumstances which caused a spirit of confusion in Sennacherib s counsel. He heard a rumor or report, that Tirhakah, the Ethiopian ruler of the Nile Valley empire, was about to launch a campaign against him. Tirhakah, like his predecessors, sought to incite the subject nations to revolt against their Assyrian masters. 1 Verses 8-13: As for verse 8, Grogan notes: This detail, which appears to have no relevance to the main message of these two chapters, is therefore an incidental testimony to the concern for truth of fact that motivated the author. 2 I didn t give any information on Sennacherib last time, so let s take a moment to get acquainted with him this morning. SENNACHERIB An Assyrian king ( B.C.), the son and successor of Sargon II ( ). He restored the capital to Nineveh, on the east bank of the Tigris, opposite the present city of Mosul. It is represented today by the mounds Kuyunjik and Nebi Yunus ( prophet Jonah ). Sennacherib constructed palaces, temples, city walls, and a water system. He was an able soldier, and it is in this capacity that he is best remembered. On his succession to the throne he found it necessary to deal with revolts throughout the empire. Exasperated by the repeated intrigues of Babylon and its king, Merodach-Baladan, he finally reduced the city to ruins in 689. In the west there was also rebellion; among the rebels was Hezekiah of Judah. What is the result of these threats to the Empire? Apparently it put pressure on Sennacherib himself to get involved. He wanted to end the situation at Jerusalem and have Hezekiah surrender the city as soon as possible. In fact Sennacherib is so concerned that he makes one of the most blasphemous statements we can read about God. He accused God of lying to Hezekiah when saying He would protect Jerusalem from Assyria. So what were the three blasphemous statements made about God? A. God sent Assyria to destroy Jerusalem; B. God was helpless against the gods of Assyria; and C. God was a liar, lying to Hezekiah, intentionally misleading him. Sennacherib was in a position of having a two front war. This was unacceptable and therefore this situation had to be resolved quickly. He ups the propaganda war, here giving a litany of gods and nations that have fallen to the might of the Assyrian nation. Verses 14-20: Hezekiah gets the letter from Sennacherib containing all these insults against God. And so, he goes up to the temple and lays the letter on the altar before the Lord. The purpose isn t to show the Lord its contents. Instead, it is placed there because Hezekiah is going to pray over it, turning to God for His intervention. The prayer includes the following: 1 Buksbazen, Victor, The Prophet Isaiah, In Two Volumes, The Spearhead Press, Collingswood, NJ, 1971, p Grogan, Geoffrey W., The Expositor s Bible Commentary, Isaiah, Zondervan Interactive Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1990, p ) 267(

4 A. First Hezekiah acknowledges just who God is. He is the covenant God, the God of Israel. It is on this basis that Hezekiah can come before Him. B. God is the creator. He is over all heaven and earth. This would be a reassurance because regardless of the words of Sennacherib, God was the God over all other gods. C. Next Hezekiah brings before God the things that concern him. Some of the boasts of Sennacherib are more than boasts. The statements are factual. The Assyrians have overrun many nations. D. Assyria has destroyed the gods of their enemies. Of course this was no big deal because they were simply idols and had no powers. E. And now comes the plea. God, save Jerusalem! Show these people who the true power in the world is. Verses 21-25: God responds through Isaiah to Hezekiah. But the response is actually directed to Sennacherib. He may had had his way until now, but he crossed the line when he attacked the God of Israel, the one true God. Of the form Grogan states: The oracle that runs from v.22 to v.29 has been superbly translated in the NIV, with a feeling not only for the meaning but for the sound of words and also for poetic form. It is a taunt song with the characteristic limping rhythm in Hebrew. In v.22 Jerusalem is represented as a young girl rebuffing with contempt the unwelcome advances of a churl. Perhaps there is a suggestion that she is betrothed to the Holy One of Israel, for Isaiah later uses the figure of marriage and divorce in relation to Israel (50:1). Sennacherib may brag of all his accomplishments but to no end, because once God decides that enough is enough, then nations, organizations and people will come to understand they are powerless before God, the creator and disposer of all. Verses 26-29: Now comes the slap in the face. Yes, says God, you have accomplished all you claim. But it was only because I allowed you to do so. But now you have thought to attack me and mine and you will be destroyed. Assyria was going to be humiliated by being treated as she treated others. hook in your nose. The Assyrians often led away captives by tying ropes to rings placed in their noses 3 Verses 30-32: God next speaks directly to Hezekiah and although he didn t ask for it, God intends to provide him with a sign. Buksbazen describes it this way: The sign will consist of the events which will soon transpire. For two years the people will subsist on that which is self-grown and self sown, but in the third year there will be regular sowing and reaping and planting and eating. 4 Verses 33-35: And so God promises Hezekiah that the people of Jerusalem will not suffer the same fate and suffering as others who have fallen before Assyria. And like all the bless- 3 NIV Study Bible Notes, Zondervan Interactive Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, Buksbazen, p ) 268(

5 ings of God, they occur because of God s mercy, not because of the deservedness of those who receive them. Verses 36-38: Once again the angel of the Lord destroys the army of Assyria, and twenty years later, Sennacherib s own sons kill him in the temple of his god, which certainly seems to be poetic justice. And so the curtain comes down on a fallen Assyrian army and dead king and a safe city of Jerusalem. Conclusion: We are coming up on the elections and I believe there is a lesson we can take from this section. But first we should note that part of being a believer in this society means being a responsible citizen. This means we should be registered voters. This means we should be intelligent voters which requires we be informed voters. And how we vote should be based on how we understand our values as believers. Having said this, remember we can fall into the trap of believing our life hangs on how elections turn out. We look at organizations like the ACLU and attitudes of certain politicians and act as if the world was falling apart. They are trying to destroy our freedom to serve God. And they are. The armies of Assyria are at the gates. But God will only put up with so much blasphemy. Our responsibility is to live as He would have us and to leave the outcome to Him. There have been many nations where those in power have gone after God. And frequently the end result was a stronger church. The problem here is the church has had it too easy and become flabby. Certainly we should be concerned about who we have as leaders in this nation and act out of that concern. But our primary responsibility isn t to fix the world, it is to live in obedience to God, loving and serving Him. In other words, loving God, loving others, and making disciples. Then we will see God working miracles in the lives of individuals. As long as the church is committed to God and His word it will be effective. To the extent it compromises with the world or with political correctness, to the extent it lets the armies at the gate intimidate it is the extent to which it becomes impotent and irrelevant. Hezekiah had his miracle, but sadly Israel/Judah still continued to rebel against God and therefore suffers the consequences. Dr. McGee puts it this way: Secular history confirms the fact that Sennacherib was murdered by his sons. It was about this time that the great kingdom of Assyria began to disintegrate and eventually was taken over by Babylon. God has already let Isaiah know that He was preparing a kingdom down on the banks of the Euphrates River, which would be the one to take the southern kingdom into captivity. God knew that though He delivered His people by this tremendous miracle in the days of Hezekiah, soon the day would return when He again would say, Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters; they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward (Isa. 1:4). 5 5 McGee, J. Vernon, Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee, Vol. 3, Isaiah, Thomas Nelson Inc., Nashville, TN 1982, p ) 269(

6 Isaiah The God Who Is There Isaiah 37 I Introduction II Hezekiah s Message for Isaiah Verses 1-4 III God s Answer Verses 5-7 IV Assyrian Arrogance Verses 8-13 V Hezekiah s Prayer Verses VI God s Answer Verses VII God s Action Verses VIII Conclusion I Introduction: A. Judah/Israel B. Assyria II Hezekiah s Message for Isaiah: (2 Kings 18:14-16 ) III God s Answer: IV Assyrian Arrogance A. God sent Assyria to destroy Jerusalem;

7 B. God was helpless against the gods of Assyria; and C. God was a liar, lying to Hezekiah, intentionally misleading him. V Hezekiah s Prayer: A. God is B. God is C. The letter D. Assyria s Victories E. Hezekiah s Plea VI God s Answer: VII God s Action: VIII Conclusion: Personal Application: As you look at our government, remember we aren t called to fear it, we are called to pray for it. Prayer for the Week: Lord, help keep our leaders and institutions not fall into Assyria s trap, believing they can define who You are and how You should be worshiped.. In Christ s name, Amen.