Isaiah 8. The previous chapter spoke of His future birth. Even as God promises a Savior for a future day

Transcription

1 Isaiah 8 Cntinue the Bk f Immanuel, within Isaiah Chapter 7 began this subsectin featuring prphecy f a cming Messiah in the frm f Immanuel, the Child Wh is with us The previus chapter spke f His future birth This chapter will pick up at a pint after the Messiah s birth The Child mtif is embedded in anther stry f Israel s disbedience and Gd s plan t bring purpseful judgment in the meantime Even as Gd prmises a Savir fr a future day Is. 8:1 Then the LORD said t me, Take fr yurself a large tablet and write n it in rdinary letters: Swift is the bty, speedy is the prey. Is. 8:2 And I will take t Myself faithful witnesses fr testimny, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the sn f Jeberechiah. Chapter 8 pens with the Lrd instructing Isaiah t make a sign The wrd fr tablet in Hebrew indicates a large placard r sign Smething yu hang up t be seen On the placard Isaiah is tld t write a cmmn phrase f war Swift is the bty r speeding t the plunder Speedy is the prey r hurrying t the spil Sldiers shuted this phrase as they ran int battle By the nature f the tablet, we understand this is meant t be a public sign annuncing smething Gd als directs that tw men were t stand as witnesses f Isaiah s writing - Uriah and Zechariah Zechariah we knw nthing abut Uriah was a priest that set up false altars under King Ahaz, s he s nt exactly a gd guy in Israel 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Isaiah 8! 2 Obviusly, Gd desn t select these men fr their faithfulness t Him Rather they will be faithful witnesses because they will be reliable in their testimny They will be able t say that what Isaiah prphesied did cme true What is Gd up t here? Well, first cnsider that Gd wants Isaiah t prepare a public annuncement f impending war And then Gd implies that this cming war is a judgment against the peple when He invites tw faithful r reliable witnesses t bserve the annuncement The Law prvided a purpse fr tw witnesses: Deut. 17:6 On the testimny f tw r three witnesses a man shall be put t death, but n ne shall be put t death n the testimny f nly ne witness. Putting all this tgether, we understand Gd is prnuncing judgement n the natin Sure enugh, lk what cmes next Is. 8:3 S I apprached the prphetess, and she cnceived and gave birth t a sn. Then the LORD said t me, Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz; Is. 8:4 fr befre the by knws hw t cry ut My father r My mther, the wealth f Damascus and the spil f Samaria will be carried away befre the king f Assyria. As Isaiah has a child by his wife, the prphetess, Gd tells him t name the sn maher-shalal-hash-baz What d yu think that name means? Essentially the same thing: spil speeds fr a natin The first written wrd has nw becme a wrd in the flesh Here we begin t see the Child mtif returning, with Christ in view 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Isaiah 8! 3 In the case f Isaiah s sn, befre he can cry ut My father r my mther, the wealth f Damascus and Samaria will be carried away The Hebrew wrds fr Father and Mther are tw syllable wrds Gd predicts the cming Assyrian invasin f the alliance f Syrian and the Nrthern Kingdm f Israel wh had cnspired t attack Judah This is the judgment upn the Nrth fr their sinful rejectin f Gd and His Cvenant Gd elabrates further... Is. 8:5 Again the LORD spke t me further, saying, Is. 8:6 Inasmuch as these peple have rejected the gently flwing waters f Shilah And rejice in Rezin and the sn f Remaliah; Is. 8:7 Nw therefre, behld, the Lrd is abut t bring n them the strng and abundant waters f the Euphrates, Even the king f Assyria and all his glry; And it will rise up ver all its channels and g ver all its banks. Is. 8:8 Then it will sweep n int Judah, it will verflw and pass thrugh, It will reach even t the neck; And the spread f its wings will fill the breadth f yur land, O Immanuel. These peple rejected the gentle waters that fed int Jerusalem s main water supply These waters were quite, steady, reliable They filled the pl f Silam It was this pl that Gd used t represent His quiet, steady faithfulness t His peple The peple f the Nrthern Kingdm has rejected this surce fr water And they ran t establish their wn kingdm in the Nrth And the peple f Israel had rejiced in the dwnfall f the kings f Syria and Israel - actually preferring the arriving Assyrians as liberatrs But this cming flw f water frm the Euphrates will nt be quiet and steady It will cme like a fld and vertake the natin and g even further The reference t Euphrates invkes the wrld vs. Gd 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Isaiah 8! 4 It will verflw it s banks and cntinue n t Judah Reaching even t the neck What Isaiah means is up t the neck but nt ver the head When Assyrian mved suth int Judah in 701 BC they seized 46 Jewish cities, but they never captured Jerusalem Assyrians dminated mst f the settled wrld fr nearly 200 years And the army will fill the land like a bird spreading it s wings ver the land Then Isaiah refers t Judah as Immanuel s land S the Lrd uses Isaiah t tell Judah that Assyrian is cming, they will cme swiftly as an arm f Gd s judgment against Israel and Judah It will be t Israel s ttal end but it will nt cmpletely remve Judah frm the Land Gd cnfirms His lessn... Is. 8:9 Be brken, O peples, and be shattered; And give ear, all remte places f the earth. Gird yurselves, yet be shattered; Gird yurselves, yet be shattered. Is. 8:10 Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a prpsal, but it will nt stand, Fr Gd is with us. The Septuagint reads: Is. 8:9 Knw, ye Gentiles, and be cnquered; hearken ye, even t the extremity f the earth: be cnquered, after ye strengthened yurselves; fr even if ye shuld again strengthen yurselves, ye shall again be cnquered. Is. 8:10 And whatsever cunsel ye shall take, the Lrd shall bring it t nught; and whatsever wrd ye shall speak, it shall nt stand amng yu: fr Gd is with us. Dead Sea Scrlls: Is. 8:9 Band tgether, natins, but be shattered. Listen, all distant cuntries, gird yurselves but be shattered. Is. 8:10 Take cunsel tgether, but it will be brught t nthing. Speak a wrd, but it will nt stand. Fr Immanuel! 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Isaiah 8! 5 There are tw meanings here First, Gd is stating the simple truth that any plan r cnspiracy t bring dwn the huse f David will be thwarted by Gd until the virgin birth In ther wrds, Gd will ensure that any Gentile attack will be shattered because GOd is intent n preserving the huse f David fr the sake f Immanuel, the Child He has prmised Secndly, Gd is abut breaking the pride and stubbrn will and disbedience f peple He des it first t His peple f Israel, but the lessn desn t end there All the remte places f the Earth will knw f this shattering and shuld learn frm it They may seek t strengthen themselves by their wn wrk r knwledge r pwer, but Gd will always be strnger But He desires t shatter us nt s that we may be crushed, but s that we may be shattered And in the place f human schemes and pwer, Gd will establish true pwer and wisdm thrugh Immanuel We must be brught lw befre we may be exalted We must repent befre we can be brught t glry in faith And the pwer t bring lw and the pwer t raise up again is Gd s alne thrugh Christ There is here a subtle but unmistakable gspel message building thrugh the events f Israel Nw as this invading army cmes upn Judah, Isaiah will still be a resident f the city S Gd gives Isaiah specific instructins fr hw t react when it happens 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Isaiah 8! 6 Is. 8:11 Fr thus the LORD spke t me with mighty pwer and instructed me nt t walk in the way f this peple, saying, Is. 8:12 Yu are nt t say, It is a cnspiracy! In regard t all that this peple call a cnspiracy, And yu are nt t fear what they fear r be in dread f it. Isaiah was prhibited frm agreeing with the views f the ppulatin f Jerusalem They attributed their circumstances t a cnspiracy Remember their king has decided t align with Assyrian in hpe t cunter the aggressin f Israel and Syrian And nw their friends have attacked them - like Russian and Germany in WWII And they will live in fear and dread f what will happen But Isaiah shuld shw n fear, nt f Assyria and nt f Israel and Syria befre Assyria Instead, it is Gd Himself wh Isaiah shuld fear and respect Is. 8:13 It is the LORD f hsts whm yu shuld regard as hly. And He shall be yur fear, And He shall be yur dread. Is. 8:14 Then He shall becme a sanctuary; But t bth the huses f Israel, a stne t strike and a rck t stumble ver, And a snare and a trap fr the inhabitants f Jerusalem. Is. 8:15 Many will stumble ver them, Then they will fall and be brken; They will even be snared and caught. Gd will be Isaiah s sanctuary fr him and the rest f the remnant living in Jerusalem But Gd has determined t be a stne t strike Israel and a rck t stumble ver And a snare t trap the inhabitants f Jerusalem Many amng thse in the city will stumble and fall and be brken and snared by Gd s hand Yu prbably nticed a secndary meaning in these wrds 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Isaiah 8! 7 The secnd stry is again abut the Messiah The Messiah is the Hly One He is the One t fear He is a sanctuary t thse wh seek after Him But He will becme a snare r a trap t expse the Jewish peple in His day Jesus Himself says he is the subject f this prphecy in Matt 21:44: Matt. 21:42 Jesus said t them, Did yu never read in the Scriptures, THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stne; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES? Matt. 21:43 Therefre I say t yu, the kingdm f Gd will be taken away frm yu and given t a peple, prducing the fruit f it. Matt. 21:44 And he wh falls n this stne will be brken t pieces; but n whmever it falls, it will scatter him like dust. Paul makes use f Isaiah s duble meaning when he explains why the Jews rejected their Messiah Rm. 9:30 What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, wh did nt pursue righteusness, have btained it, a righteusness that is by faith; Rm. 9:31 but Israel, wh pursued a law f righteusness, has nt attained it. Rm. 9:32 Why nt? Because they pursued it nt by faith but as if it were by wrks. They stumbled ver the stumbling stne. is Isn t it amazing hw the way Gd weaves tgether a message fr Israel cncerning the cming Assyrian invasin With a stry abut a cming Savir wh wuld shatter pride and rebellin amng the Gentiles while yet remaining a barrier t the Jewish natin as a part f Gd s judgment Isaiah ends the chapter by returning t the first persn t explain hw he reacted t Gd s instructins 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Isaiah 8! 8 Is. 8:16 Bind up the testimny, seal the law amng my disciples. Is. 8:17 And I will wait fr the LORD wh is hiding His face frm the huse f Jacb; I will even lk eagerly fr Him. Is. 8:18 Behld, I and the children whm the LORD has given me are fr signs and wnders in Israel frm the LORD f hsts, wh dwells n Munt Zin. I really like the way the Septuagint renders verse 16 It says: Is. 8:16 Then shall thse wh seal themselves that they may learn the law be made manifest. Let thse wh believe the Lrd s directins seal themselves and cmmit t His Law - r t His wrd - and stand apart in ding s Let the faithful remnant emerge in respnse t the Lrd s revelatin And this remnant is identifiable by their willingness t cnsult and fllw Gd s wrd And then as their representative, Isaiah declares that he will wait fr the Lrd even as He brings this judgment I will lk eagerly fr Him Lking fr Gd references lking frward t Messiah Then Isaiah says that he and his children are signs and wnders in Israel Hw? Cnsider their names: Maher-shalal Hash Baz means spil speeds fr a natin Shear-Jashub means a remnant will return Isaiah means Salvatin f Jehvah Isaiah and his sns tell the stry f Gd s plan fr Israel thrugh their names In fact, the rest f the bk f Immanuel tells the stry f these three names See chapter 9: 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Isaiah 8! 9 Is. 9:12 The Arameans n the east and the Philistines n the west; And they devur Israel with gaping jaws. In spite f all this, His anger des nt turn away And His hand is still stretched ut. See chapter 10: Is. 10:20 Nw in that day the remnant f Israel, and thse f the huse f Jacb wh have escaped, will never again rely n the ne wh struck them, but will truly rely n the LORD, the Hly One f Israel. Is. 10:21 A remnant will return, the remnant f Jacb, t the mighty Gd. Then see 11:1-2 Is. 11:1 Then a sht will spring frm the stem f Jesse, And a branch frm his rts will bear fruit. Is. 11:2 The Spirit f the LORD will rest n Him, The spirit f wisdm and understanding, The spirit f cunsel and strength, The spirit f knwledge and the fear f the LORD. S Isaiah and his family are living testimny t Gd s plan fr Israel And they themselves lk frward t Jesus day Is. 8:19 When they say t yu, Cnsult the mediums and the spiritists wh whisper and mutter, shuld nt a peple cnsult their Gd? Shuld they cnsult the dead n behalf f the living? Is. 8:20 T the law and t the testimny! If they d nt speak accrding t this wrd, it is because they have n dawn. Is. 8:21 They will pass thrugh the land hard-pressed and famished, and it will turn ut that when they are hungry, they will be enraged and curse their king and their Gd as they face upward. Is. 8:22 Then they will lk t the earth, and behld, distress and darkness, the glm f anguish; and they will be driven away int darkness. Nw in cntrast t thse wh will rely n Gd s wrd, Isaiah issues a warning against listening t the wrld s spiritual guidance Mediums and spiritists The wrld will cnsult wrldly surces fr cunsel in the midst f their difficult circumstances 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Isaiah 8! 10 Isaiah s use f thse terms t capture ungdly cunsel are nt euphemistic Often the true surce f knwledge that the wrld seeks finds its surce in the demnic realm And it finds it s way t us by way f mediums and spiritists As Isaiah says, why shuld we cnsult the dead n behalf f the living? Shuld we attempt t reach the dead by way f mediums fr the sake f the living? Clearly, the answer is n Rather, we shuld turn t the Law and Prphets - which means turning t the wrd f Gd And if thse we cnsult d nt respnd frm this surce, they are nt f the dawn They are nt f the remnant These will be the nes wh pass thrugh the land during Gd s judgment and be subjected t harsh treatment and starvatin And they will respnd by lking upward and cursing Gd And they will be in darkness, anguish, glm In chapter 9, Isaiah quickly turns the feeling arund and brings light int this darkness 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Isaiah 8! 11 Is. 9:1 But there will be n mre glm fr her wh was in anguish; in earlier times He treated the land f Zebulun and the land f Naphtali with cntempt, but later n He shall make it glrius, by the way f the sea, n the ther side f Jrdan, Galilee f the Gentiles. Is. 9:2 The peple wh walk in darkness Will see a great light; Thse wh live in a dark land, The light will shine n them. Is. 9:3 Yu shall multiply the natin, Yu shall increase their gladness; They will be glad in Yur presence As with the gladness f harvest, As men rejice when they divide the spil. Is. 9:4 Fr Yu shall break the yke f their burden and the staff n their shulders, The rd f their ppressr, as at the battle f Midian. The her here is Israel wh was placed int glm by the Assyrian army The land f Zebulun and Naphtali are tw f the tribes in nrthern Israel Specifically, they are regins immediately arund the Sea f Galilee Capernaum was lcated in Zebulun and Nazareth was lcated in Naphtali These regins wuld see Jesus first years Earthly ministry Gd treated them with cntempt fr their sin But ne day Gd will make these lands glrius in bth Jesus first and secnd cmings In verses 2 thrugh 4 Isaiah describes this cming light that will shine ver the land A time f gladness and withut the yke r burden upn Israel In ther wrds, Gd s judging is a present reality in Isaiah s day but in included plenty f clues t Gd s plan fr a future redemptin t 2009 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.