Isaiah 29-30A. At the end of chapter 28, Isaiah told two parables. But it would be with good purpose

Transcription

1 Isaiah 29-30A At the end f chapter 28, Isaiah tld tw parables These parables explained the cnsequences f Judah s errr f entering int a cvenant with Egypt t defend themselves against the advancing army f Assyria Assyria has been in the land f Judah ding what they please fr 14 years The Assyrians were brught int the land by Gd t punish Judah after Ahaz their king wuldn t trust in Gd t prtect them In Isaiah s day, the peple f Jerusalem were lking fr a slutin t expelling the invaders But Isaiah tells them nt t resist Gd s judgment But as in Ahaz s day, the peple rebel against the prphet and king Hezekiah enters int a cvenant with Egypt Isaiah says that Gd wuld respnd by bringing the natin thrugh a new rund f judgment and discipline But it wuld be with gd purpse The there wuld be plwing and threshing - pictures f judgment But it wuld give way t swing fr a new harvest Nw Isaiah fllws his parables t tell hw Gd wuld accmplish the actual judgment thrugh a series f wes (hence the name Bk f Wes) In chapter 29 we see the threshing and plwing fr their mistake in siding with Egypt Later chapters shw the swing as Gd uses this judgment fr gd And alng the way, we see Isaiah weave in discussins f anther future time when Israel enters int a cvenant with an enemy - Tribulatin 2010 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 29-30A! 2 Is. 29:1 We, O Ariel, Ariel the city where David nce camped! Add year t year, bserve yur feasts n schedule. Is. 29:2 I will bring distress t Ariel, And she will be a city f lamenting and murning; And she will be like an Ariel t me. Is. 29:3 I will camp against yu encircling yu, And I will set siegewrks against yu, And I will raise up battle twers against yu. Is. 29:4 Then yu will be brught lw; Frm the earth yu will speak, And frm the dust where yu are prstrate Yur wrds will cme. Yur vice will als be like that f a spirit frm the grund, And yur speech will whisper frm the dust. Ariel is a Hebrew wrd meaning tw things It can mean the lin f Gd r it can mean the hearth f Gd and it is used in this passage bth ways In the first verse we knw frm the cntext that Isaiah is speaking f Jerusalem The city where David camped r pitched his tent s t speak Isaiah says this city is ging t be a place f murning as a result f their mistake in entering int the cvenant with Egypt Gd will bring a siegewrks against them He s referring t the army f Assyria that cmes against Jersualem and sieges it in Hezekiah s day The city will becme an ariel t me Meaning, it will becme like the hearth f Gd, a place f burning fire And as verse 4 indicates, it will bring misery upn them The full details f this event await us in a few chapters later in the bk f wes But ntice what cmes next at this pint 2010 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 29-30A! 3 Is. 29:5 But the multitude f yur enemies will becme like fine dust, And the multitude f the ruthless nes like the chaff which blws away; And it will happen instantly, suddenly. Is. 29:6 Frm the LORD f hsts yu will be punished with thunder and earthquake and lud nise, With whirlwind and tempest and the flame f a cnsuming fire. Is. 29:7 And the multitude f all the natins wh wage war against Ariel, Even all wh wage war against her and her strnghld, and wh distress her, Will be like a dream, a visin f the night. Is. 29:8 It will be as when a hungry man dreams And behld, he is eating; But when he awakens, his hunger is nt satisfied, Or as when a thirsty man dreams And behld, he is drinking, But when he awakens, behld, he is faint And his thirst is nt quenched. Thus the multitude f all the natins will be Wh wage war against Munt Zin. Nw the prmise f smething better These enemies that camp against yur will amunt t nthing in the end It an instant, they ll be gne like chaff Speaking t these enemies, Isaiah says in verse 6 yu will suffer these utcmes frm the Lrd It will be s sudden that it will be like they dreamed the whle thing In the case f the Assyrians, we have already lked in this curse at hw that happens In chapter 37 we read hw the angel f the Lrd will g ut and destry the entire Assyrian army in a single mment Defending the city f Jerusalem in a single mment At that earlier time, we als learned this mment with Assyria when they attack the city and sieged it But never penetrated is a freshadwing f the same event later in Israel s histry In a later time, we knw anther army cnverges n Israel and fails t breach its walls...and Gd cmes t its rescue 2010 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 29-30A! 4 Zech. 14:1 Behld, a day is cming fr the LORD when the spil taken frm yu will be divided amng yu. Zech. 14:2 Fr I will gather all the natins against Jerusalem t battle, and the city will be captured, the huses plundered, the wmen ravished and half f the city exiled, but the rest f the peple will nt be cut ff frm the city. Zech. 14:3 Then the LORD will g frth and fight against thse natins, as when He fights n a day f battle. Zech. 14:4 In that day His feet will stand n the Munt f Olives, which is in frnt f Jerusalem n the east; and the Munt f Olives will be split in its middle frm east t west by a very large valley, s that half f the muntain will mve tward the nrth and the ther half tward the suth. Zech. 14:5 Yu will flee by the valley f My muntains, fr the valley f the muntains will reach t Azel; yes, yu will flee just as yu fled befre the earthquake in the days f Uzziah king f Judah. Then the LORD, my Gd, will cme, and all the hly nes with Him! Zech. 14:6 In that day there will be n light; the luminaries will dwindle. Zech. 14:7 Fr it will be a unique day which is knwn t the LORD, neither day nr night, but it will cme abut that at evening time there will be light. Zech. 14:8 And in that day living waters will flw ut f Jerusalem, half f them tward the eastern sea and the ther half tward the western sea; it will be in summer as well as in winter. Zech. 14:9 And the LORD will be king ver all the earth; in that day the LORD will be the nly ne, and His name the nly ne. This scene mirrrs the ne Isaiah will describe later in chapter 37 This mment in Zechariah is a part f the judgment that cmes upn Israel fr their willingness t enter int a cvenant with the Antichrist We re nw seeing Isaiah beginning t intrduce thse parallels between the tw events Here s anther parallel... Is. 29:9 Be delayed and wait, Blind yurselves and be blind; They becme drunk, but nt with wine, They stagger, but nt with strng drink. Is. 29:10 Fr the LORD has pured ver yu a spirit f deep sleep, He has shut yur eyes, the prphets; And He has cvered yur heads, the seers. Is. 29:11 The entire visin will be t yu like the wrds f a sealed bk, which when they give it t the ne wh is literate, saying, Please read this, he will say, I cannt, fr it is sealed. Is. 29:12 Then the bk will be given t the ne wh is illiterate, saying, Please read this. And he will say, I cannt read 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 29-30A! 5 Isaiah is talking t the Jews wh will experience this cming judgment at the hands f the Assyrians They are ging t be blinded spiritually They are like their leaders, the drunkards wh stagger with strng drink And the Lrd is the One Wh put them in this state f blindness He cvered their eyes and silenced their seers They will have the wrds f Isaiah, but they will be like smene wh can t read They wn t be able t understand the wrds f Isaiah s prphecy and s they will nt be able t avid this cming judgment This part f the experience with Assyria als has a parallel fr a future Israel In the future time when the natin f Israel is left ignrant f Gd s wrd And therefre they walk ignrantly int His planned judgement during Tribulatin And Gd is nce again the ne wh causes the blindness s that the Jews wuld be assured f experiencing the judgment Gd has planned But as with the Assyrian judgment, this blindness desn t arrive at their destructin Because in the end the Lrd will rescue the natin and restre them But nt until they have endured the judgment He has determined they MUST experience Paul describes this parallel in the future experience f Israel in the time leading t Tribulatin Rm. 11:7 What then? What Israel is seeking, it has nt btained, but thse wh were chsen btained it, and the rest were hardened; Rm. 11:8 just as it is written, GOD GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR, EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT, DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY 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 29-30A! 6 Rm. 11:9 And David says, LET THEIR TABLE BECOME A SNARE AND A TRAP, AND A STUMBLING BLOCK AND A RETRIBUTION TO THEM. Rm. 11:10 LET THEIR EYES BE DARKENED TO SEE NOT, AND BEND THEIR BACKS FOREVER. Rm. 11:11 I say then, they did nt stumble s as t fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgressin salvatin has cme t the Gentiles, t make them jealus. Rm. 11:12 Nw if their transgressin is riches fr the wrld and their failure is riches fr the Gentiles, hw much mre will their fulfillment be! Tday, the Jewish peple are under a perid f blindness instituted by Gd t ensure the natin remains under judgment They will remain in this state until they endure the cming Tribulatin which awaits them and the wrld As with the first experience in preparatin fr the attack f Assyria, this stupr in by the hand f Gd And it last until Gd releases them frm that blindness... Is. 29:13 Then the Lrd said, Because this peple draw near with their wrds And hnr Me with their lip service, But they remve their hearts far frm Me, And their reverence fr Me cnsists f traditin learned by rte, Is. 29:14 Therefre behld, I will nce again deal marvelusly with this peple, wndrusly marvelus; And the wisdm f their wise men will perish, And the discernment f their discerning men will be cncealed. Is. 29:15 We t thse wh deeply hide their plans frm the LORD, And whse deeds are dne in a dark place, And they say, Wh sees us? r Wh knws us? Is. 29:16 Yu turn things arund! Shall the ptter be cnsidered as equal with the clay, That what is made wuld say t its maker, He did nt make me ; Or what is frmed say t him wh frmed it, He has n understanding? Because f their hypcrisy and sin against Gd and their unwillingness t fllw him frm the beginning, Gd prepares a final mment f judgment This sin began with the leaders wh led Israel astray in Isaiah s day And it cntinued all the way until Jesus saw this same pattern amng the leaders in His day 2010 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 29-30A! 7 Matt. 15:1 Then sme Pharisees and scribes came t Jesus frm Jerusalem and said, Matt. 15:2 Why d Yur disciples break the traditin f the elders? Fr they d nt wash their hands when they eat bread. Matt. 15:3 And He answered and said t them, Why d yu yurselves transgress the cmmandment f Gd fr the sake f yur traditin? Matt. 15:4 Fr Gd said, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER, and, HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH. Matt. 15:5 But yu say, Whever says t his father r mther, Whatever I have that wuld help yu has been given t Gd, Matt. 15:6 he is nt t hnr his father r his mther. And by this yu invalidated the wrd f Gd fr the sake f yur traditin. Matt. 15:7 Yu hypcrites, rightly did Isaiah prphesy f yu: Matt. 15:8 THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. Matt. 15:9 BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN. Jesus says, that Isaiah s wrds were speaking f Israel s leaders even beynd the day in which he spke them He was prphesying f the leadership f Israel thrughut the time f judgment that began in Isaiah s day In respnse, first Gd made them blind t prevent them frm understanding Isaiah s explanatin f hw the judgment wuld cme In the future day, the Jews are hardened as Paul says t prevent them frm knwing the Gspel In the time f Assyria, Gd brings the judgment t a climax with the Assyrian siege f the city f Jerusalem This was the tribulatin fr the Jews f Isaiah s day In the last days, the final climatic judgment against the Jews will be the seven years f the Tribulatin And here Isaiah refers directly t that future judgment with the descriptin f the wndrusly marvelus dealing that Gd brings The wrd fr marvelusly is para, which literally means in a surpassingly extrardinary way Obviusly, we re talking abut Gd ding smething ut f the rdinary even fr Gd 2010 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 29-30A! 8 We re talking abut the Great Tribulatin, smething unlike any kind f judgment Gd has ever brught upn the wrld This cming judgment reveals the secrets and weaknesses f men It brings them dwn frm the haughtiness in which they have cme t imagine themselves t be their wn gds It shws them hw truly pitiful they are in cmparisn with their Creatr Gd s wrath pured ut against His wn creatin But just as Isaiah s parables suggested, this judgment is but fr a little while... Is. 29:17 Is it nt yet just a little while Befre Lebann will be turned int a fertile field, And the fertile field will be cnsidered as a frest? Is. 29:18 On that day the deaf will hear wrds f a bk, And ut f their glm and darkness the eyes f the blind will see. Is. 29:19 The afflicted als will increase their gladness in the LORD, And the needy f mankind will rejice in the Hly One f Israel. Is. 29:20 Fr the ruthless will cme t an end and the scrner will be finished, Indeed all wh are intent n ding evil will be cut ff; Is. 29:21 Wh cause a persn t be indicted by a wrd, And ensnare him wh adjudicates at the gate, And defraud the ne in the right with meaningless arguments. In v.17, we re tld Gd will return t favr Israel And at the cnclusin f His judgment, swing begins Gd begins planting seeds t ensure that His judgment arrives at gd things happening fr Israel On that day, the deaf will hear again The blind will see again and cme t knw the Hly Ones f Israel Jewish rabbinical leaders were well knwn fr their ability t memrize the entire Old Testament wrd fr wrd in Hebrew 2010 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 29-30A! 9 Yet they missed their Messiah because they re understanding f the text was never revealed by the Hly Spirit Instead they relied n the interpretatin f Scripture they received frm the cmmentaries written by frmer rabbis... The leaders wh Jesus described wh stumbled in drunkenness frm spiritual blindness Of curse, in Isaiah s day this new visin was accmplished thrugh an appeal t Gd fr His prtectin and cunsel As we ll study in detail in chapter 37, Hezekiah famusly receives the threatening letter frm the Assyrian cmmander statined utside the city walls And Hezekiah spreads it ut befre the Lrd and prays t Gd Is. 37:20 Nw, O LORD ur Gd, deliver us frm his hand that all the kingdms f the earth may knw that Yu alne, LORD, are Gd. And in answer t this appeal, Gd prmises t fight this battle and deliver Jerusalem In the End Times, we knw the Lrd returns in respnse t the cry f the Jews in Jerusalem, accrding t the wrds f Psalm 80: Psa. 80:2 Befre Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, stir up Yur pwer And cme t save us! Psa. 80:3 O Gd, restre us And cause Yur face t shine upn us, and we will be saved. Then the Lrd cmes t defend and secure Israel as Zecheriah describes And in Isaiah s day, the rescue came as the Lrd fught the battle fr them, destrying the Assyrian army Is. 29:22 Therefre thus says the LORD, wh redeemed Abraham, cncerning the huse f Jacb: Jacb shall nt nw be ashamed, nr shall his face nw turn pale; Is. 29:23 But when he sees his children, the wrk f My hands, in his midst, They will sanctify My name; Indeed, they will sanctify the Hly One f Jacb And will stand in awe f the Gd f Israel. Is. 29:24 Thse wh err in mind will knw the truth, And thse wh criticize will accept instructin 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 29-30A! 10 Clearly, we see Isaiah reflecting the way Gd brings these tw respective perids f judgment t a psitive end fr the natin f Israel Remember, as we ve said befre, these statements are true with respect t Israel as a natin They are nt meant t apply t every individual Jew Just like the analgy f the lake f water On any given day the specific mlecules f water change But the lake as a whle remains Nw in the beginning f the next chapter, we see Isaiah address specifically the wes fr Israel in Hezekiah s day fr their willingness t seek a cvenant with Egypt Is. 30:1 We t the rebellius children, declares the LORD, Wh execute a plan, but nt Mine, And make an alliance, but nt f My Spirit, In rder t add sin t sin; Is. 30:2 Wh prceed dwn t Egypt Withut cnsulting Me, T take refuge in the safety f Pharah And t seek shelter in the shadw f Egypt! Is. 30:3 Therefre the safety f Pharah will be yur shame And the shelter in the shadw f Egypt, yur humiliatin. Is. 30:4 Fr their princes are at Zan And their ambassadrs arrive at Hanes. Is. 30:5 Everyne will be ashamed because f a peple wh cannt prfit them, Wh are nt fr help r prfit, but fr shame and als fr reprach. Is. 30:6 The racle cncerning the beasts f the Negev. Thrugh a land f distress and anguish, Frm where cme liness and lin, viper and flying serpent, They carry their riches n the backs f yung dnkeys And their treasures n camels humps, T a peple wh cannt prfit them; Is. 30:7 Even Egypt, whse help is vain and empty. Therefre, I have called her Rahab wh has been exterminated. Isaiah prnunces anther we t Israel Nte the details f this circumstances They are rebellius children 2010 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 29-30A! 11 They execute a plan f their wn making, nt f Gd And thrugh this plan they multiply their sin They take refuge with Egypt and the Pharah But it will be t the shame f Israel Because this alliance will nt prfit Israel In the end Egypt did nthing fr them They never came t Israel s aid Isaiah cntinues in verse 6 t describe a prphecy cncerning this wuld be partner f Israel: Egypt Israel sends its treasures thrugh a land f distress (their land) and t the Negev, which just mean suth t Egypt But this wealth cannt prfit them The reference t the name Rahab is interesting and classic Isaiah creative use f language The wrd is used as a name fr Egypt thrughut the OT But it als means a big muth, smene wh is all talk And it can als mean hipp And animal that epitmizes sitting arund lazily with a big muth Chapter 30 cntinues with a descriptin n hw Gd will bring the Assyrians against them fllwed by hw He will judge the Assyrians themselves Is. 30:8 Nw g, write it n a tablet befre them And inscribe it n a scrll, That it may serve in the time t cme As a witness frever. Is. 30:9 Fr this is a rebellius peple, false sns, Sns wh refuse t listen T the instructin f the LORD; Is. 30:10 Wh say t the seers, Yu must nt see visins ; And t the prphets, Yu must nt prphesy t us what is right, Speak t us pleasant wrds, Prphesy illusins 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.

12 Isaiah 29-30A! 12 Is. 30:11 Get ut f the way, turn aside frm the path, Let us hear n mre abut the Hly One f Israel. Is. 30:12 Therefre thus says the Hly One f Israel, Since yu have rejected this wrd And have put yur trust in ppressin and guile, and have relied n them, Is. 30:13 Therefre this iniquity will be t yu Like a breach abut t fall, A bulge in a high wall, Whse cllapse cmes suddenly in an instant, Is. 30:14 Whse cllapse is like the smashing f a ptter s jar, S ruthlessly shattered That a sherd will nt be fund amng its pieces T take fire frm a hearth Or t scp water frm a cistern. Is. 30:15 Fr thus the Lrd GOD, the Hly One f Israel, has said, In repentance and rest yu will be saved, In quietness and trust is yur strength. But yu were nt willing, Is. 30:16 And yu said, N, fr we will flee n hrses, Therefre yu shall flee! And we will ride n swift hrses, Therefre thse wh pursue yu shall be swift. Is. 30:17 One thusand will flee at the threat f ne man; Yu will flee at the threat f five, Until yu are left as a flag n a muntain tp And as a signal n a hill. Is. 30:18 Therefre the LORD lngs t be gracius t yu, And therefre He waits n high t have cmpassin n yu. Fr the LORD is a Gd f justice; Hw blessed are all thse wh lng fr Him. Isaiah recrds this wrds against Israel as a recrd f their disbedience And he uses vivid language t describe sme f the destructin the city walls suffered at the hands f the Assyrians Thugh Gd gave them a sensible wrd thrugh Isaiah T rest and be at peace ver the Assyrian invasin Instead they sught an unhly alliance They tried t flee n hrses t Egypt t make an alliance Instead, they will flee their attackers But Gd wait n high t be gracius t them in a future time 2010 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.