Isaiah Lesson 14 - Chapters Our study of Isaiah - Chapters 43 through 45

Transcription

1 Isaiah Lesson 14 - Chapters Our study of Isaiah - Chapters 43 through 45 Tips to understanding our scriptures. One of the keys is the repeated use of the Hebrew word rx'y: {yä tsar'} which appears in these three chapters 16 times, and yet in the entire Old Testament, only 61 times. The definition in the Hebrew - English Lexicon of the Old Testament is: "[Qal] to form, fashion, shape, create; (of God) the Maker, the Creator; [Niphal] to be formed; [Pual] to be formed; [Hophel] to be forged, be formed; usually from existing material; God as Creator or Maker, has as its focus his planning and forming the creation as a skilled craftsman. These repeated uses of this word in these chapters reveals an underlying theme that while it is God who made man (Genesis 2:7 "The LORD God formed [1] the man from the dust of the ground"), Israel and all mankind seems to be better satisfied by ignoring that truth and going about forming God for themselves. For these chapters, I underlined all those places where the word rx'y: {yä tsar'} occurred. As usual, all those passages dealing with the first or second advents are printed in bold italics. Our study of Isaiah - Chapter 43 Tips to understanding the chapter. In this chapter and the two following, God goes about establishing His ownership of, and faithfulness to, Israel. One of the problems in interpreting this chapter is deciding which ingathering of Israel is described in verse five. We know that after Isaiah's day there would be two. First, the one after the Babylonian captivity, and second, the one at the end of times. The problem is, which one is this? Perhaps, in a sense, it is both. 1 / 19

2 Isaiah Chapter 43 Isaiah 43:1 But now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; [b] you are mine. 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. [c] When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. [d] 43:3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. [e] 43:4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life. [f] 43:5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 43:6 I will say to the north, Give them up!' and to the south, Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth-- 43:7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, [g] whom I formed and made created and formed." [h] 43:8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf. [i] 43:9 2 / 19

3 All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, "It is true." 43:10 "You are my witnesses," [j] declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, [k] so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 43:11 I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. 43:12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed-- I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God. [l] 43:13 Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?" 43:14 This is what the LORD says-- your Redeemer, the Holy One [m] of Israel: "For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride. [n] 43:15 I am the LORD, your Holy One, Israel's Creator, your King." [o] 43:16 This is what the LORD says-- he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 43:17 who drew out the chariots and horses, [p] the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: [q] 43:18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. [r] 43:19 See, I am doing a new thing! [s] Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert [t] 3 / 19

4 and streams in the wasteland. 43:20 The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, [u] because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, [v] to give drink to my people, my chosen, 43:21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise. 43:22 "Yet you have not called upon me, O Jacob, you have not wearied yourselves for me, O Israel. 43:23 You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened [w] you with grain offerings nor wearied [x] you with demands for incense. [y] 43:24 You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me, or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifices. But you have burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your offenses. [z] 43:25 "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, [aa] and remembers your sins no more. 43:26 Review the past for me, let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence. 43:27 Your first father [bb] sinned; your spokesmen [cc] rebelled against me. 43:28 So I will disgrace the dignitaries princes [dd] of your temple, and I will consign Jacob to destruction and Israel to scorn. [ee] 4 / 19

5 Our study of Isaiah - Chapter 44 Tips to understanding the chapter. In light of the condemnation pronounce on Israel at the end of the previous chapter, Chapter 44 is an assurance of God's grace defeating judgment. In the middle is an examination of the folly of man making God. Then is given the final answer to the condemnation of Chapter 43 in Isaiah 44:22 "I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you," Isaiah Chapter 44 Isaiah 44:1 "But now listen, O Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen. 44:2 This is what the LORD says-- he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, [ff] whom I have chosen. 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. 44:4 They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. 44:5 One will say, I belong to the LORD'; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, The LORD's,' and will take the name Israel. 44:6 "This is what the LORD says-- Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; [gg] apart from me there is no God. 5 / 19

6 [hh] 44:7 Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come-- yes, let him foretell what will come. 44:8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one." 44:9 All who make form idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. 44:10 Who shapes forms a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing? 44:11 He and his kind will be put to shame; craftsmen are nothing but men. Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and infamy. 44:12 The blacksmith takes a tool and works with it in the coals; he shapes forms an idol with hammers, he forges it with the might of his arm. He gets hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint. 44:13 The carpenter measures with a line and makes an outline with a marker; he roughs it out with chisels and marks it with compasses. He shapes it in the form of man, of man in all his glory, that it may dwell in a shrine. 44:14 He cut down cedars, or perhaps took a cypress or oak. He let it grow among the trees of the forest, or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow. 44:15 It is man's fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it. 44:16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm; I see the fire." 44:17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, "Save me; you are my god." 44:18 They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand. 44:19 No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, "Half of it I used 6 / 19

7 for fuel; I even baked bread over its coals, I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?" 44:20 He feeds on ashes, a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, "Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?" 44:21 "Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made formed you, you are my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you. 44:22 I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you." 44:23 Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel. 44:24 "This is what the LORD says-- your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, 44:25 who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense, 44:26 who carries out the words of his servants and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, It shall be inhabited,' of the towns of Judah, They shall be built,' and of their ruins, I will restore them,' 44:27 who says to the watery deep, Be dry, and I will dry up your streams,' Our study of Isaiah - Chapter 45 Tips to understanding the chapter. J. Vernon McGee contends that the last verse of Chapter 44 should be part of chapter 45. I agree. Remember, the chapter subdivisions (or the verse subdivisions ) are not part of the original scripture and therefore not inspired. The chapter speaks of and to a "Cyrus" who would allow the Jews to return and rebuild the 7 / 19

8 Temple. This scripture was written about 680 BC when the Assyrians were ascendant. One hundred forty two years later in 538 BC, the King of the Persians defeated the Babylonians, who had defeated the Assyrians, and issued the decree to rebuild the Temple. His name was "Cyrus." This chapter and the following three chapters (46 through 48) are a prophecy meant to reassure the people of Israel of over a century later that would have to deal with the destruction and exile at the hands of the Babylonians. It also comforted the people of Isaiah's day who might have questioned God commitment to Israel's future in light of the prophecy given the Hezekiah in Isaiah 39:6-7: "The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD. And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon." Isaiah Chapter 44:28 through 45 [ii] Isaiah 44:28 Who It is I who [jj] says of Cyrus, [kk] He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, "Let it be rebuilt," and of the temple, "Let its foundations be laid." [ll] Isaiah 45:1 "This is what the LORD says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: 45:2 I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. [mm] 45:3 I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, [nn] so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. [oo] 45:4 For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me. 8 / 19

9 45:5 I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, 45:6 so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other. 45:7 I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things. 45:8 "You heavens above, rain down righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the LORD, have created it. 45:9 "Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker Former, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, What are you making forming?' Does your work say, He has no hands'? 45:10 Woe to him who says to his father, What have you begotten?' or to his mother, What have you brought to birth?' 45:11 "This is what the LORD says-- the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker Former : Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands? 45:12 It is I who made the earth and created mankind upon it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts. 45:13 I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the LORD Almighty." 45:14 This is what the LORD says: "The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and those tall Sabeans-- they will come over to you and will be yours; they will trudge behind you, [pp] coming over to you in chains. They will bow down before you and plead with you, saying, Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.'" 45:15 (Isaiah speaking) Truly you are a God who hides himself, [qq] 9 / 19

10 O God and Savior of Israel. 45:16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together. 45:17 But Israel will be saved by the LORD with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting. 45:18 For this is what the LORD says-- he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made formed the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited [rr] -- he says: "I am the LORD, and there is no other. 45:19 I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob's descendants, Seek me in vain.' I, the LORD, speak the truth; I declare what is right. [ss] 45:20 "Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. 45:21 Declare what is to be, present it-- let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. 45:22 "Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; [tt] for I am God, and there is no other. 45:23 By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. [uu] 45:24 They will say of me, In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength.'" All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. 45:25 But in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and will exult. 10 / 19

11 Questions: [a] The first use of rx'y {yä tsar'} in the Bible. [b] Israel is the name God gave Jacob. Israel means Prince of God. Jacob is only redeemed because of the work of "the Prince of God" Jesus Christ. [c] This recalls Israel passing through the waters of the Red Sea with Moses, and walking through the flooding Jordan River with Joshua. [d] This happened literally over a century later to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego during the Babylonian captivity. [e] The Lord delivered Israel from the Egyptian army in Moses' day, and from the Cushite army in Asa's day (2 Chronicles 14:9-13). Seba is also identified with the Cushites (1 Chronicles 1:9). [f] The people the LORD gives for the life of Israel here are Gentiles who are members of armies that attack Israel. The fact that the LORD considers it a sacrifice indicates that He puts great value on the lives of even the enemies of Israel, but that He is willing to sacrifice them to protect the destiny of Israel. [g] This phrase is important in understanding the correct meaning of the Third Commandment in Exodus 20:7 "You shall not bear my name in vain, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who bears his name in vain. [h] These two words in the Hebrew are the same two appearing in the first verse, ar:b; and rx' y:. they should be translated the same because that makes the connection to the first verse that the writer obviously intended. 11 / 19

12 [i] Not referring to God's sons and daughters of the previous verse, but the nations and peoples of the subsequent verse. [j] The "sons and daughters" of verse 6. [k] Jesus Christ. The word is in the masculine singular. [l] This is the mission of Israel which will be fulfilled in the Tribulation. [m] Jesus Christ is "the Holy One" of Israel. Mark 1:24, Luke 1:35, Luke 4:36, John 6:69, Revelation 16:5. [n] Obviously speaks of the fall of Babylon, but which Babylon? The Babylon of Jeremiah's day, or the Babylon of Revelation? Considering that the Babylon in this chapter is connected with shipping, it seems unlikely to be the historical Babylon, which was in the middle of the desert, far from the sea. However, the Babylon of the Tribulation is connected to the sea as follows: Isaiah 18:17b-18 "Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, Was there ever a city (Babylon) like this great city?'" [o] Jesus Christ is the King. [p] That is, He enticed the chariots and horses of Egypt into following Israel into the desert, and into the sea: Exodus 14:4 "And I(the LORD) will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But 12 / 19

13 I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD." [q] Referring to the destruction of the Egyptian Army at the Exodus. [r] God's deliverance is not confined to the past. [s] The new thing is the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. [t] John 1:23 "John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet (Isaiah 40:3), I am the voice of one calling in the desert, Make straight the way for the Lord.'" [u] The jackals and the owls were unclean animals who would also be able to drink of this water in the desert. They are the Gentiles. [v] Jesus Christ is the living water. [w] The word here is the Hiphil form of the Hebrew db'[; {ä bad'} which means " to reduce to servitude. The concept here is that cost of the grain offerings was very slight and not a heavy burden. [x] The word here is the Hiphil form of the Hebrew [g"y: { yä gah'} which means "to make weary." Again here the concept here is that cost of the incense offerings was very slight and not a heavy burden. [y] Perhaps this is speaking of the fact that during the Babylonian exile, there was no temple, and thus no offerings of grain, incense, or animals. 13 / 19

14 [z] The same two words "burdened" db'[; {ä bad'} and "wearied" [g&q uot;y: { yä gah'} which are used in the previous verse. [aa] God's forgiveness springs from His inherent mercy, not our loveliness. [bb] Abraham. [cc] Moses and Aaron were the spokesmen: Exodus 4:14b-16 "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him." They rebelled against God: Numbers 20:23-24 "At Mount Hor, near the border of Edom, the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, Aaron will be gathered to his people. He will not enter the land I give the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah.'" [dd] The Hebrew word rc' {sar} which is usually translated "princes." [ee] These verses are pronouncing judgment on Israel. It is the OT equivalent of Romans 3:23 "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." It proclaims God's just judgment on even Abraham and Moses, the most famous of the ancestors of Israel. However, the next chapter is one of reassurance of God's provision of grace, and is the equivalent of Romans 3:24 "and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." The reason for hope, is the judgment that will come will fall on "the prince of God," the true Israel, Jesus Christ. 14 / 19

15 [ff] Jeshurun - a poetical name for the people of Israel, used in token of affection, meaning, "the dear upright people" (Deut. 32:15; 33:5, 26; Isa. 44:2). [gg] This statement does not refer to God's timelessness. It refers to the fact that He is both the most exalted (the first) and the most humble and obedient (the last). He is the King and Redeemer. [hh] Revelation 1:17. [ii] After telling the things to come (Isaiah 41:22-23) in the distant future (the first and second advent), the Lord suddenly drops in a near term prophecy (200 years) about Cyrus of Persia. [jj] I have substituted the American Standard Version translation for this phrase. [kk] The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible - article on Cyrus CYRUS - More precisely, Cyrus II, the Great ( B.C.), founder of the Achaemenid Persian empire, which continued for two centuries to the time of Alexander the Great (331 B.C.). 1. Background and early conquests. His father, Cambyses I ( B.C.), was king of Anshan, a region in eastern Elam, and his mother was Mandane, a daughter of Astyages king of Media ( B.C.). When Cambyses I died in 559 B.C., Cyrus inherited the throne of Anshan and, after unifying the Persian people, attacked the weak and corrupt Astyages. The Median general Harpagus, whom Astyages had previously wronged, deserted the king and brought his army to the side of the young Cyrus. Astyages was soon captured and the Persians took the capital city of Ecbatana in 550 B.C. without a battle. 15 / 19

16 Cyrus succeeded in welding the Medes and Persians into a unified nation. Moving swiftly to the West, he absorbed all of the Median territories as far as the River Halys in Asia Minor. When Croesus, the fabulously wealthy king of Lydia, refused to recognize the sovereignty of Medo-Persia, Cyrus defeated him in battle and took over his empire (546 B.C.). Seven years later, he was ready to launch the great assault against Babylon itself. 2. Conquest of Babylon. The Neo-Babylonian empire was in no condition to resist a Medo-Persian invasion in the year 539 B.C. During the preceding fourteen years Nabonidus the king had not so much as visited the capital city, leaving the administration of that metropolis to his profligate son Belshazzar, to whom he also "entrusted the kingship." Nabonidus further weakened the empire by concentrating his favors upon the cult of the god Sin at Haran at the expense of Babylonian deities, thus incurring the displeasure of the priesthood in Babylon. Realizing that danger was near, Nabonidus came to Babylon in the spring of 539 B.C., and brought the images of Babylonian divinities into the city from surrounding areas, but it was all to no avail. Toward the end of September, the armies of Cyrus under the command of Ugbaru, governor of Gutium, attacked Opis on the Tigris, and defeated the Babylonians. On October 10 Sippar was taken without a battle and Nabonidus fled. Two days later Ugbaru's troops were able to enter Babylon while Belshazzar, completely oblivious of the doom that awaited him, was engaged in a riotous banquet within the "impregnable" walls of the city (Dan 5). The fateful day was 12 October 539 B.C. In that same night Belshazzar was slain. 3. Cyrus and the Jews. Cyrus entered Babylon on October 29, and presented himself to the priests and people as a gracious liberator and benefactor. He reversed the cruel policies of the Assyrians and Babylonians by permitting transplanted populations to return to their homelands. The Jews were not only permitted but were actually encouraged by Cyrus to return to Judah and to rebuild their Temple (2 Chronicles 36:22, 23; Ezra 1:1-4). Furthermore he gave them the vessels that Nebuchadnezzar had plundered from Solomon's Temple (Ezra 1:7-11; 6:5), and contributed financially to the construction of their second temple (6:4). About 50,000 Jews responded to this royal proclamation and returned to Judah under the leadership of Zerubbabel and Joshua (2:64, 65). 4. Isaiah's prophecies of Cyrus. In his decree to the Jews (Ezra 1), Cyrus referred to "Jehovah, the God of heaven" as the one who had given him "All the kingdoms of the earth," and who had charged him "to build him a house in Jerusalem" (Ezra 1:2 ASV). How did Cyrus know this? Probably not through dreams or visions, but rather through confrontation with the prophecies of Isaiah written 150 years before. It seems highly 16 / 19

17 probable that Daniel who lived at least until the third year of Cyrus (Daniel 10:1), and who was greatly concerned about the fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophecy of the return of Israel to her land after seventy years (Daniel 9:2; cf. Jeremiah 25:11, 12), was the one who presented a scroll of Isaiah's prophecies (see below) to the Persian monarch. Josephus, who had access to many historical records long since lost, states that "when Cyrus read this, and admired the Divine power, an earnest desire and ambition seized upon him to fulfill what was so written" (Antiquities XI, i, 2). There is every reason to accept the testimony of Josephus at this point, in spite of modern critical views on "the Second Isaiah" and the supposed impossibility of predictive prophecy. There are four different accounts of the death of Cyrus which vary widely, from dying in his bed to dying in battle. Which is correct is not verifyable. [ll] This was fulfilled in 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1:1-3 [mm] It occurs to me that this may describe the taking of the city of Babylon by Cyrus and the Persians. According to Herodotus' ancient account. Belteshazzar and the Babylonians were secure inside the city walls when the river suddenly dried up in a night and the Medes and Persians marched through the city wall by means of the dry riverbed. Could this sudden drying up of the river actually have been because the Lord caused a mountain to collapse in the river. It seems to me that any man engineered blockage of the river (as Herodotus reported 300 years later) would have been too gradual to have happened in a night. This sudden conquest is noted in scripture in Daniel 5. [nn] What are these treasures. Gold or silver from a mine? Or the treasure of the knowledge of God's wisdom' Job 12:22 He reveals the deep things of darkness and brings deep shadows into the light. Job 28:9-15,20,23-24,28 "Man's hand assaults the flinty rock and lays bare the roots of the mountains. He tunnels through the rock; his eyes see all its treasures. He searches the sources of the rivers and brings hidden things to light. But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell? Man does not comprehend its worth; it cannot be found in the land of the living. The deep says, It is not in me'; the sea says, It is not with me.' It cannot be bought 17 / 19

18 with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed in silver. --- Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell? --- God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells, for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens. --- And he said to man, The fear of the Lord--that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.'" [oo] Ezra 1:1-2 "In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing: This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah.'" [pp] Speaking of Cyrus who made war on the Egyptians to reclaim that province of the fallen Babylonian Empire. [qq] That is, God Himself was never seen. His works could be seen, but He could never be represented by an image like an idol. [rr] This is one of the verses that is combined with Genesis 1:2, Job 9:4-8, Psalms 104:24-32, Jeremiah 4:23-26, and Jeremiah 26:15-21 to conclude that the earth had a history previous to the seven days of creation in Genesis 1 and 2. [ss] The LORD is not revealed through an idol, but through His word. [tt] Notice that salvation is for the whole world. [uu] This verse has often been used to argue that at the last times there will be a scene where "every" creature with a living soul, including Satan, fallen angels, and unbelievers will bow the knee and confess to God. I believe that this scene will only include elect angels and believers who bow and confess joyfully. Otherwise the scene would include billions whose worship is insincere and compelled. God takes no pleasure in such worship. The 18 / 19

19 term "every" in this verse should be understood to mean "everyone present" not "everyone ever created." This verse is also quoted in Romans 14:10-12 " You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgment seat. It is written: As surely as I live,' says the Lord, every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.'' So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God." This context indicates the company who bow the knee will all be "brothers." In other words believers. Furthermore, 2 Thessalonians 1:8-10 would seem to indicate that those present could not include fallen angels or unbelievers as before the Lord is glorified by His people, the will be banished from the presence of the LORD. 2 Thessalonians 1:8-10a "He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Who shall pay the penalty of everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed." Also, before the Tribulation, a scene like this is described in Revelation 5:13, and yet it could not include the fallen angels. 19 / 19