I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 43-47.

In yesterday’s passage, Isaiah declared that God, and God alone, was able to tell us what would happen in the distant future.  In today’s passage Isaiah predicts the return of the descendants of Jacob to Jerusalem and the surrounding lands.  They would be brought back to the land which God promised their ancestors from the ends of the earth.  Certainly, this prophecy was fulfilled when the Exiles returned under Cyrus and his successors.  Yet, my impression is that only a small percentage of the Jews living throughout the world returned during that time.  The Book of Esther recounts large communities living in many cities throughout the Persian Empire.  But today we see what appears to be a different story.  There are only a few nations outside of modern Israel with large Jewish populations.  Who would have predicted that 200 years ago on any basis other than a belief that this prophecy would come true once again?

Isaiah tells us that Cyrus was God’s chosen one even though Cyrus did not know who God was. God used Cyrus despite the fact that Cyrus did not worship Him, or even acknowledge His existence.  God used Cyrus for His own purposes.  Isaiah tells us that God acted despite the failure of the people of Israel to ask for His help.  Further Isaiah tells us that God will bring this same salvation to all of the people of the world.  God will do all of these things so that we may know that He is God, and there is none other like Him.  God declared these things before the entire world for all to see.  God does not issue His commands and prophecies in secret to a select few.  He declares them for all to see and know.  The Lord wants everyone to know that He is God and there is none other like Him.

I want to add on that this passage can be hard to read, but it is worth the effort.  There are many other points made here than I can cover in this short blog.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 39-42.

The verse where Isaiah refers to a voice crying to make a straight path through the wilderness for the Lord is a prophecy which John the Baptist applied to himself.  However, it is part of a command for us.  We too should be shouting for all the world to hear that God is coming, both as Savior and as Judge.  He will provide water to the needy in a parched land.  He will also confuse and humiliate those who oppose and oppress His people.  Let us not be afraid to tell people that God is coming, both as an invitation and as a warning: a warning to the wicked, an invitation to the weak and lonely.  And remember that for most people our announcement should be both a warning and an invitation.

Further, our announcement should server to show people that God is different from the gods made by humans.  God is not just an idea which people created to ease their fear of the dark and unknown.  God revealed long ago many things which have since happened, and has revealed things which are still to come.  He shows His power so that we can know that He is real.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 36-38.

This is the third account of the Assyrian invasion of Judah which we read in the Bible.  All three accounts contain the same elements. I love reading this story again despite having written about it twice already this year.  Ultimately, the story boils down to the Assyrians telling the people of Jerusalem that nothing can save them from the Assyrians; King Hezekiah could not even find enough men to mount the King of Assyria’s spare warhorses.  As for God saving them, don’t be ridiculous, had any other nation’s gods been able to save them?  There was nothing the people of Jerusalem and Judah could do, they might as well surrender!

How often have we found ourselves in such a situation?  There is nothing within our power that can get us out of a terrible situation and no one to whom we can turn.  But that is exactly the situation in which God shows His power.  There existed no power on earth which could stop the King of Assyria from conquering Jerusalem.  Yet, Isaiah told King Hezekiah that not only would the King of Assyria not conquer Jerusalem, he would not even lay siege to it.  So, what happened?  Something went through the Assyrian camp and killed a large part of the Assyrian army in a single night and the King of Assyria marched home without laying siege to Jerusalem.  King Hezekiah turned to God in his time of trouble, when he had no earthly hope of avoiding defeat.  When you know that you cannot do it on your own, turn to God and He will rescue you.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 32-35.

Today’s passage describes how to build the ideal society and promises that God will one day implement such a society.  To get there we must stop calling the ungodly heroes and stop giving respect to scoundrels.  Speak the truth in public so that everyone with ears can hear it and act in the open so everyone with eyes can see what you do.  Then we will see that righteousness brings peace.

Isaiah tells us that before God brings about the above kingdom, or perhaps, as He brings it about, He will send judgement and punishment upon those who do evil against His people.  In some ways this reads as a prophecy regarding the End Times, but I think it is more a prophecy about troubled times which come again and again throughout history when Mankind rebels against God.  I see it fulfilled in the world today.  Looking around it is easy to echo the question asked here: “Who can survive this all-consuming fire?”  The answer given in this passage is always timely when such a question becomes common.  Those who are honest and fair, and who refuse to profit from fraud, will have nothing to fear when such times come.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 29-31.

Isaiah warns that sorrow will soon befall those who think that they can hide their evil plans from God,. They foolishly think that they can ignore God’s commands, but God is their Creator and can see what they think is hidden.  Further, Isaiah tells us that when God’s judgement comes on those people the deaf will hear and the blind will see.  It really seems to me that Isaiah is telling those in positions of power that the evil deeds which they think they have hidden away from the common people will soon be revealed.  The elites believe that they have hidden their crimes and evil actions from the common man so that they will never be exposed, but Isaiah tells us that such belief is foolish.  Their evil behavior is known to God, and He will reveal it for all of the world to see.

I am not sure what the connection is between this next section and the one I discussed in the previous paragraph.  Isaiah warns the people that sorrow awaits those who make plans contrary to God’s plans.  He refers to the alliance against Assyria which Judah entered into with Egypt, but such plans happen time and again through history.  Judah entered into that alliance without consulting God before doing so.  Isaiah tells them on behalf of God that they will get nothing in return for the gold they sent to Egypt.  I am reminded of the political alliance which politically active conservative Christians attempted to enter into with the Muslim community in the late 1990s.  Their logic was impeccable, but had two fatal flaws.  God does not call Christians to stop others from sinning.  He calls on them to be transformed by the Holy Spirit to stop sinning themselves, and then to witness to others how that transformation has made their lives better.  God does not desire for us to change people’s actions by changing the laws.  He calls on us to change people’s actions by transforming their hearts (or, more precisely, He calls on us to act as agents of His Holy Spirit, and He will transform their hearts).  Even today, too many Christians seek to change this country by changing its government instead of by transforming the hearts of its people.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 26-28.

As I read today’s passage I found myself thinking that I would have trouble writing today’s blog because it seemed so focused on the Israel and Judah of Isaiah’s time.  Then I came to this:

“Who does the Lord think we are?” they ask. “Why does he speak to us like this? Are we little children, just recently weaned? He tells us everything over and over— one line at a time, one line at a time, a little here, and a little there!”

The prophet followed that up by saying that as a result God had to speak to them through foreign oppressors.  God had given us a message of peace and rest, but we would not listen, so he had to spell it out for us again, as one does for young children.  This makes me think of those who dismiss the Bible because they claim its moral code is too simplistic, that things are not as “black and white” as the Bible portrays.  Those that come after them discover that the more “complex” moral code they sought to implement relied on God’s “simplistic” one.

Isaiah goes on to address the elites who think that they have a way to avoid the destruction which they themselves are fomenting.  They think that they can fool people and events with their lies and deception.  The elites have made a deal which they think will protect them from the chaos.  They think they can harness that chaos and destruction for their own benefit.  God has canceled their deal, or, more precisely, He will reveal that a deal based on lies and deception is not really a deal in the first place.  The elites will discover that when you reject the foundation of law and justice there is no justice, or even safety, to be found anywhere.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 22-25.

I was struck by how the passage seems appropriate for now when I came to where Isaiah wrote

You say, “Let’s feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!”

That is so close to what I have heard many people say.  They often think they are quoting the Bible to support their actions, when in fact every time the Bible says something which can be paraphrased that way it is condemning those who say it.  Here, Isaiah tells us that God had called those to whom he was speaking to weep and mourn, to show remorse for their sins.  With that thought I went back over what came before.  Isaiah wrote that the leaders had fled, or surrendered without resistance.  How close this seems to reflect the cities where rioters and looters are allowed to run wild with no interference from those who sought out the job of maintaining order in those cities.  However, it is worth noting that Isaiah also condemns those who “stood in the breach”, who attempted to restore order with weapons and fortifications.  Isaiah condemns them because they do not consult the One who planned all of this long ago and set it in motion now.

In the face of what is happening let us ask the One who rules all for help.  Instead of feasting and drinking, let us fast and pray to God, repenting of our sins.  Our lives have been turned upside down, but instead of turning to God, we seek to return to our lives as they were.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 17-21.

Today’s passage begins with a prophecy against both Damascus and Israel (the Northern Kingdom), but which focuses mostly on Israel.  To a large degree this prophecy can be applied to many times in history.  Isaiah prophesies that the land will be devastated and only a few people will remain.  Only then will those who remain recognize their sin and turn to God.  Then they will give up their idol worship and seek to follow God’s commands.  To me this is especially relevant to this year.  People ask, “Why is 2020 so bad?” and the answer Isaiah gives here certainly applies.  The answer is because we have turned from God who can save us, we have forgotten the Rock who can hide us.  Things seemed to be going so well and then disaster struck.  That is what happens when people turn from God.  The scary part to me is that people do not yet seem to be turning to God.  They appear to still be relying on their idols (in this case, the government) to save them.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 13-16.

Isaiah prophesied about the fall of Babylon at a time when Babylon was not yet the major world  power, Assyria was still the dominant world power.  Yet, in today’s passage the prophecy regarding the fall of Assyria is secondary.  This suggests to me that the prophesy against Babylon was intended as a more general prophecy against the powerful than most other Old Testament prophecies. I see this prophecy as a warning against those who believe that because they have the power to do whatever they wish, whatever they wish to do is the right thing to do; a warning to those who believe that the fact that they are mighty indicates that they are righteous.  When the wealthy and powerful begin to believe that everything they desire to do is righteous, God will not wait long before He brings judgement upon them.  The prophesies against Philistia and Moab remind us that people need not be among the wealthiest and most powerful in order to fall to the idea that getting what you want justifies mistreating others.  God will, in His time, hold accountable those whom no one else will.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 9-12.

There are three messages for distributed throughout today’s passage.  One of them a warning of judgement against a sinful people who think that they are serving God and righteousness.  One of them a promise that God will send a Messiah, a Savior.  And one a warning against those whom God uses to punish the wicked.

Isaiah warns those leaders who lead the people to destruction through hypocrisy.  They are assisted in their task by religious leaders who lie and misuse God’s word.  These are the leaders who are busy working people up over a splinter while ignoring a gaping wound.  Closely related to that is God’s warning to Assyria, and other powers throughout history, whom He used to punish His people for their sin.  The Assyrians came to believe that their power was due to some innate superiority which they possessed, rather than a result of God seeking a tool to discipline His people.  Throughout history, nations and individuals have come to believe that they have more power than God.  They see the success they have had and believe they can do what they please to the weak and the powerless.  They believe they will never be held accountable.  Isaiah reminds us that they are mistaken.

Finally, and in a way related to the previous two points, Isaiah promises that a light will shine in the darkness.  Through Isaiah, God promised to raise up a leader who would show the way for people to worship Him.  A leader who will transform the world so that predators will prey on the weak no longer.  In chapter 9 verses 2 through 7, and then again in chapter 11, we see what God’s Messiah will be like.  We get an idea of what the followers of Jesus should act like.  Let us call all people from every nation to rally to the banner which Jesus holds up.  Let us unite in calling all people to abandon behaviors which harm both themselves and others while admitting that we ourselves have been guilty of such behaviors in the past.