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.

Isaiah speaks of the day when the Messiah will rule.  As he tells us of that day we learn some things about today which we should seek to change.  In Christ’s Kingdom, ungodly fools are not heroes and scoundrels are not respected.    So, as I look at the world around me I see many ungodly fools who are held up as heroes and see scoundrels being spoken of with respect.  It would be one thing if those doing this were unaware that those they speak words of respect were scoundrels, but the fact of the matter is that they often admire these scoundrels because they are scoundrels.  They speak highly of people they know have lied to convict the poor, even though the cause of those thus convicted was just.  As a servant of Christ I will seek to never hold up a scoundrel as worthy of respect, except perhaps when he abandons being a scoundrel.

Isaiah goes on to speak about the fall of Assyria and its causes.  As is so often the case, Isaiah’s message is for and about more than just the Assyrians.  He transitions into a message for all nations.  Assyria fell and was completely destroyed because the Assyrians did not keep the treaties they made and broke their promises as soon as it was convenient.  Their wealth and power did not come from the productivity of their people.  They took from those more productive than themselves and left rubble in their wake.  Eventually, their destructive behavior meant that they could no longer obtain sufficient wealth to continue to maintain their empire.  Those who profited from helping the Assyrians extract wealth from those around them were terrified by the upending of the economic system they had come to rely on.  They saw the disruption to their lifestyle and were convinced that none could withstand the destruction.  Isaiah reminds us that those who deal fairly with others can easily survive when the economy collapses.  Do not rely on taking advantage of political connections and defrauding those without them for your living and you will be prepared to weather the economic storms which come.