Isaiah
09/23/2011 07:51
No more appropriate is the warning not to miss the forest for the trees than it is for the book of Isaiah. We travel through it as we may in Europe, not so much intent on finishing the trip at a destination, as we are on enjoying the sights, sounds, and scenes along the way. It is not...
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09/30/2011 11:37
While sectional divides are debated for the book of Isaiah, few will argue against classifying the first five chapters as a sort of general summary preface of Isaiah’s message. Those first five books are what we will examine first, and from them acquaint ourselves with the prophetic...
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10/07/2011 08:15
I call verses 4 through 9 of chapter 1 God’s lament. In verse 4, we see God as he grieves. He begins calling out “Oh sinful nation.” In that “Oh” we find a Father brokenhearted over the waywardness of his children. The Hebrew is an elongated expression of two words combining...
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10/15/2011 10:31
The fourth section of Isaiah 1 is contained in verses 16 through 20. These verses speak to the call of Judah. Here God calls his people not only to dutiful obedience, but to a reasoned choice of faith. The outline or structure of development in chapter 1 so far has not been haphazard. It...
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10/21/2011 10:29
Isaiah 2 begins with a superscription similar to the one starting off chapter 1. This structural detail serves a couple of purposes. First, it lets us know that chapter 1 is done. Chapter 1 stands alone as a separate section that actually provides an overview to the whole book. It...
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10/29/2011 09:42
Isaiah 3 begins with a call to the people to “Observe!” The Lord God of Hosts (read that, Sovereign Master) grabs their attention so that they will focus on his words. He is turning now from the general descriptions of the previous chapter to specifics. The support structure of their...
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11/04/2011 08:40
Isaiah 5 begins with an allegory of a vineyard. The allegory is not that difficult to understand. But it is usually true that with fairly straightforward allegories, we often miss some of the nuanced fullness. Biblical interpretation certainly goes beyond a surface level read....
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11/11/2011 07:21
With the end of the preface (Isaiah 1-5), we begin the book proper. However, we should not forget the message of the preface because it will come into play even before Isaiah’s call is begun. I see the book as divided into four major sections. The preface, of course, was the first. The...
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11/18/2011 09:04
Chapter 7 begins telling us that Ahaz is on the throne. We have just left Isaiah’s call in chapter 6 that began with Uzziah’s death. However, 16 years transpire between Uzziah’s death, when his son Jotham ascends the throne, and Jotham’s death, when Ahaz begins his reign. The time lapse...
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01/21/2012 10:24
We don’t know how long it is after chapter 7’s prophecy that the Lord instructs Isaiah in 8:1 to write a name on a parchment. But it can’t be long. The activity and statements of the first few verses of chapter 8 is similar to the beginning of the Immanuel prophecy in 7:14-16. Isaiah is...
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02/03/2012 06:48
To understand Isaiah well, we must keep the flow of the book in mind. After the preface of the first five chapters, the book begins with God calling Isaiah to prophesy in chapter 6. In chapter 7 Isaiah begins his prophecy first with his son Shearjashub who’s name means “a remnant will...
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02/10/2012 13:26
Following the Messiah discussion of the first 7 verses of chapter 9, God and Isaiah present four strophes explaining why Israel deserves judgment. The first of these, from verse 8 to 12, highlights self-reliance—the trust Israel placed in itself apart from God. Verse 8 tells us that the...
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02/24/2012 08:39
From the middle of Isaiah 10 until the end of the section (through Isaiah 12), we see God’s care specifically for his remnant—the heaven-dwellers, those of faith. Verses 20 through 23 provide the prophecy of the remnant’s return. This is an interesting introductory phrase for this whole...
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03/02/2012 10:48
Isaiah 6 through 12 presented an interesting contrast between faith and works. We noticed that God faulted those of Judah as well as Ephraim and Assyria for their works of unrighteousness. As God, then, extends blessing to the remnant, you would think that they are people who exhibited...
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03/19/2012 07:56
Even a quick read through Isaiah won’t shake the impression that the thirteenth chapter begins a new section. Chapters 11 and 12 gave such a dramatic description of the Messiah’s gift of peace and joy to the remnant that renewing the other of Isaiah’s twin themes of judgment and hope...
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03/30/2012 10:43
The major outline of Isaiah so far to our current position—beginning chapter 13—is as follows:
I. Isaiah 1-5 – INTROCDUCTION TO BOOK
II. Isaiah 6-12 – REMNANT PROMISE
III. Isaiah 13-39 – REMNANT PROVIDENCE
A. Isaiah 13-24 – Nations...
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04/06/2012 12:13
The introduction (Is 13-14:23) to the judgment section (Is 13-24) ends with verses 3-23 of chapter 14. In this passage we look at Babylon’s king from the perspective of the rescued at rest. In this introduction, Babylon is mentioned because of the specific arrogance displayed by this...
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04/13/2012 10:29
The judgment of Moab covers two chapters—a much longer treatment than that given to Assyria and Philistia. With the greater coverage we learn additional aspects about the judgment of God. Chapter 15 begins by emphasizing the extent of Moab’s judgment. The city Ar, mentioned in verse 1,...
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04/27/2012 07:07
In Isaiah 17:12, the prophecy of judgment begins to reach beyond the nations that were part of the direct interaction with Judah covered so far in regard to Assyria’s attack. The binding of this expanded circle to the judgment story is not so much the nation of Judah as previously, but...
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05/04/2012 07:43
In chapter 21, the oracle against Babylon, we read in verses 6 through 9 of a watchman ordered to look for horses and riders. This is more of a lookout than a watchman, specifically tasked with looking for riders with news from Babylon. In Isaiah’s emphasis on paying close attention, he...
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05/16/2012 10:59
The oracle against Jerusalem includes an extra warning beyond the oracles against the other nations. In verses 15 through 25, Isaiah concentrates on the activity of the leaders. Verses 15 through 19 help us understand that Shebna, the court secretary (2 Kings 18:18) was particularly...
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