Monday Night Bible Study

This chapter is rich with meaning. Although it may not seem it at first read, God tells us many things about Himself in these 28 verses. We learn more about His love for, and restoration of Israel. We also learn more details about what God thinks of idols, how man figures into the idol equation and how God is the beginning and the end of it all. This is a truly wonderful chapter!

Verses 1-8:

In verses 1-5, God tells His chosen people that He will bless them and their offspring. He has created the nation and He knows them better than they know themselves. Because of these coming blessings, the people will grow and prosper. At the time of the fruition of the blessings, they will be proud to be known as God’s people: “One will say, ‘I am the LORD’s’; Another will call himself by the name of Jacob; Another will write with his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’ And name himself by the name of Israel.” Isaiah 44:5

This is a hopeful and happy return to form where God has forgiven the iniquity of the nation as a whole and will replenish the blessings that will return them to a flourishing state.

In verses 6-8, God reminds the people of who He is and what He can do. His descriptions of Himself to Israel are as follows:

– Redeemer: He will bring Israel back to Him

– First and the Last: all life starts and ends with Him

– Proclaimer and Appointer: He makes us aware of what is to come

– The only God: He is the only one, described here as a Rock

Why does God liken himself unto a rock? What is it about God that is rock-like? A rock is steady and strong. Particularly large and strong rocks are heavy, unbreakable and immoveable. People can use rocks to shelter themselves from the elements. A rock just is. You cannot argue with it or make it do what you want it to do. The qualities of strength, immoveability, protection and permanence are those that God is communicating when he says there is no other “Rock” besides Him: “For who is God, except the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God?” Psalms 18:31

Israel and us will do well to remember these facts from God about God.

Verses 9-20:

God, speaking through Isaiah, makes some very interesting points about the nature of idols. We learn what should have been obvious things, but these things were not obvious to us until this reading. One cannot dispute the following truths about idols. Taken from this passage, here is a list of eye-openers concerning idols:

1. Those that make idols are useless

2. Idols should be ashamed, but cannot be because they neither see nor know

3. Men that create “divine” idols are mere men; something common cannot create something divine

4. Creators of idols shall be ashamed together

5. If a man were actually making something divine, would the divine god being formed not relieve the maker of his hunger and thirst?

6. If an idol is its own divine being, why is it fashioned in the image of man, whom God made?

7. If an Idol is its own divine being, why is it fashioned using the same material that men use to warm themselves and bake bread?

Point number 7 is especially strong. How foolish is it for a man to worship something that is used to serve him?

“And no one considers in his heart, Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire, Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals; I have roasted meat and eaten it; And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?” He feeds on ashes; A deceived heart has turned him aside; And he cannot deliver his soul, Nor say, “ Is there not a lie in my right hand?”” Isaiah 44:19-20

Consider for a moment if there are any items, concepts or treasures in your life that you “worship.” Before saying no, consider it as a matter of priority. Is there anything in your life that is more important to you than God? If you could answer yes to that question in any sense, I urge you to examine why. I would also urge you not to be discouraged and turn away from the idea that God is not first in your life: serving Him is a lifelong endeavor. It requires patience, work, correction and effort.

Verses 21-28:

These verses contain an amalgam of concepts we have covered before in Isaiah: Israel is God’s servant. God will remember, forgive and call them back to Him. God also recognizes that the earth will have joy in the way that God has redeemed His people.

God says that He has formed His people the Israelites: “He who formed you from the womb.” In total, God says he formed His people three times in this chapter: verses 2, 21, and 24. It is worthwhile to compare the descriptions of man forming idols with God’s three mentions that He forms man. Man, formed by God, uselessly creates a worthless idol. The idol can do nothing and man is not glorified by his creation. God, on the other hand, forms man, who, when faithful, glorifies God through honor and obedience. Through this contrast, God is comparing himself and man. Man foolishly makes something that can do nothing. God makes something that loves and glorifies Him: “Who would form a god or mold an image That profits him nothing?” Isaiah 44:10 This contrast is another subtle argument to add to the long and incriminating list of reasons that idols are worthless.

In the final verses of this chapter, God lists characteristics of Himself before describing the restoration of Israel.

In addition to forming man in the womb, He:

1. Makes all things

2. Spreads out the heavens

3. Spreads abroad the earth

4. Frustrates signs of the babblers: God impedes those that use signs or many words to find truth

5. Drives diviners mad: God prevents those that would attempt to tell the future

6. Turns wise men backward: God reveals earthly wisdom as fallible

7. Performs the counsel of His messengers: God keeps the promises He makes via prophets, etc.

Finally in verses 26-28, God finalizes His message by mentioning Cyrus, the king who will ultimately be the instrument that will bring the remnant back. Cyrus was referenced in previous chapters in Isaiah. Here, he is mentioned in connection with how God orchestrates the return of His people. God is the One that will send Cyrus and God is the One that will have Cyrus rebuild Jerusalem and the temple.

In conclusion, this chapter has a lot to offer. It will give more and more with deeper and repeated readings. The main idea is that we, as children of God, are duty-bound to honor and obey Him. There is no other Rock; all else is flimsy and frail.

In this accessible chapter, God straightforwardly tells Israel who He is, that He will save them, and also describes how they have failed to honor Him.

Verses 1-7:

The admonition in the first verse of chapter 43 builds on assurances that God gave Israel in chapter 41. In verse 10 of chapter 41, God says, “Fear not, for I am with you.” In verse 13 of the same chapter, He says, “Fear not, I will help you.” Here in chapter 43:10, God matures the idea to “Fear not, for I have redeemed you.” God also proclaims His love for the people by saying, “I have called you by your name; you are mine.”

Verse two, in addition to having assurances of protection to God’s people, also incorporates dangers that God has protected His people from in the past: water and fire. The Israelites passed through the Red Sea to escape the Egyptians in Exodus 14 and the Jordan River in Joshua 3. God also saves Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego from an extremely hot furnace in Daniel 3. At this point, these dangers can also be interpreted figuratively as the consequences of sin.

In verses 3-7, God tells the Israelites that He is their God and that they are precious to Him. God forsakes other nations for Israel and also will add to Israel from the east, west, north and south. Bringing all of His people back together reminds us of Deuteronomy 30:1-6.

In Deuteronomy 30:1-6, God’s revelation of the Old Law had just been made to the people through Moses and He renewed the covenant with them in chapter 29. Reading this passage from Deuteronomy, we can see how God is remembering and reiterating His promise to them in Isaiah 43. Deuteronomy 30:1-6:

“Now it shall come to pass, when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God drives you, and you return to the LORD your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, that the LORD your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the LORD your God has scattered you. If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you. Then the LORD your God will bring you to the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers. And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.”

The interesting part about linking verses 3-7 of Isaiah 43 with Deuteronomy 30:1-6 is the mention that God would circumcise hearts. Because one of the ways that God will bring Israel back and ultimately all mankind to Him is by healing man’s sinful nature by forgiving sin.

Many of us know that in the Old Testament, God’s people were different from others in that their males were circumcised. Well, ultimately when Christ came, such provisions of the old law were done away with and the new law Incorporated spiritual components over physical. This reference, “God will circumcise your heart,” is a precursor to spiritual motifs in the New Testament where obeying God in spirit is stressed over obeying God with physical actions. Take this passage from II Corinthians, which explains it well:

“clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. And we have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” II Corinthians 3:3-6

God is communicating to His people in Isaiah (and to us as readers in the present day) that He has a plan to make all of His people return to Him, and the it will be done in a new way.

Verses 8-15:

In these verses, God establishes that it is His way to salvation: it is His message and His alone to reveal. The many repeated reminders that He is God suggest to us that the people (and us!) need to be reminded that God alone is over all. God is Creator and King. He is the only one that is able to save us and He will choose the time and method to do so. For us, the time has passed; the method is Jesus Christ: “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”” John 14:6

Verses 16-21:

Through Isaiah, God has mentioned a way, a path, a highway and it has typically been in reference to two separate but related ideas:

1. God will save the faithful remnant of Israel by providing them a way of escape to safety from their enemies. This will preserve the lineage of the Savior Jesus.

2. God will save mankind from their sins through Jesus Christ.

This passage can be interpreted using these same two ideas. God will save the Israelites, and the “new thing” in verse 19 is salvation through Christ, through whom all can be saved. A “road in the wilderness” and “rivers in the desert” are ideas that suggest new and unexpected passages in previously difficult terrain. This description works perfectly because Christ is an unexpected escape from the previously inescapable inevitability of sin.

What of the mention of jackals and ostriches in verse 20? We know that an ostrich is specifically mentioned as unclean (Leviticus 11:16) and that a jackal is an animal that was unclean as well and was derided in the Word of God (Job 30:29). If these animals are not desirable animals, why is God saying that they will honor Him?

Well, we know from other passages that, along with the people, animals suffered as the result of God’s punishment to the people as well:

“And the wild donkeys stood in the desolate heights; They sniffed at the wind like jackals; Their eyes failed because there was no grass.”” Jeremiah 14:6

“Therefore the land will mourn; And everyone who dwells there will waste away With the beasts of the field And the birds of the air; Even the fish of the sea will be taken away.” Hosea 4:3

“How the animals groan! The herds of cattle are restless, Because they have no pasture; Even the flocks of sheep suffer punishment.” Joel 1:18

But here in verse 20, God tells us that even the unclean animals will be blessed and rejoice. The unclean animals represent the gentiles, that is, all of the other people that were not Israelites. Although God saw them as unclean and unworthy to know Him during the Old Covenant, they would have access to God through Jesus. This is why even “the beast of the field” will honor God.

Verses 22-28:

Here at the end of the chapter however, God comes back to lament the fact that Israel has not honored Him despite all He has done for them. God reveals that He could have required more of them but He did not. Even still, Israel has grown tired of Him. God points out as counterpoint that He has grown tired of Israel because of their sin.

By way of conclusion, God says He blots out sins for His sake and that they (and we!) should remember Him because of this. But the great fear of retribution for sin still exists: “Your first father sinned, And your mediators have transgressed against Me. Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary; I will give Jacob to the curse, And Israel to reproaches.” Isaiah 43:28

God’s offer of salvation is free for all, but if we do not take it, we will be lost in our sins for eternity.

Transitioning from the rebuke of idols in the last section of chapter 41, chapter 42 begins with a prophetic description of Jesus Christ. The first nine verses of chapter 42 are a description of, and an address to the Son of God.

By reading verses 1-9, we can easily see how much God loves His Son and that the hope and trust God has in Jesus is unwavering. The phrase, “He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street,” could mean that Christ will not cry out in distress. This idea of the Savior being in distress is new in the chronology of the chapters of Isaiah. We have read many prophecies of His coming and that He would redeem the lost to God, but this is the first we have heard that the Savior would be in distress or that He may even be rejected. This same idea is explained in greater detail in Isaiah 49:4: “Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain; Yet surely my just reward is with the LORD, And my work with my God.’ ”

Another interpretation of the phrase “He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street,” could be that Christ would not be a rabble-rouser in the streets but rather would call His followers to Him through humility and humble acts.

Verse 3 explained is also quite interesting: “A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.” This verse means that He will not be a burden to the poor (symbolized by a bruised reed) and that those who have almost lost their faith in God (smoking flax) will not ultimately lose their faith but will have it renewed.

Verses 5, 8 and 9 affirm God’s status. But in between these verses, we have verses 6-7 which are endearingly addressed from God directly to Jesus and show us God’s compassion, care and love for His Son: “I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles, To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the prison, Those who sit in darkness from the prison house.” We also get an idea of how God will save the faithful. In these verses, blindness is ignorance of God’s will and the prison is sin.

Verses 10-13 are praise to God, not only because of how great He is but also because of how He will save the world. There is no question that God will vanquish His enemies, both physical (sinning nations/nations warring against Israel) and spiritual (sin and Satan).

Verses 14-20 contain God’s assurances that He will punish the misdeeds as well as save the faithful remnant. Verses 16 echoes verse 7 with the idea of providing sight and knowledge to the blind. Making “crooked places straight” refers to increasing the righteousness of the faithful through the new covenant with Jesus Christ. The final three verses of this section are a direct address to Israel. Notice that God refers to Israel as “My servant.” Recall how God referred to Jesus the coming savior as “My Servant” in verse 1?

We should understand that God is referring to both Jesus and Israel as His servants in this chapter because they both are His servants. Jesus, of course as the perfect Servant, is described in flawless terms in verse 4: “He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands shall wait for His law.” Compare this with how God’s servant Israel is described in verse 20: “Seeing many things, but you do not observe; Opening the ears, but he does not hear.” Israel very often was told and reminded of God’s will for them, and they, as a nation, ignored or disregarded God’s Word as known either through the old law or through the mouths of prophets. Even when Christ did come, many Jews, as well as the Jewish leadership, remained blind and deaf to Christ’s teachings. Israel was God’s imperfect servant.

Verses 21-25 reveal the loving kindness that God has towards His chosen people the Israelites as well as the rest of humanity. This passage is written in a way that makes certain God’s wrath at sin. The language of verse 22 references sin as a prison again and Israel is lamented as a people who will not listen and whom God has given up to other nations to be plundered. Let us look at the final two verses: “Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers? Was it not the LORD, He against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in His ways, Nor were they obedient to His law. Therefore He has poured on him the fury of His anger And the strength of battle; It has set him on fire all around,” Let’s pause here and recognize God’s fury and wrath at sin. It has built up and been poured out onto Israel. Yet, God’s love for His creation is strong, such that He still has left room to make us a way to escape through salvation in Jesus: “Yet he did not know; And it burned him, Yet he did not take it to heart.”

Letting the tone at the end of this chapter sink in, we quickly realize that Israel should be surprised at God’s punishment of them only if they have not been listening. If they had listened to the prophets’ warnings and followed the commandments He gave from the first, there would be no punishment because there would have been no trespass. They were made aware of the cause and effect of sin and punishment and would only be surprised at the punishment if they had ignored God’s commandments and instruction.

However, for those that knew and trusted God, that faithful remnant, they had obeyed God’s Word all along and had only to wait on Him to deliver them. Sound familiar? It should.

If we study and obey God’s Word, we too will be like the holy remnant. We need only to rest in God’s shelter, using our faith to see us through our troubles.

When we know what God expects of us, we should not be surprised if we experience consequences for disobedience:

“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.” Colossians 3:1-7

If you are a baptized believer in Christ, it is upon you to follow Him. As those that have been cleansed of our sins in the waters of baptism, we need to take it upon ourselves to learn, study and know God’s will for us. In this we may assure our salvation and save ourselves from the flood of regret and despair that inevitably follows sin.

Verses 1-7: God’s message to the nations

In these verses, God directly addresses the nations, and challenges them, for God knows that He would win in any contest. God then brings up Cyrus, a king that He will bring forth from the East in approximately 150 years. Cyrus will ultimately help to deliver Israel, and God is taking all the credit for this occurrence in the distant future.

Let’s take a moment to recognize that some of this content can be difficult to ingest. When God speaks through a major prophet such as Isaiah, His proclamations span large chunks of time and geography. When boiled down, verses 1-5 of this chapter are explaining God’s providence and blessing to Israel, to save them.

Verses 6 and 7 mock the idol-fashioning process. How futile are the hands of man that pursue the worthless endeavor! Despite their confidence and happiness in putting hard work into making idols, the entire effort is a waste of time.

Verses 8-20: God will punish Israel’s enemies and will bless Israel with the necessities of life

God bestows Israel with the name “My servant,” which is a great honor. As He says in verses 9 and 10: “You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its farthest regions, And said to you, ‘You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”

You can sense the love and tender care from God to His people in these verses. As the passage continues, we see that God will not allow other nations to prevail against Israel and will instead shame and disgrace them.

Also note the entire purpose of God blessing His people in this way in verse 20: “That they may see and know, And consider and understand together, That the hand of the Lord has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.”

Verses 14-20 are interesting because they are addressed to exiled Israel, whose state is so sad that it is compared to a worm. Despite their sad state, God describes how He will care for them through the surrounding natural resources. All of these proclamations and blessings come from God and speaking through Isaiah, God wants to ensure that everyone is aware of the source of these blessings:

“That they may see and know, And consider and understand together, That the hand of the LORD has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.” Isaiah 41:20

Verses 21-29: Idols are futile

This last section takes no prisoners. God openly challenges the Idols and false gods to show proof of their divinity. Of course they cannot.

There is another reference to Cyrus in verse 25, for he will release the exiled Israelites. God also asks rhetorical questions in verse 26 to drive the point home that He is the only sovereign, He is the only true God capable of showing, declaring and hearing the people.

There is no source of truth except God. There is no other man or molded image that can provide. Consider this verse addressed specifically to the idols:

“Indeed you are nothing, And your work is nothing; He who chooses you is an abomination.” Isaiah 41:24

These idols are inanimate objects. They cannot answer or declare or do anything except create sin in the lives of those that trust them:

“Indeed they are all worthless; Their works are nothing; Their molded images are wind and confusion.” Isaiah 41:29

Today, I would ask and challenge you: is there anything in your life that you hope in more than God? A material thing? An idea or ideal? A political party or set of core beliefs?

Although we do not regularly see idol worship in America, it still exists in the world. But despite their fact that none of us worship an idol made of clay or stone, I still wonder if there is anything in my life that takes the place of an idol, and gets between God and me in the exact same fashion.

This chapter marks another topic change for Isaiah. The remainder of the book will be concentrated on the glory of God’s rescue of man. This rescue will come in the form of Jesus Christ. The grace and mercy will be described in many ways. The themes of rescue are twofold here because Jerusalem will be rescued from their sins (through Jesus), and all mankind will be saved from sin (also through Jesus).

Verses 1-5: God is talking directly to His people through Isaiah. He is coming to the people, to save them. The symbolism of making a way in the desert and of there being a highway for God suggests God in the flesh walking among us as Jesus.

Verses 6-11: The temporary nature of man is described here, and coupled with the admonition to the people to look to God. Because we are “grass,” it is best to trust in Him because our time alive on earth is ultimately very short. Verse 8: “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”

The Word of God is to be our hope. We should take strength from Him and from His promises, for they exceed anything His creation or the corruption of the world has to offer.

Verses 12-31: All who doubt the magnificence of Almighty God need only read these verses. A series of rhetorical questions is asked. The answers to most of these questions is either “God” or “no one” depending on the question(s).

For instance, the following questions can be answered with “God:” “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, Measured heaven with a span And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales And the hills in a balance?”

These are quantities that are impossible for people to determine. Yet God knows because He created these things and because He is God.

And these questions can be answered with “no one:” “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has taught Him? With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, And taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, And showed Him the way of understanding?”

There is not one that is above Him; there is only our great God in heaven.

This passage is designed to elucidate the great power, wonder, majesty, incomparability and total control that God wields. As we live by faith, it can be easy to forget these grand ideals as part of our small world. Nevertheless, God is absolute in His power, His reach, and God ability to affect us and our world. Being reminded of this is good for us, just as it was good for the people of God that heard His word through Isaiah. With the influence of other ungodly nations and their corrupt idol worshipping, they needed to be reminded. We too need to be reminded of God’s ownership and place in our world. He is everything and He has everything; where else would the wise individual place their trust?

It is foolish to place it anywhere else than in God Almighty:

“But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31

In this brief chapter, Hezekiah receives letters and a present from Merodach-Baladan the king of Babylon. The letters were congratulating him on his return to health. Hezekiah shows the envoy from Babylon all of his great material treasures. Isaiah then comes to Hezekiah to ask questions: What did they say? Where did they come from? What did they see in your house?

As a prophet of God, Isaiah is asking these questions as a prelude to the prophecy that all of these great possessions would be carried off to Babylon in the future and that Hezekiah’s lineage “shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

A great lesson to learn from this chapter is that of our tendency to so quickly forget and take for granted God’s blessings. Hezekiah had just been blessed with fifteen more years of life after a grave illness and this episode directly following his return to health is marked by Hezekiah’s reveling in his life of material blessings. Without a doubt, Hezekiah recognizes God’s place in his health and wealth, but he takes too much credit for himself.

Hezekiah does not answer Isaiah’s first question of what these men said but his answer to the second question of where they came from, he says, “They came to me from a far country, from Babylon.” Hezekiah says pointedly that they came specifically to HIM from Babylon.

This may seem like a subtle and harmless remark by Hezekiah but think about the circumstances. He was just blessed with a longer life and he has so many material treasures (silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, his armory). The pure heart would be humble, giving credit to God rather than taking it for itself. Hezekiah did recognize that the Word of God is good, but even in his final words of the chapter, he reveals a heart marked by selfishness: “So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the LORD which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”” Isaiah 39:8

One would think that Hezekiah would be heartbroken that his descendants will be made eunuchs in the Babylonian palace, but he is only glad that peace and truth will remain in his time. Through Isaiah, God seems to have been trying to show Hezekiah that all of these things in which he was taking great pleasure were ultimately meaningless: “‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the LORD.”

Hezekiah missed the point. Did you?

Hezekiah is nearing the end of his life in this chapter. Having served as a righteous king before God, he appeals to God to remember him, and he is blessed.

Verses 1-8: In these verses we have the account of Hezekiah’s life being extended. The Word of the Lord came through the prophet Isaiah to be delivered to Hezekiah. Isaiah tells Hezekiah that he should set his affairs in order because his life will end soon. Hezekiah is very saddened to hear this and so he prays to God to remember him. He does not ask specifically for his time on earth to be extended, but he only prays: “Remember now, O LORD, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.”

God then speaks through Isaiah once more to Hezekiah and adds fifteen years to his life and also affirms that Jerusalem would continue to be protected from the king of Assyria. As a sign that God would be faithful in these things, the following miracle is performed: “”Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.”

Verses 9-22: After Hezekiah realizes that he has recovered to live longer, his heart is very glad and he wants to express thanksgiving to God for this reprieve. However, fear and regret are also mixed with his gratitude. In the hours when he was close to death he realized how fragile his life was and always had been:

“I said, “I shall not see YAH, The LORD in the land of the living; I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world. My life span is gone, Taken from me like a shepherd’s tent; I have cut off my life like a weaver. He cuts me off from the loom; From day until night You make an end of me. I have considered until morning— Like a lion, So He breaks all my bones; From day until night You make an end of me.” Isaiah 38:11-13

Hezekiah finally knew God’s power over the living, and his heart rejoiced when he knew that God had given him more time. Hezekiah gained wisdom and self-knowledge from this experience, realizing that his true purpose was not for himself, but to serve the Lord:

“Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back….The living, the living man, he shall praise You, As I do this day; The father shall make known Your truth to the children. “The LORD was ready to save me; Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments All the days of our life, in the house of the LORD.”” Isaiah 38:17, 19-20

Before we review chapter 37, it should be mentioned that chapters 36 and 37 of Isaiah are nearly identical to chapters 18 & 19 of II Kings. According to Hailey’s commentary on Isaiah, the evidence is strong that these chapters were authored by Isaiah rather than the compiler of Kings.

Last chapter we dealt with the weakness of God’s people in the face of earthly strength. Now let’s have a look at how the events unfold after Sennacherib’s threat through the Rabshakeh.

This lengthy chapter is divided into four parts:

1. Verses 1-7: Hezekiah turns to Isaiah

2. Verses 8-20: Hezekiah’s faith

3. Verses 21-35: God’s scathing words of dominance through Isaiah

4. Verses 36-38: 185,000 dead soldiers and Sennacherib’s death

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1. Verses 1-7: Hezekiah turns to Isaiah

In this passage, we see Hezekiah’s great fear at the Rabshakeh’s words from Sennacherib. Hezekiah is turning to Isaiah because he wants Isaiah to pray that God will rebuke Sennacherib for his blasphemous words. From chapter 36, we will remember how Sennacherib had said through the Rabshakeh that Hezekiah’s God could not save them.

Hezekiah is righteous to turn to Isaiah to pray that God would deliver the righteous remnant from this dangerous threat. Hezekiah has fear of defeat, yet He still believes that God has the power to save His people from Sennacherib. Indeed, Isaiah’s encouragement to Hezekiah is strong as he says the following of Sennacherib in verse 7: “Surely I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.”

2. Verses 8-20: Hezekiah’s faith

When the Rabshakeh returns to Sennacherib, Sennacherib is already fighting against a nation called Libnah. Sennacherib then hears that Tirhakah, King of Ethiopia is seeking to make war with him as well. Not wanting to wage war on yet another front, Sennacherib instead sends messengers to Hezekiah with more threats and proud boasting.

Instead attacking Jerusalem, Sennacherib is trying to get God’s people to surrender without any fighting taking place. Sennacherib’s relenting to attack at the news Tirhakah attacking him could very well be the effect of the spirit and rumor that Isaiah spoke of in verse 7.

Starting in verse 14, we have Hezekiah’s prayer to the Lord to deliver them. It is an encouraging prayer because we can see that Hezekiah:

– Has great reverence for God and belief in His power

– Knows that the idols in the land are not gods, but are wood and stone, the work of men’s hands

– Has faith that God can save them from Sennacherib, despite Sennacherib’s dominance of the surrounding nations

3. Verses 21-35: God’s scathing words of dominance through Isaiah

After Hezekiah’s prayer, Isaiah relays the Word of the Lord to Hezekiah. In this passage, we see God’s endearing love for and protection of His people. We also see God reminding Sennacherib that He is indeed God and that His power was at work long before Sennacherib.

Mocking Sennacherib’s boasts, God tells him that He formed the very land Sennacherib is boasting about defeating. Verses 26 & 27 show that Sennacherib’s power is not even Sennacherib’s power, but that it is all at the direction of Almighty God. Sennacherib does not even comprehend the breadth of God’s dominance over him, such is His ignorance, faith in himself and lack of belief.

God further shows His dominance over Sennacherib by likening him to a bull or donkey that He can easily control. Sennacherib never really even has a chance at success against God’s people.

God then assuages Hezekiah’s fear with the assurance that the city of Jerusalem will be protected and that Sennacherib will go back the way he came. God would not tolerate this blasphemy from Sennacherib and saved Jerusalem “…For My own sake and for My servant David’s sake.”

4. Verses 36-38: 185,000 dead soldiers and Sennacherib’s death

If there was any question whose power is at rule, these verses settle it. The scripture says that “…the angel of the LORD went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead.”

We are not given any other details about the manner of death; only that it happened supernaturally and during the night. The effect was devastating enough to send Sennacherib back home to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. While he is worshipping his idol there, his son’s come in and kill him with the sword, taking advantage of him at this weak point. The foretelling that Sennacherib would die by the sword in his own land from verse 7 came true. Truly a sad ending to the blasphemer Sennacherib.

A great blesson to learn from this chapter is found in the contrast evident in the two sides: Hezekiah in Jerusalem prayed to God for deliverance and his pure faith rested only in God. Contrarily, Sennacherib boasted in his earthly power, which we know from verse 26 he only had because God gave it to him. Also consider the two places of worship. When Hezekiah prayed to God in the house of the Lord, God heard his prayer and delivered then from Sennacherib’s threats, sustaining life for His people. When Sennacherib prayed to his idol Nisroch, he was murdered there by his own sons.

There are so many reasons and examples of how and why God is God in the Bible. I urge you to take encouragement from this story of Hezekiah and Sennacherib to go to God in times of trouble in your own life. If we are faithful, patient and believe that God can save us, it will all be done according to His righteous will and power.

Praise God!

While reading Isaiah, we have known many references to Assyria. It is a nation that seeks to conquer other nations. Assyria’s kings, administrators and citizens do not take the power of the Almighty God seriously. However, we also know that Assyria is a nation that will experience the wrath of God and will ultimately be defeated. The next few chapters in Isaiah recount specific history instead of making the broad mention of these themes that we have typically read in Isaiah. Those of us that enjoy history will enjoy these next few chapters.

The two main themes of this chapter are:

1. Faith in worldly power over the power of God

2. Lack of faith in God’s ability to save

Sennacherib sends his Rabshakeh (a title akin to governor) to Jerusalem and King Hezekiah to mock them for trusting in things that will not save them. The Rabshakeh delivers this message with a great army to Eliakim, Shebna and Joah.

Sennacherib sought to defeat other nations and he and the nation of Assyria truly believed that theirs was the greatest power and that no gods could save other nations if Assyria wanted to take them over: “Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Indeed, have they delivered Samaria from my hand? Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?” Isaiah 36:19-20

In addition to the disbelief that God can save Judah (God’s people), Sennacherib, like God, recognizes the foolishness in trusting in Egypt. God had told them how foolish it was to trust in Egypt and now the godless King of Assyria is telling them as well. It must have been obvious to everyone except God’s people. The lesson in this detail is to retain faith despite strong inclinations we might have to believe otherwise. We need to have faith that God can save us despite our doubts: “For I will surely deliver you, and you shall not fall by the sword; but your life shall be as a prize to you, because you have put your trust in Me,” says the LORD.’ ”” Jeremiah 39:18

An interesting thing to consider about this passage is the way an ancient king (Sennacherib) exhibits spiritual awareness by mentioning Hezekiah’s God. Sennacherib knows where Hezekiah’s trust should lay and is deriding and mocking him for it. It is difficult to imagine leaders on today’s world stage thinking of and making reference to spiritual powers as aid in world conquest.

Through the Rabshakeh, Sennacherib asks for God’s people to pledge to him instead of God and even offers them two thousand horses. This passage in verses 9-10 make it obvious that Sennacherib thinks it will be all too easy to defeat them. Sennacherib is convinced of the power of his own armies over the weakness of any spiritual powers against him.

Now, while the Rabshakeh is delivering this message to Eliakim, Shebna and Joah, they become concerned that the citizens of Jerusalem will hear these provocations and fear Sennacherib. So they ask the Rabshakeh to speak in a different language (Aramaic, the language of diplomacy at that time). But the Rabshakeh wants to disturb and unsettle. See verses 11-17 for this exchange.

Eliakim, Shebna and Joah show their lack of faith by being embarrassed by the Rabshakeh’s words. Instead of being embarrassed, their faith should have been strong and their stance stalwart. If my faith is challenged, do I become embarrassed and want to hide, or do I stand up for God? These three men should have had more faith in God’s ability to save the city and they ought to have vocalized it.

The final verses of this chapter have Eliakim, Shebna and Joah reporting to King Hezekiah the things that the Rabshakeh had shouted to them. Because they were delivering bad news, they came with their clothes torn. This last detail further confirms their lack of faith that God could and would save them from Sennacherib. We will see in the next chapters how this drama unfolds.

Our faith must be strong for two primary reasons. The first reason is that the One in whom we have faith is almighty and powerful. God is surely able to deliver us from threats and evil and so much more. He is God. There is nothing that He cannot do. The second reason our faith must be strong is because it will be tested. Our faith must bear the weight of fear, impending threats of loss and all the associated challenges. How strong is my faith? How strong is yours?

One evident observation is that the faith of Eliakim, Shebna and Joah was very weak if it existed at all. Let us take them as an example of what not to do.

While the previous chapter described a land desolate and corrupt (also an allegory for the spiritual condition of one living without God), this chapter describes a land healthy and fruitful, embodying God’s blessings upon the redeemed.

Verses 1 & 2 depict the glory to come through Jesus Christ. It is ultimately God’s glory and it rings out in the land. This is in contrast to the punishment meted out to the people in Isaiah 33:9: “The earth mourns and languishes, Lebanon is shamed and shriveled; Sharon is like a wilderness, And Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.”

In Isaiah 35:2, the punishment is reversed, which is fitting in light of how God redeems mankind through Jesus’s ultimate death and sacrifice for sins. Even though we (and Israel) deserve punishment, God’s grace saves and blesses us instead. What marvelous love: “It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, Even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, The excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, The excellency of our God.” Isaiah 35:2

Verses 3 & 4 admonish the suffering righteous to be strong and maintain their faith for the Lord God will save them and avenge their foes. The people suffered for years and years under the hands of abusive nations and the idolatry and sin of their own people. Through Isaiah, God is admonishing the remaining faithful to not give up hope.

The writer of the book of Hebrews uses very similar language as in Isaiah 35:3 to encourage New testament Christians in Hebrews 12:12. In this passage in Hebrews, the writer was explaining the need to suffer sometimes in order to get stronger. While there is a distinctive difference from the reason strength is needed compared to Isaiah 35, the resolution to be and remain strong is one we all need to make: “Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.” Hebrews 12:12-13

Verses 5-7 prophesy the coming glory of Jesus Christ. The mysterious plan of God had been kept from mankind for so long. Many of His people had lost faith and given in to the temptations of the world surrounding them. When God’s plan comes to fruition through Jesus, miracles will occur (proof of verses 5 & 6 found in the New Testament) and the figurative land of the desert will be lush and healthy with the water of God. Again we have the secondary spiritual meaning in these verses. The dry and wanting spiritual condition of man will be vastly improved and made healthy through the sacrifice and blood of Jesus Christ.

The final passage in this chapter is special. It is clearly written prophecy and it describes the kingdom of God, which is His church. There are three ideas at play in these verses, which all ultimately embody the same idea:

1. Highway of Holiness

2. God’s church or kingdom

3. The narrow gate

God’s church of the saved is characterized as the Highway of Holiness. This is a place for the pure in spirit and it shall be protected by God. God’s church is a path in life that can be taken even by the simplest among us. The narrow gate (Matthew 7:14) is another way to describe the righteous path we are to walk with Jesus if we want the crown of glory in heaven when our life is finished: “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:14

The final verse is the perfect conclusion to these ideas: a description of the reward in heaven. When we are redeemed to God, we ”shall obtain joy and gladness, And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Isaiah 35:10