Isaiah 33:13-36:22
Today we have read more than half of Isaiah. Not only that, we are coming to the close of the first half of the book. The first half had to do with the coming attack by Assyria and how God would protect Zion. The Assyrians will be defeated tomorrow. The second half of Isaiah has to do with the coming of the Babylonians. They will eventually destroy Jerusalem and the temple. God through Isaiah will be talking about this judgment through Babylon, its reasons, but of course, how He will restore His people and bring them back to Zion in the Millennial and eternal kingdom of the Messiah.
Isaiah 33:13-24
V. 13 So, the day the people have been fearing for years is coming. Some have trusted the Lord, some have trusted political strategy and some have been burning incense secretly and praying to a piece of wood coated with gold or silver.
V. 14 Guess which group this is? Notice the "who"s. "Who" will be answered in the next verses.
Vs. 15-24 This is the blessing and these are the promises for those who fear and trust the Lord, now and in the future in Zion.
V. 23 This is an image of a wrecked ship, a picture of the Assyrian army after God takes care of them.
Isaiah 34
This is apocalyptic imagery regarding the final battle mixed into an eternal punishment and warning to the surrounding nations that might rejoice over the hardship of God's people and the destruction of Jerusalem.
Vs. 1-4 Notice how this points to the end times.
Vs. 5-17 So why this curse against Edom? I believe it is a future warning, both for Edom in the not-so-distant future and for all the nations present at the time of the tribulation.
Zion would not be overthrown now, but it would in about 100 years. This was fair warning to Edom. After Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city and the temple, after the smoke cleared, the Edomites went up on the temple mount and held a drunken celebration. There was more, but this was the main stroke. The book of Obadiah (only 21 verses) and a chapter of Jeremiah are devoted to this future judgment. When you get to the book of Malachi, these actions by Edom are the explanation of "Jacob I have loved and Esau I have hated." God put both nations into exile because of their sins. Edom's sin was what they did in God's city. Jacob was loved, in that Israel returned and Jerusalem was restored. Esau was hated, in that the Edomites never returned and they ceased to be a people. Now imagine, those actions and that judgment is still over 100 years away. You can't say they didn't see it coming. Regardless of how God judges His own, He still loves His people and His city and they will become a stumbling block for all nations who mistreat them.
Anyone who has ever visited Petra has seen that what God foretold has come to be. Malachi 1:4 If Edom says, "We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins," the LORD of hosts says, "They may build, but I will tear down, till they are called the wicked country, the people with whom the LORD is angry forever."
Vs. 16-17 are the restoration of Zion. You'll see this if you look at the end of Obadiah, verse 21.
Isaiah 35
This is a chapter of millennial blessing as God restores His people and Zion.
V. 3 Notice how similar this is to Hebrews 12:12.
This ends the prophetic section of how God prepared the people and the city for the attack from Assyria.
Isaiah 36
We've read this story before so I'll only make a couple of observations.
V. 3 Back in Isaiah 22:15-25 God spoke about both Shebna and Eliakim. One was a practical, political animal and the other was a man of God. One of these men is spoken of in Isaiah 33:14. The other is mentioned in Isaiah 33:15-24.
When I read these words of Rabshakeh, I can hear in the background, Satan shaking Eve's confidence and trust in God. This is why we always need to stay in the Word and allow God and His love in Christ to be enough for us. Remember that last line of the Lord's prayer, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
Galatians 5:13-26
In Paul's letters he frequently had to address two extremes. We find some mention of both of these extremes in Galatians. We've already seen Christians becoming enslaved to religious works to gain discipline, guidance approval, love and favor from God. The other extreme was to misuse their freedom in Christ. We saw this very clearly in 1 Corinthians. The Jewish teachers were trying to correct this "misuse" of grace by moving people back to the law. The false argument against grace was that if God's love was totally unconditional, you could do whatever you liked and still be forgiven. And apparently then, as today, some of the Galatians allowed their conduct to slip, using grace and forgiveness as a "get out of jail free" card. The real response to the freedom of grace and love is the freedom to be grateful and lovingly obedient in following the Spirit.
Vs. 13-15 The key "directive" here is to love. Knowing the love of Christ, our primary response is to love God, our neighbor and use it in the great commission. In dealing with some who were trying to bring the law into the rebuilding of the church at Ephesus, Paul told Tim in 1 Timothy 1:5, "…whereas (in contrast to them) the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and sincere faith."
Vs. 16-26 The phrase "walk by the Spirit" is the key to life as a Christian. We can understand following the impulses of the flesh, but what are the impulses of the Spirit? Walking by the Spirit is what we don't sense. It is not the same as walking by the thoughts of your head, just like following sinful desires isn't necessarily following your head. The sense of impulse and leading is important. We are pros at the one and very "kindergarten" regarding sensing or following the Spirit. Freedom in grace means following Christ and being able to respond to the Spirit. If we are exposing ourselves to the Word to learn the mind and heart of God, we have the maturity to ask Him to direct us and show us what He is doing. Jesus followed the Spirit as He led Him every day. It wasn't works or a religious routine. That isn't how we should walk in Christ either. We are free to know Him and surrender our hearts to seek Him and follow as the Spirit leads.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2U3PU-E32E&list=FLXNvyvHkjdvvMMDyoTwM5sw&index=8
Psalm 64
Reading this I was caught by the opening requests to God: Hear me, preserve my life, hide me. I guess that sums up what I need most days.
In the middle, I was reminded of what Paul told the Romans in 12:19-21. Let God take care of it.
Vs. 9-10 David was already saying this before God had delivered him. He knew that God would judge in His time. For us, as disciples, we need to wait, but still be doing what Paul suggested in those verses in Romans.
Proverbs 23:23
It is interesting that we expect this stuff to just come to us as a consolation prize or byproduct of life. God is saying to make it our aim, and everything else becomes the consolation prize.
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One Year Bible, click on this link Every Day in the Word. If that doesn't work, go to http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/devotions/ and click on “Every Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is, the commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it. Send feedback or comments to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment