Let the Prophets Begin - ISAIAH STARTS

Happy New Year!

Let's begin with the final section of scripture that I have yet to cover in this blog. The Prophets! I have longed for this content. Wisdom literature was tough. But the prophets are a wonderful portion of God's Holy Word. In them, we see both God's hatred for sin, coming judgment, and His firm decision to be compassionate and provide hope. What a God of mercy!

Isaiah begins. 

Isaiah 1:1 (ESV) The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

The most notable thing in the first verse of this book is that Isaiah's prophetic career spanned the reign of four kings in Judah. Two of them were good, Uzziah and Hezekiah, the other two, not so much. The nation was corrupt and trending downward. The kings came and went, but God's sure servant, bearing witness to God's Word, stood the test of time. 

The diagnosis of Judah is not good. 

Isaiah 1:3–4 (ESV) The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s crib, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.” 4 Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged.

We are reminded here that our relationship with God is one that we should KNOW. It should be home to us. The be His people is to be most comfortable in His will. 

The nation is invaded and devoured by foreigners.

Isaiah 1:7–8 (ESV) Your country lies desolate; your cities are burned with fire; in your very presence foreigners devour your land; it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners. 8 And the daughter of Zion is left like a booth in a vineyard, like a lodge in a cucumber field, like a besieged city.

When you belong to God you do not belong to anyone else. Nothing other than Him makes life work. And Israel is a case study. To be His chosen is a great privilege. But it carries great consequences when His people disregard it. Israel (the southern kingdom of Judah in this case) experienced invasion and now was left teetering on the brink as Assyria loomed over their standing in history.

God outlines the reality that led them here. What is it? Answer: Heartless religion. 

Isaiah 1:11 (ESV) “What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the LORD; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.

It's common to find worshippers who do not worship the Lord. They worship their worship. They find comfort in their traditions and practices but do not know God. This was Israel, sacrificing rams and beasts in great numbers but completely disconnected from knowing the Lord. I supposed dead religion is more dangerous than outright rebellion. For dead religion can have the appearance of piety that blinds even the person performing the pious acts. 

Yet God will not give up on His people. And this is another inalterable facet of being His chosen:

Isaiah 1:18 (ESV) “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

The Lord will wash the sins of His people away. They will be clean before Him. For God always has a people reserved for Himself. 

Yet for now in the 8th century B.C. they have a choice and so do we.

Isaiah 1:19–20 (ESV) If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”