July 29 - Evening
"Lord, be gracious to us;
we long for you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in time of distress.
At the uproar of your army, the peoples flee;
when you rise up, the nations scatter...
...He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure."
- Isaiah 33:2-3, 6
when you rise up, the nations scatter...
...He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure."
- Isaiah 33:2-3, 6
Trusting the Lord, Fearing the Lord and Waiting on the Lord
Isaiah 33 is the This is the fifth of a series of woes. (The word “woe” is used 7 times.) Four of the five woes are directed at God’s chosen nation. This fifth woe is the only one directed at a foreign nation. This nation is Assyria.
These woes run through chapters 28-33. Chapter 32 of Isaiah speaks of righteous rulers in time that foreshadow the Messiah and his kingdom.
In Isaiah 33:1 the "Destroyer" is Assyria. Assyria has not been destroyed at the time of Isaiah 33. The Traitor is Assyria. Assyria had accepted money from Hezekiah in a peace agreement. Assyria agreed not attack Jerusalem if Hezekiah met their price. This is recorded in 2 Kings 18:13-16
Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended; return from me: that which you put on me will I bear. The king of Assyria appointed to Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.Hezekiah gave [him] all the silver that was found in the house of Yahweh, and in the treasures of the king's house.At that time did Hezekiah cut off [the gold from] the doors of the temple of Yahweh, and [from] the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria. - 2 Kings 18:13-16
No one dared to break a treaty with Assyria or else Assyria would destroy their land. There like an eschatological message in this that may be speaking to the ultimate Destroyer and the first Traitor: Satan. “When you stop destroying” refers to the time when Assyria, like all nations in time, will come to an end. This is one of the themes of human power in the scriptures: It will ultimately cease.
No matter how great the nation or empire (Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, Germany, England, Russia, United States) there will be a historical fall and collapse of that people. These empires must spend their time in their glory and their prime realizing that this day of judgment at God’s direction by the hands of the other nations will come. Treat you future conquerors righteously and justly.
3:2 This is a prayer of the people of Jerusalem in 701 BC when the events of chapter 36-37 occurred. When Jerusalem saw that nothing they did could deliver them they turned to God. When all their treaties, trips to Egypt, and tribute to Assyria had failed Sennacherib’s field commander stood at their walls. At this final moment they cried out to God. It was easy to wait on God then. They had no other choice other than to completely harden their heart.
God had often spoke through Isaiah that when the people decided to call on God he would deliver them. An example of this promise is in Isaiah 30:18:
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! - Isaiah 30:18
Notice: Isaiah ministry is starting to produce fruit in the lives of his people and in the values of his nation. Jeremiah began to proclaim the word of God to the people in 740 BC. It is now 701. It has taken more than 35 years. That is an entire 40 year generation.
How can Isaiah suddenly speak of deliverance for Jerusalem now when he has been predicting destruction in the first four woes? Because, the people’s focus has changed. They were trusting in nations up until this point. When the people’s focus changes then God’s response changes.
The “woe” has gone from Jerusalem to Assyria!
God was using Isaiah and the Assyrians to cause his people to cry out to him. When they cry out for help then Assyria is in dangerous ground because they are attacking people who are seeking God’s help.
Trust nations and be destroyed by God. Trust God and the oppressing nations will be destroyed.
Trust nations = destruction Trust God = deliverance
“We long for you” or “We wait for you” indicates a change of faith focus. No longer are they looking for Egypt.
The result is “all of Jerusalem was saved. Now, an entire generation had been lost, but in the end the people of this day were saved as a whole.
A greater future day is coming for Israel. When they have no other option but to cry out to God for help he will deliver.
• Ezekiel 38-39 – vs. Gog and Magog
• Revelation 19 – vs. Antichrist
“Be our strength every morning” is literally “be our arm every morning”
The warrior roles up his sleeves or bares his ARM for the battle. See below examples:
“Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O ARM of the Lord; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old.” - Isaiah 51:9
“The Lord will lay bare his holy ARM in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.” - Isaiah 52:10
“Who has believed our message and to whom has the ARM of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, . . .” - Isaiah 53:1
“I looked, but there was no one to help, I was appalled that no one gave support; so my own ARM worked salvation for me, and my own wrath sustained me." - Isaiah 63:5
33:3 The Lord is anticipated appearing for deliverance. The nations that where feared (both positively – sought to help, and negatively – as a destroying enemy) are overthrown.
33:4 When God has finished his quick destruction of the nations what they had taken as plunder will be pounced on by men like young locust.
33:5 The Lord’s victory will place him as clearly the supreme ruler over all. From his exalted position he will provide justice and righteousness to the people. This is similar to many other verses including Isaiah 32:15 where the Spirit is pour out from this exalted position of the Lord. There the result is physical productivity along with justice and righteousness. Righteousness is said to produce peace, which results in quietness and confidence.
Righteousness -------> Peace ---------> Confident Rest in the Lord
33:6 After the Lord has defeated his enemies and been enthroned in glory he will provide justice and righteousness. This justice and righteousness will be the foundation of civilization and culture at that time (or, anytime it is allowed in any culture at anytime in history, including ours.)
The results here are said to be:
- Rich store of salvation
- Wisdom – true and correct evaluation of situations, values and issues. This is subjective application of objective knowledge.
- Knowledge – recognition of correct information and possession of facts that are true.
The key to this treasure is:
FEAR OF THE LORD.
The fear of the Lord can also be describe both positively (seeking him for protection) and negatively (knowing he has the power to overthrow you) just like Israel had “feared” the nations Egypt (for protection) and Assyria (overthrow)
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. - Proverbs 1:7
“Beginning” does not mean you start there and leave it. It means it is the first and controlling principle.
He is the foundation or the cornerstone of Isaiah 28:16.
33:7-16
These verses (7-9) describes the situation Judah was under at the time due to the Assyrians. In verses 10-16 we see God’s response to the crisis and to the people’s faith.
33:7-9 Heroes and diplomats can not help. The warriors who were to defend the city are crying. The envoys who had gone to Egypt to secure protection weep.
Those who signed the peace treaty with Assyria and gave Sennacherib Hezekiah’s payment are despised because their promises to the people failed since Sennacherib did not honor their treaty.
God said he would wait on the people of Jerusalem in 30:18,
“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. . . .Blessed are all who wait for him!” - Isaiah 30:18
Now, finally, after 39 years (740-701 BC, chapter 6 to 33), the people are waiting on God and they will be blessed!
Stauros (Gr) – cross (Eng) – the Greek word staurosis an “upright stake.”
The verb stauroo means “to fasten to a stake.”
The stauros was originally a stake similar to a pole and not a cross shaped like a “t”.
By Roman times the stauros had a cross beam added to it.
I will live in righteousness and trust God so that I may experience the peace that comes from being able to wait confidently for his deliverance.
Bible Reading Descriptions Here
Personal
Safety on roads
Church
Embrace holiness
Nation
Crime
World
Jordan
Someone to Quote
"Many pastors criticize me for taking the Gospel so seriously. But do they really think that on Judgment Day, Christ will chastise me, saying, 'Leonard, you took Me too seriously'?"
- Leonard Ravenhill
- Leonard Ravenhill
Something to Ponder
The reason for the “eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot” legal code in Exodus 21:24 was not to establish a legal method of revenge. Revenge was already part of the legal code of the ancient world. Instead, the “eye for eye” legal code was the establishment of an equal and just legal system that limited vengeful retaliation. “Eye for eye” applied to everyone and limited everyone including kings, noblemen and the elite from the retaliation of a minor injury or offense by a common citizen or a servant with torture or capital punishment.
Here’s a Fact
A Hebrew ostracon from 620-580 BC was found south of the Temple mount in Jerusalem with a list of names. The last name that is readable is Uriah, which is the name of the priest in King Ahaz's day and spoken of in Isaiah 8:2. There is no clear indication this is the same man, but it is the same name. The time of Isaiah's reference and the dating of the ostracon are about 100 years apart.
Proverb
"The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteous,
but it is the ruin of those who do evil."
- Proverbs 10:29
but it is the ruin of those who do evil."
- Proverbs 10:29
Coach’s Corner
The greatest miracle is salvation. The godliest spiritual manifestation is the transformed soul.
Psalm 79New International Version (NIV)
Psalm 79
A psalm of Asaph.
1
O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble.
2
They have left the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your own people for the animals of the wild.
3
They have poured out blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury the dead.
4
We are objects of contempt to our neighbors, of scorn and derision to those around us.
5
How long, Lord? Will you be angry forever? How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6
Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the kingdoms that do not call on your name;
7
for they have devoured Jacob and devastated his homeland.
8
Do not hold against us the sins of past generations; may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need.
9
Help us, God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.
10
Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Before our eyes, make known among the nations that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.
11
May the groans of the prisoners come before you; with your strong arm preserve those condemned to die.
12
Pay back into the laps of our neighbors seven times the contempt they have hurled at you, Lord.
13
Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will praise you forever; from generation to generation we will proclaim your praise.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Psalm 79
A psalm of Asaph.
1
O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble.
2
They have left the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your own people for the animals of the wild.
3
They have poured out blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury the dead.
4
We are objects of contempt to our neighbors, of scorn and derision to those around us.
5
How long, Lord? Will you be angry forever? How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6
Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the kingdoms that do not call on your name;
7
for they have devoured Jacob and devastated his homeland.
8
Do not hold against us the sins of past generations; may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need.
9
Help us, God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.
10
Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Before our eyes, make known among the nations that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.
11
May the groans of the prisoners come before you; with your strong arm preserve those condemned to die.
12
Pay back into the laps of our neighbors seven times the contempt they have hurled at you, Lord.
13
Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will praise you forever; from generation to generation we will proclaim your praise.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Isaiah 52-53New International Version (NIV)
52
Awake, awake, Zion, clothe yourself with strength! Put on your garments of splendor, Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again.
2
Shake off your dust; rise up, sit enthroned, Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, Daughter Zion, now a captive.
3 For this is what the Lord says:
“You were sold for nothing, and without money you will be redeemed.”
4 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“At first my people went down to Egypt to live; lately, Assyria has oppressed them.
5 “And now what do I have here?” declares the Lord.
“For my people have been taken away for nothing, and those who rule them mock,[a]” declares the Lord. “And all day long my name is constantly blasphemed.
6
Therefore my people will know my name; therefore in that day they will know that it is I who foretold it. Yes, it is I.”
7
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
8
Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the Lord returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes.
9
Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10
The Lord will lay bare his holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
11
Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing! Come out from it and be pure, you who carry the articles of the Lord’s house.
12
But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
The Suffering and Glory of the Servant
13
See, my servant will act wisely[b]; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.
14
Just as there were many who were appalled at him[c]— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness—
15
so he will sprinkle many nations,[d] and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.
53
Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
8
By oppression[e] and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.[f]
9
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10
Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes[g] his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11
After he has suffered, he will see the light of life[h] and be satisfied[i]; by his knowledge[j] my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
12
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[k] and he will divide the spoils with the strong,[l] because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Footnotes:
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
52
Awake, awake, Zion, clothe yourself with strength! Put on your garments of splendor, Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again.
2
Shake off your dust; rise up, sit enthroned, Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, Daughter Zion, now a captive.
3 For this is what the Lord says:
“You were sold for nothing, and without money you will be redeemed.”
4 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“At first my people went down to Egypt to live; lately, Assyria has oppressed them.
5 “And now what do I have here?” declares the Lord.
“For my people have been taken away for nothing, and those who rule them mock,[a]” declares the Lord. “And all day long my name is constantly blasphemed.
6
Therefore my people will know my name; therefore in that day they will know that it is I who foretold it. Yes, it is I.”
7
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
8
Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the Lord returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes.
9
Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10
The Lord will lay bare his holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
11
Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing! Come out from it and be pure, you who carry the articles of the Lord’s house.
12
But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
The Suffering and Glory of the Servant
13
See, my servant will act wisely[b]; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.
14
Just as there were many who were appalled at him[c]— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness—
15
so he will sprinkle many nations,[d] and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.
53
Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
8
By oppression[e] and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.[f]
9
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10
Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes[g] his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11
After he has suffered, he will see the light of life[h] and be satisfied[i]; by his knowledge[j] my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
12
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[k] and he will divide the spoils with the strong,[l] because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Footnotes:
- Isaiah 52:5 Dead Sea Scrolls and Vulgate; Masoretic Text wail
- Isaiah 52:13 Or will prosper
- Isaiah 52:14 Hebrew you
- Isaiah 52:15 Or so will many nations be amazed at him (see also Septuagint)
- Isaiah 53:8 Or From arrest
- Isaiah 53:8 Or generation considered / that he was cut off from the land of the living, / that he was punished for the transgression of my people?
- Isaiah 53:10 Hebrew though you make
- Isaiah 53:11 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also Septuagint); Masoretic Text does not have the light of life.
- Isaiah 53:11 Or (with Masoretic Text) 11 He will see the fruit of his suffering / and will be satisfied
- Isaiah 53:11 Or by knowledge of him
- Isaiah 53:12 Or many
- Isaiah 53:12 Or numerous
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.