Explore the Bible Series for April 2: Put trust only in God
Posted: 3/21/06
Explore the Bible Series for April 2
Put trust only in God
• Isaiah 24:1-31:9
By James Adair
Baptist University of the Americas, San Antonio
Isaiah 24-27 is a collection of oracles, probably from different periods of time, dealing primarily with judgment of Israel’s enemies, though some prophecies of salvation for Israel also appear.
Because many of the oracles refer to eschatological (end-time) motifs, such as God’s final banquet or the final triumph of God’s people, this section is sometimes referred to as the Isaiah Apocalypse.
We will also look at selected passages from chapters 28-31, which reprise the earlier theme of God’s judgment on Israel and Judah, interspersed with oracles of salvation. (Rather than following the canonical order, I will group the passages thematically.) Many of the oracles in these sections are difficult to date with any precision, since the historical references they contain frequently are absent or ambiguous.
Nevertheless, they continue to speak to us today: They warn God’s people about the dangers of injustice, idolatry and putting one’s trust in anything other than God, and they encourage God’s people with the promise that God will never abandon them.
Isaiah 24:14-16
Some Christians equate personal financial security with God’s blessings, and they also see national wealth and military might as indicative of God’s approval on a larger scale.
This oracle, however, warns against such assumptions. In the midst of widespread rejoicing over God’s apparent blessings, the prophet has deep concerns.
The main word in the phrase translated, “I waste away,” in 24:16 occurs only here in the Hebrew Bible. As this translation indicates, some scholars think the phrase means the prophet is expressing his mortification at the treachery of some of his fellow citizens. Other scholars suggest the translation, “I have a secret,” perhaps indicating the prophet has received a revelation from God of which his compatriots are unaware, a message that will put a halt to the celebrating. What does the prophet know that others don’t?
Isaiah 28:1-13
This oracle similarly sets the prophet in opposition to the mass of the people, but in this passage, his message is more direct, and the people’s opposition to that message is equally blunt. In response to his contemporaries’ lampooning of his style of delivery (“do and do … rule on rule … a little here …” in Hebrew sounds like a baby’s babbling), the prophet promises God indeed will deliver a simple, straightforward message to the people—through the strange language of the Assyrians.
Isaiah 30:8-17
One of the commentaries on Isaiah found among the Dead Sea Scrolls includes an interpretation of portions of Isaiah 30. It takes the phrase “tell us pleasant things” (literally, “speak to us smooth things”) as a reference to the end times, when people will demand their prophets tell them messages pleasant to hear.
Another document from the caves near the Dead Sea, the Damascus Document, uses the phrase “seekers of smooth things” pejoratively to identify their political/religious rivals.
The passage in Isaiah says the people do not want to hear a true word of God from the prophet, because it might be a message of judgment. Instead, they prefer to hear only positive, affirming messages.
Many preachers today similarly are tempted not to oppose certain types of sin or certain groups of sinners. Nevertheless, the prophetic books, as well as the example of Jesus himself, teach us the importance of speaking the whole counsel of God, even when it is unpopular.
Isaiah 25:6-10
Many fairly recent movies have used food and meals as a metaphor for life as a whole, or at least certain aspects of it. The Danish film Babette’s Feast portrays an exiled French woman preparing a special meal for her entire adopted community on the Danish coast. As a result of the feast she prepares, old friendships are renewed, longstanding grudges are settled and suspicions about outsiders are laid to rest.
The Bible often uses meals to portray fellowship among believers and communion with God. For example, the 23rd Psalm, Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish virgins and especially the Last Supper all picture meals that are much more than just the consumption of food.
In this passage from Isaiah, the meal envisioned will be rich and sumptuous. The Lord is the host, and the guests are all those who have waited patiently for God’s deliverance. The feast celebrates not only victory over Israel’s enemies, but victory over death itself.
Isaiah 28:14-22
I’m always a little leery of clothing advertised as “one size fits all.” Since human beings come in many different shapes and sizes, I find it a little hard to believe a pair of socks, for example, that fits my wife’s size 7 foot also will fit my size 14 foot.
In Greek mythology, an innkeeper named Procrustes claimed he had a “one size fits all” magical bed. No matter how tall or short his guest, he claimed, the bed would magically adjust to fit his size. What he didn’t tell those who ventured to take advantage of his hospitality was that it wasn’t the bed that changed size, it was the person sleeping in the bed. If the man was too short, Procrustes stretched him on the rack until his feet reached the end of the bed. If the man was too tall, that portion of his legs that overhung the bed were cut off. He was eventually done in on his own bed by the hero Theseus.
In this oracle, the prophet speaks of Judah’s current situation: “The bed is too short to stretch oneself on it, and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself on it” (28:20). In other words, the solution that the nation of Judah had chosen for itself, reliance on Egypt for protection against the Assyrians, did not fit the needs of the situation. God was ready to do something “strange” and “alien” (28:21)—fight alongside Judah’s enemies.
The only hope for survival lay in a kernel of wisdom sufficient to form the foundation for a renewed society after exile. “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation: ‘the one who trusts will never be dismayed’” (28:16). The nation would fall to its enemies, but God promised to preserve a remnant of people whose righteousness reflected their trust in the Lord.
Discussion questions
• How often do we hear words in sermons or lessons that challenge views and attitudes we have maintained without question for years? How willing are we to evaluate whether these words of challenge really come from God? Do we prefer to hear, and teach, lessons that stir up no controversy and are pleasant to hear?
• Churches often have banquets or potluck dinners. In what ways do these meals foreshadow the future, eschatological banquet of all believers with God? In what ways do these meals fall short of the ideal, eschatological banquet?
• How do we deal with setbacks, even catastrophes, in our own personal lives? How is our trust in God strengthened or weakened by circumstances?