Sin’s Absurdities (Isaiah 44:1-28)

(Temple 02/10/2019) In chapter one of Isaiah, the Lord invites Israel to think rationally. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord (1:18). The strange effect of sin is that it blurs and distorts rational thinking. God offers the way of eternal life through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ, and yet broad is the way and wide is the gate that leads to destruction.

Chapter 44 contrasts the perfectly logical mind of God with the irrational and foolish mind of sinful Man.

Absurdity of Running from God (44:1-9)

Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen: 2Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 3For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: 4And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses. 5One shall say, I am the LORD’S; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel. 6Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. 7And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. 8Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.

This passage begins with the Lord reminding Israel that He raised them up as a nation. He created that nationality. He gave them the land. He blessed them above the nations of the earth. Why would they fear repentance and returning to Him? The answer is sin. The sinful state of a person dreads God, as we have seen in the first chapter of our study of Revelation. The families of the earth will wail, they will mourn, they will cry out in terror, at the coming of Christ.

The first point of absurdity is running from God. A person’s sinful nature drives him from the One who can heal him. Where does a person dying of thirst go? He goes where there is water! The wanderer in the desert sees the oasis and goes to it. He does not run from it, unless there is some recognizable danger. The worker in the summer field during the heat of the day seeks a drink of cool water for his parched throat. He knows how refreshing that water will be. He goes to the water. He doesn’t shun the water out of fear. That would be absurd!

How absurd to run from God, the Source of our spiritual refreshment and healing! Listen to the Lord’s invitation: Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses (44:2-4). What should Israel fear from God in these verses? The Lord offers blessings, floods of blessings! He would turn their dry ground, both spiritually and physically, into a fertile field!

The Lord adds to this point of running from God. Where else would they go? To what other god would they turn? There is no other God! There is no other actual being to whom they could turn with the wisdom and power of the Almighty God! No other real Redeemer and invincible King of Israel existed.

Israel had kings, both good and bad. These kings were men, imperfect and limited in abilities. The Lord is perfect and unlimited in His abilities. That which is impossible for man is possible with God.

John alluded to verse six in and other places when he referred to Jesus. Jesus is the appropriate fulfillment of this verse. The first time He came as the Redeemer of Israel and the Gentiles. The second time He comes will be as King of Israel and King of kings!

The Lord again admonishes Israel to not run from Him in fear but to run to Him in repentance. He alone is God. To run away is absurd and self-destructive.

Absurdity of Creating other gods (44:9-20)

They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed. 10Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing? 11Behold, all his fellows shall be ashamed: and the workmen, they are of men: let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, and they shall be ashamed together. 12The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the strength of his arms: yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth: he drinketh no water, and is faint. 13The carpenter stretcheth out his rule; he marketh it out with a line; he fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man; that it may remain in the house. 14He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it. 15Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto. 16He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire: 17And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god. 18They have not known nor understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand. 19And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree? 20He feedeth on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?

This passage exposes the absurdity of idol worship. How absurd to think someone can fashion an object that has supernatural powers! How ridiculous to fall down and pray to a piece of wood or metal. How foolish to invest your life in materialism and thinks of this world that will pass away and you will leave behind! How silly to think a piece of wood or metal will bring you good luck! Oh, did I get out of my lane?

The sinful condition of man includes a deceived heart. The deceived heart does not know the absurdity of worshipping something made by human hands. The deceived heart does not see the irrationality of trusting a carved piece of wood. The deceived heart does not think logically, ‘Let’s see now. I used some of this tree for a fire to warm myself. I used another part to cook my food. And I am going to bow down and pray to a block of this wood to save my soul?’ The deceived heart lives in a delusion of its own making and prefers a lie to the truth.

Don’t we see such absurdity today? The same politician who supports the murder of babies up to the point of full-term delivery introduces a bill to protect fall cankerworms.[1] Such people love themselves and the god of this world system instead of the one true God. Their hearts are deceived and they cannot escape their absurd worldview.

People are caught up in lies that they can’t let go. One alarmist after another has predicted that global warming will destroy the earth in a certain number of years, yet here we still are after their absurd claims. I am old enough to remember the alarms were about a new ice age. Those predictions didn’t pan out, either. Now their deceived minds simply call it climate change, like that is anything new. We get climate change every year. Summers are hot and winters are cold. Some days in the winter here are mild. A few days in the summer here are mild. Climate changes all the time.

The major cause of weather catastrophe is sin. The earth is cursed because of Man’s sin. People who really make a change in the world are those who win the lost to salvation in Jesus Christ. Look at verses 2-4 again and tell me who really controls the climate. The Lord God, Creator of heaven and earth. tells us what to do about the climate. I doubt if environmentalists care about the real solution to weather problems.

The sinful heart absurdly runs from God. The sinful heart absurdly creates false gods. Third, the sinful heart absurdly rejects the Lord God. Notice verses 21-28.

Absurdity of Forgetting God (44:21-28)

Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. 22I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. 23Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel. 24Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself; 25That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish; 26That confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof: 27That saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers: 28That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.

Remember the Lord! Remember He is our Creator. Remember His song!

Remember He is in control. He frustrates wicked schemes. He drives the prophets-for-profits crazy by ruining their predictions. He exposes the foolishness of the so-called wise.

From the positive perspective, the Lord confirms the message of His servants and performs the counsel of His messengers. When the Lord predicts that Judah and Jerusalem will be occupied by a foreign nation, it will happen. The Lord can even predict that name of a future leader who would allow captive Jews to return to Judah and rebuild.

Do you see the absurdity of running from God? Do you see the absurdity of creating other gods? Do you see the absurdity of forgetting God?

[1] William Davis. “Virginia Del. Kathy Tran Submitted Bill To Save Caterpillars On Same Day As Late-Stage Abortion Bill.” https://dailycaller.com/2019/01/31/kathy-tran-caterpillars-same-day-abortion/

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