Isaiah 41
Isaiah • Sermon • Submitted
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So as we are all experiencing unpresidented times in our lives I thought it would be good to look at a portion of scripture that reflects one man’s response to times of upheaval and insecurity.
In Daniel chapter 9, Daniel prays for his nation and I love this prayer and as we read through this let this be our prayer in our time as well.
1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
3 Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4 And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, 5 we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. 6 Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. 7 O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.
8 “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. 10 We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. 11 Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. 12 And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.
13 “As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself a name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!
16 “O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us. 17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”
Daniel 9
Of course we also remember the promise of
“if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Let us being praying for our Nation..
Now on to .
1 “Keep silence before Me, O coastlands,
And let the people renew their strength!
Let them come near, then let them speak;
Let us come near together for judgment.
Here we have the this term the the “coastlands”. We see this a lot in the OT and Isaiah specifically. It is sometimes translated as the “isles” or “islands”. It really is referring to distant and and shores. Like North America to a person 3,000 years ago.
In our passage the picture is of these peoples coming into the courtroom of YHWH. Interestingly, He uses the phrase, “And let the people renew their strength!” This is an illusion to the end of Ch 40 verse 31:
But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
It is almost a mocking of the idol worshippers to go to there god’s and get strength for their encounter with the true God, YHWH.
They shall run and not be weary,
It will be a scary place to stand before God and make your case without the covering of the blood of Jesus.
They shall walk and not faint.
2 “Who raised up one from the east?
Who in righteousness called him to His feet?
Who gave the nations before him,
And made him rule over kings?
Who gave them as the dust to his sword,
As driven stubble to his bow?
3 Who pursued them, and passed safely
By the way that he had not gone with his feet?
4 Who has performed and done it,
Calling the generations from the beginning?
‘I, the LORD, am the first;
And with the last I am He.’ ”
There is some question as to who Isaiah is referring to as the one raised up from the East.
Most believe him to be either Abraham, the patriarch of the Jewish people and the father of the faithful, or Cyrus, the king who joined the Medes and the Persians into a fighting force which conquered Babylon - which, prophetically, is the broad time context Isaiah speaks to.
Those in favor of Cyrus say; "Born east of Babylon in what is now Iran, Cyrus would move through country after country, conquering every king in his path. Shortly after 550 B.C., Cyrus was able to unify the Medes and the Persians and to defeat the powerful kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor. Then he turned south to conquer Babylon (539 B.C.)."
He was also the instrument God used to take down Babylon and will later be referred to as “my Servant”.
Either way, the passage is asking who? 6 times. He tells us the answer in verse 4. The Lord, YHWH, has done these things. As a quick aside that here you see YHWH called the first and the last and in ,, we see Jesus called the first and the last 4 times.
in verse 4 he writes, 4 Who has performed and done it,
Calling the generations from the beginning? It is important to not miss this, it is God who is in control. We are not running into random unconnected events, God has a hand in our current situation. We need to become aware that there are spiritual undertones to everything. That’s why the prayers of the church are so needed at this time especially.
If God is both the first and the last, then He also has authority over everything in-between. This means that there absolutely is a plan of God for human history, and He directs the path of human events toward His designed fulfillment. Our lives are not given over to blind fate, to random meaninglessness, or to endless cycles with no resolution. Instead, the LORD God who is the first and the last directs all of human history and even our individual lives.
5 The coastlands saw it and feared,
The ends of the earth were afraid;
They drew near and came.
6 Everyone helped his neighbor,
And said to his brother,
“Be of good courage!”
7 So the craftsman encouraged the goldsmith;
He who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil,
Saying, “It is ready for the soldering”;
Then he fastened it with pegs,
That it might not totter.
Here we peak back into God’s hall of judgement and observe that when confronted by the reality of the God the Universe, the idol worshipping heathens run away from the truth to their false beliefs. Isaiah mocks the sillyness of their idols.
This exactly how it works today. Scientists who absolutely know that evolution is a lie run back to it because the idea of their accountability to God is untenable to them.
Truly the Psalmist has said; Ps 14:1
The fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt,
They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.
Now Isaiah moves away fro the heaven to Israel.
8 “But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
What an encouraging, comforting word to Israel and to all His chosen, His church as well.
The term “my servant” is applied to several different people and ultimately it refers to Jesus. Here he is referring to the nation of Israel. He is contrasting Israel with the idol worshipping heathen.
ra A servant of God would never make God into his own image, his own idea of what God should be. Servants don't tell their masters what to do, or what to be. Servants know who the master is and who the servant is. Also. a servant is a person without position or rights - but the servant of God belongs to a great master."
A servant of God would never make God into his own image, his own idea of what God should be. Servants don't tell their masters what to do, or what to be. Servants know who the master is and who the servant is. Also. a servant is a person without position or rights - but the servant of God belongs to a great master."
Isaiah refers to them as both Israel and Jacob. Israel means Governed by God, easy to get that concept. But here also says that the are Jacob, His chosen. This should give us all comfort as Jacob means “heal catcher”, as in a conniver and con-man.
They are God’s because He chose them, not because of any good in them. Jesus said,
“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.
Here also Isaiah looks forward to the regathering of Israel from the four corners of the world in Verse 9.
I love verse 10, memorize this one.
10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
It is God who is upholding you, He is strengthening you, He is Helping you. Hallelujah!
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you
Shall be ashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, the LORD your God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
You know you should be aware that there are people and spiritual entities that hate you and the Gospel. The are “incensed” against you.
Our VP has been mocked for advocating prayer. Just recently, Rashida Talib, tweeted, “”f___ a National Day of Prayer”
But God promises, They shall be as nothing, And those who strive with you shall perish. 12 You shall seek them and not find them— Those who contended with you. Those who war against you, Shall be as nothing, As a nonexistent thing.
And those who strive with you shall perish. 12 You shall seek them and not find them— Those who contended with you.Those who war against you, Shall be as nothing, As a nonexistent thing.
Why you might say? For I, the LORD your God, will hold your right hand,
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’ That’s an awesome thing to know. God is holding your hand to help you get through it.
Those who contended with you.
We continue;
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
14 “Fear not, you worm Jacob,
As a nonexistent thing.
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says the LORD
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in the LORD,
And glory in the Holy One of Israel.
The idea here is that though as weak and unable as they might be God is going to make them into a mighty force.
Of the term the worm one rabbi said, ”Why are the Israelites called a worm? To signify, that as the work does not smite, that is, gnaw the cedars, but with its mouth, which is very tender, yet it nevertheless destroys the hard wood; so all the strength of the Israelites is in prayer, by which they smite the wicked of this world, though strong like cedars, to which they are compared."
The word redeemer in Verse 14 is the Hebrew word “Goel”. Meaning our close relative, the one who can buy us out of debt and is your avenger of blood. Our great Goel is Jesus Christ!
17 “The poor and needy seek water, but there is none,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, the LORD, will hear them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together,
20 That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of the LORD has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
Here God is promising rivers of water to the poor and needy, both physically and spiritually.
Rev 22
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
Now as we continue, God calls idols and their worshippers to trial.
21 “Present your case,” says the LORD.
“Bring forth your strong reasons,” says the King of Jacob.
22 “Let them bring forth and show us what will happen;
Let them show the former things, what they were,
That we may consider them,
And know the latter end of them;
Or declare to us things to come.
23 Show the things that are to come hereafter,
That we may know that you are gods;
Yes, do good or do evil,
That we may be dismayed and see it together.
He is say in sarcastic way, “I’m so afraid”.
24 Indeed you are nothing,
And your work is nothing;
He who chooses you is an abomination.
25 “I have raised up one from the north,
And he shall come;
From the rising of the sun he shall call on My name;
And he shall come against princes as though mortar,
As the potter treads clay.
Here again, he is referring to Cyrus.
Now again Isaiah is mocking the foolishness of Idolatry
26 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know?
And former times, that we may say, ‘He is righteous’?
Surely there is no one who shows,
Surely there is no one who declares,
Surely there is no one who hears your words.
27 The first time I said to Zion,
‘Look, there they are!’
And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.
And here now is the final verdict in God’s judgment hall -
28 For I looked, and there was no man;
I looked among them, but there was no counselor,
Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 Indeed they are all worthless;
Their works are nothing;
Their molded images are wind and confusion.
Everything other than the God of the Bible is wind and confusion. All roads don’t lead to the same place, Jesus is the way, and np one comes to the Father but by Him.