Isaiah 3:9-15

Isaiah 3:9–15 KJV 1900

9 The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; And they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves. 10 Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: For they shall eat the fruit of their doings. 11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: For the reward of his hands shall be given him. 12 As for my people, children are their oppressors, And women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, And destroy the way of thy paths. 13 The Lord standeth up to plead, And standeth to judge the people. 14 The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: For ye have eaten up the vineyard; The spoil of the poor is in your houses. 15 What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, And grind the faces of the poor? Saith the Lord God of hosts.

Introduction

Isaiah details the pride of Judah’s unrepentant sin.

In the first few verses of our passage, we see that Judah had given up maintaining the illusion of external decency.

When Isaiah talks about the “shew their countenance” he is talking about their whole appearance.

There is a boldness expressed in their conduct.

The pride that they have harbored in their hearts has found its way to the surface.

The emotions of the heart often find expression on the countenance.

You’ve heard it said,

We are what we think.

Their look was a witness taking the stand against them.

Instead of resembling the people of God, Isaiah accuses them of resembling the people of Sodom.

How are they resembling the people of Sodom?

By the way that they responded to their sin.

As the Sodomites of old, God’s people no longer exhibited shame over their sin.

As a result, they do not conceal their sins, instead, they glory in them.

Isaiah is drawing a picture of moral decay in Judah.

While the people of Judah carry the look of pride in their eyes and the sneer of arrogance on their lips, they are living with the self-destructive consequences of their own sin.

Isaiah discusses the rewards of behavior.

The wicked will receive the rewards of their sin.

Isaiah lets out a cry of agony “woe to their soul.”

The people are inviting their judgment for their actions.

It is a lamentable fate to receive that which is earned by evil deeds.

One thing we should always remember is that sin brings its own wages.

God doesn’t have to enact divine punishment for us to experience the pain that sin brings.

All He has to do is leave us to reap the rewards of our actions.

The righteous, however, are not forgotten.

Woe to the wicked, but God will take care of the righteous.

Judgment will not be indiscriminate.

For the righteous, it will be well.

Sowing and reaping.

Finally, we see the accountability of leadership.

Isaiah speaks of the failure of the leaders of Judah.

God’s primary issue is with the people to whom He had entrusted the guidance of Israel.

They are the ones that have led the people or allowed the people to drift into sin.

When sin was not dealt with, it led to brashness.

Men, especially the ruling classes were to blame for the growing sin and corruption.

Women and children may not be literal.

Leaders may be childish in their direction because they are immature.

Leaders at this time were primarily men.

Alack of ability to make a decision may have led to a practical abdication of authority.

One commentator said that the people responsible for the decision-making were letting their decisions be influenced by women.

God rises to plead against the leaders of Judah.

They have misled the people and abused their confidence.

Elders = the heads of houses, families, and tribes.

Princes = officials in the government.

Leaders become misleaders.

The affects of the failures in leadership cannot be overstated.

Destroy the paths = the way of truth is no longer visible.

With the right paths destroyed, the people, of necessity, go the wrong way.

Beat my people = crushing them through tyranny.

Vineyard is the people.

They were to be protected and cultivated by their government.

Beat/crush, grind with a millstone the poor.

Application

Do good, no matter what everyone else is doing.

You can never control the actions of others.

You can only control your own decisions.

Even if everyone else is doing wrong, God will honor you for doing right.

Where ever you may be, this is true.

The law of sowing and reaping remains true throughout time.

Leaders, lead people to righteousness.

Instead of destroying the paths of right, make them clear.

Instead of taking advantage of people, use whatever authority you have to help people.

This is very much the way our world works today.

Insider trading.

Double standards of justice.

Leveraging power to fulfill one’s own desires.