Intro to the Prophets: Isaiah

Introduction

I want to do a new series for a little while where we walk through the books of the Old Testament known as the Prophets. Every week we will “get to know” one of the prophets, of whom most of the books in the back half of the OT are named after. This study will serve as a guide to help you know who the prophet was, and a brief overview of his book and works.

There are 16 prophetic books in the Old Testament, from Isaiah to Malachi.

In between Jeremiah and Ezekiel is also a small book called Lamentations which is typically accredited to Jeremiah.

Typically the 16 books are broken up into two sections: the Major Prophets and the Minor Prophets.

This is a little misleading, because it makes it sound like the Majors are more important or greater than the Minors. But that’s not true. It’s purely based on their size.

The four Major Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel

All of the others are called the Minor Prophets, not for significance, but because of their size. Most are quite small.

Historically, the Minor Prophets were always contained within the same scroll/book and were often called “The Twelve”.

The prophets as our laid out in our Bibles are fairly chronological. However, it is important to note that they lived during the historical periods that we have in the earlier parts of the OT.

Whereas the historical books give us a broad overview of what was happening, the prophets give us an “on the ground” view from the people who were experiencing it.

This is why it’s good to read the prophet and the corresponding historical book to his time period together, to get a full understanding of what he’s talking about!

Finally, the prophets themselves can sometimes be difficult to interpret. They were preaching to a very particular people in a very particular time, and that’s not us! Oftentimes they weren’t even laying down prophecies in the “future” sense, like we think of. As a prophet, they were a mouthpiece of God, and they were less concerned with the future than they were with the current lives of the people they ministered to.

They weren’t just speaking to their original audience, but to us too! 1 Peter 1:10–12 “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.”

And 2 Peter 1:19 “And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts,”

Since all of the Scriptures (including the Prophets) are about Christ, and we are Christ’s body, the words of the prophets have a deeper spiritual meaning that apply to us, too!

The Book and Prophet Isaiah

The first prophet listed in our Bibles is Isaiah. It is a very large book consisting of a whopping 66 chapters.

His prophetic ministry spanned several kings of Judah, and stretched from the 740s AD to at least 701 AD, which is when Sennacherib invaded Jerusalem (Isaiah 36).

Isaiah is mentioned in 2 King 18-20, and also in 2 Chronicles. This corresponded with the the reigns of several kings of Judah, Uzziah, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.

The book of Isaiah is unique in that it doesn’t start with Isaiah’s calling. This doesn’t occur until Chapter 6, which says that his calling took place “in the year that King Uzziah died”.

Who was Isaiah?

He lived and ministered in Jerusalem. He may have been a priest (since his vision of God in Isaiah 6 takes place in the temple).

The book itself says he as the “son of Amoz”, but that’s about it as far as family goes.

The Talmud, an ancient source of Jewish tradition, says that Isaiah and King Uzziah were cousins because Amoz was a brother of Uzziah’s father Amaziah.

According to 2 Chronicles 26:22, Isaiah served as some kind of scribe.

He lived and prophesied during a time of transition out of one of the most prosperous times of Israelite history.

Uzziah had reigned for 52 years and had been a very successful king. His downfall only happened near the end of his reign when he grew too prideful. With his death, the kingdom experienced its first signs of political instability and turmoil in half a century.

To add to this, the Assyrian Empire was looming in the background. The Northern Kingdom of Israel was conquered by this Empire, and Sennacherib (king of Assyria) tried to attack Jerusalem, too. All of this was seen by Isaiah.

A major problem in Israelite society at the time was, despite its “earthly” success, idolatry and sin were rampant. Isaiah calls this out in chapter 5.

The end of his ministry found him dealing with Hezekiah, another king who brought great reforms, but ultimately ended his reign on a sour note - inviting in the Babylonians (Isaiah 39/2 Kings 20).

The last half of Isaiah’s book is prophecies mostly against the coming Babylonian Empire.

This is particularly interesting, and also a point of criticism, because the Babylonian captivity was still hundreds of years away (587 BC). At the time of Isaiah’s prophecies, Assyria was the much bigger threat.

He is one of the most quoted or alluded to prophets in the New Testament - about 65 times.

Isaiah contains the prophecy of the virgin birth (Isaiah 7).

The branch from the stump of Jesse (Isaiah 11)

The Lord’s name being Emmanuel (God with us).

The location and nature of Christ’s ministry (Isaiah 9)

The Holy Seed, and the rejection of Christ by Israel (Isaiah 6).

Sufferings of Christ as a sheep to the slaughter (Isaiah 53).

What you can expect when reading Isaiah

Lots and lots of prophesy in the form of poetry! There is very little narrative in the book as a whole.

Typically the book is broken up into three “sections” - Chapter 1-39, 40-55, and 56-66, but that’s mostly just to help tie together the major themes.

Chapter 1-39 is a series of prophetic messages against Jerusalem, Israel as a whole, and the surrounding nations of Israel.

That last part is unique. The God of Israel speaks to other nations! Although this comes in the form of warnings, it begs the question, “Why does the God of one people group care about anyone else?” Because, as it turns out, he is the God of all people!

Chapter 40-66 are more prophetic judgement with a shifting focus on Babylon.

The only person named explicitly in this section is Cyrus, the Persian king who would eventually conquer Babylon.

Because of this, some scholars think that the last half of Isaiah was written far later in history than the first half.

While it may seem like all doom and gloom, it’s really not! Intermingled throughout the chapters of Isaiah are oracles of hope, prophecies of the Lord’s Messiah, and the ultimate restoration of God’s people (which is really important for the Church, God’s people!)

As you read the book you’ll quickly notice a back and forth pattern of judgement/hope.

Isaiah 6, which is the calling of Isaiah really sets the stage for the entire book: The Lord wants Isaiah to give the people a message of repentance, even though it will fall on deaf ears. Eventually this will mean they’ll have no excuse for their sin, and God’s punishment on the people will be justified. However, there will be hope for a “remnant” that comes from a “holy seed”.

Isaiah 6:9–13 “And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” Then I said, “How long, O Lord?” And he said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, and the Lord removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.” The holy seed is its stump.”

This passage/prophecy found its ultimate fulfilment in Christ, when the Jews rejected Jesus. He quotes it to them in Matthew 13:14-15, and Paul will quote the same thing to those who rejected the Gospel in Acts 28:26-27.

Conclusion

The words of Isaiah are among the most known even to Christians, simply because he is the second most quoted OT book in the New Testament. His oracles of repentance ring out across history, demonstrating that God wants his people to repent of their sins and come back to him. But, they are also full of hope - words of a God who loves his people and promises to restore them even after he punishes them. These prophecies all culminate in the Good News of Jesus Christ, who fulfilled the words Isaiah spoke, being the long-promised Messiah who restored humanity through His resurrection, and forming from the remnant Isaiah spoke of, His Church.