The Book of Isaiah, Part 8: Pronouncements Concerning the Nations, Part C
Survey of the Old Testament Prophetic Books • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
Series - The Book of Isaiah, Part 8
Sub-series - Pronouncements Concerning the Nations, Part C
Background
Background
Covered pronouncements
Covered pronouncements
Isaiah 20 - pronouncement concerning Egypt and Ethiopia (as united kingdom)
Isaiah 21.1-10 - pronouncement concerning Babylon
Isaiah 21.11-12 - pronouncement concerning Edom
Isaiah 21.13-17 - pronouncement concerning Arabia
Isaiah 22 - pronouncement concerning the valley of vision (Jerusalem)
Isaiah 23 - pronouncement concerning Tyre
Related Historical Events
Related Historical Events
Assyria’s capture of Ashdod
date - 711 b.c.
Philistia, with the support of Egypt, revolted against Assyrian rule by deposing its puppet king, and replacing him with a new king, Yamani, who fled to Egypt when Sargon came. Fearing Sargon, Egypt handed him over to Assyria.
Babylon’s destruction
date - 689 b.c.
by Sennacherib
The seige of Jerusalem
date - 701 b.c.
Sennacherib of Assyria sends Rabshakeh against Jerusalem
see 2 Kings 18.13-37; 2 Chronicles 32
The seige of Tyre
date - 701 b.c.
Sennacherib’s coastal conquest, 705 - 701 b.c.
Main points
to whom do you place your hope with
who do you inquire about your future
to whom do you entrust your present struggles
how does God see the future of the nations surrounding Jerusalem
To whom do you entrust your present struggles
To whom do you entrust your present struggles
God declares the fall of Egypt and Cush/Ethiopia - Isaiah 20.1-4
1 In the year that the commander came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him and he fought against Ashdod and captured it,
2 at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go and loosen the sackcloth from your hips and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, going naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, “Even as My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and symbol against Egypt and Cush,
4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, young and old, naked and barefoot with buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
Egypt and Ethiopia were the superpower south of Judah
but they will fall in hand of Assyria and be exiled naked
God shows that those who trusted in Egypt’s strength will be disappointed - Isaiah 20.5-6
5 Then they will be terrified and ashamed because of Cush their hope and Egypt their pride.
6 So the inhabitants of this coastland will say on that day, ‘Behold, such is our hope, where we fled for help to be saved from the king of Assyria; and how are we ourselves to escape?’ ”
If Egypt fell under the power of the king of Assyria, how much more the other city-states of the coastland?
God’s message
God’s message
The powerful nations around you cannot be trusted in times of troubles!
not Egypt/Ethiopia
not Babylonia, a long distance ally
not Edom nor Arabia
not tyre
TRUST IN THE GOD OF YOUR SALVATION
God declares the failure of Jerusalem’s defenses - Isaiah 22.
running away - Isaiah 22.1-3
1 The pronouncement concerning the valley of vision: What is the matter with you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops?
2 You who were full of noise, You tumultuous town, you jubilant city; Your dead were not killed with the sword, Nor did they die in battle.
3 All your rulers have fled together, And have been captured without the bow; All of you who were found were taken captive together, Though they had fled far away.
man-made defenses for Jerusalem - Isaiah 22.5-11
5 For the Lord God of armies has a day of panic, subjugation, and confusion In the valley of vision, A breaking down of walls And a crying to the mountain.
6 Elam picked up the quiver, With the chariots, infantry, and horsemen; And Kir uncovered the shield.
7 Then your choicest valleys were full of chariots, And the horsemen took positions at the gate.
8 And He removed the defense of Judah. On that day you depended on the weapons of the house of the forest,
9 And you saw that the breaches In the wall of the city of David were many; And you collected the waters of the lower pool.
10 Then you counted the houses of Jerusalem And tore down houses to fortify the wall.
11 And you made a reservoir between the two walls For the waters of the old pool. But you did not depend on Him who made it, Nor did you take into consideration Him who planned it long ago.
God’s message
God’s message
it is useless to prepair your defenses but fail to put your trust in God!
it is like taking medicine and not believing that God is the healer
it is like making decisions for tomorrow, but fail to consider the will of God for your life
it is like trying to build a family, but fail to commit to the LORD your steps! - Psalm 127.1-2
1 Unless the Lord builds a house, They who build it labor in vain; Unless the Lord guards a city, The watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is futile for you to rise up early, To stay up late, To eat the bread of painful labor; This is how He gives to His beloved sleep.
Who do you inquire about your future
Who do you inquire about your future
Consulting mediums was common practice in those days
kings consulted mediums on waging war, producing children, etc.
people consult mediums concerning their future
19 When they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should a people not consult their God? Should they consult the dead in behalf of the living?
Seir consulted the prophet of God in Israel - Isaiah 21.11
11 The pronouncement concerning Edom: One keeps calling to me from Seir, “Watchman, how far gone is the night? Watchman, how far gone is the night?”
one from Seir - probably, the king of Edom sent a representative to enquire of God concerning their future
Jerusalem consulted the wrong person, Shebna
Shebna was in charge of the royal household - Isaiah 22.15-19
15 This is what the Lord God of armies says: “Come, go to this steward, To Shebna who is in charge of the royal household,
16 ‘What right do you have here, And whom do you have here, That you have cut out a tomb for yourself here, You who cut out a tomb on the height, You who carve a resting place for yourself in the rock?
17 ‘Behold, the Lord is about to hurl you violently, you strong man. And He is about to grasp you firmly
18 And wrap you up tightly like a ball, To be driven into a vast country; There you will die, And there your splendid chariots will be, You shame of your master’s house!’
19 “I will depose you from your office, And I will pull you down from your position.
Shebna had authority since he was administrator of the royal household
but Shebna was a self-serving servant of the king
he was probably one of the voices behind the reinforcing of the defense of Jerusalem
God exposed him
God’s message
God’s message
God’s people are sometimes misled either because -
they were asking the wrong person
or the wrong person was in authority
God replaced Shebna with Eliakim
Eliakim probably had the right wisdom but was not yet in authority and was not heard
Eliakim becomes a prefiguration of Christ! - Isaiah 22.19-23
19 “I will depose you from your office, And I will pull you down from your position.
20 “Then it will come about on that day, That I will summon My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,
21 And I will clothe him with your tunic And tie your sash securely around him. I will hand your authority over to him, And he will become a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
22 “Then I will put the key of the house of David on his shoulder; When he opens, no one will shut, When he shuts, no one will open.
23 “I will drive him like a peg in a firm place, And he will become a throne of glory to his father’s house.
Consulting God through His prophet was the right course for Judah and Jerusalem.
in the days of Jehoshaphat - 2 Chronicles 20.20
20 They rose early in the morning and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa; and when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: Put your trust in the Lord your God and you will endure. Put your trust in His prophets, and succeed.”
in the days of king Ahaz - Isaiah 7.9
9 and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you will not believe, you certainly shall not last.” ’ ”
in the early church, prophesying was fairly common, since the NT canon was not yet complete - see 1 Cor 14
Today, in a sense, we do the same thing whenever we read the Bible -
we consult with the prophets and apostles whenever we enquire of God
we consult with God’s ministers for guidance on practical situations and future plans
Conclusion
Conclusion
What was God’s message to His people in all these pronouncements?
First - God will never break His covenant with His people
He will punish them for their sins and unbelief
but He will not remove His mercy and compassion over them! 2 Samuel 7:14-15
14 I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and with strokes of sons of mankind, 15 but My favor shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from you.
Because His purpose is immutable!
2. Second - the sovereign God is watching over the fulfillment of His word which He gave to His covenant people
WMB - “God watches over His Word.”
He will not allow any of it fail
He will not allow any nation to void His promises!
10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it produce and sprout, And providing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 So will My word be which goes out of My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.
3. Third - God’s grace extends to the nations, and the nations have a place in God’s pre-determined end!
Paul - the gospel that includes the Gentiles has been preached since the time of Abraham!
in God’s predetermined future, many gentile nations will be presented - Egypt, Ethiopia, Philistia, Assyria, and Tyre - Isaiah 23.17-18
17 It will come about at the end of seventy years that the Lord will visit Tyre. Then she will go back to her prostitute’s wages and commit prostitution with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.
18 Her profit and her prostitute’s wages will be sacred to the Lord; it will not be stored up or hoarded, but her profit will become sufficient food and magnificent attire for those who dwell in the presence of the Lord
4. Fourth - the best future we could ever have is always with God!
there is no future without God in it!
The future belongs to God and to those who put their trust in God!
The world is passing away and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God continues to live forever.
Those who do not trust in God have no future! Isaiah 8:20-22
20 To the Law and to the testimony! If they do not speak in accordance with this word, it is because they have no dawn.
21 They will pass through the land dejected and hungry, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will become enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward.
22 Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness.
Song -
Something keeps holding me!
I’ll just keep trusting my Lord!
