Isaiah 7.2, 56-57

Prayer Requests:

Jenny—Derek and his health

Marlin, brother Jimmy

Mike, Joann doing well

Judy, Bob

Gaylene, praise for recovery

Arlene, Christy, currently in the hospital in Denver, arthritis? Still’s disease? hoping for chemo and cancer-free by July

Suzanne, chemo and radiation

USA military

If you remember last week, we looked at the first 8 verses, they serve as an invitation for all people to be found among the righteous ones of the Lord, even the foreigner and the eunuch are invited into this new reality. But that shifts here in v. 9-12 and will continue in the coming chapters as Isaiah focuses not on the idealized future work of God in the new creation, but on the current issues that plague Israel, their sins, their lack of faith, and the their disobedience.

One scholar said it’s a shift from the ideal to the real. This is us now, God is saying.

Isaiah 56:9–12 ESV

9 All you beasts of the field, come to devour— all you beasts in the forest. 10 His watchmen are blind; they are all without knowledge; they are all silent dogs; they cannot bark, dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber. 11 The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough. But they are shepherds who have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to his own gain, one and all. 12 “Come,” they say, “let me get wine; let us fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow will be like this day, great beyond measure.”

Here what comes into view is Israel’s leaders, the community overseers and shepherds, “the watchmen…shepherds who lack understanding.” What do we see about these leaders? They are blind, without knowledge, the blind leading the blind and totally unable to protect their people from the dogs ready to devour them. What are the dogs? Pagan gods, other nations, sin and disobedience.

But it also says this: they have turned to their own way, each to his own gain. They’re circling the wagons and only looking out for each other. This stands in stark contrast with God’s invitation to people of all nations and backgrounds earlier in the chapter. God’s dwelling place is open to all people who would believe in him and these leaders are focused not on reaching people of other nations, but focused on themselves!

We can be like this, right? Christ’s commission to us to go and make disciples of all nations and we usually interpret that as: make disciples of people who we like, or who are like us, or who think like us, or who we feel safe with.

Ok, let’s continue this into chapter 57:1-5 to start—

Isaiah 57 ESV

1 The righteous man perishes, and no one lays it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from calamity; 2 he enters into peace; they rest in their beds who walk in their uprightness. 3 But you, draw near, sons of the sorceress, offspring of the adulterer and the loose woman. 4 Whom are you mocking? Against whom do you open your mouth wide and stick out your tongue? Are you not children of transgression, the offspring of deceit, 5 you who burn with lust among the oaks, under every green tree, who slaughter your children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks?

It starts off here, v. 1-2, with a strange paradox: the righteous man perishes. Now this is strange considering what’s come before in chapter 56, the promise that the righteous would live and be saved and enter into the land of the Lord. But now they perish?

Let’s look closely: The righteous man perishes, but no one lays it to heart. Ok, so the emphasis is on the response to those around the righteous. What’s the response? No one cares, who cares? This is a society hostile to true believers.

Devout men are taken away, while no one understands. It is a society who pays no mind to the righteous, those of the Lord, and a society that is totally ignorant, they don’t care to know!

From the perspective of the world: the death of the righteous man is nothing. But from the perspective of God? the righteous one is taken away from calamity, he enters peace. Do you see? From God’s perspective the perishing of the righteous one is not some inevitable end, but it is their entering into peace and being spared from evil and judgment. One commentary put it this way: the faithful people of God are called away, into death, and away from a community that is descending into idolatry. Rather than witnessing the further destruction of their community, they are given peace through death which gives way to life with God. Do you see? The promise of chapter 56, that the righteous will not perish, is fulfilled not through earthly deliverance from hard things, but through death into God’s presence in new life.

V. 3-5 then become a call for those ignorant people who pay no mind to the righteous, for those people to draw near. But the whole section here is filled with almost insults toward the unrighteous, insults and accusations.

Verse 5 then describes the concrete manifestations of this spiritual unfaithfulness. The idolatry unfolds in the usual locations among the trees, and under the clefts of rock, with libations and sacrifices—including infant sacrifice—clearly connecting to the worship of foreign deities, especially Molech.1 Many of the Canaanite religious practices involved sexual fertility rites conducted under oaks and other spreading trees.2 The prophet thus moves from genealogical insult to the actual practices that reveal the people’s true spiritual parentage—they belong to a community of rebellion and treachery, not to the covenant people of God.

Isaiah 57 ESV

6 Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion; they, they, are your lot; to them you have poured out a drink offering, you have brought a grain offering. Shall I relent for these things? 7 On a high and lofty mountain you have set your bed, and there you went up to offer sacrifice. 8 Behind the door and the doorpost you have set up your memorial; for, deserting me, you have uncovered your bed, you have gone up to it, you have made it wide; and you have made a covenant for yourself with them, you have loved their bed, you have looked on nakedness. 9 You journeyed to the king with oil and multiplied your perfumes; you sent your envoys far off, and sent down even to Sheol. 10 You were wearied with the length of your way, but you did not say, “It is hopeless”; you found new life for your strength, and so you were not faint.

Here now Isaiah is condemning the pagan and idol worship. Again, we’ve seen this in Isaiah before, a mocking of idol worshippers. And here, again, is an emphasis on how silly they are to do it.

Smooth stones are your portion, the smooth stones were used to fashion idols with. So these are the rocks that were used to make idols which they would worship. But do you see the absurdity? You pour out your drink offering to stones?

Isaiah focuses on the practice of the high and lofty mountain places, these would have been mountain shrines, palces of worship in high places (often where asherah poles were erected). And what happens here? On the door and on the doorposts God’s people are supposed to display his law.

Anyone know what a Mezuzah is? It’s a small case that has a piece of Torah parchment in it that is then afixed to the door frames of homes. That’s what they were supposed to be doing, but instead, behind the door and doorpost (where the law of God was supposed to be posted), they set up an offering to their pagan gods. The language here is evocative of sexuality, probably meant to reveal a worship of fertility gods, something very common in ancient Canaanite religions (those very religions they were supposed to separate themselves from).

What’s particularly striking is the relentless momentum of the people’s pursuit. They bring gifts and offerings to the king, and send messengers to Sheol in search of new abominations. That’s not where you want to go. Rather than tiring of their wickedness, even when they become exhausted by their dissipation, they do not give up, but seem to get their second wind and press on to further wickedness.1 This reveals a tragic irony: the people expend enormous energy and resources pursuing false gods, yet receive nothing in return. Their weariness doesn’t lead to repentance but only to renewed determination to continue sinning—a portrait of spiritual bondage where the enslaved no longer recognize their chains.

This is tragic.

And I also want to point this out: when we get uncomfortable with passages like these or truths like this that we see in scripture—it’s not that we should feel bad, but it’s that we need to see that the wicked here really do bring this judgment on themselves. This is tragic.

Isaiah 57 ESV

11 Whom did you dread and fear, so that you lied, and did not remember me, did not lay it to heart? Have I not held my peace, even for a long time, and you do not fear me? 12 I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, but they will not profit you. 13 When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you! The wind will carry them all off, a breath will take them away. But he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land and shall inherit my holy mountain.

God brings things back to himself, he’s now directly confronting them and their idolatry and he’s getting to the core of the matter: where is your fear and where is your allegiance?

The people have prioritized the fear of man rather than the fear of God. Who are you so afraid of that you had to lie and that you had to forsake me? This is absurd! That’s the point God is trying to make, there is nothing so great to fear that should make any one of us turn our back ont he one who promises us life, who loves us, and who wants to save us.

God turns them over to their idols, “let your collection of idols deliver you!” But the wind will carry them off, they will be like nothing. Yet the one who takes refuge in the Lord will dwell with him.

I immediately go back to Psalm 1:4 “4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” and Psalm 2:12 “12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”

Trust God, have faith in him such that it is credited to us as righteousness and we can be found in Him. Fear God, but not because we’re not sure he’ll save us, fear and and be confident that he loves you and will save you.

**

Isaiah 57 ESV

14 And it shall be said, “Build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstruction from my people’s way.” 15 For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite. 16 For I will not contend forever, nor will I always be angry; for the spirit would grow faint before me, and the breath of life that I made. 17 Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry, I struck him; I hid my face and was angry, but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart. 18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners, 19 creating the fruit of the lips. Peace, peace, to the far and to the near,” says the Lord, “and I will heal him. 20 But the wicked are like the tossing sea; for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt. 21 There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”

Again, 14-21 continue on in these same themes of God’s dwelling place being that of the righteous and the way of the wicked is destruction and death.

I want to point out though v. 15, “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

It makes me think of Psalm 51:9-12

Psalm 51:9–12 ESV

9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.

But there is a difference, right? In the Psalm, it’s one who is repentant, humble because of their sin and their need for forgiveness. And in Isaiah, what we’ve seen are those who see no need for God and refuses his path.

In the Psalm we see someone who recognizes that it is God who creates the clean heart and right spirit, not something we manufacture ourselves. The Spirit of the Lord does that work in us, we need him to. We need simply to trust that he will, we need to repent, to turn away from the ways of the wicked, and instead toward the way of Jesus and His spirit will begin is transforming work in us.