What Satisfies?
Notes
Transcript
Isaiah 55:1-5
Isaiah 55:1-5
“Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Give ear and come to me;
listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a ruler and commander of the peoples.
Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations you do not know will come running to you,
because of the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.”
Context: People on the verge of exile.
Temple destroyed. People Camptured. Jerusalem on the verge of complete collapse.
Ch. 53, 54, 55 may be the most important OT chapters in light of the NT
—> The people are asking does God care?
—> Are our prayers being heard?
—> The resounding answer is YES!
Ch. 55 is the closing chapter to what is often refered to as the “Book of Comfort” Isaiah 40-55.
God has laid out His plan for His people through the prophet Isaiah and we are encountering the closing statements.
“Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
—> The people are being charged for everything. There is nothing free anymore in Jerusalem. Water from every well is being drawn at a cost, and if you can’t pay you don’t drink.
—> And here is God saying come and drink, come and eat, you don’t have money, that’s fine I’ll give you some anyone.
And God isn’t simply giving the necessities of bread and water but God is giving wine and milk, not to those who can pay or have earned it but to those without money.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
We waste our lives on the things of this world. Things that will never and can never satisfy what we truly need.
Yet there is hope…If we will follow God and do what is good and right their will be riches.
Give ear and come to me;
listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a ruler and commander of the peoples.
—> It isn’t temporary these promises but they are everlasting.
—>
Isaiah 40–55: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary Comments
emphasizes once again that the prophetic word embodying the will of God will come to fruition in spite of appearances to the contrary and in spite of the skepticism of those to whom it is addressed
Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations you do not know will come running to you,
because of the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.”
—> That’s us. This is for everyone everywhere.
—> We can experience this fullness too. Its not only for a select few or a select people. Its for everyone.
