How Can God Use Me When Others Suffer?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Handout
Hypocrisy Abounds
Hypocrisy Abounds
What’s the difference between justice and mercy?
59:1–8. Besides hypocritical fasting and Sabbath observance, Israel is indicted for general hypocrisy. This section identifies Israel’s true problem: disobedience. God is strong enough to deliver them, but the disobedience of the nation has alienated the people from God (vv. 1–2). Isaiah 59:3–7 describes the unjust practices of this “religious” people, encompassing both word and deed, as represented by the mention of the people’s hands and tongue[s] (v. 3). The people’s lack of concern for justice results in false witness as is commensurate for those who refuse to trust God. Self-interested logic permeates society as the people in power do whatever they must in order to ensure their own comfort and security. Their actions are rarely benevolent, nor do they have the capacity to be (vv. 5–6). Their activities result in injustice and a lack of peace. They desire only to preserve themselves through oppressive, selfish acts that disregard the justice of God (vv. 7–8).
Justice is getting what we deserve and mercy is getting what we don’t deserve (grace is unmerited favor or gift, i.e., salvation).
58:1–12. The first way Israel behaved hypocritically was in fasting. God describes Israel as a manipulative worshipers who attempt to fool God into thinking they are truly seeking him (vv. 1–2).
They appear to have been impressed by their own activities to the extent that they are offended that God has not noticed their fasting (v. 3a). The peoples’ fasting, which they count as an act of humility, is tainted by their ongoing quest to obtain their own selfish desires (v. 3b).
This manipulation was compounded by their oppression of workers (v. 3c). Moreover, the point of fasting was not contrition but merely a means of covering their contentious behavior (v. 4). The command which follows demands that the fasts not be used to make your voice heard on high.
The fast has become an attempt to manipulate Yahweh in order to gain or sustain advantage over others. Their fasts were not acts of humility, but were political tools employed in an effort to obtain blessing.
God did require fasting that would be accompanied by penitence and changed behavior.
The point of this section (58:1–59:8) has been to show the hypocritical sinfulness of Israel. It proves that they are too sinful to initiate their own redemption.
Start with
3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
In what ways are we not much different than the Israelites here?
While fasting was an appropriate act of worship, their motives for fasting were self-serving. They claimed to have humbled themselves, but their actions are motivated by pride.
How does fit in here?
1 Righteous are you, O Lord,
when I complain to you;
yet I would plead my case before you.
Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all who are treacherous thrive?
2 You plant them, and they take root;
they grow and produce fruit;
you are near in their mouth
and far from their heart.
3 But you, O Lord, know me;
you see me, and test my heart toward you.
Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter,
and set them apart for the day of slaughter.
4 How long will the land mourn
and the grass of every field wither?
For the evil of those who dwell in it
the beasts and the birds are swept away,
because they said, “He will not see our latter end.”
29 “And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you.
Fasting originally appears to have been a sign of repentance and preparation for seeking divine favor. It later became a sign of devotion and worship.
Do we attend church just to get in God’s favor?
When God refuses to be used, the people are offended that their religion does not “work.” Their unacknowledged attempt to gain advantage with God is exposed in their overbearing use of people: oppress all your workers … hit with a wicked fist.
Suggestion: Do a study on book of Amos
58:3–4 The “delight” of v. 2 is false, for it is an emotional mechanism for pressuring God into compliance with human wishes. When God refuses to be used, the people are offended that their religion does not “work.” Their unacknowledged attempt to gain advantage with God is exposed in their overbearing use of people: oppress all your workers … hit with a wicked fist. God called his people to show humanity in their social life, but they are failing to do this (cf. the recurring theme of Amos).
English Standard Version Introduction
During this time both kingdoms enjoyed political stability, which in turn brought prosperity. It was also a time of idolatry, extravagance, and corruption. The rich and powerful were oppressing the poor. Amos denounced the people of Israel for their apostasy and social injustice and warned them that disaster would fall upon them for breaking the covenant. He urged them to leave the hypocrisy of their “solemn assemblies” (5:21) and instead to “let justice roll down like waters” (v. 24).
58:5 Isaiah uses sarcasm to dismiss false piety. What establishes true religion is not what is acceptable to man but what is acceptable to the Lord (cf. Ps. 51:17; Isa. 56:6–7).
Throughout chapter 58 the author subtly plays with different nuances of the word, especially in the contrast between vv. 2 and 3. In v. 3b the seeking of pleasure by Israel is equivalent to pursuing its own affairs. Such fasting has even resulted in the oppression of the slaves and day workers, and has erupted in physical violence. This manner of fasting will hardly cause God to listen.
It is clear from vv. 1–4 that fasting itself is not being attacked, but rather its misunderstanding by Israel. The issue is then further pursued theologically in the form of a fictive disputation in which the true meaning of devotion to God is developed in a powerful, fresh prophetic formuation. (Cf. a parallel account regarding fasting in Zechariah 8, which provides some of the historical background from the exilic period assumed by Third Isaiah).
[5–9a] Verse 5 begins the disputation with a negative formulation. The sharpness of the attack is equal to any polemic of the preexilic prophets. No amount of self-mortification can suffice as an action pleasing to God since it all stems from the wrong motivation. It is, in essence, a pursuit of one’s own affairs, completely self-serving in orientation. The prophet satirizes with utter disdain the pious bowing of the head like a weed, or the lying in sackcloth and ashes. His derision is heightened by means of a continuing aggressive style: “Do you call this a fast, a day pleasing to the Lord (yôm raṣôn)?” The term raṣôn (“favor”) occurs frequently in Third Isaiah (56:7; 58:5; 60:7, 10; 61:2), and in later poetic literature. It often sounds a positive eschatological note of God’s ultimate act of gracious intervention.
Move to
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
58:6–7 God defines the true piety that he does bless, for it is true to his non-oppressive gospel (cf. 1:17; ).
27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
2chron
8 The men of Israel took captive 200,000 of their relatives, women, sons, and daughters. They also took much spoil from them and brought the spoil to Samaria.
Look at the church of Sardis in . What is their issue? (deep spiritual coma)
To share bread with the hungry, to provide shelter for the homeless, and to clothe the naked goes far beyond the servant’s commission and addresses common human compassion in a general imperative. It lies at the heart of God’s rule to demand mercy and justice for all. Recall the moving story of 2 Chron. 28:8ff. when the victorious army of Israel was constrained by the prophet Oded to clothe, feed, and furnish shelter to the defeated, helpless people of Judah rather than to follow the common ancient Near Eastern practice of subjugating one’s foes to slavery. The reference in v. 7 of “not to ignore your own kin” expresses a frequent concern of the Old Testament. It was regarded as especially grievous if the poor within the nation were forced by economic pressures into misery and slavery (Amos 4:1ff., 8:4; Isa. 3:15, 10:2; Ps. 9:19; Prov. 30:14).
“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
“ ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
Holman New Testament Commentary: Revelation A. Message to Sardis: Return to Spiritual Life (3:1–6)
The church’s deeds appeared wonderful to those outside the church, but they were not complete in the sight of … God Christ did not accuse them of heresy, but neither had they offended Romans or unbelieving Jews.
Finish with
8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
11 And the Lord will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
58:9 the pointing finger. In the ancient world, pointing the finger was involved in a formal accusation (as in the Code of Hammurapi). The omen literature attaches to the gesture the power of a curse. Here it is indicative of malevolent slander.
Overcoming darkness with light was a motif connected with the rise of the Messiah
It is all about OBEDIENCE. The LIGHT within us:
14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
. your rear guard. See ; . Here I am. God humbly offers his availability (cf. ; for men responding to God’s call, cf. , ; ).
your rear guard. See ; . Here I am. God humbly offers his availability (cf. ; for men responding to God’s call, cf. , ; ).
58:9b–10a If … if. God again defines the conditions of the blessing in a manner consistent with his nature. the pointing of the finger. Either in false accusation, or in destructive gossip, or both. See Prov. 6:12–15.
58:10b–12 then. God reaffirms his readiness to bless his obedient people. your bones. The human person (cf. Ps. 6:2; 32:3; Prov. 15:30; Isa. 66:14; Jer. 23:9). your ancient ruins. The ruins of Jerusalem in the sixth century b.c. symbolized the deeper spiritual ruins of long-standing human failure (cf. Isa. 1:5–9; 44:26–28; 61:4).
58:9 Genuine repentance is evidenced by their behavior—how they treat the poor and hungry. Genuine repentance will lead to genuine blessing. Fasting without genuine repentance was useless (see note on v. 3).
1 But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
2 The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shone.
3 You have multiplied the nation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
as with joy at the harvest,
as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
4 For the yoke of his burden,
and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of his oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Midian.
5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood
will be burned as fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
4 “Give attention to me, my people,
and give ear to me, my nation;
for a law will go out from me,
and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.
In obedience, we will be transformed, renewed, and strengthened.
Zimmerli (219ff.) uses the intertextual relation between 52:12 and 58:8 as his initial example to illustrate the basic change between the messages of Second and Third Isaiah. Second Isaiah used the imagery of a new exodus to present the coming of a new eschatological age that would occur simultaneously with the deliverance of Israel from Babylon. Salvation was depicted as a miraculous march through the desert and the transformation of Zion into the city of God. However, Third Isaiah, living after the return of the exiles to Jerusalem, has taken over Second Isaiah’s eschatological imagery, but at the same time has greatly transformed it. He has dropped all references to Babylon and to the wilderness journey, and interpreted the coming salvation metaphorically as the new religious condition of an inwardly transformed moral people. Although I do not dispute that Third Isaiah has altered Second Isaiah’s message in important ways, I disagree with Zimmerli’s interpretation regarding the nature of the change, which, of course, greatly affects how one understands the relationship between these two portions of the book of Isaiah.
First of all, regardless of what Second Isaiah may once have meant in the use of the exodus imagery, by the time of Third Isaiah, that is, in the postexilic era, Second Isaiah was interpreted within a larger literary collection, and its language understood largely metaphorically as pertaining to God’s promised salvation, which was always its true content. Part of the truth of Second Isaiah’s prophecy had been indeed fulfilled. The captivity of the Jews in Babylon had been ended and the exiles freed. There was no longer the need to repeat the language of the miraculous new exodus. Yet not all the promises had been accomplished. Jerusalem had not been elevated, nor had the new age broken with the glory of God revealed to all. Third Isaiah refers to the earlier promise (52:12), citing the last part of the verse: “the Lord will be your rear guard.” As always, Third Isaiah’s citation is never exact, but this is immaterial since its function is deitic, not midrashic. This is to say, the citation of the promise by Third Isaiah functions, above all, to confirm the truth of the earlier prophetic word. He is neither softening nor spiritualizing it in a so-called ethical reinterpretation, but refocusing the earlier promise in a new, concrete form which addresses that part of the hope not yet realized. He centers on the imagery of light and healing. The term “your righteousness” is a reference, not to Israel’s behavior, but to the salvation of God (objective genitive), promised by Second Isaiah and employed again in its original prophetic sense (41:2; 45:8, 24).
The house of Jacob had complained in 58:3ff. that God had not responded to its fasting. He had taken no notice. Now the prophet assures the people of the presence of God: “Then you will call, and the Lord will answer” (cf. 41:17). The heart of Second Isaiah’s promise of salvation, although couched in the language of a new exodus, had always been the coming of God: “Say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold, your God’ ” (49:9). He will be with his people and feed his flock like a shepherd (40:11). This same hope of the real, concrete presence of God is strongly affirmed by Third Isaiah. God will say, “Here I am” (58:9). The imagery has shifted, but the same theological substance of the promise has remained.
Notice the imagery of the transformation of the wilderness into a garden (43:20; 44:3) has been applied to the people themselves: “You will be like a well-watered garden, and like a spring whose waters do not fail” (v. 11). The goal of God’s guidance through the wilderness had always been for the sustenance of the people. This point is now made explicit by Third Isaiah: they will be transformed, renewed, and strengthened.
The stipulations of removing oppression, hateful gestures, and wicked talk pick up the motif of 58:3ff. They are linked with the positive theme of aiding the hungry and afflicted, which is also reminiscent of 58:6ff. Next, the promise of the coming of God’s salvation is repeated much in the language of 58:8, with the dominant image being the inbreaking of light for those in gloom (cf. 9:1ff.). In vv. 11f. the prophet makes a new application of the theme of the miraculous way through the desert, familiar from Second Isaiah. God will “guide” his people, satisfying their desires and increasing their strength. However, there is a change. Now the imagery of the transformation of the wilderness into a garden (43:20; 44:3) has been applied to the people themselves: “You will be like a well-watered garden, and like a spring whose waters do not fail” (v. 11). The goal of God’s guidance through the wilderness had always been for the sustenance of the people. This point is now made explicit by Third Isaiah: they will be transformed, renewed, and strengthened.
Application
Application
Ever heard the phrase “You made your bed, now lie in it.”
Ever said it or thought it when you’ve come upon someone suffering?
Explain the hypocrisy in this statement.