Isaiah 54, 55
Isaiah • Sermon • Submitted
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So we continue tonight into our journey through the Book of Isaiah. If you are like me the words of Ch 52 & 53 are still resinating in your souls. But there are more things the HS has in store for us moving forward.
So let’s open up to Isaiah 54. This is a great chapter to read and meditate on when you are feeling down. It’s so encouraging..
1 “Sing, O barren,
You who have not borne!
Break forth into singing, and cry aloud,
You who have not labored with child!
For more are the children of the desolate
Than the children of the married woman,” says the LORD.
It’s hard for us in the modern day to understand the shame felt by women of that time that could not bare children. In this chapter God speaking very intimately to the heart of a women. In the midst of this since of humiliation, God tells them to rejoice, to sing. Why? He says;
For more are the children of the desolate
Than the children of the married woman,” says the LORD.
Ultimately, what has been a time of great humiliation and shame in the Babylonian captivity will be bring forth a time of abundance and joy.
Paul speaks to this in Galatians;
27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, O barren,
You who do not bear!
Break forth and shout,
You who are not in labor!
For the desolate has many more children
Than she who has a husband.”
Paul is pointing out that there will be more souls that come to God through the new Covenant than the old. Grace always triumphs over law.
We have a sense of this today as we break out from this quarantine. Freedom has a way of making us rejoice.
2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,
And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings;
Do not spare;
Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes.
3 For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited.
The curse and shame of barrenness would be so completely broken, and Israel would be so fruitful, that they would have to expand their living space. This would be of particular comfort to the returning Babylonian exiles, who felt themselves small in number and weak. This promise would strengthen them.
Isaiah continues with this beautiful encouragment;
4 “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame;
For you will forget the shame of your youth,
And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.
The word reproach can mean, taunts or scorns from the enemy. Oh how the enemy loves to get in our head and tell us how worthless or bad we are. The HS is telling you there is coming a time when you won’t be able to remember those horrible taunts any longer.
Why? you ask..
5 For your Maker is your husband,
The LORD of hosts is His name;
They say all women love a man in uniform. The LORD of hosts is the Lord of Armies! What a comfort to know that the Creator of all there is has called you and me to be His own.
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;
He is called the God of the whole earth.
6 For the LORD has called you
Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Like a youthful wife when you were refused,”
Says your God.
7 “For a mere moment I have forsaken you,
But with great mercies I will gather you.
8 With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment;
But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,”
Says the LORD, your Redeemer.
Surely, for each us life can be hard. But it’s only for a moment. He promises us everlasting kindness. Everlasting is the Hebrew word Olam, meaning forever or in perpetuity. Kindness is the Hebrew word Hesed, meaning loyal love.
I love that quality of God. he is not like man who changes constantly. People marry and enter into covenants and then break those agreements. God is not that way. His covenant with us is eternal and loyal. Amen!
Now God gives His people assurances of His Hesed, loyal love.
9 “For this is like the waters of Noah to Me;
For as I have sworn
That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth,
So have I sworn
That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.
Remember the sign that God would never again destroy the world by flood was the rainbow.
10 For the mountains shall depart
And the hills be removed,
But My kindness shall not depart from you,
Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,”
Says the LORD, who has mercy on you.
11 “O you afflicted one,
Tossed with tempest, and not comforted,
Behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems,
And lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
Your gates of crystal,
And all your walls of precious stones.
So here God is speaking to the heart of those who have been afflicted, going through tough times. When there is no money, limited resources our first thought is how will I pay the bills?
God’s comfort is I will build you a house of incredible wealth. after all I am Jehovah Jireh, your provider. Do you believe that today? Do you trust Him to meet your needs?
Secondly, God tells us, He knows our concern is for our children's future.
13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
And great shall be the peace of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me.
Whoever assembles against you shall fall for your sake.
These are awesome promises! Pray these out loud.
16 “Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire,
Who brings forth an instrument for his work;
And I have created the spoiler to destroy.
17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD,
And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the LORD.
I always think of Ruth when I read because she quotes this verse alot. No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
I love the second half of the verse equally; And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn.
By nature many of us are passive, we just accept things. But here we are told that when confronted by unrighteous judgments we are to push back. The Hebrew word here is rasa, Its use in the following ways in scripture;
Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Hebrew (Old Testament) 8399 רָשַׁע
8399 רָשַׁע (rā·šǎʿ): v.; ≡ Str 7561; TWOT 2222—1. LN 88.289–88.318 (qal) be evil, act. wickedly, i.e., act. in a manner that violates a good and proper standard (2Sa 22:22; 1Ki 8:47; 2Ch 6:37; Ps 18:22[EB 21]; Ecc 7:17; Da 9:15+); (hif) do wrong, violate the standard (2Ch 20:35; 22:3; Ne 9:33; Job 34:12; Ps 106:6; Da 9:5; 11:32; 12:10+); 2. LN 88.289–88.318 (qal) be guilty, i.e., be in a state of having done evil and so be liable for a just punishment or penalty (Job 9:29; 10:7, 15+); (hif) declare guilty, condemn (Ex 22:8[EB 9]; Dt 25:1; 1Ki 8:32; Job 9:20; 10:2; 15:6; 32:3; 34:17, 29; 40:8; Ps 37:33; 94:21; Pr 12:2; 17:15; Isa 50:9; 54:17+), note: for a focus on making legal proclamation, see also domain LN 56.20–56.34; 3. LN 55.2–55.6 (hif) inflict punishment, i.e., fight in a very effective manner, so the enemy suffers defeat or great loss, with a focus that the enemies’ defeat is a just punishment based on the enemies’ guilt (1Sa 14:47+)
Now we move to Chapter 55, more great promises!
An Invitation to Abundant Life
1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.
The universal call of God is to everyone. “Ho everyone who thirsts,” thirst is the only requirement. You have to be thirsty. Notice money is not needed. And you who have no money,..
Jesus may have had this passage from Isaiah in mind when He cried out, If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
Also we read Revelation
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
This really is the question of the ages. Whole lives are often spent on the pursuit of things that will never satisfy.
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
We are told to listen carefully, that is give diligence to how we hear, and then eat what is good. What are we feeding ourselves? We have all heard the saying, “garbage in garbage out” so it is with our spiritual diet. The more you take in the more you will want. If we do not take in a regular diet of God’s word you will not desire it but the more you take in the more depth of understanding He will reveal to you.
Jesus said,
29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant (forever covenant) with you—
The sure mercies of David.
4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people,
A leader and commander for the people.
You cannot overstate what David was to Israel. He was the King with heart of a shepherd, a great warrior, a prophet, a man after God’s own heart.
Scripture seems to indicate that the resurrected David will rule over Israel in the millennial reign of Jesus Christ.
They will be fulfilled ultimately when David – literal King David in his resurrection body – reigns over Israel in the millennium, the 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ over this earth. Of that time, Jeremiah 30:9 says, But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. In Ezekiel 34:23-25 the LORD promises, I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them; My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken. Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. We have indications that as God’s people rule with Jesus over the millennial earth, people will be entrusted with geographical regions according to their faithfulness (Luke 19:12-19). It seems that David’s glorious portion will be to rule over Israel.
5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the LORD your God,
And the Holy One of Israel;
For He has glorified you.”
Of course, we are part of that people that runs to God. The Gentile Church.
6 Seek the LORD while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
Underline this one! Notice even our thoughts need God’s touch.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
God’s word will do it’s work as we proclaim it. I believe that as we teach it and share it that it is powerful on it’s own. That’s why I don’t skip portions as we study. Every word, every “jot and ti tel” is there for a purpose.
One time many years ago I was sharing with a skeptical co-worker and just had him read a passage to himself. He was amazed at what he read.
17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
12 “For you shall go out with joy,
And be led out with peace;
The mountains and the hills
Shall break forth into singing before you,
And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree,
And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree;
And it shall be to the LORD for a name,
For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
Well that is the result of the everlasting covenant with Jesus Christ; Joy and Peace. Even the trees and nature respond to His leadership. And so we agree with John, “Come quickly Lord Jesus!”