Thursday
Evening Bible Study
November
21, 2019
Introduction
The book of Isaiah is the first book in the section of the Old Testament
that we call the “prophets”.
It is the Old Testament book that has the clearest picture of the coming
Messiah.
The New Testament quotes from Isaiah more than from any other prophet.
John, the forerunner of Christ, began his ministry with a quote from Isaiah
(Mat. 3:3).
Jesus preached His first sermon in Nazareth from Isaiah (Luke 4:17-21).
Old Bible critics will say that the book of Isaiah is actually two books
written by different authors, with chapters 1-39 as the first book, and
chapters 40-66 as the second.
The two sections are indeed distinct, but they serve different purposes. The
first half is a book of judgment, the second half is one of comfort.
Better, recent scholarship, including the contribution of the Dead Sea
Scrolls affirms that it is a single book written by a single author.
This is not a book that was written all at once, in a single sitting. There
are various sections of the book, and it is the compiling of the writings of a
man over sixty years.
There will be times that the prophetic message is aimed close to Isaiah’s
time.
There will be times when the prophetic message is aimed far in the future.
There will be times when the message has a double effect with both a near and
far prophecy.
Isaiah has contemporaries.
His ministry overlaps the prophets Hosea and Micah.
His ministry lies roughly between 740-700 BC.
He prophesies during the reigns of the Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah –
all kings of the southern kingdom of Judah.
Keep in mind that in Isaiah’s lifetime, Israel has been split into two
different nations.
The northern ten tribes were called “Israel”, or “Ephraim”.
The southern two tribes were called “Judah”
Isaiah lived in the southern nation, and they are the main focus of his
prophecies.
Two concepts to keep in mind as we study prophecy:
We have seen that some prophecies have “double fulfillments” – they may be
fulfilled inside Isaiah’s day, and then again far in the future (like Is. 7:14
– the virgin). When you say “what does that mean?” you may need to think of
more than one thing.
We are also seeing that when it comes to prophecy, sometimes the prophecy
can skip hundreds or thousands of years between one phrase and the next. This
is called “prophetic telescoping”.
We are now in this second section of Isaiah, filled with all kinds of
comfort and words that will jump out at you as if God were speaking directly to
you.
Isaiah 48
One of the main themes of the last few chapters has been the prophecy of
the coming defeat of Babylon and the return of the Jewish captives back to
Israel.
That’s something that’s hundreds of years in the future.
This chapter continues with the same focus.
read v.1-2
:1 Who swear …not in truth or in righteousness
There is going to be a rebuke given to those who claim to be followers of
Yahweh, but not the way that God wants to be followed.
Lesson
In name only
Just because someone calls themselves a “Christian” doesn’t make them one
anymore than going to McDonald’s makes you a hamburger.
The issues here are “truth” and “righteousness”.
A Christian is one whose life matches the truth of the Bible. They have chosen to admit their sin and finds
forgiveness in the sacrifice of Jesus.
A Christian is one who is learning to allow God to form the and shape them.
A Christian isn’t perfect. A Christian still sins. But a
Christian is one who has a sensitivity to their real need for Jesus.
Illustration
Charles Swindoll tells a story about a man who bought fried chicken dinners
for himself and his date late one afternoon. The attendant at the fast food
outlet, however, inadvertently gave him the proceeds from the day’s business—a
bucket of money (much of it cash) instead of fried chicken. Swindoll writes:
“After driving to their picnic site, the two of them sat down to enjoy some
chicken. They discovered a whole lot more than chicken—over $800! But he was
unusual. He quickly put the money back in the bag. They got back into the car
and drove all the way back. By then, the manager was frantic.
“Mr. Clean got out, walked in, and became an instant hero. ‘I want you to
know I came by to get a couple of chicken dinners and wound up with all this
money here.’
“Well, the manager was thrilled to death. He said, ‘Let me call the
newspaper. I’m gonna have your picture put in the local paper. You’re one of
the most honest men I’ve ever heard of.’
“To which the man quickly responded, ‘Oh, no. No, no, don’t do that!’ Then
he leaned closer and whispered, ‘You see, the woman I’m with—she’s, uh,
somebody else’s wife.’ “
Being a Christian means we learn to let God’s
righteousness permeate all areas of our lives, not just a few places.
read v.3-5
:5 I have declared it to you
God reminds these stubborn people about the prophecies that have been
spoken.
These people will have been living in Babylon, and God is reminding them
that none of that was a surprise. He had foretold it long ago.
He’s reminding them that He alone is God, and they need to pay attention to
their lives.
read v.6-8
:6 I have made you hear new things
Because Israel would have ignored all of God’s previous warnings, He would
be giving them some new instructions.
:8 your ear was not opened
Though this simply sounds like impaired hearing, there’s more to this.
Jewish law forbids that Jews make other Jews lifetime slaves. In the ancient
economy you could become another person’s indentured servant to pay off debts,
but for no more than seven years.
But sometimes a servant came to love his master so much he didn’t want to
leave at the end of seven years.
(Exodus 21:5–6 NLT)
—5 But the slave may declare, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my
children. I don’t want to go free.’ 6 If he does this,
his master must present him before God. Then his master must take him to the
door or doorpost and publicly pierce his ear with an awl. After that, the slave
will serve his master for life.
A slave with a pierced ear was a person whose ear had been
“opened”.
I think David is referring to this when he writes,
(Psalm
40:6 NKJV) Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You
have opened. Burnt
offering and sin offering You did not require.
If you follow the rest of the Psalm, you will see that
this is speaking prophetically of Jesus.
Lesson
Visible Commitment
Would it be hard to tell in those days if a person was committed for life
to serving another?
You could tell by the earring. The earring keeps the “opened” ear “opened”.
It’s like a wedding ring.
The world knows I’m committed for life to someone else by the ring I wear
on my finger.
How can people tell if you’re committed to God?
(Matthew
5:16 NKJV) Let your light so shine before men, that they
may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
In contrast, Israel wasn’t quite as committed to God as they should have
been.
read v.9-11
:9 I will defer My anger
This would be part of God’s new instructions, that He would be pushing back
the judgment they deserved.
:10 tested you in the furnace of affliction
We’ve seen this on Sunday mornings in 1Peter.
(1 Peter 1:6b–7
NKJV) …though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by
various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being
much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be
found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,
There may be times in our lives when God allows us to go through
difficulty, not to destroy us, but to refine us like a goldsmith refines gold. It’s to put our “faith” to the test, to
purify it.
The impure gold is heated up in a furnace until it’s liquid. Then the
impurities are skimmed off of the gold.
Illustration
Charles Spurgeon said: I bear willing witness that I owe more to the fire,
and the hammer, and the file, than to anything else in my Lord's workshop. I
sometimes question whether I have ever learned anything except through the rod.
When my schoolroom is darkened, I see most.
read v.12-19
:18 Oh, that you had heeded My commandments!
Do you see God’s heart here?
Israel would be stubborn, refusing to follow after God.
Rather than destroying Israel, God shows mercy (“defer My anger” v.9)
God reminds Israel that He is the One they are looking for.
God even promises to take care of Babylon, the one who has enslaved them.
(v.14)
Our lives are so much better when we simply learn to do things the way that
God wants us to.
read v.20-22
:20 Go forth from Babylon
God will command His people to one day leave Babylon and go home, even
singing about God’s goodness.
Yet not all would be willing to leave.
There was something like 70,000 Jews that were taken captive to Babylon. But
when they got to Babylon, the Jewish community began to thrive. When Cyrus
conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to go home, only 42,000 went back, at
least initially. Josephus tells us that “they were not willing to leave their
possessions”. They had become so accustomed to Babylon and its ways that they
didn’t want to leave.
Lesson
Too much of the world
Jesus told a parable about a farmer planting seed in various types of soil.
With one of the soils, there were thorns that grew up and choked out the seed,
keeping it from being fruitful.
(Matthew
13:22 NLT) The seed that fell among the thorns represents
those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by
the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced.
Warren Wiersbe writes,
“The church today can easily grow
complacent with its comfort and affluence. God may have to put us into the
furnace to remind us that we are here to be servants
and not consumers or spectators.”
Isaiah 49
The next section is again about the “Servant”.
Though some of it seems to refer to Israel as the “Servant”, as you read
you’ll realize that it’s mostly about Jesus. Perhaps this is along the lines of
a “double fulfillment”.
read v.1-7
:1 called Me from the womb
That certainly fits Jesus.
When Mary first became pregnant, an angel came to speak to Joseph:
(Matthew
1:21 NKJV) And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall
call His name Jesus, for He will
save His people from their sins.”
:1 matrix
From the “inner parts”, the womb.
:2 made My mouth like a sharp sword
When Jesus comes back…
(Revelation
19:15 NKJV) Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword…
:5 to bring Jacob back to Him
This is Jesus, not Israel.
:6 as a light to the Gentiles
Both Israel and Jesus fit this.
Old Simeon prophesied when Jesus was dedicated as a baby…
(Luke 2:32 NKJV) A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the
glory of Your people Israel.”
When Paul was rejected by the Jews at Antioch Psidia, he told them he would
go on to the Gentiles:
(Acts 13:47 NKJV) For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the
Gentiles, That you
should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”
Paul was a Jew bringing light to Gentiles.
read v.8-13
:8 In an acceptable time I have heard You
Paul quotes this verse in urging the Corinthians to be made right with God
(2Cor. 6:2)
(2
Corinthians 6:2 NKJV) For He says: “In an
acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is
the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
:9 say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’
The next several verses seem to speaking of our future, after Jesus returns
and sets up His kingdom on the earth.
:12 the land of Sinim
It’s uncertain where this is.
Some think it refers to places as far away as China.
Others think it refers to places in Egypt.
read v.14-18
:14 The Lord has forsaken
me
It’s possible that Isaiah now goes back to the Jews being captive in
Babylon. They will feel like God has
left them, but He hasn’t.
:15 Can a woman forget her nursing child
It’s a pretty rare thing if a woman forgets about her nursing baby.
Here’s something written by a momma…
Illustration
I Wish I Were A Bear
I wish I were a bear.
If you're a bear, you get to hibernate.
You do nothing but sleep for six months.
I could get used to that.
And another thing; before you hibernate,
you're supposed to eat yourself stupid.
That wouldn't bother me either.
IF you're a mama bear,
everyone knows you mean business;
you swat anyone who bothers your cubs.
If your cubs get out of line, you swat them, too.
Your husband expects you to growl when you wake up.
He expects you to have hairy legs and excess body fat.
He likes it.
I wish I were a bear.
Lesson
He hasn’t forgotten
The high priest wore a piece of clothing that had two stone clasps on the shoulders
with the names of the tribes of Israel engraved on the stones.
It’s as if the priest bore the weight of the nation before God, by name.
He also had a breastpiece that had twelve precious stones, each with the
name of a tribe.
It was as if he were to wear their names on his heart, also being brought
before God.
We’ve taken a lesson from “Toy Story” and written our granddaughter’s name
on the bottom foot of some of her bigger stuffed toys.
Just in case she takes them with her somewhere, we can show who they belong
to.
God hasn’t just written our names on the bottom of our feet, He’s inscribed
us on the palms of His hands.
The word “inscribed” could be translated “carve, chisel, engrave”
It makes me think of the nail prints on the hands of Jesus.
I remember making a phone call once (I don’t remember to whom), and I was
placed on hold.
I waited for over fifteen minutes before giving up and calling back. Yes,
they had forgotten me.
You may wonder why you haven’t heard from God in awhile, but I guarantee
it’s not because He’s forgotten you.
It may be that He wants you to keep trusting Him even in the fog, but He
hasn’t forgotten.
read v.19-21
:19 Will even now be too small
Of course this is a promise to Israel that God will one day fully restore
them.
I’ve also felt a few times when we’ve gone through great difficulty, that
God had spoken this to my heart.
read v.22-26
This seems to continue with a picture of the Millennium when Jesus will
turn everything around for the Jews.
:25 I will contend with him who contends with you
Lesson
Pity the fool
In Rocky III, Mr. T’s character is being interviewed before a big fight
scene…
I don’t want to make too much of the clip except for the
phrase – “Pity the fool”
I think we forget that God’s watching us and just how much God cares about
us.
We think that because we are faced with a problem, or with someone who
seems to have come “against” us, that all is lost.
God may be more patient towards the person hassling us than we are, but He
hasn’t forgotten.
In the movie Karate Kid, Daniel-son has gotten himself into trouble with a
local gang of karate students…
For anyone who comes against Mr. Miyagi’s student … “I
pity the fool”.
Be careful about taking some things into your own hands and trying to “get
even”.
(Romans
12:19 NKJV) Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather
give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will
repay,” says the Lord.
If indeed you have been truly wronged, there is a Judge in
heaven who will make things right.
Isaiah 50
read v.1-3
(Isaiah 50:1 NLT) This is what the Lord
says: “Was your mother sent away because I divorced her? Did I sell you as
slaves to my creditors? No, you were sold because of your sins. And your
mother, too, was taken because of your sins.
:1 For your iniquities you have sold yourselves
Israel would be trying to tell themselves that they were taken away to
Babylon for any other reason except the right reason.
“It’s the economy”
“The king was a lousy leader”
“The Babylonians are too strong”
Lesson
Excuses
Sometimes we rely too much on excuses when we try to explain the mess we’re
in.
Like this little girl…
When a mom noticed that
her two-year-old daughter was ignoring her food, she said, “Keri, why aren’t
you eating?” Keri replied, “I can’t eat; God told me not to.” Her mother
chided: “God wouldn’t tell you not to eat your supper.” Keri looked up at the
ceiling, then conceded, “Well, maybe it was Moses.”
Illustration
Or like this guy who said…
After the accident, I told
the police officer I thought the driver of the other vehicle was drunk. He told
me the other vehicle was a cow.
If you are struggling with a certain sin in
your life, you need to stop with the excuses.
Though there may be some truth to an
excuse, in the end the problem is all mine.
Israel’s troubles were because of their own sins.
We now get a new glimpse of the Messiah…
read v.4-6
:4 the tongue of the learned
(Isaiah 50:4
NASB95) The Lord God has
given Me the tongue of disciples…
Even as Jesus had disciples, He too was a disciple.
Jesus had something to say (tongue) because He was a student
(learned/disciple)
Jesus studied the Scriptures. He was amazing the Temple scholars when He
was twelve.
:4 to speak a word … to the weary
We don’t want to be learning the Scriptures just to amaze our friends when
we play Bible Trivia.
We want to study so we have something to say to the one who is weary, who
is struggling.
Paul wrote,
(1 Timothy 1:5
NASB95) But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a
good conscience and a sincere faith.
:5 has opened My ear
Remember earlier this evening about the “opening” of the ear? (48:8)
The Messiah is one who “ear” has been “opened”. He was a willing servant.
He has willingly submitted Himself to the Father.
In the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed…
(Luke 22:42 NKJV) saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me;
nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”
We will be talking a lot about “submission” as we journey through 1Peter on
Sundays.
We need to remember that even Jesus learned to submit.
:6 gave My back to those who struck Me
This was what was involved in Jesus’ own submission.
This clip is from the movie “Son of God”
Matthew (27:26-31) records that Jesus was also mocked, spit on, and struck
in the head with a stick.
He did this willingly.
Why? Because He loves us.
Matthew records…
(Matthew 27:26–31
NKJV) —26 Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged
Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified. 27 Then the soldiers of the governor
took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. 28 And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. 29 When they
had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in
His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying,
“Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 Then they spat on Him, and
took the reed and struck Him on the head. 31 And when
they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on
Him, and led Him away to be crucified.
read v.7-11
:10 who walks in darkness…
This is a person who needs to pay attention to the words of Jesus.
John wrote,
(1 John 1:7 NKJV) But if we
walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
:11 who kindle a fire
(Isaiah
50:11 NLT) But watch out, you who live in your own light
and warm yourselves by your own fires. This is the reward you will receive from
me: You will soon fall down in great torment.
Most people understand the need to have “light” in their lives.
When I walk into a dark room, one of the first things I do is look or feel
for the light switch. I don’t want to
stumble or stub my toe.
The problem comes when we use the wrong light, the wrong fire.
Lesson
The Right Light
They say you should be careful about buying a new car at night. The color of the car is going to look a little
different in the sunlight than it will in dealer’s parking lot lights.
One of the things you’ll see employed at Disneyland is a careful use of
lighting on the rides. If you use a lot
of ultraviolet lights, you can hide a lot of stuff by painting it black.
If you get the lighting right, ordinary things can look absolutely amazing
… especially if you’re two years old…
Video: Ruthie at Small World
The wrong light can get you into a world of hurt.
Sometimes people become aware of their great spiritual need. But rather than turning on the right light,
they make up their own “light”. They
cook up their own set of rules about what they think God might want from them.
Be sure to let God’s light show you what to do.
(Psalm
119:105 NKJV) Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light
to my path.