Lord’s Day, Vol. 12 No. 44
Opening Isaiah 40-66
The first 39 chapters of Isaiah were addressed to the nation of Judah for departing from the LORD. The building up to the climax of God’s deliverance of Judah from the Assyrian siege during the reign of Hezekiah in Isaiah 36-39. The Northern Kingdom was destroyed by the Assyrian army as a dire warning to Judah to repent else suffering the same judgment. The message of Isaiah as God’s prophet in the palace of Judah was that the nation might repent from trusting in themselves and their idols and their alliances to trusting in the LORD. This Judah did, in the reign of king Hezekiah. But it was only for a short reprieve.
Judah’s judgment will finally come with the LORD raising the Babylonians to destroy Judah totally in 586 B.C. The Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and the people of Judah were deported and exiled to Babylon for 70 years. The Davidic kingdom will cease from then and never be revived until Christ the greater David returns to establish His Millennial Kingdom. Judah was under servitude from the Babylonians, the Medo-Persians, the Grecians and finally the Romans, who destroyed the Second Temple that was rebuilt and scattered the Jews for the next nearly 2000 years till their return on 14 May 1948.
In Isaiah 40-48, the prophet Isaiah brings comfort to the nation projecting their Babylonian captivity and their return to rebuild the Temple again after 70 years. Isaiah predicted the coming destruction of Babylon through Cyrus.
Isaiah 40:1-2 (KJV) Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: or she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.
Predicting their coming captivity, Isaiah gave words of encouragement to the remnant of Jews of the LORD’S presence with them as they go forth into captivity – Isaiah 40:28-31 (KJV) Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Isaiah 41:9-10 (KJV) Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away. 10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Isaiah also prophesied concerning their return from captivity through Cyrus, the Persian king, a hundred and fifty earlier.
Isaiah 44:28 (KJV) That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
Isaiah 45:1 (KJV) Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;
God will raised the Persians to judge the Babylonians and caused Judah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple.
Israel is addressed as the LORD’S servant, dearly beloved in the sight of the LORD, whom He forget not! He would redeem them and cause them to return to the land again after their Babylonians captivity during the reign of the Medo-Persians.
Isaiah 44:1-2 (KJV) Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen: 2 Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.
Isaiah 44:21-23 (KJV) Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. 22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. 23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.
Thus, Isaiah 40-48 speaks of Judah released from the Babylonian captivity prophetically.
In Isaiah 49-57, Isaiah gave further prediction of the coming of Christ – the Messiah, who will save the world from their sins. These are the events that will take place after Israel’s exile and their return to the land and building of the Second Temple under Zerubbabel.
The climax of this section is Isaiah 53 which is the middle chapter of Isaiah 49-57. Isaiah 53 is also the mid-point or the converging and climax of Isaiah 40-66 (27 chapters) which consist of three portions – Isaiah 40-48, 49-57, 58-66.
It is interesting to observe the last verse of Isaiah 48, 57 and 66 gives the same theme, namely, the misery of the wicked, namely, the unsaved! And their final judgment!
Isaiah 48:22 (KJV) There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.
Isaiah 57:21 (KJV) There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.
Isaiah 66:24 (KJV) And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.
The only hope for sinners is the atoning work of Messiah building up to a climax from Isaiah 49 to Isaiah 53.
And in examining Isaiah 53, Isaiah 53:6 may to be considered as the John 3:16 of the Old Testament. Here is the gospel put together in very few words that we might have these messages from God enshrined in our conscience and memory forever.
Isaiah 53:6 (KJV) All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isaiah 53 beautifully divides itself into 5, 3-verse sections. The first 3 verses are an introductory sketch of the life and work of Jesus Christ the Lord from Isaiah 52:13-15.
Isaiah 52:13-15 (KJV) Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high. 14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: 15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.
Then the actual 53th chapter that starts all over again with Jesus’ humble birth and growth in the most unexpected place, namely Nazareth, climaxes in the 12th verse with His exaltation to heaven. And in these 12 verses in Isaiah 53, observe a step-by-step response of Israel to Jesus. In Isaiah 53:1-3 is His total rejection by the nation (v1-3), His atoning work upon the cross (v4-6), the circumstances of His death (v7-9) and culmination and goal and fulfilment of it all (v10-12).
Isaiah 53:4-6 is the very heart of the prophesy both in its location and both in its meaning and purpose, giving the atoning work of Jesus Christ. This is the purpose He came into the world, to be the substitute for sinners to bear in their place, their guilt before a holy God.
Isaiah 58-66 gives the Kingdom of Christ in His Second Coming, after the church age, to establish His Millennia rule on earth.
The miraculous birth of the nation, at the end of the Great Tribulation period, the 70th week of Daniel’s prophecy in Daniel 9, in that the entire nation will acknowledge the LORD with a true heart is given in Romans 11:26 (KJV) And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
This sudden birth of the nation with all born-again Jews is described in Isaiah 66:7-9 (KJV) Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. 8 Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. 9 Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God.
Israel will be a sorely persecuted nation before her conversion and betrayal by the Antichrist (Daniel 9:27), or the beast (Daniel 7:19) or the little horn (Daniel 7:8) – Isaiah 66:5 (KJV) Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.
1 John 4:3 (KJV) And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
Israel will be at the centre of world evangelism during the 70th week of Daniel described in Isaiah 66.
Israel shall send forth 144,000 sealed evangelists to preach the gospel to the world in world evangelism.
Revelation 7:4 (KJV) And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty andfour thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
The two witnesses would evangelise to Israel as given in Revelation 11:3-13 during the first half of the Great Tribulation. From the testimony of the two witnesses, many in Israel were saved before they were killed by the Antichrist.
Isaiah 66:19 (KJV) And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, toTarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.
Isaiah 66:22-24 (KJV) For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain. 23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD. 24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.
After the rapture of the church, Israel will fulfil her theocratic kingdom role as the head of the nations of the world under Messiah, Christ. Isaiah saw the glorious future of Israel when Messiah reigns in Zion. God’s people will confess their sins and His enemies will be judged. Peace, prosperity and justice will prevail and God will make all things new. Amen.
Yours lovingly,
Pastor Lek Aik Wee