03/19/2021 – Day 020 – Isaiah – Chapters 12 – 17 / Prophecies: ‘The Branch’ and His Kingdom & Judgment on Nations
I’ve repeated this often for it races through my mind often, if but momentarily: For most all of the prophets but particularly Isaiah and Jeremiah, there’s was a faithful and lonely mission in terms of the world. In reality, they were far removed from lonely with the grace of the indwelling Holy Spirit. But make no mistake , they were still human, it was a hard road, faithfully travelled , to the glory of God!
So, let’s put ourselves in Isaiah’s shoes on just our reading today to illustrate this faithful mission. In summary, no one was listening! And here is why : Our reading today covers at length God’s pronouncements of future events driven by His absolute sovereignty. We cover the downfall of Assyria, Babylon, Philistia, Moab and Damascus. My bible footnote on 13:17 notes that a best guess of Isaiah’s delivery of this message was 701 b.c. Going past the Assyrian empire that was the threatening nemesis during Isaiah’s lifetime to the Babylonians, conquered by Cyrus and what was to become the Persian – Mede empire in 539 b.c., the Medes were hardly a blip on the radar screen in 701 b.c. at the time of Isaiah’s writing of this scripture.
Now, let’s look at the current scene around Isaiah and the Jewish people . I for the rest of this post will provide quotes from my “Halley’s Bible Handbook” by Henry H. Halley, 23rd edition, Copyright 1962:
“Assyrian Background of Isaiah’s Ministry (pg 285 – 286):
For 150 years before the days of Isaiah the Assyrian Empire had been expanding. As early as 840 b.c., Israel, under Jehu, had begun to pay tribute to Assryia. While Isaiah was yet a young man (734 b.c.), Assyria carried away all of north Israel. (Jimmy insert: ten of twelve tribes become ‘toast’) 13 years later (721), Samaria fell, and the rest of Israel was carried away. The, a few years later, the Assyrians came on into Judah, destroyed 46 walled cities, and carried away 200,000 captives. Finally (701 b.c.) when Isaiah was an old man, the Assyrians were stopped before the walls of Jerusalem by an angel of God. Thus, Isaiah’s whole life was spent under the shadow of threatening Assyrian power, and he himself witnessed the ruin of his entire nation at their hands, except only Jerusalem.”
Question brothers:
So, through this lineup of future prophecy fulfillment running 162 years and beyond to the Christ child and end-times, how much attention do you think was given to the unfathomable hope delivered from Almighty God?; all within a firm directive to give your heart to God completely and forget the current sufferings of this world.
I would submit that we are fellow warriors for Christ that are in the shoes of Isaiah and Jeremiah. At least , we are called to be so. So here, I go back once again , when a brother in a very special men’s bible study class asked at the end of a long study in the books of the prophets: “If God placed an ad in a newspaper for a prophet, would you answer it? After an uncomfortable silence, it received not one affirmative response. And at least for me, my negative response, at least for that time, was a sign of growth from that multi year fellowship blessing. At the beginning of our fellowship, I would have answered: “Absolutely, I am in!” But!, does the walk match the talk in the heat of the battle? Pray, for by His grace, the mission to His kingdom will be assuredly be successful!
And futher FYI:
“Chapters 13, 14: 1-27. The Fall of Babylon
.. the splendor of which Babylon rose a hundred years after Isaiah’s day, as the Queen City of the Pre-Christian world, ‘the glory of kingdoms’ (13:19), the ‘city of gold’ (14:4), is here as clearly envisioned as if Isaiah had been right there…
The gist of the prophecy: Babylon shall supercede Assyria (14:25); Media shall supercede Babylon (13:17; and Babylon shall pass away forever (13: 19-22, 14: 22-23). For fulfillment of this astonishing prediction see under II Kings 25.
The point of special interest was the Fall of Babylon would mean the release of the Captives (14: 1-4). Within one year after Babylon fell, Cyrus, the Medo-Persian king, issued a decree for the Return of the Jews to their home-land (Ezra 1:1).
A hundred years after Isaiah, when Babylone had risen to power, and was demolishing Jerusalem, Jeremiah takes up Isaiah’s cry for vengeance (see Jeremiah 50, 51).
Babylon, oppressor of the Jews, was counterpart and pattern of a New Testament Power which would enslave the Church (Revelation 17 to 19) (Jimmy insert – Yes, end times!)”
Let me back up in our reading but a good point to explore further:
“Chapters 11, 12. The ‘Branch’ and His Kingdom (pg 293)
An expansion of 2:2-4, 4:2-6, 7:14, 9:1-7. Here from predicting the overthrow of the Assyrian army Isaiah again suddenly turns his eyes to the future, and gives us one of the most glorious pictures of the Coming World to be found in all Scripture. (Jimmy insert: Was his audience listening? More importantly now: Are we listening today !?!)
A Warless World, under the reign of a righteous and benevolent King of Davidic descent, formed of the redeemed of all nations together with the restored remnant of Judah. (Jimmy insert: This was completely a foreign construct in the Jewish mind of the day, the “We are the covenant people!”, radically counter-intuitive.) Whether this will ever be in our world of flesh and blood, or in an era beyond the veil, we do not know.. But that it is to be is as sure as the morning. The subject is continued in 25:6. Chapter 12 is a song of praise for the day of glad triumph, of heaven, which we will all sing when we get there, where all the discordant elements shall have disappeared.”
Soli Deo Gloria! We have reached a good stopping point to reflect and pray!
Your brother in Christ,
Jimmy