What do we do when faced with an impossible situation that nobody else in similar circumstances has escaped? Let’s look at Isaiah 36.
Did Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, begin to conquer the cities of Judah?
In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, King Sennacherib of Assyria came to attack the fortified towns of Judah and conquered them. Then the king of Assyria sent his chief of staff from Lachish with a huge army to confront King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. The Assyrians took up a position beside the aqueduct that feeds water into the upper pool, near the road leading to the field where cloth is washed. These are the officials who went out to meet with them: Eliakim son of Hilkiah, the palace administrator; Shebna the court secretary; and Joah son of Asaph, the royal historian. (Isa 36:1-3 NLT)
Did Sennacherib’s official Rabshakeh speak against Israel’s trust in Egypt as an ally?
Rabshakeh said to them, “Now tell Hezekiah, ‘The great king, the king of Assyria, says, “What confidence is this in which you trust? I say that your counsel and strength for the war are only vain words. Now in whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me? Behold, you trust in the staff of this bruised reed, even in Egypt, which if a man leans on it, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him. (Isa 36:4-6 WEB)
Did the official mock any reliance upon God to protect Judah?
Now suppose you say to me, ‘We trust in the Lord our God.’ Isn’t he the one whose shrines and altars Hezekiah removed, telling Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship only at this altar’? (Isa 36:7 CEB)
What bet did Sennacherib make with the people of Judah?
The king of Assyria wants to make a bet with you people! He will give you 2,000 horses, if you have enough troops to ride them. How could you even defeat our lowest ranking officer, when you have to depend on Egypt for chariots and cavalry? Don't forget that it was the Lord who sent me here with orders to destroy your nation! (Isa 36:8-10 CEV)
Why did the Assyrian army commander speak in Hebrew, the language of the common people, rather than Aramaic, the language of trade and diplomacy?
Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said, “Sir, we don't want the people listening from the city wall to understand what you are saying. So please speak to us in Aramaic instead of Hebrew.” The Assyrian army commander answered, “My king sent me to speak to everyone, not just to you leaders. These people will soon have to eat their own body waste and drink their own urine! And so will the three of you!” (Isa 36:11-12 CEV)
What did Rabshakeh say to glorify Sennacherib and mock God?
Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the language of Judah: “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you. Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord by saying, “The Lord will surely deliver us. This city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” Do not listen to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria: Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then each one of you will eat of his own vine, and each one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern, until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards. (Isa 36:13-17 ESV)
What did Rabshakeh say to mock anything that Hezekiah might say about trusting God?
Beware that Hezekiah does not mislead you by saying, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’ Has any one of the gods of the nations delivered his land from the power of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria from my power? Who among all the gods of these lands ever delivered his land from my power? So will the Lord deliver Jerusalem.” (Isa 36:18-20 HCSB)
What did the people say back to Rabshakeh, and what did Hezekiah’s officials do?
But the people remained silent and didn’t respond to him with so much as a single word, because the king had commanded, “Don’t answer him.” Then Hilkiah’s son Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the secretary, and Asaph’s son Joah, the recorder, approached Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and let him know what the field commander had said. (Isa 36:21-22 ISV)
Is there battle armor that God gives us so that we may be victorious?
Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Eph 6:14-17 KJV)
What do we do when faced with an impossible situation that nobody else in similar circumstances has escaped? You decide!
God's Restoration (Isaiah 35)
After punishment that may seem harsh from a puny human perspective, is God perfectly capable of complete restoration? Let’s look at Isaiah 35.
Will God restore the desert as He renews everything once more?
The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God. (Isa 35:1-2 KJV)
Will God strengthen the weak and anxious, saving them?
Strengthen limp hands, and give courage to the knees of the stumbling. Say to those with an anxious heart, “Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.” (Isa 35:3-4 LSB)
Will the sick and handicapped be healed? Will the dry desert receive much needed water?
Then the eyes of those who are blind will be opened, And the ears of those who are deaf will be unstopped. Then those who limp will leap like a deer, And the tongue of those who cannot speak will shout for joy. For waters will burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert. The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes. (Isa 35:5-7 NASB)
Will there be a large highway only for the redeemed? Will everlasting joy be there, and no more sorrow?
And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way. The unclean will not journey on it; wicked fools will not go about on it. No lion will be there, nor any ravenous beast; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, and those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. (Isa 35:8-10 NIV)
If God promises no more sorrow or crying, does that mean that there will be no more reason for them?
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (Rev 21:3 NKJV)
After punishment that may seem harsh from a puny human perspective, is God perfectly capable of complete restoration? You decide!
Will God restore the desert as He renews everything once more?
The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God. (Isa 35:1-2 KJV)
Will God strengthen the weak and anxious, saving them?
Strengthen limp hands, and give courage to the knees of the stumbling. Say to those with an anxious heart, “Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.” (Isa 35:3-4 LSB)
Will the sick and handicapped be healed? Will the dry desert receive much needed water?
Then the eyes of those who are blind will be opened, And the ears of those who are deaf will be unstopped. Then those who limp will leap like a deer, And the tongue of those who cannot speak will shout for joy. For waters will burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert. The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes. (Isa 35:5-7 NASB)
Will there be a large highway only for the redeemed? Will everlasting joy be there, and no more sorrow?
And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way. The unclean will not journey on it; wicked fools will not go about on it. No lion will be there, nor any ravenous beast; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, and those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. (Isa 35:8-10 NIV)
If God promises no more sorrow or crying, does that mean that there will be no more reason for them?
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (Rev 21:3 NKJV)
After punishment that may seem harsh from a puny human perspective, is God perfectly capable of complete restoration? You decide!
God's Anger (Isaiah 34)
Before God can bless humanity, must He prove His existence to a stubborn world, punish all evils, and expose all our efforts as futile? Let’s look at Isaiah 34.
As God was angry with Israel’s evils, is He also angry with all nations’ evils?
Come near, you nations, to hear! Listen, you peoples. Let the earth and all it contains hear, the world, and everything that comes from it. For Yahweh is enraged against all the nations, and angry with all their armies. He has utterly destroyed them. He has given them over for slaughter. Their slain will also be cast out, and the stench of their dead bodies will come up. The mountains will melt in their blood. All of the army of the sky will be dissolved. The sky will be rolled up like a scroll, and all its armies will fade away, as a leaf fades from off a vine or a fig tree. (Isa 34:1-4 WEB)
Is the punishment of Edom (Esau), Israel’s neighbor and frequent enemy, an example of God’s judgment upon the whole world?
When my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens, it will descend upon Edom for judgment, upon a people I have doomed for destruction. The Lord has a sword covered with blood; it is soaked with fat from the blood of lambs and goats, from the kidney fat of rams, for the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, a great slaughter in the land of Edom. Wild oxen will fall with them, steers with mighty bulls, and their land will be drenched with blood; its soil soaked with fat. The Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of payback for Zion’s cause. (Isa 34:5-8 CEB)
Is this a time also described in Revelation, where God will punish the nations?
Edom's streams will turn into tar and its soil into sulfur—then the whole country will go up in flames. It will burn night and day and never stop smoking. Edom will be a desert, generation after generation; no one will ever travel through that land. Owls, hawks, and wild animals will make it their home. God will leave it in ruins, merely a pile of rocks. (Isa 34:9-11 CEV)
Will Edom become discounted as nothing, no longer a kingdom?
Its nobles—there is no one there to call it a kingdom, and all its princes shall be nothing. Thorns shall grow over its strongholds, nettles and thistles in its fortresses. It shall be the haunt of jackals, an abode for ostriches. And wild animals shall meet with hyenas; the wild goat shall cry to his fellow; indeed, there the night bird settles and finds for herself a resting place. (Isa 34:12-14 ESV)
Would the ecological disaster punishing those who oppose Israel and thus God, be so complete that only wild animals would live there?
The sand partridge will make her nest there; she will lay and hatch her eggs and will gather her brood under her shadow. Indeed, the birds of prey will gather there, each with its mate. Search and read the scroll of the Lord: Not one of them will be missing, none will be lacking its mate, because He has ordered it by my mouth, and He will gather them by His Spirit. He has ordained a lot for them; His hand allotted their portion with a measuring line. They will possess it forever; they will dwell in it from generation to generation. (Isa 34:15-17 HCSB)
Does Revelation also describe God’s final anger upon the atrocities of the nations?
So the angel swung his sickle in the earth, gathered the grapes from the earth, and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. The wine press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed from the wine press as high as a horse’s bridle for about 1,600 stadia [300 kilometres]. (Rev 14:19-20 ISV)
Before God can bless humanity, must He prove His existence to a stubborn world, punish all evils, and expose all our efforts as futile? You decide!
As God was angry with Israel’s evils, is He also angry with all nations’ evils?
Come near, you nations, to hear! Listen, you peoples. Let the earth and all it contains hear, the world, and everything that comes from it. For Yahweh is enraged against all the nations, and angry with all their armies. He has utterly destroyed them. He has given them over for slaughter. Their slain will also be cast out, and the stench of their dead bodies will come up. The mountains will melt in their blood. All of the army of the sky will be dissolved. The sky will be rolled up like a scroll, and all its armies will fade away, as a leaf fades from off a vine or a fig tree. (Isa 34:1-4 WEB)
Is the punishment of Edom (Esau), Israel’s neighbor and frequent enemy, an example of God’s judgment upon the whole world?
When my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens, it will descend upon Edom for judgment, upon a people I have doomed for destruction. The Lord has a sword covered with blood; it is soaked with fat from the blood of lambs and goats, from the kidney fat of rams, for the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, a great slaughter in the land of Edom. Wild oxen will fall with them, steers with mighty bulls, and their land will be drenched with blood; its soil soaked with fat. The Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of payback for Zion’s cause. (Isa 34:5-8 CEB)
Is this a time also described in Revelation, where God will punish the nations?
Edom's streams will turn into tar and its soil into sulfur—then the whole country will go up in flames. It will burn night and day and never stop smoking. Edom will be a desert, generation after generation; no one will ever travel through that land. Owls, hawks, and wild animals will make it their home. God will leave it in ruins, merely a pile of rocks. (Isa 34:9-11 CEV)
Will Edom become discounted as nothing, no longer a kingdom?
Its nobles—there is no one there to call it a kingdom, and all its princes shall be nothing. Thorns shall grow over its strongholds, nettles and thistles in its fortresses. It shall be the haunt of jackals, an abode for ostriches. And wild animals shall meet with hyenas; the wild goat shall cry to his fellow; indeed, there the night bird settles and finds for herself a resting place. (Isa 34:12-14 ESV)
Would the ecological disaster punishing those who oppose Israel and thus God, be so complete that only wild animals would live there?
The sand partridge will make her nest there; she will lay and hatch her eggs and will gather her brood under her shadow. Indeed, the birds of prey will gather there, each with its mate. Search and read the scroll of the Lord: Not one of them will be missing, none will be lacking its mate, because He has ordered it by my mouth, and He will gather them by His Spirit. He has ordained a lot for them; His hand allotted their portion with a measuring line. They will possess it forever; they will dwell in it from generation to generation. (Isa 34:15-17 HCSB)
Does Revelation also describe God’s final anger upon the atrocities of the nations?
So the angel swung his sickle in the earth, gathered the grapes from the earth, and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. The wine press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed from the wine press as high as a horse’s bridle for about 1,600 stadia [300 kilometres]. (Rev 14:19-20 ISV)
Before God can bless humanity, must He prove His existence to a stubborn world, punish all evils, and expose all our efforts as futile? You decide!
Zion's Treasure (Isaiah 33)
Though God’s justice sometimes seems harsh from our perspective, does it result in an eternal joy that is beyond our wildest dreams? Let’s look at Isaiah 33.
What does God prophecy to Assyria who had defeated Israel?
You defeated my people. Now you're in for trouble! You've never been destroyed, but you will be destroyed; you've never been betrayed, but you will be betrayed. When you have finished destroying and betraying, you will be destroyed and betrayed in return. (Isa 33:1 CEV)
As Assyria threatens, do God’s people eventually turn from relying on Egypt, to relying on God alone?
O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble. At the tumultuous noise peoples flee; when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered, and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers; as locusts leap, it is leapt upon. (Isa 33:2-4 ESV)
The Lord’s discipline may seem hard by human standards, but does it bring us to humility and an understanding of who He is?
The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness. There will be times of security for you—a storehouse of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure. (Isa 33:5-6 HCSB)
Will brave men and those who made a treaty with Egypt weep and feel ashamed?
“Listen! Their brave men cry out in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly. The highways are deserted; travelers have quit the road. The enemy has broken treaties; he despises their witnesses, and respects no one. The land mourns and wastes away; Lebanon feels ashamed and withers. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.” (Isa 33:7-9 ISV)
What will happen to those who relied upon a foreign government rather than God?
Now will I rise, saith the Lord; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself. Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire. (Isa 33:10-12 KJV)
Did God punish the sinners, but allow those who walk uprightly to endure?
“You who are far away, hear what I have done; And you who are near, acknowledge My might.” Sinners in Zion are in dread; Trembling has seized the godless. “Who among us can sojourn with the consuming fire? Who among us can sojourn with continual burning?” He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly; He who rejects greedy gain of oppression, And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe; He who stops his ears from hearing about bloodshed And shuts his eyes from looking upon evil; He will dwell on the heights, His refuge will be the strongholds of the cliffs; His bread will be given him, His water will be sure. (Isa 33:13-16 LSB)
Who will the righteous see? Will it be a great experience in our eternity?
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; They will see a distant land. Your heart will meditate on terror: “Where is one who counts? Where is one who weighs? Where is one who counts the towers?” You will no longer see a fierce people, A people of unintelligible speech which no one comprehends, Of a stammering tongue which no one understands. (Isa 33:17-19 NASB)
Is this a description of a future Jerusalem as a peaceful abode?
Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken. There the Lord will be our Mighty One. It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams. No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us. (Isa 33:20-22 NIV)
Will sickness and sin one day be removed from Jerusalem?
Your tackle is loosed, They could not strengthen their mast, They could not spread the sail. Then the prey of great plunder is divided; The lame take the prey. And the inhabitant will not say, “I am sick”; The people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity. (Isa 33:23-24 NKJV)
Is this also described in Revelation in the new heavens and new earth?
No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever. (Rev 22:3-5 NLT)
Though God’s justice sometimes seems harsh from our perspective, does it result in an eternal joy that is beyond our wildest dreams? You decide!
What does God prophecy to Assyria who had defeated Israel?
You defeated my people. Now you're in for trouble! You've never been destroyed, but you will be destroyed; you've never been betrayed, but you will be betrayed. When you have finished destroying and betraying, you will be destroyed and betrayed in return. (Isa 33:1 CEV)
As Assyria threatens, do God’s people eventually turn from relying on Egypt, to relying on God alone?
O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble. At the tumultuous noise peoples flee; when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered, and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers; as locusts leap, it is leapt upon. (Isa 33:2-4 ESV)
The Lord’s discipline may seem hard by human standards, but does it bring us to humility and an understanding of who He is?
The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness. There will be times of security for you—a storehouse of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure. (Isa 33:5-6 HCSB)
Will brave men and those who made a treaty with Egypt weep and feel ashamed?
“Listen! Their brave men cry out in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly. The highways are deserted; travelers have quit the road. The enemy has broken treaties; he despises their witnesses, and respects no one. The land mourns and wastes away; Lebanon feels ashamed and withers. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.” (Isa 33:7-9 ISV)
What will happen to those who relied upon a foreign government rather than God?
Now will I rise, saith the Lord; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself. Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire. (Isa 33:10-12 KJV)
Did God punish the sinners, but allow those who walk uprightly to endure?
“You who are far away, hear what I have done; And you who are near, acknowledge My might.” Sinners in Zion are in dread; Trembling has seized the godless. “Who among us can sojourn with the consuming fire? Who among us can sojourn with continual burning?” He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly; He who rejects greedy gain of oppression, And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe; He who stops his ears from hearing about bloodshed And shuts his eyes from looking upon evil; He will dwell on the heights, His refuge will be the strongholds of the cliffs; His bread will be given him, His water will be sure. (Isa 33:13-16 LSB)
Who will the righteous see? Will it be a great experience in our eternity?
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; They will see a distant land. Your heart will meditate on terror: “Where is one who counts? Where is one who weighs? Where is one who counts the towers?” You will no longer see a fierce people, A people of unintelligible speech which no one comprehends, Of a stammering tongue which no one understands. (Isa 33:17-19 NASB)
Is this a description of a future Jerusalem as a peaceful abode?
Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken. There the Lord will be our Mighty One. It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams. No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us. (Isa 33:20-22 NIV)
Will sickness and sin one day be removed from Jerusalem?
Your tackle is loosed, They could not strengthen their mast, They could not spread the sail. Then the prey of great plunder is divided; The lame take the prey. And the inhabitant will not say, “I am sick”; The people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity. (Isa 33:23-24 NKJV)
Is this also described in Revelation in the new heavens and new earth?
No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever. (Rev 22:3-5 NLT)
Though God’s justice sometimes seems harsh from our perspective, does it result in an eternal joy that is beyond our wildest dreams? You decide!
An Ethical King (Isaiah 32)
Who is the king that will reign in righteousness with honest leaders? Let’s look at Isaiah 32.
Who is this king that shall reign? Is this a prophecy of Jesus’ second coming?
Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken. The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly. (Isa 32:1-4 KJV)
Will this be a time when only righteous people will be allowed to be in government?
No longer will the wicked fool be called noble, Or the rogue be spoken of as generous. For a wicked fool speaks wicked folly, And his heart does wickedness: To do ungodliness and to speak error against Yahweh, In order to make the hungry person empty; He even causes the thirsty to lack a drink. As for a rogue, his weapons are evil; He counsels wicked schemes To wreak destruction on the afflicted with lying words, Even though the needy one speaks justly. But the noble man counsels noble plans; And by noble plans he rises up. (Isa 32:5-8 LSB)
Will selfish women who care more for their luxuries than for the suffering be given a warning?
Rise up, you women who are at ease, And hear my voice; Listen to my word, You complacent daughters. Within a year and a few days You will be troubled, you complacent daughters; For the vintage is ended, And the fruit gathering will not come. (Isa 32:9-10 NASB)
Will the inequality of a corrupt society come to an end, one that allows some to live extravagantly, while causing others to suffer?
Tremble, you complacent women; shudder, you daughters who feel secure! Strip off your fine clothes and wrap yourselves in rags. Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vines and for the land of my people, a land overgrown with thorns and briers—yes, mourn for all houses of merriment and for this city of revelry. (Isa 32:11-13 NIV)
Will the exclusive housing of the selfish rich be abandoned until the Spirit of God has been poured out? Will Israel’s brown lands turn green?
Because the palaces will be forsaken, The bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks—Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is counted as a forest. (Isa 32:14-15 NKJV)
Will Israel finally become a place of justice and righteousness? Will bounteous crops grow in a land where once desert dominated?
Justice will rule in the wilderness and righteousness in the fertile field. And this righteousness will bring peace. Yes, it will bring quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in safety, quietly at home. They will be at rest. Even if the forest should be destroyed and the city torn down, the Lord will greatly bless his people. Wherever they plant seed, bountiful crops will spring up. Their cattle and donkeys will graze freely. (Isa 32:16-20 NLT)
Was the Spirit being poured out experienced in its initial fulfillment on Pentecost?
It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy. (Acts 2:17-18 WEB)
Was the gift of the Holy Spirit also poured out on Gentiles?
While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell on everyone who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. (Acts 10:44-45 CEB)
Who is the king that will reign in righteousness with honest leaders? You decide!
Who is this king that shall reign? Is this a prophecy of Jesus’ second coming?
Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken. The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly. (Isa 32:1-4 KJV)
Will this be a time when only righteous people will be allowed to be in government?
No longer will the wicked fool be called noble, Or the rogue be spoken of as generous. For a wicked fool speaks wicked folly, And his heart does wickedness: To do ungodliness and to speak error against Yahweh, In order to make the hungry person empty; He even causes the thirsty to lack a drink. As for a rogue, his weapons are evil; He counsels wicked schemes To wreak destruction on the afflicted with lying words, Even though the needy one speaks justly. But the noble man counsels noble plans; And by noble plans he rises up. (Isa 32:5-8 LSB)
Will selfish women who care more for their luxuries than for the suffering be given a warning?
Rise up, you women who are at ease, And hear my voice; Listen to my word, You complacent daughters. Within a year and a few days You will be troubled, you complacent daughters; For the vintage is ended, And the fruit gathering will not come. (Isa 32:9-10 NASB)
Will the inequality of a corrupt society come to an end, one that allows some to live extravagantly, while causing others to suffer?
Tremble, you complacent women; shudder, you daughters who feel secure! Strip off your fine clothes and wrap yourselves in rags. Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vines and for the land of my people, a land overgrown with thorns and briers—yes, mourn for all houses of merriment and for this city of revelry. (Isa 32:11-13 NIV)
Will the exclusive housing of the selfish rich be abandoned until the Spirit of God has been poured out? Will Israel’s brown lands turn green?
Because the palaces will be forsaken, The bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks—Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is counted as a forest. (Isa 32:14-15 NKJV)
Will Israel finally become a place of justice and righteousness? Will bounteous crops grow in a land where once desert dominated?
Justice will rule in the wilderness and righteousness in the fertile field. And this righteousness will bring peace. Yes, it will bring quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in safety, quietly at home. They will be at rest. Even if the forest should be destroyed and the city torn down, the Lord will greatly bless his people. Wherever they plant seed, bountiful crops will spring up. Their cattle and donkeys will graze freely. (Isa 32:16-20 NLT)
Was the Spirit being poured out experienced in its initial fulfillment on Pentecost?
It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy. (Acts 2:17-18 WEB)
Was the gift of the Holy Spirit also poured out on Gentiles?
While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell on everyone who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. (Acts 10:44-45 CEB)
Who is the king that will reign in righteousness with honest leaders? You decide!
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