In the end of all things, will there be great joy and no more reason for sorrow or crying? Do we look forward to this? Let’s begin in Isaiah 12.
When the hope of nations comes, will people give thanks and sing songs of praise?
Then you will say on that day, “I will give thanks to You, Lord; For although You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, And You comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the Lord God is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.” Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation.
And on that day you will say, “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name is exalted.” Praise the Lord in song, for He has done glorious things; Let this be known throughout the earth. Rejoice and shout for joy, you inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel. (Isa 12:1-6 NASB)
As a foretaste of world peace, is there now no difference between Jews and Gentiles who call on the name of Jesus?
As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Rom 10:11-15 NIV)
Will all the troubles on earth eventually be resolved in such a way that there will be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying?
Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 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 21:1-4 NKJV)
In the end of all things, will there be great joy and no more reason for sorrow or crying? Do we look forward to this? You decide!
Hope of Nations (Isaiah 11)
Is there a king in whom the Gentiles or nations will hope? Do we look forward to His rule? Let’s look at Isaiah 11.
Who is the rod out of the stem of Jesse, a king that descends from the family of David?
Like a branch that sprouts from a stump, someone from David's family [KJV: a rod out of the stem of Jesse] will someday be king. The Spirit of the Lord will be with him to give him understanding, wisdom, and insight. He will be powerful, and he will know and honor the Lord. (Isa 11:1-2 CEV)
Are righteousness, equity and faithfulness some of the character traits of this king?
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. (Isa 11:3-5 ESV)
Will wild animals literally be tamed during the reign of this king? Does this reverse some curses in Genesis?
The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the goat. The calf, the young lion, and the fatling will be together, and a child will lead them. The cow and the bear will graze, their young ones will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. An infant will play beside the cobra’s pit, and a toddler will put his hand into a snake’s den. None will harm or destroy another on My entire holy mountain, for the land will be as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the sea is filled with water. (Isa 11:6-9 HCSB)
Will this “root of Jesse” rally all nations and recover the descendants of the ten tribes from various locations?
At that time, as to the root of Jesse, who will be standing as a banner for the peoples, the nations will rally to him, and his resting place is glorious. At that time, the Lord will reach out his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people, from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. He will raise a banner for the nations and will assemble the dispersed of Israel; he will gather the scattered people of Judah from the corners of the earth. (Isa 11:10-12 ISV)
Will the enmity between the northern and southern tribes be healed? Will there be a highway for the remnant to return?
The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them. And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dryshod. And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt. (Isa 11:13-16 KJV)
Does the author of Romans allude to this prophecy in regard to Jesus?
And again Isaiah says, “There shall come the root of Jesse, And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles, In Him shall the Gentiles hope.” (Rom 15:12 LSB)
Is there a king in whom the Gentiles or nations will hope? Do we look forward to His rule? You decide!
Who is the rod out of the stem of Jesse, a king that descends from the family of David?
Like a branch that sprouts from a stump, someone from David's family [KJV: a rod out of the stem of Jesse] will someday be king. The Spirit of the Lord will be with him to give him understanding, wisdom, and insight. He will be powerful, and he will know and honor the Lord. (Isa 11:1-2 CEV)
Are righteousness, equity and faithfulness some of the character traits of this king?
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. (Isa 11:3-5 ESV)
Will wild animals literally be tamed during the reign of this king? Does this reverse some curses in Genesis?
The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the goat. The calf, the young lion, and the fatling will be together, and a child will lead them. The cow and the bear will graze, their young ones will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. An infant will play beside the cobra’s pit, and a toddler will put his hand into a snake’s den. None will harm or destroy another on My entire holy mountain, for the land will be as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the sea is filled with water. (Isa 11:6-9 HCSB)
Will this “root of Jesse” rally all nations and recover the descendants of the ten tribes from various locations?
At that time, as to the root of Jesse, who will be standing as a banner for the peoples, the nations will rally to him, and his resting place is glorious. At that time, the Lord will reach out his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people, from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. He will raise a banner for the nations and will assemble the dispersed of Israel; he will gather the scattered people of Judah from the corners of the earth. (Isa 11:10-12 ISV)
Will the enmity between the northern and southern tribes be healed? Will there be a highway for the remnant to return?
The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them. And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dryshod. And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt. (Isa 11:13-16 KJV)
Does the author of Romans allude to this prophecy in regard to Jesus?
And again Isaiah says, “There shall come the root of Jesse, And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles, In Him shall the Gentiles hope.” (Rom 15:12 LSB)
Is there a king in whom the Gentiles or nations will hope? Do we look forward to His rule? You decide!
Nations Judged (Isaiah 10)
When Israel fell to Assyria and Judah paid heavy tribute, was God disgusted with Assyria’s arrogance? Are our nations arrogant? Let’s learn from Isaiah 10.
What does God say about legislation that punishes the needy and robs the poor?
How terrible it will be for the one who enacts unjust decrees, for those who write oppressive laws that they have prescribed to deprive the needy of justice and to rob the poor of my people of their rights, so that widows may become their spoil and so that they may plunder orphans! What will you do on the day of Judgment, in the calamity that will come from far away? To whom will you run for help, and where will you leave your wealth, so you won’t have to crouch among those in chains or fall among the slain? Yet for all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is still stretched out, ready to strike. (Isa 10:1-4 ISV)
Which nation would God primarily use to punish the northern tribes of Israel?
O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. (Isa 10:5-6 KJV)
However, instead of humbly acting as God’s vehicle of punishment, does Assyria go too far, acting in an arrogant manner?
But it does not intend to act in this way, And it does not think in its heart in this way, Rather, what is in its heart is to destroy And to cut off many nations. For it says, “Are not my princes all kings? Is not Calno like Carchemish, Or Hamath like Arpad, Or Samaria like Damascus? As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, Whose graven images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria, Shall I not do to Jerusalem and her images Just as I have done to Samaria and her idols?” (Isa 10:7-11 LSB)
Will Assyria also receive punishment at the hand of the Lord?
So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the arrogant pride of his eyes.” For he has said, “By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this, Because I have understanding; And I removed the boundaries of the peoples And plundered their treasures, And like a powerful man I brought down their inhabitants, And my hand reached to the riches of the peoples like a nest, And as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth; And there was not one that flapped its wing, opened its beak, or chirped.” (Isa 10:12-14 NASB)
Why is God angry with Assyria? Was their boasting a cause for God to curse them too?
Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood! Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a fire will be kindled like a blazing flame. The Light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day it will burn and consume his thorns and his briers. The splendor of his forests and fertile fields it will completely destroy, as when a sick person wastes away. And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few that a child could write them down. (Isa 10:15-19 NIV)
Will the remnant of Israel repent and return to dependence on God?
And it shall come to pass in that day That the remnant of Israel, And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, Will never again depend on him who defeated them, But will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, To the Mighty God. For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, A remnant of them will return; The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Lord God of hosts Will make a determined end In the midst of all the land. (Isa 10:20-23 NKJV)
Does God encourage Judah not to be afraid of the Assyrians?
So this is what the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, says: “O my people in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians when they oppress you with rod and club as the Egyptians did long ago. In a little while my anger against you will end, and then my anger will rise up to destroy them.” The Lord of Heaven’s Armies will lash them with his whip, as he did when Gideon triumphed over the Midianites at the rock of Oreb, or when the Lord’s staff was raised to drown the Egyptian army in the sea. In that day the Lord will end the bondage of his people. He will break the yoke of slavery and lift it from their shoulders. (Isa 10:24-27 NLT)
Will the Lord eventually punish Assyria for their arrogance, like lopping a large tree?
He has come to Aiath. He has passed through Migron. At Michmash he stores his baggage. They have gone over the pass. They have taken up their lodging at Geba. Ramah trembles. Gibeah of Saul has fled. Cry aloud with your voice, daughter of Gallim! Listen, Laishah! You poor Anathoth! Madmenah is a fugitive. The inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety. This very day he will halt at Nob. He shakes his hand at the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. Behold, the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, will lop the boughs with terror. The tall will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low. He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One. (Isa 10:28-34 WEB)
Did Jesus also speak of yet another punishment of Jerusalem for her sins, one that occurred about 40 years later?
Now Jesus left the temple and was going away. His disciples came to point out to him the temple buildings. He responded, “Do you see all these things? I assure that no stone will be left on another. Everything will be demolished.” (Mat 24:1-2 CEB)
When Israel fell to Assyria and Judah paid heavy tribute, was God disgusted with Assyria’s arrogance? Are our nations arrogant? You decide!
What does God say about legislation that punishes the needy and robs the poor?
How terrible it will be for the one who enacts unjust decrees, for those who write oppressive laws that they have prescribed to deprive the needy of justice and to rob the poor of my people of their rights, so that widows may become their spoil and so that they may plunder orphans! What will you do on the day of Judgment, in the calamity that will come from far away? To whom will you run for help, and where will you leave your wealth, so you won’t have to crouch among those in chains or fall among the slain? Yet for all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is still stretched out, ready to strike. (Isa 10:1-4 ISV)
Which nation would God primarily use to punish the northern tribes of Israel?
O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. (Isa 10:5-6 KJV)
However, instead of humbly acting as God’s vehicle of punishment, does Assyria go too far, acting in an arrogant manner?
But it does not intend to act in this way, And it does not think in its heart in this way, Rather, what is in its heart is to destroy And to cut off many nations. For it says, “Are not my princes all kings? Is not Calno like Carchemish, Or Hamath like Arpad, Or Samaria like Damascus? As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, Whose graven images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria, Shall I not do to Jerusalem and her images Just as I have done to Samaria and her idols?” (Isa 10:7-11 LSB)
Will Assyria also receive punishment at the hand of the Lord?
So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the arrogant pride of his eyes.” For he has said, “By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this, Because I have understanding; And I removed the boundaries of the peoples And plundered their treasures, And like a powerful man I brought down their inhabitants, And my hand reached to the riches of the peoples like a nest, And as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth; And there was not one that flapped its wing, opened its beak, or chirped.” (Isa 10:12-14 NASB)
Why is God angry with Assyria? Was their boasting a cause for God to curse them too?
Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood! Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a fire will be kindled like a blazing flame. The Light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day it will burn and consume his thorns and his briers. The splendor of his forests and fertile fields it will completely destroy, as when a sick person wastes away. And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few that a child could write them down. (Isa 10:15-19 NIV)
Will the remnant of Israel repent and return to dependence on God?
And it shall come to pass in that day That the remnant of Israel, And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, Will never again depend on him who defeated them, But will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, To the Mighty God. For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, A remnant of them will return; The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Lord God of hosts Will make a determined end In the midst of all the land. (Isa 10:20-23 NKJV)
Does God encourage Judah not to be afraid of the Assyrians?
So this is what the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, says: “O my people in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians when they oppress you with rod and club as the Egyptians did long ago. In a little while my anger against you will end, and then my anger will rise up to destroy them.” The Lord of Heaven’s Armies will lash them with his whip, as he did when Gideon triumphed over the Midianites at the rock of Oreb, or when the Lord’s staff was raised to drown the Egyptian army in the sea. In that day the Lord will end the bondage of his people. He will break the yoke of slavery and lift it from their shoulders. (Isa 10:24-27 NLT)
Will the Lord eventually punish Assyria for their arrogance, like lopping a large tree?
He has come to Aiath. He has passed through Migron. At Michmash he stores his baggage. They have gone over the pass. They have taken up their lodging at Geba. Ramah trembles. Gibeah of Saul has fled. Cry aloud with your voice, daughter of Gallim! Listen, Laishah! You poor Anathoth! Madmenah is a fugitive. The inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety. This very day he will halt at Nob. He shakes his hand at the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. Behold, the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, will lop the boughs with terror. The tall will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low. He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One. (Isa 10:28-34 WEB)
Did Jesus also speak of yet another punishment of Jerusalem for her sins, one that occurred about 40 years later?
Now Jesus left the temple and was going away. His disciples came to point out to him the temple buildings. He responded, “Do you see all these things? I assure that no stone will be left on another. Everything will be demolished.” (Mat 24:1-2 CEB)
When Israel fell to Assyria and Judah paid heavy tribute, was God disgusted with Assyria’s arrogance? Are our nations arrogant? You decide!
A Government (Isaiah 9)
Do we look forward to a coming government that will rule with fairness and justice? Let’s look at Isaiah 9.
Will there be a great light in Galilee that will replace the gloom of the northern tribes?
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. (Isa 9:1-2 NIV)
Will there be great joy because oppression no longer exists?
You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For You have broken the yoke of his burden And the staff of his shoulder, The rod of his oppressor, As in the day of Midian. For every warrior’s sandal from the noisy battle, And garments rolled in blood, Will be used for burning and fuel of fire. (Isa 9:3-5 NKJV)
Will all that happen because a child will be born who will head a government? What child born was also called God in the Bible?
For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen! (Isa 9:6-7 NLT)
Do human political promises often sound like boastful hot air with no substance?
The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it falls on Israel. All the people will know, including Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria, who say in pride and in arrogance of heart, “The bricks have fallen, but we will build with cut stone. The sycamore fig trees have been cut down, but we will put cedars in their place.” (Isa 9:8-10 WEB)
Regardless of the northern tribes’ political bragging, did God’s punishment succeed?
So the Lord raised up their foes against them, and stirred up their enemies—Aram from the east and the Philistines from the west—and they devoured Israel with an open mouth. Even then God’s anger didn’t turn away; God’s hand was still extended. (Isa 9:11-12 CEB)
Did the northern ten tribes repent and worship God?
The people of Israel still did not turn back to the Lord All-Powerful and worship him. In one day he cut off their head and tail, their leaves and branches. Their rulers and leaders were the head, and the lying prophets were the tail. They had led the nation down the wrong path, and the people were confused. The Lord was angry with his people and kept punishing them, because they had turned against him. They were evil and spoke foolishly. That's why he did not have pity on their young people or on their widows and orphans. (Isa 9:13-17 CEV)
Was God’s anger against a sinful nation like a wildfire?
For wickedness burns like a fire; it consumes briers and thorns; it kindles the thickets of the forest, and they roll upward in a column of smoke. Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts the land is scorched, and the people are like fuel for the fire; no one spares another. They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry, and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied; each devours the flesh of his own arm, Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim devours Manasseh; together they are against Judah. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. (Isa 9:18-21 ESV)
Who was the Word, and how did He become God in the flesh?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created… The Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We observed His glory, the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-3, 14 HCSB)
Do we look forward to a coming government that will rule with fairness and justice? You decide!
Will there be a great light in Galilee that will replace the gloom of the northern tribes?
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. (Isa 9:1-2 NIV)
Will there be great joy because oppression no longer exists?
You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For You have broken the yoke of his burden And the staff of his shoulder, The rod of his oppressor, As in the day of Midian. For every warrior’s sandal from the noisy battle, And garments rolled in blood, Will be used for burning and fuel of fire. (Isa 9:3-5 NKJV)
Will all that happen because a child will be born who will head a government? What child born was also called God in the Bible?
For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen! (Isa 9:6-7 NLT)
Do human political promises often sound like boastful hot air with no substance?
The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it falls on Israel. All the people will know, including Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria, who say in pride and in arrogance of heart, “The bricks have fallen, but we will build with cut stone. The sycamore fig trees have been cut down, but we will put cedars in their place.” (Isa 9:8-10 WEB)
Regardless of the northern tribes’ political bragging, did God’s punishment succeed?
So the Lord raised up their foes against them, and stirred up their enemies—Aram from the east and the Philistines from the west—and they devoured Israel with an open mouth. Even then God’s anger didn’t turn away; God’s hand was still extended. (Isa 9:11-12 CEB)
Did the northern ten tribes repent and worship God?
The people of Israel still did not turn back to the Lord All-Powerful and worship him. In one day he cut off their head and tail, their leaves and branches. Their rulers and leaders were the head, and the lying prophets were the tail. They had led the nation down the wrong path, and the people were confused. The Lord was angry with his people and kept punishing them, because they had turned against him. They were evil and spoke foolishly. That's why he did not have pity on their young people or on their widows and orphans. (Isa 9:13-17 CEV)
Was God’s anger against a sinful nation like a wildfire?
For wickedness burns like a fire; it consumes briers and thorns; it kindles the thickets of the forest, and they roll upward in a column of smoke. Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts the land is scorched, and the people are like fuel for the fire; no one spares another. They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry, and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied; each devours the flesh of his own arm, Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim devours Manasseh; together they are against Judah. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. (Isa 9:18-21 ESV)
Who was the Word, and how did He become God in the flesh?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created… The Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We observed His glory, the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-3, 14 HCSB)
Do we look forward to a coming government that will rule with fairness and justice? You decide!
The Longest Name (Isaiah 8)
When a nation is in serious trouble, where do we go for help? Let’s look at Isaiah 8.
What was the purpose in God naming Isaiah’s second son the longest name in the Bible? Is his name “swift booty, speedy prey,” a prophecy of Assyria conquering the northern tribes of Israel?
The Lord said, “Isaiah, get something to write on. Then write in big clear letters the name, MAHER-SHALAL-HASH-BAZ. I will tell Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberechiah to serve as witnesses to this.” Sometime later, my wife and I had a son, and the Lord said, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Because before he can say ‘Mommy’ or ‘Daddy,’ the king of Assyria will attack and take everything of value from Damascus and Samaria.” (Isa 8:1-4 CEV)
Had the northern tribes rejected the gentle waters of Jerusalem, God’s loving provision? So, will they be symbolically flooded with the waters from the Euphrates, the Assyrians?
The Lord spoke to me again: “Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.” (Isa 8:5-8 ESV)
Will any human schemes thwart God’s plans to punish the nation? Does the meaning of “God with us” (Immanuel) shift from God being with the faithful remnant of Judah to God is literally with us in Christ?
Band together, peoples, and be broken; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for war, and be broken; prepare for war, and be broken. Devise a plan; it will fail. Make a prediction; it will not happen. For God is with us. (Isa 8:9-10 HCSB)
Who should we fear, those who spread panic and conspiracy theories or God?
For this is what the Lord spoke to me, as his forceful hand was resting on me, and as he was warning me not to live the way this people were living: “Don’t call conspiracy everything that this people calls conspiracy, and don’t fear what they fear, or live in terror. The Lord of the Heavenly Armies—he’s the one you are to regard as holy. Let him be the one whom you fear, and let him be the one before whom you stand in terror! Then he will be a sanctuary, but for both houses of Israel he’ll also be a stone with which someone strikes himself, a rock one stumbles over, a trap and a snare to those who live in Jerusalem. Many will stumble on them; They’ll fall and be broken; They’ll be snared and captured. (Isa 8:11-15 ISV)
Were Isaiah’s sons Shear-Jashub (a remnant shall return) and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (swift booty speedy prey), and Isaiah’s name (God is salvation) prophetic signs of what God was about to do?
Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him. Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. (Isa 8:16-18 KJV)
What does God say to those who seek an answer from the occult?
Now when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. And they will pass through the land hard-pressed and hungry, and it will be that when they are hungry, they will be angry and curse their king and their God as they face upward. Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be banished into thick darkness. (Isa 8:19-22 LSB)
How is Jesus both the chief cornerstone and a stone of stumbling?
For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone, And the one who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for unbelievers, “A stone which the builders rejected, This became the chief cornerstone,” and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this they were also appointed. (1 Pet 2:6-8 NASB)
When a nation is in serious trouble, where do we go for help? You decide!
What was the purpose in God naming Isaiah’s second son the longest name in the Bible? Is his name “swift booty, speedy prey,” a prophecy of Assyria conquering the northern tribes of Israel?
The Lord said, “Isaiah, get something to write on. Then write in big clear letters the name, MAHER-SHALAL-HASH-BAZ. I will tell Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberechiah to serve as witnesses to this.” Sometime later, my wife and I had a son, and the Lord said, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Because before he can say ‘Mommy’ or ‘Daddy,’ the king of Assyria will attack and take everything of value from Damascus and Samaria.” (Isa 8:1-4 CEV)
Had the northern tribes rejected the gentle waters of Jerusalem, God’s loving provision? So, will they be symbolically flooded with the waters from the Euphrates, the Assyrians?
The Lord spoke to me again: “Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.” (Isa 8:5-8 ESV)
Will any human schemes thwart God’s plans to punish the nation? Does the meaning of “God with us” (Immanuel) shift from God being with the faithful remnant of Judah to God is literally with us in Christ?
Band together, peoples, and be broken; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for war, and be broken; prepare for war, and be broken. Devise a plan; it will fail. Make a prediction; it will not happen. For God is with us. (Isa 8:9-10 HCSB)
Who should we fear, those who spread panic and conspiracy theories or God?
For this is what the Lord spoke to me, as his forceful hand was resting on me, and as he was warning me not to live the way this people were living: “Don’t call conspiracy everything that this people calls conspiracy, and don’t fear what they fear, or live in terror. The Lord of the Heavenly Armies—he’s the one you are to regard as holy. Let him be the one whom you fear, and let him be the one before whom you stand in terror! Then he will be a sanctuary, but for both houses of Israel he’ll also be a stone with which someone strikes himself, a rock one stumbles over, a trap and a snare to those who live in Jerusalem. Many will stumble on them; They’ll fall and be broken; They’ll be snared and captured. (Isa 8:11-15 ISV)
Were Isaiah’s sons Shear-Jashub (a remnant shall return) and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (swift booty speedy prey), and Isaiah’s name (God is salvation) prophetic signs of what God was about to do?
Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him. Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. (Isa 8:16-18 KJV)
What does God say to those who seek an answer from the occult?
Now when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. And they will pass through the land hard-pressed and hungry, and it will be that when they are hungry, they will be angry and curse their king and their God as they face upward. Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be banished into thick darkness. (Isa 8:19-22 LSB)
How is Jesus both the chief cornerstone and a stone of stumbling?
For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone, And the one who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for unbelievers, “A stone which the builders rejected, This became the chief cornerstone,” and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this they were also appointed. (1 Pet 2:6-8 NASB)
When a nation is in serious trouble, where do we go for help? You decide!
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