- In Isaiah 28:15 the "covenant with death" is the Israelites' feeling they were invincible since they had an alliance with Egypt.
- In Isaiah 28:16 the "tested stone" is Jesus. He is "tested," meaning approved by God.
- Isaiah 28:20 is another way of saying that the Israelites efforts would not be enough to provide them protection or comfort.
- In the next verse, Isaiah 28:21 Mount Perazim is where David twice defeated the Philistines. Gibeon is where Joshua defeated the Amorites. But this time God's "strange work," his "alien task" would be to defeat Judah.
- The entire section of Isaiah 28:23-29 is God's way of saying that his work is done with careful deliberation--in a variety of ways--to harvest souls.
- In Isaiah 22:2 and then 13, the celebration of the people even as they face their judgment shows how their hearts are hardened against God. Verse 14 says this, hardening of the heart, is a sin that cannot be atoned for.
- In Isaiah 33:1 it says, "When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying, you will be betrayed." This is God speaking to Assyria and basically saying, "When I have used you to carry out my will, you will then be punished as well for your pride."
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Interpretation Helps for Isaiah 22, 28, and 33
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Summer 2010 I had the privilege of hearing a paper on the theology of the cross presented by retired prof. Deutschlander. In it he referenced God's foreign work (and it may have even been this very passage). I'm relying on memory here, but the general idea of his exposition was that God allows pain in our lives to a number of loving ends. Sometimes it is to break sinful hearts, which creates the need for God's message of forgiveness - the Gospel. Other times it is to strengthen faith, produce perseverance, teach patience, invite prayer, and the list goes on. What makes it foreign is that God loves his creation and does not want to inflict pain on it, but it is necessary work for salvation and spiritual growth/training. Other passages that come to mind along these same lines are Proverbs 3:11-12, Hebrews 12:7-12, Revelation 3:19
ReplyDeleteYes, that's what the People's Bible said as well. That it's alien work for God to be full of judgment. He wants to be full of grace but he has to punish sin and those who don't turn to him are still in their sins. I found that section very interesting and I'm sure it will be a useful reference time and again.
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