***

Introduction

The only book quoted in the New Testament more often than Isaiah (55) is the book of Psalms (68).

Perhaps needless to say, Isaiah was the author of the book of Isaiah. His book is the first of what are called the major prophets: Major and Minor Prophets. Isaiah was a contemporary of the prophet Joel.

The oldest traditions are that Isaiah was martyred by King Manasseh, the wicked son of Hezekiah – the means of execution being sawn in half. It is believed, though there’s insufficient evidence to confirm, that he was included in “they were saw in two.”

Heb 11:37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
Heb 11:38 (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.

Irrespective of how Isaiah died, we know from the Old Testament and from Jesus’ confirmations below that death was perhaps the most common reward a prophet received.

Luke 11:47 “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them.
Luke 11:48 “So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs.

***

Luke 13:33 “Nevertheless I must journey on today and tomorrow and the next day; for it cannot be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.
Luke 13:34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!

And this is just the Old Testament prophets we’ve been talking about. Add in John the Baptist, Jesus Himself, Stephen, and nearly all the apostles and we begin to see that God’s spokesmen in the biblical period seem to have had a less than 50/50 chance to die of natural causes.

***

Isaiah 1

Rebellion of God’s People

Is 1:1 – It was normal for a prophet to speak of his “vision.” It was something God showed him, but the word also means the way he “saw” things. ***** Isaiah ministered in the southern kingdom during the time that the Israel’s northern kingdom (The Divided Kingdom) was vanquished by Assyria (Key Dates for Ancient Israel).

Is 1:4 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 1:8 – “Zion“

Is 1:9 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse of Isaiah’s from the Septuagint. (This is why it says “the Lord of Sabaoth” when Is 1:9 says “the Lord of hosts.” The terms mean exactly the same thing.) As for “the Lord of hosts,” who is now “the Lord“? and what does “of hosts“ mean?

Rom 9:29 And just as Isaiah foretold,
“UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY,
WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH.”

The point that both Isaiah and Paul are making is that the city of Jerusalem was behaving as badly as Sodom and Gomorrah. The only reason Jerusalem was being preserved was because God had plans to use it in the future and there were were some of its citizens (“survivors”) who remained faithful to Him.

Jesus made similar references to Sodom when preaching to Jerusalem in His day.

Matt 10:15 “Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.

***

Matt 11:23 “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day.
Matt 11:24 “Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.”

The difference between Isaiah’s day and Jesus’ day is that there no reason for God to preserve Jerusalem and Israel after Messiah because producing Messiah was the goal of their existence. Once Messiah was born, raised, killed, resurrected, and ascended, the nation of Israel and its temple was no longer needed.

God Has Had Enough

Is 1:10 – The Lord begins speaking to Jerusalem as “Sodom” and “Gomorrah” because Jerusalem is behaving as wickedly as those ancient cities behaved.

“Let Us Reason”

Is 1:18-20 – Since coming to faith in Christ, I have always been puzzled by people who think faith has nothing to do with reason. It was reason that led me to faith. It was God who gave us reason to believe. And here He is pleading with His people to reason with Him. When we do not believe God, we are being unreasonable. Faith and reason are not enemies – they are interdependent.

Zion Corrupted, to Be Redeemed

Is 1:24 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 1:27 – “Zion“

***

Isaiah 2

God’s Universal Reign

Is 2:2-4 – Micah has essentially this same passage in Mic 4:1-3. See BSN note on it there.

Is 2:2 – “the last days“

Is 2:3 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “Zion…Jerusalem“

Is 2:5 – Who is now “the Lord“?

Is 2:10-11 – Who is now “the Lord“?

A Day of Reckoning Coming

Is 2:12 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 2:17 – Isaiah is repeating for the sake of emphasis what he said in Is 2:11. ***** Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 2:19 – Who is now “the Lord“?

Is 2:21 – Who is now “the Lord“?

***

Isaiah 3

God Will Remove the Leaders

Is 3:1 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Jerusalem“

Is 3:8 – “Jerusalem“ ***** Who is now “the Lord“?

God Will Judge

Is 3:13-15 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Judah’s Women Denounced

Is 3:16-26 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “Zion“

***

Isaiah 4

A Remnant Prepared

Is 4:2 – “the Branch of the Lord“ #FJOT

Is 4:3 – “Zion…Jerusalem“

Is 4:4-6 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “Zion“ ***** “Mount Zion” = “Zion”

***

Isaiah 5

Parable of the Vineyard

Is 5:1-7 – From this passage, Jesus weaves a parable.

Mark 12:1 And He began to speak to them in parables: “A man PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT, AND DUG A VAT UNDER THE WINE PRESS AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.
Mark 12:2 “At the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive some of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers.
Mark 12:3 “They took him, and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.
Mark 12:4 “Again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully.
Mark 12:5 “And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others.
Mark 12:6 “He had one more to send, a beloved son; he sent him last of all to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
Mark 12:7 “But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’
Mark 12:8 “They took him, and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.
Mark 12:9 “What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vine-growers, and will give the vineyard to others.

Is 5:3 – “Jerusalem“

Is 5:7 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “hosts“

Woes for the Wicked

Is 5:9 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “hosts“

Is 5:12 – Who is now “the Lord“?

Is 5:14 – “Sheol“ ***** “Jerusalem“

Is 5:16 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 5:19 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 5:24 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

***

Isaiah 6

Isaiah’s Vision

Is 6:1 – Who is now “the Lord“?

Is 6:3 – Who is the One who is “Holy, Holy, Holy“? ***** Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 6:5-7 – Notice that after seeing and hearing the vision, Isaiah confesses Israel’s – including his own – hypocritical speech: “unclean lips.” Because of that confession, Isaiah’s sins in this regard were forgiven. We have an even quicker and surer forgiveness than Isaiah did through our awareness of Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

As for the hypocritical (“unclean”) lips of the people in general, that continued unabated and unforgiven. See Is 29:10 and related BSN notes below about “lip service.”

Isaiah’s Commission

Is 6:9-10 – Remarkably, this passage is quoted in all four Gospels and the book of Acts. They all quote the passage in part; Matthew comes the closest to replicating it all.

Matt 13:10 And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”
Matt 13:11 Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.
Matt 13:12 “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.
Matt 13:13 “Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Matt 13:14 “In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;
Matt 13:15 FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL,
WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR,
AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES,
OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES,
HEAR WITH THEIR EARS,
AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN,
AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’
Matt 13:16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.
Matt 13:17 “For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

***

Mark 4:10 As soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve, began asking Him about the parables.
Mark 4:11 And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables,
Mark 4:12 so that WHILE SEEING, THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND WHILE HEARING, THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND, OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT RETURN AND BE FORGIVEN.”

***

Luke 8:9 His disciples began questioning Him as to what this parable meant.
Luke 8:10 And He said, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is in parables, so that SEEING THEY MAY NOT SEE, AND HEARING THEY MAY NOT UNDERSTAND.

***

John 12:37 But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him.
John 12:38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?”
John 12:39 For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again,
John 12:40 “HE HAS BLINDED THEIR EYES AND HE HARDENED THEIR HEART, SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYES AND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND BE CONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM.”
John 12:41 These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him.
John 12:42 Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue;
John 12:43 for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.

In John 12:41 above, the apostle John is referring to the vision Isaiah had of the Lord in the first part of this chapter (Is 6:1-7): “saw His glory.” (Speaking about Jesus, John says that he and his fellow apostles also “saw His glory” in Jn 1:14; it’s just that Isaiah saw the Lord’s glory in a vision of heaven while the apostles saw Him in the flesh on earth.)

Before you read the passage from the Acts of the Apostles below, be aware that the “they” that begins the passage refers to the leading Jews living in Rome at the time of Paul’s arrival there as a house prisoner of the Roman Empire. He had been taken into protective custody in Jerusalem and brought to Rome for his appeal as a Roman citizen to the Emperor. The main point I’m wanting to make is that the passage below is describing a Jew (Paul) interacting with his fellow Jews about the Messiah.

Acts 28:23 When they had set a day for Paul, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening.
Acts 28:24 Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe.
Acts 28:25 And when they did not agree with one another, they began leaving after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers,
Acts 28:26 saying,
‘GO TO THIS PEOPLE AND SAY,
“YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
AND YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;
28:27 FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL,
AND WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR,
AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES;
OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT SEE WITH THEIR EYES,
AND HEAR WITH THEIR EARS,
AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN,
AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.”‘
Acts 28:28 “Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will also listen.”
Acts 28:29 [When he had spoken these words, the Jews departed, having a great dispute among themselves.]

Is 6:11-13 – When Isaiah spoke these words, he was prophesying of the desolation that would come to Jerusalem and Judah when King Nebuchadnezzar would conquer it in 586 BC (Key Dates for Ancient Israel). The “stump” that would remain until it was destroyed again in 70 AD carried “the holy seed” which was Messiah. Of course, Messiah was safely ensconced in heaven about 40 years before that at His ascension. Thus there was no reason to hold back the fullness of judgment on Jerusalem in the 1st century AD as there had been in the 6th century BC.

***

Isaiah 7

War against Jerusalem

The Child Immanuel

Is 7:11 – “Sheol“

Is 7:14 – “Immanuel” ***** Matthew describes how the birth of Jesus was fulfillment of Is 7:14.

Matt 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.
Matt 1:19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.
Matt 1:20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
Matt 1:21 “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Matt 1:22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
Matt 1:23 “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”
Matt 1:24 And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife,
Matt 1:25 but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Isaiah will invoke the name “Immanuel” again in Is 8:8, and its translation – “God is with us” – in Is 8:10. #Hints

Trials to Come for Judah

***

Isaiah 8

Damascus and Samaria Fall

Is 8:8 – See note on Is 7:14 above.

A Believing Remnant

Is 8:10 – See note on Is 7:14 and Is 8:8 above. (The name “Immanuel” and the phrase “God is with us” have the same meaning.)

Is 8:14 – In Romans 9:33, the apostle Paul is combining Is 28:16 with Is 8:14. I’ve put in bold the Is 8:14 part. (See notes on Is 28:16 farther below.)

Rom 9:30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith;
Rom 9:31 but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law.
Rom 9:32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,
Rom 9:33 just as it is written,
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”

The apostle Peter is also combining Old Testament quotations about Messiah as a stone or rock, but in more expansive fashion than Paul employed.

1 Pet 2:4 And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God,
1 Pet 2:5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Pet 2:6 For this is contained in Scripture:
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER stone,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
1 Pet 2:7 This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,
“THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER stone,”
1 Pet 2:8 and,
“A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE“; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

In 1 Pet 2:6, Peter is quoting Is 28:16. (See notes on it farther below.)
In 1 Pet 2:7, Peter is quoting Ps 118:22. (See notes on it here.)
In 1 Pet 2:8, Peter is quoting Is 8:14.

Is 8:17-18 – In his letter to the Hebrews, Paul uses Isaiah to emphasize his point that Messiah is not ashamed to be associated with us. How much less should we be ashamed to be associated with Him.

Heb 2:10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings.
Heb 2:11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,
Heb 2:12 saying,
“I WILL PROCLAIM YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN,
IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.”
Heb 2:13 And again,
“I WILL PUT MY TRUST IN HIM.” And again,
“BEHOLD, I AND THE CHILDREN WHOM GOD HAS GIVEN ME.”

Is 8:19 – This was a a lesson King Saul learned the hard way in 1 Samuel 28:3-25.

***

Isaiah 9

Birth and Reign of the Prince of Peace

Is 9:1-2 – Matthew quotes this passage early in his Gospel, showing how Jesus fulfilled it.

Matt 4:12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee;
Matt 4:13 and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali.
Matt 4:14 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
Matt 4:15 “THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI,
BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE GENTILES—
Matt 4:16 “THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT,
AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH,
UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.”
Matt 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Is 9:1 – Regarding this messianic reference to Galilee, see John 7:41, 50-53 and accompanying BSN notes. More generally, see Messianic Geography. #FJOT

Is 9:6-7 –#FJOT This is one of the grandest messianic prophecies to be found in the Old Testament. One of its many interesting features is that it prophesies Messiah will be both a “son” and a “father” – There Is No Trinity; There Is Christ!

***** See related BSN note on Lk 7:16.

God’s Anger with Israel’s Arrogance

Is 9:13 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 9:19 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

***

Isaiah 10

Assyria Is God’s Instrument

Is 10:10-11 – “Jerusalem“ and “Samaria” are the respective capitals of The Divided Kingdom.

Is 10:16 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 10:17 – “his Holy One“ (that is, Israel’s Holy One)

Is 10:18 – “soul and body“

A Remnant Will Return

Is 10:20 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 10:22-23 – This passage is one of many Old Testament quotations Paul uses in

Rom 9:27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, “THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED;
Rom 9:28 FOR THE LORD WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH, THOROUGHLY AND QUICKLY.“

Is 10:23 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Is 10:26 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“ ***** This incident was first reported in Judg 7:24-25. It is also mentioned in Judg 8:3 and in Ps 83:11.

Is 10:32 – “Zion…Jerusalem”

Is 10:33 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

***

Isaiah 11

This chapter is a prophecy of New Testament times. In other words, the New Testament records how this prophecy was fulfilled – mainly by the rise of Christ and the movement He led.

Righteous Reign of the Branch

Is 11:1 – Both “shoot“ and “branch“ are figures of Messiah. King David was of “the stem of Jesse” (David’s father), and Messiah was what came forth from those “roots.”

Is 11:10 – This verse is one in a string of Old Testament quotations Paul writes in Romans 15 to demonstrate that God’s plan had always been to fully incorporate the Gentiles into His messianic plan for the world. God didn’t choose Israel instead of the Gentiles; He chose Israel in order to reach the Gentiles.

Rom 15:12 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.”

In Is 11:10, the expressions “the nations” and “the peoples” were references to Gentiles.

The Restored Remnant

***

Isaiah 12

Thanksgiving Expressed

Is 12:1-6 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “Zion“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

***

Isaiah 13

Prophecies about Babylon

Is 13:4-5 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“

Judgment on the Day of the Lord

Is 13:6 – “the day of the Lord“

Is 13:9 – “the day of the Lord“

Is 13:13 – Who is now “the Lord“? ***** “of hosts“ ***** “the day of His burning anger“

Babylon Will Fall to the Medes

Is 13:19 – Cities and nations rise, cities and nations fall. The Lord sifts them all like wheat.

***

Isaiah 14

Israel’s Taunt

Is 14:9 – “Sheol“ ***** “spirits“

Is 14:11 – “Sheol“

Is 14:12 – The NASB footnote to “star of the morning” says:

Heb Helel; i.e. shining one

Strong’s Concordance says this:

1966 helel (237d); from 1984a; a shining one:–star of the morning(1).

The King James Version of Is 14:12 says this:

Is 14:12 KJV How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

The name “Lucifer” doesn’t appear anywhere in the NASB, and its only appearance in the KJV is in this verse. See a little more on this at BSN notes on Satan.

As for Satan more generally, compare this pattern (Is 14:12-23) with the pattern found for Shebna in the BSN notes on Is 22:15-25 below.

Is 14:15 – “Sheol“

Judgment on Assyria

Is 14:24 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 14:27 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Judgment on Philistia

Is 14:32 – “the Lord“ ***** “Zion“ ***** The Lord Jesus has founded the Zion above as our eternal refuge. As the apostle Paul says:

Heb 13:14 For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.

In seeking this heavenly city, we are walking in the footsteps of Abraham…as Isaac and Jacob did.

Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.
Heb 11:9 By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise;
Heb 11:10 for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Our situation, however, is much better than what these men had, for we have the completed Bible – Old and New Testaments – to describe the city that God has built for us. For one thing, it is situated in heaven – not on earth! The Lord will always give us temporary places of refuge on earth, but the only permanent place of refuge any of us have is in heaven.

***

Isaiah 15

Judgment on Moab

Is 15:4 – “soul“

***

Isaiah 16

Prophecy of Moab’s Devastation

Is 16:1 – “Zion“

Is 16:5 – “lovingkindness“ ***** “faithfulness“

Is 16:14 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 17

Prophecy about Damascus

Is 17:3 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 17:6 – “the Lord“

Is 17:7 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 17:13 – “The nations“

***

Isaiah 18

Message to Ethiopia

Is 18:4 – “the Lord“

Is 18:7 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Mount Zion“

***

Isaiah 19

Message to Egypt

Is 19:4 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 19:12 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 19:16 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 19:17 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 19:18 – “Canaan“ ***** “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 19:19 – “the Lord“

Is 19:20 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** The phrase “a Savior and a Champion” refers to Messiah. #FJOT

Is 19:21 – “the Lord“

Is 19:22 – “the Lord“

Is 19:23-25 – This passage speaks of New Testament times. Jesus gave what is called “the Great Commission” to His apostles just before He ascended into heaven. That’s what He says in red below.

Matt 28:16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated.
Matt 28:17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.
Matt 28:18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
Matt 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
Matt 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

The apostles would not realize the fullness of what this commission meant until Acts 10 when the Lord directed Peter to start preaching to Gentiles as they had been preaching to Jews. But Gentiles were expected to ultimately become part of the messianic plan all along. It’s just that each step had to be taken in its proper time. Acts 10 was when the door of faith was flung open for Gentiles by Peter. The Lord then sent Paul to preach specifically to Gentiles all over the Roman empire.

Is 27:13 echoes Is 19:23-25.

Is 19:25 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

***

Isaiah 20

Prophecy about Egypt and Ethiopia

Is 20:2 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 21

God Commands That Babylon Be Taken

Is 21:6 – “the Lord“

Is 21:8 – “Lord“

Is 21:10 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Oracles about Edom and Arabia

Is 21:11 – “Edom…Seir“

Is 21:16 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 22

The Valley of Vision

Is 22:5 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 21:10 – “Jerusalem“

Is 21:12 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 22:13 – In 1 Cor 15, the apostle Paul spends the entire chapter defending the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and its critical importance to the way a human being lives. Here is an excerpt below. I know it’s long, but it is only a third of the chapter. I chose it because it gives the needed context for appreciating Paul’s quotation of Is 22:13, which you will find near the end.

1 Cor 15:20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.
1 Cor 15:21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.
1 Cor 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
1 Cor 15:23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming,
1 Cor 15:24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.
1 Cor 15:25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.
1 Cor 15:26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.
1 Cor 15:27 For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.
1 Cor 15:28 When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.
1 Cor 15:29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?
1 Cor 15:30 Why are we also in danger every hour?
1 Cor 15:31 I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
1 Cor 15:32 If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE.
1 Cor 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”
1 Cor 15:34 Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.

We can live for this life only, or we can live in anticipation of, and in preparation for, the life to come. People who want to live only for this world don’t realize how broken it is. Sin makes this world no fit place to live forever. Jesus didn’t live to feather His nest on earth; He lived to feather His nest in heaven. His earthly life culminated in a degrading crucifixion, but His heavenly life is a never-ending exaltation above every other name that is! Likewise, we should seek the best long-term outcomes for ourselves and our families. We should be willing to sacrifice short term benefits in order to achieve the longer-lasting ones.

Is 22:14 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** All is forgiven when we die, but we still have a final judgment to face when we get to heaven.

2 Cor 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

If you are unsure about this, see Everyone Is Going to Heaven and Judgment Is upon Us and Repentance Is Required. (For more on the meaning of “repent,” see BSN: REPENT.)

Is 22:15-25 – #FJOT This eleven-verse passage about what happened with a couple of guys named Shebna and Eliakim provides a foreshadowing (Types and Shadows of Christ) of what happened with Satan and Messiah – especially with respect to how Messiah went from being a son to being a father.

As for Shebna, his story provides a prefiguring of what would happen to Satan because of Messiah’s coming. His is a similar pattern to what we saw in Is 14:12-23 above. For more, see those notes.

As for Messiah being both a son and a father, recall that Isaiah had prophesied both roles for Messiah in Is 9:6.

Is 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

(It’s a separate point to Is 22, but note that Is 9:6 also says that Messiah will be God. For more on that, see Jesus Christ Is God and The Second Coming Reveals Christ to Be God and Father.)

Most people who accept Jesus as the Messiah have no problem seeing how Isaiah was right to call Him a son. As for calling Him a father as well, that discussion continues in the notes on verse 21 below.

Is 22:15 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 22:17 – “the Lord

Is 22:21 – We know that Messiah would “become a father” by Is 9:6 and other verses. Jesus was declared “Lord” after His resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven. Below, Paul quotes the Old Testament, confirming that “the Lord” would “become a father.”

2 Cor 6:18 “And I will be a father to you,
And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,”
Says the Lord Almighty.

This “becoming” was tied to the Second Coming. Further to that point, Jesus Himself implied that He would “become a father” in His coming when He said this:

John 14:18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

If Jesus was not going to “become a father” in His coming then would we not still be “left as orphans”? Yes. Jesus therefore came to us as a brother in His first coming, and as a father in His second coming. This was the long-awaited “adoptions as sons” mentioned multiple times by Paul (Rom 8:15, 23; 9:4; Gal 4:5; Eph 1:5), including this one:

Rom 8:23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.

The Second Coming had not yet occurred when the New Testament documents were being written, but it came within years of their completion – certainly by the end of the 1st century. (More on this at Is 22:24 below.)

See Jesus became the Father.

Is 22:22 – Jesus referred to Himself with the following words this verse of Isaiah in the book of Revelation.

Rev 3:7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this:

Is 22:24 – Jesus described in the Gospels, as below, when heaven would “hang on him all the glory of His Father’s house” (Matt 16:27; Mark 8:38; Luke 9:26). It would be at the Second Coming – which was to occur during the lifetime of at least some of His apostles. (Jesus Christ Has Already Come Again)

Matt 16:27 “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.
Matt 16:28 “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

See Messiah’s Two Major Milestones. (The first was to be declared “Lord” at His resurrection and ascension, and the second was to be declared “God” at His coming in glory.)

Is 22:25 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** In the foreshadowing story of this chapter (Types and Shadows of Christ), “the peg driven in a firm place gave way, broke off, and fell,” but when the reality of Messiah came, He would never give way, break off, or fall.

Heb 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

***

Isaiah 23

The Fall of Tyre

Is 23:9 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 23:11 – “the Lord“

Is 23:17 – “the Lord“

Is 23:18 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 24

Judgment on the Earth

Is 24:1 – “the Lord“

Is 24:3 – “the Lord“

Is 24:5 – “covenant“

Is 24:14 – “the Lord“

Is 24:15 – “the Lord“

Is 24:16 – “the Righteous One“

Is 24:21 – “the Lord“

Is 24:23 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Mount Zion…Jerusalem“

***

Isaiah 25

Song of Praise for God’s Favor

Is 25:1 – “the Lord“ ***** “faithfulness“

Is 25:6 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 25:8 – In his first letter to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul borrows Isaiah’s language from this verse.

1 Cor 15:54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.

Who is the Lord who has done thing on our behalf – that is, saved us from death?

Heb 2:14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,
Heb 2:15 and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.

The answer? The one who “partook of the same.” The “same” what? Flesh and blood.

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Isaiah said a mouthful when he said, “He will swallow up death for all time.” Humanity – not some subset of humanity – has been delivered from the fear of death. But not enough people believe it. They need to hear: Everyone Is Going to Heaven!

Is 25:9 – “the Lord“

Is 25:10 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 26

Song of Trust in God’s Protection

Is 26:4 – “the Lord“

Is 26:8 – “Lord“ ***** “soul“

Is 26:9 – “soul…spirit“

Is 26:10 – “the Lord“

Is 26:11 – “Lord“

Is 26:12 – “Lord“

Is 26:13 – “Lord“

Is 26:14 – “spirits“

Is 26:15 – “Lord“

Is 26:16 – “Lord“

Is 26:17 – “Lord“

Is 26:19 – This promise has been fulfilled! Jesus was the first fruit at His resurrection. The full harvest came when all Sheol was emptied at the Second Coming.

Is 26:20 – An inner room is a place out of sight – where we can be seen by the Lord and no one else. That is the place for most of our prayers. Jesus did pray in public, but the vast majority of His prayer was conducted in private. So it should be for us.

Matt 6:5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
Matt 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

***

Isaiah 27

The Deliverance of Israel

Is 27:1 – Isaiah (prophet of the OT) and John (apostle of the NT) collaboratively let us know that “Leviathan” is Satan. (This “collaboration” is achieved when we compare Is 27:1 and Rev 12:9.

Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

For more of his names, see Satan.

Is 27:3 – “the Lord“

Is 27:9 – In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul alludes to this verse of Isaiah’s to buttress his point about how the Lord would remove the sins of His covenant people.

Paul is explaining to the Jewish and Gentile believers in Rome how God was going to be faithful to the promises He made to the Jews while allowing a full embrace of Gentiles. For more on Paul’s argument, see the BSN notes on Romans 9-11.

Is 27:12 – “the Lord“

Is 27:13 – Isaiah spoke this same way about the threesome of Egypt, Assyria, and Israel (“Jerusalem”) in Is 19:23-25 (see notes above). ***** “the Lord“ ***** “the holy mountain at Jerusalem“

***

Isaiah 28

Ephraim’s Captivity Predicted

Is 28:2 – “the Lord“

Is 28:5 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 28:7 – “priest“ ***** “prophet“

Is 28:11-12 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse when he’s trying to explain to the Corinthians how the gift of tongues is supposed to work in the New Testament church.

1 Cor 14:21 In the Law it is written, “BY MEN OF STRANGE TONGUES AND BY THE LIPS OF STRANGERS I WILL SPEAK TO THIS PEOPLE, AND EVEN SO THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO ME,” says the Lord.

Note how Paul uses “the Law” to refer to the whole of Scripture and not strictly the Law of Moses (the first five books of the Bible). That is, technically speaking he’s quoting from the book of Isaiah but refers to it as coming from the whole of Scripture which he refers to as “the Law.” Jesus did the same thing in John 10:34.

John 10:34 Jesus answered them, “Has it not been written in your Law, ‘I SAID, YOU ARE GODS’?

Technically speaking, Jesus is quoting Ps 82:6, but He refers to it as coming from the “Law.” Thus we can consider it standard practice among 1st-century Jews to use the expression “the Law” in either of these senses, with context being the guide to determine which is which. We do something similar when we sometimes use the word Constitution as inclusive of the Bill of Rights and other times as the two being distinct.

Is 28:13 – “the Lord“

Judah Is Warned

Is 28:14 – “the Lord“ ***** “Jerusalem“

Is 28:15 – “Sheol“

Is 28:16 – The apostle Paul uses this verse from Isaiah in a couple of ways. First, he uses it to explain that God had spoken through Isaiah the prophet centuries before the time of Jesus that Messiah would be a stumbling block as well as a cornerstone.

Rom 9:30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith;
Rom 9:31 but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law.
Rom 9:32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,
Rom 9:33 just as it is written,
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”

As I explained in the notes on Is 8:14 above, Paul is combining Is 8:14 and Is 28:16. He is doing so to demonstrate how what could seem to be a contradiction in the Bible can be easily explained. It’s one of the many riddles in the Bible for which God eventually provides answers. In Old Testament times a person could complain, “Wait minute – Is Messiah going to be a stumbling stone or a stepping stone?” because those two things, as in a riddle, seem contradictory. The answer is that Messiah would be a stumbling block to unbelieving Jews and a stepping stone to believing Jews.

As if to confirm this very point, Paul will in the next chapter of Romans quote again from Is 28:16, this time focused on those who believe instead of those who don’t believe.

Rom 10:9 …if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
Rom 10:10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
Rom 10:11 For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”

The apostle Peter also invokes Is 28:16 in combination with other Old Testament scriptures – and not just Isaiah’s.

1 Pet 2:4 And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God,
1 Pet 2:5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Pet 2:6 For this is contained in Scripture:
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER stone,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
1 Pet 2:7 This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,
“THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER stone,”
1 Pet 2:8 and,
“A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

See more on Peter’s usage of Isaiah in notes on Is 8:14 above.

Peter uses “precious” where Is 28:16 uses “costly.” The difference is probably because Peter is quoting Isaiah from the Septuagint rather than from the Hebrew text. That said, it really doesn’t matter since the two words are synonymous. Therefore, the point is that the cornerstone – Jesus Christ – was and is both precious and costly. Everyone knows that precious stones are costly stones. We can also say that Jesus is precious because He’s God, and He’s costly because of the suffering He endured. If you were God, would you have become a man to endure what He endured? Would you have allowed yourself to be crucified?

Is 28:18 – “Sheol“

Is 28:21 – This verse prophesies Messiah’s resurrection from the dead which was the pivotal element of the messianic plan and the pivotal event in all human history. That God would become Messiah and ultimately rule the universe through that identity is “His unusual task,” “His extraordinary work.”

Is 28:22 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

***

Isaiah 29

Jerusalem Is Warned

Is 29:1-2 – NASB footnote on “Ariel” says “I.e. Lion of God, or Jerusalem.”

Is 29:6 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 29:10 – “the Lord“ ***** “prophets…seers“ *****

Rom 11:7 What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened;
Rom 11:8 just as it is written,
“GOD GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR,
EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT,
DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY.”

All biblical history shows that there are always false prophets as well as true ones – and the false ones usually outnumber the true ones…by a wide margin. The false prophets are blind guides of the blind.

Is 29:11-12 – This passage continues the thought expressed in Is 29:10 – that the false prophets could not explain the Scriptures, yet Jesus was explaining to His disciples everything that was going on in terms of what the Scriptures said.

Is 29:13 – The prophet Jeremiah – who ministered in the generation after Jeremiah’s – expresses a similar thought in Jer 12:2. ***** Compare Isaiah’s reference to “unclean lips” in Is 6:5-7 (including the associated BSN notes above) with what he says about “lip service” in this verse. And this was the thrust of Is 6, that the nation would, generally speaking, not follow Isaiah in repentance. This is just as the nation would, generally speaking, not follow John the Baptist in his repentance. In both cases, that unwillingness to repent led to destruction in Jerusalem – first in 586 BC and then in 70 AD (Key Dates for Ancient Israel).

Here’s how Jesus uses Is 29:13…

Mark 7:1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered around Him when they had come from Jerusalem,
Mark 7:2 and had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed.
Mark 7:3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders;
Mark 7:4 and when they come from the market place, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots.)
Mark 7:5 The Pharisees and the scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?”
Mark 7:6 And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:
‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS,
BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.
Mark 7:7 ‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME,
TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’
Mark 7:8 “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”

(Matthew also records this incident: Mt 15:1-10.)

both Isaiah and Jesus came from very hypocritical generations.

Is 29:14 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse in his first letter to the Corinthian church.

1 Cor 1:18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
1 Cor 1:19 For it is written,
“I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE,
AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.”

There’s a stark difference between the wisdom of man and the wisdom of Go – so much so that the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of man.

Blessing after Discipline

Is 29:15 – “the Lord“

Is 29:17-19 – #FJOT – It is not hard to see in the pages of the four Gospels the historical fulfillment of this description. ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 29:22-24 – “the Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Jacob“

***

Isaiah 30

Judah Warned against Egyptian Alliance

Is 30:1 – “the Lord“

Is 30:10 – “seers…prophets“

Is 30:11 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 30:12 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 30:15 – “the Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“ ***** The way of the Lord is the way of “repentance…rest…quietness and trust.” Only the stubborn and self-willed resist it. Here are a couple of ways that Jesus expressed it.

Matt 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
Matt 11:29 “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
Matt 11:30 “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

***

Luke 5:30 The Pharisees and their scribes began grumbling at His disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?”
Luke 5:31 And Jesus answered and said to them, “It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick.
Luke 5:32 “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

God Is Gracious and Just

Is 30:18 – “the Lord” ***** “gracious“ ***** “on high” – He’s enthroned in heaven, where He ascended after His crucifixion and resurrection.

Is 30:19 – “Zion…Jerusalem“ ***** “gracious“

Heb 4:16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Is 30:20 – “The Lord“ is our “Teacher.”

John 13:13 “You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am.

Is 30:21 – THE WAY

Is 30:26-33 – “The Lord“

***

Isaiah 31

Help Not in Egypt but in God

Is 31:1 – “the Holy One of Israel“ ***** “the Lord“

Is 31:3 – “the Lord“

Is 31:4 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Mount Zion“

Is 31:5 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Jerusalem“

Is 31:6 – A particularly poignant call to repentance.

Is 31:9 – “the Lord“ ***** “Zion…Jerusalem“

***

Isaiah 32

The Glorious Future

Is 32:6 – “the Lord“

Is 32:8 – See Act 17:11 for a demonstration of such noble-mindedness.

Is 32:15 – Compare with Joel 2:28.

***

Isaiah 33

The Judgment of God

Is 33:2 – “Lord“

Is 33:5 – “The Lord“ ***** “Zion“

Is 33:6 – “The Lord“

Is 33:10 – “The Lord“ – This speaks to Jesus’ resurrection.

Is 33:14 -15 – Isaiah is describing hell.

Is 33:20 – “Zion…Jerusalem“

Is 33:21 – “The Lord“

Is 32:22 – Surely James was mindful of this verse of Isaiah’s.

James 4:11 Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.
James 4:12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?

***

Isaiah 34

God’s Wrath against Nations

Is 34:1 – “nations…peoples“

Is 34:2 – “the Lord“ ***** “the nations“

Is 34:4 – “host…hosts“

Is 34:5 – “Edom“

Is 34:6 – “the Lord“ ***** “Edom“

Is 34:8 – “the Lord“ ***** “Zion“

Is 34:16 – “the Lord“ ***** “His Spirit“

***

Isaiah 35

Zion’s Happy Future

Is 35:2 – “the Lord“

Is 35:10 – “the Lord“ ***** “Zion“

***

For the next four chapters (Is 36-39), Isaiah primarily writes history. The chapters before this (Is 1-35) were primarily prophecy, and that focus will resume in the chapters after this (Is 40-66).

As a general rule, Isaiah and all the prophets write their history as narrative prose and their prophecy as poetry. This makes it easier for us to tell when they are switching gears because Bible printers present prose and poetry so differently on the page. Exceptions to this rule include, of course, examples like Ex 15 where Moses commemorates the victory over Egypt and the historical psalms (such as Psalms 105 and 106).

The historical information in Is 36-39 can also be found 2 Kings 18:13-20:19, some of it word for word. I will limit my comments on this history here since I’ve already made comments there: the BSN notes on 2 Kings.

***

Isaiah 36

Sennacherib Invades Judah

Is 36:1-22 – “Jerusalem“ ***** “the Lord“ ***** “the nations“

***

Isaiah 37

Is 37:1-38 – “the Lord“ ***** “priests“ ***** “prophet“ ***** “Jerusalem“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “Zion“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“ ***** “Mount Zion“

Hezekiah Seeks Isaiah’s Help

Hezekiah’s Prayer in the Temple

God Answers through Isaiah

Assyrians Destroyed

***

Isaiah 38

Hezekiah Healed

Is 38:1-22 – “prophet“ ***** “the Lord“ ***** “Sheol“ ***** “soul“ ***** “faithfulness“

***

Isaiah 39

Hezekiah Shows His Treasures

Is 39:1-8 – “prophet“ ***** “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts

***

At this point, Isaiah returns to his prophecies. (See note between chapters 35 and 36 above.)

***

Isaiah 40

The Greatness of God

Is 40:2 – “Jerusalem“ ***** “the Lord“

Is 40:3-5 – “the Lord“ ***** All four Gospel writers – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – declare that John the Baptist was the fulfillment of this prophecy from Isaiah (Mt 3:3; Mk 1:3; Lk 3:4-6; Jn 1:23). Moreover, in the fourth Gospel, John the Baptist himself agrees that he was the fulfillment of this prophecy. I’m picking just one of the Gospels to present to you. It’s the third Gospel, which provides us the longest quotation of the Isaiah passage as well as the most context for it.

Luke 3:1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,
Luke 3:2 in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness.
Luke 3:3 And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins;
Luke 3:4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,
“THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,
‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD,
MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT.
Luke 3:5 ‘EVERY RAVINE WILL BE FILLED,
AND EVERY MOUNTAIN AND HILL WILL BE BROUGHT LOW;
THE CROOKED WILL BECOME STRAIGHT,
AND THE ROUGH ROADS SMOOTH;
Luke 3:6 AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD.‘”
Luke 3:7 So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Luke 3:8 “Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.
Luke 3:9 “Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

One of the most important things we can learn from this prophecy and its fulfillment is the nature of biblical prophecy – specifically, that it very visual and metaphorical. This does not mean that it is never literal. On the contrary, everyone thought Moses was being figurative about God raising up a prophet like him, but that prophecy was fulfilled quite literally when Jesus rose from the dead!

Deut 18:15 “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him.

That said, poetic prophecy is usually picturesque and suggestive of profound yet unseen realities. That is certainly the case here with Is 40:3-5. In fulfilling this passage, God was not altering the physical features of Israel as if He were making the Smoky Mountains look like the Great Plains and paving an interstate through it. On the contrary, God was laying out a new landscape for righteousness. John the Baptist was “paving a way”…for Him! The Lord was “leveling the playing field” of life and He Himself was going to be the standard for righteousness going forward.

***** #Hints If the “voice in the wilderness” was to “make smooth in the desert a highway for our God,” and if John the Baptist was the voice in the wilderness making the way for Jesus, it is not too far from there to Jesus being God.

Is 40:6-8 – “the Lord“ ***** The apostle Peter is quotes this passage in his first letter.

1 Pet 1:22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
1 Pet 1:23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.
1 Pet 1:24 For,
“ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS,
AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS.
THE GRASS WITHERS,
AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF,
1 Pet 1:25 BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.” And this is the word which was preached to you.
1 Pet 2:1 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander,
1 Pet 2:2 like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation,
1 Pet 2:3 if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

It seems to me that Peter is describing Jesus as the personified word of God in the same way that Luke, John, and others have done.

Luke 1:1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us,
Luke 1:2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word,
Luke 1:3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus;
Luke 1:4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.

***

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.

The translators didn’t make Luke’s “word” a capital like they did with John’s, but I don’t see how Luke – or Peter for that matter – meant anything different from John. Moreover, Peter is quoting Isaiah who in Is 40:8 said “the word of our God stands forever” and how could that not be speaking of Jesus’ resurrection?!

Is 40:8 – See the reference to this verse at my page on the New American Standard Bible (NASB).

Is 40:9-12 – “Zion…Jerusalem“ ***** “the Lord“ ***** #FJOT What a song of Jesus is this passage! The good shepherd is in plain view here!

Is 40:13 – “the Spirit of the Lord“ is the Holy Spirit. ***** The apostle Paul quotes this verse in two of his letters.

Rom 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!
Rom 11:34 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR?
Rom 11:35 Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN?
Rom 11:36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

***

1 Cor 2:14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
1 Cor 2:15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.
1 Cor 2:16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

Paul’s point in both cases was twofold: 1) God is wiser than us beyond measure, 2) God is more generous than us beyond measure. Therefore, God grants us some of that wisdom we could never attain on our own…and we are enriched by it!

Is 40:15 – Now we know the origin of this figure of speech.

Is 40:25 – “the Holy One”

Is 40:26 – “host”

Is 40:28 – “the Lord“

Is 40:31 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 41

Israel Encouraged

Is 41:4 – “The Lord“ identifies Himself through Isaiah in this verse, and in Is 44:6 and Is 48:12 as well, as “the first and the last.” ***** In addition to the many New Testament verses that declare Jesus to be “the Lord,” we also have Jesus identifying Himself three times in the book of Revelation as “the first and the last” as described by Isaiah in this verse.

Rev 1:17 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last,
Rev 1:18 and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.

***

Rev 2:8 And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this:

***

Rev 22:12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.
Rev 22:13 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Is 41:14 – “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 41:13 – “The Lord“

Is 41:14 – “The Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 41:16 – “The Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 41:17 – “The Lord“ *

Is 41:20 – “The Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 41:21 – “The Lord“

Is 41:27 – “Zion…Jerusalem“

***

Isaiah 42

God’s Promise concerning His Servant

Is 42:1-4 – Matthew uses this passage from Isaiah to show that Jesus was not ad-libbing His messianic role. He wasn’t freelancing. Rather, He was following a script – a script written by others, long before He was born. Each author – like Isaiah – was writing a different part of that script.

Matt 12:15 But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all,
Matt 12:16 and warned them not to tell who He was.
Matt 12:17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
Matt 12:18 “BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN;
MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL-PLEASED;
I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM,
AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.
Matt 12:19 “HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT;
NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS.
Matt 12:20 “A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF,
AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT,
UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY.
Matt 12:21 “AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.“

(Minor point: Since Matt 12:21 can be found the Septuagint version of Is 42:4 but not the Hebrew version, this explains why you don’t see this line in your NASB 1995 OT.)

Is 42:1 – “My Servant” and “My chosen one” are Messianic titles. ***** “soul“ ***** “My Spirit“ is the Holy Spirit.

Is 42:4 – His “law“

Is 42:5 – ““The Lord“ ***** “spirit“

Is 42:6 – “The Lord“ ***** “covenant“

Is 42:8 – Regarding His name of “LORD” (YHWH), it was notably established in Ex 3:13-15; 6:2-3.

Is 42:10-13 – “The Lord“

Is 42:19 – “My servant,” “My messenger,” and “the servant of the Lord” are all Messianic names/titles/roles.

Is 42:21 – “The Lord“ ***** “the law“

Is 42:24 – “The Lord“ ***** “law“

The Blindness of the People

***

Isaiah 43

Israel Redeemed

Is 43:1-13 – “The Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“ ***** “the nations…the peoples” ***** “My servant” is a Messianic title. ***** “your Holy One“

Israel Is God’s Witness

Babylon to Be Destroyed

Is 43:20-21 – The apostle Peter strung together the following sentence from words, phrases, and ideas found in this passage from Isaiah as well as a half dozen other verses located all over the Old Testament.The apostles were steeped in the Scriptures because that’s the way Jesus taught them.

1 Pet 2:9 But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
1 Pet 2:10 for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY.

What is going on here in Peter’s letter is what was going on throughout the New Testament texts from Acts through Revelation. And that is that by the plan of God, the resurrection of Jesus had made Him king of Israel, as His ancestor David had been. Only Jesus’ throne was situated in the Zion that was in heaven, not the Zion on earth from which David had reigned. While the citizens of David’s kingdom had been the physical descendants of Abraham, the citizen’s of Jesus’ kingdom were spiritual descendants of Abraham. Whether physically Jew or Gentile, these spiritual descendants had the kind of faith that Abraham had. That is, these folks simply believed God – the good news about Jesus the Messiah.

What all this means is that the New Testament church was spiritual Israel. That meant they were heirs to all the promises. It also meant that as Jesus had been fulfilling scriptures about things Messiah would do in Matthew through John, so the church was fulfilling scriptures about things spiritual Israel would do . Thus – to quote Is 43:21 – the New Testament church was “the people formed” to “declare His praise.” They treasured what the apostles wrote and passed it down to their children. And that’s what enabled the apostles words – which Jesus had taught them – to make their way to us. And that’s how the Bible came to have a New Testament as well as an Old Testament.

The Shortcomings of Israel

***

Isaiah 44

The Blessings of Israel

Is 44:2 – “the Lord“

Is 44:3 – “My Spirit” is the Holy Spirit. ***** “blessing“

Is 44:4 – These “poplars” are trees of righteousness…like the one portrayed in Psalm 1.

Is 44:5 “the Lord“

Is 44:6 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “I am the first and I am the last” – see Is 41:4 (which also has this phrase) and accompanying BSN notes above.

The Folly of Idolatry

Is 44:18 – This echoes the spiritual state of the people as Isaiah described them in Is 6.

God Forgives and Redeems

Is 44:23 – “the Lord“

Is 44:26 – “Jerusalem“ ***** Notice the similarity of thought between this verse and Is 54:17. Both verses speak of God’s commitment to back up His spokesmen’s prophecies with His promised action.

Is 44:28 “Cyrus” was the Persian king who, in his conquest of Babylon, brought to an end Judah’s Babylonian Captivity by authorizing the Jews and other peoples captured by the Babylonians to return to their homelands. For more, see 2 Chr 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-2 and elsewhere. ***** “Jerusalem“ ***** “temple“

***

Isaiah 45

God Uses Cyrus

Is 45:1 – “the Lord“ ***** “Cyrus” – see note on Is 44:28 above. ***** “His anointed“ is a messianic allusion. That is, Cyrus was a type of Christ, prefiguring a king who would liberate captives (such as in Eph 4:8; Ps 68:18; Mic 2:13).

Is 45:3 – “the Lord“

Is 45:5 – “the Lord“

Is 45:6 – “the Lord“

Is 45:7 – “the Lord“

God’s Supreme Power

Is 45:8 – “the Lord“

Is 45:11 – “the Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 45:12 – “host“

Is 45:13 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Is 45:14 – “the Lord“

Is 45:17 – “the Lord“

Is 45:18 – “the Lord“

Is 45:19 – “the Lord“

Is 45:21 – “the Lord“ ***** “And there is no other God besides Me” is echoing Deut 4:35, and then both are amplified in the New Testament (Mk 12:32).

Deut 4:35 “To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him.

***

Mark 12:28 One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?”
Mark 12:29 Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD;
Mark 12:30 AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’
Mark 12:31 “The second is this, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12:32 The scribe said to Him, “Right, Teacher; You have truly stated that HE IS ONE, AND THERE IS NO ONE ELSE BESIDES HIM;
Mark 12:33 AND TO LOVE HIM WITH ALL THE HEART AND WITH ALL THE UNDERSTANDING AND WITH ALL THE STRENGTH, AND TO LOVE ONE’S NEIGHBOR AS HIMSELF, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
Mark 12:34 When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that, no one would venture to ask Him any more questions.

This provides quite the riddle to solve when Ps 110 has Messiah seated at God’s right hand – that is, beside Him. This is why Jesus called the Second Coming a “day of revelation.”

Luke 17:30 “It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed.

Riddles are meant to be solved. Nothing is hidden except to be revealed (Mk 4:22).

Is 45:22 – #FJOT #Hints

Matt 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

Is 45:23 – The apostle Paul quotes from this verse in two of his letters.

Phil 2:9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
Phil 2:10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
Phil 2:11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

***

Rom 14:10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.
Rom 14:11 For it is written,
“AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME,
AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD.”
Rom 14:12 So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.

It’s only a matter of time before everyone confesses Jesus as Lord and praises Him…and God has all of the time in the world.

Is 45:24 – “the Lord“ ***** “Men will come to Him” has its fulfillment in Christ (Messiah).

Matt 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

***

John 12:32 “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”

Is 45:25 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 46

Babylon’s Idols and the True God

Is 46:13 – “Zion“

***

Isaiah 47

Lament for Babylon

Babylon is a type of the city or nation that has gotten too big for its britches. Survey human history. The haughtier the the nation, the more humiliating its fall. God will not be mocked; whatever a nation sows, that it will reap.

Gal 6:7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.

As goes a man, so goes a nation. America will be no exception to this rule.

Is 47:4 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“ ***** “The Holy One of Israel“

***

Isaiah 48

Israel’s Obstinacy

Is 48:1 – “the Lord“

Is 48:2 – “the Lord“ ***** “of hosts“

Deliverance Promised

Is 48:12 – “I am the first, I am also the last” – See notes above on Is 41:44 about this form of self-identification by God.

Is 48:14 – “the Lord“

Is 48:16 – “the Lord“ ***** “His Spirit” is the Holy Spirit.

Is 48:17 – “the Lord“ ***** “the Holy One of Israel“

Is 48:18 – His commandments are not a burden – they are the path to well-being.

***

1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

Is 48:20 – “the Lord“

Is 48:21 – See Ex 17:1-7.

Is 48:22 – “the Lord“

***

Isaiah 49

Salvation Reaches to the End of the Earth

Is 49:6 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse because he knows his fellow Jews will recognize it.

Acts 13:44 The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord.
Acts 13:45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming.
Acts 13:46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.
Acts 13:47 “For so the Lord has commanded us,
‘I HAVE PLACED YOU AS A LIGHT FOR THE GENTILES,
THAT YOU MAY BRING SALVATION TO THE END OF THE EARTH.'”
Acts 13:48 When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.
Acts 13:49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region.
Acts 13:50 But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district.
Acts 13:51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.

Because Paul knows that his fellow Jews will recognize these words (Acts 13:47) as Isaiah’s, he knows also that they will have to reckon with God’s reference to the Gentiles in it. Paul was always hoping that his success in preaching to Gentiles would provoke his fellow Jews to reconsider their unbelief (Rom 10:19; 11:11, 14) – like trying to induce a reluctant swimmer to jump in the water by making sure he sees how much fun everyone else having in the pool. These Jews in Pisidian Antioch, however, were having none of it.

Is 49:8 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse in his second letter to the Corinthians. He uses it in a sentence that, according to the translators, is 185 words long. I say “according to the translators” because ancient texts didn’t have much in the way of punctuation. The reader had to figure out what the writer was wanting to communicate pretty much by the words themselves and not much else – not even capitalization. See Ancient Writings for more explanation of what the translators have to work with.

Please read the entire sentence because context has a particular importance with this quotation.

2 Cor 6:1 And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain–
2 Cor 6:2 for He says,

“AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU,
AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.”

Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION“–
2 Cor 6:3 giving no cause for offense in anything, so that the ministry will not be discredited,
2 Cor 6:4 but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God, in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in distresses,
2 Cor 6:5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger,
2 Cor 6:6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love,
2 Cor 6:7 in the word of truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left,
2 Cor 6:8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true;
2 Cor 6:9 as unknown yet well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death,
2 Cor 6:10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things.

If Paul had quoted Is 49:8 without the rest of this long sentence we might not have appreciated that “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME” and “THE DAY OF SALVATION” could include the quantity and severity of afflictions Paul describes. Sometimes grace comes in the midst of great difficulty. This is an important point to grasp; otherwise, we might miss God altogether. He is often found in the eye of the storm.

Promise to Zion

***

Isaiah 50

God Helps His Servant

Is 50:6-7 – #FJOT The Gospel writers document how the prophecies of verse 6 were fulfilled in the life of Jesus.

Matt 26:67 Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him,
Matt 26:68 and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

***

Matt 27:28 They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.
Matt 27:29 And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
Matt 27:30 They spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head.
Matt 27:31 After they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.

***

Mark 14:65 Some began to spit at Him, and to blindfold Him, and to beat Him with their fists, and to say to Him, “Prophesy!” And the officers received Him with slaps in the face.

Mark 15:19 They kept beating His head with a reed, and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing before Him.

***

Luke 22:63 Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking Him and beating Him,
Luke 22:64 and they blindfolded Him and were asking Him, saying, “Prophesy, who is the one who hit You?”
Luke 22:65 And they were saying many other things against Him, blaspheming.

So much for fulfillment of verse 6. As for the fulfillment of verse 7, we see that profoundly and dramatically in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Extreme trials followed by extreme vindication – this was the life of Messiah. The Jews had never been able to reconcile the prophecies of suffering (like Is 50:6) with the prophecies of glory (like Is 50:7) until the resurrected Jesus of Nazareth showed up presenting them with signs of both that could not be denied. – as in the following case:

John 20:26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
John 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
John 20:28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

Isaiah and all the prophets prophesied both suffering and glory for Messiah. It’s a theme that was central to the messianic plan and therefore central to the Bible.

***

Isaiah 51

Israel Exhorted

***

Isaiah 52

Cheer for Prostrate Zion

Is 52:5 – As we saw in Is 49:6 above, God expected Israel to be a light for Him to all the other nations, but, alas, reality sometimes produced the opposite result. That is, Israel was as capable of bringing shame to God’s name as honor. It’s the shame that Isaiah and Paul are describing.

Rom 2:23 You who boast in the Law, through your breaking the Law, do you dishonor God?
Rom 2:24 For “THE NAME OF GOD IS BLASPHEMED AMONG THE GENTILES BECAUSE OF YOU,” just as it is written.
Rom 2:25 For indeed circumcision is of value if you practice the Law; but if you are a transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.

We who are known as followers of Jesus must be aware that our behavior is either going to reflect favorably or unfavorably on our confession of faith. That is, by the way we live, we are bringing either honor or dishonor to the name of Jesus every day.

Is 52:7 – The prophet Nahum says something very similar in Nah 1:15. See BSN notes there.

Nah 1:15 Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news,
Who announces peace!
Celebrate your feasts, O Judah;
Pay your vows.
For never again will the wicked one pass through you;
He is cut off completely.

***

Isaiah 53

The Suffering Servant

In some ways, this chapter reads like a firsthand account of Jesus’ crucifixion. However, this crucifixion would not occur for another 700-800 years! ***** Moreover, the practice of crucifixion was not know in that part of the world until after Isaiah’s time. That’s not to say, however, that it was entirely unique from all prior forms of capital punishment. For some background on means of public execution prior to the practice of crucifixion, see Gen 40:19 and Deut 21:22. See also Josh 10:26-27 and the accompanying BSN note.

Is 53:1 – Isaiah is wondering if all his preaching and prophesying have been doing any good. He surely remembered that God had told him at the time He commissioned him to preach that the nation would be deaf to his message (see John 12:40 below, and Is 6:10 which John is quoting). Israel was hardening against Jesus the same way they had hardened against Isaiah.

John 12:36 “While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them.
John 12:37 But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him.
John 12:38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?“
John 12:39 For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again,
John 12:40 “HE HAS BLINDED THEIR EYES AND HE HARDENED THEIR HEART, SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYES AND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND BE CONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM.”
John 12:41 These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him.
John 12:42 Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue;
John 12:43 for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.

Paul also makes reference to Isaiah 53:1 and the similarity between Israel’s spiritual condition during Isaiah’s time and the time of John the Baptist, Jesus, and the apostles. In both cases, Jerusalem was ultimately destroyed – the second time more thoroughly. (Key Dates for Ancient Israel)

Rom 10:11 For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
Rom 10:12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him;
Rom 10:13 for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”
Rom 10:14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?
Rom 10:15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!”
Rom 10:16 However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?“

Even though Isaiah knew his overall mission to the nation would be unsuccessful, he wanted to know if at least some people were being saved. This was like Elijah thinking he was the only one in Israel who had not fallen away from the Lord (1 Kings 19:13-14, 18).

Is 53:4 – Matthew shows us how Isaiah’s prophecy in this verse was fulfilled in the many healings granted by God through Jesus.

Matt 8:14 When Jesus came into Peter’s home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick in bed with a fever.
Matt 8:15 He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and waited on Him.
Matt 8:16 When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill.
Matt 8:17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES.”

Is 53:7-8 – This interesting story from the Acts of the Apostles shows how Jews read Isaiah in the 1st century AD, and how the coming of Jesus charged the text with personal relevance.

Acts 8:26 But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, “Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.)
Acts 8:27 So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship,
Acts 8:28 and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.
Acts 8:29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”
Acts 8:30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
Acts 8:31 And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Acts 8:32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this:
“HE WAS LED AS A SHEEP TO SLAUGHTER;
AND AS A LAMB BEFORE ITS SHEARER IS SILENT,
SO HE DOES NOT OPEN HIS MOUTH.
Verse Info. Notes Acts 8:33 “IN HUMILIATION HIS JUDGMENT WAS TAKEN AWAY;
WHO WILL RELATE HIS GENERATION?
FOR HIS LIFE IS REMOVED FROM THE EARTH.”
Acts 8:34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?”
Acts 8:35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.

The prophets used their own experiences of suffering to help them understand what Messiah would have to face.

Is 53:9 – The apostle Peter shows us how to understand how this verse from Isaiah was fulfilled in the life of Jesus.

1 Pet 2:20 For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.
1 Pet 2:21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,
1 Pet 2:22 WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH;
1 Pet 2:23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;
1 Pet 2:24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.
1 Pet 2:25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Sin was what brought death into the world. If there had been no sin, there would be no death. Because Jesus did not sin, He did not deserve to die. That’s what put Him in a position to die for us. We die for ourselves, but He died for us. He was the only one who could be a fitting sacrifice for the human race.

Is 53:12 – Just before He was arrested, Jesus quoted this verse from Isaiah to His disciples.

Luke 22:37 “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS‘; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.”

Here is how its fulfillment was described.

Luke 23:32 Two others also, who were criminals, were being led away to be put to death with Him.
Luke 23:33 When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left.

What irony that He “WHO COMMITTED NO SIN” (Is 53:9) was the one who “WAS NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS” (Is 53:12)! No wonder the Jews couldn’t figure out all the prophetic riddles until Jesus came along to give – and be – the answer.

***

Isaiah 54

The Fertility of Zion

Is 54:1 – See how Paul uses this verse from Isaiah to enhance his explanation of how faith in Jesus replaces adherence to the Law of Moses.

Gal 4:21 Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the law?
Gal 4:22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman.
Gal 4:23 But the son by the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise.
Gal 4:24 This is allegorically speaking, for these women are two covenants: one proceeding from Mount Sinai bearing children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar.
Gal 4:25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.
Gal 4:26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother.
Gal 4:27 For it is written,
“REJOICE, BARREN WOMAN WHO DOES NOT BEAR;
BREAK FORTH AND SHOUT, YOU WHO ARE NOT IN LABOR;
FOR MORE NUMEROUS ARE THE CHILDREN OF THE DESOLATE
THAN OF THE ONE WHO HAS A HUSBAND.”
Gal 4:28 And you brethren, like Isaac, are children of promise.
Gal 4:29 But as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also.
Gal 4:30 But what does the Scripture say?
“CAST OUT THE BONDWOMAN AND HER SON,
FOR THE SON OF THE BONDWOMAN SHALL NOT BE AN HEIR WITH THE SON OF THE FREE WOMAN.”
Gal 4:31 So then, brethren, we are not children of a bondwoman, but of the free woman.

Is 54:13 – This is yet another example of how Jesus said and did everything according to the script provided by the prophets – what we call the Old Testament.

John 6:41 Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.”
John 6:42 They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?”
John 6:43 Jesus answered and said to them, “Do not grumble among yourselves.
John 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.
John 6:45 “It is written in the prophets, ‘AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me.
John 6:46 “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.

If a man looks to heaven and prays, or even closes his eyes and prays, and sincerely asks, “God, I don’t who you are; please reveal Yourself to me,” that man will be led to Jesus Christ.

Is 54:17 – Notice the similarity of thought between this verse and Is 44:26. Both verses speak of God’s commitment to back up His spokesmen’s prophecies with His promised action.

***

Isaiah 55

The Free Offer of Mercy

Is 55:3 – All three of the OT quotations that Paul is using here involve David – the first and last are from psalms he wrote, and in between comes the one Isaiah wrote about him. The point is that Messiah inherited all that was David’s…and much, much more.

Acts 13:32 “And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers,
Acts 13:33 that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ‘YOU ARE MY SON; TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU.’
Acts 13:34 “As for the fact that He raised Him up from the dead, no longer to return to decay, He has spoken in this way: ‘I WILL GIVE YOU THE HOLY and SURE blessings OF DAVID.’
Acts 13:35 “Therefore He also says in another Psalm, ‘YOU WILL NOT ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY.’

Is 55:4 – #FJOT

***

Isaiah 56

Rewards for Obedience to God

Is 56:7 – “My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples” – Jesus quoted this statement from Isaiah when He cleared the temple of moneymen. This incident is recorded in all three of the synoptic Gospels (Mt 21:12-13; Mk 11:15-18; Lk 19:45-48). Here is how it reads in Mark’s.

Mark 11:15 Then they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to drive out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves;
Mark 11:16 and He would not permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple.
Mark 11:17 And He began to teach and say to them, “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS‘? But you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.”
Mark 11:18 The chief priests and the scribes heard this, and began seeking how to destroy Him; for they were afraid of Him, for the whole crowd was astonished at His teaching.

Jesus combined his quotation of Isaiah with a quotation from Jeremiah – “ROBBERS’ DEN” – a phrase found in Jer 7:11. Jesus honored the words of all the prophets, regarding them as equally authoritative since all spoke for the same God.

Luke 24:27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

At the time Jesus was quoting Isaiah – around 33 AD – the temple of God was still standing in Jerusalem. It was destroyed in 70 AD (Key Dates for Ancient Israel). It was never rebuilt. Instead, Jesus built a temple in the heavenly Jerusalem.

John 14:2 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14:3 “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.

It is to that temple we go and pray every day. This is why Jesus used the term “kingdom of heaven” interchangeably with “kingdom of God” – because the kingdom of God is centered in heaven and not on earth. Heaven is accessible to any nation. It’s not as though the Queen of Sheba has to journey to Jerusalem to see the wisest man in the world anymore (1 Kings 10:1-13).

***

Isaiah 57

Evil Leaders Rebuked

***

Isaiah 58

Observances of Fasts

Keeping the Sabbath

Is 58:13-14 – Isaiah’s words here prophesy of New Testament times when Messiah would become Lord of the Sabbath – that being the eternal Sabbath because God rests from His work of salvation just as He rested from His work of creation in Gen 2:1-3.

Matt 12:8 “For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
(see the same statement in Luke 6:5.)

This sabbath is “the day of the Lord” prophesied throughout Old Testament times. It is called “the day of Christ (Jesus)” in Phil 1:6, 10; 2:16. It is the day in which we live. The NT church lived in a foretaste of it. Because it is His day and no one else’s, we should do only that which He wills.

2 Cor 5:14 For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died;
2 Cor 5:15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

***

Isaiah 59

Separation from God

Is 59:7-8 – In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul puts together a string of OT quotes which confirm his point that Jews and Gentiles are all sinners. That is, it’s not as though God chose the Jews because they were good and the Gentiles were bad. All of humanity has a common problem with sin. Paul’s list pulls mainly from the Psalms – but it does include this passage from Isaiah that we’re currently addressing.

Rom 3:10-12 comes from Ps 14:1-3; 53:1-3
Rom 3:13 comes from Ps 5:9 and 140:3
Rom 3:14 comes from Ps 10:7
Rom 3:15-17 comes from Is 59:7-8
Rom 3:18 comes from Ps 36:1

Rom 3:9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin;
Rom 3:10 as it is written,
“THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE;
Rom 3:11 THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS,
THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD;
Rom 3:12 ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS;
THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD,
THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”
Rom 3:13 “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE,
WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,”
“THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”;
Rom 3:14 “WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS”;
Rom 3:15 “THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD,
Rom 3:16 DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS,
Rom 3:17 AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN.”
Rom 3:18 “THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”

Obviously, Paul could have quoted many more OT verses to make his point, because it’s a point that the Bible often makes, but this list was plenty long enough to discourage anyone from claiming that either Jews or Gentiles were righteous in God’s sight.

A Confession of Wickedness

Is 59:16 – #FJOT See also Is 63:5 below, which makes the same point. None of us qualified to be the Savior of humanity…so God took on the job Himself!

Is 59:20-21 – In the middle section of his letter to the Roman believers (Rom 9-11), the apostle Paul gives a biblical explanation of why the nation of Israel was persecuting the movement its Messiah was leading. That explanation required an understanding of the difference between the Israel according to the flesh and the Israel according to the spirit – that is, the difference between physical Israel (the nation) and spiritual Israel (the church). Once Paul’s readers understood that difference, they could make sense of what the Scriptures were saying.

Rom 11:25 For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery–so that you will not be wise in your own estimation–that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;
Rom 11:26 and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,
“THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION,
HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.”
Rom 11:27 “THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM,
WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.”
Rom 11:28 From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers;
Rom 11:29 for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
Rom 11:30 For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience,
Rom 11:31 so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy.
Rom 11:32 For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all.

The Zion that would be saved was the heavenly Zion; the earthly Zion would be destroyed. Similarly, it would be the spirits of humanity who would be saved – for all flesh perishes. It returns to dust. God gives us new bodies – spiritual bodies to clothe our spirits – after we die. And with these garments we will dwell in heaven. All corruption and destruction is temporal and on earth. Everything that is eternal continues in heaven. Everyone is going to heaven, for what you read above is not “God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to some.” Rather, what you read is “God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all.” If there is doubt in your mind that all men are sinners, then there can logically be doubt in your mind that everyone is going to heaven. But if you accept God’s contention that all men are sinners, then it’s illogical to think that He would only be merciful to a subset of them. On what basis would He decide who makes the cut? Any basis would mean a man had earned His salvation, which would negate God’s mercy. It’s worth repeating:

Rom 11:32 For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all.

***

Isaiah 60

A Glorified Zion

This entire chapter was fulfilled in New Testament times – first in the life of Jesus, and then in the life of His church. Recall what Jesus said to Paul when He knocked him off his high horse (Acts 9, 22, 26).

Acts 22:6 “But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me,
Acts 22:7 and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’
Acts 22:8 “And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’

Jesus’ enemies persecuted Him to death – death on a cross. Yet here He is telling Saul of Tarsus that when he was persecuting the New Testament churches, he was persecuting Jesus Himself. The New Testament church – that is, the apostolic generation that we read about in the New Testament – was the greatest and most important generation of humanity there has ever been or ever will be. (The Greatest Generation of All)

It was in New Testament times that the prophecies of Isaiah and all the prophets were fulfilled. Even the promise of the Second Coming was fulfilled in that generation even though the fulfillment was not documented in the New Testament. There was no way it could have been because the New Testament documents were preserved by the churches and passed down through generations. They would have no interest in including any document that said the kingdom had come and made them obsolete. I know from personal experience that pastors want to hold on to their flocks and not let them go. Nevertheless, I ultimately accepted the fact that All Bible Prophecy Has Been Fulfilled in Christ because I became convinced of its truth. Yes, I lost my church…but I gained my soul.

Is 60:1-3 – At first, heaven’s glory shone only on Jesus. But then a transition was triggered. Catch it here, when Jesus was in Jerusalem during the week Passover was approaching.

John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast;
John 12:21 these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”
John 12:22 Philip came and *told Andrew; Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus.
John 12:23 And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
John 12:24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

Andrew and Philip reporting to Jesus about foreigners coming to seek Jesus signaled to Him that Is 60:3 was being triggered: “Nations will come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.” Jesus knew the messianic plan laid out in the Scriptures we call the Old Testament – that He needed to die like a seed in order to replicate Himself. That interest in Him was arising in places outside of Israel was a sign to Him that it was time for Him to shift His personal operations to heaven where He could reach more people. The Messianic Plan meant that He needed to now give in to crucifixion because that was the path by which He was going to get to heaven.

Once Jesus rose from the dead, He spent over a month visiting repeatedly with His disciples and explaining how everything that happened to Him was according the messianic plan. (The 40-Day Bible Study of Jesus the Messiah) After that, Jesus rose to the heights of heaven to become the light to His followers that God had been to Him. Thus was the prophecy that we call Is 60 fulfilled twice – first in the life of Jesus, and then in the life of the church He built (“I will build My church” – Mt 16:18). The church in every subsequent generation has been man-made, but that first one was uniquely His. The kingdom of God that was established in His Second Coming has been prevailing ever since.

Is 60:19-20 – This passage builds on Is 60:1-3, but also on Is 2:5; 9:2. Isaiah is speaking of a time when men would cease to be guided by what they could physically see so that they could be guided by invisible light; Paul declared that time to have come with statements such as he made in 2 Cor 4:16-18; 5:7; Rom 8:5-8; Heb 12:1-2. Related to this, Jesus Christ is described as a sun in Ps 84:11; Mal 4:2; Rev 1:16. He was a visible man who rose to be an invisible light. The importance of the spiritual light He provides is contrasted with the relative unimportance of physical light, not just here in Is 60:19-20, but also in Rev 21:23-27; 22:5. If you doubt the value system implied by this comparison, remember what Jesus says in Mt 5:29-30; 18:8-9. Indeed, Jesus declared that He was the light of the world (Jn 8:12; 9:5), and, when we look to Him, we reflect that light to the rest of the world (Mt 5:14; Is 60:5). Paul saw this reflection dynamic the same way in 2 Cor 3:18, just as in modern times we know that the moon reflects the sun’s glory. In other words, we have no light except His that shines on us – like reflectors embedded in highway pavement to reflect headlight beams. And there are many other places in Scripture where this theme of Jesus Christ as light is sounded – such as Ps 18:28; 27:1; Mic 7:8; Act 26:18; 1 Pet 2:9. #FJOT

***

Isaiah 61

Exaltation of the Afflicted

Is 61:1-2 – Watch what Jesus does with this passage from Isaiah. This scene comes relatively early in Jesus’ ministry, but after He had gained some notoriety for His teaching and miracles in other cities of Israel.

Luke 4:16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read.
Luke 4:17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
Luke 4:18 “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME,
BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.
HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES,
AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND,
TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED,
Luke 4:19 TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.”
Luke 4:20 And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him.
Luke 4:21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

You would think that the home town crowd would be supportive of Jesus, but watch how the situation quickly deteriorates.

Luke 4:22 And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
Luke 4:23 And He said to them, “No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.'”
Luke 4:24 And He said, “Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his hometown.
Luke 4:25 “But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land;
Luke 4:26 and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.
Luke 4:27 “And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
Luke 4:28 And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things;
Luke 4:29 and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff.
Luke 4:30 But passing through their midst, He went His way.

In this incident, we see the prime example of a prophet not finding honor in his own hometown. We also see a microcosm of the following verse about Him.

John 1:11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.

This statement was true of Jesus and His hometown friends and family, of Jesus and His fellow Jews, and, in the broadest sense, of Jesus and His fellow human beings. Yet He loves and redeems us all in spite of our treatment of Him.

Is 61:2 – Jesus seems to be alluding to this verse in the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount. This is all the more meaningful because of the broader context of Is 61:1-2 – the implication being that once again, Jesus is proclaiming that He is the budding fulfillment of the messianic promises.

Is 61:2 …To comfort all who mourn,
Matt 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

***

Isaiah 62

Zion’s Glory and New Name

Is 62:2 – This builds on Is 60:1-3 above. Part of this verse finds fulfillment in Acts 11:26. (The “he” in Acts 11:25 refers to Barnabas.)

Acts 11:25 And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul;
Acts 11:26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for an entire year they met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

Is 62:11 – Although most of Mt 21:5 is a quotation of Zech 9:9, the opening line (“SAY TO THE DAUGHTER OF ZION”) comes from Is 62:11. (See BSN notes on Zech 9:9 and on Mt 21:5.)

Matt 21:1 When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
Matt 21:2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me.
Matt 21:3 “If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
Matt 21:4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
Matt 21:5 “SAY TO THE DAUGHTER OF ZION,
‘BEHOLD YOUR KING IS COMING TO YOU,
GENTLE, AND MOUNTED ON A DONKEY,
EVEN ON A COLT, THE FOAL OF A BEAST OF BURDEN.‘”

The “daughter of Zion” was an expression meaning Jerusalem and its citizens; and more broadly, Israel and its citizens.

***

Isaiah 63

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

Is 63:2 – #FJOT Jesus’ garments were certainly covered in His blood before they were covered in those He judged.

Is 63:5 – #FJOT See also Is 59:16 above.

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

“You Are Our Father”

***

Isaiah 64

Prayer for Mercy and Help

Is 64:4 – The apostle Paul quotes this verse to emphasize that God’s wisdom is not achieved by means of man’s wisdom; rather, God bestows His wisdom as a gift. He reveals it to the humble and the proud have no access to it.

1 Cor 2:6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away;
1 Cor 2:7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory;
1 Cor 2:8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;
1 Cor 2:9 but just as it is written,
“THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD,
AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN,
ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.“
1 Cor 2:10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.
1 Cor 2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.

***

Isaiah 65

A Rebellious People

Is 65:1-2 – Paul quotes Isaiah at this end of this passage to confirm that God was not surprised at Israel’s rejection of its Messiah. This rejection had been foreseen well in advance.

Rom 10:14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?
Rom 10:15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!”
Rom 10:16 However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?”
Rom 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
Rom 10:18 But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have;
“THEIR VOICE HAS GONE OUT INTO ALL THE EARTH,
AND THEIR WORDS TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD.”
Rom 10:19 But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says,
“I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION,
BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING WILL I ANGER YOU.”
Rom 10:20 And Isaiah is very bold and says,
“I WAS FOUND BY THOSE WHO DID NOT SEEK ME,
I BECAME MANIFEST TO THOSE WHO DID NOT ASK FOR ME.”
Rom 10:21 But as for Israel He says, “ALL THE DAY LONG I HAVE STRETCHED OUT MY HANDS TO A DISOBEDIENT AND OBSTINATE PEOPLE.”

God had considered every contingency in the messianic plan and was not going to be stymied in any way.

New Heavens and a New Earth

Is 65:17 – Isaiah also speaks of “new heavens and a new earth” in Is 66:22. The apostles Peter and John believe in Isaiah’s prophecy, and understand it now that Jesus has explained and the time has drawn near.

2 Pet 3:13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

***

Rev 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

The new heavens and new earth of which Isaiah spoke were spiritual, not physical. Two books go into detail about the spiritual dimension of heaven and of earth:

***

Isaiah 66

Heaven Is God’s Throne

Is 66:1-2 – This portrayal fits well with Habak 2:20. ***** Stephen quotes this short passage in concluding his defense in his trial before the Sanhedrin. Stephen had certainly learned by this point that the temple of which the citizens of Jerusalem were so proud was going to be reduced to rubble sometime later in that generation. Jesus had prophesied this in His Olivet Discourse and the apostles had surely passed along that word in their teaching. Therefore, Stephen’s hope was not in the earthly temple. The dwelling place that this “greater David” was building for God was in the Jerusalem above! Knowing that Isaiah had foreseen this, Stephen quoted him.

Acts 7:44 “Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen.
Acts 7:45 “And having received it in their turn, our fathers brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David.
Acts 7:46 “David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
Acts 7:47 “But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.
Acts 7:48 “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says:
Acts 7:49 ‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE,
AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET;
WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord,
‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE?
Acts 7:50 ‘WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’
Acts 7:51 “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.
Acts 7:52 “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become;
Acts 7:53 you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”

The temple that Isaiah and Stephen described – that is the one to which we go to worship.

Is 66:2 – Connect the use of “who trembles at My word” in this verse with the use of “who tremble at His word” in Is 66:5 below. We who open the Bible every day to read the words of our Lord in order that we might obey them, will He not consider us to be “trembling at His word?” Therefore, let us be sure to open the pages of His book with a “humble and contrite spirit.”

Hypocrisy Rebuked

Is 66:5 – Connect the use of “who tremble at His word” in this verse with the use of “who trembles at My word” in Is 66:2 above. Let us seek to recall throughout the day His instructions that we have read in the past, and may we “tremble” at the memory of those words so that we might do them with zeal throughout the day.

Joy in Jerusalem’s Future

Is 66:22 – Isaiah also speaks of “the new heavens and the new earth” in Is 65:17. See notes above, especially how the concept is picked up in the New Testament.

***

BSN home page