Last week we looked at “truth” and determined that God is the source of all truth and that Jesus Christ is the revelation of that from Genesis through Revelation.
"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne" (Psalms 89:14). Jesus claims, "My judgment is just because I seek not my own will, but the will of him who sent me" (John 5:30). Jesus clearly regards his Father's will as upholding justice. God is "One who impartially judges" (1 Peter 1:17). Psalm 2 portrays a picture of God as He looks down from His Throne and views the nations of the world. The question is presented: “Why are the nations in an uproar, and the peoples mutter vanity?” (v. 1) Then we read in verses 2-3 about the condition of the world: “The kings of earth set themselves up and rulers conspire together against the LORD and against His Anointed One; Let’s rip their chains apart, and throw their ropes off us!” God who looks to and fro over all the earth sits in heaven and laughs! He mocks them and He speaks to them in His anger and terrifies them in His fury. (vv. 4-5) He sounds a warning to the kings and judges of the earth in vv. 10-12: “Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He become angry, and you perish along your way—since His wrath may flare up suddenly. Happy is everyone taking refuge in Him.”
The words of Isaiah 8 describes a similar charge to the nation of Israel and I believe to us today as God declares about Himself in Malachi 3:6: “I am the LORD; I change not.” This means God will never be less that He is now, or ever be different from what He has already revealed Himself to be in the past. His essential being or character and attributes are always the same. This includes the fact that He is without beginning or end. He is not only unchanging, but is just, all-knowing, all-powerful, ever present, holy, faithful and loving. God is unchanging in His faithfulness to us, in His wisdom and in His counsel.
Isaiah lived in a time of tension. In many respects it was a time of crisis in the history of the world. World-shaking events were transpiring. Catastrophic and cataclysmic judgments were taking place. There was upheaval in the social order. Does this sound familiar to where we are today in America? God was bringing judgment on Israel but was giving Judah another chance. In order to establish the justice of His cause, God called her into court; He held her before His bar of Justice. He gave her opportunity to answer the charge, to hear His verdict, and to throw herself on the mercy of His court. I believe that God is inviting America into the court today to see if He is just. It is well for this day and generation to go into the courtroom and see God on the Throne of judgment as He has been divested of His authority and mocked as the moral ruler of His universe. I believe that God is giving America a second chance today to declare that He is still the moral ruler of His universe; He is still upon the Throne of justice; He has not abdicated; He punishes sin!
Isaiah records the principles upon which God judges the nations. God raises up nations and He puts them down. The kingdoms of this world today are Satan’s, but God overrules them. God has permitted great nations to rise and He has permitted Satan to use them; but when it is time in God’s program for certain nations to move off the stage, He moves them off—Satan notwithstanding. Even God’s own people, the Jews, are a testimony of the fact that He rules in the affairs of the nations of this world. There would be hope for this nation today if we would stand with Isaiah and say: “I saw also, the LORD sitting upon a throne.” (Isa. 6:1) The people were looking for a confederacy to save them rather than looking to God for help. The center verse of the Bible gives a sound warning against such action: “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.” Israel had departed from God and fallen into sin.
This prophecy of Chapter 8 continues from Isaiah 7, where God assured Ahaz, king of Judah, that he would not be overthrown by the combined forces of Syria and Israel. God announced judgment against Syria and Israel, saying of their attack against Judah: “ It shall not stand, nor shall it come to pass…” (8: 1-4) The LORD gave a sign in the birth of Isaiah’s second son confirming this. Let’s follow the instructions God gave and glean lessons for us today in America. He was told to write the name of his first son down on a large scroll which meant “speed to the spoil, hurry to the plunder.” (1) The message was to be made public so all would understand the judgment. (1-5) (2) He was to take two faithful witnesses with him. (Deut. 19: 15) (3) Then he went to the prophetess for advice. There are many examples of prophetesses in the Bible: Miriam (Ex. 15: 20, Deborah (Judges 4:4), Huldah (2 Kings 22: 14), Noadiah (Neh. 6: 14), Anna (Luke 2: 36), and Philip’s four daughters (Acts 21: 8-9). We are instructed in 1 Thess. 5: 20 not to despise prophesying. According to vv. 5-10 the people did not appreciate their humble streams—God’s provision and blessing and they rejoiced in wicked leaders. It is as if God is saying, “You don’t like what I have given you? You persist in rejecting what I give you? Then I will give you something different, but you won’t like it either.” He sent flood waters upon them! (4) The counsel of men would fail. Nothing could stop the Assyrian army, because even if they did not know it, or even if their own hearts were wrong in the matter God was using them. Isaiah was a messenger of God’s word that would come to pass no matter what the three nations did to prepare against it. He gave Judah the assurance that God is with us—Immanuel!
In verses 11-15 we see Isaiah’s instruction to Judah how they can prepare for the invasion. (5) Do not say, “a conspiracy” nor be afraid of their threats nor be troubled. We daily hear this word—conspiracy theorists in their attempt to discredit truth and instill fear! Isaiah said (6) Let the LORD of hosts be your fear and let Him be your dread. He will be as a sanctuary for those who obey and a rock of offense for the disobedient. A conspiracy is an unlawful, harmful or evil plan formulated in secret by two or more. Michael Barkun, a political scientist, has described conspiracy theories as relying on the view that the universe is governed by design, and embody 3 principles: nothing happens by accident, nothing is as it seems, and everything is connected—a matter of faith rather than proof! His statement is in direct conflict with Romans 8: 28!
Verses 16-18 instructs us how to (7) prepare by waiting on the LORD. Waiting on the LORD is not passive inactivity. It means to wait on the LORD as a waiter would wait on a table. It means to be totally attentive to the LORD, focused on His every more, and responsive to His every desire. At times it means inactivity, but even that is an “active inactivity,” where we stand before the LORD, totally focused on Him, waiting for what He wants next. Isaiah told them to (8) Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. Waiting on the LORD is connected with His Word. We can wait on the LORD by waiting in His Word—abiding in it day and night and claiming His Promises!
Isaiah had been called to prophesy and to use his children in his prophetic messages (Isaiah 7: 3, 8:3). So, he declared, “Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me!” It was as if he were saying, “Look at us! We are the message!” The first son’s name meant” Speed to the spoil, hurry to the plunder” and the second son’s name meant “A Remnant Shall Return.” This spoke of the redemption and restoration God will eventually bring both for Israel and the Jewish people and to the Church in the Rapture in Jesus our Blessed Hope! The name Isaiah means, “Salvation is of the Lord.” This spoke of the attitude and hope Judah needed to have and what we need today. We must not live in fear and dread of the world as our help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth!
Lastly, in verses 19-22 Isaiah warned: (9) Prepare by seeking His light and Word, not the darkness of the occult. Today there is a rise in movies, video games, TV programs, books (i.e. Harry Potter series) and even Satanic reading for storybook time in libraries and Satanic clubs in schools! Spurgeon said: “It is God’s Word that breaks the fetters and sets the prisoner free, it is God’s Word instrumentally that saves souls, and therefore let us bring everything to the touchstone.” Those who reject God’s truth will live in darkness and suffer the consequences.
Let us reach back to the prophecies of Isaiah and to the eternal counsels of God who made heaven and earth (Isa. 42:5) and look forward to the time when God will create new heavens and a new earth. (Isa. 65:17 and 66: 22) Isaiah unfolds the redemptive work of Christ and a clear view of grace! For those who reject the Father’s love, the die is cast, the script is written, but for those who love Him, it is a blessing supreme!