LUKE 1: 57- 80 "Zechariah’s Prophecy"

This portion of sacred Scripture  outlines the birth  of John the Baptist  and the remarkable  prophecy of his father, Zechariah.

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1.      THE  BIRTH OF JOHN THE BAPTIST (2:57-66)

a.     God’s great mercy and Elizabeth’s great  joy  (vv.57-58)

b.     Zechariah’s  changed perspective (vv. 59-64)

c.       A question asked by many:  What then will this child be?  (vv. 65-66)

2.      THE QUESTION ASKED  AND ANSWERED: ZECHARIAH’S PROPHECY   CONCERNING  HIS SON JOHN (2:67- 79)

a.     Praise to God for fulfilling his promise to redeem his people (1:67-75)

b.     A word  concerning John and his  ministry (1:76-79)

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1.         THE  BIRTH OF JOHN THE BAPTIST (2:57-66)

a.         God’s great mercy and Elizabeth’s great  joy  (vv.57-58) “When the time came for Elizabeth to give birth to her child, she bore a son her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.”

Having been previously introduced to the fact  that  the priest  Zechariah and Elizabeth were childless  and advanced in years (1:7). At this time Zechariah was performing his priestly duty in the temple (1:11-23). We read of the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Zechariah concerning the miraculous conception of a son. Zechariah’s scepticism earned him the rebuke of God - a period of being temporarily mute, being unable to speak for 9 months.

We are now introduced to the fact of John’s birth, just as Gabriel said.  Luke tells us of two initial responses to this birth. Firstly, those that knew Elizabeth (neighbours and relatives- 1:58) knew that this was God’s mercy. The Lord had given her a son out of child bearing season. Secondly, they rejoiced with her.  And so, on that level alone there is great rejoicing in the fact of God’s kind and merciful providence. The stigma of childlessness was dealt with and it produces a deep and satisfying joy in Elizabeth.

But there is more here than meets the eye. Wherever God is at work we may be assured that He does more than  we   human minds   can understand.  The apostle Paul, interviewing God’s great salvation plan in his letter to the Romans gets a hint of this when he writes: “Oh the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgements and how inscrutable his ways!” (Rom. 11:33). When we are given glimpses of God and His work, we are completely out of our depth  of understanding. 

b.         The Birth Utterly  Changed Zechariah’s  Perspective (vv. 59-64)

To begin with, Zechariah had no understanding  concerning God’s sovereign power and  providence. He had no ability to see or hear God’s voice and will in the matter, and therefore  he did not  have  any ability to speak. He had deeply  doubted the angel Gabriel’s  announcement. But all that has changed now.  Family and friends  are coming together  on the 8^th day following the child’s birth to circumcise the child in accordance with the law of Moses, and to name him. Everybody supposes that that he would be called Ben Zacharyah after his father (Zechariah means God remembers).Elizabeth, who had trusted the word  of  Gabriel  from the moment Zechariah communicated this to her (via a writing tablet 1:63) says to them, “No; He shall be called John” (1:60).  And we hear a very  familiar family squabble  erupting:  “But Elizabeth, there are  no John’s in your family!” (1:61).   And so they turn to Zechariah, making signs to him, like one  would do with a  deaf man. But he can hear everything they say. He can just not speak. He is mute. 

I remember visiting a German man called Richard in a local institution in the 90’s. Richard was mute. His hearing was fine, but his brain could just not do the speaking. God had temporarily disengaged Zechariah’s brain –speech function.  And so   Zechariah signals them to give him a writing tablet, and he confirms in writing what his wife has already said, “His name is John.”[1] 

God’s chastising of Zechariah’s initial unbelief had its desired effect. He was no longer arguing. He was now conforming to God’s will and purpose. And now he writes that name with full conviction on to that tablet, and immediately the Lord  restores his speech.  The first thing that comes out of Zechariah’s mouth is the blessing of God (1:64). Reflect on this. A man in the priestly service of God  is  chastised  because he did not implicitly trust the Word of the Lord by the angel Gabriel.  That chastising brought wonderful perspective  to Zechariah- and not just perspective,  but deep, reverential  praise. Thank God for  such times when we are led  away from our  spiritual complacency  to  experience God  afresh as loving, merciful sustaining Father. What valuable lessons  the Christian  learns in the valley of humiliation.  This poem by Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) gives this perspective:

“I walked a mile with Pleasure;

She chatted all the way;

But left me none the wiser

For all she had to say.

I walked a mile with Sorrow;

And ne’er a word said she;

But, oh! The things I learned from her,

When Sorrow walked with me.”

Zechariah, in his afflicted state learned to trust God afresh. God so often works in adversity to build us up, to grow us in grace, and to help us to believe. This is what happened with Zechariah. In nine months of silence, while Elizabeth was pregnant with John  Zechariah was given the gift of silence  to repent, confess, and do self – examination.  And when the people heard Zechariah speak for the first time after this,  they  were  wondering (1:63)…

c.      What Then Will This Child Be?

This is a wonderful moment. God was so near, not only to Zechariah and Elizabeth, but to all the surrounding people. There is an expectancy in the air. What is God up to?  What then will this child be? The answer is in the making in the next section, in which the Holy Spirit through Zechariah will tell us what He is up to and what kind of child this will be. This child will not be the Messiah. He will not be the Christ. But he is the one who will focus every one’s attention on another Child. John is the forerunner of the Messiah. He is the trumpet. He  is born and called  to   announce  the  coming  and the work of  Jesus.

2.         QUESTION ANSWERED:  ZECHARIAH’S PROPHECY CONCERNING JOHN 

            (1:67- 79)

Zechariah was now given the  liberty  to speak , and he does so in terms of  prophetic  praise to God. This portion of Scripture is called the Benedictus[2]- from the Latin “blessed be”.  Zechariah’s  prophetic words  ascribe  blessing to  the God  who  is now finally  giving the promised gift  of salvation – a longstanding promise of  God !  This  prophecy contains three  wonderful truths :

a.     Praise To God For Fulfilling His Promise To Redeem His People (1:67-75)

Zechariah under the influence of the Holy Spirit (1:67) makes it very clear that John’s ministry and message is going to be set in the context of the unfolding plan of God’s redemptive plan  for our fallen world.

In answering the question, “What then will this child be”, he is not falling into the trap of extolling his boy as a child prodigy, a Wunderkind,  a special child, who will do great things, such as a Mozart who started composing  music at the age of 5! John is special to be sure. His birth was special. He has a very unique calling from God, but no - he wasn’t the long expected Messiah.  Zechariah wants people to know that this is not about John. It is about God.  God is doing this. He is visiting His people. He is in the process of redeeming them. He is providing a horn of salvation through the house of David. He has spoken about this many year ago through his prophets. He is the God who will deliver his people in the midst of their sinful and woeful existence. He has not forgotten! He has remembered His covenant, which he first gave to Abraham.

Zechariah wants us to know that John is a part of a larger picture, in which God is preparing to visit His people in the person of His own Son, the Messiah, Christ our Lord, who is in Himself  is going to accomplish redemption for His people.  And so Zechariah  does not glorify  his own, miraculously born son. He is glorifying  God.   Here is something we all must learn  to think about in doing  the work of God. This ministry that we have through God’s mercy is not about us. The apostle Paul says that it is  all about Jesus (2 Cor. 4:1-6). We exist to make Him known. He alone is our hope and salvation.This is the  God-centeredness of  Zechariah's song,  which teaches us  to thinking and living  in  this  world  in  God-centred  terms.

We must reflect briefly  on the  fulfilment of prophecy given to Abraham (1:72-75). We find the account of this in Genesis 12 and 17.  Luke connects the dots for us by telling  us  that the coming of Jesus as Messiah in this world was in fulfilment of God's promise to Abraham. At this time  the promise was  about  2,000 years old and from our perspective 4000 years old.  God’s promise to Abraham was not  made to the Jews, but to the world- the nations – the gentiles. “Abraham, you will be a father of many nations!”   John will help the world of his day , and us, to look to the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29,36) This is not about John, although he will be used much of God. He knows that he must  decrease in  all  his  work. Jesus must increase.(John 3:30).

b.     Concerning John And His Ministry (1:76-79)

In this section Zechariah finally answers the  question, “What then will this child be”? What purpose does God have for him? Here is Zechariah’s answer:  “And you my child will be called the prophet of the Most High;  for you will  go before the Lord to prepare His ways...”. Zechariah speaks about things that his son will do in the future. At this stage Zechariah was already an old man, and we don't know how long he lived and whether he lived to see the fulfilment of his words .But this we know. Zechariah is given inspired insight when his son was eight days old - concerning his life’s purpose and preaching ministry.  He will have the responsibility of preparing Israel for the coming of the Lord. John will have the responsibility of calling Israel to repentance, because Israel had strayed from her God —  see 1: 77: “…To give knowledge of salvation to His people in the forgiveness of their sins….”   John’s ministry anticipates the grace of the gospel by  preaching  the  forgiveness of sins and the salvation that we have because of forgiveness of sins. And all this because of  1:78  “…because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high….”

And that becomes the work of John, and we see this fulfilled in Luke 3:4-6. Sadly, John’s preaching has often characterized as hard, challenging, demanding – but the gospel  tone of his preaching  is often forgotten. The tone makes the music! John’s preaching is actually  a wonderful example of faith preaching that produces soft hearts.  Faithful preaching  must uphold the demands of the law, and our inability to keep it, whilst pointing to the gospel of grace in Christ. 

That is why John’s ministry is such a model and blessing. It is a truly Christ centred, Christ focussed ministry.  

He existed for the glory of Christ. 

May God be pleased to give us more preachers like him in these  days!

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[1] Greek: autou onoma estin Ioannēs

[2] Mary’s  song ( 1: 46-55) is called the Magnificat ; Simeon’s  prophetic blessing of  Jesus, the Nunc Dimittis

Isaiah 10:5-34 "The Sovereignty of God"

The Bible provides us with perspectives that absolutely rock our common worldviews.  A very common worldview today (and it is even held by many Christians)   is that God has nothing to do with the world’s politics.  It is thought that He leaves that to the world’s rulers. It is thought that He is watching this world from a distance, and some Christians believe that He will only intervene at the end of time, when things have thoroughly gotten out of hand.

Well, the Bible knows nothing of this kind of thinking. Nothing!  Isaiah shows us that God is at work in this world in a sovereign, hands-on way. Even though we do not see Him physically, He is the unseen hand ruling the world, upholding it moment by moment.

Nothing exists or happens in this world which He doesn’t know.

Nothing that happens in this world catches Him by surprise.

God is involved in the political happenings of our world. In and through it all He does not command evil, but He does allow evil to have its way for a while, so that our world may learn to see its own folly. In the history of nations God is frequently seen to be handing nations over to the kind of rulers they deserve.    

Do we have any influence in all of this? 

Yes! We must pray and work. The Bible teaches us to pray (that is, to speak to and ask God) for our governing authorities, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way (1Tim 2:2).  The Bible teaches also that Christians must work positively, working as salt and light in this decaying world.  

From  this text we learn to see God’s hand in the affairs of this world  in  that,

1.     Assyria is  God’s  chastising tool  upon  His wayward  nation (10:5-7)

2.     Assyria   is an arrogant boastful nation  (10:7-11 ; 13-14)

3.    Assyria will be in for a nasty surprise, for God will  judge her (10:12;10:15-19)

4.     God will preserve His people, in the midst of it all political chaos (10:20-34)

1.     10:5-7   Assyria, God’s surprising  instrument of chastisement

In  Isaiah 7:1 -10:4  God  has revealed to  Isaiah that He would use Assyria [i] as an instrument of judgment against Syria, Israel, and Judah, who were at this time  at  war among themselves. God was not standing by idly. He was handing over these nations to Assyria: “Ah Assyria, the rod of my anger; the staff in their hands  is my fury.”

Do you see the Great Shepherd at work here?  “… the rod of my anger … the staff in  their hands is my fury”.  The rod and the staff are a shepherd’s tools to guide and correct his  sheep. Assyria fulfilled that function right now, as God used her to correct Syria, Israel, and Judah. In that sense Assyria was the servant of God - but only in that sense.  Later in Isaiah  44:28  that  same  idea  is expressed,  when  a century and a half later God calls Cyrus, the Persian ruler to be His shepherd  to deliver Israel from Babylonian captivity and to punish the Babylonians  for their brutal ways.

Back to Assyria. The Lord says,  “against a godless nation I send him, and against the people of my wrath I command  him to take spoil and to seize plunder and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.” (10:6b).

The language here leaves us in no doubt that God  was using the Assyrians who were the political superpower at that time. The Assyrians were an efficient, well developed army in its day. They were the first to develop iron weapons, being superior to the bronze weapons, commonly used at that time. Their skill allowed them to make weapons and protective items, so more soldiers could use them. They were the first army to have a separate engineering unit, which could set up ladders and ramps, and fill in moats, and dig tunnels to help the soldiers get into a walled city. They were also among the first to build chariots. These technological advancements allowed the Assyrians to expand their empire.[ii]   What is surprising in all this is that God would use  a pagan nation, an arrogant nation to chastise His people. In this next section we will explore  the arrogance of the Assyrians.

2.      Assyria - an arrogant boastful nation  (10:7-11 ; 13-14)

We have seen that Assyria is a tool in God’s hand. 

But how does Assyria see herself? Chapter 10:7-11 and 10: 13-14 give us insight here.  Assyria, although she is given this momentary authority by God, we find  this  assessment of her own attitude: "(But he- Assyria) does not so intend, and his heart does not so think; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few” (10:7). Assyrians  think that they are the  masters of their own destiny.  The arrogance of the king of Assyria is described in  10:13, “For he says, By the strength of my hand have I done it, and by my wisdom, for I have understanding; I remove the boundaries of people, and  plunder their treasures; like a bull I bring down those who sit on thrones…” (10:13,14). Here  we learn  that,  although Assyria was indeed  an instrument in God's hand, and since she  was  doing the will of the LORD,  that this  fact did not free her  from employing her own motives  for  attacking  Syria, Israel, and Judah.  Not at all!  Although  she  was  given a free hand from God, it was in her heart to destroy, and cut off not a few nations.    When we read of the account of the Assyrian besiegement of Jerusalem in Isaiah 36:10 (cf. 2Kings 18:25) we take note that the commander of the Assyrians appeared to have been aware of his divine mandate from the God of Israel. But it is equally clear in that context that Assyria thought little of the God of Israel. The Assyrian commanders appropriated to themselves much glory, but in truth, their enablement came from the sovereign God, who had enabled them to rule at a time such as this.  

Do you see what is happening here? Assyria had an over - inflated view of herself.  She regarded her commanders to be on the level of the kings of other nations: "For he says, 'Are not my commanders  all  kings? Is not Calno like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus?” The cities mentioned in 10:9,10 were systematically conquered  by the  Assyrians, and in so doing they  boasted  that  none of their territorial  gods  had been able to help them.

Observe the pride of the Assyrians. Consider their boastful language: “As my hand has  reached to the kingdoms of the idols, whose carved images were greater than those  of Jerusalem and Samaria, shall I not do  to Jerusalem and her idols as I have done to Samaria and her idols?'"  (10:10,11). They thought of  the  God of Israel as nothing more than one of the idols that they had conquered in Samaria or in many other cities. They glory in their own strength and wisdom and power.  This is asking for trouble! The Assyrians were going to be in for a rude  surprise!

3.     Assyria will be in for a nasty surprise, for God will  judge her  (10:12; 10:15-19)

This brings us to the next point. Do not think that God Almighty overlooks anything! In this very text God the Almighty vows to severely discipline the Assyrians.

10:12  “When the Lord has finished all his work  on Mt Zion  and on Jerusalem, he will punish  the  speech of the arrogant  heart of the king of Assyria  and the boastful look in his eyes…”

In 10: 15 -19  the LORD uses the pictures of an axe, a saw, a rod, and a staff to make the point that  a tool  should never take credit for what the workman  does with the tool. The skill is in the user, not in the tool.  Assyria was the tool. God was the workman, but Assyria took the glory.  And now she must face God herself.

10:16 “Therefore the Lord God of hosts will send wasting sickness among his stout warriors…”.   In Isaiah 37:36 we read  how God, in history  actually   judged the Assyrians: “And the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185 000 in the camp of the Assyrians”. That was the end of the Assyrian   attempt to conquer Jerusalem, and that is basically also the end of the Assyrian empire. How those that think they stand beware lest they fall. How the mighty have fallen!  God is a terrible Judge! Let the arrogant and unrepentant  take note! It is a terrible thing to fall into the hand of the Living God.

As we pause to reflect on this, one of the greatest perplexities for the thoughtful reader of Scripture is how God could possibly use such a pagan, arrogant nation to chastise among others, his own people? We shall find that there is nothing uncommon about God’s strategy.  140 years later we shall find a similar situation. In Jeremiah’s  and in  Habakkuk’s day  (605 and 686 B.C.)  God raised up the ruthless, godless Babylonians  to  chastise  the Southern kingdom,  Judah (Hab. 1:6-11), and after which  He promptly  announced judgment on Babylon herself (Hab. 2:6-17)!

Here we deal with the mystery of God’s ways in the temporary judgements of the peoples of the world, and especially in the judgement of His backslidden people.  Here we deal with the fact that the LORD can use a wicked nation like the Assyrians to punish His own people’s wickedness. He could use godless nations as the rod of His anger, whilst at the same time   judging theses godless nations, saying to them, "woe  upon you Assyria!"  (10:5). It is true that the backslidden church  has suffered much  at the hand of an ungodly world over these last 2000 years. All this is seen and ordained by God  who  uses  this wicked world to chastise His own.

Scripture teaches us that God can use wicked people  to further His will, without ever approving of their  wickedness, and in the end judging their wickedness. This  is repeatedly seen in the Scriptures. Joseph's brothers sinned against Joseph, but God used it for His purpose, and He disciplined Joseph's brothers. Saul sinned against David, but God used it for His purpose, and God judged Saul. Judas sinned against Jesus, but God used it for His purpose, and He judged Judas. The wicked assault the  people of God, and God uses that for their sanctification, but in the end, the wicked will be judged for their  wickedness.

God is absolutely able to bring  good out of  evil- even the evil  done to  his beloved children. See what good God has brought out of the cross!  But those who  designed and desired the evil cross  will  need to meet  their Maker in the day of  judgement. We cannot  know  exactly how God will bring about  the good, but we can trust  Him for the outcome. God does care about all the evil done in this world, and He will bring about His judgment according to His perfect will and timing. Again, we cannot know when that will be, but it will happen!

4.      What about Israel? In the midst of it  all  God will preserve a remnant (10:20-34)

God  must judge all sin, including that sin  that  is found among His people. “He is  of purer eyes that to see evil and cannot look at wrong” (Habakkuk 1:13). How then shall  anyone escape?  In the midst of all this, God has a word for the worried – for the righteous, who feel themselves to be pawns in the game.  What about  the  true, faithful people of God that are found in  every generation? What about them?  Are they  just  a lost cause,  are they  just incidental to this story, or  are they, as the militarists say,  ‘collateral damage’ in this  eternal wrangle between God and  evil?

Not at all!

The story of the Bible now takes on another profound turn as we are introduced to the doctrine of the remnant ...the survivors of the house of Jacob (10:20) … the remnant of Jacob (10:21).

Chapter 10 closes with real hope and gives us ultimate perspective and application:

(i)   (10:22) “Destruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness”. When God allows  the destruction  of his own   cause -  Israel or the church,  we must know that it is always righteous, and never unfair. God’s  judgment overflows with righteousness and the outcome will always  be good! The church of our own day, so beset  with compromise and worldly ways  desperately needs  to be cleaned out by God.  Will not God not use our enemies to do that?

(ii)  (10:23) “For the Lord GOD of hosts will make a full end”.  An end of what? An end of Judah's trust in nations like Assyria. They will never again depend on him who defeated him. In the same way, God must cleanse the church  to  stop her  dependence  on worldly solutions  in terms  of her work in this world.

(iii) (10:24) “Therefore … be not afraid of the Assyrians…”. God is telling His people, "I will chastise you, and it will hurt. But I have a plan, so don't be afraid." This may not be nice to hear, but it is oh so necessary.   It hurts to be disciplined and corrected. Yet we must tell ourselves  to  continue  to  trust God, even when it hurts. Weeping will last for a night. Joy comes in the morning.  

(iv) (10:26) God can- just as he did before! Two examples are used: 

a.     Gideon’s victory over the Midianites, and  the Red sea crossing.  “And the LORD of hosts will wield against them  a whip, as when  he  struck Midian at the rock of Oreb.” This is a reference to Judges 7:25 which  describes Gideon's  miraculous victory over the Midianites at the rock of Oreb. Now  God's judgment on Assyria would be as miraculous and complete as Gideon's victory was. We have already seen how the LORD killed  185,000 Assyrians in one night. 

b.     “And his staff will be over  the sea, and he will lift it as he did in Egypt,”  is a reference  to Exodus 14:16  in which we find a description  of  how  God used  Moses staff  to divide the Red Sea. In the same way, He would do something totally miraculous against Assyria.

(v)  (10:27 -34) “In that day that his burden will depart from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck…”.   In  10:28-32  follows  a  prophetic description of the arrival of the army of the Assyrians. The listing of cities from the north to the south, describes  the route of the Assyrian invasion. Nob is found  on the outskirts of Jerusalem. This is as far as the army of the Assyrians came against Judah. There  they were stopped. Here the LORD killed 185,000 Assyrians in one night (10:33,34).

The buck stops with the Lord God of hosts. Everything rises and falls before the  Sovereign God. 

Do you know of any   human dynasty or world power that has endured for any  significant time? 

No! They all come and go.  

Our text is indeed a grand celebration of the sovereignty of God. So then, do not fear  what man can do. Of what account is he? Fear God.  We need to  be reminded again of what  Isaiah had previously said in 8:11-13,

11For the LORD spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: 12“Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. 13But the LORD of hosts, him you shall honour as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.

Now that is biblical perspective. 

Let God’s Word be true and every man a liar!

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[i] Assyria corresponds to most parts of modern-day Iraq as well as parts of Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey.

[ii] https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/assyrian-empire/

Isaiah 9:8-10:4 "God’s Outstretched Hand"

General  Overview

·       Isaiah  Chapters 7-12  is known as "The Immanuel Book”[1]   

·       Last time we ended on a wonderfully encouraging note as we considered the Immanuel child with the 4 names (9:1-7).

·       This new section (9:8-10:4) appears in sharp contrast to 9:1-7.  This is by design. The glorious age of the Messiah just described will come, but it is not yet. This hopelessness is meant to make us look elsewhere. Until the Messiah comes to redeem His creation, this earth will groan (Rom. 8:18-23).Throughout this  section  Isaiah encourages us to lift our eyes above to Immanuel, our Wonderful Counsellor, the Mighty God, the  Everlasting Father, the  Prince of Peace, the Branch.

·       Isaiah 9:8-10:4 is written in four parts, each part concluding with the words,  “For all this His anger is not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”    God has been using the prophet Isaiah to warn the people of Israel (NK) and Judah (SK) concerning  the impending judgment which will come upon them if they do not repent. In this text, Isaiah is commanded to speak a Word from the Lord to the NK. But God is also using the prophet Isaiah to speak to us in our own day. 

We will find 4 warnings here that correspond to our own day. 

Outline  of 9:8-10:4

(i)               Because of your  pride  you will be  defeated  by  many  enemies (9:8-12)

(ii)             Because  you refuse to repent  your leadership will be overthrown (9:13-17)

(iii)           Because  you persist  in  wickedness you will turn against one another (9:18-21)

(iv)            Because  you practice social injustice there  will be a day of judgement  (10:1-4)

1.     9:8-12 Because of  your pride  your  will be  defeated by  many  enemies

Our text begins with these dramatic words: “The Lord has sent a word against Jacob, and it will fall on Israel” (Jacob = Israel=  Ephraim= Samaria= NK).  The tribe of Ephraim was the largest tribe in the NK . Ephraim is therefore  often used synonymously with  Israel and the NK.  Samaria was the capital city of the NK.  This prophecy is directed to the NK. The Lord (here  Adonai -  the sovereign  Lord/ Master) has a weighty word for this  wayward nation. Whenever we think of the word of the Lord, we must  not think in small terms. God’s word is always weighty and sure. 

We get a sense of this in Isaiah 55:11: “...so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” 

The words of the Lord are his deeds. God has sent forth this word, and because it is His word, He will bring it to pass [2]. This word is given as a result of the prideful, arrogant attitude of the NK (9:9).  This arrogant attitude   is described in 9:10.  In their pride, the leaders and the people of the NK of Israel said, “The bricks have fallen, but we will build with dressed stones” etc. Whatever has fallen down (probably a reference to the earthquake of Amos 1:1;4:11), they said,  we will  simply rebuild with something better.  

In so doing they disregarded the hand of God in the earthquake that caused the bricks to collapse. Their world view was the ‘Yes we can’ attitude, which is so common in our own day.  They and we make no connection with the fact that God sends wars and  calamities against a pride infested people.  But look what is happening! From the perspective of Isaiah, the spokesman of God, it is the  LORD that  sends successive waves of enemies  over time against Israel –first there  is King Rezin and the Syrians from the east and the Philistines from the West (9:11,12),   and later the Assyrians in 10:5ff. At the hand of the Assyrians, the destruction of NK- Israel would be complete. After this they will never rebuild anything!   The most notable  fact here  is that  God is the FIRST CAUSE of their down fall,  as He uses the  Syrians  on the east, the Philistine in the west (9:12), and infighting or civil war (9:18-21)and finally Assyria (10:5-19)  to humble them.

This section  ends with the refrain (9:12b),  “For all this, His anger has not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still”.  It appears at the end of each of these four sections (9:12; 9:17; 9:21; 10:4). Literally, it reads, "All this judgment, but still there is more to come." It signifies that He continues to judge,  which  now  follows  in  the next section…

2. 9:13-17 Because you  refuse to repent, your  leadership will be overthrown.

Listen to this: “The people did not  turn to Him who struck them, nor inquire  of the LORD of hosts.So the LORD cut off from NK- Israel head and tail…” (9:13,14). 

Despite  the fact that God  had  sent these enemies against them they would not listen. The more they were chastised by God the more they refused to listen. The consequence of rejecting the word of the LORD is that they will listen to someone else. “You gotta serve somebody” (Bob Dylan).

The problem  is  that those  that they were listening to  their  societal leaders such  as  the  elder and  the honoured man, and the prophet-  BUT none of these led by the truth. On the contrary, they led their people astray (9:16). They were not leaders – they were misleaders! They misled the young men, the vulnerable orphans  and widows. Even these   were led astray by the godless examples of their leaders.  In the end they were all speaking folly (9:17).

When the Word of the LORD is rejected by leaders,  society crumbles! Hosea[3] says, “and it shall be like people like priest” (Hosea 4:9). All are corrupt. No one is righteous. What else can God do but to   judge this wicked nation?  Isaiah speaks graphically. In one day (i.e. very quickly) head and tail, palm branch and reed (tall growth and low growth), elders, respected men and the prophets will be cut off. And God is the FIRST Cause. He hands us over to bad leaders. Yet, Israel still refuses to turn to God. And once again, God says, [REFRAIN  9:17b]   “For all this, His anger has not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still” -literally - "All this judgment, but still there is more to come."

3.     9:18-21 Because you persist in your wickedness you will attack your own brothers.

Evil leaders are self- centered. We have seen that their self- serving leadership causes their society to lose its cohesiveness. Brother betrays brother. It is a part of what it means to be handed over by God. Let’s see how this happens.

9:18 “For wickedness burns like a fire; it consumes briars and thorns; it kindles the thickets of the forest, and they roll upward in a column of smoke.”  We all have seen the recent images of wildfires in California, Australia and even South Africa. Wildfires are   unstoppable, swift, uncontrolled, devouring everything before them. The prophet Isaiah applies this image to the wrath of God on this godless society:  “And the people are like fuel for the fire” (9:19).  Their wickedness supplies fuel to the fire of God’s judgment.  He hands us over to ourselves.  It manifests in society by the fact that close family ties are no longer considered sacred. No man shall spare his brother (9:19-21). God did not need to start the fire or fan the flames; He simply takes away the gift of common grace - the “fire retardant” that restrains evil men.  Ephraim and Manasseh (9:21) the sons of Joseph were blood brothers, but  here they devour each other, and together  they are against their brother Judah. It is a picture of utter societal chaos and disintegration. This house is hopelessly divided. It cannot stand.[4]

In terms of application all we have to do is to observe the history of the NK- Israel,   following the death of Jeroboam II  in 2 Kings 14:23-29). We see what follows  in 2 Kings 15:8ff . Six kings reigned before NK-Israel fell in 722 BC. Five came to the throne by assassination of their own brothers.  This is the wildfire of God’s judgment. They fought with each other, and they fought against their brothers in the southern kingdom of Judah. No love for God = no love for fellow man.  The apostle Paul saw this and he warned the Galatians, 13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another. Gal. 5:13-16

And once again, a third time,  God says, “For all this, His anger has not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still” - "All this judgment, but still there is more to come." (9:21b) There was still sin to judge, and God wasn’t ready to stop His work of judgment.

4.     (10:1-4) Because of  social injustice, you will be exiled and  killed.

Again, the subject here relates to the leadership of NK-Israel, acting in a ruthless  way against the poor and vulnerable of their society: 10:1-2 “Woe to those who decree iniquitous decrees, and the writers who keep writing oppression, to turn  aside  the needy from justice  and to  rob the poor of my people of their  right, that widows may be their spoil, and that they  may make the fatherless their  prey! “

The question for them is, “What will you do on the day of punishment, in the ruin that will come from afar? To whom will you flee, and where will you leave your wealth?  (10:3) …and the answer is …” you will crouch among the prisoners or fall among the slain (10:4).  

All that God needs to do to bring judgment on Israel is to withdraw His protection. Without Him they have no hope before  their enemies. And for the fourth time, Isaiah says, “For all this, His anger has not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still” -  "All this judgment, but still there is more to come." (10:4b). The repetition of this refrain reminds us that God is not letting up on them. They will drink His wrath down to the dregs.  There will be no escape from God’s justice. It is either repentance now, or it is the facing of the wrath of God when the day of mercy has expired.  What hope is there for a people like this?

Here is  the only hope! As we look back over the last few chapters we take note that the Immanuel book (Chapters 7-12) reverberates with Name of the Messiah – Immanuel (7:14;8:8,10), Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, everlasting Father (9:6,7), the Branch  (11:1).

Greater than God’s judgment is the message of God’s mercy. The mercy plan of God is rooted in God’s Messiah. Isaiah begs us to look to the Messiah – NOW! The key to our survival is the Messiah. Look to Him! He is the central focus of this section. 

This is the Gospel, the Good News, and it becomes the Good News only because we have learned to recognise the severity of the bad news that surrounds us. 

Do you recognise these societal symptoms in our day?  

"What will  YOU do on the day of punishment... to whom will YOU flee for help, and where will YOU leave  YOUR wealth?" (Isa.10:3)

And in the light of these facts, do you recognise and embrace the Messiah?

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[1] H.C. Leupoldt:  Exposition of Isaiah, Baker Book House, p.39

[2]  E. Young:  The Book of Isaiah,  Eerdmans , p.348

[3] Hosea –the last prophet of Israel to prophesy before the NK fell to Assyria

[4] Luke 11:17; Mark 3:25; Matthew 12:25