The Book of Isaiah - Essay Example

Commentary: The Book of Isaiah Assignment 2 Stephen Major Theo 201 Dr. Harvie May 25th, Background The first two chapters of the book of Isaiahreveal God’s displeasure in the doings of the people of Judea, where they had turned away from God and towards evil, without caring about their relationship with God. The first chapter presents God’s accusations and appeals to the people of Judah. In the accusations, God speaks through his prophet Isaiah expressing his displeasure in the alliances that the rulers of Judah had established with nations that worshiped pagan God’s (Young & Isaiah, 1965). He also expresses the injustices in the land, where the rulers and the powerful oppress the poor and weak, yet the same bloodied hands are lifted up to pray to him. God expresses his anger towards those who try to bribe him using sacrifices that he may let them continue with their sins and save them from punishment. In the second chapter God goes beyond Judah and promises his judgment for the entire universe, promising the wicked anguish in a punishment that would purify the land of the wicked and save the just and righteous. God, through Isaiah, promises “the day of the Lord,” when those who are proud will be ashamed and suffer. There are questions concerning the authorship of the entire book of Isaiah, with some suggesting that it could have been contributed towards by different authors (Bratcher, 2015). However, the first and the second chapter show a clear flow of events, thus indicating that it was authored by one individual. The Wickedness of Judah The first verse of the first chapter of the book of Isaiah includes an addition of the editor aimed at identifying the prophet of God in the book and the circumstances that underlie his ministry. It is important to note that the name Isaiah means “the Lord’s salvation”, giving a glimpse of the mission of God towards saving his people, and clearly indicating that the people had turned away from God for them to need salvation (Young, 1992). The chapter involves a series of oracles that collected at different periods during the ministry of Isaiah. The people of Israel had lost their way and intended to establish alliances and political alignments with other nations that served pagan gods such as Egypt and Assyria (Kickert, 2009). God sent Isaiah to speak God’s voice among the people of Israel to remind them of their origin, and what God expected of them. In this first chapter, Isaiah used animals such as Ox and Ass considering their stubbornness and stupidity to define the failure of the Israelites to heed the voice of God. Israel was a term that was used by various prophets including Isaiah to refer to Judah, mostly after the Northern Kingdom had fallen (Andreasen, 2001). God metaphorically refers to Israel as a bruised body, to define their historical disaster. Judah had survived as a remnant after the destruction of the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by God, which are used proverbially to symbolize wickedness. Jerusalem had been isolated as a city and thus they were highly vulnerable to attacks from other nations, an aspect that led to their alliances with “evil nations” (Podhoretz, 2002). The Chapter, in verse 9, refers to God as the “Lord of Hosts”, meaning that God was the ‘Ruler’ and ‘Creator’ of not just the angels and stars, but Israel’s armies (Waggoner, 2003). This was to assure Israelites that they did not need any alliances with foreign nations to overcome their enemies, but to turn back to God for He would protect them. The reintroduction of Sodom and Gomorrah in the chapter, with a reference to Judah, is not in line with the good fortune that the latter had for evading the total destruction that befell the former cities, but an emphasis on the wickedness that Judah had developed, similar to Sodom and Gomorrah (Moulton, 1901). The Chapter also includes God’s accusation of the rulers and the population at large for their religious hypocrisy, where they believed they could please God with different form of worship, including sacrifices, amidst their oppression of the weak and neglecting of justice in making judgments (Sawyer, 1986). The bloodiness of the hands, as expressed in the chapter, is used proverbially to refer to the oppression that the poor people faced at the hands of the rulers and other individuals in power. This is the reason why Isaiah mentions that God does not regard them with their hands spread out as they pray to Him. It is thus clear that the first part of the Chapter involves God’s accusation of the people of Judah for failing to adhere remain loyal to him even though he was their creator and engaging in much evil as much as he had spared them from destruction during the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Broyles & Evans, 1997). However, the climax of God’s accusations through Isaiah, as presented in the chapter, involves admonitions directed positively towards reversing the situations. God’s offer to settle the case he had created with Israel is based on changes in their behavior as expressed within His accusations. The Israelites were thus required to make an important choice between life and death, with life constituting abiding by God’s will, and death constituting continued disobedience (Calvin & Calvin, 2000). The use of the phrase “Faithful City” in verses 21 and 28 is an indication of the three chronological eras that the city had to pass through, which included its former ideal state, the wicked condition that it was presently going through, and the ideal conditions in the future as per God’s intentions (Newworldencyclopedia.org, 2015). The ideal conditions were to come only after a purging judgment of majorly the rulers of Judah. The judgment was to be a form of purification in which the wicked would perish while the righteous and just would survive. Isaiah refers to the captivity that was to befall the Southern Kingdom after they had escaped the events in the Northern Kingdom yet they maintained their evil ways (Andreasen, 2001). The prophet did not have an idea of the time of the invasion but he knew that it was to come to purify the nation as God had shown him. The people of Judea believed that they could bribe God with sacrifices during the burning of their cities in order for him to do away with any punishment placed against them and to allow them to continue with their sinful ways (Davidson, 1907). This is a clear indication that most people would part with their sacrifices easily but not their sins. Nevertheless, however costly the wicked people’s decisions are, God cannot accept them without reformation of life and the heart. God not only rejected the offerings of the people of Judah but also abhorred them. This is an indication of how hateful sin is to God (Broyles & Evans, 1997). As such, if individuals indulge in forbidden practices and secret sin, and reject Christ’s salvation, the even their prayers to God become an abomination. Zion, God’s Royal City The second chapter of the book of Isaiah presents two vital oracles including nations’ pilgrimage to Mount Zion and the Lord’s Day. The chapter shifts from an initial accusation aimed only at Judah due to their trust in human resources and superstitious practices, to accusations of the entire humankind, with an emphasis on the “Lord’s Day” when human pride would be humbled (Motyer, 1993). This presentation of the pilgrimage could be termed as a precondition of the vision of Zion’s glory in future. The vision is rooted in the Zionists’ earlier traditions that had originated from the royal cult. Earlier mythical excogitations followed within the Zion tradition associated high mountains with the dwelling of deities (Broyles & Evans, 1997). As such, Mount Zion’s lifting has been used as a metaphor within the chapter to represent the recognition of God’s authority in the entire universe. Upon acknowledgment of God’s authority by all nations, they would seek His justice when in disputes instead of having resorting to war, and that all individuals will worship Him (Motyer, 1993). The “Lords Day” is introduced in this chapter with emphasis on the suffering that it will bring upon individuals who hold more value for the things of the earth as compared to the value they have for God (Smith, 2007). At first, one may interpret “the day of the Lord” as the day when the Chaldeans took Jerusalem and when idolatry was gotten rid of among the Jews (Young & Isaiah, 1965). However, it is clear that this day refers to the general destruction of those who have formed enmity with Christ. It is clear from the chapter that it is imbecility for those who are targeted by God’s wrath to believe that they can run and hide themselves from it. Individuals who have placed their affections on earthly things will be highly terrified by the earth’s shaking. The chapter also clearly indicates that on the “Lord’s Day”, God will bring down the haughtiness of men either by His grace convincing them of Pride’s evilness, or by God’s providence depriving them the possessions that they were once proud of (Smith, 2007). The chapter reminds people not only in Judah but also in the entire world of the need to put their full hope in God and to glorify him and not their possessions. God also assures humankind that he will ultimately destroy those who forget that he created them and instead value earthly possessions (Calvin & Calvin, 2000). References Andreasen, M. L. (2001). Isaiah the Gospel Prophet. Ringgold, GA: TEACH Services, Inc. Bratcher, D. (2015). The Unity and Authorship of Isaiah: A Needless battle. Retrieved June 6, 2015, from Crivoice.org.: http://www.crivoice.org/isaiahunity.html Broyles, C. C., & Evans, C. A. (Eds.). (1997). Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah: Studies of an Interpretative Tradition. Leiden: BRILL. Calvin, J., & Calvin, J. (2000). Isaiah. (A. E. McGrath, & J. I. Packer, Eds.) Wheaton, Illinois: Crossways. Davidson, A. B. (1907). The Book of the Prophet Isaiah. Cambridge: CUP Archive. Kickert, B. (2009). The Voice Of Isaiah: A Study Of The Literary Structure Of Isaiah. Kentucky: Asbury Theological Seminary. Motyer, J. (1993). The prophecy of Isaiah. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press. Moulton, R. G. (1901). Isaiah. Michigan: Macmillan. Newworldencyclopedia.org. (2015). Book of Isaiah. Retrieved from New World Encyclopedia: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Book_of_Isaiah Podhoretz, N. (2002). The prophets. New York: Free Press. Sawyer, J. F. (1986). Isaiah, Volume 2. Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press. Smith, G. V. (2007). Isaiah 1-39. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group. Waggoner, E. J. (2003). Treasures in Isaiah: Good News in "the Gospel Prophet". Ringgold, GA: TEACH Services, Inc. Young, E. J. (1992). The Book of Isaiah, Volume 2. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. Young, E., & Isaiah. (1965). The book of Isaiah. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids. Read More