September 21, 2021

If We Are Not Firm in Faith, We Will Not Be Firm at All.

Isaiah 7–12

Rachel Fagan
Tuesday's Devo

September 21, 2021

Tuesday's Devo

September 21, 2021

Central Truth

We can learn from Ahaz's disobedience. His hope should have been in the plans given to him by the Lord, but our hope gets to be what Christ has already done for us on the cross. Whatever is or is to come, God asks us to trust, wait, and hope.

Key Verse | Isaiah 8:11-13

For 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: "Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the LORD of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread."

Isaiah 7–12

Isaiah Sent to King Ahaz

In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with 1 7:2 Hebrew Syria has rested upon Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz 2 7:2 Hebrew his heart and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

And the LORD said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub 3 7:3 Shear-jashub means A remnant shall return your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it 4 7:6 Hebrew let us split it open for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” thus says the Lord God:

‘It shall not stand,
    and it shall not come to pass.
For the head of Syria is Damascus,
    and the head of Damascus is Rezin.
And within sixty-five years
    Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.
And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,
    and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.
If you 5 7:9 The Hebrew for you is plural in verses 9, 13, 14 are not firm in faith,
    you will not be firm at all.’”

The Sign of Immanuel

10 Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the LORD your 6 7:11 The Hebrew for you and your is singular in verses 11, 16, 17 God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test.” 13 And he 7 7:13 That is, Isaiah said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 8 7:14 Immanuel means God is with us 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”

18 In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. 19 And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures. 9 7:19 Or watering holes, or brambles

20 In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired beyond the River 10 7:20 That is, the Euphrates —with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also.

21 In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep, 22 and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will eat curds, for everyone who is left in the land will eat curds and honey.

23 In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels 11 7:23 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams of silver, will become briers and thorns. 24 With bow and arrows a man will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns. 25 And as for all the hills that used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come there for fear of briers and thorns, but they will become a place where cattle are let loose and where sheep tread.

The Coming Assyrian Invasion

Then the LORD said to me, “Take a large tablet and write on it in common characters, 12 8:1 Hebrew with a man's stylus ‘Belonging to Maher-shalal-hash-baz.’ 13 8:1 Maher-shalal-hash-baz means The spoil speeds, the prey hastens And I will get reliable witnesses, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah, to attest for me.”

And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the LORD said to me, “Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz; for before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

The LORD spoke to me again: “Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, 14 8:7 That is, the Euphrates mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.”

Be broken, 15 8:9 Or Be evil you peoples, and be shattered; 16 8:9 Or dismayed
    give ear, all you far countries;
strap on your armor and be shattered;
    strap on your armor and be shattered.
10  Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing;
    speak a word, but it will not stand,
    for God is with us. 17 8:10 The Hebrew for God is with us is Immanuel

Fear God, Wait for the LORD

11 For 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. 13 But the LORD of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14 And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15 And many shall stumble on it. They shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken.”

16 Bind up the testimony; seal the teaching 18 8:16 Or law; also verse 20 among my disciples. 17 I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him. 18 Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. 19 And when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? 20 To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. 21 They will pass through the land, 19 8:21 Hebrew it greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against 20 8:21 Or speak contemptuously by their king and their God, and turn their faces upward. 22 And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness.

For to Us a Child Is Born

21 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. 22 9:1 Or of the Gentiles

23 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
    on them has light shone.
You have multiplied the nation;
    you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
    as with joy at the harvest,
    as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden,
    and the staff for his shoulder,
    the rod of his oppressor,
    you have broken as on the day of Midian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
    and every garment rolled in blood
    will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon 24 9:6 Or is upon his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called 25 9:6 Or is called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
    there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

Judgment on Arrogance and Oppression

The Lord has sent a word against Jacob,
    and it will fall on Israel;
and all the people will know,
    Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria,
    who say in pride and in arrogance of heart:
10  “The bricks have fallen,
    but we will build with dressed stones;
the sycamores have been cut down,
    but we will put cedars in their place.”
11  But the LORD raises the adversaries of Rezin against him,
    and stirs up his enemies.
12  The Syrians on the east and the Philistines on the west
    devour Israel with open mouth.
For all this his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is stretched out still.

13  The people did not turn to him who struck them,
    nor inquire of the LORD of hosts.
14  So the LORD cut off from Israel head and tail,
    palm branch and reed in one day—
15  the elder and honored man is the head,
    and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail;
16  for those who guide this people have been leading them astray,
    and those who are guided by them are swallowed up.
17  Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men,
    and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows;
for everyone is godless and an evildoer,
    and every mouth speaks folly. 26 9:17 Or speaks disgraceful things
For all this his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is stretched out still.

18  For wickedness burns like a fire;
    it consumes briers and thorns;
it kindles the thickets of the forest,
    and they roll upward in a column of smoke.
19  Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts
    the land is scorched,
and the people are like fuel for the fire;
    no one spares another.
20  They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry,
    and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied;
each devours the flesh of his own arm,
21  Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim devours Manasseh;
    together they are against Judah.
For all this his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is stretched out still.

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!
What will you do on the day of punishment,
    in the ruin that will come from afar?
To whom will you flee for help,
    and where will you leave your wealth?
Nothing remains but to crouch among the prisoners
    or fall among the slain.
For all this his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is stretched out still.

Judgment on Arrogant Assyria

Woe to Assyria, the rod of my anger;
    the staff in their hands is my fury!
Against a godless nation I send him,
    and against the people of my wrath I command him,
to take spoil and seize plunder,
    and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
But he 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;
for he says:
“Are not my commanders all kings?
Is not Calno like Carchemish?
    Is not Hamath like Arpad?
    Is not Samaria like Damascus?
10  As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols,
    whose carved images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11  shall I not do to Jerusalem and her idols
    as I have done to Samaria and her images?”

12 When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, he 27 10:12 Hebrew I will punish the speech 28 10:12 Hebrew fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the boastful look in his eyes. 13 For he says:

“By the strength of my hand I have done it,
    and by my wisdom, for I have understanding;
I remove the boundaries of peoples,
    and plunder their treasures;
    like a bull I bring down those who sit on thrones.
14  My hand has found like a nest
    the wealth of the peoples;
and as one gathers eggs that have been forsaken,
    so I have gathered all the earth;
and there was none that moved a wing
    or opened the mouth or chirped.”

15  Shall the axe boast over him who hews with it,
    or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it?
As if a rod should wield him who lifts it,
    or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!
16  Therefore the Lord God of hosts
    will send wasting sickness among his stout warriors,
and under his glory a burning will be kindled,
    like the burning of fire.
17  The light of Israel will become a fire,
    and his Holy One a flame,
and it will burn and devour
    his thorns and briers in one day.
18  The glory of his forest and of his fruitful land
    the LORD will destroy, both soul and body,
    and it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19  The remnant of the trees of his forest will be so few
    that a child can write them down.

The Remnant of Israel Will Return

20 In that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no more lean on him who struck them, but will lean on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. 21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. 22 For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness. 23 For the Lord God of hosts will make a full end, as decreed, in the midst of all the earth.

24 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: “O my people, who dwell in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrians when they strike with the rod and lift up their staff against you as the Egyptians did. 25 For in a very little while my fury will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction. 26 And the LORD of hosts will wield against them a whip, as when he struck Midian at the rock of Oreb. And his staff will be over the sea, and he will lift it as he did in Egypt. 27 And in that day his burden will depart from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck; and the yoke will be broken because of the fat.” 29 10:27 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain

28  He has come to Aiath;
he has passed through Migron;
    at Michmash he stores his baggage;
29  they have crossed over the pass;
    at Geba they lodge for the night;
Ramah trembles;
    Gibeah of Saul has fled.
30  Cry aloud, O daughter of Gallim!
    Give attention, O Laishah!
    O poor Anathoth!
31  Madmenah is in flight;
    the inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety.
32  This very day he will halt at Nob;
    he will shake his fist
    at the mount of the daughter of Zion,
    the hill of Jerusalem.

33  Behold, the Lord God of hosts
    will lop the boughs with terrifying power;
the great in height will be hewn down,
    and the lofty will be brought low.
34  He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an axe,
    and Lebanon will fall by the Majestic One.

The Righteous Reign of the Branch

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
    and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,
    the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and might,
    the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
    or decide disputes by what his ears hear,
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
    and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
    and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
    and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
    and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
    and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze;
    their young shall lie down together;
    and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
    and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.
They shall not hurt or destroy
    in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
    as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.

11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, 30 11:11 Probably Nubia from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.

12  He will raise a signal for the nations
    and will assemble the banished of Israel,
and gather the dispersed of Judah
    from the four corners of the earth.
13  The jealousy of Ephraim shall depart,
    and those who harass Judah shall be cut off;
Ephraim shall not be jealous of Judah,
    and Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14  But they shall swoop down on the shoulder of the Philistines in the west,
    and together they shall plunder the people of the east.
They shall put out their hand against Edom and Moab,
    and the Ammonites shall obey them.
15  And the LORD will utterly destroy 31 11:15 Hebrew devote to destruction
    the tongue of the Sea of Egypt,
and will wave his hand over the River 32 11:15 That is, the Euphrates
    with his scorching breath, 33 11:15 Or wind
and strike it into seven channels,
    and he will lead people across in sandals.
16  And there will be a highway from Assyria
    for the remnant that remains of his people,
as there was for Israel
    when they came up from the land of Egypt.

The LORD Is My Strength and My Song

You 34 12:1 The Hebrew for you is singular in verse 1 will say in that day:
“I will give thanks to you, O LORD,
    for though you were angry with me,
your anger turned away,
    that you might comfort me.

Behold, God is my salvation;
    I will trust, and will not be afraid;
for the LORD God 35 12:2 Hebrew for Yah, the LORD is my strength and my song,
    and he has become my salvation.”

With joy you 36 12:3 The Hebrew for you is plural in verses 3, 4 will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day:

“Give thanks to the LORD,
    call upon his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples,
    proclaim that his name is exalted.

Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously;
    let this be made known 37 12:5 Or this is made known in all the earth.
Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
    for great in your 38 12:6 The Hebrew for your in verse 6 is singular, referring to the inhabitant of Zion midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Footnotes

[1] 7:2 Hebrew Syria has rested upon
[2] 7:2 Hebrew his heart
[3] 7:3 Shear-jashub means A remnant shall return
[4] 7:6 Hebrew let us split it open
[5] 7:9 The Hebrew for you is plural in verses 9, 13, 14
[6] 7:11 The Hebrew for you and your is singular in verses 11, 16, 17
[7] 7:13 That is, Isaiah
[8] 7:14 Immanuel means God is with us
[9] 7:19 Or watering holes, or brambles
[10] 7:20 That is, the Euphrates
[11] 7:23 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
[12] 8:1 Hebrew with a man's stylus
[13] 8:1 Maher-shalal-hash-baz means The spoil speeds, the prey hastens
[14] 8:7 That is, the Euphrates
[15] 8:9 Or Be evil
[16] 8:9 Or dismayed
[17] 8:10 The Hebrew for God is with us is Immanuel
[18] 8:16 Or law; also verse 20
[19] 8:21 Hebrew it
[20] 8:21 Or speak contemptuously by
[21] 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew
[22] 9:1 Or of the Gentiles
[23] 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew
[24] 9:6 Or is upon
[25] 9:6 Or is called
[26] 9:17 Or speaks disgraceful things
[27] 10:12 Hebrew I
[28] 10:12 Hebrew fruit
[29] 10:27 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
[30] 11:11 Probably Nubia
[31] 11:15 Hebrew devote to destruction
[32] 11:15 That is, the Euphrates
[33] 11:15 Or wind
[34] 12:1 The Hebrew for you is singular in verse 1
[35] 12:2 Hebrew for Yah, the LORD
[36] 12:3 The Hebrew for you is plural in verses 3, 4
[37] 12:5 Or this is made known
[38] 12:6 The Hebrew for your in verse 6 is singular, referring to the inhabitant of Zion

Dive Deeper | Isaiah 7–12

The main elements and characters in this prophecy are disobedience (Ahaz), warning of God's wrath (Isaiah), and God's outstretched hand (Christ).

In chapter 7, King Ahaz refuses God's good news that Judah is already rescued from the Assyrians. God tells him the overtaking of Judah "shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass." (Isaiah 7:7) God reveals that Jesus will come from Judah, so it will stand. Yet Ahaz, in his disobedience, refuses to trust God's instructions, and Judah endures pain when there could have been peace. Despite this disobedience, the siege doesn't last, and Judah stands.

God is faithful, even in His wrath at the arrogance and oppression of the Assyrians, "For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still." (Isaiah 9:12b, 17, 21) This is good news—that even though our desire to control our world breeds disobedience, we are already (Romans 5:8) and have always been (John 1:1-3) rescued. 

We live in a world of destruction, but we are called to live beyond it (Isaiah 8:11-15). Discerning what and whom we can trust on earth is not only overwhelming, but is a job we aren't tasked with. Our calling is to lean NOT on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5), to be still (Psalm 46:10), to wait (Micah 7:7), to trust, to follow, to fear God and wait for the Lord. God's word in Isaiah 7:9, "If you are not firm in faith you will not be firm at all," is echoed in Jesus' response to Nicodemus in John 3:9-12. Jesus asks, "If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?" What else can God give beside His Word and His Son? What more will it take for us to accept salvation?

Christ eventually arrived through Isaiah's prophecy (Isaiah 9:6-7), so those who trust in Him are forgiven and rescued. Our response to this throughout the uncertainty of our experience on earth should be to sing, "I will trust, and will not be afraid" (Isaiah 12:2), reaching out for the still-outstretched hand.

Discussion Questions

1. What do you think caused Ahaz to refuse to ask God for a sign? Have you ever refused to ask God for help? My community group points me to truth in Scripture and encourages prayer when I express my struggles. If you are not already in community, you can be blessed by this kind of love and accountability as well. 

2. To which comforts do you find yourself turning before going to God in prayer? These comforts or struggles for control can become false idols. What idols are you placing above your trust in and love for God?

3. Do you believe that to us a child was born who is our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace? In which of these roles do you need Jesus the most today? Take a moment in prayer to ask for what you need from Him.