February 8, 2011

THE TRUTH OF GOD TRIUMPHS

Isaiah 27

Grace Columbo
Tuesday's Devo

February 8, 2011

Tuesday's Devo

February 8, 2011

Central Truth

No matter how strong or big the enemy seems, God will always triumph, and He will always provide.

Key Verse | Isaiah 27:13

It will come about also in that day that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD in the holy mountain at Jerusalem. (Isaiah 27:13)

Isaiah 27

The Redemption of Israel

In that day the LORD with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea.

In that day,
“A pleasant vineyard, 1 27:2 Many Hebrew manuscripts A vineyard of wine sing of it!
    I, the LORD, am its keeper;
    every moment I water it.
    Lest anyone punish it,
I keep it night and day;
    I have no wrath.
Would that I had thorns and briers to battle!
    I would march against them,
    I would burn them up together.
Or let them lay hold of my protection,
    let them make peace with me,
    let them make peace with me.”

In days to come 2 27:6 Hebrew In those to come Jacob shall take root,
    Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots
    and fill the whole world with fruit.

Has he struck them as he struck those who struck them?
    Or have they been slain as their slayers were slain?
Measure by measure, 3 27:8 Or By driving her away; the meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain by exile you contended with them;
    he removed them with his fierce breath 4 27:8 Or wind in the day of the east wind.
Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be atoned for,
    and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: 5 27:9 Septuagint and this is the blessing when I take away his sin
when he makes all the stones of the altars
    like chalkstones crushed to pieces,
    no Asherim or incense altars will remain standing.
10  For the fortified city is solitary,
    a habitation deserted and forsaken, like the wilderness;
there the calf grazes;
    there it lies down and strips its branches.
11  When its boughs are dry, they are broken;
    women come and make a fire of them.
For this is a people without discernment;
    therefore he who made them will not have compassion on them;
    he who formed them will show them no favor.

12 In that day from the river Euphrates 6 27:12 Hebrew from the River to the Brook of Egypt the LORD will thresh out the grain, and you will be gleaned one by one, O people of Israel. 13 And in that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

Footnotes

[1] 27:2 Many Hebrew manuscripts A vineyard of wine
[2] 27:6 Hebrew In those to come
[3] 27:8 Or By driving her away; the meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
[4] 27:8 Or wind
[5] 27:9 Septuagint and this is the blessing when I take away his sin
[6] 27:12 Hebrew from the River

Dive Deeper | Isaiah 27

When reading Isaiah for the first time, it is hard to condense it all into one devotional message. God is trying to tell us a lot through this chapter, but the main point He is trying to communicate is that He is more powerful than the devil, and in the end times when there is nothing left, His truth remains.

Satan tries to attack us in many ways, and lead us against God’s will for our lives. In Isaiah 27:1 (NIV), the Lord declares that He will “punish with his sword, his fierce, great and powerful sword . . . the gliding serpent . . . .” It doesn’t matter how powerful the devil seems right now. Unfortunately, he is more powerful than we alone are. But because we have God on our side, we have power to resist temptation and rise above Satan.

In the end, not only will there be a great battle in which God will triumph over Satan, but also the Israelites “will be gathered up one by one,” (Isaiah 27:12), and all “will come and worship the Lord” (Isaiah 27:13). Because we are God’s people, we will have the privilege of sharing in His victories, and rejoicing and praising Him when it is all over. Even nonbelievers will realize how powerful God is, and every tongue will acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:11).

Discussion Questions

1. Why is it so easy to doubt God’s power and fall into the temptation the devil gives?

2. What does this passage say about God’s character and the way He comes through during hard times?

3. If we know that the devil will ultimately lose, why do we let him win in our hearts sometimes?

WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY

ISAIAH 26-30 (FEB 7-11)

Read Isaiah 26:3-4.

What does verse 4 say God is? What are characteristics of a big rock, like a boulder? (e.g., immovable, firm, solid)

Read Isaiah 28:16.

Who is the cornerstone that God gave us? (Read also Acts 4:11-12)

Activity: Walk around your house, yard, and neighborhood. Look for different things that you can build on. Talk about each of them and decide if they would be a good place to build a house. Even talk about crazy things like your bed, or the swimming pool, or sand.
Now read Matthew 7:24-27. What does Scripture say is the best place to build your house?

We learned earlier that God is our eternal Rock and Jesus is the One on whom we should build our lives. Reread Isaiah 26:3-4. What does God say He will do for you if you trust Him? Does this mean that nothing hard will happen in your life if you trust in God? Hard things will inevitably come, but what does it look like to be in perfect peace? (This comes from keeping your eyes on God and believing that He is in control and that He is good.)