ReadBibleAlive.com Daily Bible Studies |
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| Series Theme: Isaiah Studies (Series 1 of 8 - chapters 1 to 8) | |
| PRELIMINARY to reading Isaiah Please check the 1st set of this series to understand Isaiah more fully
Chapter: Isaiah 3
Passage: Isaiah 3:1-7
A. Find Out:
1. What was the Lord first going to take? v.1 2. Then who was He going to take? v.2,3 3. What would then have to happen? v.4 4. What would be the consequence for society? v.5 5. On what grounds would people choose leaders? v.6 6. But what would be the response? v.7
B. Think:
C. Comment:We now move on to the detail of what the Lord intends to do to Jerusalem and Judah : He will move on the land and remove resources. First of all it will be natural resources, food and water, that will be limited. The means of this is not stated, just the fact of it! The second resource to be removed will be anyone in any form of leadership. Those in leadership have greater responsibility for the state of the nation and so they will be the ones taken first. Again, how they will be taken is not specified, just the fact that they will be taken! The effect upon society is given, adding to the awfulness of what is coming, and is detailed in three ways: First of all the young and immature will be pushed forward to take the place of those taken. Second, they will not be up to the job and every person will be out for themselves, exploiting whoever they can. Third, in desperation, people will grab at whoever looks the least impoverished and demand that they take charge and do something about it. However, such people will understand the futility of the task and their own inability to handle it and will refuse to take on the role of leader. The state of society will be very desperate with all leadership gone and mob rule prevailing. This is an awful picture of the state after God has judged them.
D. Application:
Chapter: Isaiah 3 Passage: Isaiah 3:8-15 A. Find Out:
1. What is the state of nation and city? v.8 2. What have they done and what will happen? v.9 3. Yet what will happen to the righteous? v.10 4. What will happen to the wicked and why? v.11 5. Who do what to whom? v.12 6. What will the Lord do to whom and why? v.13-15
B. Think:
C. Comment:In the first seven verses of this chapter Isaiah makes a statement of the Lord's intent. In these next 8 verses he restates it with greater emphasis on the reason why. First here, in the first two verses, he describes the people, against the Lord, openly defying him with their sinful ways, already in the process of bringing down the society. In verse 11 he continues the thought of verse 9c that they are evil and are bringing disaster upon themselves, they have no one to blame but themselves for what is coming. He then goes on to describe in detail their folly: the young are oppressing the older generation, women have risen to take the place of rule instead of men, leaders wrongly guide, and the poor are oppressed. The picture he portrays is of a court room with the Lord presiding. Justice is being meted out against wrong doing. In the midst of all this (v.10) is a single verse of hope for those who are righteous. It is both a verse of hope and encouragement. You who are righteous, says Isaiah, don't need to worry, you will be rewarded for what you have done, but note he doesn't say they will escape their society, for those of us who are righteous (believers) still have to live in the collapsing society!
D. Application:
Chapter: Isaiah 3 Passage: Isaiah 3:16-26
A. Find Out:
1. How many descriptions are given of the women? v.16 2. What will therefore happen to them? v.17 3. What will the Lord do? v.18-23 4. What will replace what? v.24 5. What will happen to the men? v.25 6. What will be the state of Jerusalem ? v.26
B. Think:
C. Comment:The prophecy now focuses on a particular group: the women of Jerusalem . First of all note their ATTITUDE: they are “haughty” and they are immodest and the inference is that they are more concerned to look good than about their relationship with the Lord. Second note their AFFLUENCE: they have much finery, much perfume, and they focus on fine appearance; they sound the height of western sophistication in the way they appear. Third, note their DESTINY: they will be brought low by the removal of all this finery and will have it replaced by skin infection that will be thoroughly unpleasant to see and smell! The Lord has previously said He will deal with the pride and arrogance of men and what better way to now do the same with the women! The way this will come about is also described: the men will be cleared away by invaders and the authorities that used to sit in the gates (the place of judgement and authority) will be removed. The women will be left without authority and without providers and all of their pride will come crashing down. This is a terrible indictment of the people of Jerusalem and of what will happen to them.
D. Application:
Chapter: Isaiah 4 Passage: Isaiah 4:1-6
A. Find Out:
1. What will the women want in that day? v.1 2. Yet who will be what? v.2 3. What will the survivors of Jerusalem be called? v.3 4. What will the Lord do and how? v.4 5. What will the Lord then create? v.5 6. For what purpose? v.6
B. Think:
C. Comment:This chapter carries straight on from the previous one referring to the women of Jerusalem , and Isaiah concludes by saying they will cry out for identity in the absence of their own men. Their disgrace will bring them lack of identity. It is then that Isaiah speaks of the Branch of the Lord. Elsewhere you will have seen, the Branch of the Lord refers to a coming person, a great ruler in the order of king David, probably meaning Jesus, the presence of God with men. Here it thus means that the presence of God will be in the midst of the survivors in Jerusalem and they will thus be holy, they will have a new identity given to them. Note also the way that this will come about: it will come by judgement and fire, God will send His form of judgement on them and remove all the dross, all the impurity, all the unrighteousness from the city. In other words He will remove all those who insist on holding onto those things. The final picture is of Jerusalem under the protective cloud of God, a place of security, guarded and kept by God. From a city that flagrantly disdains God it will be transformed into one where He dwells in their midst.
D. Application:
RECAP - "Failure" - Isaiah 3 & 4 SUMMARY :
In this third group of 4 studies we have seen :
COMMENT :At the end of chapter 2 was the warning not to trust in man but in God, and chapter 3 portrays the Lord as the One who is in control and who will move in such a way on this people that He will remove everyone who is in leadership, and most men, so that eventually only children, young people and women are left. The reasons were clearly given in the previous chapter and this present one simply says what will happen and who will be left!
LESSONS?1. Leaders have particular responsibility for society. 2. Remove the restraint of authority and anarchy follows. 3. Affluence dulls love for God. 4. Christians have to live in the midst of a declining society. 5. Society declines when it is godless, and unrighteousness follows. 6. God wants to redeem our society and make it a dwelling place for Him.
PRAY :Think about the state of our own society and pray for it, asking God to have mercy and turn the hearts of people back to Himself.
PART 4 : "Vineyard and Judgement"In this next Part we will see the Lord calling the nation a vineyard that deserves judgement. The rest of the chapter comprises warnings to various wrong doers, and the Lord's judgement that will come upon them because of their refusal to repent. See that warning always comes to turn a people back from judgement.
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