Reassurance of Israel’s Future
March 8, 2020
Commentary
The faithful remnant may have felt alone because they were few. But God reminded them to look back (vv 1-3) to their ancestors, the source of their spiritual heritage (Abraham and Sarah) and how much had come from their faithfulness. He was suggesting that if they as a faithful few would remain faithful, even more could come from them.
Next God tells them to look ahead (vv 4-6) and realize that justice will come to the world and they will be vindicated by the Lord. He makes it clear that there is a day coming when “the heavens shall vanish away” and “the earth shall wax old” (v. 6), a time when the heavens and the earth shall be no more. The inhabitants of the earth “shall die in like manner” which indicates the frailty of human life apart from God who is the source of all life. However, all who submit to Him through faith and trust in His grace shall experience His salvation, which shall last longer than this temporal earth. In fact, it shall last forever (John 3:16).
God’s final admonition (vv 7-8) focuses on looking within, where we find either fear or faith. He illustrates how the moth and worm shall destroy the enemy, but God’s salvation will endure forever. Moths and worms do their work for the most part unnoticed, but they do their work, just the same. The prophet is referring to the fact that the seeds of destruction are already at work in the Babylonian Empire, and the leaders are unaware of what is happening. The prayer is that God in His power will rise again and save His people as He did in the exodus (vv. 9-11). When Israel escaped from Egypt the Egyptian army was drowned in the Red Sea while the Israelites crossed over on dry ground.
Application
My God is the same God who made a road in the depths of the sea. His methods may change, but His love and care do not.
Isaiah 51:1– 11 (NET)
1 “Listen to me, you who pursue godliness, who seek the Lord. Look at the rock from which you were chiseled, at the quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look at Abraham, your father, and Sarah, who gave you birth. When I summoned him, he was a lone individual, but I blessed him and gave him numerous descendants.
3 Certainly the Lord will console Zion; he will console all her ruins. He will make her wilderness like Eden, her arid rift valley like the garden of the Lord. Happiness and joy will be restored to her, thanksgiving and the sound of music.
4 Pay attention to me, my people. Listen to me, my people! For I will issue a decree, I will make my justice a light to the nations.
5 I am ready to vindicate, I am ready to deliver, I will establish justice among the nations. The coastlands wait patiently for me; they wait in anticipation for the revelation of my power.
6 Look up at the sky. Look at the earth below. For the sky will dissipate like smoke, and the earth will wear out like clothes; its residents will die like gnats. But the deliverance I give is permanent; the vindication I provide will not disappear.
7 Listen to me, you who know what is right, you people who are aware of my law. Don’t be afraid of the insults of men; don’t be discouraged because of their abuse.
8 For a moth will eat away at them like clothes; a clothes moth will devour them like wool. But the vindication I provide will be permanent; the deliverance I give will last.”
9 Wake up! Wake up! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the Lord! Wake up as in former times, as in antiquity. Did you not smash the Proud One? Did you not wound the sea monster?
10 Did you not dry up the sea, the waters of the great deep? Did you not make a path through the depths of the sea, so those delivered from bondage could cross over?
11 Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return; they will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.
Illustration: Jason Smith Played Basketball For The Hawkeyes
Jason Smith is a basketball player for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes. He is a walk-on, which means he did not receive a scholarship. He played very little during his four years on the team, but he stayed with it. He demonstrated real faithfulness. But more than that is the example of his parents. They attended every game-away and home. They knew that chances were few that Jason would play-and in fact, most of the time he didn’t. But there in the stands, every game, sat his faithful parents. It must have been quite an encouragement for him. (Bruce Howell – Sermon Central).