It is my firm belief that angels are often employed by God to throw into the hearts of his people comforting thoughts. Not confessing our sin creates barriers between us and God. Lament declares that sin has been at work and suffering has resulted. But she would remain a harlot, trafficking as before, with all the kingdoms of the world. If He was not virgin born, then His death would have no power to do anything for us. In the larger context of biblical history, this sign had messianic implications (Matt. While there are senses in which the Spirit as fire is now available and at work in special ways, as the result of the perfected work of the Son of God, there are senses in which all human history has known the presence and power of "the spirit of justice," and "the spirit of burning." What fully enchants you to remain in a pit when you may sit on a throne? The prophet was commanded to seal up the testimony, that is to cease his public ministry. This he declared in this oracle, and then proceeded to describe dramatically the arrogance of Assyria, who does not recognize the Divine purpose, but has it in his heart to destroy (verse 7). He can exchange your weakness for His strength today. This glorious God, majestic beyond compare, in might and in wisdom, yet calls the faithful among men to prepare His way, to make straight His highway. Instead of trusting its Creator for fullness of life, Israel trusted His creatures. Would you pour out your heart before the Lord? Oh, for a baptism into the Spirit of God! The politicians were seeking the alliance of Assyria, whilst the superstitious had recourse to familiar spirits and wizards. To announce their doom with metallic voice and unperturbed manner will only harden; but to speak with streaming eyes, and the eloquence of a broken heart, will touch the most callous. Soon as the word is uttered, “I have sinned,” that very moment flies the seraph. “Thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.” Isaiah 38:17 He's far too powerful and loving and strong to ever get tired. What a mercy it is that when we walk in the way of faith, in the way of Christ, fools as we are, we shall not err! As today’s application, we suggest you obtain a recording of the Messiah (if you haven’t already done so). - F B Meyer - Our Daily Homily, In that day men will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. The much more likely thing is that the ungodly one will drag the other down to his level, than that the godly one shall pull the other up. But watchman, when comes the morning? But in God's presence, even the seraphs covered themselves in humility (Isa 6:2). Then blessed be the hand that wounds; let it go on wounding; let it cut and tear; let it lay bare to me myself at my very worst, that I may be driven to self-despair and may fall back upon the free mercy of God and receive it as a poor, guilty, lost, helpless, undone sinner, who casts himself into the arms of sovereign grace, knowing that God must give all, that Christ must be all, that the Spirit must work all and that man must be as clay in the potter’s hands, that the Lord may do with him as seems good. If forgiveness is essential to a state of mind which we are exhorted to exhibit, then forgiveness may be enjoyed at this present hour. He saw the angels surrounding the throne who eternally call out the reality of God’s holiness. The desert will blossom. God’s laws are not, like cobwebs, meant to catch the little flies while the great ones break through, but he will strike leviathan, he will surely punish the mightiest sinners of the earth. There's only one God who qualifies; the ""eternal"" or ""everlasting"" God of Israel. Whether faith blossom or not, whether it bring forth joyous fruit in our experience or not, so long as it be there in all its permanence we are saved. Arguing with you about what Web sites to visit. He will be holy and just. Therefore, they should stand not by military strategy but by faith in Him (Isaiah 7:9). In this Burden the prophet foretold the destruction of Damascus, and the breaking down thus of that to which Israel was trusting. The core image is “wells of salvation,” from which we draw spiritual life and rejoice in His goodness to us (Isaiah 12:3; cf. Neither is it enough just to be able to be seen through. Notice the variety of his attributes. Let our joyful eye dwell upon THE NOTABLE ACT of divine mercy—“blotting out.” God himself appears upon the scene, and in divine benignity, instead of manifesting his anger, reveals his grace: he at once and for ever effectually removes the mischief, not by blowing away the cloud, but by blotting it out from existence once for all. You will even sing His praises in the fiercest fires. In measure, when it shooteth forth, thou wilt debate with it: Mark’s is the gospel which describes Christ as a servant, and it is one of the attributes of a good servant that he is prompt at once to do his lord’s bidding. In this connection, observe the last words of the prophet, "Blessed are all they that wait for Him;" that is, those who do not make Him wait for them. In the long run, this Branch from the line of David would be the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The word "They," in the Hebrew "These," refers to the wilderness, the dry land, the desert. As a child of the Creator of the universe, you need not live as a forgery, or think you are unworthy of the blessings of the Lord. But when the Lord takes such a man as that in hand, he does not lead him that way, but in a way that he never went before. But now —Isa. The virginal conception of Jesus remains a unique event in all of history. He knew what they would be when He called them into the divine family. In it the prophet turned from his messages concerning the surrounding nations, to give attention to Jerusalem. Specifically, the first psalm acknowledges the justice of God’s judgment, but even more, Isaiah rejoiced in the miracle of God’s forgiveness and the restoration of the covenant relationship. Isaiah 9:1-7 To us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. Diplomatists, who represent brute force, may gauge Egypt accurately, for her power is as their own; but when they try to explain God, they are ever dealing with that of which they are ignorant. It is Jacob; but it is Israel. Let the mind go back to the earlier song of the vineyard which the prophet had sung (chapter 5). To angels, first of all, I believe this command is addressed: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people.” You often talk about the insinuations of the devil; I frequently hear you bemoaning yourselves because you have been attacked by Apollyon, and have had a hard struggle with Beelzebub; you have found it hard to resist his desperate thrusts which he made against you; and you are always talking about him. They know God’s thought before He speaks a word. He will not speak to his friend because of some small offence; is that honourable? You have only to scratch it to turn up the same old egotism that has prevailed six thousand years. He had grace and strength enough, but none to spare. Our Saviour, although truly man, was as to his human nature the Holy One of God. Often, the Prophets described the future by returning to images familiar in Israel’s history: the Garden of Eden and the temple, as two primary examples. And how did people decide when and where to show sorrow in this way? Nothing could be more opposed to this mentality than the awe-inspiring heavenly scene before us today. It is to be noted that immediately after this appeal, the prophecy returns to the sad conditions then existing, to a denunciation of them, and to a declaration that in order to end them, and bring in the true order, "there shall be a day of Jehovah," and that a day of "the terror of Jehovah." Nothing, less than nothing, vanity. O Lord, this night restore us! What is your biggest need right now or your most worrisome circumstance? What we know not now, we shall know hereafter. Isaiah’s response to this vision was complete humility (Isaiah 6:5). This passage is a wonderful reminder that Jesus Christ can mend broken lives. The arresting and instructive fact is that in the midst of the darkness and degeneration, this prophet of God had a clear vision of the ultimate glory, an unwavering faith that it would be realized; and that he described it, and made his appeal to the nation to walk in the light of it. The Abrahamic covenant guaranteed that the land would belong to Israel (Ge 15:18, 19, 20, 21; 17:7, 8), and God’s covenant with David promised that a king from his line would forever rule on Israel’s throne (2Sa 7:16). It is good here to turn back to an earlier word of the prophet concerning Assyria (Isaiah 5-33). - F B Meyer - Our Daily Homily, “The wayfaring men, though fools, shall not errtherein.”—Isaiah 35:8. The only proper response to the ""glorious things"" God has done and will do in the Millennium: offer Him thanks, sing His praises, and shout aloud for joy (Isa 12:4, 5, 6). Then, when you meet all injury and unkindness with an unfailing Christian courtesy, bending like a rush before the storm, to rise when it has passed over, you will have joy. That speech was intended to reduce the morale of the nation. To be venturesome is no sign of wisdom. We have commerce, too, with the future. Be just and fear not. 16:5). Broad rivers and streams also point to commerce. There is no fury in God; He has no desire for the death of the ungodly, but that he should turn from his unrighteousness and live. Each believer should be thirsting for God, for the living God, and longing to climb the hill of the Lord and see Him face to face. And when He came to earth, He also brought light and salvation to the Gentiles, setting free those held in sin's bondage (Isa. Many of the images in today’s reading are embraced even by those people who believe that world peace can be achieved by negotiations. TODAY ALONG THE WAY If you belong to the eternal God, His ""everlasting arms"" are underneath you today. 40.3 People who depend on their own willpower nearly always fail to sustain their good intentions. Discard your laziness, your lethargy, your coldness, or whatever interferes with your sincere and pure love for Christ, your soul’s Husband. The best antidote is the habit of looking from the gifts to the Giver, and to accustom yourself to the position of a steward of the benefits which have been done to you. For example, “Babylon the Great” is written on the forehead of the adulterous woman on the beast, who is “drunk with the blood of the saints.” It is also a city, either a literal city or a “city” symbolizing the entire world system, but in either interpretation it does not worship the Lord and pursues its own benefit and pleasure above all. In light of all that has happened in government this year, you may be tempted to become despairing or cynical about the entire political process and the institutions of government.