ISAIAH LESSON 60
We will begin this lesson in Isaiah 51:1 "Hearken to me, ye that
follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock
[whence] ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit [whence] ye are
digged."
In the sense of the house of Israel, whose lineage descended from
Abraham, we could say they came from the hole of the pit. Abraham had
lived in a land which was full of idol worshippers. Ur of the Chaldees
was a rich land in material wealth, but greatly lacking in the
spiritual blessings. It was a pit of sin. God called Abraham out of
this land. The physical house of Israel came from a man {Abraham} who
was 100 years old, before his son Isaac was born. Of course, Abraham
was, also, the ancestor of all who believe. We are from the Rock {The
Lord Jesus Christ}. This message, then, is to all who believe and have
accepted the righteousness of Christ, as well as those descendents of
Abraham who were under the law of righteousness. "Hearken unto me"
means stop what you are doing, and listen carefully to me. Those that
seek the LORD, find Him. If you are seeking God more fully, this
message is for you.
Isaiah 51:2 "Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah [that]
bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him."
This son, spoken of here, is not Ishmael, but Isaac. The
blessings came through Isaac. Abraham and Sarah's son was Isaac. God
did not call Abraham's father and other relatives. He called Abraham.
Of this one man God would build a mighty family of believers. Abraham
received the greatest spiritual blessing anyone could have. He
believed God, and it was counted unto him as righteousness. He was,
also, blessed materially. God blessed Abraham with gold, and silver
and cattle. Abraham grew into the mighty family of Jacob and his 12
sons. His descendents, as many as the sand of the sea, are all who
believe in Christ.
Isaiah 51:3 "For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all
her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her
desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found
therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."
This is speaking primarily of the promised land. It had become
pretty desolate during the Babylonian captivity. God is saying here,
He will restore the fertile land, and it will be productive again. The
desert is in bloom now in the promised land. Fruit and vegetables are
abundant. There is so much of the fruit, they are selling to other
countries. This is enough to cause a person to rejoice. It is not a
natural thing for a desert to produce like this. Zion, in this
particular instance, perhaps, means Jerusalem.
Isaiah 51:4 Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O
my nation: for a law shall proceed from me, and I will make my
judgment to rest for a light of the people.
God's nation is Israel. We know that Jesus ministered in
Jerusalem in the temple. This goes even further than that, however.
This is speaking of a time when Jerusalem will be the center of
worship. Jesus is the Light of the world. Where He is, there is no
darkness. God will send His message forth from Jerusalem {Zion} and
from His church {Zion}. His law will be written on the hearts of all
the believers. The law, of course, is the law of grace. This is
speaking of the new covenant God has made with man through belief in
Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 51:5 "My righteousness [is] near; my salvation is gone
forth, and mine arms shall judge the people; the isles shall wait upon
me, and on mine arm shall they trust."
Righteousness, here, is speaking of the salvation through faith
in the righteous One {Jesus}. The right arm, or hand, is speaking of
the power and authority of Jesus Christ. The "arm and hand" denote
work. The "isles" are speaking of all the far away lands that will
benefit from receiving Christ Jesus as their Saviour. The Gentiles
accepted Jesus more freely than did the Jews.
Isaiah 51:6 "Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the
earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the
earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall
die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my
righteousness shall not be abolished."
In this Isaiah is looking to the near future of physical Israel's
freedom from Babylon. It is speaking of a few hundred years later,
when Jesus would come as Saviour. It is, also, looking through the
ages to the culmination of time when the heavens vanish. We are all
cautioned to look up to the heavens and upon the earth. We are told
heaven and earth shall someday pass away. Salvation will never stop.
It is like the Word, it lives on forever.
Isaiah 51:7 "Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the
people in whose heart [is] my law; fear ye not the reproach of men,
neither be ye afraid of their revilings."
We see from this, that God, through Isaiah, is saying, "If you
love me, do not deny me before men". We are to fear the Lord. We are
not to fear men, or what evil they can do to us. Look what Jesus said
in the next verses. Luke 12:8 "Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall
confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before
the angels of God:" Luke 12:9 "But he that denieth me before men shall
be denied before the angels of God." It is really great to know Jesus
and have His laws written in the fleshly part of our hearts, but we
must, also, confess Him with our mouth before all who will listen.
Isaiah 51:8 "For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and
the worm shall eat them like wool: but my righteousness shall be for
ever, and my salvation from generation to generation."
The body we are housed in will grow old and die. It will return
to the dust from which it came. Righteousness and salvation are in the
spirit of man. I Corinthians 15:44 "It is sown a natural body; it is
raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a
spiritual body." The natural body returns to the earth. The spiritual
body lives forever in heaven with our Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is
not for just a handfull of people, but to all generations of people.
I Timothy 4:10 "For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach,
because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men,
specially of those that believe."
Isaiah 51:9 "Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD;
awake, as in the ancient days, in the generations of old. [Art] thou
not it that hath cut Rahab, [and] wounded the dragon?"
The "Rahab" here, is not the woman's name who was the harlot.
This is a symbolic name for Egypt. It speaks of worldliness. The
dragon is speaking of Satan. This is a warning to wake up and stay
strong in the Lord. The message seems to be speaking of past times,
when God has overcome Satan. It could be implying the destruction of
the Egyptian army at the Red Sea.
Isaiah 51:10 "[Art] thou not it which hath dried the sea, the
waters of the great deep; that hath made the depths of the sea a way
for the ransomed to pass over?"
The following Scriptures are a very good description of just what
happened at the Red Sea. Exodus 15:8 "And with the blast of thy
nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright
as an heap, [and] the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea."
Exodus 15:9 "The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will
divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my
sword, my hand shall destroy them." Exodus 15:10 "Thou didst blow
with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as lead in the mighty
waters." God provided dry land for His family to cross over. The
minute they were safely on the other side of the sea, God released the
water, and it drowned the Egyptians. This is a reminder from God that
He protects His own.
Isaiah 51:11 "Therefore the redeemed of the LORD shall return,
and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy [shall be] upon
their head: they shall obtain gladness and joy; [and] sorrow and
mourning shall flee away."
This verse is sung in many churches today as a song of praise to
God. The house of Jacob will return from Babylon to Jerusalem. They
will be filled with joy and praise, because God has redeemed them. The
church of the Lord Jesus Christ will sing praises unto the Lord for
our Redeemer. We have been redeemed with the precious blood of Jesus.
Gladness, joy, and singing follow, because we have been redeemed.
Sorrow and mourning should not be in the vocabulary of those who have
been redeemed.
Isaiah 51:12 "I, [even] I, [am] he that comforteth you: who [art]
thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man [that] shall die, and of
the son of man [which] shall be made [as] grass;"
They should not fear the Babylonians, as we should fear no man
today. Men are here today and gone tomorrow. They fade away and are
gone. God is everlasting, fear Him. Matthew 10:28 "And fear not them
which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather
fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
Isaiah 51:13 "And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath
stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth;
and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the
oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where [is] the fury of
the oppressor?"
I have said before that Satan is the oppressor of mankind. He has
no power over that of Christ. He is subject to God. He must get
permission from God, before he can even oppress the Christian.
Christians cannot be possessed of Satan or the devil, because we are
possessed of God. Christ lives in us, and His Light does away with all
darkness. Satan can attack you from the outside. Christians can be
oppressed of Satan, or a devil. He attacks us, but cannot override the
Light of Jesus to fill you with darkness. He can do whatever he wants
with the unsaved, but not with a Christian. If you are possessed of a
devil, repent and be saved. Sometimes we confuse the desires of our
flesh with possession.
Isaiah 51:14 "The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed,
and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should
fail."
When you are a captive as these Israelites were, you think you
will die of starvation. Certainly the luxurious lifestyle they had
before is gone. They would take the opportunity as quickly as possible
to get out of this bondage.
Isaiah 51:15 "But I [am] the LORD thy God, that divided the sea,
whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts [is] his name."
Some of the Israelites had forgotten who their God was. He
reminds them here, He is the Mighty God who parted the Red Sea. He
even gives them His name "LORD of hosts".
Isaiah 51:16 "And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have
covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens,
and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou [art] my
people."
God had miraculously protected these Hebrews from the beginning
of Abraham. He gave them His law at Mount Sinai. Zion is used here
instead of Jerusalem, so that this extends to the church, as well.
Perhaps, this is speaking of divine protection for all of God's people
here on the earth, until the new heaven and new earth comes.
Revelation 21:1 "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first
heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more
sea."
Isaiah 51:17 "Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast
drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken
the dregs of the cup of trembling, [and] wrung [them] out."
We know the cup of God's fury was felt by them when Jerusalem was
taken, and they were sent captive to Babylon. God allowed this to
happen to humble them and make them seek the face of the Lord.
Isaiah 51:18 " [There is] none to guide her among all the sons
[whom] she hath brought forth; neither [is there any] that taketh her
by the hand of all the sons [that] she hath brought up."
There was no one left of the house of Jacob who would lead the
people against their oppressors. They had no one step forward as a
leader. God had to help them Himself.
Isaiah 51:19 "These two [things] are come unto thee; who shall be
sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the
sword: by whom shall I comfort thee?"
In this Scripture, we see the hardships that came upon them in
captivity. There was no help in sight for them. They were desperate.
God will comfort them Himself.
Isaiah 51:20 "Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all
the streets, as a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of the
LORD, the rebuke of thy God."
Even their young men felt helpless to do anything to free them
from this captivity. They were like a bull caught in a net, helpless.
They are under judgement from God, and no one can stand under that.
This rebuke was to cause them to repent of their idols and return to
true worship of God.
Isaiah 51:21 "Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted, and
drunken, but not with wine:"
There was no wine in captivity. They were drunk from weakness.
They were afflicted and weak from the oppression they suffered.
Isaiah 51:22 "Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God [that]
pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine
hand the cup of trembling, [even] the dregs of the cup of my fury;
thou shalt no more drink it again:"
Their Lord, the LORD has delivered them from such great
oppression. He has given them their homeland back. God, Himself has
taken the oppression away. God has acted in their behalf and restored
them.
Isaiah 51:23 "But I will put it into the hand of them that
afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go
over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to
them that went over."
Babylon had been very powerful in the sight of the world. They
were thought of as being safe from any harm. God changed all that, and
they were captured and destroyed themselves. The followers of the Lord
are back in their homeland free. The Babylonians are now suffering all
the shame and humiliation that they had brought on the Israelites.
Isaiah 60 Questions
1. Who is verse 1 addressed to?
2. How could we say they came from the hole in the pit?
3. What was the pit?
4. Who is the Rock?
5. What does "Hearken unto me" mean?
6. The son, spoken of in verse 2, is not __________, he is ________.
7. What was the greatest spiritual blessing that Abraham received?
8. What was Abraham blessed with materially?
9. For the LORD shall comfort ________.
10. He will make her wilderness like ________.
11. What are abundant in the area that used to be desert?
12. God's nation is _________.
13. God will send His message from where?
14. What law is verse 4 speaking of?
15. What is the righteousness in verse 5?
16. What do the "arm and hand" denote?
17. Who are the "isles" in verse 5?
18. What different things is verse 6 speaking of?
19. Quote Luke chapter 12 verses 8 and 9.
20. What will happen to the body we are housed in?
21. What happens to the spiritual body?
22. Quote 1 Timothy chapter 4 verse 10.
23. Who is "Rahab" in verse 9?
24. Who is the dragon?
25. Where do we find a good description of what happened at the Red
Sea?
26. Quote Isaiah chapter 51 verse 11.
27. Quote Matthew chapter 10 verse
28. Can a Christian be possessed of a devil?
28. What is the miraculous protection in verse 16?
29. What two things had come upon them {verse19}?
30. What did God do to Babylon?
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