Isaiah 63 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence              This particular passage doesn’t seem to be connected to what comes before or after, and it reads more like one of the laments in the psalms than a vision or prophecy, but, surely, the prophets were well versed in laments as well.  In the first six verses, Isaiah speaks of the wrath of the Lord going out against his enemies, and his garments being stained with their blood…

Isaiah 62 by Pastor David Groendyk This is a chapter filled with beautiful truths and beautiful exhortations to God’s people. Keep in mind the context of the past two chapters and all of the salvation that God has accomplished. Isaiah 62 describes a benefit of salvation that maybe we don’t talk about enough. In verses 1–5, we see that since God has done so much for his people, he delights in them. Meditate on some…

Isaiah 61 by Pastor Mark Hudson                 Is 61 quite easily divides into two sections.  1-4 and 5-11.  You may notice your Bible will provide extra space where the editors see natural or textual divisions.  The first verse should be familiar since our Lord Jesus Christ read this in Luke 4 in a synagogue in Nazareth, his hometown.  He is handed the scroll of Isaiah and whether or not He choose the passage or…

Isaiah 60 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence            For the despised and forsaken city languishing in deep humiliation the Lord now brings great news.  Through his prophet, Isaiah, the Lord foretells a time in which the earthly city of Jerusalem will finally reflect the heavenly city of Zion.  In fact, the two will become one, although we don’t learn that explicitly until it is revealed to the apostle John in the book of Revelation, but much…

Isaiah 59 by Pastor David Groendyk “God is unlimited in his capacity and readiness to help,” says the ESV Study Bible about verse 1, which is a comforting reminder for anyone who goes on to read the rest of the chapter. As Isaiah has been describing what final salvation looks like for God’s people in this last section of the book, he’s also been showing Israel what their wickedness looks like in order that they…

Isaiah 58 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence            Fast days and feast days were designed by God for the good of his people and for the health of the nation as a whole.  Yet like every other good thing created by God, sinful man found a way to pervert them, to suck the life out of them and to empty them of their meaning.  There is nothing more that God hates than vain worship and empty…

Isaiah 57 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence The peace of God distinguishes the righteous from the wicked in this chapter.  When the righteous man lies down at night, he rests in peace.  Even when he perishes, he is taken away from calamity and enters into an eternal peace.  The wicked, on the other hand, are like a turbulent sea tossing up mire and dirt, and for them the Lord swears that there will be no peace. …

Isaiah 56 by Pastor David Groendyk This last major section of Isaiah from chapters 56–66 depicts what it will look like for God’s people to experience the New Jerusalem (chapter 60), their coming salvation (chapter 62), the year of the Lord’s favor (chapter 61). What will it look like for God’s people to inherit this brand new kingdom and new life? It begins in chapter 56 with a total reversal. The true “people of God”…

Isaiah 55 by Pastor Mark Hudson                 This is a great chapter on being satisfied with God.  We are not a satisfied people.  Well, we think we are satisfied with the purchase of a better vehicle until we see even a better one next to us.  We like the feeling of buying things until that wears off.  We often think certain things we know we should not do will satisfy until we once again are…

Isaiah 54 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence            Moving from the Servant of the Lord to the servants of the Lord, Isaiah describes the people of Israel in this chapter as a barren woman, a widow, and a wife deserted.  But there is hope for the barren woman for she will have children and for the widow for she will not be disgraced, and for the wife deserted for she will be loved by her husband. …

Isaiah 53 by Pastor David Groendyk How will the salvation of God’s people described in the previous chapters come about? It will be through the sacrificial suffering of God’s chosen servant. So even though Judah would return from exile long before Jesus was born, full salvation and return and restoration would not happen until this servant would come on the scene. Even though this is an Old Testament passage written 700 years before Christ was…

Isaiah 52 by Pastor Mark Hudson                 While these expressions in Is. 52 may sound somewhat unusual, even foreign, to us that is because it is foreign to us.  How many Americans have been exiled?  We have imprisoned Japanese, treated Africans horribly, treated the Irish, Italian, etc. beyond poorly, we not many Americans have been forcibly removed from this country.  So, we may fail to appreciate what the fuss is about.             For those of…

Isaiah 51 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence            Once again Isaiah returns to the theme of comfort in this chapter.  And here he is clearly addressing the remnant of God’s people who pursue righteousness and who seek the Lord.  They have endured great hostility and loss through the Babylonian captivity, but through the means of the mysterious servant of God, the Lord will bring salvation to Israel, and God’s kingdom will be restored in all its…

Isaiah 50 by Pastor David Groendyk In chapters 49–55, it is made much more explicit what the true Servant of God is going to accomplish. This chapter highlights the failure of the people of God and contrasts it with the success of God’s chosen servant. The call, then, is to obey the voice of that successful servant. In verses 1–3, the exiles of Judah feel as though they’ve been abandoned by God. They feel like…

Isaiah 49 by Pastor Mark Hudson             This chapter begins a new section in this part of the book.  I want to focus on structure for this devotional. I find it helpful not only find out what a  verse means, but where I am in the argument of the author.  What is the big idea Isaiah is teaching.  Once we understand the larger context, we are guided as we strive to understand individual verses.  The…

Isaiah 48 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence            Like the weeping prophet, Jeremiah, Isaiah is dealing with a people who are very dull of hearing and who do not seek the Lord in truth, even though they continually claim that they are.  They boast in their heritage and in their lineage but do not really trust the Lord.  In the second half of the book of Isaiah, the prophet is showing them some events far into…

Isaiah 47 by Pastor David Groendyk The Lord continues his condemnation in this chapter of the wicked enemy nation of Babylon who had taken Judah into exile. At the heart of Babylon’s wickedness is their own pride (vv. 8–11). In these verses, we see some of the ways Babylon’s pride plays out. One way is that their pride has given them a false sense of security (v. 10). Notice that multiple times Babylon is quoted…

Isaiah 46 by Pastor Mark Hudson             In Isaiah 46, Isaiah contrasts the idols of the nations with the One true and living God.  How counter-cultural that was in Isaiah’s day, in the first century, and in our day.  God, through the prophet, is saying that the gods of the nations are not an alternate way to truth.  Unbelievers have always thought people who think this way are arrogant, dismissive of other cultures, and self-righteous. …

Isaiah 45 Devotional by Pastor Lawrence In the previous chapter Isaiah mentions by name the anointed one, a messiah and the shepherd of nations that the Lord would use to overthrown the Babylonian Empire and to bring the Jews back to their homeland in order to build up the house of God.  In 539 BC, Cyrus the Great would enter the city of Babylon and take captive Nabonidus thus ending his hegemony over the nations. …

Isaiah 44 Devotional by Pastor David Groendyk Have you heard the expression, “You are what you eat”? It’s a pithy saying that teaches us that our health is directly linked to what kind of food we eat. Well, there’s also a Christian version of that saying: “You become what you worship.” Isaiah 44 is a good reminder of that. All throughout this chapter, there is a play on the idea of creating, forming, fashioning, making,…

Isaiah 43 Devotional by Pastor Mark Hudson             In a lengthy book like Isaiah, I like to know where I am in the context of the entire book.  I follow the outline of John Oswalt’s commentary.  I made copies of that outline (2 sided) and the one-sided copy of E.J. Youngs’ commentary last Sunday night.  There might be copies in the office still.             We are in a section, according to Oswalt, from Is. 42:10-44:22…