Scripture: Isaiah 66: 23-24

“All humanity will come to worship me from week to week and from month to month.  And as they go out, they will see the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me.  For the worms that devour them will never die, and the fire that burns them will never go out.  All who pass by will view them with utter horror.”

Scripture Commentary: Be careful about what you worship.

Isaiah brings his book to a close with great drama by contrasting two ways of living.  There are those who are humble and have a profound reverence for God’s messages and to applying them.  These people live to worship before the Lord.

Do not follow society’s urges and  the ways of the world.

Then there are those who choose their own way, transgressing against God.  Don’t let your freedom to choose lead you away from God’s pathway to eternal life.

Isaiah 66 gives us a vivid picture of the great judgement that will occur at Christ’s second coming.  It’s a sobering portrayal of judgement for the faithless.

The faithful will have eternal life with God.

In contrast, for the faithful there is a glorious picture of rich reward in that we will be with our Lord Jesus Christ.

The contrast is so striking that it would seem that everyone would want to follow God’s ways.  However, we are often foolish and reluctant to change our earthly ways.

How foolish and reluctant are you?  The day of judgement is coming.  Are you ready?

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 66

Scripture: Isaiah 66: 23-24

And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord. And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. 

Scripture Commentary: I have transgressed and Jesus made intercession on my behalf

Isaiah closes his book with a dramatic juxtaposition between two ways of living. He speaks of people who have transgressed against God, don’t listen to the Holy Spirit, and go against what they know is right and in accordance with the Gospel.

Isaiah also speaks of the humble person who reveres God’s message and applies it to his life. This person asks for forgiveness, worships God, and lives a Christian life.

Do not make your place in the ways of this world.

Resist societal urges.   Your earthly life is not eternal, not like your life with God in his kingdom. Winning the admiration of people does not mean you have the approval or mercy of God.

You have the freedom to choose, but don’t let that choice steer you away from God’s path.

This chapter gives us a vivid picture of the coming judgment. For the faithless, there is a sobering portrayal of eternal damnation. For the faithful, there is a glorious picture of an eternal life with our Lord Jesus Christ. The contrast is striking. It’s hard to believe that some people would actively choose an eternity without God.

We are reluctant to change our earthly ways, even knowing there is a price to pay. How reluctant are you?

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 66

Scripture: Isaiah 59:1-2

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. 

Scripture Commentary: For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.*

God can and will do everything for you. He will love you unconditionally, show you mercy, and give you eternal life. In return, he seeks openness, confession, and your request for forgiveness.  Let nothing separate you and your God.

Sin offends God and separates us from him.

God can neither ignore nor tolerate sin as if it did not matter. If someone treats you poorly and doesn’t apologize, do you continue having a relationship with them, or do you shut them out of your life? Why shouldn’t God do the same when you treat him wrong?

If you live a life of sin, you force God to turn away from you.

Dying with sin means no forgiveness, and we separate ourselves eternally from God. God wants us to live with him forever, not live in eternal damnation.

Choose to live the life with God.

If you confess that you believe God gave his only Son to save the world so that neither you nor I, nor anyone, should perish; and you choose to live a Christian life, then God is with you.

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 59

**Additional Reading:
Isaiah Chapter 41

Scripture: Isaiah 53: 1-3

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Scripture Commentary: God will cut off those who despise his son.

Jesus doesn’t “fit” into the mold of our narrow expectations of who the Messiah would be.  People despised and rejected him. God chose to save the world through a humble servant, not a glorious king. Jesus, the Messiah, suffered for the sins of all people.  God revealed this to his prophet, Isaiah.

The idea of a humble servant being the hero is contemptible to our human pride.

We create super heroes who fit worldly definitions of beauty and strength. We do not acknowledge the unbeatable and most awesome deed Jesus did for us.  He, who was faultless, died for our sins.

We can’t understand how God works. 

We don’t recognize what God is doing in our lives.  There was nothing beautiful or majestic in the physical appearance of God’s servant.  Israel miscalculated the servant’s importance and considered Jesus an ordinary man. Jesus is no ordinary man. God sent him to open the doors of his kingdom to us. Jesus gave us the possibility of an eternal life in heaven.

Do you despise Jesus?  Are you living a life where Jesus is ordinary?

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 53

Other Posts from the Book of Isaiah:
The Pit of Corruption is Dug for the Wicked
Jesus Is the One and Only
Value Others As You Do Yourself

Scripture: Isaiah 55: 1-3, 6

“Come, all you who are thirsty, Come to the waters; and you who have no money, come buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. Give ear and come to Me; hear Me, that your soul may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love.(1-3)   Seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near…”(6)

Scripture Commentary: Seek the Lord, Seek His righteousness and humility

As the Bible says, “Seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near…”  Food costs money, lasts only for a short amount of time, and meets only physical needs. God offers us free nourishment that feeds our souls. God’s salvation is freely offered. His love fills us when we eagerly receive it.

Without God’s love, our spirits will starve. God never moves away from us, but we often move away from him. Seek the Lord now, while you can. He is waiting to give you his love and mercy.  All you have to do is turn to him.

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 55

Scripture: Isaiah 55: 6-7

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Scripture Commentary: Call upon the Lord; He will answer your cry!

We’ve all said it.  “I am going to repent later on.”  “I have time.  The world won’t end today!”  Don’t hold off for there isn’t time to spare.  Seek the Lord; call upon him.

Satan places things in this world to misdirect us so that we go about our life  knowing that we are doing wrong but thinking that we have time to fix it with God later.

Question: If you were to die right now, is your life “fixed” with God?

Isaiah tells us to call upon the Lord while he is near

God is not moving from us.  It is us who are moving from Him.  Don’t wait until you have run out of time.  Your time began when you were conceived in your mother’s womb, and the clock has been running ever since.

Don’t try to fit God into your mold.  His plan and purpose does not conform to yours.  The following is from Isaiah 55: 8-9:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Don’t run out of time!

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 55

Scripture: Isaiah 53: 1, 5-6

Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? (1) But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.(5-6)

Scripture Commentary: To whom is the Lord revealed?

Isaiah wrote this scripture long before Our Lord Jesus Christ came to earth to save the Israelites. The Lord was revealed to them.  Even with the knowledge of his coming, the Israelites still didn’t receive the Messiah.

The Lord is revealed to you

Today we stand in a different position. We have the hindsight of Christ’s prior coming as proof of his identity and his purpose. However, some of us continue not to recognize him. Our sin is much greater than that of the ancient Israelites. Our understanding is greater also, yet we still reject Jesus Christ.

Why do we live a godless lifestyle when we have the knowledge of Christ? Does your life follow the path Jesus asked you to walk? Do you love your neighbor as you love yourself? Do you talk to God, and have you given your life to Jesus Christ?

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 53

Other recent posts from the Book of Isaiah:
The Pit of Corruption is Dug for the Wicked
Here I Am, Lord; Send Me
Pray Unto the Lord – He Will Respond

Scripture: Isaiah 38: 17-19

Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back. For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth.

Scripture Commentary: Only God can lift us from the pit of corruption and despair

Hezekiah realized that God answered his prayers. God delivered him from the pit of corruption, and forgave him.  How do you respond when God answers your prayer? Do you thank him but continue with your life as if nothing happened, or do you live your life for our Lord?

Isaiah 38: 17-19 have three important messages:

1. God answers prayers
2. We should go into the world and spread his word
3. You can not talk from the grave

The time is now to live a life for God

Hezekiah expresses the significance of passing the joy of the Lord from father to children, from generation to generation. We have the Word of God because of faithful men and women who passed along the message through the centuries.

We exist for a moment in time, but the time that we have is the time that God gave us. When we enter the grave we cannot work for God, we can only do that for him while we are living.

Live today and the rest of your earthly life for God!

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 38

Scripture: Isaiah 6: 8-10

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here I am; send me.  And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.  Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.

Scripture Commentary: Will you say “here I am, Lord,” when He is looking for a spokesman?

The more clearly Isaiah saw God, the more aware he became of his  powerlessness and inadequacy to do anything of lasting value without God; however, he was willing to be God’s spokesman.

God told Isaiah that the people would listen but not learn from his message because their hearts had become calloused beyond repentance .

How is your heart?  Are you so into yourself that when God calls you, you can’t hear Him?

God’s patience with the people’s chronic rebellion was finally exhausted.  His judgment was to abandon them to their rebellion and hardness of heart.

Why did God send Isaiah if He knew the people wouldn’t listen?

Although the nation would not repent, some individuals did listen.  God is merciful even when He judges.  We can gain encouragement from God’s promise to preserve His people.  If we are faithful to Him, we can be sure of His mercy.

Consider what God may be telling you, and obey Him before time runs out.

Read the Entire Chapter:
Isaiah Chapter 6