Isaiah warns Israel with a series of woes. These were for Israel and her Gentile neighbors, but we can look at the principles. The first section lists the "charges" against the nation and nations, and the second is a list of national "sentences." This list is not exhaustive and consists of a summation of the prophet's words. As always, refer to the original for context and study!
The Charges
- Forsaking the Lord; you have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned your backs on him
- You've become a sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great
- You've become a brood of evildoers
- Your children are given to corruption
- You have a haughty, prideful look
- You parade your sins like Sodom
- You take over house after house and field after field, until there is no room left for anyone else in all the land
- You rise early to chase after intoxicating drinks
- You stay up late intoxicated
- You have no regard for the deeds of the Lord, no respect for the work of his hands
- You drag around your iniquity with cords of vanity and your sin with a cart rope
- You call evil good and good evil
- You put darkness for light and light for darkness
- You put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter
- You forgive the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent
- You prey on widows and rob orphans
- You're a champion at mixing drinks
- You are arrogant
- You heap sin upon sin
- You make unjust laws
- You issue oppressive decrees
- You cry out like a noisy sea
- You go to great depths to hide your plans from the Lord
- You do your work in darkness and think, “Who sees us? Who will know?”
- You look to the world and its wisdom for help and not to the LORD
- You argue with your Maker
The Sentence
- You bring disaster upon yourself
- You will be paid back for what you have done
- Your leaders will hunger, the people will thirst
- Death will come upon nobles and the masses
- You will be humbled
- You will be abandoned
- You will be blown away like chaff
- You will be rebuked
- You will be thrown to the ground
- You will be broken
- You will be put to shame
- You will be betrayed
- You will be destroyed
- The makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced
God is merciful, compassionate and ready to forgive and restore both nations and individuals. He is long-suffering and not willing that any should perish. He awaits for nations and individuals to call upon his name that he may forgive, heal, restore and bless! Isaiah himself was convicted of his personal sins in the light of God's glory and he cried out, "I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips!"
But God showed Isaiah the remedy for his condition, "All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him [Christ] the iniquity of us all." The one-time sacrifice of Christ forever sanctified those who believe and has secured our eternal redemption! He paid the full price!
For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us.
For more on the only rescue plan from the penalty for sin CLICK HERE
