II Kings 20:1-11; Isaiah 38; II Kings 20:12-19; Isaiah 39; Isaiah 36:1; II Kings 18:13-16

Would you know the power of repentance? Would you understand the strong weapon of salvation and the might of confession? By confession Hezekiah routed 185,000 of the enemy. That was important, but it was little compared with what shall be told. The same King’s repentance won the repeal of the sentence God had passed on him, “Give charge concerning your house for you shall die and not live.” What expectation was left? What hope for recovery was there, when the prophet said, “For you shall die?” But Hezekiah did not cease from penitence for he remembered what was written: “In the hour that you turn and lament, you shall be saved.” He turned his face to the wall, and from his bed of pain his mind soared up to heaven—for no wall is so thick as to stifle reverent prayer—“Lord,” he said, “remember me. You are not subject to circumstance, but are yourself the legislator of life. For not on birth and conjunction of stars, as some vainly say, does our life depend. No, you are the arbiter according to your will, of life and the duration of life.” He whom the prophet’s sentence had forbidden to hope was granted fifteen further years of life, the sun turning back its course in witness thereof. Now while the sun retraced its course for Hezekiah, for Christ it was eclipsed, the distinction marking the difference between the two. I mean Hezekiah and Jesus. Now if Hezekiah could revoke God’s decree, shall not Jesus grant the remission of sins? Turn and lament, shut your door, and beg for pardon, that God may remove [you] from scorching flames. For confession has the power to quench fire; it can tame even lions.

Cyril of Jerusalem on II Kings 20:1-11, from Catechetical Lectures, 2.15

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One more thing…

Some of you may be wondering where I get these occasional quotes from the Church Fathers. I’d love to claim some tremendous breadth of knowledge and a keen insight as to the applicability of each saint’s writings to our particular Scriptures. But that thought is, frankly, laughable. In truth, I am indebted to my college roommate for finding these quotes, and his source, in turn, is the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture. All of that goes to say that none of us stands alone. We are all members of the Body of Christ, building one another up, right here, right now in RTB and in our respective congregations — and reaching back through history to those great saints who have gone before us and to whom we owe so much.

Isaiah 22:15-25; Isaiah 30-32

Let’s recall the historical situation into which Isaiah speaks. Isaiah is in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, where Hezekiah is king, a good king who follows the LORD. The Northern Kingdom of Israel is no more, having been destroyed by the exceedingly strong — and brutal — Assyrian empire. Now Assyria (to whom Hezekiah’s father, wicked King Ahaz, had foolishly and faithlessly appealed for help against Israel and Syria) is knocking on Judah’s door. Some within Judah (possibly led by Shebna the Secretary?) look to the next greatest military power in the area, Egypt, as a refuge. But they forget the LORD.

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help
and rely on horses,
who trust in chariots because they are many
and in horsemen because they are very strong,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel
or consult the LORD!

Isaiah 31:1

My question for each of us is this: Who (or what) is your Egypt?

When everything is going well, when we are prosperous and healthy, it’s easy to convince ourselves that we trust in God. But how about when things are not going so well? To whom (or what) do we look for shelter and security when disaster looms, in a pandemic, or a war, or a financial crisis? Do we look to government benefits to supply all our needs? Do we trust in the U.S.A.’s mighty military arsenal, our most capable fifth-generation fighter aircraft, our nukes? Do we look to political parties or individual politicians as our savior? Or how about Wall Street and our own bank accounts? The list goes on…and on…endlessly, in fact, because we continually manufacture new alternatives — anything but the LORD.

But let’s heed what Isaiah says:

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, and you said,
“No! We will flee upon horses”;
therefore you shall flee away;
and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”;
therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.
Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.

Isaiah 30:15-18

Security apart from the LORD? It’s all bound to fail. It is in the LORD Himself alone that we have hope.

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One more thing…

The divine protection, then, is always inseparably present to us, and so great is the love of the creator for his creature that his Providence not only stands by it but even goes constantly before it. The prophet, who has experienced this, confesses it very clearly when he says, “My God will go before me with his mercy.” When he notices goodwill making an appearance in us at once he enlightens and encourages it and spurs it on to salvation, giving increase to what he himself planted and saw arise from our own efforts. For he says, “Before they cry I will hear them. I will hear them when they are still speaking.” And again: “As soon as he hears the voice of your cry, he will respond to you.” Not only does he graciously inspire holy desires, but also he arranges favorable moments in one’s life and the possibility of good results, and he shows the way of salvation to those who are straying.

John Cassian on Isaiah 30:19, from Conferences 13.8.3-4

Isaiah 18-20; 15-16

The other day, I mentioned that in reading through Isaiah and the other prophets we should not miss the message of hope in Christ. Today we see that message clearly extended beyond Israel and Judah to foreign nations, specifically Cush, Egypt, Assyria, and Moab. (See Isaiah 18:7; 19:18-25; 16:3-5.)

That is good news for us today, for if the LORD has a message of redemption for these nations — even calling Egypt “My people” and Assyria “the work of My hands“, right along with Israel “My inheritance” (Isa. 19:25) — then there is hope for us, too. But let’s be clear: The message of grace and redemption comes very much in the midst of a declaration of judgment upon these same nations. The judgment is on sin and rebellion against the LORD. The grace is for those willing to receive it.

And the LORD will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the LORD, and He will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them.

Isaiah 19:22

Proverbs 28-29

See:

• September 13 (2022) / Proverbs 28:1-14
• September 14 (2022) / Proverbs 28:15-28
• September 15 (2022) / Proverbs 29:1-14
• September 16 (2022) / Proverbs 29:15-27

Proverbs 25-27

Having come to the reign of Hezekiah, our chronological readings take us back to the book of Proverbs because of Proverbs 25:1: These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied. (Of course, we might just as well have read these chapters when we were hanging out with Solomon…)

See:

• September 7 (2022) / Proverbs 25:1-14
• September 8 (2022) / Proverbs 25:15-28
• September 9 (2022) / Proverbs 26:1-12
• September 10 (2022) / Proverbs 26:13-28
• September 11 (2022) / Proverbs 27:1-14
• September 12 (2022) / Proverbs 27:15-27

II Kings 18:1-12; Isaiah 10:5-12:6

Several themes run through Isaiah that we would do well to recognize, but which I cannot possibly cover with any adequacy. We see a few of these today (as we have already in prior readings):

• The LORD’s sovereignty
  • Assyria is the LORD’s instrument of judgment, fully under His control. Yet at the same time, the king of Assyria, exercising his own free will, is doing everything arrogantly and with evil intent, so the LORD holds him accountable for his sin. (Isaiah 10:5-27)
  • We’ll see the same principle at play in the Crucifixion, where God is fully in control of Christ’s going to the Cross, yet all the actors (Judas, Pilate, those who cry, “Crucify!”) are responsible for their evil actions.
  • In prior readings, see Isaiah 14:24-27.
• The promise of a saved remnant of Israel (i.e., wider Israel, including Judah)
  • The LORD promises that there will always be a surviving remnant — but only a remnant — of Israel, and that one day that remnant will rightly honor and praise the LORD. (Isaiah 10:20-23) In the short term, we get a picture of this in that Jerusalem is protected from the Assyrian onslaught that otherwise devastates the land of Judah. (Isaiah 10:24-27) In the longer term, consider that the Jews still exist at all, despite millennia of persecution. Ultimately, we can anticipate that one day the LORD will draw the remnant of Israel together into proper worship. (Isaiah 11:11-12:6)
  • In prior readings, see Isaiah 1:9,26-27; 4:2-6; 17:7-9; 28:5-6; 29:22-24.
• The promise of a coming Messiah/Christ
  • The LORD promises that He will raise up a new Ruler that will reign in righteousness and justice, a Ruler on Whom the LORD’s Spirit will rest, and Who is, in fact, the LORD Himself. (Isaiah 11:1-5)
  • In prior readings, see Isaiah 7:14; 8:1-7; 28:16-17.
• The promise of a peaceful world under the Messiah’s rule
  • The LORD declares that under the coming Messiah, the world will be transformed. Even dangerous animals will become docile. (Isaiah 11:6-9)
  • In prior readings, see Isaiah 2:2-4; 4:4-6.

Of course, this is just a sampling. Isaiah has much more to say than what is captured here, but in each of these themes there is hope — hope that is centered in Christ. Sometimes that hope is subtle, hidden in the midst of words of woe, but the hope is there nonetheless. So let’s look for these themes as we move forward through Isaiah and the other prophets. Let’s hear this message of hope in Christ.

Isaiah 28-29; II Kings 17:5-41

Exile for the Northern Kingdom of Israel!

Having walked through Israel’s sordid history, surely we could see this coming! After two centuries of persistent idolatry, despite warnings from numerous prophets, Israel must face the music. II Kings 17 provides all the explanation, so I need not repeat it here. The Northern Kingdom of Israel is crushed by Assyria and deported into exile, never to be heard from again as a distinct people; hence, the “Ten Lost Tribes of Israel”.

Southern Kingdom of Judah: Be warned!

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One more thing…

As II Kings 17 explains, Assyria ships many of the people of Israel out while bringing in other conquered people from foreign lands. The result is a tremendous amount of syncretism, mixing Israel’s already-corrupted version of the worship of the LORD with yet more pagan practices. By New Testament times, the people of Judah (the Jews) want nothing to do with these adulterated Samaritans. Lest we think that is all ancient history, the Samaritans survive to this day.

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And another thing…

If in reading the Scripture you stumble on a good thought that is a “stumbling stone and a rock of offense,” blame yourself. For do not despair that this “stumbling stone and rock of offense” have meanings so as to fulfill the saying “And the one who believes will not be put to shame.” Believe first, and you will discover much holy aid beneath the supposed offense.

Origen on Isaiah 28:16 (See also I Peter 2:6.)

II Chronicles 27-28; II Kings 17:1-4

As mentioned yesterday, Micah alludes to child sacrifice:

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

Micah 6:7

With King Ahaz we see that Micah’s question is not just hypothetical. Micah is not expressing some abstract notion using a generous dose of hyperbole. No, human sacrifice is all too real, but it does nothing to expunge the sin of [one’s] soul, it just makes it much worse.

[Ahaz] walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. He even made metal images for the Baals, and he made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel. And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

II Chronicles 28:2-4

Ahaz is not on a good path. As we know, Ahaz is attacked by the combined forces of Israel and Syria. Failing to understand (or accept) Isaiah’s message to him (Isaiah 7), Ahaz does not put his trust in the LORD, so he is largely defeated. Even so, the LORD fulfills His promise and uses Assyria to crush Ahaz’s enemies, Israel and Syria, saving Jerusalem, but instead of turning to the LORD in gratitude, Ahaz furthers his apostasy. He desecrates the Temple with a pagan altar copied from Damascus (II Kings 16:10-16), destroys various implements of worship, and effectively shuts the Temple. (II Kings 16:17-18; II Ch. 28:24)

As we walk through the history of Israel and Judah, seeing all the kings of Israel persisting in idolatry and seeing some of the kings of Judah (like Ahaz) following suit, one has to wonder what’s going on in their heads. They have the prophets speaking out against their practices, yet they persist in rebelling against the LORD. Do they know what they are doing? How do sons so radically depart from their fathers? Are they really that blind and deluded? Do they really believe that Baal or Asherah or Molech or Chemosh or whatever other false god is better or stronger than the LORD? Or are they cynically just using “religion” (of whatever form) to manipulate the people for their own political purposes (without truly buying in to any of it themselves)?

Of course, we cannot actually answer these questions because we cannot get inside their heads or know their hearts. But we can each look at our own hearts and ask similar questions there. What delusions might I be under? What lies do I believe? What worldly practices do I unthinkingly follow? What worldly practices do I knowingly follow? Do I persist in some sin? Why? Is that sin more desirable than the Lord? Why do I think so?

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One more thing…

Because of the practice of human sacrifice in the Valley of Hinnom, righteous King Josiah later defiles it (II Kings 23:10), and it becomes a trash pit. In New Testament times, it is known as Gehenna. With fires burning there continually, Jesus uses it to represent hell. See, for example, Matthew 23:15 or Mark 9:43.

Micah 4-7

He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8

Simple. Not easy, mind you, but simple nonetheless.

This verse encapsulates a theme that runs through the Scriptures. It stands as an answer to the rhetorical questions of Micah 6:6-7, asking what kinds of sacrifices we are to make to satisfy the LORD (including, horrifically, even child sacrifice). Here Micah echoes Amos 5:21-24 (June 5), Isaiah 1:11-17, Hosea 6:6, I Samuel 15:22 (March 25), Proverbs 21:3 (July 23, 2022), and Psalm 50, which we just read in church on Sunday — and the list goes on. We see again, that God is far more interested in how we care for one another, and how we actually relate to Him, than in sacrifice or ritual.

So take some time today and consider:

• What does it mean to do justice?
• What does it mean to love kindness?
• What does it mean to walk humbly with your God?

While the answers to those questions might well be simple, let’s not settle for simplistic. For example, it might seem like “justice” is all about the court system, but is it? It might seem like “kindness” would argue against spanking a disobedient child, but does it? Ask the Lord and think it through and take a step or two in humility, walking with our God.

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One more thing…

With so much to consider, let’s not miss Micah’s most obvious reference to Christ:

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for Me
One who is to be Ruler in Israel,
Whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.

Micah 5:2 (cited in Matthew 2:6)

Glory!

Isaiah 14:24-32; II Kings 16:10-20; Micah 1-3

The LORD of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned,
so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
so shall it stand…”

Isaiah 14:24

For the LORD of hosts has purposed,
and who will annul it?
His hand is stretched out,
and who will turn it back?

Isaiah 14:27

The context of these verses is the LORD’s eventual judgment upon Assyria. But the principle that they express goes well beyond that scenario. These verses speak of the LORD’s omnipotence, His sovereignty over all. Nothing — and no one — can stand against the LORD’s determined purpose. Whatever He says He will do, He will do. There is no stopping Him.

Of course, we all know this, so we nod our heads in agreement. But do we believe it? Really? Do we live our lives in firm conviction of this truth? What would an outside observer, listening to what we say and watching what we do, say about us? Would the preponderance of evidence really reveal that we trust in an almighty God? I wonder.