Bible Studies
God’s Glory Revealed in Judgment (Isa. 1:2-9)
Series: Glory of God from IsaiahIntroduction:
1. In Isaiah’s first utterance he plunged into an announcement of the sinfulness of the nation and the certainty of coming judgment. 2. Why? Why not address his commission as a prophet first? Was he not first commissioned and then given his message? 3. Isaiah is not concerned with chronology, but of emphasis. Thus, he addressed the sinfulness of the nation first. For it is the matter of primary importance. 4. When he saw the glory of God in his commission it was his sinfulness that first had to be dealt with before he could become a servant of the Lord. And so it is with the people of Judah. 5. And so it is with us. I find it amusing when people argue over some minor point of theology all the while their relationship with God is marred by rebellion or by the practice of some gross immorality. 6. Judah was practicing idolatry and at the same time offering sacrifices to God. God said, “I have had enough of burnt offerings. Who requires this trampling of My courts? Bring your worthless offerings no longer.” “When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you. Even though you multiply prayers I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood” (1:11-15). 7. Certainly the great theme of the Bible is that God forgives sin, but the theme is meaningless without the realization of God’s judgment against it.Discussion:
I. God’s glory is revealed in His judgment against sin.A. When Isaiah was commissioned it was his awareness of his own sin that was the matter of first consideration (6:1-7).
1. “I am ruined,” he said. “Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.”
2. In the presence of the glory of God his sin showed up like so much dust in the sunlight.
B. And so it was with Judah and Israel.
1. While the Chronicler describes the reigns of Uzziah and Jotham in a positive light, in the light of God’s glory the people are desperately sick, rebellious sons, having revolted and even despised the Holy One of Israel (1:1ff). They are described as Sodom and Gomorrah (1:10).
2. A day of reckoning was predicted (2:12, 19-21).
a. “You will be devoured by the sword” (1:20).
b. The elders and the princes of the people are condemned (3:13-15).
c. The Lord will make the women go bald (3:16-17).
3. In chapter 5 he compares them to a vineyard, delicately cared for, but which produces only worthless grapes. He says, “I will remove its hedge and it will be consumed. I will break down its wall and it will become a trampling ground. I will lay it waste; it will not be pruned or hoed, but briars and thorns will come up. I will charge the clouds to rain no rain on it.”
4. God used Assyria and Babylon as instruments of His judgment.
a. Assyria used to trample down the godless (10:5-6).
b. Babylon executed His anger (chapter 13).
1) “All hands will fall limp. Every man’s heart will melt. They will writhe like a woman in labor and look at one another in astonishment” (7-8).
2) “Thus I will punish the world for its evil” (11).
C. God’s judgment would come upon all the surrounding nations. Chapters 13-24.
1. Babylon (13:17ff).
2. Assyria (14:24ff).
3. Philistia (14:29ff).
4. Moab (15-16).
5. Damascus (17)
6. Ethiopia (18).
7. Egypt (19).
8. Tyre (23).
9. The earth (24)
II. Judgment against sin is founded upon God’s holiness (Isa. 6:3).A. Wrath is God’s holy action against sin.
1. It is necessary. It is not arbitrary. It is not capricious.
2. Wrath results from who God is. He stands by nature entirely against sin. Illustration of paper in oven 375 degrees.
B. Sin transgress against God’s very nature (cf. 1 Pet. 1:16) and results in His hatred against sin and sinners.
1. We sometimes say that God hates sin and loves the sinner. Note entirely accurate.
a. “Thou dost hate all who do iniquity” (Psa. 5:5).
b. “The one who loves violence His soul hates” (Psa. 11:5).
2. We see it everywhere in Scripture. Some contend that the O.T. only demonstrates God’s wrath against sin, that the N.T. is about His love.
3. Such an approach misinterprets Scripture.
a. It is not only in God’s judgment against Sodom and Gomorrah and the Canaanites that His glory is revealed in wrath against sin.
b. A central theme in Isaiah’s message is wrath against His own people for their sin.
c. The whole O.T. sacrificial system speaks to God’s holy wrath against sin.
d. Hear the voice of John the Baptist as he prepares the way for the king, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear his threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3:11-12).
4. Ron Edwards described the holiness of God in action. “Whenever you see the half-eaten fruit of the garden laying at the feet of a cherub wielding a flaming sword and two sets of footprints leaving the garden but not returning, you see the holiness of God in action. Next time you see a great body of water swell out of its banks let it be a perpetual reminder of the holiness of God in action during the days of Noah. Next time you smell the smell of sulfur, turn to Gen. 18 and 19 and remember Sodom. Next time you hear of an earthquake remember that the earth opened up and gobbled up Korah. Next time you read the obituary column, remember Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. When you read about violence in your neighborhood remember Nadab and Abihu who were torched from heaven, remember Uzzah, struck down like he was hit by a sniper when he touch the ark. And when you meditate on the sacrificial system with its grace, mercy and substitutionary atonement, flip that coin and meditate on the other side. See the mountains of charred and mutilated animal carcasses. See the streams of blood flowing through Jerusalem as if they were arteries rather than streams of water.”
5. I would add one more thing: REMEMBER THE CROSS!!! See there the white-hot anger of God’s glory as it burns against sin.
III. What does all this mean to me?A. For Isaiah it meant that he perceived himself as ruined (6:6).
B. For Israel it meant the judgment of God.
C. For the foreign nations it meant the judgment of God.
D. For you it means the judgment of God.
1. Yes the book of Isaiah promises hope for Israel.
2. Yes God sent the Seraph to Isaiah to cleanse his lips and forgive his sin.
E. But it is all dependent upon your willing faith to repent and receive forgiveness from God. But do not forget the price that was paid for your forgiveness.
1. Isaiah says, “He was pierced through for our transgressions” (55:5); “as a result of the anguish of his soul He will see it and be satisfied” (11); “He will bear their iniquities” (11).
2. It was God’s great glory that acted in our behalf for our forgiveness, but it is also God’s great glory reflected in judgment that led to the cross. Cf. Ex. 33:18ff.
Conclusion:
1. As a result of God’s glory every sin must receive its just recompense. 2. Not one sin will escape. 3. Either allow Christ to accept that judgment or you must. 4. The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus. 5. Will you accept it?
