Daily Bible Devotionals

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 50. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“And now, says the Lord, who formed me from the womb to be His Servant, to bring Jacob back to him, so that Israel might be gathered to Him; for I am honored in the sight of the Lord, and my God is my strength - He says, ‘It is not enough for you to be My Servant raising up the tribes of Jacob and restoring the protected ones of Israel. I will also make you a light for the nations, to be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’” Isaiah 49:5-6 (HCSB)

Even before Jesus arrived, His mission had been designated: He would be a preacher. “Sword and arrows” speak of the opposition He could expect. (49:2) When Jesus came, He acted as Israel’s representative. He labored on behalf of His covenant people. His mission involved transforming sinful Israel into ideal Israel. Just as Isaiah had warned, Jesus’ message was rejected by most of the Jewish community, a rejection maintained by most of the Jewish community in our time. However, their rejection of Messiah opened up evangelism for the Gentiles, which was God’s plan all along. (Romans 11)

Isaiah continues to describe the Servant’s task in today’s passage. He will be a “light for the nations.” The gospel of the kingdom (which Jesus makes possible) is meant not simply ethnic Israel. It is to be comprised of both Jew and Gentile, by God’s promise to all who trust in Messiah. (Romans 9:6) Though Jesus restricted Himself almost entirely to the Jews during His earthly ministry, Gentiles were not excluded – something Matthew’s gospel, written primarily to Messianic Jews, underlines.

Matthew’s gospel takes up today’s passage. (Matthew 12:17-21) Gentile women, Rahab, Ruth, Uriah’s wife (Bathsheba), and Tamar are among Jesus’ genealogy. (Matthew 1) Jesus’ ministry is primarily conducted in “Galilee of the Gentiles.” (Matthew 4:15) And so on. Of course, the “Great Commission” is worded in such a way as to emphasize the need to go “and make disciples of all nations .” (Matthew 28:19)

Paul justified his mission to the Gentiles with today’s passage. He was speaking to a mixed (Jew and Gentile) audience in Antioch but focusing on Jews who opposed him.

“Then Paul and Barnabas boldly said: ‘It was necessary that God’s message be spoken to you first. But since you reject it, and consider yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles! For this is what the Lord has commanded us: I have appointed you as a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’  When many Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the message of the Lord, and all who were appointed to eternal life believed.” Acts 13:46-48 (HCSB)

The idea that “Gentiles get in” was completely revolutionary in Isaiah’s time and the apostle Paul’s generation. “What do we do with all these Gentiles?” was the greatest question debated amongst the early Church, which was primarily comprised of Jewish believers. Perhaps the obvious question for today’s Church should be, “Where did all the Jews go?” followed closely by, “How does the Lord want to use me to share the gospel with the Jewish people?”

“Go forth from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! With a voice of singing, declare, proclaim this, utter it to the end of the earth; say ‘The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob!’  And they do not thirst when He led them through the deserts: He caused the waters to flow from the rock for them; He also split the rock, and the waters gushed out. ‘There is no peace,’ says the Lord, ‘for the wicked.’”  Isaiah 48:20-22 (HCSB)

After having pronounced judgment upon Babylon for their pride and idolatry, the Lord turns back toward Israel with a message of hope and redemption. He informed Israel that His rebuke (at the hand of Babylon) was not intended to destroy Israel completely, only to refine her through adversity, as silver through a fire.  

God’s intention is always to purge sin from His people. He prefers that we willingly release our sin, but He is not above letting His Name (and namesake) be tarnished temporarily to drive sin from His own children. It reminds me of the parent who is not afraid to reprimand their child in public if the situation requires it. Ultimately, questions about parenting styles will be vindicated by the testimony of kids raised rightly! The call for Israel to flee Babylon is echoed in the New Testament book of The Revelation. “Babylon,” henceforth, becomes a Biblical metaphor for spiritual adultery & worldly harlotry among God’s people.

“After these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Revelation 18:1-4 (NKJV)

Notice how the Lord reminds Israel of His provision of water throughout desert periods. It also reminds us of how Jesus promised “living water” to the Samaritan “woman at the well.”  Also, consider Paul’s words to the church in Corinth:

“Now I want you to know, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, all passed through the sea, and all were immersed into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from a spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.” 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 (HCSB)

Finally, compare the Lord’s declaration of “no rest for the wicked” with King David’s exhortation in Psalm 1:

“How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.” Psalm 1:1-2 (HCSB)

“I was angry with My people; I profaned My possession and placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; you made your yoke very heavy on the elderly. You said: ‘I will be the mistress forever.’  You did not take these things to heart or think about their outcome. So now hear this, lover of luxury, who sits securely; who says to herself: ‘I, and no one else, will ever be a widow or know the loss of children.’  These two things will happen to you suddenly, in one day: loss of children and widowhood. They will appear to you in their entirety, in spite of your many sorceries and the potency of your spells.” Isaiah 47:6-9 (HCSB)

Today’s passage brings to mind how salvation can only come through Messiah Jesus. We learn today that if God were to raise up another nation to replace Israel, giving them the same opportunities and favor as He gave to Israel, that newly favored nation could not fulfill God’s requirements, either. God showed favor to Babylon to judge the nations and rebuke Israel. But God-given power went to their heads. They humiliated God and elevated their man-made gods. Instead of showing grace to Israel, the Babylonians punished them. Compare Babylon’s burden and yoke to that of Jesus:

“Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (HCSB)

In addition, God will never be a widower or father orphans. (Hebrews 13:5) His “Bride” is His Church, all who are saved by His grace through faith in His Son, Messiah Jesus. (Ephesians 2:8-9) His children are the “sheep of His pasture.” Therefore, His “Bride” equals the sum total of His “sheep,” as it were.

“My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me. I have given them eternal life, and they will never perish – ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father – We are One.” John 10:27-30 (HCSB)

God’s warning to Babylon (when Babylon said they would be His “Mistress forever”) is curiously similar to Paul’s warning to Gentile believers who displayed arrogance towards what they considered to be “rejected” Israel. (In Biblical imagery, people are also referred to as “branches,” with Jesus being the “True Vine”)  

“Now if some of the branches (the unfaithful of Israel) were broken off, and you, though a wild olive branch, were grafted-in among them, and have come to share in the rich root of the cultivated olive tree, do not brag that you are better than those branches. But if you do brag – you do not sustain the root, but the root sustains you.”  Romans 11:17-18 (HCSB)

The World is prone to forsaking both wedding vows and offspring. God has no mistresses, only one “Bride”. He is eternally faithful to His vows and His natural and adopted children.

“Bel crouches; Nebo cowers. Their idols are consigned to beasts and cattle. The images you carry are loaded, as a burden for the weary animal. The gods cower; they crouch together; they are not able to rescue the burden, but they themselves go into captivity. ‘Listen to me house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been sustained from the womb, carried along since birth. I will be the same until your old age, and I will bear you up when you turn gray. I have made you, and I will carry you; I will bear and save you.’” Isaiah 46:1-4 (HCSB)

Having been reintroduced to the figure of Cyrus in chapters 46-47, we are taken a little beyond that horizon to the eventual downfall of Babylon itself. Behind Babylon’s collapse lies her idolatry. Idolatry and collapse are always intimately bound together.

The kingdoms of this world are notoriously unstable. Babylon’s power was awesome, but it disappeared in a moment. Perhaps this is also a warning to our United States. We should take heed lest we stray from the reality that Jesus is Lord and the truth that apart from God, there is no salvation, revelation of spiritual truth, or true justice. Man’s empires exist only so long as God allows.

In a sermon titled “God’s Providence,” C.H. Spurgeon said, “Napoleon once heard it said that man proposes, and God disposes. ‘Ah,’ said Napoleon, ‘but I propose and dispose, too.’  How do you think he proposed and disposed? He proposed to go and take Russia; he proposed to make all Europe his. He proposed to destroy that power, and how did he come back again? How had he disposed it? He came back solitary and alone, his mighty men perished and wasted, having well-nigh eaten and devoured one another through hunger.”  Man proposes, and God disposes. (Proverbs 16:9)

It is true that Babylon was given power over Israel for a time. God was angry with His people and wanted to teach them a lesson. But Babylon showed no mercy and failed to recognize that God must be worshipped exclusively (not worshipped alongside idols); therefore, Babylon received no mercy. Babylon’s arrogance is captured by the striking similarity of her boast to that of God Himself.  

“I am God, and there is none like me.” Isaiah 46:9 (NKJV - Compare to Isaiah 47:8, 10)

Moving to today’s passage, everything this world’s kingdoms are devoted to is unstable. This applies not just to idols in the sense that we usually think of them but also to such idolatrous things as ambition, power, fame, and materialism. The same truth is taught in the apocalyptic vision of Daniel 11. Kingdoms, void of a true foundation, are bound to crumble. Ultimate success is only guaranteed to the kingdom of God.  

It is good for us to ask the Lord to reveal those things in our lives to which we have ascribed worship and honor, attributes that belong only to the Lord. Once revealed, we must destroy those “idols” and restore proper worship to Him only. As enticing as some worldliness may seem at the outset, it has a horrible, predictably ruinous end.

“Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground.  Does the clay say to the Potter, ‘What are you making?’  Does your work say, ‘He has no hands’?”  Isaiah 45:9 (HCSB)

Isaiah 44:28 introduced us once more to Cyrus.  It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of Cyrus The Great in Israel’s ancient history.  The successive victories of Cyrus against the Medes, Lydians, and Babylonians, ratified in secular history sources, bring into focus the astonishing accuracy of Isaiah’s prophecies given 150 years earlier.  It was the Lord who called Cyrus and gave him these victories.

It has been argued that Cyrus was a believer, a convert of sorts, but Scripture indicates that was not the case.  He was a pagan who saw the favor of Israel’s God as something to add to his collection of gods.  That is not to say that Cyrus was not “used by the Lord.”  He was “anointed” and empowered to succeed because the Lord had willed it to accomplish His purposes.  

Put bluntly, it is possible to be used of the Lord and not know Him personally, just as it is possible to know Him in a saving way but not be used…shelved because of unrepentant sin.  God’s using a person is not always a clear indicator of their salvation…nor is His rebuke of believers a true indicator that He has rejected them.  Salvation is by grace through faith.  (Ephesians 2:8-9) God is about the business of accomplishing His purposes, and any tool among His creation is at His Disposal.  See also Balaam’s donkey and Jonah’s whale.

Everything that happens, even in international affairs, is according to the Lord’s plan.  There is no panic in Heaven, only planning.  No emergency sessions of the Trinity because we are messing things up!  When everything seems shaking all around, God’s sovereignty is of enormous encouragement.  This brings us to today’s passage.

The “clay-to-the-Potter” dialogue is the arrogance of unbelief.  It questions what God is doing.  The Lord who made the stars in the universe can order the course of history.  What is this foolishness that questions God’s ability to raise up a Cyrus some 150 years later?  It is nothing less than unbelief.  This type of unbelief will always be in opposition to prophecy.  It questions not only the prophet but also the core reality that the prophet is simply delivering the message of God, who can call His shots 150 years in advance.

Before Israel went into exile, Isaiah was delivering God’s invitation of Grace.

The same level of faith that Israel was commanded to display is required of followers of Jesus.  We must believe that Jesus died and was resurrected, a past event, a prophecy already fulfilled, and that He is coming again to gather His followers and judge the unrepentant.

“And now listen Jacob My servant, Israel whom I have chosen. This is the Word of the Lord your Maker who shaped you from birth: He will help you: do not fear; Jacob is My servant; I have chosen Jeshurun. For I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants and My blessing on your offspring. They will sprout among the grass like poplars by the streambeds. The one will say: I am the Lord’s; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand: The Lord’s, and name himself by the name of Israel.” Isaiah 44:1-5

Chapter 43 began with redemption and ended with a rebuke. Just a few verses earlier the Lord had promised, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for My own sake and remembers your sins no more.” Isaiah 43:25

Isaiah develops this idea in chapter 44. The chapter can be divided into two sections: a promise of revival to God’s true “people”, (His greater Messianic Community, both Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah) and, a contrast between the true God (Who alone can promise salvation/revival) and the dumb, worthless idols of men.

Promises like these in today’s passage, the promise of His Spirit, provision and salvation, abound in Isaiah’s prophecy. We will read later, in chapters 63-64, how Isaiah speaks about the possibility of global revival, including both Israel and the nations.

Consider the Bible’s descriptions of the experience of God’s blessings. (Isaiah 12:3; 55:1; Psalm 42:1; Jeremiah 2:13; John 4:14; 7:37; Revelation 7:17) I have experienced seasons where I felt spiritually parched, and in those times, the Lord’s blessing is truly like refreshing water. The blessing Isaiah now speaks of is the revival of God’s people from their current morbid condition.

The Lord discloses in the Bible how, throughout history, He has advanced His people of faith by intermittent revivals. That is the primary purpose of the book of Judges. Perhaps, the most recent “revival” in our time would have been the “Jesus Movement” in the late 60’-70’s. Isaiah describes such times as periods of great blessing, underlined by the use of the name: Jeshurun, to describe not only Israel but also the community of “upright” believers-at-large. That term was used by Moses when he described the blessedness that redeemed people could expect from God. Deuteronomy 33:5, 26

I believe our generation is ripe for revival, and your getting intimate with God’s Word will no doubt play a part in your ability to be a contributor to that revival. One thing to note is WHO Isaiah says will be affected by the revival. First, there are those among the Nations who reject the gospel. Then, there are those of Israel who worship God’s Servant, Messiah Jesus, who say, “I am the Lord’s”. Next, there are those of Israel who reject Messiah, who identify with “Jacob”, Isaiah’s moniker for apostate Israel. Finally, there are those from among the Nations who believe in Jesus and take determined steps to be identified with the Lord, through faith in Him. So, which group most describes you, and what part is God preparing YOU to play in the forthcoming “revival”?

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 43. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers? Was it not the Lord, He against Whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in His ways, nor were they obedient to His Law. Therefore, He has poured out His anger and the strength of His battle; it has set him on fire all around, yet he did not know; and it burned him, yet he did not take it to heart.” Isaiah 42:24-25 (NKJV)

Isaiah is prophesying about the coming judgment upon Israel and Judah for having abandoned God by turning to idols. The Jewish mindset, during the days in which Isaiah prophesied, was of the opinion that no matter how greatly His people sinned, God would not utterly destroy them because of His covenant promise. While that is correct to assume, Israel and Judah had no idea the extent His rebuke was about to take. They could not fathom how small of a remnant He would allow to remain of His people. And they could not imagine that God, Whom they called upon for deliverance, was actually the One who was fighting against them; it would be at His command that foreign armies would destroy Jerusalem, the one city they assumed would stand as “home base,” off-limits to foreign reign.  

Why would a loving God do such a thing to His people? Because His grace and mercy only have value when set against the backdrop of His standard, which validates His judgment. However, do not assume the Lord has abandoned His people! His rebuke, while strong and determined, is intended to turn His people back to worshipping Him, not to destroy them utterly. If you find yourself under the rebuke of the Lord, it helps to remember that His goal is your repentance. That is His goal for Israel AND the Gentiles, and always has been.

“’Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?’ This is the declaration of the Lord God. ‘Instead, don’t I take pleasure when he turns from his ways and lives?’” Ezekiel 18:23 (HCSB)

"Otherwise, I am going to send all My plagues against you,[a] your officials, and your people. Then you will know there is no one like Me in all the earth.” Exodus 9:14 (HCSB)

Consider Pharaoh’s response to God’s rebuke in contrast with King David’s. Will you harden your heart or humble yourself and be restored?

“And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart, he and his servants.” Exodus 9:34 (NKJV)

“When David saw that his servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants, ‘Is the child dead?’ And they said, ‘He is dead.’ So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped.” 2 Samuel 12:19-20a (NKJV)

“Be silent before Me, islands! And let peoples renew their strength. Let them approach, then let them testify; let us come together for the trial. Who has stirred him up from the east? He calls righteousness to his feet. The Lord hands nations over to him, and he subdues kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, like wind-driven stubble with his bow. He pursues them going on safely, hardly touching the path with his feet. Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am first, and with the last – I am He.”  Isaiah 41:1-4 (HCSB)

In the ancient Near East, whenever a vassal failed to satisfy the obligations of a sworn treaty, the suzerain (usually the king) would take out legal proceedings against him by means of a covenant lawsuit. The legal process was conducted by means of messengers. Messengers delivered one or more warnings in the first of its two distinct phases. These were worded in such a way as to reflect non-negotiable terms of the original treaty.

The vassal would be reminded of what he had promised and would be asked to give an explanation for his offense. The vassal would be told to mend his ways. Just in case he did not take the point, the consequences of continued offense would be stated. The curses (retributions) of the covenant would have formed part of the original agreement. Such a procedure as this was an ultimatum. Unless the vassal recruited a neighbor state to help them fight the ensuing battle that would result from their breaking the treaty, wise vassals would quickly mend their ways.  

Sometimes, a messenger sent to deliver this ultimatum was rejected, imprisoned, or even killed! The matter would then move on to the next and final phase. This would take the form of a declaration of war.

“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those farmers?’  ‘He will completely destroy those terrible men,’ they told Him, ‘And lease his vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at the harvest.’  Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This came from the Lord and is wonderful in our eyes. Therefore, I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation producing its fruit. Whoever falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder!’” Matthew 21:40-44 (HCSB)

When Jesus told the parable of the vineyard, seeing Himself as the last in a succession of messengers, most of whom had been stoned and killed, He had this same judicial process in mind. It is what Isaiah described, with God calling Israel and Judah to account. In Jesus’ day, Israel had rejected God’s Word (as in Isaiah’s day). They were also about to reject the Son of God.  

Isaiah 41 begins in a courtroom. At the sight of a conquering king approaching, instead of turning to the Lord, the nations (Israel included) turned to their idols. When faced with difficult times, where do you turn?

“Jacob, why do you say, and Israel why do you assert: ‘My ways are hidden from the Lord and my claim is ignored by my God?’  Do you not know? Have you not heard? YHWH is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth. He never grows faint or weary; there is no limit to His understanding. He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless. Youths may faint and grow weary, and young men may stumble and fall, but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:27-31 (HCSB)

Wrong thoughts of God twist our perspective on life. Everything can get bent out of shape and do great harm to the Lord’s cause. In today’s chapter, Isaiah sought to lift our eyes toward heaven and behold God in all His glory. If things are not working out as we would like, it is precisely because life is not all about what we want. Life is about what God intends for us. Waiting on God – His ways, His thoughts, His timing – is the key to spiritual growth and maturity.

Let’s be honest. Have you ever felt that God does not care about you? Trials can make us lose sight of God’s majesty and cause us to feel sorry for ourselves. Some of the people in Isaiah’s time could not reckon God’s timing with His love. They felt that if God loved them, there should be no problems in their lives.

Coping with spiritual depression can be difficult. Almost all of Israel was in the doldrums during Isaiah’s day. The people complained, “God either does not know what we are passing through; or He does not care.”  In times such as these, it is important that we recognize certain realities of God: He is Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omniscient, and His Character never changes.

The problem with Israel’s theology was that they sought religion for what God could do for them and not the other way around. As long as we feel God exists for our pleasure, we will probably be disappointed. But the reason we exist is for God’s pleasure. If we have a proper understanding of mankind’s relationship to God, we will understand that God receives pleasure when we faithfully worship Him through difficult times, as well as easier ones.

The way God dealt with depressed believers in Isaiah’s day was to talk about eagles! It is as if He was saying, “You may feel like a bedraggled sparrow, but if you pay attention to what I’m saying, you will mount up with wings like eagles.”  We must remain faithful and wait patiently upon the Lord. If rebuke is necessary, we must accept it. If trials come our way, we must endure them, waiting on God to fulfill His gracious promises.

“Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ‘Hear the word of the Lord of Hosts: ‘The time will certainly come when everything in your palace and all that your fathers have stored-up until this day will be carried off to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord. ‘Some of your descendants who come from you will be taken away, and they will be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ‘The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.’ For he thought: There will be peace and security during my lifetime.” Isaiah 39:5-8 (HCSB)

Sadly, Hezekiah’s greatness is clouded by the sin of pride that developed in his closing years. Merodach-Baladan, the king of Babylon, wanted (according to the Jewish historian Josephus) aid for a rebellion against Assyria. He is identified with Mardukhabaliddina (bummer of a name), who seized the Babylonian throne in 721 B.C., was deposed by Sargon of Assyria, and then came back to rule again for a short time about 704 B.C.

He sent letters and a present to Hezekiah because he had heard about his illness. After having recovered so wonderfully, Hezekiah was congratulated by the Babylonian king. The flattery was too much for Hezekiah. He fell for it, and in a moment of incredible stupidity, he showed the foreign ruler’s envoys all the treasure in his storehouses. It was an act of folly for which Isaiah gave him a severe reprimand. There is a strong hint of boasting in verse 3, as though Hezekiah wanted to underline just how important he was that such great leaders should show him so much honor. There is only one explanation for Hezekiah’s folly: Pride had grown in his heart.  

“But Hezekiah’s heart was proud, and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore, the Lord’s wrath was on him and on Judah and Jerusalem.” 2 Chronicles 32:25 (NIV)

Pride is a vice that clinches so tightly to the hearts of men that if we were to strip ourselves of all faults, one by one, we should, no doubt, find it the very last and hardest thing to rip away. It would have been better, had Hezekiah died at the time the Lord appointed, than for him to live and spoil his testimony in this way. After all, Manasseh, the worst king Judah ever experienced, was born during Hezekiah’s “borrowed” time.

Hezekiah made no opportunity to witness to the Babylonian visitors. Instead, he boasted, leading to Babylon’s eventual overthrow of Judah. I believe Hezekiah’s great folly was not restricted to showing off the kingdom treasures. His great folly was actually the fact that he sought his own glory above the well-being of the Kingdom. Once the judgment was pronounced against him, he concurred that it was “good .”But in his mind, the “goodness” had less to do with justice and more with the fact that he escaped direct punishment for his sin. He harbored no remorse for his descendants.

I have met Messianic (Christian) leaders who seemed more concerned with their personal fame than protecting & equipping the next generation. It is incumbent upon us to not just do great things for God but also to prepare the next generation for greatness.

“In those days Hezekiah became terminally ill.  The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came and said to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: “Put your affairs in order, for you are about to die; you will not recover.”’  Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord.  He said, ‘Please, Lord, remember how I have walked before You faithfully and wholeheartedly, and have done what pleases You.’  And Hezekiah wept bitterly.  Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: ‘Go and tell Hezekiah that this is what the Lord God of your ancestor David says: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears.  Look, I am going to add 15 years to your life.”  Isaiah 38:1-6 (HCSB)

I’ve known countless people who have clung to today’s passage as an anchor verse on the effectiveness of healing prayer.  From one angle, that is true, but in Hezekiah’s case, he really should have heeded the Word of the Lord, set his house in order, and passed away.  After all, the message of his impending death did not come from a secular doctor; it came from the Lord’s spokesman, the prophet Isaiah. Two major negative consequences occurred as a result of Hezekiah’s healing.  

1) Babylon

“At that time Merodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah since he heard that he had been sick.  Hezekiah gave them a hearing and showed them his whole treasure house – the silver, the gold, the spices, and the precious oil - and his armory, and everything that was found in his treasures. There was nothing in his palace and in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. Then the prophet Isaiah came to King Hezekiah and asked him, ‘Where did these men come from and what did they say to you?’ Hezekiah replied, ‘They came from a distant country, from Babylon.’ Isaiah asked, ‘What have they seen in your palace?’ Hezekiah answered, ‘They have seen everything in my palace. There isn’t anything in my treasuries that I didn’t show them.’” 2 Kings 20:12-15 (HCSB)

2) Manasseh

Born after Hezekiah’s healing, Manasseh was Israel’s most evil king, vigorously reinstating idolatry. Ironically, he defied Hezekiah’s own words about legacy: “…a father will make Your faithfulness known to children.” Isaiah 38:19

“Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ‘The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good,’ for he thought:  Why not, if there will be peace and security during my lifetime?  The rest of the events of Hezekiah’s reign, along with all his might and how he made the pool and the tunnel and brought water into the city, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.  Hezekiah rested with his fathers, and his son Manasseh became king in his place.” 2 Kings 20:19-21 (HCSB)

“Manasseh was 12 years old when he became king and reigned 55 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah. He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, imitating the detestable practices of the nations that the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites.” 2 Kings 21:1-2 (HCSB)

“Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord.  Then Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: Lord of Hosts, God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are God – You alone – of all the kingdoms of the earth.  You made the heavens and the earth.  Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, Lord, and see.  Hear all the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God.  Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated all these countries and their lands.  They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands – wood and stone.  So they have destroyed them.  Now, Lord our God, save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord – You alone.’”  Isaiah 37:14-20 (HCSB)

Sennacherib’s envoys returned from the outskirts of Jerusalem to find that the Assyrian army had left Lachish to attack the nearby city of Libna, a military fortress in the lowland between the Mediterranean and the hills of Judah. (2 Kings 19:8)

The threat from King Tirhakah forced Sennacherib to retreat, but not before firing a final “missile” threat at Hezekiah.  It came in the form of a letter, probably very lengthy and taking up several leather or papyrus scrolls.  Sennacherib had nothing new to say, apart from the all-important fact that initially, he had accused Hezekiah of deceiving the people of Jerusalem; now he was accusing the Lord of deceiving Hezekiah.

“Say this to Hezekiah king of Judah: Don’t let your God, whom you trust, deceive you by promising that Jerusalem won’t be handed over to the king of Assyria.” Isaiah 37:10 (HCSB)

Hezekiah’s response was to return to the Temple to engage once more in prayer to the Lord.  By spreading out the letter, Hezekiah was making a gesture as if to say, “Lord, look at this!”  His prayer is a model, containing both adoration and petition.  Hezekiah weaves what he knows about God’s character into worship.  Prayer should begin with worship, as Jesus Himself taught in the Lord’s Prayer. (Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4)

Even when we are pressed into a corner (as many of us are today), worship should come first when we approach the Lord in prayer.  I am not talking about music, which has become synonymous with “worship” in our church culture.  I am speaking of approaching the Lord with the attitude that recognizes that God saves men: He hears our prayers, has the power to deliver, is present in our lives, and has a consistent character (as revealed through Scripture) that we can trust.

Isaiah’s friendship and ministry to King Hezekiah, urging prayer as the way of deliverance, won the day.  God gave Judah a God-fearing leader (Isaiah) at its most crucial time, and Isaiah has also been given to us by way of the Bible.  Will you heed his counsel, as did Hezekiah?  Will you worshipfully approach the Lord with your requests?

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 36. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Strengthen the weak hands, steady the shaking knees!  Say to the cowardly: ‘Be strong; do not fear! Here is your God; vengeance is coming. God’s retribution is coming; He will save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy, for water will gush in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the parched ground will become a pool of water, and the thirsty land springs of water. In the haunt of jackals, in their lairs, there will be grass, reeds, and papyrus.”  Isaiah 35:3-7 (HCSB)

It has been said that people are like tea bags.  You never know what is on the inside until you put them into hot water!  I have had many “tea bag” moments in my life.  Moments where the Lord, by His grace, dropped me into hot water.  And I would like to report that I always steeped righteousness into those hot water pots.  But I did not.  

I know that the concept of the Lord willingly bringing hardship upon His faithful children seems foreign to some believers.  We would rather believe He will spare us from hardship because we choose to follow Him closely.  But in His wisdom, He chooses from time to time to allow us to experience difficulty.  The therapeutic nature of hardship reveals to us (and to onlookers) how deep our faith really is.  More often than not, through hardship, God reveals the difference between our aspirational faith and our core faith.  The difference between how faithful we believe we are versus how faithful we actually are.

John the Baptist had a “tea bag” moment.  He was in prison and facing execution.  He began to doubt, or at the least needed reassurance, that the One whom he had declared, “The Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world,” was really worth dying for.      

“When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent a message by his disciples and asked Him, ‘Are You the One who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’ Jesus replied to them, ‘Go and report to John what you hear and see: the blind see, the lame walk, those with skin diseases are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news. And if anyone is not offended because of Me, he is blessed.’”  Mathew 11:2-6 (HCSB)

Interestingly, Jesus did not answer, “Hold on, John!  There, I’ll dispatch a band of angels to rescue you!”  He simply quoted today’s Isaiah passage, titled in my Bible “The Future Glory Of Zion.”  Jesus reminded John, the “Baptizer,” of God’s promise from His Word.  **As concerned as Jesus may have been with John’s reassurance, He was also concerned with John’s followers’ testimonies!  Notice how He told John’s disciples, “Go and report to John what YOU hear and see.”  That is a valuable lesson!  In the midst of suffering, we need to be encouraged by other faithful believers.  Furthermore, we can be an encouragement in the midst of our own suffering. Remember: salvation doesn’t always mean the end of earthly suffering.  Someday, we will all be liberated from the bonds of earthly suffering and enter the eternal “Glory of Zion,” the New Jerusalem.

“You nations, come here and listen; you peoples, pay attention!  Let all the earth hear, and all that fills it, the world and all that comes from it.  The Lord is angry with all the nations – furious with all their armies.  He will set them apart for destruction, giving them over to slaughter.  Their slain will be thrown out, and the stench of their corpses will rise; the mountains will flow with their blood.  All the heavenly bodies will dissolve.  The skies will roll up like a scroll, and their stars will all wither as leaves wither on the vine, and foliage on the fig tree.”  Isaiah 34:1-5 (HCSB)

Isaiah once more turns matters far removed from the events of the seventh century B.C.  Chapter 33 closed with a glimpse of the new heavens and the new earth.  Chapters 34-35 concentrate on the universal judgment of the wicked surrounding the “day of the Lord” and the endless joy of the redeemed, portrayed in terms of the “flowering of the desert.”

The portrayal of the “day of the Lord” focuses (initially at least) on the negative side: it is “…a day of vengeance, a year of retribution…”  God is angry with the nations whom He has called before Him.  He threatens their total destruction, and the language is apocalyptic.

The apostle John confirms that the Day of the Lord is upon us.

“Then I saw Him open the sixth seal.  A violent earthquake occurred; the sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair; the entire moon became like blood; the stars of heaven fell to the earth as a fig tree drops its unripe figs when shaken by a high wind; the sky separated like a scroll being rolled up; and every mountain and island was moved from its place.  Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the military commanders, the rich, the powerful, and every slave and free person hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains.  And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day of Their wrath has come!  And who is able to stand?’”  Revelation 6:12-16 (HCSB)

Israel had comfortably forgotten the “vengeance of the covenant,” the jealousy of God at work within the confines of His chosen people to punish transgression, to discipline them unto greater holiness, and to purge evil from His people.

The broad truth is that God’s saving work, the bringing of His people into a covenant of grace, is not intended to induce a spirit of moral complacency.  Rather, we should enter into a spirit of determined ambition to be holy to obey God’s Word.  Disobedience must expect rebuke and punishment if the disobedience hard-heartedly continues.  God loves His people and will never forsake them, but He will chastise us when we fall into sinful ways.  Today’s passage is a strong reminder of the predictable end of those who “receive the Lord’s Name” in vain.  If He is truly our Bridegroom, shouldn’t we be faithful brides?

God keeps His Word: He is both faithful to judge and faithful to save.  How would you choose Him to be faithful toward you?

“The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling seizes the ungodly: ‘Who among us can dwell with a consuming fire?  Who among us can dwell with everlasting flames?’  The one who lives righteously and speaks rightly, who refuses gain from extortion, whose hand never takes a bribe, who stops his ears from listening to murderous plots and shuts his eyes to avoid endorsing evil – he will dwell on the heights; his refuge will be the rocky fortress, his food provided, his water assured.”  Isaiah 33:14-16 (HCSB)

Isaiah 33 is an “emergency psalm” of sorts.  It seems to have three clear divisions: A prayer for the promised destruction of Assyria (2-9), God’s challenging answer (10-16), and the future Messianic kingdom (17-24).

The reason I chose today’s passage is because it deals directly with a very sensitive issue as it pertains to Jewish evangelism.  Isaiah answers the volatile question: What happens to those Jewish people who reject Messiah Jesus?  It also delineates between those (within Judaism) whom Isaiah describes as “sinners” and those who are “righteous.”  And Isaiah reveals their representative consequences: blessing or everlasting flames.

You see, there are some in the “Church-at-large” who believe we should not evangelize the Jewish people because, in the apostle Paul’s words, “All Israel will be saved.”  But that argument fails to consider the proper context of Paul’s statement.

“So that you will not be conceited, brothers, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery: A partial hardening has come to Israel until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way, all Israel will be saved, as it is written: The Liberator will come from Zion; He will turn away godlessness from Jacob.  And this will be My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.” Romans 11:25-27 (HCSB)

Paul had already made a distinction that “Israel,” in a Messianic saving sense, is defined as those Jews who believe Messiah Jesus by faith.  Salvation is a choice and not bestowed simply because one comes from Hebrew physical descent.  Both Gentiles and Jews must choose to trust Jesus in order to be saved.  But Paul does not infer that all people who are Jewish (aka physical Israel) will enter into that saving relationship.  That was Isaiah’s message to his all-Jewish audience.  Paul simply reinforced Isaiah’s words.

“But it is not as though the word of God has failed.  For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.  Neither are they all children because they are all children Abraham’s because descendants.” (Romans 9:6-7a) Salvation is by Grace through Faith.  (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Since today’s chapter is also predicting the days of Messiah Jesus, it is important to point out that many Jewish people believed in/followed Jesus during His earthly ministry (He fed 5000 at one point).  At the same time, many Jews rejected Him, namely Judas, Caiaphas, and the Sanhedrin.  Neither Isaiah nor any other Bible writer would assume the same eternities await both groups.  That reality makes our evangelical efforts even more urgent!   (See also: John 7:50-53; 9:16; 10:19-21; 12:10-11, 19, 42-43)

“Indeed, a king will reign righteously, and rulers will rule justly.  Each will be like a shelter from the wind, a refuge from the rain, like streams of water in a dry land and the shade of a massive rock in an arid land.  Then the eyes of those who see will not be closed, and the ears of those who hear will listen.  The reckless mind will gain knowledge, and the stammering tongue will speak clearly and fluently.  A fool will no longer be called a noble, nor a scoundrel said to be important.”  Isaiah 32:1-5 (HCSB)

No fools or scoundrels?  Sounds like bad news for Washington DC!  The unbeliever is a fool.  The foolish enjoy the company of folly; their perception is twisted.  The folly and confusion which characterized Isaiah’s day changed with the coming of a king.

Having introduced the idea of a new order in chapter 31, Isaiah now launches into a description of the righteous rule of that era’s king.  As to the identity of the “king,” commentators have been divided.  It seems clear enough, however, that it cannot be Hezekiah, for the king Isaiah has in mind is completely righteous.  Isaiah must, therefore, be speaking about a Messianic rule: the righteous government of Messiah Jesus.

But what of this king’s subjects, described by Isaiah as “rulers”?  (Which makes sense, because we will reign with Messiah. 2 Timothy 2:12)  Whereas the foolish are crafty and cunning, dedicated to doing evil things, using all kinds of tricks and plots to deceive, the disciples of Messiah will be enlightened and noble.  Salvation changes men’s minds and makes them wise.  This is something God promised to do in Isaiah 29.

“Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder after wonder.  The wisdom of their wise men will vanish, and the understanding of the perceptive will be hidden.”  Isaiah 29:14  (HCSB) (See also: 1 Corinthians 1:19)

In just over a year's time, things will change drastically for Jerusalem.  The description of Jerusalem’s transformation seems to transcend anything that happened in Isaiah’s time.  Once again, the prophet is using the events of his day to teach greater truths.  Following the judgment of Jerusalem comes the outpouring of the Spirit.  Shavuot (Pentecost) naturally comes to mind. (Also see: Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17-18, 33; 10:45)

But there are even greater things here: A new order of things will be established where there is fruitfulness, peace, righteousness, quietness, security, and rest.  These “attributes” are descriptive of the new earth, the home of the righteous.  They are also given to believers as a deposit of sorts, distinguishing us from the World and reminding us to live in hope of that glorious day when the “New Jerusalem” will be revealed.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self control.  Against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23 (HCSB)

“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and who rely on horses!  They trust in the abundance of chariots, and in the large number of horsemen.  They do not look to the Holy One of Israel and do not seek the Lord’s help. But He also is wise and will bring disaster.  He does not go back on what He says; He will rise up against the house of wicked men and against the allies of evildoers.  Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the Lord raises His hand to strike, the helper will stumble and the one who is helped will fall; both will perish together.” Isaiah 31:1-3 (HCSB)

Isaiah’s warning to Israel was also prophesied generations prior in Psalm 20.

“May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble; may the name of the God of Jacob defend you; may He send you help from the sanctuary, and strengthen you out of Zion; may He remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice. – Selah - May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your purpose. We will rejoice in your salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions. Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. They have bowed down and fallen; but we have risen and stand upright. Save, Lord! May the King answer us when we call.” Psalm 20:1-9 (NKJV)

100 + years later, Jeremiah was the on-the-scene reporter, testifying that everything Isaiah had prophesied was coming to pass, exactly as predicted.  Still, on the verge of judgment, Israel had a choice to repent.  The same could be said of America today!

“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition before Him: ‘If you will still remain in this land, then I will build you and not pull you down, and I will plant you and not pluck you up. For I relent concerning the disaster that I have brought upon you. Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not be afraid of him,’ says the Lord, ‘for I am with you, to save you and deliver you from his hand. And I will show you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and cause you to return to your own land.’ But if you say, ‘We will not dwell in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the Lord your God, saying, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor be hungry for bread, and there we will dwell’ - Then hear now the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah! Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you wholly set your faces to enter Egypt, and go to dwell there, then it shall be that the sword which you feared shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt; the famine of which you were afraid shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there you shall die.  So shall it be with all the men who set their faces to go to Egypt to dwell there. They shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. And none of them shall remain or escape from the disaster that I will bring upon them.’”  Jeremiah 42:9b-17 (NKJV)

“Therefore the Lord is waiting to show you mercy, and is rising up to show you compassion, for the Lord is a just God.  All who wait patiently for Him are happy.  For you people will live on Zion in Jerusalem and will never cry again.  He will show favor to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears, He will answer you.  The Lord will give you meager bread and water during oppression, but your Teacher will not hide Himself any longer.  Your eyes will see your Teacher, and whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: ‘This is the way.  Walk in it.’  Then you will defile your silver-plated idols and your gold-plated images.  You will throw them away like menstrual cloths, and call them filth.”  Isaiah 30:18-22 (HCSB)

There is a recent UCLA survey on “spirituality on college campuses,” conducted over a number of years, polling over 1400 higher learning institutions.  As it were, spirituality is on the rise on college campuses.  But a sobering statistic stands out among the thick pages of data.  When asked, “Do you seek spirituality to know what God requires of you?” only 13% said “Yes.”  That answer tells us that most people are seeking God for what He will do for them, not what He requires of them.

Given that statistic, it makes sense that many followers of Messiah Jesus find themselves disappointed with God.  We often assume that God exists to make us wealthy, successful, or popular.  In short, we generally believe He exists for our happiness.  The truth is that we exist for HIS pleasure, not the other way around.  He is more concerned with our spiritual prosperity than our earthly wealth.  

So, if we expect “good standing” with God to mean wealth and prosperity for us, we will experience mostly disappointed lives.  Consider the words of today’s passage:

“He will show favor to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears, He will answer you.  The Lord will give you meager bread and water during your oppression, but your Teacher will not hide Himself any longer…”  Isaiah 30:19b-20a (HCSB)

Israel has turned to the Lord, crying out, and He will hear her cry.  But His response was not to shower her with earthly wealth to reward her repentance.  No, He gave Israel what was necessary for physical survival and spiritual wealth: Bread, water, and His guidance (His Word).  It makes Jesus’ reply to Satan during His desert temptation more stirring:

“Man does not live by bread alone but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God.” Deuteronomy 8:3b, Luke 4:4 (HCSB)

Only after Israel had learned what God required of them (and proved faithful in heeding His Word) did He allow earthly blessings to return to them.  So, keep heeding His Word.

“Then He will send rain for your seed that you have sown in the ground, and the food, the produce of the ground, will be rich and plentiful.  On that day your cattle will graze in open pastures.”  Isaiah 30:23 (HCSB)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 29. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Listen and hear my voice.  Pay attention and hear my words.  Does the farmer plow continually to plant seed?  Does he continually turn and break up his ground?  Does he not level its surface and sow dill and scatter cumin and plant wheat in rows, barley in its place and rye within its area?  For his God instructs and teaches him properly.  For dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is the cartwheel driven over cumin; but dill is beaten out with a rod, and cumin with a club.  Grain for bread is crushed, indeed, he does not continue to thresh it forever.  Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it, He does not thresh it longer.  This also comes from the Lord of armies.  Who  has made His counsel wonderful and His wisdom great.”  Isaiah 28:23-29 (NASB)

Today’s chapter ends with a more promising note.  A farmer doesn’t keep on plowing indefinitely.  He sows in order to reap.  

Has God been “turning your soil,” lately perhaps, mixing in a bit of “manure” to boot?  God is preparing you as a farmer prepares the land to yield a bountiful crop of spiritual fruit!  Spiritual discipline is what this chapter has all been about.  Those who see the Father’s hand in it will profit.  Yes, it involves hardship.

“Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons.  For what son is there that a father does not discipline?”  Hebrews 12:7 (HCSB)

It is also unpleasant and painful.

“No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the fruit of peace and righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”  Hebrews 12:11 (HCSB)

God’s discipline is revealed in a variety of ways; like a farmer who plows and sows, The Lord deals differently with particular children in order to produce a harvest of grace.  He may rebuke us through the reading of His Word. (2 Timothy 4:2)  He may use sickness. (Romans 5:3-4)  Sometimes, He even uses Satan himself.  Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was also a “messenger of Satan.” (2 Corinthians 12:7)  That is the lesson of the book of Job.

To those who have eyes to see, there is a smiling face below the surface of a (seemingly) frowning God.  Our lives, even when under discipline, are ordered by a God who is “wonderful in counsel” and “gives great wisdom.”  God is preparing us, teaching us to faithfully endure pain and trust in Him so that we can stand firm to administer the gospel at a time when others are being crushed by the weight of this World.  

Endure His training.  Nobody trusts when a poorly trained, out-of-shape soldier says, “I got your back!”  Nor do they heed the rhetoric of the undisciplined Christian.  

“Consider it great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:2-4 (HCSB)

“On that day the Lord will thresh grain from the Euphrates River as far as the Wadi of Egypt, and you Israelites will be gathered one by one.  On that day a great trumpet will be blown and those lost in the land of Assyria will come, as well as those dispersed in the land of Egypt; and they will worship the Lord at Jerusalem on the holy mountain.”  Isaiah 27:12-13 (HCSB)

Isaiah’s Apocalypse (Isaiah 24-26) has shown the coming judgment for the world, the downfall of God’s enemies, and of death itself.  It has spoken of the safety of God’s people within its own eternal city, promising complete deliverance from His wrath and eventual bodily resurrection.  

The aim of God for His people is not only their salvation from sin and its curse; it is that they might be fruitful.  The passage in chapter 27 depicting a vineyard must be read in parallel with chapter 5, where we were shown the picture of Israel as having been unfruitful.  The Vinedresser had come to His vineyard only to find “bad fruit.”  All the attention given to the vineyard had been to no effect.  The coming exile into Babylon was God’s chastisement for their backsliding.  Interesting, then, the words of Jesus:

“I am the vine; you are the branches.  The one who remains in Me and I in Him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.”  John 15:5 (HCSB)

Jesus is the restoring agent for both Israel and the nations.  He is the TRUE vine.  In addition, salvation comes exclusively through Him.

“Jesus told him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6 (HCSB)

Today’s chapter ends with a summons to the dispersed Jewish exiles to come home from Assyria and Egypt.  A great trumpet sounds, summoning their return.  The words are echoed to this day in synagogue worship in the tenth of the Eighteen Benedictions, “Sound the great trumpet for our liberation; lift up the ensign to gather our exiles…” The language is picked up by Paul, who describes the ushering-in of the end:

“For the Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ [Messiah] will rise first.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16 (HCSB)

We find the same picture in Psalm 47:5: “God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.”  In fulfillment of His plan and purpose, God is going to spread a feast for all kinds of people, including all “Israel,” but not all Jews. (Romans 9:6-7; 11:25-26) Messiah-followers are diverse and cosmopolitan.  Heaven and glory await God’s people: those who are the redeemed through Messiah Jesus.  And what will our occupations be?  Worship leaders, singing His praises!  

“On that day sing about a desirable vineyard!” Isaiah 27:2 (HCSB)

“In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:  ‘We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks.  Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in.  You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.  Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.  For he has humbled the inhabitants of the height, the lofty city.  He lays it low, lays it low to the ground, casts it to the dust.  The foot tramples it, the feet of the poor, the steps of the needy.’”  Isaiah 26:1-6 (ESV)

Isaiah depicts pilgrims coming from far off, arriving at the gates of the city, and calling out in song for the doors to be opened wide to receive them.  Jerusalem’s strength, the peace enjoyed by its inhabitants, comes from the salvation God has caused to make known within its walls.  

The song is not only a testimony of what those who sing it have come to know.  It is also an exhortation to others to put their trust in the Lord and experience the same transformation in their own lives.  For that matter, it should be the passionate cry of all believers!  While we may not all be called to be “evangelists,” per se, we are all called to evangelize.

Several points are worth noting in today’s chapter, distinctive features of those who “occupy the city of God.”

1) They are righteous. (26:2, 7) Those who are righteous have received their righteousness from the Lord.

2) They are blessed. (26:7) The way they travel is level and smooth.  It makes John the Baptist’s message more understandable: “Prepare the way for the Lord; make His paths straight…”  It also clarifies that fire consumes the wicked. (26:11)

3) They long for His presence. (26:8-10) Even in times of judgment, the righteous learn repentance.  The wicked remain in unbelief despite God’s warnings.

4) They enjoy peace. (26:14) Isaiah sees the wicked as being denied resurrection into God’s kingdom.  This does not mean that Isaiah denied the resurrection of the dead as such.  His point was merely that those who trouble the righteous will trouble them no more.  This is especially so in Heaven.  

5) They confess past failure and frustration. (26:16-19) Evidently, Israel had been in such distress that they were barely able to pray.  It reminds me of the silent prayer Hannah prayed in Eli’s presence. (1 Samuel 1:9-20) Now we see the resurrection of the righteous.

6) They wait patiently and quietly for the Lord’s coming. (26:20-21) The exhortation is for us to faithfully believe His Word and promise.  He will deliver!

“Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.  For You have turned a city into a heap, a fortified city into a ruin; a palace of strangers is no longer a city, it will never be rebuilt.  Therefore, a strong people will glorify You; cities of ruthless nations will revere You.  For You have been a stronghold for the helpless, a stronghold for the helpless, a stronghold for the poor in this distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a rain storm against a wall.  Like heat in a dry land, You subdue the uproar of foreigners; like heat by the shadow of a cloud, the song of the ruthless is silenced.” Isaiah 25:1-5 (NASB)

Isaiah’s words in today’s passage are very similar to Mary’s praise in the Gospel of Luke:  “And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.  For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold henceforth all generations will call me blessed.  For He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name.  And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation.  He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.  He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly.  He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty.  He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever.’  And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.” Luke1:46-56 (NKJV)

The remnant was pitifully small – like the gleanings left in the corner of a field or a few olives missed at the top of a tree (Isaiah 24:13).  Amos compared the remnant to a single coal left glowing after a campfire or to legs and ears left from a lion’s kill.

But after the storm comes a bright rainbow of promise.  God will not only deliver His people; He will take away their hearts of stone and give them new ones: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” Ezekiel 36:26-27 (NKJV)

He also promised to establish a new covenant with His people: “’Look, the days are coming’ – this is the Lord’s declaration – ‘When I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.  This one will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt – a covenant they broke even though I had married them’ – the Lord’s declaration.  ‘Instead, this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days’ – the Lord’s declaration.  “I will put My teaching within them and write it on their hearts.  I will be their God, and they will be My people.  No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least to the greatest of them.” – this is the Lord’s declaration.  ‘For I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sin.’” Jeremiah 31:31-34 (HCSB)

Today, we remember that God is faithful (even to His most ancient promises).  He helps the helpless, and He is immutable.  His character never changes.

“On that day the Lord will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and kings of the earth, on the earth.  They will be gathered together as prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished.  The moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed, for the Lord of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders.” Isaiah 24:21-23 (ESV)

One thing is clear: No one should be complacent about the future.  Isaiah, in his youth, may well have heard Amos preach.  Both share certain themes, and in this chapter, certain verses are identical. (compare Isaiah 24:17-18 with Amos 5:19) Amos warned the Northern Israelites about complacency, saying:

“Woe to you who long for the day of the Lord!  Why do you long for the day of the Lord?  That day will be darkness, not light.” Amos 5:18 (NIV)

History is moving toward its inevitable goal: The Day of the Lord.  For those who are in fellowship with God, this is a matter of supreme joy.

“They raise their voices, they sing out; they proclaim to the west the majesty of the Lord.  Therefore, in the east honor the Lord!  In the islands of the west honor the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.  From the ends of the earth we hear songs: The Splendor of the Righteous One.  But I said, ‘I waste away!  I waste away!  Woe is me!’  The treacherous act treacherously; the treacherous deal very treacherously.”  Isaiah 24:14-16 (HCSB)

For those who are not in fellowship with the Lord, the Day of the Lord is, indeed, a day of darkness.  According to Isaiah’s words in today’s chapter, it will be a day of judgment that:

1) is final (Luke 16:26).

2) includes Satan and his angels (1 Corinthians 6:2-3; 2 Peter 2:4).

3) takes place after a period of imprisonment (Revelation 20:1-3).

4) concludes in sheer glory (Revelation 21:22-24; Isaiah 60:19-20).

The big question on all of our minds should, perhaps, be, “How will I survive that Day?”

There is a way.  Salvation is offered exclusively through Messiah, Jesus, and it is freely offered to all who would accept it.

“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.  Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.”  John 3:16-18 (HCSB)

“And at the end of the 70 years, the Lord will restore Tyre and she will go back into business, prostituting herself with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth.  But her profits and wages will be dedicated to the Lord.  They will not be stored or saved, for her profit will go to those who live in the Lord’s presence, to provide them with ample food and sacred clothing.” Isaiah 23:17-18 (HCSB)

Isaiah 23 is a prophecy about the downfall of Tyre’s influence in commercial trading on the high seas.  These prophecies against the nations began with Babylon and ended with Tyre.  If Babylon symbolizes power, then Tyre stands for commerce.  The connection between them is clear: both represent the attempts of man to live without God.  In the Revelation, chapters 17 and 18, the two nations are combined as representatives of the world’s seductive and oppressive powers.  Tyre is portrayed as a prostitute plying her trade.  Other prophets had things to say about Tyre: Ezekiel and Amos, for instance.

Two things emerge here and deserve closer inspection.  The FIRST has to do with the danger of MATERIALISM.  Tyre’s commercial activity is compared to that of a prostitute.  The figure seems apt: commercialism can easily assume the policy of the highest profit, regardless of the means.  It is this characteristic of idolatry/spiritual adultery which is underlined in the book of Revelation.

“For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries.  The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries” Revelation 18:3 (NIV)

Few businesses run on principles that seek first the kingdom and glory of God.  Consider Chick-fil-A, the only major Christian-owned business that has taken the idea of observing the Sabbath seriously.  We need to take heed to Jesus’ warning about the seductiveness of material things.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth and nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal.” Matthew 6:19-20 (NASB)

The SECOND danger mentioned in today’s chapter has to do with God’s OWNERSHIP of all property.  Isaiah gives us a glimpse of things to come.  He sees a day when Tyre’s earnings will be given to the Lord’s treasury.  What appears to have happened is that Tyre has converted to the Lord.  The Lord then uses her to bless Israel.

If our culture would recognize that God owns everything, perhaps we would be less obsessed with prostituting ourselves to obtain stuff.  Instead, we would approach the Lord and ask Him to provide for us according to His great knowledge and plan.  At least, that was what Isaiah was trying to convince Judah.

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 22. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Therefore I am filled with anguish.  Pain grips me, like the pain of a woman in labor.  I am too perplexed to hear, too dismayed to see.  My heart staggers; horror terrifies me.  He has turned my last glimmer of hope into sheer terror.  Prepare a table, and spread out a carpet!  Eat and drink!  Rise up, you princes, and oil the shields!  For the Lord has said to me, ‘Go, post a lookout; let him report what he sees.’” Isaiah 21:3-6 (HCSB)

In today’s chapter, we get somewhat of a glimpse of Isaiah’s personality.  The focus of his attention is further away, both geographically and historically.  So far, Isaiah has concerned himself with Judah’s near neighbors.  Babylon, on the other hand, was about as far away as the Bible world ever knew.  Not only that, but the events of which he speaks did not take place until almost 200 years after Isaiah’s time.

Isaiah calls, as it were, for watchmen to be posted on the city walls of Jerusalem.  They were to look out for messengers coming from Babylon with the news that Babylon had indeed fallen.  The fall of Babylon is of great significance in the Bible because it symbolizes the fall of everything evil.  Henceforth, all the way through to the end of the book of the Revelation, “Babylon” becomes a metaphor for evil.  We also learn here that whenever “Babylon” and God’s people become intimately intertwined, God will purge the evil, even to the shame of His children and (in the short term) His own Name.  Still, we also learn that God will not allow His people to be ultimately destroyed in the process, and His Name will be exalted in the end.  It just may feel otherwise at times.

In terms of Isaiah’s personality, what emerges clearly from this chapter is Isaiah’s reaction to what he sees.  Clearly, Isaiah is a sensitive man, deeply affected by the destruction he saw ahead for the Babylonians.  A similar picture emerges in the next chapter when he asks to be left alone so that he might weep.  In short, Isaiah was empathetic.  He genuinely felt remorse on behalf of the sinner and longed for their repentance.

Isaiah’s heart reminds us of Jesus, Who, when beholding the sinful state of Jerusalem, wept over it. (Luke 19:41; Mathew 23:37) The Apostle Paul also experienced such emotions when he thought of the lost condition of his non-Messianic Jewish countrymen.  (Romans 9:3) Question: Do you mourn for the sinner or simply scoff?

David Hume was an 18th-century British deistic philosopher who rejected Christianity.  One day, a friend saw Hume hurrying down a London street and asked where he was going.  “To hear George Whitefield preach," he replied.  His friend was amazed and asked, “But surely you don’t believe what Whitefield preaches, do you?”  “No, I don’t,” answered Hume, “but he does.”  Hume would have gone to hear Isaiah, too, I believe.

This leaves us with two questions: 1) Does your knowledge of God’s Word lead you to humble empathy or puff up your spiritual pride? 2) Who is hurrying to hear you preach?

“In the year that the commander-in-chief, sent by Sargon King of Assyria, came to Ashdod and attacked and captured it – during that time the Lord had spoken through Isaiah son of Amoz, saying, ‘Go, take off your sackcloth and remove the sandals from your feet,’ and he did so, going naked and barefoot – the Lord said, ‘As My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot three years as a sign and omen against Egypt and Cush, so the king of Assyria will lead the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, young and old alike, naked and barefoot with bared buttocks, to Egypt’s shame.”  Isaiah 20:1-4 (HCSB)

We are a third of the way through the book of Isaiah. So far, we know almost nothing about Isaiah himself! We know he had a wife and two sons. But what kind of person was Isaiah, the man? He was obedient.

The cost of obedience to God’s will is high, and the follower of Jesus knows that. But few have gone to the lengths to which Isaiah was commanded. Have you ever felt that you were called to do something that was just a little below your dignity? Many followers of Jesus feel just like that. I have. When the congregation’s building needs cleaning, we insist God has gifted us with theological insights, not the skill to use a vacuum cleaner. It is along these lines that David once said:

“Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” Psalm 84:10 (NIV)

Paul urged the Philippians not to think too highly of themselves. (Philippians 2:3)

God’s message (through the media of Isaiah’s “performance art”) is not primarily for Egypt, Ashod, or Cush. It is for Judah and especially for King Hezekiah, who was tempted to look to other nations for military deliverance from the Assyrian menace.

It is foolish to trust anyone apart from God. Though Hezekiah was essentially a godly king, given to reform, he was also prone to compromise in a crisis. Sound familiar? It is the essence of world politics today! Hezekiah’s glances at Egypt for help did not win him favors with Isaiah. This is a message Hezekiah will have to hear again.  (30:1-3) The attraction of Egyptian/Philistine military expertise might bring short-term benefits, but as guardians of the truth, God’s people are to be separate from ALL forms of unbelief.

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we will rise up and stand firm.” Psalm 20:7-8 (ESV)

The promise of God’s Word compels us to endure His calling, standing firm even when He beckons us to humiliating circumstances.

“On that day, there will be an altar to the Lord in the center of the land of Egypt and a pillar to the Lord near her border. It will be a sign and witness to the Lord of Hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord, because of their oppressors, He will send them a savior and a leader, and he will rescue them.” Isaiah 19:19-20 (HCSB)

In the first half of chapter 19, we see (in Egypt) the people were looking for meaning in their lives. It is a picture of modern civilization. Is it any wonder that one of the top-selling books of our time is The Purpose Driven Life? People are still looking for purpose almost everywhere except in Jesus. Ours is a culture of men with sore eyes. They find the light painful and consider darkness (which permits them to see nothing) as restful and agreeable.

In 19:16-25, we are given another picture of Egypt. It refers to events in the future and is signified by a six-fold repetition of “On that day...” We have seen Isaiah’s concern for Gentiles before, but it is breathtaking to consider the idea that Egypt, Israel’s cruelest oppressor in days gone by, should now be promised a place alongside Israel. Egypt’s progression from sin to salvation is worth noting. There appear to be five elements involved in their transition:

1) A state of fear

2) A state of submission

3) A state of access into God’s presence

4) A state of fellowship

5) A state of complete acceptance

Paul describes the calling of the Gentiles and their inclusion in the greater community of Messiah (the Church) as a breaking down of the wall that once separated Jews and Gentiles. (Ephesians 2:14) It is similar to what happened to East and West Germans when the Berlin Wall came down. They became simply “Germans” again.  

The fellowship that binds followers of Jesus together is much more profound. Believers share the promise of Heaven. (Romans 8:17; Galatians 3:29) This is a mystery, in that through the Gospel, Gentile believers are heirs together with Jewish believers, members of one body, ONE in Messiah, Jesus. (Ephesians 3:6)

What these past few chapters have been about is that God can raise children from the most unlikely sources: Ruth from Moab, Naaman from Damascus, a Eunuch from Ethiopia, or an Athanasius from Alexandria in Egypt. Oh, yes, and then there’s us.

In this understanding, we get a foretaste of Heaven.

“And after this, I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” Revelation 7:9 (HCSB)

“Ah!  The land of buzzing insect wings beyond the rivers of Cush sends couriers by sea, in reed vessels on the waters.  Go, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth-skinned, to a people feared far and near, a powerful nation with a strange language, whose land is divided by rivers.  All you inhabitants of the world and you who live on the earth, when a banner is raised on the mountains, look!  When the trumpet sounds, listen!”  Isaiah 18:1-3 (HCSB)

Tsetse flies are buzzing beside the Nile River.  We are in the heat of a Sudanese summer.  Today’s passage takes us southwest of Israel and almost to the equator.  We might be tempted to think that a country so far away from Jerusalem would not come into God’s reckoning, but we would be mistaken.  Nothing escapes His notice, no matter how far away it is.  Cush is called to account.

Cush (aka Ethiopia) is in trouble.  A flurry of ambassadors is bent on achieving diplomatic solutions to the oncoming Assyrian aggressor, but to no avail.  On the surface, Isaiah’s message to the Cushites is encouraging.  It brings out the truth that God is in absolute control of events.  The Cushites have no reason to be concerned about war: God will allow the Assyrians to come only as far as Egypt and no further.  A trumpet (shofar) will sound in the mountains of Judah, proclaiming the limits of Assyria’s power.

God is never taken by surprise because He is Lord of all, and the nations rise and fall at His command.  Isaiah predicts Assyria’s end with graphic imagery: wild birds and animals devour them.  This teaching is repeated by the Apostle Paul in his sermon in Athens:

“From one man He made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live.” Acts 17:26 (HCSB)

We find the same message in the Book of Job.  Satan is allowed to bring so much devastation into Job’s life, but there are limits.  It is the same lesson that lies behind the “chain” that currently binds Satan. (Revelation 20:1-2)  

Just as Damascus and Ephraim (Israel) will return to the Lord as a result of His chastisements, so too will there be Cushites (Ethiopians) who will come and present Him gifts.  (Psalm 68:31-35)

We cannot help but be reminded of the story (Acts 8) of the salvation of the Eunuch servant of Queen Candice of Ethiopia.  Most likely, a dispersed Jew who found himself pressed into the service of the Ethiopian queen, the Eunuch would have been in Jerusalem during the Pesach (Passover) crucifixion of Jesus.  No doubt, he heard the testimony of other dispersed Jews who heard the gospel proclaimed in their own language during the festival of Shavuot (Pentecost) 50 days after Pesach.  God sent Philip to the Eunuch, who was reading Isaiah 53. No doubt, when they reached Isaiah 56, its message of grace and mercy towards eunuchs was the trigger for the Eunuch’s faith in Jesus.  Praise the Lord that His Word can be trusted and His salvation endures forever!

“An oracle against Damascus: Look, Damascus is no longer a city.  It has become a ruined heap.  The cities of Aroer are forsaken; they will be places for flocks.  They will lie down without fear.  The fortress disappears from Ephraim, and a kingdom from Damascus.  The remnant of Aram will be like the splendor of the Israelites.  This is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts.” Isaiah 17:1-3 (HCSB)

Anyone involved in ministry has experienced the trial of laboring in a difficult situation with little or no fruit.  Sometimes, we convince ourselves that our “mission field” is incapable of producing fruit, but we are wrong.  God can produce trophies of grace from the most unpromising of conditions.  This is what chapters 17-19 are all about.

If these chapters seem like difficult reading, it is probably because it is difficult for us to be confronted with the reality of how abhorrent sin is to Almighty God.  He detests it and will not pass it by as though it were not there.  The fact that this sustained judgment annoys us says more about us than it does about the narrative.  Perhaps it is just in this area that we need to re-evaluate ourselves as God sees us.

Isaiah continues to pronounce judgments on surrounding nations…Damascus (Syria), Cush (Ethiopia), and Egypt.  You may ask, “If God is the God of Israel, why is He judging other nations?”  It is because God is not ONLY the God of Israel…He is Lord of all!  He is Lord, whether people accept Him or not.  It is not as if He is Lord because we accept and worship Him as such.  He IS Lord, regardless of mankind’s recognition of His Lordship.  

That is what is so offensive to the world about God: Man has no choice as to Who is Lord.  Deny Him and invent your own god if you want.  Yahweh is still Lord of all!  And it is only a matter of time before He exposes all other worship as false.

Damascas was Syria’s capital city.  Syria’s future was to be one of ruin and lonely forsakenness.  The picture is of flocks grazing with nobody to look after them.  It is a vivid picture of what life is like for those who don’t know God when the glory has departed because their “idols” have proven to be mere, powerless, lifeless objects.

Whatever is left of Aram, after the Assyrians have raided it, will be like Israel’s so-called “glory” once God has departed.  It will be no more than the few gleanings left in the field after the harvest or the few olives on an olive tree once it has been shaken.  Because Israel (aka Ephraim) and Syria were allies (right down to the idolatry), that meant Israel was going to share the same fate as the Syrians.

Western society cannot expect a different future from what happened to Syria or Ephraim.  But there is Hope.  Assyria’s power will come to an end, and even in the most unlikely places, God has a faithful remnant: a few “gleanings,” but His, nonetheless. (Amos 4:11)

“We have heard of Moab’s pride – how very proud he is – his haughtiness, his pride, his arrogance, and his empty boasting.” Isaiah 16:6 (HCSB)

Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the Moabites covers two chapters: 15-16.  Chapter 15 gives a picture of total destruction.  16 gives some of the causes of Moab’s downfall.  The devastation is complete, and the story receives even fuller treatment in Jeremiah 48.  Within a short period, Isaiah’s words were fulfilled.  Assyria came onto Moab, marching southward and driving those that escaped the sword into the territory of Edom.  City after city had fallen, and most of the places mentioned can still be located.  The picture of Moab that the Lord wants us to remember is of their arrogance.

Living in Israel 100 years after Isaiah, Jeremiah repeats Isaiah’s charge, adding for further clarity that God’s patience had run out:

“Make him drunk, because he has exalted himself against the Lord.  Moab will wallow in his own vomit, and he will also become a laughingstock.” Jeremiah 48:26 (HCSB)

Moab had wealth in terms of sheep.  We find this in 2 Kings 3:4. In Isaiah 16:1, Moab is asked to send tribute to Jerusalem.  The picture of the Moabites crossing the border into Edom with their family treasures is a graphic portrayal of the insecurity of riches.

Hysterical women are running southward, away from the aggressor; they are like young birds shaken out of their nests and fluttering about on the floor below.  (16:2)

Those who defy God turn to religion for justification.  Man’s religions are his greatest crimes.  Moab is no different, but even as she presents herself at high places, it is only to wear herself out.  Her praying is to no avail.  Jesus said the same thing about pagan religion:

“And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard.”  Matthew 6:7 (BSB)

Nothing but grief comes to those who defy God.  And this is only a PICTURE of what awaits all who ultimately defy Him.

But all is not dark.  In a display of Divine pity, God cries out for Moab. (15:5; 16:7, 9, 11) Isaiah is an evangelist as much as he is a prophet of judgment.  He, unlike Jonah, longs that his enemies turn to God and find salvation.  He takes no delight in the death of the wicked.  Isaiah speaks more than the facts of the gospel; he speaks God’s heart for sinners, as well.

“‘Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?’  This is the declaration of the Lord God.  ‘Instead, don’t I take pleasure when he turns from his ways and lives?’” Ezekiel 18:23 (HCSB)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 15. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“For the Lord will have compassion on Jacob and will choose Israel again.  He will settle them on their own land.  The foreigner (aliens) will join them and be united with the house of Jacob.  The nations will escort Israel and bring it to its homeland.  Then the house of Israel will possess them as male and female slaves in the Lord’s land.  They will make captives of their captors and will rule over their oppressors.” Isaiah 14:1-2 (HCSB)

Years ago, I was on a trans-continental flight sitting next to a teenage girl who was really, really into the rock band Van Halen.  She was playing her Walkman sooooo loud that it was annoying passengers three rows away.  I decided to do what I always do: tune out the world and read my Bible.  Believe it or not, she turned off the Walkman and asked me about what I was reading.  We chatted a bit, and then she blurted, “I’ve always wondered about the UFOs in the Bible.”  “UFOs?” I asked.  “Yeah, the Bible talks about the aliens living among the Israelites…”  True story.

Sorry to disappoint all you Star Trek (or Van Halen) fans, but that’s not the kind of “aliens” the Bible is referring to.  Tucked away in this section of prophecy is a striking allusion to the future of God’s Church.  In the midst of this battle scene, where we can almost hear the command to attack in 13:4-5, leading to the overthrow of Babylon (13:17-22), is today’s passage, a word of promise to God’s people.

What amounts to a wholesale judgment on God’s enemies (represented by Babylon) turns out to be a blessing of deliverance for God’s people (Jacob).  God used Babylon to purge His people of sin and purify to Himself a people who will serve Him.

Once Babylon has served its purpose of purging, it will be destroyed, making a way for the Savior to come.  God’s treatment of these pagan nations, once used as tools in His hand, now rejected, may seem cruel.  But the reality is that they experienced God’s power, provision, and enabling, yet rejected the God Who provided their positions of prominence.

This little section is a cameo sketch of a theme that will occupy twenty-seven chapters (40-66) of Isaiah’s prophecy.  Even now, in the midst of words of terrible doom, God wants His own children to take refuge in Him.  He has not forgotten His promise, no matter how difficult times are or may become.  He has planned compassion for that remnant of Jacob (Israel who turn to Him through Messiah Jesus) and those “aliens,” Gentiles who will come to faith through Jesus as well.

What a glorious future lies in store for God’s children, both Jew and Gentile, who have received His covenant promise of salvation through faith in His Son, the Messiah Jesus!

“Look, the day of the Lord is coming – cruel, with rage and burning anger – to make the earth a desolation and to destroy the sinners on it.  Indeed, the stars of the sky and its constellations will not give their light.  The sun will be dark when it rises, and the moon will not shine.  I will bring disaster on the world, and their own iniquity, on the wicked.  I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant and humiliate the insolence of tyrants.” Isaiah 13:9-11 (HCSB)

Isaiah 13 introduces us to an important Biblical expression: The Day of The Lord.  The first occurrence refers to a not-too-distant horizon, the invasion of Babylon, some 150 years away.  But the second instance is quite different.

It is vital to understand that events actually separated by long periods of time are seen from an “Old Testament” perspective as following close after each other.  It’s like a “condensation” of time, where events are condensed and couched next to each other but actually occur decades or millennia apart.  This perspective is similar to what we experience when looking at two objects from a long distance away: they “appear” close together when in fact, they are not.

The prophecy of Joel regarding Shavuot (the Festival of Weeks, i.e., the Day of Pentecost) is an example of this.  

“After this I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity; then your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, and your young men will see visions.  I will pour out My Spirit on the male and female slaves in those days.”  Joel 2:28-29 (HCSB)

Immediately after the prophecy of the outpouring of the Spirit, Joel gives an apocalyptic account of the coming of “the day of the Lord.”

“And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.” Joel 2:30-31(NKJV)

The Day of the Lord can sometimes refer to a day that is in the near future, but usually, it is a phrase used by prophets to describe the final day of consummation when the wicked will be punished.  Question: when the events the prophets predict come to pass EXACTLY as prophesied, why is it that we doubt the probability of those events yet to pass?

Again, two things confound a fool: 1) how slow God is to act, and 2) how quickly He shows up!  Are you prepared for the Day of The Lord?

“Then you will say on that day, ‘I will give thanks to You, Lord; for although You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me.  Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.’  Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.  And on that day you will say, ‘Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; make them remember that His name is exalted.’”  Isaiah 12:1-4 (NASB)

The sight of the mighty Warrior (in Isaiah 11 and 12) is awesome.  The effect of God’s judgment cuts Judah down to a stump.  There are times when the Church has almost been extinguished.  There may have been times when you felt you were personally on the verge of extinction!  But the roots remain, and from them, fresh signs of life grow once more.  Those who know the salvation of which Isaiah speaks know how thankful we should be and how full of joy it makes us, so much so that we burst out in song!

Today’s chapter is actually two songs, back-to-back.  After so many allusions to the coming Messiah, Jesus, the prophet bursts out into song.  The lesson here is that, although God has been offended with his people, He was also satisfied that the chastisement He inflicted on them was sufficient.  We should be encouraged that, although we may feel the rebuke of the Lord, it will be for only a season, and we will be comforted by Him as soon as He has disciplined us.  Now, that’s something to sing about!!  You see, salvation is what we are most in need of, and typically, we only compartmentalize “salvation” as the eternal alternative to “damnation.”  We often forget our day-to-day need for deliverance, not just for the afterlife, but to get through this life.

Throughout his prophetic book, Isaiah makes use of a widely used Biblical symbol: water.  (41:17-18; 55:1; 55:10)

“With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” Isaiah 12:3 (ESV)

Possibly the most well-known use of this imagery is found in the words of Jesus Himself to the Samaritan woman at the well.  In fact, the whole account is Jesus’ most in-depth address to the divided kingdom era (of which Isaiah was addressing with his prophecy) and His willingness to forgive Israel’s spiritual adultery.

“Jesus said, ‘Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again.  But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again – ever!  In fact, the water I give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.’” John 4:13-14 (HCSB)

What the Samaritan woman needed most of all was the water of salvation to relieve the spiritual thirst in her soul.  This has always been what we sinners need in every age.  This was the content of Isaiah’s songs of trust and joyful thanksgiving.

“On that day the root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples.  The nations will seek Him, and His resting place will be glorious.  On that day the Lord will extend His hand a second time to recover – from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the coasts and Islands of the west – the remnant of His people who survive.” Isaiah 11:10-11 (HCSB)

Early in the days of Israel’s wilderness wanderings, the Israelites found themselves on the verge of war with the Amalekites.  Joshua was asked to assemble an army while Moses climbed a nearby hill.  With God’s staff in his hands, he lifted up his arms with Aaron and Hur helping him.  So long as his arms were held upward, the Amalekites were defeated.  Afterward, Moses built an altar and named it “The Lord is my banner.”  It marked a place where Moses and the people of God had witnessed God fighting on their behalf.

When God’s banner is planted in the ground, God’s people have no cause to worry.  He fights for His people.  As King Jehoshaphat was told, later in Israel’s history...

“This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army.  For the battle is not yours, but God’s.’” 2 Chronicles 20:15b (NIV)

The writer of Chronicles tells us that Ahaz ignored Isaiah and asked the king of Assyria for help.  Then, things got worse.

“In his time of trouble King Ahaz became even more unfaithful to the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 28:22 (NIV)

What Ahaz refused to see was that Israel’s battle was primarily a spiritual one.  The truth is that ALL battles are primarily spiritual, even though our battles involve human interaction.  So, because Ahaz refused to fear the Lord, victory was not secured through his strategic military alliances.  He should have trusted the Lord because victory is only found in Him.  That oversight cost Ahaz (and Judah) dearly.  

Perhaps, you are facing an overwhelming adversary.  The only way you will find enduring victory is by humbling yourself and surrendering to the Lord’s will, revealed in His Word.  Remember that the battle is the Lord’s.   He plants His banner as a symbol of His conquests.  He is interested in winning YOU before He wins the world through you.  Do not resist the Lord!  Let Him plant His banner of love and Lordship deep into your heart, soul, and strength.

When the people of God find themselves in any trouble, the Bible reminds them of His past victories and promises of future victories.  His Word acts as a banner fluttering in the breeze.  The very sight of it reminds us that our strength comes from His mighty power and strengthens our faithful resolve.

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17 (NKJV)

“On that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no longer depend on the one who struck them, but they will faithfully depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.  The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God.  Israel, even if your people were as numerous as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return.” Isaiah 10:20-22a (HCSB)

God hates pride.  It was pride in the later years of King Uzziah that caused judgment to fall upon him.  Judah, too, was filled with arrogance, thinking they knew better than God’s prophet.  And disgrace was sure to follow. (Proverbs 11:2)

But once more, Isaiah brings into focus the mercy of God.  A remnant will return.  The clouds of God’s anger against sin are lined with the silver thread of His covenant promise: a Remnant will come forth.

The idea of a “Remnant” is something we believers should strongly consider…especially when sharing the gospel with Jewish non-believers.  Some Church leaders suggest we should not bother sharing the gospel with the Jewish people because God’s Word says that all of Israel will be saved.  But shouldn’t we consider Paul’s words, (directed by the Holy Spirit) when determining exactly what spiritual “Israel” means to the Lord?  

“But it is not as though the word of God has failed.  For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.  Neither are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants.  On the contrary, your offspring will be traced through Isaac. That is, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but the children of the promise are considered to be the offspring.” Romans 9:6-8 (HCSB)

Those who are “Israel” are not strictly those of physical descent from either Abraham or Jacob…rather, they are those who faithfully BELIEVE the promise of God, that is, in the promise of Messiah Jesus, whom Isaiah called “Immanuel.”  Today’s passage defines the “Remnant” as those who faithfully depend on the Lord, the faithful One of Israel, Immanuel, Jesus.  Consider the apostle John’s words within the context of Isaiah’s prophecy.  The Remnant is expanded to contain both Jew and Gentile: EVERYONE who believes.  Also, those appointed for destruction are people of unbelief: Jew and Gentile.

“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.  Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.  This, then, is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.  For everyone who practices wicked things hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed.  But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”  John 3:16-21 (HCSB)

“Nevertheless, the gloom of the distressed land will not be like that of the former times when He humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali.  But in the future, He will bring honor to the Way of the Sea, to the land east of the Jordan, and to Galilee of the nations.  The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness.  You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy.  The people have rejoiced before You as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils.”  Isaiah 9:1-2 (HCSB)

Light shines through Isaiah’s words in several ways.

1) The People of God.  Isaiah refers to “the people” and “the nation.”  He means the people of God, the remnant from within Judah.  Though the Lord will shame them through Assyrian oppression, He will not forsake Judah entirely.  He will gather them again and, through them, bring to pass His promise.

2) The Light of Jesus.  When Jesus was forced to move from Nazareth to Capernaum (in the region of Naphtali and Zebulon), Matthew says that this was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophesy. (Matthew 4:14-16; Luke 4:14-30) The point of Matthew’s quotation was to indicate that people who had been living in darkness now had the light of God’s Son in their midst. “Galilee of the Gentiles,” so long despised by the Jews, was earmarked for evangelism by Messiah Jesus.

3) The Impossible is Possible with God.  Isaiah knew His Bible!  He remembered that in the time of the judges, God had whittled down Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 10,000 to 300 to do battle with the Midianites.  He was anxious to demonstrate the principle: not by might, nor by power, but by His Spirit.  A surprise attack on the Midianite camp was enough to send them packing.  This is a message Isaiah takes up again and again.  Three pictures are brought together in verse 4 to remind Judah that Assyria’s oppression is nothing new.  They had also been this way in Egypt 700 years earlier.  Here, Judah is compared to an ox.  Poor Judah – to be a beast of burden.  But things can change!  The zeal of the Lord Almighty can change things if Judah would only listen.

4) An End to Warfare.  Assyrian men are seen lying dead from battle with blood-stained clothes.  Everywhere there is a stench of battle.  The enemy has been totally destroyed and disarmed.  The refuse of war is burnt, and there is peace.  It reminds us of the end of the Revelation.  And what was the cause of all this?  The birth of a child to the royal house of David.

The World promises the light of hope but can only deliver darkness.  The World is OUR Assyria.  The child, Jesus, however, brings peace and light.  Peace is the first fruit of our justification.  (Romans 5:1)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 8. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will name Him Immanuel.  He will eat curds and honey at the time He knows enough to refuse evil and choose good.  For before the boy knows enough to refuse evil and choose good, the land whose two kings you dread will be abandoned.” Isaiah 7:14-16 (NASB)

Ahaz, the king of Judah, was in a desperate situation.  The apostate Northern Kingdom of Israel had partnered with their pagan neighbors, Syria.  Furthermore, the two were advancing toward Jerusalem, intent on sacking it.  While he was searching for a military or political solution, God sent Ahaz a spiritual solution in the person of Isaiah.  God was willing to deliver Judah by His grace, but only if Ahaz would believe His message (through His messenger) by faith.  Ahaz had a choice to make, and there would be harsh consequences if he chose wrongly.

“If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.” Isaiah 7:9b (NKJV)

As a sign that Isaiah’s prophecy was from God, the Lord promised to give confirming markers of progress along the path to Judah’s deliverance.  Since Judah’s greatest enemy was not Israel or Syria (rather, it was their own sinfulness), the Lord began with a prediction of the distant future, a virgin birth.  Then, the prophet works his way toward Judah’s more immediate threat: Israel and Syria.

Focusing for a moment on Judah’s (and the world’s) ultimate need for personal salvation and victory over sin, God gives, as a sign, the miracle of Messiah’s virgin birth.  The title “Immanuel,” translated as “God with us,” does not merely mean “God is on our side, so He sent us a leader.”  “Immanuel” speaks of the deity of Messiah.  Consider the prophet Micah’s announcement concerning the coming Messiah, the place of His birth, and Who He is:

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from old, from everlasting.” Micah 5:2 (NKJV)

Eternal in origin, yet born as a human child, Messiah Jesus had to grow up and learn as any boy.  The Living Word of God (John 1) had to learn the Word of God to “refuse evil and choose good.”  But, by the time He reached the age of accountability, He was fully trained, and no sin was found in Him.  (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Messiah’s humble upbringing, referenced as “eating curds and honey,” is in stark contrast to how the haughty leaders of Israel and Syria would be forced into humility.  “It shall be in that day that a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep; so it shall be, from the abundance of the milk they give, that he will eat curds; for curds and honey everyone will eat who is left in the land.” (Isaiah 7:21-22)  It serves as a lesson to us: Be humble before the Lord through Jesus, or be humbled by the Lord!

“So I said, ‘Woe is me, for I am undone!  Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.’  Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal, which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.  And he touched my mouth with it and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is purged.’  Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying: ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’  Then I said, ‘Here am I!  Send me.’” Isaiah 6:5-8 (NKJV)

Excuses, excuses.  Everybody has one.  Moses had one:

“But Moses replied to the Lord, "Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent--either in the past or recently or since You have been speaking to Your servant--because I am slow and hesitant in speech."  Exodus 4:10 (HCSB)

Jeremiah had one:

“But I protested, ‘Oh no, Lord, God! Look, I don't know how to speak since I am only a youth.’”  Jeremiah 1:6 (HCSB)

10 of the 12 spies who scouted the land of Canaan after the exodus had one:

“But the men who had gone up with him (Caleb) said, ‘We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.’” Numbers 13:31 (NKJV)

And the list goes on.  So, what is YOUR excuse?  What excuse do you give for not living faithfully, as God calls us?  Do you not realize that where God GUIDES, God PROVIDES?  He does not call you because He needs your giftedness and in order to accomplish His purposes.  God has gifted you because you need His provision in order to be successful in the things He calls you to accomplish.

So, like Isaiah, we must first realize we are unworthy in His presence and confess that sin to Him.  Then He cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9) when we place our faith in Him, and He fills us with His Holy Spirit.  (Romans 15:13)  Then He calls us specifically equipped for the work He has called us to.  (Hebrews 13:20-21)  And when we obey and heed His call, He literally works through us (even as He is working on us through sanctification) to accomplish the goal to which we are called.  

“I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ [Messiah] Jesus.”  Philippians 1:6 (HCSB)

So, what is your excuse for not stepping up and shouting, “Here am I!  Send me!?”

“Now let me sing to my Well-beloved a song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard: My Well-beloved has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill.  He dug it up and cleared out its stones, and planted it with the choicest vine.  He built a tower in the midst, and also made a winepress in it; so He expected it to bring forth good grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes.  And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge, please, between Me and My vineyard.”  Isaiah 5:1-3 (NKJV)

Isaiah’s prophetic words were echoed by Jesus many generations later:

"Listen to another parable: There was a man, a landowner, who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. He leased it to tenant farmers and went away.” Matthew 21:33 (HCSB)

What are Isaiah and Jesus talking about, and why was God so disappointed with His vineyard?

“For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are His pleasant plant.  He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.” Isaiah 5:7 (NKJV)

“When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to get his fruit. And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.  Again he sent other servants, more than the first.  And they did the same to them.  Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’  But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.’  And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.  When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?  They said to him, ‘He will put those wretches to a miserable death and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.’”  Matthew 21:34-41 (ESV)

In the days of Jesus’ earthly ministry, Israel’s religious leaders held to a belief that Messiah would soon deliver them.  They believed that Messiah would levy justice upon Israel’s oppressors (Rome) and reward Israel’s faithfulness.  So, when Jesus quoted Isaiah in such a direct way, He knew that the religious leaders would recognize the parallel stories.  He was making the statement that Israel’s religious leaders were not to expect Messiah to reward their perceived good deeds.  Rather, they should expect justice and harsh rebuke against themselves for having turned from His Word and oppressing the people.  The “cry for help” the Lord answered was not to deliver His people from Roman oppression but from Jewish religious oppression.  This was not Judaism as He prescribed.  It was what Judaism had become by following the vain interpretations and traditions of men, traditions that held a form of Godliness but ultimately blocked the path of true worship.

“In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious; and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing for those of Israel who have escaped.”  Isaiah 4:2 (NKJV)

Isaiah’s message was clear: judgment is coming upon Judah and Jerusalem.  Why?  While they had continued in certain religious practices commanded by the Lord, they had largely abandoned His Word.  Their worship consisted of rote religious actions, but it was void of a personal daily pursuit of God in His Word as led by His Spirit.  If we understand Isaiah’s exhortation, we can make the connection to Messiah Jesus’ Words to his disciples:

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, and you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” John 15:1-8 (NKJV)

While we can focus on the negative aspects of Isaiah’s preaching, namely the judgment of the Lord against apostasy-laden Hebrew worship, we are amiss if we do not also recognize the great grace offered in the midst of Isaiah’s pronouncement.

“And it shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy – everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem.  When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning, then the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night.  For over all the glory there will be a covering.” Isaiah 4:3-5 (NKJV)

Yes, judgment will come.  And Jeremiah will be the “on the scene reporter” (many years later) telling the people of Jerusalem that the Word prophesied by Isaiah is coming true in their day.  But the message of encouragement (even giving a 70-year time limit for exile) in Jeremiah 29 echoes the hope of Isaiah 4.  For the remnant, those bent on repenting and returning to the Word of the Lord will again inhabit Jerusalem, experiencing the same signs of the Lord’s presence that accompanied Moses and the exiles from Egypt.  And for believers of Jesus, we expect the same signs of His presence in the New Jerusalem.  (Revelation 21:1-4)

“For Jerusalem stumbled, and Judah is fallen, because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of His glory. The look on their countenance witnesses against them, and they declare their sin as Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves.”  Isaiah 3:8-9 (NKJV)

Just because I have written songs for a living, which involve melodically rhyming words and ideas, does not mean that I like poetry.  I have never purchased a book of poetry, nor do I have any plans to.  So, I identify with the frustration of many folks who had to endure the past six months of the “Poetic Books” of the Bible.  The cry is typically, “When can we get back to something with a concrete narrative?”  Abstract thinking is not easy for most people; they like stories.  The problem is the story we pick up on in Isaiah is not a continuation of the positive deliverance stories we left with Nehemiah and Esther.  After a sizable measure of wisdom and poetry, we are dumped smack into a serious prediction of destruction.  It was this exact destruction that led to the cries for deliverance in Nehemiah's and Esther’s day. We are going way back in Israel’s history, so we know God doesn’t bluff.

God knows His people need a poetic reminder of His graceful wisdom and melodious majesty before they are bombarded with the hard, sin-revealing truths of the rest of the Old Testament.  The prophetic “party pooper” is Isaiah.  And that is what prophet preaching is: sobriety in the midst of a drunken stupor.  Who welcomes the voice of wisdom and righteousness, saying, “Someone has to pay this tab you guys are running up at the bar!?”  The wine the people drank was worldliness, and Isaiah was one of several men whom the Lord called to collect on the people’s sin debt.

Today’s message from Isaiah is simple: because the Church (Jerusalem) has stumbled, the nation (Judah) is fallen.  And that is about as relevant a message as you can hear in our generation!  Yet, in the midst of judgment, God’s people are still offered a word of encouragement; encouragement for true believers, not false ones.

“Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him. As for My people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.” Isaiah 3:10-12 (NKJV)

The Word of God through Isaiah is often misunderstood as preaching on behalf of a God Who cannot be pleased.  That is simply untrue.  Isaiah’s words must not be misconstrued as anything other than God’s grace.  God’s first choice for His people is ALWAYS to plead for their repentance.  (2 Peter 3:9)

“The Lord stands up to plead, and stands to judge the people.”  Isaiah 3:13 (NKJV)

God’s grace is worthless unless it offers shelter from a certain impending judgment.

“Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?”  Isaiah 2:22 (ESV)

It is hard to imagine a greater contrast than that between the two pictures portrayed in today’s chapter.  One is of unprecedented blessing, and the other of fearful judgment.  Little wonder that the chapter ends with a plea to give up on man.  It literally means, “Stop trusting in man.”

The verse is worthy of closer examination because it summarizes the burden of the prophet: “Put no more trust in man, WHO HAS ONLY the breath in his nostrils.  Of what account is he?”  

The words "trust" and "of what account" correspond exactly to the words “rejected” and “esteemed” in Isaiah 53.

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”  Isaiah 53:3 (ESV)

Israel (not all Jews, but the vast majority) gave up on the very One they should have relied upon: Messiah.  Throughout history, the sinner’s epitaph (Jew or Gentile) is that they trusted in everything (and everyone) except God’s Way.  

Isaiah has depicted the glories and woes that are coming for Israel.  Could the same be predicted for the Church-at-Large today?  That really is the big question, isn’t it?  There are those who will make their way to a celebration in “Zion;” they are the redeemed of the Lord.  But there are others who have rejected Jesus, God’s Messiah (anointed One), to their doom.  Salvation is offered to Jews and Gentiles alike through Messiah Jesus, just as damnation awaits all who reject Him, Jew or Gentile.  The determining factor in salvation (or damnation) has nothing to do with genetics: Who's your daddy?  Rather, salvation is by God’s grace when we faithfully believe on Messiah: Who's your Father?

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”  Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV)

The wise will sit up and learn the lesson:

“O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.” Isaiah 2:5 (ESV)

Are you walking in His Light?  Have you chosen to trust Him Who was rejected by men yet accepted by God?  He Who was of no account to men, yet is esteemed by God, graciously imputes His righteousness into the bankrupt spiritual accounts of all who will receive Him.

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Isaiah 1. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“(Shulamite: To the Daughters of Jerusalem) His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases. (A Relative Speaks) Who is this coming up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? I awakened you under the apple tree. There your mother brought you forth; there she who bore you brought you forth.” Song of Solomon 8:3-5 (NKJV)

We all have that awkward “relative” who shows up, seemingly out of nowhere, and makes an uninvited statement.  Clark Griswold had cousin Eddie in Christmas Vacation.  Napoleon Dynamite had Uncle Rico.  Today’s chapter ends the Song of Solomon with a powerful statement about the importance of legacy.  And that statement comes out of the blue from a person described simply as “Relative.”  

As the Shulamite is exhorting the daughters of Jerusalem (for the third time) concerning the utmost importance of not stirring-up or awakening love until it pleases, her relative speaks up, “Hey!  I remember the day you were born!  Look at how godly you have grown up and how joyful you are because your relationship with the Lord has remained intact!”  No, the relative does not say it that plainly.  We must recall that the Song of Solomon is poetry, so it compels us to think more abstractly with Scripture, as did the parables Jesus told.  But a major theme of the last chapter underscores the importance of the Shulamite being “sealed” on her heart and arm, a direct Scriptural reference to being governed by God’s Word.

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”  Deuteronomy 6:6-9 (NKJV)

Furthermore, the talk of beautifully adorned walls and towers, matched with the Shulamite’s exhortation/warning to the daughters of Jerusalem (including her own sister), are further indicators that the “love of loves” is not a chance thing; rather, it is the product of discipleship, passed down through the generations.  The Shulamite is acting as a “watchman” for future generations of Israelite girls.

“So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.” Ezekiel 33:7-9 (NKJV)

The ”Love of Loves” is obtainable to ANYONE who will seek the Bible and live it out!

“(The Beloved Speaking)…The fragrance of your breath like apples.  And the roof of your mouth like the best wine.”  (The Shulamite Speaking) “The wine goes down smoothly for my beloved, moving gently past the lips of sleepers. I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” Song of Solomon 7:8b-10 (NKJV)

As we are approaching third base, here in chapter 7 of Solomon’s song, before our minds drift toward the next batter (a huge slugger named Isaiah), perhaps, we should pause and recall how this relationship between the Shulamite and her Beloved has grown from dating to marriage.  Because we are almost at the end of this book, and I am over halfway thru yet another decade of marriage, I cannot help but identify (in this passage) with the hope of a strong marriage that lasts a lifetime.  Who, when they stand before the preacher and respond, “For better or worse, richer-or-poorer,” doesn’t assume (or at least hope for) their marriage would be passionately devoted for a lifetime?  Yet so few stand the test of even seven years time. Could it be that these two lovebirds have found the secret?  That their love song could be atop God’s “best of all time” playlist, on eternal repeat as “Song of Songs”?  Well, God does and separated it from the Psalms.

While Song of Solomon is poetic, it is written from the perspective of historical-literal (observation of two actual people).  That is of utmost importance because it tells us that the relationship we read about here is not just theoretical, only replicated in a laboratory under strictly controlled conditions.  No, it is OBTAINABLE for any marriage!  Imagine overhearing an older couple talking to each other in this manner; the "wine" of their love getting better with age.  I want that.  Who doesn’t?  Well, then, go for it!  Marital love is supposed to be a forever thing.  It is only distorted when the world entices us with hollow advertisements promising the thrill of a perverted and unfaithful alternative.  Consider this: What do your kids think about marriage by watching yours?  Obtainable faithful love is available for anyone who wants to receive it and reciprocate.  Of course, it is displayed best by Jesus, our “Bridegroom.”

“This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” Ephesians 5:32-33 (NKJV)

“(The Daughters of Jerusalem Speaking) Where has your beloved gone, O fairest among women? Where has your beloved turned aside, that we may seek him with you? (The Shulamite Speaking) My beloved has gone to his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed his flock in the gardens, and to gather lilies. I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine. He feeds his flock among the lilies.” Song of Solomon 6:1-3 (NKJV)

Perhaps, you have heard that love is not jealous.  In fact, the Bible speaks against jealousy and positions it as opposing true love.

“Love is patient, love is kind. love does not envy, is not boastful. Is not conceited, does not act improperly,…” 1 Corinthians 13:4-5a (HCSB)

So, it was confusing to me, as a new believer, young in the faith, when I read how God, Who is love (1 John 4:8), describes Himself as “jealous.”

“You are never to bow down to another god because Yahweh, being jealous by nature, is a jealous God.” Exodus 34:14 (HCSB)

Obviously, we are talking about two kinds of jealousy.  1 Corinthians 13 speaks of an irrational, unjustifiable jealousy.  There are some men who become enraged if they see their wives talking to other men in a casual social setting.  Such jealousy is crazy because, in life, we interface with people of the opposite sex several times a day and have interactions that have nothing to do with intimacy.  Yet there are some spouses who become anxious and fearful of losing their husband or wife through such arbitrary encounters. This type of jealousy signals deeper emotional problems.

On the other hand, there is a righteous jealousy.  For instance, show me a man who sees his wife in the arms of another man yet is not jealous, and I will show you a man who does not love his wife!  God is justifiably jealous when He sees His “bride” (the Church) cuddling with the idols of this world.

In today’s passage, we get a glimpse of justified jealousy.  The daughters of Jerusalem ask the Shulamite where her beloved has gone.  Note that these are the same “daughters of Jerusalem” whom the Shulamite directs to look upon Solomon as she searches for her beloved (3:10a-11).  Because her love is exclusive, her answer is kind yet firmly direct.  Essentially, “My man is where he needs to be, doing what he needs to be doing.  Oh, and by the way, he is MINE, and I am HIS.”  

I love that sense of ownership.  I have that with my wife, and she has that with me.  That does not make either of us one another’s slave driver.  It simply reinforces the reality that when I am away, I can trust she is true to her marriage vows.  And she knows the same of me.  I also know how the idea that one’s spouse “owns” them is offensive to some Christians.  Perhaps, we should revisit the “bought with a price” ownership/marriage between Jesus and His “bride,” aka us! (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

“I sleep, but my heart is awake; it is the voice of my beloved! He knocks, saying, 'Open for me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one; for my head is covered with dew, my locks with the drops of the night. I have taken off my robe; how can I put it on again? I have washed my feet; how can I defile them?'” Song of Solomon 5:2-3 (NKJV)

Early into chapter 5, we enter another of the Shulamite girl’s dream sequences.  Unlike her dream in chapter 3, this one is anxious and troublesome.  We must remember that Song of Solomon is poetry, yet it is historical-literal, written about two actual people, whom Solomon observed and declared that they had obtained the love of loves, the “Song of Songs.”  This was something he had never experienced even though he had 1000 wives and concubines.  

“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites - from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.” 1 Kings 11:1-6 (NKJV)

It is easy to understand Solomon’s appreciation for a love so pure and undefiled and why he wanted everyone to know about and imitate it. Because of Solomon’s moral downturn, some suggest this book is simply Solomon’s dirty poetry.  Its description of eros love (passionate, physically demonstrative) makes some people uneasy.  In fact, I have purposely not included its graphic elements because I want to remain sensitive to people’s feelings.  But the graphic nature of certain passages in Song of Solomon brings to mind how our culture has distorted eros love.  James MacDonald identifies these distortions as:  1) Eros Prudish: The idea that eros is bad or dirty. Hey, if you’re married and you don’t have the ability to have fun and smile in the bedroom, that’s Victorian.  Somehow eros, as God designed it, has been stolen from you.  2) Eros Prominent: Some folks ONLY think about eros.  Adult bookstores outnumber Mcdonald's restaurants 4/1. Only ¾ of high school students graduate non-virgins. Our culture has become obsessed with sex.  3) Eros Promiscuous: The idea that the thrill of eros can only come from multiple partners 4) Eros Perversion:  What received capital punishment 100 years ago was locked in prison 50 years ago and hidden because it made people sick 25 years ago is paraded, celebrated and government-funded today.

Song of Solomon is in the Bible for a reason, and it is not simply an example of dirty poetry from a perverse mind.  God does not need to reinforce how depraved Solomon was.  But He does want to show us the example of undefiled Biblical eros.

“Behold, you are fair, my love! Behold, you are fair! You have dove’s eyes behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats, going down from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep which have come up from the washing, every one of which bears twins, and none is barren among them. Your lips are like a strand of scarlet, and your mouth is lovely. Your temples behind your veil are like a piece of pomegranate. Your neck is like the tower of David, built for an armory, on which hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men.” Song of Solomon 4:1-4 (NKJV)

Really? Your hair is like a flock of goats? Your teeth are like shorn sheep after the washing and each one is present with its twin? (Something not everyone in Arkansas can brag about!) Your neck is like the tower of David, built for an armory?  I suppose these were the best pick-up lines of ancient Israel. But did they work? They absolutely worked because chapter 4 is when the talk moves to EROS love: passionate physical expression.

In chapters 1-3, we witness the verbal exchanges of two youngsters in love. But at the beginning of chapter 3, we are confronted with a fairly steamy dream sequence, the middle of which contains this famous exhortation:

“I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases.” Song of Solomon 3:5 (NKJV)

I can’t recall how many times I’ve quoted this passage to my teenage kids! Dream all you want, but God has ordained certain acts for marriage.

So, we have the dream of the Shulamite girl (in chapter 3) searching the city at night.  

It ends with her depiction of Solomon riding atop the shoulders of his throne bearers. His bodyguards are experts at war and armed with their swords because it is night.  In this statement, we cannot ignore the bravery of a girl whose dreams take her in search of her boyfriend in the midst of the most dangerous conditions. By her description of Solomon, his perfumed couch, valiant entourage, and crown, we may be inclined to think her beloved is Solomon himself. But notice the Shulamite summons all the daughters of Jerusalem to go out and see Solomon while she searches for her beloved alone.  She is saying, in essence, “Ladies, King Solomon is gorgeous, rich and powerful…but I am my beloved’s.” (2:16; 6:3)  Her love is EXCLUSIVE with a sense of mutual ownership.  And so is her beloved’s love for her.    

They may have been dating for the first three chapters, but the dream sequence turns physical in chapter 4. A marriage has taken place. The exhortation to not “awaken love before its time” now echoes as, “I am so glad we did not awaken love before its time because this is awesome, to act on our passion without guilt or shame!” Their love is not only awakened, but (as is the case with healthy newlyweds) love has insomnia! Eros takes over. As one pastor put it, “Where in all of literature does one find a text so filled with eros, yet remain so moral?”

“By night on my bed I sought the one I love; I sought him, but I did not find him. ‘I will rise now,’ I said, ‘and go about the city; in the streets and in the squares I will seek the one I love.’ I sought him, but I did not find him. The watchmen who go about the city found me; I said, ‘Have you seen the one I love?’ Scarcely had I passed by them, when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let him go, until I had brought him to the house of my mother, and into the chamber of her who conceived me. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases.” Song of Solomon 3:1-5 (NKJV)

Just to review, Song of Solomon is one of the Bible’s Poetic books, and its purpose is to use creative imagery, picturesque language, subtlety, and repetition to teach wisdom with respect to marriage.  The perspective is historic-literal.  Even though the style is poetry, there is no indicator that Solomon is not writing about two actual people whom Solomon observed and exclaimed, in essence, “That’s it!  Even though I have had 1000 wives and concubines, I have never experienced the kind of love these two have!”

Since the style is poetic and there is no structured timeline, per se, we must glean the micro lessons and put them together to get a vivid picture of what God is trying to communicate in the Song of Songs.  Under the banner that marital love is EXCLUSIVE, we learn that exclusivity involves time (1:4) and that quality time demands not just our presence but also our attention (2:14).  For love to be exclusive, there must be a sense of ownership (2:16), and that is exactly what the apostle Paul exhorts us to grasp with respect to our relationship with Jesus; after all, we are the “Bride of Messiah,” and we are exclusively His. (1 Corinthians 6:12-20)

Today, in a dream sequence narrative, we focus on a series of pursuits.  It confirms the legitimacy of female pursuit, at least in an established relationship.  This is quite different from the image we warn our daughters against.  The girl who chases after every cute boy she sees is a sure sign of a poor self-image and signals deeper issues with an unhealthy need for male affirmation.  Again, this is the “Song of Songs” (the love of loves), so this is a proper and real example of the necessity of both the man and woman to affirm that their spouse is worth pursuing.

Let’s be honest.  Those of us who have been married for more than a couple of years have looked at our spouse and wondered what happened to those days of hard pursuit after one another.  Was it just a phase where we wanted each other, obtained one another, and now wonder, “What else…?”  Joyful marriage is not simply a goal or object to be obtained, then brushed aside for the next conquest.  No, it is a choice to wake up every day and communicate to our spouses that we still desire them and that they are still worth pursuing!

We must not awaken love before its time, but we must also never let it fall asleep!

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Song of Solomon 2. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“The song of songs, which is Solomon’s.”  Song of Solomon 1:1 (NKJV)

Today, we embark on a journey through the most misunderstood book in the Bible, second only, perhaps, to the Book of Revelation.  Having recently read the Psalms, it is important to note that the Hebrew title of this book is “Song of Songs.”  While there are some amazing psalms in Scripture, the sum of this book constitutes the best of the best.  Consider that title compared to lordship.  While there are many lords (authorities) who deserve our respect, God is the Lord of Lords. There are many kingdoms in the world, but only Jesus is the King of Kings.  Ecclesiastes recognizes the Vanity of Vanities.  Likewise, many places are considered holy in this world, but only the presence of God defines the Holy of Holies. In short, this is the greatest love song ever.  As such, it deserves our close attention.  

Song of Solomon is one of the Bible’s Poetic books (along with Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Lamentations) whose collective purpose is to use creative imagery, picturesque language, subtlety, and repetition to teach aspects of wisdom.  Song of Solomon communicates wisdom that, when heeded, ensures joy in marriage.

Contrary to the opinions of a myriad of well-intended authors and theologians, Song of Solomon is not allegory (a story like Pilgrim’s Progress) or typology (speaking of Messiah Jesus and the Church or God and the nation of Israel).  It is not a dramatic instructive reenactment of an ancient process of betrothal or a marriage ceremony.  The Song of Solomon is historical-literal.  It is simply a series of poems expressing the pinnacle of human affection, the pure love of an actual man and woman who are committed for life, as observed by King Solomon.  Solomon was a man who sought hard after true marital love, yet he never personally experienced it.

“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites - from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.” 1 Kings 11:1-8 (NKJV)

If you want to understand God’s plan for Biblical marriage, don’t follow Solomon’s example; take heed to his observation of these two innocent young lovers.

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.  For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”  Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 (NKJV)

When my children were little, my wife and I noticed that we tended to be negative in how we instructed our kids.  That is, when they were being good, we seldom praised them.  But they sure heard when we observed them doing something they should not be doing!  It seemed that “No!” was heard way more often than “Yes!” in our home.  

So, we decided to institute a practice called “caught being good.”  The idea is the opposite of being caught while doing bad things.  Periodically, when we noticed a child sharing, obeying the first time we asked, or talking kindly to a sibling, we would say, “Caught being good!”  And we would reward them, somehow.  We discovered this to be a very positive motivational practice.  It not only rewarded the behavior of one child, but it also encouraged ALL my children.  The hope was that a positive competition for pleasing Mom and Dad would ensue.  Sometimes it did.

There are many people (believers and non-believers) whose opinion of God is very negative.  They do not understand that when the Bible says, “fear God,” it does not mean “be afraid of God.”  Fearing God means to honor and respect Him as He deserves.  Still, people’s negative opinion of Him remains.  

Yes, God is the Law Giver and Judge of all mankind, but He is also more gracious and loving than people give Him credit for.  He holds us accountable yet offers us liberty.  He commands us to discipline ourselves and follow Him, yet He wants a personal relationship with us, to the point where He considers us “sons and daughters,” co-inheritors with Messiah.

Reading the last words of the book of Ecclesiastes, where the Lord brings into judgment every secret thing we have done, the idea of our sin being exposed and announced to all creation causes anxiety for even the most pious believer.  But what about our good works being exposed, those secret God-honoring moments where we have humbly served people without seeking recognition?  Should we not be motivated to be caught being good more than we are ashamed of being caught being bad?  Let’s strive from this point on to live our lives in such a way that God is glorified and Messiah is magnified through our faith, which leads to good works and humbly leads others to follow Him, as well!  Let’s pursue lives worthy of being exposed!

“In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:16 (HCSB)

"Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these God will bring you into judgment.  Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh, for childhood and youth are vanity." Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 (NKJV)

I once saw a bumper sticker that read, “Hire a college student while they still know everything.”  As a parent of teenagers and young adults, I resonate with that bumper sticker!  On the one hand, there is something to be admired when young people are filled with optimism and talent and work hard to achieve their goals.  But when youth are endowed with talent, intelligence, opportunity, and grit yet refuse to seek the Lord’s guidance, that is a recipe for a major downfall.  And that is exactly Solomon’s observation.

Notice how he says nothing about youth seeking the Lord.  Rather, he describes youth who walk in the ways of their heart.  That sounds so positive.  But consider what the Lord says about the unredeemed heart:

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?  I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.” Jeremiah 17:9-10 (NKJV)

Or what about those youth who walk in the sight of their own eyes, as opposed to being led by the Spirit.  Sounds romantic, right?  But we are commanded to walk by the Spirit’s leading as we place our faith in God’s Word, not by formulating our own life’s plan based on the world as we observe it.  Walking by faith and not sight is especially compelling because there is a judgment forthcoming.  We will all be held accountable for how we spent our time on earth and to what extent we invested the spiritual gifts He has entrusted to us.

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.  We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.  Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” 2 Corinthians 5:7-10 (NKJV)

Solomon’s message is very clear: It is time to grow up, time to put away childishness, which is evil and vain for adults to pursue.

“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child;  but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” 1 Corinthians 13:11-12 (NKJV)

“Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment, and cause it to give off a foul odor: so does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.”  Ecclesiastes 10:1 (NKJV)

Over the course of my music career, my band Big Tent Revival was nominated for 5 GRAMMY awards.   Of course, each time we were nominated, we dressed up and took our wives to the awards show.  One particular year, the host was comedian Rosie O’Donnell.  These days, Rosie’s name has become synonymous with bitterness and left-wing political views.  But in the mid 90’s, she was well-loved and respected by almost everyone.  She was the voice of one of the characters in the children’s movie “The Lion King” and hosted the Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards.  

So, there we were at the Grammys, laughing at Rosie’s good-natured banter and ribbing of the stars when it came time for the first commercial break.  The moment we went to commercial, Rosie let loose (to the audience which contained many children) one of the foulest jokes I have ever heard.  It was so foul that it got only nervous laughter from the mostly secular music crowd.  Then she told another foul joke, and so it went for the rest of the night.  The cameras came on, and she was the clean funny Rosie the world expected, but when the cameras were off, she was a completely different person.  It was years before the rest of the nation would learn of her duplicity, but it was apparent to all who were in attendance that the woman was not consistent with her image.  It was sad because she was so well-loved for her public persona, yet her lack of character eventually shipwrecked her career.

Solomon was talking about a similar phenomenon as the one I experienced with Rosie, a woman whose “perfume” of honor and wisdom was fouled by the “fly” of her lack of scruples.  Perhaps, Solomon was even referencing his own father, King David, who (at the pinnacle of his God-ordained rule, an anointed “man after God’s own heart”) killed a close friend (Uriah) in order to sleep with his wife.  Of course, that woman was Solomon’s own mother.

But what of us?  It takes a lifetime to build a reputation of wisdom and honor.  In order to gain people’s trust, we must display character over long periods of time.  But in a Twitter rant, a viral YouTube video, a forwarded email, or a Facebook post, that good reputation can come crashing down.  Fools let their emotions and feelings override their better judgment.  Bad decisions during a momentary override of the Spirit’s prompting can have devastating results.  Let us heed Solomon’s exhortation and be anxious for nothing, but in all things, through prayer and supplication, we should make our petitions known, seeking to be led by the Spirit and maintaining a reputation of character, as opposed to building a reputation for being a character.  In this manner, we will protect ourselves against forfeiting the respect and honor due the Lord by those who bear His Name.

“Indeed, I took all this to heart and explained it all: the righteous, the wise, and their works are in God’s hands.  People don’t know whether to expect love or hate.  Everything lies ahead of them.  Everything is the same for everyone: there is one fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not sacrifice.  As it is for the good, so it is for sinner; as for the one who takes an oath, so for the one who fears an oath.  This is an evil in all that is done under the sun: there is one fate for everyone.  In addition, the hearts of people are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live – after that, they go to the dead.” Ecclesiastes 9:1-3 (HCSB)

On a fly-over, today’s passage may seem depressing.  Solomon tells us that all people can expect the same end: death.  Whether you live righteously or wickedly, everyone will die.  Job professed it poetically and with blunt acceptance:

“And He said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there.  The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’” Job 1:21 (NKJV)

But where both Job and Solomon stopped short was that they omitted the obvious follow-up question: And then what?  Sure, we all die, but what happens after we die?  The writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews gives the answer.

“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment…” Hebrews 9:27 (NKJV)

So, there is life after life.  Death is not the end; it's just the end of our lives on Earth.  And, while our righteousness in this life (even righteousness through Jesus) does not necessarily save us from experiencing physical death, it does ensure the believer can stand before the Lord, justified, on the Day He passes judgment.  In simple terms, Heaven awaits those who can pass that judgment.  And what happens to those whom the judgment of God finds guilty?  The essence of “judgment” is that those who do not meet a legal standard must suffer the penalty of falling short of the law.

The point Solomon is making in today’s passage is that all the stuff we may acquire in this world is meaningless, given that nobody can take it with them to the grave.  You may have been successful in business or education in this world, but how will that help you escape the judgment of God?  For the unbeliever, this world is as close to Heaven as they will ever come, so I understand why they would try and get all they can now.  But for the believer, this world is as close to Hell as they ever have to get. And that reality allows us to live joyfully, which may contradict our circumstances.

“Listen, my beloved brethren: has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” James 2:5 (NKJV)

“Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity. Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him.” Ecclesiastes 8:10-13 (NKJV)

Late Winter/early Spring of 2011, I had just arrived in Israel when news broke that the citizens of Egypt were rioting in Cairo.  By the time I left Israel, Egypt’s leader Hosni Mubarak had been deposed, and a defacto government run by the Muslim Brotherhood was forming.  But it did not stop there.  In what would later be called “Arab Spring” (the period of time between late 2011-2014), the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen were ousted.  Syria and Bahrain went into civil turmoil, the governments of Kuwait, Lebanon, and Oman changed, and Morocco and Jordan implemented constitutional reforms.  Judgment day had come for Middle Eastern dictators! One of the things that puzzled Western political analysts for decades was how the people tolerated totalitarian authority for so long!  Was there truly a God who judges sin?  And if so, why did He wait so long?

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)

Yes, God is gracious and merciful, but there is a time appointed when His Justice must eclipse Grace and Mercy, or else He is not holy.

“Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:30-31 (NKJV)

Will men and women heed the warnings of the Bible?  Only time will tell. But, sadly, many will be wooed into believing they have more time to repent, only to be caught off guard by events that have been predicted for thousands of years.  Not just non-believers but church attenders as well.  Surrender to Jesus while there is still time!  

“As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’ So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. And when this comes to pass - surely it will come - then they will know that a prophet has been among them.” Ezekiel 33:30-33 (NKJV)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Ecclesiastes 7. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: A man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing for himself of all he desires; yet God does not give him power to eat of it, but a foreigner consumes it.  This is vanity, and it is an evil affliction.” Ecclesiastes 6:1-2 (NKJV)

When I was a boy, my friend's father owned a restaurant across town.  They happened to also be our next-door neighbors.  I had always wanted to eat at their restaurant, but my folks would never take me.  Well, one summer, when I was eight years old (4th of July weekend, to be exact), my friend’s family invited me to eat with them at their establishment.  When I asked my mom and dad, they said, “No.”  I was so mad!  So, I walked next door, told my friend’s father that my folks said, “Yes,” got into their car, sunk down in my seat, out of view, and drove away with them.  Furthermore, I took my birthday money ($20) with the intent of spending it all at the “buy one, get one free” fireworks stand my friend’s dad said they were going to visit.

Let’s just say the whole trip took longer than I had hoped. It was way past dinnertime when I arrived back home, full of good food and holding a grocery sack full of fireworks.  That is when I found out that my parents had called the police, and the whole neighborhood was searching for “the lost Wiggins boy.”  It was also when I found out that the Shreveport Louisiana Sheriff’s Department recommends that parents whip their children with leather belts in such circumstances. At least they did back then.  But the worst part was when my parents made me watch as my brother and sister were allowed to shoot off all my fireworks.  Very slowly and sadistically.

So, believe me when I tell you that I internalize today’s passage deeply.  I did not feel my parents were being fair by letting my siblings enjoy the instruments of my wealth.  Sometimes, we feel the same about God.  We work hard, only to see someone else enjoy the fruits of our labor.  We cry out, “God is not fair!”  But the reality is that God is not “fair.”  He is “just.”  Fairness implies that everyone should get the same amount, the same income, the same house, the same health, etc.  Justice promises that everyone will ultimately be weighed according to the same standard: God’s Word.

Personally, I am glad that God is not fair because that would mean that everyone would have to stand under the full force of His judgment, which brings up another attribute of God’s character: His gracious and merciful Love.

In terms of what we deserve for our labors, the Bible tells us that the “wages of sin is death.”  But because God is loving and not willing that anyone would perish, He poured out His judgment upon Jesus on the Roman cross.  Jesus paid a debt He did not owe in order to pay a debt we could not afford so that we could stand before God, justified.

Another concept that is misunderstood in our culture is that of wealth and peace.  Our culture says that if a man works hard and obtains wealth, wealth will bring him peace.  But what profits a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul? (Mark 8:36)

“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God.  Better to draw near in obedience than to offer the sacrifice as fools do, for they ignorantly do wrong.  Do not be hasty to speak, and do not be impulsive to make a speech before God.  God is in Heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.  For dreams result from much work and a fool’s voice from many words.”  Ecclesiastes 5:1-3 (HCSB)

Years ago, when I was in college, I used to work summers at the Whirlpool refrigerator plant.  It was a great experience, paid well, and made me glad to return to school in the fall!  One phenomenon that occurs to assembly line workers is that when they go to sleep at night, they dream of working on the assembly line…and their dreams are usually focused on a scenario where they can’t keep up with the pace of the conveyor belt.  It’s kind of depressing to work all day and dream about work all night.  But as I said, it's a shared dream.  So common that the Bible mentions it in today’s passage: Dreams result from much work.

Today’s passage also tells us that a fool’s voice results from many words.  I am a professional singer, so I am always happy to hear when a young singer has spent time practicing and finally finds their voice.  Nobody is happy when a fool finds his voice.  Have you ever been around a person who never stops talking?  Anyone can be chatty on any particular day, but there are some people who never stop!  Personally, I try and avoid such people, not because I don’t want to carry on a conversation with them, but because I CAN’T carry on a conversation with them.  I can’t get in a word edgewise.  The Bible calls such endless speech “foolish.”

It is even more foolish when we approach the Lord with such speech.  I am not saying we should not petition the Lord; we should do so often.  I’m simply relaying God’s Word to you.  A recent UCLA Study focusing on the rise of spirituality on college campuses discovered that only 13% of college students sought “spirituality” to learn what God required of them.  The vast majority only sought “spirituality” for what God could do for them.  Going before the Lord with a list of demands and accusations is equivalent to being “hasty to speak” and “impulsive to make a speech before God.”

Yes, the Lord wants us to petition and beseech Him, but we must always keep in mind the reality of our relationship with Him.  He is God in Heaven, and we are His creatures on earth.  From this perspective, we are more likely to guard our steps and draw near to Him in reverent obedience.   Obedience to what?  To His revealed Word, the Bible.  

It is through God’s Word that we know Who He is and where we fit into the whole equation.  It is through God’s Word that we learn what He requires of us and how to approach Him.  And it is knowledge of God’s Word that quiets the heart and stills the tongue, for we babble, mostly, out of ignorance and anxiety.  It is God’s Word that transforms fools into followers.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.  For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.  But woe to him who is alone when he falls.  For he has no one to lift him up.  Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;  But how can one be warm alone?  Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.  And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV)

I used to work on the staff of a fairly large church in Southern California.  The church was located in an area of So-Cal called "The Inland Empire” (aka The IE).   Forty minutes inland from Newport Beach and forty minutes from Palm Springs, the Inland Empire is a "settling" place.  If you’re tired of the high premium lifestyle of Orange County, but you’re not ready to retire in the desert, you’re probably looking for a more affordable way of life in-between.   That’s the IE.

For some reason, the IE is also a haven for homeless people.  Almost every major street intersection hosts someone holding a sign, begging.  Along many sidewalks, it is common to see a person pushing a shopping cart chocked full of their life’s possessions.  

One afternoon, I was on my way to lunch with one of our church’s pastors when he remarked that he used to be homeless.  I’d never had a conversation with a former homeless person.  So, I asked him two questions: 1) How did you become homeless? And 2) How did you get free from what seems to be an irreversible downturn?

His answer to the first question was simple.  “I became homeless because I burned all my relationships.”  He said that it all began by living selfishly and unaccountably.  Once he burned through all his close personal relationships, he was only left with convenient “party” relationships.  Eventually, his unaccountable lifestyle led to the loss of his job.  No money meant the loss of his party friends.  Then he turned to desperate means of hustling for money in parking lots and theft to survive.  He lived in his car.  Then, the car broke down.  One day, he returned from begging to find his “home” (car) had been towed.  Homeless.

So, how did he journey back to the point where he was a pastor on a major church staff?  Someone shared the gospel with him.  And from rock bottom, he entered into a personal relationship with Messiah Jesus.  He began reading the Bible and praying.  He became accountable to the Lord for his thoughts and actions.  That led to new personal relationships with other believers, a roommate, and eventually a job, car, wife, and kids.

We don’t have to be without a house to be homeless.  Many people are spiritually and emotionally “homeless.”  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  Followers of Jesus always have a family to love them and a home awaiting them. (John 14:2-3)

“I have seen the task God has given humanity to keep us occupied.  He has made everything suited to its time; also, He has given human beings awareness of eternity, but in such a way that they can’t fully comprehend, from beginning to end, the things He does.  Know that there is nothing better for them to do than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live.  Still, the fact that everyone can eat and drink and enjoy the good that results from all his work is a gift from God.  I know that whatever God does will last forever; there is nothing to add or subtract from it; and God has done it so that people will fear Him.”  Ecclesiastes 3:10-14 (CJB)

Humanity is a collection of people under grace.  That is not to say that everyone on earth follows Jesus and is saved.  I am simply saying that whenever sinful people are in clear view of the all-seeing Holy God, it is only by His grace and mercy that they remain un-judged and alive.  Solomon knew this quite well.  In today’s passage, he observed the simple fact that a person can “eat and drink and enjoy the good results from all his work” is due to God’s grace, His gift to both believer and unbeliever.

So, why is God so gracious?  Why does He delay judgment on the earth?  Because He wants people to choose Him, to believe in Him, or as the Bible puts it: to FEAR Him.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)

And what, exactly, does it mean to “fear” God?  It means to honor, respect, worship, and revere Him.  Much more than the everyday pedestrian “respect” we may give another person, to “fear” the Lord is to acknowledge that He is the Creator and we are creatures; He is Lord, and we are slaves.  His Way is the only way, and any course corrections we might make in order to deviate from His way would be errant and never lead us to a right relationship with Him.  Fearing God is foundational to our salvation, joy, and success.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7 (NKJV)

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.”  Psalm 111:10 (NKJV)

Fearing the Lord carries the attitude which proclaims, “This may not feel right, but because I trust God and believe His Word, I will live according to His instruction and in the hope of His promises, given to all who faithfully follow Him.”  In fact, today’s passage claims that mankind cannot fully comprehend eternity; therefore, to fear God is also to faithfully admit that eternity lies in His hands.  His alone is the power to eternally save or destroy.  Yet, He chooses to extend forgiveness.  Will you choose Him?

“There is nothing better for a man than to eat, drink, and enjoy his work.  I have seen even this is from God’s hand, because who can eat and who can enjoy life apart from Him?  For to the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner He gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give the one who is pleasing in God’s sight.  This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.” Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 (HCSB)

“If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it.” - John D. Rockefeller

Surely, there must be more to life than the acquisition of stuff.  Yet, “just a little more” seems to be the mantra of American culture.  Greed and gluttony are most certainly at the epicenter of our nation’s current financial dilemma.

It’s not hard to find a rich man, but have you ever found a satisfied one?  Rock stars and actors are among the most depressed people around.  You see, the more we acquire, the less the “emptiness” is satisfied.  Contented men and women are surely rare these days.  

I am reminded of the story of a simple Mexican fisherman.  One day, the Mexican was fishing on the river’s shore, minding his own affairs, when a vacationing American businessman approached him.  “Sir,” the American asserted, “I have been watching you from down the river.  During that time, you have caught five fish for every one I have caught; and all your fish are twice the size of mine.  What is your secret?”

“Señior,” the Mexican replied, “I have been fishing here my whole life.  I know all the places the fish swim throughout the day.”

Impressed, the American hired the Mexican to take him fishing for the day, and it turned out better than he had imagined.  Afterwards, the American paid his guide well and asked the Mexican about his life.

Shyly, the Mexican told his new amigo he had a simple life; he woke up in the morning and caught a few fish.  He kept enough to eat, and the few he had left, he sold in the market.  Afterwards, he went home and enjoyed a siesta with his wife.  In the evenings, he would stroll to the village square, drink wine and play guitar with his friends.

“What a tremendous wasted opportunity,” the American exclaimed.  “Did you know that you could make a lot of money guiding fishing trips?  And with that money, you could buy a boat and eventually a fleet of fishing vessels.  Then, you could open a cannery and export the fish you haul in all over the world!  You could become very rich.”

“What would I do then?” asked the Mexican.

Proudly, the American retorted, “Well, then you could retire and make your own rules.  You could wake up in the morning, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife, and in the evenings, drink wine and play guitar with your friends at the village square…” Be content.

“The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. ‘Vanity of vanities,’ says the Preacher; ‘Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.’ What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun? One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever.” Ecclesiastes 1:3-4 (NKJV)

It is important for people to believe their lives have purpose and that the energy spent working toward that purpose makes a difference in the world.  We don’t necessarily need to drastically change the world.  We can typically find happiness in knowing that our lives are making a positive impact in some aspect of it.  Or, perhaps, we simply need to know that we matter to someone and that our presence on earth brings someone joy.  That question about “what profit has a man from all his labor” was something King Solomon wrestled with.  Through Solomon’s life example in Scripture (and his own words today), we learn that it is quite possible to become extremely successful and recognized and respected by throngs of people yet feel completely empty and purposeless.  This was not just a personal journal thought of Solomon’s that we discovered under his pillow after he died.  Solomon included this message in Psalm 12, a song of Ascents.  That meant that when the Israelites were ascending to worship the Lord at the temple in Jerusalem, Solomon wanted them to deeply consider and contrast their labor in the world with their labor for the Lord.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” Psalm 127:1-5 (NKJV)

Messiah Jesus expanded on these exact same passages to underscore the utmost importance of denying the vanity of temporary, flesh-pleasing, worldly pursuit in favor of the eternal value of temporary persecution involved in Kingdom-building.

“When he had called the people to Himself, with his disciples also, he said to them, ‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when he comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” Mark 8:34-38 (NKJV)

Vanity is investing in an earthly kingdom which leads to hell and hinders the next generation.  Godliness is laboring for the gospel and ensuring our kids do, as well!

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Proverbs 31. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, his utterance. This man declared to Ithiel - to Ithiel and Ucal: Surely I am more stupid than any man, and do not have the understanding of a man. I neither learned wisdom nor have knowledge of the Holy One. Who has ascended into heaven, or descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name, if you know? Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.” Proverbs 30:1-6 (NKJV)

Nobody really knows who Agur, son of Jakeh is.  Neither Agur, his father, nor his sons Ithiel and Ucal are mentioned anywhere else in Scripture.  Some scholars speculate that Agur is a nickname for Solomon, but that does not explain his father and children.  Other scholars think he was a Gentile, living between Judea and Babylon, but that does not explain how his wisdom was included in the Jewish proverbs, which point to God’s revelation as the only true source of Wisdom.  Finally, other scholars think he was an allegorical character with his name loosely translated in Hebrew as “the one who first gathered maxims together," his father’s name meaning "despised," and his son's names understood to mean “I am weary” and “I am exhausted.”  Less important than who Agur was, is what he said.

His words seem to mirror Job’s, which point to God (specifically, the Godhead Person of Messiah – Jesus) as the creator of heaven and earth. (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-14) “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” Job 38:4-7 (NKJV)

“And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” John 17:5 (NKJV)

We understand Agur grasped the idea of Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.”) because he learned God’s Word from his father, and Biblical values were passed down for four generations.  That is because they not only taught the Word, but he did not add to it!  (Deuteronomy 4:2; 12:32)  Let the same be said of us!  Walk in the Word, not turning right or left!

“For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the Book of life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” Revelation 22:18-20 (NKJV)

“Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, but happy is he who keeps the law.  A slave will not be instructed by words alone; for though he understands, there will be no response.” Proverbs 29:18-19 (NASB)

I have spent all my adult life in the music business and in local church music ministry.  As a touring recording artist, I have partnered with over 1000 local churches’ efforts in all 50 US states to share the gospel and encourage believers.  There is a very close relationship between music and preaching, which is evident throughout the Bible.  Martin Luther said that music is “the handmaiden of theology.”  Music serves theology.  Music is the soundtrack for vision (proclamation of God’s Word).  When the music and vision are in sync, it makes the transition from pedestrian life to corporate worship effortless.  But it doesn’t matter how good the music is when the vision is off.  Things just never come together, and the congregation is left with less than they hoped for, less than it could have been.

I have heard today’s verse preached from the perspective of a pastor’s vision for a church, for a building program, a small group effort, or perhaps, a way to reach young people.  While that is true from an operational standpoint, this proverb is not speaking of a pastor’s vision but God’s vision as revealed in His Word, the Bible.  Lack of vision (in Proverbs 29:18-19) is contrasted with keeping the Law.  So, the presence of vision means aligning oneself with the Word of God.  God is saying that whenever people depart from His Word and seek to do ministry for Him, yet apart from His articulated way to worship Him, it always ends badly. And we see that throughout the Bible.  

Consider the days when Samuel was called by God:  “Now the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. And the WORD OF THE LORD WAS RARE (my emphasis) in those days; there was no widespread revelation.  And it came to pass at that time, while Eli was lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim that he could not see, and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the Lord where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, that the Lord called Samuel. And he answered, ‘Here I am!’” 1 Samuel 3:1-4 (NKJV)

Consider the generation after Joshua: “When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who DID NOT KNOW THE LORD, NOR THE WORK WHICH HE HAD DONE (my emphasis) for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the Lord to anger. They FORSOOK THE LORD (my emphasis) and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.” Judges 2:10-13 (NKJV)

Indeed, we are a generation that lacks vision…in our nation and in our churches.  We’re reading the Bible to align our values with God’s vision. The seeds of REVIVAL!

“Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but such as keep the law contend with them. Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand all.” Proverbs 28:4-5 (NKJV)

As we are rounding third base and heading toward home plate, here in the Book of Proverbs, we should be thinking about what the big takeaway lesson is.  Sure, there are hundreds of micro lessons and practical perspectives we can apply to fortify our faithfulness and situational wisdom, but the overall plea of the Book of Proverbs is for our life’s posture to reflect that we are God’s people and that we seek His Word (the Bible) in order to live according to it.

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV)

We must remember that the Hebrew word that translates as “Law” is “Torah.”  And Torah means “teaching” in Hebrew.  God is not calling us to a life of prideful legalism.  He is telling us the way of abundant life can only be found when we submit to His teaching, as articulated in the Bible.  If we seek the Lord in His Word, He will be faithful to reveal the truth of Scripture.  By the revelation of God’s Spirit (given to all believers), we will be able to understand (from the Bible) how to live a life that pleases Him, even in the midst of great opposition.  God loves us that much!

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:7-12 (NKJV)

Foolish men forsake God’s teaching, either ignoring it or flat-out rejecting it.  God calls fools “evil men”: “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate. Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.” Proverbs 8:13-14 (NKJV)

The only way to transition from foolishness to wisdom is to receive the Living Word, Messiah Jesus.  When you cross that line of faith, He gives you His Holy Spirit, Who reveals the Bible in a practical way: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” Psalm 111:10 (NKJV)

“Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and attend to your herds; for riches are not forever, nor does a crown endure to all generations. When the hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself, and the herbs of the mountains are gathered in, the lambs will provide your clothing, and the goats the price of a field; you shall have enough goats’ milk for your food, for the food of your household, and the nourishment of your maidservants.” Proverbs 27:23-27 (NKJV)

There are two types of shepherds in the church.  First, there are those who truly care for the well-being of the sheep.  By doing so, they will forever have wool for their clothing and milk to drink.  Then, there are those shepherds (let's call them “baaaa-d” shepherds) who only see the sheep as a source of leather and mutton.  They do not care about the sheep.  Bad shepherds only care about themselves.  It won’t be long before their flock is completely diminished.  Now, consider what God’s Word has to say about Good and Bad shepherds, and choose which one you will be.  

“‘Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!’ says the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: ‘You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,’ says the Lord. ‘But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.  I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,’ says the Lord. ‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; a King shall reign and prosper and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.  In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely; now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’” Jeremiah 23:1-6 (NKJV)

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore, My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” John 10:11-18 (NKJV)

“He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You. ’Jesus said to him, ‘Feed My sheep.’”  John 21:17 (NKJV)

“As snow in summer and rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool. Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause shall not alight. A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the fool’s back. Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. He who sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence. Like the legs of the lame that hang limp is a proverb in the mouth of fools. Like one who binds a stone in a sling is he who gives honor to a fool. Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools. The great God who formed everything gives the fool his hire and the transgressor his wages. As a dog returns to his own vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.” Proverbs 26:1-12 (NKJV)

Today’s proverb deals primarily with fools; the extent to which we can trust them, and how we should deal with foolish behavior.  So, it is important that we Biblically address exactly what a fool is.  A fool is not necessarily a person who lacks superior intellect.  Many of the world’s most educated people are foolish.  A fool is not a person who makes mistakes.  Even the most righteous among us make mistakes from time to time.  People who are funny or silly are not necessarily foolish.  No, a fool is someone who is not wise.  In fact, foolishness is the opposite of wisdom.  So, let’s see how the Bible defines wisdom and work backwards.  

Wise people fear the Lord and obey His Word: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” Psalm 111:10 (NKJV)

Fearing the Lord means hating evil. “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate. Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength. By me kings reign, and rulers decree justice.” Proverbs 8:13-15 (NKJV)

A wise person learns to hate evil by searching the Bible (Godly counsel) and fears the Lord by believing His Word to the extent that they live faithfully according to it.

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV)

So, a fool denies (or ignores) God’s Word. Therefore, they do not fear the Lord.  Ergo, fools love evil; maybe not to the extent of mass-murdering evil, but any counsel other than God’s Word is evil. Fools are dangerous, must be avoided and weeded out because unchecked evil always leads to some manner of death.

“These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied: It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter. As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, so the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the dross from silver, and it will go to the silversmith for jewelry. Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of the great; for it is better that he say to you, ‘Come up here,’ than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince, whom your eyes have seen.” Proverbs 25:1-7 (NKJV)

It is better to be summoned by the king than to be asked to step aside for one more worthy.  Today’s passage is from a collection of King Solomon’s proverbs, so we get a rare insight into the relationship between sanctification and promotion from a king’s perspective.  This is not a pedestrian’s theory about how to impress a king.  It is from a king telling you how kingdoms work at the highest level.  And the wisdom is scalable, meaning that it works on both national and personal levels.  

First and foremost, there is personal sanctification (setting oneself apart), the “putting-off of dross.”

“Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, Who also will do it”.  1 Thessalonians 5:21-24 (NKJV)  (2 Corinthians 6:17)

Personal holiness precedes promotion.  It is fairly easy to develop a reputation of righteousness to fool the common man.  But God sees beyond your reputation (the part of your life that everyone can see) and looks deeper into your character (who you really are down deep).  You can’t fool Jesus by simply claiming He is your Lord. If He truly is your Lord, then you must surrender to His Lordship!

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”  Matthew 7:21-23 (NKJV)

“And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 8:11-12 (NKJV)

We should not brag to the Lord, “Look what I did!”  Rather, surrender to His lordship and earnestly (yet humbly) seek His great, “Well done…”   (Matthew 25:21-23)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Proverbs 24. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Do not overwork to be rich; because of your own understanding, cease! Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away like an eagle toward heaven.” Proverb 23:4-5 (NKJV)

In Newport Beach, California, there is a shopping mall called Fashion Island.  It was one of my favorite places to frequent when I lived in Southern California.  Everything about the mall was perfect, from the high-end boutique shopping and restaurant options to their landscaping, koi pond and the posh movie theater with the wide leather recliners. But my favorite thing about Fashion Island was how they would valet a long line of high-end sports cars right in front of Canaletto Ristorante Veneto.  When I say “high-end,” I’m not talking about Mercedes, Porsche, or BMW…the high-end autos of Middle America.  I am talking about supercars: McLaren, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bugatti, and Maserati; cars you only read about in magazines.  And there they would be, just sitting in the sun, driven by the elite, men who have no problem spending $500,000 + on a car.

I recall slowly walking past the valet line with a friend from Newport Beach, marveling at these feats of automotive engineering, when I mumbled the age-old question, “What do these people do that they can afford these? And why can’t I do THAT for a living?”  My friend, who is by no means poor, answered, “Don’t be fooled. These guys are all just one bad business deal or market downturn from losing it all.”  Some folks simply do not feel alive unless they are living on the edge.  And the only folks who know where the edge is, are those who have gone over it!  While the supercar valet line is never-ending, the group of guys driving up and tossing their keys to the valet is ever-changing.  That is EXACTLY the point of today’s passage from Proverbs 23.  If you put your trust and security in riches, beware. Riches have a tendency to fly away and leave you completely financially and spiritually bankrupt in the process. No, we cannot rely on riches or the obsessive pursuit thereof to fill the emptiness inside.  Only Messiah Jesus can do that!  

Focusing on building our earthly “kingdoms” takes our focus off God and the tasks He has set apart for us within His Kingdom. When people seek God, they typically entreat Him for what He can do for them.  Seldom do we consider what He requires of us in His plan for our lives!  Any plan other than God’s plan is destined to fail.

“He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8 (NKJV)

“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it… ” Psalm 127:1a (NKJV)

“Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches - feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny You, and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God.”  Proverbs 30:7-9 (NKJV)

“Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my knowledge; for it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you; let them all be fixed upon your lips, so that your trust may be in the Lord; I have instructed you today, even you. Have I not written to you excellent things of counsels and knowledge, that I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth, that you may answer words of truth to those who send to you?” Proverbs 22:17-21 (NKJV)

It is the father’s duty to impart Biblical values to his children, so they would imitate him and allow God’s Word to guide every aspect of their lives: all day, every day.

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.” Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NKJV)

Not only should our pursuit of God’s Word (and the application of it) be for our personal worship, but also so that we may be prepared to “answer words of truth to those who send to you.” (Proverbs 22:21)

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.” 1 Peter 3:15-16 (NKJV)

If we make obedience to God’s Word our highest priority, our children will too.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)

Often interpreted that children will depart from Biblical values during their teenage years, yet return when they are older, Proverbs 22:6 is actually saying that children who properly learn Biblical values will continue in them, even into their old age.

“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites - from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.  For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David.” 1 Kings 11:1-6 (NKJV)

“A false witness shall perish, but the man who hears him will speak endlessly.” Proverbs 21:28 (NKJV)

There have always been false teachers, people who claim to speak on behalf of God yet preach ideas that contradict God’s Word and character.  Jeremiah dealt with them.

“For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.  For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.” Jeremiah 29:8-9 (NKJV)

Jesus dealt with them.

“‘Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.  Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.  And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.”’ When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, ‘Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.’ Then His disciples came and said to Him, ‘Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?’ But He answered and said, ‘Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone.  They are blind leaders of the blind.  And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.’” Matthew 15:6b-14 (NKJV)

The early church dealt with them and predicted they would increase in the last days.

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;  and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NKJV)

What is destructive about false teaching is that heresy spreads like pigment in a can of white paint.  It cannot be un-stirred and must be completely thrown out.  Long after the false teacher is gone, the “man who hears him” continues to apply the false theology, thus teaching it to a new generation.  Heresy gets passed down as Biblical truth and affects future generations to the extent that they believe the actual truth as a lie, to the point of mocking and persecuting Bible-believing Christians. (Psalm1:1-3)

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” Matthew 7:21-23 (NKJV)

“A man’s steps are of the Lord; how then can a man understand his own way?” Proverbs 20:24 (NKJV)

On July 4, 1776, the American colonies formally declared their independence from British rule.  Their letter of declaration contains a rather iconic statement: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…”  The ideas of personal independence and the freedom to pursue whatever makes us happy are deeply embedded into the value system of most American citizens, even to this day.  But is that notion Biblical?  While God’s Name (their Creator) is used, and it is undeniable that every human deserves a fair shot, are we truly free to do whatever we want?  In short, no.  We are free to choose, but we do not have the right to choose wrongly.  While our fellow citizens may say, “Live and let live!” God says, “Live for Me, and Me alone!”

God has a plan for each of our lives.  While we may believe we have the freedom to choose our own destiny, we are accountable to God for the choices we make.  He has created all mankind with both the intent and capacity to know Him in a saving way.  And for those of us who have surrendered our lives to His Lordship, He has a plan for you, a job in His Kingdom.  

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV)

Many people (including many Christians) find that notion offensive.  They do resist a God to Whom we must be accountable.  They assume God is more like an all-loving genie who exists to fulfill our wishes.  Well, we may choose to go our own way, but God always brings us back to the place where we are forced to choose between our fleshly desires and His perfect plan for us.

“A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV)

Just as Abraham faithfully chose to follow God’s call to follow Him “to the place where I will show you” (Genesis 12:1), we, too, must choose to follow God through Messiah Jesus.  As Abraham did, let Jesus lead you to the place He is preparing.  Do not resist His leading or question His character!  There is no other Way to heaven.

“‘Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.’”  Thomas said to Him, ‘Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” John 14:1-6 (NKJV)

“Better is the poor who walks in his integrity than one who is perverse in his lips, and is a fool. Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, and he sins who hastens with his feet. The foolishness of a man twists his way, and his heart frets against the Lord.” Proverbs 19:1-3 (NKJV)

Our generation values people who are successful more than ones who are not.  Today’s proverb touches on the differences between how people treat the rich and the poor.  The world exalts the rich and famous, but God looks deeper into a person’s soul.  Recall how the Lord instructed Samuel when he showed up at Jesse’s home to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king of Israel, replacing the people’s choice for King Saul.  

“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; or man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’” 1 Samuel 16:7 (NKJV)

Even though a person may obtain celebrity or riches, they do not guarantee that person will be happy.  King Solomon wrote a whole book of the Bible (Ecclesiastes) about that very topic.  Even King Saul (who had the kingdom, power, money, and good looks) was tormented because he lacked a personal relationship with God.

“But the Spirit of the Lord [Yahweh] departed from Saul, and a distressing [evil] spirit from the Lord [Yahweh] troubled [tormented] him.” 1 Samuel 16:14 (NKJV)

It is not as though God is saying that there is any glory, strictly in being poor, per se.  There are many rich people who love the Lord and use their money to build God’s kingdom.  And there are many poor people who rebel against the Lord.  The whole point of distinguishing between the poor and the rich in today’s proverb is to address the deep cultural prejudice against a person simply because of their lack of resources.  Equally prejudiced is to ascribe value to a person merely because they are wealthy.  BOTH are sin because they judge the inner man (a person’s character) solely by observing the outer man.

“Many entreat the favor of the nobility, and every man is a friend to one who gives gifts. All the brothers of the poor hate him; how much more do his friends go far from him! He may pursue them with words, yet they abandon him. He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will find good.” Proverbs 19:6-8 (NKJV)

The key to joy has nothing to do with riches. It has EVERYTHING to do with knowing God’s Word and obeying it.  Wisdom is to fear the Lord (i.e., Hate evil – Proverbs 8:13) to the point that we have understanding (depart from evil).    

“And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.’” Job 28:28 (NKJV)

“A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; from the produce of his lips he shall be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” Proverbs 18:20-21 (NKJV)

Today’s proverb focuses largely on various ways that our words are a reflection of who we are on the inside.  As children, we learned the schoolyard rhyme, “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”  But that isn’t really true, is it?  Words can sometimes hurt more than fists because their damaging effects strike deeper into our sense of self-worth.  Jesus taught that very lesson.  

“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45 (NKJV)

Words can build up or tear down, so our highest priority should be that we know God’s Word to the extent that it controls our speech and actions.  Notice how Jesus (the Word made flesh - John 1:14) used the Bible to defend against Satan’s schemes.  Ever heard the saying, “You are what you eat”?  Well, Jesus consumed God’s Word as if it were food.  As a body draws nutrition from food, He drew it from the Bible.

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:1-4 (NKJV)

Jesus saw it as His utmost priority to obey God’s commands in the Old Testament.  Thus He lived out Job’s faithful declaration.

“Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers. And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.” Deuteronomy 8:1-3 (NKJV)

“But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held fast to His steps; I have kept His way and not turned aside. I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.” Job 23:10-12 (NKJV)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Proverbs 17. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he. The wise in heart will be called prudent, and sweetness of the lips increases learning. Understanding is a wellspring of life to him who has it. But the correction of fools is folly. The heart of the wise teaches his mouth, and adds learning to his lips. Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” Proverbs 16:20-25 (NKJV)

There are a dozen-or-so verses that seem to be bedrock foundations from which other Biblical ideas are weighed.  They make such undeniably straightforward declarations.  You may grow tired of my quoting them so frequently, but I assure you that my reminding you of these bedrock verses is not because I have not committed other verses to memory.  I am quoting them often because I want you to remember them!  It is not enough for us to read devotionals telling us what to think.  We must learn HOW to think.  I am not alone in my approach to learning.

“For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.” 2 Peter 1:12-15 (NKJV)

That being said, we must take another look at Psalm 1.  

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV)

Yes, I quote Psalm 1 often, especially here in the Proverbs, but it acts as a key that helps to unlock understanding so we can know WHY there are such distinguishing outcomes between those who heed God’s Word vs those trying to build their lives apart from God’s blueprint.  We either align with God or fight against Him!

“The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits. Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.” Proverbs 16:1-3 (NKJV)

“A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV)

“The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.” Proverbs 16:33 (NJKJV)

“The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.” Proverbs 15:29 (NKJV)

If the Lord is far from the wicked yet hears the prayers of the righteous, we should probably explore how He defines “wicked” and “righteous”!  Let’s begin with those who are righteous; who are they, and how can we be counted among them?  The GOOD NEWS is that ANYONE who turns from his sin and receives eternal life through Jesus can be saved, i.e., considered righteous.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:16-17 (NKJV)

So, Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of the world; does that make us all righteous?  Are there no “wicked” if Jesus has atoned for their sin?  Sadly, not everyone will receive salvation because not everyone will believe on His Name.

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” John 3:18-21 (NKJV)

Notice how Jesus said, “he who does not believe is CONDEMNED ALREADY.” (emphasis mine).  Everyone (before they receive salvation) is condemned; sinners from birth and considered wicked by God, according to His standard as articulated in the Bible.  That is the human dilemma!  How can sinful men commune with Holy God if He is far from the wicked?  How can He hear our prayers if we aren’t righteous?  When we turn from our sin and receive salvation by His Grace (paid for by Jesus’ righteous works, not our own: Ephesians 2:8-9), we become righteous.  (2 Corinthians 5:21) The last prayer of the wicked is the first prayer of the righteous!

“For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.” Jeremiah 29:10-14 (NKJV)

“In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death.” Proverbs 14:26-27 (NKJV)

I sure love how the Bible defines itself! If we are to derive generationally-fortifying “strong confidence” from fearing the Lord (confidence that is a “fountain of life”), then God’s Word must clearly define what “fearing the Lord’ means.

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.” Proverbs 8:13 (NKJV)

Notice how hating evil (pride, arrogance, the evil way, and perverse mouth) is the beginning of wisdom, and how our understanding is proportional to our knowledge of God.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)

That means God’s Word (and not ungodly counsel) must be the source of my knowledge and understanding of Him if I am to expect my wisdom and understanding to lead me toward the “fountain of life,” away from the “snares of death.”

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV)

Praise God that His Word has the power to transform not only our lives but also the generations that follow us.  If we fear the Lord, teaching and modeling faith to our children, they will honor us by not departing from Him.  (Proverbs 22:6)  Their “place of refuge” will forever be defined by their “strong confidence” that His Word never fails. Even though difficult seasons arise, they remain faithful to our teaching.

“Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.” Deuteronomy 5:16 (NKJV)

Hatred of evil (motivated by our knowledge of God’s Word as revealed by His Holy Spirit) turns us away from the snares of death, leading to the fountain of life.

“And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” Revelation 22:17  (NKJV) (Jeremiah 2:13; John 4:10)

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. He who despises the word will be destroyed, but he who fears the commandment will be rewarded. The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death. Good understanding gains favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard. Every prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool lays open his folly. A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful ambassador brings health. Poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction, but he who regards a rebuke will be honored. A desire accomplished is sweet to the soul, but it is an abomination to fools to depart from evil.” Proverbs 13:12-16 (NKJV)

One of the greatest tricks of Satan is to get Christians to believe God has promised them something that He hasn’t.  Then all Satan has to do is sit around and wait for us to become despondent and blame God for not coming thru for us.  We literally get angry with God when, in fact, it is Satan who convinced us that God’s Word said otherwise.  Believe me, it happens to us all of the time.  It is how Satan tempted Eve, and he even tried to tempt Jesus (the Living Word of God) by distorting God’s Word.  Jesus resisted Satan by answering with the correct understanding of the Bible.

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”’ Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: “He shall give His angels charge over you,” and, “In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”’ Jesus said to him, ‘It is written again, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”’ Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”’ Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.”  Matthew 4:1-11 (NKJV)

So, after we have chosen to surrender to the Lordship of Jesus and receive salvation, we still have a choice to make every day thereafter.  It is a choice between “hope deferred” and “desire accomplished,” the “fountain of life” and the “snares of death,” “God’s favor,” or the “hard way.”  And the deciding factor is whether you choose to seek God’s Word every day, meditate on it and allow it to govern every aspect of your life.  (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)  Salvation is not only about eternal life.  It is also about living abundantly and joyfully on this earth, despite fierce opposition.

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10 (NKJV)

“Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad. The righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray.” Proverbs 12:25-26 (NKJV)

Anxiety and depression are very common in our culture.  Anxiety is a sense of unease or fear about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.  If anxiety is prolonged, a loss of hope sets in and a sense of despondency or dejection presses down on a person’s psyche.  That is what psychologists call depression.  Long before Sigmund Freud, psychoanalysis, or modern psychiatric therapy, God had already identified the conditions of anxiety and depression, along with their cure: His Word and Bible-based community.  If there were ever a New Testament example of today’s proverb, it would be the apostle Paul’s prison letter to the church in Philippi.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ [Messiah] Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:6-9 (NKJV)

Paul followed today’s proverb, even down to his community of godly friendships.

“Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved. I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.”  Philippians 4:1-5 (NKJV)

By making God’s Word the compass that guides us all day, every day (Deuteronomy 6:6-7), we will know how to navigate life’s hardships.  And if we remain in Christian community, encouraging one another in our present circumstances, we will spur each other on, keeping our minds focused on the coming Kingdom.  It’s worth it!

“Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God. For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, having the same conflict which you saw in me and now hear is in me.” Philippians 1:27-30 (NKJV)

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise. If the righteous will be recompensed on the earth, how much more the ungodly and the sinner.” Proverbs 11:30-31 (NKJV)

One of the more prominent images in the Bible is that of “bearing fruit.”  Just as an apple tree is known for bearing apples and an orange tree produces oranges, so we are known for bearing fruit that represents the “vine” we are attached to.  Apple trees do not bear oranges, so believers should not bear the fruit of unrighteousness.  “By their fruits you will know them.” (Mathew 7:20)  Today’s proverb reminds us to examine ourselves (2 Corinthians 13:5) to know whether we are truly attached to Jesus, The True Vine.   Here are some New Testament passages that reinforce this statement from today’s proverb.  

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father.” For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” Matthew 3:7-12 (NKJV)

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” John 15:1-8 (NKJV)

“And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:12-15 (NKJV)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Proverbs 10. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Now therefore, listen to me, my children, for blessed are those who keep my ways.  Hear instruction and be wise, and do not disdain it.  Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.  For whoever finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the Lord; but he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; all those who hate me love death.” Proverbs 8:32-36 (NKJV)

From the get-go, it is important to understand that the person speaking in this proverb is not Messiah.  It is “Wisdom.”  In a sense, she (self-described v. 1-3) can be attributed to the Holy Spirit, whose ministry is to reveal the truth of God’s Word.  Also, because “Wisdom” says she was “established from everlasting,” present at creation, and stood beside Messiah (Jesus) as a “master craftsman.” (v. 23-31) Wisdom & Understanding must complement each other, so we must both know God’s Word and how to apply it AND have the resolve to live according to it!

Here is a picture of someone who seeks deliverance.  Even though it is delayed, by faith, that person keeps hoping, not disdaining its (as of yet) unfulfillment.  For the faithful, if God said something would happen a certain way, they believe it as if it has already happened, even though the results of their faith are delayed indefinitely.  

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)

We see today’s proverb played out precisely at the beginning of the New Testament book of Acts 3.  A lame man is begging at the temple gate called “Beautiful” and cries out for alms (charity) to the apostles Peter and John.  (Acts 3:1-3) The beggar is in the right place at the right time, and Peter quotes today’s proverb.

“And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.”  So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them - walking, leaping, and praising God.” Acts 3:4-8 (NKJV)

“All the words of my mouth are with righteousness; nothing crooked or perverse is in them.  They are all plain to him who understands, and right to those who find knowledge.  Receive my instruction, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold; for wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her.  I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge and discretion.  The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.  Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.” Proverbs 8:8-14 (NKJV)

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.  For by me your days will be multiplied, and years of life will be added to you.  If you are wise, you are wise for yourself, and if you scoff, you will bear it alone.” Proverbs 9:10-12 (NKJV)

Sandwiched between a description of how Wisdom (portrayed as a woman) invites the simple man into her home to forsake foolishness and how the Foolish woman entices simple men into her home to indulge in foolishness, which leads to death, is this short passage about fearing the Lord.  If the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, leading to knowledge, understanding, and life, then what does it mean to fear the Lord?  That question was answered in yesterday’s proverb!

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.  Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.  By me kings reign, and rulers decree justice.  By me princes rule, and nobles, all the judges of the earth.  I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me.” Proverbs 8:13-17 (NKJV)

So, fearing the Lord does not mean we should be afraid of the Lord, forever hiding from His presence.  “Fearing the Lord” is more akin to loving the Lord.

“You who love the Lord, hate evil!  He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.” Psalm 97:10 (NKJV)

Fearing the Lord means hating evil.  When we fear the Lord, we love what He loves and hate what He hates.  When we harbor love for this world (and the evil therein), we are more likely to be wooed by the enticements of the “foolish woman  .”Imagine a man who marries his beautiful, godly bride yet still harbors affection for a past girlfriend.  If that old girlfriend were to call, he would be inclined to re-open that relationship and forsake his vows to his wife.  Now, suppose the same man loved the Lord and his wife, and he hated evil.  He would have absolutely no impulse to return the advances of his past girlfriend, even if his marriage was in a rough season.

Commandment #3 states: “You shall not take the Name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His Name in vain.” Exodus 20:7 (NKJV)

Taking the Lord’s Name in vain is like a woman who marries a man yet falls for the charms of another man.  She would have taken her husband’s name in vain because her heart belongs to another!  So, fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom, but hating sin is the foundation of fearing the Lord.  

“Jesus answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.’” Mark 7:6 (NKJV)

“My son, keep my words, and treasure my commands within you.  Keep my commands and live, and my law as the apple of your eye.  Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.  Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister,’ and call understanding your nearest kin, that they may keep you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words.” Proverbs 7:1-5 (NKJV)

Beware of distancing personal accountability by wandering alone.  (James 1:14)

“For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice, and saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, a young man devoid of understanding, passing along the street near her corner; and he took the path to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night.” Proverbs 7:6-9 (NKJV)

A wandering heart is an easy prey for a predatory spirit.  (1 Peter 5:8)

“And there a woman met him, with the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart.  She was loud and rebellious, her feet would not stay at home.  At times she was outside, at times in the open square, lurking at every corner.  so she caught him and kissed him; with an impudent face she said to him: ‘I have peace offerings with me; today I have paid my vows.  So I came out to meet you, diligently to seek your face, and I have found you.  I have spread my bed with tapestry, colored coverings of Egyptian linen.  I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.  Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; let us delight ourselves with love.  For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; he has taken a bag of money with him, and will come home on the appointed day.’”  Proverbs 7:10-20 (NKJV)

Wandering hearts, attuned to seduction, commit acts of sin.  (Proverbs 4:23)  

“With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, with her flattering lips she seduced him.  Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks, till an arrow struck his liver.  As a bird hastens to the snare, he did not know it would cost his life.” Proverbs 7:21-23 (NKJV)

Sin always over-promises and under-deliverers.  The consequences always outweigh the thrill.

“Now therefore, listen to me, my children; pay attention to the words of my mouth: Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, do not stray into her paths; for she has cast down many wounded, and all who were slain by her were strong men.  Her house is the way to hell, descending to the chambers of death.” Proverbs 7:24-27 (NKJV)

The only way to avoid sin (and its consequences) is to walk according to God’s Word, the “straight way,” never wandering or straying to the right or left of it.  Don’t be more conservative than it demands or more liberal than it allows.  (Joshua 1:7-8)

“My son, keep your father’s command, and do not forsake the law of your mother.  Bind them continually upon your heart; tie them around your neck.  When you roam, they will lead you; when you sleep, they will keep you; and when you awake, they will speak with you.” Proverbs 6:20-22 (NKJV)

Every Christian parent knows that children do not come from the womb pre-discipled.  We are not given fully mature infant followers of Jesus.  Instead, we get a starter kit containing a tiny human “larvae” and a Bible.  It is up to us to build our children’s value systems and to raise them as God’s Spirit leads.  The last thing any Christian parent needs to do is to throw away the manual and raise kids by the seat of their pants!  And that is exactly what the Bible is: the manual for Christian living and a repair manual for when we stray from the manufacturer’s blueprint.  Even when we have done all that we know to do, our children still grow up and make choices of their own, even choices that everyone knows do not honor the Lord.  We cling to God’s Word when our kids stray off course.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)

So, when our children go “roaming” as all mature young adults must eventually do, we hope the Biblical values we endowed them with will override the allure of secular culture.  Only then do we truly understand the great importance of having our children grow up in a home where God’s Word was not just a part of family life; but that the Word dominated and guided our family life.  That is God’s design.

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.” Deuteronomy 6:6-8 (NKJV)

“For the commandment is a lamp, and the law a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of life, to keep you from the evil woman, from the flattering tongue of a seductress.  Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, nor let her allure you with her eyelids.  For by means of a harlot a man is reduced to a crust of bread; and an adulteress will prey upon his precious life.” Proverbs 6:23-26 (NKJV)

The “seductress” or “harlot” that Solomon describes is not just a wanton woman.  It is also a metaphor for spiritual adultery.  Only God’s pure Word can keep us pure.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.  I have sworn and confirmed that I will keep Your righteous judgments.  I am afflicted very much; revive me, O Lord, according to Your word.  Accept, I pray, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord, and teach me Your judgments.” Psalm 119:105-108 (NKJV)

“For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths.  His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin.  He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.” Proverbs 5:21-23 (NKJV)

There is a popular saying, “All paths lead to God.”  In one sense, that saying is true because all men everywhere will have to stand before the Lord in judgment.  The more important question should not consider whether all paths lead to God, but which one of the many paths available will actually lead to Heaven, the GOOD way.

“Thus says the Lord: ‘Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls.  But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’” Jeremiah 6:16 (NKJV)

Of all the ways we could go, there is only ONE way that leads to salvation.

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” John 14:6 (NKJV)

While salvation is offered exclusively through Messiah Jesus, it is offered liberally to anyone who would receive it.

“He came unto His own, and His own did not receive Him.  But as many as received Him, to them gave the right to become the children of God, to them who believe in his name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:11-14 (NKJV)

“Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.” Acts 17:30 (NKJV)

Yes, God ponders the paths of men.  He studies our ways as a master chess champion who can wander through a convention hall, playing hundreds of competitors at once, knowing their next moves, yet winning every game.  Jesus won the victory over our sin, yet offers the trophy to us!  (Ephesians 2:8-9)  He calls to us, pleading through His Word and through faithful men and women who share the gospel.  God does not desire that men would perish but that all would have eternal life.  (2 Peter 3:9)  So, mankind must choose to believe the lying enticements of the great “harlot” (Revelation 19:1-2) or to receive eternal life-giving grace from Messiah Jesus.

“Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” Hebrews 3:12-13 (NKJV)

“My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings.  Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.  Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.  Put away from you a deceitful mouth, and put perverse lips far from you.  Let your eyes look straight ahead, and your eyelids look right before you.  Ponder the path of your feet, and let all your ways be established.  Do not turn to the right or the left; remove your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:20-27 (NKJV)

Today’s proverb begins with a stern exhortation to keep Solomon’s instruction, his “words and sayings.”  Since it is recorded as wisdom in Scripture, we can only assume that Solomon is speaking of God’s Word, which he is imparting to his son.  As such, his teaching aligns with his father David’s instruction.

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.  He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NKJV)

Perhaps, you have heard it preached that the heart is “deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)  Of course, that is true of the unredeemed heart, but the Spirit-led heart of a believer has the potential for purity and must be guarded by God’s Word and Holy Spirit.  Jesus warned His disciples how unredeemed hearts may seem righteous, yet they cannot be trusted.

“These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.” Matthew 15:8 (NKJV)

When we seek God’s Word, as illuminated by His Spirit, we learn to guard our hearts and minds, aligning them with the truths of God’s character and waiting on His timing.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV)

Focusing on God’s Word, looking straight ahead, and not straying to the “right or left” means that we should walk according to what the Bible teaches, not being more conservative than it demands nor more liberal than it allows.  Surrender to His leading and trust that He will guide you in paths of righteousness.  (Psalm 23:3)

“Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls.  But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’” Jeremiah 6:16 (NKJV)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Proverbs 3. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you; understanding will keep you, to deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks perverse things, from those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness; who rejoice in doing evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked; whose ways are crooked, and who are devious in their paths; to deliver you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words, who forsakes the companion of her youth, and forgets the covenant of her God.  For her house leads down to death, and her paths to the dead; none who go to her return, nor do they regain the paths of life - so you may walk in the way of goodness, and keep to the paths of righteousness.  For the upright will dwell in the land, and the blameless will remain in it; but the wicked will be cut off from the earth, and the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.” Proverbs 2:10-22 (NKJV)

Anyone familiar with the story of Solomon’s life scratches their head when reading today’s proverb.  That’s because God gave Solomon the wisdom to discern His Word rightly, yet Solomon lacked the moral integrity to apply it to his own life, at least long term.  In that sense, Solomon reminds me of those doctors and nurses who stand outside the hospital smoking cigarettes!  It’s not like they are unaware of the cancerous life-shortening effects of smoking.  They probably tell their emphysema patients, “Smoking will kill you  .”They just choose to ignore the facts for themselves.  How could Solomon preach so rightly yet live so wrongly?

“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites - from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you.  Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love.  And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.  For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon.  And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.” 1 Kings 11:1-8 (NKJV)

It is not enough to simply know God’s Word.  We must also obey and apply it!  We must practice what we preach.  When the preaching of God’s Word is matched with our practice of it, not only will we share it with others, but it will be Spirit-filled and change the values of the people who both hear our message and observe our lifestyles.  The problem with the church at large is not the absence of good preaching.  It is that people have no value for it.  We must model our faith. (Luke 11:28; Matthew 23:3; Luke 6:46; Ezra 7:10; Psalm 1:1-3; Judges 2:10; 1 Samuel 3:1)