October
9th Isaiah 34 The wrath of the Lord
1: Come near, ye nations, to hear; and
hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and
all things that come forth of it. 2:
For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all
their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the
slaughter. 3: Their slain also
shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the
mountains shall be melted with their blood. 4: And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the
heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall
down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig
tree. 5: For my sword shall be
bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people
of my curse, to judgment. 6:
The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and
with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the
LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea.
7: And the unicorns shall come
down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked
with blood, and their dust made fat with fatness. 8: For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance, and the year of
recompences for the controversy of Zion.
9: And the streams thereof
shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land
thereof shall become burning pitch. 10:
It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever:
from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it
for ever and ever. 11: But the
cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall
dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the
stones of emptiness. 12: They
shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all
her princes shall be nothing. 13:
And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses
thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls. 14: The wild beasts of the desert
shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to
his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place
of rest. 15: There shall the
great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there
shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate. 16: Seek ye out of the book of the
LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my
mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them. 17: And he hath cast the lot for
them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line: they shall possess it for
ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.
Isaiah
35 Be strong and fear not
1: The wilderness and the solitary
place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the
rose. 2: It shall blossom
abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency
of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD,
and the excellency of our God. 3:
Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. 4: Say to them that are of a fearful
heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God
with a recompence; he will come and save you. 5: Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of
the deaf shall be unstopped. 6:
Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for
in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. 7: And the parched ground shall
become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of
dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes. 8: And an highway shall be there, and
a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass
over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not
err therein. 9: No lion shall
be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found
there; but the redeemed shall walk there: 10: And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion
with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and
gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Today we are reading Isaiah chapters 34 & 35. In chapter
34 Isaiah records the message of God to the Gentile nations. He begins in v1-8
talking about the nations and their armies. The Lord says come near because my
wrath is against you. The Lord invites them to come near for destruction. The
Lord it appears will go to war with the nations based on the city of Bozrah. This is the day
of the LORD’s vengeance and the year of recompenses because of their opposition
to Zion. Then
he speaks of the judgment of the Lord on the land, v9-10. The streams will be
turned into bitumen and the dust to volcanic ash. The land will burn day and
night forever. No-one will ever live there forever. There will only be birds of
prey there v11. Then he speaks of the princes and nobles v12 They will be
brought to nothing. The land will be left desolate. No-one will live there and
weeds will come up in the palaces. Nettles and brambles in the fortresses. Only
wild beasts, birds and creatures will live there. Demons will inhabit the land.
In chapter 35 Isaiah speaks of the glory of Jehovah the king. This is a much
quoted passage and misunderstood. The Lord says that the wilderness and barren
place will rejoice in Israel.
And they will blossom like a rose. (This passage is cited today to describe the
revival of Israel
in our day however this is referring to the Day of the LORD, not the Day of
Grace.) What he prophesies is outstanding and far exceeds anything known today.
The land of Israel will be abundant blossoming.
Still the land is dry and burnt up by the sun today. The first point is that
they will see the glory of the LORD in the land and the excellency of our God.
the Lord will give strength to the weak and stability to the feeble knees.
There will not be any fear again because the Lord will come bringing vengeance
on their enemies. The Lord will save them – from their enemies. The Lord will
open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf. The lame will jump like a
young deer and the dumb will sing. In the wilderness waters will break out of
the ground and parched areas will become pools. The land will become filled
with springs and there will be grass with reeds and rushes a sure sign of
excessive water. (A saturated water table) the highway will be established –
‘the way of holiness’. This is the route that men will take when they come up
to worship before the LORD. No unclean man will walk that road. But the
ordinary men though unlearned will not miss the path. There will be no danger
from wild beasts on the road. Only the redeemed of the LORD will walk this
road. Those that walk this road on their homeward journey will come with songs
and will everlasting joy. They will obtain joy and happiness from the Lord and
all sorrow and sighing will flee away. Needless to say this is not fulfilled
today.
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