Dwell in the Word: Isaiah 46:1-13

Contemplate these questions as you dwell in Isaiah 46:1-13:

1. How does the imagery in this passage highlight the contrast between the idols carried by beasts of burden and God carrying His people?

2. What significance does God's declaration of carrying His people from before their birth to their old age have for understanding His role as the sustainer and savior of Israel?

3. How does this passage emphasize the importance of listening to God and turning away from idolatry, and what lessons can contemporary believers draw from this?

Transcript:

Honestly, passages like this are some of my absolute favorite in all of scripture. I love it when God skewers idolatry. There's always a lot of fun language, isn't there? This imagery that here, your gods, the things that you are worshiping are traveling on beasts of burden. They are being carried. They're not sustaining anything. They haven't created anything. You created them. They can't even save the beasts of burden or the burden. In fact, if you were to go into captivity, if you were captured, they would go with you. And so what does God say? We see this here, as I've highlighted in verses three and four. Listen to me, O House of Jacob and all the remnants of the House of Israel who have been born by me from before your birth, carried from the womb. Even to your old age, I am he. And to gray hairs, I will carry you. I have made and I will bear. I will carry and I will save. Notice the difference here. The Gods are being carried by these beasts, by these beasts of burden, but instead God is carrying His people. And He goes all the way to the beginning.

He's saying to them, Hey, to before you were born, when you were in your mother's womb, I was carrying you. And now as you have gray hairs, I am going to carry you. I've made you. I'm going to bury you. I'm going to carry you. I am the God that saves. I am the only one who can rescue. These idols can not do this. And so, we see here is that we come to the end of the chapter that God is calling out, telling them to listen. I am speaking to you, He's saying. You need to listen. You're stubborn of heart. You're far from righteousness. But here's the truth I'm going to bring near my righteousness because it's not far off, and my salvation will not delay. God is going to bring it. He is going to rescue His people. It's not going to be the idol. It is not going to be other humans. It is going to be the one who has created them. And the significance here that we see is that this is for God's people. It is for Israel, His glory. He is doing something here. He is the one who carries them.

He is the one who rescues. He is the one who saves. And why does He do this? Because He is the one who has created them. Now, God created all the people, even their pagan neighbors. But the idea here is that God has spoken to His people. He has called them out. He has saved them to be His people. They are Israel, His glory. They are a particular people. And so, He is going to save. He has created them, and He will carry them. This is an important reminder for us. We are not maybe subject to idolatry in the same way that other people are. I've mentioned this before as we've been in the Book of Isaiah. We're not bowing down before a statue of gold, but we are always prone to create idol's in our hearts to make God out to be something that He is not. But we are being called continually by the word of God to come back to Him because He has made us His particular people. He has set us apart. He has made us His glory, that people that was rescued by the work of Jesus Christ for us.

So, may we continually direct our hearts towards Him, the one who created them, the one who saved them, the one who carries us. May we be carried by Him every day that we may be His people to His glory.