Dwell in the Word: Isaiah 9:8-10:4

Contemplate these questions as you dwell in Isaiah 9:8-10:4:

1. In this passage, the people of Israel seem to downplay the significance of the judgments they're facing, believing they can rebuild and make things better. How can this tendency to minimize the consequences of sin and judgment be a relevant cautionary lesson for Christians today?

2. The repetitive phrase, "For all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still," underscores the ongoing nature of God's judgment and the seriousness of sin. How does this serve as a reminder of the need for repentance and reliance on God's grace in our lives?

3. Pastor Mark alludes to the ultimate resolution of God's wrath through Christ, who bore the full measure of God's judgment on our behalf. How does understanding the connection between God's wrath and Christ's atonement impact your appreciation of God's grace and salvation through Jesus?

Transcript:

As we come to this passage, we see the people have had the beginnings of judgment, but they think that it isn't that big of a deal. We see this here in verse 10, The bricks have fallen, but we'll build with dressed stones, the sycamores have been cut down, but we'll put cedars in their place. Essentially, they see that this stuff has happened, but they're seeing it as an opportunity to rebuild better, to make things nicer. The fullness of judgment has not yet come. And so, we look here and we see that there is all this issue with people with not caring for the poor and taking care of the fatherless and the widow, etc, all these things that we've talked about so far in Isaiah. And we see here in verse 15, it says, The elder and the outer man is the head and the prophet who teaches lives is the tail. From top to bottom, beginning to end, there are issues among people. These people have been leading them astray, and the people who are following them are swallowed up. We see here that, Therefore, the Lord does not rejoice over the young man and has no compassion on their followers and with us.

Everyone is godless and an evil doer. Every mouth speaks folly. The judgment is going to be comprehensive, for lack of a better way of saying. There is going to be a judgment that is coming that is going to affect all of people. It has not completely come yet. Then there's a phrase that we see multiple times in this passage, and you get this idea that this passage is poetic in nature. Yes, it's a prophecy. It's a prophetic word. But we see this repetition that we find in poetry or the Psalm, and here it is, For all this his anger has not turned away and his hand is stretched out still. We see that in verse 21 as well. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. Then in verse 4 of Chapter 10, For all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. We can read that, and we can very easily understand what is being said there. We don't need advanced degree in Biblical interpretation to know basically what is being said here is, Yep, this stuff is happening. There's fighting between Manasseh and Ephraim.

Brothers are fighting. I see the idea there. This is not just two tribes from wherever. All these brothers are fighting, and Manasseh and Ephraim, the children of Joseph, the descendants of them are fighting. They've also come up against Judah. You get the idea. There's all this stuff happening. But for all of this, this isn't the judgment yet. God's anger is still out there. His hand stretched out still. There is more coming. There is more coming in judgment. That's the idea that we see here. Now, it's important that as we think about this passage, this is a difficult one for us to consider what it means for us. We understand that this was on Israel and Jude at the time. But at the same time, we need to remember that God does still punish sin. Now, it is in discipline for us. It is in hopes that we would turn in repentance. But we need to remember that ultimately this great wrath that we have seen here in this passage that is coming, it also is pointing forward to the idea that God's wrath and judgment is going to be poured out on another, that his judgment for sin would be poured out on Christ.

That is being pointed forward to throughout all of the Old Testament. So while we remember that our sin grieves God, it is rebellion against him, it's important that we remember that as we look at these statements of judgment, that God's hand was not still. His hand was stretched out. But when he did that, he poured out for our sin. He poured it out on Christ, and it was the full measure. It was enough. It paid price for our sin. So when we read these verses, we can remember that his anger was turned away. God's wrath was turned aside by Christ for us. His hand was not stayed. It was stretched out and fully poured out His wrath on Christ for us.