A Translation and Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ the Redeemer Church, 03 February 2008
6. Y’all seek Jehovah while He is to be found,
call Him while He is to be near.
7. Let the wicked forsake his way, and a man of iniquity his thoughts, and let him turn
to Jehovah and He will have compassion on him,
and to our God, for He will be great to pardon.
8. For y’all’s thoughts are not my thoughts, and my way is not y’all’s way, declares Jehovah.
9. As the heavens are exalted from the earth,
thus my ways are exalted from y’all’s ways, and my thoughts from y’all’s thoughts.
10. For as the rain and the snow which come down from the heavens and do not return there except it
saturate the earth
and make her give birth
and make her sprout
and it give seed to the sower and bread to the eater
11. thus will be my word which goes out from my mouth – It will not return to me empty except
it has done that which I pleased
and made progress toward what I sent it for.
12. For in joy y’all will go out, and in peace y’all will be lead forth.
The mountains and the hills will break forth into song before your faces,
and all the trees of the field will clap the hand.
13. Instead of the thorn, a cypress will grow up;
instead of the nettle, a myrtle will grow up,
and it will be for Jehovah
for a name, for an everlasting sign;
it will not be cut off.
Do you remember the Peanuts comic where Lucy asks her brother to do something for her and he asks for a reason why? She slowly makes a fist and says, I’ll give you five good reasons: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5!”
Thankfully, God is not like that! He doesn’t have to explain things to us – we should do what He says simply because He is bigger than we are – but still He takes the time to explain and convince us of the wisdom of obeying Him. How wonderful!
As we saw in the first half of Isaiah 55, God calls everyone to “Come/step up, buy, and eat” from Him, to “listen hard” to Him, to “seek” Him while He may be found and “turn” away from our “ways” and our “thoughts.”
· It would be entirely reasonable for God to leave it at that and simply expect the people He created to step out in unthinking obedience to their Maker.
· It would be entirely reasonable for God to use Lucy’s approach – and in fact He has already done so in the earlier chapters of Isaiah when He threatened judgment upon all the nations.
· But now God sees fit to provide four good reasons to forsake our sin and pursue Him:
Isaiah 54:8-10 “With flood of wrath I caused my face to be hidden from you for a moment, but with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you, says Jehovah your Redeemer. 9. This is like the days of Noah to me, when I swore off the waters of Noah from again going over upon the earth, thus I have sworn off from the wrath upon you and from the rebuke with you. 10. For the mountains may recede and the hills may slip away, but my lovingkindness will not recede from you, and the covenant of my peace will not slip away, says Jehovah, your Compassionate One.
Jeremiah 3:12 “Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, ‘Return, backsliding Israel, says Jehovah; I will not look in anger upon you; for I am merciful, says Jehovah, I will not keep anger for ever.’”
As promised in Leviticus 4-6 where the priests are instructed in how to offer sacrifices. Notice how God says over and over in the space of two chapters that they can be assured of God’s forgiveness when they follow His provision for it:
· 4:20 “…he shall do with the bullock as he did with the bullock for a sin offering… and it will be forgiven them.”
· 4:26 “And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar… making atonement for him concerning his sin, and it will be forgiven him.”
· 4:31 “He… shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savor unto the LORD… and it will be forgiven him.”
· 4:35 “… the peace offering… made by fire unto the LORD: and the priest shall make an atonement for his sin that he hath committed, and it will be forgiven him.”
· 5:10 “And he shall offer… a burnt offering… for his sin, which he has sinned, and it will be forgiven him.”
· 5:13 “…as touching his sin that he has sinned in one of these and it will be forgiven him…”
· 5:16 “…the priest will make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it will be forgiven him.”
· 5:18 “And he shall bring a ram without blemish out of the flock… for a trespass offering… concerning his ignorance wherein he erred and knew it not, and it will be forgiven him.”
· 6:7 “And the priest shall make an atonement for him before the LORD: and it shall be forgiven him for any thing of all that he hath done in trespassing therein.”
lit “cause to be great to pardon.”
Romans 5:20 And the law came in besides, that the trespass might abound; but where sin abounded, grace did abound more exceedingly:
The first reason to turn to God is because He is merciful.
· God is not like I am. When my girls come to me asking if they can watch a video, they do so with a certain amount of apprehension because I am unpredictable - I might reprimand them for wanting to watch a movie, or I might tell them to watch whatever they want.
· If God were like that we would have reason to be hesitant to turn to Him. Thankfully, God is predictable:
· In John 6:37 Jesus tells us “Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to me; and he who comes to me I will never cast out.”
v.8. For y’all’s thoughts are not my thoughts, and my way is not y’all’s way, declares Jehovah.
· Note that God has “thoughts” and “ways” – this reveals the personal nature of God. He is intelligent and active.
· Man has thoughts and ways because he is made in the image of God, but our intelligence and ability to act is on a much lower level than that of our creator,
· Furthermore, our thoughts and “ways” are so bent by both original sin and our willful acts of sin that there is no comparison with God’s thoughts and ways.
This comprises a second reason why we must “forsake” our “thoughts” and “ways” as v.7 calls us to do, and turn to God and heed Him: our thoughts are hopelessly messed up by sin:
· Prov. 14:12 “There is a way which seems right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.”
· Jer. 17:9 Our “heart is deceitful and desperately wicked.”
· Romans 3:23 “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”
We are like Barney Fife in the Andy Griffith TV show. He thinks he knows all there is to know about everything, and that is most of the humor of the show: we know he’s really a fool and knows almost nothing and we laugh at his false confidence – like the time when he decides to enter a singing competition and shows off as he practices, getting the tune all wrong and singing all off pitch. Then another guy walks in who can really sing well, and Barney offers to teach him how to sing. As it becomes obvious that Barney is clueless, the guy asks Barney if he can sing a cappella. Now, every good musician knows that a cappella means singing without an instrument to accompany you, but Barney was not a good musician and had no idea what the term meant, but he wasn’t going to let that stop him, and he starts making up a tune and singing the word “a cappella” over and over again to impress his audience.
· On screen an attitude like Barney’s is funny, but imagine having to actually work with the guy! You’d find him to be a real jerk!
· When we think our thoughts are a pretty good idea, God finds us to be just as obnoxious.
· Psalm 2 talks about how God “sits in heaven and laughs” at those who do the opposite of His way; The Psalmist goes on to say that God “mocks them” and “will terrify them in His wrath.”
v.9 “As the heavens are exalted from/higher than the earth, thus my ways are exalted/higher...”
· This word higher/exalted was also used in Isaiah 5:16 “But the LORD of hosts is exalted in justice, and the Holy God shows himself holy in righteousness.”
· The prepositions in v.9 are literally “from” indicating distinction from, separation - God is holy.
· Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
God’s way is different from our way and it is better than our way, so we need to seek (v.6) Him, turn from our way (v.7), listen hard (v.2) to God’s thoughts and buy (v.1) into them.
God is merciful and forgiving; God’s way is better than our way, and now, reason #3: God will get His way.
The success of God’s ways – the outworking of His plan – is compared in vs. 10-11 to the geo-hydraulic cycle. “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there except it saturate the earth and cause her to bear/bud/bring forth and cause her to sprout/bud/flourish., … so will be my word..”
Precipitation falls in order to water the earth before it returns in evaporation.
But this isn’t talking about rain, it is talking about the word of God bringing new life.
a) Moses used this figure of speech comparing God’s word to rain in Deuteronomy 32:2 “May my teaching drop as the rain, my speech distill as the dew, like gentle rain upon the tender grass, and like showers upon the herb.”
b) Isaiah has already used the verb “to sprout” in regards to:
o Salvation & Righteousness (Previous use) – 45:8 “Cause the heavens to drizzle from above and [from] the skies let righteousness rain down, let the earth open and let salvation bear its fruit and let righteousness sprout - together. I, Jehovah created it.”
o “new things”– 43:18 “You will not remember the first things or brood on old things, 19. Look, I am doing a new thing, It springs up now, Don’t you know it? I will even put a way in the wilderness and rivers in desert! 20. Livestock of the field will honor me, jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, streams in the desert, to cause my chosen people to drink. 21. This people I formed for myself will recount my praise.”
o New People – 44:3-5 “I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessing upon your offspring: 4 and they shall spring up among the grass, as willows by the watercourses. 5 One shall say, I am Jehovah's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto Jehovah, and surname himself by the name of Israel.
b) The “seed” is pictured as new people in:
o 53:10 – “…He caused grief if His soul would place itself for a sin-offering, He will see seed; He will prolong days.”
o 54:3 “Enlarge your tent… for right and left you will burst forth, and your seed will take over the nations! And they will cause desolate cities to be inhabited.”
o 59:21 “And as for me, this is my covenant with them, says Jehovah: my Spirit that is upon you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed...”
And this sending forth of God’s word to bring about a new thing – salvation and righteousness for a new people – v.11 assures us that it will “succeed”
This echoes what Isaiah has already said in 45:22 “Face toward me and be saved, all ends of earth! For I am God and there is not another. 23. By myself I have sworn; righteousness has gone out of my mouth - a word, and it will not turn back - that to me every knee will bow; every tongue will swear. 24. It will say to me, ‘Righteousness and strength are only in Jehovah!’ Unto Him it will come, and all who were incensed with Him will blanch. 25. In Jehovah all the seed of Israel will be righteous and will praise.”
Notice how the word desire/pleasure from v.11 is also used of:
The means of God’s work is His word:
- John 4:41 “And many more [Samaritans] believed because of His word.”
- The same verb “goes forth” is used of God’s word going out in v.11 and of God’s people going out in v.12!
Contrast God’s success with man’s thoughts and ways:
This is the third reason why we should heed God’s word and turn to Him – our thoughts and ways will ultimately fade away, but God’s thoughts and ways will go on forever and will be successful. His word doesn’t go out unless it’s going to actually do what He wants, just as the rain doesn’t fall unless it hits the ground and gets the ground wet!
Not only is God merciful and forgiving, and not only is His plan of salvation bigger and better and more assured of success than ours, it also gives more joy and peace!
The phrases “in joy” and “in peace” in v.12 are placed first in the Hebrew sentence to emphasize “joy” and “peace.”
Isaiah has mentioned this outburst of joy many times in his book:
· 44:23 “Sing out, heavens, for Jehovah has done it. Shout, depths of the earth; burst into song, mountains, forest, and every tree in it, for Jehovah has redeemed Jacob, and in Israel He will glorify Himself!”
· 49:13 “Heavens, sing for joy, and earth, rejoice! Let mountains break forth into singing, for Jehovah has comforted His people, and will show compassion to His afflicted ones.”
· Previous use of “Joy” - 51:11 “So the ransomed of Jehovah will turn and come to Zion with singing, everlasting gladness upon their head. They will obtain joy and gladness; sorrow and sighing have fled!”
· Next use of “joy” - 61:7 “…instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their portion… everlasting joy shall belong to them.”
· 52:9 “Burst out! Cheer together, dry places of Jerusalem, for Jehovah has comforted His people; He has redeemed Jerusalem!”
· Next instance of “peace” - Isaiah 57:2 “He enters into peace; they rest in their beds, each one that walks in his uprightness.”
· “Led forth” - Delitzsch describes as a festal parade.
· Like the wedding picture in Psalm 45:14 “She will be led unto the king in ebroidered work: The virgins (her companions that follow her) will be brought unto you. 15 With gladness and rejoicing they will be led: They will enter into the king's palace.”
Fulfillment of “go out:”
· The Jews would “go out” of Babylon after 70 years in captivity – this was great cause for joy!
· Jewish commentators stop here, but in the context of v.11, the “going out” includes much more than the Reconstruction of Jerusalem, it includes the “going out” of the “word:”
o to create the earth,
o to instruct mankind in God’s way,
o and to regenerate fallen man.
· Throughout history, God’s people have been led out of bondage to sin, pictured early on in the Exodus out of Egypt. When we go out from under the bondage of sin under the blood of and under the leadership of our Lord Jesus, that is an occasion for great joy and peace!
· And when we, in obedience to Jesus’ Great Commission, “go into all the world” communicating this good news of liberation from the bondage of sin, we spread the joy and peace of God even further!
Mountains and hills break into singing:
· They sing along with God’s people described in 54:1 who are also “breaking forth into song”
· Rom. 8:22 – The creation which groans under our sin will rejoice at our liberation from sin.
· This is true environmentalism! Get saved, make the hills rejoice!
“Trees of the field will clap” (end of v.12) Part of the promised blessings of walking in a covenant relationship with God:
· Leviticus 26:3-6 “If you will walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; 4 then I will give your rains in their season, and the land will yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 …and you will eat your bread to the full... 6 And I will give peace in the land...”
· Psalm 98:3-8 “He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness toward the house of Israel: All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 4 Make a joyful noise unto Jehovah, all the earth: Break forth and sing for joy, yes, sing praises… 8 Let the floods clap their hands; Let the hills sing for joy together”
· Psalm 96:11-13 “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; 12 Let the field exult, and all that is therein; Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy...
· Clapping is a sign of rejoicing (Ezek. 25:6)
v.13 “instead of the thorn, a cypress/pine/fir/juniper will grow up; instead of the briar, the myrtle…”
· This may be speaking literally of heaven - Here we see the original curse of Genesis 3 reversing!
· Or figuratively of a change of heart:
o Rashi explains this as a symbol of the righteous (cypress & myrtle) replacing the wicked (thorn & briar)
o This would go with the text of Micah 7:2-4 “The godly man has perished out of the earth, and there is none upright among men… 3 Their hands are upon that which is evil to do it diligently... 4 The best of them is as a brier; the most upright is worse than a thorn hedge…” (although these words are different than the ones Isaiah used)
·
Both the cypress and the myrtle and evergreen trees a symbol
of everlasting life.
Additionally, the myrtle grows beautiful white flowers – a symbol of righteousness
and purity.
· These trees are among the seven trees mentioned in Isaiah 41:17 “When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none… I the LORD will answer them... 18. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys… 19. I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, 20. that they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the LORD has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it.”
· The last two instances of the verb “go up” also have to do with the righteous:
o they that wait upon the lord (40:31) who “will go up on the wing like the eagle”
o and the Messiah 53:1 who “went up like… the root from dry ground…”
“This will be for a name/renown/memorial for Jehovah”
· Last mention - 54:5 “For your Maker is your Husband – ‘Jehovah of Hosts’ His name. And the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, and He is called “God of all the earth.’”
· Next mention - 56:5 “Unto them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name better than of sons and of daughters; I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.”
· Jeremiah 13:11 “I caused the whole house of Israel to cling to me and the whole house of Judah, says Jehovah; that they may be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory”
· “The change will exist for the glory of its author.” (Young)
· What is the “name” for Jehovah/the LORD in the New Testament? (Jesus!)
· Additionally, when we turn to God and He saves us, it gives God honor on earth and gives Him a reputation as a savior.
“an everlasting sign; it will not be cut off”
1. Psalms 18:50 He will give a great deliverance to His king and show lovingkindness to His anointed, to David and to his seed, for evermore.”
2. This is covenant language:
o Covenants are “cut” (v.3),
o Covenants have signs (rainbow of Gen 9:13, circumcision-Rom 4:11, Passover of Ex. 13, Sabbath day of Ex. 31 and Ezek 20:12, the actions of prophets – Ezek. 12:6-11, 24:24, the birth of Jesus in Isa 7:14 and Luke 2:12&34)
o and covenants are everlasting if God makes them!
I told you I would give you four good reasons to seek the Lord. Are these good enough reasons for you?
Most of you have already taken that first step of turning away from your thoughts and ways and turning toward God to honor and obey Him, but we are so prone to wander that we need to have these commands and these reasons repeated to us to remind us to keep choosing to trust God and to keep turning away from rebellion against Him.
I hope you will let these truths sink deep into your heart:
Nate Wilson’s website – Isaiah Sermon Expositions
Christ the Redeemer Church website - Sermons