Beyond Judgment to Grace and Glory
Read: Isaiah 4:2-6 In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel. (v. 2) In this bit of prose using the phrase “in that day,” Isaiah speaks about a future time when survivors in […]
Discerning God’s Judgment
Read: Isaiah 3:1-11 Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves. (v. 9, NIV) Isaiah provides important insights into a troubling but important issue: God’s judgment. It’s something that many of us find uncomfortable. Throughout the Bible, God’s judgment begins with his assessment of our inward thoughts and attitudes but also includes our outward […]
Advertising Bibles
Words of Hope’s Turkish director has recently begun partnering with a ministry called the Bible Correspondence Course. This ministry advertises free Bibles and Bible study materials in local newspapers.
A Lesson on National Peril
Read: Isaiah 2:5-22 The arrogance of man will be brought low and human pride humbled; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day, and the idols will totally disappear. (vv. 17-18) Having read yesterday about God’s glorious future for his people, we can empathize with Isaiah’s dismay at the decadence in the religious and social […]
God’s Purpose for the Nations
Read: Isaiah 2:1-5 Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD. (v. 5) In this beautiful poem we have Isaiah’s vision of dramatic, world-embracing events expressed symbolically. These events will take place “in the last days the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains […]
A Transformed City
Read: Isaiah 1:21-28 Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not come to them. (v. 23) With intense poetry and dramatic metaphor Isaiah describes the tragic consequences when God’s people, particularly leaders, ignore God’s standard for righteous living and compassion. What […]
Transforming Grace
Read: Isaiah 1:1-20 The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner’s manger, But Israel does not know, my people do not understand. (v. 3) In this reading we are introduced to Isaiah’s beautiful poetry and striking metaphors. Though the historical setting for this passage is not stated, Isaiah places the root cause for the […]
Dramatic Change
Read: 2 Chronicles 29:1-30 Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel, in order that his fierce anger may turn away from us. (v. 10) What an immediate, dramatic change took place in the spiritual and public life of Judah when Hezekiah became king at age […]
A Corrupt Leader
Read: 2 Chronicles 28:1-27 For the LORD humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel . . . (v. 19) Immediately north of Judah was the Jewish nation of Israel which had separated from Judah after the reign of Solomon. Its capital was Samaria. North of Israel was Aram (Syria); its capital was Damascus. North […]