Isaiah 50 vs 6-11 & Isaiah 51 vs 1 - 7
Isaiah Chapter 50 Verse 6
· This verse speaks in sobering detail of the suffering of the Messiah. Mark 15 says He was beaten, mocked and they spit on Him. Luke 22 tells us He was punched in the face. And we know from Isaiah that at one point they plucked out His beard. The ultimate disrespect of any Jewish male… And notice the action wasn’t really on the part of His abusers but all that happened to Him was at His volunteering… We read here in the beginning of this verse, “I gave…”
Isaiah Chapter 50 Verses 7 – 9
· How is it that Jesus was able to endure what He did and even more, to volunteer and proceed willingly when He had the power to stop it all immediately? And this is helpful, because when you and I find ourselves uncomfortable or suffering in the Spirit and we know we can end it right now…, divorce or strike back or go off on them, find another church, quit another job, why stay the course? Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
· The reward of the cross was the resurrection and the place at the right hand of the throne of God. The place of the Advocate and the defeat of the adversary. That was a promise given by the Father for generations and then Jesus came not only to fulfill those promises but KNOWing that He was the fulfillment. Trusting the Father and trusting the Word above even His own situation. And so, He set His face like a flint, which means He determined in Himself to carry it through to the end…
Isaiah Chapter 50 Verses 10 – 11
· I love this! We ask people today and we wonder, “Are you a Christian?” But who knows what that means anymore! Folks can say they are a Christian and then believe Jesus was an angel. Folks can say they are a Christian and then live for themselves! Are they really a follower of Jesus Christ!? Not a chance! Here is a better phrased question…, “Do you obey the voice of Jesus and do you fear the Lord?” That is the Biblical definition of a Christian!
· And as the suffering Savior endured what He endured, as they beat Him and mocked Him and as He allowed Himself to be destroyed, He knew two things. One was that this would enable men to be saved, and two this would seal the fate of those that would reject Him. He says, “This you shall have from My hand…,” the same one mentioned in verse 16 of the last chapter that is inscribed with the names of all men that have ever lived…, “You shall lie down in torment.” Only time this Hebrew word torment is ever used in the Bible. And it means regret without repair…, sorrow without sorry, grief without relief, pain without cure…, this is the fate of those that make themselves enemies of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah Chapter 51 Verses 1 – 3
· So, who is God talking to? Or maybe a better thought is, who will be able to hear this? He says, “Listen to Me you who follow after righteousness and you who seek the Lord.” This word for follow means “chase it like it stole your purse!” HA! To chase, to pursue, to run after to harass…, that’s the picture. God has made amazing promises and in Him are hidden all of the riches of wisdom. And some have accepted that! Figured that out! And so, they don’t wait for righteousness to happen or for someone else to teach them, they pursue wisdom all on their own.
· And you who seek the Lord. The word here is demand, require, to search and search until something is secured. What’s the point? There are things, many things…, most things, in the Word of God and in the heart of God and in the mind of God that folks simply cannot hear and will not benefit from and will not ever know, because they are literally reserved only for those that this is what they do… Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart!” The things of God, like the things He really has promised and wants us to have, are only apprehended by the humble. Those that have turned the corner and surrendered their heart to Jesus!
· And so, what is it God has for them in these verses? When you are in the grip, in the situation, in the season, in this life, remember…, remember that you were formed from dust. Remember that God created the intricacy of YOU from a hole dug in the earth…, and if He is that God, He is not restrained. AND, remember the impossibilities of taking a couple like Abraham and Sarah and completing His Word to them. AND in light of that, hold fast…
· Zion, this is why perhaps people get things wrong like Replacement Theology or Reformed Theology, because there is Israel and there is Zion. Israel is Israel, the Jewish people, the Jewish nation and that bloodline and land specifically, but Zion, that is the Kingdom of God on earth. Spiritual Israel. Comprised of the entirety of the family of God, Jew and gentile, Israel and the church and yet the portion of the bloodline of Israel that rejects the Messiah, and in that rejects God, that is not Zion… So perhaps this is how folks twist doctrine and say God is finished with the Jew… He is not, Zion is simply His entire earthly spiritual Kingdom…
· And so, Zion, those that we’ve already mentioned, in this life, through even tragedies and crisis and hardship, and as Zion groans in this fallen dark and sinful world and life, God holds us like His beloved children in the palm of His hand. He does comfort. Wildernesses are as joy-filled as Eden, He does spring forth produce and beauty in deserts and even so we sing, we have joy, we have gladness and the heart of Zion is filled with thanksgiving!
Isaiah Chapter 51 Verses 4 – 6
· These are promises of hope to the people of God and really, we use the word “promises” and it’s not needed. This is the word of God. These are His commitments and yes, His promise,s but really its just His word and that is enough. This is hope for Isaiah, hope for the nation who will soon be in captivity, hope for the people of God throughout their lives because it is a revealing assurance that this world, this life is not all there is and there is coming a place, an existence, where God’s salvation and righteousness fit entirely!
· It’s also a statement of practical applicability for us today. Those who tie themselves intimately to the things of this world will incur loss… Those that tie themselves intimately to the things of God will incur upgrade!
Isaiah Chapter 51 Verse 7
· The third “listen to Me” statement which is a command but is also a revelation of those that are ABLE to listen. (God would not command what we are not able to do…) And this listen to Me is “you who know righteousness…,” and what’s that mean? “You people in whose heart is My law,” and that is significant. Knowing righteousness is not that you do what is right or that you are educated in terms of proper doctrine. Those that know righteousness, and let’s go back, those that are the people of God, and those that seek the Lord and follow after righteousness, are those that have opened their heart, cleared out room, and welcomed the Word and Person of God in and above anything or anyone else, including themselves, these are they that in whose heart is God’s law. Not their own…, God’s law... That is the only path to knowing righteousness.
· And…, look, more revealing assurances…, those that grow to know righteousness…, do not fear the reproach of men, nor be afraid of their insults… Why do people offend us so much and so easily? Because we are so afraid. Fear manifests in offense… Offense is to be eaten up over what someone else has said or done… But those that hope and wait on the Lord…., those that know righteousness, there is a strength of character that blooms… And now, even the fiery darts of the enemy are stopped…, by what? The breastplate of righteousness…!