Isaiah 44 vs 1-28

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 1 – 2

The name “Jeshurun” is not a name we are particularly familiar with for Israel however it is used a total of four times in the Bible. Once here and three times in the book of Deuteronomy. It’s meaning is literally, “the upright one,” and so it’s an entirely encouraging name for a nation that is often so backwards and certainly not upright! The name then speaks of God’s grace towards His people and as they are at times extremely sinful, God yet restores them, helps them and chooses them not because they are particularly good, but because He is good.

One other encouraging take on this grace, do you think God sees something in them, in their future, that they don’t particularly see or know? Absolutely!!

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 3 – 5

Here’s the deal though. Are you thirsty? Is your heart, or are there portions of your heart, (and mind for that matter), that you identify personally as “dry ground?” If not then don’t expect this promise to be for you. The Lord is well able and is ready to fix all sorts of things in and about you but what if you don’t agree that they need fixing or don’t care about that specific darkness in your character? That is equivalent to rejecting the Spirit of God. 

Take this as a prerequisite. The prerequisite of being filled by God is acknowledging that are you dry. If you’re not thirsty today, then you may ask yourself, why? The answer is to ask any runner or any athlete working hard. Thirst is no problem for them…

And I am fully aware that God is talking physically about the children of the people of Israel when He says “descendants” but I also perceive a spiritual truth here that the areas we disallow the Lord to work in within our hearts and minds will also bear offspring. Second and third order effects. Derivative darknesses that have the capability to compound day over day, year over year… It’s a slippery slope, embracing darkness….

And yet the promise for areas and things that we do deal with and give over to the Lord, making ourselves and these areas of our hearts thirsty for the things of God and dry ground when they don’t glorify God, look at the promise. He won’t just give His Spirit, His promise is that He will pour out His Spirit…, unto second and third order advantages! (I mean what could we achieve and become if God were to POUR His Spirit out on whatever part of your life is lacking!?)

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verse 6

Big deal statement! Why? God says, “I am the First and the Last, the only.” Turn over to Revelation 22:13, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” Who is speaking? Look at Revelation 22:16, “I, Jesus…” Who is Jesus!? So very clear in the scripture! He is GOD!

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 7 – 8

That is an incredible proof statement of God alone being the Beginning (not from the beginning, He is somehow the Beginning Himself), and also the End, again, not the coming end, but the End Himself. It’s mind-blowing and to attempt to explain that He says of Himself, “I appointed the ancient people, and the things that are coming and shall come.” God’s sovereignty and solitude and scope on display in these verses!!

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 9 – 11

Familiar verses that we have read in similar form before however what God goes into next is entirely awesome in my opinion. He gives the practical explanation as to why gods, idols created by men are obviously powerless…

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verse 12

I love that! The god is so weak and worthless that even as the blacksmith is bringing him out of the coals, the god has no power to strengthen his own maker/savior! The guy making the god gets hungry and has to take a break! HA!

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 13 – 20

Incredibly practical examination against and case presented to the ridiculousness of molded images! Half of it you use to keep you warm, pieces of it you burn to warm your food, and the rest of it you make into a god that you bow down to and worship!? If your god is made out of the same stuff you burn and it’s lost in the use then wake up! That is a puny god!!

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 21 – 22

I love that word picture because essentially as our names were written in the Book of Life by the blood of Jesus accomplished at the cross, our names were blotted out of the Book of the Law as Paul said in Colossians 2:13-14, “And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross!”

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verse 23

Have you noticed, why does God so often encourage nature to sing praise unto Him? It is because mankind is the only part of creation that is in rebellion. When Jesus walked on the water, it supported Him. When He spoke to the wind, it calmed. Jesus was told to stop His disciples from worshipping Him and His response was that if they did, the rocks would break out into praise….

A song of rejoicing and praise and gratitude and freedom is called for in light of what God has done for His people. He has redeemed Jacob, that trickster, the deceiver, the one that put himself before his brother and served his own needs only…, the one that rather than submit to God fought with God stubbornly all night, that man and that ungodly character in us all, God has redeemed by the perfect blood of His Son and now being redeemed, forgiven and set free, God is glorified and is glorifying Himself in Israel! Who we are and how our life is governed now…

Don’t miss that. If you are a Christian today, you HAVE received the gift of eternal life (John 10:28), and you HAVE been grafted into the family of God (Romans 11:24), and you ARE NOW a child of the Most-High (1 John 3:2). Effectively you have been changed, born again, just as Jacob was redeemed unto being born again as Israel, and God is going to and is currently glorifying Himself in your life.

Now, that can look great for you as you bear fruit of this relationship. Love, joy, peace, goodness, kindness, gentleness, long suffering, faithfulness and self-control. How’d she do that? How can he handle that? How is she so strong in grace? How is he so strong in character? Purpose and capacity and wisdom and strength and vision and capability just growing and even creating these things day to day in your life… And God is SO glorified in that!

Or, this can look terrible for you as you bear fruit of this relationship. God’s Word being proven exacting in your life as you belong to God and yet serve your flesh…, sowing to the wind and reaping the whirlwind. Discouraged and degraded and unsatisfied and unkind, who cares about being gentle to others, you’re too much in need for yourself! Not able to handle the smallest of offenses or setbacks…, you have to self-medicate with substance or immaturity. Don’t doubt, immaturity, self-service is as addictive as any drug, actually much more! Because a hit of that only lasts a moment!

Either way, either experience, God is glorified. Proven true. His Word hasn’t failed in either scenario… And that is part of this whole Christian experience now that you HAVE been changed and ARE His child…

Isaiah Chapter 44 Verses 24 – 28

This is the wisdom of man! You don’t have to look too far to see the folly of the imaginations of us in our history. You can see these in the laws that have been created! In the time of Napoleon, taking a bath every day was outlawed as dangerous to one’s health! Look, I’m not making this up, look this up, in Ohio and Oklahoma, it’s illegal to make silly faces at a dog! WHAT!? So DUMB! In Alabama, there is actually a law on the books making it illegal to drive while blindfolded! Oh, the wisdom of us! So inspiring!!

In the ultimate showing of God’s preeminence, He calls out the coming servant of the nation, Cyrus, by name. And we will look at him more in-depth next time but enough to say for now, Cyrus was not only a name not known by Isaiah or any other Israelite, he wasn’t even born yet. It would be 150 years before he would be born and about 200 years before he would perform the Word of God. Incredible!