In The Word
Read: Isaiah 20:1-22:14
Prophecy about Egypt and Ethiopia
20 In the year that the commander came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him and he fought against Ashdod and captured it, 2 at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go and loosen the sackcloth from your hips and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, going naked and barefoot. 3 Then the Lord said, “Even as My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and symbol against Egypt and Cush, 4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, young and old, naked and barefoot with buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5 Then they will be terrified and ashamed because of Cush their hope and Egypt their pride. 6 So the inhabitants of this coastland will say on that day, ‘Behold, such is our hope, where we fled for help to be saved from the king of Assyria; and how are we ourselves to escape?’”
God Commands That Babylon Be Taken
21 The pronouncement concerning the wilderness of the sea:
As windstorms in the Negev come in turns,
It comes from the wilderness, from a terrifying land.
2 A harsh vision has been shown to me;
The treacherous one still deals treacherously, and the destroyer stilldestroys.
Go up, Elam, lay siege, Media;
I have put an end to all the groaning she has caused.
3 For this reason my loins are full of anguish;
Pains have seized me like the pains of a woman in labor.
I am so bewildered I cannot hear, so terrified I cannot see.
4 My mind reels, horror overwhelms me;
The twilight I longed for has been turned into trembling for me.
5 They set the table, they spread out the cloth, they eat, they drink;
“Rise up, captains, oil the shields!”
6 For this is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, station the lookout, have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees a column of chariots, horsemen in pairs,
A train of donkeys, a train of camels,
He is to pay close attention, very close attention.”
8 Then the lookout called,
“Lord, I stand continually by day on the watchtower,
And I am stationed every night at my guard post.
9 Now behold, here comes a troop of riders, horsemen in pairs.”
And one said, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
And all the images of her gods are shattered on the ground.”
10 My downtrodden people, and my afflicted of the threshing floor!
What I have heard from the Lord of armies,
The God of Israel, I make known to you.
Pronouncements about Edom and Arabia
11 The pronouncement concerning Edom:
One keeps calling to me from Seir,
“Watchman, how far gone is the night?
Watchman, how far gone is the night?”
12 The watchman says,
“Morning comes but also night.
If you would inquire, inquire;
Come back again.”
13 The pronouncement about Arabia:
In the thickets of Arabia you must spend the night,
You caravans of Dedanites.
14 Bring water for the thirsty,
You inhabitants of the land of Tema;
Meet the fugitive with bread.
15 For they have fled from the swords,
From the drawn sword, and from the bent bow,
And from the press of battle.
16 For this is what the Lord said to me: “In a year, as a hired worker would count it, all the splendor of Kedar will come to an end; 17 and the remainder of the number of bowmen, the warriors of the sons of Kedar, will be few; for the Lord God of Israel has spoken.”
The Valley of Vision
22 The pronouncement concerning the valley of vision:
What is the matter with you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops?
2 You who were full of noise,
You tumultuous town, you jubilant city;
Your dead were not killed with the sword,
Nor did they die in battle.
3 All your rulers have fled together,
And have been captured without the bow;
All of you who were found were taken captive together,
Though they had fled far away.
4 Therefore I say, “Look away from me,
Let me weep bitterly,
Do not try to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
5 For the Lord God of armies has a day of panic, subjugation, and confusion
In the valley of vision,
A breaking down of walls
And a crying to the mountain.
6 Elam picked up the quiver,
With the chariots, infantry, and horsemen;
And Kir uncovered the shield.
7 Then your choicest valleys were full of chariots,
And the horsemen took positions at the gate.
8 And He removed the defense of Judah.
On that day you depended on the weapons of the house of the forest,
9 And you saw that the breaches
In the wall of the city of David were many;
And you collected the waters of the lower pool.
10 Then you counted the houses of Jerusalem
And tore down houses to fortify the wall.
11 And you made a reservoir between the two walls
For the waters of the old pool.
But you did not depend on Him who made it,
Nor did you take into consideration Him who planned it long ago.
12 Therefore on that day the Lord God of armies called you to weeping, to wailing,
To shaving the head, and to wearing sackcloth.
13 Instead, there is joy and jubilation,
Killing of cattle and slaughtering of sheep,
Eating of meat and drinking of wine:
“Let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we may die.”
14 But the Lord of armies revealed Himself to me:
“Certainly this wrongdoing will not be forgiven you
Until you die,” says the Lord God of armies.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
Once again, the Lord is giving specific messages through Isaiah. Now He added Babylon and Edom. Isaiah was not only told to proclaim the prophecy, but to physically display it. It was not enough that he had been wearing sackcloth, but now the Lord instructed him to deliver the message naked and barefoot for three years as a sign to the people. Wow! Today, He may not ask us to walk that kind of sign out before the people, but He does ask each of us to walk in His ways so people can see Him in us. The people had put their hope in what they thought were strong nations that could not be defeated. However, nations are nothing compared to the will of God.
Where is your hope today? Today, our currency says, “In God we trust.” However, there has been a movement to remove all references of God in government. The people that would remove God from being their trust and hope would put the culture, created things, and the perceived strength of this nation in His place. However, when you count on things you think are strong and do not have your hope and trust in God, you will always be disappointed. We should pay close attention, very close attention. He can remove the defense of this nation just like He removed the defense of Judah. Our hope must always be in the one true living God. Stay on His straight and narrow path.