BIG IDEA:
THE MIGHTY GOD CARRIES OUT HIS MASTER PLAN FOR THE REPENTANT REMNANT BY CONTROLLING HISTORICAL CYCLES OF OPPRESSION, DELIVERANCE AND JUDGMENT
INTRODUCTION:
When it comes to the future of the nation of Israel, make no mistake, God has a master plan. He sovereignly decrees the events of history and the courses of nations. He also has a plan for each of us as individuals.
1. Understand the Roots of the nation of Israel – What had God promised?
– Promises to Abraham
– Promises to David
2. Understand the Destiny of the nation of Israel – How will they end up?
– Concept of the Day of the Lord – Judgment and Purging
– Return to the Lord as the believing remnant – “All Israel will be saved”
– Entrance into the glorious Messianic kingdom on earth
Every plan has its Genesis – its beginnings
Every plan has its Revelation – its culmination in history
THE MIGHTY GOD CARRIES OUT HIS MASTER PLAN FOR THE REPENTANT REMNANT BY CONTROLLING HISTORICAL CYCLES OF OPPRESSION, DELIVERANCE AND JUDGMENT
Let’s look at the Mighty God in Action:
I. (:20-23) WORD OF HOPE FOR THE OPPRESSED — THE MIGHTY GOD OFFERS TARGETED HOPE TO THE REPENTANT REMNANT AFTER MASSIVE DESTRUCTION —
DON’T GIVE UP ON GOD AND HIS PROMISES
A. (:20) Oppression – The Mighty God Promotes Genuine Faith thru the Crucible of Oppression
“Now it will come about in that day that the remnant of Israel, and those of the house of Jacob who have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.”
Looks forward to the final Day of the Lord
Frame of reference – 2 Options??
1) Talking about the northern kingdom here (not talking about Ahaz in the south turning to Assyria)
2) Or talking about the entire nation here and focuses more on Judah specifically in the next paragraph – so this could be an appropriate reference to the misplaced trust of Ahaz = my preference – but still with an emphasis on the northern kingdom …
Lot of hypocrisy – people who claim to rely on God (“lean on”) but do not
Motyer: The reference to the Lord as a Warrior God is suited to this context where the people have been under the heel of a conqueror and need liberation. He is a “God of warrior-prowess”, as in Joshua 5:13 – 6:27, and as Isaiah will see him again in 59:15b-20. Whatever his people’s need, since the Lord “of hosts” possesses every potentiality and power, he casts himself into the appropriate role.
But still maintain sense of deity – not just a mighty warrior but mighty God so that prophecy of Messiah in 9:6 maintains that emphasis on deity
B. (:21-22a) Deliverance — The Mighty God Delivers the Tiny Repentant Remnant
“A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. For though your people, O Israel, may be like the sand of the sea, Only a remnant within them will return;”
Shear-Jashub = “a remnant will return”
Hos. 3:5 “Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king; and they will come trembling to the Lord and to His goodness in the last days.”
9:6 messianic promise of the Mighty God that would come
Cf. Rom. 9:27
Oswalt: despite the ring of Assurance that the people will not be annihilated, it is still true that the remnant will be but a fragment of the original. The promises to Abraham . . . cannot be used as a hedge to protect oneself from judgment (Luke 3:7-9), which is apparently what some were doing in Isaiah’s day. They were evidently arguing that God’s promises to multiply them would be kept to the extent that they would always be a numerous people.
C. (:22b-23) Judgment — The Mighty God Executes Judgment Consistent with Righteousness
“A destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness. For a complete destruction, one that is decreed, the Lord God of hosts will execute in the midst of the whole land.”
Overflowing with righteous judgment – getting what they deserved
Beall: The prophecy spans a large sequence of time, since it alludes to Ahaz’s policy of depending upon Assyria for help (the issue in chaps. 7 and 8), and the ultimate dependence of Israel upon the Lord in the Millennium. Israel will depend on “the Lord, the Holy One of Israel” (laer”f.yI vAdq. hw”hy>) rather than upon Assyria, who was an undependable “ally” that defeated Israel.
Van Parunak: The majority of commentators understand this to be an allusion to Ahaz and his policy of calling on Assyria for help, as we discussed in ch. 7. But this interpretation has two flaws. First, it ignores the distinction between Israel in vv. 20-23 and Judah in 24-32. Second, it is imprecise. Assyria never smote Ahaz. It was only under Hezekiah that Assyria afflicted the southern kingdom.
As we observed in discussing the alternating verb tenses in 9:8-12, Assyria took many of Israel captive in the reign of Pekah, leading to a coup by Hoshea, who adopted a policy of submitting to Assyrian rule. He chose to “stay [lean] upon him who smote them.”
The remnant shall return,–In Hebrew, this clause is “Shear-Yashub,” the name of Isaiah’s son from 7:3.
Beall: the remnant concept also has its negative side, since Isaiah reminds the nation that even if their people are now as numerous as the sand of the sea (language reminiscent of the Abrahamic covenant [Gen 22:17; 32:12]), only a remnant will return. The destruction of the rest will be an indication of God’s righteousness: He will judge mankind.
II. (:24-27) WORD OF DELIVERANCE — THE MIGHTY GOD PROMISES AMAZING DELIVERANCE TO JUDAH VIA THE COMING ANOINTED ONE –
DON’T FEAR (DESPITE HOW BAD THINGS MAY LOOK)
A. (:24-25) Oppression – The Mighty God Calms Our Fears by Stressing the Purpose and Brevity of Oppression
1. Present Oppression Will Come to an End Just as Former Oppression Came to an End
“Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts, ‘O My people who dwell in Zion, do not fear the Assyrian who strikes you with the rod and lifts up his staff against you, the way Egypt did.’”
Matthew Henry: Considerations offered for the silencing of their fear.
1. The Assyrian shall do nothing against them but what God has appointed and determined. They are here told beforehand what he shall do, that it may be no surprise to them
2. The storm shall soon blow over
3. The enemy that threatens them shall himself be reckoned with.
4. They shall be wholly delivered from the power of the Assyrian, and from the fear of it
2. Allow the Anger of God to Accomplish His Purposes as He Redirects it Against Your Oppressors
“For in a very little while My indignation against you will be spent, and My anger will be directed to their destruction.”
Timothy Dane: “indignation” – used often for God’s anger against His own people 10:5; 26:20; Dan. 8:19 “the final period of the indignation”; Dan. 11:36 “for that which is decreed will be done”
Ps. 30:4-5 “Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name. For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning.”
B. (:26) Judgment – The Mighty God Executes Judgment in Accordance with Righteousness
1. Remember the Amazing Judgment of the Midianites
“And the LORD of hosts will arouse a scourge against him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb;”
Assyrians will not be able to escape; despite Sennacharib fleeing with small remainder of his army back to capital city of Nineveh; killed by his two sons
2. Remember the Amazing Judgment of the Egyptians
“and His staff will be over the sea, and He will lift it up the way He did in Egypt.”
Ex. 14 – Moses parted the waters by raising his staff over them; then the armies of Pharaoh perished
C. (:27) Deliverance – The Mighty God Breaks the Yoke of Oppression
1. Anticipate Long Awaited Deliverance From Oppression
“So it will be in that day, that his burden will be removed from your shoulders and his yoke from your neck,”
compulsion to render service to foreign oppressors
2. Look to the Coming Messiah for Deliverance
“and the yoke will be broken because of fatness.”
Van Parunak: “Rod” and “staff” in 10:5 recall the oppression mentioned in 9:4, “the staff of his shoulder, and the rod of his oppressor.” There, deliverance from that oppression was compared with “the day of Midian,” the great victory that God gave Gideon over Israel’s adversaries, and here the same imagery emerges.
2 Options for transalation of the word: “fatness” or “oil” (standing for anointed one)
1) fatness
a. In a negative sense
1)) Related to Assyria
Beall: The last clause is obscure: the Heb. word means “fat” or “oil”–it probably means that the Lord would destroy the yoke of Assyria because of their pride and self-sufficiency–that is how the word is used in v. 16. [but is the fatness symbolic of Assyria or Israel (as Young)?]
2)) Related to Israel
Oswalt: the picture drawn is of an ox who has eaten so well and been worked so little that the very fat of its neck breaks the yoke away (Delitzch citing Kimchi).
b. In a positive sense – related to Israel experiencing the blessing and prosperity of the Lord — Timothy Dane: strength of Israel
2) oil – used for anointing – reference to the coming anointed one
Van Parunak: Though modern versions like to refer this to fatness, the AV’s association makes more sense. Israel’s kings, unlike Assyria’s, enjoyed the divine anointing symbolized by the oil. The Targum explicitly says that “the people [sc. the Assyrians] shall be broken before the Messiah.” In our next portion (v. 34), we will see another example of this assertion, when Assyria, pictured as Lebanon, falls by “the Mighty One.”
Cf. 9:4
III. (:28-34) WORD OF JUDGMENT — THE MIGHTY GOD STRIKES DOWN THE ARROGANT ASSYRIANS BEFORE THEY CAN ADD JERUSALEM TO THEIR IMPRESSIVE LIST OF CONQUESTS —
DON’T SHAKE YOUR FIST AT GOD (AND ARROGANTLY ASSERT YOUR OWN AGENDA)
A. (:28-31) Waves of Oppression — The Mighty God Hears the Growing Desperation of a Land Overrun by Progressive Conquests – the Wicked are on a Roll
“He has come against Aiath, He has passed through Migron; At Michmash he deposited his baggage. They have gone through the pass, saying, ‘Geba will be our lodging place.’ Ramah is terrified, and Gibeah of Saul has fled away. Cry aloud with your voice, O daughter of Gallim! Pay attention, Laishah and wretched Anathoth! Madmenah has fled. The inhabitants of Gebim have sought refuge.”
The whole land invaded and overrun
Places located North and Northeast of Jerusalem
Oswalt: No literal attack is necessary for this account to serve its purpose in this setting. By means of short, hard-hitting phrases it depicts an army’s relentless progress southward from a point some fifteen miles north of Jerusalem until it finally stands overlooking the Holy City.
Young: The enemy approaches closer and closer to Jerusalem and the desperation of the local inhabitants becomes greater and greater.
B. (:32) Battleground for Divine Deliverance – The Mighty God Protects Jerusalem from the Arrogant Assault – the Wicked Shake Their Fists at God
“Yet today he will halt at Nob; He shakes his fist at the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.”
C. (:33-34) Severity of Judgment – The Mighty God Cuts Down the Arrogant Wicked – the Wicked are Abased
“Behold, the Lord, the God of hosts, will lop off the boughs with a terrible crash; Those also who are tall in stature will be cut down, And those who are lofty will be abased. And He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe, And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.”
Motyer: In contrast to the bogus sovereignty of the king, the real Sovereign takes centre stage.
[Some commentators think it refers to judgment upon Judah as an introduction to 11:1-2; but the context seems to fit better with Assyria being the target.]
Whole forest will be cut down – both the tall, majestic trees and the underlying growth of thickets
MacArthur: The OT equates Assyria to Lebanon (Eze 31:3; cf. 2:13; 37:24).
Constable: The prophet now changed his perspective as well as his figure. Even though Assyria would menace and, indeed, destroy Jerusalem, Yahweh of armies would cut the enemy down to size as a lumberjack trimmed branches off a tree and finally felled it. God’s irresistible instrument would cut back Assyria’s many lofty leaders. This would be a felling as colossal as the harvesting of Lebanon’s vast forests (cf. Ezek. 31:3).
CONCLUSION:
THE MIGHTY GOD CARRIES OUT HIS MASTER PLAN FOR THE REPENTANT REMNANT BY CONTROLLING HISTORICAL CYCLES OF OPPRESSION, DELIVERANCE AND JUDGMENT
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DON’T GIVE UP ON GOD AND HIS PROMISES – LIVE IN HOPE
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DON’T FEAR (DESPITE HOW BAD THINGS MAY LOOK) – LIVE IN FAITH AND THANKSGIVING
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DON’T SHAKE YOUR FIST AT GOD (AND ARROGANTLY ASSERT YOUR OWN AGENDA) – LIVE IN ANTICIPATION OF ACCOUNTABILITY
How different our lives would be!