Israel’s Only Savior
“Now this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place. Because you are precious and honored in My sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you and nations in place of your life.
Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back!’ Bring My sons from afar, and My daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone called by My name and created for My glory, whom I have indeed formed and made.” Bring out a people who have eyes but are blind, and who have ears but are deaf.
All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Who among them can declare this, and proclaim to us the former things? Let them present their witnesses to vindicate them, so that others may hear and say, “It is true.” “You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may consider and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me, no god was formed, and after Me none will come. I, yes I, am the LORD, and there is no Savior but Me. I alone decreed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you. So you are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “that I am God. Even from eternity I am He, and none can deliver out of My hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”
A Way in the Wilderness
Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake, I will send to Babylon and bring them all as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships in which they rejoice. I am the LORD, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, and your King.”
Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea and a path through the surging waters, who brings out the chariots and horses, the armies and warriors together, to lie down, never to rise again; to be extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: “Do not call to mind the former things; pay no attention to the things of old. Behold, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert. The beasts of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My chosen people. The people I formed for Myself will declare My praise.
Israel’s Unfaithfulness (Judges 2:10-15; Jeremiah 2:23-37)
But you have not called on Me, O Jacob, because you have grown weary of Me, O Israel. You have not brought Me sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored Me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with offerings, nor wearied you with frankincense. You have not bought Me sweet cane with your silver, nor satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices. But you have burdened Me with your sins; you have wearied Me with your iniquities.
I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more. Remind Me, let us argue the matter together. State your case, so that you may be vindicated. Your first father sinned, and your spokesmen rebelled against Me. So I will disgrace the princes of your sanctuary, and I will devote Jacob to destruction and Israel to reproach.”
God through Isaiah is trying to call Israel back to Himself one more time. But nobody seems to be listening. Look at the promises God is making! “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place. Because you are precious and honored in My sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you and nations in place of your life.” Favored nation status? It doesn’t get much better than this. Why would anybody turn down such an offer from the God of the universe? And it gets better.
“Do not call to mind the former things; pay no attention to the things of old. Behold, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert.” In any desert, water is a precious commodity. No matter how well adapted to desert life an animal might be, it still requires water. Finding a way through a waterless wasteland can be treacherous and deadly, but God is promising that He will make a way. But there’s a big problem.
Even after God has done all kinds of miracles for Israel, the Israelites have ignored God and have refused to worship Him. Even worse, when the Israelites have brought animals for sacrifices, they have brought the lame, the maimed, and the blind. “But you have burdened Me with your sins; you have wearied Me with your iniquities.” The prophet Malachi also brings a similar charge against the Israelites. “When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the LORD Almighty.” (Malachi 1:8)
God is offering incredible deliverance on the one hand and condemnation on the other. Unfortunately, the Israelites are persisting in their sins, choosing their own destruction. “So I will disgrace the princes of your sanctuary, and I will devote Jacob to destruction and Israel to reproach.”
APPLICATION: Some people are so foolish that they would cut off their own noses to spite their own faces! The ancient Israelites KNEW that their God had repeatedly delivered them and they KNEW that their God still wanted to deliver them; yet, they steadfastly refused to turn away from their sins. Stupidity has been described as making the same mistake repeatedly and expecting different results. That’s where the Israelites stand at this point.
Throughout the history of both the Northern and Southern kingdoms, God has repeatedly delivered when people have called on Him, but they remain recalcitrant. Through Isaiah, God is making some of His strongest arguments, and yet the Israelites are refusing to listen. We know that eventually God allows the Assyrians to overrun Judah, destroying much of Jerusalem.
The wonderful thing about God’s promises is that they don’t just apply to one set of people. Untold numbers of believers have taken courage from God’s promises to be with them through fire and floods and to make a way in the desert, supplying them with water. Those same believers have lived to testify to God’s goodness and provision. One such saint, Robert Keene, wrote this grand old hymn in 1787: “How Firm a Foundation Ye Saints of the Lord.”
- How firm a foundation, ye Saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in his excellent word!
What more can he say than to you he hath said,
Who unto the Savior, who unto the Savior,
Who unto the Savior for refuge have fled?
2. In ev’ry condition—in sickness, in health,
In poverty’s vale or abounding in wealth,
At home or abroad, on the land or the sea—
As thy days may demand, as thy days may demand,
As thy days may demand, so thy succor shall be.
3. Fear not, I am with thee; oh, be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid.
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by my righteous, upheld by my righteous,
Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.
4. When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o’erflow,
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee, and sanctify to thee,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.
5. When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply.
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, thy dross to consume,
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.
6. E’en down to old age, all my people shall prove
My sov’reign, eternal, unchangeable love;
And then, when gray hair shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs shall they still, like lambs shall they still,
Like lambs shall they still in my bosom be borne.
7. The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose
I will not, I cannot, desert to his foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, I’ll never, no never,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, let these words of faith sink into our hearts and become our testimony. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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