The LORD Has Chosen Israel
“But now listen, O Jacob My servant, Israel, whom I have chosen. This is the word of the LORD, your Maker, who formed you from the womb and who will help you: “Do not be afraid, O Jacob My servant, Jeshurun, (Jeshurun means the upright one, a term of endearment for Israel.) whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring. They will sprout among the grass like poplars by flowing streams. One will say, ‘I belong to the LORD,’ another will call himself by the name of Jacob, and still another will write on his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’ and will take the name of Israel.”
Thus says the LORD, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the LORD of Hosts: “I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God but Me. Who then is like Me? Let him say so! Let him declare his case before Me, since I established an ancient people. Let him foretell the things to come, and what is to take place. Do not tremble or fear. Have I not told you and declared it long ago? You are My witnesses! Is there any God but Me? There is no other Rock; I know not one.”
All makers of idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend, so they are put to shame. Who fashions a god or casts an idol which profits him nothing? Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are only human. Let them all assemble and take their stand; they will all be brought to terror and shame. The blacksmith takes a tool and labors over the coals; he fashions an idol with hammers and forges it with his strong arms. Yet he grows hungry and loses his strength; he fails to drink water and grows faint. The woodworker extends a measuring line; he marks it out with a stylus he shapes it with chisels and outlines it with a compass. He fashions it in the likeness of man, like man in all his glory, that it may dwell in a shrine.
He cuts down cedars or retrieves a cypress or oak. He lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel, and the rain makes it grow. It serves as fuel for man. He takes some of it to warm himself, and he kindles a fire and bakes his bread; he even fashions it into a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it. He burns half of it in the fire, and he roasts meat on that half. He eats the roast and is satisfied. Indeed, he warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.” From the rest he makes a god, his graven image. He bows down to it and worships; he prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.”
They do not comprehend or discern, for He has shut their eyes so they cannot see and closed their minds so they cannot understand. And no one considers in his heart, no one has the knowledge or insight to say, “I burned half of it in the fire, and I baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make something detestable with the rest of it? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?” He feeds on ashes. His deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”
Jerusalem To Be Restored
Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are My servant, O Israel. I have made you; you are My servant; O Israel, I will never forget you. I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud, and your sins like a mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you. Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O depths of the earth.
Break out into singing, O mountains, you forests and all your trees. For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and revealed His glory in Israel. Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who by Myself spread out the earth, who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who confounds the wise and turns their knowledge into nonsense, who confirms the message of His servant and fulfills the counsel of His messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be inhabited,’ and of the cities of Judah, ‘They will be rebuilt, and I will restore their ruins,’ who says to the depths of the sea, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your currents,’ who says of Cyrus, ‘My shepherd will fulfill all that I desire,’ who says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be rebuilt,’ and of the temple, ‘Let its foundation be laid.’”
“This is the word of the LORD, your Maker, who formed you from the womb and who will help you: “Do not be afraid, O Jacob My servant, Jeshurun, (Jeshurun means the upright one, a term of endearment for Israel.) whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” Once more, God is promising to restore Israel and to recall the Israelites to worship only Him.
At the same time, God is also reaffirming that HE is the only true God. “Have I not told you and declared it long ago? You are My witnesses! Is there any God but Me? There is no other Rock; I know not one.”
Imagine that you are God and you are watching people insisting on creating their own idols. How weird is that? “All makers of idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend, so they are put to shame. Who fashions a god or casts an idol which profits him nothing? Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are only human.” God describes the total futility of such practices. “He feeds on ashes. His deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”
Finally, Isaiah predicts the coming of Cyrus and ultimate restoration of Jerusalem and the temple. Although there are those who insist that Isaiah really didn’t predict the coming of Cyrus 100 years before he lived, this interpretation simply indicates the lack of faith on the part of these interpreters. “…who says of Cyrus, ‘My shepherd will fulfill all that I desire,’ who says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be rebuilt,’ and of the temple, ‘Let its foundation be laid.’”
APPLICATION: One of the most wonderful things about God’s promises is that they work on several different levels. While God originally gave these prophecies to Isaiah for the nation of Israel, these promises are also available for all those who believe.
- “I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” How many of us have children, grandchildren, or others for whom we pray daily that they will come to know Jesus as Savior and Lord?
- “Thus says the LORD, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the LORD of Hosts: “I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God but Me.” We have the assurance of the One True Living God, the Creator of the universe, that we are not wasting our faith or our efforts in believing.
- God is reminding us that idols are useless. It is left for us to search our hearts to make sure that we have not created an idol without meaning to do so.
- God reminds us that He is a God of restoration. Eventually, God moved Cyrus of Persia to call for the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple. God continues to restore and to rebuild.
One of our closest friends in our area is a local pastor who spent many years as a fetish worshiper, sacrificing animals and enduring all kinds of rituals to get power. But at some point, God got our friend’s attention, totally transforming his life. Now our friend ministers to villages on both sides of the Ghana/Togo border, testifying to the power of God to change lives and to give hope.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, please help all who read these words to realize just how much You love them and how much You want good things for them. Help them to abandon their idols and trust wholly in You. In the mighty and precious Name of Jesus. Amen.
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