Daughter of Zion - Jeremiah 6

Jeremiah 6:1 "O ye children of Benjamin, gather yourselves to flee out of the midst of Jerusalem and blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a sign of fire in Bethhaccerem; for evil appeareth out of the north, and great destruction."

The trumpet was sound was the sign to Israel for various occasions, one concerned the approach of the enemy.

Here the prophet is encouraging them to sound the trumpet to let the people know to escape from the approaching enemy.

v4 "Prepare ye war against her; arise and let us go up at noon. Woe unto us! for the day goeth away, for the shadows of the evening are stretched out."

It appears to be hopeless because this is the judgment that is to come upon Israel for disobedience. Still the prophet sounds the warning.

v11 "Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD; I am weary with holding in: I will pour it out upon the children abroad, and upon the assembly of young men together; for even the husband with the wife shall be taken, the aged with him that is full of days."

The answer for Israel is simple, return to the Lord. As the scripture has said before, they have eyes to see and ears to hear but they will not even as the enemy approaches.

v16 "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye int he ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls, But they said, We will not walk therein."

The enemy is fearsome: v22 "Thus saith the LORD, Behold a people cometh from the north country, and a great nation shall be raised from the sides of the earth."

It is a sad time. The prophet cries for the nation to repent. The Lord calls for them to return to him. The enemy is on the way. Judgment is sure. Yet Israel continues as if nothing is going to happen. It is a hard lesson they are about to learn and one we should all take heed to.

v2 "I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and delicate woman."

Submission - Isaiah 64

Isaiah 64:8 "But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand."

See also Jeremiah 18:6

Previously, we have see a confession of sin and the need seen for a redeemer. Here we see acknowledgement that God is God and we are his creation. I think many people have the mistaken idea that man has an option when it comes to recognizing that God exist and that we are obliged to honor him as our creator. We must submit to his position of authority over us. It can be voluntary with substantial rewards or in the judgment day with substantial penalties.

The potter and the clay is a good illustration when we consider the creation of man and how the Lord made us from the clay of the earth.

v6 "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."

Here is what might be called a paradox. We are so much below God in position that we are as but a leaf that falls from a tree and gradually fades away. Yet, we find that God, in his great love, is mindful of us and cared enough for us to send his Son to die for our iniquity. Not His iniquity but our iniquity. That is true love.

Then there is the need. In this case, they acknowledge that they are in disrepair, destroyed and desolate. Now, they can get some help.

v10 "Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation."

We have claimed it as our own and swelled with pride but it is all yours Lord.

v12 "Wilt thou refrain thyself for these things, O LORD? wilt thou hold thy peace, and afflict us very sore?"

"Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?" Psalm 85:6

Beulah and Hephziabah - Isaiah 62

Isaiah 62:4 "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married."

Beulah: married Hephzibah : my delight restored

Israel like Gomer in the book of Hosea is here restored to intimate relationship with the Lord. There is no denying that Israel is the apple of God's eye. If you read Hosea, you will see the sad condition of Israel of this day. They had left the Lord and gone after idols. In the comparison to marriage here, they had committed adultery.

v12 "And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD; and thou shalt be called, Sought out, a city not forsaken."

We are, of course, speaking of Zion and Jerusalem.

v1 "For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth."

The enemy will be cast out and God's people will again reap and eat the fruit of the crops they labored for. No longer will people pass through Israel and wag their heads at the desolation. In the marriage illustration, it would be the same as someone making fun of a man's wife, the husband would become very angry if he loved her as God loves Israel.

v6 "I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,"

Preacher - Isaiah 61

Isaiah 1:1 "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; v2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD; and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;"

Jesus quoted this passage in Luke 4:18-19 and followed it with the following words: "...This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." And he truly did all those things.

It is a message of hope for those of Zion who are under heavy burdens and are cast down to the lowest point.

v3 "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified."

As much of Isaiah is, this chapter is about redemption and their can be no redemption without the Redeemer. We can see a foretaste of these things in the gospel and when the time of grace is fulfilled and judgment is rendered, the full impact of these promises will be completed.

v11 "For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations."

In verse ten it says "...as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels." This refers also to Revelation 21:2. "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."

We live somewhere between creation and the conclusion of time. We can but be amazed at what is to come. Perhaps, we can grasp a part of how it will be. I doubt our imagination can touch the totality of what is to come. I expect it will be wondrous.

II Peter 1:4 "And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away."

I Thessalonians 4:16-17 "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord."

That is jsut the start of the rest of eternity.

Zion Awake - Isaiah 52

v14Isaiah 52:1 "Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean."

Israel is in a sad state at this time. They are captive and it would seem there was no hope. Here the Lord is telling them to get all cleaned up and put on your best for the Lord is going to restore them to greatness.

v2 "Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion."

Can you see the picture? A slave with a collar around their neck being beaten, dragged and walked on. Then comes a voice that tells them to shake off these symbols of bondage for they are coming home.

v3 "For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money."

Here we can jump over to Zechariah and spot some beautiful verses:

Zechariah 2:8 "For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you; for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye." Joshua seems to represent the nation and we see him in dirty garments but is cleaned up by the Lord. v3 "Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and stood before the angel. v4 And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment." So he will do for Israel. Although they are helpless to redeem themselves, He will redeem them because he loves them.

v9 "Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem; for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem."

As a Christian, I recognize that this redemption comes through Jesus. Israel, as a nation, still waits for the Messiah and this redemption. Here is the verse that I believe refers to Jesus as do many others:

v13 "Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high."

Further we see the crucifixion mentioned, although, not understood at the time. See also Psalm 22.

v14 "As many were astonished at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men;"

So we see the mystery that many wished to understand.

v15 "So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him; for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider."

See also Luke 22-23.

Highway and a Way Isaiah 35

Isaiah 35:8 "And an highway shall be there; and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein."

Almost all this chapter refers to the coming of Messiah. You can see the ministry of Jesus throughout. As the first says, in this highway even a fool can walk without erring.

So, look out for those that are weaker, a better day is coming.

v3 "Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees."

v4 "Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not; behold your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you."

The verse says 'your God will come' then he repeats it 'he will come'. And Christians know that he did come. Whether everyone believes in Jesus or not, next month the world will acknowledge in one way or another his birth.

v5 "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped."

Luke 11:14 "And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered."

Luke 18:42 "And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee."

Luke 8:50 "But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying Fear not; believe only, and she shall be made whole."

These are a few examples of the fulfilling of this chapter in Isaiah. Jesus often said 'Fear not'.

v10 "And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

These words are being spoken to give hope in the face of suffering. A time of trouble is ahead as we will see in the next chapter but joy is promised. We are much in the same boat today, we live in a troubled world. There is no escaping to Egypt for us, we live in a time of global trouble and we can see it on the news. But we have a hope that joy will come.

Joel 3:17 "So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain; then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more."

Revelation 21:27 "And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

Do you remember the story of the great supper where the guest did not show and the master sent his servants out into the highways and byways to find people for guest. Although many have rejected Jesus, he will fill the house.

Luke 14:16 "Then said he unto him A certain man made a great supper, and bade many. And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it; I pray thee have me excused. And another said I have bought five yoke of oxen...And another said, I have married a wife... when the master heard this he sent out his servants again v23 "And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. v24 "For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper."

As it was said "I turn to the Gentiles."

Jesus waits for anyone to come to him for salvation. We will be one with him.

The Promise

Isaiah 12:1 "And in that day thou shalt say, O LORD, I will praise thee; though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me."

In the midst of judgment, here is a message of comfort that someday the Lord's anger would be turned away and Israel would rest in the promise land.

It reminded me of an oft quoted passage in the New Testament. John 14 came to us between the birth of Jesus and his death on the cross. It was a time when it must have seemed to Jesus' disciples that all was lost.

And for us, as Christians, we are between the birth of our redemption and the promise of our rest in heaven.

John 14:1 "Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in me." The chapter of comfort begins. Then he promises: v2 "...I go to prepare a place for you. v3 "...I will come again, and receive you unto myself..."

Here we see those comforting words to a people that were going into captivity: v3 "Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation."

They knew about wells. Their forefathers had gone about digging wells to give people water and to water their flocks. One of those wells was an important part of Jesus' ministry. Remember, the woman at the well. John 4:6 "Now Jacob's well was there, Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well; and it was about the sixth hour."

We know the story of how Jesus used the well to illustrate the plan of salvation to the woman of Samaria.

So, we could call this chapter the chapter of hope. We can endure many troubles if there is hope of relief at the end. It is when there is no hope that people despair.

v4 "And it that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted."

v6 "Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee."

What was the hope? For one, the LORD would be in their midst. Israel would honor him as in the beginning. They would have joy again and sing as before. That's a lot to look forward to.

Psalm 119:75 "I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me."

The Remnant Isaiah 10

Isaiah 10:12 "Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the LORD hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks."

Assyria is the instrument used to punish the children of Israel but Assyria thought themselves to be more than that. So, in this chapter we are told that once the purpose of Assyria is fulfilled, their attitude will be dealt with.

v20 "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth."

There were the very poor who were left by the conquerors to tend the vineyards and then there were those who returned from captivity to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. These are the remnant. Others did not return when given the opportunity because they were doing well financially in the land of captivity.

v21 "The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God."

I'd recommend Nehemiah and Daniel as study books here. We should keep in mind, as Christians, that all the prophecy concerning Israel has not been fulfilled. The gospel is still a mystery to those who do not believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God. We live now in a time when redemption is come to the Gentiles, a time of grace, before the events of Daniel and Revelation fully come to pass.

We are looking from Isaiah toward the short term future events and the long term future events. I think there are some key words and phrases which should be considered: v12 "whole work" "remnant" "v25 "very little while" "indignation" .

v33 "Behold the LORD, the LORD of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror; and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled."

We could say that the LORD is chastening Israel but he will not allow the punisher to exceed his bounds without cost.

Psalm 119:81 "My soul fainteth for thy salvation; but I hope in thy word."

Enemies Trickery Nehemiah 6

Nehemiah 6:2 "That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me saying Come let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief."

In the first verse it tells of the frustration of the enemy with the fact that the wall was finished to the point that there were no breaches in it. You remember that at first, the enemy just laughed and said it could not be done, then they tried to attack to stop the work. Both attempts failed and now they want to get Nehemiah out of the city so they can possibly kill him. Nehemiah did not fall for it.

v3 "And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?"

So then a letter writing campaign started between the enemy and the princes. The enemy accused the Jews of planning a rebellion which Nehemiah denied. Then one of the enemy wanted Nehemiah to hid from the danger in the house of God by shutting him up inside.

v10 "Afterward I came unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up and he said Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee."

It was all about trying to put fear into Nehemiah so that he would hid instead of doing the work. Shemaiah was already shut up in his own house and he wanted Nehemiah to do the same in the Lord's house.

v11 "And I said, Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in."

Verse twelve tells us that the man was hired by Sanballat. Verse 15 tells us that the wall was finally finished. The enemy is downcast.

v16 "And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God."

Nehemiah kept his focus on the task he was about. He did not stop because of ridicule, deception or threats on his own life. In the end, the finished wall was a witness to the power of God. I expect many memories of the great nation Israel was before the captivity, are now coming back to those who have abused the remnant.

Isaiah 30:19 "For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more; he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry, when he shall hear it, he will answer thee."

The enemy tries to trick Nehemiah into endangering himself.