Isaiah 44
THE first five verses are in subject connected with the preceding chapter, but the division of the Bible into chapters and verses, while very useful, is a human arrangement, and far from perfect. It was in 1250, nearly 700 years ago, that a cardinal of Rome named Hugo divided the Bible into chapters as it is today. In 1551, an Englishman, Sir Robert Stephens; put out a Greek New Testament with the verse arrangement we have in our Bibles; in 1560 the whole Bible was printed in this form for the first time.
“Fear not!” (verse 2). These words of inexpressible comfort to faint-hearted saints are found in the Bible no less than 33 times as uttered by God, or spoken by angels, His messengers, who delight to do His bidding. Well might the Psalmist say,
Should the Christian fear when John 10:27-3027My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. 30I and my Father are one. (John 10:27‑30); Rom. 8; 2 Cor. 5:1-51For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: 3If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 4For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. 5Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 5:1‑5); 1 John 4:1717Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. (1 John 4:17) assure him on God’s authority of his security now and eternally?
“Jeshurun,” a name given to Israel in Deut; chapters 32 and 33, and in our chapter, is believed, to mean “the upright (people).”
Faith grasps God’s “I wills” (verse 3), wherever they are found. They speak of the blessed purposes of our gracious God, as we sometimes sing,
“Whose love is as great as His power. And knows neither measure nor end.”
See Gen. 9:1515And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. (Genesis 9:15) to Noah and his descendants; Gen. 17: 1-S to Abraham; Ex. 12:1313And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:13); to Moses and the children of Israel; Matt. 8:33And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. (Matthew 8:3) to the leper; John 14:33And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3) to the Lord’s people of this day, and Heb. 13:55Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. (Hebrews 13:5) for believers at all times.
It fills the heart with gladness to think of the day to come when God’s earthly people, the Jews, now blind and deaf (chapter 42:19, 20) to the gospel of His grace, will carry out what verse 5 foretells of them.
Verses 6 to 20 take up again the needful discussion of the idols to whose worship Israel was so prone, Who can speak as God can? To the heart and the conscience His Word is directed; why would not His chosen people hear, and repent with humble confession of their sinfulness?
We may think ourselves free from the besetting sin that was Israel’s, but let us recall that, after all, anything which is allowed to take the supreme place in the heart which belongs to God, is an idol. Not to those who bowed down before images of false gods, but to Christians, children of God by faith in Christ Jesus is 1 John 5:2121Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. (1 John 5:21) addressed,
“Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”
It is the living and eternal God who speaks (verse 6): the First and the Last, and beside Him there is no God. Compare this name of God with it as used by our risen Lord of Himself in Revelation 1:17, 1817And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. (Revelation 1:17‑18); there He is “the First and the Last, and the Risen One;”—He was dead, but is alive for evermore, and has the keys of hales and of death, —the mighty Conqueror of Satan and of death’s power, through His own death has brought deliverance to all who trust in Him.
All the issues of life are in the hands of God; who but He has foretold with absolute truth, what has happened, and what will happen? (verse 7). Have the substitutes for Himself that Satan has provided, —the idols, or the sorcerers, the necromancers, the star-gazers, on the one hand: or man, boastful in his pride, self-sufficient as he deems, —have these proved themselves trustworthy? Let such answer the demand of verse 7; for the children of God, there can be no question at all, —Satan, the father of lies, held out to Eve in the garden of Eden a bright prospect (Gen. 3:55For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. (Genesis 3:5)). But what misery, what tears, and groans, what fearful consequences have followed believing Satan’s lie!
Coming down to the measure of man’s darkened mind, God in verses 9-20 shows the utter folly of idol worship (see Rom. 1:21-2321Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. (Romans 1:21‑23)). The first mention of idolatry is in Gen. 31:1919And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's. (Genesis 31:19), but Josh. 24:14, 1514Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord. 15And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:14‑15) shows that it was from it that Abraham was called, the “flood” being the great river Euphrates (See Amos 5:25, 2625Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel? 26But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves. (Amos 5:25‑26) and Jer. 2:2828But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah. (Jeremiah 2:28)).
In most touching language God brings Himself before His people.
“Remember these things, O Jacob and Israel (the old and new names of the father of the nation) for thou art My servant; ... thou shalt not be forgotten of Me. I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions ... return unto Me, for I have redeemed thee” (verses 21, 22). This language will yet reach the stony heart of Israel, God’s Word will not return to Him void.
At the close of the chapter, the Persian deliverer of the Jews from the oppression of the Babylonians, already referred to in chapter 41, is named though then unborn. Man in his unbelief may reject the inspiration of the Bible, but for the Christian there can be no doubt that it is God Himself who speaks from its pages, and He alone declares in truth things to come. Cyrus is not the only case of a man’s being named long before his birth (see 1 Kings 13:2, 32And he cried against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee. 3And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the Lord hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out. (1 Kings 13:2‑3), fulfilled in 2 Kings 23:1616And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. (2 Kings 23:16)).
ML 12/31/1933