Isaiah 28:1

Isaiah 28:1 says, Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine!  This is a warning to the ten tribes of Israel of their coming defeat by the king of Assyria.  They were prosperous at that time, but it wasn’t going to last.  Those who do not acknowledge God and His authority in the world may be rich in material things, but one day they are going to lose it all.  If it doesn’t happen before then, it will happen when Jesus Christ returns to claim those who are His.  It is not the powers of the world that we need to be concerned with, but our relationship with Jesus Christ. 

Verse two adds, Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand.  Isaiah reminded the people of Israel of the power of God.  They had grown rich while outside of God’s will, but God was still the One with all the power.  People may grow rich outside of God’s will, but it will be but a brief richness, no matter how long it lasts.  If we begin to value the things of the world more than our relationship with God, we are setting ourselves up for a fall. 

Verse three continues, The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet:  The people of Israel were proudful people, even though they had turned away from God.  They were putting their faith in themselves and not in God.  We profess ourselves to be a Christian nation, but if we turn away from God, no matter how powerful we may be in this lifetime, none of those things gained outside of God’s will are going to last.  We may even take pride in calling ourselves a Christian nation, but if our actions are not in accordance with God's laws, then one day He will take it all away. 

Verse four continues, And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.  This is a continuing warning about how fleeting the riches of the earth are.  The people of Israel may have grown fat from abundant harvests, but this was going to change.  This area was abundant in good crops, but the people had started to think of them as their right to have and had stopped giving God the glory and praise for them.  As followers of Jesus Christ, we should never begin to glorify ourselves instead of giving God the glory and praise. 

Verse five states, In that day shall the Lord of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people,  These promises applied to the people of Judah.  Isaiah said when this day of restoration came that God would be the crown for the glory of the people.  Their restoration would come because of the glory of God and not of their own merit.  We are restored to a relationship with God because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.  This was done for our benefit, but it was done for God’s glory. 

Verse six adds. And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate.  Isaiah said that God would give those who judged His wisdom, which is the only true wisdom, and He would also give strength to those who fought against the forces of evil for His glory.  As we engage in spiritual judgment and warfare today, we need to rely on God to give us the wisdom and strength to do so. 

Verse seven continues, But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.  Isaiah said that the people, even the priests and the prophets had erred by indulging in strong drinks that clouded their judgment.  Once more, I will say that taking a drink of alcohol is not necessarily a sin but allowing it to make you intoxicated is.   It seems that too often the objective of drinking is to get drunk, and this will never be acceptable to God. 

Verse eight concludes, For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean.  Being drunk led to filthiness on the table.  I hate to think about what a mess it would be if those we are eating with vomited on the table because they were drunk.  I personally can also see this as a warning against ‘vomiting out’ the filth of the world as we sit at the Lord’s table and the Lord’s table should be wherever His people gather to eat, whether as a family or a congregation.  We need to be careful that we don’t bring the filth of the world to our table. 

Isaiah 27:10

Isaiah 27:10 says, Yet the defenced city shall be desolate, and the habitation forsaken, and left like a wilderness: there shall the calf feed, and there shall he lie down, and consume the branches thereof. Isaiah said that the defended city would be desolate, with the cattle feeding in it.  This was all going to occur because of the idolatry of the people of Judah.  Whatever we hold to be more important than God will one day be done away with.  Even as followers of Christ, if we build up things in our life that are outside of God’s will, they will one day be nothing but desolation. 

Verse eleven adds, When the boughs thereof are withered, they shall be broken off: the women come, and set them on fire: for it is a people of no understanding: therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them will shew them no favour.  Isaiah said that when the boughs of the trees were withered, or dying, that the women would burn them for fuel.  They would no longer serve as a source of food for the people.  Isaiah said God pronounced them to be people of no understanding, no matter how smart they might have been.  God made them, but He was now going to have no mercy on them because they refused to turn away from their idols.  We cannot afford to allow anything to become more important to us than God is.  

Verse twelve continues, And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall beat off from the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt, and ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel.  Isaiah said that there was a promise of God that this punishment would not last forever.  He would once again gather those of His people who remained true to Him and restore them as a nation.  We have the promise of God that no matter how bad things may get in life that one day He is going to gather all His children, those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ, to Him. 

Verse thirteen concludes, And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem.  Isaiah said when that day came, that a trumpet would sound and the people would be returned to Jerusalem from wherever they were.  This was a temporary restoration, because nowhere on this earth will be our everlasting home.  One day, that final trumpet will sound and we will be called home to our everlasting home with Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 27:1

Isaiah 27:1 says, In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.  Matthew Henry says this refers to when God delivered His people from Sennacherib and to the destruction of the army of the Assyrians in one context, but it also refers to the deliverance of the church throughout the ages.  I believe it ultimately refers to the final deliverance when Jesus Christ returns again when Satan will be forever defeated.  Those enemies that are too powerful for us to defeat on our own have already been defeated by Jesus Christ, and all we have to do is put our faith in Him to claim this victory. 

Verse two adds, In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine.  We, like the people of Israel, or Judah in this case, are a part of God’s vineyard and He will always take care of us spiritually.  For that reason, we need to sing praises to Him every day. 

Verse three continues, I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.  Isaiah said that God had promised to take care of His vineyard, His people, day and night.  This is the assurance that we have as followers of Christ today.  There is never a time when we are not protected by God, no matter how big our enemies may seem.   

Verse four states, Fury is not in me: who would set the briers and thorns against me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together.   Isaiah said that even though the people of Judah had rebelled against God, that He didn’t look on then with fury.  If God found briars and thorns in His vineyard, He would trample them down, but not out of fury.  I believe that when we rebel against God and He has to chastise us, it isn’t out of fury, but out of love and with remorse.     

Verse five adds, Or let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me.  Isaiah then said that God invited the people to take hold of His strength so that they might make peace with Him.  In order to take hold of God’s strength, we must acknowledge that we are powerless to defeat sin and death on our own and put our faith in Him. 

Verse six continues, He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.  Isaiah then said that if they came to Him that God would cause the descendants of Jacob, His chosen people, to take root and fill the world with good fruit.  As followers of Christ, we are a part of His chosen people, and He expects us to fill the world with the good news, the gospel, and with good fruits of righteousness.

Verse seven says, Hath he smitten him, as he smote those that smote him? or is he slain according to the slaughter of them that are slain by him?   Isaiah said that those who are supposedly a part of the family of God but who aren’t obeying Him will be judged by Him.  They would be allowed to be killed in their disbelief.  As followers of Christ, when we disobey God, we do not lose our salvation, but we will one day have to account for our actions.  Just being a Christian does not give us the right to do whatever we choose to do.

Verse eight adds, In measure, when it shooteth forth, thou wilt debate with it: he stayeth his rough wind in the day of the east wind.  Matthew Henry says this means that God will judge the actions of His people, and even though they are His forever, He will still expect them to obey His word.  If we are disputing with God, we need to understand that we will always be wrong, and He will always be right. 

Verse nine continues, By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged; and this is all the fruit to take away his sin; when he maketh all the stones of the altar as chalkstones that are beaten in sunder, the groves and images shall not stand up.  Isaiah said God was going to take away the iniquity of Jacob, or of his descendants, when they turned away from false gods and false worship and turned to Him.   The only way we can be saved is to come to Jesus Christ and put our faith in Him.  After we are saved, then we must do our best to live in accordance with God’s word.  Our iniquity is healed when we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord. 

Isaiah 26:15

Isaiah 26:15 says, Thou hast increased the nation, O Lord, thou hast increased the nation: thou art glorified: thou hadst removed it far unto all the ends of the earth.  Isaiah reminded the people that God was the one responsible for them becoming a great nation when they obeyed Him.  If we are to be a great nation today, we can only do so by being obedient to God and living by His laws and guidance.  God increased the numbers of the people of Israel and Judah because of His covenant with them, and when they disobeyed that covenant, He allowed them to be taken over by other nations and their numbers to decrease.  As Christians, our numbers should be increasing, but too often we fail to obey God’s commandments, and our numbers decrease.  If we have put our faith in Jesus Christ, though, the number of those who are saved will never decrease in our home to come.

Verse sixteen adds, Lord, in trouble have they visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening was upon them.  Isaiah said that when the people of Judah found themselves in trouble in the world that they would then called out to God, even if they were being chastised by Him.  We should never just call out to God when we are in trouble but should call out to Him daily so that He will keep us in His will, then we won’t find ourselves in trouble spiritually. 

Verse seventeen continues, Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O Lord.  Isaiah said that in God’s sight the people of Judah had been like a woman in labor, who cried out in her pain.  God did not cause their suffering, nor does He cause ours, but He is aware of it.  Even if we are not in physical pain because of our disobedience to God, and we may even be flourishing, God sees our spiritual condition.  Any time we are disobedient to God, He is going to see our spiritual suffering.

Verse eighteen states, We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.  Isaiah said Judah had been like a woman in labor, but they hadn’t brought forth a child.  There would be a great disappointment at this time.  Isaiah also said that they had not brought forth the deliverance of the earth, which it was their duty to reach with God’s word and which they were to show His grace.   If we are not reaching out to the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ today, we are laboring in vain spiritually. 

Verse nineteen adds, Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.  Isaiah said that even those alive who were rebelling against God would find no deliverance until they repented and returned to Him, and those who had died faithful to Him would live again.  Even if we die a physical death because of our faith in God, we will live forever with Him spiritually.  The dead in Christ shall rise again, and those who are living refusing to accept His gift of salvation will suffer an everlasting spiritual death one day. 

Verse twenty says, Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.  Isaiah told his fellow Jews to go into their chambers and shut the doors behind them until this indignation was past.  Matthew Henry says this verse and the next were not a part of the previous song but an introduction to the next chapter more than a conclusion to this one.  Of course, we must remember that chapters and verses were set at a much later time, so we shouldn’t take them to be any more than man-made divisions. Isaiah said that the trouble that was coming to Judah would only last for a while, and the times we suffer because of our faith will only last for a little while from an eternal perspective.  We are told to go into the world and proclaim the gospel, even if this at times may cause us to be in danger.  They were also told to separate themselves from the non-believers and return to purity before God.

Verse twenty-one adds, For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. Isaiah said that one day God was coming in judgment of the earth.  There will be no hiding place for those who are lost, but we as Christians need to hide securely in our faith in Jesus Christ.  He is the only everlasting hiding place.

Isaiah 26:9

Isaiah 26:9 says, With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.  Isaiah said that he desired God in the night and then early in the morning.  I believe that this means that Isaiah continually sought to be in fellowship with God.  We likewise need to always desire to be in fellowship with God at all times.  Isaiah then added that when the judgments of people were based on following God’s law that all the earth would learn His righteousness.  This should be our desire, though it will never happen in this lifetime. 

Verse ten adds, Let favour be shewed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord.  Though God showed His mercy to the wicked, the sinners, they would not walk in obedience to Him by learning about His righteousness.  They would continue to deal unjustly with others and would not behold the majesty of God.  Even if we are a Christian nation, which I don’t personally think we can call ourselves anymore, there will always be those who refuse to believe in God and acknowledge His majesty. 

Verse eleven continues, Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see: but they shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at the people; yea, the fire of thine enemies shall devour them.  Isaiah said that God had lifted up His hand to give the wicked warning of the danger of continuing to deny or defy Him.  They would not see what should be evident to them, but Isaiah said there was coming a day when God would make them see, but it would be too late to do them any good.  Those who refuse to see Who God is in this life will one day see Him clearly, but it will be too late to accept His mercy shown to everyone when He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for their sins.  

Verse twelve states, Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us: for thou also hast wrought all our works in us.  Isaiah said that God would ordain peace to His people, and we as His people, those who are  followers of Christ, should be at peace in our lives today.  This doesn’t mean that everything is always peaceful in our lives with those around us, but that we should be spiritually at peace even if our life is in turmoil.  We aren’t promised that we will never be persecuted and suffer because of our faith, but we still should always be at peace in our soul.  We also must acknowledge that any good that we do as Christians is because God empowers us to do it.  

Verse thirteen adds, O Lord our God, other lords beside thee have had dominion over us: but by thee only will we make mention of thy name.  Isaiah said that even though the people of Judah had often been under the power of rulers of other nations that only God had the right to rule them and that they should give their allegiance to Him.  Still, they found themselves in this situation because they refused to be obedient to God and His commandments.  As followers of Christ, we should never put our faith in any earthly ruler, but we should always be obedient to God alone. 

Verse fourteen continues, They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.  Isaiah reminded the people of Judah that their enemies of the past were dead and forgotten.  Those who oppose God and His people, no matter how powerful they may be, will one day be dead and forgotten.  Even if they are remembered, they will no longer have power over anyone.  Our ruler as Christians, Jesus Christ, will never be dead and forgotten, since His power is forever.  Only those with our names written in the Book of Life will be remembered, and even then, it will not be because of what we have done, but it will be because of what Jesus Christ did for us when He died for our sins.  

Isaiah 26:5

Isaiah 26:5 says, For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it low; he layeth it low, even to the ground; he bringeth it even to the dust.  Isaiah said that those who had set themselves up as being more important than other people would be brought down low, so low that they would be no more than dust.  All the power that people of the world may exhibit, outside of God’s will, one day will amount to no more than the dust of the earth.  At times in the past, God has brought lofty nations down, and one day He will do it for all time to all ungodly nations. 

Verse six adds, The foot shall tread it down, even the feet of the poor, and the steps of the needy.  Isaiah said those who were considered poor and unworthy would tread down the powerful if they put their faith in God.  Today, many poor and needy Christians are being looked down on and mistreated by those in power, but even if that is happening, these Christians need to just remain humble servants of God.  Jesus Christ set the example and we as His followers need to truly follow His example. 

Verse seven continues, The way of the just is uprightness: thou, most upright, dost weigh the path of the just.  Isaiah said that the way of the just was to be upright with God.  The only way we can do this is by putting our faith in Jesus Christ and being obedient to His will.  God, the Most Upright, will judge our path, even if we are a follower of Christ.  We cannot accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord and then just go our own way.  We must always follow the way that Jesus Christ leads us, and this will always be to moral uprightness. 

Verse eight concludes, Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O Lord, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.  Isaiah said that those people of Judah and Jerusalem who had put their faith in God awaited His judgments and that the desire of their soul was to obey Him and remember Who He is and what He had done for them.  As Christians, we need to remember who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for us, and it should be our desire to serve Him faithfully. 

Isaiah 26:1

Isaiah 26:1 says, In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.  The first four verses of this chapter are a song of praise for the safety of the church in general and every member in particular.  Isaiah said that in that day, which Matthew Henry said is the gospel day, the day of enlarging the Old Testament church, that this song of victory and praise to God would be sung.  We as followers of Christ have assurance of an everlasting victory, and we should be singing praises to God. 

Verse two adds, Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.  Isaiah said instead of shutting themselves away, that the people of Judah should open the gates so all the righteous might come in.  God’s salvation was never intended to be limited to just a certain group of people but was and is to be available to all who put their faith in Jesus Christ.  As stated many times, this meant that those who lived before He came were to put their faith in the coming Messiah, and those who lived after He came were to put their faith in the fact that He is the Messiah, or Savior, Who came to redeem mankind.  We cannot sing praises to Him if we have not accepted Him as our personal Savior and Lord though. 

Verse three continues, Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.  Those who believe in Jesus Christ should live in perfect peace because He has already assured them of the ultimate victory.  This is to be a perfect peace.   Matthew Henry says this an inward peace, an outward peace, peace with God, peace of conscience, and peace at all times under all events.  If we are a follower of Christ, we should have that same peace today. 

Verse four continues, Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:  Isaiah told the people to trust in the Lord forever because He has everlasting strength.  This is never going to change.  There should never come a time that we as Christians do not rejoice and trust in God.  He will never fail to be able to deliver on His promise of everlasting life with Him to all who put their faith in Jesus Christ.