Isaiah 41:1

Isaiah 41:1 says, Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.  Matthew Henry says this chapter was intended to both convict the idolaters and to comfort those who had remained true to God.  He also said that even though it was intended to convict the Babylonians and to comfort the Israelites in that day that it also applies to people of the world today.  God will convict those who are sinning of their sin, whether they acknowledge this conviction or not, and He will comfort those who put their faith in Him, no matter what is going on in the world.  There was nothing that either group of people could say that would diminish the power of God, so they were called on to stay silent before Him.  There is no need to question God’s authority, because He has already won the victory.   

Verse two adds, Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.  Isaiah said that God asked who had done for the people who worshipped false God’s what He had done for the righteous man, or those who put their faith in Him, since no one of their own merit is righteous.  God had given the people of Israel power over the other people around them as long as they put their faith in and were obedient to Him.  As followers of Christ, He has likewise given us victory over sin and death, not because of our own merit, but because of His mercy. 

Verse three continues, He pursued them, and passed safely; even by the way that he had not gone with his feet.  I believe that Isaiah was saying that God provided a way for victory even when the people of Israel saw no way.  At times, it may seem that the world is about to overpower us and we can see no way to overcome it, but God will always make a way, even when we don’t see one. 

Verse four states, Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he.  Isaiah said that when people asked Who had delivered the people from generation to generation that the answer was God Himself had done this.  This was true from the beginning and will be true to the end.  God always has and always will provide a way for salvation if people only accept His gift. 

Verse five adds, The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came.  Matthew Henry says this referred to the Gentiles seeing the power of God and coming to Him even when the people of Israel were still rejecting Him.  I do know that the people of Israel as a nation still reject Jesus as the Messiah or Christ today, which is the reason that we as Gentiles who have accepted Him as our Savior and Lord are tasked with sharing the gospel with the world. 

Verse six continues, They helped every one his neighbour; and every one said to his brother, Be of good courage.  Isaiah said that those who put their faith in God helped and encouraged one another.  This should be true of Christians today.  We need to help and encourage those in need, not just our fellow believers but also anyone that God gives us a chance to help.  It is not enough to say that we will pray for them if we are unwilling to be used by God to actually help and encourage others. 

Verse seven concludes, So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.  People of different professions helped and encouraged one another.  We as followers of Christ should never be self-centered and have no concern for other people who work around us.  When it comes to work in the church especially, we all need each other and no one job is more important in God’s eyes than any other. 

Verse eight says, But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.  God then had a message for His chosen people, whom He had made a covenant with through both Abraham and Jacob, which applied to all who accepted it.  As Christians, we have entered into a covenant relationship with God, which is a continuation of the one He made with Abraham that was fulfilled when Jesus Christ came.  We are not God’s people by birth as the people of Israel who lived up to the covenant relationship with God were called to be, but we are a part of His people by our rebirth spiritually as Christians, and we should always be ready to hear God’s word to us. 

Verse nine adds, Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.  Isaiah said the people of Israel were God’s people by His action of calling them and choosing to reach out to the world through them. Likewise, we are a part of God’s people as Christians because He has reached out to us and called us to put our faith in His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, Who lived, died, and rose again so that we might have an everlasting relationship with God if we put our faith in Him.

Isaiah 40:21

Isaiah 40:21 says, Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?  Isaiah asked if they had not heard that God was the One Who laid the foundation of the earth.  As Jews, they should have heard this all their lives, but they didn’t live as though they believed it.  God has always made Himself known to people, and He will continue to do so until Jesus Christ returns, when everyone will finally acknowledge Him.  Until then, we need to continue to share the gospel with the world, so that people may know God and His plan for salvation.  Too many people will then be asked if they didn’t know this and will have to say that they did but they didn’t believe it.  

Verse twenty-two adds, It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:  Isaiah said that God sat above the earth and stretched out the heavens and that people were as grasshoppers before Him.  As followers of Christ, we must acknowledge that He is the Creator of everything and the Redeemer of all who put their faith in Him.  There will never be anyone or anything more powerful than God.  

Verse twenty-three continues, That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.  Isaiah said that God made all the powers in the world, the ones who were over other people, to be nothing.  There are many rulers today who deny God who think that they are very powerful, but one day, they will know that their power was a vanity, or nothing. 

Verse twenty-four states, Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.  Isaiah said that the people of Israel who denied God and lived by their own sense of justice and power would never settle into a position where they could grow and prosper.  If we want to grow and prosper spiritually, we cannot do it outside of the will of God, even if we are followers of Christ.  We cannot make our own laws if they oppose God’s laws, no matter how powerful we may be in the world. 

Verse twenty-five adds, To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.  Isaiah said that God asked to whom would they liken Him, and the answer then and the answer now has to be no one.  There is no other God besides the one true and living God.  We must acknowledge this and then just put our faith in Him and follow His leadership. 

Verse twenty-six continues, Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.  Isaiah called on the people to look up to the heavens and see the mighty work of God.  He created the universe and called all of His creation by name.  Matthew Henry says this means that we aren’t to always be bogged down looking at the earth and our problems but are to look up to the majesty of God.  When life seems to be bowing us down to our lowest level of hope, we just need to look up to God once more if we are followers of Christ.  He will always bring us spiritual hope. 

Verse twenty-seven says, Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God?  Isaiah asked why the people who were descendants of Jacob were now saying that they were hidden from God or that His ways were hidden from them.  God entered into a covenant relationship with Jacob, and God had never failed in His part of the covenant.  If we as Christians are feeling defeated spiritually, we need to acknowledge that it is because we have failed to continue to live up to our part of our covenant relationship with God, which calls for us to always look to Him in faith for the answers to life’s problems. 

Verse twenty-eight adds, Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.  Isaiah basically asked them didn’t they know Who God is.  There is no failing in God, so why were they living as though He had failed.  We should never question the power and authority of God as Christians, and if we start to when life is getting hard, we need to just look up to Him once more.   

Verse twenty-nine continues, He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.  Just as Isaiah said to the people of Judah then, we need to look to the One Who gives us the power to not faint under the pressures of life so that He might strengthen us when we have no strength of our own. 

Verse thirty states, Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:  Isaiah said that even the young men who relied on their own strength would grow weary, faint and utterly fall.   No matter how strong we may think we are physically, we will fail spiritually if we don’t look to God for our spiritual strength. 

Verse thirty-one adds, But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.  Isaiah said that those who wait on the Lord for strength and wisdom would never fail.  They would soar like eagles, run and not be weary, and walk and not faint.  To me, this means from doing the greatest to doing the least for God everyday He will always give us the ability to do whatever He has called us to do.  Sometimes we may be soaring spiritually and sometimes we may be just trudging along, but God will empower us either way.

Isaiah 40:15

Isaiah 40:15 says, Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.  Isaiah said that to God the people of any nation, no matter how powerful, were like a drop in a bucket or the dust of the earth.  We may think nations today are very powerful, but they are nothing compared to God, and as followers of Christ, He is our source of power.  There will never be anyone who can overpower Him.  

Verse sixteen adds, And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering.  Isaiah said that all the sacrifices that the people might offer would add nothing to God.  Whatever we may offer to God today can add nothing to Who He is.  God does not accept us because of anything we can give Him, but He accepts us because of what He gave us, which is forgiveness from our sins by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord. 

Verse seventeen continues, All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.  Isaiah then returns to the fact that all nations combined are nothing in power before God.  God created it all and He can easily destroy it all, so we should be thankful that He thinks enough of people who failed Him to provide a way for them to be redeemed instead of just destroying us. 

Verse eighteen states, To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?  Isaiah then asks what image, or idol, men could make that would compare to God.  The answer then and now is that there is not one.  This includes us as individuals.  We should never attempt to put ourselves on the same level as God.  Golden images may look pretty, but they are nothing compared to God. 

Verse nineteen adds, The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth silver chains.  Isaiah said that the workman made these graven images and overlaid them with gold, but they were still just manmade things.  Anything that we worship more than God is powerless to help us. 

Verse twenty concludes, He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved.  Isaiah said that those who made the images or idols attempted to make sure that they could not be moved, but anything that stands between God and us will one day be removed no matter how well rooted it may be.

Isaiah 40:6

Isaiah 40:6 says, The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:  This verse and the next two refer to God’s word being spoken to the people.  Isaiah asked what he should cry.  He wasn’t just giving his opinion but was looking to God for the message.  When we witness to people today, it cannot be based on our opinion but must aways be based on God’s word as He leads us to the right words to say.  The message was that the people of is real were no more powerful than the grass of the field and all their goodliness was as a flower.  Sometimes, we think more highly of ourselves than we should.  We are still just a part of God's creation.

Verse seven adds, The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.  Isaiah said that just as God could wither the grass, so could He allow His people to be defeated because of their disobedience to Him.  God wasn’t just arbitrarily punishing the people of Israel, but they were being punished for their sins. 

Verse eight continues, The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.  I believe that God was saying that everything in this world is temporary but that His word is eternal.  For this reason, God’s word should always be more important to us than any earthly treasure if we are a part of His people.

Verse nine states, O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!  Isaiah called on the people of Judah and Jerusalem to go up on the mountain and call on people to behold their God.  They were not to cower in fear or quietly proclaim that they believed in God, but they were to do so openly and boldly.  This is still what we as Christians should be doing today.  There should never be a time we are afraid to proclaim that we follow God’s commandments and directions. 

Verse ten adds, Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.  Isaiah said that God's people needed to see that God was coming with a strong hand and that He would rule over them.  He would also be the One Who gave rewards to people and called them to His work.  God will accomplish His work with or without people doing it, but as followers of Christ, we are called on to do what He calls us to do.  When we know what God wants us to do, we need to do it willingly and with all our might.  We don’t work for rewards, but we work because we have been awarded salvation if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ. 

Verse eleven continues, He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.  Isaiah said that God would be like a good shepherd taking care of His flock.  He would gather the lambs, or young and defenseless ones with His arm and gently lead the ones with young.  God also expects His people to do the same thing with people of the world, especially the young and defenseless and expectant mothers.  I don’t believe that God ever expects us to send them away as burdens. 

Verse twelve states, Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?  Isaiah was basically asking who other than God could create everything that there is, and the answer would be no one. 

Verse thirteen adds, Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him?  Isaiah then asked who directed the Spirit of God other than God Himself, or who taught the Holy Spirit how to counsel people, other than the heavenly father.  God is the source of all truth and wisdom, and we should never think that we are better prepared to handle any situation than He is.  We have the Holy Spirit indwelling us to counsel us, and we need to listen to what he says. 

Verse fourteen continues, With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding?  This is just a continuation of the statement that God doesn’t need anyone to advise Him, nor is there anyone who can.  We just need to accept the truth of God without trying to add to or take away from it.  God is the Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer of everything, though mankind is the only part of creation that needed redeeming.   

 

Isaiah 40:1

Isaiah 40:1 says, Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.  The rest of the book of Isaiah is different than the first thirty-nine chapters.  One way is that Isaiah is not named once in these chapters, but I will refer to him.  Also, the focus moves from many woes to many blessings for the people of Israel.  Though this message was to Israel at that time, it also is the message of the coming of Jesus Christ that will end with His return after He died for the sins of mankind on the cross. When we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we should then live celebrating the many blessings that God has given us and let go of the woes of the past.  Isaiah said God called on His people to comfort others who were His people and in need.  This is still our calling today as Christians.

Verse two adds, Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins.  The people were told to speak well of Jerusalem, because her warfare was accomplished and she had received double punishment from God for all her sins.  Just as the people of God in that day were called on to comfort others of His people, we as Christians need to comfort other Christians who may be suffering today.  We can do this because Jesus Christ paid for the price all our sins.

Verse three continues, The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.  As stated earlier, this verse may refer to people in that day, but it also is a reference to John the Baptist when He made this call to the people in Jesus’s day.  We are to still proclaim this same message today as we witness for Jesus Christ. 

Verse four states, Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:  This will happen forever when Jesus Christ returns in victory.  Even if the people of Israel did this for a time, then we know that it didn’t last and never will until Jesus Christ returns in victory. 

Verse five adds, And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.  Though the people of Israel may have been restored for a time with all obstacles removed from their serving God, once more, this will happen for the final time when Jesus Christ returns.  We simply need to live by faith in Him until He returns. 

Isaiah 39:1

Isaiah 39:1 says, At that time Merodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah: for he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered.  Matthew Henry points out that this event is also told about in 2 Kings 20, starting with verse 12.  The son of Baladan the king of Babylon sent Hezekiah a gift because he heard he had been sick.  Merodachbaladan, the name of the king of Babylon’s son, was doing something nice, but sometimes even things done for nice reasons can turn out wrong in the end. 

Verse two adds, And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not.  Hezekiah gave in to pride and showed the emissaries from Bablon all his treasure.  He didn’t leave anything out.  God had just restored Hezekiah’s health, but he seemed more proud of talking about his possessions than of talking about the miracle that God had performed in his life.  We should never let pride in our possessions become more important than our relationship with God is, but we too often talk more about our possessions than we do about our God Who has given them to us.  We can get caught up in pride just as Hezekiah did.

Verse three continues, Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon.  Isaiah came to Hezekiah and asked who these men were and where they came from, and Hezekiah said they had come from a far country, Babylon, to see him.  I believe that Hezekiah was full of pride than men would come from so far to see him and he didn’t think any more about what they might decide to do later when they saw all his treasures.  I don’t believe there is ever a good reason to show off or brag about our riches.  As Christians, we need to understand that everything we have is a blessing from God and should be used for His honor and glory and not our own. 

Verse four concludes, Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them.  Isaiah asked Hezekiah what he had shown these men from Babylon, and he said everything.  Once more, I believe that his pride clouded his judgment just as it can do ours today.  Anytime we allow pride in what we possess to become more important than following the will of God, we allow sin to slip back into our life and set ourselves up for a fall.  It would have been so much better if Hezekiah had prayed about what he should do when these men from Babylon came bringing him a gift than to just become full of pride in his position and start showing off His possessions instead of giving God praise for what He had without bragging.  Self-pride will always get us in trouble when we start thinking that what we have is more important than God or even a sign that He approves of all that we are doing.

Verse five states, Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord of hosts:  After telling Isaiah everything that he had shown to the Babylonians, Isaiah had a message from God for Hezekiah. It is always better if we hear God’s message for us before we do anything than it is to hear it after we have done something that we shouldn’t do.   

Verse six adds, Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord.  The message wasn’t a good one, and sometimes God’s message to us may not be something good if we have been acting outside of His will.  Isaiah said that one day the Babylonians were going to carry away all the treasures of the people of Israel.  One day, all the treasures that we have laid up here on the earth will be done away with, so there really is no reason to flaunt them in self-pride. 

Verse seven continues, And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.  Isaiah said not only would all the treasures of Israel be taken away, but Hezekiah’s sons, instead of being rulers, would be taken away to serve as eunuchs in the place of the king of Babylon.  They would be left completely powerless.  When we allow anything to come between God and us, we become spiritually powerless and may find ourselves enslaved to sin once again, even though we have everlasting forgiveness as Christians.  Just because we are forgiven doesn’t mean we can become full of self-pride and do whatever we want to do without there being a price to be paid.

Verse eight concludes, Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.  Hezekiah said what Isaiah had spoken was good, because there would be peace in his days.  Hezekiah was basically saying that God was acting justly with him and the people of Israel, so he could live at peace with that.  We have to acknowledge that if God has to chastise us as followers of Christ that He will always be acting justly, and we should be at peace in our soul if this happens.  When we as Christians sin once more, then God is going to hold us accountable.

Isaiah 38:15

Isaiah 38:15 says, What shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it: I shall go softly all my years in the bitterness of my soul.  Hezekiah starts by asking what could he say about God’s mercy.  He said God had spoken, so he would go softly for the rest of his years, but then he added in the bitterness of his soul.  This could seem to be saying that he was going to be bitter about what had happened to him before, but Matthew Henry says it refers to bitterness for having questioned God.  Whichever way it is interpreted, I don’t believe we should have bitterness in our soul as Christians, either about things that have happened in the past or about how we may have reacted to them in times of destress.  We should just put our faith in God and always come to Him in obedience and ask for forgiveness when we fail to, and then it shouldn’t cloud our relationship with Him or other Christians. 

Verse sixteen adds, O Lord, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live.  Hezekiah said he, and by extension the kingdom, would live by the understanding that God was the One Who had given him these extra years.  We need to make sure that we always give God the credit for the good things that happen in life, as individuals and as a nation. 

Verse seventeen continues, Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.  Hezekiah said before God restored him to health that he had bitterness in his soul.  Too often, we as Christians allow what is going on in the world or in our life to determine how we feel about our relationship with God.  If everything is not as we want it to, or if we are somehow suffering because of our relationship with God, we can become bitter toward God, but this should never happen.  We already have everlasting life with God as followers of Christ, so nothing that happens in this lifetime should make us bitter toward Him. 

Verse eighteen states, For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.  Hezekiah said those that died could not praise God, but I would have to add in this lifetime.  When Jesus Christ returns to claim His people, the church, we will praise God forever.  I believe that those who are saved and die before then will already be praising Him.  It is the lost people who will never be able to stand in God’s kingdom and praise Him. 

Verse nineteen adds, The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth.  Hezekiah said that the living would praise God and make His truths known to their children as he was doing that day.  I would once again say that I believe that this refers to those who are spiritually alive by faith in God doing this, and not that all people who are alive will.  We can only give God praise if we have become a part of His people by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord. 

Verse twenty continues, The Lord was ready to save me: therefore we will sing my songs to the stringed instruments all the days of our life in the house of the Lord.  Hezekiah said since God was ready to save him that he would sing songs of praise accompanied by stringed instruments.  This was a physical healing that Hezekiah was singing praises about, but as Christians, we should always sing praises ti God for our salvation no matter what is happening in our life today.   

Verse twenty-one says, For Isaiah had said, Let them take a lump of figs, and lay it for a plaister upon the boil, and he shall recover. Hezekiah said that Isaiah had told him how to recover from his illness and that it was God’s word that he spoke.  God could have cured Hezekiah with just a word, but his making and applying the plaster showed Hezekiah's willingness to obey, just as we must obey God's word in order to be healed spiritually today.  No matter who reaches out to us with the gospel when we are lost and spiritually sick, it is God’s word that they share, and the glory should go to Him alone. 

Verse twenty-two adds, Hezekiah also had said, What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?  Hezekiah then asked for a sign to tell him that it was time to go to the house of the Lord.  He had been considered spiritually unclean evidently and now he wanted a sign to show that he no longer was.  The only sign we will ever have that we are spiritually clean is the sign of the cross and the empty tomb.  It is the only sign we should ever need.  We must trust God at all times without the need for physical signs.