Introduction to the Book of Isaiah

by Charles Voss and Sandra Zawada

Note: Scriptures are blue.

The Book of Isaiah might well be the most misquoted and most misunderstood of all the prophetic books  The Book of Isaiah is mostly recognized as a prophetic book and that it is, but there is another side of this book that most people fail to see .   THE ORIGINAL HEBREW SCRIPTURES WERE WRITTEN IN SCROLLS. The scrolls were not broken into chapters and verses as we have it today. The practice of referring to chapters and verses only started around 1228 CE. Legend says that some monk from the church in Rome inserted these false breaks as he was riding his donkey across Europe. Nonetheless, the invention of such references suited the "Christian" publishers and printers so now that is what we have to work with. The Hebrew Scriptures are known today as the Old Testament or Tanakh. Chapter and verse breaks serve to isolate various portions of the words of ETERNAL and so changes and even distorts the meaning of passages consequently allowing them to be taken out of context.[1] That is the reason we must be very careful when any one quotes a verse or passage out of its original text. If you have read the first chapter of Isaiah, you might think that Isaiah is a book about a Father talking to His disobedient, rebellious, unloving and evil children. Nevertheless, if you look closely, you will see that it is really telling a love story. Isaiah is about a love story that has been interrupted. Before the love story can continue though, many things have to take place. Before we look at the Book of Isaiah, we first need to look at the SOVEREIGN that Isaiah is talking about. This Father is very special and most interesting. He is really someone who loves to create. He is the most successful executive and is a great provider. In addition, I think that He is the most loving Father there ever was. He loved His children and took care of them providing them with food and everything they needed. As a Father, He would cuddle His children speaking tenderly to them. He enjoyed watching His children and took care of each one. If they were in danger, He would protect them and not let anything happen to them. He loved His children so much that He wanted to have many, many children. The Father is such a caring Father that it never entered His mind that His children would rebel against Him and not want to have anything to do with Him. Oh, there were a few who did not rebel and who loved their "Daddy." Nevertheless, most of his children became rebellious and down right evil. Talk about hurt! This Father was so hurt and His children became so corrupted that it angered the Father. Everything the Father said the children would turn around and say or do the opposite just to spite him. He tried everything he could to get his children to listen to him and do right things, but they would not. They became so evil that the Father did not want to have anything to do with them. Now the Father has to do something very sad. He has to punish His children. There is no way He will allow any of His evil children to receive any of His inheritance. What a shame! What a tragedy! The Theme of the Book If Isaiah was a movie then chapters one and two would the "Preview of Upcoming Attractions." The opening scene is set in eight century BCE with the Mighty Assyrian Empire dominating the entire Middle East with the political intrigue we saw above as Judah deals with Assyria for the capture of the Ten Tribes. Chapter two is set in the latter days with the Davidic Kingdom of our SOVEREIGN ruling the world in peace and harmony. The Prophet Isaiah The Prophet Isaiah wrote the Book of Isaiah in the eighth century BCE. There is much to learn about the end times in this very important book. To fully understand the Book of Isaiah, we need to look at the author. ISAIAH, whose name means <salvation of ETERNAL>, was the greatest of the writing prophets. He carried on his ministry in Judah during the reigns of four kings, possibly 740 to 680 BCE, a period of about sixty years during which Samaria was captured and Israel was carried away in 722-721 BCE, and Judah was invaded by Sennacherib in 701 BCE. The themes of Isaiah's utterances reach back to the eternal counsels of the CREATOR and the creation of the universe (e.g. 42:5) and look forward to the time when the CREATOR will create new heavens and a new earth (65:17; 66:22). No other prophet has written with such majestic eloquence about the [splendor] of the SOVEREIGN (see chapter 40). All the nations of the earth come within the scope of Isaiah's predictions (e.g. 2:4; 5:26; 14:6,26; 40:15,17,22; 66:18). Whereas there are in Isaiah many important prophecies concerning Jerusalem (called by more than thirty different names) as well as prophecies about Israel, Judah, and the nations of the earth, the book sets forth the great Messianic [Mashiach][2] predictions in which are foretold [his] birth (9:6), his awakening (9:6-7), his mission (9:1-2; 42:1-7; 61:1-2), his future millennial reign (e.g. chapters 2; 11; 65), etc[3] Isaiah is written prophecy to show Israel and Judah their sins and the destruction that will come upon them if they do not repent. There are four general parts to a prophecy and these state the reasons why the SOVEREIGN gives prophecy: The indictment against Israel or Judah and a warning and request for them to repent. The retribution upon Israel or Judah if they do not repent. To show the Mighty One's unceasing redemptive love for Israel and Judah when they come to Him with a broken and a contrite heart. To set the limits that Heylel cannot cross. The prophecies in the book of Isaiah are played out using four servants of our SOVEREIGN. The Four Servants of ETERNAL I  We must understand the servants that the SOVEREIGN mentions because that is a vital key. They are used for different purposes at different times. The first one mentioned is Isaiah who is the author of the book. He played a part in some prophesies as in the following verses where he was the sign of what is to come. Isaiah 20:2-5 . At the same time ETERNAL spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and remove the clothes from your body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. Then ETERNAL said, “Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. II.  The next servant we see is the thirteen sons of Jacob and the thirteen tribes that came from them. They were chosen for a specific job. It is indeed true that the nation Israel was the SOVEREIGN's chosen people. Exodus 19:6. ETERNAL said, “Say this to the family of Jacob. And tell this to the people of Israel: ‘Every one of you has seen what I did to the people of Egypt. You saw how I carried you out of Egypt. I did it as an eagle carries her young on her wings. And I brought you here to me. So now obey Me and keep My agreement. Do this, and you will be My own possession, chosen from all nations. Even though the whole earth is Mine, you will be My Kingdom of priests. You will be a nation that belongs to Me alone.’ You must tell the Israelites these words.” However, understand that they were not chosen as "teacher's pet" or for special favors. They were chosen for a special PURPOSE, WHICH they have never done. They were to prepare the ultimate establishment of the Kingdom of the SOVEREIGN! [4] Isaiah 41:8-9. ETERNAL says, “People of Israel, you are My servants. People of Jacob, I chose you. You are from the family of My friend Abraham. You were far away on the earth. I called you from a faraway country. I said, ‘You are My servants.‘ III  The next two servants are Kings, Cyrus and David; they are operating in two greatly different ages of time. In the sixth (6) century BCE, King Cyrus set the House of Judah free from captivity to return home and build the second Temple. Isaiah 44:28-45:1. And I (ETERNAL] will raise up her waste places...Who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, And he shall perform all My pleasure, Saying to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” and to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.”’ ...Thus says ETERNAL to His anointed, to Cyrus, “whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut.” The following three verses show the redemption of Judah from Babylon as the Jews are carrying the Temple vessels back to Jerusalem. The Jews are traveling under Cyrus’ protection as the SOVEREIGN directed Cyrus. Isaiah 52:10-13. ETERNAL has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our SOVEREIGN. Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; go out from the midst of it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of ETERNAL. For you shall not go out in haste, and you shall not go in flight; for ETERNAL will go before you, and the SOVEREIGN of Israel will be your rear guard. IV  The next king, King David, in the twenty-first (21) century CE will set both houses free, the House of Judah and the House of Israel free from their coming captivity to return home and build the third and final Temple. The following six verses occur on earth after ETERNAL has and stood on the Mount of Olives splitting it into. He then causes King David and the Prophet to stand from their graves to set His people free from captivity for the second time. Chapter 11 is near the beginning the scroll to give a preview of the Wonderful World Tomorrow which is yet to come. Isaiah 11:1-5. A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.[5]  The spirit of ETERNAL shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of ETERNAL.[6]  His delight shall be in the fear of ETERNAL. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. The Tribes of Israel To be able to understand fully our subject of Isaiah 53, we need some background on who the Tribes of Israel are. The Northern Kingdom the “House of Israel” consisted of the tribes of Asher, Dan, Ephraim, Gad, Issachar, Manasseh, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon, and Zebulun (Numbers 1:21-45). The English word "Israel" is from the Hebrew word “Yisra'el” (yis-raw-ale' Strong’s H3478 and means, “he will rule as SOVEREIGN” it is used today typically of Jacob’s posterity. Here in the latter days the phrase “Grater House of Israel” is generally considered to consist of the democracies of Northwestern Europe, the British Isles, America, and most of the nations of the former British Commonwealth. The “House of Judah” consists of the Jews; Joseph carried the name of Israel.[7] Prophecies Concerning Judah. Deuteronomy 30:1-2 states the case of ETERNAL against Judah. they had been chasted according to Deuteronomy 28-29, which has been visited upon Israel in the land and now the time of expulsion from the land is near for Judah. Here ETERNAL renews the promise of the Palestinian Covenant (Deuteronomy 30:3 "that ETERNAL your SOVEREIGN will bring you [all the tribes of Israel] back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where ETERNAL your SOVEREIGN has scattered you”). Only a loving SOVEREIGN Father could do that. ETERNAL gave Isaiah a vision that is primarily about Judah and Jerusalem: Isaiah 1:1-2 (NIV)[8]  The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Hear O heavens! Listen, O earth! For ETERNAL has spoken: "I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me! In the second verse, Isaiah jumps right into the heart of the theme of his vision. In this verse, ETERNAL is summoning the heavens and the earth to listen to Him. This is a huge matter to ETERNAL. You can hear the cry of a Father lamenting over His children. The next verse follows right after verse two and all of Israel’s (all 13 tribes) troubles come from the truth of this indictment. ...1:3-4. The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner's manger, but Israel does not know, My people do not understand. Ah, sinful nation, a people loaded with guilt, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! They have forsaken ETERNAL; they have spurned the Mighty One of Israel and turned their backs on Him. Read the rest of the indictment through verse 23. Israel’s troubles will be removed when Isaiah 54:13 and 60:16 have been fulfilled. Can you imagine children turning against their loving, caring Father the most wonderful father there could ever be? These children were so corrupt that they became their Father's enemies. Then what does ETERNAL say that He will do to get relief [of the pain] from His enemies? Isaiah 1:24-25. Therefore the SOVEREIGN, ETERNAL [of hosts], the Mighty One of Israel, declares: "Ah, I will get relief from My foes and avenge Myself on My enemies. I will turn My hand against you; I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities." Have you ever seen a father of a newborn baby? You can see the pride in his eyes and the love on his face as he tenderly cuddles his precious one in his arms. Then in the next few years the child goes through the teething stage, the crawling stage, the walking and talking stage, the adolescent stage and on and on until he is an adult. As a parent, and rightfully so, you expect your children to appreciate all that you have done for them. You expect to be a family and do special things together and celebrate special occasions. You expect to have a close relationship with them--forever. What is a loving Father to do when His children rebel against Him and even reject Him just for the reason that they want to be rebellious and be stiffed necked and unreasonable? Read the first chapter of Isaiah and reread it until you can hear the cry of a rejected Father. Read it until you can feel His pain. All you have to do is listen because his cries ring out into all the earth and even to the uttermost part of the heavens. You can hear the anger of a "tried" and "weary" Father. This weary Father declares: ...1:18. "Come now, let us reason together," says ETERNAL. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. The Father tries again. He wants to "reason" with His children because if they will not listen to Him and be reasonable, there will have to be dire consequences. All the children have to do to avoid the consequences is listen to their father and be willing and obedient. How difficult is that? "Come now, let us reason together!" Only a very few of ETERNAL's children (a small remnant) will Quest for the truth of the Almighty One. Most will refuse to walk through the open door into the very heart of our loving SOVEREIGN and love Him as their only true Father. Their refusal to accept His wonderful love and kindness is the cause of all the evils in this world. Humankind since the Garden of Eden has refused our SOVEREIGN Father’s love which is as the love of a child... so pure, so innocent, so tender, so open.! His is a precious, caring love.[9] The Vision of the Last Days When we read Isaiah's vision today, we must understand that the words "mountains" and "hills" in prophecy are synonymous with world governments both large and small. Isaiah 2:1-2. This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem: In the last days, the mountain of ETERNAL's Temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream [flow] to it. This verse is a preview of the last chapter of the book on human history and we can see a slight glimpse of our human potential when the Kingdom of ETERNAL’s Davidic Kingdom will be established to rule over all the earth. The new Temple in Jerusalem will be the seat of the world-ruling Government.[10] Once more our kind, loving and heart broken Father opens the door to all 13 tribes for them to return to worship Him, their CREATOR. Isaiah 2:5 (NIV). Come, O House of Jacob, let us walk in the light of ETERNAL. You have abandoned Your people, the House of Jacob. They are full of superstitions from the East; they practice divination[11]  like the Philistines[12] and clasp hands with pagans. What is being said in verse 5 is very important! The Father is talking to His family of the patriarch Jacob. He is addressing them as the ones who are supposed to walk and carry the light of the happiness of ETERNAL. Then He goes on to say that they are full of superstitions from the eastern religions. In other words, they practice the Babylonian Mystery Religions established in the Empire by the church in Rome and not only that, but they practice witchcraft like the Philistines which are their enemies and even hold hands with those who worship the Queen of Heaven. Generally, the visions of Isaiah cover the history of all time from the creation of the earth until the creation of the new heavens and the new earth. Specifically, the visions cover the history of the House of Judah and the House of Israel from their first captivity until their second one about to take place now in these latter days. However, in the next verse Isaiah, though still referring to Judah and Jerusalem, is speaking of the latter days as shown by the term “in that day” which refers to “The Time of Jacob’s Trouble.” Isaiah 3:17-18 (NKJV). Therefore ETERNAL will strike with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion [referring to the various divisions of the synagogue in Jerusalem], and ETERNAL will uncover their secret parts. "In that day," ETERNAL will take away the finery... Yes, the Day of Trouble is coming very soon and it will not be pretty. In truth, most of Judah (the Jews) will not survive--only a third, who will go into captivity? (Ezekiel chapters 4 and 5) Then the Time of Jacob's Trouble will spread to all the rest of Israel. The Righteous Ones I am telling you the Mysteries of the Ages. Although I tell you of the loving Father's special secrets, you still have to find that place for yourself. Nobody can find it for you, not even a man from Galilee. The secret place is the most precious place you can find. It is a place of refuge and protection. It is a place where you will be safe when the perilous pestilence and terror comes. Nobody can be in that special place unless he/she comes to the Father in that trusting place--as a loving child. There He will hide you under the shadow of the Almighty--under His wings. Oh, by the way, is the Almighty YOUR Father? That is the secret place--the place of protection. In that place, you do not have to be afraid. Were the Children of Israel afraid when the plagues came upon the land of Egypt? They could see the plagues on the land of Egypt, but they were not coming near them. The coming end time will be the same way. Are you righteous? Then take courage. Here are a few verses about the righteous: Psalm 5:12. For You, O ETERNAL will bless the righteous; with favor, You will surround him as with a shield. ...11:7. For ETERNAL is righteous, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright. ...15:1-2. ETERNAL, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your righteous hill? He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart; ...34:15. The eyes of ETERNAL are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry. ...34:17. The righteous cry out, and ETERNAL hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. ...37:29. The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell in it forever. ...89:14. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; mercy and truth go before Your face. Proverbs 12:21. No grave trouble will overtake the righteous, but the wicked shall be filled with evil. ...18:10. The Name of ETERNAL is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. Isaiah 60:21. Also your people shall all be righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the Branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified. Do you know whom the righteous ones are? The righteous ones are in right standing with their Father. They do what is right in His eyes and obey His every Word, The Commandments. The wicked are the opposite. They are not in right standing with the Father. They do not do what is right and do not obey The Commandments. Which side are you on? “Just as there was a time when your town and your parents did not exist, there was also a time when the planet we live on did not exist. Moreover, just as there was a reason for the Earth coming into being, there was a reason for YOU coming into being. Do you know what it is? DO YOU KNOW WHY YOU ARE ALIVE? Few people have even the vaguest idea that humankind was put on the earth for a PURPOSE, let alone what that purpose might be. The CREATOR, the SOVEREIGN, is producing a family in and through man! The SOVEREIGN’s ultimate transcendent PURPOSE is breathtaking beyond words. The establishment of the ancient nation Israel is an integral part of the supreme master plan.[13] The secret place is the most precious place you can find. It is a place of refuge and protection. It is a place where you will be safe when the perilous pestilence and terror comes. Nobody can be in that special place unless he-she comes to the Father in that trusting place--as a loving child.. So our calling by our CREATOR, the SOVEREIGN, is producing a family in and through humans who have become like a loving child. Summary To this point in this booklet we have seen that the attempt to mistranslate Isaiah 7:14 and misquote Zechariah 13:6 by misusing it when taken out of context indicates that Isaiah 53 is not about the man from Galilee (J-sus or Y-shuah). We have also learned that the SOVEREIGN has four servants Isaiah, the Children of Israel, King Cyrus, and King David that are intertwined throughout the book. The Children of Israel are composed of two grouping of tribes: House of Judah (Judah, Benjamin, and parts of Levi). The House of Israel (Asher, Dan, Ephraim, Gad, Issachar, Manasseh, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon, and Zebulun). In the intertwining of servants, either house may be listed seperately or both may be listed together. The contents of the Book of Isaiah bear out the dual nature of the SOVEREIGN’s call. Many of the prophecies in the first 39 chapters warn that destruction is the inevitable consequence of sin. Yet interspersed with these foreboding thoughts are promises of happier days when a purified people of all Israel will lead all mankind toward a better world.[14] [The Understanding of Isaiah 53 - index] [The Hope of Israel - main index page ] Footnotes [1] . See our article “How to Have Correct Scripture Study.” [2] . See our articles “New Proof of the Messiah,” and “Functions of a Savior, Messiah, Priest, and Prophet.” [3] . Scofield’s Notes the introduction to the book of Isaiah. [4] . See our booklet “The Children of Israel - Their Promises and Prophecies of Their Future.” [5] . The Messiah is to stand from his grave in the ground, not come down on a cloud. See our booklet “New Proof of the Messiah.” [6] . This narrative about King David is to take place after his advent and the establishment of the millennial Davidic Kingdom. [7] . We cover the true Scriptural meaning in our booklet “The Children of Israel Their Promises and the Prophecies of Their Future. [8] . All Scriptures in this section will be quoted from the New International Version (NIV). Unless noted and all emphasis is the authors. [9] . To read more about the CREATOR's love see our article “The Love of a Child.” [10] . See our booklet ”The Wonderful World of Tomorrow” also the article “The Reuniting the Tribes of Israel” and booklet “The Two-fold Aspect of the Promises to Abraham, Judah's Scepter and Joseph's Birthright.” [11] . Divinations of the evil spirit as in the mysticism of eastern religions, the pagan mystery religions, and Judaic Kabbalism. [12] The modern Palestinians are the Philistines of the Gaza Strip. [13] . To fully understand this statement, refer to our article, “Death, Awakening, and Salvation.” [14] . “The Mysteries of the Bible,” the Readers Digest Association, Inc. Pleasantville, New York. NY, page 239. .

 

 

 

 

 

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