Tagged: Free Bible study

Isaiah 65: New Heaven and Earth

LISTEN/PODCAST: Isaiah 65 – New Heaven and Earth

READ: Isaiah 65 – Notes

STUDY: Isaiah 65 – Worksheet

Prologue

Where we are:

Part 1: Judgment Part 2: Historical Interlude Part 3: Salvation
Chapters 1-35 Chapters 36-39 Chapters 40-66

When this takes place:

Chapter 65 is part of the second major section of Isaiah and deals less with Judah’s immediate plight than with its future deliverance from Babylonian exile and ultimate glory.

Key verse:

Isa. 65:17 – For I will create a new heaven and a new earth; the past events will not be remembered or come to mind.

Quick summary:

Many non-Israelites are seeking God, while His own people rebel against Him. The Lord will punish His people but preserve a remnant, which will experience great happiness. Looking further into the future, Isaiah records the promise of God to create news heavens and a new earth. The present age, with its sin, sickness and death, will be forgotten forever.

Take note:

Verse 17 of this chapter, along with Isa.66:22 and Rev. 21:1 – 22:5, speak of new heavens and a new earth. Some aspects of chapters 65-66 seem to have in view a time when sin and all its effects are reversed. However, Isa. 65:20 suggests that death is not completely destroyed, leading some scholars to conclude that this chapter refers instead to the Millennium, a 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth that precedes the final judgment of Satan, demons and wicked people and, of course, the creation of new heavens and a new earth.

Provoking God (Isa. 65:1-16)

The Holy One of Israel has reached out continuously to His people, even to those who have not sought Him. He has cried out, “Here I am, here I am” (v.1) and spread out His hands (v. 2). The apostle Paul quotes verses 1-2 in Rom. 10:20-21 to show that the people of Israel heard God’s message yet continued in their rebellion, walking the wrong path and following their own thoughts. Rather than responding in repentance toward Yahweh who loves them, they provoke the Lord to His face in a number of ways:

  • Sacrificing in gardens – that is, worshipping in pagan places (Isa. 1:29; 66:17)
  • Burning incense on bricks – worshipping at pagan altars and disregarding God’s command to make altars of unhewn stone so as to separate themselves from idolaters (Ex. 20:25)
  • Spending nights in secret places – consulting the dead while sitting among the graves (Isa. 8:19)
  • Eating swine’s flesh, and putting polluted broth in their bowls – disregarding the Jewish dietary laws (Lev. 11:7; Isa. 66:3)
  • Saying to one another, “Keep to yourself, don’t come near me, for I am too holy for you!” – hypocritically justifying themselves as more religious than their fellow countrymen (see Matt. 9:11; Luke 5:30, 18:11; Jude 19)

All of these practices are as irritating to the Lord as the smoke of day-long fires in a person’s nostrils. In response, the Lord will not keep silent; He will repay. “The Assyrian threat (Isa. 1-37) and the Babylonian Exile (chaps. 38-66) were two of the ways the Lord disciplined His people. The consequences of sin had to be faced; God would pay them back in judgment for their idolatrous worship in high places (cf. 57:7)” (John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck, The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, S. 1:1119).

Although judgment is pronounced on the entire nation, the Lord will spare a righteous remnant. Just as a few grapes are left when the vineyards are gleaned (Deut. 24:21), so a small number of those faithful to the Lord will return to the land and possess it. Sharon (v. 10), the coastal plain south of Mt. Carmel, is excellent for agriculture, and the Valley of Achor, west of Jericho, is known for its sheep herding.

The Lord has never left Himself without witness among the world’s people. In the days before the flood, Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord (Gen. 6:8). Elijah is the only remaining prophet of the Lord in Israel in his day (1 Kings 18:22). And even in the dark days before Messiah’s return, God will seal faithful witnesses (Rev. 7:4). In contrast to the claims of Muslims that Judaism and Christianity are corrupt forms of monotheism, and contrary to the claim of Mormon founder Joseph Smith that the whole of Christendom fell into apostasy after the death of the apostles, God is faithful to preserve His message by providing truthful messengers, although they may be few in number.

In verses 11-12, the Lord warns those who abandon Him that they will come to a tragic end. Fortune and Destiny (v. 11) are the names of pagan gods worshiped by the Israelites in their efforts to discern the future. So the Lord tells them plainly what will happen: They will die by the sword because they refuse to listen while they persist in evil.

Verses 13-16 contrast the Lord’s servants with those who have departed from Him. The faithful will eat, drink, rejoice, and shout for joy from a glad heart, while the wicked will be hungry, thirsty, and put to shame. Further, those who abandon the Lord will cry out from an anguished heart, lament out of a broken spirit, and ultimately be killed. The faithful are promised a new name – that is, they “shall no longer be ‘forsaken’ of God for unbelief, but shall be His ‘delight’ and ‘married’ to Him (Is 62:2, 4)” (Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, S. Is 65:15). Finally, God promises to graciously forget their sins.

A New Creation (Isa. 65:17-25)

The final verses of this chapter present great promises – and pose great interpretive challenges. God’s people are promised new heavens and a new earth, a pledge repeated in 2 Peter 3:13 and Rev. 21:1. In addition, they are promised a New Jerusalem, where the redeemed will live securely, enjoy the fruit of their labors, and live a long time. In contrast to military defeat and exile, the Israelites will be “a people blessed by the Lord along with their descendents” (v. 23), and their prayers will be answered even before they are expressed. While they enjoy abundant food, good health, safety and happiness, Satan’s food will be dust (v. 25).

These are wonderful promises. Yet they do not describe a world completely purged of sin and its consequences. Verse 20, for example, tells us that an old man will “live out his days,” implying that eventually he will die. A 100-year-old person is to be considered a youth, and the one who doesn’t live that long is “cursed.” Meanwhile, the serpent is still around, and while evil and destruction are banned from God’s “holy mountain,” one might conclude they are present elsewhere on earth (v. 25).

What are we to make of this confusing picture? Are we not urged to look forward to a day when God will wipe every tear from our eyes; when death will exist no longer; when all grief, crying and pain are banished as the “former things” (Rev. 21:4)? Then why does Isaiah describe a future day when the redeemed enjoy vastly improved but still imperfect lives?

Commentators generally respond in one of two ways. Some take the passage literally, understanding Isaiah to be describing conditions in the millennium, a 1,000-year reign of Messiah on earth that precedes final judgment and the creation of new heavens and a new earth. This view is consistent with a literal rendering of Rev. 20, which describes Satan as bound for 1,000 years while the followers of Jesus reign with Him on earth. At the end of the millennium, Satan is loosed for a short time to deceive the nations, then is defeated and cast into hell. Joining him in the lake of fire are unbelievers, following their resurrection and judgment before the great white throne. With Satan, demons and unbelievers consigned for eternity to hell, God purges the created order of sin and its consequences, resulting in new heavens and a new earth.

Other commentators, however, read Isa. 65 figuratively, understanding references to the sinner (v. 20) and the serpent (v. 25) as promises of judgment and victory. Those who hold this view also tend to see Rev. 20 in symbolic terms, describing Christ’s ultimate victory over Satan, sin and death. “The wicked will no longer flourish, nor the strong prey on the weak, nor the tempter escape his sentence (cf. v 25 with Gn. 3:14–15), in the perfect world to come. But all this is expressed freely, locally and pictorially, to kindle hope rather than feed curiosity…. [T]his is brought to pass not by a bare creative fiat, but through the Messianic king” (D.A. Carson, New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, S. Is 65:17).

Lawrence O. Richards shares a comforting thought: “However students of prophecy sort these elements out, it is clear from Isaiah’s warm and comforting description of God that a real transformation of man’s state and nature lies ahead. Sin’s curse is lifted, lifespan is extended, and peace is brought even to the animal kingdom. All that is wrong on earth will be set right. When you read prophecies of doom – an atomic holocaust, a greenhouse effect that will melt the ice caps and cause the oceans to overflow our cities, a new Ice Age that will destroy life on earth – do not fear. The real destiny of earth is described by Isaiah here” (The Bible Readers Companion, electronic ed., S. 445).

Closing Thought

Considering the present life and longevity of the unsaved, Matthew Henry writes: “Unbelievers shall be unsatisfied and unhappy in life, though it be ever so long. The sinner, though he live to a hundred years old, shall be accursed. His living so long shall be no token to him of the divine favour and blessing, nor shall it be any shelter to him from the divine wrath and curse. The sentence he lies under will certainly be executed, and his long life is but a long reprieve; nay, it is itself a curse to him, for the longer he lives the more wrath he treasures up against the day of wrath and the more sins he will have to answer for. So that the matter is not great whether our lives on earth be long or short, but whether we live the lives of saints or the lives of sinners”  (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, S. Is 65:17).

Isaiah 64: Tear the Heavens Open

LISTEN: Isaiah 64 mp3

READ: Isaiah 64 notes

STUDY: Isaiah 64 worksheet

Prologue

Where we are:

Part 1: Judgment Part 2: Historical Interlude Part 3: Salvation
Chapters 1-35 Chapters 36-39 Chapters 40-66

When this takes place:

Chapter 64 is part of the second major section of Isaiah and deals less with Judah’s immediate plight than with its future deliverance from Babylonian exile and ultimate glory.

Key verse:

Isa. 64:4 – From ancient times no one has heard, no one has listened, no eye has seen any God except You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.

Quick summary:

Isaiah continues His plea for God to act, in language that foreshadows Messiah’s glorious appearance. When Christ returns, the earth will quake, similar to the shaking of Mt. Sinai at the giving of the law. Isaiah’s reference to fire also links these two events (see Ex. 19:18, 24:7; Isa. 2:5 – 4:1; Heb. 12:18-29). Isaiah confesses that the Holy One of Israel cannot tolerate the people’s sins, which have gone on far too long, yet He calls upon the Lord in faith to forgive and restore.

Take note:

Verse 6 is an often-quoted passage that describes the depravity of the human heart and the inability of people to be reconciled to God through their own efforts. Isaiah laments that “all of our righteous acts are like a polluted garment” – literally, like an unclean menstrual cloth. “[A]ll of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.”

Paul echoes this truth, stringing together a number of Old Testament passages when he writes, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away … there is no one who does good, not even one” (Rom. 3:10-12). But the apostle’s point is not to drive us to despair; it is to direct us to Christ, in whose righteousness we are clothed: “Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them filth, so that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ – the righteousness from God based on faith” (Phil. 3:8-9).

The Remnant’s Plea (Isa. 64:1-7)

Convinced of their uncleanness before a pure and holy God, the people realize their desperate state and ask the Lord to rend the heavens like a piece of cloth, come down and execute judgment on Judah’s enemies. Fire and boiling water symbolize God’s judgment here, as in other passages of Scripture (see, for example, Jer. 1:13-14; Mal. 4:1). The Lord’s “awesome deeds” in verse 3 likely refer to the fire, darkness and earthquake that accompanied His giving of the law on Mt. Sinai (Ex. 19:16-19; Deut. 4:11-13). This same God – the only true God – acts on behalf of those who trust in Him. “Recalling this, the remnant would ask that God work on their behalf. They would confess their sin, spiritual uncleanness, weakness (like a shriveled leaf), and lack of prayer. However, they would not blame God for their dreadful condition; they would know that their wasting away was because of their sins. Therefore they would have to count on God’s faithfulness and promises” (John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck, The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, S. 1:1119).

Verse 4 states: “From ancient times no one has heard, no one has listened, no eye has seen any God except You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.” The apostle Paul picks up on this ancient truth in 1 Cor. 2:9 to make the point that while all people may hear God’s Word with their ears, it is only by the Holy Spirit that the heart receives the eternal truths of God’s gracious and mighty deeds, whether they concern Israel, as Isaiah reports, or the gospel, to which Paul refers.

“Why is God not working wonders?” asks Warren Wiersbe. “They have sinned (Isa. 64:5–6) and must confess their sins and turn from them. If our righteousness is filthy, what must our sins look like in His sight! According to verse 4, God has planned for His people wonderful things beyond their imagination; but their sins prevent Him from sharing His blessings. Is there any hope? Yes, because God is a forgiving Father and a patient Potter (Jer. 18). He can cleanse us and make us anew if we will let Him have His way” (Be Comforted, An Old Testament Study, S. Is 64:1).

These verses contain a complete though brief description of the impact of sin on human beings, according to Lawrence O. Richards:

  • First, sin is habit–forming. We continue to sin against God’s ways (v. 5).
  • Second, sin rightly arouses the anger of God and directs it against us (v. 5).
  • Third, sin is defiling, making it impossible for us to approach Him (v. 6).
  • Fourth, sin so corrupts our character that even the best we can do is fouled by base motives (v. 6).
  • Fifth, sin is destructive, shriveling us up from within and creating circumstances that sweep us away (v. 6).
  • Sixth, sin alienates us from God, creating a distaste for the Lord that keeps us from calling on His name (v. 7).
  • Seventh, sin causes God to hide His face from us and to judge us (v. 7).

“In view of all that sin has done to us, it is no wonder Isaiah cries out, ‘How then can we be saved?’ The answer is in verse 8” (The Bible Readers Companion, electronic ed., S. 444).

The Potter’s Hand (Isa. 64:8-12)

The final words of the righteous remnant’s prayer express trust in the Lord, who is confessed as Father and Potter and whose will is received with complete submission. The humbled believers are depicted as obedient children and soft clay, entrusting their lives and future to the sovereign hand of the Holy One of Israel. They plead with the Lord to withhold His anger, righteous though it is, and to extend mercy to them as His children. They remind Him that Judah’s cities have been destroyed – possibly the phrase “holy cities” is a reference to upper and lower Jerusalem – and the temple has been burned to the ground. They lament, “… all that was dear to us lies in ruins” (v. 11). Therefore, the people ask the Lord to break His silence and do something about their plight. Their appeal for forgiveness and restoration is based solely on God’s grace.

The people’s lament in verse 11 is double edged. The “holy and beautiful temple” is where “our fathers praised you.” Is Isaiah reminding God of Israel’s glorious past, or confessing that his own generation has fallen so deeply into sin that worship has become cold and mechanical? Perhaps a little of both. Even so, the prophet expresses trust that the Lord will be faithful to His covenant with the people and, after severely chastening them, will restore them and their place of worship. “They interest God in the cause when they plead that it was the house where he had been praised, and put him in mind too of his covenant with their fathers by taking notice of their fathers’ praising him,” notes Matthew Henry. “Observe here how God and his people have their interest twisted and interchanged; when they speak of the cities for their own habitation they call them thy holy cities, for to God they were dedicated; when they speak of the temple wherein God dwelt they call it our beautiful house and its furniture our pleasant things, for they had heartily espoused it and all the interests of it. If thus we interest God in all our concerns by devoting them to his service, and interest ourselves in all his concerns by laying them near our hearts, we may with satisfaction leave both with him, for he will perfect both” (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, S. Is 64:6.

Closing Thought

We are challenged to pray as Isaiah did, with humility, candor, boldness and trust. Matthew Henry writes: “Those that would take hold of God in prayer so as to prevail with him must stir up themselves to do it; all that is within us must be employed in the duty … our thoughts fixed and our affections flaming. In order hereunto all that is within us must be engaged and summoned into the service; we must stir up the gift that is in us by an actual consideration of the importance of the work that is before us and a close application of mind to it; but how can we expect that God should come to us in ways of mercy when there are none that do this, when those that profess to be intercessors are mere triflers?” (S. Is 64:6)

The Parable of the Vineyard Owner

Following is chapter 12 of The Kingdom According to Jesus. You may order the entire study from a number of the nation’s leading booksellers.

Matt. 21:33-46 (HCSB)

33 “Listen to another parable: There was a man, a landowner, who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. He leased it to tenant farmers and went away.
34 When the grape harvest drew near, he sent his slaves to the farmers to collect his fruit.
35 But the farmers took his slaves, beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.
36 Again, he sent other slaves, more than the first group, and they did the same to them.
37 Finally, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38 But when the tenant farmers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance!’
39 So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
40 Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those farmers?”
41 “He will completely destroy those terrible men,” they told Him, “and lease his vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at the harvest.”
42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This came from the Lord and is wonderful in our eyes?
43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation producing its fruit.”

44 [“Whoever falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder!”]
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they knew He was speaking about them.
46 Although they were looking for a way to arrest Him, they feared the crowds, because they regarded Him as a prophet.

This parable also appears in Mark 12:1-12 and Luke 20:9-19.

The context

Jesus has entered Jerusalem triumphantly on Palm Sunday. He has cleansed the Temple complex, overturning the money changers’ tables and driving out those who are turning the “house of prayer” into a “den of thieves” (Matt. 21:13). He has healed the blind and the lame and has received the praises of children. After spending the night in Bethany, He curses a fig tree on His way back to Jerusalem, and the tree – a symbol of Israel – withers. Returning to the Temple, Jesus is confronted by the chief priests and elders and challenged about His authority. He responds with a question about John the Baptist’s baptism, whether it is from God or from men. When the Jewish leaders are not able to answer, Jesus tells the parable of the two sons, stating that “Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you” (Matt. 21:31). He then tells the scathing parable of the vineyard owner – a parable so pointed that it prompts them to intensify their efforts to do away with Him.

Central theme

The central theme of this parable is that the stewardship of the kingdom of heaven will be taken away from Israel and given to the church. Matthew Henry comments: “This parable plainly sets forth the sin and ruin of the Jewish nation; they and their leaders are the husbandmen here; and what is spoken for conviction to them, is spoken for caution to all that enjoy the privileges of the visible church, not to be high-minded, but fear.”

Central characters

The central characters in this parable are the landowner and the vineyard. The landowner pictures God the Father; the vineyard, His kingdom on earth entrusted to the Jews. Note what God has done in establishing and furnishing the kingdom:

  • He has planted the vineyard. God took the initiative to establish His kingdom on earth, a work of design and creation for which He assumed full responsibility.
  • He has put a fence around it. God protected His kingdom from those who opposed it and sought to destroy it. As one commentator writes, “He will not have his vineyard to lie in common, that those who are without, may thrust in at pleasure; not to lie at large, that those who are within, may lash out at pleasure; but care is taken to set bounds about this holy mountain” (Matthew Henry Unabridged).
  • He has dug a winepress and built a tower. The altar was the winepress upon which atonement was made for man’s sin and fellowship with God maintained; Mark’s account refers to the pit under the press, where the wine gathered after being crushed out of the grapes. The watchtower was His constant vigilance over a nation and people He established to exalt His great name; some say this is the Temple, in which the divine presence is manifested.

In the context of this parable, God has carefully and lovingly established His kingdom on earth – a vineyard fully furnished to produce a great harvest to be richly enjoyed by God and His people.

Details

The owner leases out his vineyard to tenant farmers and goes away. This is a common practice in Jesus’ day. The farmers occupy the vineyard, tend it, enjoy its fruits, and pay rent to the owner by sharing the harvest with him.

The tenant farmers in general are the Jews, whom God has graciously and freely entrusted with His kingdom. To them, Paul says, “belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple service, and the promises” (Rom. 9:4). God raised up the nation of Israel as the vehicle by which He would bless the whole world (Gen. 12:3). The farmers in particular are the Jewish religious leaders. Once God establishes the nation, reveals His purpose, gives the Jews the law and provides a homeland for them, He goes away. This does not mean He abandons them; rather it means there are fewer manifestations of His divine presence, while the law, prophets and sacrificial system are given to the nation until the time of the harvest.

When the grape harvest “draws near,” the landowner sends his servants – a common occurrence in which the tenant farmers share a portion of the harvest with the owner as rent. The servants in this case are the prophets, who represent the Master Himself. But note how the tenants – especially the Jewish religious leaders – treat them: they beat one (scourge, flay, take off the skin), kill another, and stone a third. Those hearing the parable know full well that the Jews had beaten Jeremiah, killed Isaiah, and stoned Zechariah the son of Jehoiada in the Temple. And when the Lord sends other servants, such as John the Baptist, they are imprisoned or beheaded.

At last, the master of the vineyard sends his son, whom “they will respect” (v. 37). But instead they recognize him as the heir, throw him out of the vineyard and kill him. What a picture this is of the Jewish leaders who refuse to receive Jesus as Messiah, take Him outside of the city and crucify Him. Matthew Henry comments: “Though the Roman power condemned him, yet it is still charged upon the chief priests and elders; for they were not only the prosecutors, but the principal agents, and had the greater sin” (Matthew Henry Unabridged).

As Jesus finishes the story, He asks the Jewish leaders, “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those farmers” (v. 40)? They reply, “He will completely destroy those terrible men and lease his vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at the harvest” (v. 41). In effect, they have just condemned themselves and pronounced their own sentence. Within 40 years of this parable, the Roman armies will sweep into Jerusalem, destroy the Temple, kill more than 1 million Jews and scatter the rest throughout the known world. The nation of Israel will cease to have its homeland and its center of worship for nearly 1,900 years, when national Israel is restored after the close of World War II; the Jewish people still await the rebuilding of the Temple.

In contrast, a little over 50 days after this parable is told, the Holy Spirit comes on the Day of Pentecost and ushers in the church age, taking up residence in the “temple” of the new believers’ bodies (see I Cor. 6:19). Truly, God has temporarily set aside Israel and entrusted His kingdom to the church.

Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22-23 and alludes to Isaiah 8:14-15 when He says, “Have you never read the Scriptures: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This came from the Lord and is wonderful in our eyes” (v. 42)? Although many rejected Jesus, as a builder would reject one stone in favor of another, He would become the capstone, or cornerstone, of His new building, the church (see Acts 4:11, 1 Peter 2:7). Having referred to Himself (not Peter) as the rock upon which the church would be built (Matt. 16:18), He now states the consequences of coming into contact with Him. “He that runs against it – a cornerstone, standing out from other parts of the foundation – shall be injured, or broken in his limbs or body. He that is offended with my being the foundation, or that opposes me, shall, by the act, injure himself” (Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament).

Verse 44 is bracketed, meaning that some manuscripts omit it, but its imagery is significant. It’s a reference to the custom of stoning as a punishment among the Jews. A scaffold is built, twice the height of the person to be stoned. Standing on the edge of the scaffold, the one being stoned is violently hit with a stone by one of the witnesses. If the person dies from the blow and the subsequent fall, nothing further is done; but if not, then a heavy stone is thrown down to crush and kill the accused – a stone so heavy it often required two men to lift it. “So the Saviour speaks of the falling of the stone on his enemies. They who oppose him, reject him, and continue impenitent, shall be crushed by him in the day of judgment, and perish for ever” (Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament). This also seems to allude to the crushing of the Jewish state by the Romans and the subsequent dispersion of the Jews through all the nations of the world.

The chief priests and Pharisees clearly understand that Jesus is directing this parable at them. Yet instead of repenting of their unbelief, they plot His arrest. Within a matter of days, the Jewish religious leaders will begin to fulfill the parable, and within a generation they will see it come to pass – first with the birthing of the church, then with the destruction of the Jewish Temple and nation.

Spiritual application

Just as God set aside the nation of Israel for its poor stewardship of His kingdom, He will not hesitate to chasten and rebuke those in His church who fail to be faithful stewards of His vineyard. “For the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17).

Isaiah 63: Look Down from Heaven

LISTEN: Isaiah 63 podcast

READ: Isaiah 63 notes

STUDY: Isaiah 63 worksheet

Prologue

Where we are:

Part 1: Judgment Part 2: Historical Interlude Part 3: Salvation
Chapters 1-35 Chapters 36-39 Chapters 40-66

When this takes place:

Chapter 63 is part of the second major section of Isaiah and deals less with Judah’s immediate plight than with its future deliverance from Babylonian exile and ultimate glory. This chapter in particular previews Messiah’s coming to judge Israel’s enemies.

Key verses:

Isa. 63:15-16 – Look down from heaven and see from your lofty home – holy and beautiful. Where is Your zeal and Your might? Your yearning and Your compassion are withheld from me. Yet You are our Father, even though Abraham does not know us and Israel doesn’t recognize us. You, Lord, are our Father; from ancient time, Your name is our Redeemer.

Quick summary:

H.L. Willmington writes: “As a blood-soaked warrior approached, a watchman asked his identity. He identified himself as the one who all alone had conquered Israel’s foes and was ready to redeem his people (63:1–6). Isaiah responded with praise for the God who throughout history had shown grace toward his people, no matter how often they rebelled against him (63:7–9). When he recalled the Exodus, however, Isaiah wondered why God had not yet delivered his people once again (63:11–17), and begged him to do so quickly (63:17–19)…. 63:1–6 can be seen as foreshadowing Christ’s second coming and victory at Armageddon (see Rev. 14:18–20; 19:11–21)” (Willmington’s Bible Handbook, Tyndale House Publishers, 1997, S. 374).

Take note:

When the Lord comes (or returns, from a New Testament perspective), He is asked two questions: Who is this? And, why is Your clothing red? He answers the first question in verse 1, “It is I, proclaiming vindication (or righteousness).” Just as the Lord reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush as “IAM WHO I AM” (Ex. 3:14), Jesus proclaims His deity by identifying Himself to the woman at the well as “I am” (John 4:26) and to the Jewish religious leaders by declaring, “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). The Lord of Isaiah 63 is the same Lord of all Scripture, establishing the truths of the Trinity and the deity of the Messiah.

The Lord answers the second question, as to why His clothing is red, “I trampled the winepress alone … I trampled them [the nations] in My anger … their blood spattered My garments” (v. 3). Just as juice from freshly pressed grapes will stain the garments of the vintner, so Messiah’s robes will be covered in blood when He returns to judge the nations. Zechariah foresees this day as well (Zech. 14:3), as does the apostle John (Rev. 14:19-20; 19:11-21).

The Day of Vengeance (Isa. 63:1-6)

This chapter begins with a graphic image of the Messiah approaching Jerusalem, having avenged Himself and His people of their common enemies as symbolized by Edom. His garments are spattered with blood, much as a vintner’s robes are stained from the grapes he has trampled, yet the Messiah is neither injured nor weary. In fact, He is “splendid in His apparel, rising up proudly in His great might” (v. 1). Edom is the wicked nation southeast of Israel that often opposes God’s people and therefore is under God’s wrath (see Mal. 1:4). Bozrah is a city in Edom and its name means “grape gathering.” The Lord’s clothing is red (adom), a Hebrew word-play on Edom. Isaiah already has identified Edom and Bozrah as typical of the impenitent world (Isa. 34:6). The imagery is clear: As a vintner crushes the harvested grapes beneath his feet, the Messiah will crush His enemies.

The ancient wine press is a large hollowed-out rock into which grapes are placed for people to trample. The juice runs out of a hole in the rock and is captured in vessels beneath it. As the people crush the grapes, no doubt some of the juice stains their clothing. In a similar fashion, when the Messiah crushes His enemies, His robes will be stained with their blood (Rev. 19:13). Having rejected the blood of the Lamb as payment for their sins, those who oppose the Messiah at His return will have their blood shed. They truly will die in their sins (John 8:24).

Warren Wiersbe comments: “When Jesus came to earth the first time, it was to inaugurate ‘the acceptable year of the Lord’ (Isa. 61:2; Luke 4:19). When He comes the second time, it will be to climax ‘the day of vengeance of our God’ (Isa. 63:4; 61:2). The enemy will be crushed like grapes and forced to drink their own blood from the cup of God’s wrath (51:17; Jer. 25:15–16). These images may not appeal to sophisticated people today, but the Jews in that day fully understood them” (Be Comforted, An Old Testament Study, S. Is 63:1).

As a side note, this passage of Scripture is the background for the Civil War’s most famous song, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” according to Lawrence O. Richards in The Bible Readers Companion.

God’s Mercies Remembered (Isa. 63:7-14)

Before stating their two requests – that God be compassionate toward them (vv. 15-19) and that He punish their enemies (64:1-7) – the righteous remnant declares the Lord’s faithful love and praiseworthy acts (v. 7). While Isaiah exalts the Lord for all He has done, the Lord claims the remnant as His own and even identifies with their suffering (v. 8). This divine empathy is expressed elsewhere in Scripture, for example:

  • Isa. 53:3-6 – He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like one people turned away from; He was despised, and we didn’t value Him. Yet He Himself bore our sicknesses, and He carried our pains; but we in turn regarded Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on Him, and we are healed by His wounds. We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.
  • Mark 8:31 – Then He began to teach them that the  Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the  chief priests, and the  scribes, be killed, and rise after three days.
  • Acts 3:18 – But what God predicted through the mouth of all the prophets – that His  Messiah would suffer – He has fulfilled in this way.

The name “Angel of His Presence” (v. 9) literally means “Angel of His face,” or the One who stands continually before the Lord. Most likely this is a reference to the Angel of the Lord, or as many commentators believe, the pre-incarnate Messiah.

In verses 10-14 Isaiah reminds his fellow citizens of the post-wilderness rebellions of Israel for which they were chastened but not cut off. Even though God’s people reject the Lord, He remains faithful to His covenant promises to them. There is strong emphasis on the deity and personhood of the Holy Spirit in these verses. The Holy Spirit is grieved by the rebellious Israelites (v. 10), present among the flock (v. 11), and the One who, like a gentle farmer leading his cattle into a valley, gives His people rest (v. 14).

A Forlorn Family (Isa. 63:15-19)

The Jews in Babylonian exile will plead with the Lord to look down from His “lofty home” at their plight in the same way He looked down on the people in Egypt in Moses’ day. They will long for a display of His zeal, strength and compassion. The people will wonder why His “yearning” – literally the agitation of His inward parts, or the emotions that spring from compassion – is withheld from them. Even though they have drifted far away from the faithful paths of Abraham and Jacob, God is still their Father and Redeemer. In exile, the people will realize that though they have belonged to God for centuries, they have not been in a proper relationship with Him, nor have they humbly submitted to His theocratic rule. Penitently, the people will ask the Lord to return them to Him while reminding Him that their place of worship, the temple, has been destroyed.

The people ask an odd question in verse 17: “Why, Lord, do you make us stray from Your ways?” (emphasis added). Further, they state, “You harden our hearts …” Are the Jews in exile blaming God for their sin and its consequences? Is there any truth to their complaint? And if so, how can they – or any of us – be held responsible for our rebellion against God?  One commentary explains it this way: “They do not mean to deny their own blameworthiness, but confess that through their own fault God gave them over to a reprobate mind (Is 6:9, 10; Ps 119:10; Ro 1:28)” (Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997, S. Is 63:17). D.A. Carson adds, “God is not to blame for their spiritual plight; it stems from their own dalliance with evil” (New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, S. Is 63:15). While God certainly chooses servants like Jeremiah from their mothers’ wombs, and determines centuries in advance the leaders who will alter human history (Cyrus, for example), He is not the author of evil, nor does He tempt people with evil (James 1:13-14). Further, He does not direct people’s thoughts, words and deeds in such a way that releases them from their personal responsibility to repent, believe and follow Him. The sovereignty of God and responsibility of men and women are mysterious biblical doctrines whose difficulties make them no less true.

Matthew Henry shares this insight: “Why hast thou made us to err from thy ways …Those are wicked indeed that lay the blame of their wickedness upon God. But I rather take it to be the language of those among them that lamented the unbelief and impenitence of their people, not accusing God of being the author of their wickedness, but complaining of it to him…. When they ask, Why hast thou done this? it is not as charging him with wrong, but lamenting it as a sore judgment…. God had caused them to err and hardened their hearts, not only by withdrawing his Spirit from them, because they had grieved, and vexed, and quenched him (v. 10), but by a judicial sentence upon them (Go, make the heart of this people fat, ch. 6:9, 10) and by his providences concerning them, which had proved sad occasions for their departure from him…. Convinced consciences complain most of spiritual judgments and dread that most in an affliction which draws them from God and duty” (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, S. Is 63:15).

Closing Thought

The chapter ends with the people of God surrendering to Him at last. J. Vernon McGee writes: “This should be the attitude of the Christian today – complete yielding to God. Most of us are afraid to yield to God because we are afraid He will be hard on us. God wants to be gentle with us if we will give Him a chance. But remember that He also is the God of judgment. He is the One who is coming to earth some day to tread the winepress of the fierceness of His wrath. God is not trying to frighten you; He is just telling you the truth” (Isaiah: Volume II, p. 186).

The Parable of the Vineyard Laborers

Following is chapter 11 of The Kingdom According to Jesus. You may order the entire study from a number of the nation’s leading booksellers.

Matt. 20:1-16 (HCSB)

1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
2 After agreeing with the workers on one denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.
3 When he went out about nine in the morning, he saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing.
4 To those men he said, ‘You also go to my vineyard, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ So off they went.
5 About noon and at three, he went out again and did the same thing.
6 Then about five he went and found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’
7 ‘Because no one hired us,’ they said to him. ‘You also go to my vineyard,’ he told them.
8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told his foreman, ‘Call the workers and give them their pay, starting with the last and ending with the first.’
9 When those who were hired about five came, they each received one denarius.
10 So when the first ones came, they assumed they would get more, but they also received a denarius each.
11 When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner:
12 ‘These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day and the burning heat!’
13 He replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius?
14 Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you.
15 ’Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my business? Are you jealous because I’m generous?’
16 So the last will be first, and the first last.”

The context

Jesus is with His 12 disciples, who have just witnessed His dealings with the rich young ruler and have heard His teaching that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Startled, the disciples ask, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus responds, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Peter points out that he and his fellow disciples have left everything to follow Jesus. “So what will there be for us?” he asks. Jesus assures Peter that everyone who has sacrificed for His name will be well compensated in the age to come. Jesus then closes out Matthew 19 by saying, “But many who are first will be last, and the last first” (v. 30), a phrase repeated in the parable that follows and gives us a key to understanding its meaning.

Central theme

The central theme of this parable is that all believers receive the complete reward of the kingdom. Commentaries suggest at least four possible interpretations:

  1. This is a parable about the Gentiles, who will enjoy the privileges of the new covenant, while the Jews, because of their rejection of the Messiah, will be set aside.
  2. This is a parable about God’s call to individual lives. The call early in the morning is for children; the call around nine is for youth; the call at noon is for adults; the call at three is for the aged; and the evening call is when sickness or other infirmities press hard on one’s life.
  3. This is a parable about the preaching of the gospel. The morning call is the preaching of John the Baptist; the second call is the preaching of Jesus; the third, the preaching of the fullness of the gospel after the ascension of Christ; the fourth, the mission of the apostles to the Jews; and the last call, the gospel presentation to the Gentiles.
  4. This is a parable about humble Christian service. The followers of Christ should labor in His vineyard, the church, fully confident they will receive their reward in heaven (see Matt. 5:12, 6:1; Luke 6:23). They need not be concerned that some have come into the kingdom before them, or after them, or that their length of service or degree of giftedness is different from theirs.

The fourth interpretation of this parable seems to be the most faithful to the context. Consider what commentator Albert Barnes wrote in the early 1800s in Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament:

To all justice shall be done. To all to whom the rewards of heaven were promised, they shall be given. Nothing shall be withheld that was promised. If among this number who are called into the kingdom I (God) choose to raise some to stations of distinguished usefulness, and to confer on them peculiar talents and higher rewards, I injure no other one. They shall enter heaven as was promised. If amidst the multitude of Christians, I choose to signalize such men as Paul, and Martyn, and Brainerd, and Spencer, and Summerfield – to appoint some of them to short labour, but to wide usefulness, and raise them to signal rewards – I injure not the great multitude of others who live long lives less useful, and less rewarded. All shall reach heaven, and all shall receive what I promise to the faithful.

Regarding Jesus’ summary words, “So the last will be first, and the first last,” F.F. Bruce comments, “What is the point of the saying in this context? It seems to be directed to the disciples and perhaps the point is that those who have given up most to follow Jesus must not suppose that the chief place in the kingdom of God is thereby granted to them” (The Hard Sayings of Jesus, p. 199).

Herbert Lockyer adds, in All the Parables of the Bible, “As laborers may we ever remember that motive gives character to service, and that acceptable service is determined, not by duration, but by its spirit.”

Central character

The central character in this parable is the landowner, a picture of Jesus who is Creator of all things (John 1:1-3; Col. 1:16), sovereign Lord over His creation, and the One to whom all judgment has been given (John 5:22). He actively and graciously seeks laborers for His vineyard, rewarding them justly for their work.

Details

In the immediate context, the laborers are Christ’s disciples, who are among the first to labor in Christ’s vineyard. The workers who come along later symbolize others – Jews and Gentiles – who will receive Christ and serve Him throughout the church age. Matthew Henry comments, “God hires laborers, not because he needs them or their services … but as some charitable generous householders keep poor men to work, in kindness to them, to save them from idleness and poverty, and pay them for working for themselves” (Matthew Henry Unabridged).

The denarius is the customary wage of a solider or a day laborer. The word is rendered “penny” in the King James Version.

The vineyard may be seen as the kingdom of heaven, into which people of all walks of life are called. Some would say the vineyard is the church, which requires constant pruning and care.

The marketplace may be seen as the world. The soul of man stands ready to be hired, for God made us to work. The devil seeks to hire people to waste their inheritance and feed swine, while the Lord calls them to dress His vineyard. We are put to the choice, for we must choose whom we will serve (Josh. 24:15).

It’s important to note that some manuscripts add, “… for many are called, but few are chosen” to verse 16. Albert Barnes comments in Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament:

The meaning of this, in this connexion [sic], I take to be simply this: “Many are called into my kingdom; they come and labour as I command them; they are comparatively unknown and obscure; yet they are real Christians, and shall receive the proper reward. A few I have chosen for higher stations in the church. I have endowed them with apostolic gifts, or superior talents, or wider usefulness. They may not be so long in the vineyard; their race may be sooner run; but I have chosen to honour them in this manner; and I have a right to do it. I injure no one; and have a right to do what I will with mine own.”

Spiritual application

As grateful laborers in Christ’s vineyard, all believers should be faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to us, confident that we will receive our promised reward. At the same time, we should not be envious of those who may overtake us in length or fruitfulness of service.