Tagged: God

Isaiah 37: My Hook in Your Nose

Isaiah 37: My Hook in Your Nose (audio)

Isaiah 37: My Hook in Your Nose — Study Notes and Worksheet (pdf)

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:

The events in this chapter occur in 701 B.C., when Sennacherib besieges Jerusalem.

Key verses:

Isa. 37:28-29 – But I know your sitting down, your going out and your coming in, and your raging against Me. Because your raging against Me and your arrogance has reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will make you go back the way you came.

Quick summary:

When Hezekiah hears of Sennacherib’s siege of Jerusalem and the Assyrian’s blasphemous boasts, the king of Judah asks Isaiah to seek the Lord on the people’s behalf. Isaiah delivers three messages from the Lord, according to Willmington’s Bible Handbook (S. 368):

  • Message 1: “Don’t worry, he’s doomed” (vv. 5-20).
  • Message 2: Sennacherib’s rise and ruin (vv. 21-29).
  • Message 3: “Neither army nor arrows will enter the city” (vv. 30-35).

These messages are fulfilled (vv. 36-38). The angel of the Lord miraculously destroys the Assyrian army. Sennacherib returns home and, some time later, is assassinated.

Take note:

“The Angel of the Lord,” who strikes 185,000 Assyrians dead on the hills surrounding Jerusalem, is a “theophany,” an appearance or manifestation of God to people. Many commentators believe the Angel of the Lord (distinct from “an angel of the Lord” or “an angel sent by the Lord”) is the pre-incarnate Messiah, who appears in numerous places to different people throughout the Old Testament: to Hagar in the wilderness (Gen. 16:7-11); to Moses in the burning bush (Ex. 3); to Balaam as he rode his donkey (Num. 22:22-35); to Gideon beneath the oak of Ophrah (Judges 6:11-24); to David in Jerusalem (2 Sam. 24:11-17); and elsewhere.

 

Don’t be Afraid (Isa. 37:1-7)

Like the envoys sent to meet the Assyrian commander, King Hezekiah tears his clothes in anguish over the Rabshakeh’s threats and in response to the pagan’s blasphemy. The king also puts on sackcloth and enters the temple as a public declaration that the nation’s destiny is fully in the hands of the God of Israel. He sends Eliakim, who is in charge of the palace, and Shebna the scribe to Isaiah, declaring this “a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace” and seeking a word from the Lord through the prophet. Picking up the imagery from Isa. 26:17-18, they compare Judah to a woman so weakened in pregnancy that she is about to die in childbirth.

Although the Assyrian commander mocks the living God in hopes of driving Hezekiah to abandon his faith and agree to surrender, the king turns to the Lord for deliverance. Matthew Henry writes, “Rabshakeh intended to frighten Hezekiah from the Lord, but it proves that he frightens him to the Lord. The wind, instead of forcing the traveller’s coat from him, makes him wrap it the closer about him. The more Rabshakeh reproaches God the more Hezekiah studies to honour him, by rending his clothes for the dishonour done to him and attending in his sanctuary to know his mind”  (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, S. Is 37:1).

Isaiah tells the messengers to assure the king not to be afraid. The Lord has heard the Rabshakeh’s boasting and blasphemy and will not permit them to go unpunished. He will put “a spirit” in King Sennacherib, influencing his judgment and causing him to return to his country, where he will die by the sword. This comes to pass as Sennacherib, who has turned to the southwest to face off against Judah’s allies, hears of the death of 185,000 Assyrian soldiers and goes home to regroup, only to be assassinated.

Sennacherib’s Letter (Isa. 37:8-13)

Sennacherib has left Lachish, the city from which he stages his assault on Jerusalem, in order to address a threat from Tirhakah, a Cushite army commander who later will become king of Egypt. Word has arrived that Tirhakah has come to the aid of Judah, and Sennacherib moves his forces five miles north of Lachish to meet the Cushite army. Not wanting to fight a war on two fronts, Sennacherib sends a threatening letter to Judah’s King Hezekiah, urging him to surrender immediately. He reminds Hezekiah that other nations’ gods were powerless to stop the advancing Assyrian war machine and that Judah’s God will fare no better. Gozan, a city on the Habor River, fell to the Assyrians a century earlier. Haran, a city in Aram, is now an Assyrian stronghold. Rezeph, also a city in Aram, had long ago been subdued. The arrogant king lists other places and their leaders that have fallen into Assyria’s hands.

Matthew Henry comments: “Great successes often harden sinners’ hearts in their sinful ways and make them the more daring. Because the kings of Assyria have destroyed all lands (though, in fact, they were but a few that fell within their reach), therefore they doubt not but to destroy God’s land; because the gods of the nations were unable to help they conclude the God of Israel is so…. Thus is this proud man ripened for ruin by the sunshine of prosperity” (S. Is 37:8).

Hezekiah’s Prayer (Isa. 37:14-20)

Hezekiah takes Sennacherib’s taunting letter to the temple and lays it out before the Lord. What follows is a great prayer of faith. The king begins with praise, acknowledging the Lord of Hosts as the one true and living God, the Creator, exalted above all things and sovereign over the kingdoms of the world. Referring to Him as “God of Israel,” Hezekiah remembers (for God needs no reminding of) the special covenant relationship between the Lord and His people. The king’s reference to God being “enthroned above the cherubim” points to His presence, the Shekinah glory, in the Holy of Holies in Jerusalem’s temple (1 Kings 6:23; 8:10-13). The cherubim “are so inseparably associated with the manifestation of God’s glory, that whether the Lord is at rest or in motion, they always are mentioned with Him (Nu 7:89; Ps 18:10)” (Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, S. Is 37:16).

The king confesses God’s sovereignty over all the kingdoms of the world, including Assyria, which has demolished its enemies and run roughshod over their false gods, gods of wood and stone “made by human hands” (v. 19). But now Sennacherib has overstepped his bounds, mocking the living God and treating Him and His people with contempt. Hezekiah’s plea is simple, humble and direct: “Now, Lord our God, save us from his hand so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord – You alone” (v. 20).

God’s Answer (Isa. 37:21-35)

The Lord’s reply to Hezekiah’s prayer provides a three-fold assurance: Jerusalem will not be taken; the Assyrians will not stay; and the Jews will not starve.

The “Daughter Zion,” like a young virgin, will not be ravaged by the barbarous Assyrians. She may look at the enemy and shake her head in scorn because he cannot touch her. The Lord will spare His remnant for a number of reasons. First, to glorify His name (vv. 23, 35). Sennacherib has mocked the God of Israel and the Assyrians have exalted themselves above all men and gods, but they will soon learn to fear the one true and living God. Second, the Lord will spare Jerusalem because of His covenant with David (v. 35; 2 Sam. 7). He promised that one of David’s descendents would reign on the throne forever. Ultimately this is fulfilled in Christ. It’s true that Jerusalem will fall and the temple will be destroyed a century later at the hands of the Babylonians, but God’s promise stands and His timing and purpose are unchallenged. A third reason the Lord will spare a remnant is because of His promise to use Israel as the means by which the Abrahamic covenant would be fulfilled and all the world would be blessed through the Messiah (Gen. 12:1-3).

The Lord’s second assurance to Hezekiah is that the Assyrians will not stay (vv. 23-29). God addresses Sennacherib directly in these verses, reminding the king that his empty and blasphemous boasts will not thwart the plan of God. Ultimately, the Lord will humble the king and his army and lead them like cattle away from Daughter Zion: “I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will make you go back the way you came” (v. 29).

The Lord’s final assurance is that the Jews will have enough to eat – comforting words to people under siege. Although normal agricultural pursuits would be interrupted momentarily, the cycle of planting and harvesting would return to normal within three years (v. 30). Warren Wiersbe observes that Psalm126 may have been written to commemorate Jerusalem’s deliverance from the Assyrians: “The harvest promise in verse 30 parallels Psalm 126:5–6. The seed would certainly be precious in those days! That grain could be used for making bread for the family, but the father must use it for seed; so it is no wonder he weeps. Yet God promised a harvest, and He kept His promise. The people did not starve” (Be Comforted, S. Is 36:1).

Sennacherib’s Demise (Isa. 37:36-38)

As God promises, the Assyrians fail to take Jerusalem. The angel of the Lord, who some commentators say is the pre-incarnate Messiah, strikes down 185,000 enemy soldiers in a single night. The carnage the next morning is difficult to fathom: There are no signs of a struggle, no battle wounds on the fallen; just a massive army of soldiers lying dead on the hillsides. The Lord promised to chop down the Assyrians like a forest (Isa. 10:33-34), pummel them like a storm with fire, rain, a torrent and hailstones (Isa. 30:27-30), and destroy their leader (Isa. 30:31-33), and now He is true to His word. The work of God on this fateful night reminds the Jews of His sovereignty in bringing both deliverance and judgment (Ex. 12:12; 2 Sam. 24:15-17).

News of the Assyrian defeat prompts Sennacherib to leave Judah and return to his capital city of Ninevah. Twenty years later, as a result of a power struggle, he is assassinated by two of his sons while worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch (or Asshur, the chief Assyrian god depicted as an eagle-headed human figure), thus fulfilling Isa. 37:7 (see also 2 Kings 19:7, 35-37). Although Sennacherib mocks the God of Israel, his own god is unable to save him.

Closing Thought

Matthew Henry summarizes: “God can quickly stop their breath who breathe out threatenings and slaughter against his people, and will do it when they have filled up the measure of their iniquity; and the Lord is known by these judgments which he executes, known to be a God that resists the proud. Many prophecies were fulfilled in this providence, which should encourage us, as far as they look further, and are designed as common and general assurances of the safety of the church and of all that trust in God …” (S. Isa 37:21).

Copyright 2009 by Rob Phillips

Comparing Islam and Christianity

Apologetics 101: Part 9

This is session nine in a 10-part series designed to help Christians defend their faith.

Islam and Christianity (audio)

Session 9 — Islam and Christianity (pdf)

Islam is the youngest and fastest-growing major world religion.  It was founded by Arabian visionary Muhammad (570-632 AD), who was born in the city of Mecca in Arabia. Muhammad claimed he received supernatural revelations from God through the angel Gabriel. These revelations were written down by others and compiled into a book called the Koran (or Qur’an). Islam today is comprised of two main schools: the majority Sunni school and the minority Shi’ite school. In addition, there are millions of Muslim mystics called Sufis. Islam is the second largest religion in the world (behind Christianity) with about 1.5 billion followers. Interestingly, the four nations with the largest number of Muslims today are all outside the Middle East – Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India.

Purpose

The ultimate goal of Islam is to subjugate the world and then rule it according to Islamic law.  Islam claims to be the restoration of true monotheism and thus supersedes both Judaism and Christianity. Islamic law teaches that conversion may be achieved through persuasion or subjugation, but some hold that if these fail, unbelievers (or “infidels”) may be eliminated if necessary. As such, hostility toward non-Muslims is accepted and even encouraged in some Islamic cultures, based on passages from the Koran such as, “O, true believers, take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends. They cannot be trusted. They are defiled – filth.”

Islam’s Beginnings

Islam began with the supernatural visions and revelations that Muhammad claimed he received from God through the angel Gabriel. Because Muhammad could neither read nor write, he claimed to have memorized these revelations and ordered his followers to write them down. These writings became Islam’s holy book, the Koran. Muhammad at first feared his revelations came from a jinn, or evil spirit, but later he accepted their source as divine and taught that he alone was the true recipient of Allah’s truth.

Muhammad was born in the Arabian city of Mecca in 570 A.D. Mecca was an important economic center, serving as a resting place for trading caravans. But is also was an important religious city because the Ka’bah was located there. The Ka’bah is a cubic structure that in the days of Muhammad housed 360 deities. Each Arabian tribe selected its own deity and came to Mecca each year to pay homage to its god. Muhammad’s monotheistic preaching threatened the economic and religious livelihood of Mecca and set him against his own tribe. He and about 100 Muslim families were forced to flee to Medina, a city 200 miles north of Mecca. Muslims look to the year of Muhammad’s flight, 622 A.D., as the beginning of the Muslim calendar. In 630, Muhammad and his army returned and took control of Mecca. He personally destroyed the idols in the Ka’bah and within a year succeeded in unifying the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula under Islam. Muhammad died in 632 A.D. without appointing a successor.

The Sects of Islam

The two major sects of Islam, Sunni and Shi’ite, originally were established after Muhammad’s death in a dispute over who should serve as his successor, or caliph. The Sunni Muslims insisted that Muhammad’s successor be elected, while the Shi’ite Muslims felt he should be of Muhammad’s blood line, which would have meant that Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, would have become caliph. The Sunnis prevailed and today account for about 80 percent of the Muslim population. Sunnis and Shi’ites differ in other ways as well:

  • Authority. Sunnis emphasize the authority of the written traditions, which include the Koran and the Sunna (“custom”), from which they derive their name. They also receive guidance from a consensus of elders (ulama), who base their decisions on Islam’s writings. Shi’ites look more toward human authority. Initially, they believed Allah spoke through the Imam, roughly the equivalent of the Catholic Pope. In the ninth century, however, the twelfth Imam, known as the Mahdi, became hidden; Shi’ites today await his return, much as Christians await the return of Christ.
  • Civil and religious power. Sunnis believe there should be a separation between civil and religious authorities, while Shi’ites believe the religious authorities should exercise both political and religious power. Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini, for example, was a Shi’ite leader.

There is another significant sect of Islam known as Sufism, which is mystical in nature. Minor sects include the Wahhabis (primarily in Saudi Arabia), the Druze (mostly in Lebanon, Syria and northern Israel), the Alawites (mainly in Syria), and the Ahmadiyas (primarily in Pakistan). Beyond this, Islam has been influential in the founding of two other religions: Sikhism and Baha’ism.

Source of Authority

Muslims believe Allah has revealed many written works, including the Old and New Testaments.  But these revelations ended with the Koran (Qur’an, “recitations”), which supersedes all others. For all practical purposes, Muslims accept only the Koran as the Word of God. They believe Allah’s earlier revelations in the Bible have been corrupted by Jews and Christians and therefore are not trustworthy, except as interpreted by the Koran. Sunni Muslims, as mentioned above, also place strong emphasis on the Sunna, which includes the Hadith, in which the sayings and conduct of Muhammad and his companions are recorded.

Basic Beliefs

Every Muslim must hold to six articles of faith:

  • Faith in Allah. The central doctrine of Islam is that God is one and that no one may be associated with his deity. To associate someone, like Jesus, with Allah by calling Him God’s Son is to commit the unpardonable sin of shirk (see Surah 4:48).
  • Belief in angels like Gabriel, whom they claim transmitted the Koran to Muhammad. Each person has two angels assigned to him or her – one to record the person’s good deeds and the other to record the person’s evil deeds. Muslims also believe in evil spirits called jinn, from which we get the word “genie.”
  • Acceptance of the Koran. Four high-ranking prophets were given books by divine revelation. Moses was given the Tawrat (Torah); David, the Zabur (his Psalms); Jesus, the Injil (Gospel); and Muhammad, the Koran. Muslims teach that only the Koran has been preserved in perfection; Jews and Christians have corrupted the rest.
  • Acceptance of Islam’s prophets, with Muhammad as the greatest. The Koran says Allah has sent prophets to every nation, proclaiming the truth of the one true God. In all, 124,000 prophets have been sent. Most are unknown, but many include biblical characters such as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, Jonah, John the Baptist, and Jesus. Muhammad is the only prophet who is for all time; he is called “Seal of the Prophets.”
  • Belief in predestination – that is, everything that happens, good and evil, is predestined by Allah’s will.
  • Preparation for the Day of Judgment, in which each person’s good and evil works will be measured, resulting in heaven or hell. Only Allah knows – and has predetermined – who will go to heaven and who will go to hell. Hell is not an eternal place of torment, but a place where evil is purged from its inhabitants

Religious Duties

Every Muslim must practice at least five fundamental religious duties.  These are known as the Pillars of Religion, and they are:

  • The confession of faith or Shahada: “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.” Sincerity in voicing the confession is essential.  If a Muslim repudiates the Shahada it nullifies his or her hope of salvation.
  • Prayer (Salat). Muslims must recite 17 cycles of prayer each day. These cycles usually are spread over five times while the supplicant faces Mecca – dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, dusk, and two hours after sunset. The noon service on Friday is the only time Muslims are expected to gather together at the mosque. Muslims wash themselves ceremonially before praying; this is called ablution or wudu.
  • Observing Ramadan, a month of fasting throughout the daylight hours to commemorate the first revelation of the Koran to Muhammad. During the day, Muslims must refrain from food, drink, smoke, and sexual relations. After sundown, all of these pleasures may be enjoyed until sunrise the next day.
  • Almsgiving or Zakat. Muslims are required to give 2.5 percent of their currency, plus other forms of wealth, as determined by a complicated system that purifies their remaining wealth.
  • Pilgrimage, or Hajj, to Mecca, Muhammad’s place of birth. Every Muslim who is physically and financially able must make this trek at least once is his or her lifetime. Pilgrims must wear white garments to eliminate all class distinctions. The process of visiting several sacred sites usually takes more than a week.
  • A sixth religious duty is sometimes associated with these: Jihad. Muslims tend to speak of two jihads – an internal jihad, or struggle between right and wrong, much like the Christian’s struggle between the Spirit and the flesh; and an external jihad, or military battle. When the situation warrants it, this duty requires Muslims to go to war to defend Islam against “infidels.”  Anyone who dies in a holy war is guaranteed everlasting life in heaven and is considered a martyr for Islam.

Are God and Allah the same?

While many people assume that Christians and Muslims worship the same God, differing only in the name upon which they call, this simply is not true. The God of the Koran and the God of the Bible do share similarities, but the differences are profound. Following are some similarities and differences as highlighted in The Illustrated Guide to World Religions:

Similarities

  • Both are one.
  • Both are transcendent creators of the universe.
  • Both are sovereign.
  • Both are omnipotent.
  • Both have spoken to humanity through messengers or prophets, through angels, and through the written word.
  • Both know in intimate detail the thoughts and deeds of men.
  • Both will judge the wicked.

Differences

  • Allah is a singular unity, while God is a compound unity who is one in essence and three in persons (Matt. 28:19; John 10:30; Acts 5:3-4).
  • Allah is not a father and has begotten no sons (Surahs 19:88-92; 112:3), but God exists in an eternal relationship as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
  • Through the Koran, Allah broke into history through a word that is written, but the God of the Bible broke into history through the Word who is a person (John 1:1, 14; Col. 1:15-20; Heb. 1:2-3; 1 John 1:1-3; 4:9-10).
  • “Allah loves not those that do wrong” (Surah 3:140), and neither does he love “him who is treacherous, sinful” (Surah 4:107), but the God of the Bible “proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).
  • The standard of judgment for Allah is the Koranic teaching that our good deeds must outweigh our bad deeds (Surahs 7:8-9; 21:47), but the standard of the God of the Bible is complete perfection as measured by the holy character of God Himself (Matt. 5:48; Rom. 3:23); since it is impossible for sinful and fallen people to attain godly perfection, God sent His Son to pay our sin debt and reconcile us to God (Rom. 5:11; 2 Cor. 5:18-19).
  • Allah provided a messenger, Muhammad, who warned of Allah’s impending judgment (Surahs 2:119; 5:19; 7:184, 188; 15:89-90) and who declared that “No bearer of a burden can bear the burden of another” (Surahs 17:15; 35:18). But God provided a sinless Savior who took our sins upon Himself and bore God’s wrath in our place (Matt. 20:28; 26:28; Luke 22:37; John 3:16; 10:9-11; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13; 1 Thess. 5:9-10).

Copyright 2009 by Rob Phillips

Seven Reasons to Trust the Scriptures

Apologetics 101: Part 2 – How do I know the Bible is true?

This is the second in a 10-part series designed to help Christians defend their faith.

How do I know the Bible is true? (audio)

How do I know the bible is true? (pdf)

BibleMuslims claim The Koran is the perfect revelation of Allah given to the prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel. It corrects corrupted Jewish and Christian scriptures and supersedes all other religious writings.

Members of the Unification Church say Divine Principle is their written authority, coming from the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, “the Lord of the Second Advent” who completed the work Jesus left unfinished when Jesus died on the cross rather than marrying and having children.

Mormons profess belief in four standard works: The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price, and the Bible (“as far as it is translated correctly”). The Book of Mormon is especially important, recording Jesus’ appearance in America to the descendants of a Jewish prophet; it is, in Mormon teaching, “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.”

Adherents to the Church of Scientology study Dianetics, a book by one-time science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, who claimed that people are eternal beings who go through a series of rebirths and must shed the negative baggage from past lives in order to become “operating thetans.”

Then, of course, there’s the Bible, which most Christians agree is the Word of God.

Add to these the sacred writings of countless other belief systems – from Buddhism to Baha’ism – and the claims to truth are astounding in their number and variety.

But which of these books is really true? Is it possible that all of them contain some truth – or that all of them are true for the people who choose to believe them? Is it narrow-minded, arrogant, or even bigoted to say that any of these writings is false? Why do Christians insist that the Bible is the Word of God? Can’t we all just get along?

Most Christians believe in the veracity of Scripture. That is, we trust the Bible to be the inerrant, infallible, and inspired Word of God and the authoritative source of all we believe and practice. By inerrant, we mean the original autographs are without error. By infallible, we mean the Bible is incapable of error because God, as its author, does not lie or make mistakes. By inspired, we mean the Bible is “God breathed.” And by authoritative, we mean that the Bible, as God’s Word, is His written revelation to us and must therefore guide our thoughts, words and deeds.

But many people – including some professing Christians – do not share such a high view of Scripture. They raise serious objections to the church’s claims about the Bible’s truthfulness and reliability. For example, some critics charge:

  • “No one really knows what Bible says because we don’t have the original manuscripts.”
  • “It’s silly to assume that one book – the Bible – contains all of God’s truth and that other great writings, from the Vedas to The Book of Mormon, do not come from God.”
  • “The Bible is full of contradictions.”

Responding to these objections is a daunting task – in part because critics raise some valid points. For example, it’s true that we do not have the “autographs,” or the original documents written by the Bible’s human authors. At the same time, the Bible soars above other ancient documents in many convincing ways, giving us good reasons to trust it as the Word of God. In the paragraphs below we offer seven reasons to trust the Scriptures.

Reason 1: The documents

While the autographs, or original manuscripts, of the Bible have not survived the ravages of time, no other book from the ancient world has more, earlier, or more accurately copied manuscripts than the Bible. For example, we have 25,000 – 30,000 handwritten copies of the New Testament, 5,700 of them in Greek. This is astounding when you consider that the average Greek author has fewer than 20 copies of his works – and no originals – still in existence. Even if there were no copies of these biblical texts, we could reconstruct the entire New Testaments from the writings of the ancient church fathers, who quoted from the New Testament more than one million times. In addition, the existing Bible manuscripts are relatively older than other ancient documents, dating closer to the time of the originals, thus lending credence to their reliability. Finally, while these documents vary somewhat as they have been copied over the years, nearly all of the variants are minor, and none of them challenges a single doctrine of the Christian faith.

Reason 2: The scribes

The 40 men who penned the Scriptures over a period of 1,500 years insisted that their message came from God. Many were persecuted, or even martyred, for their faith. The authors of the Bible claimed to be under the direction of the Holy Spirit (2 Sam. 23:2; 2 Peter 1:20-21). The prophets ascribed their message to God. Phrases such as “Thus saith the Lord,” “God said,” and “the Word of the Lord came to me” are found hundreds of times in the Bible. The apostle Paul declared that “All Scripture is inspired by God” (2 Tim. 3:16). Peter referred to the writings of Paul as “Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16). Even non-Christian ancient writings attest to the truthfulness of the eyewitness accounts of Christ. For example, the Jewish historian Josephus, in his Jewish Antiquities, written

in the last third of the first century, corroborates the claims of the New Testament writers that Jesus was more than a man; He was the Messiah, and rose from the dead on the third day (18:63-64, quoted in “The Historical Reliability of the New Testament,” Craig L. Blomberg, Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics, p. 215).

Reason 3: Fulfilled prophecy

The Old Testament features nearly 300 prophecies of the Messiah, the latest of which dates to more than 200 years before the birth of Jesus, who fulfilled every Messianic prophecy except those pertaining to His glorious return one day. Many of these ancient prophecies are highly detailed, making it impossible – apart from divine intervention – for one man to fulfill them all. Yet Jesus did, confirming His identity as the Messiah (or Christ), and providing exceptional evidence for the reliability of Scripture. Among the Messianic prophecies fulfilled in Jesus are:

  • His virgin birth (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:21)
  • His birthplace in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:1; Luke 2:4-7)
  • His miracle-working authority (Isa. 35:5-6; Matt. 9:35)
  • His rejection by the Jews (Ps. 118:22; 1 Peter 2:7)
  • His suffering and death (Ps. 22; Isa. 53; Matt. 27:27ff)
  • His resurrection (Ps. 16:10; Mark 16:6; Acts 2:31; 1 Cor. 15:3-8)
  • His ascension into heaven (Ps. 68:18; Acts 1:9)
  • His place today at the Father’s right hand (Ps. 110:1; Heb. 1:3)

In addition, the Bible gives us many supernatural confirmations of its divine origin. For example, Moses, Elijah and other prophets were given the authority to perform miracles to confirm God’s sovereign power and divine message through them. Jesus, were are told by Luke, was “a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know” (Acts 2:22).

Reason 4: Archaeology

The unearthing of ancient sites has confirmed the accuracy of the biblical record. Noted archaeologist Nelson Glueck states, “As a matter of fact … it may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference. Scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible” (Rivers in the Desert, p. 31, quoted in Systematic Theology, p. 557 ).

Examples of archaeological confirmations include the Tower of Babel (Gen. 11); Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 18-19); the fall of Jericho (Josh. 6); King David (2 Sam.); and the Assyrian Captivity (Isa. 20). In the New Testament book of Acts alone there are hundreds of archaeological confirmations. During decades of research, Sir William Ramsay wrote, “I found myself often brought into contact with the book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities, and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne in upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvelous truth” (St. Paul the Traveler and the Roman Citizen, p. 8, quoted in Systematic Theology, p. 558).

Reason 5: Jesus

Jesus claimed to be the Messiah (or Christ), the Son of God and the Son of Man (Matt. 16:16-18; 26:63-64; John 8:58). He was confirmed by acts of God (John 3:2; Acts 2:22) and declared that He had been given all authority in heaven and earth to rule and to judge (Matt. 28:18; John 5:22). Therefore, His views on the Bible are extremely important. What did Jesus have to say?

Norman Geisler writes, “Jesus declared that the Old Testament was divinely authoritative (Matt. 4:4, 7, 10); imperishable (Matt. 5:17-18); infallible (John 10:35); inerrant (Matt. 22:29; John 17:17); historically reliable (Matt. 12:40; 24:37-38); scientifically accurate (Matt. 19:4-5; John 3:12); and ultimately supreme (Matt. 15:3, 6)” (Systematic Theology, p. 559).

In addition, Jesus promised that the New Testament would be God’s Word. He told the apostles that the Holy Spirit would teach them “all things” and lead them into “all truth” (John 14:26; 16:13). The apostles later claimed this divine authority for their words (John 20:31; 1 John 1:1-4; 4:1-6). Peter acknowledged Paul’s writings as “Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:15-16).

Jesus also personally affirmed many things that Bible critics deny, for example: 1) God created a literal Adam and Eve (Matt. 19:4); Jonah actually was swallowed by a great fish (Matt. 12:40); the whole world was destroyed by a flood in Noah’s day (Matt. 24:36-39); and there was one prophet (not two or three) who wrote all of Isaiah (Mark 7:6-7; Luke 4:17-21).

Reason 6: The Holy Spirit

The same Holy Spirit who authored Scripture (2 Tim. 3:16-17) lives in believers’ hearts and “testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Rom. 8:16). This means the Holy Spirit confirms the truth of God’s Word to us. Jesus taught that the Holy Spirit would convince the lost of their sin of unbelief, of the righteousness of Christ, and of the judgment they will share with Satan if they persist in their unbelief – all clear teachings of Scripture (John 16:7-11).

Reason 7: The redeemed

The Bible’s life-changing power is widely known through the testimony of those who have come to know Christ. The apostle Paul, once known as a Christ-hating persecutor of the church, declared, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1:16). Peter added, “… you have been born again – not of perishable seed but of imperishable – through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Peter 1:23).

The celebrated British archaeologist Sir William Ramsay, who began his studies as a skeptic, became a Christian after exploring the sites of Paul’s journeys firsthand and comparing them with the testimony of Acts (“The Historical Reliability of the New Testament,” Craig L. Blomberg, Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics,  p. 220).

Millions of personal testimonies throughout the ages lend credence to the power of God’s Word to convey truth, convict the spiritually dead of their sins and bring new life through faith in Jesus Christ. As the writer of Hebrews declares: “For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as to divide soul, spirit, joints, and marrow; it is a judge of the ideas and thoughts of the heart” (Heb. 4:12).

Copyright 2009 by Rob Phillips

Isaiah 34: There will be Blood

Isaiah 34: Listen to the audio

Isaiah 34: Download notes and a worksheet for further study

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:

There is not sufficient information to know precisely when Isaiah delivers the prophetic messages of chapters 34-35. It is clear, however, that these prophecies anticipate the Day of the Lord, when He will judge the nations and deliver His people. Some commentators believe chapters 34-35 serve as an “eschatological conclusion” (an end-times wrap up) to the woe oracles of Isa. 28-33, which could place this message in the reign of Hezekiah.

Key verses:

Isa. 34:2 – The Lord is angry with all the nations – furious with all their armies. He will set them apart for destruction, giving them over to slaughter.

Quick summary:

Isaiah describes the judgments of the Day of the Lord in detail, including miraculous wonders in the heavens. In all likelihood, Edom is symbolic of the world powers that have opposed Israel and now must face the Jewish people’s “Judge … lawgiver … and King” (Isa. 33:22). “In the Day of the Lord, the Gentiles will be repaid for the way they have treated the Jews and exploited their land (Joel 3:1–17). ‘Zion’s cause’ may not get much support among the nations today, but God will come to their defense and make their cause succeed” (Warren Wiersbe, Be Comforted, S. Is 34:1).

Take note:

Anyone who contends that Jesus is the consummate peace-love-and-joy hippie who taught “live and let live” and never spoke a harsh word or raised a hand in anger would do well to note how Isaiah, Jesus Himself and the New Testament writers depict the Messiah in both His first and second comings. Isaiah, for example, describes the Lord as “angry,” “furious,” setting the armies of the nations apart for “destruction” and “giving them over to slaughter.” The “stench of their corpses will rise,” the prophet reveals, and the mountains will “flow with their blood” (Isa. 34:2-3). Jesus often expresses anger, especially toward the religious leaders of His day, and twice he violently drives the money changers from the Temple. A reading of His “woes” against the “scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites” in Matthew 23 reveals stinging rebukes against the religious elite of His day, and His parables of the kingdom of heaven lay out a tragic end for those who oppose Him (see, for example, Matt. 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-50; 22:1-14) What’s more, His return will be violent and bloody as He punishes those who shake their fists toward heaven and fight against the rightful Heir to the world’s throne (see Rev. 19:11-21).

The Judgment of the Nations (Isa. 34:1-4)

The chapter opens with a call to the entire earth to “come here and listen.” No one is left out of this frightening message of God’s future judgment. He clearly beckons the “nations … peoples … earth … and all that fills it … the world and all that comes from it” (v. 1). What is so important that no one is exempted? “The Lord is angry with all the nations – furious with all their armies” (v. 2).  In His wrath, Yahweh will slaughter countless evil soldiers, leaving their blood to flow in the valleys and their corpses to rot on the hillsides.

There will be wonders in the sky as well. “All the heavenly bodies will dissolve,” Isaiah writes. “The skies will roll up like a scroll, and their stars will all wither as leaves wither on the vine, and foliage on the fig tree” (v. 4). Catastrophic events in the heavens will accompany the Messiah’s return to earth to establish His kingdom (see Joel 2:10, 30-31; 3:15; Zech. 14:6-7; Matt. 24:29). However, it is difficult to know with certainty exactly when and how these prophecies will be fulfilled. John Walvoord and Roy Zuck comment: “Isaiah 34:4 may refer to the judgment of the sixth seal in the Tribulation (Rev. 6:12-13), or to the eternal state, after the Millennium, when the sun will not be needed (Rev. 21:1). Or perhaps Isaiah was speaking figuratively of a change in the whole power structure in the Millennium when human kings will be done away with and God alone will be in control” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, S. 1:1084).

The Judgment of Edom (Isa. 34:5-17)

Isaiah uses Edom as an example of the world, which will come under God’s judgment. The Edomites are descendents of Esau, Jacob’s older brother, and are perpetual enemies of Israel (cf. Ezek. 35; 36:5). As such, they are an appropriate representation of what the Lord will do to all nations that oppose His people. The Lord’s slaughter of Edom is depicted as “a sacrifice in Bozrah,” the capital city of Edom (v. 6). Modern-day Buseirah is located about 25 miles southeast of the Dead Sea and is a place animals in Isaiah’s day are slaughtered for sacrifice. The Jews’ practice is to offer sacrifices to God, but in this passage it is God offering the wicked as sacrifices. The Lord depicts His enemies as animals, who are sacrificed along with the fat (Lev. 3:9-11). These nations often slaughtered and sacrificed God’s people, so now the Lord sacrifices them.

Many Bible commentators believe this bloody scene depicts the battle of Armageddon in the last days. Warren Wiersbe writes: “Isaiah compares the Day of the Lord to the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah (Isa. 34:9–10; Gen. 18–19). This is a significant comparison because, just before the coming of the Lord, society will be ‘as it was in the days of Lot’ (Luke 17:28). Tar running like streams and sulfur like dust will keep the fires of judgment burning (Gen. 14:10; 19:24). The description in Isaiah 34:10 reminds us of the fall of Babylon (Rev. 14:8-11; 19:3). We should also remember that the fires of eternal hell, the lake of fire, will never be quenched (Mark 9:43–48)” (Be Comforted, S. Is 34:1).

“Edom symbolizes in Scripture the ungodly (cf. Heb. 12:16) and the persecutor (cf. Ob. 10–14), the opposite and adversary of the church,” writes D.A. Carson. “The metaphor in vs 5–7 is a grim variant of the banquet scene (cf. 25:6), dwelling on the butchery behind the sacrificial feast and using [a] current idiom to show that the whole people, from ‘young bloods’ and leading citizens (7a) to the least and lowest (6), is doomed (cf. 63:1–6)” (New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, S. Is 34:1).

As a result of God’s judgment, the land will seem to be ablaze – her streams turned to pitch (a flammable tar-like substance) and her soil to sulfur. The land will become desolate, inhabited only by creatures that seek out more solitary confines. Owls, ravens, jackals, ostriches, hyenas, wild goats and other animals will abound as the land becomes overgrown and uninhabitable for generations. Isaiah uses an interesting name in verse 14: The “night monster” (NASB) or “screech owl” (HCSB), literally Lilith, is noted in ancient mythology as a female night demon that inhabits desolate places. The imagery here is used to illustrate the total devastation of the heathen lands.

The theme of divine vengeance dominates chapters 34-35, prompting some people to withdraw from the “angry” and “vindictive” God of the Old Testament in favor of a kinder, gentler New Testament God. Some even argue the Bible cannot be true since it depicts two entirely different Gods in the Old and New Testaments. Yet God is immutable, or unchanging, as Scripture makes clear, and He alone is the rightful Author of vengeance. Both the Old and New Testaments affirm the truth that the Lord is the “God of vengeance” (Ps. 94:1). In Deut. 32:35 the Lord declares, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay.” Sometimes God’s vengeance is carried out through human agencies (cf. Num. 31:2-3; Josh. 10:13). “Yet no individual has God’s permission to take personal revenge,” writes Lawrence O. Richards. “The reason is that vengeance is a judicial concept. It is reserved for God, as moral and spiritual Judge of His universe, to punish those who persistently reject Him, abandon His ways, and oppress the righteous. Typically vengeance is reserved for history’s end (cf. Isa. 63:1–6), and any present time is marked by a divine forebearance that provides individuals and nations with every opportunity to repent and to believe” (The Bible Readers Companion, electronic ed., S. 428).

In the New Testament, the doctrine of God’s vengeance is expressed in the Greek words dike and dikesis. The primary meaning is “justice” and communicates the fact that justice is a judicial function reserved for God alone (Rom. 12:19). As in the Old Testament, vengeance in the New Testament often looks toward the end of human history (Rom. 2:1-11) and is sometimes graphically described (2 Thess. 1:5-10; Rev. 19:11-21). “The real wonder is not that God will certainly punish the unrepentant, but that He chose to vent His anger against sin on Christ rather than on us. Christ’s sufferings for us forever disprove the notion that a God of vengeance could not also be a God of love” (Richards, S. 428).

Closing Thought

Matthew Henry comments: “As there is a day of the Lord’s patience, so there will be a day of his vengeance; for, though he bear long, he will not bear always…. There is a time prefixed in the divine counsels for the deliverance of the church and the destruction of her enemies, a year of the redeemed, which will come, a year of recompences [sic] for the controversy of Zion; and we must patiently wait till then, and judge nothing before the time” (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, S. Is 34:1).

Copyright 2009 by Rob Phillips

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How do I know the Bible is true (part 6)?

This eight-part series addresses common objections to the Bible as the Word of God.

Objection 6: The Bible can’t be true because it depicts a different God in the Old and New Testaments.

bible1Critics argue that the God of the Old Testament is distant, vengeful and harsh, engaging in genocide and punishing the innocent. Meanwhile, they say, the God of the New Testament is loving, kind and gracious, eager to forgive. Further, His Son Jesus is a gentle, meek, selfless and all-too-human being who speaks in adoring terms of His Father in Heaven. Complicating things further, the God of the Old Testament is described as one (Deut. 6:4) while the New Testament hints at a triune Godhead consisting of three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. How can the Gods of the Old and New Testaments be reconciled as one?

God’s nature and progressive revelation

First, it’s important to note that this objection reveals a basic misunderstanding of what the Old and New Testaments reveal about the nature of God. The writers of www.gotquestions.org put it very well: “The fact that the Bible is God’s progressive revelation of Himself to us through historical events and through His relationship with people throughout history might contribute to people’s misconceptions about what God is like in the Old Testament as compared to the New Testament. However, when one reads both the Old and the New Testaments it quickly becomes evident that God is not different from one Testament to another and that God’s wrath and His love are revealed in both Testaments.”

For example, the Old Testament in many places describes God as “a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in faithful love and truth” (Ex.34:6; see also Num. 14:18; Deut. 4:31; Neh. 9:17; Ps. 86:5, 15; 108:4; 145:8; Joel 2:13). In the New Testament, God’s love for mankind is manifested more fully in the sending of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died for us (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8; 1 Cor. 15:3-4). Or, consider that in the Old Testament, God deals with the Israelites much as a loving father deals with his children, punishing them for their idolatry but delivering them when they repent of their sins. In much the same way, the New Testament tells us God chastens Christians for their own good. Hebrews 12:6, quoting Proverbs 3:11-12, says, “[f]or the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and punishes every son whom He receives.”

God’s wrath – and jealousy

But what about God’s wrath – and jealousy? Both the Old and New Testaments tell us that God delivers judgment on the unrepentant. He orders the Jews to completely destroy a number of people groups living in Canaan, but only after allowing them hundreds of years to repent (see, for example, Gen. 15:13-16). In addition, God’s order to destroy the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites and others has a divine purpose: “so that they won’t teach you to do all the detestable things they do for their gods, and you sin against the Lord your God” (Deut. 20:18).

When the Old Testament describes God as “jealous” (see Deut. 4:24, for example), the word translated “jealous” (qanna) also means “zealous.” God’s jealousy “is an expression of His intense love and care for His people and His demand that they honor His unique and incomparable nature” (Apologetics Study Bible, p. 273). In the New Testament, Paul tells us that “God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” (Rom. 1:18). Jesus Himself often had harsh words for hypocrites (see Matt. 23) and even acted violently against them (John 2:15). He spoke more about hell than heaven, and He is depicted as an angry and wrathful judge in verses foretelling His return (Rev. 19:11-16). Put simply, a God who loves what is good must necessarily hate what is evil.

A Redeemer for a wrecked human race

Throughout the Bible we see a God who patiently and lovingly calls people into a relationship with Him. The entire human race is wrecked by sin, resulting in spiritual and physical death and separation from our Creator (Rom. 3:10, 23; 6:23; Eph. 2:1). Paul writes that the whole world groans beneath the weight of sin (Rom. 8:22). But from the moment Adam and Eve rebelled against God, He provided a way for that broken fellowship to be restored. He began with a promise of a Redeemer (Gen. 3:15); instituted a sacrificial system in which an innocent and spotless animal would shed its blood to atone for – or temporarily cover – man’s sin; and then He sent His Son, the Lamb of God, to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29; 3:16). When one reads the entire Bible, it becomes abundantly clear that the God of the Old and New Testaments does not change (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8).

Is God one – or three?

Finally, what about the one God of the Old Testament and the triune God of the New Testament? There is no contradiction here. While the Bible emphatically declares that there is one true and living God (Deut. 6:4; James 2:19), the Old Testament hints at the triune Godhead, and the New Testament more fully reveals one God in three persons (see Gen. 1:1-2, 26; 3:22; 11:7; Isa. 6:8; Matt. 3:16-17; John 1:1, 14; 10:30; Acts 5:3-4; Col. 1:16; 2:9; Heb. 1:8; 1 Peter 1:2). An ancient saying sums up the difficulty of comprehending the Trinity but the necessity of believing in it: “He who would try to understand the Trinity would lose his mind, and he who would deny the Trinity would lose his soul.”

Copyright 2009 by Rob Phillips