Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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The 1st chapter in Isaiah’s prophecy begins with a serious call of repentance to a rebellious and disobedient People of God.
Israel has played the harlot and worshiped foreign gods even while going-through-the-motions of offering sacrifice and ritual to the true God.
The result is that God has become—humanly speaking—nauseous of Israel’s feigned worship.
/“Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations— I cannot bear your evil assemblies.
Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them.
When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen.
... ”/ (Isaiah 1:13–15, NIV)
But God is merciful, and, if they shall repent and come to Him in faith, He shall forgive them.
/“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD.
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”/ (Isaiah 1:18, NIV)
Chapters 2-5 are Isaiah’s second sermon to the nation.
(Although we’ll only look at chapters 2-4 this evening).
In chapter two, the prophet contrasts what God intended Israel to be (2:1-5) with what she actually has become (2:6-4:1), and what God will me of her in the future (4:2-6).
The progress of Isaiah’s sermon is from the ideal to the real, and back to the ideal.
!
I. GOD’S DESIRE FOR ISRAEL (2:1-4)
#. the first part of Isaiah’s sermon is one of great hope, in which Zion's Glorious Future is foretold
#. as the prophet opens his message, you can almost hear his listeners shouting, /“Amen, and amen”, “Preach on brother Isaiah, preach on”/
#.
Isaiah says that a time is coming—in the last days— when wonderful events will transpire
!! A. THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD'S HOUSE
#. 1st all the nations of the earth shall flock to Jerusalem to worship the True God in His sanctuary
* /“In the last days the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.”/
(Isaiah 2:2, NIV)
#. in the ancient world, many of the surrounding cultures believed that their god’s lived and reigned from high mountain peaks
#. using that symbolism, Isaiah maintains that the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be seen as the true place of worship for all peoples—not merely the Jews
#.
Isaiah is proclaiming, Our God rules! and every tongue shall confess Jehovah as the One, True and Living God
!! B. THE WORD OF THE LORD FROM JERUSALEM
#. 2nd men will want to learn the ways of God and Israel shall teach them
* /“Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.”/
(Isaiah 2:3, NIV)
#. under the Old Covenant, the Israelites made pilgrimages to Jerusalem three times a year
#. but in the future the entire world will go there and in that day Jehovah’s instruction will go forth from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth
#.
Jerusalem will be The Anointed One’s capital city where he will judge the grievances between nations and peoples, and peace will reign throughout the earth
* /“He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.”/
(Isaiah 2:4, NIV)
!! C. IN THE LAST DAYS
#. the question, of course, is Isaiah’s vision a vision of Israel’s near future or distant future?
#. the key is found in verse two when Isaiah proclaims, “In the last days ... “
#. the phrase describes a distant time from the perspective of the prophet and is an example of what has been described as /"prophetic foreshortening"/
#. this means that events far removed in the future are spoken of as if they were close at hand
* ILLUS.
If you’ve ever been driving toward the mountains, you’ve seen this phenomenon.
You see what looks to be one long continuous range of mountains, but in reality you’re looking at a series of mountain ranges that appear close together, but actually are far apart.
#. many conservative scholars believe—and I agree with them—that Isaiah is describing the Millennial Kingdom of our Lord established at his Second Coming
* /“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”/ (Revelation 21:1–5, NIV)
#. vv.
1-5 represent God’s glorious future—and ultimate—desire for Israel
!
II.
GOD’S DISCIPLINE OF ISRAEL (2:6-4:1)
#. the glorious future hope of Zion (Jerusalem) is tempered, by Isaiah's message concerning Zion's Inglorious Present
#. as Isaiah opens his message you can almost hear his listeners shouting, /“Amen, and amen”, “Preach on brother Isaiah, preach on”/
#. they like what they hear
#.
Jerusalem will be the spiritual capitol of the world
#. as he continues to preach, the tone of the message suddenly changes
#. now Isaiah begins to hear weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth
#.
Isaiah’s message has become a condemnation of Israel’s sins of which there are many
#. the condemnation is so acute that God announces His rejection of His people
* /"For you have rejected your people, the house of Jacob, because they are full of things from the east and of fortune-tellers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners."/
(Isaiah 2:6, ESV)
#. disobedience always has consequences
!! A. A DEARTH OF RELATIONSHIP (2:6-22)
#. the nation is filled with extraordinary wealth (v.
7)
#. gold and silver are abundant
#. the land is filled with extraordinary political and military power (v.
7)
#. horses and chariots—instruments of military might and political muscle—keep the nation safe
#. the land is also extraordinarily filled with idiolatry (v.
8)
#. the result is that Israel has imported fortune-tellers and intermarried with pagans who have introduced their detestable worship to the people of Israel
#. the consequence is that God has cut them off from Himself
#.
Isaiah spoke to a people who were rich and powerful and told them why they were headed to ruin
#. they listened to occult diviners rather then prophets
#. they practiced foreign rites
#. they worshiped foreign gods
#. they strutted proudly around and wondered why God was displeased
#. the situation had become so desperate that Isaiah could only raise the terrifying curse: Do not forgive them (v.
9)
#.
God will no longer be a blessing to Israel, but a terror (vv.
10-22)
#. to escape, they shall hide in caves, and if it were possible, would hide under the rocks!
* /"Enter into the rock and hide in the dust from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty."/
(Isaiah 2:10, ESV)
* /"And people shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground, from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth."/
(Isaiah 2:19, ESV)
!! B. THE DEARTH OF LEADERSHIP (3:1-15)
#. another consequence of the nation of Israel’s disobedience will be a lack of qualified leaders and the consequent collapse of society
#.
God is going to remove from Jerusalem all that is essential to keep a society functioning
#.
He will remove support and supply
#. bread and water—the bare necessities of life—will be gone
#.
He will remove the mighty man and the soldier, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor and the skillful magician and the expert in charms
#. leading men in the military will be gone
#. political, religious, and commercial leaders will be gone
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