Would you read once again our chapter, please?

Did you “hear” John the Baptist preaching in that Text, Isaiah chapter 40? He is there prophesied 700 years before he was born! “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Verse 3 (Remember Luke 3:2-4? “The word of God came unto JOHN the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he came into all the country about Jordan, PREACHING the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.”)

Wow, the miracle of Bible prophecy!

And what about verse 8? “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the Word of our God shall stand for ever.” How many times is that repeated in the New Testament, one way or another? (Jesus in Matthew 5:18 … “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Or Jesus again in Mark 13:31 … “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.”) Was our Lord a student of Isaiah, or not? Make that Student, with a capital.

Now let’s look at a whole Paragraph, verse 12-18 … “Who (the Lord) hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? 13 Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him? 14 With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding? 15 Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. 16 And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. 17 All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. 18 To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?” Beautiful, I “hunger” to preach that Text right now! Sublime it is!

Did you notice? The nations combined are simply “a drop in the bucket” to our great God! (Take that, you UN rebels!) UN meaning the United Nations, so called.

Then after a brief Section mocking “idols” and false worship … Isaiah continues his Paean of Praise …

“Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: that bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.” Verses 21-23, the great Creator, ruling everything from Heaven!

Wax on, Almighty Saviour … “To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.” Verse 25 … I am about to shout! He is Superior, Sovereign, Above all!

And He never tires! “Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, FAINTETH NOT, NEITHER IS WEARY?” Verse 28, Omnipotent, Faithful, Immutable!

“Things I didn’t say,” what was I thinking!

One of the GREAT chapters of Scripture … Isaiah 40. Oh, surely now, you will want to read it again!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

I need to hear from someone today. (Text me, it’s instant … 770-844-7627.) Was this series of thoughts enlightening, encouraging, a blessing? If so, adore HIM from the depths of your heart.

As you read this I will be driving to a Revival in Gastonia, North Carolina. Pray for me please as I travel.

Thanks.

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It seems like (in any leaning situation) the teacher gleans more knowledge than even the students! In the case of the Website here … the readers, you dear readers.

Well, last night as I prepared for today’s Lesson … I learned how dramatically marked the difference really is between Isaiah chapter 39 and Isaiah chapter 40.

Let me show you.

Isaiah 39:5-7 (the chapter only has 8 verses) relates: “Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. “

The Wrath of God!

Then, without any chapters divisions in the original Isaiah Scroll, immediately God says (Isaiah 40:1) … “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem.”

The Grace of God!

Wow!

This too … the Judgment Verses are spoken by one person, the verbs being singular.

But the Comfort Verses are spoken by several persons! Those verb bring plural!

“But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Romans 5:20, triple Grace instead of singular judgment!

One voice of condemnation, though inspired and truthful.

Three voices (maybe Voices) of comfort, keeping consonant with the manifold Mercy of our great God!

Three voices, Brother Bagwell?

Isaiah 40:3 … “The VOICE of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Jesus is coming!

Isaiah 40:6-8 … “The VOICE said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.” The eternal Word of God!

Then Isaiah 40:9 … O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy VOICE with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!”

Triple Grace!

Triple Comfort!

Triple Love!

From our Triune God!

Wow again.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

I am getting excited about our Isaiah “Class,” more than ever!

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There has been a lot said about the NATIONS of the world, going all the way back to Isaiah chapter 13. (I never realized what an International Prophet this great man of God really was.) Of course, a sizeable amount of that Material concerns Judah and Jerusalem, the “home front” for Isaiah.

And even the way Chapter 39 ends, with a “focus” on Babylon, is quite significant. (Babylon, the NEXT NATION that will try to dominate (persecute, if not annihilate) Judah.

Remember, he (Isaiah) ministered under the reigns of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. After which the leadership quality in that little Land deteriorated rapidly. With King Josiah being the only significant “bright spot.” All the others being dismal failures. Yes, Manasseh (who reigned 55 years) finally repented, but it was nearly a case of “too little, too late.”

In other words, Judah is heading toward National Calamity. The “Babylonian Captivity,” to be exact.

Yet in all those decades of chaos, Isaiah chapters 40-66 promise “better days” ahead, in the distant future anyway, for Judah. For Israel really, the whole Nation!

This is one reason Isaiah is often called the “Evangelist” among the Old Testament Prophets. He says a lot (at times in Type and Symbol and then at times by Direct Inference then actually by Name) about Jesus!

All I am saying today is that Isaiah chapters 40 onward should be the most exciting part of the book.

In fact, look at the opening words of chapter 40, “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.” Verses 1 and 2, thrilling!

What a change of pace!

The Lord willing, we shall begin this fairly long (but equally profitable) journey tomorrow morning. Twenty-seven more chapters!

Let’s all be willing learners!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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King Hezekiah of Judah is a much more complex character than I ever realized! (Maybe that’s partly because there is so much Material about him in Scripture! Quite a biography! I mean in the Book of Second Kings and both Volumes of the Chronicles, as well as Isaiah and Jeremiah, Hosea, Micah too!)

In Isaiah 38 the King got some bad news, from the Lord at that! (“In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for THOU SHALT DIE, and not live.” Isaiah 38:1, sounding pretty ominous!)

But Hezekiah prayed! Oh, did he! Maybe I should say he prayed and prayed and prayed! (“Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and PRAYED unto the LORD.” Isaiah 38:2) And cried! (“And Hezekiah WEPT sore.”)

Then, true to His Word (“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” Jeremiah 33:3) … God answered that prayer! (From the Lord, through Isaiah the Prophet, to Hezekiah the King: “Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I WILL ADD unto thy days FIFTEEN YEARS.” Isaiah 38:5)

Fifteen more years!

A new “lease on life,” so to speak.

But then (now Psalm 106:15 is coming to mind … “And He, the Lord, gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.”) … comes Isaiah chapter 39. (You can review it in more detail by studying yesterday’s Lesson.)

King Hezekiah foolishly received a delegation from the (wicked) King of Babylon and showed them everything he owned! Even down to his silver and gold reserves! (Like wagging a bug juicy carrot in front of a wild rabbit! Or fresh, red meat in front of a wolf!)

For this indiscretion God rebuked Hezekiah. More than that, God punished him. And his whole nation, Judah! (God wants us loving and worshipping and impressing HIM and HIM alone!) As is recorded In Isaiah 39:5-7 … “Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

Wow! (It’s that “wages of sin” thing again! That “Be sure your sin will find you out” Syndrome, Law of Almighty God!)

Families dead, thousands of them!

Judah’s (God’s people) honor tarnished!

Her identity nearly erased!

National calamity!

And here is how Isaiah received that “bad” news! (Information every bit as disturbing as the King’s “bad news” last chapter! About setting one’s house I order! About preparing to die! But it’s his Nation this time, not him personally.)

At first Hezekiah’s words sound pretty mature! A good attitude! “Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, GOOD IS THE WORD OF THE LORD which thou hast spoken.” Isaiah 39:8a

Almost on as high a plane as Job’s “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” But in Hezekiah’s parlance: “Though God slay my Nation, my progeny, I WILL TRUST IN HIM?” (Note the ?, not a ! here.)

Then the King added these last, selfish words! “He (the Lord) said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.”

Wow!

“Yes, my grandsons will die in an enemy attack! But at lease my remaining years will be good!”

The nation’s economy “under my watch” will continue to prosper!

Yes … “There shall be peace and truth in my days.”

Suddenly, what at first appeared to be a good attitude proved sour!

Selfish!

Immature!

Wow!

Fifteen more years … an answer to prayer! But years in which Hezekiah perhaps made the biggest (and most costly) mistake of his life, career, administration!

Yes … God granted his request (to live longer) but perhaps send “leanness” to his soul (and his Nation’s) because of Hezekiah’s not submissively yielding to God’s perfect Plan for his life.

Not everyone will agree with my assessment of Hezekiah’s blunder, his big mistake. I just think sometimes we can “push” it too far concerning prayer … when God has made His Will plain in the first place.

Think about it.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

Oh, by the way, wicked (future) King Manasseh was born to Hezekiah curing this added fifteen year span too! (Fifty-five years of degradation for Judah!)

A very dangerous fifteen-year addition!

Wow!

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“At that time Merodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah: for he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered. And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not.” Isaiah 39:1-2

The Assyrian Empire is waning, but world politics seldom exists as a vacuum. And the Babylonians were waiting “in the wings” to assume hegemony! They would next rule the then-known world.

So … in today’s Lesson the aspiring Babylonians send a delegation to King Hezekiah, with devious goals in mind.

Under the “guise” of a gift for the recovering King (whose life had recently been spared and extended by the Lord) the representatives of Merodachbaladan wish to “spy” on Judah.

And unsuspecting (or maybe just naïve or maybe “lifted up in pride” due to such unusual international attention) Hezekiah talked (and showed) way too much to his covert potential enemies!

Big mistake, which Isaiah the Prophet will (soon) soundly rebuke!

“Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon. Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, ALL that is in mine house have they seen: there is NOTHING among my treasures that I have not shewed them.” Verses 3 and 4, Isaiah obviously at the moment not being “in the loop” of intimate Palace business.

But Isaiah certainly was “in the Loop” with Almighty God!

“Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: Behold, the days come, that ALL that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: NOTHING shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” Isaiah 39:5-7

He showed them ALL. And some day they would come and take his ALL! Oh, how gullible we Christians can be!

Hezekiah, who once trusted the Assyrians too much … now has trusted the Babylonians too much!

When will we ever learn?

Proverbs 3:5-6 … “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

I personally do NOT believe the Devil is omni-present and omnipotent and omniscient! (My living God is all That, and a whole Lot more!) But not Satan.

And sometimes, I suspect, the more we can keep our mouths shut around evil and wicked people … the better off we’d be!

Whatever his motive, Hezekiah blabbed too much!

And his ill advised “openness” led to the pronounce of future judgment on his progeny and his people.

Proverbs 30:32 might apply to each of us in this context. “If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, LAY THINE HAND UPON THY MOUTH.”

Ephesians 4:27 says: “Neither give place to the devil.”

In many cases … “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: BUT HE THAT REFRAINETH HIS LIPS IS WISE.” Proverbs 10:19

Wow!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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