Isaiah's Notes

What to do when your shoulders are penned to the mat.

Isaiah 33:1 Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! when thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.
2 O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble
A great crisis was about to fall on Judah.
Their enemies were becoming quite vicious with their words.
Their threats to every nation had always been back up with actions.
The enemy is Assyria. Their batting average was a thousand. They were undefeated in battle. They were cocky and they were fearless.
What do you do when it seems you are down for the count of 10 and the referee is at 8? It is good to have a prophet of God around. Isaiah was that prophet. He had been alone with the Lord and God had given his prophet a bold and fearless spirit. He stands and gives Israel hope.
We first see a prophecy to Assyria found in verse one.

I - A PROHECY

Before we can understand this chapter completely we must first get a proper understanding when Isaiah gave this prophecy.
Hezekiah had come to the throne of Judah when they were in pretty bad shape spiritually, morally, politically and socially.
Hezekiah believed God’s word and realized he had to do something drastic that would shake up the nation and open the eyes of Judah so they would see the need to turn back to God.
Now I want you to know that what Hezekiah did was not popular with most of the people. But, it was popular with God.
A – REPENTANCE
Look at what King Hezekiah does:
Second Kings 18:4 He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
High places were places in the mountains people would go to worship. They would say I am worshipping god in nature or they would put an image before them and bow to that image.
The High places were places of comfort and convenience. You hear of people going there today. They say, “I’m going to the mountains or to get alone and rest and I’ll we’ll have devotionals Sunday in the cabin.” Others say, “I’m going to the races but we will have services at the race track. God calls that a high place. It is any place a person goes to worship God and God is second and not first.
You can take a vacation a few times a year and rest but you should never take a vacation from God or the Church Jesus died for.

The groves were trees or poles set near an altar where God’s people were worshipping the Canaanite god, Astarte.
She was the god of fortune and happiness or prosperity.
Does that like any places of worship today?
Nehushtan was the copper serpent Moses made hundreds of years earlier in the wilderness. Israel had griped and complained so bitterly that God sent serpents among them to bite them Many died. As Moses and Aaron sought God, they were led to build this serpent and lift it up before the people and as many as looked to this brass serpent by faith, they were healed or delivered from the serpents. Here, hundreds of years later many in Judah still bowed to and worshipped Nehushtan. Hezekiah didn’t put the serpent in the attic. He destroyed it.

B – REVIVAL
In Isaiah, chapter 32, Isaiah talked of people who tasted of the Lord and those who trusted in the Lord. Second Kings 18:5-6 revealed that Hezekiah was one of those who trusted in the Lord.
Hezekiah brought a renewal or resurgence of godliness to Judah
5 He (Hezekiah) trusted in the LORD God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. That is a great compliment.
6 For he clave to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses.
Notice four things about Hezekiah that will move God’s heart:
1 - He trusted in the Lord. He fled to the Lord and took shelter in His arms. He just believed God could do anything. Amen.
2 - He clave to the Lord. “Clave” carries the idea of holding on to the things of God with all of ones strength. It also means to pursue closely and Hezekiah never turned away from the Lord. He was faithful.
3 - He also followed the Lord. That means he chased after the Lord all the days of his life. He patterned his life after God’s word.
4 - He kept God’s commandments but God did not prosper him. Hezekiah guarded God’s commandments. He kept them near his heart and obeyed God’s word even in the most difficult times.

C - REBELLION
In II Kings 18 we see what Israel’s rebellion (not Judah’s) brought to them.
In the fourth year of King Hezekiah the Assyrians came against the Northern Kingdom, Israel, and fought against them for three years and finally took them captive into Samaria.
The reason God allowed that to happen is found in II Kings 18:12 “Because they obeyed not the voice of their God.”

D - REGRESSION
Hezekiah regresses. For some reason his strong stand for God is weakened and he begins to wane. Why?
Eight years later Sennacherib who was now the king of Assyria destroyed all the smaller cities around Judah and sent his messengers to Judah to let them know he was going to destroy them next.
Hezekiah’s heart regressed. Sennacherib then demanded gold and silver from Judah. Hezekiah agreed and sent to Sennacherib by today’s standard $48 million in silver and $4.5 million in gold bullion.
But you can’t deal with the devil. Once you paid him once, he will always want more and more and more of your life until he owns you, your family and your business.
Then Hezekiah had to give him all the silver found in God’s house as well as all of his own personal treasures.
More demands came and Hezekiah had to cut off the gold from the doors and pillars of the house of the Lord. Sennacherib owned all of Israel’s wealth.
Would Sennacherib be happy now? Absolutely not! He is a picture of Satan. Satan is never content with controlling just part of your life. He won’t quit till he owns all of your life. Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile. Invite him for breakfast and he’ll stay all day.
A man told me a story about someone in his church that fell on hard times. This man lived alone and so he said, “Well, you can move in with me for a month or two till you find you a place to live.” The man has been living with him 11 years and he doesn’t plan on leaving.

I thank God for the freedom of speech that we have in our country but our forefathers meant that freedom to be used for religious purposes and good purposes and not evil.
Israel had this freedom of speech as well and with that freedom, king Sennacherib’s sent his great orator, Rabshakeh to deliver a speech to the people of Israel and all who would listen.
His speech struck fear in the hearts of the people of Judah as he came to Jerusalem and mocked their king and used propaganda to reveal the king’s weaknesses. He even told Judah that their God had sent him to warn them against the error of their king.
Rahshakeh says, therefore, give pledge to my king and he will take care of you. He will feed you and clothe you and give you goodly houses and land. The economy will be better under the Assyrian flag than under the Israeli flag.
Rahshakeh was offering Judah a change. He was offering them a new king and with that new king, a new god. Selah!

E – REAPING
Now, when we read Isaiah 33:1 we find that Isaiah had an answer to those who would use lying words to try to destroy God’s people.
Here is Isaiah’s prophecy. He says in Isaiah 33:1, “Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! when thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.”
Isaiah says two things: 1) Woe or you are as good as dead. Death will come to you that deal violently and deceitfully with God’s people. Thank God for men who will stand against the media and false religions of the world.
Too many people say, “Preacher we don’t want to ruffle any one’s feathers.” Friend, the Church is going to be friend chicken if we don’t ruffle some feathers. The preachers were afraid to ruffle some feathers in Germany and Hitler came to the throne and killed six million Jews and eight million Gentiles.
2) Isaiah’s says to Rahshakeh, “You shall be spoiled.”
In Galatians 6:7-10 Paul writes what Isaiah has just expressed this way.
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
This text carries both a positive and a negative message. Do right and be blessed. Obey God, walk with God, pursue God and be protected by God.
Do evil and be cursed. Live in the world and invite the devil over for a cup of coffee and you will reap the outcome.
GOD’S LAWS
God created many laws. One that is very evident is the law of gravity. If you are a Christian and you jump off the top of a twenty story building you will be eating lunch in heaven. It is caused by the law of gravity.
If on the other hand you don’t know the Lord and you jump off that twenty story building you will be toasting marshmallows in hell and you’ll be the marshmallow.
Another one of God’s law is that of “sowing and reaping.” It is a good law that can bring positive or negative results, depending on you.
For those who follow and obey God’s word great blessings will come. For those who disobey God’s Word judgment will come.
This is Isaiah’s words to the king of Assyria, Sennacherib. God says, “You mess with my people and I’ll mess with you.” That is what the word spoil means. It means to mess up, ruin or destroy.

Christian, can I encourage you to honor God not just in the face of death but in the midst of life. Satan doesn’t’ care if you will say, “I’ll die for the Lord.” He just doesn’t want you to live for the Lord.
His goal is to get you to compromise. His goal is to get you to just live a so-so life. That is what Israel had done and they had been conquered eight years earlier. Now Judah as a whole were living a so-so life for God and judgment was about to hit them.
In the book of Revelation and chapter three God reveals that in His Word. 16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
The church age in the last days before the Lord comes will as a whole be like Laodicea.
They were called lukewarm. They were a little to good to be thought bad, but a little to bad to be called good.
They were like a good cup of lukewarm coffee on a cold winter morning. But, you say, “Preacher, a cup of lukewarm coffee is sickening.” Yes it is! God told this church, change your ways or I’ll spew you out of my mouth.
Here are God’s words to you and me today:
1) “Stand fast: Stand fast with the liberty wherewith you have been set free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1).
“Stand fast” is a military term. It means to dig in and never retreat.

2) “Run the race: Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”(Hebrews 12:1-2).
3) Fight a good fight. Paul said, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: (II Tim 4: 7).
4) Be faithful. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful (I Cor 4:2).
In modern day terminology Isaiah would say, “Give God all you have. There is a race to run for God. Don’t quit, keep running, don’t quit. Push it, push it, push it.”

When I think of giving my best to God I think of the story of Dick and Rick Hoyt. I think of the love that Dick Hoyt has for his son Rick.
In 1962 Ricky was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. He would never walk. He would never talk. He would never have control of his body. He would be in a wheel chair the rest of his life. He had lost oxygen to his brain and the doctors told his dad, “Put him away. He will only be a vegetable the rest of his life.”
But the love of a father said, ‘No, we will raise Rick just like our other children.” They cried, they took their son home and gave their lives to loving their son. They knew he was smart and they knew he was paying attention to them.
They had a computer built so Rick might be able to communicate with them. At the age of 12 Rick spoke his first words through the computer.
Ricks’ father, Dick, was a military man. He knew what discipline and dedication was all about. He was just a few months removed from a heart attack when his son at the age of 12 heard of a charity run for a paralyze victim in his High School. He asked his dad if they could run in the 5 mile race and his dad said, “Yes” and Rick began to train.
They came in next to last in the race. But they ran again and again. They ran marathons and the Iron-man- six times. Dick runs for his son. His son says, “Dad when I run I don’t realizes I have a physical problem.” Dick has pulled; pushed and carried his son in over 950 races and does it because as he says, “I just love my son,”
Christian, I hope to admonish you to know that we are living in the last days. This world will be less and less a friend of Christ and His true followers every day till He returns.
1) Please, keep walking with the Holy Righteous God of the bible.
2) Do right till the stars fall from the sky.
3) Let God take vengeance on the evil doers.
4) Repent and revitalize your heart. Don’t rebel or regress and you shall reap the blessings of the Lord.
After the prophecy in verse one, Isaiah offers a prayer for God’s people.

B – A PRAYER (2,7)
2 O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble
Isaiah lived long enough to see the spiritual atmosphere in Israel fall to a mere fleshly worship. He lived long enough to see Israel conquered and taken captive by the mighty Assyrians.
Now he hears the same threats from the Assyrians against Judah. Isaiah knows that the answer to freedom is not in just what he preaches but in the right reaction of the people of Judah. Will they repent and seek the Lord?
Will they see and receive his grace? Will they trust in His arm or strength? Will they trust God to now deliver them in a time of trouble? So he prays, “O LORD, be gracious unto us.”

We that are fifty-years old and older have lived long enough in America to see spiritual worship in most churches become mere fleshly worship.
We have seen a nation that was founded on Christ and a nation that used both prayer and Bible study daily in the public school classroom for over 200 years remove both of them from every public school in the 1960’s.
We have lived long enough to see the Ten Commandments taken off the walls of our schools.
We have lived long enough to see Bible truth replaces with humanistic philosophies.
We have seen creation replaced with evolution and morality replaced with immorality.

We have literally seen every one of God’s Ten Commandments broken by our government and our pubic school system.
Let me give you but a few examples:
1 – The first commandment says we should love God with all our hearts. In most schools, God is ignored. His word is and being is questioned. IN some he is denied and in some he is mocked.
2 – The fifth commandment says to honor thy father and thy mother. That is no longer taught.
3 – God said, “Thou shalt not kill.” I know what I am about to say is politically incorrect but abortion is legalized murder.
4 – God said, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” Yet, pre-marital sex, homosexuality and any life style one chooses is taught as a choice to students today. Sin is never condemned and evil is never called sin.

We that know God’s Word know what the future holds.
Today, we still have the spiritual freedom to practice both true worship and true prayer. My fear is if we don’t take our spiritual freedom seriously one day the true Christians will suffer in America as they have in Russia, China and maybe even as they have in Muslim nations.
We have lived long enough to see our spiritual heritage placed in the closet and that which was in the closet walk down the streets of America.
We have lived long enough to see a once good government become a godless government and I say that sadly.
So we must ask the question, “What do we do?” That is what Isaiah reveals in verse 2. Plead with and pray to the Lord.
As Hezekiah, repented and revived his own life and then prayed and pleaded with God, so the believers today must do the same.

Will you:
1 - Make correction in your lives by putting God first.
2 - Seek the Lords by spending time in His Word.
3 – Please the Lord by loving your mate and family.
4 - Worship Him in spirit and truth.
5 – Call out to God.
Paul said in First Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing?”
David wrote in Psalms 18:3, “Call upon the Lord?”
Jesus said in Matthew 7:7, “Ask and it shall be given, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be open to you.”


Isaiah revealed a prophecy. He revealed a prayer. Now he reveals a promise.
II - In verse 3-6 Isaiah revels a PROMISE.
3 At the noise of the tumult the people fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations were scattered.
At the prayers of God’s people, God will take the united, fortified armies of the Assyrians that has never lost a battle and scattered it to the wind.
Most Christians in America don’t pray much because we don’t have heathen nations mightier than us threatening to wipe us off the face of the earth.
But, we do have a united globalization of nations seeking for a one world government.
And we do have a tremendous union of religious organizations that have united together to feed and take care of the world from a social standpoint but they have so watered down the Bible that they have thrown out the truth and teachings of the doctrines of the a Bible and jezebels and devils stand in their pulpits. These religious organization will bring about a one-world religion.

4 And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpillar: as the running to and fro of locusts shall he run upon them.
Then God says to the Assyrians I will take all of your destruction and consider what you have done. I will then heap it on your head and it will be like a hundred million locusts coming down on a vineyard. God was saying I will leave you with nothing.

5 The LORD is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with judgment and righteousness.
Then the Lord will (v 5) be exalted on high in the hearts of all the people and He will be the righteous judge of all the earth and all the earth will fear the Lord.
Proverbs 29: 2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

Isaiah 32:6 And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.
Christian you may ask, “How does that apply to me?” You must realize this world is not your home. Many things may go wrong physically, financially and governmentally. But, we have God’s promise that one day we will be with Him and we will dwell on high with our Lord.
Wisdom is knowing according to Biblical history, a people move from poverty or slavery to seeking God. God then blesses them and gives the freedom. They live in freedom a while but after a few generations they forget the price of freedom and the people become spiritual slackers. Oppression sets in. Freedom is lost and a people start all over again in slavery.
Now that you know truth will you be stable? Will you be the steadfast one, the solid rock, the strength, yea the strong one for others?
Most of your friends at work are on roller coaster ride that ends with a head on collision with God.
Most of your family are riding that same roller coaster ride. They are having a blast as they ride.
And you and I are on that ride to. Will be put on the brakes?
Will we prophesize with a warn lovingly heart of where the ride ends?
Will we pray for God’s people to receive his grace and trust the strong arm of the Lord to deliver us?
And will we be the strong one for our mate and children? Will you?

III - In verse 7-9 Isaiah talks about worldly Peace.
Man has tried for thousands of years to have peace by making peace-treaties. There is just one problem. There is war in man’s heart.
Man without God’s grace to make him content and loving and forgiving is by nature, greedy, selfish and proud. And there will be war until the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ reigns in the heart of men (v7).
7 Behold, their valiant ones shall cry without: the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
As we read verse eight we, in our minds, think of the streets in many European nations during World War I and II.
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man. Sadly, the desolation is not that of a physical war but the condition of a people at war with God. Their hearts are desolate for they have broken their spiritual marriage covenant with God. When you got saved, you made a covenant with God.
Your covenant whether you understood it or not was to love God in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth until death you part. You were to keep yourself for only Him. He has kept His part. Have you kept yours.

9 The earth mourneth and languisheth: Lebanon is ashamed and hewn down: Sharon is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
There is no peace until the Prince of peace saves man’s soul. That is true in a nation as well as in an individual heart. When Jesus Christ moves into a nation or the heart of a person, his life becomes peaceful.

IV - In verse 10 – 24 Isaiah reveals a day of PROSPERITY.
He who gives men breath and life and substances and purpose and protection and provisions and salvation should be lifted up in life.
10 Now will I rise, saith the LORD; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself.
In verse 11-12, God will first have to bring judgment to those who don’t know Him. This of course pictures the tribulation time.
11 Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you.
12 And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire.
Then in verse 13 God says, learn how I operate.
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
Learn how God operates. If He is approached properly and Biblically, He will bless a person, a nation, if not the judgment will come.
In verses 14-16 Isaiah reveals that judgment will fall on godless government.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
In verse 15-16 reveals the blessing to those who love righteousness.
15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;
- They shall dwell with the Lord.
16 He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
- They shall behold the beauty of the King and the land.
17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.
-Though God’s people will be confronted with terror and destruction, they will escape that terror because they have chosen righteousness. (18-19).
18 Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?
19 Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand.

V - In verse 20-24 we have the Prince. Isaiah finally reveals that there is a great day coming when the Lord Himself shall rule and reign in Zion, the New Jerusalem.
20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
At that time the earth will flow with the blessings of God.
21 But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
The Lord will be judge, lawgiver and King.
22 For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.
The wicked will be no more for 1000 years.
23 Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey.
There will be no sickness and no sin.
24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.