Bible Reading Reflection from Isaiah 13-23

 [Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (FG), a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible]

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟛:𝟙𝟡

"And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah."

In verse 3 we see God raising up proud people to...??? To punish the proud people of.... in v11. Babylon's fall was predicted and was fallen, gone!

BTW, arrogant America will surely be gone too. God will be raising up a wicked nation to humble her. Perhaps China! It will be a treat to see if it happens in our lifetime!

In the Scripture, we see God raising up wicked people to punish, and righteous people to administer justice. Both are raised by God. Even Genghis Khan is said to have justified his invasion by saying that he was a punishment of God to punish the nations! 😎 A cool guy! 😂

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟜:𝟡

“Hell from beneath is excited about you, To meet you at your coming; It stirs up the dead for you, All the chief ones of the earth; It has raised up from their thrones All the kings of the nations."

There are some people hell will be excited to meet. Some criminals will be excited to meet some police put in prison.

Heaven is excited to meet the righteous with "Well done! My faithful servant." Hell will be with, "Have you become like us?" v10.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟝:𝟝

"My heart cries out for Moab; her fugitives flee to Zoar, to Eglath-shelishiyah. For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of destruction"

Moab ought to be judged, and so God judged them, yet God was crying for them as well. A God who judges and is compassionate at the same time. Or a compassionate God who judges.

Well, we cannot judge as God did, that is His prerogative. But we can imitate His compassion. It's easy for us to despise the corrupt wicked people, it may be a good practice to pity them!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟞:𝟡

"Therefore I weep with the weeping of Jazer for the vine of Sibmah; I drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh; for over your summer fruit and your harvest the shout has ceased."

Moab must be punished for its wickedness, but more so it's because of God's love for righteousness. It's expressed through the emotions of Isaiah! Hmm! Likewise, America must be humbled, and so England, France, and those elites. They are proud.

Chinese or whoever will humble them soon. And what will the Chinese do to them and the rest of the world with their ideology of communism? How ever so, it must come. The proud ones (those who are irreligious) with all their resources, potential, and privilege will be humbled by God. How sad to see them wasted! But it must be, to prove that if you live in God's world, you better know God's directions!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟟:𝟟

"In that day man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will look on the Holy One of Israel."

A day is coming when everyone will confess Yahweh is God. Many sinners will repent, seeing the judgment of God. Hardly do we hear people turning to God in their heydays; it was usually in their doom days or gloomy days.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟠:𝟝

"For before the harvest, as soon as the bud blossoms And the flower becomes a ripening grape, Then He will cut off the sprigs with pruning knives And remove and cut away the spreading branches."

What a rich analogy of judgment! Isaiah is the Paul of the Old Testament in terms of literature!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟡:𝟚𝟜-𝟚𝟝

"In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, ‘Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.’"

In verses 1-17, it's a terror against Egypt, but from v18-24, it's favor upon Egypt. That's the God of the Bible. Judgment against sinners but Salvation to those who repent. To destroy the wicked and to prosper the righteous. No escape, no, not a joke or a mock; God will repay accordingly.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟚𝟘:𝟛

“And the LORD said, ‘Even as My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot three years as a sign and token against Egypt and Cush.’”

That's more than a thousand days. Hmm! How many of us would be willing to do that? Not one minute, hour or day, or a few weeks. But 3 years of summer, winter, autumn, spring, rainy seasons. Just for a sign. And if God demanded such a life of solitude, shame, and suffering from Isaiah just for a sign, won't the punishment be severe? And so verse 6.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟚𝟙:𝟡

“‘Now behold, here comes a troop of riders, horsemen in pairs.’ And one said, ‘Fallen, fallen is Babylon; And all the images of her gods are shattered on the ground.’”

So, Babylon was fallen. Babylon has become a metaphor for wicked power in the Bible. And so wicked power will always fall! God is not tired of the world. He watches everyone and will repay everything.

He knows even those ants that crawl under the fallen leaves which are under the dead fallen trees on the floor of a deep forest where no soul has ever trodden! God protects them from predators and provides them with food and shelter from storms.

This is still God's world, and He continues to judge the wicked.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟚𝟚:𝟙𝟟-𝟙𝟠

"'Behold, the LORD is about to hurl you headlong, O man. And He is about to grasp you firmly. And roll you tightly like a ball, To be cast into a vast country; There you will die And there your splendid chariots will be, You shame of your master's house.'"

What word pictures in this prophecy! Isaiah is a literary giant of the Bible!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟚𝟛:𝟙𝟟

"It will come about at the end of seventy years that the LORD will visit Tyre. Then she will go back to her harlot's wages and will play the harlot with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth."

Reading a chapter of Isaiah each day could be a boring discipline because we aren't familiar with those nations mentioned in it. Anyway, keep reading!

At least, it impresses upon our mind that God is serious, and judgment is a key theme of the Bible!

Sermon Tips from the text of 1 Peter 3:1-7

  Sermon Tips for Expository Preachers, Listeners, and Students 

Bible Reading Reflection from Isaiah 1-12

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (FG), a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible] 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙:𝟙𝟠

"‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ Says the LORD, ‘Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.’"

Prophet Isaiah begins with a dreadful indictment but he also includes a distinctive invitation! There will always be a light for those who look for it, salvation for those who seek it, a cleansing for those who come to Him!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟚:𝟙𝟙

"The proud look of man will be abased And the loftiness of man will be humbled, And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day."

It's repeated again in v17. The certainty of the humiliation of man and exaltation of God. Thus, ended with v22 to stop esteeming mere man but to entrust oneself to God. A Day of Reckoning is Coming.

BTW, we read the Scriptures on our good normal days so that we may be able to learn how to live in the sudden days of difficulty. Watchmen may not be appreciated in the daytime, but when they catch a thief in the middle of the night one day, people will know the value of watchmen. A difficult day always comes and goes!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟛:𝟝

"And the people will be oppressed, Each one by another, and each one by his neighbor; The youth will storm against the elder And the inferior against the honorable."

Disorderliness, chaos, corruption, and wickedness all come from God. Not actively brought in, but by removing the good leaders and system of the lands.

America pulled out its soldiers from Afghanistan and see how the Taliban captured the country.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟜:𝟛

"It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy--everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem."

How dreadful the day of reckoning may be, there will always be the mercy of God on those who trust in Him. How dark the world may plunge into, there is always a remnant of faithful people.

No persecution, no apostasy, no diseases, no calamities, no schemes of man, no schemes of Satan, nothing can prevail against the faithful remnants of God.

The faithful themselves cannot jump out, for God holds them fast. Are we the faithful remnant in any sinking issues of a cultural war?

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟝:𝟙𝟛

"Therefore My people go into exile for their lack of knowledge; And their honorable men are famished, And their multitude is parched with thirst."

God often judged people by removing restraints. He removed Lot to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. He judged Israelites by removing the word of God. When there's a lack of knowledge of God, people live in sin and wickedness, resulting in a ripe harvest of judgment.

The church gathering is taken away. People no longer have a sacred day of worship. Conscience is tampered with and seared. Public Health is preferred over anything!

Lack of knowledge is culminating. No wonder if the world plunges into another dark age. Yet, there shall be always remnants, physically and spiritually thriving!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟞:𝟙

"In the year of King Uzziah's death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple."

One of the most successful and prosperous times of Judah was when Uzziah was reigning. Now, he is dead. The kingdom looks shaky. The dark days might usher in. Well, God is alive ruling over everything on his heavenly throne. Uzziah is dead, but God is ever alive, active, and about to do something awesome!

When we think life and society are about to go dark, and they shall; remember God is light, and He will be our light.

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟟:𝟙𝟙-𝟙𝟚

"‘Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.’ But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask, nor will I test the LORD!’"

Ahaz was offered a choice of sign. He refused. Pretending to be religious and reverential. Well, he didn't want any sign. Because he didn't like the message of the sign. He was told to trust God and not on the strength of his soldiers. He was told to believe and be calm. And that's difficult, right? To sit still and believe.

Saul was rejected because he didn't wait for Samuel. He didn't wait because the enemies were coming and his soldiers started to depart because Saul wasn't fighting.

Many people don't want and won't ask the counsel of God or wise people because they know they won't like it. Ahaz pretending to be reverential was actually despising the counsel of God.

Anyway, a sign was given. And since he refused the offer, the real sign was fulfilled long after his death in Jesus Christ!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟠:𝟙𝟟

"And I will wait for the LORD who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will even look eagerly for Him."

John Owen in his book "Mortification of Sin" discussed this verse to some extent. Sometimes, God will not answer our prayers because of some certain sin in our life. God will hide from us.

And in this context, God hid from the Israelites because of their sins. Their seeking of God was not earnest. Earnest seeking involves turning away from sin.

E.M. Bounds writes that God will not answer the prayer of everyone, He will answer only the earnest prayer of earnest people!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟡:𝟙𝟟

"Therefore the Lord does not take pleasure in their young men, Nor does He have pity on their orphans or their widows; For every one of them is godless and an evildoer, And every mouth is speaking foolishness. In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away And His hand is still stretched out."

I remember last year when Modi declared a national lockdown, many migrant workers rushed out to bus stations, train stations, and border areas. Well, Modi was rightly criticized heavily. However, in the due course of human society, the migrant workers were equally to be blamed.

In a sense, there's no injustice on earth because everyone is getting what he deserves. We are sinners, the ground is cursed. In fact, it's a mercy and grace that we are able to survive until now.

God looked at the Israelites, it was their leaders who had led them astray, but they were equally wicked and wouldn't be spared from judgment. They should have lived differently, like Daniel, Josep, Job, and Abraham. Such a person God saved!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟘:𝟝

"Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hands is My indignation."

Assyria was God's chosen nation to punish the northern kingdom of Israel. However, they were not a chosen nation to bless others. That task was for the children of Abraham, and we have seen it through Abraham’s descendant, Jesus Christ.

Assyria was far more wicked than Israel or Judah, and after they had been used by God to punish His people, He will punish Assyria by the Babylonians again. The Assyrians were proud of the power they were given. But they were just a club in the hands of God (v15) They shouldn't exalt themselves over the One who wields them.

Our prosperity may not be a blessing for others, and perhaps not because God is pleased with us. Perhaps we are far worse than others, and God lets us prosper just to shame His people. Tajuang-tajumei guai lung gai bam mei, aniu guai ta tikalak tikachik lou ding cho. And they shall have their due end as well!

We must be a blessing to others as God has blessed Abraham to be. Then, our prosperity could be well thought of as coming from the good pleasure of God! Think about that!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟙:𝟙𝟚

"And He will lift up a standard for the nations And assemble the banished ones of Israel, And will gather the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth."

Much of which is written in Isaiah 11 has not been fulfilled yet. We have never seen it in history or the present, and will never see it in the near future according to the course of this present time. Literally or metaphorically, we have never seen it realized. It is to be fulfilled in the future, known as the millennium kingdom.

Something drastic and strange has to happen to usher in such a state of society because the world in our eyes and comprehension is going worse by worse year after year. But God's word shall come to pass that in the end the righteous will triumph! They will stand up from their grave to join the celebration and reign!

 

𝕀𝕊𝔸𝕀𝔸ℍ 𝟙𝟚:𝟙

"Then you will say on that day, “I will give thanks to You, O LORD; For although You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, And You comfort me.”"

A chapter of Salvation. A chapter of Joy. A chapter of Restoration. A chapter of God's favor. A chapter of Praise.

God humbles and exalts a person. He chastises and rewards a person. He causes sorrow and joy in one's life. And everything He does is good, right, pleasant, and is also for our own good! We are called to be fearful of Him but at the same time to never be afraid of Him.

Bible Reading Reflection from Song of Songs 1-8

 [Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (GP), a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible]

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟙:𝟙𝟝

"How beautiful you are, my darling,

How beautiful you are!

Your eyes are like doves."

A friend of mine called me up yesterday and asked if a worship leader can ever sing a love song on weekdays!

First, the real worship leader is not the man with the guitar, it's the man with the Bible. The teaching pastor of the church is the real worship leader. If not, it's not biblical worship.

Second, we have a love song in the Bible. Look at such verse as SoS. 1:15. It's a dialogue between a lover.

Third, Sensual descriptions are avoided. Filthy language isn't included. Indeed, not all songs are comely to Christians.

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟚:𝟙𝟞

"My beloved is mine, and I am his;

He pastures his flock among the lilies."

Indeed! This is what marriage is. Paul echoed the same that the wife is not her own, nor the husband his own. It is certainly in the context of intimate desire, where one submits to the desire of the other!

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟛:𝟚

"I must arise now and go about the city;

In the streets and in the squares I must seek him whom my soul loves.'

I sought him but did not find him."

How a lover seeks to meet her lover! I remember Proverbs 1:20-21, an exhortation to seek wisdom. Indeed, God has given us the capacity to desire, to be passionate.

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟜:𝟟

"You are altogether beautiful, my darling,

And there is no blemish in you."

Indeed, love covers a multitude of sins. Love overlooks faults and mistakes. Love does not keep a record of wrong. If human lovers can do that, God the perfect lover is more awesome. Actually, that's what God does to a sinner when he comes to God. He blots the sins away. He makes him white as wool, like snow.

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟝:𝟙𝟘

"My beloved is dazzling and ruddy,

Outstanding among ten thousand."

Blessed is the one who is satisfied with one's spouse. His/her spouse stands out among all, and will trade everything just for that one person!

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟞:𝟛

"I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine,

He who pastures his flock among the lilies."

This is already mentioned in 2:16.

Marriage is monogamous. Faithful. Till death separates.

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟟:𝟜

"Your neck is like a tower of ivory,

Your eyes like the pools in Heshbon

By the gate of Bath-rabbim;

Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon,

Which faces toward Damascus."

The lover loves everything about his lover. Everything is beautiful to her, her body, each and every part of her body. He loves her wholesomely.

There are some people who got married because they found out to be pregnant. There are some people who want to run away from their spouses because they happen to have an affair and would like to live with their newfound partners. They thought those were love, the basis for marriage.

True lover loves not only a part but loves the whole person, including the soul immortal!

 

𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝟠:𝟟

"Many waters cannot quench love,

Nor will rivers overflow it;

If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love,

It would be utterly despised."

Wow! Great description of Love. Nothing can suppress love. Nothing can outshine love. Nothing is more valuable than love.

A college professor of mine once said, "When Poverty knocks at the door, Love flies away through the window." Well, that's not love. Love never dies, never gives up according to this verse and 1 Corinthians 13. And God also loves us with this kind of love in Romans 8.