#960 Isaiah 3 Taking Away

 

For behold, the Lord God of hosts

is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah

support and supply,

all support of bread,

and all support of water;

2 the mighty man and the soldier,

the judge and the prophet,

the diviner and the elder,

3 the captain of fifty

and the man of rank,

the counselor and the skillful magician

and the expert in charms.

4 And I will make boys their princes,

and infants shall rule over them.

5 And the people will oppress one another,

every one his fellow

and every one his neighbor;

the youth will be insolent to the elder,

and the despised to the honorable.

6 For a man will take hold of his brother

in the house of his father, saying:

“You have a cloak;

you shall be our leader,

and this heap of ruins

shall be under your rule”;

7 in that day he will speak out, saying:

“I will not be a healer;

in my house there is neither bread nor cloak;

you shall not make me

leader of the people.”

8 For Jerusalem has stumbled,

and Judah has fallen,

because their speech and their deeds are against the Lord,

defying his glorious presence.

9 For the look on their faces bears witness against them;

they proclaim their sin like Sodom;

they do not hide it.

Woe to them!

For they have brought evil on themselves.

10 Tell the righteous that it shall be well with them,

for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.

11 Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him,

for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him.

12 My people—infants are their oppressors,

and women rule over them.

O my people, your guides mislead you

and they have swallowed up the course of your paths.

13 The Lord has taken his place to contend;

he stands to judge peoples.

14 The Lord will enter into judgment

with the elders and princes of his people:

“It is you who have devoured the vineyard,

the spoil of the poor is in your houses.

15 What do you mean by crushing my people,

by grinding the face of the poor?”

declares the Lord God of hosts.

16 The Lord said:

Because the daughters of Zion are haughty

and walk with outstretched necks,

glancing wantonly with their eyes,

mincing along as they go,

tinkling with their feet,

17 therefore the Lord will strike with a scab

the heads of the daughters of Zion,

and the Lord will lay bare their secret parts.

18 In that day the Lord will take away the finery of the anklets, the headbands, and the crescents; 19 the pendants, the bracelets, and the scarves; 20 the headdresses, the armlets, the sashes, the perfume boxes, and the amulets; 21 the signet rings and nose rings; 22 the festal robes, the mantles, the cloaks, and the handbags; 23 the mirrors, the linen garments, the turbans, and the veils.

24 Instead of perfume there will be rottenness;

and instead of a belt, a rope;

and instead of well-set hair, baldness;

and instead of a rich robe, a skirt of sackcloth;

and branding instead of beauty.

25 Your men shall fall by the sword

and your mighty men in battle.

26 And her gates shall lament and mourn;

empty, she shall sit on the ground. Isaiah 3 ESV

Isaiah 3 Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem

1-3. For behold, the Lord of hosts - Adonai "Lord", plural majesty. Whatever rule men have or see here on earth, there is an ultimate Lord above all.

All support of bread and all support of water - "Man cannot live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." They have forsaken the necessity of the latter for the comforts of the former, and He will correct their excesses. We think we have no need of God in times of prosperity, but Who made the rain to fall, watering the crops, Who gave them this land?

The mighty man and the soldier - The strength of the nation, those perceived to be great among men, who held the trust of the country against it's foes, removed. A near future fulfillment to Isaiah's prophecy is not far off in Babylon.

…25 And I will bring a sword against you to execute the vengeance of the covenant. Though you withdraw into your cities, I will send a plague among you, and you will be delivered into the hand of the enemy. 26 When I cut off your supply of bread, ten women will bake your bread in a single oven and dole out your bread by weight, so that you will eat but not be satisfied.27 But if in spite of all this you do not obey Me, but continue to walk in hostility toward Me,… Leviticus 26: 25-27

…13 As the LORD had declared, Nebuchadnezzar also carried off all the treasures from the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and he cut into pieces all the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD. 14 He carried into exile all Jerusalem— all the commanders and mighty men of valor, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths— ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained.15 Nebuchadnezzar carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, as well as the king’s mother, his wives, his officials, and the leading men of the land. He took them into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.… 2 Kings 24: 13-15

…15 The toil of a fool wearies him, for he does not know the way to the city. 16 Woe to you, O land whose king is a youth, and whose princes feast in the morning.17 Blessed are you, O land whose king is a son of nobles, and whose princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness.… Ecclesiastes 10: 15-17

4-5. And I will make boys their princes - Those that need leaders, to be discipled, to be taught, those without experience, the immature; they shall lead the unrepentant. 

But it is here threatened that this stay should fail them. When the mighty men and the prudent are removed children shall be their princes —children in age, who must be under tutors and governors, who will be clashing with one another and making a prey of the young king and his kingdom-children in understanding and disposition, childish men, such as are babes in knowledge, no more fit to rule than a child in the cradle. These shall rule over them, with all the folly, fickleness, and frowardness, of a child. And woe unto thee, O land! when thy king is such a one! - Matthew Henry

The youth will be insolent to the elder, and the despised to the honorable - They know nothing of standing on truth; they will despise the sound of it, blow about in the wind, shoot from the hip and knee jerk. Wisdom will become a hated thing. History, they will count as not worth knowing; like the children they are they will be bound to their feelings and fixed in their pride. Watch children and their fads, if it is popular they think it right, if it is loud then they think for good reason.

…10 but when the perfect comes, the partial passes away. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I set aside childish ways. 12 Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.… 1 Corinthians 13: 10-12

6-8. And this heap of ruins shall be under your rule - The old leadership failed, and the new leadership hastened the spoil.

I will not be a healer....you shall not make me leader - No one wants to lead in this anarchy; it is real work to reform, and the ruins do not have the political enticement of prosperity. This is coming in the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon in 586 B. C. which will foreshadow the time before Christ's second coming.

Defying His glorious presence - They speak against God, putting men up as saviors, godless and arrogant in their boast. They desire a god, who cannot see what's done in secret and then now openly. The God of the Bible is sovereign, omniscient, and just, and they will have nothing of Him.

…9 They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongues strut across the earth. 10 So their people return to this place and drink up waters in abundance.11 The wicked say, “How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?”… Psalm 73: 9-11

9-11. They proclaim their sin like Sodom, they do not hide it - You can see the smugness on their faces, proud, bearing the flag of pride; their sin is open, and the land is ready to spit them out. Their leaders have not held up God's standard, so they received leaders like unto their own childish wantonness, but what has the approval of man against the disdain of God. What claim of charity could one possibly make that leads this people toward the cup of God's wrath? The prey hastens, not believing God will do as He has said, or that He has a right over His creation.

…12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot settled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent toward Sodom. 13 But the men of Sodom were wicked, sinning greatly against the LORD. Genesis 13: 12-13

…18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and through him all the nations of the earth will be blessed. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has promised.” 20 Then the LORD said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great. Because their sin is so grievous,…

…21 I will go down to see if their actions fully justify the outcry that has reached Me. If not, I will find out.” 22 And the two men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD.23 Abraham stepped forward and said, “Will You really sweep away the righteous with the wicked?… Genesis 18: 18-23

…46 Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south. 47 And you not only walked in their ways and practiced their abominations, but soon you were more depraved than they were.48 As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did as you and your daughters have done.…

…49 Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed, and complacent; they did not help the poor and needy. 50 Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them, as you have seen.51 Furthermore, Samaria did not commit half the sins you did. You have multiplied your abominations beyond theirs, and all the abominations you have committed have made your sisters appear righteous.… Ezekiel 16: 46-51

…13 The harm they will suffer is the wages of their wickedness. They consider it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deception as they feast with you. 14 Their eyes are full of adultery; their desire for sin is never satisfied; they seduce the unstable. They are accursed children with hearts trained in greed. 15 They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.… 2 Peter 2: 13-15

…22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6: 22-23

One may look them in the face and guess at the desperate wickedness that there is in their hearts: They declare their sin as Sodom, so impetuous, so imperious, are their lusts, and so impatient of the least check, and so perfectly are all the remaining sparks of virtue extinguished in them. The Sodomites declared their sin, not only by the exceeding greatness of it (Gen. 13:13 ), so that it cried to heaven (Gen. 18:20 ), but by their shameless owning of that which was most shameful (Gen. 19:5 ); and thus Judah and Jerusalem did: they were so far from hiding it that they gloried in it, in the bold attempts they made upon virtue, and the victory they gained over their own convictions. They had a whore’s forehead (Jer. 3:3 ) and could not blush, Jer. 6:15 . Note, Those that have grown impudent in sin are ripe for ruin. Those that are past shame (we say) are past grace, and then past hope. 2. That their guides, who should direct them in the right way, put them out of the way (v. 12): "Those who lead thee (the princes, priests, and prophets) mislead thee; they cause thee to err.’’ Either they preached to them that which was false and corrupt, or, if they preached that which was true and good, they contradicted it by their practices, and the people would soon follow a bad example than a good exhortation. - Matthew Henry

12-15 My people - infants are their oppressors - Tyrants, tantrum throwers, blame placers, gossips, stirred more by appetite and emotion than by reason. 

Children are their oppressors, and women rule over them (v. 12), men that have as weak judgments and strong passions as women and children: this was their sin, that their rulers were such, and it became a judgment upon them.III. - Matthew Henry

O, my people, your guides mislead you - They are comforters, protectors of wrong, defenders of confusion. "Peace, love, and free", they cry up, but walk the people toward their destruction. 

The Lord has taken His place to contend - 

…5 then may my enemy pursue me and overtake me; may he trample me to the ground and leave my honor in the dust. Selah 6 Arise, O LORD, in Your anger; rise up against the fury of my enemies. Awake, my God, and ordain judgment.7 Let the assembled peoples gather around You; take Your seat over them on high.… Psalm 7: 5-7

The spoil of the poor is in your houses - They wanted a god who didn't see such things, but that is not God. They took His patience, that He is slow to anger, as safety against that which He placed up with his name.

…3 All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. 4 Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the LORD.5 There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is in the company of the righteous.… Psalm 14: 3-5

…4 They pour out arrogant words; all workers of iniquity boast. 5 They crush Your people, O LORD; they oppress Your heritage.6 They kill the widow and the foreigner; they murder the fatherless.… Psalm 94: 4-6

16-26. Because the daughters of Zion are haughty - They are vain, forsaking the guard of the home, thinking little of the rearing of their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, but trading it for the counsel of a godless culture. They are possessed by appearances, flaunting outward "beauty", and neglecting the care of the soul.

8 Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or dissension. 9 Likewise, I want the women to adorn themselves with respectable apparel, with modesty, and with self-control, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, 10 but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess to worship God.… 1 Timothy 2: 8-10

…3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair or gold jewelry or fine clothes, 4 but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God’s sight. 5 For this is how the holy women of the past adorned themselves. They put their hope in God and were submissive to their husbands,… 1 Peter 3: 3-5

Tinkling with their feet - Rather than serve the poor, they spent money on make up, jewelry and the kind of anklets that made noise so as to draw attention to them. They wanted to appear successful, seductive and be revered for outward appearances. They make much of what God makes little of, what doesn't last.

…59 He will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary disasters, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses. 60 He will afflict you again with all the diseases you dreaded in Egypt, and they will cling to you.61 The LORD will also bring upon you every sickness and plague not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed.… Deuteronomy 28: 59-61

The head dresses - Even what God had graciously gave them they made more of then Him. It was never things but the state of the heart toward such things, choosing them above obedience, above their neighbor. 

…27 For Aaron and his sons they made tunics of fine linen, the work of a weaver, 28 as well as the turban of fine linen, the ornate headbands and undergarments of finely spun linen,29 and the sash of finely spun linen, embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.… Exodus 38: 27-29

…46 She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels as well.’ So I drank, and she also watered the camels. 47 Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She replied, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists.48 Then I bowed down and worshiped the LORD; and I blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who led me on the right road to take the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.… Genesis 24: 46-48

…21 The son declared, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let us feast and celebrate.… Luke 15: 21-23

…11 And every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the court of the harem to learn about Esther’s welfare and what was happening to her. 12 In the twelve months before her turn to go to King Xerxes, the harem regulation required each young woman to receive beauty treatments with oil of myrrh for six months, and then with perfumes and cosmetics for another six months.13 When the young woman would go to the king, she was given whatever she requested to take with her from the harem to the king’s palace.… Esther 2: 11-13

…23  Her husband is known at the city gate, where he sits among the elders of the land. 24 She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchants.25 Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the days to come.… Proverbs 31: 23-25

However outwardly beautiful the woman of Proverbs 31 is, her inner beauty shines through it. Her character is renowned. 

…33 His father recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!” 34 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.35 All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.… Genesis 37: 33-35

…27 You must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. 28 You must not make any cuts in your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.29 You must not defile your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will be prostituted and filled with depravity.… Leviticus 19: 27-29

Empty, she shall sit on the ground -

…12  When they lifted up their eyes from afar, they could barely recognize Job. They began to weep aloud, and each man tore his robe and threw dust in the air over his head. 13 Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights, but no one spoke a word to him because they saw how intense his suffering was. Job 2: 12-13