#1036 Isaiah 58 Spiritual, Are You?

 

“Cry aloud; do not hold back;

lift up your voice like a trumpet;

declare to my people their transgression,

to the house of Jacob their sins.

2 Yet they seek me daily

and delight to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that did righteousness

and did not forsake the judgment of their God;

they ask of me righteous judgments;

they delight to draw near to God.

3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?

Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’

Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,

and oppress all your workers.

4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight

and to hit with a wicked fist.

Fasting like yours this day

will not make your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is such the fast that I choose,

a day for a person to humble himself?

Is it to bow down his head like a reed,

and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?

Will you call this a fast,

and a day acceptable to the Lord?

6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:

to loose the bonds of wickedness,

to undo the straps of the yoke,

to let the oppressed go free,

and to break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry

and bring the homeless poor into your house;

when you see the naked, to cover him,

and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,

and your healing shall spring up speedily;

your righteousness shall go before you;

the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;

you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’

If you take away the yoke from your midst,

the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,

10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry

and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,

then shall your light rise in the darkness

and your gloom be as the noonday.

11 And the Lord will guide you continually

and satisfy your desire in scorched places

and make your bones strong;

and you shall be like a watered garden,

like a spring of water,

whose waters do not fail.

12 And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;

you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,

the restorer of streets to dwell in.

13 “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,

from doing your pleasure on my holy day,

and call the Sabbath a delight

and the holy day of the Lord honorable;

if you honor it, not going your own ways,

or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;

14 then you shall take delight in the Lord,

and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;

I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,

for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” Isaiah 58 ESV

Isaiah 58 False Fasting

14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. 15 For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. 16 O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. 18 O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. 19 Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.” 1 Chronicles 29: 14-19

1 Chronicles 29 Oddity

1-2. Cry aloud; do not hold back - Don't sugar coat, no diluting will ever be helpful here. Tell them the truth boldly. It is not about the messenger, it is the message that is important. Their response is not in your hands, many times God spoke through the prophets, but the people mocked or simply turned away. 

Declare to my people their transgressions - He is going to point out those behaviors which God is not pleased with. We have learned by reading God's word that faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God. We have also learned that faith itself is a gift from God, so Isaiah need only stick to what God is communicating, not worry about the response, and put off all selfish desire to be liked. He is not to be an ear tickler. We have also learned that God's word will accomplish everything He intends for it to; it will not return to Him void. 

…8And when He comes, He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9in regard to sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see Me;… John 16: 8-10

As if they were a nation that did righteousness - They sought Him daily and delighted in knowing His ways - as if. It doesn't sound like a bad thing. The Bible tells us to seek the Lord while He may be found, but the problem is it was all outward, "as if they were a nation that did righteousness." 

…7You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you: 8‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. 9They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’ ”… Matthew 15: 7-9

But God, I am on my 15th year of going through the Bible in one year. I go to church or my idea of church, I tithe. If you ask anyone in my small group they will tell you that I am a devoutly religious man. It is easy to get caught up in going through the motions, in outward appearance, and the self righteous, religious, are the hardest to confront. Hearing they didn't hear, reading they didn't see themselves and could never apply what they read. They were satisfied, delighted in knowing about His ways, but were never convicted unto repentance. They had feelings and emotional ties to buildings and social gatherings, but they never saw how dangerously offensive their unregenerate hearts were to God. They liked praise music, it was like a Sunday concert, but without the truth they did not realize they were not approaching God in Spirit either. It was all for them.

They ask of me righteous judgments - We all see wrong in the world, but how hypocritical when we want God to judge sin but not ours. We admit that something is wrong, is sin, but we won't accept the gravity of our own sin, and we cling to rituals that remain empty, devoid of sincerity.

3-5. Why have we fasted, and you see it not - You can find many books, in the "Christian" book store no less, that follow this as though it were a good pattern. Apostate authors that give systems of legalism, and make profoundly dumb statements like, "if God won't move then I will move God." 

Why have we humbled ourselves, and You take no knowledge of it - They wanted God to do things for them, but we see His answer, "you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers." God was on a different page than them when it came to defining humility and fasting. In other words, what y'all are doing ain't what it actually looks like. 

1What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you? 2You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may squander it on your pleasures.… James 4: 1-3

“How can any nation pretend to fast or worship God at all, or dare to profess that they believe in the existence of such a Being, while they carry on the slave trade, and traffic in the souls, blood, and bodies of men! O ye most flagitious of knaves, and worst of hypocrites, cast off at once the mask of your religion; and deepen not your endless perdition by professing the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, while ye continue in this traffic!” (Adam Clarke, writing in 1823)

Fasting like yours this day, will not make your voice to be heard - It is like the people who read books on how to win friends and influence people; they go through the motions, learn the things that others have said in the past, the problem, it isn't genuine. They don't love people, they want to be loved or admired by them, but they only care for their own advancement. These people humbled themselves by imitation, bowing down, spreading ashes, but not for the grief and lament of their own sin; they were not penitents, just ascetics, hoping to be seen by men. 

16When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. 17But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18so that your fasting will not be obvious to men, but only to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.… Matthew 6: 16-18

6-12. Is not this the fast that I choose - You would think all ears would be open, note pads and quills coming out, now we will get to hear what God's expectation is. Think about it, what good is your ideal of religion if it doesn't match up to what God is actually saying? 

To loose the bonds of wickedness - Lament over sin, and a desire to be released from it. Also, a desire to release others from such gross arrangements as they have willfully or unwilfully been partner or captive to us in. Stop oppressing the poor, quit teaching others to do so, and stop fighting with one another over worldly things. 

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry - How many times have I heard of a problem and thought if only I had the ability to help? I could have if I fasted from a comfort that I did not need, gave up smoking, didn't go on my so called "deserved vacation" this year. They are willing to fast for more stuff, but to give to someone that can't give me anything in return, that's just not good math. Yea, that would be like someone without sin taking on my sin, and then going to the cross on my behalf, except way easier and not even close. It's called love. James beautifully summarizes this section in two verses:

…26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless. 27Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1: 26-27

And not to hide yourself from your own flesh - Aren't you supposed to be brothers and sisters, why do you turn a blind eye and avoid seeing the need.

Then shall your light break forth like the dawn - Now you're cooking with gas, everything else before was just empty ritual. 

You shall cry, and He will say, "Here I am" - Then He tells them, and since they love lists this should make it easy:

• Take away the yoke from your midst - Stop making up your own religion and attaching my name to it. Quit making yokes for yourselves others that I did not command.
• The pointing of the finger - Quit looking to blame others for your mistakes, remove the log from your own eye.
• Stop speaking wickedness - Sins of the mouth come from the heart, slander, disrespect, or glorying over what God hates.

Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from thy ways, like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against thy holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done, and there is no health in us. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us miserable offenders. Spare thou them, O God, which confess their faults. Restore thou them that be penitent, according to thy promises declared unto mankind, in Christ Jesus our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of thy holy name. - Book of Common Prayer 1559 edition

13-14. If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath - They celebrated the Sabbath, the feasts and festivals, but only for show, for themselves. People today confuse worship with entertainment. I have had other people tell me how important it was for them to keep the Sabbath, but it was show, it was actually more important for them to have that day off for football, gatherings, fishing in my case, but not for the reason they were trying to sell. They felt spiritual if they thought someone else was seeing them that way. 

Sabbath

Sabbath 1689 

Sabbath 1689 2

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#1035 Isaiah 57 No Shalom for the Wicked

 

The righteous man perishes,

and no one lays it to heart;

devout men are taken away,

while no one understands.

For the righteous man is taken away from calamity;

2 he enters into peace;

they rest in their beds

who walk in their uprightness.

3 But you, draw near,

sons of the sorceress,

offspring of the adulterer and the loose woman.

4 Whom are you mocking?

Against whom do you open your mouth wide

and stick out your tongue?

Are you not children of transgression,

the offspring of deceit,

5 you who burn with lust among the oaks,

under every green tree,

who slaughter your children in the valleys,

under the clefts of the rocks?

6 Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion;

they, they, are your lot;

to them you have poured out a drink offering,

you have brought a grain offering.

Shall I relent for these things?

7 On a high and lofty mountain

you have set your bed,

and there you went up to offer sacrifice.

8 Behind the door and the doorpost

you have set up your memorial;

for, deserting me, you have uncovered your bed,

you have gone up to it,

you have made it wide;

and you have made a covenant for yourself with them,

you have loved their bed,

you have looked on nakedness.

9 You journeyed to the king with oil

and multiplied your perfumes;

you sent your envoys far off,

and sent down even to Sheol.

10 You were wearied with the length of your way,

but you did not say, “It is hopeless”;

you found new life for your strength,

and so you were not faint.

11 Whom did you dread and fear,

so that you lied,

and did not remember me,

did not lay it to heart?

Have I not held my peace, even for a long time,

and you do not fear me?

12 I will declare your righteousness and your deeds,

but they will not profit you.

13 When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!

The wind will carry them all off,

a breath will take them away.

But he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land

and shall inherit my holy mountain.

Comfort for the Contrite

14 And it shall be said,

“Build up, build up, prepare the way,

remove every obstruction from my people's way.”

15 For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,

who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:

“I dwell in the high and holy place,

and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,

to revive the spirit of the lowly,

and to revive the heart of the contrite.

16 For I will not contend forever,

nor will I always be angry;

for the spirit would grow faint before me,

and the breath of life that I made.

17 Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry,

I struck him; I hid my face and was angry,

but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.

18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him;

I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners,

19 creating the fruit of the lips.

Peace, peace, to the far and to the near,” says the Lord,

“and I will heal him.

20 But the wicked are like the tossing sea;

for it cannot be quiet,

and its waters toss up mire and dirt.

21 There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.” Isaiah 57 ESV

Isaiah 57 No rest for the wicked

…36Still others endured mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. 38The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.… Hebrews 11: 36-38

1-2. The righteous man perishes, and no one lays it to heart - We saw in the last chapter that there were many false, lazy prophets. They were not true shepherds, in it only for worldly gain, but here we find the true watchmen, and that when they die no one cares or grieves about the disappearance of such light. Who would ever want their life, dressed in rags, proclaiming what people didn't want to hear? They were neglected in life, quieted in their death, few took them seriously, no mourners, only the celebration of the delusional. To think of Isaiah knowing this, seeing this, and still standing up as the watchman until he is sawn in half.

He enters into peace - The mistreatment is only for a season, the worse that men can do has nothing on eternity. 

…3He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His name. 4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.5You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.… Psalm 23: 3-5

17And if we are children, then we are heirs: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him. 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God.… Romans 8: 17-19

3-10. But you, draw near, sons of the sorceress - He is calling for them to come and be judged not according to how they saw themselves, but for what they were. Sorcery, adultery and looseness were the earmarks of their breaking covenant with God to pursue the sins of the pagans and their idolatry. 

1This is the word of the LORD that came to Hosea son of Beeri in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and of Jeroboam son of Jehoash, king of Israel. 2When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, He told him, “Go, take a prostitute as your wife and have children of adultery, because this land is flagrantly prostituting itself by departing from the LORD.”3So Hosea went and married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.… Hosea 1: 1-3

1“Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’ 2Rebuke your mother, rebuke her, for she is not My wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove the adultery from her face and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.3Otherwise, I will strip her naked and expose her like the day of her birth. I will make her like a desert and turn her into a parched land, and I will let her die of thirst.…

…4I will have no compassion on her children, because they are the children of adultery. 5For their mother has played the harlot and has conceived them in disgrace. For she thought, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me bread and water, wool and linen, oil and drink.’6Therefore, behold, I will hedge up her path with thorns; I will enclose her with a wall, so she cannot find her way.…

…7She will pursue her lovers but not catch them; she will seek them but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will return to my first husband, for then I was better off than now.’ 8For she does not acknowledge that it was I who gave her grain, new wine, and oil, who lavished on her silver and gold— which they crafted for Baal.9Therefore I will take back My grain in its time and My new wine in its season; I will take away My wool and linen, which were given to cover her nakedness.… Hosea 2: 1-9

Whom are you mocking - When God's prophets spoke the people made fun of them, Noah for 120 years as a preacher of righteousness, building an ark where there was not enough water to float it. Moses, Elijah, and now Isaiah, when did they ever receive anything from the mouths of God's children? When did they ever hear the call to repent without grumbling?

Are you not children of transgression - What is the prophet saying that doesn't match up with God's call to righteousness? You are sinners that come from sinners. Is this not the truth? They were hypocrites in this as well, for they saw others as sinners and themselves less shameful.

…9Whom is He trying to teach? To whom is He explaining His message? To infants just weaned from milk? To babies removed from the breast? 10For they hear: “Order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line; a little here, a little there.”11Indeed, with mocking lips and foreign tongues, He will speak to this people… Isaiah 28: 9-11

You who burn with lust among the oaks - They were fervent in their pursuit of worshiping other gods, and this included flagrant acts in direct violation of God's law. Thou shalt have no other gods. It also included sexual sins, adultery, fornication, prostitution and homosexuality. There is a long history of cultures worshiping in this way, with temple prostitutes, nature religions which include nudists, polygamy, wife swapping. Often their lust was their entry into idolatry, but it shows the state of our hearts, we are willing to sell out quickly and be led by our stomachs and our corrupt passions.

Numbers 25 Fell from within

Who slaughter your children in the valleys - Children, the old, and the true prophets always become the sacrifice for the greedy, lustful and hard of heart. We have murdered so many infants in the name of freedom and compassion. Oh God, please help us.

Slaying the children in the valleys: One of the Canaanite gods the Israelites worshipped was named Molech, and he received children as sacrifices. Molech was “worshipped” by heating a metal statue representing the god until it was red hot, then by placing a living infant on the outstretched hands of the statue, while beating drums drowned out the screams of the child until it burned to death. Molech was one of the “lovers” God’s people forsook the LORD for in their spiritual adultery. - Enduring Word

i. People who would not make a small sacrifice for the LORD God would kill their own children for a pagan idol! “And as the love of harlots is oft hotter than that of husband and wife, so superstition many times outdoeth true religion.” (Trapp)

Molech

Behind the door and the door post - Deuteronomy 6

“The sensitive Israelite reader would, of course, remember that it was the word of God – and, most aptly, the assertion that there is only one God – that was the be inscribed on the doors.” (Grogan)

You journeyed to the king with oil - Ahaz did this when he refused God's help and sign, instead going to and making allegiance with the king of Assyria. He even went so far as to worship Assyria's gods and set up an altar like theirs in the temple.

Isaiah 7

But you did not say it was hopeless - They grew tired of and probably bored with some aspects of their sins, and of course we all hate repercussions, but they found new ways to invigorate their sinful passions. It was a lost cause, but they were arrogant, no one likes to admit they are wrong though. Build another tower of Babel, make up another religion, find a way around some of the consequences. There is only one cure for sin and its ultimate destruction, and that is the righteousness of Christ, His substitutionary atonement, received by faith.

…24By faith Moses, when he was grown, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25He chose to suffer oppression with God’s people rather than to experience the fleeting enjoyment of sin. 26He valued disgrace for Christ above the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his reward.… Hebrews 11: 24-26

14-21. Build up, build up, prepare the way - God will provide a worthy sacrifice for His people, and remove the obstacles to their unbelief. 

…2As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way.” 3“A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’ ” 4John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.… Mark 1: 2-4

…9For those who harvest grain will eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather grapes will drink the wine in My holy courts.” 10Go out, go out through the gates; prepare the way for the people! Build it up, build up the highway; clear away the stones; raise a banner for the nations!11Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the ends of the earth, “Say to Daughter Zion: See, your Savior comes! Look, His reward is with Him, and His recompense goes before Him.”… Isaiah 62: 9-11

And also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit - He resists the proud but gives much grace to the humble. He is Holy, high and lifted up, yet He establishes His spirit with the lowly. Those who did what the people in verse 10 would not; they wouldn't admit to the hopelessness of their state, and in verse 13, when those proud do cry out, He tells them to cry to their idols. Blessed are they that mourn over their sin, that beat their chest and cry, "have mercy on me a sinner." 

…16For You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You take no pleasure in burnt offerings. 17The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.18In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.… Psalm 51: 16-18

I have seen his ways, but I will heal him - I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners. This is a true revival, it produces the fruit of a repentant heart, following God, loving His word, living for His glory. Whenever you see a church billboard that advertises revival this Saturday or any day - run the other way, men don't have the power to invoke that which is an act of God alone. We may see some social reforms, people cry, emotions and feelings run high, but you must be born again, the Spirit has to convict men of their sin and lead them to the cross. Your job is like Isaiah's, an unpopular one, you say what God has said, study the word of God, regard it with His name, for that is where He has placed it. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Don't preach another gospel, don't soil His message, don't pretend at faith, preach the whole counsel of God knowing that His word will not return void. It will accomplish everything He intends. It is an honor and grace untold to be able to share the gospel, and to have that hope that you will see Him work in the hearts of those who are spiritually dead.

…7Do not be amazed that I said, ‘You must be born again.’ 8The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. 9“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.… John 3: 7-9

There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked

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#1034 Isaiah 56 Bark and Bite

 

Thus says the Lord:

“Keep justice, and do righteousness,

for soon my salvation will come,

and my righteousness be revealed.

2 Blessed is the man who does this,

and the son of man who holds it fast,

who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it,

and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”

3 Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,

“The Lord will surely separate me from his people”;

and let not the eunuch say,

“Behold, I am a dry tree.”

4 For thus says the Lord:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me

and hold fast my covenant,

5 I will give in my house and within my walls

a monument and a name

better than sons and daughters;

I will give them an everlasting name

that shall not be cut off.

6 “And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,

to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,

and to be his servants,

everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant—

7 these I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

8 The Lord God,

who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

“I will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.”

Israel's Irresponsible Leaders

9 All you beasts of the field, come to devour—

all you beasts in the forest.

10 His watchmen are blind;

they are all without knowledge;

they are all silent dogs;

they cannot bark,

dreaming, lying down,

loving to slumber.

11 The dogs have a mighty appetite;

they never have enough.

But they are shepherds who have no understanding;

they have all turned to their own way,

each to his own gain, one and all.

12 “Come,” they say, “let me get wine;

let us fill ourselves with strong drink;

and tomorrow will be like this day,

great beyond measure.” Isaiah 56 ESV

Isaiah 56 Foreigners and Israel's irresponsible leaders

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the groom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they did not take extra oil with them; 4 but the prudent ones took oil in flasks with their lamps. 5 Now while the groom was delaying, they all became drowsy and began to sleep. 6 But at midnight there finally was a shout: ‘Behold, the groom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 But the foolish virgins said to the prudent ones, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ 9 However, the prudent ones answered, ‘No, there most certainly would not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the groom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut. 11 Yet later, the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Be on the alert then, because you do not know the day nor the hour. Matthew 25: 1-13

1-2. Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon My salvation will come - Isaiah has already explained to them what salvation looks like, Who brings it, none other than the suffering Servant, that Messiah will be the substitution for their sins. He has also told them that they will be taken into captivity in a foreign land, and that they will return. The message here is broad, far reaching; it covers much of human history. What did you believe, Who did you believe in, and how has that affected the way you live? When the Master of the house returns what will you be found doing? We should be living in eager expectation of Christ return, being a light to all nations, doing what is just and righteous in God's sight, just like Christ lived, only doing what He saw the Father doing. 

Blessed is the man who does this - This is a hard saying for those going to Babylon. Their temple would be gone, and so they would have no priests to mediate or offer sacrifice for them. The letter of the law would be impossible, yet their allegiance to the One true God cannot change. God has been most gracious in Scripture, showing us examples of what it looks like to be God's people in a pagan land. Daniel and his friends stayed fast to God's commands, but this was by no means celebrated by their conquerors. Daniel went to the Lion's den for his faith, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego all went into the furnace. 

…9Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. 10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.… Matthew 5: 9-11

Who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it - Exodus 20 ,  1689 Sabbath 1,  1689 Sabbath 2 . 

…10but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant or livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates. 11For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day He rested. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.12Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.… Exodus 20: 10-12

Keeping the Sabbath would also be difficult in a foreign land, but there were Jews during the Babylonian captivity and under the Persian rule that still met and prayed by the river. This was still a common practice for Jews living abroad in Paul's time.

…12From there we went to the Roman colony of Philippi, the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days. 13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate along the river, where it was customary to find a place of prayer. After sitting down, we spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14Among those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.… Acts 16: 12-14

…15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. 16Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath. 17These are a shadow of the things to come, but the body that casts it belongs to Christ.… Colossians 2: 15-17

3-5. Who choose the things that please me - Eunuchs are understood in this sense to have put aside all else in service to the Lord. Some did this by vow, and others were made Eunuchs by their captors, like taking a stud horse and turning it into a gelding. The key is the service and the calling. Those that were forced to be eunuchs were bereft of the possibility of having children, but those who either forced or by call, who chose to see this as a gift, as freedom from such earthly attachments and responsibilities, and the ability to serve God fully for the sake of the gospel, those will receive special honor. Roman Catholicism, like all works systems cults, has screwed this up to no end. 

…11“Not everyone can accept this word,” He replied, “but only those to whom it has been given. 12For there are eunuchs who were born that way; others were made that way by men; and still others live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it. Matthew 19: 11-12

…32I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord. 33But the married man is concerned about the affairs of this world, how he can please his wife, 34and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the work of the Lord, how she can be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world, how she can please her husband.…

…35I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but in order to promote proper decorum and undivided devotion to the Lord. 36However, if someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his betrothed, and if she is beyond her youth and they ought to marry, let him do as he wishes; he is not sinning; they should get married. 37But the man who is firmly established in his heart and under no constraint, with control over his will and resolve in his heart not to marry the virgin, he will do well.…

…38So then, he who marries the virgin does well, but he who does not marry her does even better. 39A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord. 40In my judgment, however, she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.… 1 Corinthians 7: 32-40

…4Have we no right to food and to drink? 5Have we no right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas? 1 Corinthians 9: 4-5

6-8. And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord - He will bring them to His holy mountain as well. Israel was always under the order to be a light to the other nations, but instead they despised them. Many put much on their lineage, but in no way sought to be pleasing to the Lord, if they had, then evangelism would have been part of this obedience. 

…27For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.… Galatians 3: 27-29

For My house shall be called a house of prayer - Not an exclusive club for Jews, the rich and famous, but for all who call upon the name of the Lord. It is still a narrow entry, but it is not through the door of self righteousness, blood line or money; it is the cross of the suffering Servant.

12Then Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those selling doves. 13And He declared to them, “It is written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer.’ But you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’ 14The blind and the lame came to Him at the temple, and He healed them.… Matthew 21: 12-14

9-12. His watchmen are blind - This was a wonderful opportunity for the wild beasts, the wolves outside. Israel's prophets couldn't see danger when approaching. They had no understanding, lacking true wisdom from above. Isaiah compares these would be prophets to dogs that can't even bark. Come one, come all, the dogs in that house won't wake the master and they don't have enough sense to know who to bite. They are lazy, and rather than study they would prefer to share their silly dreams. Rather than warn the people of danger and their need to repent, they would rather lead them into those very sins that God hates. They were prophets for profit, not shepherds called by God.  

The prophets of Israel were called to be ‘watchmen’ for the people who are to sound the call when they hear that the enemy is coming, or when they see that the people are turning away from the Lord they were to go and tell them of the error of their way and implore the people to repent.

4.3. The beasts of the field and the forests are called to come and to eat. I believe that the food that they are invited to eat is the people of God who as dumb sheep are not being protected by their shepherds. Their shepherds cannot protect them because they have ‘no understanding,’ spiritually speaking, and don’t even realize that God’s people are in any danger, nor do they care.

4.4. Those of us who are leaders in the church today must take the burden of leadership so seriously. God’s people need to be protected, nourished, and taken care of by shepherds that the Lord raises up to watch over them. God’s people are like sheep in that they are so vulnerable to many things that could harm them, and good shepherds are ever needed to watch over and tend them.

4.4.1. There is a degree in which all of us as Christians have someone over whom we are to be a watchman and a shepherd, and we all ought to take that responsibility to heart. Those of us who are parents have the awesome responsibility to be good shepherds over our children. J. B. from Precept Austin

…20The anger of the LORD will not turn back until He has fully accomplished the purposes of His heart. In the days to come you will understand this clearly. 21I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.22But if they had stood in My council, they would have proclaimed My words to My people and turned them back from their evil ways and deeds.”… Jeremiah 23: 20-22

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