Author Archive for: meiling

Today’s passage is Isaiah 34:1-17. Let’s go!

Isaiah 34:1-17 (NIV)
1 Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it!
2 The LORD is angry with all nations; his wrath is upon all their armies. He will totally destroy them, he will give them over to slaughter.
3 Their slain will be thrown out, their dead bodies will send up a stench; the mountains will be soaked with their blood.
4 All the stars of the heavens will be dissolved and the sky rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree.
5 My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens; see, it descends in judgment on Edom, the people I have totally destroyed.

On verses 1-17:  Isaiah 34 is the wrath of God speaking.  Because God is a just and holy God who cannot tolerate sin and wickedness, and because people in all the nations around the world are guilty of sin and wickedness, Isaiah 34 describes the wrath of God toward all nations around the world because of their sin.   That is why Romans 3:23 says that “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” while Romans 6:23 says that “the wages of sin is death”.  In Isaiah 34 we see God’s justice and wrath being expressed.

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Isaiah 33:1-16.  Let’s go!   As usual, I recommend that you read the whole passage by yourself a couple times and see what you can extract from the passage before reading the message below.

Isaiah 33:1 (NIV)
1  Woe to you, O destroyer, you who have not been destroyed! Woe to you, O traitor, you who have not been betrayed! When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying, you will be betrayed.

On verse 1:  Remember that chapters 28-33 contain 5 messages of both woe and hope, all in connection with Judah, Judah’s alliance with Egypt and the threat of Assyria.  Here in this third of five messages of woe, Isaiah is likely addressing Assyria and predicting that after Assyria has destroyed other nations, Assyria itself will be destroyed.  The reason Isaiah calls Assyria a “traitor” is possibly because Assyria and Judah seemed to make peace in 2 Kings 18:13-16, only for Assyria to break that peace shortly after and invade Judah (as described in 2 Chronicles 32:1).

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Isaiah 32:1-20.  Let’s go!

Isaiah 32:1-8 (NIV)
1  See, a king will reign in righteousness and rulers will rule with justice.
2  Each man will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.
3  Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed, and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4  The mind of the rash will know and understand, and the stammering tongue will be fluent and clear.
5  No longer will the fool be called noble nor the scoundrel be highly respected.

On verses 1-8:  Isaiah predicts the day when a king will reign in righteousness and his princes will reign with him in justice (v1).  Because of their righteous, just rule, they will provide refuge and refreshing for the people (v2), the simple and stuttering will find understanding and clarity (v3-4), while scoundrels will be found out (v5).  Whereas people suffer under the rule of a fool (v6-7), people will prosper under the rule of this noble king (v8).