Isaiah 22:1-25 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Isaiah 22:1-25. Let’s go!
Isaiah 22:1-4 (NIV)
1 An oracle concerning the Valley of Vision: What troubles you now, that you have all gone up on the roofs,
2 O town full of commotion, O city of tumult and revelry? Your slain were not killed by the sword, nor did they die in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled together; they have been captured without using the bow. All you who were caught were taken prisoner together, having fled while the enemy was still far away.
4 Therefore I said, “Turn away from me; let me weep bitterly. Do not try to console me over the destruction of my people.”
On verses 1-4: This next oracle is concerning Jerusalem, which is identified by its nickname the City of David and other landmarks in verses 9-10. Some scholars believe that Isaiah gave this message when Jerusalem was under siege by Assyria in 701 B.C.
Here in verses 1-4 Isaiah laments how the leaders of his people Judah have fled and been taken prisoner (v3), how (as we will see in verses 12-13) the people of Jerusalem responded to the siege with revelry instead of looking to God for help (v2) and how Jerusalem is on the verge of being destroyed (v4). Because of these two problems – the fleeing of leaders and the revelry of the people in a crisis – Isaiah asks in verse 1 “What troubles you now?” Isaiah is not asking his people what is bothering them; he is asking them what’s wrong with them. Verse 1b can be translated “What’s with you?” Isaiah is not only disturbed by the fact that Jerusalem is being attacked but by the weak way that the people of Jerusalem are responding to the attack.
Why does Isaiah call Jerusalem the “Valley of Vision”? It’s not clear. There are 3 major valleys in Jerusalem – the Kidron, the Hinnon, and the Tyropoeon. Some guess that Isaiah calls Jerusalem the Valley of Vision because it was around one of these valleys where Isaiah would receive his visions. Others think that perhaps Isaiah is being sarcastic, calling Jerusalem a Valley of Vision when in fact the things Isaiah will say about Jerusalem demonstrate that the people of Jerusalem suffered from a lack of spiritual vision.
Isaiah 22:5-11 (NIV)
5 The Lord, the LORD Almighty, has a day of tumult and trampling and terror in the Valley of Vision, a day of battering down walls and of crying out to the mountains.
6 Elam takes up the quiver, with her charioteers and horses; Kir uncovers the shield.
7 Your choicest valleys are full of chariots, and horsemen are posted at the city gates;
8 the defenses of Judah are stripped away. And you looked in that day to the weapons in the Palace of the Forest;
9 you saw that the City of David had many breaches in its defenses; you stored up water in the Lower Pool.
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem and tore down houses to strengthen the wall.
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool, but you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it long ago.
On verses 5-11: While verses 5-7 describe the enemy laying siege to Jerusalem, verses 8-11 describe what the people of Judah did to try to protect themselves against the siege: how they stored weapons in the Palace of the Forest (v8), how they identified the weak spots in the city wall with an eye to strengthening them (v9a), how they stored up water in the Lower Pool just in case (v10), how they tore down houses so that they could use the material to strengthen the city wall (v10), possibly even creating a second wall (v11), and how they built a reservoir to hold more water from the Old Pool (v11). While the people of Judah were thoughtful and strategic in planning for an Assyrian attack, they did not look to God for help (v11b). They were trusting in their own strength and plans instead of trusting in God.
What can we learn from this? It is good to plan and to strategize, but we cannot let our plans and strategies take the place of looking to God for help. That was the mistake the people of Jerusalem made. Whether it’s in how we approach the possibility of heaven, or how we live out our years on earth, we need to look to God for help rather than trusting in ourselves and our abilities.
Isaiah 22:12-13 (NIV)
12 The Lord, the LORD Almighty, called you on that day to weep and to wail, to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.
13 But see, there is joy and revelry, slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep, eating of meat and drinking of wine! “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!”
On verses 12-13: In allowing these hardships to come upon Jerusalem, God was calling the people of Jerusalem to seek Him in repentance, mourning and worship (v12). Instead, the people of Jerusalem gave up on God and on themselves, deciding to throw parties instead, since they thought death was inevitable and life was now meaningless. “Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die!” was their mentality. (Paul would later quote this verse in 1 Corinthians 15:32 to communicate how meaningless life is if there is no hope of resurrection and eternity.)
What can we learn from this? Whenever we face a crisis, God wants us to see that crisis as an opportunity to seek God, to repent of sin, and to ask for God’s mercy and help, believing that with God all things are possible. We can either face a crisis with faith or by giving up.
Isaiah 22:14 (NIV)
14 The LORD Almighty has revealed this in my hearing: “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for,” says the Lord, the LORD Almighty.
On verse 14: What can we learn from how God allowed Judah to be humbled this way just like other nations? It shows that God does not play favourites when it comes to His justice. When we sin against God, no matter who we are, God’s justice demands that the sin be paid for.
Isaiah 22:15-25 (NIV)
15 This is what the Lord, the LORD Almighty, says: “Go, say to this steward, to Shebna, who is in charge of the palace:
16 What are you doing here and who gave you permission to cut out a grave for yourself here, hewing your grave on the height and chiseling your resting place in the rock?
17 “Beware, the LORD is about to take firm hold of you and hurl you away, O you mighty man.
18 He will roll you up tightly like a ball and throw you into a large country. There you will die and there your splendid chariots will remain– you disgrace to your master’s house!
19 I will depose you from your office, and you will be ousted from your position.
20 “In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah.
21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
22 I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.
23 I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will be a seat of honor for the house of his father.
24 All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots–all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars.
25 “In that day,” declares the LORD Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The LORD has spoken.
On verses 15-25: Chapter 22 ends with Isaiah contrasting two leaders in Jerusalem. First there is the prideful and corrupt palace administrator called Shebna whom God will depose and kick out (v15-19). All of Shebna’s efforts to selfishly create a glorious grave for himself in Jerusalem will come to nothing because God will send him away from Jerusalem to a large country where he will die in obscurity (v18). Then there is his noble replacement Eliakim, who will be like a father figure to the people of Judah, but who will tragically fall, and with him all of Judah as well (v20-25). Eliakim and Shebna are mentioned in 2 Kings 18 and 19,
What can we learn from this? It is not the title that makes the person, but the person that makes the title. In other words, a person can hold a high position of authority, but how people view that person and how much people value that person’s position will depend on that person’s character and how well they served in that role.
Father, when trouble comes, I pray I would see and respond to that trouble Your way, with faith and without giving up. May I not put my trust in my own plans and abilities, but in You. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
