OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 6

Isaiah 6:1-13

6:1-4 Isaiah had a vision of the Lord sitting on His throne. In the vision, God wore a long robe and was surrounded by angels. An angel declared God as the holy authority over the whole earth. The voice was bold and strong and shook the House of God Isaiah found himself to be in.

6:5 Isaiah was shaken with awe by the glorious vision. He declared himself to be unclean, unworthy of seeing God, the true King.

6:6-7 One of the angels flew to Isaiah and cleansed him, his mouth specifically, for Isaiah was chosen by God to be a prophet.

6:8 The Lord spoke: Whom shall I send? And who will go for Us? And Isaiah elected to be the one! Isaiah wanted to be a prophet for God; he wanted to dedicate his life to God's mission.

6:9 The Lord told Isaiah to visit His people and explain to them that though the word of the Lord is among them, they are not learning it. Though it is within their sight, they are neglecting it, turning their gaze to fruitless things.

6:10 God even had a plan to dull the understanding of some of the people, for He knew that if they paid and attention and learned to do better... but did not actually do it, they would be doubly guilty.

6:11-12 God wanted Isaiah to move and speak as His prophet until His plan was finished. God's plan was to make the corrupt city desolate. He was sending Judah into captivity where they would be humbled from their evil ways and once again seek the Lord and His righteousness.

6:13 Though God planned to clear the city, a remnant would remain: those who remained faithful.

OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 5

Isaiah 5:1-30

5:1 This chapter is an analogy of God's children and their stewardship of His kingdom of earth.

5:2 God loves us deeply; His plan has continually been to protect us and to provide for us. He made the earth to support us, nourish us and inspire us. The laws and commandments of His kingdom are meant to protect us and guide us into blessing. With attention to the finest detail, He created us... but humanity went rogue. 

5:3-6 We are invited to consider our situation: hasn't God loved us well and faithfully? He has given life and free will, He has provided the Holy Spirit to those who will claim it. And then humanity rejected Him with their behavior. Unrighteous behavior has made the earth an almost spiritually-desolate place. 

5:7 The analogy explained by Isaiah himself: For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are His pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.

5:8-10 God warns against over-crowding as it causes emptiness and desolation.

5:11 God warns against alcoholism, of putting substances as the priority of the day.

5:12 He also warns against a party-lifestyle in which a person's commitment to God is made defunct. It is crucial that each individual remain aware of the Lord and the work of His hands; we must reflect on life and the nature of it in order to remain spiritually connected. 

5:13-14 To neglect faith is to cause oneself to become unwise, spiritual famished and thirsty. Without their connection to God, Judah walked steadily into depravity. No one upheld justice, no one behaved righteously... and therefore people suffered. Judah became prideful and rambunctious.

5:15-17 God promised to humble them. God always restores justice; He always returns to take care of His righteous flock,. though they may be few; they are few in the midst of a cruel majority and God is indignant on their behalf.

5:18-19 The evil and cruel and unjust will be forced to face their actions; those who mock God's vengeance against actions they thought they were free to make, must then face it.

5:20 Woe to those who oppress and deceive and harm and justify their actions.

5:21 Woe to those who are stubborn and selfish in their power and wealth.

5:22-23 Woe to those who abuse substances and subsequently harm others. We are called to be sober and vigilant, 1 Peter 5:8, in order to care for God's children and combat evil.

5:24-25 God will thoroughly destroy the evil.

5:26-30 God will return to rescue and strengthen and restore His children. God will bring His judgement to the earth; it will be a beautiful time for the righteous, and a dark time for the wicked.

OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 4

Isaiah 4:1-6

4:1 All elect of God (those righteous ones who love Him steadfastly) will cling to Him if only to be called His.

4:2 God plans to renew the earth and humanity with the coming of His kingdom. Once again, the earth with thrive because of His complete authority and provision.

4:3 Those who comprise the kingdom of God will be called holy because they will reside in the Holy Spirit and kingdom of God.

4:4-5 God will cleanse and purify the land and hearts of humanity; He will be a light, a warming and also refining fire. He will be protection and guidance. As He was for the tribes of Israel, He will be our covering cloud in the day and our fire at night.

4:6 As the Holy Spirit protects us now, the presence of God will be our shelter.

OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 3

Isaiah 3:1-26

3:1-3 Depraved behavior causes the blessings of God to recede. As a form of discipline, God allows us to walk away from our blessings in order to learn that life lived without righteousness is not worthwhile.

3:4-5 In exchange for blessings, the corrupt nation of Judah (and all other corrupt nations, peoples and institutions) find themselves to be comprised of and led by oppressive men and ideologies. Leaders so focused on selfish gains are subsequently deficient of the wisdom and selflessness which arranges the well-being of the people within their jurisdiction. 

3:6-7 No ruler or party within a nation will take accountability for their actions which damaged the nation; much time spent on blame rather than correction.

3:8-9 If only Judah, and any nation or individual who behaves shamefully, would admit their mistake and endeavor to rectify (rather than repeat) it, so much progress would be made by man and humanity. God is incredulous to observe, however, that people do not feel remorse for their actions, and continue instead, in their selfish behavior... purposely, neglectfully ignorant of the harm their actions cause.

3:10 The righteous are always protected by God, always provided for by Him. Even in the midst of a damaged and corrupt nation, the love, support and provision of God ensures that righteous behavior is blessed.

3:11-12 The wicked also receive that they sow. God calls us to awake to corrupt behavior in order that we can separate ourselves from it. He warned the people of Judah and simultaneously, He warns us. We need to be very wise and selected about who we decide to trust and follow and learn from. Only our God is qualified for those tasks.

3:13-15 As God's children, we should be grateful that He is angry and indignant on behalf of the righteous. God's anger is a reflection of His deep love and commitment to righteousness; those who harm or cause discord ignite His wrath. He watches as corrupt and selfish behavior damages the world and well-being of humanity and here in Isaiah, He asks: "what do you mean by crushing My people and grinding the faces of the poor?" What is the point of destruction of others for personal gain?

3:16-17 God rejects the stubborn, the haughty, the lustful, the destructive. He has promised to reveal all corruption and dismantle it, strike it and eliminate it. 

3:18-23 The haughty will be humbled. Their "impressive" things and lifestyles will crumble. For God judges a person based on the quality of their soul and thus the fine things of the world will not count for anything.

3:24-26 All of the gain of corrupt and selfish behavior will become a snare their possessors. Reduced, humbled, exposed by the righteous judgement of God.

OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 2

Isaiah 2:1-22

2:1-2 An opening chapter of the book of Isaiah, chapter 2 promises the hope of God's kingdom to come.

2:3 People will flock to the kingdom of God to receive instruction from Him, for instruction from God will have been proved to produce blessing.

2:4 Within the kingdom, all will be judged for their actions on earth, and the evil extracted (eliminating the need for war). Weapons will be transformed into implements of peace.

2:5 The promise of God's kingdom and judgement is a blessing, a light like no other, that we are encouraged to walk toward.

2:6-9 Humanity is encouraged to walk not just into the light... but specifically out of the darkness. The Lord observed much cruelty among His people and the harm it caused. They had exchanged their faith for greed and pagan practices and it ruined the peace and equality within their kingdom. God wants us to remove the idols from our lives and hearts and recommit to servitude to His righteous plan for humanity. 

2:10-11 A promise to the evil, the selfish, the negligent... the Lord is angry. His anger is fierce enough to humble the haughty. 

2:12-19 God's judgement will be comprehensive... all souls subject to His discerning gaze and watchful heart. For righteous and compassionate souls, it will be a blessed reunion with God. But for the evil, it will be a destructive one. God has planned complete removal of idols, arrogance, cruelty, deception. 

Many people read the books of the major prophets and think we have an angry God... we have a kind God who is indignant and fierce against the evil because of how they hurt the ones He loves. 

2:20-21 Indeed, the day of the return of the Lord will be the day of the removal of idols which cause greed and lust and disloyalty.

2:22 We are encouraged here to not regard the opinion of humans above the opinion of God. We should endeavor to please God not lust, not another person, not any other thing.

OT: The Book of Isaiah, Chapter 1

Isaiah 1:1-31

1:1 The kingdom of Judah was failing; it was weak and its people were corrupt. It had once been a strong and righteous place, established, reinforced and blessed by God Himself. It had been a kingdom build by divine intervention for the children of God; that is: the twelve tribes which had committed themselves to Him. They followed God and He led them directly into blessing.

Then they began to falter in their commitment to God. They began to neglect their relationship with Him and consequently reject His commandments, choosing instead the lifestyle of the corrupt nations around them. They were immoral and cruel, stubborn and arrogant. Steadily their values changed and descended until they were unrecognizable to the people they once were. 

But God still recognized them; He still claimed them as His own. He still accepted responsibility of them. Knowing that the people had blocked out His voice, God decided to try to reach them through another's: Isaiah. 

1:2-3 Judah and the inhabitants of the earth were called to listen to a message sent from God. We were told in 1 Corinthians 10:11, that former things occurred as an example to people in future generations, therefore we listen to the message God had for Judah as instruction for ourselves.

Indeed God raises and nourishes His children. Yet generation after generation, we rebel against Him. We reject the nourishment of God in favor of worldly pleasures. It's ironic, and astounding to God that even simple animals know their master but God's children refuse to recognize their own.

1:4 Judah was called out for its sin. Their behavior was evil and corrupt. They neglected all of God's commandments. They made him angry with their cruel and fruitless behavior. They left their faith and walked opposite of righteousness. Their behavior was not only wrong but also regressive. All progress made by God for them they wasted to live corrupt lifestyles.

1:5-6 God determined that their whole system was corrupt: from head to toe they were sick with corruption. 

1:7-9 Their corrupt lifestyle caused their country to become desolate. They did not take care of their blessings. It was desolate in that there was no justice, no righteousness, no compassion within. They had allowed fake, foreign gods into their mindsets.  And yet there were a few in the country who remained loyal to God, and for their sake, He sent a warning to this nation. 

1:10-11 People were sacrificing animals to God but their heart was not committed to Him. Their depraved behavior was not connected to any spirituality. They were going through the motions, killing animals in rituals not connected at all to God. God stated plainly that He did not enjoy their burnt offerings.

1:12-15 God explained that He would not acknowledge their strange, futile sacrifices. The corrupt and brutal rituals Judah had brought into the region were rejected by God; He hated them and was weary of them. He wanted His children to return to acts of righteousness.

1:16-17 Therefore God called them to cleanse themselves of the iniquity. He called them to cease evil and to do good. To seek justice and reject oppression. He called them to have compassion on the weak and humble and alone among them.

1:18-20 God provided them an opportunity for redemption. He had acknowledge and called out their corruption and sin... yet He promised that if they were willing to change and obedient to the instruction of God, they could be restored to blessing. But if they would not stop rebelling against justice, they would not be allowed to continue as they were.

1:21-23 God compared their disloyalty to their faith to adultery. He called them harlots. They had been just and righteous once... and then became murderers. They were weak and rusted and diluted. They were rebellious, thieves and deceivers. They acted to fulfill selfish desires, even at the expense of justice. They neglected the needy among them. 

1:24-26 We have a gentle God... and yet He is also stern. He has to be, in order to guide us, protect us, and keep order. Therefore God determined vengeance against His enemies; He promised to remove His enemies. Once His children, they became enemies and adversaries as they rejected His word and neglected to live with righteousness. God promised to cleanse and bring order.

1:27-31 God's plan is always to restore justice and righteousness; He promises destruction to those who oppose it. Corrupt behavior will face its shame and its end. Desolation is the result of corrupt behavior, God ensures it. 

OT: Song of Solomon, Chapter 8

Song of Solomon 8:1-13

8:1-4 The Shulamite woman wanted to be as close with her love as she was with her family; her separation from him was excruciating. We do not thrive when we are separated from God for He is our family.

8:5 Their love was fascinating to observers. Our relationship with God is a testimony to the world, usually when we do not even realize it. 

8:6-7 The young woman wished to be known and remembered always by her love. She wished for a loyal and steadfast relationship. God wishes for us to be loyal and steadfast with Him, also. He wants to be known and remembered by us as He knows and remembers us. Love is an indescribable strength... but broken or betrayed loved, jealousy, is also fierce. It is better that our relationship remain true and wholesome and loyal.

8:8-9 The young woman was kept from her love... they tried to put up walls between her and him.

8:10-14 But Shulamite was a garden enclosed. Her walls were up to ensure loyalty to her love. Likewise we must not allow any thing or person to come between us and God. The world might try to compete or tempt us but ultimately, what the world offers falls far short of what our relationship with God offers.

OT: Song of Solomon, Chapter 7

Song of Solomon 7:1-13

7:1-9 The young man loves the woman. Our loyalty and steadfast faith to God is beautiful to Him. He appreciates our righteousness and compassion; Song of Solomon makes poetic the love God has for those who enter into a spiritual relationship with Him.

7:10-13 The Shulamite dreams of life with her love. We also long to be within the eternal kingdom of God.

OT: Song of Solomon, Chapter 6

Song of Solomon 6:1-13

6:1 The Shulamite's intense love for this man caused others to be interested in him.

6:2-3 When they asked her where he was, she answered that he was in his garden. Jesus is the in the eternal kingdom of God, and it is indeed as a garden... lush with the Living water and provisional fruit.

6:4-10 The Shulamite's love and faith in their relationship warmed the man. He loved her and described her as beautiful and graceful. God sees all of us, and still finds us to be beautiful.

6:11-12 The Shulamite was homesick in the king's house; she visited the gardens but they were not like the the garden where she fell in love. Indeed nothing can compare to the haven, love and beauty of God.

6:13 The king, the ways of the world, clung to the Shulamite. She did not understand why they would not let her go to her love. Do not let the ways of the secular world cling to you and hinder you or persuade you away from your relationship with God.

OT: Song of Solomon, Chapter 5

Song of Solomon 5:1-16

5:1 Just as this young man had done, Jesus has prepared a garden for His family.

5:2-8 The Shulamite was anxious to be with her beloved. She searched for him, most particularly when she felt separated by him because of the secular world. Similarly must we cling to our relationship with Jesus as the way of the world works quietly to disengage us from our faith.

5:9 The king was confused. He did not understand why the Shulamite chose the other man instead of him, who offered her jewels and fame. 

5:10-16 The Shulamite described her love as "altogether lovely" and her friend. Though the rest of the world may not understand, our love and awe for our Father and Friend is fierce. We worship and revere Him for the beauty of His love and character.