The Major Prophets

Lesson 5

 

                                            ISAIAH AND THE PROBLEM OF SIN

 

 

1.                  Isaiah’s commission (6:9-10) turns out to be one of the great moral principles of the Bible: people’s response to God’s revelation of his heart reveals the true condition of their own heart.

a.                   Matt. 13:13-15

b.                  John 12:39-41

c.                   Acts 28:25-27

 

2.                  The sinfulness of Judah and Jerusalem was confirmed by their attitude toward the word of the LORD which Isaiah proclaimed to them.

a.                   Isa. 28:9-10

b.                  Isa. 30:8-11

c.                   Isa. 65:1-7, 11-12

 

3.                  The book of Isaiah, therefore, uses the most vivid and revolting images to portray the exceeding ugliness of sin.

a.                   Like ungrateful children who despise the one who has blessed them – 1:2-4

b.                  Like a diseased body with undressed sores and wounds from head to foot – 1:5-6

c.                   Like a ruined city, as desolate as a watchman’s hut in a cucumber field – 1:7-8

d.                  Like a woman who has become a whore, though she was formerly a faithful wife – 1:21

e.                   Like a well-cared-for vineyard yielding bitter fruit – 5:1-7

 

4.                  Isaiah leaves no doubt that sin is first and foremost an offence against God.  The sinfulness of it arises precisely from the statement the sinner is making about him.

a.                   “What I have made deserves to be exalted more than the One who made me.” – 2:8, 17-18

b.                  “Who sees us?  Who knows us?  We do as we please.” – 29:15-16

c.                   “We have fulfilled our ritual obligations.  What more could he expect?” – 1:10-15; 57:3-5; 58:1-5

 

5.                  But a person’s sin is also repulsive because of what it does to the people around him.  Isaiah emphasizes that unfaithfulness to the Lord leads to unrighteousness among men.  Social injustice therefore deserves the judgment of God (5:8-30).

 

a.                   “I want what joins me, and I don’t want anyone else in on it.” – 5:8-10

b.                  “It has to be fun.  Nothing else matters to me.” – 5:11-12

c.                   “What consequences?  I’m interested in now, not in right and true.” – 5:18-19

d.                  “The only wrong is right.” – 5:20

 

e.                   “I’m sophisticated enough to handle things on my own; I don’t need anyone to tell me what to do.” – 5:21

f.                   “Everyone has his price.  I’m brave enough to take the best deal.” – 5:22-23

 

6.                  The tragedy of sin becomes real within the individual.  It must be so, for one cannot ignore God and misuse people without marring his own personhood.  Isaiah intended for what he said about the fate of the nation to be felt within each life.

a.                   Isa. 64:6-7

b.                  Isa. 57:20-21

c.                   Isa. 48:18-19

 

7.                  Against this background, the message of the great prophet Isaiah shines most brightly:  God intends to do something about sin!  If we have recognized how ugly the problem was, we can appreciate how beautiful the promise is.

a.                   Isa. 55:6-7

b.                  Isa. 53:6

c.                   Isa. 43:25

 

 

Isaiah 1:18 summarizes the message of this great book like this:

 

“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD;

though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”