Daily Devotional
Sunday: Woe to Ephraim: Isaiah 28:1-13; Malachi 2:1-9
Isaiah 2:1-4 speak of the “crown of pride” on the heads of political leaders and nobility of the Northern Kingdom. Isaiah 2:7-8 reveal that the priests and prophets are no better. All of them are absorbed with trying to satisfy themselves. Drunkenness is a problem for them, but is only a symptom of a deeper problem, an unwillingness to surrender their needs and desires to the Lord. They rejected God, and will now learn His truth through the “stammering” or foreign lips of the Assyrians.
Monday: The Precious Corner Stone: Isaiah 28:14-22
The focus now shifts to the leaders in Jerusalem. If Israel won’t listen, perhaps Judah will learn from it. “Scornful men” (Isaiah 28:14) is a serious epithet against these leaders. They not only reject the truth but also make light of it. God’s response to them is to lay “a precious corner stone,” a tried-and-true foundation rock. They could either build upon it, and find true security, or they would be swept away and destroyed.
Tuesday: Lessons from Farming: Isaiah 28:23-29
The comparison of royal counsel to farming is characteristic of wisdom literature. A farmer knows there are certain ways to do things; he doesn’t continue plowing forever. When he plants, he doesn’t mix all the different seeds together. He uses the right tools for threshing for the size of the grain that was harvested. While simple farmer peasants have learned these principles from God, the so-called wise counselors and spiritual leaders, who supposedly have the benefit of natural and spiritual revelation, are blind and ignorant of divine truth. While profound, God’s spiritual revelations are just as practical.
Wednesday: Woe to Jerusalem: Isaiah 29:1-14
“Ariel” is identified as the city where David lived—the city of Jerusalem. One possible meaning of this word is “altar hearth.” This would make sense, since it is an empty, ritualistic worship they are offering to God. They have replaced a personal and vital relationship with God, with ritualistic performance. To them, these rituals kept the Divine in their control.
Thursday: Woe to Worldly Counselors: Isaiah 29:15-24
Again we find the themes of judgment and hope combined. Isaiah accuses the counselors of trying to hide their counsel “from the Lord” (Isaiah 29:15). They were guiding Judah’s leadership to make an alliance with Egypt to stave off the aggression of other nations. Isaiah tells them that this is like a clay pot telling the potter how to do his work (Isaiah 29:16). Isaiah 29:17-24 bring a promise of spiritual restoration, as God’s Word becomes known.
Friday: The Folly of Trusting Egypt: Isaiah 30:1-33
The foolishness of trusting Egypt is denounced in Isaiah 30:1-5, and then illustrated in a two-verse oracle (Isaiah 30:6-7), meant to show that Egypt was powerless to help anybody. The prophet then turns his focus again to Judah’s coming devastation in Isaiah 30:8-18. They will be like a smashed pot, the pieces of it so small it is useless for anything else. Isaiah 30:19-33 bring the hope of three great promises: (1) spiritual regeneration; (2) physical blessings, and (3) utter defeat for all of Israel’s enemies.
Saturday: God is Mightier: Isaiah 31:1-9
Isaiah 31:1-3 are the most specific words yet in combating the counsel to trust in Egypt. Isaiah 31:8-9 are the most specific in promising God’s deliverance to the Assyrian threat. This is a foreshadowing of Isaiah 37:36, when 185,000 Assyrian soldiers died in one night at the hand of just one of God’s angels!