THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Isaiah: Jahweh Is Salvation

VI. God's Judgment For Trusting In Man Versus God, Isaiah 2:22-4:1

C. God's Judgment For The Trust Women Put In Themselves Versus The Lord

(Isaiah 2:22; 3:16-4:1)

I. Introduction

A. When God's prophet Isaiah called the nation to stop trusting in man (Isaiah 2:22), one of the great vices that had led to this call was the failure of Judah's women to trust in God versus trusting in themselves.

B. Isaiah 3:16-4:1 clarifies this error, providing invaluable insight and an application for us today (as follows):

II. God's Judgment For The Trust Women Put In Themselves Versus The Lord, Isaiah 2:22; 3:16-4:1.

A. The Isaiah 2:22 admonition to stop trusting in man that summarizes the Isaiah 2:6-21 general exposure of Judah's sins also acts to introduce Isaiah 3:1-4:1 where God focuses on specific sins caused by this errant trust in man versus the correct trust in the Lord, Edward J. Young, The Book Of Isaiah, 1974, volume I, p. 135.

B. One part of society, its women, had failed Judah, and God's prophet exposed this group's sin in Isaiah 3:16:

1. The Lord added to His recent critique of Judah's men a critique about the nation's women, Isaiah 3:16a.

2. Specifically, He critiqued their self-sufficient haughtiness that was expressed in walking about with a stretched out neck, a posture that in the Ancient Near East indicated pride, Isaiah 3:16b; Ibid., p. 162.

3. In this pride, Judah's women at random "flirted" (saqar, B. D. B., A Heb.-Eng. Lex. of the O. T., p. 974) with their eyes as they went about their neighborhoods, leading to a breakdown in morals throughout society as they seduced men who were neither their husbands nor their future husbands, Isaiah 3:16c.

4. As they walked about, Judah's women tripped along with mincing steps, with ornaments jingling in their ankles to attract attention so they could begin to seduce men with their flirting eyes, and look impressive to people in society in general, Isaiah 3:16d NIV.

C. Thus, a day of divine judgment was coming when God would cause their hair, their most important glory as women, to fall out, leaving a scab on the scalp and exposing their bare heads to their shame, Isaiah 3:17 NIV.

D. God would also take away the finery the women used to make themselves alluring, including their bangles, headbands, crescent necklaces, earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle chains, sashes, perfume bottles, charms, signet rings, nose rings, fine robes, capes, cloaks, purses, mirrors, linen garments, tiaras and shawls (Isaiah 3:18-23 NIV), all the finery utilized to make themselves as women seductive for their selfish ends.

E. In place of fragrance by their use of perfumes would be a stench produced when invading soldiers seized their costly perfumes, in place of a sash would be an encircling rope used to tie prisoners together, instead of well-dressed hair, baldness, instead of fine clothes, sackcloth worn to express distress, instead of beauty, branding with hot irons as they would be marked by branding as prisoners of war, Isaiah 3:24 NIV; Ibid., p. 168-169.

F. The men with whom they had once flirted would fall by the sword (Isaiah 3:25), and the city represented in its gates would be emptied of inhabitants so that they would figuratively mourn, sitting on the ground and alone, Isaiah 3:26; Ibid., p. 169-170. ["There is an extant coin from Vespasian which pictured the conquered Jerusalem as a dejected woman sitting under a palm tree, a soldier standing before her, and which bears the inscription . . . 'Jerusalem alone,'" Ibid., p. 170.]

G. In fact, "(w)ars would slaughter so many men that in that day (ultimately the Tribulation days), women will be willing to be self-supporting if only they can be married and escape the reproach of being childless," Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Isaiah 4:1. In great contrast to the once self-sufficient, flirtatious women of Judah in Isaiah's day, Judah's women would become desperate to be wed in order to remove their shame.

Lesson: God would judge Judah's women for self-sufficient pride that led to self-centered living and immorality resulting in the undermining of the morals of the men about them and thus of society in general. God would administer this judgment by removing their false crutches of attractiveness in order to humble Judah's women.

Application: (1) May we men and women alike repent of false pride to rely on God for blessings especially in the acquisition of a spouse. (2) May women in particular heed the 1 Peter 3:1-4 admonition to adorn themselves not with an emphasis on externals, but with the hidden person of the heart, a meek and quiet spirit that is in the sight of God a great price! (3) May we men and women alike NOT flirt with the opposite gender to obtain a spouse, an activity that is not only the sin of sensuousness but attracts the wrong kind of partner, but HUMBLY TRUST GOD for the quality spouse of His provision as in the case of Isaac's acquisition of Rebekkah, Genesis 24:1-9, 10-16, 67.