THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Isaiah: Jahweh Is Salvation

Part LXVIII: Israel's Salvation From Sin By God's Initiative

(Isaiah 59:1-21)

I. Introduction

A. The problem of sin has to be resolved before God can establish His Messianic Kingdom on earth.

B. However, man's sin is too overwhelming a problem for man himself to handle, so God must take the initiative to handle it, and the wonderfully gracious way He does this is predicted in Isaiah 59:1-21 (as follows):

II. Israel's Salvation From Sin By God's Initiative, Isaiah 59:1-21.

A. God declared in Isaiah 59:1 that His hand was not shortened that He was not able to reach out to the estranged sinner and save, that His ear was not dull so that it could not hear the call of the sinner for help.

B. However, Israel's great sins were the problem that stopped such divine assistance, Isaiah 59:2-8:

1. Israel's sins had separated her from God so that He had hidden His face of blessing from her with the result that He would not hear her prayers for help, Isaiah 59:2.

2. The sins of murder, lying, injustice and planning evil had caused such a state of affairs, Isaiah 59:3-4.

3. Israel's plans were like the eggs of poisonous serpents that hatched harm to one another, and like a spider's web that one can see through it, God could easily see the wickedness of their deeds, Isaiah 59:5-6.

4. The people were swift to do evil, their thoughts concocted iniquity while desolation and destruction lay in their ways so that they did not know peace and there was no justice, Isaiah 59:7-8.

C. Isaiah thus confessed the sin of his people, painting a bleak picture of their spiritual state, Isaiah 59:9-15a:

1. Justice was far from Israel, righteousness did not overtake them; they hoped for light, but behold darkness, they hoped for brightness, but they walked in gloom, Isaiah 59:9 NIV.

2. Isaiah confessed that Israel groped for the wall like the blind who have no eyes, stumbling at noon as in the twilight due to their spiritual darkness, and among those full of vigor, Israel was like dead men, v. 10.

3. The oppressed were thus like growling bears and moaning doves (Isa. 59:11; Bible Know. Com., O. T., p. 1114) who hoped for justice but found it not, for salvation, but found it to be far away, Isaiah 59:11.

4. This state persisted because Israel's sins were great and kept her from the Lord in her rebellion against Him and deceit (Isaiah 59:12-13), resulting in justice, righteousness and truth being kept away from Israel to where even he who departed from evil only made himself a prey for evildoers, Isaiah 59:14-15a.

D. God viewed this situation and was displeased that there was no justice, and He also saw that there was no man qualified to intercede in behalf of Israel, and He marveled at Israel's wretched situation, Isaiah 59:15b-16a.

E. Accordingly, the Lord Himself brought salvation by His own arm, that is, by His own power, with His righteousness upholding Him (Isaiah 59:16b), what occurred at Christ's first advent when He died on the cross to provide salvation for sinners, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Isaiah 59:16.

F. Then, at Christ's Second Coming, He will judge His wicked enemies (Isaiah 59:17-19) as a Mighty Warrior clad in the garments of righteousness (v. 17) with the result that mankind will revere the Lord worldwide (v. 19) and Israel's Redeemer will come to Zion to those in Israel who turn from transgression, Isaiah 59:20.

G. God will make a New Covenant with believers in Israel, pouring out His Spirit upon them and instilling His words in them, words that will not depart from their descendants forever, Isaiah 59:21.

Lesson: Where Israel in Isaiah's day was humanly hopelessly entrenched in sin and spiritual blindness to where she would not call on God to save her even though He was able to save her, God viewed the situation as deplorable, noting there was no man to rescue Israel, so He wrought His own salvation through His own Son, the Incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ, at the cross in His first advent. Then, at His Second advent, Jesus Christ will defeat the wicked enemies of God and Israel, He will redeem the righteous in Israel and pour out His Holy Spirit upon them so that His words will forever be in the mouth of Israel's remnant and in the mouths of their descendants!

Application: (1) If we do not know Jesus Christ as Savior, may we realize how utterly destitute we are in our own sin and helplessness to work any sort of meritorious righteousness and instead cleave to the salvation offered by grace alone through faith in Christ as our sole hope of salvation. (2) May we believers also trust God to judge the wickedness of an unrepentant world at Christ's Second Coming instead of becoming dismayed at the great growth of evil today. (3) As believers, may we live in hope for the Blessed Messianic Kingdom to come and rely on the indwelling Holy Spirit we Christians have receive in our dispensation for power to live and to serve the Lord.