The big criticism Isaiah had of the people referred to in this prophecy is that they failed to look to the Lord for help in time of trouble. Instead, they sought support from their southern neighbours, the Egyptians. After all their history it is perverse to think of Israel seeking help from Egypt, but here it is. From the earliest days of the nation, from the time of Jacob, Joseph and Moses, God had proved Himself faithful by saving Israel from Egypt. Now, as danger looms, the first thought of materialists is, ‘who has most horses and the fastest chariots?’ Woe repeated This is the second time a specific ‘woe’ is imposed on the men of Judah who go down to Egypt for help. The…

This chapter speaks of God’s displeasure toward Jews who turned to Egypt for help during the Assyrian campaign. Isaiah called the people of Judah and Jerusalem to trust the Lord but rather than retain a confidence in the Lord and seek a covering under God’s spiritual protection they placed their hope in men and in the flesh. Instead of resting in God their Saviour they tried to forge alliances and buy deliverance using their worldly wealth. Help from an old enemy? The princes and leaders of Judah sent ambassadors to Zoan and Hanes, cities in Egypt, to solicit Pharaoh’s help. As Sennacherib advanced from the north the wealthy took their riches and fled south on donkeys and camels to hide in Egypt. Isaiah labels this…

Ariel is a symbolic name for Jerusalem and is drawn from a word meaning ‘lion of God’, either for strength or victory. Sometimes Ariel is applied more specifically to the altar in the temple at Jerusalem. Then the inference is that the nation’s strength flowed from the true worship of God because divine acceptance is received through blood sacrifice. These ideas combine in the Lord Jesus who is both the Lion of the tribe of Juda for strength and the altar and sacrifice who won victory for His people at the cross. The curse of hypocrisy In our verses Isaiah implies that sacrifices in Jerusalem had become mere rituals. Now they brought woe, not blessing, upon the nation because they were no longer offered to…

Today we have a passage announcing judgment on Israel and Judah and some beautiful pictures of the Lord Jesus to bless the hearts of believers then and now. The apostles drew on these verses to encourage their own generation and their testimony still stands sure and firm. Our God has laid in Zion a chief corner stone ‘and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded’. A crown of pride Drunkenness is frequently denounced in scripture as a source of shame and a cause for judgment, so, too, is man’s sinful pride. Isaiah declares that Ephraim, used for the ten tribes of Israel, is guilty of both drunkenness and pride; sensual indulgence and abusing God’s kindness. The Lord is about to use Assyria, a…