Isaiah
46
Isaiah presents God interacting with His
remnant in this chapter. The remnant is weak and transgressed (v. 8b) and is
stubborn (v. 12). But around this analysis of the weeds condition in the
remnant [made up of wheat and weeds], the salvation engine of God is constantly
appealing and leaving a door of escape open. History happens according to
Isaiah because of His remnant. That is why God asks spiritual Israel, the
remnant to listen to take note of His uniqueness (v. 3a-b). The chapter starts
out with the satire or mockery of idols (vv. 1-2 and vv. 5-7). The weeds in the
remnant cannot stop cherishing idols in their lives. God points to a time 132
years later, when Nabonidus will neglect the religion of Bel and Nebo, as we
learn happened according to the cuneiform tablet BM 38299 or the Nabonidus Chronicle. The Chronicle says
that “an evil spirit altered him” (Nabonidus). When a demon religion says among
demons that a person has an evil spirit then is it mathematical to think that it
is a biblical good spirit and that it is God? In the list of problems the god
Bel is mentioned by the scribe from the time of Cyrus who composed this
overview of Nabonidus biography 142 years later than Isaiah. And God revealed
it to Isaiah about Bel and Nebo (v. 1a). They used cattle and beasts to
represent their gods but they would fall and their worshippers together (v.
1b-d and 2a-c). The veracity of future prediction is to ring a sound of
confidence in their God who cares for the remnant and is committed to do so
until their old age (vv. 3-4) “even to your old age, I shall be the same”. The
Lord shall carry them and bear them and deliver them (v. 4c-d). This verse 4 is
very special since the Lord is using a personal pronoun in the front of each
action that He will do for the remnant as an emphasis: “I, I shall be the same”;
“I, I shall make”; “I, I shall carry”; “I, I shall bear and deliver”. Normally
in cuneiform texts or inscriptions of the ANE these pronoun additions were used
by rulers to uplift their own ego’s by saying “It was I, I killed the enemy.
Wow”.
Again
the Lord mocks the idols which are useless (vv. 5-7) which instead of carrying
the worshipper, is been carried (v. 7a) and instead of delivering (v. 4d) as
God will do with the remnant, “cannot deliver him [idol worshipper] from his
distress” (v. 7e). Therefore God wants the transgressing remnant or weeds in
the remnant to take note of the usefulness of God as opposed to the uselessness
of the idol described before (vv. 8-9). The reason God is different is because
He predicts future things “the end from the beginning” (v. 10a); promising that
“My purpose will be established” (v. 10c). The purpose of God is “good pleasure”
(v. 10d). God’s plan is to call Cyrus in the future after the fall of
Nabonidus, both in which God worked, the one to nullify and the other to
peacefully take over. God will “calling a bird of prey from the east” [east is
Iran area here] (v. 11a). Cyrus would be 142 years later than Isaiah the “man
of My purpose from a far country” (v. 11b). The salespoint of God’s message about
Himself to the remnant is that He has spoken and will bring it to pass and He
has planned and will do it (v. 11c-d). Isaiah used a special Hebrew particle to
highlight the salespoint here. It is used three times at the end of verse 11. “Surely, I have spoken” and repeated Surely, I will bring to pass” and “Surely, I will do”. The certainty of the
event to happen is underlined here for the reader not to miss. Earlier God had
another salespoint regarding the remnant worshipper’s attitude to the idols “Surely, they worship it” and then the
salespoint follows on the quality of idols as gods: “Surely, crying to it, also it cannot answer”. The remnant is
constantly in mind by God in his rehearsal of history or events in future. A
part of the remnant of God is analyzed by God as “stubborn-minded” (v. 12a) and
secondly, “far from righteousness” (v. 12b). There are many wayward sons and
daughters in the remnant that are prodigal sons and daughters, far from
righteousness and right doing but God does not give up. He promises in verse 13
to the returnee “I bring near My righteousness, it is not far off”. Christ was
promised in the First Coming to come near as Christ our Righteousness and in
the Heavenly Sanctuary as our Advocate He still is “not far off” and to the church
of Laodicea He promised that the Second Coming will not be “far off” and “My
salvation will not delay” meaning that God has a date to come on His charts and
will not delay that date (v. 13b). At the Second Coming He will grant the
faithful remnant “salvation in Zion” (v. 13c) and “My glory to [spiritual]
Israel” (v. 13d).
Dear God
Grant that we
will recognize Your desire for us to keep faithful as Your remnant. That we
will keep pleading with our loved ones to approach God while there is time and
to have the conviction that our God does not delay His coming but wishes all to
come to an understanding of Christ our Righteousness. Amen.
Koot
van Wyk, (DLitt et Phil; ThD) Kyungpook National University, Department of
Liberal Education, Sangju, South Korea; conjoint lecturer of Avondale College,
Australia