Isaiah Chapter 59
“And Joshua said, “Alas, Lord GOD, why have You brought this people over the Jordan at all—to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan!” (Joshua 7:7).
This is what Joshua prayed to God after the defeat of the Israelites at the Battle of Ai. At that time, Joshua had not realised that the Israelites were being punished because of the sin of Achan.
In Isaiah 59, God, through the prophet Isaiah, pointed out that the people hoped that God would bring peace to their country and deliver them from the hands of their enemies, but their hope was in vain (59:11). This was because the people of Israel had rebelled against God for a long time. They did sinful things, they were full of lies (59:3), their hearts were poisonous, and in their hands was violence (59:6).
Therefore, they were plundered by the enemy, and finally, their nation was destroyed. The people said that it was because of God’s “shortened arm” – they felt that God’s power was insufficient to save them; and they also said that God’s “ears were too dull to hear”, – that God could not hear or was unwilling to hear their cries (59:1), as if throwing them away. In Isaiah 58, it describes self-righteous people having a godly appearance, who fasted austerely, as if doing righteousness, as if delighting to draw near to God, but God ignored them and did not accept them (58:2- 5). They had in fact offended God many times but did not know it, and they thought that God had wronged them and had broken the covenant with their ancestors.
When we encounter setbacks, sufferings, and failures in our lives, do we react like Joshua and the people of Israel? Do we immediately complain to God, but not perhaps think that maybe our “iniquities have separated us from God” and our “sins have caused God to hide his face from us” (59:2)?
As Christians, we might wonder why our family is disharmonious. How can Christian families keep arguing with each other? Why are Christian children disobedient? Why do believers in the church disagree and fail to submit to each other? We blame God for not taking action to solve these problems for us, we say God is not answering our prayers. But do we reflect on ourselves? Perhaps we are self-righteous, and we think that the will of our hearts and the actions of our hands all proceed out of a heart that respects God and loves others. Why doesn’t God pave the way for us and make everything prosper? Little do we know that we have deviated from God’s will.
Fortunately, Chapter 59 goes on to say that the Israelites later discovered the real reason for their suffering: it was God’s discipline. So they confessed and repented (59:9-15). Similarly, if we can have such awareness like the people of Israel, God will have mercy on us and stretch out His arm to us to save us (v. 16).
Thank God, this chapter ends with the prophecy that the Messiah, Jesus Christ, will come. It is also a reminder to us today that since we already have Jesus Christ as our Saviour, all our sins have been forgiven. Although we have weaknesses, and we still give in to the flesh from time to time, but compared to the Israelites in the Old Testament, we are much more blessed.
“My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,” says the LORD, “from this time and forevermore.” (59:21).
In the age of the New Testament, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, this is within reach. By relying on the Holy Spirit and by knowing God’s words, we should be able to draw closer to God than the Israelites in the Old Testament. We should better understand what God is pleased with and what He is not, and have more strength to live out the spiritual life that God desires.
