ISAIAH 56

Isa 56:1-12 NASB Thus says the LORD, “Preserve justice and do righteousness, For My salvation is about to come And My righteousness to be revealed. (2) “How blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold of it; Who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any evil.” (3) Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say, “The LORD will surely separate me from His people.” Nor let the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.” (4) For thus says the LORD, “To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, And choose what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant, (5) To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off. (6) “Also the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, To minister to Him, and to love the name of the LORD, To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath And holds fast My covenant; (7) Even those I will bring to My holy mountain And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.” (8) The Lord GOD, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, “Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.” (9) All you beasts of the field, All you beasts in the forest, Come to eat. (10) His watchmen are blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark, Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber; (11) And the dogs are greedy, they are not satisfied. And they are shepherds who have no understanding; They have all turned to their own way, Each one to his unjust gain, to the last one. (12) “Come,” they say,”let us get wine, and let us drink heavily of strong drink; And tomorrow will be like today, only more so.”

• What is the Lord’s command and what awaits those who obey?
• Who is included in the blessing?
  • Why did God single out the foreigner and the eunuch?
  • What blessing does he offer each who obey His command?
• Is this blessing reserved for a specific creed or race or bloodline?
• Verses 9-12: Who is God referring to as “watchmen”? ( Isa_52:8; Eze_3:17 ).
• What are they doing and what is their attitude?
• Can you draw a parallel when we are called to be watchdogs?

ISAIAH 57

Isa 57:1-2 NASB The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart; And devout men are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from evil, (2) He enters into peace; They rest in their beds, Each one who walked in his upright way.

• What do you see in this verse about:
  • The meaning of death?
  • The spiritual awareness of the people?
• What new thing do you see here about God’s plan for life and death and God’s character?

Isa 57:3-8 NASB “But come here, you sons of a sorceress, Offspring of an adulterer and a prostitute. (4) “Against whom do you jest? Against whom do you open wide your mouth And stick out your tongue? Are you not children of rebellion, Offspring of deceit, (5) Who inflame yourselves among the oaks, Under every luxuriant tree, Who slaughter the children in the ravines, Under the clefts of the crags? (6) “Among the smooth stones of the ravine Is your portion, they are your lot; Even to them you have poured out a drink offering, You have made a grain offering. Shall I relent concerning these things? (7) “Upon a high and lofty mountain You have made your bed. You also went up there to offer sacrifice. (8) “Behind the door and the doorpost You have set up your sign; Indeed, far removed from Me, you have uncovered yourself, And have gone up and made your bed wide. And you have made an agreement for yourself with them, You have loved their bed, You have looked on their manhood. (9) “You have journeyed to the king with oil And increased your perfumes; You have sent your envoys a great distance And made them go down to Sheol. (10) “You were tired out by the length of your road, Yet you did not say, ‘It is hopeless.’ You found renewed strength, Therefore you did not faint. (11) “Of whom were you worried and fearful When you lied, and did not remember Me Nor give Me a thought? Was I not silent even for a long time So you do not fear Me?

• Name the various ways that God’s people are in sin.
• Is there a primary source of these various categories of sin?
• What irony is there in verse 8 (Deu 6:5-9)?
• What do verses 9-10 demonstrate about their faith in their idols?
  • How does this reveal man’s ability to be deceived?
• What is God saying in verse 11?

Isa 57:12-21 NASB “I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, But they will not profit you. (13) “When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you. But the wind will carry all of them up, And a breath will take them away. But he who takes refuge in Me will inherit the land And will possess My holy mountain.” (14) And it will be said, “Build up, build up, prepare the way, Remove every obstacle out of the way of My people.” (15) For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the contrite. (16) “For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would grow faint before Me, And the breath of those whom I have made. (17) “Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry and struck him; I hid My face and was angry, And he went on turning away, in the way of his heart. (18) “I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and to his mourners, (19) Creating the praise of the lips. Peace, peace to him who is far and to him who is near,” Says the LORD, “and I will heal him.” (20) But the wicked are like the tossing sea, For it cannot be quiet, And its waters toss up refuse and mud. (21) “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”

• Who is healing?
• Who is restoring?
• Who is He restoring and healing?
• Who is he not restoring and healing?
• Isa 57:16 AMP For I will not contend forever, neither will I be angry always, for [if I did stay angry] the spirit [of man] would faint and be consumed before Me, and [My purpose in] creating the souls of men would be frustrated.
  • What does this tell you about the effect of God’s emotions toward us? If God’s anger would consume us, what might God\’s love, joy and compassion do for us?
• Who are the wicked according to verse 20? (Pro 4:14-16, Jud 1:10-13)
• How does that compare with us, who can behave wickedly.

ISAIAH 58

Isa 58:1-5 GNB The LORD says, “Shout as loud as you can! Tell my people Israel about their sins! (2) They worship me every day, claiming that they are eager to know my ways and obey my laws. They say they want me to give them just laws and that they take pleasure in worshiping me.” (3) The people ask, “Why should we fast if the LORD never notices? Why should we go without food if he pays no attention?” The LORD says to them, \”The truth is that at the same time you fast, you pursue your own interests and oppress your workers. (4) Your fasting makes you violent, and you quarrel and fight. Do you think this kind of fasting will make me listen to your prayers? (5) When you fast, you make yourselves suffer; you bow your heads low like a blade of grass and spread out sackcloth and ashes to lie on. Is that what you call fasting? Do you think I will be pleased with that?

• Who is speaking and who is listening in? (Verse 1-3)
• What is the attitude of God’s people? Are they seeking Him? Are they praying and observing rites?
• Have you ever felt this way, yourself (Verse 3)?
• Does God see what the people are doing even though he is not answering their prayers?
• How does God explain their plight? (Verses 4-5)
• What does this reveal to you about God?

Isa 58:6-14 GNB “The kind of fasting I want is this: Remove the chains of oppression and the yoke of injustice, and let the oppressed go free. (7) Share your food with the hungry and open your homes to the homeless poor. Give clothes to those who have nothing to wear, and do not refuse to help your own relatives. (8) “Then my favor will shine on you like the morning sun, and your wounds will be quickly healed. I will always be with you to save you; my presence will protect you on every side. (9) When you pray, I will answer you. When you call to me, I will respond. “If you put an end to oppression, to every gesture of contempt, and to every evil word; (10) if you give food to the hungry and satisfy those who are in need, then the darkness around you will turn to the brightness of noon. (11) And I will always guide you and satisfy you with good things. I will keep you strong and well. You will be like a garden that has plenty of water, like a spring of water that never goes dry. (12) Your people will rebuild what has long been in ruins, building again on the old foundations. You will be known as the people who rebuilt the walls, who restored the ruined houses.” (13) The LORD says, “If you treat the Sabbath as sacred and do not pursue your own interests on that day; if you value my holy day and honor it by not traveling, working, or talking idly on that day, (14) then you will find the joy that comes from serving me. I will make you honored all over the world, and you will enjoy the land I gave to your ancestor, Jacob. I, the LORD, have spoken.”

• What fasting does God want? (6-7, 13-14)
• Is this still true today?
• What blessings will God bestow? (8-12)
• How do you think this change is possible? What has to change in them?
• Does this also apply to us, today?

THEME

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

APPLICATIONS

Isa 52:8 NASB Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, They shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes When the LORD restores Zion.

Eze 3:17 NASB \”Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me.

Deu 6:5-9 NASB “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (6) “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. (7) “You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. (8) “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. (9) “You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Pro 4:14-16 NASB Do not enter the path of the wicked And do not proceed in the way of evil men. (15) Avoid it, do not pass by it; Turn away from it and pass on. (16) For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; And they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.

Jud 1:10-13 NASB But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed. (11) Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. (12) These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; (13) wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.