Isa: 7:14 An offer of a sign as “deep as Sheol or high as heaven” (Isa: 7:11, NRSV) did not move Ahaz. So, when God says He Himself will come up with a sign (Isa: 7:14), we expect it to have breathtaking dimensions that only the divine imagination could devise (compare Isa: 55:9, 1 Cor: 2:9). Surprise! The sign is a … Continue reading –>
Isa: 7:10-13 Ahaz did not respond to Isaiah’s call for faith. So, God mercifully gave the king another chance, telling him to ask for a sign that was “deep as Sheol or high as heaven” (Isa: 7:11, NRSV). Here is one of the greatest invitations to faith ever given to a human being. Unlike lotteries or … Continue reading –>
Isaiah 7.3-9 While Ahaz was weighing his political options to meet the threat from Israel and Syria, God knew some things he did not. For one thing, it was God who had allowed trouble to come upon him in order to discipline him and bring him to his senses (2 Chron: 28:5, 2 Chronicles 28:19). Moreover, although … Continue reading –>
Isaiah 7.1-9 What terrifying crisis did King Ahaz face early in his reign? 2 Kings 15.37-38; 2 Kings 16.5-6; Isaiah 7.1-2. The kingdoms of northern Israel (Ephraim) and Syria (Aram) ganged up on the smaller country of Judah, to the south. This happened when Judah was weakened by attacks from the Edomites and Philistines. In the … Continue reading –>
Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study: Isa: 7:1-9, Isa: 7:10-13, Isa: 7:14. Memory Text: “If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established”(Isaiah 7:9). One Sabbath Connie and Roy drove into their driveway after church. A bantam hen flew frantically across the yard in front of them. Something was wrong. The pet birds were supposed to … Continue reading –>
Hope in a Plane Crash By Andrew McChesney, Adventist Mission The world watched in horror when a midair plane collision killed 71 people in Germany in 2002 and, two years later, a grieving father retaliated. Vladimir Shevil, who was mourning the death of his own daughter to cancer, found hope amid the tragedy. He found … Continue reading –>
Further Study: “Iniquitous practices had become so prevalent among all classes that the few who remained true to God were often tempted to lose heart and to give way to discouragement and despair. It seemed as if God’s purpose for Israel were about to fail and that the rebellious nation was to suffer a fate … Continue reading –>
Isaiah 6:9-13 When God recommissioned Isaiah, why did He give the prophet such a strange message to take to His people ( Isaiah 6.9-10)? Lest we should think that Isaiah heard wrong or that this message is unimportant, Jesus cited this passage to explain why He taught in parables (Matt: 13:13-15). God does not want any to perish (2 … Continue reading –>
Isa. 6:8 “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me” (Isa: 6:8). Having been purified, Isaiah immediately responded to God’s call for a representative whom He could send out on His behalf. In New Testament terms, … Continue reading –>
Isaiah 6:5-7 At the sanctuary/temple, only the high priest could approach the presence of God in the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement and with a protective smokescreen of incense, or he would die (Lev: 16:2, Leviticus 16.12-13). Isaiah saw the Lord, even though he was not the high priest, and he was … Continue reading –>
