When Your World Is Falling Apart
(All Bible texts are in the NKJV Bible unless otherwise indicated)
Sabbath Afternoon
Memory Text: Isaiah 7:9
9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria, And the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son.
If you will not believe, Surely you shall not be established.” ’ ”
Sunday – Danger From the North (Isa. 7:1–9)
Isaiah 7:1-9
Isaiah Sent to King Ahaz
1 Now it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of
Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of
Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to make war against it, but
could not prevail against it. 2 And it was told to the house of David,
saying, “Syria’s forces are deployed in Ephraim.” So his heart and the heart
of his people were moved as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and
Shear-Jashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on
the highway to the Fuller’s Field, 4 and say to him: ‘Take heed, and be
quiet; do not fear or be fainthearted for these two stubs of smoking
firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and the son of
Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have plotted
evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, and
let us make a gap in its wall for ourselves, and set a king over them, the
son of Tabel”— 7 thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, Nor shall it
come to pass. 8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, And the head of Damascus
is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be broken, So that it will
not be a people. 9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria, And the head of Samaria
is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, Surely you shall not be
established.” ’ ”
2 Kings 15:37, 38
37 In those days the Lord began to send Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the
son of Remaliah against Judah. 38 So Jotham rested with his fathers, and was
buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Ahaz his son
reigned in his place.
2 Kings 16:5, 6
5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel,
came up to Jerusalem to make war; and they besieged Ahaz but could not
overcome him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Syria captured Elath for Syria,
and drove the men of Judah from Elath. Then the Edomites went to Elath, and
dwell there to this day.
Isaiah 7:1, 2
Isaiah Sent to King Ahaz
7 Now it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of
Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of
Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to make war against it, but
could not prevail against it. 2 And it was told to the house of David,
saying, “Syria’s forces are deployed in Ephraim.” So his heart and the heart
of his people were moved as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.
2 Kings 15:19
19 Pul king of Assyria came against the land; and Menahem gave Pul a
thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to strengthen
the kingdom under his control.
Isaiah 7:5, 6
5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have plotted evil against
you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, and let us make a
gap in its wall for ourselves, and set a king over them, the son of Tabel”—
2 Kings 16:7-9
7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am
your servant and your son. Come up and save me from the hand of the king of
Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me.” 8
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord,
and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and sent it as a present to the
king of Assyria. 9 So the king of Assyria heeded him; for the king of
Assyria went up against Damascus and took it, carried its people captive to
Kir, and killed Rezin.
2 Chronicles 28:16
Assyria Refuses to Help Judah
16 At the same time King Ahaz sent to the kings of Assyria to help him.
2 Kings 16:9
9 So the king of Assyria heeded him; for the king of Assyria went up against
Damascus and took it, carried its people captive to Kir, and killed Rezin.
2 Kings 16:3, 4
3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel; indeed he made his son
pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the
Lord had cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed
and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green
tree.
2 Chronicles 28:2-4
2 For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made molded images
for the Baals. 3 He burned incense in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and
burned his children in the fire, according to the abominations of the
nations whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. 4 And he
sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under
every green tree.
James 2:22
22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works
faith was made perfect?
Jeremiah 12:5
The Lord Answers Jeremiah
5 “If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, Then how can
you contend with horses? And if in the land of peace, In which you trusted,
they wearied you, Then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan?
Monday - Attempted Interception (Isa. 7:3–9)
Isaiah 7:3-9
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and
Shear-Jashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on
the highway to the Fuller’s Field, 4 and say to him: ‘Take heed, and be
quiet; do not fear or be fainthearted for these two stubs of smoking
firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and the son of
Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have plotted
evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, and
let us make a gap in its wall for ourselves, and set a king over them, the
son of Tabel”— 7 thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, Nor shall it
come to pass. 8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, And the head of Damascus
is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be broken, So that it will
not be a people. 9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria, And the head of Samaria
is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, Surely you shall not be
established.” ’ ”
2 Chronicles 28:5
Syria and Israel Defeat Judah
5 Therefore the Lord his God delivered him into the hand of the king of
Syria. They defeated him, and carried away a great multitude of them as
captives, and brought them to Damascus. Then he was also delivered into the
hand of the king of Israel, who defeated him with a great slaughter.
2 Chronicles 28:19
19 For the Lord brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had
encouraged moral decline in Judah and had been continually unfaithful to the
Lord.
Tuesday – Another Chance (Isa. 7:10–13)
Isaiah 7:10-13
The Immanuel Prophecy
10 Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask a sign for
yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height
above.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!” 13
Then he said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to
weary men, but will you weary my God also?
Esther 5:6
6 At the banquet of wine the king said to Esther, “What is your petition? It
shall be granted you. What is your request, up to half the kingdom? It shall
be done!”
Esther 7:2
2 And on the second day, at the banquet of wine, the king again said to
Esther, “What is your petition, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And
what is your request, up to half the kingdom? It shall be done!”
Mark 6:23
23 He also swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half
my kingdom.”
Exodus 17:2
2 Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that
we may drink.” So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do
you tempt the Lord?”
Deuteronomy 6:16
16 “You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.
Malachi 3:10
10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My
house, And try Me now in this,” Says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open
for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there
will not be room enough to receive it.
Wednesday - Sign of a Son (Isa. 7:14)
Isaiah 7:14
14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall
conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Isaiah 7:11
11 “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the
depth or in the height above.”
Isaiah 55:9
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than
your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
1 Corinthians 2:9
9 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered
into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love
Him.”
Judges 6:36-40
The Sign of the Fleece
36 So Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand as You have
said— 37 look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there
is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall
know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.” 38 And it was
so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he
wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 Then Gideon said to
God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test,
I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the
fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew.” 40 And God did so that
night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.
Isaiah 7:3
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and
Shear-Jashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on
the highway to the Fuller’s Field,
Isaiah 8:18
18 Here am I and the children whom the Lord has given me! We are for signs
and wonders in Israel From the Lord of hosts, Who dwells in Mount Zion.
Isaiah 8:1-4
Assyria Will Invade the Land
1 Moreover the Lord said to me, “Take a large scroll, and write on it with a
man’s pen concerning Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. 2 And I will take for Myself
faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of
Jeberechiah.” 3 Then I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a
son. Then the Lord said to me, “Call his name Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz; 4 for
before the child shall have knowledge to cry ‘My father’ and ‘My mother,’
the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be taken away before
the king of Assyria.”
Isaiah 7:16
16 For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good,
the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings.
Read Isaiah 9 and 11
Isaiah 9:6
6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government
will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 11:10
10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a
banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place
shall be glorious.”
Deuteronomy 22:20, 21
20 “But if the thing is true, and evidences of virginity are not found for
the young woman, 21 then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of
her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with
stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the
harlot in her father’s house. So you shall put away the evil from among you.
Matthew 1:21-23
21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He
will save His people from their sins.” 22 So all this was done that it might
be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call
His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
Isaiah 9:6
6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government
will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Matthew 3:17
17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased.”
Isaiah 11:1
The Reign of Jesse’s Offspring
11 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall
grow out of his roots.
Isaiah 11:10
10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a
banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place
shall be glorious.”
Revelation 22:16
16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the
churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning
Star.”
Galatians 4:4
4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born
of a woman, born under the law,
Thursday - “God Is With Us”! (Isa. 7:14)
Isaiah 7:14
14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall
conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Isaiah 8:10
10 Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing; Speak the word, but
it will not stand, For God is with us.”
Psalm 23:4
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear
no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Isaiah 43:2
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the
rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you
shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.
Daniel 3:23-25
23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound
into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was
astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did
we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?” They answered and
said to the king, “True, O king.” 25 “Look!” he answered, “I see four men
loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form
of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
Genesis 32:24-30
24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking
of day. 25 Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched
the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He
wrestled with him. 26 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he
said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” 27 So He said to him,
“What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” 28 And He said, “Your name shall no
longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with
men, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I
pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed
him there. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen
God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
Acts 7:55
55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the
glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
Hebrews 1:3
3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person,
and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself
purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Friday: Further Study
Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 19-21.
Chapter 1—“God With Us”
“His name shall be called Immanuel, ... God with us.” “The light
of the knowledge of the glory of God” is seen “in the face of Jesus
Christ.” From the days of eternity the Lord Jesus Christ was one with
the Father; He was “the image of God,” the image of His greatness and
majesty, “the outshining of His glory.” It was to manifest this glory
that He came to our world. To this sin-darkened earth He came to reveal
the light of God’s love,—to be “God with us.” Therefore it was
prophesied of Him, “His name shall be called Immanuel.” By
coming to dwell with us, Jesus was to reveal God both to men and to angels.
He was the Word of God,—God’s thought made audible. In His prayer for His
disciples He says, “I have declared unto them Thy name,”—“merciful and
gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,”—“that the
love wherewith Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” But not
alone for His earthborn children was this revelation given. Our little world
is the lesson book of the universe. God’s wonderful purpose of grace, the
mystery of redeeming love, is the theme into which “angels desire to look,”
and it will be their study throughout endless ages. Both the redeemed and
the unfallen beings will find in the cross of Christ their science and their
song. It will be seen that the glory shining in the face of Jesus is the
glory of self-sacrificing love. In the light from Calvary it will be seen
that the law of self-renouncing love is the law of life for earth and
heaven; that the love which “seeketh not her own” has its source in the
heart of God; and that in the meek and lowly One is manifested the character
of Him who dwelleth in the light which no man can approach unto. In the
beginning, God was revealed in all the works of creation. It was Christ that
spread the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth. It was His hand
that hung the worlds in space, and fashioned the flowers of the field. “His
strength setteth fast the mountains.” “The sea is His, and He made it.”
Psalm 65:6; 95:5. It was He that filled the earth with beauty, and the air
with song. And upon all things in earth, and air, and sky, He wrote the
message of the Father’s love. Now sin has marred God’s perfect work, yet
that handwriting remains. Even now all created things declare the glory of
His excellence. There is nothing, save the selfish heart of man, that lives
unto itself. No bird that cleaves the air, no animal that moves upon the
ground, but ministers to some other life. There is no leaf of the forest, or
lowly blade of grass, but has its ministry. Every tree and shrub and leaf
pours forth that element of life without which neither man nor animal could
live; and man and animal, in turn, minister to the life of tree and shrub
and leaf. The flowers breathe fragrance and unfold their beauty in blessing
to the world. The sun sheds its light to gladden a thousand worlds. The
ocean, itself the source of all our springs and fountains, receives the
streams from every land, but takes to give. The mists ascending from its
bosom fall in showers to water the earth, that it may bring forth and bud.
The angels of glory find their joy in giving,—giving love and tireless
watchcare to souls that are fallen and unholy. Heavenly beings woo the
hearts of men; they bring to this dark world light from the courts above; by
gentle and patient ministry they move upon the human spirit, to bring the
lost into a fellowship with Christ which is even closer than they themselves
can know. But turning from all lesser representations, we behold God in
Jesus. Looking unto Jesus we see that it is the glory of our God to give. “I
do nothing of Myself,” said Christ; “the living Father hath sent Me, and I
live by the Father.” “I seek not Mine own glory,” but the glory of Him that
sent Me. John 8:28; 6:57; 8:50; 7:18. In these words is set forth the great
principle which is the law of life for the universe. All things Christ
received from God, but He took to give. So in the heavenly courts, in His
ministry for all created beings: through the beloved Son, the Father’s life
flows out to all; through the Son it returns, in praise and joyous service,
a tide of love, to the great Source of all. And thus through Christ the
circuit of beneficence is complete, representing the character of the great
Giver, the law of life.
Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, pp. 325-330.
The God whom we serve is long-suffering; “His compassions fail not.”
Lamentations 3:22. Throughout the period of probationary time His Spirit is
entreating men to accept the gift of life. “As I live, saith the Lord God, I
have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from
his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye
die?” Ezekiel 33:11. It is Satan’s special device to lead man into sin and
then leave him there, helpless and hopeless, fearing to seek for pardon. But
God invites, “Let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with
Me; and he shall make peace with Me.” Isaiah 27:5. In Christ every provision
has been made, every encouragement offered. In the days of apostasy in Judah
and Israel, many were inquiring: “Wherewith shall I come before the Lord,
and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before Him with burnt
offerings, with calves of a year old? will the Lord be pleased with
thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil?” The answer is
plain and positive: “He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth
the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk
humbly with thy God?” Micah 6:6-8. In urging the value of practical
godliness, the prophet was only repeating the counsel given Israel centuries
before. Through Moses, as they were about to enter the Promised Land, the
word of the Lord had been: “And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God
require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all His ways, and
to love Him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all
thy soul, to keep the commandments of the Lord, and His statutes, which I
command thee this day for thy good?” Deuteronomy 10:12, 13. From age to age
these counsels were repeated by the servants of Jehovah to those who were in
danger of falling into habits of formalism and of forgetting to show mercy.
When Christ Himself, during His earthly ministry, was approached by a lawyer
with the question, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?”
Jesus said to him, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and
with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great
commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
Matthew 22:36-40. These plain utterances of the prophets and of the Master
Himself, should be received by us as the voice of God to every soul. We
should lose no opportunity of performing deeds of mercy, of tender
forethought and Christian courtesy, for the burdened and the oppressed. If
we can do no more, we may speak words of courage and hope to those who are
unacquainted with God, and who can be approached most easily by the avenue
of sympathy and love. Rich and abundant are the promises made to those who
are watchful of opportunities to bring joy and blessing into the lives of
others. “If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted
soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the
noonday: and the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in
drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden,
and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.” Isaiah 58:10, 11. The
idolatrous course of Ahaz, in the face of the earnest appeals of the
prophets, could have but one result. “The wrath of the Lord was upon Judah
and Jerusalem, and He ... delivered them to trouble, to astonishment, and to
hissing.” 2 Chronicles 29:8. The kingdom suffered a rapid decline, and its
very existence was soon imperiled by invading armies. “Rezin king of Syria
and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and
they besieged Ahaz.” 2 Kings 16:5. Had Ahaz and the chief men of his realm
been true servants of the Most High, they would have had no fear of so
unnatural an alliance as had been formed against them. But repeated
transgression had shorn them of strength. Stricken with a nameless dread of
the retributive judgments of an offended God, the heart of the king “was
moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with
the wind.” Isaiah 7:2. In this crisis the word of the Lord came to Isaiah,
bidding him meet the trembling king and say: “Take heed, and be quiet; fear
not, neither be fainthearted .... Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of
Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying, Let us go up against
Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king
in the midst of it: ... thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither
shall it come to pass.” The prophet declared that the kingdom of Israel, and
Syria as well, would soon come to an end. “If ye will not believe,” he
concluded, “surely ye shall not be established.” Verses 4-7, 9. Well
would it have been for the kingdom of Judah had Ahaz received this
message as from heaven. But choosing to lean on the arm of flesh, he
sought help from the heathen. In desperation he sent word to
Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria: “I am thy servant and thy son: come
up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the
hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me.” 2 Kings 16:7. The
request was accompanied by a rich present from the king’s treasure and
from the temple storehouse. The help asked for was sent,
and King Ahaz was given temporary relief, but at what a cost to Judah! The
tribute offered aroused the cupidity of Assyria, and that treacherous nation
soon threatened to overflow and spoil Judah. Ahaz and his unhappy subjects
were now harassed by the fear of falling completely into the hands of the
cruel Assyrians. “The Lord brought Judah low” because of continued
transgression. In this time of chastisement Ahaz, instead of repenting,
trespassed “yet more against the Lord: ... for he sacrificed unto the gods
of Damascus.” “Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them,” he said,
“therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me.” 2 Chronicles
28:19, 22, 23. As the apostate king neared the end of his reign, he caused
the doors of the temple to be closed. The sacred services were interrupted.
No longer were the candlesticks kept burning before the altar. No longer
were offerings made for the sins of the people. No longer did sweet incense
ascend on high at the time of the morning and the evening sacrifice.
Deserting the courts of the house of God and locking fast its doors, the
inhabitants of the godless city boldly set up altars for the worship of
heathen deities on the street corners throughout Jerusalem. Heathenism had
seemingly triumphed; the powers of darkness had well-nigh prevailed. But in
Judah there dwelt some who maintained their allegiance to Jehovah,
steadfastly refusing to be led into idolatry. It was to these that Isaiah
and Micah and their associates looked in hope as they surveyed the ruin
wrought during the last years of Ahaz. Their sanctuary was closed, but the
faithful ones were assured: “God is with us.” “Sanctify the Lord of hosts
Himself; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread. And He shall
be for a sanctuary.” Isaiah 8:10, 13, 14.