Well, good evening. It's all right. You can talk to me. I have been blessed. We still have a little bit more to go. This is our last session here tonight. And Todd told me just take all the time I need. And if you don't get to preach, that's all right. He said it's OK. But no, I have been blessed. I'm very thankful. For everyone that has come, it's been a blessing to me. It's been refreshing, it's been challenging, it's been encouraging. And I hope it has been for you all as well. And I like the feeling of us saying, hey, let's encourage one another. Let's encourage, let's marshal the troops and let's encourage one another. We're in this thing. and we're serving our master. We have the message of the king to proclaim. And so I pray that we will all be sharpened through this weekend. So I know we got a little more to go, but I have been given the task of preaching. These are these example messages, and I guess I'm going to be doing the example of Old Testament. Isaiah chapter number 28, that's all right with me, but Isaiah chapter 28, And we're gonna start here just by reading one verse, but we're gonna look more before we're done. Isaiah chapter number 28, verse number 10 reads, for precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little. Now this is a text that is very easy to look at And it seems very explanatory, it seems easy to understand what it means. We often hear it used in a way that is descriptive or prescriptive of word ministry. That brothers, we've got to preach line upon line and precept upon precept. I have used it that way. Others have used it that way. About two years ago, I guess it was, I preached through the book of Isaiah, started at the beginning of it and all the way to the end. I think it took 106 messages or something like that to get through it. I think John Calvin did it in 300 and some. But his eschatology was off, so it just took him a long time. I don't know what the problem was there, but anyway. going through the book of Isaiah and coming to this passage, and this is something I've preached, I don't know, it's been over 20 some books of the Bible that I've preached through verse by verse, and it has never failed me as I've been preaching through a book that I've hit a verse and I've said, you know what, I've used that before and didn't really understand what it meant. And I've used it just wrong, and I've used it not understanding what the context of the passage was. So, Isaiah 28.10 is a verse that sounds good, doesn't it? In fact, it sounds like you could put that on Twitter. You could, you know, make a bumper sticker out of it. You could do all kinds of things. It has kind of a, it kind of sounds like a formula. That's what it sounds like. Well, there's probably a reason for that. It's almost like a rhyme. And even as I understand it in the Hebrew, it's monosyllables, and so it's even more rhythmic and lyrical in the Hebrew than what it is even coming across in the English. But, if you keep reading a little bit, verse 13 gives us a clue that something is not quite right about that. When you look at verse 13, it says, But the word of the Lord was unto them Precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little. Now that's just saying the same thing if you stop there. But if you keep reading it says that they might go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken. That sounds negative. Sounds kind of bad. So that doesn't maybe sound like a good thing. Precept upon precept seems to have a bad outcome. The end of that verse reveals that speaking precept upon precept results in going, which means going away, falling backward, being broken, being snared, and being taken. What does it mean? What does precept upon precept mean? How do we go about understanding what it means? And obviously, if we're going to understand it, we're going to interpret this verse properly, just as what has been talked about over the past few days. We're going to have to go to the context. And when you are looking, particularly in an Old Testament passage, you're going to have to consider a couple of things in particular. One of those is historical context. You know, who's right, who they're writing to, all that sort of thing that was talked about. What in the world is going on in Isaiah chapter number 28? So if we look at, first of all, the broader context, the historical context of what's taking place here, the northern kingdom of Israel had made an alliance with the kingdom of Syria. And during that time that they had formed this alliance, there was a kingdom that was on the ascendancy known as the Assyrian kingdom. So you have the kingdom of Assyria and you have the kingdom of Syria. And I know it's hard and I may even switch those around inadvertently. But Israel had made an alliance with the kingdom of Syria to oppose the Assyrians that were basically on a course for world conquest at the time. So what Israel and Syria did was they went to Judah, which was being ruled by the king Ahaz at that time. And they went to Judah and they sought to make an alliance. They said, we want the kingdom of Judah, the southern kingdom, we want you to join with us, Israel and Syria, that we can join our forces together, that we can oppose the Assyrians because they are assaulting us and seeking to take us over. Now, when that happened, King Ahaz refused. He would not enter into an alliance with the northern kingdom and Syria. And so what they did, they didn't like that, and so what they did was they responded, Israel and Syria responded by attacking Judah. So they wouldn't go into an alliance with them, so they began attacking them. And they assaulted Jerusalem several times, although God deliberately never allowed them to take Jerusalem. So what was going on then, the kingdom of Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel hatched a conspiracy, they had a secret plan, that they were going to come in and they were going to depose Ahaz from the throne. And they were going to set up in his place, this son of Tabial, put him in his place and it would be a king, basically he would be their puppet. So he would be ruling over Judah, but Israel and Syria would have control over him and control over the kingdom. Ahaz also, by the way, which we don't really have time to chase this particular rabbit, but Ahaz was of the house of Judah. Ahaz is in the line of Davidic kings. So there was a satanic effort behind this conspiracy that is trying to bring an end to the Davidic dynasty at that time. So what do you know about that right away? What you know about that right away is God wouldn't let that happen. Now Ahaz was worried about that. Judah was worried about that. They were already suffering some losses from it. But God wasn't going to let that happen. So you can read about some of that in 2 Kings 15 and 16. Do you want to read about some of that? So what happened? Out of fear and desperation, Ahaz, after he had refused to join with Syria and Israel, Ahaz went to Tiglath-Pileser. Now that was the king of Assyria. So he goes to Assyria, in other words, the enemy that Syria and Israel were against, their opponent. He goes to Assyria. He's going to try to do an end run and go to join with Assyria to secure them from the threat of Israel and Syria. So that's what Ahaz was going to do. So in chapter 7 of Isaiah, if you just turn back there, God sent the prophet Isaiah specifically and particularly to Ahaz to tell him not to enter into an alliance with Assyria. That's why he sent the prophet to him. He was told specifically, this is what Isaiah told him specifically, Ahaz, in verse number 7, Thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass. In other words, he says, look Ahaz, God knows all about the plans that Syria and Israel have for removing you from the throne and taking over the kingdom of Judah. God knows all about those plans, and you know what? The Lord has said, God has spoken and said, their plans will not stand. They will not come to fruition. They will not be permitted to do so. In verses number 8 and 9, Isaiah says, For the head of Syria is Damascus, in the head of Damascus' raisin. And within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people. And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established." Alright, so Ephraim that's talked about, that was and Samaria was the capital of the kingdom of northern Israel. So he's talking about the northern kingdom, the northern ten tribes. Ephraim being the leading tribe, Samaria being the capital at that time, Syria with their capital, and Damascus was the kingdom that he's talking about. So in other words, what's he saying here? He says, their plan to depose you will not succeed. God will not allow it to happen. Not only that, God is going to bring judgment upon them for their sins. In fact, Isaiah specifically prophesied that within 65 years, God is going to bring judgment upon them. Ephraim would be broken within 65 years. And that happened from 735 BC, which is when this prophecy of Isaiah's was spoken, to about 670 BC. And what happened was, In 722 B.C., 2 Kings 17 talks about it. The northern kingdom of Israel was invaded by the Assyrians and was carried away into captivity. And by 670 B.C., which is later in 2 Kings 17, they were dissolved or scattered or dispersed among foreign nations. They were broken. That's exactly what Isaiah said. to 670 BC, 65 years from when Isaiah spoke that. Now, Ahaz refused. He just flat refused. And that's where Isaiah says, go ahead and ask a sign, and God will give you a sign. And he did. But still, he just flat refused to hear that word. So instead, he went into alliance with Tithoplaser and the Assyrian kingdom, which resulted in what? It resulted in them being brought under tribute. And you can read the sad career of King Ahaz in 2 Chronicles chapter number 28. You can find out about how he went to the temple and basically he just stripped the temple of all the gold and everything that it had in order to make a payment to the kingdom of Assyria. He ended up building altars. Even at a time he got so desperate, Ahaz began building altars to the kings of Syria. That's how desperate that he got. Plundered the temple to do so. Nailed the doors of the temple shut. and took all of the gold and they ended up under tribute. So Assyria would go on to carry Israel away captive 13 years after Isaiah spoke to Ahaz there in Isaiah chapter number 7. And Judah would end up under tribute to Assyria at that time. Historically, that's what's taking place. So now we come to Isaiah chapter 28, and we're going to look at the more medium context. And Isaiah chapter 28 happens about 10 years after chapter 7. So you're still about three years away from when Samaria is going to be taken and then carried away captive by the Assyrians. So Judah is under tribute to Assyria at this time. the Northern Kingdom is going to be carried away in just a short amount of time. So, when we look at Isaiah's prophecy, Isaiah's prophecy divides into different major sections. And the chapter 28 actually starts a major section in Isaiah's prophecy. From chapter 28 through chapter number 35, you have a large section of this prophecy that contains six woes. Six woes. Woes are pronouncements of judgment. Five of those woes come to Israel and to Judah in some form. And the sixth woe comes to Assyria. The five woes that go to Israel and Judah are denouncing them for their pride and the despising of God and His Word and They are warned against seeking alliance with foreign nations. They are told not to do that. Isaiah was sent to Ahaz ten years prior specifically to tell him not to do that. God says do not do this. So these woes speak judgment upon them. Why? Because of their refusal to hear and obey the Word of God. And their refusal to trust in God that was manifest by them rather leaning on the arm of the flesh. They would rather trust in this alliance with this foreign nation. I mean, have you seen how big their army is? Have you seen all the shields and spears and the chariots and the archers and everything that they have? And they would trust in them rather than trusting in God. God's man came with God's message and said, no, don't look to the foreign nations. You just trust and you rest in God and He will deliver you. But they refused to hear that. So these woes are pronounced upon them. The last woe that's pronounced in this section is a woe actually to Assyria. And what you find there is a wonderful, there's some wonderful theology there dealing with the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man, if you want to dig into it, because God pronounces to the kingdom of Assyria and says, look, you have been a rod in my hand. I have been whipping my people with you. But he goes on to say that Assyria, but they didn't do that in order to fulfill the will of God. They did that because that was what they wanted to do. And yet for this, God says He's going to bring judgment on Assyria, and He did in the form of the Babylonians later. So, when we look at chapter 28, verses 1 to 13, This woe that is pronounced is upon Ephraim. It is to the northern kingdom of Israel. But if you pay close attention, by the time you get to verse 14, it says, Wherefore, hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule the people which is in Jerusalem. So even though verses 1-13 are spoken as a woe against the northern kingdom of Israel, it is actually a warning being issued to Judah. Because what is going to come upon them is because of their refusal to hear God's Word, their refusal to trust in God's Word, their alliances with foreign nations rather than trusting in God, and the judgment that's going to come on them, you know what's going to happen? It's also going to come on Judah. It's going to be a hundred and some years later, but it's going to come on them as well. So, it's a prophecy about the taking away of the northern kingdom, and that's going to begin in about three years' time from when this is spoken. But again, it's spoken as a warning to Judah because they're guilty of the same sins. And the implication is that judgment on Ephraim will also be judgment on Judah if they don't repent and obey the Word of the Lord. this word should stand and ring in their ears. And when they see the northern kingdom invaded and carried away, it ought to put them on their face before Almighty God and say, God, your word is sure. Forgive us of our sin. Forgive us of our transgression. Let's tear down these altars to the gods of Syria. Let's repent and let's return unto the Lord because His word is sure and His will will be done. That's what it ought to do. It doesn't. But that's what ought to happen. So, if we look at verses 1 to 13, let's break these down a little further. Verses 1 to 4 depict the coming doom of Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom of Israel. And it's given in two particular images. Verse 2 says, Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing shall cast down to the earth with the hand. So the first image that he uses to speak of the overthrow of Samaria is that of a flood. He speaks of the fierce and destructive force of a great storm and a flood of mighty waters that's going to overflow them. And this actually harkens back to Isaiah chapter number 8 verses 7 to 8 and the flood imagery that he uses when he predicts the judgment being used by the Assyrians and portrays it as a flood. The second image is in verse number 4. And the glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before summer, which when he that looketh upon it seeth it, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up. So the second image that he uses to speak of the judgment against the northern kingdom of Israel is the eating of an early ripe fig. The early ripe fruit. What does that mean? It means suddenly. Notice that. He eats it while it's still in his hand. The man goes out and he finds an early ripe fruit. and he plucks it and he eats it quickly. That's a picture of suddenness. So he tells them, the northern kingdom, that this judgment is going to come on them with a destructive force like a mighty flood and it's going to come on them suddenly like the early ripe fruit that is devoured once it's found. It's not waited around on. Verses 5 to 6. also speak of the promise of the preservation of a remnant, which you will find as you study throughout the prophets and the prophet Isaiah in particular, that when there are pronouncements of judgment upon Israel or Judah, there are also promises of the preservation of a remnant. In fact, if you go back to Isaiah chapter number 8 and the flood imagery that's spoken of of Assyria, what does he say? He says the waters are going to overflow you even to the neck. It's not going to go over the head though. Why? Because there's going to be a preservation. God's going to preserve His people. Even through that judgment, He's going to deliver a remnant. Those pictures are all through the book of Isaiah. That's what verses 5 and 6 are about. We don't have time to look at them in a lot of detail. So then we come to verses 7-10. Verses 7-10 give us, and specifically in this time, was giving Judah. a picture of the religious leadership of the northern kingdom in light of the warnings of God to them. So this warning has been spoken to the northern kingdom. And Judah is receiving this word. This is the woe that is pronounced upon the northern kingdom. And this is the religious and spiritual leadership of the northern kingdom in light of the word of God that has come to them. That's what's being described here. Verses 7 to 8 describe a drunken condition with moral defilement. Verse 7, but they also have erred through wine and through strong drink are out of the way. The priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink. They are swallowed up of wine. They are out of the way through strong drink. They err in vision. They stumble in judgment. For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness so that there is no place clean. Now just a little aside, brothers, when you begin to preach verse by verse through books, when you hit verse 8, that's about the time you're going to have visitors. Alright, so just to give you a hands up of what's coming. So verses 7 to 8 describe the religious and spiritual, in other words, Those people who most among the northern kingdom of Israel should be recognizing the voice of God and should be speaking up, the priests and the prophets, and saying to the people, this is the Word of God. We need to repent. We need to forsake these idols. We need to cleanse our land of these idols and we need to turn to the living God. Those that should most be recognizing the voice of God. It says instead, are in a drunken stupor, passed out drunk with vomit on the table. Not pleasant, but that's what the spirit says. So it does describe drunkenness and it does describe moral defilement. And I'll be honest with you, the fundamentalist in me, and I had a very fundamentalist upbringing, Is that exactly the point that's being presented here? Do you think that they were literally sitting there drunk with vomit-filled tables? I don't believe so. I believe it's an image that's being used for something. What would it be? It represents, and it's in the text. Again, you know, the Bible has a wonderful way of answering our questions. It's in the text. Notice at the end of verse 7, they are out of the way through strong drink. They err in vision. They stumble in judgment. So this drunken stupor represents how senseless they were to the Word of God. They were not hearing it and understanding it. They were not receiving it. It was just like talking to a man passed out drunk in the gutter. They had no sense of it. They weren't getting it. If you look at the book of Hosea in chapter number 7, it actually agrees with what is written here. This is a description of the northern kingdom of Israel in Hosea chapter 7. And he uses two different images to describe what is also told to us in the text, that their alliance with foreign nations was killing them, and they were senseless to it. Hosea 7, verse 8 says, Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people. Ephraim is a cake not turned. Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not. Yea, grey hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not. Two images that are used there. Ephraim is mixed among the people. In other words, they have aligned themselves with foreign nations. And they are being devoured. He says two images. First, he says he is a cake that is not turned. What does that mean? Well, a cake that was put on the fire, over the fire, however that it was, and it wasn't watched so that it was turned in time, what happened? It was burned on one side and wasn't done on the other. So in other words, that's an image of not paying attention. You're senseless to what is going on. Your cake is being ruined and you don't know it. The second image. He says, Yea, grey hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth it not. The second image, he said they were being devoured in verse 9. Strangers have devoured. The goyim are devouring them and they don't know it. They have become old and feeble without noticing. They don't realize they've gotten old and grey. and feeble. So what's Hosea describing in this northern kingdom because of their alliance with foreign nations? He says they're senseless to the Word of God. They don't know what's going on. This alliance is killing them. And they don't even realize it. Much like a drunk is drinking himself to death and oftentimes doesn't realize it. Doesn't realize what's happening. Doesn't realize what's going on. So that's what is being talked about here. He said they're out of the way. through strong drink. They're not discerning the Word of the Lord because it's like they're in a drunken stupor. So they're erring in vision and they're stumbling in judgment. Verse 9 and 10, then, are the words that the priests and the prophets are using to mock God's true messengers sent to warn them. Notice what they say. Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts? What's he saying? They saw themselves to be of superior knowledge and spiritual discernment. And they're mocking God's prophet that had come to warn them, saying, who does he think he's teaching? Preschool children? He says, them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts? In other words, what does this prophet think he's doing? Who does he think he's talking to? Why are they saying that? Well, you go on reading in the next verse, verse 10. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little. In other words, verse 10 is what the drunken, mocking prophets and priests of the northern kingdom were saying to Isaiah in reference to the message of God that he was preaching. What does that mean? Well, again, we get back to the fact that when you look at it, again, even in English, it's kind of lyrical. It has a rhythm to it. It sounds like sort of a slogan or some sort of a saying. It's a mocking rhyme. And when you look at it in Hebrew, every one of these words of this is a monosyllable. In other words, even the saying of it imitates babbling. They're saying the prophet is babbling to us like we are a bunch of preschoolers. Who does he think he's teaching? Who does he think he's instructing, telling us what we ought to do? It would maybe be something akin to think of a professor, you know, walking into a college English class and having everybody in front of him and saying, all right now, we are going to learn some spelling rules. So y'all repeat after me. I before E, except after C, and something about a neighbor and something else. I don't remember. But anyway. Well, I think it was, what did Barney on Andy Griffiths, it's about before eating chicken or something like that, but anyway. So it would be kind of like a professor coming, I mean, they would feel insulted. Like, well, are you serious? Like, we need to recite this spelling rule, this little rhyme? Are you serious? Are you kidding me? This is what my parents have paid good money for? So the prophets were mocking God's prophet that came with God's message. They said, it's a bunch of babble, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Like he's talking to babies. That's what they were saying about him. So then when you come to verse 11 and 12, then you notice there's consequences. Consequences are pronounced upon them. He says in verse 11, for with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak. to this people. In other words, you think the prophets of God are babbling to you in baby talk. He said, God's going to speak to you with stammering lips and another tongue. And notice in verse 12, to whom he said, this is the rest wherewith you may cause the weary to rest, and this is the refreshing. But notice this at the end of verse 12, yet they would not hear. So because they would not hear, God goes on to say in verse 13, the word of the Lord was to them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little, that they might go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken. Why? Because, just as it says in verse 12, because they would not hear. So what is being spoken of here? Verse 11 shows us that God's judgment on them would be captivity. I will speak to you with a language that you do not know. What's that mean? That means a foreign country is going to invade you and carry you away captive. And you won't understand their language. Verse number 12. says that judgment will come on them because they refused the Word of God that they could understand. That Word called them to rest through repentance and faith in God, and they would not hear it. They refused it. And so because of that, again in verse 13, God responds and tells the mocking prophets, that's right, I'm going to talk to you in baby talk because you refused to listen to My Word. And the result is going to be that you're going to go, you're going to fall backward, you're going to be broken, you're going to be snared, and you're going to be taken. So, this captivity to Assyria is pointed to, and they're scattering among the nations in this passage. And it's a warning to Judah. Because they're guilty of the same sins. They're refusing that same Word of God that the northern kingdom was refusing. And the same thing that happened to them is going to happen to you if you do not repent. That's the message being preached to them. You can see that again beginning with verse 14. So, precept upon precept. What is it? Speaking precept upon precept in this passage is a sign of judgment and it is a fulfilling of prophetic ministry. In other words, it is a prophetic judgment ministry to them. If you think about Isaiah's call in Isaiah chapter number 6. Isaiah chapter number 6. His commission here. Verse number 9. And he said, Go and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not, and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. These verses have to do with the coming of the kingdom. And this is a part of the mystery of the kingdom that's later revealed by Christ in the parables, that if they would hear and understand, they would have turned to God, they would have been converted. In other words, the kingdom would have come. But he did not, instead they killed the king. So Isaiah was called to a ministry that came to the people in a form of precept upon precept. It was a pronouncement of judgment upon them that they were being talked to that way. It was because they would not hear the Word of God that they were being talked to that way. Rather than seeing their Messiah, their eyes were being shut. Their ears were being closed. Their hearts were being stopped. And the veil was put. upon the face. Paul said that even when Moses is read in their synagogues, he talked about it in 2 Corinthians chapter 3, he said even when Moses is read in their synagogues, he said that veil is on their hearts. It's not taken away. What does he mean? They don't see Christ. Because they would not hear the word of God, they will not see their Messiah. So precept upon precept is prophetic judgment ministry to the people. This prophetic ministry is a simultaneous revealing and concealing. He said to Isaiah that you're going to speak to this people and you're going to speak truth to them. You're going to give them the Word of God. They're not going to hear it. They're not going to receive it. They're not going to understand it. It's very similar to what He said to Ezekiel. If you look at Ezekiel chapter number 12. In Ezekiel chapter number 12, the Word of the Lord also came unto me saying, Son of man, Thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see and see not, they have ears to hear and hear not, for they are a rebellious house. So if that's the ministry that Ezekiel was engaged in, we also find, if you go to chapter 17 here in Ezekiel, that Ezekiel's ministry came to them in the form of parables. Ezekiel chapter number 17, verse 1, And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, put forth a riddle and speak a parable unto the house of Israel. Why? Why is Ezekiel going to speak to them in a parable? Well, they're not going to understand what you're talking about. Exactly. Because this is a word of judgment against them. They will not hear the word of God, so God will speak to them in a parable they do not understand. And the people complained about it. You look at chapter 20 here in Ezekiel and verse number 49, Then said I, Ah, Lord God, they say of me, doth he not speak parables? They mocked Ezekiel just the way that they mocked Isaiah. Listen to that babbling prophet. He's not talking sense. He's speaking in parables. He's speaking in riddles that we don't understand. That is prophetic judgment ministry. The speaking in parables. The speaking also of another language that is spoken up here in Isaiah 28 is another form of prophetic judgment ministry. Speaking to the people in foreign tongues. He talks about that in verse 8 and verse 11. For with stammering lips and another tongue we speak to this people. That sheds a lot of light if you start tracing that out on what the gift of tongues was all about in the New Testament. It is prophetic judgment ministry. Paul laid that pretty straight. When he said that in 1 Corinthians 14, he said it's a sign to the Jews. That speaking in tongues is a sign to the Jews. What is all that about? Well, all this prophetic judgment ministry culminated and was fulfilled in what? The rejection and killing of their Messiah. and ultimately the destruction of Jerusalem. If you look at Mark chapter number 4, in Mark chapter number 4, this is Mark's section of Jesus' parables. There are just a couple more later in Mark, but this is the bulk of it here in chapter number 4. And in the midst of this, after the parable of the sower or the seeds and the soils, however you want to look at it, when Jesus is explaining parables to them, He says in verse Number 11, He said unto them, and this was the 12 that were about Him and the 12, in other words, His disciples, His ones that were following Him at that time. This is not the whole crowd that He's talking to at this point. In verse 11, He said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables. Why? that seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand, lest at any time they should be converted and their sins should be forgiven them." You know what the mystery of the kingdom is? The mystery of the kingdom is the Messiah. And it is in particular the rejection of the Messiah. See, what was concealed in the Old Testament, that mystery that was hidden that is revealed in the New, is the fact that at Christ's first coming, the Kingdom was not going to come. The kingdom was not going to be established. In fact, it was going to be at His second coming that the kingdom is going to come and be established. That's the mystery of the kingdom. And Jesus said, it's given to you to know the mystery of the kingdom. To them it's not given and so I speak to them in perilous. Why? Because they don't hear and they don't see and they don't understand. He said if they did, they would turn and be converted and the kingdom would come. But they don't. So the parables are a form of revelation that reveals and conceals at the same time. It reveals to those that have ears to hear and it conceals from those who do not. Just as the prophetic ministry of Isaiah and Ezekiel and so on. So, just to wrap this up. Precept upon precept. is not a prescription of preaching ministry today. It's not telling us how that we are supposed to preach today. Our command has already been touched on a number of times. 2 Timothy 3.16 through chapter 4 verse 2, preach the word. Make it plain. Preach the word. That's our command. Not line upon line and precept upon precept. If line upon line and precept upon precept refers to rudimentary ways of speaking, it's elementary type teaching. So if your preaching ministry is precept upon precept, like what is spoken about there in Isaiah, then at best that means that you're just talking to babes. In Hebrews chapter number 5 and verse number 11, Hebrews chapter 5 and verse number 11, after talking about Melchizedek, and it's going to take you more than five minutes to prepare a message to preach on Melchizedek. He'd been talking about Melchizedek and he goes on to say in verse 11, Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull in hearing. For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again, which be the first principles of the oracles of God." In other words, you need to hear precept upon precept because you have no maturity. You have no understanding like you ought to understand. He says, you are such as have need of milk and not of strong meat. For everyone that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe." And that's who needs preceptable and precept preaching. You're a babe. You're just a child. You're just a babbling infant. You don't understand the Word of God. In 1 Corinthians chapter number 3, when Paul was writing to the church at Corinth, he had a similar complaint. He says in verse 1, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with meat, for hitherto you were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able." So the preaching ministry of the Word of God is not prescribed to us to be precept upon precept. That's elementary. That's rudimentary. When we go back to Mark chapter 4 for just a moment, we understand also what Jesus said. Remember, He said to His disciples, He said, to you, it's given to know the mystery of the kingdom. And so what happened? Well, in verse 34 it said, but without a parable spake He not unto them? And when they were alone, He expounded all things to His disciples. That's right. Not to the crowd, To the crowd, He spoke to them in parables. To the disciples, He expounded that revelation to them so that they would know the mystery of the kingdom. And it would be hidden from those that refused to hear. So here's the principle. Just like with the milk and the meat. If you need to hear precept upon precept, here's the principle. In chapter 4 here, verse 21, And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel or under a bed, and not to be set on a candlestick? For there is nothing hid which shall not be manifested, neither was anything kept secret but that it should come abroad. Do you know what he's talking about in verse 22? He's talking about the mystery of the kingdom that was concealed. He says there's nothing hidden that wasn't meant to be revealed. That's why the light comes. You bring the light into the room so that the room is illuminated. so that you see clearly. The light has come to reveal to you the mystery of the kingdom. God did not give that. He did not intend to conceal that, but to reveal it. But, to have it revealed, He said in verse 23, If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. You have to have ears to hear. In other words, you have to have faith in Jesus Christ. Notice as He goes on in verse 24, He said unto them, Take heed what you hear. With what measure ye meet, it shall be measured to you and unto you, that here shall more be given. For he that hath to him shall be given, and he that hath not from him shall be taken, even that which he hath." And that is exactly what was illustrated in the northern kingdom in their carrying away the captivity. Later in the southern kingdom, they're carrying away the captivity. Why? Because they refused to hear. And so even what they had was taken away. If they would have heard, if they would have listened, more would have been given. They would have seen their Messiah instead of rejecting and killing Him in the person of Jesus Christ. But they refused the Word of God. So Judah was warned in Isaiah chapter 28 by the example of Israel's refusal to hear God's Word. Somebody said along the way that if you ain't applying it, you ain't preaching. So let's just apply it. Alright? Judah was taught by the example of Israel. Look, this Word came to them. They mockingly scorned and refused it. And as a result, they're going to be carried away in judgment. If you do the same thing with this Word that's coming to you right now, Judah, you're going to be carried away in judgment. Likewise, when we stand up and we open, I love the statement Steve Lawson said one time, take the word of God and stand up like a man and preach it. And when we stand up like a man and we gird up our loins and we preach the very words of God, then we can also say that if you refuse this Word, if you refuse to hear God's voice, you will be taken away in judgment. Just as Israel was, just as Judah was. And with that, I'm done. Thank you.