Friends, I greet you once again in the name of our Lord Jesus, thankful for his marvelous, inspired, inerrant, infallible, written revelation. Not just in the New Testament, but sad to say for many Christians, there's also an Old Testament, which is the foundation upon which the New rests and is established. I'm sure none of you have ever seen a pyramid with only the apex hanging in mid-air. God says, read the foundation chapters, and what we're reading here is the Bible of the Lord Jesus and the apostles and all the early Christians, until perhaps 20 years after Jesus departed from the earth, the New Testament scriptures began to appear. Some of these portions are unfamiliar to us, but God is the Holy Spirit, who is the author, guarantees that if we trust Him and ask for wisdom, patience, that He will begin to bring to light things that will tremendously bless and encourage us in the Lord. Isaiah 24, 5, 6, and 7 were what many people call the little apocalypse of Isaiah. which begins with Armageddon and ends with resurrection and all the marvelous events in between that will take place at the end of the age to Israel and the nations. And now chapter 28, a denunciation of Israel and of Judah in terms of their conduct and attitudes in view of the coming judgment of the Lord. First of all, the Northern Ten Tribes of Israel with their capital city at Samaria, built and established by a godless king named Omri, the father of Ahab, that became a notorious center of idolatry and wickedness. Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim, Ephraim being the chief tribe, you remember, of the Northern Ten Tribes. and of the fading flower of its glorious beauty which is at the head of the fertile valley." It's a beautiful valley all around that hill that just emerged upon which there was a beautiful citadel, a city established that Isaiah describes here as the head of the fertile valley and a proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim. You know, Hosea chapter 7, Amos chapters 4 and 6 also denounce that northern kingdom for the sin of intoxication, inebriation, alcoholism, and complete indifference to the clear will and word of God. And there are various ways, friends, that people can be dulled concerning God's truth. In our own society, in our own church age, we see all around us materialism and self-centeredness, proud, arrogant minds that have no openness in humility and teachability to God's Word. So as we apply these things to us, may the Spirit of God bring conviction to our own hearts that we don't say, well, those are people long ago who got what they deserved, and this has no relevance, whatever, to me or to us. Verse 2. Behold, the Lord has a strong and mighty agent as a storm of hail and tempest of destruction, like a storm of mighty overflowing waters. He has cast it down to the earth with his hand. Not the typical blast from the eastern deserts called the Sirocco, But even worse will be the destruction, the catastrophe that God will bring upon a godless nation that really should have been the repository of His truth, the light to all nations. Yes, once again, Isaiah by the Holy Spirit denounces this city of Samaria for all it represented, verses 3 and 4. the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim is trodden underfoot, the fading flower of its glorious beauty, which is at the head of the fertile valley, will be like the first ripe fig prior to summer, which one sees, and as soon as it is in his hand, he swallows it, as if an Assyrian soldier is coming in toward the city, and finds this fig, grabs it, instantly swallows it, so will be the fate, the doom, the destruction of Samaria. Now you see it, now you don't. It's gone. Because in that day, verse 5, the Lord of hosts will become a beautiful crown, infinitely different from Samaria, and a glorious diadem to the remnant of his people, not to everybody but to those few, who by the Holy Spirit recognize his true glory as the Messiah, the Savior of the world. A spirit of justice for him who sits in judgment, a strength to those who repel the onslaught at the gate. And so friends, in this beautiful statement, we have the first of three announcements in Isaiah 28 of the magnificence and glory of the Messiah of Israel, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We will see him again mentioned specifically in verse 16 and then the last verse of the chapter, verse 29, as sort of an inclusio that brings to the focus who it is that we are going to have to face and give an account to and who it is who alone can save us from what we deserve. Verse 7 and verse 8 are horrible statements. One hesitates even to read them. The end product of self-indulgence and depravity at its worst on the part of people who claim to be the spiritual leaders of the nation. They're identified as the priests and prophets, you see, of the northern tribes. Verse 7, and these also reel with wine stagger from strong drink. The priest and the prophet reel with strong drink. They are confused by wine. They stagger from strong drink. They reel while having visions. They totter when rendering judgment, for all the tables are full of filthy vomit without a single clean plate." A total alcoholic fog settled down upon the capital city and the leadership of the Northern as they rush headlong into destruction from which they have never recovered to this day. The ten northern tribes, you see, are being prepared, as it were, by God for their final destruction at the hands of the Assyrian armies that carried them off into a captivity which has never ended and will not until God reunites that nation at the tribulation time, according to Ezekiel 37. Friends, what an awful fate awaited that nation because of their deliberate defiance of the known will of God. Yes, friends, the very people who should have loved them were swallowed up by the wine that they were drinking. Think of our own day, friends. The very people who should be teaching God's precious word Standing in pulpits in great, beautiful cathedrals and churches are the ones who, more likely than not, are instruments not of the Holy Spirit, not teaching the truth of God's precious Word, but misleading, deceiving the people who come to hear from these leaders. Times really haven't changed. You know why? Because friends, two things still remain true. This is what we call a transdispensational truth or reality. It's true of every dispensation throughout human history. Number one, our human depravity. Jeremiah 17, 9, the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it? Only God can fathom the depth of human sin and selfishness. Another thing that's never changed. Satan, who blinds the minds of them that receive not the gospel of the Lord Jesus, who is the image of God, lest his light should shine unto them. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, against mere finite, visible, tangible enemies, but against satanic powers of darkness and the rulers of the darkness of this age, Satan and hundreds of millions of his angels that Jesus called demons. Of course, Satan can't make a person become wicked. He can't make a person who wants to respond to God reject the Lord. He just is available to help people who don't want the gospel and don't want to submit to the Lord, to have reasons not to. He encourages evil everywhere, but he cannot create it. Evil is created right in our own heart. You see, Jesus said so in Matthew 15, out of the heart of man, not Satan. come evil thoughts that Satan takes advantage of and brings to rightful, righteous destruction, because one more thing has never changed. That's the infinite holiness of God, which is the absolute measuring stick against which all of our depravity will be finally dealt with in eternity, apart from the blood of Christ, our only hope. A shocking example of the attitude of these religious leaders begins in verse 9 and comes down to verse 13. Here they are ridiculing Isaiah the prophet. To whom will he, I take this to mean Isaiah, to whom will he teach knowledge? To whom will he interpret the message? They're ridiculing, mocking him as one who is treating them like little weanlings, ages three to five. Just those weaned from the milk, just those taken from the breast, for he says, order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line, a little here, a little there. Isaiah, you're treating us like babies. Do and do, do and do, rules and rules, rules and rules. Don't you know that we're very sophisticated, highly intellectual people? You are treating us like children. And God's response to that blasphemy in verse 11, indeed He will speak to this people. through stammering lips and a foreign tongue, if you don't appreciate the simplicity and the clarity of Isaiah's messages. God says, I will bring you somebody that you won't understand at all, namely the Assyrians who will dominate you and carry you into captivity. This, by the way, is quoted by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 14 and applying to the tongues, which to the Jew was to be a sign of apostolic authority in the early church foundation period. but which to them was absolutely meaningless because they refused to recognize, of course, the truth of God coming through the apostles and the prophets in the foundation phase of the church. Verse 12, he who said to them, here is rest, give rest to the weary, here is repose, but they would not listen. Friends, How gracious the Lord is. How often he tells us in his word, as we're going to see, for instance, in chapter 30, in verse 15, that those who simply trust in him will find peace and security and joy. In repentance and rest you shall be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength. What did the Lord Jesus say? Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me. For I am meek and lowly of heart, and you shall find rest to your soul." How gracious he is. The very thing you and I strive for, and work for, and struggle for, he says it's a free gift. And by his grace, we enter into this provision. We don't have to fight our way to heaven, break through the resisting doors of God's heaven. Jesus said very, very clearly and emphatically, didn't he? Just trust in me. And at last you will have rest from the fear and the anxiety and the frustration of your sins. And only he can bring that security and that joy. But, Isaiah says, they would not listen. when millions and billions of human beings come to an eternal hell in the lake of fire. And this is a staggering, awesome thought, friends. Not one will ever say, I have been mishandled, mistreated, unfairly dealt with, because just like Isaiah says, they would not listen. They have deliberately, intentionally, repeatedly, consistently suppressed the truth. It's like Peter says in 2 Peter chapter 3. This they willingly are ignorant of. They don't have to be ignorant, they want to be. The facts are available. They're clear everywhere. From the creation of the universe, to God's providential dealings with us one by one, But they would not listen. So the word of the Lord to them will be, order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line, here a little, there a little, like little children having to learn the hard way through endless repetition and constant threats. That they may go and stumble backward and be broken, snared, and taken captive. So much for Samaria, the northern kingdom, the northern ten tribes. And with a broken heart, Isaiah, now by the Holy Spirit, shifts his attention to Jerusalem, the capital of Judah, the southern kingdom, which was, of course, the center of the Davidic monarchy and the Zadokian priesthood and the temple sacrifices and worship services of the Lord. What's going on down in the southern kingdom? Have they learned anything from what's going on up north? Well, Ezekiel 23 makes it clear that the southern kingdom did not learn a thing about God's horrible judgments on the northern tribes, and just simply went their own way toward their own destruction, which God providentially postponed for another hundred years. Until not Assyria, but Babylon destroyed them too. Now, what's going on in Jerusalem? Verse 14, Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, O scoffers, who rule with people who are in Jerusalem, because you have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have made a pact. Now, this apparently was Ahaz, one of the worst kings that ever ruled in Jerusalem, the father of Hezekiah, one of the godliest men who ever ruled in Jerusalem. Well, Ahaz, you know, was being threatened by a combination of armies from Damascus and Samaria. They were trying to build a coalition in the West to protect themselves against the threat from Nineveh in the East. And Jerusalem wouldn't cooperate. And so they were determined to come down and destroy Ahaz and take over Jerusalem and put their own puppet king, Tabe'el, into a position of power where he could be manipulated from the north. Well, what was Ahaz's response? Believe it or not, friends, the man was totally demonic. Instead of looking to the Lord and trusting in him and asking him for guidance and help, he actually hired the Assyrians to come and destroy the northern kingdom and Damascus to get them off his back. And Isaiah was sent to him and said, just ask any sign in the heaven above or the earth beneath to encourage you to believe and trust and obey the Lord. And with absolute defiance, he said, I will not tempt the Lord. In other words, leave me alone. I've made my own plans. I have my own strategy. Goodbye. And so God turns from Ahaz and said to the whole nation, remember in Isaiah 7, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and call his name Immanuel. That is the answer. That's the only hope Israel has. Immanuel, God with us. So presumably this covenant with death is the covenant, the treaty, the secret plot that Ahaz is hatching in his own depraved heart with the king of Assyria, described also as a representation of Sheol itself. And what's God going to do with that kind of a treaty? Which, of course, ultimately, you know, dear friends, and it could happen tomorrow. Israel will enter into another covenant of death, and a pact with Sheol, which will last for seven years, with the little horn, the beast, the Antichrist, who will come on the scene just as they are so desperate, even today, for some kind of a leader to give them international prestige, to give them some kind of power and credibility in the world. And the Lord Jesus described this pact with death, didn't he? He said in John 5, I am come in my Father's name and you receive me not, but one is coming in his own name and him you will receive. To my understanding, the only time the Lord Jesus ever referred to the Antichrist personally, in terms of that covenant, that pact with death and Sheol, which will bring near destruction to the nation in the 70th week. Now friends, The overwhelming scourge will not reach us when it passes by, they will say in their complacency. For we have made falsehood our refuge, and we have concealed ourselves with deception." Of course, they don't actually say that, but that's what they've done. They won't admit it, but that's the truth. Well, what's God's better plan for Israel? Are you ready? Verse 16. Thus says the Lord God. Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone, for the foundation firmly placed in he who believes in it will not be disturbed. I'll make justice the measuring line, righteousness the level, and hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies and the waters shall overflow the secret place, and your covenant with death shall be cancelled, and your pact with Sheol shall not stand. When the overwhelming scourge passes through, then you become its trampling place. As often as it passes through, it will seize you from morning after morning. It will pass through any time during the day or night, and it will be sheer terror to understand what it means. You see, every human resource, friends, to protect us from the wrath of God is ridiculously, hopelessly inadequate. That 20th verse is unforgettable, isn't it? The bed is too short on which to stretch out. The blanket is too small to wrap oneself in. Every human substitute for the Savior turns out to be a blanket and a cold, cold night, four inches long and two inches wide. You might just as well not have one. It's a mockery. To be in a bed, dear friends, to expect you're going to get some rest, which is too short to accommodate you. So this plot you see that Ahaz had with the Assyrians, that Israel someday soon will have with the Antichrist, turns out to be infinitely inadequate, totally disappointing, in contrast to whom? To this stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone, which will be a foundation firmly placed, and anyone who builds on, believes in, trusts in him will not be disturbed. By the way, friends, in whom do you put your trust this evening? Is it your own plans and your own career goals, your own financial security, your own higher education, maybe your own affiliation with some kind of a company, or maybe even a church? Is that your hope, your security? Be assured of this. In infinite love and mercy, God will wipe out every false prop and every inadequate foundation. And only those who have their house built upon the rock, which is Jesus Christ, will survive the awful storms of judgment that he will bring upon a Christ-rejecting earth. God, the Holy Spirit, is saying, in whom do you trust? What is your foundation? And Jesus answers from heaven. I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no man cometh to the Father but by me." Are you in him? Now, verse 21. For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Parazim. He will be stirred up as in the Valley of Gibeon. What happened there? Well, that's where David, the first legitimate king of the theocracy of Israel crushed the Philistines with supernatural power, a tremendous victory. God will rise up again, as he did in those days, to do his task, his unusual task, and to work his work, his extraordinary work. Friends, let's face this, please. In all of human history, rare indeed have been God's spectacular global judgments. Why, there was the Edenic curse, there was the Genesis flood, and the Tower of Babel. And there's never been another one since. Another what? Universal judgment of global catastrophe. But God is saying, just watch. Someday, I will remove all human security systems, and I will shake the earth to its foundations, remember Isaiah 24, and only those who have a relationship with me, and that's the remnant, will survive. And so, friends, this is unusual for God to do, you see. He's not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance, that all will put their trust in Him, that all will believe what He's done on their behalf. That's what He wants, because God so loves us that He gave His Son to pay that price, apart from which we can never enter heaven. We can't ever enter heaven unless we're absolutely perfect. Are you perfect? You say, no, all of sin comes short. Absolutely. And therefore, the only hope we have is to have a substitute who is perfect, a representative If we come to God the Father in the name of, the authority of, based on the merits of Jesus, His beloved Son, we have acceptance, don't we? And only in Him. So God says to these people, this will be an unusual thing I'm going to do. Remember Lamentations? Chapter 3? That horrible, tragic, tear-filled retrospect on the destruction of Jerusalem, dear friends. He does not afflict willingly or grieve the sons of men. It's the last resort of the loving, living God to bring judgment to the world, climaxing in Armageddon. But he has scoffers dominating his earth. You see them in verse 22? Now do not carry on as scoffers, lest your fetters be made stronger, for I have heard from the Lord God of hosts of decisive destruction on all the earth." By the way, all scoffing ends officially at the end of Armageddon. Why? All visible, organized military opposition ends totally and forever. When the Lord Jesus descends from heaven, And with a two-edged sword, namely his word, he will smite the wicked, starting with Satan, then the beast, then the false prophet, and then all the armies of the world, and all scoffers are removed. I'm saying, Lord, do I have anything in my heart that is in opposition to you, that resists you, that defies you? Am I a scoffer? Smash whatever is in me that resists you. Because now is the time, friends, to repent, not at the opposite end of the wrath of God. Verse 23. A little story about farmers here, friends. Verses 23 to 28. And how God teaches them wise habits. methods to handle the different types of grain and the different types of soil and the different tools they have to bring forth a crop. And the lesson here is how the master farmer, God himself, processes the human race perfectly so the end product is an eternal glory to his name. Watch how the farmer works. Verse 23. Give ear. Hear my voice and listen and hear my words. Does the farmer plow continually to plant seed? Does he continually turn and harrow the ground? Does he not level its surface and sow dill and scatter cumin and plant wheat and rose, barley in its place and rye within its area? Well, how does he know how to do all this? We might call this the school of hard knocks, or hopefully learning a few things from his father and his ancestors and neighbors. But ultimately, who's his teacher? Verse 26. For his God instruction teaches him properly. The creation order. God has put within us, you see, by virtue of our possession of his image and likeness, a certain sensitivity. a certain capacity to see things as they really should work. And if you don't learn the lesson, you will starve to death, and your family too, because of your willful stupidity. God teaches you, in the physical realm as well as the spiritual. Verse 27, for Dil is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is the cartwheel driven over Cumen, But Dill is beaten out with a rod, and cumin with a club. Grain for bread is crushed. Indeed, he does not continue to thresh it forever. I mean, there does come a time when the farmer's job is done, see. And God is saying, just watch me. I'm not going to judge the world forever and ever. I'm going to have a catastrophic, spectacular, global catastrophe, and it will do the job. Now keep watching, verse 28. Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it, he does not thresh it longer. There's hope for the culmination, the completion of the process. Well, who's going to do all of this threshing, planting, sowing, preparing, processing of the human race? The master farmer will do it. Does he have adequate intelligence to handle the whole human race? Look at verse 29. This also comes from the Lord of hosts, who has made his counsel wonderful and his wisdom great. That reminds one of Isaiah 9, 6, unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Friends, eliminate this from your worry list. namely whether God can handle a human race. He can handle it. He is wonderful, pellet, infinitely divine in his mastery of every detail of human life. And his wisdom is great. When you have frustrations, fears, don't consider the Lord your last resort. Never say for one moment in your heart, all else having failed, I will now pray. No. He's the first resort. He's the only one who really has all the answers. And it's just as if God is saying, when you're through struggling, worrying, going to finite, sinful human experts, I'm available to have a word with you. Yes, dear friends, he knows exactly what he's doing to every human being, including you and your closest loved ones and friends and your neighbors and every human being in this nation, from the President of the United States to all the rest of us, and not only here, but every nation of the entire world. He has made his counsel wonderful and his wisdom great. Well, thank you, Lord, for your message to Samaria and Jerusalem. Now we focus again, chapter 29, on Jerusalem. This may surprise us because Jerusalem here is given a special name we may not be familiar with. How many have ever heard of this one for Jerusalem? Ariel, a burning altar hearth, like the altar of burnt offerings in the temple where thousands of animals were reduced to ashes in an endlessly burning fire. Whoa, oh, Ariel. Ariel, the city where David once camped. Add year to year and observe your feasts on schedule. In other words, you people are so proud of your traditions. That's the city, yes, that David built. This is the city where the legitimate feasts are held every year. Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles. Oh, you have every reason to be proud, don't you? And complacent is the great city of God. But because your attitude has shifted downward toward me, you take me for granted, you see. Look what I'm going to do to you, Ariel. Verse 2, And I will bring distress to Ariel, and she shall be a city of lamenting and mourning, and she shall be like an Ariel to me. I'm going to make this whole city like a burning hearth sacrifice. You see, friends, in Hebrews 10.26 we learn the same thing about ourselves. Awful, awful statement of what's going to happen to those who take God for granted. For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, what's going to happen to us? Let's say that again. If we go on sinning willfully, may we know better, we've heard the Bible taught year after year, we know what we're doing wrong and why. After receiving the knowledge of the truth, There is no longer remaining a sacrifice for sins, but a certain terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries. If we don't listen to the gentle words of God, He has a special fire waiting for us. Either the fire that will devour all of our supposed good works as Christians at the Bema, the judgment seat of Christ, or the lake of fire forever and ever if we're not in the blood of Christ. Friends, yes, Jerusalem itself will be destroyed with fire. Verse 3, he now takes this interesting representation. God says, I will soon appear at your gates looking like an Assyrian soldier. Verse 3, I will camp against you, encircling you. I will set siege works against you. I will raise up battle towers against you. Remember in Isaiah chapter 10, friends, God says, oh Assyria, you're the rod of my hand. I'm going to use you to smite this unbelieving, resistant, disobedient nation. And the Assyrian has no idea that he's serving God. Certainly not the God of Israel. But did you know that every nation in the world is in his hand? And he has never lost control of planet Earth. True. Adam turned the world over to Satan, and still, by virtue of his surrender of his originally God-given dominion, still belongs to Satan. But above Satan is someone who has Satan under control, and that's God. And if you don't believe it, check Job chapter 1, where God says to Satan, you can do this, but not that, and this, but not this, to my servant Job. And guess what Satan turns out to be? A mere puppet moved by invisible strings from the third heaven. And he's not sovereign. He is mighty, but not almighty. Now friends, watch carefully what's going to happen here. as God moves in on Jerusalem to destroy it like He almost did in the time of Sennacherib when Hezekiah was the king. Verse 4, Then you shall be brought low, from the earth you shall speak, and from the dust where you are prostrate your word shall come, your voice shall also be like that of a spirit from the ground, and your speech shall whisper from the dust. I am going to so humble you I'm going to smash your pride and arrogance and all the things you trust in. You'll be like some kind of a little tiny thing down in the ground, just whispering and gasping. You say, you mean that's the end of Israel? Oh no. Isaiah always brings in a word of hope. You notice how this goes all through the book? Sin and judgment. Hope and blessing, alternating, lest you become transfixed with the coming glory and forget that you're in a world that needs your witness. Or to be so distracted by the world to which you are witnessing, you forget the glory that gives you hope and direction. Those two aspects constantly intertwine to give us mature perspectives. on our relationship to God and our human environment. Now, what's going to happen then to the enemies of Israel that God will actually use to destroy his people? What's going to happen to them? Verse 5. But, thank God for that word, The multitude of your enemies shall become like fine dust. You will be pulverized, but hold on here, Israel, so will they. And the multitude of the ruthless ones, the merciless ones, like the chaff which blows away. You remember what God said to Abraham, I will bless them that bless thee, and what? Curse them that curse thee. All human history can be interpreted and explained on that perspective, friends. It was my sad experience to be a soldier in Europe in 1944, 5 and 6, and to see a nation, friends, that will go down in all of human history as about the worst enemy God ever brought upon Israel. And you know what happened to them? They disappeared forever. They were mighty. They were great threats. They were bombastic. Their words were very frightening. But you see, with amazing suddenness, the Nazis disappeared from the face of the earth. And whoever remained among them fled in terror to hiding places. That's no threat today. I know there are neo-Nazis. But the Nazi regime collapsed so drastically, so suddenly, and so totally. It's sort of like what happened to Sennacherib when he attacked Jerusalem and decided, I'm going to wipe out this nation and this capital city. And in one night, God annihilated 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. The next morning, people looked over the wall, and the great threat was gone. That's how God handles his enemies. You see it at the end of verse 5? It shall happen instantly, suddenly. That's Armageddon. Armageddon won't drag on for months and months and months and months and years and years. No. One word from the Lord Jesus and the whole opposition collapses. Verse 6. From the Lord of hosts you will be punished with thunder and earthquake and loud noise, with whirlwind and tempest and a flame of a consuming fire, and the multitude of all the nations who wage war against Ariel, against Jerusalem. We see that in Zechariah 14, it will be a burden of stone to all nations, and all nations will gather themselves against Jerusalem. Look at this, even all who wage war against her and her stronghold and who distress her, to be like a dream, a vision in the night. And it'll be as when a hungry man dreams, and behold, he's eating. And when he awakens, his hunger is not satisfied. See, there's no food there at all. He was dreaming there might be. Or as when a thirsty man dreams, and behold, he's drinking. But when he awakens, behold, he is safe. There's nothing to drink. His thirst is not quenched. Thus the multitude of all the nations shall be who wage war against Mount Zion." They have great hopes, great expectations to come in to Jerusalem, into Israel, and smash, extinguish, destroy, and annihilate this nation that's thorn in their sides. And it's happening today. Watch the international scenes in the Near East. And they have dreams of moving in and taking over. But when they awake from their dream, behold, God is there. You see, he has a commitment to Israel. Did you know that? Not because Israelis are so nice, wonderful, virtuous, and God-honoring. You know why he has a commitment to Israel? Because he made a promise to Abraham 4,000 years ago. And Romans 11 says, his covenants and his agreements are irrevocable. They can never be broken. God keeps promises, will accomplish it, until the day of Jesus Christ. When he starts, he finishes, friend. He's committing himself to you and me and to those who trust him. But how awful to have a dream that you're going to smash God's people and you wake up from your dream and all of a sudden you're overwhelmed with the awful reality not of a nation that's ready to collapse under the impact of your threats, but the living God who is about to destroy you for touching the apple of His eye, the object of His love. Now, shift with me, please, back to the sad situation in Jerusalem that never learned the lesson of faith and trust. Yes, as we shall see in chapters 36 and 7, God did wipe out the Assyrian armies in the days of Hezekiah, but did the people become, therefore, spiritual? God-honoring? Faithful? No. And God knew that it would take more than a miracle to get their attention. How many miracles did the scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites see at the hand of Jesus, the Messiah? Hundreds, thousands. How many of them believed? Very, very few. Now watch what happens to Israel. Verse 9. Be delayed and wait, blind yourselves and be blind. They become drunk, but not with wine. They stagger, but not with strong drink. For the Lord has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep. He has shut your eyes, the prophets. He has covered your heads, the seers. The very prophets God sent to them and the seers they refused to listen to. They shut their eyes and covered their heads so they wouldn't hear the message. So, friends, Israel became like an airliner in a fog with dead radios, absolutely spiraling to destruction. 1 Corinthians 2.14. The natural man, the unregenerate man, receives not the things of the Spirit of God. They are what? Foolishness to him. Neither can he know them. Why not? They are spiritually discerned. And unless God takes that veil from the heart of the Jew that covers his mind so he can't even believe his own Old Testament, they cannot ever be saved. And for that matter, neither can you, nor I. God the Holy Spirit has to do that, doesn't He? Remove the blindness. Remove that deadly resistance. Verse 11. And the entire vision shall be to you like the words of a sealed book. That's what the Bible is to most people in the world, even Jews. Which, when they give it to the one who is literate, saying, please read this, he will say, I cannot, for it's sealed. Verse 12. Then the book will be delivered to one who is illiterate, saying, please read this. And he says, I cannot read. Then the Lord says, because this people draw near with their words, and honor me with their lip service, but they remove their hearts far from me, and their reverence for me consists of tradition learned by rote. Therefore, behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous, and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the discernment of their discerning men shall be concealed. Oh friends, look across the world and see what's happening in synagogues where the chosen people are gathering Sabbath after Sabbath and with veils over their heart and mind impervious to the Word of God. Thank God there are exceptions. Some Jews, finally by the grace of God, come to the knowledge of Messiah. Very few. Some Gentiles come to the knowledge of the Savior by God's grace. Sorry to say, friends, very few. Very, very few. Why? We're blind? John 3.19, this is the condemnation. That light has come into the world. And men love what? The darkness, rather than the light. Neither would they come to the light, lest their deeds should be reproved. You can't ever say, why didn't you ever give me any light? That's never the problem. The problem is, what have I done with the light? What am I doing with the inscripturated light? What am I doing with the congregation of people into whom God has put the light? Where am I in this whole thing? Am I resisting it, suppressing it, ignoring it, bypassing it, minimizing it, despising it? Well, friends, that's where all of us are, except for those rare moments of spiritual illumination. Look at where we're at. Verse 15. Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the Lord, whose deeds are done in a dark place, and they say, who sees us or who knows us? Oh, really? Do you think God is so ignorant he doesn't know what you're thinking? That he has to line up people to be witnesses and get testimonies to find out what's going on in your mind and heart? No. Friends, he has all the tapes, all the evidence, all the books, he knows all the facts. Every secret thought, hidden things of darkness, someday brought to light. All the motives, Imagination, attitudes, brought to life. Are you ready for that? Or are all those things under his blood? The blood of Christ. And people who think that of God, that he doesn't know what I'm thinking, I mean, I have secret things in my imagination that God doesn't know a thing about. Really? Then you're just like, verse 16, a what? a piece of clay that says to the potter who shaped it, you don't know anything. Who says to its maker, you didn't make me. Or what is formed says to him who formed it, he has no understanding. There's no purpose, they say, in the world. No plan, no design, no creator at all. Friends, that's the kind of world we live in. Every major university in the Western world is in a position, officially, of total denial that there's any personal living God who ever created anything or designed anything at all. So the potter, God, is considered as equal with the clay. And what is made, namely us, are saying to our maker, You didn't make us. And what is formed, namely us, saying to him who formed us, you don't know anything. You are very ignorant. You know how God handled Job when Job began to question God's wisdom? He finally, patiently, lovingly confronted him and said, Job, where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Too bad you weren't here to help me, to design create everything, how much different things would be. Yes, they would be different, friends, but far worse. The modern mind says, the only thing that matters out there in outer space is there's some kind of a force that, of course, did not create us. And the only reason why we are transfixed and obsessed with that force out there is because it might destroy us. And God says, I'm not the force. I'm an infinitely loving, omniscient, gracious God who demonstrated that love by dying on a cross for you and rising from the dead. And we say thank you, Lord, for your mercy, your patience with us. You see, for the pagan mind, friends, beginnings are only theoretical. And endings are all but unthinkable. And God says, you better think about the beginning and the end, because I will handle you forever in the light of your rejection of my basic reality. But there's hope for those who trust him. Watch this magnificent statement in verses 17, 18, and 19. Is it not just a little while yet before Lebanon will be turned into a fertile field, and the fertile field will be considered like a forest? You say, wait a minute, a little while? It's already been 2,700 years since you said this, Lord, to Isaiah. Yes, but to God, one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years but a day. So it's only been less than three days since you said this. He's coming. He's coming soon. And on that day, the deaf shall hear the words of the book. And out of their gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see. Remember those people back there at verse 10, whose eyes you see. The prophets, God allowed them to blind their eyes. Someday he's going to open those ears and open those eyes. Isaiah 35 says so. The deaf shall hear, the blind will see, the lame will leap, you see, like the heart in the kingdom age. Everybody who enters the kingdom surviving the 70th week of Daniel will be instantly healed and will live a thousand years plus. And out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see, and the afflicted also shall increase their gladness in the Lord. And the needy of mankind shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel, not just praise, but rejoicing. At their annual feast, they come to rejoice in the Lord. Did you know that in the whole Hebrew calendar, religious calendar, friends, there was only one day when you weren't supposed to rejoice? What day was that? The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. That's it. where the high priest entered in, not with his, of course, with the blood of an animal, into the Holy of Holies to represent the nation in its apostasy and its sin and its tragedies. And the people were to weep for their sin. But joy and gladness is God's purpose for his people forever. How many realize that? Do I realize this? I think the New Testament says something like this. Rejoice in the Lord how often? Always. And in case we missed it, again I say what? Rejoice. I think that means rejoice. Rejoice in what? My achievements? My spirituality? No. The size of my church? No. But in the Lord. and what he has done and what he has promised and what he will accomplish. Because friends, all unbelievers, rebels, will be removed, verse 20, For the ruthless will come to an end, and the scorner shall be finished. Indeed, all who were intent on doing evil will be cut off, who cause a person to be indicted by a word, and ensnare him who adjudicates at the gate, and defraud the one in the right with meaningless arguments." And so often is our judicial system, friends, sad to say today, trapping people in legal niceties and empty platitudes and verbosity. And the end result is that the righteous are crushed and the wicked are protected. Therefore, thus says the Lord who redeemed Abraham concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now turn pale, but when he sees his children the work of my hands in his midst, they shall sanctify my name. Indeed, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob. You see, hallowed be thy name. Sanctified, set apart, recognized, appreciated as being special. And they will stand in awe of the God of Israel. And those who err in mind will know the truth. And those who criticize will accept instruction. Friends, we're beginning to learn, aren't we, at the end of this millennium, the second millennium, that the universe can't save itself. Only God, who is not wrapped up and conditioned by the system, can come in from the outside with resources and attributes and a program and a plan that can wrench us out of this horrible self-destruct world system and bring us into his eternal kingdom. And then Israel will enter the millennium and see their children multiplying, and that's a prominent theme in Isaiah, and God will fulfill his promises from ages past. Yes, every word he ever uttered will at last be proven true. Do you trust this great God? Is your life built on that foundation and that one alone? Let's pray. Now, Father, how marvelous is Thy Word. Every word has been infinitely carefully prepared from all eternity by the third person of the eternal Godhead. So as we read and believe, as we listen and understand, Strong indeed will be our foundation, so that no finite storm can wipe us out or sweep us away. Nothing Satan and the demons can ever do will threaten us, because as we humble ourselves in the light of your words and eat your mighty hand, we can rebuke the devil, resist him as it were, and he'll actually flee from us. He's finite. He knows God and trembles. Help us, dear Father, to build a relationship with you based on biblical reality, so when the mighty storms come, and they will, that we might stand secure, rejoicing, confident in Him, the Messiah, the Christ, in Him alone. Help us, Father, to lock into this precious book, We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.