Lesson #36

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RETURN TO LIST OF LESSONS

ISAIAH 43 AND 44
Lesson #36
ISRAEL, GOD’S ETERNAL SYMBOL

MEMORY VERSE: ISAIAH 43:11

• READ ROM 11:1
  • PAUL ASKED THE QUESTION, “HAS GOD FINISHED WORKING WITH THE JEWS? THEN HE ANSWERS THE QUESTION WITH A BIG, “NO”. THIS IS THE MESSAGE IN ISAIAH 43.

• READ ISA 43:1-4 THE CREATOR WHO REDEEMS
  • NOTICE IN VERSE 1 THAT THE JEWS ARE CALLED JACOB AND ISRAEL.
    • THEY ARE CALLED JACOB BECAUSE OF THEIR REBELLIOUS NATURE JUST LIKE JACOB IN GENESIS.
    • THEY ARE CALLED ISRAEL BECAUSE GOD SEES THEM AS ULTIMATELY REDEEMED JUST LIKE JACOB WHOSE NAME WAS CHANGED TO ISRAEL.
      • AND OF COURSE, THERE WAS ALWAYS A FAITHFUL REMNANT IN THE MIDST OF THE REBELLIOUS MULTITUDE.
  • GOD’S PROVISION FOR ISRAEL:
    • “PASSEST THROUGH THE WATERS” (2) =
      • THIS IS A REFERENCE TO THE PARTING OF THE RED SEA WHEN THEY CAME OUT EGYPT AS WELL AS THE PARTING OF THE JORDAN RIVER WHEN THEY ENTERED THE PROMISE LAND.
        • SYMBOLICALLY, IT REFERS TO ANY KIND OF TROUBLE THAT SEEMS TO OVERWHELM YOU.
    • “WALKEST THROUGH THE FIRE” (2) =
      • THIS REFERS TO THE FIRES OF PERSECUTION SUCH AS IN DAN 3.
  • GOD’S REDEMPTION:
    • THE WORD REDEMPTION MEANS TO BUY WITH A PRICE.
      • GOD SAYS THAT THE PRICE HE PAID WAS EGYPT, ETHIOPIA, AND SEBA (SHEBA) (3)
        • GOD USED THESE NATIONS TO DISCIPLINE HIS PEOPLE, AND THEN HE HAD TO JUDGE THEM FOR THEIR HATRED OF THE JEWS.
          • READ PRO 21:18.
        • GOD DOES THE SAME THING ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS. HE SENDS NON-BELIEVERS TO MIS-TREAT US SO AS TO STRAIGHTEN OUT SOMETHING IN OUR LIVES. THEN HE BRINGS JUDGMENT ON THOSE WHO MISTREATED YOU.
          • READ PRO 11:8.

• READ ISA 43:5-13 ISRAEL’S REGATHERING IS FOR A PURPOSE
  • GOD SAYS WE CAN KNOW THERE IS A GOD IF WE OBSERVE THE SERVANT WITNESS IN ISA 43:10-12?
    • WHO IS THIS?
      • IT IS JESUS CHRIST. WE KNOW THERE IS A GOD BECAUSE HE CAME TO BEAR WITNESS OF THE TRUTH.
    • GOD BEGAN TO REGATHER THE JEWS IN 1948 WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ISRAEL. HOWEVER, WE WILL NOT SEE A FULL REGATHERING UNTIL THE MILLENNIAL REIGN OF CHRIST ON EARTH.
      • READ JER 31:10.
  • THE REGATHERING OCCURS IN STAGES:
    • 1948 AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ISRAEL.
    • DURING THE TRIBULATION PERIOD BY THE ANTI-CHRIST.
    • DURING THE MILLENNIUM BY JESUS CHRIST.
      • WHAT IS GOD’S PURPOSE IN REGATHERING THE JEWS?
        • GOD STILL MUST FULFILL ALL THE PROMISES HE MADE TO ABRAHAM AND DAVID.
      • HOW DOES OBSERVING THIS WITNESS TELL US ABOUT GOD?
        • BECAUSE GOD IS FAITHFUL TO FULFILL HIS PROMISES TO THE JEWS, HE WILL BE FAITHFUL TO FULFILL HIS PROMISES TO BELIEVERS IN JESUS CHRIST.
      • READ MAT 24:32-33 THE FIG TREE = A SYMBOL OF THE NATION OF ISRAEL
        • THE PURPOSE IS THAT THE JEWS ARE TO BE A WITNESS THAT THERE IS A GOD.
        • REMEMBER IN ROM 1 WE DISCOVERED THAT ALL CREATION IS A WITNESS THAT THERE IS A GOD.
        • BESIDES CREATION, THE JEWS ARE A WITNESS THAT THERE IS A GOD.
        • HOW ARE THE JEWS A WITNESS?
          • THEIR SURVIVAL THROUGH HISTORY IS A TESTIMONY OF GOD’S SUSTAINING POWER WHEN OTHER NATIONS AND ETHNIC GROUPS HAVE NOT SURVIVED.
          • YOU CAN KNOW THAT THERE IS A GOD BY HOW THE JEWS ALWAYS MANAGE TO SURVIVE IN A WORLD OF PERSECUTION.
          • YOU CAN TELL PROPHETIC TIME BY WATCHING WHAT GOD IS DOING WITH THE JEWS. (MAT 24)

• READ ISA 43:14-28 BABYLON DESTROYED AND ISRAEL FORGIVEN
  • GOD ALLOWED THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY TO CHASTISE THE PEOPLE. IT WAS A JUDGMENT OF THEIR HABITUAL IDOLATRY. IT IS INTERESTING THAT THEY LEARNED THE LESSON, BECAUSE WHEN THEY RETURN ED FROM THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY, IDOLATRY WAS NO LONGER A NATIONAL PROBLEM.
    • GOD COUNSELS THE RETURN ING JEWS NOT TO REMEMBER THE FORMER THINGS (18). GOD WOULD DO A NEW THING.
    • THE NEW THING IS THE MILLENNIAL REIGN OF CHRIST WHERE DESERTS WILL BLOOM AND ANIMALS WILL GET ALONG TOGETHER. (20)
      • ALL HAVE SINNED, EVEN ABRAHAM, “THE FIRST FATHER” (27). HOWEVER, GOD WILL FORGIVE.

• SUMMARY:
  • WHAT DOES THIS CHAPTER SAY ABOUT GOD?
    • HE IS THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL (3)
    • HE IS THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL (3) (14)
    • HE IS THE ONE AND ONLY SAVIOR (3) (11)
    • HE IS THE CREATOR (7) (15)
    • HE EXISTED IN ETERNITY PAST (13)
    • HE IS THE REDEEMER (14)
    • HE IS THE KING (15)
    • HE IS THE FORGIVER OF SINS (25)

• READ ISA 44:1-8 FEAR NOT! THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL COME
  • THE ADMONITION TO “FEAR NOT” IS MENTIONED TWICE IN THIS SECTION.
    • HIS PEOPLE ARE TOLD NOT TO FEAR BECAUSE OF THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. (3)
      • (WATER IS A FREQUENT SYMBOL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT).
    • WHEN IS THE FULFILLMENT OF THE PROPHECY IN VERSE 3?
      • THE FIRST FULFILLMENT BEGAN ON THE DAY OF PENTECOST AND CONTINUES THROUGH THIS NEW TESTAMENT AGE.
      • THE SECOND FULFILLMENT WILL BE IN THE MILLENNIUM KINGDOM OF CHRIST ON EARTH.
    • IN VERSE 2 ISRAEL IS CALLED JACOB BECAUSE GOD’S PEOPLE WERE ACTING REBELLIOUS. BUT ISRAEL IS ALSO CALLED “JESHURUN” WHICH IS A POETIC NAME MEANING “UPRIGHT”. IN OTHER WORDS, THESE REBELLIOUS PEOPLE DO NOT DESERVE GOD’S BLESSINGS, BUT GOD WILL UNCONDITIONALLY FULFILL HIS PROMISE TO HELP THEM. HE WILL SEND THE HOLY SPIRIT TO HELP THEM TO BE “UPRIGHT”.
      • WHO IS IT THAT SENDS THE HOLY SPIRIT?
        • READ JOH 16:7
          • IT IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.
        • IN ISAIAH 44, WE KNOW THIS IS JESUS CHRIST SPEAKING BECAUSE OF VERSE 6. THESE ARE ALL NAMES FOR JESUS:
          • LORD
          • THE KING OF ISRAEL
          • THE REDEEMER
          • THE LORD OF HOSTS
          • THE FIRST AND THE LAST (REV 1:8,11 REV 21:16)
        • HE SAYS THERE IS NO GOD ASIDE FROM JESUS CHRIST. (8)

• READ ISA 44:9-20 THE FOOLISHNESS AND BENEFITS OF IDOLATRY:
  • THOSE WHO MAKE IDOLS ARE “VANITY”. VANITY MEANS = FOOLISH.
  • ACCORDING TO THIS CHAPTER, IDOLATRY IS FOOLISH, WHY?
    • IDOLS ARE NOTHING. THEY HAVE NO POWER.
  • THERE IS ONLY ONE BENEFIT FROM MAKING IDOLS; WHAT IS IT?
    • IT GIVES MAN WORK TO DO WITH FIRE FOR WARMTH AND COOKING WHEN HE CUTS DOWN A TREE TO MAKE AN IDOL.

• READ ISA 44:21-28 THE RETURN OF THE JEWS FROM CAPTIVITY
  • GOD PROMISES TO FORGIVE ISRAEL FOR HER IDOLATRY (21-22).
  • GOD PROMISES TO RETURN CAPTIVE ISRAEL BACK TO HER LAND. JERUSALEM WILL BE INHABITED BY JEWS AGAIN. (26)
    • AT THE TIME THIS PROPHECY WAS GIVEN BY ISAIAH, THE TEMPLE HAD NOT YET EVEN BEEN DESTROYED. THE PEOPLE HAD NOT YET GONE INTO THE 70 YEAR BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY.
  • KING CYRUS WILL BE THE ONE TO RELEASE THE JEWS FROM THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY. HE MADE A DECREE SETTING THEM FREE.
    • THIS PROPHECY WAS WRITTEN BY ISAIAH 150-200 YEARS BEFORE CYRUS WAS EVEN BORN.
      • GOD CALLS CYRUS HIS SHEPHERD (28) BECAUSE CYRUS PERFORMED GOD’S WILL. HE NOT ONLY RELEASED THE JEWS, BUT SHEPHERDED THEM BACK TO ISRAEL WITH HELP AND ENCOURAGEMENT TO BUILD A NEW TEMPLE AND CITY.
      • VERSE 28 REALLY BELONGS WITH THE NEXT CHAPTER BECAUSE CHAPTER 45 IS ABOUT CYRUS.

HOMEWORK
ISAIAH 45 AND 46
This is a self-study. Please do not send homework answers to the teacher forcorrection.

• APPLICATION OF ISA 43 AND 44:
• THE JEWS ARE GOD’S WITNESS THAT THERE IS A GOD. BELIEVERS ARE ALSO TO BE GOD’S WITNESSES. READ 1JOHN 1:1-3. WE ARE TO BE A WITNESS OF THE REALITY OF GOD IN OUR LIVES. SOMETIMES WE DO THAT VERBALLY, BUT ALWAYS DO THAT THROUGH OUR LIFESTYLE.
  • AS NON-BELIEVERS OBSERVE YOUR LIFE, WHAT DO THEY SEE THAT TELLS THEM GOD EXISTS?
• PREPARATION FOR ISA 45 AND 46

• READ ISA 45:1-25
  • EXPLAIN THE MEANING OF VERSE 7, SPECIFICALLY WHERE GOD SAYS HE CREATES EVIL.

• WHAT SPECIFICS DO YOU LEARN ABOUT CYRUS IN THIS CHAPTER?

• READ ISA 46:1-13
  • WHAT DO YOU LEARN ABOUT THE POWER OF GOD FROM THIS CHAPTER?

MEMORY VERSE: ISAIAH 45:22