Isaiah 28
A Failproof Foundation
A Crown of Glory vs. 1-6
Precept Upon Precept vs. 7-13
An Immovable Foundation vs. 14-22
Wonderful Counsel vs. 23-29
Intro:
A young boy walked by a construction site
He observed several men who were building with bricks
He asked the first man what he was building
The man replied; “What does it look like I’m doing? I am laying brick.”
The boy walked up to the second man and asked the same question
The man replied; “I am building a wall that will support the roof of this building.”
Finally the boy went the third and and asked what he was building
The man replied; “I am building a great cathedral where people can come and worship Jesus!”
The boy walked away inspired
It's all a meter of perspective
While brick upon brick and erecting walls are important we can often lose sight of what God is doing
Call it the big picture if you want but we have to maintain an eternal perspective
If someone was to come and ask you what you were building in your life what would be your answer?
Would your answer be in frustration or would it be with the realization that you are part of something great that God is doing?
For us to answer that we have to look at the foundation we have laid
If it is with Christ as the Cornerstone then we innately have that sense that Christ is doing something
If our foundation is built on something else we probably live with a sense of frustration
Israel had all the materials to build a fail proof foundation but they chased after other things
Read Isaiah 28:1-6
Transition:
The name “Jerusalem” means “city of peace,” but throughout its history it has been associated more with conflict than with peace.
Even today, Jerusalem is a focal point for concern in the Middle East.
The psalmist admonishes us to “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem,” (Ps. 122:6).
Why pray for Jerusalem? Why not pray for London or Moscow or Rome?
Because when there is true peace in Jerusalem, there will be peace in the whole world (Isa. 52:7)
Today we see four warnings followed by salvation oracles
We see warnings about the dangers of drunkenness, trusting in other countries for security, and in our own wisdom
Those are all followed by four ways in which Jesus Christ saves us
We see His glory, He is a immovable foundation, and wise counselor
A Crown of Glory vs. 1-6
This first section starts with a woe to the northern kingdom of Israel
The people of Judah would welcome any word against this kingdom
It was later confirmed when Ephraim fell in 721 BC to Assyria
It would also set the stage for similar warning for Judah in vs. 7-22
Ephraim is know for its drunkenness
This is both literal and figurative
The country was overcome with wine
Drunk people are often those who boast about some past accomplishment
This is why Isaiah calls them a fading flower, once great but fading from that past glory
That crown that once invoked pride is no longer worthy because it is drunk
God has judgment coming against them like that of a hail storm and a mighty flood
Of course he is describing the Assyrians who will trample them under their feet
That once glorious beauty will be gone
Isn’t that true of what alcohol does to people?
It takes once powerful people and cause them to fade quickly
Call it riches to rags
Maybe you have known someone who lost a great life because of their drunkenness
The same can be said for any addiction that takes over someones life
But thankfully God doesn’t leave us there
He sends the Lord of Hosts to rescue us
Vs. 5 In that day the Lord of Hosts will be a crown of glory
Vs. 5-6 is what is known as a salvation oracle
This sudden and dramatic reversal reflects how quickly Jesus can rescue us
Like a searchlight in the midst of a fallen building so is the glory of Christ in the midst of our sin
He will be this for the remnant of his people
He is not the crown of the whole nation, but only the glorious crown of the remnant of people that honor him.
This happened after captivity
We see it in the books of Ezra & Nehemiah where only a small remnant returned
God was their glory while the rest of the Jews rejected God and stayed
This is a foreshadowing of what is going to happen when Christ returns for us
1 Peter 5:4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.
No matter how bleak it looks right now we must remember that
Jesus Christ is our crown of glory and a diadem of beauty to those who follow him
Jesus + nothing = everything
He will come in a spirit of Justice and Strength for those who are faithful
Precept Upon Precept vs. 7-13
Vs. 7-10 Isaiah turns the tables on Judah and accuses the Prophets and Priests of being drunk
The priests and prophets were the leaders that were responsible for leading the nation in God’s ways, but these spiritual leaders were leading them away from God.
According to the law (Lev 10:8–10) the priests were not supposed to drink wine
Both the priests and prophets in Judah allowed wine to control their behavior and thinking.
It's mentioned five times in this verse
The results were the physical confusion of a staggering walk and mental confusion that led people astray
Isaiah now attacks these spiritual leaders by demonstrating their incompetence, the childish nature of their teaching, and the severe consequences of following them.
When the Israelites should be maturing in their faith they are still stuck on the simple things
Isaiah likens them to be still on the breast
Breast feeding is the right thing to do but if your child is 8 years old cut him off
Because of this God is asking who will he teach his knowledge to and whom will explain his message
The Priests mocked simple Isaiah’s teaching as too infantile
But God contradicts that by saying that it is precept upon precept, line upon line
Precept is another word for command or law
Line upon line is reference to plumb lines that make sure things are straight
Imagine building a building brick by brick
You stack one upon another in such a way that it will stay
You then ensure that it is straight by using plumb lines that are taken from the cornerstone
If you are drunk you won't be able to do this because it staggers your hand and thinking
The leaders of the Judah have built an unstable house because of their drunkenness
Isaiah stands out as a stark contrast by teaching the principles of God’s word simply
God’s word does the work in our hearts
2 Tim 4:2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching
An Immovable Foundation vs. 14-22
To be able to use a plumb line you must have a cornerstone to work off of
This was a literal stone that was a perfect 90 degrees and level
They would take their lines off of this point and the the rest of the house would line up
Isaiah now goes after the foundation that the Priests and Prophets have laid
Many of the people in the prophet’s audience probably had trouble accepting these dire words of judgment and some readers today will deny that these words have any application to them.
This paragraph is held together by repeated references to:
(a) mocking, scoffing 28:14 and 22
(b) the covenant with death 28:15 and 18
(c) lies 28:15 and 17
(d) refuge 28:15 and 17
(e) hiding place 28:15 and 17
(f) overwhelming scourge 28:15 and 18
Because of the trust that Israel had put in these things they were completely unstable
When we put our trust in anything other than the Lord we too will be unstable
Those who were given the opportunity to find rest and security in God (28:12) are now placing their trust in someone other than God (28:15).
God’s secure foundation (28:16) offers hope to those in Zion, but it was rejected for a political solution (the “covenant with death” made with Egypt) that would end up destroying the nation.
The theological principle Isaiah promotes is that if people trust God for security, they will have nothing to fear,
but if they refuse to trust God and depend on man’s strength, political treaties, or human attempts to fix things, God will purposely work against them (his “strange work” in 28:21) to get them to change their thinking and trust him.
1 Peter 2:6 Behold, I lay in Zion, A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
Rom 9:33 Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
Wonderful Counsel vs. 23-29
This last section is a farming parable
Some people question whether is belongs in here
But it bears with the whole theme of making Christ our foundation
Isaiah uses the Farmers trusting God of when to plant
The farmer’s work is just an easily understood example that illustrates the two conclusions found in 28:26 and 29.
These conclusions, which essentially say the same thing, capture the central lesson that God teaches people how to live (28:26) and gives people wonderful counsel (28:29).
The application is: if God gives the farmer wise instruction, then the audience should take seriously God’s counsel for them.
Is 9:6 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.
What was God’s wise counsel?
In the first part of chap. 28 God teaches them about “the right way”.
The prophet admonishes his audience:
not to follow the path of the northern nation of Israel (28:1–4),
not to listen to the gibberish of the drunken prophets and priests (28:7–13),
not to depend on their political alliances, their covenant of death with Egypt (28:14–22),
but to trust in God as their only secure foundation (28:16).
They must stop doing what they are now doing (28:22) and listen to what God is saying (28:23).
The wise farmer hears God’s instruction and is successful because he follows God’s wise counsel.
Should not the spiritual and political leaders of Judah do the same?
These insights into threshing grain are given merely to illustrate the theological principle (28:29) that the farmer knows how to do all these things because of God’s wonderful counsel and wisdom.
The two conclusions in vv. 26 and 29 simply communicate to the audience that God teaches people wisdom so that they can do the right thing.
Now the prophet’s audience must listen to what God has said about Israel’s mistakes
Closing:
