Day 208 (Isaiah 44-48) - Year 4
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Hey Bible Readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for The Bible Recap. Today's chapters reiterated a lot of the themes we read about yesterday. First, that God chose Israel to be His people and that they will continue to be His people throughout the generations. Second, that He is the one true God and anyone who worships idols is foolish and sinful and wasteful because the idols they're worshiping are handmade and will ultimately be destroyed.

Third, God points out his sovereignty over all things. While he has chosen Israel, there are some whom he has given undiscerning hearts and closed eyes. This is his judgment on their idolatry. We first saw this in 6, 9-10, and it shows up repeatedly in Isaiah, and is even quoted by Jesus in the New Testament. But part of being sovereign means that even those whose hearts are far from him are still used to serve his purposes.

We see this with King Cyrus again today. Even though he wasn't a follower of Yahweh, God still uses him for his glory. In 4428, God says, Chapter 45 starts out with a long passage about Cyrus, reminding us that we serve a God who makes even his enemy's plans bend to his will.

God is the one who equips Cyrus, even though Cyrus doesn't know him. God is working through him. God is doing the heavy lifting here, breaking the doors of bronze and cutting the bars of iron, creating darkness and calamity, bringing rain and light and fruit, and ultimately using all of this to set his people free from exile.

In chapter 46, God points out that Babylon, Israel's captors, are idolaters. It should come as no surprise that the ones who took Israel into exile aren't followers of Yahweh.

He paints a picture of them having to lug their idols around and how that weighs them down, prevents any kind of forward motion, and ultimately leads to bondage. Personally, that hit a little too close to home for me. I don't really like relating to Babylon. But back to the prophecy. What's been prophesied here about Babylon's bondage actually happens when King Cyrus of Persia comes against them. And in contrast to Babylon carting their idols around, Yahweh points out that he is the one who carries Israel.

He says he's carried them from the womb and will carry them even when they're old. Cue the footprints poem. And remember yesterday when he told them to forget the things of the past because it was infringing on their capacity to remember the important things? Today, he tells them to remember, to recall who he is to them. Here are some of the things he says about this in verses 8 through 11.

Remember this, recall it to mind. Remember the former things of old, for I am God and there is no other. I am God and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand and I will accomplish all my purpose. I have spoken and I will bring it to pass. I have purposed and I will do it.

God has shown them who he is, and he can be trusted to keep being that person in the future. His consistency is so comforting. In chapter 47, God addresses Babylon, the people who lead Israel into exile. Babylon is arrogant and entitled. Those two things often go hand in hand, and God promises to humble them.

They'll seek help from an abundance of wicked sources, from idols to sorcerers to astrology, who will all fail to save them. Then in chapter 48, God speaks to Israel again. They were giving lip service to God and claiming him without actually knowing him. So he takes time to remind them. He basically says,

All that stuff you just went through, remember how I told you it was about to happen? I gave you a heads up about it because it's one of the only ways to get your attention since you're so stubborn and forgetful. That way, you'd have no excuse for thinking your idols were the one who rescued you. It was me all along. And now that you know my track record, that I do what I promise, I'm going to tell you some brand new things I'm about to do. You've never heard anything like it.

God is setting them up for the promise of the Messiah. He tells them that he will do all these incredible things, defer his anger, restrain it, not cut them off, and he will do it for his name's sake, for the sake of his praise, for his own sake. What does all this mean? There are two possible reasons and motives behind restraining your anger towards someone. First, you might do that if you believe they've been falsely accused and aren't actually guilty, which means you'd be restraining it for that person's sake.

But that definitely isn't the case with Israel. God knows their sin. Israel knows it. Isaiah knows it. And even we know it. Second, you might restrain your anger towards someone who is guilty because you're displaying your own character. That you're a person who seeks out opportunities for forgiveness. That's what God is doing here. It isn't for Israel's sake that he withholds his anger. It's to show us and them and everyone what kind of a God he is. He is a God who forgives sinners.

And maybe that sounds selfish or showy to you, that God's priority is God's glory. And if so, then just think for a moment what things would be like if we were his first priority. How backward would that be for a holy, glorious God to worship fallen humanity? I wouldn't trust that God.

But I trust a God who prioritizes his glory, not only because it's right and fitting, but also because, selfishly, I benefit from it. Here's what I mean by that. I'm not married, but I've heard many counselors say that the best thing you can do for your children is to put your marriage first. Otherwise, the child becomes an idol that replaces the spouse and drives a wedge in the marriage. But when the marriage is the priority over the children, the children feel secure and blessed as a result of not being the ultimate focal point.

That's sort of the way I view this thing with God's glory here. When the triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit are focused on displaying their glory and character throughout the universe, then I reap the benefits. Namely, God withholds his anger from me, pays for my sins, and adopts me into his family. I love being the recipient of the overflowing love from the Trinity. My God shot today was in 4519.

God is speaking to Israel and reminding them of the relationship he's had with them all along. He says, I did not speak in secret in a land of darkness. I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, seek me in vain. I love this reminder from God in the midst of our seeking him that none of this is in vain. Even on the days where you feel perplexed by what you're reading and I failed to address the part that confused you most, none of it is in vain.

God responds to our efforts to know him because he's the one who initiated this desire to begin with. He doesn't thwart your desire to hear and know him. He gave you that desire. He delights in that desire. He's meeting you in that desire. And he's where the joy is.

Are you struggling in the reading plan? This might be a good time to hit the reset button by going back and listening to our six prep episodes, either again or for the first time. They're super helpful, even if you've been with us for months. You can listen to them all in about an hour. Swipe up for a link to prep episode one in today's show notes or search for it in your app. Hopefully that will be just the refresher you need to keep showing up every day. I believe God has some incredible things for you in those episodes.

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