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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
When the Lord has finished all his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. For he says:
“‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, because I have understanding. I removed the boundaries of nations, I plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their kings. As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.’”
Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood!
Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a fire will be kindled like a blazing flame. The Light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day it will burn and consume his thorns and his briers. The splendor of his forests and fertile fields it will completely destroy, as when a sick person wastes away. And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few that a child could write them down.
Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians, who beat you with a rod and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did. Very soon My anger against you will end and My wrath will be directed to their destruction.”
The Lord Almighty will lash them with a whip, as when He struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb; and He will raise His staff over the waters, as He did in Egypt.
They enter Aiath; they pass through Migron; they store supplies at Mikmash. They go over the pass, and say, “We will camp overnight at Geba.” Ramah trembles; Gibeah of Saul flees. Cry out, Daughter Gallim! Listen, Laishah! Poor Anathoth! Madmenah is in flight; the people of Gebim take cover. This day they will halt at Nob; they will shake their fist at the mount of Daughter Zion, at the hill of Jerusalem.
See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will lop off the boughs with great power. The lofty trees will be felled, the tall ones will be brought low. He will cut down the forest thickets with an ax; Lebanon will fall before the Mighty One.
Isaiah 10:12-19, 24-26, 28-34
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18
If you want to hit at the heart of the message from our scripture passage today from Isaiah, Chapter 10, these wise words from Solomon would do the job. For as we are going to see in the case of the Assyrian empire, anyone who chooses the folly of pride and haughtiness are destined for a fall. Look at our passage for today again:
When the Lord has finished all his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. For he says:
“‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, because I have understanding. I removed the boundaries of nations, I plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their kings. As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.’”
Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood!
Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a fire will be kindled like a blazing flame. The Light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day it will burn and consume his thorns and his briers. The splendor of his forests and fertile fields it will completely destroy, as when a sick person wastes away. And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few that a child could write them down.
Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians, who beat you with a rod and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did. Very soon My anger against you will end and My wrath will be directed to their destruction.”
The Lord Almighty will lash them with a whip, as when He struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb; and He will raise His staff over the waters, as He did in Egypt.
They enter Aiath; they pass through Migron; they store supplies at Mikmash. They go over the pass, and say, “We will camp overnight at Geba.” Ramah trembles; Gibeah of Saul flees. Cry out, Daughter Gallim! Listen, Laishah! Poor Anathoth! Madmenah is in flight; the people of Gebim take cover. This day they will halt at Nob; they will shake their fist at the mount of Daughter Zion, at the hill of Jerusalem.
See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will lop off the boughs with great power. The lofty trees will be felled, the tall ones will be brought low. He will cut down the forest thickets with an ax; Lebanon will fall before the Mighty One. Isaiah 10:12-19, 24-26, 28-34
The bottom line here was that God was using the Assyrians to wage judgment on His people. This made the Assyrians instruments of His will to accomplish His purposes. The problem was that the Assyrians didn’t understand this. They didn’t grasp that they were simply tools being used by the Master Craftsman to shape His chosen people into who He wanted them to be. Or as I wrote a few days ago, they just didn’t get it.
Instead, the Assyrians took credit for what they had done as indicated by the words of their king who the scriptures say had willful pride in his heart and a haughty look in his eyes:
“‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, because I have understanding. I removed the boundaries of nations, I plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their kings. As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.’”
The attitude of the Assyrians was reflected in their leader. They had great success in their battles but rather than credit that success to God, they saw it as coming from their own strength and wisdom. Thus Isaiah, the spokesperson for God during that time, posed several important questions, questions we need to consider today as well:
Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood!
The principle is clear. An axe is of no use without someone raising it up and swinging it. Ditto for a saw or rod or club. They are useless without a user and so too were the Assyrians without a God to direct them and command them to the work He wished to be accomplished.
The same applies to you and me today. For we will follow in the steps of the Assyrians and seek our own prideful glory and haughty promotion unless we are allow God to use us as instruments of His will and way, offering ourselves to Him as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2) and instruments of His will. We should be asking the Lord to use us in whatever way He sees fit each and every day to further His kingdom here on earth, and then be prepared to be used by Him to that end in response to our request.
That’s the way it’s supposed to work.
That’s the only way it’s going to work.
For if we choose otherwise, then we, like the Assyrians, will find ourselves in the crosshairs of God’s wrath and judgment. In the way of the Assyrians, it came in the form of a wasting disease that no amount of arrogant strength and wisdom could cure. It could come today in any other form that the Lord chooses.
Let’s make it easy on ourselves and avoid the fall by just submitting to God in humble adoration and obedience as we walk in the footsteps of Jesus who will always lead us to righteousness and a place of favor with the Father, now and forever more.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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