Slideshow image

Overview

Prophecies are a slippery group. Liquid. Hard to pin down. 

Isaiah here in chapter 3 is continuing his prophecy about Judah and Jerusalem. In Isaiah 2 the referent was the latter days, probably referring to the Great Tribulation, maybe even the millennial kingdom. But now in Isaiah 3, he seems to be referencing “the present-future” (which I will explain in a moment). And my word, what Isaiah is describing in chapter 3 is haunting. The vision he is describing to us is a snapshot of the complete breakdown of society. A complete dismantling. 

Isaiah 3:1-5

For behold, the Lord God of hosts is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah
support and supply, all support of bread, and all support of water; the mighty man and the soldier, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor and the skillful magician and the expert in charms. And I will make boys their princes, and infants shall rule over them. And the people will oppress one another, every one his fellow and every one his neighbor; the youth will be insolent to the elder, and the despised to the honorable.

This seems like something straight out of a dystopian novel. No bread. No water. Everyone will be stripped down. There will be an earthquake in the social strata. A judge will be on the street fighting with a street performer. Both trying to survive. The youth will dishonor the aged. They will take advantage of them. God is nowhere to be found in this place. 

This is what happens when God is systematically removed from society. Now within the context of Isaiah 3, scholars debate on whether this prophecy is referring to the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. or its destruction in 70 A.D. or any season of divine judgment. I tend to lean toward 586 B.C., but the specific date is not important. It is the warning signs. God speaks through His word. 

Isaiah 3:6-8

For a man will take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying:
“You have a cloak; you shall be our leader, and this heap of ruins shall be under your rule”;

in that day he will speak out, saying:
“I will not be a healer;  in my house there is neither bread nor cloak; you shall not make me leader of the people.”

For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their deeds are against the Lord, defying his glorious presence.

Notice people want to be led. People need help to understand their meaning, their existence. The problem is we are watching people “exchange truth for a lie”. Putting the wrong leaders in place. Replacing the divine—by trying to deify humanity. 

Who do you look to for hope in this present age? Who is your healer? Your counselor? 

Wake up. Look around you. Society is crumbling. Only the glorious presence of God can save our nation. We need a revival.