WinstonY

Question 4.5 The sound of the great trumpet to which Isaiah and John of the Revelation refer to is Jesus Christ. The Jesus event, his birth, life, ministry, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection is that which we as Christological interpreters must point. It is the resurrection event to which Isaiah points to when he says in verse 19 “Your dead shall live, their corpses shall rise. O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a radiant dew, and the earth will give birth to those long dead”. winstonY

Question 4.5 Yes, resurrection is what is taught. This wonderful promise which people never first comprehended is made clear to Isaiah by the situation of Israel and Judah.In Isaiah's time it must have been felt that there was no earthly way that the problems before the people could be mended. However Isaiah's faith and trust in Yahweh was so powerful that he knew that there was an answer to life's greatest problems. Yahweh, the Lord Yahweh provided to Isaiah the answer which comes to us in verse 19 of chapter 26. Isaiah. led by Yahweh comes to believe that the dead shall live, their corpses shall rise. The prophet does not know, anymore than we, in what form the resurrection of the dead shall occur. He just knows that we shall live. For the dew of God's morning for us, the dawn of a new day is a radiant dew that sparkles like a crown on our foreheads as we step forth to meet Christ as he stands waiting for us. (Question 4.4) In his prayers and fasts Isaiah must have received this unprecedented response from his Lord and he pours the response forth in these verses so that we so many years later can see the response and hear it preached. We shall live forever with the Lord God , Yahweh. This was a rare utterance that is only repeated in the old testament in Daniel 12:2 but is certainly revealed for all to see and hear and experience by the birth, life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. It is this rebirth that gives us hope, hope that oppression will end and that all will live in peace as the wolf lies down with the lamb. Paul also speaks often of the resurrection that occurs for us. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 he writes "So if anyone is in Christ , there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see everything has become new." It appears that the new creation occurs as soon as one becomes new with Christ. In 1 Corinthians 15 he speaks ecstatically of the resurrection of the body and when and how it occurs. He speaks of a physical body and a spiritual body. We will be changed, he writes , we will become imperishable in Christ. We be clothed by Christ in a new robe of righteousness placed upon us by the righteousness of Christ and shall live forever because of the amazing grace of the Lord Yahweh.

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Question 4.5 Yes, resurrection is what is taught. This wonderful promise which people never first comprehended is made clear to Isaiah by the situation of Israel and Judah.In Isaiah's time it must have been felt that there was no earthly way that the problems before the people could be mended. However Isaiah's faith and trust in Yahweh was so powerful that he knew that there was an answer to life's greatest problems. Yahweh, the Lord Yahweh provided to Isaiah the answer which comes to us in verse 19 of chapter 26. Isaiah. led by Yahweh comes to believe that the dead shall live, their corpses shall rise. The prophet does not know, anymore than we, in what form the resurrection of the dead shall occur. He just knows that we shall live. For the dew of God's morning for us, the dawn of a new day is a radiant dew that sparkles like a crown on our foreheads as we step forth to meet Christ as he stands waiting for us. (Question 4.4) In his prayers and fasts Isaiah must have received this unprecedented response from his Lord and he pours the response forth in these verses so that we so many years later can see the response and hear it preached. We shall live forever with the Lord God , Yahweh. This was a rare utterance that is only repeated in the old testament in Daniel 12:2 but is certainly revealed for all to see and hear and experience by the birth, life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. It is this rebirth that gives us hope, hope that oppression will end and that all will live in peace as the wolf lies down with the lamb.

Question 4.4 Isaiah 26 is introduced by the words”on thqt day this song will be sung”. That day is the day of the Lord about which Isaiah has been speaking. On that day those of steadfast mind Yahweh will keep in peace. It is upon that day which the great peace will descend. A time when the wolf will lay down with the lamb. (11:6) A day when the Lord will in righteousness judge the poor. (11.4) A time when there will be endless peace. (9:7) On that day there shall be perfect peace for those who trust in the Lord. When we fall away from trusting the Lord there becomes a gap between saviour and servant. This trust in God is a dependence on God to fulfill his part made through Noah, Abraham, David, and filled in the person of Jesus Christ. If we fail in this trust, we are at risk of having reneged on our bargain of the covenant. Further if we do not trust in God we do not love the Lord and this also creates problems in our relationship with God. This relationship is based upon trust and love. Verse 4b of Chapter 26 seems to be very difficult to translate. The notes translate as “the Lord, the Lord is the rock eternal”. The NRSV has “for in the Lord God you have an everlasting rock”. I like the NKJV which translates 4b as “for in YAH the Lord is everlasting strength.” The Hebrew as translated by Strong’s Exaustive Concordance of the Bible describes ‘sur’ as “edge, God, mighty God, mighty One, rock, sharp, stone, strength, end and strong.” It seems that the tenor of the verse is to indicate God is the mighty one who is the one of everlasting strength and can be figuratively as the eternal rock. Winstony

Question 4.3 The comfort is provided by the message that god in ‘swallowing up death’ swallows up all in perfection in life that has been experienced and wipes the slate clean with the cleansing blood of Christ. This promise of the covenant in Abraham and Jesus is so bountiful and gracious that we can obtain relief of pain , we still experience loss but it is now manageable. When we die we are greeted by Jesus for he is standing waiting for us by the right hand of god. For we read in Acts 7:55 that Stephen “saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God”. Regardless of death, when and where, Jesus is standing at the right hand of God and waiting anxiously for us to come. winstony

Question 4.2 Feast in ancient times were times of celebration and joy . Here in Isaiah and the New Testament the feast is joyfilled. Jesus said,”The attendance cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them.” (Matt. 9: 5) With Jesus as Saviour and Lord we are in such joyous times. The feast mentioned in the notes are times of joy. The feast in Isaiah 25:7“...the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations he will swallow up death forever”, is the new heaven and the new earth , the new creation that the Bible continually speaks about. This is a great and wonderful day when oppression and poverty will be destroyed. In verse 8, the poet writes, “he will swallow up death forever”. There are 2 possible ways of looking at death here. There is death at the end of life and already in the life of death and resurrection we are guaranteed eternal life with Christ and the joyful relation with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Death is also used in the Testament for God’s action against the force of evil and his destruction of that power. Thus our omnipotent God has a powerful two prong message . There is the defeat of evil and the defeat of death. It is our duty and our reward then, to work against the evil forces of the world, poverty, oppression, captivity, sickness and against all the structures of society that feed these evils. As well we have a duty to mark out a stance where we affirm the life , death and resurrection and the abundant grace of providing an eternal relationship with God. Wow! It is too good to be true and it is all symbolized by the feasting of God’s people with him where there is an abundance of food; there is an abundance of God’s grace and the last days the world will be filled with justice and peace. This feasting is symbolized by the communion of the Last Supper.

Question 4.1 “The earth lies polluted under its inhabitants” (5) writes Isaiah. The whole of creation suffers because of human transgression . Man in his greed in the past and continuing through the present pollutes the earth with his waste. The desire for more material wealth than one really needs, the desire to hoard and the desire to treat others in a contemptible fashion leads to a way of life that pollutes the earth. The wrath of God, that wrath that reacts to the waste, the pollution, the cruelity of people and is a consequence of the everlasting covenant made with Noah for then God said “for your own lifeblood I will surely require a reckoning.” (Genesis 9:5) “For in his own image God made humankind”, (9:6) . If we are made in God’s image humans are modeled out of perfect clay but in the process the clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand and the pot needs to be repotted by the potter. (Jeremiah 18:4) Just as God through Jesus creates a new heaven and a new earth humans will put on a new robe, one of righteousness provided by the saving act of Jesus Christ on Calvary. God is a God who created and is creating now and forever. We are threatened because we do not understand the message as it is presented in the Bible. We do not realize that a new heaven and a new earth is for which we pray when we pray “thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven”. Matthew 6:10) When God’s kingdom comes then it will be life as it is promised in Isaiah 11:6 “the wolf will lie down with the lamb”. The Messiah will judge with righteousness (11:4) with the belt around his waist and faithfulness with his belt around his loin ( 11.5) . This will be a time of thanksgiving and praise and although it will come in God’s time we , while on this earth, are told to love the Lord our God with all our heart and our neighbour as ourselves. We are to strive to bring good news to the poor and proclaim release for the captives as Jesus proclaimed in Luke 4: 16 - 18. 1 John 2: 15 - 17 does not contradict Isaiah . John tells us not to love the world as it is (one can read into this that John would and does love the new creation, the new heaven and the new earth, a place where Justice abounds and we are righteousness before God.) The love of the Father in those who love the world we as Christians, as followers of Yahweh , through the Son are to love justice for all , the widow and orphan, and oppressed and the captives. When all this comes into being by the hand of the almighty Father then the new creation will abound. In verse 17 John suggests that his present world of sin and sorrow are passing away and that in the new creation the will of God will be done forever. winstony

Question 3-2 The fertile Crescent is anchored at one end by Egypt and at the other by Mesopotamian nations that were in ascendance at any given time. Between these powers were the smaller independent nations like Syria, Judah and Israel. In the Seventh century Assyria spread its influence across the area and upon conquering territory the captured slaves would be forced to walk back to Assyria naked; thus showing their defeat and vulnerability before the King of Assyria. Thus God called upon Isaiah to go naked for three years to impress upon the people their vulnerability and they will ask “See, this is what has happened to those in whom we hoped and to whom we fled for help and deliverance from the King of Assyria! And we how shall we escape?” The only way to escape was to put their faith and trust in the God of Israel. Today our situation is much similar- instead of Assyria being the threat our threat is much more subtle. It is the god of commercialism that we must fight against and we also must put their faith and trust in the God of Israel and his son Jesus. When Judah was threatened by Israel and Syria, She should listen to Isaiah's plea and put her trust in Yahweh alone. The king, however, would not put his faith and trust in Yahweh and made a disastrous deal with Assyria. I would not have had the courage of Isaiah, to walk naked for three years. winstonY

Question 3-3 The traditional way that Judah and the other tribes handled military preparations wast to pray to Yahweh to deliver his people from the evils that confronted them. They did this even when they seemed to be the protagonist. In the wilderness Moses taught the people how to be persistent and to fight through their trials, calling on the Lord at all times for help so he would continue to provide them with their daily bread. The people of Isaiah's time had forgotten how to trust god and to depend upon him for their needs. Instead they began to trust in their own solutions to the problems. In the defence of Jerusalem the people did not do wrong by strengthening the walls and securing the water supply. Their wrong was in not trusting their work to the Lord. They should have remembered that God is their strength, their rock, their salvation and their fortress. The people had not consulted God. Shebna seems to have taken money from the royal treasury to build a mansion and tomb of his own. He was stealing and this seems to be especially worse in the dire situation of the city. Of course I have-for all have sinned and come short of the kingdom of God. But we have a Savior who clothes us in His Robe of righteousness. WinstonY

3-1 The ruler described in 14. 12-17 is all about self. These verses speak of the ruler of Babylon but they also have overtones to all other in powerful positions over others and all those who are 'self' thinkers' – from Nebuchadnezzar to Stephen Harper of Canada or former president George W Busch of USA. People with great power think of themselves in the fashion that the leader in 14;12-17 as he speaks” 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; The ruler here reaches to Heaven and tries to make himself like God. “I will make myself like the Most High “ The rich and powerful have this attitude as well. In a society where the wealth of the society is concentrated in the hands of a few, these become very wealthy and powerful. These often see themselves as gods with special privileges. They flaunt their wealth “The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting along with swaying hips,with ornaments jingling on their ankles. (3.16) But Yahweh warns “You are brought down to Shoel”(14.15) These live in every day and every age and in time these are made to recognize that the wrath of the Lord will fall upon them(14.27) For the Lord of Hosts has a plan for the whole earth and his hand is” stretched out”(verse 26) and he has a plan as he had a plan for the children of Israel at the Red sea when he stretched out his hand and parted the waters for the people to pass through. \ The notes suggest “this arrogance is characteristic of Satan and the antichrist” but add that to say the King of Babylon and the King of Tyre are intended to be types to instruct us of Satan goes far beyond the text.” We all exalt ourselves beyond what we are; we tend to think of self rather than God or 'other'. We say ' How should we do this ?' rather than 'How would God have us do it? We must continuously remind ourselves that God is in charge and we just play the hand we are given. To do this we must continuously talk to God in prayer and replace ourselves at the center of our universe with God upon whom we can rely upon for strength through the Lord Jesus

Lesson 2 - 7 Verse 10 in the KJV reads: “On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious. On that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that is life of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Ethiopia, from Elan, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea. He will raise a signal for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The jealousy of Ephraim shall depart, the hostility of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not be jealous of Judah, and Judah shall not be hostile towards Ephraim. But they shall swoop down on the backs of the Philistines in the west, together they shall plunder the people of the east. They shall put forth their hand against Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites shall obey them. And the Lord will utterly destroy the tongue of the sea of Egypt; and will wave his hand over the River with his scorching wind; and will split it into seven channels, and make a way to cross on foot; so there shall be a highway from Assyria for the remnant that is left of his people, as there was for Israel when they came up from the land of Egypt.” (Isaiah 11: 10 - 16) The signal which God raises from a christological point of view can hardly be anything but the life, mission and message, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the cross of Jesus. Isaiah in his time would be looking for the return of the exiles but we must look here to the message of Christ and his resurrection. Jesus saw himself as the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy for in his Nazareth Declaration he said: “When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: ‘The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, ....’ (Luke 4: 16 - 18) We are all living now in the new creation of God as fulfilled by Jesus and we look forward to the wider fulfilment of the prophecies of Isaiah 10: 6 - 9. For now Jesus with righteousness judges the poor and decides equity for the meek of the world. Righteousness and faithfulness are his belt. (10.5) This is the flag, the ensign around which we Christians are called to assemble as we love the God our God and our neighbour as ourself. The nations are the gentiles of the time of Paul and in general the people of the world. We are all called to rally around Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross. This that for which we are called and told to go into all the world and preach the gospel to all. For in Christ there is neither Jew or Gentile, nor slave or free, nor male or female, for all are one in Christ. (Galatians 3:28) Isaiah 11: 10 - 16 is forward to the return of the exiles, to Jesus and his resurrection and also mildly referring to the new creation in Jesus whereas in 2 Thessalonians 2: 1 or Mark 13: 26 - 27 are looking forward to the totality of the new creation in Jesus as seen through the eyes of the early disciples. Every prophecy is filled in God’s time. A prophecy may e filled many and sometimes only partially. Jesus’ prophecy of Luke 4: 16 - 18 is only partially fulfilled. Though some peoples have been freed from oppression, many in this world are oppressed by poverty, by evil organizations and evil people. We must work continually to do God’s work to free the oppressed, heal the blind and the sick, heal the broken hearted, preach the Good News of Christ to the poor and to proclaim the day of the Lord.

Question 2 - 5 Jesse was the father of King David and the shoot of Jessie from the stump of Isaiah that had been axed by the Assyrians is being seen as a descendant of David or someone called by God that will rise to become the Messiah. This is an indicated by the attributes given to this sprout, the spirit of the Lord will rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. The Christian community read these verses and, thinking christologically, they interpreted this as applying to Christ. In verses four and five, the qualities of the Messiah are given. In righteousness the poor are judged, He will decide with the meek and he will inflict harsh judgement on the wicked.. These are qualities which Jesus declares in Luke 4: 14 - 16. The poor and the oppressed are the victims here, the widows and orphans, the poor with no one to speak for them. When the kingdom of God descents in full as we pray every day than there will be a great ‘newness of creation' in which the lion will eat straw like the ox. This is a deep radical, limitless transformation in which we – like lion, wolf and leopard, will have no hunger for injury, no yearning for brutal force; no passion for domination which is seen by Paul in Romans 8: 19 - 23 (103. There will be a great reversal in fortunes between the oppressed and the oppressor just like the reversal of fortune between Lazarus and the Rich Man. Though the great chasm cannot be crossed, remember when the Lord Yahweh stretches out his arm all things are possible. Who would have thought of the results of the Syrian fast for peace. WinstonY

Lesson 2 - 6 This peace is the peace of God as provided by the Messiah, the Prince of Peace; it is the type of peace that exists in heaven and we pray for this peace when we pray ‘Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven'. This peace will extend "...on all my Holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea". (V9). Verses 6 & 9 describe a figurative time of peace than can o ly be brought forth by a transformation of creation by God through Jesus Christ, and it is this transformation for which we work and pray but the remarkable transformation, this new creation can only be brought about by God. WinstonY

Lesson 2 Question 3 Isaiah is a multi- layered book with interpretations possible for past present and future. All can be easily possible at the same time. The ancients did not necessarily see time as a linear function as we moderns do but they would have seen past, present and future all being some blend of each other as existence moved forward. For these eternal life would have a different meaning, perhaps a fuller meaning than we linear time converts. We in the Christian church interpret these verses from a Christological standpoint. It has just read in Isaiah 5 of the magnitude, wonder and glory of the Lord Yahweh. It can now be expected that this great and magnificent lord is capable of all things. The audience is also aware of the promise of a Messiah, so the reader or hearer waits in anticipation. With this Lord 'all things are possible.' The miracle of Gidden's miraculous victory at Midian has been recalled, the stage has been set skillfully for the arrival of the Son, born to “us”. This use of the pronoun us makes the reader or hearer part of the story and the story becomes ours. These verses are in a set of three parallel phrases upon newness. This child announced in the third parallel is a 'newness' in the experiences of the people and the Lord Yahweh. This new child born to us has all the attributes of God – Wonderful Councillor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace. In verse 7 there are three characteristics that speak of godliness; His authority shall grow continually - it has no limit; He will establish justice and righteousness- a tradition of prophetic tradition and His Kingdom will be for evermore- His power is for ever. We are also told in verse 2 that in the future Galilee will be honoured. This happened when Jesus moved to Capernium. Jesus, Himself, was convinced that he was the messiah, Christians do the same. Regardless of the attributes that are given here, Counsellor, God, Father, Prince of Peace I am interested mainly in the saving grace of God through this Messiah and for His Kingdom to come on Earth as it is in Heaven. WinstonY

Lesson 2 Question 3 Isaiah is a multi- layered book with interpretations possible for past present and future. All can be easily possible at the same time. The ancients did not necessarily see time as a linear function as we moderns do but they would have seen past, present and future all being some blend of each other as existence moved forward. For these eternal life would have a different meaning, perhaps a fuller meaning than we linear time converts. We in the Christian church interpret these verses from a Christological standpoint. It has just read in Isaiah 5 of the magnitude, wonder and glory of the Lord Yahweh. It can now be expected that this great and magnificent lord is capable of all things. The audience is also aware of the promise of a Messiah, so the reader or hearer waits in anticipation. With this Lord 'all things are possible.' The miracle of Gidden's miraculous victory at Midian has been recalled, the stage has been set skillfully for the arrival of the Son, born to “us”. This use of the pronoun us makes the reader or hearer part of the story and the story becomes ours. These verses are in a set of three parallel phrases upon newness. This child announced in the third parallel is a 'newness' in the experiences of the people and the Lord Yahweh. This new child born to us has all the attributes of God – Wonderful Councillor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace. In verse 7 there are three characteristics that speak of godliness; His authority shall grow continually - it has no limit; He will establish justice and righteousness- a tradition of prophetic tradition and His Kingdom will be for evermore- His power is for ever. We are also told in verse 2 that in the future Galilee will be honoured. This happened when Jesus moved to Capernium. Jesus, Himself, was convinced that he was the messiah, Christians do the same. Regardless of the attributes that are given here, Counsellor, God, Father, Prince of Peace I am interested mainly in the saving grace of God through this Messiah and for His Kingdom to come on Earth as it is in Heaven. WinstonY

Question 2.2 Stumbling Stone There are two possibilities for the interpretation of the 'stone' from v.14. The stone can a sanctuary for as 1 Peter 2.6 says “ ...and he who believes in him shall not be put to shame.” The cross was a stumbling block for those who refuse to believe. If one is completely rational like the ancient Athenians who refused to believe Paul in Acts 17 or like the rational thinkers of the Modern Age than the cross and Jesus are a stumbling block. But those who believe in a sense of trusting and true relationship with Jesus than the living stone becomes a sanctuary and a salvation. The reason people stumble is probably because of self. When we put self first we tend to ignore others, both God and our fellow people. We are told to love God and our neighbour as our self. We cannot love god whom we have not seen. \if we don't love our neighbour who we have seen. This twofold love triangle is vital to our spiritual life. \if we do not care for others we cannot care for the \lord for He said “in as much as you have done it unto the least of these, my children you have done it unto me.” (Matt. 25:40) Yahweh is a stumbling stone for the people because of their selfishness and their lack of concern for others who are less fortunate in life. Jesus is concerned about the hungry; he fed the multitude, he was concerned for the lame and sick; he healed them, he was concerned for the sinner; he forgave them. Jesus called for freedom from oppression – physically , emotionally and spiritually. \Yahweh in Isaiah , is also concerned about these. Chapter 5 has five oracles starting with ' ah' (or Woe in the NJKV) . These five denounce in justice of most every kind and clearly set out the \lord's position on gluttony, extravagant spending on self, lies, those who call evil good, those wish in their own eyes who become their own stumbling stone before \Yahweh. In these days God calls for justice and righteousenes. God does not want us to stumble but we become so caught up in self, in unrighteousness and in justice that we fail to walk in his way. We have just read in Isaiah 5 of the greatness, magnitude, and glory of the Lord Yahweh that we can expect this magnificence to be capable of all things, with him all things are ;possible. This child born to us will have many attributes --- wonderful counsellor, mighty God, everlasting father , prince of peace. These tell us that the child is Christ the \messiah , the son of God. winstonY

Question 2-1 The instructions from God to Ahaz through Isaiah was that Ahaz the king should stand firm to Syria and Israel and firm in his trust in Yahweh- for Yahweh can be trusted and men, leaders can not be trusted. God had given His word through the prophet Isaiah, but Ahaz disregarded the prophecy. We are mot told why he did not listen to the word of God as delivered by Isaiah but it is probable that his heart was hardened. He “kept looking, but did not understand. (6.9b) Instead the king made a compact with the devil, the king of Assyria. Judah became a vassal of Assyria. This contract eventually lead to Judah rebelling and Assyria 'drowning Judah up to the neck(8.8) . Ahaz probably thought that he was smarter than God because he was sated with the power, wealth and prestige which comes from being a ruler of a country. And what would Isaiah know about regional politics. When one has such power and prestige it is hard to see yourself as not being in control.. Nowadays even the common people in the industrialized nations have to deal with the rationalism of the Modern Age which puts a high premium on individualism and rational thinking. These tend to inflate one's opinion of oneself and one's society. It is hard to do what tells us because 1) we must realize and believe that believe that God is indeed speaking and 2) we need the strength to follow His instructions. winstonY

Question 6 This is a very difficult passage! How could a loving God condemn His people to unbelief? Isaiah himself complains-he asks “ How long?” and God answers that only the Holy sees is the stump! (Isaiah 6.13) It is this Holy Seed that gives us Hope. Hope for the oppressed, hope for the poor, hope for the blind, hope for the day of the Lord and hope for eternal life in holy relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This hope is what God continually calls for throughout the Bible and through history. When society does not respond than the wrath of God falls upon them. It is then that that the things of God are hidden from the worldly wise and understanding and the things of God are revealed to babes. (Matthew 11.25) No, there is no frustration in the Jesus' voice in this. For he is the Lord and experienced all this turmoil with Isaiah. Jesus-God in both the Isaiah passage and the Matthew is expressing a fact, a reality-when people's activities get out of hand , that greed overpowers good sense, when justice is consistently blocked that people's spiritual sense is dulled and God is elbowed aside. This was the way in ancient Judah and still prevails today. Jesus tells the rich young man to sell everything he has, give it to the poor and to follow him. This is our challenge today just as it was the Challenge 2500 years ago. Yes, there is hope, a hope in the seed. It is in the seed that there is hope. winstonY

Question 6 This is a very difficult passage! How could a loving God condemn His people to unbelief? Isaiah himself complains-he asks “ How long?” and God answers that only the Holy sees is the stump! (Isaiah 6.13) It is this Holy Seed that gives us Hope. Hope for the oppressed, hope for the poor, hope for the blind, hope for the day of the Lord and hope for eternal life in holy relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This hope is what God continually calls for throughout the Bible and through history. When society does not respond than the wrath of God falls upon them. It is then that that the things of God are hidden from the worldly wise and understanding and the things of God are revealed to babes. (Matthew 11.25) No, there is no frustration in the Jesus' voice in this. For he is the Lord and experienced all this turmoil with Isaiah. Jesus-God in both the Isaiah passage and the Matthew is expressing a fact, a reality-when people's activities get out of hand , that greed overpowers good sense, when justice is consistently blocked that people's spiritual sense is dulled and God is elbowed aside. This was the way in ancient Judah and still prevails today. Jesus tells the rich young man to sell everything he has, give it to the poor and to follow him. This is our challenge today just as it was the Challenger 2500 years ago.

Isaiah upon being faced with the reality of God is overcome by a sense of his own insignificance before God. Isaiah is also struck with his own sinfulness, his unrighteousness before God. He like all of us are ungodly and do not deserve the mantle of righteousness in which God clothes us through Jesus. We also should be so struck. With the reality of God as we stand in the presence of the God who created, who creates and who is creating. When we see the work of the creator, the earth in all its beauty, the waters, and the skies, all speak of God's wonders and still many are unable to conceive of a God that creates. We cannot all expect to have such a call, like Isaiah or Moses but still we can see in creation, in our lives something of the revelation of God to His people. The covenant given to us is too good to be true. God deals with Isaiah's fear by baptizing him with fire, the fire from the life call. We too are baptized by the fire of the Holy Spirit poured out in full force on Pentecost through the work of Jesus Christ. Alas, my response is inadequate. I do not answer, Here I am. WinstonY

When God places a call to an individual to do a great thing, there often is accompanied by a great happening. So the individual could put great emphasis on the call and even use the event as a basis of the individual's authority from God to speak. Moses had the burning bush, Saul the event on the Damascus road, with Isaiah a vision of God in His temple. The vision to Isaiah was of God's throne room which Isaiah and his hearers/readers would recognize to be similar to the inner sanctuary of the temple of Solomon. The seraphims in the vision are unnumbered and each has six wings instead of two. They could also speak and fly, much more than the cedar idols of Solomon's temple. These differences (see 1 Kings 6:11-28) illustrates the awesome greatness of the God we worship. Yet Jesus tells us to call Him, Father and we are the heirs of His Kingdom (Romans 8.17 ) we get here a sense of God's overwhelming holiness and of the inadequacies of Isaiah and we the reader/hearer. WinstonY

Isaiah 5, the Vineyard Song In the parable (Song of the Vineyard) it is somewhat difficult to tell who is the speaker for someone is speaking on behalf of ‘my beloved'. Regardless God that is God who planted the vineyard and cared for it with great love. The love of the owner of the vineyard can be understood by reading Naboth's Vineyard (1Kings 21:1 - 28).. Like all vineyard owners God loves the vineyard and hopes for a return which is consistent with his ideals of fairness and justice. This God who is not partial and who doesn't take bribes who executes justice for the orphans and the widows, and who loves strangers providing them with food and clothing. (Deut. 10: 17-18) To accomplish this God cultivated the garden. God provided a history for his people, a covenant with Abraham, Issac and Jacob. Moses was directed to lead the people from oppression in Egypt, the prophets proclaimed justice and jubilee but all the gardener got in return was sour grapes. When he looked for justice, he saw bloodshed for righteousness he heard the same cries of distress that he had heard from the people in their oppression in Egypt. The first thing for God to do is to destroy with the wrath of God the vineyard (verses 5 & 6). But God is more than just. He is a God of forgiveness and mercy. In Luke 13: 6 - 9, the gardener worked around the tree for three years and when the owners received no fruit, he threatens to cut down the tree. The gardener suggested to try another year, to manure and cultivate the soil and then a crop may result. God is gracious, his message of truth and resurrection in Christ is so wonderful it is to good to be true. God gives the opportunity after opportunity, he manures and cultivates us. Bless this God who loves us so much he gave his only Son. This gracious God is the one who by his grace justifies people; it is his gift to humankind and it is dispensed freely by our gracious God. "Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters, and you are you who have no money to buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price". (Isaiah 55: 11) Oh, such a wonderful promise, it is a dream, it is too good to be true. winstonY

Lesson1.1 In what way is Judah confused about her identity? Judah did not understand the dual nature of her covenant with God. We, both the people in the time of Isaiah and we the people of today have a responsibility to both love God with all our hearts and our neighbours as our selves. Today we have a further responsibility because modern media makes everyone our neighbour. There is a fidelity responsibility to our neighbour in the Kingdom of God. This than calls for justice for all, both rich and poor. The people of Judah, as are the people of our age are sinful, a people laden with iniquity, of spring who do evil, children who deal corruptly, who have forsaken the Lord and have become estranged from Him. If we look ahead to verses 16-17 we hear God's call for the stopping of evil, a washing clean , seeking justice , stopping oppression and defending the widows and orphans. This is a similar call to Jesus' Nazareth declaration of Luke 4:16-18. The people of Judah of Isaiah's time were not fulfilling their fiduciary role as guardians of their neighbour-just as the people of North America and Europe. It is only necessary to turn from evil, stop oppressing the poor and the widows, to seek justice and to turn to the Lord with a new heart as cleansed by the new covenant of Jesus. These ancients and ourselves are unreasonable in that our actions disappoint and anger the Lord God and stir the wrath of God from Heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness.(Romans 1.18) The wrath of God is unleashed upon the world as the people of the world commit atrocities against God and His world. We see the consequences in more violent storms, droughts and floods and plagues of insects and diseases. These are among the responses to people's atrocities. God's alternative offer is to good to be true. We must only return to God in prayer and in his bountiful grace.

HI all What does this prophecy of the future Jerusalem tell us about God's plan for the Gentiles? About God's plan for the Jews? In the last days-the Day of the Lord-in the acceptable year of the Lord 'there is no Jew or Greek, there is neither slave nor free, their is neither male or female; for you are all one Christ.'(Galatians 3:28) God is willing to forgive, scarlet shall become snow. If you are willing and obedient is a reference to v16b ';Stop doing wrong, learn to seek justice, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed, defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow'. This is very similar to Jesus' Nazareth Declaration of Luke 4:16-18. This God's plan for the Jews, this is God's plan for the gentiles, this is God's plan for us. We are all one, the rich and the poor and we must love our neighbour as ourselves and treat them as we would treat ourselves and we will all stream to the mountain of God shouting songs of Joy "Hallelujah hallelujah". At that time spiritual hunger will be satisfied and swords will be pounded to plows. WinstonY