​Today’s reading finishes the major prophets (Daniel) and takes us through the first three minor prophets (Hosea, Joel, and Amos). Each book has its own unique emphases but all depict God as sovereign over earth’s kingdoms—whether those kingdoms acknowledge Him or not.

 Daniel—The Most High reigns over the kingdoms of men
 Daniel was written long after Hosea, Joel, and Amos, and foretells events hundreds of years beyond Daniel’s lifetime. Two key words in Daniel are kingdom, which occurs far more in Daniel than in any other book of the Old Testament, and Most High God, Daniel’s signature designation for God. These two key words work together to lift up the Most High as King over all earth’s kingdoms. Even mighty Nebuchadnezzar was no match for the Most High. “The Most High rules over the kingdom of men and He gives it to whomever He wishes” (4:17). The Most High will bring an end to the kingdoms of men and establish His kingdom—what some have called the Fifth Kingdom—and turn over the dominion of it to one “like a son of man” (7:13). This does not mean that all is easy for the followers of the Most High during the kingdoms of men. We sometimes read the stories of the fiery furnace and the lions’ den and forget that in the latter half of Daniel not all those who stood for God were delivered (7:21; esp. 11:33). Their deliverance, and ours, lies ahead in the Fifth Kingdom.

Hosea—God’s love for Israel’s kingdoms spurned but constant
Hosea dates to the divided monarchy of Judah and Israel. Hosea’s message indicts both kingdoms for their practical rejection of God’s love. By embracing a lifestyle contrary to God’s law and worshiping idols, they have forgotten the God whose love brought them into existence. Yahweh is the one who trained Ephraim to walk (11:3)! As you read Hosea, look for how God’s heart is broken by His people’s unfaithfulness (see 11:8)—much as Hosea’s heart must have been by His promiscuous spouse. Also, notice the vivid imagery and metaphors Hosea uses throughout to describe Israel’s unfaithfulness and God’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness to Israel includes discipline. Hosea pictures a God who tears but does so in order to restore relationship (5:14-6:3). God’s love will ultimately win the day and secure the heart of His people, convincing them that He alone is their help (13:9) and their fruitfulness (14:6).

Joel—Time for the Kingdom of Judah to seek the Lord!
Repeated references in the book of Joel to the house of Yahweh suggest that it is addressing the Kingdom of Judah. A key concept in Joel is the Day of the Lord. A locust plague serves as a harbinger of that future, fearful Day and as a good opportunity to consider seriously one’s status before the Lord. Epidemics, plagues, famines, wars, and natural disasters should all remind us that now is the time to learn repentance! Joel, in fact, contains one of the most beautiful descriptions of repentance in the entire Old Testament (2:12-14). God’s people responded to Joel’s preaching of repentance and, oh what blessings God poured out and will pour out still on His people (2:18-3:21)! Like church discipline in the New Testament, God disciplines not in order to destroy but so that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus (1 Cor. 5:5).

Amos—A prosperous kingdom is not necessarily a God-blessed one
Amos is a farmer from Judah sent by God to excoriate the sins of Israel. About half of the book of Joel spoke positively of coming restoration but Amos contains nothing like this, other than its closing verses (9:11-15). God commissions Amos to preach in Israel during a time of material prosperity and national expansion. But such outward affluence sometimes hides the real character of the times. Amos is God’s hand to pull back the veil on Israel’s sins. His focus is on Israel’s mistreatment of others, but Amos also addresses Israel’s idolatry, especially the shrines where golden calf worship and similar syncretistic worship took place. Israel seemed blissfully ignorant that the famine, drought, blight, mildew, and plagues that she had been experiencing are God’s attempt to get her attention (4:6-10). Instead, Israel seems to have assumed that the act of bringing sacrifice was enough to appease the “Man Upstairs,” regardless of one’s other actions (4:4-5). But God sees to the heart of such phony religious motions. The coming day of judgment was for them, not for someone else!

Amos shows that God speaks in all that is happening around us. If there is calamity in a city, the Lord has done it; and if a messenger of God is confronting us about something, we ought to listen (3:6-8)! Amos 4 is particularly full of examples of God’s unsuccessful efforts to get Israel’s attention. When such efforts fail, one ultimately crosses the line in the sand and divine judgment must fall. There is a sin unto death!

In the end, though, God does have a plan to repair the fallen kingdom of David (9:11-12). Not one of God’s true “pebbles” will be lost, but every sinner will be flushed out and destroyed (9:9-10). God’s judgment is exact, impartial, fair, and infallible. Amos’ advice for his neighbors to the North is good advice for everyone: Seek the Lord and live (5:4).

Do you really think you will live if you disobey the One who made the Pleiades and Orion, turns darkness into dawn, and pours out the waters onto the face of the earth? His name is Yahweh (5:8)!

​In Ezekiel 25-48, God is at work to display His greatness, holiness and glory in all that He does toward the nations and toward His people Israel.

• “Behold, I am against you, O Sidon, and I will get glory in the midst of you” (28:22).
• “And I will show Myself great and display My holiness and make Myself known in the eyes of many nations” (38:23).
• “And it shall be a renown for them on the day I show My glory” (39:13).
• “And I will set My glory among the nations” (39:21).

When God makes the statement that He will “set” His glory among the nations, what He means is that they will see, experience, and acknowledge His glory. They will be brought face to face with the inescapable reality that Yahweh is earth’s sovereign. That’s the point of the expression Adonai Yahweh (translated “Lord GOD” in most Bibles) used 212 times in Ezekiel, far more than anywhere else in the Old Testament. Yahweh is sovereign, and Ezekiel 25-48 describes occasions in which He will put His greatness on display for all to see.

Even the way God observes, assesses, and punishes pagan nations, like Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt, displays His glory. Two themes stand out in the chapters addressed to various nations (chs. 25-32, 35):

1. How these nations slighted God’s people (the clearest statement occurs in 28:25-26)
2. How it is nothing to God to shatter the most powerful of nations and hustle them off to the realm of the dead (32:17-32)     

God also displays His glory in these chapters by reinstating Israel as a nation and recapturing their affections. Several passages in Ezekiel 34-39 outline what God has in store for Israel in future days. As you read these chapters, look for repeated elements in God’s benevolent purposes for Israel:

• gathering them from the lands to which they have been scattered
• resettling them in their land
• reuniting the nation into one kingdom with one king
• providing David (meaning the “second David,” Messiah) to rule them as that king
• cleansing their sins
• giving them a new heart
• putting His Spirit in them so that they will obey Him
• causing them to dwell safely and prosperously

Such a revival of national Israel would be a miracle and that’s exactly the point made in the Valley of Dry Bones vision in Ezekiel 37. God’s work in resurrecting the nation of Israel will be a signal demonstration of who He is—note the threefold repetition of the refrain then you will know that I am Yahweh in chapter 37 (vv. 6, 13-14) and in the surrounding chapters as well. Ezekiel 37 reechoes the covenant ideal that God’s restoration will effect: “I will be their God, and they will be My people” (v. 27). In addition, Israel’s deliverance from an attempted invasion (chs. 38-39) will convince them that Yahweh is their God, and they will be embarrassed by all their unfaithfulness to Him (39:22, 26). The greatest concentration of references in Ezekiel 25-48 to God's displaying His glory occurs in the context of this overturned invasion (38:23; 39:13, 21).

The last nine chapters of Ezekiel describe a temple situated in a sacred portion of land set apart from Israel’s tribal allotments. As you read the details for this temple—admittedly a bit bewildering—note the focus on the measurements of the entrances and exits, porches, and courts. The reason for this focus is found in Ezekiel 43:6-12: God is designing this temple in a way that will prevent its future desecration. The measurements are to impress upon Israel God’s desire for the holiness of His temple and serve as a reminder to them of how often they had dishonored His house in the past.

This temple is part of a whole city with fields and workers, surrounded by Levites and priests, with a “prince” whose lands lie to the east and west. Ezekiel ends by telling us the name of the city: “Yahweh is there” (48:35). This is the best thing about this city and reminds us of why God acted as He did throughout chapters 25-48 to avenge, protect, and display His glory: so that He could dwell once again with His people.

Ezekiel is sometimes referred to as the prophet of the Lord’s glory. On three occasions Ezekiel was permitted to see the chariot of the Lord’s glory (chs. 1-3, 8-11, 43). In Ezekiel 1-24, Ezekiel pictures and prophesies coming judgment in an effort to woo Israel to acknowledge Yahweh in all of His glory.

Dates of Ezekiel’s prophecy
As you read Ezekiel, note how he dates his prophecies to King Jehoiachin’s captivity, which began in 597 BC when Nebuchadnezzar carried Jehoiachin and other Judeans captive to Babylon. There are four of these date formulas in Ezekiel 1-24 (1:2; 8:1; 20:1; 24:1).

One of those captives was Ezekiel, who was evidently about 25 years of age at the time. As a younger contemporary of Jeremiah, Ezekiel is for the exiles in Babylon what Jeremiah was for those still in Judah. Both, in their respective places, foresaw and announced the fall of Jerusalem.

Sign acts picturing coming judgment
Ezekiel is also famous for his attention-grabbing sign acts by which he pictures coming judgment. All seven are found in Ezekiel 1-24 (4:1-3, 4-8, 9-17; 5:1-17; 12:1-16; 12:17-20; 21:18-23). His actions when his wife died also became a sign of judgment to Israel (24:15-27). In addition, Ezekiel was mute for much of the first seven years of his ministry and only able to speak when he had a direct word from the Lord to deliver (3:26). Once news reached him that Jerusalem had been destroyed, he was able to speak again (24:25-27; 33:21-23).

Key refrain in Ezekiel
The most frequent refrain in Ezekiel, recurring at least 77 times, is then they [or you] shall know that I am Yahweh. This formula cuts to the heart of God’s purposes in His judging and restoring. God is working in all life’s circumstances to bring people to see, confess, and appreciate who He is! This objective intersects with Ezekiel as the prophet of Yahweh’s glory. God does what He does for the glory of His name. There are things He does not do purely because of how it reflects on His great name (20:9, 14, 22, 44). One of the worst tragedies of sin is the way God’s name is profaned and His glory sullied. Judah’s desecration of God’s holiness has driven Him away from His sanctuary (8:6). Jerusalem’s destruction is imminent.

Ezekiel’s refrain then they shall know that I am Yahweh also reflects God’s heart for a relationship with His people. God is punishing His people not to destroy them but to bring them to the point where they will confess themselves His people and they will allow Him to be their God (11:20; 14:11), a covenant ideal as old as Abraham (Gen. 17:7). God’s desire for a relationship with His people is why idolatry provokes His jealousy so much. Idols capture the hearts of those who pursue them. God wants to take hold of Israel—and you and me--by our hearts (Ezek. 14:5).

God’s answer to Israel’s idolatry
God employs frank and rather graphic portrayals of Judah’s idolatry in an effort to shock them into the awareness of what they have done (see especially chapters 16 and 23). Jerusalem, in fact, has sinned worse than both Sodom and Samaria (16:48-52). One theme that Ezekiel reiterates is how Judah has used God’s good gifts to fund their idolatries (16:17-18; 23:41). How often we too use God’s blessings to pursue our idols!

God’s jealousy is such that He will not let His people continue in their idolatrous ways. Their unfaithfulness crushes God’s heart (6:9) but rather than walk away from them God will work on them until they acknowledge Him in all His glory. Let Judah be like all the nations and worship gods of wood and stone? Impossible! God will so work in them that the entire house of Israel—all of it—will serve Him in their land (20:40). His work of judgment will at first be painful. The sword will devour the nation. Their king will step down and rule no more. But that does not mean God’s covenant promises with David have ceased. In the midst of the ruins, the scepter is held in reserve until He comes to whom it belongs (an allusion to Genesis 49:10).

A watchman for the sake of God’s glory
But before this Messianic ruler comes, God's fury must fall (24:13). Ezekiel 18:4 states God's guiding principle clearly: the person who sins is the person who dies. Each will be judged according to his works and ways (18:30; 24:14). God, however, does not desire the death of anyone (18:32) and accepts the repentance of those who turn away from their sins.
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Yet the Lord knows that Israel is hardheaded and hardhearted and that they will not listen (3:7). As for Ezekiel, his job remains the same whether Israel listens or not. He is a watchman for Israel. If he sounds the alarm he has done his duty, and their blood will fall on their own heads (3:16-21). We too are watchmen, in a way, sounding the alarm of coming judgment to those who have abandoned the God of glory in pursuit of their own idols. "Little children, guard yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21).

Jeremiah 30-52
Jeremiah 30-52 opens and closes on a positive note but in between it delineates the events that led to the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BC, the darkest day in Judah’s history up to that point. Jeremiah lives through the fulfillment of the very prophecies of judgment he preached. What these chapters make clear though is that God's judgment of Judah is discipline, not destruction (30:11; 46:28). 

 Jeremiah 30-33
 Jeremiah 30-33 is called the Book of Comfort and is one of the most encouraging of all the sections in Jeremiah. For once in these chapters, Jeremiah’s messages of coming restoration and blessing outnumber his words of judgment. The New Covenant prophecy in Jeremiah 31:31-34 is extremely significant and is the longest Old Testament passage quoted in the New Testament. In this prophecy, God promises to make a new covenant with Israel and Judah that will replace the Mosaic Covenant and will create the personal relationship with His people He has desired since the day He made a covenant with Abraham. I will be your God, and you will be My people (31:33; see also 31:1; 32:38; Gen. 17:7). God’s promise that fields in Judah will be bought and sold again, even after the great disaster He is about to bring upon His people, testifies to His omnipotence (32:17, 27). The prophecy of the Davidic Branch is restated in Jeremiah 33:14-17. In fact, the name David occurs twenty-two times in Jeremiah, equally divided between Jeremiah 1-29 and Jeremiah 30-52, more times than in any other Old Testament prophetic book. Jeremiah 34-36 clusters stories from the days of Jehoiakim and Zedekiah to show how Judah persists in disobeying the Lord. Jehoiakim’s burning the scroll of Jeremiah cannot stop God’s words through Jeremiah from coming to pass (36:19-32).

Jeremiah 37-45
Jeremiah 37-45 describes Jerusalem and Judah in their final dark days. Zedekiah is a weak leader who wants to hear what Jeremiah has to say but will not obey it. He will not even speak up on behalf of Jeremiah because he is so afraid of his own subjects. Zedekiah’s noncompliance forfeits Jerusalem’s last opportunity to avoid being burned (38:17). In Jeremiah 39, Jerusalem falls and Zedekiah is captured in mid-flight. He is taken to Nebuchadnezzar who kills all his sons and carts him off to Babylon.

But even with the fall of Jerusalem, the final episode in Judah’s waywardness is not yet written. A man named Ishmael kills Gedaliah, the governor appointed by Nebuchadnezzar to oversee Judah for him. Mayhem ensues. The remnant that still remains in Judah runs to Jeremiah for direction from the Lord, feigning obedience but having already decided to escape to Egypt (41:17-18). When the Lord’s directive is for the remnant to stay in the land of Judah and trust Him for their safekeeping against Nebuchadnezzar (whose governor had been assassinated), the people show their true colors, falsely criticize Baruch, set off for Egypt, and haul Jeremiah along with them for good measure. Jeremiah 44 reveals that even the horrific months through which they have just passed have not shaken loose idolatry’s hold on them. Grind a fool in a mortar but it will not remove his foolishness from him (Prov. 27:22).

Jeremiah 46-51
In Jeremiah 46-51, poetic oracles announce God’s judgments against various nations. Look for the thrice repeated reference to Yahweh as “the King” (46:18; 48:15; 51:57). He is King and His jurisdiction is the whole earth. When He wills the demise of the nations, they fall. When He wills their restoration—as He does in the case of Moab, Ammon, and Elam—they rise again. “Who is the shepherd able to stand against me” (49:19; 50:44)? Particularly long are the two oracles of judgment against Babylon, who is occasionally referred to under her code name Leb-qamai (51:1) and Sheshach (51:41). Babylon’s fall is Zion’s vindication (51:5, 10-11, 36, 56).

Jeremiah 52
Jeremiah 52 is an appendix that summarizes all the trouble Jerusalem brought on herself. Verse 3 says it all: God got so fed up with Jerusalem and Judah’s sin that He cast them out of His presence.  
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The book of Jeremiah ends on a positive note, however, by recording the exaltation of Jehoiachin after 37 years in exile in Babylon (52:31-34). Jehoaichin’s change of fortune hints at God’s future plans for His people. The terrible demise of Judah and Jerusalem was deserved punishment for repeated rebellion but it is not the final chapter in their history. God will work through David’s line to bring a Deliverer (that Righteous “Branch” mentioned in earlier chapters) who will make them the righteousness and the light to other nations He intended them to be from the very beginning of His covenant dealings with them.  But all of that lies in the distant future.

Jeremiah 1-29 groups together 23 years of Jeremiah’s preaching of judgment against the kingdom of Judah.

Like the very last announcement to board a departing plane, Jeremiah’s ministry in these chapters is God’s final call to the kingdom of Judah. If her inhabitants fail to heed God’s words through Jeremiah, the kingdom, her king, and her Temple will all come tumbling down.

Here are some key items to search for as you read Jeremiah 1-29. 

1. Jeremiah’s call to ministry in Jeremiah 1. Note how God promises that the majority of his ministry will be a preaching of coming judgment (v. 10). God also prepares Jeremiah for the fight that God knows lies ahead—Jeremiah will face stiff opposition but God will be with him (vv. 17-19).
2. In Jeremiah 2, observe how God reports on what Judah should have said and did not (vv. 6, 8) or what they did say and should not have (vv. 20, 23, 27, 31, 35). Their speech betrays a heart far from God and full of idols. Jeremiah 2 also contains the fountain-of-fresh-water versus broken-cistern metaphor—Judah’s exchange of her Glory for idols who cannot profit is mindboggling (2:9-13).
3. In Jeremiah 3-6 (specifically 3:6-6:30), look for the comparison between Israel, the Northern Kingdom, and Judah, the Southern Kingdom. Keep in mind that Israel has already been carried away captive for her idolatry. Yet—and this is God’s point in these chapters—Judah has not learned from Israel’s mistake. Her inhabitants’ decision to knowingly persist in idolatry has “forced” God to punish her. God would be unjust not to (5:9, 29; also 9:9).
4. As you read Jeremiah 7-10 discern how God addresses Judah’s misplaced confidences and how He attempts to refocus her on the duty of obedience to Him. Judah boasts in the Temple as if the building itself is a talisman protecting against divine punishment (7:1-11). What happened at Shiloh is proof positive that God does not hesitate to topple religious buildings if God’s people refuse to obey. Jeremiah 9 makes clear that boasting in wisdom, might, and riches is a misplaced trust. In chapter 10, idols are misplaced confidence—they are manmade and mean nothing to the God who made the heavens and the earth. If you want to boast, boast that you know the Lord (9:23-24). In some ways, what God desires most is a heart to know Him (24:7). Where that exists, all other relational wrinkles will iron out.
5. In Jeremiah 11-20, feel the increasing “back and forth” in terms of who is speaking. (You may have already noticed this in 8:13-9:3.) Sometimes God is speaking to Jeremiah. Other times, Jeremiah is speaking to God. Now and again, God delivers a message to Jeremiah for His people. And on occasion, Jeremiah is speaking to God on behalf of the people—either quoting their words (as in 11:19) or grieving over them. Jeremiah’s preaching of Judah and Jerusalem’s imminent destruction is decidedly unnationalistic, and it leads to his being beaten and humiliated by Pashhur the priest (20:1-6). When the heat gets too intense for Jeremiah, his emotions melt and he complains to the Lord about his circumstances. See if you can detect Jeremiah’s five complaints scattered through these chapters and how the Lord responds graciously but firmly to His overwhelmed servant.
6. Jeremiah 21-25 confirms to Judah’s kings and prophets that God will not deliver Judah and Jerusalem from Babylon (see 21:1-7). (Like He did for Hezekiah from Sennacherib!) In Jeremiah 22, God assesses three of Judah’s final kings and disapproves of them all. God’s curse against Coniah, also known as Jeconiah, is especially severe (22:24-30). Do not miss the Messianic Branch prophecy in Jeremiah 23:5-8. The term Branch refers to a small sprig, the kind that sprouts from a seemingly dead stump. Although unworthy shepherds (kings!) and false prophets have led God’s people astray and sealed the nation’s doom (see chapter 23), God will in the future raise up a “shoot” to sit on David’s throne and usher in a reign of justice and righteousness. “Behold, the days are coming” is a very common way in which Jeremiah introduces something God will do in the future (7:32; 9:25; 16:14; 19:6; 23:5, 7; 31:27, 31, 38; 33:14; 48:12; 49:2; 51:47, 52). Jeremiah 24 with its analogy of good figs and bad figs paves the way for Jeremiah 25, perhaps the clearest declaration of the seventy years of captivity to Babylon in all of the Old Testament (25:8-14).
7. Jeremiah 26-29 brings the prophecies of judgment against Judah to a close. As you read these chapters, hunt for two things: (1) the hostile reactions to Jeremiah’s preaching of Jerusalem’s demise and of a lengthy captivity in Babylon, and (2) the way in which God defends or confirms Jeremiah’s unpopular message. Adverse reactions are humanly understandable: agree with a preacher who tells you to surrender to the enemy battering down your gates? But Jeremiah is right. He speaks for God. Those in Judah and Jerusalem who will survive are those who settle down in Babylon and wait until God’s appointed time of captivity is over (29:1-14). But those who resist Jeremiah and his words preach rebellion against the Lord, and each in turn will face the consequences for what they have done (29:24-32).

The divine punishment warned of in Jeremiah 1-29 is severe but almost every such warning is conditional, depending on the response of the person to whom the warning is issued. God does not change and His will does not change but when you or I change, we fall under a different set of decreed consequences (18:7-10). Unfortunately, Judah refused to change and the last half of Jeremiah records the tragic outcome.

​Isaiah 36-39 bridges the gap between Isaiah 1-35 and Isaiah 40-66.

Isaiah 36-39: God delivers Israel from Assyria and foretells captivity in Babylon
Isaiah 36-39 records the dramatic fulfillment of God’s promises in Isaiah 1-35 to devastate the Assyrian army and send Sennacherib home defeated, once God had finished using the latter to chastise His wayward people. The miraculous deliverance from the Assyrians in Isaiah 36-37 then becomes a platform for trusting God in the future, when He does not deliver Jerusalem from Babylonian invaders but rather brings her exiles back after a time of chastisement. Isaiah 40-66 record this future restoration.

In addition, Hezekiah’s stumble in Isaiah 39 involving the Babylonian messengers brings a rebuke from Isaiah and a prediction that Jerusalem’s treasures and Hezekiah’s own descendants will be carted off to Babylon. This allusion to the future Babylonian Captivity is the backdrop against which Isaiah 40-66 opens. That Jerusalem would receive comfort, as Isaiah 40 promises, after her time of exile in Babylon must have seemed humanly impossible. After all, the Northern Kingdom never came back from its exile. But the God who delivered from Assyria in Isaiah 36-37 can just as easily free from exile in Babylon. Isaiah 40-66 views the future release from Babylon as fact and even foretells events in Jerusalem’s far more distant future.

Isaiah 40-66 subdivides into three sections: chapters 40-48, 49-57, and 58-66. Each section ends by warning that the wicked have no peace; the last, with the wicked’s eternal lack of peace (66:24).

Isaiah 40-48: Yahweh proves His uniqueness by foretelling Cyrus’ freeing of Israel
As you read Isaiah 40, note the three voices that speak up to assure comfort to God’s people (vv. 3, 6, 9) and the particularly moving depiction of God with which the chapter ends (vv. 28-31). In Isaiah 41-48, look for allusions to the Persian king, Cyrus the Great, God’s instrument to free His people from captivity (41:2, 25; 45:13; 48:14). Isaiah even mentions Cyrus by name decades before he is born (44:28; 45:1).

Cyrus is not Israel’s redeemer though, God is. More references to God as Israel’s Redeemer occur in Isaiah 40-48 and in the chapters beyond than in any other book of the Bible. And as Israel’s Redeemer, God is telling them in advance what He will do in order to convince them that there is no other God. Specifically, His foretelling of what He will do in the future through Cyrus proves conclusively that He alone is God. What other god could foretell the future like that? In this context of absolute monotheism, the great invitation to look to Yahweh and be saved is issued to the ends of the earth (45:22). The satirical portrayals of those who make idols reveal the absurdity of idolatry (41:5-7; 44:12-20).

Isaiah 49-57: The Messianic Servant vicariously bears the sins of His people
A figure is introduced in Isaiah 40-48 who will become the focus of Isaiah 49-57. As the Messianic Servant of Yahweh, He will bring deliverance on a far greater scale than Cyrus ever could. Four poems in Isaiah, dubbed “Servant Songs,” make this Servant their central focus, each zooming in on a different aspect of His identity and work.

1. Isaiah 42, the first Servant Song, depicts the Servant as sympathetic, gently but persistently intent on bring justice to the world (vv. 1-9).
2. The second Servant Song clarifies that the Servant’s seeming failure actually leads to success in a much wider mission (49:1-7).
3. In Isaiah 50, the Servant submits Himself to Yahweh, even at great personal cost (vv. 4-7).
4. The fourth Servant Song is rightly the most famous, setting forth Messiah’s vicarious suffering for sin and subsequent exaltation (52:13-53:12). By bearing sin, Yahweh’s righteous Servant will justify many, birthing, as it were, many faithful servants of Yahweh. (After Isaiah 53, the word servant only occurs in the plural.)

Isaiah 58-66: God prepares a kingdom for His servants
These faithful servants of Yahweh are the recipients of eschatological kingdom blessings. The heritage of these servants encompasses Jerusalem’s millennial prosperity, peace, and protection (54:1-17). The invitation to join this happy band of servants is open-ended: come and drink, buy and eat, listen and live, seek and find (55:1-7). Even foreigners can become God’s servants (56:6). Tragically, Israel itself has blind watchmen and other rebels whose sins God will not overlook. He must treat them as His foes. Only those in Zion who turn from transgression experience Him as Redeemer (59:18-21).

The future glory of Zion fills Isaiah’s final chapters. Note the references to “My holy mountain” (56:7; 57:13; 65:11; 66:20). God has only one such mountain, and it is Zion. Isaiah 60 emphasizes the glory of the Lord that will light Jerusalem. Messiah Himself is commissioned to bring comfort to Zion’s mourners Zion (61:3), and the call rings out to persist in intercession for Zion until God makes her “a praise in the earth” (62:7).  

Yahweh will hear this intercession, take vengeance on Zion’s enemies, and comfort Jerusalem (66:6-13). But not all will experience Jerusalem in her future glory (66:14-17). The distinction between God’s servants and those who are not is an eternal one. God’s glory is at stake. Those willing to behold His glory and worship will endure forever (66:18-23), but those who refuse and rebel will be an eternal horror to all mankind (66:24).

​In the end, God’s glory really does fill the whole earth (6:3). And the nation God created for His glory will declare His praise (43:7, 21).

(As you read Isaiah 1-35, look for the repeated words and phrases that I have bolded below.)

Isaiah 1-6: A rebellious people
The vision of Isaiah opens with a sinful nation that needs more chastisement. Judah and Jerusalem have already been sorely chastised, but they have not yet turned from their rebellion against Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel. Jerusalem must be humbled and emptied before it can be exalted and filled. Israel and Judah, for whom God has thoughtfully provided everything, has brought forth nothing except wild fruit (5:4). Isaiah himself, when he sees the thrice-holy Lord of hosts lifted up, confesses that he dwells among a people of unclean lips (6:5). Judgment is coming until only a stump remains (6:13), and Isaiah is God’s messenger to deliver that message. God’s ultimatum to Israel is clear: obey and eat from your land, or disobey and be devoured (1:20). God is still willing to cleanse their sin (1:18), but will they listen?

Isaiah 7-12: Assyria and Immanuel
They will not, so God brings chastisement in the person of the king of Assyria, who will shave Israel like a razor (7:20). The staff in Assyria’s hands is the rod of God’s anger. “In all this, His anger is not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still” (5:25; 9:12, 17, 21; 10:4). Not until Isaiah 12 does God turn from His anger and come to His city, Zion, with deliverance (12:6). In the midst of chastisement, Israel is not to trust in alliances or consult wizards for deliverance from Assyria (8:12, 19). God has a purifying work in the hearts of His people that He is using the King of Assyria to accomplish, but when God is done with him, He will punish the king of Assyria (10:12).

Israel is not devoid of hope, though, because God is with them (8:10). Their land is Immanuel’s (8:8), the son born of a virgin as a sign to stubborn King Ahaz (7:14). He will shatter Israel’s darkness (9:1-2), reign on David’s throne (9:6-7), and as the root of Jesse, stand as a banner for all peoples (11:10-12).

Isaiah 13-23: Ten oracles against the nations
Isaiah 13-23 speaks of more divine wrath, but this time for the nations. God is king over them too, and all the purposes of punishment and restoration that He has planned for them will come to pass (14:24, 26-27; 19:12, 17; 23:8-9). Occasionally hope is extended to the nations but such hope is only found in the Lord of hosts who dwells in Mount Zion (14:32; 16:1, 5; 18:7).

Isaiah 24-27: The world’s end
Ultimately, Yahweh will bring the whole earth to its knees as punishment for its iniquity (Isa. 24-27; see especially 26:21). God will strip bare the earth--nothing more than an over-sized city to Him--but at His city, Zion, He will reign and display His glory (24:23). Therefore, God’s people are to take cover until His wrath passes (26:20-21), lay hold of His strength (27:5), and wait for the day that worship comes to God’s holy mountain, Jerusalem (27:13).

Isaiah 28-33: Six coming woes
At the same time, judgment is coming to both Samaria and Jerusalem (chapters 28-29), but God’s purpose is to purge not destroy (27:7-9). Chastisement is God’s “unusual” work, but He carries it out with wisdom. Like a veteran farmer, God knows just the amount of breaking up and threshing His people need (28:21-29).

God promises to protect Jerusalem from Assyria but in His way and in His timing. No amount of alliance-making or running to Egypt on their part will help. “In returning and rest you shall be saved and your strength shall be in quietness and trust” (30:15). At the right time, God will heal the wounds He has inflicted at the hands of the Assyrians (30:26). Assyria will be shattered by the voice of the Lord (as Isaiah 36-37 will reveal). God’s furnace is in Jerusalem (31:9), and its fire will unleash its fury against the enemies of His people.  He will manifest Himself as Judah’s Judge, Lawgiver, and King, and save them (33:22)!

Isaiah 34-35: Edom’s doom and Zion’s joy
So all the nations better wake up and pay attention (34:1). No design of theirs against God’s people will ultimately succeed. Enemies like Edom will disappear forever, its fortified cities becoming nothing more than a dwelling for beasts (34:5-15).

But, oh!, how different the land of Israel and Judah, with the desert blossoming like a rose and a highway of holiness leading to Zion (35:1-8). Those redeemed by God will walk on that highway as they return to Zion, and all will be joy (35:10).

Chastisement, having accomplished its divine ends, is no more.

To the natural sequence of reading Ecclesiastes and the Song, I included Lamentations in order to make readings on later days more equal in length. Despite the disparity in their content and style, I would like for us to consider all three under the imagery of a garden.

Life outside the garden
Ecclesiastes pictures life outside the Garden of Eden. Mankind now lives “under the sun” and all is vanity. Ecclesiastes presents the frustration, unexplained questions, and futility of life. Welcome to reality! Along the way, however, Ecclesiastes provides some answers, although admittedly not all the answers and not always satisfying answers. The end of the book will provide the ultimate answer (12:13). In addition, Ecclesiastes contains proverbs that set forth wise thinking and behavior. Life’s futility does not excuse relativity. There are rights and wrongs, and a judgment lies ahead (11:9).

According to Ecclesiastes, the panacea for the futility of life under the sun is “godliness with contentment.” Highlight these four themes as you read Ecclesiastes:

1. Recognize and accept the enigmas God allows.
2. Embrace the wisdom God reveals.
3. Enjoy the gifts God gives.
4. In all and above all, reverence and obey God.

Intimacy as a garden
The Song is perhaps the most pure example of Hebrew poetry found in the Old Testament, and it brings the power of its poetry to bear on the romantic relationship of one couple, Solomon and the Shulammite. Imaging their relationship as a garden is not much of a stretch as the Song itself uses the image of a vineyard (2:15). The Song catches up with them during their courtship (1:2-3:5), zooms in on their wedding night (3:6-5:1), and portrays some of the relational hiccups that occur after the wedding (5:2-8:4). 

Their courtship is characterized by longing, admiration, anxiety (3:1-5), and—very importantly—restraint. “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, do not arouse or awaken love until it is desirable” (2:7; 3:5; 8:4). A garden of delights awaits them on their wedding day, but it is not to be enjoyed before then. The fox of premarital indulgence could spoil their vineyard (2:15).

Their wedding night contains procession, excitement, wonder, eagerness, consummation, and sanction. Solomon especially praises his bride for her beauty (4:1-11) and her purity (4:12). The narrator’s voicing his approval of their union conveys God’s sanction of the newlyweds (5:1b). A garden needs tending and so does the garden of romance. Male and female rhythms do not always keep pace together and that can create tension in marriage (5:2-8). But through transparency, communication, and voiced admiration (5:10-16; 6:4-10), a couple can weed out relational tensions and enjoy the ongoing fruits of intimacy.

Two final thoughts on the Song. First, The Song is told largely from the feminine viewpoint and sheds light into feminine thoughts and emotions. Both men and women need to read the Song and profit from its content, but it especially hammers home certain truths to the “softer gender.” The Song is for women what Proverbs 5-7 is for men. It shows along what pathways a woman can be tempted to abandon her treasured purity and sacrifice it on the altar of wanton desire. It also exposes those attitudes or actions that can hinder her marital intimacy and create distance between her and her husband. Second, the Song ends by reiterating the Shulammite’s purity (8:8-10). Being a “wall” before marriage fostered the unsullied satisfaction enjoyed after marriage.

A Garden lost due to sin
Lamentations’ Hebrew name is Ekah, which means “how!” Israel bereaved of Jerusalem and the Temple . . . How can this be? The answer is sin! Israel rebelled against God and was expelled from “garden” He had given them.

Lamentations is a dirge mourning the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Its five chapters are each a poem based on multiples of 22, corresponding to the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Every chapter except chapter 5 is an acrostic. Each chapter also highlights a slightly different theme related to Jerusalem’s destruction.

• Lamentations 1 reports on the lack of anyone to comfort Jerusalem in her sorrow (1:2, 9, 16-17, 21).
• Lamentations 2 views Jerusalem’s destruction as a result of divine wrath (2:1-4, 6, 21-22).
• Lamentations 3 clings to hope in the midst of sorrow because of God’s unchanging goodness (see vv. 21-26).
• Lamentations 4 dwells on the great calamity that befell Jerusalem.
• Lamentations 5, in its entirety, is a prayer. Although Jerusalem’s desolation seems permanent, prayer finds hope in a God who is eternal and sovereign.

Lamentations is relevant for those experiencing chastisement. It is a reminder of sin’s certain and painful consequences. No one gets away with any sin! Second, it is a guide of how to pray during times of chastisement. Speaking of your pain to the Lord is permissible, but do so with a heart of genuine grief and repentance for sins committed. Third, Lamentations is a pointer as to where to hope in times of chastisement for sin. Hope in the character of the God who chastised you—He is good, merciful, compassionate, faithful, just, impartial, eternal, and sovereign. 

In terms of number of words, Proverbs is somewhere in between Nehemiah and Daniel in size. Like psalms, it is poetry and is best read as lines. Think about the relationship between the two lines in a verse in order to understand the truth the verse is communicating. Much of Proverbs is antithetical parallelism, contrasting the path of wisdom with that of the foolish. The Hebrew word “proverb” comes from a verb that means “to represent” or “to be like.” Thus, the proverbs in Proverbs often employ comparisons or contrasts in order to make their point.

The book of Proverbs has six sections.

Section One - Proverbs 1:1-7
Proverbs' brief preface explains the purpose of the entire book and emphasizes that the fear of the Lord is necessary to the acquisition of any true knowledge (v. 7). The fear of the Lord is a central theme in Proverbs (1:7; 2:5; 9:10; 10:27; 14:26-27; 15:16, 33; 16:6; 19:23; 22:4). Proverbs classifies people’s attitude towards the wisdom of fearing God as essentially threefold: the simple, the wise, and the fool. The wise are the most responsive to a book like Proverbs, even though they are already wise. The fool is most in need of Proverbs but it is high unlikely he or she will listen. The simple is the person not yet fully decided as to whether they will choose the path of wisdom or the path of the fool.

Section Two - Proverbs 1:8-9:18
The next nine chapters (1:8-9:18) extol wisdom with the goal of convincing the reader to make wisdom a chief pursuit in his or her life. If the simple will heed these chapters, they have a chance of becoming wise. What emerges in these chapters is that walking in the path of wisdom is a protection, a shield from the evil that can so easily destroy you. These nine chapters are also full of words for way, path, or road. Underline every such word you come to as you read these chapters. I count 52 occurrences. How many do you come up with? Proverbs 9 sets forth clearly the two ways, each with a woman beckoning the traveler. The traveler must choose between Lady Wisdom or Lady Folly. Which will be your choice?

Section Three - Proverbs 10:1-22:16
The remaining chapters of Proverbs set forth what the path of wisdom and the path of folly look like in everyday life. These chapters contain the short, pithy, true-to-life maxims for which Proverbs is primarily known. Proverbs 10:1-22:16 contain 375 proverbs, virtually all one-verse in length. Even in these chapters we see the word way or path repeated. There is a way to life and a way to death, as different from each other as Cain from Abel. The way you think is right may actually be the way to death. You cannot “follow your heart”; you must follow the pathway Proverbs maps out as wisdom. Every aspect of life is impacted by which pathway you choose: your speech, work ethic, choice of companions, business ethics, spending practices, behavior toward kings, treatment of the poor, discipline of children, and response to insults. Wisdom is the skill of choosing what pleases God in all of these areas and more, and the consequences for making the wrong choices are severe (14:12).

Section Four - Proverbs 22:17-24:34
The next section of Proverbs is two collections of wise sayings, probably compiled and edited by Solomon (22:17-24:34), that break out of the one-verse proverb pattern of Proverbs 10:1-22:16.

Section Five - Proverbs 25-29
Proverbs 25-29 is another collection of Solomon’s proverbs, put together in Hezekiah’s day. (Remember that Solomon composed and/or amassed some 3,000 proverbs.) Note the repeated use of picturesque similes in chapters 25-26. Reflect on the simile to catch the point being conveyed.

Section Five - Proverbs 30-31
Two appendices (chs. 30-31) close the book, each written by an unknown figure. Our assumption is that Solomon recognized the merits of their respective wisdom and chose, under inspiration, to include it with his other proverbs. Proverbs 31:10-31 is an acrostic—the virtuous woman from A to Z.
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So  . . . are you wise? Test yourself as you read through Proverbs. Where you see a weakness in a certain area of your life, do a topical study of all that Proverbs says on that topic. Proverbs should challenge you, not discourage you. One key difference between the righteous and the wicked is not that the former never falls but that he gets back up again when he does (24:16). After all, wisdom is a skill, and a skill improves with experience, knowledge, effort, and a teachable spirit. The willingness to be corrected (in order to improve) is a sign of a wise person. Teach a wise man and he acquires knowledge (21:11). Proverbs will make you wiser if you will heed it.

There are several unique features in Psalms 101-150, but let me begin our discussion by suggesting a strategy for reading the psalms and any other biblical poetry.

Poetic Lines
Biblical poetry is best read as lines. A Bible version with poetic layout is a great help in this regard. Take Psalm 115:3, with its two lines, as an example:

“But our God is in the heavens;
All He desires He does.”

Typically a verse will have two and maybe three lines. Read each verse and ask yourself: what is the relationship of the line below to the line above it? The relationship is typically one of three options:

1. Synonymous—where the second line restates the first but with some variation in order to highlight a detail (e.g., 117:1)
2. Antithetical—where the second line gives a contrast to the first line (138:6)
3. Developing—where the second line develops the first in some way

Psalm 123:1 is an example of a “developing relationship,” where the second line explains who “you” is in the first line. In Psalm 115:2, the second line gives the content of what the nations say. Psalm 115:3, our example above, is also “developing”: the result of God’s living in the heavens is that He is unfettered by earthly limitations.

Psalm 110--a purely Messianic psalm
In our discussion of Psalms 1-50, we listed five primary psalm types: praise, lament, thanksgiving, confidence, and wisdom. In treating Psalms 51-100, we suggested the additional psalm type of Zion songs or psalms of worship. Psalms 101-150 provides a good opportunity to bring up messianic psalms since Psalm 110 is the psalm most quoted in the New Testament and possibly the most purely Messianic of all the psalms. Royal or messianic psalms often use words like David, king, or anointed. Because David is a type of Messiah, these psalms often anticipate the “Greater than David” who will someday reign on earth. Psalm 110 is a Davidic psalm in which David calls the Messiah “my Lord.” Jesus seizes upon the unexpected nature of David’s calling one of his sons “my Lord” in His conversations with the religious leaders of His day (Matt 22:42-45). See if you can spot another psalm in our reading for today that repeats the name David four times.

Psalm collections
Psalms 101-150 contain a number of important collection of psalms. The first is Psalms 113-118, sometimes referred to as the “Egyptian Hallel” or as simply “The Hallel.” Hallel is the Hebrew word for “praise.” These psalms praise God for His deliverance of Israel and are read at various Jewish yearly festivals. Psalm 118:22 contains an important Messianic prophecy to which Jesus (Matt. 21:42) and Peter (Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:4, 7) alluded in the New Testament. Psalms 120-134 are all titled “songs of degrees” or “songs of ascent.” These songs were sung by pilgrims as they ascended to Jerusalem for worship. Psalms 146-150 all begin and end with the words Hallelu-Yah or “Praise Yahweh,” creating a crescendo of praise that brings the book of Psalms to a dramatic close. “Let everything with breath praise Yahweh” (150:6).

The acrostic of Psalm 119
Psalms 101-150 also contains the longest psalm in the entire psalter. Psalm 119 is long, in part, because it is an acrostic employing the entire Hebrew alphabet of 22 letters. That’s why the psalm has 22 sections. Many Bibles will include a Hebrew letter before each of the 22 sections. That Hebrew letter is the letter with which each of the eight verses in that section begins. So, for example, in the section titled zayin (vv. 49-56), every verse begins with the letter zayin. Because the Hebrew word “remember,” begins with the letter zayin, it is easy to understand why the word “remember” occurs only here in all of Psalm 119 (vv. 49, 52, 55). Psalm 119, of course, is a prayer that expresses the psalmist’s relationship to God’s Word. It is as if he has organized his prayer from A to Z!

Examples of poetic artistry
Psalms 101-150 contain many other examples of poetic artistry beside the acrostic of Psalm 119. Psalm 136’s pithiness becomes more apparent when you recognize its brevity of expression. This is the psalm in which every verse ends with the refrain “for His enduring loyalty is forever.” In Hebrew, this refrain is three words with a total of six syllables--ki le‘olam chasdo—creating a short, staccato-like response to everything the psalm says about God. Psalms 101-150 also contain much imagery. Psalm 114 personifies the sea as being afraid and the mountains as skipping (vv. 3-4). “The net is broken and we have escaped” (124:7) dramatically pictures Israel’s harrowing escape from her enemies. Children are not just declared a blessing; they are likened to arrows (Ps. 127:4). Artistry also appears in the way the psalmist will use semantic rhyme (rhymes of meaning) to develop a theme. In Psalm 118:10-12, he interchanges the words “surrounded” and “destroyed” in order to make his point. In vv. 15-16, note the triple repetition of “right hand.”

Two themes in Psalm 101-150
Psalm 101-150 reiterate a couple of important themes. One is God’s willingness to bless not just Israel but all those who fear Him. Fearing God becomes a term for a genuine follower or worshiper of God (115:11; 118:4; 119:74, 79; 128:1, 4; 135:20; 145:19; 147:11). Another phrase unique (at least in the Hebrew formulation of it) to Psalm 101-150 is God as “Maker of heaven and earth” (115:15; 121:2; 124:8; 134:3; 146:6). Only the One who makes heaven and earth is God. His name is Yahweh, and the help He offers His people is invaluable and impenetrable.