READING: Isaiah 3-6, Ephesians 2
I am continually struck by the nature and power of sin, even among God’s people. It seems that people personally and corporately choose at first to hide in their sin (much like Adam and Eve did in Genesis 3), then a growing acceptance of sin gives people illegitimate permission to bring their sin increasingly into the public without shame. The combination of the pleasure of sin and numbness toward conviction leads to open rebellion—and God must then bring judgment.
Here’s the way Isaiah described that situation in his day: “For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen because they have spoken and acted against the Lord, defying his glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them, and like Sodom, they flaunt their sin; they do not conceal it” (Isa 3:8-9). Their words, their actions, and, indeed, the looks on their faces revealed that they openly stood against their Creator. They were no better than the people of Sodom, who showed no embarrassment or remorse in their drive to have sex with Lot’s guests (Gen 19:1-11). As one writer said of Isaiah’s people, “Sin is no longer sin, it is the new morality.”*
The sinful revolt of the Israelites in Isaiah’s day would not last without judgment, however; instead, Isaiah wrote, “Woe to them, for they have brought disaster on themselves” (Isa 3:9). The Lord God of Armies would carry out judgment on His people, and they would reap what they had sown (Gal 6:7). Once again, the scriptures remind us of the long-term destructive nature of our sin—and that “the Lord of Armies is exalted by his justice, and the holy God shows that he is holy through his righteousness” (Isa 5:16).
PRAYER: “God, bring me to the place where I detest my sin.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Isaiah 7:1-10:4, Ephesians 3
*Motyer, J. A. (1999). Isaiah: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 20, p. 64). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.