ISAIAH 33 - Distress and help

NOTES BY VERSE

Note: each ** comment in this document is listed in numerical order according to the verse(s) from this chapter

** Isaiah again conveys warnings to those who think they have the upper hand; the Lord will respond and save Zion in His good time; His people are to continue to seek Him every morning in the meantime even when God’s timing may not make sense

Isaiah 33:1 NIV

[1] Woe to you, destroyer,

 you who have not been destroyed! Woe to you, betrayer, you who have not been betrayed! When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying, you will be betrayed.

Isaiah 33:2 NIV

[2] Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.

Isaiah 33:20-22 NIV

[20] Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken. [21] There the Lord will be our Mighty One. It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams. No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them. [22] For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us.

** God in early Old Testament days established the path to salvation through repentance and rest; our salvation can still be found in quietness, repentance, and trust in God

Isaiah 30:15 NIV

[15] This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.

Exodus 14:14 NIV

[14] The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

Isaiah 32:16-18 NIV

[16] The Lord's justice will dwell in the desert, his righteousness live in the fertile field. [17] The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. [18] My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.

Isaiah 33:6 NIV

[6] He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

Isaiah 45:22 NIV

[22] “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.

Psalm 62:1-2 NIV

[1] Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. [2] Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

** When we lose the fear of God, we open ourselves to sin and lawlessness  <B310>

• Jesus' love keeps us from being legalistic while the fear of God keeps us from lawlessness

• The fear of God is not being afraid of Him, but being terrified we are NOT WITH Him

Philippians 2:12 NIV

[12] Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed---not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence---continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,

Isaiah 33:6 NIV

[6] He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

• The fear of God promotes an awareness of His authority and builds respect in our relationship with Him

Psalm 25:14 NIV

[14] The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.

• Those who do not fear God lose the respect and intimacy they have with Him (Psalm 25:14)

• Jesus ends up becoming fictitious and His presence in their life is lost, making it easier to walk away from God and the church altogether

• Millions of Christians in today's churches love Jesus but do not fear God

• Many do not fear the CONSEQUENCES of stepping away from God  <M1506>

** Knowledge leads to wisdom and ignorance leads to foolishness  <H85>

The 19th century Old Testament scholar EJ Young remarked, “Wisdom is the true and correct evaluation of things, whereas knowledge is the true recognition of what things are. It emphasizes the objective, whereas ‘wisdom’ brings to the fore the subjective aspect.”

Proverbs 9:10-11 NIV

[10] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. [11] For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.

Isaiah 33:6 NIV

[6] He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

** God is our stable foundation who offers truth through His Word in these last days of insanity

Isaiah 33:6 NIV

[6] He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

Psalm 31:1-5,14 NIV

[1] In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. [2] Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. [3] Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me. [4] Keep me free from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge. [5] Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, Lord, my faithful God. [14] But I trust in you, Lord; I say, “You are my God.”

** Believers have the ultimate hope during these terrible last days because our hope is in God who knows the beginning from the end!  <H84>

1 John 4:4 NIV

[4] You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

John 16:33 NIV

[33] “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 13:19 NIV

[19] “I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am.

Luke 21:34 NIV

[34] “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap.

1 Timothy 4:1-2 NIV

[1] The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. [2] Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.

Titus 2:13 NIV

[13] while we wait for the blessed hope---the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ

Isaiah 33:6 NIV

[6] He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

** Negotiations with Sennacherib had been futile (vs 7) and the Assyrians threatened a second siege and “all was terror, grief and confusion”; Isaiah is addressing this situation in this 33rd chapter  <B20>

Isaiah 33:7-8 NIV

[7] Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly. [8] The highways are deserted, no travelers are on the roads. The treaty is broken, its witnesses are despised, no one is respected.

Isaiah 33:7-8,14 NIV

[7] Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly. [8] The highways are deserted, no travelers are on the roads. The treaty is broken, its witnesses are despised, no one is respected. [14] The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: “Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?”

** Between the view that is enjoyed of the Redeemer's glory on earth, and that which is realized by the redeemed in Heaven — there is a threefold distinction:

In the first place, His glory as seen here, is dark and obscure, but in Heaven it is clear and unclouded. The apostle speaks of our beholding Him now imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror. It is by means of certain indistinct mediums, such as the representations of His word and ordinances; but He will be seen above, face to face!

In the second place, His glory is beheld here, only in separate parts and portions. The things recorded of Him in the sacred writings are studied one by one, and, by comparing them together, we form a general estimate of His character. In some passages, we have an account of His person; in others, of His offices; in others, of His love or mercy. And it is by collecting these scattered fragments together, that our knowledge of Him is now obtained.  

It is thus that the Savior is seen here on earth; but how will it be in Heaven? We shall see Him all at once — complete and entire, in one vast blaze of unobscured glory!

And, in the third place, the view we have of Christ on earth is only in occasional glances. There are seasons in the experience of every believer when he has to say with Job, "Behold I go forward but He is not there; and backward but I cannot perceive Him!" Or in the language of the prophet, "Truly, you are a God who hides Yourself!"

But, precious truth! the vision in Heaven will be perpetual; it will be altogether unbroken and undisturbed. "Your sun shall no more go down, neither shall your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord shall be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended!"  <M129>

Isaiah 33:17 NIV

[17] Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and view a land that stretches afar.

** The name ‘Zion’ can refer or be a synonym for different areas

Areas include the:

• Temple Mount (Ps 2:6)

• City of Jerusalem (Is 33:20)

• Entire Jewish nation (Is 33:14)

• Millennial Jerusalem (Is 2, Heb 12:22)  <R173>

Psalm 2:6 NIV

[6] “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain. ”

Isaiah 33:20 NIV

[20] Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.

Isaiah 33:14 NIV

[14] The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: “Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?”

Hebrews 12:22 NIV

[22] But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly

** God will return His people to Israel in the end of days and the Lord Almighty will reestablish Jerusalem as holy; He will rule the world from Jerusalem with an iron hand

• Coincidentally, Jerusalem is geographically located at the center of Israel and the Temple Mount centrally located in Jerusalem

• Israel is in a central position in the Middle East surrounded by Jihadist neighbors who want to "march to Jerusalem"

• The world is increasingly turning its attention toward Jerusalem  <S2002>

• The Lord declared that when the Jews were regathered to Israel, they would never again be removed

• His Word makes clear that the Jewish people will be hated and opposed by the surrounding nations

• As Arab nations plot to destroy Israel, the UN resolves to ostracize the single democratic nation in the Middle East, and the West dithers and divests, Israel will endure

• Not because of the IDF’s strength or Israeli elected leaders’ prowess, but because the LORD God Almighty has promised  <M139>

Ezekiel 11:17-21 NIV

[17] “Therefore say: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.' [18] “They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. [19] I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. [20] Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. [21] But as for those whose hearts are devoted to their vile images and detestable idols, I will bring down on their own heads what they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord. ”

Isaiah 33:20 NIV

[20] Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.

Zechariah 12:2-3 NIV

[2] “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. [3] On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.

Revelation 21:2-3 NIV

[2] I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. [3] And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.