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Isaiah Offers Hope
1 Ahaz, the son of Jotham and the grandson of Uzziah, was king of Judah when King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel went to attack Jerusalem. But they were not able to do what they had planned. 2When news reached the royal palace that Syria had joined forces with Israel, King Ahaz and everyone in Judah were so terrified that they shook like trees in a windstorm.
3Then the Lord said to me:
Take your son Shearjashub and go see King Ahaz. You will find him on the road near the cloth makers' shops at the end of the canal that brings water from the upper pool. 4Tell Ahaz to stop worrying. There's no need for him to be afraid of King Rezin and King Pekah. They are very angry, but they are nothing more than a dying fire. Ahaz doesn't need to fear 5their evil threats 6to invade and defeat Judah and Jerusalem and to let the son of Tabeel be king in his place.
7I, the Lord, promise that this will never happen. 8-9Damascus is just the capital of Syria, and King Rezin rules only in Damascus. Samaria is just the capital of Israel, and King Pekah rules only in Samaria. But in less than 65 years, Israel will be destroyed. And if Ahaz and his officials don't trust me, they will be defeated.
Reflect
(note: this note follows the text of the NIV. The CEV reads a little differently in places.)
Are you reading this on a phone? On a friend’s Facebook wall? In an email? Is it starting your day or ending it, or just a chance encounter?
Isaiah seeks out Ahaz as he inspects the aqueduct (v 3), worried about the siege by Jerusalem’s enemies. He has a message to give him, from God.
Is he seeking you out today?
How often are we out and about our business, with no thought for God. We complain of course, when he doesn’t deliver: make our business go well. Then like Ahaz we will duck and dive, shadow boxing our enemies; wheel and deal, looking for help from wherever we can.
Isaiah warns Ahaz, stop fearing the wrong thing, stop trusting anyone but God.
“If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.” (7:9b NIV)
But we don’t have our personal prophet. Isaiah is not going to track us down – though if you have someone like that, don’t be like Ahaz and ignore them. Cherish them. It’s easy to swipe and delete.
Writing this has been my Isaiah. Once upon a time I started my day with a passage and a prayer – and a note to self. Then I missed a day, then a week – after all there are viaducts to fortify (see v 3). What had been a quiet intimate moment with wisdom I would spend the day unpacking, became an interruption to my firefighting. I trusted my own water supply. Smoldering embers became forest fires. But Isaiah caught up with me on the ramparts: “Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid” (v 4, NIV, where CEV has “Tell Ahaz to stop worrying”).
If we hope that God will be with us, we must be with God. Unless we are firm, regular, fixed, we will be overwhelmed by the enemies at our gate. Start today.
Respond
Thank you for sending Isaiahs. Thank you for not leaving us to our own devices, but tracking us down on them. Thank you for wanting to be with us, even when we don’t want to be with you. Help us be quiet, not fear, take heed. Meet us in the morning.
Alexander Best
Alexander cultivated a network of Christian leaders, OneMission, to promote collaboration, including service to the 15,000 new students arriving at University of Toronto each fall, under the umbrella, ServeToronto. He helped foster the same at the PanAm Games in Toronto and is the former Canadian Director of the Lausanne Movement Canada. He publishes THisToronto, a social media platform promoting & connecting the activities of over 300 ministries and churches in the city."