The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 24: “Woe to David's City” (Isaiah 29:1-24)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 24: “Woe to David's City” (Isaiah 29:1-24)
1. The Lord Humbles Jerusalem (29:1-16)
a. The Siege of Jerusalem (29:1-8)
29 Woe to you, Ariel, Ariel,
the city where David settled!
Add year to year
and let your cycle of festivals go on.
2 Yet I will besiege Ariel;
she will mourn and lament,
she will be to me like an altar hearth. 
3 I will encamp against you on all sides;
I will encircle you with towers
and set up my siege works against you.
4 Brought low, you will speak from the ground;
your speech will mumble out of the dust.
Your voice will come ghostlike from the earth;
out of the dust your speech will whisper.
5 But your many enemies will become like fine dust,
the ruthless hordes like blown chaff.
Suddenly, in an instant,
6 the Lord Almighty will come
with thunder and earthquake and great noise,
with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire.
7 Then the hordes of all the nations that fight against Ariel,
that attack her and her fortress and besiege her,
will be as it is with a dream,
with a vision in the night—
8 as when a hungry person dreams of eating,
but awakens hungry still;
as when a thirsty person dreams of drinking,
but awakens faint and thirsty still.
So will it be with the hordes of all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.
b. Spiritual Blindness (29:9-14)
9 Be stunned and amazed,
blind yourselves and be sightless;
be drunk, but not from wine,
stagger, but not from beer.
10 The Lord has brought over you a deep sleep:
He has sealed your eyes (the prophets);
he has covered your heads (the seers).
11 For you this whole vision is nothing but words sealed in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” 12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.”
13 The Lord says:
“These people come near to me with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
is based on merely human rules they have been taught. 
14 Therefore once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;
the wisdom of the wise will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.”
c. Practical Atheism (29:15-16)
15 Woe to those who go to great depths
to hide their plans from the Lord,
who do their work in darkness and think,
“Who sees us? Who will know?”
16 You turn things upside down,
as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!
Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it,
“You did not make me”?
Can the pot say to the potter,
“You know nothing”?
2. A Glorious Transformation (29:17-24)
a. Moral Disorder Righted (29:17-21)
17 In a very short time, will not Lebanon be turned into a fertile field
and the fertile field seem like a forest?
18 In that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll,
and out of gloom and darkness
the eyes of the blind will see.
19 Once more the humble will rejoice in the Lord;
the needy will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 The ruthless will vanish,
the mockers will disappear,
and all who have an eye for evil will be cut down—
21 those who with a word make someone out to be guilty,
who ensnare the defender in court
and with false testimony deprive the innocent of justice.
b. Spiritual Greatness Revived (29:22-24)
22 Therefore this is what the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, says to the descendants of Jacob:
“No longer will Jacob be ashamed;
no longer will their faces grow pale.
23 When they see among them their children,
the work of my hands,
they will keep my name holy;
they will acknowledge the holiness of the Holy One of Jacob,
and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24 Those who are wayward in spirit will gain understanding;
those who complain will accept instruction.”

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 23: Woe to Ephraim & Judah (Isaiah 28:1–29)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 23: Woe to Ephraim & Judah (Isaiah 28:1–29)
A Short Review of the Structure of Isaiah1
Importance of chapters 36-39
Chapters 1-35Chs. 1-6: Opening Messages and the Call of Isaiah
Chs. 7-12: The Rule of Assyria and the Messiah
Chs. 13-23: Oracles against the Nations
Chs. 24-27: The Apocalypse
Chs. 28-35: Book of Woes and Restoration
Chapters 36-39: Historical Interlude
Chapters 40-66
The Book of Woes and Restoration: Isaiah 28–352
Woe to Ephraim (Israel) and Judah (28:1–29)
Woe to Jerusalem and Her Restoration (29:1–24)
The Condemnation of Judah’s Alliance with Egypt (30:1–33)
The Deliverance of Judah by God, Not Egypt (31:1–9)
The Rule of the Righteous King (32:1–20)
Woe to Assyria and Blessing to Jerusalem (33:1–24)
God’s Day of Vengeance against the Nations (34:1–17)
The Joy and Salvation of the Redeemed (35:1–10)
Woe to Ephraim (Israel) and Judah (28:1–29)
Woe to Ephraim (Israel) (28:1–8)
Isaiah 28:1–8 (NIV)
1 Woe to that wreath, the pride of Ephraim’s drunkards, to the fading flower, his glorious beauty, set on the head of a fertile valley— to that city, the pride of those laid low by wine! 2 See, the Lord has one who is powerful and strong. Like a hailstorm and a destructive wind, like a driving rain and a flooding downpour, he will throw it forcefully to the ground. 3 That wreath, the pride of Ephraim’s drunkards, will be trampled underfoot. 4 That fading flower, his glorious beauty, set on the head of a fertile valley, will be like figs ripe before harvest— as soon as people see them and take them in hand, they swallow them. 5 In that day the Lord Almighty will be a glorious crown, a beautiful wreath for the remnant of his people. 6 He will be a spirit of justice to the one who sits in judgment, a source of strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate. 7 And these also stagger from wine and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble when rendering decisions. 8 All the tables are covered with vomit and there is not a spot without filth. 
Judgement against Jerusalem’s Leaders (28:9–29)
Immature People Don’t Listen (28:9–13)
Isaiah 28:9–13 (NIV)
9 “Who is it he is trying to teach? To whom is he explaining his message? To children weaned from their milk, to those just taken from the breast? 10 For it is: Do this, do that, a rule for this, a rule for that; a little here, a little there.” 11 Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people, 12 to whom he said, “This is the resting place, let the weary rest”; and, “This is the place of repose”— but they would not listen. 13 So then, the word of the Lord to them will become: Do this, do that, a rule for this, a rule for that; a little here, a little there— so that as they go they will fall backward; they will be injured and snared and captured.
The Lord Rebuilds His Way (28:14–22)
Isaiah 28:14–22 (NIV)
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem. 15 You boast, “We have entered into a covenant with death, with the realm of the dead we have made an agreement. When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by, it cannot touch us, for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.” 16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. 17 I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line; hail will sweep away your refuge, the lie, and water will overflow your hiding place. 18 Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the realm of the dead will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it. 19 As often as it comes it will carry you away; morning after morning, by day and by night, it will sweep through.” The understanding of this message will bring sheer terror. 20 The bed is too short to stretch out on, the blanket too narrow to wrap around you. 21 The Lord will rise up as he did at Mount Perazim, he will rouse himself as in the Valley of Gibeon— to do his work, his strange work, and perform his task, his alien task. 22 Now stop your mocking, or your chains will become heavier; the Lord, the Lord Almighty, has told me of the destruction decreed against the whole land.
The Parable of the Farmer (28:23–29)
Isaiah 28:23–29 (NIV)
23 Listen and hear my voice; pay attention and hear what I say. 24 When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually? Does he keep on breaking up and working the soil? 25 When he has leveled the surface, does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin? Does he not plant wheat in its place, barley in its plot, and spelt in its field? 26 His God instructs him and teaches him the right way. 27 Caraway is not threshed with a sledge, nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin; caraway is beaten out with a rod, and cumin with a stick. 28 Grain must be ground to make bread; so one does not go on threshing it forever. The wheels of a threshing cart may be rolled over it, but one does not use horses to grind grain. 29 All this also comes from the Lord Almighty, whose plan is wonderful, whose wisdom is magnificent.1 Herbert M. Wolf, Interpreting Isaiah: The Suffering and Glory of the Messiah (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1985), 39–50.2 Adapted from Wolf, Interpreting Isaiah, 147–169, and Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Introduction, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 22: "Israel's Coming Salvation" (Isaiah 27:1-13)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 22: "Israel's Coming Salvation" (Isaiah 27:1-13)1The Destruction of Evil (Isaiah 27:1)
1 In that day, the Lord will punish with his sword— his fierce, great and powerful sword— Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea.Israel’s Position as God’s Vineyard (Isaiah 27:2-6)
2 In that day— “Sing about a fruitful vineyard: 3 I, the Lord, watch over it; I water it continually. I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it. 4 I am not angry. If only there were briers and thorns confronting me! I would march against them in battle; I would set them all on fire. 5 Or else let them come to me for refuge; let them make peace with me, yes, let them make peace with me.” 6 In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit.The Purpose behind God’s Judgment (Isaiah 27:7-11)7 Has the Lord struck her as he struck down those who struck her? Has she been killed as those were killed who killed her? 8 By warfare and exile you contend with her— with his fierce blast he drives her out, as on a day the east wind blows. 9 By this, then, will Jacob’s guilt be atoned for, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: When he makes all the altar stones to be like limestone crushed to pieces, no Asherah poles or incense altars will be left standing. 10 The fortified city stands desolate, an abandoned settlement, forsaken like the wilderness; there the calves graze, there they lie down; they strip its branches bare. 11 When its twigs are dry, they are broken off and women come and make fires with them. For this is a people without understanding; so their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor.The Returning Remnant (Isaiah 27:12-13)12 In that day the Lord will thresh from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, Israel, will be gathered up one by one. 13 And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.Concluding Thoughts from Isaiah 24-27
• God Is in Control• God’s Sovereignty Includes Judgment and Salvation• God Calls Us to Peace• Great Days Are Coming!
1 The following outline is adapted from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Survey, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 21: “Judah’s Song of Deliverance” (Isaiah 26:1–21)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 21: “Judah’s Song of Deliverance” (Isaiah 26:1–21)
Judah’s Praise (26:1-6)1
Secure in Peace (26:1-4)
1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts. 2 Open the gates that the righteous nation may enter, the nation that keeps faith. 3 You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. 4 Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
Down to the Dust (26:5–6)
5 He humbles those who dwell on high, he lays the lofty city low; he levels it to the ground and casts it down to the dust. 6 Feet trample it down— the feet of the oppressed, the footsteps of the poor.
Judah’s Prayer (26:7-21)
The Divinely Smoothed Pathway (26:7-9)
7 The path of the righteous is level; you, the Upright One, make the way of the righteous smooth. 8 Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. 9 My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.
Impenetrable Blindness (26:10-11)
10 But when grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and do not regard the majesty of the Lord. 11 Lord, your hand is lifted high, but they do not see it. Let them see your zeal for your people and be put to shame; let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them.
The Divinely Ordained Peace (26:12-15)
12 Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us. 13 Lord our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone do we honor. 14 They are now dead, they live no more; their spirits do not rise. You punished them and brought them to ruin; you wiped out all memory of them. 15 You have enlarged the nation, Lord; you have enlarged the nation. You have gained glory for yourself; you have extended all the borders of the land.
Out of the Dust (26:16-19)
16 Lord, they came to you in their distress; when you disciplined them, they could barely whisper a prayer. 17 As a pregnant woman about to give birth writhes and cries out in her pain, so were we in your presence, Lord. 18 We were with child, we writhed in labor, but we gave birth to wind. We have not brought salvation to the earth, and the people of the world have not come to life. 19 But your dead will live, Lord; their bodies will rise— let those who dwell in the dust wake up and shout for joy— your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead.
Secure from Wrath (26:20-21)
20 Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. 21 See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer.
1 The outline for this lesson is adapted from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Survey (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007) and J. A. Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 212.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 20: “God’s Victory over His Enemies” (Isaiah 25:1–12)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 20: “God’s Victory over His Enemies” (Isaiah 25:1–12)1
1. Praise to God (25:1–5)
a. God Has Demonstrated His Faithfulness (25:1–3)
Isaiah 25:1–3 NIV1 Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. 2 You have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified town a ruin, the foreigners’ stronghold a city no more; it will never be rebuilt. 3 Therefore strong peoples will honor you; cities of ruthless nations will revere you.
b. God Has Protected His People (25:4–5)
Isaiah 25:4–5 NIV4 You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like a storm driving against a wall 5 and like the heat of the desert. You silence the uproar of foreigners; as heat is reduced by the shadow of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless is stilled.
2. Description of God’s Restoration and Blessings (25:6–12)
a. God Will Establish Fellowship with His People (25:6–7)
Isaiah 25:6–7 NIV6 On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines. 7 On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations;
b. God Will Comfort His People (25:8–9)
Isaiah 25:8–9 NIV8 he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken. 9 In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”
c. God Will Remove His People’s Enemies (25:10–12)
Isaiah 25:10–12 NIV10 The hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain; but Moab will be trampled in their land as straw is trampled down in the manure. 11 They will stretch out their hands in it, as swimmers stretch out their hands to swim. God will bring down their pride despite the cleverness of their hands. 12 He will bring down your high fortified walls and lay them low; he will bring them down to the ground, to the very dust.
1The outline for this lesson is taken from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Survey (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 18: "Jerusalem and Tyre" (Isaiah 22:1-23:18)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 18: "Jerusalem and Tyre" (Isaiah 22:1-23:18)
1. A Message against Jerusalem (22:1-25)1
Jerusalem’s Siege (22:1–14)
22 A prophecy against the Valley of Vision:
What troubles you now,
that you have all gone up on the roofs,
2 you town so full of commotion,
you city of tumult and revelry?
Your slain were not killed by the sword,
nor did they die in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled together;
they have been captured without using the bow.
All you who were caught were taken prisoner together,
having fled while the enemy was still far away.
4 Therefore I said, “Turn away from me;
let me weep bitterly.
Do not try to console me
over the destruction of my people.”
5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day
of tumult and trampling and terror
in the Valley of Vision,
a day of battering down walls
and of crying out to the mountains.
6 Elam takes up the quiver,
with her charioteers and horses;
Kir uncovers the shield.
7 Your choicest valleys are full of chariots,
and horsemen are posted at the city gates.
8 The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah,
and you looked in that day
to the weapons in the Palace of the Forest.
9 You saw that the walls of the City of David
were broken through in many places;
you stored up water
in the Lower Pool.
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem
and tore down houses to strengthen the wall.
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls
for the water of the Old Pool,
but you did not look to the One who made it,
or have regard for the One who planned it long ago.
12 The Lord, the Lord Almighty,
called you on that day
to weep and to wail,
to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.
13 But see, there is joy and revelry,
slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep,
eating of meat and drinking of wine!
“Let us eat and drink,” you say,
“for tomorrow we die!”
14 The Lord Almighty has revealed this in my hearing: “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for,” says the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
Shebna and Eliakim (22:15–25)
Shebna: Leadership for His Own Gain (22:15-19)
15 This is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“Go, say to this steward,
to Shebna the palace administrator:
16 What are you doing here and who gave you permission
to cut out a grave for yourself here,
hewing your grave on the height
and chiseling your resting place in the rock?
17 “Beware, the Lord is about to take firm hold of you
and hurl you away, you mighty man.
18 He will roll you up tightly like a ball
and throw you into a large country.
There you will die
and there the chariots you were so proud of
will become a disgrace to your master’s house.
19 I will depose you from your office,
and you will be ousted from your position.
Eliakim: Leadership to Serve Others (22:20-25)
20 “In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. 21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. 22 I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 23 I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. 24 All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars.
25 “In that day,” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.
2. A Message against Tyre (23:1-18)
Call to Lament (23:1-7)
23 A prophecy against Tyre:
Wail, you ships of Tarshish!
For Tyre is destroyed
and left without house or harbor.
From the land of Cyprus
word has come to them.
2 Be silent, you people of the island
and you merchants of Sidon,
whom the seafarers have enriched.
3 On the great waters
came the grain of the Shihor;
the harvest of the Nile  was the revenue of Tyre,
and she became the marketplace of the nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon, and you fortress of the sea,
for the sea has spoken:
“I have neither been in labor nor given birth;
I have neither reared sons nor brought up daughters.”
5 When word comes to Egypt,
they will be in anguish at the report from Tyre.
6 Cross over to Tarshish;
wail, you people of the island.
7 Is this your city of revelry,
the old, old city,
whose feet have taken her
to settle in far-off lands?
Tyre's Judgment and Future (23:8-18)
8 Who planned this against Tyre,
the bestower of crowns,
whose merchants are princes,
whose traders are renowned in the earth?
9 The Lord Almighty planned it,
to bring down her pride in all her splendor
and to humble all who are renowned on the earth.
10 Till your land as they do along the Nile,
Daughter Tarshish,
for you no longer have a harbor.
11 The Lord has stretched out his hand over the sea
and made its kingdoms tremble.
He has given an order concerning Phoenicia
that her fortresses be destroyed.
12 He said, “No more of your reveling,
Virgin Daughter Sidon, now crushed!
“Up, cross over to Cyprus;
even there you will find no rest.”
13 Look at the land of the Babylonians, 
this people that is now of no account!
The Assyrians have made it
a place for desert creatures;
they raised up their siege towers,
they stripped its fortresses bare
and turned it into a ruin.
14 Wail, you ships of Tarshish;
your fortress is destroyed!
15 At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, the span of a king’s life. But at the end of these seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the prostitute:
16 “Take up a harp, walk through the city,
you forgotten prostitute;
play the harp well, sing many a song,
so that you will be remembered.”
17 At the end of seventy years, the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her lucrative prostitution and will ply her trade with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth. 18 Yet her profit and her earnings will be set apart for the Lord; they will not be stored up or hoarded. Her profits will go to those who live before the Lord, for abundant food and fine clothes.
Tyre's Ultimate Fate
 
1 The outline for this lesson was taken from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Survey (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 17: “Babylon, Edom, and Arabia” (Isaiah 21:1-17)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 17: “Babylon, Edom, and Arabia” (Isaiah 21:1-17)
1. The Prophecy against Babylon (Isaiah 21:1-10)
Isaiah 21:1–10 (NIV)
21 A prophecy against the Desert by the Sea:
Like whirlwinds sweeping through the southland,
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2 A dire vision has been shown to me:
The traitor betrays, the looter takes loot.
Elam, attack! Media, lay siege!
I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.
3 At this my body is racked with pain,
pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;
I am staggered by what I hear,
I am bewildered by what I see.
4 My heart falters,
fear makes me tremble;
the twilight I longed for
has become a horror to me.
5 They set the tables,
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink!
Get up, you officers,
oil the shields!
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookout
and have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariots
with teams of horses,
riders on donkeys
or riders on camels,
let him be alert,
fully alert.”
8 And the lookout  shouted,
“Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower;
every night I stay at my post.
9 Look, here comes a man in a chariot
with a team of horses.
And he gives back the answer:
‘Babylon has fallen, has fallen!
All the images of its gods
lie shattered on the ground!’ ”
10 My people who are crushed on the threshing floor,
I tell you what I have heard
from the Lord Almighty,
from the God of Israel.
2. The Prophecy against Edom (Isaiah 21:11-12)
Isaiah 21:11–12 (NIV)
11 A prophecy against Dumah:
Someone calls to me from Seir,
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?”
12 The watchman replies,
“Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you would ask, then ask;
and come back yet again.”
3. The Prophecy against Arabia (Isaiah 21:13-17)
Isaiah 21:13–17 (NIV)
13 A prophecy against Arabia:
You caravans of Dedanites,
who camp in the thickets of Arabia,
14 bring water for the thirsty;
you who live in Tema,
bring food for the fugitives.
15 They flee from the sword,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow
and from the heat of battle.
16 This is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a servant bound by contract would count it, all the splendor of Kedar will come to an end. 17 The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.” The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 16: “Egypt and Cush” (Isaiah 19:1–20:6)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 16: “Egypt and Cush” (Isaiah 19:1–20:6)
1. A Message concerning Egypt (19:1–25)
a. Judgment against Egypt and Its Leaders (19:1–15)
i. A Rebuke of Egypt’s Idols (19:1–4)
Isaiah 19:1–4 (NIV)
1 A prophecy against Egypt: See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud and is coming to Egypt. The idols of Egypt tremble before him, and the hearts of the Egyptians melt with fear. 2 “I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian— brother will fight against brother, neighbor against neighbor, city against city, kingdom against kingdom. 3 The Egyptians will lose heart, and I will bring their plans to nothing; they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead, the mediums and the spiritists. 4 I will hand the Egyptians over to the power of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
ii. A Rebuke to Egypt’s Ecology and Industry (19:5–10)
Isaiah 19:5–10 (NIV)
5 The waters of the river will dry up, and the riverbed will be parched and dry. 6 The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up. The reeds and rushes will wither, 7 also the plants along the Nile, at the mouth of the river. Every sown field along the Nile will become parched, will blow away and be no more. 8 The fishermen will groan and lament, all who cast hooks into the Nile; those who throw nets on the water will pine away. 9 Those who work with combed flax will despair, the weavers of fine linen will lose hope. 10 The workers in cloth will be dejected, and all the wage earners will be sick at heart.
iii. A Rebuke to Egypt’s Leaders (19:11–15)
Isaiah 19:11–15 (NIV)
11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; the wise counselors of Pharaoh give senseless advice. How can you say to Pharaoh, “I am one of the wise men, a disciple of the ancient kings”? 12 Where are your wise men now? Let them show you and make known what the Lord Almighty has planned against Egypt. 13 The officials of Zoan have become fools, the leaders of Memphis are deceived; the cornerstones of her peoples have led Egypt astray. 14 The Lord has poured into them a spirit of dizziness; they make Egypt stagger in all that she does, as a drunkard staggers around in his vomit. 15 There is nothing Egypt can do— head or tail, palm branch or reed.
b. Egypt’s Submission and Restoration (19:16–25)
Isaiah 19:16–25 (NIV)
16 In that day the Egyptians will become weaklings. They will shudder with fear at the uplifted hand that the Lord Almighty raises against them. 17 And the land of Judah will bring terror to the Egyptians; everyone to whom Judah is mentioned will be terrified, because of what the Lord Almighty is planning against them.
18 In that day five cities in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord Almighty. One of them will be called the City of the Sun. 
19 In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt, and a monument to the Lord at its border. 20 It will be a sign and witness to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge the Lord. They will worship with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them. 22 The Lord will strike Egypt with a plague; he will strike them and heal them. They will turn to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.
23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 24 In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing  on the earth. 25 The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”
2. Isaiah’s Sign against Egypt and Cush (20:1–6)
Isaiah 20:1–6 (NIV)
1In the year that the supreme commander, sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdod and attacked and captured it—2at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz. He said to him, “Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet.” And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot. 3Then the Lord said, “Just as my servant Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years, as a sign and portent against Egypt and Cush, 4so the king of Assyria will lead away stripped and barefoot the Egyptian captives and Cushite exiles, young and old, with buttocks bared—to Egypt’s shame. 5Those who trusted in Cush and boasted in Egypt will be dismayed and put to shame. 6In that day the people who live on this coast will say, ‘See what has happened to those we relied on, those we fled to for help and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How then can we escape?’ ”
 **The outline for this lesson has been adapted from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Survey, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 15: “Messages against Syria, Israel, and Cush” (Isaiah 17:1-18:7)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 15: “Messages against Syria, Israel, and Cush” (Isaiah 17:1-18:7)
1. A Message against Syria (17:1-3)
17 A prophecy against Damascus:
“See, Damascus will no longer be a city
but will become a heap of ruins.
2 The cities of Aroer will be deserted
and left to flocks, which will lie down,
with no one to make them afraid.
3 The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim,
and royal power from Damascus;
the remnant of Aram will be
like the glory of the Israelites,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
2. A Message against Israel (17:4-11)
A Time of Weakness for Israel (17:4-6)
4 “In that day the glory of Jacob will fade;
the fat of his body will waste away.
5 It will be as when reapers harvest the standing grain,
gathering the grain in their arms—
as when someone gleans heads of grain
in the Valley of Rephaim.
6 Yet some gleanings will remain,
as when an olive tree is beaten,
leaving two or three olives on the topmost branches,
four or five on the fruitful boughs,”
declares the Lord, the God of Israel.
Revival to Come to Israel (17:7-8)
7 In that day people will look to their Maker
and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel.
8 They will not look to the altars,
the work of their hands,
and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles 
and the incense altars their fingers have made.
The Desolation to Come (17:9-11)
9 In that day their strong cities, which they left because of the Israelites, will be like places abandoned to thickets and undergrowth. And all will be desolation.
10 You have forgotten God your Savior;
you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress.
Therefore, though you set out the finest plants
and plant imported vines,
11 though on the day you set them out, you make them grow,
and on the morning when you plant them, you bring them to bud,
yet the harvest will be as nothing
in the day of disease and incurable pain.
3. A Message to the Nations (17:12-14)
12 Woe to the many nations that rage—
they rage like the raging sea!
Woe to the peoples who roar—
they roar like the roaring of great waters!
13 Although the peoples roar like the roar of surging waters,
when he rebukes them they flee far away,
driven before the wind like chaff on the hills,
like tumbleweed before a gale.
14 In the evening, sudden terror!
Before the morning, they are gone!
This is the portion of those who loot us,
the lot of those who plunder us.
4. A Message against Cush (18:1-7)
18 Woe to the land of whirring wings
along the rivers of Cush, 
2 which sends envoys by sea
in papyrus boats over the water.
Go, swift messengers,
to a people tall and smooth-skinned,
to a people feared far and wide,
an aggressive nation of strange speech,
whose land is divided by rivers.
3 All you people of the world,
you who live on the earth,
when a banner is raised on the mountains,
you will see it,
and when a trumpet sounds,
you will hear it.
4 This is what the Lord says to me:
“I will remain quiet and will look on from my dwelling place,
like shimmering heat in the sunshine,
like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
5 For, before the harvest, when the blossom is gone
and the flower becomes a ripening grape,
he will cut off the shoots with pruning knives,
and cut down and take away the spreading branches.
6 They will all be left to the mountain birds of prey
and to the wild animals;
the birds will feed on them all summer,
the wild animals all winter.
7 At that time gifts will be brought to the Lord Almighty
from a people tall and smooth-skinned,
from a people feared far and wide,
an aggressive nation of strange speech,
whose land is divided by rivers—
the gifts will be brought to Mount Zion, the place of the Name of the Lord Almighty.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 14: “Judgment on Assyria, Philistia, and Moab” (Isaiah 14:24-16:14)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 14: “Judgment on Assyria, Philistia, and Moab” (Isaiah 14:24-16:14)
Outline1• Judgment on Assyria (14:24-27)• Judgment on Philistia (14:28-32)• Judgment on Moab (15:1-16:14)
Judgment on Assyria (14:24-27)
Isaiah 14:24–27 (NIV)
24 The Lord Almighty has sworn,
“Surely, as I have planned, so it will be,
and as I have purposed, so it will happen.
25 I will crush the Assyrian in my land;
on my mountains I will trample him down.
His yoke will be taken from my people,
and his burden removed from their shoulders.”
26 This is the plan determined for the whole world;
this is the hand stretched out over all nations.
27 For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him?
His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?
Judgment on Philistia (14:28-32)
Isaiah 14:28–32 (NIV)
28 This prophecy came in the year King Ahaz died:
29 Do not rejoice, all you Philistines,
that the rod that struck you is broken;
from the root of that snake will spring up a viper,
its fruit will be a darting, venomous serpent.
30 The poorest of the poor will find pasture,
and the needy will lie down in safety.
But your root I will destroy by famine;
it will slay your survivors.
31 Wail, you gate! Howl, you city!
Melt away, all you Philistines!
A cloud of smoke comes from the north,
and there is not a straggler in its ranks.
32 What answer shall be given
to the envoys of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion,
and in her his afflicted people will find refuge.”
Judgment on Moab (15:1-16:14)
Lament over Moab’s Condition (15:1-9)
Isaiah 15:1–9 (NIV)
A prophecy against Moab:
Ar in Moab is ruined,
destroyed in a night!
Kir in Moab is ruined,
destroyed in a night!
2 Dibon goes up to its temple,
to its high places to weep;
Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba.
Every head is shaved
and every beard cut off.
3 In the streets they wear sackcloth;
on the roofs and in the public squares
they all wail,
prostrate with weeping.
4 Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,
their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz.
Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out,
and their hearts are faint.
5 My heart cries out over Moab;
her fugitives flee as far as Zoar,
as far as Eglath Shelishiyah.
They go up the hill to Luhith,
weeping as they go;
on the road to Horonaim
they lament their destruction.
6 The waters of Nimrim are dried up
and the grass is withered;
the vegetation is gone
and nothing green is left.
7 So the wealth they have acquired and stored up
they carry away over the Ravine of the Poplars.
8 Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab;
their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim,
their lamentation as far as Beer Elim.
9 The waters of Dimon are full of blood,
but I will bring still more upon Dimon—
a lion upon the fugitives of Moab
and upon those who remain in the land.
Moab’s Coming Judgment (16:1-14)
Moab’s Desperate Plea for Help (16:1-5)
Isaiah 16:1–5 (NIV)
Send lambs as tribute
to the ruler of the land,
from Sela, across the desert,
to the mount of Daughter Zion.
2 Like fluttering birds
pushed from the nest,
so are the women of Moab
at the fords of the Arnon.
3 “Make up your mind,” Moab says.
“Render a decision.
Make your shadow like night—
at high noon.
Hide the fugitives,
do not betray the refugees.
4 Let the Moabite fugitives stay with you;
be their shelter from the destroyer.”
The oppressor will come to an end,
and destruction will cease;
the aggressor will vanish from the land.
5 In love a throne will be established;
in faithfulness a man will sit on it—
one from the house of David—
one who in judging seeks justice
and speeds the cause of righteousness.
A Lament for Moab (16:6-14)
Isaiah 16:6–14 (NIV)
6 We have heard of Moab’s pride—
how great is her arrogance!—
of her conceit, her pride and her insolence;
but her boasts are empty.
7 Therefore the Moabites wail,
they wail together for Moab.
Lament and grieve
for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth.
8 The fields of Heshbon wither,
the vines of Sibmah also.
The rulers of the nations
have trampled down the choicest vines,
which once reached Jazer
and spread toward the desert.
Their shoots spread out
and went as far as the sea. 
9 So I weep, as Jazer weeps,
for the vines of Sibmah.
Heshbon and Elealeh,
I drench you with tears!
The shouts of joy over your ripened fruit
and over your harvests have been stilled.
10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards;
no one sings or shouts in the vineyards;
no one treads out wine at the presses,
for I have put an end to the shouting.
11 My heart laments for Moab like a harp,
my inmost being for Kir Hareseth.
12 When Moab appears at her high place,
she only wears herself out;
when she goes to her shrine to pray,
it is to no avail.
13 This is the word the Lord has already spoken concerning Moab. 14 But now the Lord says: “Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab’s splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble.”
 1 The outline for this lesson was adapted from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah: A Historical and Theological Study, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2007).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 13: “God and the Nations: Babylon” (Isaiah 13:1-14:23)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 13: “God and the Nations: Babylon” (Isaiah 13:1-14:23)
Structure of Isaiah 1-271
 
 
Outline2⦁ Why the Oracles against Other Nations?⦁ God’s Judgment of Babylon (13:1-14:23)
Why Oracles against other Nations?⦁ Challenges to the Messianic Kingdom
⦁ The challenge of earthly kingdoms⦁ The challenge of other gods
⦁ Challenges to God’s Sovereignty
God’s Judgment of Babylon⦁ Why Begin with Babylon?⦁ Babylon’s Destruction (13:1-22)⦁ The Taunt Song against Babylon’s King (14:1-23)
Why Begin with Babylon?⦁ Assyria would seem to have been the most natural choice of where to begin. They posed the greatest threat at the moment.⦁ Isaiah knew Babylon’s eventual role in history and its threat to Judah. Assyria would invade Judah, but Babylon would succeed.
Babylon’s Destruction (13:1-22)⦁ The Work of Many Nations
⦁ Nations would form a coalition to bring Babylon down.⦁ Those who had suffered under Babylonian rule would have the joy of participating in ending it.
⦁ The Day of the Lord
⦁ Not a twenty-four-hour day but rather a period of time in which God works his purposes in a particularly distinctive way in the heavens and on earth.⦁ The Day of the Lord usually has one or more of these three key elements:
⦁ God’s judgment against unbelievers⦁ The cleansing and purging of God’s people⦁ The salvation of God’s people
Isaiah 13:1–22 (NIV)
13 A prophecy against Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz saw:
2 Raise a banner on a bare hilltop,
shout to them;
beckon to them
to enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded those I prepared for battle;
I have summoned my warriors to carry out my wrath—
those who rejoice in my triumph.
4 Listen, a noise on the mountains,
like that of a great multitude!
Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms,
like nations massing together!
The Lord Almighty is mustering
an army for war.
5 They come from faraway lands,
from the ends of the heavens—
the Lord and the weapons of his wrath—
to destroy the whole country.
6 Wail, for the day of the Lord is near;
it will come like destruction from the Almighty. 
7 Because of this, all hands will go limp,
every heart will melt with fear.
8 Terror will seize them,
pain and anguish will grip them;
they will writhe like a woman in labor.
They will look aghast at each other,
their faces aflame.
9 See, the day of the Lord is coming
—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—
to make the land desolate
and destroy the sinners within it.
10 The stars of heaven and their constellations
will not show their light.
The rising sun will be darkened
and the moon will not give its light.
11 I will punish the world for its evil,
the wicked for their sins.
I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty
and will humble the pride of the ruthless.
12 I will make people scarcer than pure gold,
more rare than the gold of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble;
and the earth will shake from its place
at the wrath of the Lord Almighty,
in the day of his burning anger.
14 Like a hunted gazelle,
like sheep without a shepherd,
they will all return to their own people,
they will flee to their native land.
15 Whoever is captured will be thrust through;
all who are caught will fall by the sword.
16 Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes;
their houses will be looted and their wives violated.
17 See, I will stir up against them the Medes,
who do not care for silver
and have no delight in gold.
18 Their bows will strike down the young men;
they will have no mercy on infants,
nor will they look with compassion on children.
19 Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms,
the pride and glory of the Babylonians,
will be overthrown by God
like Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 She will never be inhabited
or lived in through all generations;
there no nomads will pitch their tents,
there no shepherds will rest their flocks.
21 But desert creatures will lie there,
jackals will fill her houses;
there the owls will dwell,
and there the wild goats will leap about.
22 Hyenas will inhabit her strongholds,
jackals her luxurious palaces.
Her time is at hand,
and her days will not be prolonged.
The Taunt Song against Babylon’s King (14:1-23)⦁ Good News for Judah (14:1-2)
Isaiah 14:1–2 (NIV)
The Lord will have compassion on Jacob;
once again he will choose Israel
and will settle them in their own land.
Foreigners will join them
and unite with the descendants of Jacob.
2 Nations will take them
and bring them to their own place.
And Israel will take possession of the nations
and make them male and female servants in the Lord’s land.
They will make captives of their captors
and rule over their oppressors.
 ⦁ The Taunt Song (14:3-23)
Isaiah 14:3–23 (NIV)
3 On the day the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and turmoil and from the harsh labor forced on you, 4 you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:
How the oppressor has come to an end!
How his fury has ended!
5 The Lord has broken the rod of the wicked,
the scepter of the rulers,
6 which in anger struck down peoples
with unceasing blows,
and in fury subdued nations
with relentless aggression.
7 All the lands are at rest and at peace;
they break into singing.
8 Even the junipers and the cedars of Lebanon
gloat over you and say,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one comes to cut us down.”
9 The realm of the dead below is all astir
to meet you at your coming;
it rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you—
all those who were leaders in the world;
it makes them rise from their thrones—
all those who were kings over the nations.
10 They will all respond,
they will say to you,
“You also have become weak, as we are;
you have become like us.”
11 All your pomp has been brought down to the grave,
along with the noise of your harps;
maggots are spread out beneath you
and worms cover you.
12 How you have fallen from heaven,
morning star, son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
you who once laid low the nations!
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;
I will make myself like the Most High.”
15 But you are brought down to the realm of the dead,
to the depths of the pit.
16 Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:
“Is this the man who shook the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
17 the man who made the world a wilderness,
who overthrew its cities
and would not let his captives go home?”
18 All the kings of the nations lie in state,
each in his own tomb.
19 But you are cast out of your tomb
like a rejected branch;
you are covered with the slain,
with those pierced by the sword,
those who descend to the stones of the pit.
Like a corpse trampled underfoot,
20 you will not join them in burial,
for you have destroyed your land
and killed your people.
Let the offspring of the wicked
never be mentioned again.
21 Prepare a place to slaughter his children
for the sins of their ancestors;
they are not to rise to inherit the land
and cover the earth with their cities.
22 “I will rise up against them,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
“I will wipe out Babylon’s name and survivors,
her offspring and descendants,”
declares the Lord.
23 “I will turn her into a place for owls
and into swampland;
I will sweep her with the broom of destruction,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
⦁ Who is the object of this taunt? Who is the “Morning Star, Son of the Dawn” (vv. 12-14)?
Lessons from these Oracles to the Nations3⦁ God is opposed to the proud.⦁ God judges wickedness.⦁ God is sovereign over the nations.⦁ The LORD is the only true God.⦁ The LORD’s people should trust in him, because only he can deliver them.
                                                                                          
1 Taken from John Goldingay, Theology of Isaiah.2 Outline is from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering Isaiah.3 Adapted from Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr., Isaiah: God Saves Sinners.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 12: “A Glorious Future” (Isaiah 11:1–12:6)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 12: “A Glorious Future” (Isaiah 11:1–12:6)
Outline
A Future to Long for (11:1–16)
A Future to Sing about (12:1–6)
A Future to Long for (11:1–16)
A Future Messiah (11:1–5)
11 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— 3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
A Future Peace (11:6–10)
6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.
A Future Homecoming (11:11–16)
11 In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean. 12 He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth. 13 Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish, and Judah’s enemies will be destroyed; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim. 14 They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia to the west; together they will plunder the people to the east. They will subdue Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them. 15 The Lord will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian sea; with a scorching wind he will sweep his hand over the Euphrates River. He will break it up into seven streams so that anyone can cross over in sandals. 16 There will be a highway for the remnant of his people that is left from Assyria, as there was for Israel when they came up from Egypt.
A Future to Sing about (12:1–6)
A Song of Salvation (12:1–3)
12 In that day you will say: “I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. 2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.” 3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
A Song of Mission (12:4–6)
4 In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. 5 Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. 6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”
**All Scripture quotations are from the NIV.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 11: “Destruction and Deliverance” (Isaiah 10:5–34)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 11: “Destruction and Deliverance” (Isaiah 10:5–34)
Introduction
Outline⦁ Destruction for the Enemies of God (Assyria) (10:5–19)⦁ Deliverance for the Elect of God (the Remnant of Israel) (10:20–34)
1. Destruction for the Enemies of God (Assyria) (10:5–19)
Isaiah 10:5–19 (NIV)
5 “Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of my anger,
in whose hand is the club of my wrath!
6 I send him against a godless nation,
I dispatch him against a people who anger me,
to seize loot and snatch plunder,
and to trample them down like mud in the streets.
7 But this is not what he intends,
this is not what he has in mind;
his purpose is to destroy,
to put an end to many nations.
8 ‘Are not my commanders all kings?’ he says.
9 ‘Has not Kalno fared like Carchemish?
Is not Hamath like Arpad,
and Samaria like Damascus?
10 As my hand seized the kingdoms of the idols,
kingdoms whose images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria—
11 shall I not deal with Jerusalem and her images
as I dealt with Samaria and her idols?’ ”
12 When the Lord has finished all his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. 13 For he says:
“ ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this,
and by my wisdom, because I have understanding.
I removed the boundaries of nations,
I plundered their treasures;
like a mighty one I subdued their kings.
14 As one reaches into a nest,
so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations;
as people gather abandoned eggs,
so I gathered all the countries;
not one flapped a wing,
or opened its mouth to chirp.’ ”
15 Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it,
or the saw boast against the one who uses it?
As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up,
or a club brandish the one who is not wood!
16 Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors;
under his pomp a fire will be kindled
like a blazing flame.
17 The Light of Israel will become a fire,
their Holy One a flame;
in a single day it will burn and consume
his thorns and his briers.
18 The splendor of his forests and fertile fields
it will completely destroy,
as when a sick person wastes away.
19 And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few
that a child could write them down.
2. Deliverance for the People of God (the Remnant of Israel) (10:20–34)
Isaiah 10:20–34 (NIV)
20 In that day the remnant of Israel,
the survivors of Jacob,
will no longer rely on him
who struck them down
but will truly rely on the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.
21 A remnant will return,  a remnant of Jacob
will return to the Mighty God.
22 Though your people be like the sand by the sea, Israel,
only a remnant will return.
Destruction has been decreed,
overwhelming and righteous.
23 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, will carry out
the destruction decreed upon the whole land.
24 Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“My people who live in Zion,
do not be afraid of the Assyrians,
who beat you with a rod
and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did.
25 Very soon my anger against you will end
and my wrath will be directed to their destruction.”
26 The Lord Almighty will lash them with a whip,
as when he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb;
and he will raise his staff over the waters,
as he did in Egypt.
27 In that day their burden will be lifted from your shoulders,
their yoke from your neck;
the yoke will be broken
because you have grown so fat.
28 They enter Aiath;
they pass through Migron;
they store supplies at Mikmash.
29 They go over the pass, and say,
“We will camp overnight at Geba.”
Ramah trembles;
Gibeah of Saul flees.
30 Cry out, Daughter Gallim!
Listen, Laishah!
Poor Anathoth!
31 Madmenah is in flight;
the people of Gebim take cover.
32 This day they will halt at Nob;
they will shake their fist
at the mount of Daughter Zion,
at the hill of Jerusalem.
33 See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
will lop off the boughs with great power.
The lofty trees will be felled,
the tall ones will be brought low.
34 He will cut down the forest thickets with an ax;
Lebanon will fall before the Mighty One.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 10: "The Lord's Anger against Israel" (Isaiah 9:8-10:4)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 10: “The Lord’s Anger against Israel” (Isaiah 9:8–10:4)
Introduction
Israel and Judah should have been paying attention to their relation to God and what he expected of them as his covenant partners.
Instead, they were more concerned about the threat from Assyria (which was God’s judgment on their disobedience).
Isaiah 9:8–10:4 is composed of four parallel sections.
Each section ends with the refrain: “Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised.” (9:12, 17, 21; 10:4)
This repeated refrain communicates the fact that God’s anger against sin cannot be easily assuaged.His wrath will fall in multiple stages on Israel, because of their disobedience.
Outline
The Lord’s Anger at Human Pride (9:8–12)
The Lord’s Anger at Wicked Leaders (9:13–17)
The Lord’s Anger at Internal Strife (9:18–21)
The Lord’s Anger at Social Injustice (10:1–4)
The Lord’s Anger at Human Pride (9:8–12)
The Lord’s warning to Israel has been clear (8–9a).
The Lord has sent a message against Jacob; it will fall on Israel. All the people will know it–– Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria–– who say with pride and arrogance of heart, (Isa. 9:8–9 NIV)
The Lord is angry with Israel because of their self-dependent pride (9b–10).
All the people will know it–– Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria–– who say with pride and arrogance of heart, "The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with dressed stone; the fig trees have been felled, but we will replace them with cedars." (Isa. 9:9–10 NIV)
The Lord’s wrath is coming and will not be quickly extinguished (11–12).
But the LORD has strengthened Rezin's foes against them and has spurred their enemies on. Arameans from the east and Philistines from the west have devoured Israel with open mouth. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. (Isa. 9:11–12 NIV)
The Lord’s Anger at Wicked Leaders (9:13–17)
Stubbornly unrepentant, even after the Lord’s judgments (13).
But the people have not returned to him who struck them, nor have they sought the LORD Almighty. (Isa. 9:13 NIV)
The Lord’s anger directed at the leaders and prophets who have failed to guide the people to repentance (14–16).
So the LORD will cut off from Israel both head and tail, both palm branch and reed in a single day; the elders and dignitaries are the head, the prophets who teach lies are the tail. Those who guide this people mislead them, and those who are guided are led astray. (Isa. 9:14–16 NIV)
The Lord’s anger will be all-inclusive and unrelenting (17).
Therefore the Lord will take no pleasure in the young men, nor will he pity the fatherless and widows, for everyone is ungodly and wicked, every mouth speaks folly. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. (Isa. 9:17 NIV)
The Lord’s Anger at Internal Strife (9:18–21)
Wickedness has devastating and far-reaching consequences (18).
Surely wickedness burns like a fire; it consumes briers and thorns, it sets the forest thickets ablaze, so that it rolls upward in a column of smoke. (Isa. 9:18 NIV)
The tribes of Israel were full of internal strife and division. They selfishly looked out for the good of their own tribe above the good of the nation. Now, that internal strife was magnified by the devastation of war (19–21).
By the wrath of the LORD Almighty the land will be scorched and the people will be fuel for the fire; they will not spare one another. On the right they will devour, but still be hungry; on the left they will eat, but not be satisfied. Each will feed on the flesh of their own offspring: Manasseh will feed on Ephraim, and Ephraim on Manasseh; together they will turn against Judah. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. (Isa. 9:19–21 NIV)
The Lord’s Anger at Social Injustice (10:1–4)
The Lord’s holy wrath was particularly directed against those who distorted justice and took advantage of the weak (1–2).
Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, 2 to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. (Isa. 10:1–2 NIV)
There will be no hiding from the Lord’s wrath against wickedness (3–4).
What will you do on the day of reckoning, when disaster comes from afar? To whom will you run for help? Where will you leave your riches? Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives or fall among the slain. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. (Isa. 10:3–4 NIV)

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 9: "Darkness to Light" (Isaiah 8:19-9:7)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 9: “Darkness to Light” (Isaiah 8:19–9:7)
1. A Land of Darkness and Gloom (8:19–22)
a. Living in Spiritual Darkness and Confusion (8:19–20)
When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God's instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. (Isa. 8:19-20 NIV)
b. Living under the Chastening Hand of the Lord in Despair (8:21–22)
Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness. (Isa. 8:21-22 NIV)
2. Darkness Turned to Light (9:1–5)
a. Humility Turned to Honor (9:1)
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan-- (Isa. 9:1 NIV)
b. Darkness Turned to Light (9:2)
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. (Isa. 9:2 NIV)
c. Sorrow Turned to Joy (9:3)
You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. (Isa. 9:3 NIV)
d. Slavery Turned to Freedom (9:4)
For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. (Isa. 9:4 NIV)
e. War Turned to Peace (9:5)
Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire. (Isa. 9:5 NIV)
3. The Light of the Messiah (9:6–7)
a. The Birth of the Messiah (9:6a)
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. (Isa. 9:6a NIV)
b. The Names of the Messiah (9:6b)
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa. 9:6b NIV)
c. The Reign of the Messiah (9:7)
Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this. (Isa. 9:7 NIV)

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 8: "The Coming Assyrian Invasion" (Isaiah 7:17-8:22)

The Prophecy of Isaiah
“The Coming Assyrian Invasion” (Isaiah 7:17-8:22)1
Outline
The Destruction of the Land (7:17-25)
The Birth of Maher-Shalal-Hash- Baz (8:1-4)
The Judgment of the People (8:5-22)
Destruction of the Land
Isaiah 7:17-25
Punishment for trusting in Assyria for protection rather than the Lord.
Assyria will remove the threat of the Syria-Israel alliance, but Assyria will also subjugate Judah.
The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah-- he will bring the king of Assyria." (Isa. 7:17 NIV)
Flies & Bees: No place to hide (7:18-19)
In that day the LORD will whistle for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices in the rocks, on all the thornbushes and at all the water holes. (Isa. 7:18-19 NIV)
Shaved & Shamed: No more dignity (7:20)
In that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River-- the king of Assyria-- to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard also. (Isa. 7:20 NIV)
1 Cow & 2 Sheep: No one to inhabit the land (7:21-22)
In that day, a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats. And because of the abundance of the milk they give, there will be curds to eat. All who remain in the land will eat curds and honey. (Isa. 7:21-22 NIV)
Briers & Thorns: No harvest to bring in (7:23-25)
In that day, in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels, there will be only briers and thorns. Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers and thorns. As for all the hills once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns; they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run. (Isa. 7:23-25 NIV)
The Birth of Maher-Shalal-Hash- Baz (8:1-4)
The LORD said to me, "Take a large scroll and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz." (Isa. 8:1 NIV)
Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz“Swift is the plunder; speedy is the prey.” – Bryan Beyer
“Speeding is booty; hastening is plunder.” – John Mackay
“The spoil of the two kings will quickly be taken.” – Willem VanGemeren
So I called in Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah as reliable witnesses for me. Then I made love to the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. And the LORD said to me, "Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. For before the boy knows how to say 'My father' or 'My mother,' the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria." (Isa. 8:2-4 NIV)
The Judgment of the People (8:5-22)
Assyrian Invasion (8:5-10)
The LORD spoke to me again: 6 "Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoices over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates-- the king of Assyria with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it, passing through it and reaching up to the neck. Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land, Immanuel!" (Isa. 8:5-8 NIV)
Raise the war cry, you nations, and be shattered! Listen, all you distant lands. Prepare for battle, and be shattered! Prepare for battle, and be shattered! Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted; propose your plan, but it will not stand, for God is with us. (Isa. 8:9-10 NIV)
Waiting for Yahweh (8:11-22) 
Assessing the Options (8:11-15)
This is what the LORD says to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people: "Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls a conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread. He will be a holy place; for both Israel and Judah he will be a stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. And for the people of Jerusalem he will be a trap and a snare. Many of them will stumble; they will fall and be broken, they will be snared and captured." (Isa. 8:11-15 NIV)
Divinely Given Hope (8:16-18)
Bind up this testimony of warning and seal up God's instruction among my disciples. I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the descendants of Jacob. I will put my trust in him. Here am I, and the children the LORD has given me. We are signs and symbols in Israel from the LORD Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion. (Isa. 8:16-18 NIV)
The False Alternative (8:19-22)
When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? Consult God's instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness. (Isa. 8:19-22 NIV)
1 The outline for this lesson was based on Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah and John L. Mackay, A Study Commentary on Isaiah, Volume 1: Chapters 1-39 (Ep Study Commentary).

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 7: "The Sign of Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:1–17)

The Prophecy of IsaiahLesson 7: "The Sign of Immanuel" (7:1–17)
The Historical Setting (7:1–9)1
Time of National Crisis for Judah
Threat of Israel and Syria Alliance
Syro-Ephraimite War, 735-734 BC
Key Figures:Tiglath-Pileser III (Assyria)
Rezin (Syria)
Pekah (Israel)
Ahaz (Judah)
       1When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.        2Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.        3Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. 4Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. 5Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying, 6“Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” 7Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘It will not take place,      it will not happen, 8for the head of Aram is Damascus,      and the head of Damascus is only Rezin. Within sixty-five years      Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people. 9The head of Ephraim is Samaria,      and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith,      you will not stand at all.’” (Isaiah 7:1–9, NIV)
The Sign Offered, Refused, and Given (7:10–17)
The Sign Offered and Refused (7:10–13)
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.”     12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”     13 Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? (Isaiah 7:10–13, NIV)
The Lord’s Sign: The Birth of Immanuel (7:14–16)
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin  will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.  15 He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, 16 for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. (Isaiah 7:14–16, NIV)
The Repurcussions for Judah (7:17)
17 The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.” (Isaiah 7:17, NIV)
Interpretations of Isaiah 7:14
The Meaning of ‘AlmahView 1: Isaiah’s Words Find Their Fulfillment Only in Jesus
View 2: The Prophecies of Isaiah 7 and 8 Are Linked
View 3: The Woman Is Already Pregnant
Conclusion: Isaiah 7:14 and the New Testament
1 This outline is drawn from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 6: "Isaiah's Vision and Call" (Isaiah 6:1-13)

The Prophecy of Isaiah
“Isaiah’s Vision and Call” – Isaiah 6:1-13
Isaiah 6:1–13 (NIV)
6 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
9 He said, “Go and tell this people:
“ ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10 Make the heart of this people calloused;
make their ears dull
and close their eyes. 
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
11 Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”
And he answered:
“Until the cities lie ruined
and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left deserted
and the fields ruined and ravaged,
12 until the Lord has sent everyone far away
and the land is utterly forsaken.
13 And though a tenth remains in the land,
it will again be laid waste.
But as the terebinth and oak
leave stumps when they are cut down,
so the holy seed will be the stump in the land.”
 
Outline of Isaiah 6
“I Saw the Lord” – Isaiah’s Vision (verses 1-7)
“I Heard the Lord” – Isaiah’s Call and Commission” (verses 8-13)
“I Saw the Lord”
“I Saw the Lord” – Isaiah’s Vision (verses 1-7)Isaiah’s Vision of God (1-4)The Sovereignty of God (1-2)
The Holiness of God (3)
The Worship of God (4)
Isaiah’s Response to the Presence of God (5-7)Conviction of Sin (5)
Cleansing from Sin (6-7)
“I Heard the Lord”
“I Heard the Lord” – Isaiah’s Call and Commission (verses 8–13)The Lord’s Call (8)
Isaiah’s Obedient Response (8)
The People’s Callousness Hardened by the Word (9–10)
The People’s Judgment Confirmed (11-12)
Mercy in Judgment: A Remnant Will Remain (13)

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 5: The Lord's Vineyard (Isaiah 5)

“The Lord’s Vineyard”Isaiah 5:1–30
1. A Song about a Vineyard (5:1-7)
a. The song’s characters
1) The singer: Isaiah, the Prophet2) The vineyard owner: the Lord3) The vineyard: Israel/Judah
b. The Song’s Meaning
1) The Lord created and owns the vineyard (Israel/Judah) (v. 1)
Isaiah 5:1 I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.
2) The Lord expended great care and effort in planting the vineyard (Israel/Judah) (v. 2)
Isaiah 5:2 He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit.
3) The Lord intended to reap a harvest of good fruit (righteousness and justice) from the vineyard (Israel/Judah) (vv. 3–4, 7)
Isaiah 5:3 “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. Isaiah 5:4 What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad? Isaiah 5:7 The vineyard of the Lord Almighty is the nation of Israel, and the people of Judah are the vines he delighted in. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.
4) Instead, he received only bitter fruit (distress, bloodshed) from his vineyard (Israel/Judah). (4, 7)5) The Lord will leave his vineyard (Israel/Judah) to be devastated by the elements (enemies) (vv. 5-6)
Isaiah 5:5 Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. Isaiah 5:6 I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.”
2. The Vineyard’s Harvest of Bitter Fruit (5:8-24)
a. Oppressive Landowners (8-10)1
Isaiah 5:8 Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field till no space is left and you live alone in the land. Isaiah 5:9 The Lord Almighty has declared in my hearing: “Surely the great houses will become desolate, the fine mansions left without occupants. Isaiah 5:10 A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath of wine; a homer of seed will yield only an ephah of grain.”
b. Pursuers of Drunken Revelry (11-12)
Isaiah 5:11 Woe to those who rise early in the morning to run after their drinks, who stay up late at night till they are inflamed with wine. Isaiah 5:12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets, pipes and timbrels and wine, but they have no regard for the deeds of the Lord, no respect for the work of his hands.
c. God Testers (18-19)
Isaiah 5:18 Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit, and wickedness as with cart ropes, Isaiah 5:19 to those who say, “Let God hurry; let him hasten his work so we may see it. The plan of the Holy One of Israel— let it approach, let it come into view, so we may know it.”
d. The Morally Twisted (20)
Isaiah 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
e. The Self-Exalted (21)
Isaiah 5:21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.
f. The Immoral Opportunists (22-23)
Isaiah 5:22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks, Isaiah 5:23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent.
3. The Destruction of the Vineyard (13-17, 24-30)
a. Appropriate judgment: loss of land, hunger, thirst (13)
Isaiah 5:13 Therefore my people will go into exile for lack of understanding; those of high rank will die of hunger and the common people will be parched with thirst.
b. Total judgment in divine action: death, humbling, ruination (14–17)
Isaiah 5:14 Therefore Death expands its jaws, opening wide its mouth; into it will descend their nobles and masses with all their brawlers and revelers. Isaiah 5:15 So people will be brought low and everyone humbled, the eyes of the arrogant humbled. Isaiah 5:16 But the Lord Almighty will be exalted by his justice, and the holy God will be proved holy by his righteous acts. Isaiah 5:17 Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture; lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.
c. Appropriate judgment: speedy disaster (24a) repays the call for the Lord to hasten (19); acquiescing in sin (18, 20) issues in helpless collapse into judgment (24bcd)
Isaiah 5:24 Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, so their roots will decay and their flowers blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.
d. Total judgment: The Lord summons the invincible foe (Assyria) (25–30)
Isaiah 5:25 Therefore the Lord’s anger burns against his people; his hand is raised and he strikes them down. The mountains shake, and the dead bodies are like refuse in the streets. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. Isaiah 5:26 He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, he whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily! Isaiah 5:27 Not one of them grows tired or stumbles, not one slumbers or sleeps; not a belt is loosened at the waist, not a sandal strap is broken. Isaiah 5:28 Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung; their horses’ hooves seem like flint, their chariot wheels like a whirlwind. Isaiah 5:29 Their roar is like that of the lion, they roar like young lions; they growl as they seize their prey and carry it off with no one to rescue. Isaiah 5:30 In that day they will roar over it like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks at the land, there is only darkness and distress; even the sun will be darkened by clouds.
 
1 The subpoints for verses 8-23 come from Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah.

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Lesson 4: The Ideal Jerusalem, Lost and Found (Isaiah 2:1–4:6)

The Ideal Jerusalem, Lost and Found (Isaiah 2:1–4:6)1
1. The Heading (2:1)
1 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem: (Isaiah 2:1, NIV)
2. The Ideal Jerusalem: The Great ‘Might Have Been’ (2:2–4)
2 In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. 3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. (Isaiah 2:2–4, NIV)
a. The Lord’s Temple (v. 2)2
b. The Lord’s People and His Word (v. 3)
c. The Lord’s Peace (v. 4) 
3. The Actual Jerusalem: The House of Jacob Forsaken (2:5–4:1)3
a. Trusting in Mankind (2:5–22)
i. Full, but Empty (2:5–11)
5 Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord. 6 You, Lord, have abandoned your people, the descendants of Jacob. They are full of superstitions from the East; they practice divination like the Philistines and embrace pagan customs. 7 Their land is full of silver and gold; there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. 8 Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made. 9 So people will be brought low and everyone humbled— do not forgive them. 10 Go into the rocks, hide in the ground from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty! 11 The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. (Isaiah 2:5–11, NIV)
ii. High, but Low (2:12–18)
12 The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled), 13 for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty, and all the oaks of Bashan, 14 for all the towering mountains and all the high hills, 15 for every lofty tower and every fortified wall, 16 for every trading ship and every stately vessel. 17 The arrogance of man will be brought low and human pride humbled; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day, 18 and the idols will totally disappear. (Isaiah 2:12–18, NIV)
iii. Reduced to the Caves (2:19–22)
19 People will flee to caves in the rocks and to holes in the ground from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth. 20 In that day people will throw away to the moles and bats their idols of silver and idols of gold, which they made to worship. 21 They will flee to caverns in the rocks and to the overhanging crags from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth. 22 Stop trusting in mere humans, who have but a breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem? (Isaiah 2:19–22, NIV)
b. The Folly of Human Dependence (3:1–4:1)
i. Boys for Men (3:1–7)
1 See now, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water, 2 the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, 3 the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter. 4 “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.” 5 People will oppress each other— man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored. 6 A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!” 7 But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.” (Isaiah 3:1–7, NIV)
ii. Plunderers for Leaders (3:8–15)
8 Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the Lord, defying his glorious presence. 9 The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves. 10 Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds. 11 Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done. 12 Youths oppress my people, women rule over them. My people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path. 13 The Lord takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people. 14 The Lord enters into judgment against the elders and leaders of his people: “It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses. 15 What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty. (Isaiah 3:8–15, NIV)
iii. Shame for Beauty: The Humiliation of the Haughty Daughters of Jerusalem4 (3:16–4:1)
16 The Lord says, “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. 17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion; the Lord will make their scalps bald.” 18 In that day the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces, 19 the earrings and bracelets and veils, 20 the headdresses and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms, 21 the signet rings and nose rings, 22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses 23 and mirrors, and the linen garments and tiaras and shawls. 24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding. 25 Your men will fall by the sword, your warriors in battle. 26 The gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground. 1 In that day seven women will take hold of one man and say, “We will eat our own food and provide our own clothes; only let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace!” (Isaiah 3:16–4:1, NIV)
4. The New Jerusalem: The Greatness that Is ‘Yet to Be’ (4:2–6)
2 In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. 3 Those who are left in Zion, who remain in Jerusalem, will be called holy, all who are recorded among the living in Jerusalem. 4 The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; he will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire. 5 Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory will be a canopy. 6 It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain. (Isaiah 4:2–6, NIV)
a. The Branch (v. 2)5 
b. The Lord’s Cleansing and Protection (vv. 3–6)
Notes:1 The main structure of this outline is derived from J. Alec Motyer’s two commentaries on Isaiah.2 See Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah for these subpoints.3 See. John N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT) for point 3 and subpoints.4NIV Zondervan Study Bible.5 See Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Book of Isaiah for these subpoints.