Prophetic Vision

Isaiah 45:15-25

I have heard it said, the Bible is not relevant, what does a book like Isaiah written in 698-740 B.C., have that you and I need?  There is one thing striking about the ones who often make such foolish statements, often they have not spent anytime with the prophet’s writing.  For one thing, Isaiah is the most quoted book of the Old Testament in the New Testament it is by far the book in the O.T. that will give the reader the greatest insights into the character and nature of God.  Isaiah anticipated Messiah’s coming with amazing clarity, and it is poetic, intriguing in its prophetic vision.

Today’s headlines in the News; “An Egyptian-brokered ceasefire that Western and Israeli leaders hoped would bring an end to the current Gaza war had already collapsed by Tuesday afternoon, just hours after Israel's cabinet voted in favor of the truce.  Around mid-morning, Israeli ministers voted 6-2 to accept the Egyptian proposal, and the Israeli army was ordered to halt all operations against terrorist forces in Gaza.  But the Gaza rockets just kept coming. Volley after volley targeted central and northern Israel. And though Israel's Iron Dome prevented any serious damage or injuries, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel wouldn't accept the lopsided situation for very long.  By mid-afternoon, Israel was against striking targets in Gaza, and the war appeared to be back in full swing.” 

Do you recall God speaking to the prophet Isaiah about Egypt; look at Isaiah 31:1, “Woe to 

those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they 

are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of 

Israel or consult the LORD!” What? Isaiah is in the Jewish Bible, and yet they have not 

learned, they are looking to Egypt, to the Western nations and to the U.S.A., and yet Israel’s 

hope is not found in any of the above nations, it is only found in the LORD.

In Isaiah 45:1-25, God is making sure that we who are called by His name understand He 

has never hidden Himself from us, but it may seem so, in that His ways are higher than ours, 

and His thoughts are higher than ours.  But God has gone to the extreme to pursue a 

relationship and make Himself known to His creation.  It matters not what little gods you 

have chosen; government, money, power, none, nothing and no one but our Creator can 

reveal the future.

So God in the time of Isaiah and God of 2015 is the same, and both Israel and you and I 

must look only to Him.  Please ponder these words: “Declare and present your case; let 

them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, 

the LORD?  And there is no other god besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is 

none besides Me. “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and 

there is no other. By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness 

a word that shall not return: ‘To Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.” 

(Isaiah 45:21-23 ESV)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice