Reading for February 27

 Read Isaiah 5.8-25. In verses 8-24: The conduct of the ruling classes in Jerusalem involved greed, manipulation of justice, violence, and dishonesty. Divine judgment is therefore necessary. The concluding part of this indictment many occur in 10.1-3, with 5.25 correspondingly misplaced from 9.8-21. Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 26th

 Read Isaiah 5.1-7. In 5.1-30: The song of the vineyard. In verses 1-7: The parable of an unfruitful vineyard is an apparently unremarkable story whose full meaning only becomes clear when the storyteller reveals that he is describing Israel and Judah. The verdict of v. 6 is valid also for this larger meaning: The land must soon suffer utter devastation and ruin. This is the theme-message which underlies all the prophecies of chs. 5-12 (see especially 6.11-13). The parable is made more complex by the opening address in which the speaker declares: Let me sing for my beloved my love-song. As a "friend of the injured vine owner, the speaker is an interested onlooker or perhaps the owner's supporter at a feasts. In this case, the claim to present a love-song suggest that the story will be about a disappointed lover (see the use of vineyard imagery for courtship in Song 8.11-12). In v. 7 The vineyard represents both Israel and Judah. Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 25th

 Read Isaiah 4.2-6. In 4.2-6: The glory of the new Jerusalem. In verses 5-6: Judgment is the necessary path to the rewal of hope and to the dawning of a time of justice and world peace. Hence, the opening chapters conclude with the vision of a chastened and glorified Jerusalem in which the presence of God will be evident everywhere (vv. 5-6). The visionary presentation is filled with symbolic word pictures in which the title the branch of the Lord (v. 2) refers to the new Davidic king (compare 11.1). As God had led the ancestors of the nation through the desert (see Ex 13.21-22), so now the same presence would indicate the protection and blessing of the favored city. The picture of shade and shelter (v. 6) counter the warnings of the sufferings and trials in 3.1-4.1. Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 24th

 Read Isaiah 3.13-4.1. In 3.13-4.1: The Lord's case against the people. The reasons for Judah's misfortunes are detailed in a lawsuit which God is bringing against the people. In verses 15-16: Oppression of the poor and women who indulge in absurd luxury are outward signs of spiritual sickness. Accordingly, God's punishment will fit the offense (v. 24): the horrors of warfare will reduce many of the women who had so pampered themselves to a state of destitution (3.25-4.1). Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 23rd

 Read Isaiah 3.1-12. In 3.1-4.1 Confusion in Judah and Jerusalem. In verses 1-8: The city and land will suffer famine and lose of their natural resources, bringing confusion and panic. There will be no capable judges and elders (vv. 1-5), bringing economic and social chaos (v. 6) with the breakdown of law and order. The broader context indicates that this is the consequence of oppressive foreign invasions and interference (see chs. 5-12). In verses 9-12: The readers of that time would know, only too well, the ruined state of Judah and its chief city. Disobedience and indifference to the Lord God had brought such misfortune upon them. Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 22nd

 Read Isaiah 2.5- 22. In verses 5-11: Seeking commercial prosperity and success, neglected its spiritual foundations. On that day (v. 11) point to an indefinite time of God's judgment and comes to refer to the great judgement and renewal for Judah and all the nations (see Isa 25.9). In verses 12-22: The prophet depicts God's punishment of human pride through the image of bringing down natural features such as tall trees and high mountains (vv. 12-15). Arrogance is the root of idolatry (vv. 19-20), the belief that human beings can control the divine realm. The day of the Lord (v. 11) now points to God's judgment against human violence and disregard of the divine laws. The ships of Tarshish (v. 16) were the famed ships of the maritime nations of the Mediterranean. In Gen 10.4 Tarshish is a great-grandson of Noah, but several biblical references to it as a place point to its fame as a source of trade, especially trade in precious metals. It is often located in the southwestern Spain, but probably more than one site where mining and metal-refining took place bore such a name. Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 21st

 Read Isaiah 2.1- 4. In 2.1-22: Jerusalem: Its destiny and wrongdoing. In verses 1-4: From the time of David's adoption of the city as his capital, Jerusalem had been celebrated as the place to which many nations paid homage and brought tribute (Ps 2.2-11). This memorable prophecy reinterprets this theme, giving divine assurance that the city will become a center from which God's law will be administered among the nations (the city's name is related to the Hebrew word for peace, "shalom" peace, God's purpose for all nations (v. 4), can only come when there is justice. Comments or Questions..