READ: Isaiah 31 – 32
BACKGROUND: Isaiah is sometimes called the “Bible within the Bible” and if you’re a lover of random facts and trivia you might enjoy these comparisons: Our Bible has 66 books; Isaiah has 66 chapters. The Old Testament’s 39 books and Isaiah’s first 39 chapters are about God’s law and judgment. The New Testament’s 27 books and Isaiah’s last 27 chapters are about God’s comfort and deliverance. Our Bible is truly amazing. The Bible was written over thousands of years by hundreds of different authors who lived in strikingly different cultures, yet the themes, the message, the answers, the HOPE for all humanity and for all time never changes!
By Verse:
31:1 – Egypt had lots of horses and chariots
2 – a bit of sarcasm from the prophet: “He is also wise.” – a bit like saying, “Yeah, right, let’s just depend on Egypt ‘cause you all know more than God….”
5 – Isaiah uses lots of similes, personification, and allusions. Here, God is like a bird….
9 – God is the fire
32:2 – During Christ’s return to Earth during the millennium, leaders will protect and comfort
6 – Wise people care for others.
9 – A warning to feel confident and secure only if you are trusting the Lord for your future.
13 – Without God’s blessing, the promised land is barren just like the surrounding countries.
20 – Those who follow God’s ways – (this is the way…walk in it!) will enjoy his great blessings!
THINK: My Bible prefaces each book with an outline, and these two chapters come under the heading: “Woe to those who rely on Egypt!” In other words, if you’re trusting in a few horses and chariots from some folks who think frogs have supernatural powers, you might want to reconsider. As usual, it’s easy to roll our eyes in exasperation at those idiot Israelites – I mean how hard can this trusting God stuff be? I find it amazingly easy to trust God, right? At least until I hear the evening news over the car radio: Wall Street had another bad day….the Dow Jones is down, and no recovery in sight. “Woe to those who rely on the Stock Market!” I guess I’m glad I don’t have much to lose. But the reality is, unless I am focused on God’s word, I continually find myself distracted into trusting just about everything but God. Whether it is wealth, or health, or governments, or relationships, anything that seems more secure than following God’s way is foolish!
ASK: Am I trusting in all kinds of earthly “Egypts” for my future? Do I believe that the men of this world have more wisdom than God?
Written by: Deb Howard
throughin2.com 