Today in chapter 59 God gives some specific reasons that He will not intervene or stop the Babylonian captivity.
Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
Isaiah 59:1-2
It is never a lack of ability or awareness in our omnipotent and omniscient God that makes it appear from our point of view that He doesn't care or can't hear us. We don't want to assume that all trials are associated with a sin driven separation between us and God. Some trials, like those of Job, we simply can't understand. However, for us, the Church, and our nation it makes sense to ask God and if He shows you sin to ask for mercy and forgiveness in prayer. In this context God give specific examples of sin through Isaiah's prophecy.
For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies; your tongue mutters wickedness. No one enters suit justly; no one goes to law honestly; they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies, they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.
Isaiah 59:3-4
The sin identified here is very well known to us. The law is used for personal gain and motivation is driven by lust and pride rather than by a desire for justice worked out with a fear of God and humility. Isaiah compares the spread of this attitude in their court system to harboring snake eggs and dressing yourself in spider webs.
They hatch adders' eggs; they weave the spider's web; he who eats their eggs dies, and from one that is crushed a viper is hatched. Their webs will not serve as clothing; men will not cover themselves with what they make. Their works are works of iniquity, and deeds of violence are in their hands. Their feet run to evil, and they are swift to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their highways. The way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their paths; they have made their roads crooked; no one who treads on them knows peace. Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold, darkness, and for brightness, but we walk in gloom. We grope for the wall like the blind; we grope like those who have no eyes; we stumble at noon as in the twilight, among those in full vigor we are like dead men.
Isaiah 59:5-10
I wish this didn't seem so relevant to my time and place in history. I wish I could just look at this in the context of Israel in 700 BC. I wish I didn't worry that God will need to apologize to Israel of 700 BC if He doesn't judge us soon. We have the Statue of Justice as a symbol in many courts. For the last 500 years or so she has typically been blindfolded to symbolize an impartial judge with a sword in one hand and scales in the other. But we've selected a image of a pagan goddess (Justitia or the Greek Dikē) and giving someone a sword and a balance while they're blindfolded may lead to darkness, gloom, groping like blind, and stumbling in the daytime. God loves justice and when those in positions of authority abuse their position then God takes notice. We can pray for our nation and make sure that we act in a righteous manner.
We all growl like bears; we moan and moan like doves; we hope for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities: transgressing, and denying the LORD, and turning back from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words. Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands far away; for truth has stumbled in the public squares, and uprightness cannot enter. Truth is lacking, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.
Isaiah 59:11-15
The condition of our nation should move us to pray but mostly it just moves us to complain. If we want justice and salvation then it can come from only one place. No man will ever provide it apart from the mercy and grace of God. Here we have transgressing against God, denying the Lord what is His, turning back from following God, speaking against government, and lying. God will put a limit to injustice and sin and we can trust Him in all situations. Christians in the first century had much more difficult times than us. They taught a respect for authority because they knew the biblical truth that there is no authority except that authority that is under God. Even Nero couldn't get outside the hedges that God set. God was going to use the Roman Empire to judge Jerusalem long after the Babylonian captivity but God was going to save and build His Church in a new way with an indwelling Holy Spirit.
He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no one to intercede; then his own arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him. He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak. According to their deeds, so will he repay, wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies; to the coastlands he will render repayment. So they shall fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come like a rushing stream, which the wind of the LORD drives. "And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression," declares the LORD. "And as for me, this is my covenant with them," says the LORD: "My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring," says the LORD, "from this time forth and forevermore."
Isaiah 59:16-21
God brought salvation when no one could be the intercessor between God and man. Christ was perfectly righteous and zealous for God's law. God established a new covenant that has continued 2000 years as the Holy Spirit has built and kept the Church and those who are Abrahams children according to faith have been kept in the Church confessing the Word.
The vengeance for clothing addresses the atonement in which our sins were paid for and God's just punishment was paid as well as the judgment of Jerusalem at the hands of the Romans in 70 AD shortly after Christ's work. The beauty here is found in the work of God in establishing the Church made up of all those who are born again.
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes all around, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be carried on the hip. Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and exult, because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
Isaiah 60:1-5
We do have multiple ways to see fulfillment in many places. I don't want to pass over the partial fulfillment in the reconstruction of the Temple prior to Jesus' day. However, think of how beautifully this was fulfilled in Pentecost and in the Church age as all sorts of people have been brought into the Body of Christ. Sometimes the fulfillments just seem to jump out at us. We wait for Christ to be revealed in all His glory but think about the wise men who brought gifts to Christ and the shepherds when you hear the following verses.
A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the LORD. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to you; the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall come up with acceptance on my altar, and I will beautify my beautiful house.
Isaiah 60:6-7
Gentiles will make acceptable offerings and in fact will become acceptable offerings. God glorifies Christ as the Temple incarnate as all races and nations are called to worship Him.
Who are these that fly like a cloud, and like doves to their windows? For the coastlands shall hope for me, the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your children from afar, their silver and gold with them, for the name of the LORD your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has made you beautiful.
Isaiah 60:8-9
I love it that Isaiah mentioned Tarshish because it reminds me of how God used Saul of Tarshish. Think of how God used Saul who became Paul as a ship to bring the sons and daughters of Abraham from afar along with all they have as living sacrifices before God.
As we think of our praise and worship of Christ on Palm Sunday, we can remember and rejoice that our worship is acceptable because of the name of the Lord our God and because of the Holy One of Israel. The work on the Cross makes you beautiful. Apart from that glorious work we should be struck dead after uttering the first two words of the Lord's Prayer. We get to pray "Our Father" and not be guilty of blasphemy on top of all our other sins because of that perfect work on the Cross that took the righteous and just punishment for our sin. We are now clothed in the righteousness of Christ and that makes us beautiful.
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