The *Lord uses picture language to teach an important lesson. Solomon made a great *Temple for God. But even Solomon realised that nobody could ever force God to stay inside man-made limits. Even a beautiful *Temple or a magnificent palace is not sufficient for God. (See 1 Kings 8:27; see also Steph... [ Continue Reading ]
ISAIAH: GOD CONTROLS THE NATIONS GOD’S PROMISES TO HIS SPECIAL PEOPLE ISAIAH CHAPTER S 58 TO 66 _NORMAN HILLYER_ CHAPTER 66 The *Lord divides the ‘people of God’ into two types. There are those people whose *worship is merely traditional and empty (without any real meaning). And there are tho... [ Continue Reading ]
People who are truly humble in front of God are right to be afraid of his great power. They have seen something of God’s punishment against a nation that refuses to obey him. They are afraid that God may have to act again. • But God will never disappoint people that firmly trust him. He will act on... [ Continue Reading ]
Many of the people feel ‘great fear’ of something unknown. They do not know what it might be. So they give *worship both to the *Lord and also to their *idols. It is a kind of insurance! One thing is clear. They do not really trust the *Lord. • Fear of the unknown is a very powerful enemy (see Job... [ Continue Reading ]
The *Lord uses picture language to emphasise an important truth. In real life, for a mother to give birth without pain cannot happen. Were it to take place, it could only be by the *Lord’s powerful action. • The *Lord does not perform his purpose only partly and then stop. What he begins, he always... [ Continue Reading ]
The *Lord continues the word picture that describes *Jerusalem as a mother. So ‘she’ and ‘her’ in verse 12 mean *Jerusalem. And God’s people, that is, his holy nation, are like the child. God will provide for their complete satisfaction. God had intended wonderful gifts of love to his people (see I... [ Continue Reading ]
Fire is often a picture word. Frequently, it describes when God is present (see Exodus 13:21). And it is also a picture word that refers to Christ’s return to act as judge (see 2 Thessalonians 1:7; 2 Peter 3:10-12).... [ Continue Reading ]
God will punish evil behaviour wherever he finds it (see Isaiah 13:11; Isaiah 30:27-33). Verse 17b (the second part of verse 17) To eat such meat was against God’s law (see my notes on Isaiah 65:4b). TRUE *WORSHIP The end of the Book of Isaiah returns to the subjects in Isaiah 4:2-6. These fina... [ Continue Reading ]
People cannot hide anything from God (see Psalms 94:9-11; Proverbs 20:12; Luke 6:8). • God’s action appears elsewhere in the Bible (see Ezekiel 39:25-29).... [ Continue Reading ]
Not all *Israelites were bad. A small number continued to be loyal to the *Lord. He will give them a task that, as *Jews, they never expected. They will go to *Gentiles on the *Lord’s behalf and tell them about his greatness in *glory and actions. God will include each person who believes their mess... [ Continue Reading ]
The words of this verse refer to all believers, *Jews and *Gentiles alike. They are all coming to *worship in the New *Jerusalem.... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus refers to the *Temple as the ‘House for Prayer for all nations’ (see Mark 11:17).... [ Continue Reading ]
God will create New *Jerusalem. God creates new life in believers when they turn to him. All that God creates, he permanently supports.... [ Continue Reading ]
That is, month after month and week after week. In other words, all the time.... [ Continue Reading ]
This verse describes a terrible scene. It refers to the deep narrow valley called Hinnom. This valley is near to *Jerusalem, on the south side. (The *New Testament uses the *Greek word Gehenna for the *Hebrew word Hinnom – see Matthew 10:28). In the Hinnom Valley, two wicked kings of Israel burned t... [ Continue Reading ]