12/5/12. Isaiah 22:1-25. THE PROPHECY CONCERNING JERUSALEM-my devotional

Key Verse: 22:11                                                                                  Kevin jesmer NIU UBF

“ You built a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool, but you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it long ago.”

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, thank you for Gospel that frees our hearts and helps us to live above this world. Thank you that our happiness is not dependant on people and things, but on the Gospel…on Jesus Christ. Your love for us is like a deep ocean current unphased by the squalls on the surface. I thank you for blessing the KBC winter retreat fundraiser. Help the young people to experience Jesus Christ and to draw near to you from their hearts. Please grant me your word in my heart from this passage. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Part 1: You Did Not Look to The One Who Made It (1-14).

Verses 1-4, “A prophecy against the Valley of Vision: What troubles you now, that you have all gone up on the roofs, ² you town so full of commotion, you city of tumult and revelry? Your slain were not killed by the sword, nor did they die in battle. ³ All your leaders have fled together; they have been captured without using the bow. All you who were caught were taken prisoner together, having fled while the enemy was still far away.  Therefore I said, “Turn away from me; let me weep bitterly. Do not try to console me over the destruction of my people.”

God was judging the nations. When the day of God’s righteous judgment came upon the people God called, they did not turn to him. Instead, they fled in fear and grieved the Lord. There are sayings, “When the going gets tough the tough get going” and “The captain always goes down with his ship”. In the gospel we read about Jesus and how he is the Good Shepherd; the Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. (Jn 10) We also read about Jesus who came to serve others and give his life for many. (Mk 10:45) But these leaders have all fled together. The fled even while the enemy was still a long way off. They let their people be there all alone to suffer and be defeated. They thought that they were smart departing prematurely, but in the end they were captured by the enemy.

Some may say that the people did not deserve to have their leaders endanger their lives for them. They were a town …”full of commotion, you city of tumult and revelry.” How easy to step away and say, they deserve what their sins deserve.

But Jesus did not feel this way about us. We did not deserve his grace and mercy either, but Jesus stayed. He suffered and died. He did not flee. And in doing so he saved all of those who put their faith him. He saved them because he did not save himself. Jesus is the opposite of the human leaders in this passage.

I learn here that I need to be a faithful friend. I need to be one who sticks with others through the thick and the thin. I need to be faithful to the ones I have been called to be faithful to in this life. This is reflecting the heart of Christ who has been so gracious to me.

Look at verses 5-12,  “⁵ The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day of tumult and trampling and terror in the Valley of Vision, a day of battering down walls and of crying out to the mountains. ⁶ Elam takes up the quiver, with her charioteers and horses Kir uncovers the shield. ⁷ Your choicest valleys are full of chariots, and horsemen are posted at the city gates. ⁸ The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah, and you looked in that day to the weapons in the Palace of the Forest. ⁹ You saw that the walls of the City of David were broken through in many places; you stored up water in the Lower Pool. ¹⁰ You counted the buildings in Jerusalem and tore down houses to strengthen the wall. ¹¹ You built a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool, but you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it long ago. ¹² The Lord, the Lord Almighty, called you on that day to weep and to wail, to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.”

When the battle came toJerusalem, the leaders and the people prepared for it by shoring up the city’s defenses. But they did not look to the One who made his dwelling there. The day of God’s judgment was God’s call to his people to turn to him and cry out in repentance.

Well, lets face it…there are consequences for running away from our responsibilities and allowing our hearts be filled with, “commotion, tumult and revelry.” We will suffer greatly because such things. Students may be filled with worldly desires and distractions that cause them to fail. Or they may be filled with sorrows and depression. They may feel fruitless and meaningless and like restless wanderers in this life. They may also feel the nagging suspicion that they will have to face the judgment of God. Is it God’s fault. I don’t think so. It is about our own sin.

How do we respond when hardships come our way? Do we repent of our sins and turn to the Lord and decide to do what is right in his eyes? Do we decide to walk in faith? Or do we just try to make things right in our own way? Do we, in our pride continue to leave God out of the equation and try on our own to fix up the brokenness using only our own flimsy resources? From this passage I learn that I need to stop trying to fix things up in my own way and choose God’s way. I am helpless to find lasting solutions to my own problems. In how to raise my kids, my human reaction would be to punish and take away privileges. But this stops communication. God’s way of grace and truth are the better way. Jesus’ way of influencing people through relationships is the better way. The right way, definitely is not my way.

Look at verses 13-15, “See, there is joy and revelry, slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep, eating of meat and drinking of wine! “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!” ¹⁴ The Lord Almighty has revealed this in my hearing: “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for,” says the Lord, the Lord Almighty.”

These people, however, became fatalistic and decided to eat and drink and party-then die. They turned away from God and his atonement at the very time of his judgment. This is the reaction of any who have tried and failed and refuse to come to Jesus for God’s help. Students may  study a little bit and fail and instead of repenting and coming to Jesus they say, “Oh, what is the use? Let me party for I only live once.” One of my favorite rock anthems as a teenager was, “Rock Rock ‘till you drop….it is better to burn out than fade away.” The song is built on the philosophy, let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. But Jesus saved me from despair and fatalism. He planted hope in my heart for this world and the next. I can do anything through him who gives me strength.

Part 2: Shebna and Eliakim (15-25).

Verses 15-25, “¹⁵ This is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says: “Go, say to this steward, to Shebna the palace administrator: ¹⁶ What are you doing here and who gave you permission to cut out a grave for yourself here, hewing your grave on the height and chiseling your resting place in the rock? ¹⁷ “Beware, the Lord is about to take firm hold of you and hurl you away, you mighty man. ¹⁸ He will roll you up tightly like a ball and throw you into a large country. There you will die and there the chariots you were so proud of will become a disgrace to your master’s house. ¹⁹ I will depose you from your office, and you will be ousted from your position.”

Shebna was a steward in charge of the king’s palace. When trouble came, he did not turn to God, but prepared his own tomb. He had a position of stewardship, but instead of seeking God and helping others do the same, he only became self-seeking and made others fatalistic. Therefore, God ousted Shebna and put Eliakim in charge.

Again, when there is trouble, we as servants of God, should never give up and be self preserving. We need to point people to Jesus. We need to strengthen the hearts of believers in our midst. If we are that kind of leader than we will be deposed and new leaders will be raised up by God. I pray that I can be a leader who can be devoted to serve God and to the welfare of the people.

Eliakim was great but he had his own problems. Let’s see what I mean. Look at verses 20-25. “In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. ²¹ I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. ²² I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ²³ I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. ²⁴ All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars. ²⁵ “In that day,” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.”

Eliakim had God’s authority. He was raised up to a place of leadership. He was a father to his people. He was connected to David’s heritage of faith. He was like a peg driven into firm place.  His whole family drew strength from his influence. I need to be such an influence to my family and those whom God has brought into my life. I need to be a source of strength that others may find support in. But ultimately I need to turn people away from me and to Jesus Christ.

But still his great legacy and influence would not last forever. Look at verse 25, “²⁵ “In that day,” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.” There will be a time when the firm influence of Eliakim will give way. This shows the limits of human achievements. We are limited no matter how strong we are. I try to stand as a good husband and father and shepherd and Bible teacher and nurse and friend. But if I don’t lead them to Jesus one day I will let them down. Jesus will never let them down and will lead them all the way to thekingdom ofGod. I must lead others to Christ.

Prayer: Lord, teach me to repent and look to you in times of trouble. Make me a good steward who can help others seek you in troubled times.

One Word: Look to the One who made you