Isaiah 28 Commentary
Israel’s Faithless Leaders, Judah’s Unfaithful, Punished
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KEY THOUGHT: Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim | The priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink, [Isaiah 28:1a,7b NKJV]
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Isaiah 28 NKJV
Woe to Ephraim and Jerusalem
28 Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim,
Whose glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the [a]verdant valleys,
To those who are overcome with wine!
2 Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one,
Like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm,
Like a flood of mighty waters overflowing,
Who will bring them down to the earth with His hand.
3 The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim,
Will be trampled underfoot;
4 And the glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the [b]verdant valley,
Like the first fruit before the summer,
Which an observer sees;
He eats it up while it is still in his hand.
5 In that day the Lord of hosts will be
For a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty
To the remnant of His people,
6 For a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,
And for strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7 But they also have erred through wine,
And through intoxicating drink are out of the way;
The priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink,
They are swallowed up by wine,
They are out of the way through intoxicating drink;
They err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
8 For all tables are full of vomit and filth;
No place is clean.
9 “Whom will he teach knowledge?
And whom will he make to understand the message?
Those just weaned from milk?
Those just drawn from the breasts?
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little.”
11 For with stammering lips and another tongue
He will speak to this people,
12 To whom He said, “This is the rest with which
You may cause the weary to rest,”
And, “This is the refreshing”;
Yet they would not hear.
13 But the word of the Lord was to them,
“Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little,”
That they might go and fall backward, and be broken
And snared and caught.
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men,
Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem,
15 Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
And with Sheol we are in agreement.
When the overflowing scourge passes through,
It will not come to us,
For we have made lies our refuge,
And under falsehood we have hidden ourselves.”
A Cornerstone in Zion
16 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation,
A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;
Whoever believes will not act hastily.
17 Also I will make justice the measuring line,
And righteousness the plummet;
The hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,
And the waters will overflow the hiding place.
18 Your covenant with death will be annulled,
And your agreement with Sheol will not stand;
When the overflowing scourge passes through,
Then you will be trampled down by it.
19 As often as it goes out it will take you;
For morning by morning it will pass over,
And by day and by night;
It will be a terror just to understand the report.”
20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on,
And the covering so narrow that one cannot wrap himself in it.
21 For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim,
He will be angry as in the Valley of Gibeon—
That He may do His work, His awesome work,
And bring to pass His act, His [c]unusual act.
22 Now therefore, do not be mockers,
Lest your bonds be made strong;
For I have heard from the Lord God of hosts,
A [d]destruction determined even upon the whole earth.
Listen to the Teaching of God
23 Give ear and hear my voice,
Listen and hear my speech.
24 Does the plowman keep plowing all day to sow?
Does he keep turning his soil and breaking the clods?
25 When he has leveled its surface,
Does he not sow the black cummin
And scatter the cummin,
Plant the wheat in rows,
The barley in the appointed place,
And the [e]spelt in its place?
26 For He instructs him in right judgment,
His God teaches him.
27 For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
Nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin;
But the black cummin is beaten out with a stick,
And the cummin with a rod.
28 Bread flour must be ground;
Therefore he does not thresh it forever,
Break it with his cartwheel,
Or crush it with his horsemen.
29 This also comes from the Lord of hosts,
Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in [f]guidance.
Footnotes
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 28 Commentary
Israel’s faithless leaders, Judah’s unfaithful prophets and priests, punished
The first section deals with Israel’s drunken leaders. It reflects poor judgment, lack of direction, and general drunkenness of the mind. Nothing is normal. They are proud for nothing, but the LORD will humble them with an attack from someone stronger.
Judah is equally wicked. Her prophets and priests are so drunk that they stagger. In their drunken state, they feel they are too educated to listen to the basics. They are tired of God’s dos and don’ts – too many instructions from the prophet.
This chapter is personal. We get a glimpse of the prophet’s struggles with the people. Leaders don’t want to pay attention. They despise the warnings. They pour scorn on his teachings.
Then God responds: “Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people.” Verse 11. It refers to a time of exile when Jerusalem would be destroyed, and people would be forced to listen to a foreign language while in exile. This lesson won’t be ignored.
The Spirit of the LORD speaks softly to an individual’s spirit. The expectation is that you respond with a child’s faith. Don’t laugh about it – pretending wisdom and knowledge. The LORD may use a stronger voice that you won’t miss.
Isaiah speaks to people who feel they have it all under control. All is covered. Money, connections, political power, or position. They can all give false security to an individual. “It cannot touch us,” so they think.
But the LORD says, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” Verse 16b.
Isaiah has offered an alternative. It is perfect and can be trusted. We can rely on it. The New Testament reader knows the scripture is referring to the LORD Jesus Christ. He is the Cornerstone. You can trust him for perfect stability.
Can we understand this message? The bed is too short and the blanket too narrow! Think about it and know there isn’t any substance in what we have trusted.
It is scary that we are hanging on a single thread and know nothing about it!
But see! There is a tested stone in Zion – the LORD Jesus Christ. He can be trusted.
An individual can see God’s perfect plan for them and appreciate the wisdom from above. Only in Christ do pieces come together!
The closing verses appeal to logic. Your Maker designed logic and wisdom in you. You plan and execute your plans to perfection. You define your own world because your Maker designed you for it.
What makes you feel Your Maker is clueless? Won’t His plans come to pass?
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