Isaiah 41:21-29

Isa 41:21

Produce your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob.

 

Then Isaiah brings forth a challenge from the LORD.  Isaiah tells these people to bring forth their cause and their best reasons why they believe the false gods and idols would do them better than what the LORD has done for his people.  It is like today, bring forth your reasons and your cause to try and prove that your religion is better than what God has prepared for his true people.

 

Isa 41:22

Let them bring them forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.

 

Now the LORD challenges them in a different way.  First he tells them to bring forth their false gods and for them to prophesy what will happen.  See if they can tell what will happen and if they can bring about their false prophesies to fruition.  Then he tells them to look at the former things concerning idolatry.  How many nations engaged in idolatry and what happened to them as a result of their turning away from the true God.  Let these false gods explain the creation of the world and the universe.  Let us know so we may have the opportunity to consider or ponder those things to see if they can match what the true God of Israel has done.  The latter end of them will be destruction as well as those who follow them and the false religions associated with them.  It is the same thing today.  Sit down and ponder your religion to see if it can stand up to the truths of Scripture and if it will yield you everlasting life as true Christianity does.

 

Isa 41:23

Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

 

Then the false gods are challenged to prove their own deity.  First they are told to prophesy the future and any true God would do this at 100% accuracy and not partially.  If they could do any prophesying that would come true, then we would know that they are true gods because true gods have that capability.  Then they are challenged to do whether good or evil so the people will know that they have power to fear.  We must see these things so we are not dismayed or disappointed that you are truly gods.  If you cannot do these things, then we will know that you are false gods and have no power whatsoever.

 

Isa 41:24

Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooseth you.

 

Then the LORD is done challenging them because he knows full well that the false gods are nothing and the works that are associated with them will be brought down to nothing.  Those who follow the false teachings and their idolatry are nothing more than an abomination in the sight of the LORD, especially when they try and recruit others to follow the false religion.  A man who chooses idols instead of the real God is nothing more than an abomination to the LORD.

 

Isa 41:25

I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.

 

Then the LORD states his case that he has the power to direct nations and kings.  Here Cyrus is in view as coming down from the north which is the way the invasions of Judah and Israel normally came.  Cyrus by his father was Mede and his mother was a Persian so his army consisted of Medes and Persians.  The country of the Medes lay north and the country of the Persians lay east which is “the rising of the sun.”  Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, (Ezra 1:1)  Cyrus will come against Babylon and will conquer them and then the LORD will stir up the spirit of Cyrus and will allow the Jews to go back to Judah and build the temple.  The conquering of Babylon will not be difficult matter.  Belshazzar was having a drunken feast while the troops of the Medes and Persians were literally sitting outside the gates of Babylon.

 

Isa 41:26

Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.

 

The Lord had declared this from the beginning and now he challenges the false gods to tell the people if they knew about this or if they had a hand in any of the planning of the event.  Was there any of the false gods who prepared any event like this and actually brought it to pass so we may know that he kept his word thus showing his righteousness?  Then the LORD makes a three-fold declaration.   First, there is not one false god which can openly show their power or can plan events.  Secondly, none can actually declare what they are going to do or how they are going to bring something to pass.  Thirdly, every false idol will not be able to hear the words of their supplicants because they are only stone or gold laid wood and praying to them is total vanity.

 

Isa 41:27

The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.

 

This verse has to do with redemption.  There was none of the idols who could actually make the claim that they could bring redemption to Jerusalem through one that brings good tidings who would be speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ.  The false gods could never offer anything but false religion and could not free anyone from the bondage of false religion.  Behold, behold would refer to the fact that God makes a prediction of things in the future and speaks about them as if they were in the present, in other words, like it has already come to pass.

 

Isa 41:28

For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, and there was no counseller, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.

 

The false gods did not even have one man who could act as a counselor or could utter one word whether it be prophetic or something which was in the present.  None of them could ever bring a message of encouragement or bring a message of hope because Satan, the one behind those gods, could never bring a message of hope or reassurance of any kind since he does not possess the faculties for it.  The representatives of false religions today are in the same situation as they cannot bring any message of everlasting hope just a lot of opinion and suggestions which will come to nothing.

 

Isa 41:29

Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.

 

All false idols and that would include false religions are nothing but vanity or emptiness and have no spiritual substance to them.  Their works are nothing as they do not have the power to change one person as the true gospel does but have no effect upon people at all.  These false religions and idols will only send a person deeper into sin.  The molten images which are the works of man are nothing more than the wind which may elicit an immediate reaction but actually has no substance and they only engender confusion without brining any stability into a person’s life.  Since false religions are false, they can do no good for anyone.

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