Isaiah 58:1-14

Isa 58:1

Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.

 

Then Isaiah is commanded to lift up his voice like a trumpet which means he is not to hold back anything they have done.  The trumpet was used to warn the people of impending trouble and that is what Isaiah is to do now.  His voice is now to be the trumpet of warning to the people of Judah.  There are two groups of people in view in this verse, the first group is called “my people” which are the true believers of God and yes it is possible for true believers to be caught up in transgressions if they are not careful and maybe choose to follow the crowd in ignorance.  The second group is the house of Jacob which is the rest of the Jews who have gone after idols and false religions.

 

Isa 58:2

Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.

 

Here is the total hypocrisy of the nation of Judah.  They seek the LORD daily and pretend to delight in the ways of God.  They act as if they have not violated the law of God by going after the false gods.  What they were doing here is treating the true God of Israel as one of the gods in their pantheon of gods.  They ask the LORD concerning the ways of true justice and delight in approaching him but it is all a façade because they are pretending to be the LORD’s people while all the time they had a double minded existence.  A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. (James 1:8)  On one hand they wanted to inquire of the LORD but on the other they discounted what he said and continued on in their sin of rebellion and idolatry.  Once again many Christians do the same thing as they read the word of God and find out what he has written on a certain subject and then do what they want anyway.  Many Christians say they love the Bible as long as it doesn’t interfere with their plans.

 

Isa 58:3

Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

 

Then they were complaining that they had partook of fasting which could be the Day of Atonement and individual days of fasting of a personal choice.  They had fasted but they claim that God did not notice their efforts.  Then within that fast they had afflicted their souls.  Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. (Leviticus 23:27)  The fast was to get them to focus on spiritual matters and not earthly matters. Then they complained that they had done this yet God did not take notice of their fasting.  The problem was is that they were not doing these things from the sincerity of their heart or the complete obedience to God but was all an outward show.  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:5)  Then the LORD tells them straightly that during the time of their fasts they would continue in their pleasurable pursuits whether it be drinking or forms of sensuality since they were still doing obeisance to the false gods which endorsed sensuality.  Then at the same time they exacted all their labors from the people they were employing and forcing them to work during the fast.  Their idea of fasting was to try and persuade God to give them what they were asking for not realizing the LORD does not reward disobedience.  They violated the true fast and its purpose.

 

Isa 58:4

Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.

 

Their fast was supposed to be making them aware of their own sins and transgressions against the LORD instead it became a time when accusations seem to be flying in every direction.  Instead of them doing it in peace, they fasted to the point of actually getting into a fight with each other.  Instead of them dealing with their own sins, they were dealing with everybody else’s sins and of course, there was resistance on the part of those being accused by the equally guilty.  They thought that exposing the sins of others instead of dealing with their own sins would cause them to be heard by God but accusing someone of sins and not dealing with your own is tantamount to a heart filled with pride which means the person doing the accusing was just as guilty of sin and transgression as the one or ones they were accusing.  These attitudes would never be accepted by God.

 

Isa 58:5

Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?

 

Then the LORD asks a series of four questions to these people.  Is what they were calling a fast the type that the LORD had chosen or took delight in?  Is it only one day whereby man should afflict his soul or should that be something that he does regularly to keep himself on the straight and narrow?  Is it to bow down his head as a bulrush to show everyone around him how religious and pious he is?  The Lord Jesus Christ had something to say about that:

 

16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. (Matthew 6:16-18)

 

Matthew 6:16-18 speaks about the proper way to fast which is not telling anyone you are fasting but it is between you and God.  Are these things what God calls an acceptable fast?  Then God goes on in the next two verses and tells them what the real fast is all about and it also has a great gospel meaning.

 

Isa 58:6

Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

 

Then the LORD gives them another question that he himself will answer giving them the true reason for the fast.  I will approach it from the time of Isaiah first and then the gospel meaning.  First, they were to loosen the bands of wickedness which was the cruel obligations they placed upon the poor people such as usury which would add up to taking so much in interest they would lose their lands to the lenders.  Then they were to undo the heavy burdens which were placed upon the people which was mortgages or loans which caused them to work incessantly just to make interest payments.  Then they are to let the oppressed go free and they are to release them from the heavy burdens that they bear in debt to the landowners.  Then just as two oxen are yoked together to do work, the borrower is servant to the lender and are yoked together until they have paid all their debts which normally does not happen because interest will keep the debt high.  The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. (Proverbs 22:7)

 

Then this passage has a true gospel meaning.  To loose the bands of wickedness which has every person in the world banded, the true gospel releases the soul from wickedness and gives it eternal life in Christ thus cleansing the soul and removing all sin from the soul.  To undo the heavy burdens is to release a person from the heavy burden of false religion in trying to appease God or thinking they are on the path to eternal life when false religion leads to eternal damnation.  The world has oppressed people which is the beast system of Satan but the true gospel frees a person from the oppression of the world system and brings them out of it.  No longer are they subject to the whims of the kingdom of Satan but are now transferred to the kingdom of God.  Then the yoke of false religion must be broken by the true gospel.  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32)  The true gospel frees up a person’s soul and makes them free in Christ as the only truth on earth as all false religions and world systems keep people in spiritual bondage.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (Matthew 11:29)

There is another aspect of fasting and that is when you are engaging in ministry, you are fasting to the things you normally do.  You have exchanged your time from doing your desires to doing the ministry work of the LORD.

 

Isa 58:7

Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

 

Then the people of Israel were to show compassion to those they have oppressed.  They were to share the food which they took from the oppressed people and were to help feed them.  Those who lost their homes to the evil creditors were to be taken in by other people so they would not live their lives on the streets.  Then those who were very destitute and could not even afford any decent clothing were to have clothes bought for them so they could be dressed and not have to hide themselves in shame.  Then those who were affluent were not to hide themselves from those who needed their help whether they be family members or those who are in the same neighborhood.

 

Then there is also a gospel meaning to this verse.  The bread we are to give out is the bread of the gospel who is the Lord Jesus Christ himself.  And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (John 6:35)  Then those who are cast out of the house should be brought into the house of God by means of salvation.  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: (Ephesians 2:12)  Then those who are spiritually naked, that is, those without a Savior need to be clothed with the true gospel and it is our responsibility to cover him or her with the truth after God saves them.  44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? 45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. (Matthew 25:44-45)  Then the true Christian is to be involved in the Great Commission as there is none who is exempted from the Lord’s command which means no is to be sitting on their couches waiting for the rapture.  Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD. (Jeremiah 23:24)  You cannot hide from the LORD on your couch or anywhere so you need to get busy and get out there. 

 

Isa 58:8

Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.

 

Once the people of Judah begin to follow the ways of the LORD and to reject the way they have been behaving especially in the manner of their fasting, then they will experience the blessing of God once again.  It will be a new day for them just as a new day breaks forth in the dawn with a sunrise.  Then they shall experience a new health which would be spiritual health because they are in obedience to the LORD.  Then their righteousness will be from the heart and not just an external show because it will have substance.  The LORD promises that he will be their rear guard so nobody will be able to come at them without being noticed.  God will protect their vulnerabilities.

 

Then the gospel meaning to this verse.  A person who is unsaved will walk in darkness until the time they have become regenerated and then when they become saved, it will be a new day for them which will never end.  Then whereas before they walked in spiritual death, they now have spiritual life for eternity and they will exude a spiritual health.  Before salvation, man has his own idea of righteousness resulting in self-righteousness which only deceives him but once they become saved they will have the imputed righteousness of Christ which will manifest itself in many ways in their walk, when they deal with people or are involved in worship because it will be true worship.  Then the LORD will be the protector of his people especially in the area of spiritual protection and give discernment to recognize false gospels.  I experienced this personally.  When I was a very young Christian back in 1981, a man walked up to me at the annual Family Radio Bible Conference and tried to convince me that the Urantia Book was just as much truth as the Bible.  The Urantia Book is a New Age book around since the 1920’s because of that incident I took to study comparative religions as Luther did when he compared the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church to that of the Bible.  So what Satan meant for evil, God turned it around for good.

 

Isa 58:9

Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

 

Then once the people are walking in obedience to the LORD, they will call upon the name of the LORD and he will answer them.  Previously they thought that God did not see them or take note of their religious attempts to appease him.  The problem was that they were doing it from a pretentious heart and not in sincerity.  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. (Jeremiah 33:3)  Once they walk in the truth, God states that he will answer them not maybe but keep in mind that no is also an answer.  The LORD will make himself known to them by intervening for them.  They were first to show their desire to walk with the LORD by removing the yoke which was the yoke of oppression which the wealthy put on the poor people.  The putting forth of the finger would be a sign of accusation which could be false or a sign of scorn or revenge.  They were not to take any kind of personal vengeance on anyone.  They were also to cease speaking vanity which could be false accusations with the tongue or just speech which is condemnatory or false stories about people to build a consensus against them for some evil purpose.  Remember what Jezebel did to Naboth?  She hired false witnesses against him for the purpose of having him killed so Ahab could take his vineyard.  (1 Kings 21)

 

Isa 58:10

And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:

 

If the people were to make their goods available to those in need and to help those who are afflicted whether it be in hunger, sickness or in extreme poverty then shall thy light rise in obscurity which is in the darkest part of the needs of these people.  In their extreme poverty and needs, a person who comes beside them will help them in the most darkest time in their lives and because of their willingness to help, their darkness would be as the noon day when the sun is at its height.  Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. (Psalm 112:4)  Then there is a verse in the New Testament which deals with this type of situation.  But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? (1 John 3:17)  The people helping them means they have come from a point of self-serving to the point where they are obedient to the LORD and willing to help others in genuineness.

 

Isa 58:11

And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

 

Those whom the LORD has granted salvation to and is evidenced by their change of habits and their walk, the LORD guarantees that he will be their guide continually which means no break in the guidance.  For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death. (Psalm 48:14)  He will continue to pour the water of life and the water of the true gospel in their soul even at times when there are no places of worship or they are surrounded by false gods as in the case of the Babylonian captivity.  He promises to strengthen the soul with the making fat or the great abundance of the gospel which would be poured upon the person who has become redeemed.  Then those eternal waters of the gospel will be a never ending source always blessing and watering the redeemed person.  The well-watered garden is place where many things grow in abundantly and the person who is watered with the wisdom of God through the true gospel will grow abundantly in their walk.  The false gods will always fail people but the truth of the gospel will never fail anyone that it is implanted in.

 

Isa 58:12

And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

 

Then the promise is given of future generations of the godly who have followed the ways of the LORD.  In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: (Amos 9:11)  God had promised that one of his descendants would sit on the throne.  The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.  (Psalm 132:11)  After Judah goes into captivity for 70 years, then after they return God will send prophets to get them to build the walls and restore Jerusalem the way it was in the time of David.  They must rebuild the city because the Lord Jesus Christ is going to be born in Bethlehem and with him coming to Judah, when he brings in the gospel of grace, then there is going to be a state of spiritual joy like there was in the time of David.  For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.  (Isaiah 14:1)  The rebuilding of physical Jerusalem is a type of the building of spiritual Jerusalem, the body of believers when it goes out to the world.

 

16 After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: 17 That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things. (Acts 15:16-17)

 

James quotes from the prophet Amos 9:11 as God states that He will once again become involved with His people. The day which is being spoken of here, is the day the Lord went to the cross. The nation of Israel was without a word from the Lord for over four hundred years and they had sunk into rank apostasy and had no testimony to the world, which is what is meant by being “fallen down.” Then when the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth, He died for His people, the Elect of God, and out of the ruins of the spiritual fall of Israel, began to rise a new nation and that nation was built by God Himself. He would set it up and that would be the body of Christ.  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. The city of David was built by man’s hands but the city which Abraham looked for and only saw in faith, was the body of believers otherwise called a city. (Hebrews 11:10)  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. (Revelation 21:2)

 

Isa 58:13

If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

 

Then when Isaiah penned this verse the ceremonial Sabbath was still in power as being part of the ceremonial law.  God viewed the Old Testament sabbath as holy and as a result a man was put to death for violating it.

 

And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. (Numbers 15:32)

 

And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses. (Numbers 15:36)

 

The penalty for violating the Sabbath day was death as in the case of the man who was just picking up sticks.  That teaches us the even just a slight work for the purpose of gaining salvation will yield eternal death.  Once a person is saved in Christ, they need not do any work since the entire price of their salvation has been paid for.  The problem was that the people were violating the sabbath in that they were continuing to do what they wanted to in violation of the law of God.  In the time of Nehemiah, the nobles were allowing business to be conducted on the sabbath but Nehemiah stepped in and put a stop to it by closing the gates until the sabbath was over.

 

16 There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. 17 Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? 18 Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. 19 And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. (Nehemiah 13:16-19)

 

The sabbath day was to be a day of spiritual activity when people could sit around and rest and speak of the things the LORD had done for them.  If there is not time to recollect the things the LORD did for them, then there will become a forgetting of those things and future generations would be trained to know and understand them.

 

Isa 58:14

Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

 

Once they return to the LORD and obey the laws of the sabbath then the LORD gives them further promises they could look forward to.  Once they are obedient they can once again delight themselves in the LORD and reject all those idols that they were placing their trust in.  They will ride upon the high places of the earth which means their vision will be beyond the horizon of the earth and they will be able to speak of things in Heaven and the LORD who is way above the earth.  Then the LORD will feed them with the heritage of Jacob which is the true gospel as the tribes of Israel took the promised land, the heritage of Jacob will be Heaven where they will live in the ultimate Promised Land forever.  The LORD has spoken it which means that it will come to pass and that it has been established.

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