“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23, ESV)

28/08/2016 – Evening Service: Isaiah 59, The Everlasting Covenant with the Redeemer/Messiah

Bible Readings:

Isaiah 59:1 – 21, Romans 11:11 – 36

Sermon Outline:

Isaiah 59:1–2 (NKJV)

1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.

Isaiah 59:21 (AV)

21 As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.

Isaiah 59:19 (NKJV)

19 So shall they fear The name of the Lord from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.

(19). niv (adopting a minutely altered Hebrew text) presents this pictorially as a pent-up flood, released and driven by a divine wind. The change is not, however, necessary and is uncertain in detail. The words more naturally mean, ‘When an adversary comes in like a stream, the Spirit of the Lord lifts a banner against him.’ This could well be a proverbial saying used appropriately here: the ‘adversary’ is all that opposes the Lord and his helpless people, but the Lord’s Spirit rallies his own forces (in context, the Lord’s ‘arm’ and ‘righteousness’, 16cd) to his banner (11:10) and wins the victory. Thirdly (20), this new world is Zion-centred. From his victory over their foes worldwide, the great Next-of-Kin who has taken upon himself all their needs comes as victor to Zion (40:9–11; 52:7–10).

Motyer, J. A. (1999). Isaiah: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 20, p. 418). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.