Isaiah 55:1-11
Discussion questions
Getting started
Have you ever had the fortune of a fortune cookie come true?
How are you handling the changing scientific answers regarding the coronavirus?
Getting into the Word
The premise of this section of Isaiah is that God keeps his Word, even if it isn’t what we’d like. This was demonstrated twice in the life of Isaiah alone, even though Isaiah may be drawing on previous events to gain his conviction
Isaiah 38, Hezekiah becomes sick (about 714 BC). He is told that he will not die. God will deliver him from the hands of the Assyrians. The sign all this will happen is that the sun will go back down the stairway. This happens in Isaiah 38:8. Hezekiah recovers.
Isaiah 37:6-7 the Assyrians have surrounded Jerusalem (about 705 BC). God promises through Isaiah that he will make Sennacherib want to return home. He also promises that he will have Sennacherib killed. In 37:36-38 all this happens.
What do you think these things meant to Isaiah (the words of Isaiah 55 might help)?
Depending on what you want to emphasize, there may be as many as 2,500 (Hugh Ross) prophecies and as many as 1,800 are fulfilled. Do you find it encouraging that so many prophecies have taken place?
You would think if so many prophecies have actually taken place (happened) everyone would do what God says all the time. But the Judeans didn’t listen well. Most didn’t come back from Babylon. What do you think are the reasons people (ancient and modern) find it hard to trust God’s messages?
Even if we get past the differences of genre, culture, and history in the Bible, most people will still not find a list of fulfilled prophecies convincing enough. In 55:9-11, Isaiah is telling us about a reason why, even as he tells us to listen to the Word. What is he saying?
I love the promise of Isaiah 55. In verses 9-11, he says that we don’t get what we want. The world is going to go his way, not ours. He says, “it will accomplish what I desire” - not what we desire. He will still say in verse 12, “you will go out in joy, be led forth in peace, and have a juniper instead of a thornbush”. When we listen to God’s Word, we’ll get what we really want, not what we think we want. Martin Luther put it this way, “Thus all the godly regard all things as happy in inner peace and happiness and rejoicing in the Spirit.... It is not, however, the joy that characterizes the Enthusiasts, who are happy when things go well. But the highest joy is to rejoice and be glad in every persecution and upheaval. Let the Christian know that though all else has been taken away, Christ has not been removed from him, and let him spurn everything outside of Christ.” This is the mystery of the gospel. Joy doesn’t come from getting what we want, but getting something we didn’t even know we wanted.
Can you accept this?
Is there a time when experienced trouble or unrest, but still found joy because of God’s Word?
Taking it home
Pick a prophecy or event in the Bible and research how it was fulfilled, or study one listed below. Learn it well enough that you could tell it to someone else.
Where is one place in life right now where you are listening to God’s Word when you don’t want to?
Appendix A Examples of prophecies fulfilled
(1) Some time before 500 BC, the prophet Daniel proclaimed that Israel's long-awaited Messiah would begin his public ministry 483 years after the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem (Daniel 9:25-26). He further predicted that the Messiah would be "cut off," killed, and that this event would take place prior to a second destruction of Jerusalem. Abundant documentation shows that these prophecies were perfectly fulfilled in the life (and crucifixion) of Jesus Christ. The decree regarding the restoration of Jerusalem was issued by Persia's King Artaxerxes to the Hebrew priest Ezra in 458 BC, 483 years later the ministry of Jesus Christ began in Galilee. (Remember that due to calendar changes, the date for the start of Christ's ministry is set by most historians at about AD 26. Also note that from 1 BC to AD 1 is just one year.) Jesus' crucifixion occurred only a few years later, and about four decades later, in AD 70 came the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 105.)*
(2) In approximately 700 BC, the prophet Micah named the tiny village of Bethlehem as the birthplace of Israel's Messiah (Micah 5:2). The fulfillment of this prophecy in the birth of Christ is one of the most widely known and widely celebrated facts in history.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 105.)
(3) In the fifth century BC, a prophet named Zechariah declared that the Messiah would be betrayed for the price of a slave—thirty pieces of silver, according to Jewish law-and also that this money would be used to buy a burial ground for Jerusalem's poor foreigners (Zechariah 11:12-13). Bible writers and secular historians both record thirty pieces of silver as the sum paid to Judas Iscariot for betraying Jesus, and they indicate that the money went to purchase a "potter's field," used—just as predicted—for the burial of poor aliens (Matthew 27:3-10).
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1011.)
(4) Some 400 years before crucifixion was invented, both Israel's King David and the prophet Zechariah described the Messiah's death in words that perfectly depict that mode of execution. Further, they said that the body would be pierced and that none of the bones would be broken, contrary to customary procedure in cases of crucifixion (Psalm 22 and 34:20; Zechariah 12:10). Again, historians and New Testament writers confirm the fulfillment: Jesus of Nazareth died on a Roman cross, and his extraordinarily quick death eliminated the need for the usual breaking of bones. A spear was thrust into his side to verify that he was, indeed, dead.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1013.)
(5) The prophet Isaiah foretold that a conqueror named Cyrus would destroy seemingly impregnable Babylon and subdue Egypt along with most of the rest of the known world. This same man, said Isaiah, would decide to let the Jewish exiles in his territory go free without any payment of ransom (Isaiah 44:28; 45:1; and 45:13). Isaiah made this prophecy 150 years before Cyrus was born, 180 years before Cyrus performed any of these feats (and he did, eventually, perform them all), and 80 years before the Jews were taken into exile.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1015.)
(6) Mighty Babylon, 196 miles square, was enclosed not only by a moat, but also by a double wall 330 feet high, each part 90 feet thick. It was said by unanimous popular opinion to be indestructible, yet two Bible prophets declared its doom. These prophets further claimed that the ruins would be avoided by travelers, that the city would never again be inhabited, and that its stones would not even be moved for use as building material (Isaiah 13:17-22 and Jeremiah 51:26, 43). Their description is, in fact, the well-documented history of the famous citadel.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 109.)
(7) The exact location and construction sequence of Jerusalem's nine suburbs was predicted by Jeremiah about 2600 years ago. He referred to the time of this building project as "the last days," that is, the time period of Israel's second rebirth as a nation in the land of Palestine (Jeremiah 31:38-40). This rebirth became history in 1948, and the construction of the nine suburbs has gone forward precisely in the locations and in the sequence predicted.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1018.)
(8) The prophet Moses foretold (with some additions by Jeremiah and Jesus) that the ancient Jewish nation would be conquered twice and that the people would be carried off as slaves each time, first by the Babylonians (for a period of 70 years), and then by a fourth world kingdom (which we know as Rome). The second conqueror, Moses said, would take the Jews captive to Egypt in ships, selling them or giving them away as slaves to all parts of the world. Both of these predictions were fulfilled to the letter, the first in 607 BC and the second in AD 70. God's spokesmen said, further, that the Jews would remain scattered throughout the entire world for many generations, but without becoming assimilated by the peoples or of other nations, and that the Jews would one day return to the land of Palestine to re-establish for a second time their nation (Deuteronomy 29; Isaiah 11:11-13; Jeremiah 25:11; Hosea 3:4-5 and Luke 21:23-24).
This prophetic statement sweeps across 3,500 years of history to its complete fulfillment—in our lifetime.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1020.)
(9) Jeremiah predicted that despite its fertility and despite the accessibility of its water supply, the land of Edom (today a part of Jordan) would become a barren, uninhabited wasteland (Jeremiah 49:15-20; Ezekiel 25:12-14). His description accurately tells the history of that now bleak region.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 105.)
(10) Joshua prophesied that Jericho would be rebuilt by one man. He also said that the man's eldest son would die when the reconstruction began and that his youngest son would die when the work reached completion (Joshua 6:26). About five centuries later this prophecy found its fulfillment in the life and family of a man named Hiel (1 Kings 16:33-34).
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 107).
(11) The day of Elijah's supernatural departure from Earth was predicted unanimously—and accurately, according to the eye-witness account—by a group of fifty prophets (2 Kings 2:3-11).
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 109).
(12) Jahaziel prophesied that King Jehoshaphat and a tiny band of men would defeat an enormous, well-equipped, well-trained army without even having to fight. Just as predicted, the King and his troops stood looking on as their foes were supernaturally destroyed to the last man (2 Chronicles 20).
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 108).
(13) One prophet of God (unnamed, but probably Shemiah) said that a future king of Judah, named Josiah, would take the bones of all the occultic priests (priests of the "high places") of Israel's King Jeroboam and burn them on Jeroboam's altar (1 Kings 13:2 and 2 Kings 23:15-18). This event occurred approximately 300 years after it was foretold.
(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1013).
Sermon
The Bible is really hard. It’s harder for some than others. And we can’t forget that.
The Bible’s language is archaic. Even if you are reading a modern translation like the NIV that we use at Peace, it still will say, “I am the good shepherd.” Do you know how many shepherds there are in the United States today? Less than 1,500. I’ve had to study and think a great deal to figure out what the Bible means when it says, I’m the good shepherd.
The Bible is fairly advanced literature. Let’s say you’re reading verse 12 of today’s lesson: the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands”. I know that Fraulein Maria in the Sound of Music believed the hills were alive with the sound of music, but have you ever heard the mountains sing? Any of you have clapping trees in your backyard?
The Bible is historically challenging. Where was Jesus buried? We’ve got two decent locations. In the end you have to make an educated guess. I guess two is better than none.
The Bible causes spiritual upheaval. Take verse 1 today. “Come buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
It’s so awesome to get past all that.
Many people “I have loved our spiritual conversations”
KP - Bible passages all over the wall of the hospice room. “Thank God for life!”
Discover
The Bible make a difference – conversion; doing, desiring
What does the text say
Isaiah 55 is one of the most beautiful invitations to be part of God’s kingdom. You can hear its beauty in verse 1 ““Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
One of the most wonderful invitations in the whole Bible. The word “come” the author uses here, it’s a very strong encouragement. One writer says, “this particular invitation is unsurpassed for warmth of welcome”. You can call it a cosmic evite.
It’s an invitation to have the forgiveness, pardon, life, joy, celebration, and feasting. In it, God is making two points to his people.
First, God said, “and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?” What is he saying there?
You can’t buy anything without money. That’s not possible. You have to work. Only then can you spend your own money to get what you earned. Still God wants you to buy what you haven’t earned.
To get God’s forgiveness, pardon, feasting, new life, food, and celebration; first, there is a different doing.
We don’t earn. We don’t buy it. We don’t take it. We receive it. This is what Christians call grace.
The second thing, he says, “my ways aren’t your ways, my thoughts aren’t your thoughts”. He even says, “my Word will accomplish what I desire”. (verse 8, verse 11)
We often highlight here that God’s Word works. It’s effective. He also want to emphasize, with God, you don’t get what you want. You get what God wants.
There is different desire.
The Israelites couldn’t earn the real good stuff. Quite the challenge for Hezekiah, Isaiah, and the Israelites in general.
Hezekiah and his people had tried to be a good people. He was a reforming king. He wasn’t an idol worshiper. He didn’t set up temples just so people didn’t travel to other countries. There was this whole long list that the northern people did, that Hezekiah didn’t do.
Still, God offered them a new city, a new country, forgiveness, pardon, feasting, new life, food, and celebration.
God did two things for him to prove that his Word was good. If you want to know what those two things are, you should come to one of our studies.
Hezekiah was convinced, God’s Word does what he desires. “The word of the Lord you have spoken is good.” (Isaiah 39:8)
God’s Word does what God desires.
Will you let God do what he desires? One thing I’ve had to work through, I don’t think there really is much point in having a God that always does things your way. That wouldn’t be a God. That would just be me. I need to God’s Word do what God desires, so that his Word has his way in your life.
So many of us fall into one of two camps. Some of us, we want what God wants, but we want to do it ourselves. We want the fine feast, new life, and pardon. We want that all without any connection to God.
If we’re those kind of people, God says, “Come, buy without money.” And that’s really hard for all of us. Just a few weeks ago, I was at a friend’s house. He wanted some help with his network for his small business. After I helped him with his network, we checked out his pile of bikes in his yard. He collects used bikes as spares for his kids. He raids parts off of bikes and puts repairs old ones.
He had two bikes that worked for us. One for my son and one for me. Before I wheeled them away, I asked, how much can I give you for them? He said, oh, don’t worry about it. I got them for free. I’m glad to give them away for free. Plus, they’ll probably go to the recycling center if you don’t take them. We chatted a little more, then he had to hurry off to meet someone at work. I was left standing to load the bikes into my car with my son. But do you know what I had to do before I left?
I put 20 bucks on the table.
Others of us don’t want what God wants, we want what we want. And to those people God says, “Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.”
This I think is even harder for some of us to imagine. We think, I’ve got a house, family, kids, job, a halfway decent government. How much more could I want?
Until you realize that God’s kingdom is like the difference between Kraft mac and cheese and real homemade mac and cheese. How many of you make real homemade mac and cheese? See? And I would be willing to bet that while you will eat Kraft in a pinch, if you have your choice you’ll always eat the real stuff. For me, it’s tuna. I can’t stand tuna in a can. I had a tuna in a can sandwich when I was in 4th grade. It took me 3 days to eat that sandwich. Fresh tuna, I love that stuff.
Martin Luther actually had a test for faith here. Martin Luther wasn’t big into testing our faith. He realized we doubt all the time and if we take the test at the wrong time of day, we’ll fail. But here, he had an easy one. He said, do you have joy? And not the joy of the happiness people, but joy in trials and upheaval?
It’s not that hard to have the joy. God already made the message of Isaiah 55 come true. John tells us “the Word became flesh”.
And what did he do? Barrels of water became gallons for nothing. A few loaves of bread became bread for thousands, without cost or price. Nations that we know not - a woman from Syrophenecia and Samaria and Nain ran to him for help. The women on the way to the cross and the thief on the cross called to him for help.
And the last thing – on Easter morning, Peter and John and Mary came to the tomb.
“the word became flesh”
See, everyone else says listen to some far off ruler. God in Jesus says, listen to my Son.
Call to action
Friends this is wonderful. It’s simple.
What is one place in your life where you are doing what God’s Word says and it’s not what you normally desire, so you can find out what God wants?
I’ve got plenty of people telling me what to do. There are plenty of people saying, here is what God says and here is how you should live your life. Everyone is an evangelist for their position. What I don’t have is a lot of people saying, I’m doing what God wants no matter how convenient it is for me, and this is how I’m discovering that what God wants is so much better.
I'm doing it and I’m experiencing God’s forgiveness, pardon, life, joy, and celebration in ways I never imagined.
If you’ve been a follower of Jesus for a while, you don’t know how encouraging it is for us to hear how you are discovering what God wants for you.
This is really simply. It’s really wonderful. The more we want God to be God, the more we get what we want. What? When God acts as God, what do we get? Yes justice, condemning, and accusing, but we also get forgiveness, life, and salvation. So the more God gets to be God, the more we get what we really want.
God’s Word does what God desires.