ISAIAH - CHAPTER 3 - Famine of leadership
ISAIAH – CHAPTER 3
Tuesday, July 2, 2013, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
As I read this chapter, I was tempted to skip over and move on to Chapter 19, the Oracle concerning Egypt, which is unfolding before our eyes as well as many other judgments of God on the nations of the world and on this nation.
However, unless the Lord speaks and gives me new direction, I stay the course of the assigned path.
In Chapter 3, Isaiah deals with judgment in greater detail, and shows how it will proceed against the rulers and against the women. In the scriptures that describe God’s judgment against Judah and Jerusalem, we can insert the United States of America and the apostate church.
The judgment in the case of the rulers is to be the destruction of true and noble government and the substitution of incompetent administration, with chaos and corruption necessarily resulting. The reason for this, so far as the people are concerned, is the open sin into which they have been led by evil rulers. So far as Jehovah is concerned, He has the cause of the people in His heart, and is against all oppression.
This chapter can apply to all governments and those in authority, natural or spiritual. As all of our teaching and preaching of the Word has been “On Time”, so I move forward in Faith that this chapter is “On Time”.
Those of us ladies who enjoy lovely garments and beautiful jewelry could get under condemnation over the prophecy to the Daughters of Zion, 3: 16-14. However, I hope to bring these verses into the “light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, that like the Queen in Psalm 45:13, “The king’s (King Jesus) daughter is all glorious within; her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought to the king in raiment of needlework…with gladness and rejoicing.”
Of course, this verse speaks not only of beautiful outer garments, but garments of salvation, love, joy, peace, mercy, kindness, purity, goodness, peace, grace, etc.
Isa. 61:10: ‘I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels.”
As Christians we are clothed upon with our house which is from heaven (2 Cor. 5:2).
So, the garments here are metaphorical of the ungodliness and unrighteousness of the women.
Isa. 3: 1-3: “Behold the Lord, the Lord of hosts, does take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread and the whole stay of water. The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient, the captain of fifty, and the honorable man, and the counselor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.”
This can have a dualistic interpretation of prophecy of famine of food as well as famine of the Word and the Spirit. The “Stay” means lean or rest upon; rely on or trust in; support”.
Society’s props:
- Military:
(a) – The Mighty Man - Heroes
(b) - The Man of War – military heroes
(c) - The Captain of Fifty –Officers and Leaders
- Civic:
(a) - The Judge---justice
(b) - The Ancient – Elder – principle of wisdom
(c) - The Honorable Man – The man of elevated countenance (favor).
(d) - The Counselor---Spirit of counsel
(e) - The cunning Artificer – skilled in the arts.
- Religious:
(a) - The Prophet – the mouthpiece of God.
(b) - The Prudent – “Diviner” – the King. (prov. 16:10).
(c) - The Eloquent Orator – skilled in magnetism
Isa. 3: 4-5: “I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them. The people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbor; the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honorable.”
The United States has immature government leaders who are inexperienced in the military, civic justice and wisdom, religion and foreign policy. We are seeing this play out in every arena.
- Military – Benghazi
- Civic-- justice and Wisdom – ruling last week by the Supreme Court.
- Religious – Absolutely zero knowledge and understanding of the Way of God.
- Oppression – run away national debt and taxation. The Internal Revenue Service oppressing the people.
- Children are not taught to respect their elders.
- Those who are “base” (crude, rude, without morals) disrespect those who are honorable. Even our movies and television shows are disrespectful to all that is honorable.
Isaiah foresees the day when the land will be bereft of men of experience and knowledge, amid famine conditions. A country without Godly leadership is a nation set for devastation of the economy and chaos. We have a visual of that principle in the Middle East.
Isa. 3: 6-8: “A man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, You have clothing, be our ruler, and let this ruin be under your hand; IN THAT DAY, shall he swear, saying, I will not be a healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing; make me not a ruler of the people. For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of His glory.”
The citizen will be desperate for men to take the lead, and will choose the most reluctant fellow with the slightest claim to advancement. The “clothing” or “cloak” is a very slight mark of distinction. It was possibly a poor enough qualification, but better than nothing.
We have this situation today in the United States. Honorable men do not want to run for government office because of the oppression of the liberal media. By the time Obama gets out of office, “the ruin under his hand” will be an incredible challenge for anyone to restore the nation to its former glory.
“To provoke the eyes of the Lord’s glory” is another leitmotiv (re-occurring theme) that man’s sin separating him from the Image of God.
Isa. 3:9: “The show of their countenance does witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe to their soul! They have rewarded evil to themselves.”
That is self-explanatory. The sin of Sodomy is no longer done in hiding, but flaunted.
Isa. 3: 10-11: “Say to the righteous, that it shall be well with him; for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him.”
In the midst of judgment, we have this wonderful promise that all will be well for the righteous and we will eat even in the midst of famine the fruit or blessing of what we do.
Isa. 3:12: “As for My people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, that which lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.”
David Payne suggests that “oppressors and women” here refer to leaders who are weak and effeminate in view of the reference to Sodomy in the previous verse. Also that money-lenders and usurers dominate the scene. In any case the leaders lead the people astray.
Kelly Varner suggests that “women” here refers to leaders who rule from their soul.
Isa. 3:13-15: “The Lord stands up to plead, and stands to judge the people. The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of His people, and the princes thereof; for you have eaten up the vineyard, the spoil of the poor is in your houses. What mean you that you beat My people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? Says the Lord God of hosts.”
Whether priest, prophet, king, governor, or president, the Lord God of hosts will bring judgment to those who spoil his vineyard and take advantage of the poor.
Isa. 3: Moreover the Lord says, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet; Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will discover their secret parts(nakedness). IN THAT DAY, the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the moon, the chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers. The bonnets and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings. The rings, and nose jewels, changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the cloaks/veils and the purses, the glasses, and the fine linen, and the hoods, and the veils. It shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher, a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.”.
In That Day of the conference, I guess this means no one will be crossing the street to Sam Moon’s during the conference (tongue-in-cheek). Sam Moon has all of the above in a building the size of a city block. “their round tires like the moon”--- A joke I couldn’t resist.
These obviously are not Godly women. These women are flirtatious and dress for seduction. They handle themselves “walking and mincing as they go”. These are women whose finery had been extorted from the poor. Isaiah predicts that the public ostentation will be replaced by public humiliation.
Paul wrote in 2 Cor. 5:2-3: “We earnestly desire to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven; If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.”
Kelly Varner suggests that the Daughters of Zion here could speak of:
- Women who live according to 1 John 2:15-17.
- A frame of mind which is bent toward 2 John 2: 15-17.
- Local churches which function according to 2 John 2:15-17.
- Church systems which function according to 1 John 2: 15-17.
1 John 2: 15-17: “Love not the world ‘cosmos”, neither the things that are in the “cosmos”. If any man love the “cosmos”, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the ‘cosmos” the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the ‘cosmos’. The ‘cosmos’ passes away, and the lust thereof; but he that does the will of God abides for ever.”
“Kosmos” The world; the universe; the circle of the earth; the inhabitants of the earth; the ungodly multitude; the whole mass of men alienated from God, and therefore hostile to the cause of Christ; world affairs; the aggregate of things earthly; the whole circle of earthly goods; endowments riches; advantages; pleasures; which although hollow, frail and fleeting, stir desire; seduce from God and are obstacles to the cause of Christ; any aggregate or general collection of particulars of any sort.”
In our Sunday evening service, this same truth was evident in 2 Cor. 4: 2-4: “Having renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; in whom the god of this world has blinded their minds of them which believe not, less the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine to them.”
Women of God, I believe that we are clothed in the beauty of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God and that as we dress as lovely as we can afford, we glorify His Kingdom and not the “cosmos” of Satan.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries, Inc.
www.eastgateministries.com