The Bible Recap - Day 205 (Isaiah 35-36) - Year 5

Episode Date: July 24, 2023

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Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible recap. Before we dig into our chapters today, let's zoom out a little on this situation to make sure we're addressing some of the possible nuances of these prophecies. Yesterday we left off with Edem being turned into a sticky, smelly, waste land covered in weeds and birds. It represented a kind of undoing of creation, much like the flood when God destroyed Earth 1.0 and then opened Earth 2.0 for business. When God first made Earth 1.0, the words he used to describe it in Genesis 1.2 were without form void. Shapeless and empty, basically. The Hebrew words used here are Tohu and Bohu. And in yesterday's description of that wasteland

in 3411, both of those words are used again. This seems to be a very intentional move. Genesis 1 is the only other place where that combo exists in Scripture. And in fact, the only other time the word bohu void is used in all of Scripture is in Jeremiah 423, where he's describing this same situation. So yesterday we read about the formless void earth 2.0 after God's wrath was poured out over all the nations, and today we read about how the ransom captives are brought back to the land.

So to understand this section well, we have to ask, does this refer to the time around 700 BC when this was written, or is this a future prophecy of the final days? And if you had a chance to watch the short video we linked to about the day of the Lord, you may be wondering, is this a day of the Lord, or is this the day of the Lord? If you missed that video, we'll link to it again in today's show notes. A popular opinion among scholars is that it's both judgment on the earth, then, and judgment on the earth

in the future. A day of the Lord, and the day of the Lord. We've talked about how prophecies can often speak to multiple things in a layered sort of way, and it's possible that's what's happening here. A low-level reference to the immediate scenario multiple things in a layered sort of way, and it's possible that's what's happening here. A low-level reference to the immediate scenario in the seventh century BC,

and a high-level reference to the future scenario still yet to come. So when we read today about the ransom captives returning to the land, what about that? What is that point to? Again, possibly both timeframes. The all-ready fulfilled return of the Israelites to the promised land, and the not ready fulfilled return of the Israelites to the promised land,

and the not yet fulfilled return of all God's adopted children, to the newly restored earth 3.0. It bears repeating that I hold all as yet unfulfilled prophecies with an open hand, and if you happen to disagree with any of my interpretations of End Times prophecy, that's okay, as long as you do it biblically, of course. And we're still friends. So with that in mind, let's take a look at what happens in chapter 35 today. Much of the partial fulfillment of these prophecies has already happened. When it speaks of the desert blooming, it is. I've been to that desert, and it's a wealth of agriculture. For instance, today Israel exports tulips to Holland, and there

are streams in the desert. And God brought back the ransom captives among Judah that happened about 70 years after they were exiled to Babylon. He made a specific promise to a specific people, and he fulfilled that promise. God can be trusted to keep his word, you guys. fulfilled that promise. God can be trusted to keep his word, you guys. My favorite part of this chapter is in verse 4. It says, say to those who have an anxious heart, be strong, fear not. Why? Why shouldn't they fear? How can they be strong? He continues by saying, behold, your God will come with vengeance with the recompense of God, He will come and save you. Does this mean they won't go into exile? No, they do.

It just means exile is not the end of the story. He's coming to get them. When my heart feels anxious, when I'm maybe headed for exile, I try to preach to it. Behold your God, behold your God, behold your God. This chapter ends with a promise we've seen before. No more tears, no more wickedness, no more threats to our peace, just everlasting joy. Then in chapter 36, we revisit a story we first encountered on day 200, where the Assyrians come to confront the leaders who work for King Hezekiah, and they do it in front of the people of Judah. They try to use their best intimidation tactics to get the people to doubt God and follow them instead.

They promise the people protection and provision, mocking God's ability to take care of his people. They also mock the people of Judah directly. They basically say, look, we'll even give you 2,000 horses provided you can even find that many warriors to ride on them. That's like saying, oh, you want to fight us? We'll give you the guns ourselves, but you probably wouldn't know how to use them. The Assyrians make a lot of false statements, but I'll give them credit for one thing, though. They do come up with a profound metaphor that rings true in general.

In verse 6, they say, behold, you are trusting in Egypt, that broken read of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it. In other words, if they try to go to Egypt for help, it'll backfire. And that's true. The Assyrians are right here in this one tiny sentence, even got himself foreign Judah against trusting Egypt. Idols may prop you up temporarily,

but they'll wound you eventually. The rest of a serious speech is just a bunch of trash talk, intimidation tactics, and false promises. Fortunately, King Hezekiah was wise enough to tell his people not to respond. What was your God shot today? Mine was in chapter 35. I just kept reading it over and over again, picturing that desert, those streams, those flowers. And I was in awe at our promise-making, promise-keeping God.

If God has brought about such great beauty in just this partial fulfillment, how much more beautiful will it be when He brings about the complete fulfillment of this prophecy in the future? I'm so glad I'll get to see it with my own eyes. I've always wanted to live in Israel, and he says it's going to happen. What an abundantly generous God.

He is where the joy is. You've heard me talk about D-group, right? It's different from TBR, but it's got its own level of joy because we dig into deeper levels of study and spiritual disciplines. Most of our TBRT members are in D-group and I think you would love it too. You can join an existing D-group that meets in person, or if there isn't one near you, you can join an online D-group or start your own. To find out more about our current study or to join a D-group, visit mydgroup.org or

click the link in the show notes. You aren't meant to go through life alone. If you're looking for a prayer community that encourages each other and prays for each other's needs, check out WayNation's Prayer Wall. You can leave a request on the prayer wall and you can pray for others. To jump in, text the word pray to 67101. Way to 67101.