The people of Isaiah's day are sin-sick. The Lord tries to reason with them, telling them that things don't have to be this way. If they will make their hearts right with Him, He will heal their land and protect them from their enemies. "Why should you be beaten anymore? Why do you persist in rebellion? Your whole head is injured, your whole heart afflicted. From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness---only wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with olive oil." (Isaiah 1:5-6)
I believe the reference to wounds and sores is metaphorical---that it's intended to create a mental picture of how spiritually unwell they are---although it's possible they were falling prey to more physical illnesses than usual due to their participation in idolatrous practices. Heathen idolaters ate foods that were forbidden to the Jewish people (some of them even drank blood) and they engaged in fertility rituals that involved sexual immorality. As a result, parasite infestations and sexually transmitted diseases were rampant among the pagan people and were possibly contracted by many of the Jewish people who had adopted some heathen ways.
Isaiah's people wouldn't have to worry about contracting the health issues that are peculiar to the pagans if they will avoid those unclean practices. In addition, they wouldn't have to worry about raids perpetrated by their enemies. "Your country is desolate, your cities burned with fire; your fields are being stripped by foreigners right before you, laid waste as when overthrown by strangers. Daughter Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, like a hut in a cucumber field, like a city under siege." (Isaiah 1:7-8)
During the years of Isaiah's ministry, Judah was attacked by several of her neighbors, including the northern kingdom of Israel. They were also attacked by Syria, Edom, Philistia, and Assyria. These invasions primarily occurred during the reign of King Ahaz of Judah, who was a wicked man, but Judah must have greatly feared Assyria for quite some time, especially after the northern kingdom of Israel fell to that nation. The Lord preserved Judah from Assyria because some good kings arose who instituted religious reforms in the land, but Judah eventually fell into so much idolatry that the Lord allowed it to be conquered by Babylon. He compares Judah, in the verses above, to temporary shelters that are set up in fields at harvest time. This demonstrates how precarious their position became due to their sin.
The Lord will not make an end of the nation but will allow a remnant of the people to survive. Isaiah foresees this and says, "Unless the Lord Almighty had left us some survivors, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah." (Isaiah 1:9) The prophet realizes that it's only the Lord's mercy that keeps Him from making a complete end to the nation in the way that He made a complete end to Sodom and Gomorrah.
Isaiah now compares the nation to Sodom and Gomorrah because the Lord would be justified in destroying Judah, for the people know His laws and commandments and call themselves by His name but are living like heathens. "Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; listen to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah!" (Isaiah 1:10) This is a scathing indictment to be compared to the two cities whose names have become synonymous with sin. Even in today's world we sometimes hear an especially wicked region or situation referred to as Sodom and Gomorrah. I am sure Isaiah's people looked down upon the ancient people of Sodom and Gomorrah and did not think of their own sins as being equally (if not more) reprehensible. I think we can all probably agree that the sins of a person who knows the word of God are far less excusable than the sins of heathen people who know less about the Lord.
Here is what the Lord tells Isaiah to say to the people: "'The multitude of your sacrifices---what are they to Me?' says the Lord. 'I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before Me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of My courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings!'" (Hosea 1:11-13a)
Although the Lord did prescribe certain offerings to be brought at particular times and for particular reasons, those offerings were to be brought with a sincere heart. Thank offerings, such as would be made from the crop harvest, were to be brought as acknowledgment that the Lord is the giver of all things and that they owe their prosperity to Him. Sin offerings, which required animal sacrifices, were to be brought in a repentant spirit, not as something done for show. The person was to come in a humble attitude, admitting he or she was a lawbreaker deserving of death but being grateful that the Lord mercifully allowed a stand-in to take their place. From what the Lord says in the verses above, we can conclude that the people were still bringing many offerings and sacrifices. They had not slacked off on going through the motions. But their heart wasn't in it and that's what made everything they did meaningless.
It's possible to get caught up in going through the motions and to lose the heart of our worship. It's possible to become so consumed with works that we stop spending time with the Lord. Time with Him should come first, not last. Then everything else will fall into its proper place.
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