The conclusion they will reach in our next chapter is that their troubles have come upon them because they have sinned against the Lord. We know that they did not reach this conclusion during Isaiah's day, for in his day the sins of the people of the northern kingdom reached such a tipping point that they were conquered during the prophet's lifetime. Following Isaiah's lifetime, the southern kingdom eventually descended into the same type of idolatry and immorality as the northern kingdom, sins for which the Lord allowed them to be conquered also. For these reasons I agree with the scholars who believe that the thoughts relayed to us by Isaiah are of a prophetic nature; he foresees the people's distress and he hears the thoughts they will think in those days.
Today we conclude our look at Chapter 63. Due to their distress, the people (of whom a majority fell into idolatry prior to their defeat) begin calling upon the Lord again. "Look down from heaven and see, from Your lofty throne, holy and glorious. Where are Your zeal and Your might? Your tenderness and compassion are withheld from us." (Isaiah 63:16)
They have indeed done wrong but they know that the Lord is a merciful and forgiving God. They know that the Lord has the right to be angry with them but they also know that He has a right to be angry with their enemies who are so severely oppressing them. They ask Him to remember the zeal He had for Israel in times past. They ask Him to think back on the ways He mightily defended them for the sake of His holy name. Of all the people in the world, they alone are known by the name of the Lord and they alone are referred to time and time again in the Scriptures as His "inheritance". They know that He promised never to make an end of them as a people. They know that He promised David his lineage would never end. I believe they are calling upon the Lord not because they are righteous but because He is. They are calling upon Him not because they have kept their end of the covenant but because He has kept His side of the bargain.
"But You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; You, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is Your name." (Isaiah 63:16) Abraham, who was a "friend of God" (James 2:23) would not recognize them as his descendants, spiritually speaking, for they have erred so much from the faith. I believe that the reference to "Israel" is a reference to Jacob (whose name the Lord changed to Israel) and not a reference to the nation. Jacob would find it difficult to claim them as his descendants because their faith differs so much from his own. Abraham and Jacob would be reluctant to acknowledge them as kinsmen but the Lord, who called Israel His "firstborn son" (Exodus 4:22) never breaks His word and the people are counting on Him to still claim them as His own.
They say something next that reminds me of something I said to my parents several times when I was a small child. "Why, Lord, do You make us wander from Your ways and harden our hearts so that we do not revere You?" (Isaiah 63:17a) The word "make" would be more properly translated as "allow", such as, "Why do You allow us to wander from Your ways?" In other words, they are saying, "Why didn't You stop us?" There were several times as a child when my parents warned me not to do something but I did it anyway, with unfortunate results, and I petulantly whined to them, "Why did you let me do it?" Just as my parents sometimes let me do something they knew wasn't going to work out, in order to teach me a lesson, the Lord gave us the free will to disobey His instructions so we would learn a lesson. When we deliberately disobey the Lord, we cannot expect good results. The outcome of our poor decisions is intended to teach us to more closely follow His instructions so we don't find ourselves in unpleasant circumstances nearly as often. While it's true that bad things happen in this world even when we are walking on the right paths, it's also true that we bring a great deal of unnecessary troubles upon ourselves through sin.
Chapter 63 concludes with the people asking the Lord to defend His inheritance against their heathen enemies. This will show the whole world that He alone is God. By restoring the fortunes of Israel, He will be proclaiming to the world that He keeps His promises (in spite of man's inconsistent obedience) and that there is no other God. "Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes that are Your inheritance. For a little while Your people possessed Your holy place, but now our enemies have trampled down Your sanctuary. We are yours from of old; but You have not ruled over them, they have not been called by Your name." (Isaiah 63:17b-19)
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