Isaiah 2:7-9b: "Their land (i.e. Israel) is full of silver and gold; there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made. So man will be brought low and mankind humbled . . . "
The prophet Isaiah was commissioned by the Lord to proclaim the coming judgment of God upon the covenant people for their rebellious disposition towards the Lord. In chapter one of the book of Isaiah, one finds that the prophet declares that the people had become a "sinful nation, a people loaded with guilt, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption" (1:4). So debased had the people become that they were brazenly committing detestable acts of idolatry, immorality, and injustice. Isaiah refers to these people as those who have "spurned the Holy One (God) of Israel . . . turning their backs on Him."
The explanation for this sacrilege is found in our focal passage cited above. For years, the Lord had blessed the Israelites materially for their faithfulness to Him as their Lord; but after time, these blessings caused the people to swell up with their own pride, thinking that they had amassed their wealth through their own accomplishments. Their eyes turned away from dependence on and surrender to the Lord; now, they believed that they were privileged for what they had achieved. These people were consumed with their own accolades, accumulated wealth, and self-elevating achievements, and they turned their backs on the very Lord who had blessed them in the first place. No longer was there a reverential respect for the One True God. No longer was there a desire to follow the Lord with uncompromising obedience.
In response to this treason that the people perpetrated against God, the Lord sent Isaiah to warn the people to repent of their sins and seek the Lord as they had before. The Lord assured His people that they would experience the blessedness of His presence in perpetual peace if they would walk in His light (Isaiah 2:1-5); thus, the people were presented with a choice. They could surrender to the Lord in a spirit of penitence and humility, or they could continue down the path of defiance and self-aggrandizement. Tragically, these people would choose the latter, and God responded by sending powerful, foreign invaders to sack the land, taking from the Israelites their treasures, their freedom, their land, and their pride.
There is a good lesson to be learned from the sinful ways of the Israelites of ages past, for God is a God of constancy (see James 1:17). As He did not tolerate the sinful rebellion of the Israelites 2700 years ago, so too God will not allow our continued disobedience towards Him today. Let's forsake our pride and sinful behavior and turn to the Lord. He is the Faithful One who will forgive our sins and restore unto us the blessing of His Divine favor.
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