God used the king of Assyria to accomplish his purposes, executing divine judgment upon Israel. But the king didn’t recognize that he was being used by the Lord. Instead, he boasted of his...
Throughout the Scriptures, God cares profoundly about justice. As it says in Psalm 99:4, he is the “Mighty King, lover of justice.” In particular, God seeks justice for those who aren’t in...
I can’t read this passage without hearing echoes of the glorious chorus from Handel’s Messiah: “For unto us a child is born. . . .” I envision a booming choir and a sanctuary...
Writer and professor J. Schaap has a nice piece out called, "Harvest Moon." ...
As Israel faced the imminence of a foreign invasion, all of their attention was focused on their enemies, rather than on the Lord. Isaiah called the people to put God first in their...
When Ahaz was king of Judah, the northern kingdom of Israel allied itself with Syria against Judah. No doubt this deeply troubled Ahaz and his subjects. But, through Isaiah, God reassured Ahaz,...
There are two places I stop for coffee in the morning: one if I'm in a hurry, and one if I'm not. My "in a hurry" stop is one of the nearly 10...
This post is from the Church Whisperer. ...
In an earlier chapter of my work life, I served as director of web marketing for a large hospital. It was a vibrant place with a compelling mission: to make sick children well. ...
Isaiah 6 begins with the prophet’s vision of a thrice-holy God. Isaiah’s first response is to lament his own sinfulness. Yet, through an angel, God removes Isaiah’s sin. Then the Lord poses a.....
When one of our children has felt rejected by a group or thought she was unattractive and unacceptable, my stomach has tightened and I have ached for her. I've wanted to run and...
Why are some professional sports teams always at the bottom of the standings? Most teams cycle up and down the standings, but...
In Isaiah’s day, the people of Israel, especially her leaders and teachers, had forsaken God’s truth. In fact, they justified their own injustice in ways that turned truth on its head, calling evil.....
It had been a wonderful trip to New Haven to visit my brother. And I even made my first visit into New York City. Exhausted and exhilarated, I was anxious to return home...
I did a lot of coaching last summer. I coached for my two youngest sons: Elijah and his Little League team and Daniel and his T-ball team. It was a commitment of several...
The workplace can be a hotbed for the unexpected. We rarely see those unnerving events coming—you know, the ones that take us out of our normal routine and cast us into fearful uncertainty...
In Isaiah 5, the people of Israel are portrayed as God’s vineyard, with God as the owner and tender of the vineyard. Even though God invested great effort, lovingly caring for his vineyard...
In the opening chapters of Isaiah, God condemns Israel for its immorality and godlessness, predicting a day of painful judgment. But God also looks forward to a time of restoration, when the people...
In the passage immediately prior to this one, Isaiah urged the Israelites not to put too much trust in human beings (Is. 2:22). By relying on unreliable people too much, rather than on...
“I miss them,” my daughter said to me yesterday of some friends we don’t see much anymore. It broke my heart to hear the sadness in her voice as she walked away. ...
