The Book of Isaiah, Chapter by Chapter

We want to take you through the book of Isaiah chapter by chapter. We have finished the books of poetry. If you have not read those studies you can start with Job and go through to the Song of Solomon. Now we come to the prophets. Isaiah is the first and the biggest of them. We will tell you what each chapter is about and how it fits into the message of the book. And how it points us to the one God that is revealed in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah has been called the fifth gospel. No book in the Old Testament tells us more about Jesus. His virgin birth. His names. His ministry. His suffering and death. His resurrection. His kingdom. And no book in the Bible says more clearly that there is only one God. “I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me” (45:5). Isaiah puts those two things together. The one God who has no equal is the one who would come and save us himself.

There are three things we want you to take away from this study. Isaiah is about the holiness of God. “Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts” (6:3). Isaiah is about the one God. “I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God” (44:6). And Isaiah points to Jesus Christ. The child called “The mighty God, The everlasting Father” (9:6). The servant who “was wounded for our transgressions” (53:5). We will explain these points as we go through the book. But we want you to keep them in mind as we begin.

“The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah” (1:1). Isaiah’s name means the LORD is salvation. It comes from the same Hebrew root as the name Jesus. He preached in Jerusalem for about 40 years. From around 740 to after 700 BC. We met the kings he served in our 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles studies. The Jews say he was sawn in two during the reign of Manasseh.¹ Hebrews 11:37 may be talking about him. “They were sawn asunder.”

Isaiah has two big parts. Chapters 1–39 are mostly about judgment. On Judah and on the nations. Chapters 40–66 are mostly about comfort and the salvation to come. Some have noticed that the Bible has 66 books. 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New. Isaiah has 66 chapters. 39 in the first part and 27 in the second. And the second part starts with the voice in the wilderness. Just like the New Testament starts with John the Baptist.

Critics will say that someone else wrote chapters 40–66. Long after Isaiah died.² Because the second part names Cyrus king of Persia about 150 years before he lived (44:28; 45:1). But the Bible tells us God can tell the future. “Declaring the end from the beginning” (46:10). That is the whole point of those chapters. And notice what John did. He quoted from chapter 53 and from chapter 6 one right after the other. And he said “Esaias said” both times (John 12:38–41). The oldest copy of Isaiah we have was found with the Dead Sea Scrolls. It has all 66 chapters as one book.

The second half has three parts of 9 chapters each.³ Each part ends with the same warning. “There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked” (48:22; 57:21; and see 66:24). And one name for God runs through the whole book. “The Holy One of Israel.” Isaiah uses it about 25 times.⁴ It is almost never used anywhere else. We will break the book down like this. Judah on trial (1–5). Isaiah’s call and Immanuel (6–12). Burdens on the nations (13–23). The judgment of the earth (24–27). Woes and hope (28–35). Hezekiah (36–39). Comfort ye my people (40–48). The servant of the LORD (49–57). And glory to come (58–66). Then we will put together what Isaiah teaches about the one God. Just like in our other studies we will be using the KJV for our scripture quotations. And we will let you know where you can find the work of the scholars we reference.

Isaiah 1: Come Now, Let Us Reason Together

“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me” (v.2). God calls heaven and earth as witnesses. Like a court. “The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider” (v.3). Even a donkey knows who feeds it. Israel did not know their God. They were sick from head to foot (vv.5–6). If God had not left a small remnant they would have been like Sodom (v.9).

They were still going to church. Still offering sacrifices. But God said “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me?” (v.11). “Bring no more vain oblations” (v.13). He would not hear their prayers because their hands were full of blood (v.15). “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings” (v.16). “Seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow” (v.17). Then God made an offer.

The case was against them. But God offered to wash them clean. Scarlet to white. “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land” (v.19). The blood of Jesus “cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

Isaiah 2: The Mountain of the LORD’s House

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains … and all nations shall flow unto it” (v.2). People from every nation will say “Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD … and he will teach us of his ways” (v.3). “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (v.4). Then Isaiah turns to the day of the LORD against everything proud. Twice he says “the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day” (vv.11, 17). The LORD alone. Men will throw their idols to the moles and the bats (v.20).

Isaiah 3–4: The Branch of the LORD

Chapter 3 says God would take away the leaders of Judah. Children would rule them (3:4). The daughters of Zion walked with their noses up and their ankles jingling (3:16). God would take away all their fine things. Then chapter 4 gives hope. “In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious” (4:2). The Branch is a name for the Messiah. We will see it again. God will wash away the filth of the daughters of Zion. And he will put a cloud by day and fire by night over mount Zion (4:5). Like he did in the wilderness.

Isaiah 5: The Song of the Vineyard

Isaiah sang a song about a vineyard. His beloved planted it on a fruitful hill. He cleared the stones. Planted the best vines. Built a tower and a winepress. And it brought forth wild grapes (vv.1–2). “What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it?” (v.4). “For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel … he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry” (v.7). Jesus told a parable about a vineyard just like this (Matthew 21:33–41).

Then six woes. Woe to those who add house to house and field to field (v.8). Woe to the drunkards (v.11). Woe to those who draw sin like a cart with ropes (v.18). “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness” (v.20). Woe to those wise in their own eyes (v.21). Woe to those who take bribes (vv.22–23). That sounds like our day.

Isaiah 6: Holy, Holy, Holy

The king had died. We saw in our 2 Chronicles study that Uzziah was struck with leprosy for going into the temple. But Isaiah saw the real King. On the throne. High and lifted up. The seraphims covered their faces. They could not look at him. And they cried holy three times.

Trinitarians will say that three holies mean three persons. And that God says “us” in verse 8. “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”⁵ But notice. Saying something three times is how Hebrew makes it the strongest. We saw that with “O earth, earth, earth” in our Numbers study (Jeremiah 22:29). And notice the same verse says “Whom shall I send.” I. Singular. The “us” is like Genesis 1:26. We covered that in our Genesis study. God speaking with his heavenly court around him.

Now here is the most important thing. Who did Isaiah see on the throne. John tells us. “These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him” (John 12:41).⁶ John was talking about Jesus. Isaiah saw Jesus on the throne. The LORD of hosts. Not a second person beside him. The LORD of hosts himself. And that LORD came in the flesh.

Isaiah said “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips” (v.5). One of the seraphims took a live coal from the altar and touched his lips. “Thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged” (v.7). Then God asked “Whom shall I send?” And Isaiah said “Here am I; send me” (v.8). God told him the people would hear and not understand. See and not perceive (vv.9–10). Jesus quoted this about the people who would not believe him (Matthew 13:14–15).

Isaiah 7: Immanuel

Syria and Israel came against Jerusalem. King Ahaz was afraid. God sent Isaiah to tell him not to fear. “If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established” (v.9). God told Ahaz to ask for a sign. Any sign. Ahaz would not. So God gave him one.

Some will say the Hebrew word almah only means a young woman.⁷ But it is used for an unmarried young woman. And the Greek Old Testament translated it virgin hundreds of years before Jesus. Matthew tells us it was fulfilled in Mary. “Behold, a virgin shall be with child … and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Matthew 1:23). We covered this in our 2 Kings study. Notice the name. God with us. Not someone with God. God himself with us.

Isaiah 8: A Stone of Stumbling

Isaiah had a son and named him Mahershalalhashbaz (v.3). It means speed the spoil. Before the boy could talk Assyria would take Damascus and Samaria (v.4). Assyria would flood Judah too. Up to the neck. “The stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel” (v.8). Then the people are told “Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear” (v.13).

Notice who the stone is. “The LORD of hosts himself.” Peter quotes this verse about Jesus. He is “a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word” (1 Peter 2:8). The LORD of hosts himself is the stone. And the stone is Jesus. “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (v.20).

Isaiah 9: Unto Us a Child Is Born

“The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light” (v.2). It would happen in Galilee (v.1). Matthew says this was fulfilled when Jesus began to preach in Galilee (Matthew 4:13–16). Then Isaiah says how.

A child is born. That is his humanity. A son is given. That is God giving himself. And look at his name. Not names. Name. Singular. Wonderful. We saw in our Judges study that the angel of the LORD told Manoah his name was secret. Which means wonderful. Counsellor. The mighty God. The everlasting Father. The Prince of Peace.⁸

Notice two of those names. The mighty God. In the very next chapter Isaiah uses the same title for the LORD. “The remnant shall return … unto the mighty God” (10:21). The child is the mighty God. And notice The everlasting Father. Trinitarians say the Son is a different person from the Father. But Isaiah says the son that is given is called the everlasting Father. The Son and the Father are not two persons. The son that was born is the everlasting Father come in the flesh. Jesus said “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9). And “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30). He sits on the throne of David. And his kingdom has no end.

Then the chapter turns to judgment on Israel. Four times we hear the same refrain. “For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still” (9:12, 17, 21; 10:4).

Isaiah 10: The Rod of Mine Anger

“O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger” (v.5). God used Assyria to punish Israel. But Assyria thought it did it by its own power. “Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith?” (v.15). So God would punish Assyria too. Then hope. “The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God” (v.21). Paul quotes this. “Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved” (Romans 9:27).

Isaiah 11–12: A Rod Out of the Stem of Jesse

“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD” (11:1–2). The tree of David would be cut down to a stump. But a shoot would come out of it. The Messiah. Notice the Spirit. One Spirit. The spirit of the LORD. Described seven ways. Then the peace of his kingdom. “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb” (11:6). “For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (11:9). “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek” (11:10). Paul quotes it (Romans 15:12).

Chapter 12 is a song for that day. “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation” (12:2). He is become my salvation. We saw that in our Exodus study. The word salvation is yeshuah. The name Jesus. God did not send someone else to be our salvation. He became our salvation. “Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation” (12:3).

These chapters are called burdens. A burden is a heavy message of judgment. God is not just the God of Israel. He judges every nation.

Isaiah 13–14: Babylon and Lucifer

The first burden is on Babylon. Babylon was not even the great power yet. Assyria was. But Isaiah saw Babylon would rise and fall. The Medes would come against it (13:17). It would become like Sodom and Gomorrah (13:19). Then chapter 14 is a song mocking the king of Babylon when he falls.

Five times he says I will. The king of Babylon wanted to be like God. Many believe this also describes Satan who stood behind the king.⁹ Jesus said “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luke 10:18). Pride was the first sin. And pride brings everyone down. Then God says Assyria will be broken in his land (14:24–25). “For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it?” (14:27).

Isaiah 15–20: Moab, Damascus, Ethiopia and Egypt

Chapters 15 and 16 are about Moab. Isaiah wept for them (15:5). In the middle is a promise. “And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David” (16:5). Chapter 17 is about Damascus and Israel who allied with it. Chapter 18 is about Ethiopia. Then chapter 19 is about Egypt. God would judge Egypt. But then something amazing. “In that day shall there be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt” (19:19). Egypt would know the LORD. “Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance” (19:25). The enemies of Israel would become the people of God. In chapter 20 God told Isaiah to walk barefoot and stripped for 3 years. It was a sign. Assyria would lead Egypt and Ethiopia away captive (20:2–4).

Isaiah 21–23: The Valley of Vision and the Key of David

Chapter 21 says “Babylon is fallen, is fallen” (21:9). Revelation uses the same words (Revelation 14:8). Someone calls out “Watchman, what of the night?” (21:11). Chapter 22 is a burden on Jerusalem itself. The valley of vision. The people partied instead of repenting. “Let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die” (22:13). Paul quotes this (1 Corinthians 15:32). Then God removed Shebna the treasurer and put Eliakim in his place. “And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open” (22:22). Jesus uses this about himself. “He that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth” (Revelation 3:7). Chapter 23 is about Tyre the great trading city. It would be forgotten 70 years (23:15).

Isaiah 24–25: He Will Swallow Up Death

Now Isaiah looks at the whole world. “Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste” (24:1). The earth is defiled because people broke the everlasting covenant (24:5). The earth reels like a drunk man (24:20). Then “the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem” (24:23). Chapter 25 is praise. The LORD will make a feast for all people in his mountain (25:6).

Paul quotes the first part about the resurrection. “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:54). John quotes the second. “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (Revelation 21:4). And notice who comes. “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us.” Our God himself comes to save.

Isaiah 26–27: Perfect Peace

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (26:3). “Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength” (26:4). Then a promise of resurrection. “Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust” (26:19). In chapter 27 God punishes leviathan the crooked serpent (27:1). And the great trumpet will be blown and the scattered will come and worship the LORD in Jerusalem (27:13).

Isaiah 28: With Stammering Lips and Another Tongue

Chapter 28 starts with a woe on the drunkards of Ephraim. Even the priests and prophets were drunk (v.7). They mocked Isaiah. They said he talked to them like little children. “Precept upon precept; line upon line … here a little, and there a little” (v.10). Then Isaiah answered.

Paul quotes this verse in his chapter on tongues. “In the law it is written, With men of other tongues and other lips will I speak unto this people; and yet for all that will they not hear me, saith the Lord” (1 Corinthians 14:21).¹⁰ God would speak through other tongues. And it would be rest and refreshing. That is what happened on the day of Pentecost. “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). Peter later called it “times of refreshing” from the presence of the Lord (Acts 3:19). But many still would not hear.

Then God said “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste” (v.16). Peter and Paul both say this stone is Jesus (1 Peter 2:6; Romans 9:33).

Isaiah 29–31: Their Heart Is Far From Me

Chapter 29 is a woe on Ariel. That is Jerusalem. “This people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me” (29:13). Jesus quoted this to the Pharisees (Matthew 15:8–9). But a day would come when “the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see” (29:18). Chapters 30 and 31 are woes on those who ran to Egypt for help instead of God. “In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not” (30:15). “Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it” (30:21). “Now the Egyptians are men, and not God” (31:3).

Isaiah 32–33: The LORD Is Our King

“Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness” (32:1). Things would be bad “Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field” (32:15). Chapter 33 says “Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty” (33:17). Then this.

Judge. Lawgiver. King. Three roles. One LORD. He does all three. And “he will save us.” The one LORD in every role. Not three persons.

Isaiah 34–35: Your God Will Come

Chapter 34 is judgment on all nations. Especially Edom. Then chapter 35 is pure joy. “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose” (35:1).

“Your God will come … he will come and save you.” And when he comes the blind will see and the deaf will hear and the lame will walk. When John the Baptist was in prison he sent to ask Jesus if he was the one. Jesus said “Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk … and the deaf hear” (Matthew 11:4–5). Jesus was telling John to read Isaiah 35. Your God will come. And he came. “And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness” (35:8).

Isaiah 36–39: Thou Art the God, Even Thou Alone

These four chapters are almost the same as 2 Kings 18–20. We covered them in our 2 Kings study. We will not go into them again but the same principles apply. Sennacherib’s Rabshakeh mocked the LORD (36). Hezekiah prayed. “O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth” (37:16). “That all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD, even thou only” (37:20). The angel of the LORD struck 185,000 Assyrians (37:36).

Chapter 38 has something Kings does not. Hezekiah’s song after God healed him. “Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back” (38:17). Then chapter 39. The messengers from Babylon. Isaiah told Hezekiah everything would be carried to Babylon (39:6). That sets up the second half of the book. The people would go to Babylon. And chapter 40 starts by comforting them.

Isaiah 40: Behold Your God

“Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God” (v.1). Her warfare is done. Her iniquity is pardoned (v.2). Then a voice.

All four gospels tell us this voice was John the Baptist (Matthew 3:3; Mark 1:3; Luke 3:4; John 1:23). And whose way did John prepare. Jesus. But Isaiah says he would prepare the way of the LORD. A highway for our God. John prepared the way for Jesus. So Jesus is the LORD. Our God. Not someone sent ahead of God. God himself coming.

“All flesh is grass … The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever” (vv.6, 8). Peter quotes it (1 Peter 1:24–25). “O Zion, that bringest good tidings … say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!” (v.9). “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm” (v.11). The God who comes is the good shepherd.

Then Isaiah shows how great God is. He measured the waters in his hand and the heavens with a span (v.12). The nations are like a drop in a bucket (v.15). “To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?” (v.18). “To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One” (v.25). No one is equal to him. Then the chapter ends with a promise.

Isaiah 41: I the LORD, the First

God raised up a righteous man from the east (v.2). That is Cyrus. “I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he” (v.4). The idol makers encourage each other and nail their idols down so they will not fall over (vv.6–7). But Israel is God’s servant. “The seed of Abraham my friend” (v.8). “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee” (v.10). Then God challenges the idols. Tell us what is going to happen. “Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods” (v.23). They cannot.

Isaiah 42: My Glory Will I Not Give to Another

Now the first of the servant songs.¹¹ “Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles” (v.1). Matthew says this is Jesus (Matthew 12:17–21). “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench” (v.3). He is gentle with the weak. He will be “a light of the Gentiles” (v.6). Then God says this.

God will not give his glory to another. But Jesus prayed “O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was” (John 17:5). If God does not give his glory to another then Jesus is not another. He is the LORD. The glory that belongs to God alone belongs to Jesus because he is God manifest in the flesh.

Isaiah 43: Beside Me There Is No Saviour

“Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee” (vv.1–2). Then God calls his people as witnesses.

No God before him. No God after him. And beside him no saviour. Now listen to the angels at Bethlehem. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Paul calls him “the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). If there is no saviour beside the LORD and Jesus is the Saviour then Jesus is the LORD. “Behold, I will do a new thing” (v.19). “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake” (v.25).

Isaiah 44: I Am the First, and I Am the Last

“For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty … I will pour my spirit upon thy seed” (v.3). Then the strongest words in the book about the one God.

I am the first and I am the last. Now read Revelation. Jesus said “Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore” (Revelation 1:17–18).¹² The first and the last died and rose again. That is Jesus. “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last” (Revelation 22:13). There is only one first and one last. Jesus is the LORD of Isaiah 44:6. God said “Is there a God beside me? … I know not any.” God does not know of any other God. Not a second person. Not a third. None.

Then Isaiah mocks the idol maker. He cuts down a tree. He burns half of it to cook his food and warm himself. And with the other half he makes a god and falls down to it. “Deliver me; for thou art my god” (v.17). “A deceived heart hath turned him aside” (v.20). Then this. “I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself” (v.24). We used this verse in our Genesis study. Alone. By myself. No one helped. Then God names Cyrus. “That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure” (v.28).¹³

Isaiah 45: Every Knee Shall Bow

“Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus” (v.1). God called a pagan king by name. “I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me” (v.5). “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things” (v.7). There is no second power. “Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker!” (v.9). “Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour” (v.15). We saw that in our Esther study. Then the chapter ends with this.

No God beside me. A just God and a Saviour. Unto me every knee shall bow. Now read Philippians. “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow … And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10–11).¹⁴ Paul took Isaiah 45:23 and said it is about Jesus. The God who said “unto me every knee shall bow” is Jesus. There is no God beside him. And every knee will bow at his name.

Isaiah 46–47: I Will Carry You

“Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth” (46:1). The idols of Babylon had to be carried on animals. They were a burden. But God carries his people. “And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you” (46:4). “I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning” (46:9–10). Chapter 47 is about Babylon falling. Babylon said in her heart “I am, and none else beside me” (47:8). She talked like God. And she would fall in one day.

Isaiah 48: The Lord GOD, and His Spirit, Hath Sent Me

“I am he; I am the first, I also am the last. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth” (vv.12–13). Then a verse that some use to teach three persons.

Trinitarians will say that here we have the Lord GOD and his Spirit and the one who is sent. Three persons.¹⁵ But notice the words. “His Spirit.” The Spirit belongs to the Lord GOD. It is his own Spirit. Not another person beside him. We saw in Psalm 139 that his Spirit and his presence are the same thing. The one who is sent is speaking as God’s messenger. Many say it is Isaiah himself. Others say it is the servant who speaks in the next chapter. If it is the Messiah then it is the man Christ Jesus. Sent by God and anointed with God’s own Spirit. Just like Jesus said “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me” (Luke 4:18). And notice what this same chapter says just before. “I am he; I am the first, I also am the last” (v.12). And right after. “Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God” (v.17). One LORD. One Redeemer. One God.

“Go ye forth of Babylon” (v.20). “There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked” (v.22). That ends the first part of the second half.

Isaiah 49: A Light to the Gentiles

The second servant song. “The LORD hath called me from the womb” (v.1). “And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified” (v.3). The servant is called Israel. But he is also sent to bring Israel back (v.5). He is what Israel should have been. The true Israel. The Messiah. “I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (v.6). Paul and Barnabas quoted this when they turned to the Gentiles (Acts 13:47). Then God comforts Zion. She thought God forgot her. “Can a woman forget her sucking child … yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands” (vv.15–16). On the palms of his hands. Where the nails would go.

Isaiah 50: I Gave My Back to the Smiters

The third servant song. “The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary” (v.4). Then “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting” (v.6). That is exactly what they did to Jesus (Matthew 26:67; 27:30). “Therefore have I set my face like a flint” (v.7). Luke tells us Jesus “stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51).

Isaiah 51–52: How Beautiful Are the Feet

“Look unto the rock whence ye are hewn … Look unto Abraham your father” (51:1–2). God made one man into a nation. He can do it again. “Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD” (51:9). “Therefore the redeemed of the LORD shall return, and come with singing unto Zion” (51:11). Chapter 52 says “Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion” (52:1). “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace … that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!” (52:7). Paul quotes it about preachers of the gospel (Romans 10:15). “The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations” (52:10). Then the fourth servant song begins. “Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high. As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man” (52:13–14). He would be lifted up. And his face would be beaten beyond recognition.

Isaiah 53: He Was Wounded for Our Transgressions

“Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?” (v.1). John quotes this about the people who did not believe Jesus (John 12:38). Notice the arm of the LORD. Your arm is not another person. It is you. It is your own strength reaching out. The arm of the LORD is the LORD himself acting to save. And Isaiah tells us who the arm is.

This is the clearest picture of the cross in the Old Testament.¹⁶ Written about 700 years before it happened. He grew up like a root out of dry ground. Nothing special to look at (v.2). Despised. A man of sorrows. He carried our griefs. Matthew says Jesus fulfilled this when he healed the sick (Matthew 8:17). Wounded for our sins. Bruised for our iniquities. With his stripes we are healed. Peter quotes it (1 Peter 2:24). We went astray. And the LORD laid all of it on him.

“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter” (v.7). Jesus stood silent before his accusers (Matthew 27:12–14). The Ethiopian eunuch was reading this very verse when Philip met him. “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus” (Acts 8:35). And the eunuch was baptized that same day. “And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death” (v.9). He died between two thieves and was buried in a rich man’s tomb (Matthew 27:38, 57–60).

“Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him … when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin” (v.10). The word for offering for sin is asham. The trespass offering we saw in our Leviticus study. Then “he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days.” After he dies he lives. The resurrection. “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many” (v.11). “He was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (v.12). Jesus said this verse was about him (Luke 22:37). And on the cross he prayed for the ones killing him (Luke 23:34).

Isaiah 54–55: Ho, Every One That Thirsteth

After the cross comes the joy. “Sing, O barren” (54:1). Paul quotes this about the church (Galatians 4:27). “For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel” (54:5). We saw this in our Song of Solomon study. “For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee” (54:7). “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper” (54:17).

Then the invitation. “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price” (55:1). Salvation is free. “I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David” (55:3). Paul says this was fulfilled when Jesus rose from the dead (Acts 13:34). “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near” (55:6). “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD” (55:8). “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void” (55:11).

Isaiah 56–57: An House of Prayer for All People

God welcomes the stranger and the eunuch who keep his covenant. “Even them will I bring to my holy mountain … for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people” (56:7). Jesus quoted this when he cleansed the temple (Mark 11:17). Then God rebukes the leaders. They are blind watchmen and dumb dogs that cannot bark (56:10). Chapter 57 condemns idolatry. Then this. “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit” (57:15). The God who lives in eternity lives with the humble. “There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked” (57:21). That ends the second part.

Isaiah 58–59: His Arm Brought Salvation

The people fasted but nothing happened. God said they fasted for show and still fought and oppressed their workers. “Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free” (58:6). Feed the hungry. House the poor. Clothe the naked (58:7). “Then shall thy light break forth as the morning” (58:8). Call the sabbath a delight (58:13).

“Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God” (59:1–2). Sin separates. Then this. “And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him” (59:16). No man could save. So God did it himself. His own arm. “For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head” (59:17). Paul tells us to put on the same armor (Ephesians 6:14–17). “And the Redeemer shall come to Zion” (59:20). Paul quotes it (Romans 11:26).

Isaiah 60: Arise, Shine

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee” (60:1). Darkness covers the earth. But the LORD rises on his people. “And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (60:3). The nations bring their wealth. Gold and frankincense (60:6). The wise men brought gold and frankincense to Jesus (Matthew 2:11). “The sun shall be no more thy light by day … but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory” (60:19). Revelation says the new Jerusalem has no need of the sun “for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof” (Revelation 21:23).

Isaiah 61: The Spirit of the Lord GOD Is Upon Me

Jesus stood up in the synagogue in Nazareth and read this. Then he closed the book and said “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:21). We saw this in our Leviticus study with the jubilee. Notice where Jesus stopped reading. Right after “the acceptable year of the LORD.” He did not read “the day of vengeance.” The first time he came for mercy. The day of vengeance is still to come. Notice also the Spirit. The Spirit of the Lord GOD was upon him. Jesus as a man was anointed with God’s own Spirit (Acts 10:38). Then “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” (61:3). “He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation” (61:10).

Isaiah 62: A New Name

“And thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name” (62:2). Zion was called Forsaken. Now she will be called Hephzibah. My delight is in her. And Beulah. Married (62:4). “For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee” (62:5). God set watchmen on the walls who would not keep silent day or night. “And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (62:7). Keep praying. “Behold, thy salvation cometh” (62:11).

Isaiah 63: Thou, O LORD, Art Our Father, Our Redeemer

“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? … I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save” (63:1). His clothes are red. “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me” (63:3). Revelation shows Jesus coming “clothed with a vesture dipped in blood” and treading “the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God” (Revelation 19:13, 15). “And I looked, and there was none to help … therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me” (63:5). Again his own arm.

Then Isaiah remembers God’s mercy in the past. “In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them” (63:9). “But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit” (63:10). His holy Spirit. The Spirit belongs to him. When they grieved the Spirit they grieved God himself. Then this.

Notice who the Father is. The LORD. And who the Redeemer is. The LORD. Our Father. Our Redeemer. One LORD. One name from everlasting.¹⁷ The Father is the Redeemer. And the Redeemer came in the flesh. We do not have a Father who sent a different person to redeem us. The Father himself redeemed us. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19).

Isaiah 64: Oh That Thou Wouldest Rend the Heavens

“Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down” (64:1). Isaiah prayed for God to come down himself. And he did. “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him” (64:4). Paul quotes it (1 Corinthians 2:9). “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags” (64:6). Our best is not good enough. “But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter” (64:8).

Isaiah 65–66: New Heavens and a New Earth

“I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not” (65:1). Paul says this is the Gentiles (Romans 10:20). God would call his servants by another name (65:15). “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered” (65:17). There will be no more weeping (65:19). “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together” (65:25).

“Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me?” (66:1). Stephen quoted this before he was stoned (Acts 7:49). God does not need a building. “But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word” (66:2). Then Zion gives birth all at once. “Shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children” (66:8). On the day of Pentecost about 3000 souls were added in one day (Acts 2:41). Then God says all nations will come and see his glory (66:18). “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me … so shall your seed and your name remain” (66:22). And the book ends with a warning about those who rebelled. “Their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched” (66:24). Jesus used those words about hell (Mark 9:44). Two ways. Glory or judgment.

No book in the Bible makes it clearer that there is one God. And no book shows more clearly that the one God would come in the flesh. Before we finish we want to put it all together. There are three things we want to point out.

First Isaiah says there is only one God. Over and over. “I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me” (45:5). “Before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me” (43:10). “Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any” (44:8). “I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself” (44:24). “I am God, and there is none like me” (46:9). Not one God in three persons. One God. Alone. By himself.

Second the New Testament takes the words Isaiah used for the LORD and says they are about Jesus. Isaiah saw the LORD on the throne. John says he saw Jesus (6:1; John 12:41). The LORD of hosts himself is the stone of stumbling. Peter says that is Jesus (8:13–14; 1 Peter 2:8). John prepared the way of the LORD our God. And he prepared the way for Jesus (40:3). Your God will come and the blind will see. Jesus did it (35:4–5; Matthew 11:5). Beside the LORD there is no saviour. Jesus is the Saviour (43:11; Luke 2:11). The LORD is the first and the last. Jesus is the first and the last who was dead and is alive (44:6; Revelation 1:17–18). To the LORD every knee shall bow. At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow (45:23; Philippians 2:10). The LORD will not give his glory to another. Jesus has that glory (42:8; John 17:5).

Third Isaiah shows how the one God came. A child is born. A son is given. And his name is The mighty God, The everlasting Father (9:6). A virgin would conceive and he would be called God with us (7:14). The arm of the LORD would be revealed. And the arm was a man of sorrows wounded for our sins (53:1–5). When there was no man to save God’s own arm brought salvation (59:16; 63:5). The LORD our Father is our Redeemer (63:16). Isaiah prayed “Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down” (64:1). And he did. Not a second person. The one God. In the flesh. Jesus Christ. “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9).

We have gone through Isaiah chapter by chapter. Here is what we can conclude. First Isaiah is about the holiness of God. Isaiah saw him high and lifted up and cried woe is me (6:5). The Holy One of Israel judged Judah and the nations for their sin. Their sacrifices could not cover their wickedness. But the same holy God offered to make their scarlet sins white as snow (1:18). Holiness and mercy come from the same God.

Second Isaiah is about the one God. There is no God beside him. No saviour beside him. No one before him or after him. The idols are wood that a man burns half of and bows to the other half. The gods of Babylon have to be carried. But the LORD carries his people. And he declares the end from the beginning. He even named Cyrus before he was born.

Third Isaiah points to Jesus Christ. Born of a virgin. Called Immanuel. The mighty God and everlasting Father on the throne of David. The rod out of the stem of Jesse with the Spirit of the LORD on him. The servant who would be a light to the Gentiles. Who gave his back to the smiters. Who was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities. Who made his soul an offering for sin and then saw his seed and prolonged his days. Who preached good tidings to the meek. And who will come again in glory to make new heavens and a new earth.

Isaiah ends with a warning and a hope. The rebels will face fire that is not quenched. But all who tremble at his word will see his glory. Isaiah preached before the fall of Jerusalem. The next prophet preached while it was falling. He wept for his people. That is where Jeremiah begins.