The Bible OverBrew - Bible in a Yearنموونە

Week 17. Day 1. Isaiah 1-3.

Introduction to Isaiah.

Right from the early church, Isaiah has been known as ‘the fifth gospel’ for the way it testifies so clearly to the coming Messiah. This is true throughout the prophecy, but especially in prophecies of hope from ch40 onwards. Isaiah breaks into three main sections, each of which has a distinct audience and message.

• Ch 1-39. Addressing the people of Isaiah’s day (8th century BC in the southern kingdom of Judah), warning them of judgment to come. This judgment would be(the exile to Babylon, which would happen over 100 years later.
• Ch 40-55. Looking ahead and promising comfort and salvation after the exile.
• Ch 56-66. Looking even further to the future, calling Israel to live in light of God’s salvation.

Even though Ch 1-39 chapters are largely focussed on judgment, they still contain still glittering prophecies of hope, though the context shows that these will only be fulfilled after judgment has fallen.

Isaiah 1-3.

Chapters 1-5 form an introduction to the book of Isaiah, leading in to chapter 6: the dramatic call of Isaiah. In today’s chapters (1-3) pay particular emphasis to 1:1-2:5 which are a microcosm of the whole book, moving from sin to judgment, to hope.

1:2-2:5

• What is Judah condemned for?
• What is the hope?
• What is the picture painted in 2:1-5?

Note: ‘Mountain of the Lord.’ Remember that Eden was a mountain, and the temple was on a mountain (c.f. mount Sinai also). The ‘mountain of the Lord’ refers to the dwelling place of God among his people

In the rest of ch2-3 note the references to the proud and lofty being humbled and brought low.

NOTE: Days 1-5 of each week contain the scripture reading for that week. Day 6 has just the 'key chapters'. If you want a briefer version of this plan that still takes you through the whole Bible, you could just read the key chapters featured on day 6. Day 7 has the podcast video where we discuss the week's reading.