10 Why God's New City Will Never Fall (Isaiah 54:11-17)

Krisan Marotta: Good morning. This is Krisan Marotta, and you're listening to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. Thank you so much for downloading it. Today we're going to be studying Isaiah chapter 54, verses 11 through 17. This is the tenth talk in our series on the servant songs from the Old Testament book of Isaiah. You can find lecture notes for today's talk on our website. Just go to wednesdayintheword.com slash servant songs 10. We're going to be finishing chapter 54 today. We did the first part of it in our last section, so you might want to listen to that. You'll find that at wednesdayintheword.com slash servant songs nine. Today we're going to look at the last verses from eleven to seventeen. But in the first part of the chapter, we saw that Isaiah announced that there is now a new age because of what the servant, the Messiah, has done, and we saw that that new age will have a new seed, a new land, and a new covenant, and the glory of those will far surpass the old covenant. Well, as we finish the chapter today, he's going to focus on one more thing that's new in this new age, and that is a new city. In this section, the prophet speaks of a new city to demonstrate that what the servant accomplished through his death and resurrection not only fulfilled the old covenant, but far surpasses the old covenant and Israel's grandest dreams. Start in verse eleven, we're going to look at eleven and twelve. O afflicted one, storm tossed and not comforted, behold, I will set your stones in antimony and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. Moreover, I will make your battlements of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones. So Isaiah starts out by contrasting Israel, the nation of Israel's dark past with her glorious future. So he's contrasting the future glory of the new city created by the Messiah with the dark past of her people. In the past she was battered relentlessly by the storm of God's wrath, O afflicted one, storm tossed and not comforted. Listen to Isaiah 51, this is verse 17. Rouse yourself, rouse yourself, or rise, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the Lord's hand the cup of his anger, the chalice of reeling you have drained to the dregs. So in the past Israel was under God's wrath. And then in that same chapter 5120, he says, Your sons have fainted, they lie helpless at the head of every street, like an antelope in a net, full of the wrath of the Lord, the rebuke of your God. This was the nation's past. They were afflicted, they were storm tossed, they were not comforted because they were under God's wrath, but now that is going to change. And he uses this metaphor like a jeweler displays a diamond against black velvet, so the diamond sparkles more brightly against the black background. The prophet's going to compare the city's future with her past, and against that dark backdrop, God will lay these precious stones in antimony. Antimony refers to the black mineral powder which was used by Middle Eastern women as a cosmetic, kind of like eyeshadow. It was used to increase the brilliance of the eyes, so by darkening the eyelids you would increase the brilliance of the of the eyes. And in this context, antimony I think refers to the dark mortar that was used to set off these precious stones. So they would mix black powder into the mortar to darken it, and then when the stones were laid into that mortar, they would sparkle all the more brilliantly in contrast. Like a jeweler displaying diamonds against a black velvet backdrop, the future is set against the past and the contrast is going to be brilliant. No expense will be spared in creating this new city, they will use jewels throughout and they will be real and genuine, unlike Babylon. Look at fifty four eleven again, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. Moreover I will make your battlements of rubies and your gates of crystal and your entire wall of precious stones. So the jewels will be everywhere throughout the city. And this verse would have been especially meaningful to the captives in Babylon, because Babylon boasted of buildings that were set in precious stones. In their literature that survives, they claim they used lapis lazuli and azure stone to cover their buildings, that their wealth and their splendor was so great they could cover all their buildings with these precious blue stones, but they faked it. Klaus Westerman explains in his commentary Nebuchadnezzar said he had erected such and such a building in precious stones. Mention is often made in particular of the unku stone that is Lapis Lazli or Azurstone. In actual fact, of course, what came in question were perfectly ordinary bricks overlaid with blue glass paste. So Babylon claimed to have covered their buildings in precious stone, but it was fake blue glass. Babylon's buildings were phony just like their gods. They claimed to be covered in precious gems, but they were only blue glass paste, painted on ordinary bricks. In contrast to Babylon, then the new Jerusalem, the new city, will be constructed with authentic precious gems, eternal in value, splendid in beauty and use throughout. No expense will be spared in building this new city. In the old Jerusalem, gems were only used in the temple area. For the most part, the prophets of Israel condemned splendor in buildings except in the temple. But in this new city, precious gems will be used from the foundations to the walls to the tower gates everywhere. Why the change? Because this new city is God's people, and they are evidence of his splendor. The precious stones becomes a metaphor for God's people or his sheep. One of my favorite pastors, Brian Morgan, explains it this way. He says that Isaiah mixes his metaphors here and he writes, quote, I will set your stones in antimony, but he doesn't use the verb normally associated with the work of a stonemason or a jeweler. Instead he uses a verb that is usually used of shepherds causing their sheep to lie down and eat. The most famous example is Psalm 23, two. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters. By mixing verbs like that, some commentators think Isaiah is pointing out the jewels are metaphors for God's flock, his people, and the buildings in the new city are God's people. That's the end of the quote. And you can see the New Testament writers picking up on this metaphor. Paul and Peter write that the new Jerusalem, the new city, is built with living stones of which Christ Himself is the cornerstone. They write that the foundation of this new city is the teaching of the twelve apostles concerning Jesus, and on this foundation then the new city will be constructed with living stones of God's people, which includes both Jew and Gentiles. This is Ephesians two nineteen through twenty-two, which Paul wrote. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. So Paul picks up this metaphor of the people of God are the new temple. The people of God are being built into a holy temple for the Lord. Peter writes the same thing. This is first Peter two, verses four and five, and coming to him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God. You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. So you, God's people, are the new city, you're the new temple, you're the living stones, and no expense will be spared in building you into this holy living temple and community. I think one implication of that is that we should not get too caught up in this world. It ought to give us the right perspective. Though we live in a fallen evil world, remember that God is building a new city. Our fallen dark world is just the backdrop that will enhance the brilliance and the splendor of the age to come when the Messiah comes back, gathers his people, and rights every wrong. This world will fade away, but God's new city will endure forever. It's going to outlast all of history. So that ought to keep our priorities in line. We want to remember that this is just the preface, that we're just in the introduction. The curtain has not yet gone up, and the play, the real story, the real play has not yet begun. And we don't want to throw away what's to come, that new city to come. We don't want to throw that away for the phony jewels and pleasures of this life. So the first implication of this text, it gives us this new perspective, and the second, closely related to that, is it gives us a new focus. If God's great work is building this new city of living stones, then that ought to be our focus too. Our focus ought to be on the lives of people, of individual men and women, fellow sheep and strugglers, not on programs, buildings, budgets, and appearances. It's easy to get caught up in all the worries and details and logistics of this life. But our focus should always be on the people. One of the phrases that we drilled into our kids is people are more important than things. When you're dealing with your brother or your sister, the relationship is more important than the toy and who had it first. And that kind of focus changes our attitudes. Let me give you an example. Many years ago we hired some college kids who were believers to paint our house. Well, they bit on the job and ended up grossly underestimating what it was going to cost them in paint and materials. And when the job was all done, they had very little to show for it. They explained the problem to us and and just kind of came hat in hand saying, look, we made this huge mistake. And we decided just to pay the difference, which almost doubled our costs. And at the time we were struggling young married, and so the extra cost was a pretty big dent in our budget, but we felt the relationship was more important than the money. When my then boss found out what we'd done, she was appalled. She said we were just suckers. They made a mistake and they ought to pay for it, and we should just be happy that we got lucky. And her attitude struck me as the difference between a believer and a non-believer, that there's this difference in focus, that we care more about the people than the programs, more about the relationships than getting our fair share or all of our what's our due. And I have to say I haven't missed the money over the last 20 years, but I have sure enjoyed hearing how these friends are doing now that they're married and having babies and growing in the Lord. So people are more important than things, than budgets, than programs, than buildings, five-year plans, and so on. Our focus ought to be the living stones of the church, not its programs. Okay, next Isaiah turns to the education of this new city. Look at verse 13. All your sons will be taught of the Lord, and the well-being of your sons will be great. So all believers will be personally taught by the Lord. In the Old Testament, God's curriculum was accomplished through mediators, prophets, and priests. So there were people that were singled out, given the Spirit, and then under the inspiration of the Spirit, these men taught the rest of the flock how to walk and taught the ways of the Lord, passing down the traditions, the understandings, and the word of God. But in the days following the servant, the Spirit will be given to all. This is Jeremiah thirty-one thirty four, and they will not teach again each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, declares the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more. Jeremiah is speaking there of the new covenant, when they won't need mediators and priests and prophets, intermediaries anymore. They will all know from the least to the greatest. All believers will be taught by the Father just as the servant himself was. Remember Isaiah fifty verse four. The Lord has given me the tongue of the disciples that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. He awakens me morning by morning, he awakens my ear to listen as a disciple. That same relationship is now being made available to every child of the kingdom, every son and daughter in the kingdom. The Spirit is given to all believers, guaranteeing the well being of this new city. No one has to rely on a second hand message or education anymore, because God will teach us directly through his spirit. John writes this same idea in first John, this is two twenty-seven. As for you, the anointing which you receive from him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you, but as his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie, and just as it is taught you, you abide in him. Now he's there's a lot more going on in j in the context of first John, but at least one of the points he's making is you don't need a priest or a go-between anymore. The scriptures are open to you. The teacher is waiting. My parents sent me to Stanford University, and my first year there cost what was then a whopping six thousand dollars for tuition room and board, but that was just the beginning of the runaway tuition hikes. By my last year the cost had almost doubled to ten thousand dollars, which seems like a penance today, but I'm sure my parents were in shock. They probably spent about thirty thousand to send me to college, but you know what? God had other plans. I'm sorry to admit that I don't remember all that much of what I learned in college. I've long since discarded my textbooks and my notes, but while I was in college, I attended this great church and was taught by some very godly men and women. In fact, the man I quoted earlier, Brian Morgan, was my college pastor at the time. I often refer to him as my favorite rabbi because he spends so much time in the Old Testament. We keep in touch and he sometimes sends me his exegetical note outlines, which I just I love. And in fact, ninety-five or maybe even ninety-nine percent of my understanding of Isaiah comes from Brian Morgan in a class I took from him oh years and years ago. I don't remember a quarter of what my professors taught me, but I remember everything I learned at that church, and that education was free. The principles and the passages I learned there are etched in my memory thanks to the Holy Spirit. And I always think it's ironic that my parents spent a lot of money to send me to an Ivy League school, but God was sending me to a free school, the church that would change my life forever. Now Isaiah goes on, because the Lord teaches everyone, it guarantees their well-being or their peace. In thirteen again, all your sons or all your builders will be taught of the Lord, and the well-being of your sons will be great. Because of the work of the servant, because of the work of Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Spirit being given, all the workmen in the city enjoy a state of peace or well-being. And that is the Hebrew word shalom again. We've talked about it before. It's a really rich and deep word. It's a little hard to pin down because it contains so much and its nuances shift a little bit in certain contexts. Perhaps the one of the simplest ways to define it is it's this full range of well-being or peace that results from the victory of righteousness over evil. The idea here is because the servant brought victory over evil, we are no longer under God's wrath. We are now personally taught by God, even as his own son was, and thus our peace, our well-being, our future prosperity is guaranteed. So the servant Jesus Christ established righteousness, and thus this new city enjoys peace or harmony or this contentment and well-being, because we are no longer under God's wrath. Now, one of the implications, I think, of that is that we ought to encourage everyone to be a co-worker with us. So we all possess the spirit, and we need each member of the body to use his or her spiritual gift to play that unique part that God has designed personally for them in building this new city of living stones. We often get the idea that, oh, it's the pastors and the leaders who kind of do all the work and they're up front and they do everything and we sit back and cheer or something, but that's not the picture of the church. The job of a pastor or any leader is not to do all the work themselves, not to micromanage everyone in their work. Instead, they equip the body to do the work of the ministry. So they teach the word of God and make sure that people have the tools and the truth that they need to then go out and do whatever work God has called them to do. So they proclaim the truth so that the body is equipped to build with gold and silver and precious stones rather than wood, hay, and stubble, as Paul writes in Corinthians. As a result of the servant securing righteousness then for all his children, the gift of the Spirit is given to all his children, and now all the sons and daughters in the city enjoy this intimacy with the Lord, an intimacy that was in previously only granted to kings and prophets. And unlike old Jerusalem, the old nation of Israel, whose security was threatened, if a king turned away from God, this new city will enjoy lasting peace. Look at fourteen through seventeen. In righteousness you will be established, you will be far from oppression, for you will not fear, and from terror for it will not come near you. If anyone fiercely assails you, it will not be from me. Whoever assails you will fail because of you. Behold, I myself have created the smith who blows the fire of the coals, and bring out a weapon for its work, and I have created the destroyer to ruin. No weapon that is formed against you will prosper, and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from me, declares the Lord. So the basis of this new security is righteousness. Security was always a problem for the city of Jerusalem. It's naturally fortified on three sides by three valleys, but the northern approach has no natural defense, and that is traditionally the point at which the city was invaded. At the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was facing the threat of the Assyrians, and in response to that threat, Hezekiah, the king, one of the kings at the time, increased taxes to build his defense and his famous tunnel, which you can still wade through if you visit the city today. But according to the Old Testament, the security of Jerusalem did not depend on its fortifications, its military might, or its foreign alliances. The security of Dr of the city depended on the righteousness of its king and of its people trusting God. God makes this clear in Deuteronomy seventeen, this is verses eighteen through twenty. He's speaking about the king, and he says, Now it shall come about when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. It shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, by carefully observing all the words of this law and these statues, that his heart may not be lifted up above his countrymen, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right or the left, so that he and his sons may continue long in his kingdom in the midst of Israel. So the king was to know the law and to follow it, and that following ensured that he would stay in the kingdom, stay in peace and prosperity. And it's interesting, sometimes Isaiah would advise the king to a surrender in the kingdom. The face of an enemy threat. Sometimes Isaiah would tell the king, No, this time you need to attack. But every time what Isaiah told the king was you need to trust in the Lord. That's where your security and your victory lies. And if the king didn't listen to the prophet, as was often the case, then the city would be compromised and plunged into despair. But with the coming of the servant, Jesus Christ, the Messiah, we have a new king, and the city finally has a king who has fulfilled God's law with his whole heart. In his work on the cross, Jesus imparted that gift of righteousness to his people, and the city now stands secure because it is not only has a righteous king, it will it has righteous inhabitants. We saw this in Isaiah 53 11, my servant will justify the many, and he will bear their iniquities, and in fifty-four fifteen, in righteousness you will be established. So the result of being established in righteousness is this security, this freedom from fear. He says, In righteousness you will be established, you will be far from oppression, and you will not fear and from terror for it will not come near you. That was fifty-four fourteen. Notice oppression is an assault from the outside while terror is an assault from within. So he's covering everything. This is what we refer to as the peace of God which surpasses all understanding. As a new Christian, I used to think that the peace of God was this kind of feeling that came and went, and that I could be filled up with it, or I could spring a leak and lose it all. But I've come to understand as I've studied more and more that the peace of God is not so much a feeling as it is an attitude or a state of mind. The peace of God is this freedom from fear, this certain knowledge that nothing can happen to me that is not under God's control. Nothing can happen to me that will cause Christ to abandon me. I can't say or do anything to jeopardize my adoption into his family or my inheritance in the kingdom of God. If God chooses me, I'm chosen. I didn't have to earn it or muster it up, and so I can't unearn it and lose it. Remember the incredible display of God's love we talked about from chapter fifty-three. Jesus died for us while we were enemies. How much more then, now that we are his beloved brothers and sisters, can we have confidence that nothing will separate us from his love? If he died for us while we were his enemies, what what do we have to fear now? So the victory is guaranteed in these new battles because God will never again abandon us. He says, if anyone fiercely assails you, it will not be from me. That's in 15. He tells us victory is guaranteed for three reasons. First, the relationship has changed dramatically. Under the old covenant, security was based on how faithfully the people kept their side of the covenant. When Israel refused to remain loyal to the covenant, when they turned away from God and chased after idols, God gave them over to their enemies. So their security depended on their ability or lack thereof to keep the covenant. In chapter 6310, Isaiah writes, But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. Therefore he turned himself to become their enemy. So when they turned away from him, God had to discipline them to bring them back, he had to turn away from them and become their enemy. But now under the new covenant, God says he will never again war against his own people because of the cross of Christ. He has created this new people who have the law of God written on their hearts, and he no longer needs to discipline us the way he disciplined Old Testament Israel. That gives us confidence because no matter what happens to us, we can be convinced that God knows what he's doing, that it's part of his plan, it's under his control, and he is not going to abandon us and let us down. So when your boss gives you a hard time at work, or if you have a terrible day with your children, or your family's hit by financial loss or tragedy, or you're facing persecution or whatever, it's not coming from God as a judgment or punishment. He's not turned his back on you or abandon you. It's a tool he's using to strengthen and mature you and grow you into the person he wants you to be, and the ultimate victory is guaranteed. So your relationship with him is no longer based on your ability to remain loyal to the covenant, it's based on the cross and it's secure. It's based on faith, which is a gift he's given you through grace because of Jesus Christ. So the second reason our victories are guaranteed is because God is in control. Look at verse 16. Behold, I myself have created the smith who blows the fire of the coals and brings out the weapon for its works, and I have created the destroyer to ruin. So in the age to come, we still see God as the commander of all of history. He creates the one who makes the weapons, he creates the one who uses the weapon, in other words, he controls all the results of history, the outcome, its path, and its progress. So the outcome of all battles, whether they're global war or family struggles, they are in his hands. Our victory, our ultimate victory, is guaranteed because God is in control. Verse 17 No weapon that is formed against you will prosper, and every tongue that accuses you in judgment will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from me, declares the Lord. Finally, victory is guaranteed because the destiny of the servant is the legacy for all God's servants. God will vindicate the servant's children just as he vindicated the servant himself. So the third reason is our victory is guaranteed because it's not based on our own resources, it's based on a God who is controlled and has promised to vindicate his servants. Well, just to wrap this up, let me focus on one implication of this, and that is that we should fight the right battles. Yes, the outcome is guaranteed, yes, our victory is assured, yes, God's city will stand secure, but sometimes we're off fighting the wrong battles with the wrong weapons. We have to remember that the real enemy is sin and death, and the way to defeat sin and death is through the cross of Christ. So the enemy is not the Democrats or the Republicans or the government in general or the school board or management or big business or liberals or conservatives. The real enemy is sin and death, and the only way to defeat that is through the cross of Jesus Christ. And our battle is not with other groups or individuals, our battle is with evil, and that we need to offer the cross as the solution. As Paul writes in Ephesians, this is Ephesians six, starting in verse ten, finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. So as Paul says, be strong in the Lord, in the strength of his might, put on the full armor of God and stand firm in the faith. Stand firm against the schemes of the devil. That's our real enemy, and victory over that enemy has been assured to us by the servant Jesus Christ. Thank you for listening to Wednesday in the Word, the podcast that explains not only what a passage means, but also tries to show you how we figure that out. This is serious Bible study applied to real life. If you've been blessed by this podcast, please do me a favor and take two minutes and leave a rating or a review on Apple Podcasts. Reviews really do matter. Every five reviews help people find the podcast, and I would really appreciate your help. Our theme music is graciously provided by Reggie Coates of Heartfeltmusic.org. I'm Krisan Marotta and you can hear more or listen to previous episodes by going to wednesdayintheword.com.