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“Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz [King of Judah], you and your son Shear-jashub [whose name means “a remnant will return”], at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, on the highway to the fuller’s field, 4 and say to him, ‘Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands, on account of the fierce anger of Rezin [King of Aram/Syria] and Aram [Syria] and the son of Remaliah [King of Israel, who had besieged Jerusalem along with the Syrians]. 5 ‘Because Aram, with Ephraim [Israel] and the son of Remaliah, has planned evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and terrorize it, and make for ourselves a breach in its walls and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand nor shall it come to pass.” (Isaiah 7:3-7 NASB)
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Truth to Power The above example is merely one of many instances where Isaiah the prophet boldly spoke truth to power. Standing up and speaking truth becomes, in fact, one hos hallmark traits. Sometimes Isaiah’s words are comforting, as in this case. He steps up and reminds the leadership and all the people that God is sovereign; that He has a plan; that those who turn to Him will be blessed. Other times, Isaiah’s speeches are confrontational – even with his good friend King Hezekiah. Whether the king is basically a good guy or a stinker, Isaiah will confront him when he’s wrong. Rage Against God Peter Hitchens has written an insightful book that exposes how the world desperately needs Christians to stand up and speak truth (in love) to power. He says:
Series Notes If you would like a copy of the introductory material for our summer series on Isaiah being preached at Frisco Bible Church, click HERE. |
