Reading: Isaiah 39-41, Psalm 118
In Isaiah’s retelling of the rescue of Jerusalem from Assyria, we have seen Hezekiah held up as a righteous king in the tradition of his forefather David. In his commitment of his fate to the God of Israel, in his psalm writing, in his faithfulness to the people of Israel, he mirrors the actions of David and engages the hope of those of the people who are still paying attention to the promises of God in the books of Moses. People like Isaiah. At the end of Isaiah’s “book 1” we are left with an implied question: Is Hezekiah the guy?
Isaiah then makes a hard turn. We already know the answer of course, both because we have read the book of Kings and because we know about Jesus, but Isaiah did not until it happened. I think the whole story of Hezekiah is replicated in Isaiah because it was a deeply disappointing story for Isaiah. As a faithful prophet in the days of Ahaz, Isaiah witnessed his people turning further and further away from their God. He was given visions of destruction because of their actions, but also visions of restoration. Then Hezekiah becomes king and begins to reform the kingdom. It culminates in the rescue of Jerusalem from a huge Assyrian army by the direct action of God on their behalf. Isaiah has to be asking himself if the rest of the hopeful promises he has been proclaiming will come true. Then comes chapter 39.
Hezekiah gets a visitor from Babylon, and he is carrying a letter from the king of Babylon. Hezekiah shows off all the kingdom’s arms and treasure. Why is this a big deal? Why does this trigger Isaiah’s prophecy of destruction and plunder by the Babylonians? That letter has something to do with it. Merodach-baladan, the king of Babylon, had been sending letters formenting rebellion against Assyria to many of their vassal kings. Hezekiah responds by showing off what he can do to contribute to the Babylonian rebellion. If we remember, this was his father’s Ahaz’s tactic, only he was allying with Assyria against Samaria and Syria. Hezekiah, who was flying so high, here trusts Babylon rather than the God of Israel. While it may seem a small thing, to Isaiah this is a crushing let down. Hezekiah’s response makes it even worse: as long as he will live in peace, who cares what happens to the next generation?
Isaiah cares, and God cares. The rest of the book of Isaiah is oriented towards the future generations that Hezekiah has discounted. The voice in the book of Isaiah changes so much here that some believe it is a totally different writer, but I think the change in voice is a deliberate tactic by Isaiah. Before chapter 39 he was prophesying in hope of a present fulfillment by Hezekiah. Afterwards he is looking into a future beyond exile for Judah. He now knows it is inevitable. There have been hints of this before- the shoot from the stump of the house of Jesse back in chapter 11 for instance. Starting in chapter 40, Isaiah turns to the fulfillment of what he foresaw there, and the fulfillment of God’s promise of restoration after destruction.
Chapter 40 begins with comfort, comfort my people. Isaiah talks about a voice calling in the wilderness, in contrast to the watchman on the tower we heard of before. The people have gone into exile, and the beginning of restoration comes from the wilderness, not the city. Jerusalem has been punished, but God isn’t done. Isaiah continues his vision of God flattening all the powers of the world with his infinite power, but contrasted by his personal presence and preservation of the people of Israel. All of chapter 40 and most of 41 is an affirmation of God’s care for the broken, exiled people of Israel. At the same time, there is a personalization of Israel going on- God speaks to Abraham, to Jacob, to their descendant who will be his chosen servant. This chosen servant, who has been sort of implied throughout the book of Isaiah, is about to occupy the center of Isaiah’s book.
The last piece of chapter 41 is a challenge by God to the future people of Israel. They have tried worshiping all the idols of the nations around them which God warned them to avoid. Those idols have let them down. Nothing has worked out for them, and God answers their complaint about their situation with a reference back to his own words: didn’t I tell you this was what would happen? I think Isaiah puts this here as a reminder that God keeps his promises. We are about to jump into a twelve chapter information dump about God’s chosen servant, and Isaiah wants to remind the people of Israel, present and future, that all of this is in fulfillment of what they already knew from the books of Moses and the promise to David. It will shock them, but it is really nothing new. God has not changed, and his plan for his people will be completed in spite of their failures. Hezekiah was not the last hope. The collapse of David’s kingdom and the exile is not the end. God’s promises will not be forgotten.