Jo’s Place

Isaiah Chapter 47 “Come down, virgin daughter of Babylon, and sit in the dust. For your days of sitting on a throne have ended. O daughter of Babylonia,* never again will you be the lovely princess, tender and delicate. Take heavy millstones and grind flour. Remove your veil, and strip off your robe. Expose yourself to public view. You will be naked and burdened with shame. I will take vengeance against you without pity.” Our Redeemer, whose name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, is the Holy One of Israel. “O beautiful Babylon, sit now in darkness and silence. Never again will you be known as the queen of kingdoms. For I was angry with my chosen people and punished them by letting them fall into your hands. But you, Babylon, showed them no mercy. You oppressed even the elderly. You said, ‘I will reign forever as queen of the world!’ You did not reflect on your actions or think about their consequences. “Listen to this, you pleasure-loving kingdom, living at ease and feeling secure. You s...

Isaiah Chapter 46 Bel and Nebo, the gods of Babylon, bow as they are lowered to the ground. They are being hauled away on ox carts. The poor beasts stagger under the weight. Both the idols and their owners are bowed down. The gods cannot protect the people, and the people cannot protect the gods. They go off into captivity together. “Listen to me, descendants of Jacob, all you who remain in Israel. I have cared for you since you were born. Yes, I carried you before you were born. I will be your God throughout your lifetime—until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you. “To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal? Some people pour out their silver and gold and hire a craftsman to make a god from it. Then they bow down and worship it! They carry it around on their shoulders, and when they set it down, it stays there. It can’t even move! And when someone prays to it, there is no answer. It can’t rescue anyone from trouble. “D...

Isaiah Chapter 45 part 2 This is what the Lord says: “You will rule the Egyptians, the Ethiopians, and the Sabeans. They will come to you, with all their merchandise, and it will all be yours. They will follow you, as prisoners in chains. They will fall to their knees, in front of you and say: ‘God is with you, and he is the only God. There is no other.’ ” Truly, O God of Israel, our Savior, you work in mysterious ways. All craftsmen, who make idols, will be humiliated. They will all be disgraced, together. But the Lord will save the people of Israel, with eternal salvation. Throughout everlasting ages, Israel will never again be humiliated and disgraced. For the Lord is God, and he created the heavens and earth, and He put everything in place. He made the world, to be lived in, not to be a place of empty chaos. “I am the Lord,” he says, “and there is no other. I publicly proclaim bold promises. I do not whisper obscurities, in some dark corner. I would not have told the people, of...