Isaiah 46:12

Israel’s ‘hard hearts’ refers to the fact that the people were not willing to accept a foreigner as God’s agent (see Isaiah 45:9-13).

Babylonian ~ a person from the country called Babylon; or anything that has a relationship with the country called Babylon.
idol ~ home-made image of a god.
Lord ~ God’s personal name in the Bible. In the original language, God’s name ‘Lord’ means ‘head over all’ and ‘God always’.
worship ~ to praise God (or a false god) and to pray to him.
Zion ~ the mountain in Jerusalem where God’s holy Temple was.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Temple ~ special building in Jerusalem where the Jews praised God and offered him prayers and gifts.
Jews ~ people who belong to the countries called Judah and Israel; people who belong to the 12 tribes of Israel.
tribe ~ group of the later family of one father.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Temple ~ special building in Jerusalem where the Jews praised God and offered him prayers and gifts.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Jews ~ people who belong to the countries called Judah and Israel; people who belong to the 12 tribes of Israel.
tribe ~ group of the later family of one father.
glory ~ the splendid beauty and wonderful light of God’s most holy character.

1. Isaiah: New *Heavens and a New Earth

God’s Servant Saves God’s People

Isaiah Chapter s 41 to 55

Gordon Churchyard

The words in square brackets, […], are not in the *Hebrew Bible. They make the book easier to understand in English. Isaiah wrote his book in the *Hebrew language. Words in round brackets, (…) are explanations.

Chapter 46

1. False gods cannot help you

v1 [The false god called] Bel bends down. [The false god called] Nebo lies low. Animals that can carry heavy weights carry their *idols. [The animals] carry their images, which are very heavy. They are very heavy for tired [animals].

v2 [The gods] lie down and they bend down together. They cannot rescue the heavy weight. They themselves go away [into another country] as slaves.

v3 Listen to me, you people [that come from the family] of Jacob. [Listen to me], everyone that remains of the people in Israel. I have supported you since [your mother] *conceived you. And I have carried you since you were born.

v4 [I will do this] even until you are old with grey hairs. I am he; I am he who will supply all that you need. I have made you and I will carry you. I will supply all that you need. And I will rescue you.

v5 With which [god] will you compare me? Are [Bel, or Nebo] as good as me? Which [god will you say] is like me? Can you compare me with [a god that people make]?

v6 Some [people] pour out gold from a bag. And they weigh out silver on the scales (machine to weigh things). Then they hire someone who can work with gold. He makes it into a god. Then they bend down and they *worship it!

v7 They lift it onto their shoulders and they carry it. They put it in its place and there it stands. It cannot move from that spot. If anyone calls out to it, it does not answer. It cannot save anybody from their troubles.

v8 Remember this and fix it in [your] mind. Make a special note about it, you people that fight against me.

v9 Remember the former things that happened long ago. I am God and there is no other [God]. I am God and there is nobody like me.

v10 I told [you] at the beginning what will happen at the end. [I told you] from long ago what will happen in the future. It is I who says [this]: “My purpose will stand. And I will do everything that I want [to do].”

v11 I will call from the east a bird that hunts *prey. And [I will call] a man from a country that is far away. He will bring about my purpose. The things that I have said, I really will do them. The plan that I have made, I really will make it happen.

v12 Listen to me, you people that will not change your minds. [Listen], you people that are far away from goodness.

v13 I am bringing my goodness near [to you]. It is not far away. There will be no delay as I bring safety [to you]. I will give this safety to *Zion. [I will give] my beauty to Israel.’

2. Notes

Verses 1-2 Sennacherib attacked Babylon in 703 *B.C. (*B.C. means ‘years Before Christ came to the earth’.) When Sennacherib did this, Merodach-Baladin was the king of Babylon. Merodach-Baladin moved all the gods away from Babylon to a safe place. The gods could not move themselves. Isaiah saw this as something that would happen again in the future. But this time, it was Cyrus who would attack Babylon. Cyrus came from east of Babylon, verse 11. Isaiah said that animals would have to carry the gods away. The gods were *idols and images. An *idol is a picture of a god that people have made out of metal or stone or wood, verse 6. These *idols and images were very heavy. They will not stand up, but they must lie flat for the animals to carry them away. The gods cannot help, or ‘rescue the heavy weight’.

Isaiah mentions Bel and Nebo. These were two false gods that the inhabitants of Babylon served. Bel was the chief god. They kept the image of Bel in Babylon. They also called Bel by the name ‘Marduk’. Nebo was Bel’s son. They kept Nebo in a city near Babylon called Borsippa. Some of their kings had letters like Nebo in their names. Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus are two examples.

Verses 3-5 God compares himself with Bel and Nebo. The people had to carry Bel and Nebo. God himself carries his people. In other words, he supplies what they need, He had done this since the birth (beginning) of the nation called Israel. ‘*Conceived’ refers to the sex act which produces a baby inside the mother. Some Bible students think that the ‘birth of the nation’ refers back to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For answers to the questions in verse 5, see the note on verses 8-13.

Verses 6-7 God describes how people make *idols. Again he emphasises that somebody must carry the *idol. It cannot walk, so it cannot carry its people. It cannot supply what people need. It cannot talk, so it cannot answer questions. It cannot say what will happen in the future. ‘*Worship’ means to love and to serve someone who is greater than you.

Verses 8-13 The *Hebrew words for ‘make a special note’ we can translate better as ‘take it to heart’, verse 8. The *Jews believed that you thought with your heart. Therefore, this is a way to say: ‘Listen and do something about it.’ This is God’s last appeal by Isaiah to his people. But Isaiah is still not sure how the *Jews will answer the questions in verse 5. The answer should be that the *LORD is the only real God. But verse 12 may mean that they will choose to serve false gods, like Bel and Nebo. So he makes one last appeal.

• There is only one God, there is no other God, verse 9.

• God said long ago what would happen. False gods cannot say what will happen, verse 10.
• God has a purpose (a plan) and nothing will stop it, verses 10-11.

This purpose will bring Cyrus, whom verse 11 calls: ‘the bird from the east’. Cyrus will be cruel, like a bird that hunts *prey. A bird that hunts *prey catches smaller birds and animals in order to eat them. And Cyrus will be cruel to many people. But God will still use him in order to carry out his (God’s) purpose.

‘Goodness’ in verses 12 and 13 means God’s good character and it means his purposes. God wants his people to have that goodness, but it is far away from them. That is why God must bring it to them. They do not want a foreigner like Cyrus to save them. However, God’s purpose is that Cyrus will save them. Then, God’s people will have his good character. He wants his people to be like himself. That will give his people a beautiful character. *Zion and Israel in this verse mean God’s people that live there.

3. Something to do

1. Maybe you know people that *worship false gods. Pray that they will *worship the one real God.

2. Remind yourself of the story about Merodach-Baladin. You will find it in the notes on Isaiah chapter 39.

9. heavens ~ another word for ‘skies’. It can also mean the place where God lives and the skies above us.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   idol ~ a false god that people made.
   conceive ~ to have sex so that a baby will be born.
   worship ~ to tell God (or a false god) that he is wonderful; and also, to tell him that you love him.
   prey ~ the smaller birds and animals that larger birds and animals catch for food.
   Zion ~ a name for Jerusalem.
   conceive ~ to have sex so that a baby will be born.
   worship ~ to tell God (or a false god) that he is wonderful; and also, to tell him that you love him.
   Jews ~ the people that lived in Judah (which sounds like ‘Jew-dah’) and Israel.
   LORD ~ LORD is a special name of God. In the Hebrew language it is YHWH. It may mean ‘always alive’. So LORD is a sign that the Hebrew word is YHWH.
   lord ~ master. When it has a capital L (that is, ‘Lord’) it is a name for God.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.