Isaiah 28:1-13 Notes, Israel's appetite for pleasure resulted in their destruction (Judah is warned)

Isa 28:1-4 (ESV) Ah, the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim,
and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
which is on the head of the rich valley of those overcome with wine!
2 Behold, the Lord has one who is mighty and strong;
like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest,
like a storm of mighty, overflowing waters,
he casts down to the earth with his hand.
3  The proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim
will be trodden underfoot;
4  and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
which is on the head of the rich valley,
will be like a first-ripe fig before the summer:
when someone sees it, he swallows it
as soon as it is in his hand.


• Who are we discussing?
• The NK, also called Israel (10 tribes)
• Verse one describes its location?
• Glorious beauty
• Rich valley
• Why is this important?
• It is a picture to Judah and a warning
• In prophetic scripture, a flood is often a reference to what?
• An army
• Obviously the theme here concerns drunkenness?
• One thought would be intoxication with power
• Another is that it describes irrationality
• Another is it emphasizes an appetite out of control for the things of the world. APPLICATION: when we live for the world instead of for God, things get out of balance, and foolishness and scoffing start to dominate our attitude toward life and toward God


Isa 28:5-8 (ESV) In that day the Lord of hosts will be a crown of glory,
and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people,
6 and a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,
and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.


7  These also reel with wine
and stagger with strong drink;
the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink,
they are swallowed by wine,
they stagger with strong drink,
they reel in vision,
they stumble in giving judgment.
8 For all tables are full of filthy vomit,
with no space left.


• Typically, in scripture, the phrase "in that day" is pregnant with a particular meaning, what is it? The Jewish commentaries of the time also understood the verse in this sense.
• It is a reference to the end times, probably the end of the tribulation or the millennial kingdom (essentially the Messiah's return)
• So verse 5, in relationship to verses 1-4, suggests that the true beauty of Israel won't really be realized until the Messiah comes (2nd time)
• So, the NK started out the discussion and is our reference point. We then contrast the NK with first a prophecy concerning the return of the Messiah and now verses 7-8, where are we going?
• The key phrase is "these also" referring to Judah
• Judah is guilty of the same things as Ephraim -- their leaders are drunk causing them:
• To be erratic and make bad decisions
• To babble (reel in vision)
• False judgments
• APPLICATION: We get a picture of how bad it is with the idea of a table just full of vomit. There is no room left, the vomit covers the whole table because of their sin (living to fill their appetites not living to fill their lives with God)


Isa 28:9-10 (ESV) "To whom will he teach knowledge,
and to whom will he explain the message?
Those who are weaned from the milk,
those taken from the breast?
10 For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line, line upon line,
here a little, there a little."


• What Isaiah (or God) does here is to mock Judah. This is Judah's response to Isaiah. What are they saying?
• We are not babies
• Who do you think you are teaching?
• Verse 10 requires the Hebrew to understand.
• Both of these words are one syllable words. The "upon" is not there --
• The phrase is a series of repeated one syllable words
• Saw saw saw saw qaw qaw qaw qaw
• This is baby babbling sound that Isaiah is repeating that they have been saying to him or mocking someone who stutters
• (Constable) What Isaiah advocated was trust in the Lord rather than reliance on foreign alliances for national security. …  it has never appealed to proud intellectuals who consider themselves beyond the simplicity of God's truth


Isa 28:11-13 (ESV)  For by people of strange lips
and with a foreign tongue
the Lord will speak to this people,
12 to whom he has said,
 "This is rest;
give rest to the weary;
and this is repose";
yet they would not hear.
13 And the word of the Lord will be to them
precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line, line upon line,
here a little, there a little,
 that they may go, and fall backward,
and be broken, and snared, and taken.


• So how God respond to the people's scoffing of his word to them?
• So you thought Isaiah was babbling or couldn't talk (I wonder if Isaiah had a slight speech impediment -- that would make this even more powerful), well, I am going to bring a people you cannot understand
• Also, their sound will sound like a baby or a stutterer to you
• God says that his desire was for something different, what?
• Rest
• Repose (which is resting)
• APPLICATION: So God's desire was to give them rest, but they would not listen. They decided to seek their own rest in feeding their appetites (drunkenness in drink, food, and things). They scoffed at him until he had to destroy them
• This is a hard way to learn a lesson. What we don't understand is how much God loves us and how much he knows what is really best for our souls