Isaiah 30, What is God trying to teach or am I to stubborn to learn?

Isa 30:1-7 (ESV) "Ah, stubborn children," declares the Lord,  "who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin; 2  who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt! 3  Therefore shall the protection of Pharaoh turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your humiliation. 4 For though his officials are at Zoan and his envoys reach Hanes, 5 everyone comes to shame through a people that cannot profit them, that brings neither help nor profit, but shame and disgrace."

6 An oracle on the beasts of the Negeb. Through a land of trouble and anguish, from where come the lioness and the lion, the adder and the flying fiery serpent, they carry their riches on the backs of donkeys, and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people that cannot profit them. 7 Egypt's help is worthless and empty; therefore I have called her  "Rahab who sits still."



• We are back discussing Israel, Egypt's help, and the Assyrian threat
• First, how does God describe his people, and what does it mean?
• Obstinate
• Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French obstinat, Latin obstinatus, past participle of obstinare to be resolved, from ob- in the way + -stinare (akin to stare to stand)
• 1 : perversely adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion<obstinate resistance to change>2 : not easily subdued, remedied, or removed <obstinate fever> (Pasted from <http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/obstinate> )
• Hebrew (Strongs OT:5637) S¹rar. The root means basically "to be stubborn."  …  It is a rebellious generation (Ps 78:8) or heifer (Hos 4:16) which walks in its own way (Isa 65:2). It has a stubborn shoulder (Neh 9:29), a deaf ear (Zech 7:11), and a stubborn and rebellious heart (Jer 5:23). (from Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Copyright © 1980 by The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago.)
• How is the stubbornness described?
• Carry out plans that are not mine
• Act contrary to the Spirit
• Heap sin on sin
• Act without consulting
• How can we tell when we are being stubborn or just acting in prudence?
• Do we pray for guidance?
• Do we discuss with others, preferably more spiritually mature?
• How do we respond to contrarian advice?  Our attitude reflects our heart
• Historically, Shabako, a Nubian was pharaoh over Egypt.  That fact alone tells a lot of Egypt's strength in that day, that a foreigner reigned.  Egypt was in fact weak and did not respond when Assyria attacked.  The verses which follow (6, 7) suggest a secret trip through the Negev to avoid Assyrian detection
• APPLICATION:
• It is very hard to determine when you are stubborn.  The emotion itself suggests that you will deny it.  Most people find out that they are stubborn the hard way, through difficult circumstances that are ultimately the result of their stubbornness.  That is a very sad way to learn
• You can pray:
Ps 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart; // test me and know my anxious thoughts.  // 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, // and lead me in the way everlasting. NIV



Isa 30:8-14 (ESV) And now, go, write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever. 9  For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord; 10  who say to the seers, "Do not see," and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, 11 leave the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel."

12 Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel, "Because you despise this word and trust in oppression and perverseness and rely on them, 13 therefore this iniquity shall be to you  like a breach in a high wall, bulging out, and about to collapse, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant; 14 and its breaking is like that of a potter's vessel that is smashed so ruthlessly that among its fragments not a shard is found with which to take fire from the hearth, or to dip up water out of the cistern."



• I want to look at this passage because it could actually describe America's churches. What similarities do you see?
• People are looking for "beliefs" that they are comfortable with
• We have ceased to be concerned about truth -- why? -- because, deep down, we don't believe absolute truth exists
• People want to be comfortable, not right
• People want to create their own version of God, an idol by any other name
• APPLICATION: The response to hard questions is not "well, my God does not do that," but rather, what is I don't understand about the ONE TRUE GOD?



Isa 30:15-22 (ESV) For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, "In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength." But you were unwilling, 16 and you said, "No! We will flee upon horses"; therefore you shall flee away; and, "We will ride upon swift steeds"; therefore your pursuers shall be swift. 17  A thousand shall flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill. 18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice;  blessed are all those who wait for him.

19 For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. 20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. 21  And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the way, walk in it," when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left. 22 Then you will defile your carved idols overlaid with silver and your gold-plated metal images. You will scatter them as unclean things. You will say to them, "Be gone!"



• So what does Judah want to do and what does God want them to do?
• They want a treaty with Egypt
• God wants them to trust
• They think they can send messengers swiftly to Egypt to get help
• There is a similarity to the end times
• They want to make a treaty with Assyria during a time of God's judgment
• They will make a treaty with the antichrist during the tribulation (the time of Jacob's trouble) which will be broken in the middle
• One difference is during the tribulation, Israel will finally turn away from their idols and will listen to their Teacher at the end, Jesus


APPLICATION: The story, the similarity of Assyria's judgment and the tribulation continue into Chapter 31 and 32. God does discipline us as he sees best. There is a danger in running from God's discipline and interfering with God's discipline. I think, in prayer, when things do seem to be hard, we need to ask the question first, God, what do you want me to learn from this?