ISAIAH 64


1 - 4 "Oh, that Thou wouldst rend the heavens, that Thou wouldst come down, that the mountains (or kingdoms) might flow down before Thy faces as the burning of liquid fire the fire shall cause the waters to boil -- to make known Thy Name to Thine adversaries: Before Thy Faces the nations shall tremble.

 At Thy doing of terrible deeds we shall not confide in, Thou descendest; before Thy Faces the mountains were poured out, and from the age u-mal-olahm, (from the beginning of the Mosaic Economy) men have not heard, they have not given ear to, the eye hath not seen besides Thee, O Elohim (mighty ones) what He shall prepare for him that is waiting diligently for Him" (chap. 64:1-4).

(Bro Thoma's rendering chap. 64:1-4).


 But as it is written [Isa 64: 1-4], Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Paul quotes this in 1 Cor. 2:9, in such a way as to show that the "Elohim" apostrophised by Isaiah, as the many in one who alone hath given ear to the things that shall be prepared, are the saints in Christ; for he saith to this class of persons,

"God hath revealed them to us by His Spirit . . . that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. For all things are ours and for our sakes" (chap. 3:21; 2 Cor. 4:15).

The Elohim only have heard and given ear to, and seen by the eye of faith, the all things to be inherited. Thus saith Isaiah. But Paul also saith, that he and his brethren discerned them; therefore, admitting Paul to be a competent witness in the premisses, "the saints in Christ Jesus" who are finally approved, and the Elohim of Isaiah in the text before us are the same.

Phanerosis - His Face As the Appearance of Lighting


Rending the Heavens


The Mosaic heavens would be rent to make way for the New heavens and earth, the New Covenant (2 Pet. 3: 12,13: Ga1. 3: 19) rent like a garment (Hb.1. 11,12: Is. 51:6; Hb 8: 13), as Christ rent the veil of the flesh, and the veil in the Temple was rent from top to bottom, signifying the opening of the way into the Most Holy (Mk. 5: 38, Mtt: 27: 51), likewise at his baptism the heavens were rent open or cloven asunder (Mtt.3: 16, Lk. 3: 21), commencing the opening of the way.into the new heavens and earth, or Most Holy.

The Jewish heavens were rentaway at AD70 by the armies of Titus and Vespasian (Lk 21: 20, Dan. 8: 11,12, Dan 9: 27)... the rending of the corrupt Gentile heavens in its latter day manifestation"pagano-Romish; political and ecclesiastical (Rev. 16-19), at the Apocalypse of the Lord Jesus Christ (the "thou" who has come down, as Deity manifestation in power and great glory) (Mtt.25: 31-34, Rev.16:15, Rev l: 7) causing the heavens to shake or mountains to melt and flow down... This will then be the end of this corrupt and abominable age and the end of the Sin powers who betweeen them are wrecking the beautiful earth.

Yahweh will destroy those that destroy (pollute) the earth *



Trembling Nations


Yahweh's fiery judgments will not only purge the earth of its abominations but also regenerate the earth (Is.66.15, Is.29.6, Is.30.27, Pslm 46). Fire is a symbol of war, and the great seven hilled, seven headed Apostasy drunken with the blood of the saints, which has deceived the

nations with its sorceries (Rev.17: 4), will be cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 18, Rev. 19.20).

Thus will the angry and stormy seas of nations be caused to boil, and as boiling purifies water, so will the nations be purifed of their mire and dirt, and turned into it sea of glass

(Rev 4,5,6, Rev. l5.2), when the Sun of Righteousness arises to burn up the wicked like

stubble, yet with healing in his wings (beams) (MaI. 4: l,2; Lk 21: 25,26).

The Jewish polity suffered a similar fate (Joel 2: 30-32), before the great and terrible day of Yahweh. Thus the nations will tremble at his presence when Yahweh roars out of Zion (Mtt.24: 29, JoeI 3: l2-17, Ex. l5). *



Warnings ignored (As in Noah's day)


This echoes the language of PsIm 68, when Yahweh came from Sinai into the Holy, and when the Almighty scattered kings it was white as snow in Salmon. Suddenly the unexpected comes, although plenty of warnings, yet unheeded, bro and sis drunk with the world, and the world itself blind as bats.

Yet the Lord warns be vigilant and keep our garments unspotted by the evil world (Lk.17, Rev.16: 15). Israel or Judah's commonwealth had seen such terrible things (2Kgs 17, 2Kgs 19, 2Kgs 25) and failed to heed the warnings by the prophets, Yahweh's faithful messengers (2Chron. 36, Pslm.74, 76, 79). *



Paul quotes this in 1 Cor. 2:9, in such a way as to show that the "Elohim" apostrophised by Isaiah, as the many in one who alone hath given ear to the things that shall be prepared, are the saints in Christ; for he saith to this class of persons, "God hath revealed them to us by His Spirit . . . that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. For all things are ours and for our sakes" (chap. 3:21; 2 Cor. 4:15).

The Elohim only have heard and given ear to, and seen by the eye of faith, the all things to be inherited. Thus saith Isaiah. But Paul also saith, that he and his brethren discerned them; therefore, admitting Paul to be a competent witness in the premisses, "the saints in Christ Jesus" who are finally approved, and the Elohim of Isaiah in the text before us are the same.

Phanerosis - His face as the appearance of lightning.



5 Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness [tzedek], those that remember Thee in Thy ways [drakhim]: behold, Thou art wroth; for we have sinned [been in sins]: in those is continuance [in them a long time], and we shall be saved [shall we be saved?].

Heb. paw-gah. This word "meetest" has several meanings such as to come (betwixt), cause to entreat, fall (upon), make intercession. It is rendered 'intercession' in ch. 53:12 and this appears to be the meaning here in Isa 64:5.

The Apostle Peter understood the basis of fellowship with the Father in his exclamation:

"…in every nation he that feareth Him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with Him" (Acts 10:35).

Faith with works are required in a contrite heart which trembles at God's Word (Isa. 66:2. See also Psa. 37:4; 112:1; Phil. 4:4).

"We have sinned" — And therefore suffer as a result.

"In those is continuance, and we shall be saved"

— For those who work righteousness. The idea is that if the people remember the ways of

God, they will be given continuance in His service, and shall be saved (Mic. 7: 18-20). God "remembered" His covenant for them (Psalm 106: 45), though they often "remembered not" Him (Psalm 78: 42).

Bro Trevor Snow



6 But we are all as an unclean thing [the tameh], and all our righteousnesses [kol tzidkoteinu]are as filthy rags [beged iddim (filthy rags, a garment of menstruation)]; and we all do fade as a leaf [aleh]; and our iniquities [avoneinu], like the wind [ruach], have taken us away.

The Mosaic economy would fade as a leaf blown away by the winds of war, famine and pestilence (Jer.24. 9, 10: 26: 6,18: Jer. 30: 7) Jeremiah seems to have identified himself with the people, like Daniel (Dan.9) and Nehemiah (Neh.l. 7), ever mindful of the vulnerabilities of flesh (Rom.7). *

* The Apocalyptic Messenger, June 2019  


 

The phrase " filthy rags," is nowhere used in Scripture as descriptive of " the righteousness of the righteous " (Ezek. xviii. 19-30). It is only used once ; and then it is expressive of the " righteousness" of unpardoned, but repentant Israel. Hence, therefore, it is only correctly applied, not to the work of faith and labour of love, or good works of the righteous, but to the righteousness of unpardoned sinners.

If a saint has no righteousness of his own, Jesus Christ will refuse to be righteousness for him at the judgment. He covers naked sinners, that, as saints, they may develop works ; that by these works which perfect faith, they may be justified, as Abraham was (James ii. 21-26).

Zealots in their frenzy do not perceive the difference between the justification of sinners and the justification of saints. Sinners are " justified by faith " in the obedience of faith,which is baptism; while saints are "justified by works" in the presence of the Righteous Judge ' 'at his appearing and his kingdom.''

Hence, these theorists, who have " a zeal of God but not according to knowledge," in their argument condemn themselves. They declare that they have " no righteousness of their own." I fear this is the fact; and that their garments are as filthy as they say. If their theory brought such ragged pretenders to judgment, what would become of them in view of the man cast into outer darkness because of the filthiness of his garment ? (Matt. xxii. 12-13).

Truly, as they say, if they were required to appear in " raiment clean and white, which is the righteousness of the saints " (Rev. xix. 8), the lunacy of despair awaits them.

Anastasis



8 But now, O Yahweh, Thou art our father [Avinu]; we are the clay [chomer], and Thou our potter [otzreinu (our Potter, Maker, Creator)]; and we all are the work [ma'aseh] of Thy hand [yad].

Here is the exhortation to submit to the moulding hands of Yahweh purging out the hard resistant lumps of flesh and pride that hinder the work of the craftsman in developing a vessel of beauty and usefulness (Jer. l8, Jer. l9) *

 

The formation of man

... "the Lord God formed man, the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives; and man became a living soul."

The simple, obvious, and undogmatic meaning of this, is, that the dust was first formed into "clay," which was then modelled by Yahweh Elohim into the form of the soul called "man," as a potter shapes the substance of his vessels.

Elihu said to Job, "I also am formed out of the clay" (Job 33:6) ; and again, "we are the clay, and Thou our potter; and we all are the work of Thy hand " (Isaiah 64:8). The fashioning of the clay being accomplished in all its component parts, which in the aggregate constitute man; that is, the dust being animalized, and then organized, the next thing was to set all the parts of this exquisite mechanism into motion.

This was effected by the inrush of the air through his nostrils into his lungs according to the natural laws. This phenomenon was the neshemet el, or "breath of God," breathing into him; and as it was the pabulum of life to all creatures formed from the dust, it is very expressively styled "the breath of lives" in the plural number.

Some imagine that Yahweh Elohim placed his mouth to the nostrils of the as yet clay-cold man-soul prostrate before him, and so breathed into them. Be this as it may; of this, however, we are without doubt, that God breathes into every man at his birth the breath of lives to this day; and I see no Scriptural reason why we should deny that He breathed it into Adam as He hath done into the nostrils of His posterity, namely, by the operation of the natural, or pneumatic laws.

Hitherto, man, though a soul formed from the ground, had been inanimate; but, as soon as he began to respire, like the embryo passing from fetal to infant life, he "became a living soul," not an everliving, but simply nephesh chayiah a living breathing frame, or body of life.

Elpis Israel 2.1.



11 Our holy and our beautiful house [Beis Kadsheinu v'Tifarteinu], where our fathers [Avoteinu] praised Thee, is burned up with fire [eish]: and all our pleasant things are laid waste [kol machamadeinu (all our desiring) is in ruins].

12 Wilt Thou refrain Thyself for these things, O Yahweh? wilt Thou hold Thy peace, and afflict us very sore [ad me'od?]?

The closing prayer is rhetorical. lsaiah knew the answer. It was the end. God would not refrain himself; nor hold his peace - but give them over to Caesar. *

* The Apocalyptic Messenger, June 2019