seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Isaiah 46:1 Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols are borne by beasts of burden.[a]
The images that are carried about are burdensome,
a burden for the weary.
2 They stoop and bow down together;
unable to rescue the burden,
they themselves go off into captivity.
3 “Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
and have carried since you were born.
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
5 “With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?
6 Some pour out gold from their bags
and weigh out silver on the scales;
they hire a goldsmith to make it into a god,
and they bow down and worship it.
7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry it;
they set it up in its place, and there it stands.
From that spot it cannot move.
Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer;
it cannot save them from their troubles.
8 “Remember this, keep it in mind,
take it to heart, you rebels.
9 Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
10 I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.’
11 From the east I summon a bird of prey;
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned, that I will do.
12 Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted,
you who are now far from my righteousness.
13 I am bringing my righteousness near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,
my splendor to Israel.
a. Isaiah 46:1 Or are but beasts and cattle
This is from bible-studys.org.
“Bel” and “Nebo” were two of the most prominent Babylonian deities. The name Bel is derived from Baal and refers to Marduk, the patron deity of Babylon. Nebo (or Nabu), was viewed as the son of Bel (Marduk). His name is found in the name of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. The idea in this passage is that the Babylonian deities will one day fall before the Lord (Nebuchadnezzar’s confession in Daniel 4).
The rhetorical question “To whom will ye liken me?” implies the obvious answer, no one! “I am God, and there is none like me.” Yahweh is the unique and incomprehensible God. His uniqueness is found in His “declaring the end from the beginning.” His singular distinctiveness is His ability to predict the future with complete accuracy. Since He alone knows the future, the “salvation” of the Lord “shall not tarry” (Hab. 2:3; Heb. 10:37). In the timetable of God, all things are proceeding on schedule.
“All the remnant of the house of Israel”: The God of Israel is not helpless like idols. In His strength, He has sustained and will sustain helpless Israel through every circumstance. (In verse 4), the Lord uses the first person pronoun 6 times to emphasize His personal involvement in delivering Israel.
I have had a whole bunch of ideas about what to write. I started out thinking this was about a parent rescuing a child.... like a child who sneaked out the window in the middle of the night and wound up in the middle of a knife fight. ... [yep that would be me as a kid] Then the gods of Babylon [including Marduk the baby murdering statue] came up and I was going to go into that yet again. And then I saw verse 11..... a man out of the east.... and current events..... and I had a world war going on in my mind.... more like Armageddon than the restoration of Jerusalem. I thought about that "eye of the needle" verse and thought this is about wasting time on worldly adoration.My online Bible [Bible Gateway] titled this chapter "Gods of Babylon". The descendants of Abraham and Jacob [Israel] were held in Babylon for 70 years.... and during that time.... they were supposed to learn a lesson and come back praising God. It was a godly time out.... if you please. Cyrus.... who was not directly related to Jacob [Israel] or Shem [Noah's son who continued the line to Jesus after the flood]..... Cyrus was chosen by God to send the descendants of Jacob [Israel] back home to rebuild the Temple.
I think.... now it's only my vivid imagination working.... I think some of those people who marched back to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple..... carried some idols back with them. I think God is telling His humans.... through the Prophet Isaiah.... that they shouldn't have even thought about bringing those worthless idols back with them.... the desire for those useless bobbles is what got them in trouble in the first place.
God is reminding them.... through the Prophet Isaiah..... that He knew those humans would be stupid and get themselves in trouble.... and He plunked Cyrus there to bail them out and send them back to rebuild the Temple. The Prophet talked about the humans being force marched to Babylon hundreds of years before it happened. God called Cyrus out by name..... hundreds of years before all this happened..... and the stupid humans still crave those wooden bobbles.
Stupid Humans..... they brought the idols back with them! Stupid Humans.... what in the world do we need more than God?
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