Isaiah Overview

ISAIAH

Isaiah was a man with a mission. The Lord had shown him a glimpse of His glorious throne and placed a call on his life. As a prophet, he spoke God’s words. For the most part, these were words of confrontation, exhortation, and warning—words that made him extremely unpopular. But even when he faced opposition Isaiah continued to stand up for the truth. The Lord had called him to warn the people of their headlong rush into disaster. The Book of Isaiah records these prophetic words of warning, but it also records Isaiah’s words of promise and hope. One day, a Messiah would come who would save, comfort, and bless His people.

Author Isaiah the son of Amoz has traditionally been identified as the author of the entire book that bears his name (1:1). However, since the rise of historical criticism in the late nineteenth century, debate has surrounded the authorship of Isaiah. The Book of Isaiah addresses three different historical time periods, and some critical scholars have concluded that there were three different authors for the book. Because chapters 1–39 address Israel when it was confronting Assyrian invasions during the second half of the eighth century b.c., most scholars have agreed that these chapters were composed by Isaiah the son of Amoz, the so-called Proto-Isaiah (or “First Isaiah”). But chapters 40–55 speak to the discouraged exiles in Babylon in the first half of the sixth century b.c., two centuries after the prophet Isaiah lived. For this reason, some have assumed an anonymous author called Deutero-Isaiah (or “Second Isaiah”) for these chapters. The rest of the book, chapters 55–66, addresses the controversies that surrounded the postexilic community in the second half of the sixth century b.c.. Thus this last section has been identified as the work of either Deutero-Isaiah or another anonymous author called Trito-Isaiah (or “Third Isaiah”). The basis for this elaborate analysis of the Book of Isaiah is the assumption that a Hebrew prophet could only address his contemporaries and not distant generations. According to these critics, a prediction of a future event, such as Isaiah’s prophetic naming of Cyrus two hundred years before that ruler came to power (44:28; 45:1), is simply impossible.

Contrary to the critics’ assumption, a prophet would commonly ask one generation to participate in the future events of another generation. Moses spoke this way when he addressed the new generation of Israelites at Moab as though they had participated in the events at Mt. Sinai (Deut. 5:3); yet none of Moses’ audience, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, had actually been there (Deut. 1:35–38). Isaiah, who began his career in 740 b.c. and ended it around 681 b.c., also used this technique. He commanded the Israelites to “go forth from Babylon” (48:20) many generations before the Exile in 586 b.c. and the return in 538 b.c.. This was a miraculous prophecy of the Israelites’ return from Babylon, a prophecy that would sustain the faith and hope of the exiles, such as Ezra and Nehemiah.

The internal evidence of the Book of Isaiah points to one author, the prophet Isaiah. Unlike books that have multiple authors, such as the books of Psalms and Proverbs, no editorial notices in the Book of Isaiah indicate a change of author (2:1; 13:1). Moreover there are numerous linguistic similarities throughout the book, such as the use of relatively rare titles for God, “the Holy One of Israel” and “the Lord of Hosts.” Variations in style between chapters 1–39 and chapters 40–66 may be due to differences in subject matter, changed perspectives, and perhaps even the prophet’s growing maturity. The New Testament confirms the view that Isaiah authored the entire book. The apostle John attributed prophecies from 53:1 as well as from 6:9, 10 to the prophet Isaiah (John 12:38–41). Thus there is no convincing reason to discount Isaiah’s authorship of the entire book.

Interpretation Understanding Hebrew prophetic literature involves recognizing and interpreting parallelism. The Hebrews used parallelism in poetry and prophecy as a literary technique to emphasize a particular thought. Here is an example: “The ox knows its owner / and the donkey its master’s crib; / but Israel does not know, / My people do not consider” (1:3). In the first part of this verse, both the ox and the donkey intuitively know the objects that they depend on, the owner (provider) as well as the “master’s crib” (provision). The second part of the verse contrasts the intuition of animals with the behavior of the Israelites. Israel does not know “its Owner,” and even though they are God’s “people,” they “do not consider” God’s provision. Thus the second half of the verse creates the analogy in parallel with the first half.

Prophetic poetry uses colorful images that point to further meanings. Unlike prose, which addresses historical realities more directly, poetry draws its readers and listeners into spiritual realities with the use of evocative language. Thus in 42:15, the images of “mountains and hills” represent all sorts of obstacles—both physical and spiritual—to the exiles’ return to Jerusalem. The promise that the Lord would “dry up” these obstacles means that He would eliminate all impediments to the exiles’ return, just as He had dried up the Red Sea for the Israelites long before. Similarly in 41:18, that the Lord would “open rivers” and make “the dry land springs of water” means that He would miraculously provide for the returning exiles in the same way He had provided water from a rock (Ex. 17:1–6).

Another major element in understanding prophetic literature is recognizing that the prophecies themselves and their arrangement often lack chronological perspective or have multiple fulfillments. For example, the same prophecy may speak of both Jesus’ First and Second Comings (63:1, 2). Likewise, one prophecy may speak of both the virgin birth of Jesus as well as the birth of Isaiah’s son during Pekah’s invasion. Moreover, an oracle about the servant Cyrus, the Persian emperor of the sixth century b.c. (41:1–29), may stand next to a prophecy concerning the Servant Jesus (42:1–9). Ultimately, the interpretations of Jesus and the New Testament authors provide a guide for interpreting Old Testament prophecies.

Audience As a prophet, Isaiah spoke to three historical epochs. In chapters 1–39, he delivered his message of condemnation to the eighth-century Israelites, pronouncing judgment on their immoral and idolatrous lifestyles. This judgment came quickly, for during Isaiah’s ministry, Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727 b.c.) set out to extend Assyria’s rule into the west, and in doing so put pressure on Israel and Judah. In 722 b.c. another Assyrian king, Sargon II, conquered the northern kingdom. Only the nation of Judah was left. But Isaiah predicted that even Judah would fall—as much later it did, in 586 b.c..

In chapters 40–55, Isaiah comforted the future generation of weary exiles—the Jews who thought that God had forgotten them (40:27). In a brilliant series of prophecies, Isaiah presented the case that Israel’s captivity was not due to the superiority of Babylon’s idols, but to the disciplining rod of Israel’s Lord (42:23–25). He predicted the exiles’ return and encouraged them to rouse themselves (52:1–10), to flee Babylon (48:20, 21), and to entrust their future to the Almighty (41:14–20).

Finally in the third section (chs. 56–66), Isaiah exhorted the Jews who had returned to the land. This was the period before the temple was rebuilt (58:12; 61:4; 64:10) or perhaps while it was being rebuilt (66:1). Isaiah encouraged these Jews to put away greed (56:9–11), self-indulgence (56:12), idolatry (57:3–10), cynicism (57:11–13), and hypocritical self-righteousness (58:1–5). But he also predicted that the community would be split between true and false worshipers (see chs. 65; 66). The complete restoration of Israel was still to come (49:8–26). The promised Messiah would appear in the future (61:1–3). Then Gentiles would join Israel’s godly remnant to become the “servants” of the Lord (56:3; 65:1, 15, 16) in a new nation (65:1; 66:8). The ultimate triumph of good over evil would have to await the new heaven and the new earth (65:17–19).

Christ in the Scriptures

Following are some of Isaiah’s Christological prophecies and their New Testament fulfillments: Isaiah 9:6 is fulfilled in Luke 2:11 and Ephesians 2:14–18; Isaiah 50:6 plays out with unbelievable precision in Matthew 26:67; 27:26, 30. Isaiah 61:1, 2 is nothing less than the personal mission Jesus verbalizes and embraces when He reads the scroll at the synagogue in Nazareth, as recorded in Luke 4:17–19.

Of particular importance is Isaiah’s description of the five aspects of Jesus’ saving work on our behalf. They appear in the five stanzas of Isaiah 52:13–53:12. There we read of Jesus’ wholehearted sacrifice, His perfect character, His atonement that results in peace with God, His payment that results in our forgiveness, and His death that nullifies the effects of sin. Isaiah refers to Jesus’ earthly ministry and His crucifixion as well as His eventual return to earth as the reigning King.