Isaiah 13:1-14:2

How would the oracle against Babylon, written 100 years before the actual event, have comforted and strengthened the faith of the Jewish people? With Babylon representing any anti-God institution, whether a nation or political party, how do Isaiah 13 and Revelation 18 build the faith of believers? Revelation 18:4–5a says: Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her (Babylon), my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues; for her sins are heaped high as heaven…” How is this a warning for us today—both as a church and individually? In our preaching and evangelism, why must we not shy away from speaking of God’s wrath and judgement? Why do you think Christians often struggle with the idea of God’s fierce anger? In Isaiah, God speaks often of judgement against pride and arrogance. How does God’s righteous anger reveal the seriousness of human pride and sin? How can we avoid pride both individually and as a church? The language of Isaiah 13:9–13 is very similar to Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:29–31 about the signs of the end of the age. And as Jesus hung on the cross there was cosmic unrest, judgement on sin, and the outpouring of God’s wrath. How does this help us understand Old Testament prophecy and God’s use of typology (i.e. that events in history can be repeated and point forward to a final and complete fulfilment)? Verses 15–16 are very shocking to us—and rightly so. Read Psalm 137. How does this help us understand why such things would happen to the Babylonians? How do Isaiah 14:1–2 bring comfort to God’s people, and how does it make us appreciate Jesus all the more in light of the coming day of the Lord?