Isaiah: Week 5 • Isaac Serrano 11.12.17

The majority of chapters 13 through 24 of Isaiah are grim oracles for the nations, where YHWH proclaims His dismay and judgment, ultimately, on all the lands. Individuals disobey. Rebels band together in groups, tribes, even nations. YHWH has clearly labeled His own people, Israel, as unfaithful and unrighteous. But as we read the Scroll, we are posed with another deep question—what is the essence that lurks beneath the evil of humanity? What gives humanity such a sinister unity and boldness in the face of its Creator? In Isaiah 14, we are introduced to the “day star,” where the King of Babylon is likened to the planet Venus wanting to elevate itself at the beginning of each day before the light of the Sun. But we know this imagery has a greater implication. There are spiritual forces that underlie all of humanity’s rebellion, and these forces influence our physical actions (or inactions) and Isaiah is dreadfully aware of this reality and its effect on all. This includes his own people.