33 LESSON 23: A MAGNIFICENT VISION OF THE KING IN HIS GLORIOUS TRIUMP

I. MAIN IDEA This chapter gives a magnificent vision of the victory of King Jesus over all his foes, giving hope to all who trust in him (Davis). Isaiah 33 seems to anticipate an impending attack by the Assyrians, and this is a prayer by desperate people (Smallman).

II. BACKGROUND Chapter 33 describes the last minute turning to the Lord which took place in , led by king , when Sennacherib’s envoys were at the gates (701 BC). Previously, ’s king had made an alliance with (2 Kings 16:7) but now Assyria is breaking it. This final ‘woe’ is directed toward Assyria because they are about to attack Jerusalem. At last, God’s people have learned their lesson and cast themselves on the Lord’s mercy. God responds and destroys the Assyrians and prophetically tells them of the future New Jerusalem where the inhabitants will never experience such dread.

III. SUMMARY

Figure 1 Chapter 33 sequence of events

EVENT #1: WOE TO THE ASSYRIANS (33:1) Chapter 33 describes the last minute turning to the Lord which took place in Jerusalem, led by king Hezekiah, when Sennacherib’s envoys were at the gates (701 BC). Previously, Judah’s king Ahaz had made an alliance with Assyria (2 Kings 16:7) but now Assyria is breaking it. This final ‘woe’ is directed toward Assyria because they are about to attack Jerusalem.

33:1. The destroyer is Assyria. Previously, King Ahaz, the father of Hezekiah, foolishly made an alliance with Assyria (2 Kings 16:7). This prophecy, spoken before the Assyrian invasion by Sennacherib, shows that this seemingly unstoppable army will in fact be stopped. Those who did the destroying will be destroyed, and will be dealt with treacherously by others.

EVENT #2: HEZEKIAH’S PEOPLE CRY TO GOD FOR HELP (33:2-6) 33:2. In light of the Assyrian threat and the longed-for deliverance of a righteous king, God's people no longer look to the Egyptians, they no longer look to themselves. Now, they finally look to the Lord, and cry out, "Lord, be gracious to us.”

Mike Taylor | [www.MondayNight .Org]

33:3-4. This may already have had an initial fulfillment after the death of the Assyrian soldiers, for undoubtedly the inhabitants of Jerusalem congregated like locusts around the corpses and the implements of war.

EVENT #3: ASSYRIA RISES UP BUT GOD DESTROYS IT (33:7-16) 33:7-9. Diplomacy with Assyria has failed and the whole land is becoming, as it were, scorched earth, under Assyria’s iron fist. Yet it is precisely at that moment of critical intensity that God acts.

33:10-13. When there are no human solutions, God’s power is displayed and has to be acknowledged by all of his mighty deliverance.

33:14-16. To see God’s consuming fire in the Assyrian invasion is terrifying enough, so who could ever dwell with this God of holiness, a ‘consuming fire.’ The answer lies in the moral perfection from which the dwellers in Jerusalem realize how short they fell, as we all do. Here is the king again in all his beauty, whose rule over his extensive kingdom is the only spiritual answer to the fallen nature of the human race (Jackman).

EVENT #4: THE PROPHECY OF , THE NEW JERUSALEM (33:5-6, 17-24) 33:5-6. When Christ’s kingdom (Zion) is established, Jerusalem will be the home of justice and righteousness because King Jesus will reign there (cf. Rev. 21:2-3).

33:17-24. The remaining portion of this chapter describes how the oppressing invaders have disappeared forever. Jerusalem is now a city of peace and permanent security, never to be attacked again. Isaiah exclaims that this can only happen as a work of God. The prosperity, wealth and health of the eternal kingdom finds its greatest expression in the greatest of the benefits of God’s grace.

THREE THINGS ISAIAH WANTED GOD’S PEOPLE TO KNOW… 1. To trust God who faithfully keeps his promises of blessings (cf. Deut. 28). 2. To know that God is far much more powerful than the Assyrian invaders. 3. To know that someday God’s people will enjoy absolute peace in a future Zion (a Holy City).

" I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice

from the throne saying, "Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God." (Rev. 21:2-3 NIV)

Mike Taylor | [www.MondayNight Bible.Org]