e-Watchman articles considering the entire prophecy of Isaiah.
A common thread that runs through most of the books known as the prophets is the exile and repatriation of the Israelites and the Jews. Through Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, the so-called major prophets, to Micah, Amos, Hosea, Zephaniah and Joel, the theme is the same. God used both the Assyrian and Babylonian empires as his punishing agents. And then he brought judgment upon those [...]
Sunday, July 23 Give us more faith.—Luke 17:5. What can you do to build and maintain strong faith? Do not be satisfied with only what you learned up to the point of your baptism. Take note of fulfilled prophecies in the Bible because these can provide you with powerful reasons for having faith. You can also use God’s Word as a measuring rod to see if your faith [...]
QUESTION #8 - According to John 12:41, John says Isaiah saw Jesus' glory and spoke about him. The New World Translation has a cross reference pointing back to Isaiah 6:1,8. There, Isaiah saw Jehovah and spoke about him. There is even a cross reference pointing to John 12:41. So the Watchtower agrees that these scriptures are related. How can both passages of scripture be true unless [...]
Jehovah's Witnesses Daily Text Thursday, March 2 Your own ears will hear a word behind you saying, “This is the way. Walk in it.”—Isa. 30:21. You no doubt agree that the Bible contains God’s message for mankind in general. But does the Bible also convey how you in particular can draw closer to Jehovah? Indeed it does. How? As you regularly read and study the Bible, consider [...]
Thursday, November 24 Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because they had all sinned.—Rom. 5:12. The first to die was faithful Abel. Then Adam’s other offspring grew old and died. Did they inherit sin as well as death? The apostle Paul answers: “Through the disobedience of the one man many were made sinners.” Sin and [...]
The preceding chapters of Isaiah (24-33) are focused primarily upon Israel and God’s intention to chastise, correct and ultimately save his wayward people. However, in the 34th chapter of Isaiah Jehovah turns his attention to all the nations, inviting them to consider the awful judgment he has in store for them. This particular ordering of events is in keeping with the biblical precept that judgment begins [...]
The 15th and 16th chapters of Isaiah are devoted exclusively to the denunciation of Moab. Moab, along with Ammon, were the nations that descended from Abraham’s nephew, Lot – the sons born by his daughters after their mother had been turned into a pillar of salt for disobeying the angel of Jehovah.
As the Watchtower’s commentary on Isaiah points out, although closely related to the children of Abraham, having a similar language and customs, the Moabites and Hebrews were long-time enemies. The Jews, of course, were bound by the law covenant to exclusively worship Jehovah. The Moabites were not under any such covenant. Nevertheless, that did not mean they were not accountable to Jehovah.
As explained in numerous articles on this site, both the Assyrian and Babylonian military campaigns picture various aspects of the world conquest of the 8th king.
From the latter part of the 14th chapter of Isaiah through the 19th chapter, are conveyed Jehovah’s judgments against numerous nations surrounding Israel. However, it is noteworthy that Jehovah entered into judgment with his own nation first. This is in keeping with the axiom that judgment begins with the house of God.
Although the 13th and 14th chapters relate the end of the executioners, namely Babylon and Assyria, the prophecy of Isaiah is not presented chronologically. Babylon went on to overthrow many other nations before God finally disposed of it.
So, after Jerusalem and Judah were crushed by Babylon, the tempest from out of the north, as described by Jeremiah, God next called Philistia to account: “And with famine I will put your root to death, and what remains over of you will be killed. Howl, O gate! Cry out, O city! All of you must become disheartened, O Philistia! For out of the north a smoke is coming, and there is no one getting isolated from his ranks.”
The Philistines were the implacable enemies of Israel dating back to the days of the judges, most notably Samson, whose inspired final performance before the Philistine nobles brought the house down – literally! (Perhaps prefiguring the killing of the last anointed witnesses as the trigger for the destruction of the harlot)
Imagine yourself at a fine restaurant, the kind of restaurant with soft candle-light and white table cloths; served by waiters in tuxedos who cater to your every whim. Your favorite dish is on the menu and the chef prepares it to perfection. But, as you sit soaking up the atmosphere you get a whiff of a very unpleasant, nauseating stench, and as you gaze around the [...]
Along with Hosea and Micah, the prophecy of Isaiah is one of the oldest prophetic books in the Hebrew Scriptures. While the prophecy is directed to Israel and Jerusalem, woven throughout the book are judgments to come during the day of Jehovah. One example of that is the 28th chapter of Isaiah. Addressed to the “drunkards of Ephraim,” “the rulers of this people who are in [...]
