God Acts
Isaiah 46:3–13
Chapter 42 begins with a reference to the servant of the Lord, a theme that occurs four times in the book of Isaiah. Based on the context, the servant of the Lord can be a reference to Israel, but it ultimately has its fulfillment in Jesus.
The True God (3–7)
The chapter begins with the continuing theme against idol and idolatry. Isaiah takes the tone of mockery against idols because of how worthless they are to save or help the people of Babylon. It calls to mind Elijah mocking the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18, when Elijah scoffs at the prophets and encourages them to yell louder to Baal because he might be asleep. Not only do the Babylonians go into exile, but the idols do as well, showing the complete folly of idols — they are made by people, put on display by people and then petitioned for help by the people, but the idols do nothing. In fact, they are less than helpful because people have to carry them around, making their existence physically burdensome.
Not only are the idols physically burdensome, but they are spiritually numbing. The idea that there are forces at work that need to be appeased is a hindrance to spiritual vitality. In fact, it is a spiritual burden. Serving Jesus on the other hand is spiritual relief. Jesus Himself says, “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
When we realize that God is not a being who needs to be appeased and when we understand God’s grace, it is spiritually refreshing, allowing us to serve God in gladness not out of a sense of obligation.
The Trustworthy One (8–11)
One of the confidences we have with God is that He is faithful to do what He says He will do. In contrast to idols which need to be “appeased” for the worshipper to get what he or she wants, God cannot be coerced. We trust God will do what is best for us because He loves us, even when we are unlovable. Many people think of Christianity as a set of rules one must follow in order to be made right with God. They think of the Bible in a negative sense. However, the fact that God has revealed Himself to us in Scripture is a wonderful blessing. Whereas the pagans had to wonder about how to “appease” the gods, often in the form of sacrifice, we know how to please God — by following His will — and the will of God is this: to believe in the one He has sent, which is Jesus (John 6:29).
The Just One (12–13)
In spite of God’s faithfulness, Isaiah has to chastise those who refuse to obey God. He reminds them that God is near to us, and He alone brings salvation.
Knowing God’s will for us should give us the desire to follow Him. However, there are times when we are far from Him or stubborn like the Israelites. We may be holding a grudge against someone, we may be unwilling to forgive, we may think of ourselves as worthless or we may be involved in not paying taxes or being greedy or selfish. When we sin, we choose to obey our own desires instead of God’s, making ourselves our own god, which is idolatry. While we sometimes think we know best or think God doesn’t really understand our predicament, we have to pray for God to forgive us of our sinful attitude and turn back to Him.
By Robert L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
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