Today's Video Devotion

Wednesday 3/27/24

A Desire to Obey God

📺️ Isaiah 4 🔊

¹And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

 ²In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.

 ³And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:

 ⁴When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

 ⁵And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.

 ⁶And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the day time from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

Written By: God through Inspiration

Penned By: Isaiah

Date Penned: (700-681 BC)

Overview: To Tell of God's Salvation through the Messiah (c 1-66)

Theme: Words of Judgment (c 1-39)

Message: God's Holy People will be Cleansed (v 1-6)

Isaiah 4 Commentary 

(4:2-4) The Branch - The "branch of the LORD" probably refers to the Messiah, although some believe it refers to Judah. The point is that during the distress predicted by Isaiah, some people will be protected by God's loving grace. Those protected will be set apart to serve God when the Messiah rules the earth (Jeremiah 23:5-6; Zechariah 6:12-13). Their distinctive mark will be their holiness, not wealth or prestige. This holiness comes from their sincere desire to obey God's moral standards and from their wholehearted devotion to him. Evil will not always continue as it does now. The time will come when God will put an end to all evil, and his faithful followers will share in his glorious reign. 

(4:5-6) Shelter - Following the vivid warning of the coming judgment of the Exile on the people of Judah, Isaiah reminds them that ultimately the Lord provides shelter for his people. The images Isaiah uses in these verses recall the Lord's protection of the Israelites during the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 13:21-22; 14:21-22). Just as there is judgment for sin, restoration by God's hand will also come. We can have hope in the final judgment to come that God will be the hiding place of protection for those who remain faithful to him.

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today, we continue in the Book of Isaiah with Chapter 4. In our text today, we see that amid tribulation predicted by Isaiah, God will protect those who have the mark of Holiness. This Holiness comes from a sincere desire to obey God and a wholehearted devotion to Him. How about you? Do you exhibit Holiness? Let us learn from our text today and Isaiah's instruction to be Holy with our sincere desire to obey and be devoted to Him, allowing us to experience God's protection through persecution.