Rachel Workman: Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?”
I said, “Here I am. Send me.”
9 And he said, “Yes, go, and say to this people,
‘Listen carefully, but do not understand.
Watch closely, but learn nothing.’
10 Harden the hearts of these people.
Plug their ears and shut their eyes.
That way, they will not see with their eyes,
nor hear with their ears,
nor understand with their hearts
and turn to me for healing.”[b]
11 Then I said, “Lord, how long will this go on?”
And he replied,
“Until their towns are empty,
their houses are deserted,
and the whole country is a wasteland;
12 until the Lord has sent everyone away,
and the entire land of Israel lies deserted.
13 If even a tenth—a remnant—survive,
it will be invaded again and burned.
But as a terebinth or oak tree leaves a stump when it is cut down,
so Israel’s stump will be a holy seed.”
The hardening of hearts has always been hard for me. Maybe it's as simple as God knowing the heart and the outcome. God doesn't want them turning to him for healing because he knows he would. But he also know the heart is so full of evil. Or maybe it's part of the process that allows them to suffer sufficiently in order to one day come to Christ. Either way it doesn't matter. He is God and I am not.
____________________________________________________________________________________
John Burnett: And I heard the voice of
the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said,
“Here I am! Send me.” 9 And he said, “Go, and say
to this people:
“‘Keep on hearing,[a] but do not understand;
keep on seeing,[b] but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull,[c]
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.” God hardens or dulls the hearts of those who do evil. The consequences are severe not only here on earth as described below but also for eternity in hell.
11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”
And he said:
“Until cities lie waste
without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
and the land is a desolate waste,
12 and the Lord removes people far away,
and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
13 And though a tenth remain in it,
it will be burned[d] again,
like a terebinth or an oak,
whose stump remains
when it is felled.”
The holy seed[e] is its stump.
keep on seeing,[b] but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull,[c]
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.” God hardens or dulls the hearts of those who do evil. The consequences are severe not only here on earth as described below but also for eternity in hell.
11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”
And he said:
“Until cities lie waste
without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
and the land is a desolate waste,
12 and the Lord removes people far away,
and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
13 And though a tenth remain in it,
it will be burned[d] again,
like a terebinth or an oak,
whose stump remains
when it is felled.”
The holy seed[e] is its stump.
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Tomorrow’s reading for Isaiah
7:1-9
2 The news had come to the royal court of Judah: “Syria is allied with Israel[b] against us!” So the hearts of the king and his people trembled with fear, like trees shaking in a storm.
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Take your son Shear-jashub[c] and go out to meet King Ahaz. You will find him at the end of the aqueduct that feeds water into the upper pool, near the road leading to the field where cloth is washed.[d] 4 Tell him to stop worrying. Tell him he doesn’t need to fear the fierce anger of those two burned-out embers, King Rezin of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah. 5 Yes, the kings of Syria and Israel are plotting against him, saying, 6 ‘We will attack Judah and capture it for ourselves. Then we will install the son of Tabeel as Judah’s king.’ 7 But this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“This invasion will never happen;
it will never take place;
8 for Syria is no stronger than its capital, Damascus,
and Damascus is no stronger than its king, Rezin.
As for Israel, within sixty-five years
it will be crushed and completely destroyed.
9 Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria,
and Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah.
Unless your faith is firm,
I cannot make you stand firm.”
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