A SURE FOUNDATION
Today’s Reading: Isaiah 28-29
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
A couple of tourists enjoy the ruins that Josephus called a “most magnificent Palace.” Herod the Great built it on a promontory jutting out into the waters of Caesarea. The pool in the centre was nearly Olympic in size and was filled with fresh water. A statue once stood in the centre. Paul would have been imprisoned on the grounds of this Palace (Acts 23:35). Caesarea Maritima is a national park on the Israeli coastline, near modern Caesarea. In today’s reading God says, “Behold I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation!” (Isaiah 28:16a). Herod’s buildings have crumbled, but God is constructing a forever building!!!
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verse: Isaiah 29:18
In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
There’s bad news on the way to the good news of our key verse. Six times Isaiah declares that “intoxicating drink” and drunkenness are bad news! Like this blog, hopefully, “precept upon precept [repeated], line upon line [repeated], here a little, there a little” (28:10) will cause us to understand the message! God will then use the people who speak other languages, the Assyrians and the Babylonians, to speak to His people, because they don’t listen well! It’s almost as if they had a pastor with a serious stammer trying his best to communicate. In 28:13 the people responded to Isaiah’s words with mockery, considering them unworthy of a hearing, repetitive, and boring. This resulted in backsliding, brokenness, and being caught in the snare of their own making. They brought it on themselves! Isaiah 28:16 tells us of the foundation upon which we should build our lives. A helpful New Testament reading is 1 Peter 2:4-8.
Isaiah 29 mentions “Ariel” several times. “Ariel” means in Hebrew, “Hearth of God,” and probably refers to the altar of burning coals in the Temple at Jerusalem. The people who offered their sacrifices were going through the motions of their religion but were not repenting for their sins! Therefore, they were bringing more judgment upon themselves. But God does not give up on His people. It turns around and our key verses kick in! Hallelujah!!!
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, I pray that I will have Your grace to continue building my life on Your “sure foundation,” the measuring line (horizontal) and the plummet (vertical) being 100% governed by the position of Jesus Christ in my life, the “Precious Cornerstone!” I ask this in His Name! Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
I’ve been impressed by the repetition of “black cummin” and “cummin” in today’s reading. My daughter, Ellen Shaheen, has become an expert cook in middle-eastern foods. She tells me that “black cummin” is caraway seed, and cummin is the spice that makes much of her food so delicious. In preparation for use, the seeds are “beaten out with a stick” (28:27) in order to remove the casings and to bring out the flavour of the spices. The “beating” Judah had by the Babylonians served to bring out the best in the people of God! Never again did the Jews turn to wholesale idolatry.
Yours for building in an excellent way the “temple” in which God desires to live and in which we live! (1 Corinthians 6:19-20),
David
P.S. I asked our daughter, Ellen, for samples of “cummin” and “black cumin” which are mentioned in today’s reading. She told me that the “cumin” has been ground into a fine powder and the “black cumin” or “caraway” is beaten to remove a shell. Isaiah gives us a word picture of what the Assyrians and Babylonians will do to Israel and Judah! I know from personal experience that the end result makes certain foods taste very good! (Isaiah 28:25-27)
