Page 92 - Isaiah Student Worktext

Study Section 13: Chapters 44 - 46

13.1 Connect

Do you remember reading about the Philistines capturing the ark of God and put it in the
temple of Dagon? The first morning, the idol of Dagon was fallen before the ark. The
Philistines placed it back up on the stand before the ark. The next day the idol of Dagon was
not only fallen but was broken in pieces before the ark. God was demonstrating to the
Philistines that He was superior and that the idol of their God was NOTHING.

People living in Jerusalem during Isaiah’s day were worshipping false gods and wooden idols. Isaiah
warned them that these idols would be cast down.

An idol is a substitute for God. We spend time and “worship” our things which can become idols. God’s
warning to Israel is a warning to us today to guard against making “things” our object of worship and
care.

13.2 Objectives

1. The student should be able to discuss that God ridicules idolaters and exalts His supremacy over
idols by predicting the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple by Cyrus more than a century and a
half before it happens.

2. The student should be able to discuss how God rises up Cyrus of Persia and gives him an empire so
that the Jews will rebuild Jerusalem, so that the gospel of Christ may spread to the ends of the earth.

3. The student should be able to describe how being warned about Idols that are crushing burdens that
sinners carry, to their own destruction, but that the living God carries His children from their birth to
their old age, even to their glorious salvation.

13.3 Chapter 44 - Main Idea: God ridicules idolaters and exalts His supremacy over idols by
predicting the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple by Cyrus more than a century and a
half before it happens.

This is a continuation of God’s ‘battle’ with idolatry that threatens to destroy His people.

V. 1-2 God commands the attention of ‘Jacob’ (Israel) and reminds them that He and He alone
shaped Israel from birth, as of course He did with each of us.

Israel is often referred to as Jacob because Jacob’s name was changed to Israel. ‘Jacob’ means
deceiver. Here, Israel is also referred to as ‘Jeshurun’, which means ‘Upright One’, which stands in stark
contrast to ‘deceiver’. Deuteronomy 32: 15

In the simple exercise of using both names for Israel, God is illustrating the imputed righteousness that
will come to all believers. Jacob is deceptive, but through God’s righteousness, we become the ‘upright
one’.

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