Nov. 17, 2024

Isaiah 40: Comfort Pt 2

Isaiah 40: Comfort Pt 2

We conclude our discussion about false comfort and Comfort

Spreaker Apple Podcasts Spotify PocketCasts Amazon Music Overcast Audible Castro iHeartRadio Castbox Podchaser TuneIn Deezer Pandora RadioPublic Podcast Addict RSS Feed YouTube Fountain PlayerFM Goodpods Podverse Podyssey Breaker Podurama Audacy JioSaavn
Spreaker podcast player icon Spreaker Spreaker Apple Podcasts podcast player icon Apple Podcasts Apple Podcasts Spotify podcast player icon Spotify Spotify PocketCasts podcast player icon PocketCasts PocketCasts Amazon Music podcast player icon Amazon Music Amazon Music Overcast podcast player icon Overcast Overcast Audible podcast player icon Audible Audible Castro podcast player icon Castro Castro iHeartRadio podcast player icon iHeartRadio iHeartRadio Castbox podcast player icon Castbox Castbox Podchaser podcast player icon Podchaser Podchaser TuneIn podcast player icon TuneIn TuneIn Deezer podcast player icon Deezer Deezer Pandora podcast player icon Pandora Pandora RadioPublic podcast player icon RadioPublic RadioPublic Podcast Addict podcast player icon Podcast Addict Podcast Addict RSS Feed podcast player icon RSS Feed RSS Feed YouTube podcast player icon YouTube YouTube Fountain podcast player icon Fountain Fountain PlayerFM podcast player icon PlayerFM PlayerFM Goodpods podcast player icon Goodpods Goodpods Podverse podcast player icon Podverse Podverse Podyssey podcast player icon Podyssey Podyssey Breaker podcast player icon Breaker Breaker Podurama podcast player icon Podurama Podurama Audacy podcast player icon Audacy Audacy JioSaavn podcast player icon JioSaavn JioSaavn

We conclude our discussion about false comfort and Comfort

WEBVTT

1
00:00:01.040 --> 00:00:05.000
All right, Isaiah chapter forty. I think we're finally there.

2
00:00:06.519 --> 00:00:10.679
We kind of got there last week and then we

3
00:00:10.800 --> 00:00:14.439
kind of stopped. So we're gonna hopefully get this all

4
00:00:14.480 --> 00:00:17.600
put back into kind of some kind of context and

5
00:00:17.679 --> 00:00:21.120
all hopefully we can move forward. I hope, I hope.

6
00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:24.760
I hope. I hope. I hope. The comfort discussion about

7
00:00:24.760 --> 00:00:28.879
false comfort, the discussion about the fake comfort, to me

8
00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:32.600
is the reason I had to spend so much time

9
00:00:32.679 --> 00:00:35.880
on it and the reason I'm separate from church. I'm

10
00:00:35.880 --> 00:00:40.039
doing an entire podcast series about it, is because remember,

11
00:00:40.119 --> 00:00:43.880
the whole reason we're in Isaiah forty, the whole reason

12
00:00:43.920 --> 00:00:46.079
we are there and we're gonna look at Isaiah forty

13
00:00:46.159 --> 00:00:49.079
through fifty five is because of sermon after sermon after

14
00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:52.320
sermon after sermon after sermon after sermon after sermon that

15
00:00:52.399 --> 00:00:55.079
I would listen to on anything between Isaiah forty and

16
00:00:55.119 --> 00:00:57.200
fifty five. In fact, it became a joke on the

17
00:00:57.200 --> 00:01:00.119
podcast Take a stop watch, let's see how quick we

18
00:01:00.159 --> 00:01:02.960
get inserted into the text. The very first one that

19
00:01:03.039 --> 00:01:06.040
I chose was thirty nine I think thirty eight, thirty

20
00:01:06.040 --> 00:01:09.719
seven seconds we were already inserted into the text. Others

21
00:01:09.799 --> 00:01:13.519
it was zero seconds because the title inserted us into it,

22
00:01:13.920 --> 00:01:17.200
and it's just what in the world is that? Right?

23
00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:22.640
So yeah, I mean, well it's I guess it's attempt

24
00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:24.920
to feel good, but it's just an attempt to take

25
00:01:24.959 --> 00:01:27.000
the text and make it about us when it shouldn't

26
00:01:27.040 --> 00:01:29.560
be about us. So my goal here is to try

27
00:01:29.599 --> 00:01:32.000
to go through Isaiah forty through fifty five, put it

28
00:01:32.040 --> 00:01:34.439
in its proper context, and see what we can do

29
00:01:34.560 --> 00:01:39.959
with it correctly. We've already spent multiple hours outlining everything,

30
00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:43.480
summarizing it, struck all of that, So in some ways

31
00:01:43.480 --> 00:01:45.359
I want to go back through it, but I'm not.

32
00:01:45.439 --> 00:01:47.239
We're just gonna We're just gonna jump in and see

33
00:01:47.239 --> 00:01:49.120
what we can get. So let's try to at least

34
00:01:49.159 --> 00:01:53.359
remember the basic context, all right. Isaiah thirty nine six

35
00:01:53.480 --> 00:01:58.680
through eight provides the context for Isaiah forty through fifty five.

36
00:02:00.120 --> 00:02:04.840
It explains why Judah will suffer exile in Babylon, and

37
00:02:04.920 --> 00:02:07.319
it sets up the need for comfort and hope. I

38
00:02:07.359 --> 00:02:11.360
cannot stress that enough, right, So Isaiah thirty nine explains

39
00:02:11.599 --> 00:02:16.080
who needs comfort. It's the people in Babylonian captivity. Right,

40
00:02:16.560 --> 00:02:18.639
we talked about we went from Isaiah thirty nine to

41
00:02:18.680 --> 00:02:21.000
Deuteronomy twenty eight, because God said, if they do this,

42
00:02:21.080 --> 00:02:23.280
they get blessing. If they do this, they get cursed.

43
00:02:23.360 --> 00:02:25.360
And we looked at all the things that they did wrong,

44
00:02:25.520 --> 00:02:28.159
and they did everything wrong. Therefore they get the curse.

45
00:02:28.280 --> 00:02:31.240
And now the curse is happening, right because no matter

46
00:02:31.280 --> 00:02:33.520
what Israel did, they were always going to get the

47
00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:38.000
curse because no one can keep God's law, which is

48
00:02:38.039 --> 00:02:42.960
really the bigger philological discussion here, all right, But it

49
00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:47.080
all sets up. They are suffering, they're in captivity. So

50
00:02:47.159 --> 00:02:49.159
when you go to Isaiah chapter forty, verse one, what

51
00:02:49.240 --> 00:02:54.039
do we read, comfort yee, comfort yee. It makes it

52
00:02:54.240 --> 00:02:58.719
means something, all right. Isaiah forty through fifty five offers

53
00:02:59.120 --> 00:03:04.360
the hope. It addresses Israel's brokenness and God's plan for restoration.

54
00:03:05.159 --> 00:03:10.680
This entire section reassures Israel that despite the consequences of

55
00:03:10.719 --> 00:03:18.039
their action, God will remain faithful. He will demonstrate his

56
00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:24.199
power mercy through their return from exile and through promises

57
00:03:24.240 --> 00:03:29.199
of spiritual redemption that reach beyond mere physical restoration. But

58
00:03:29.319 --> 00:03:33.199
the power, the mercy, the faithfulness, it's all directed to

59
00:03:33.360 --> 00:03:38.319
those who areware and Babylonian captivity. I cannot stress that enough,

60
00:03:39.240 --> 00:03:45.240
all right. The context of Isaiah forty is indeed connected

61
00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:49.599
to Isaiah thirty nine, where the impending Babylonian captivity is

62
00:03:49.639 --> 00:03:54.680
foretold due to Juda's persistent disobedience to the laws given

63
00:03:54.800 --> 00:03:59.919
at Siinai. This disobedience led to their experiencing the cursing

64
00:04:00.439 --> 00:04:04.639
outlined in Deuteronomy twenty eight, which warned at the consequences

65
00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:09.199
for forsaking God's commandments. All right, and we outlined that,

66
00:04:09.280 --> 00:04:11.560
and we took that all apart. Can we agree with

67
00:04:11.680 --> 00:04:16.480
that the Babylonian exile was a direct consequence of judas

68
00:04:16.600 --> 00:04:22.720
persistent disobedience to the covenant laws, resulting in the curses

69
00:04:22.759 --> 00:04:26.920
of Deuteronomy twenty eight. They failed to uphold key aspects

70
00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:31.879
of God's law, including exclusive worship of Yahweh, justice and

71
00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:37.600
compassion for others, Sabbath observance, and faithfulness to the Covenant.

72
00:04:38.879 --> 00:04:45.120
These violations led to their defeat, exile, and suffering separation

73
00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:49.560
from their homeland and symbolically, from God's presence. The curses

74
00:04:49.600 --> 00:04:52.360
they endured in Babylon reflect the warning God had given

75
00:04:52.360 --> 00:04:57.639
at Sinai, illustrating the seriousness of covenantal faithfulness and foreshadowing

76
00:04:57.639 --> 00:05:00.959
the hope of restoration that would come only when Israel

77
00:05:01.040 --> 00:05:07.360
turned back to God. That historical background leads right into

78
00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:10.800
Isaiah chapter forty verse one. All right, I thought it

79
00:05:10.839 --> 00:05:13.000
was easier to read a summary than to try to

80
00:05:13.040 --> 00:05:14.759
just walk through it, because then I would start preaching

81
00:05:14.839 --> 00:05:17.120
it again. All right, So I made myself read a

82
00:05:17.160 --> 00:05:19.920
summary because if I started to give the summary, then

83
00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:22.319
all the summary would turn into a sermon? Right? Does

84
00:05:22.360 --> 00:05:24.199
that work for everyone? That get us all set up?

85
00:05:24.759 --> 00:05:28.680
All right? So Isaiah chapter forty verse one, we begin

86
00:05:28.839 --> 00:05:34.079
with one word repeated two times, right, comfort? Comfort? Everybody

87
00:05:34.120 --> 00:05:39.560
see that comfort? Ye? Comfort, Ye, my people, saith your God. Now,

88
00:05:40.800 --> 00:05:44.000
typically what I would do here is that would probably

89
00:05:44.000 --> 00:05:48.000
provide an outline to the entire chapter, and we would,

90
00:05:48.199 --> 00:05:50.480
but I'm not going to do that. What we're gonna

91
00:05:50.480 --> 00:05:53.519
do is we're just going for this hour. Since we

92
00:05:53.560 --> 00:05:56.680
spent the entire first hour and the end of the

93
00:05:56.800 --> 00:06:01.360
last hour last week talking about this thing of com comfort. Comfort,

94
00:06:01.680 --> 00:06:04.399
that's what we're going to focus on. That word comfort.

95
00:06:05.519 --> 00:06:08.639
That's exactly what I was about to do last week

96
00:06:08.839 --> 00:06:11.759
when I asked all of you guys the question about

97
00:06:11.839 --> 00:06:15.319
should God's attributes bring us comfort? And then I started

98
00:06:15.480 --> 00:06:18.279
giving you kind of my thesis as I've talked about

99
00:06:18.279 --> 00:06:20.319
in the first hour this morning, which then I felt

100
00:06:20.399 --> 00:06:23.000
like that kind of changed the temperature in the room.

101
00:06:23.399 --> 00:06:26.720
But we got to talk about the comfort part, all right.

102
00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:30.199
So we've talked about comfort as false comfort. Now we've

103
00:06:30.199 --> 00:06:32.680
got to try to understand what is the word used here?

104
00:06:32.720 --> 00:06:37.639
Everybody ready, all right? The word comfort in this verse

105
00:06:37.759 --> 00:06:42.959
is translated from the Hebrew word does everyone remember knack'm

106
00:06:43.079 --> 00:06:53.759
Knack'm right? It's meaning usage and significant provide profound insight

107
00:06:55.079 --> 00:06:59.519
into the message of Isaiah chapter forty, verse one, and

108
00:06:59.639 --> 00:07:03.959
it's broader context in Isaiah forty through fifty five, and

109
00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:08.240
it's the way it would be understood by the original recipients.

110
00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:13.040
So in other words, this Hebrew word knockham is absolutely

111
00:07:13.199 --> 00:07:17.920
key to understanding the whole section. So that's why instead

112
00:07:17.959 --> 00:07:20.319
of coming in going okay, Because if you look at

113
00:07:20.399 --> 00:07:23.519
Isaiah chapter forty, right, look at verse one and two,

114
00:07:24.040 --> 00:07:27.959
just for a little bit of structure purposes a right,

115
00:07:28.040 --> 00:07:30.639
what is verse one and two? Verse one is comfort? Comfort?

116
00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:36.240
Verse two speak comfortable to Jerusalem, and it says some

117
00:07:36.360 --> 00:07:39.199
specific things, right. I think it mitches three or four things, right,

118
00:07:39.439 --> 00:07:44.319
and then what happens in verse three? Okay, Now, all

119
00:07:44.360 --> 00:07:46.120
of a sudden, we have a voice crying in the wilderness.

120
00:07:46.160 --> 00:07:48.160
We know that's connected in the New Testament to John

121
00:07:48.160 --> 00:07:52.199
the Baptist. What just happened? So from a structural standpoint,

122
00:07:52.360 --> 00:07:56.720
we would separate what verse one and two into its

123
00:07:56.759 --> 00:07:59.000
own section is kind of like the prelog, kind of

124
00:07:59.040 --> 00:08:02.120
like the introduction, and then verse three kind of goes.

125
00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:05.399
So we're typically I would try to look at one

126
00:08:05.439 --> 00:08:07.920
and two as a unit, but I'm just going to

127
00:08:07.959 --> 00:08:10.839
focus on comfort and then maybe next week we'll put

128
00:08:11.040 --> 00:08:13.160
one and two together as a unit. Does that make

129
00:08:13.199 --> 00:08:15.560
sense to what I'm doing? And why am I doing that?

130
00:08:15.879 --> 00:08:17.800
What have we just been the last hour talking about

131
00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:20.480
false comfort? So now we're going to talk about the

132
00:08:20.519 --> 00:08:23.959
real comfort in its real context? All right? So what

133
00:08:24.160 --> 00:08:26.720
let's start with the meaning of the Hebrew word knockham.

134
00:08:27.040 --> 00:08:30.279
All right, Let's start with the Hebrew the meaning of

135
00:08:30.319 --> 00:08:35.759
the Hebrew word all right, The primary meaning the verb

136
00:08:35.919 --> 00:08:43.559
knockham generally conveys the idea of two things. Two basic

137
00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:48.080
concepts come from this Hebrew word where he says comfort, comfort.

138
00:08:48.559 --> 00:08:52.639
What are these two things from knockham? Two basic ideas.

139
00:08:53.159 --> 00:09:01.480
Number One, comfort or console provide relief, consolation, or encouragement

140
00:09:01.759 --> 00:09:09.159
in the face of sorrow or distress. Comfort or console relief, consolation,

141
00:09:09.360 --> 00:09:12.240
encouragement in the face of sorrow or distress. Now does

142
00:09:12.279 --> 00:09:17.200
that fit the context? Does that? Yes? It does. Are

143
00:09:17.200 --> 00:09:21.240
they facing sorrow and distress? Yeah, they're in Babylonian captivity.

144
00:09:22.840 --> 00:09:26.120
Now remember the comfort These words of comfort were given

145
00:09:26.200 --> 00:09:29.039
before they went into Babylonian captivity. But it's for when

146
00:09:29.080 --> 00:09:32.000
they're facing their sorrow and distress. In some ways, it's

147
00:09:32.039 --> 00:09:34.159
telling them what's going to happen, even before it happens.

148
00:09:34.159 --> 00:09:36.159
But you get the idea, all right, So it's to

149
00:09:36.240 --> 00:09:41.480
provide relief, consolation, or encouragement. Everybody got that. What's the

150
00:09:41.519 --> 00:09:49.519
second primary meaning of kno caam? What's the second meaning

151
00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:52.879
anybody know?

152
00:09:55.720 --> 00:10:06.200
To repent, relent, or be sorry, feeling regret, sorrow, or

153
00:10:06.240 --> 00:10:11.519
a change of mind in response to circumstances.

154
00:10:11.960 --> 00:10:17.039
Oh, that's interesting, right, So what are the two meanings

155
00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:22.399
comfort or console, providing relief, consolation, encouragement in the face

156
00:10:22.440 --> 00:10:24.720
of sorrow or distress? And what else does it mean

157
00:10:25.240 --> 00:10:28.360
to repent, to relent, to be sorry, to feel regret,

158
00:10:29.279 --> 00:10:32.919
to feel sorrow, possibly a change of mind and response

159
00:10:32.960 --> 00:10:38.519
to circumstances. That's very important. All right. Now that's the

160
00:10:38.600 --> 00:10:45.240
meaning of the Hebrew word, just the basic meaning consolation, comfort, encouragement,

161
00:10:45.960 --> 00:10:48.799
or to repent, relent or be sorry. Those are the

162
00:10:48.799 --> 00:10:51.600
two basic ideas. Now, what is the kind of the

163
00:10:51.879 --> 00:10:54.360
nuance of knock cam? There's kind of a nuance here.

164
00:10:54.679 --> 00:11:00.679
The word carries a sense of an emotional and active passion,

165
00:11:01.720 --> 00:11:05.720
meaning that the one offering comfort does so with intentional

166
00:11:05.799 --> 00:11:10.519
care and resolve to address the distress of the recipient.

167
00:11:11.799 --> 00:11:15.039
In other words, this is it carries a deep sense

168
00:11:15.080 --> 00:11:18.759
of emotion, a deep sense of compassion that's meant to

169
00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:21.799
be to do something right. It's one thing to say,

170
00:11:21.879 --> 00:11:25.840
oh man, I feel really bad about the situation and

171
00:11:25.879 --> 00:11:31.879
then just do what. It's another to have such an

172
00:11:31.879 --> 00:11:36.399
emotion and such compassion that you do what you seek

173
00:11:36.480 --> 00:11:40.559
to do something. This is the idea that the one

174
00:11:40.679 --> 00:11:45.559
saying comfort comfort, there's it's it's it's demonstrating that there's

175
00:11:45.799 --> 00:11:47.679
something that's going to be done, which is what the

176
00:11:47.799 --> 00:11:50.240
entire section is about. Because God is going to do

177
00:11:50.360 --> 00:11:54.279
what He's gonna do something right, He's gonna do something.

178
00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:58.639
Does everybody see kind of that that idea. When knock

179
00:11:58.720 --> 00:12:02.480
am is used to discret God's actions, it often reflects

180
00:12:02.559 --> 00:12:08.799
his compassion or relenting and response to human suffering or repentance.

181
00:12:08.799 --> 00:12:11.039
In other words, when it describes God, it's going to

182
00:12:11.120 --> 00:12:15.759
describe action. He's going to do something, or he's going

183
00:12:15.840 --> 00:12:20.840
to relent from doing something, he's going to stop doing something. Well,

184
00:12:20.840 --> 00:12:22.840
you kind of get both right here in Isaiah forty

185
00:12:22.919 --> 00:12:29.200
verse one. Right, you get the stopping relenting part. He's

186
00:12:29.240 --> 00:12:33.960
going to stop and relent the captivity, right, and then

187
00:12:34.200 --> 00:12:37.000
he's going to do what He's going to actively work

188
00:12:37.039 --> 00:12:39.679
to get them out of it. So you've got the

189
00:12:39.759 --> 00:12:43.879
action and the relenting all in Isaiah chapter forty, verse one.

190
00:12:43.960 --> 00:12:47.759
Does that make sense? Everybody should say, amen, they're okay,

191
00:12:47.799 --> 00:12:50.360
all right, all right, I think it's I think that

192
00:12:50.399 --> 00:12:52.759
makes sense. All right. So what do we have here?

193
00:12:53.000 --> 00:12:55.679
We have the meaning of the Hebrew word, we have

194
00:12:55.759 --> 00:12:58.919
the kind of the nuance of it. All right, I

195
00:12:58.919 --> 00:13:02.759
think that makes sense. All right. How about the usage

196
00:13:03.519 --> 00:13:07.759
of knockham elsewhere in the Old Testament. Let's look at

197
00:13:07.759 --> 00:13:10.720
where this word is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.

198
00:13:11.840 --> 00:13:15.279
All right, are you ready go to Genesis thirty seven

199
00:13:15.399 --> 00:13:22.879
thirty five, Genesis thirty seven thirty five. Tell me what

200
00:13:22.919 --> 00:13:26.399
you see there? Now, we're not going to go through

201
00:13:26.399 --> 00:13:28.679
every usage of it. Okay, I don't remember how many

202
00:13:28.679 --> 00:13:32.120
times it's used. I had it written down, but I

203
00:13:32.200 --> 00:13:38.480
deleted it somehow. Okay, you see that they rose up

204
00:13:38.519 --> 00:13:42.559
to do what to comfort him? Jacob refuses to be

205
00:13:42.600 --> 00:13:46.679
comforted knock him after believing Joseph is dead, emphasizing the

206
00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:50.799
emotional depth of consolation. What does it demonstrate He's so

207
00:13:51.000 --> 00:13:56.360
emotional that he can't be comforted? He refuses to be comforted. Right,

208
00:13:56.440 --> 00:13:59.919
it's showing again its connected to the emotion. Everybody see that?

209
00:14:00.440 --> 00:14:03.039
Everybody good with that? How about Job to eleven? I

210
00:14:03.039 --> 00:14:09.039
don't have time to go expound every one of these sections. Okay,

211
00:14:11.039 --> 00:14:13.200
Job two eleven? I think we have an idea. What's

212
00:14:13.240 --> 00:14:17.039
going on here? Right? Job's going through some difficult times?

213
00:14:17.120 --> 00:14:21.399
Is he not? What happens in two eleven? His three

214
00:14:21.480 --> 00:14:29.000
friends show up. What does it say about them? There?

215
00:14:29.039 --> 00:14:32.240
We go to comfort him, notock him? All right? They

216
00:14:32.240 --> 00:14:35.919
come to this show's kind of a relational and empathetic

217
00:14:36.080 --> 00:14:40.600
aspect of the word. They're his friends and they're showing

218
00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:42.759
up to try to comfort him. Now we know, do

219
00:14:42.879 --> 00:14:45.759
they They don't really do a lot of comforting, but

220
00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:49.840
they alas showed up with a but what is this show? Action?

221
00:14:50.519 --> 00:14:53.360
They didn't just say did you hear about job man?

222
00:14:53.799 --> 00:14:58.799
That's really bad? And then left? They did what? And

223
00:14:58.879 --> 00:15:02.679
they stayed. Remember they spent what seven days without even speaking,

224
00:15:03.000 --> 00:15:06.399
and then we don't know how long those dialogue went

225
00:15:06.480 --> 00:15:09.759
on and on and on and on, but they stayed.

226
00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:13.840
So even if we don't agree with what they did, well,

227
00:15:13.840 --> 00:15:17.519
you gotta admit they did. They did something, or in

228
00:15:17.559 --> 00:15:19.759
some ways they do more than a lot of people do, right,

229
00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:21.840
So in some ways they kind of did a good thing, right.

230
00:15:22.080 --> 00:15:24.399
I mean, I know it's easy to criticize them, but

231
00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:29.240
they have actually stayed with job correct, So I guess

232
00:15:29.320 --> 00:15:30.840
in some ways you can see it as a good thing.

233
00:15:31.120 --> 00:15:33.519
There's lots of ways of looking at it. So there

234
00:15:33.600 --> 00:15:36.960
is the example of knockham being used in relation to

235
00:15:37.039 --> 00:15:40.720
comfort or to console. Those are two examples Genesis thirty

236
00:15:40.759 --> 00:15:43.639
seven thirty five in Job two eleven. Those are examples

237
00:15:43.639 --> 00:15:46.240
of it being used that way. All right, how about

238
00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:48.000
the other way that it can be used? Look at

239
00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:50.159
Genesis sixty six, I think you know what this is?

240
00:15:50.240 --> 00:15:57.799
Where this is going. Genesis sixty six. Everybody know what

241
00:15:57.840 --> 00:16:03.919
this is. Yeah, it says repented. I think the NIV

242
00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:06.480
Steven is turant turned into the NIV. I've got one

243
00:16:06.519 --> 00:16:08.320
right here, but I bet you it's going to say

244
00:16:08.320 --> 00:16:12.759
something about sorry or something along those lines. Genesis sixty

245
00:16:12.799 --> 00:16:19.320
six grieved all right, so grieved sorry, and the King

246
00:16:19.399 --> 00:16:24.679
James repented. That's Knockham that he was sorry. He relented

247
00:16:24.720 --> 00:16:28.080
that he had made or repented almost that he made

248
00:16:28.159 --> 00:16:32.600
humanity because of their wickedness, including great regret and sorrow.

249
00:16:32.840 --> 00:16:36.799
So it's kind of showing that he's almost he feels bad.

250
00:16:36.960 --> 00:16:40.039
And now again it's anthropomorphic. It's speaking of God in

251
00:16:40.120 --> 00:16:43.039
human terms, so we can understand, but it's speaking that

252
00:16:43.080 --> 00:16:46.399
God is looking, going, man, why did this happen? Like

253
00:16:46.440 --> 00:16:49.879
I almost regret this, I'm almost sorry that I did

254
00:16:49.879 --> 00:16:51.879
this because of the way this turned out. Of course

255
00:16:51.919 --> 00:16:53.480
he knew it was going to turn out that way.

256
00:16:53.919 --> 00:16:56.200
We can get into that whole discussion. Look at Exodus

257
00:16:56.200 --> 00:16:58.320
thirty two fourteen. I think you know where this is going.

258
00:17:10.559 --> 00:17:18.759
Exodus thirty two fourteen. What happens the Lord repented or

259
00:17:18.839 --> 00:17:23.720
relented from bringing disaster on his people after moses intercession,

260
00:17:23.799 --> 00:17:27.759
showing a change in course born out of compassion, God

261
00:17:28.039 --> 00:17:32.880
relents from bringing judgment. This is very applicable to Isaiah

262
00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:35.880
forty verse one, Is it not so? In many cases

263
00:17:36.359 --> 00:17:41.160
knockam reflects both sorrow and comfort, or in some cases

264
00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:46.079
it reflects sorrow, comfort, and relenting. It can really have

265
00:17:46.160 --> 00:17:52.559
three ideas, sorrow, comfort, and relenting. Everybody get that idea

266
00:17:52.839 --> 00:17:56.640
as the act of comfort often arises out of grief

267
00:17:57.119 --> 00:18:02.079
regret about a difficult situation. All right, So that's how

268
00:18:02.079 --> 00:18:05.279
it's used elsewhere. In other words, what am I demonstrating?

269
00:18:05.440 --> 00:18:08.759
It has a wide range of usages Just in those

270
00:18:09.079 --> 00:18:13.279
few passages, I mean those are very different to go

271
00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:16.200
God is sorry, or God relents to well, they showed

272
00:18:16.279 --> 00:18:18.640
up to comfort a friend. It just shows a wide

273
00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:21.599
range of usage. Does that make sense? But we're in

274
00:18:21.640 --> 00:18:25.640
what book? Isaiah? So what should we look at? Look

275
00:18:25.720 --> 00:18:31.240
at how knockam is used where in Isaiah? So knockam

276
00:18:31.279 --> 00:18:35.319
appears multiple times in Isaiah, conveying God's compassion and intent

277
00:18:35.400 --> 00:18:45.559
to restore his people. Look at Isaiah twelve one. Though

278
00:18:45.599 --> 00:18:49.680
you were angry with me, your anger turned away that

279
00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:54.160
you might comfort me knock am reflects God's shift from

280
00:18:54.319 --> 00:18:59.680
anger to comfort, emphasizing his willingness to restore after judgment.

281
00:19:00.200 --> 00:19:03.240
Everybody see that Isaiah twelve to one. Everybody got that

282
00:19:03.359 --> 00:19:06.200
kind of basic idea. So not gam can reflect what

283
00:19:07.799 --> 00:19:11.920
a move or a transition from what anger to comfort.

284
00:19:12.680 --> 00:19:19.079
Now that's important why Isaiah forty through fifty five is

285
00:19:19.119 --> 00:19:24.400
called what we talked about in the first hour. We

286
00:19:24.440 --> 00:19:26.240
talked about it last week, we talked about it the

287
00:19:26.240 --> 00:19:29.119
week before that, the Book of comfort or the Book

288
00:19:29.160 --> 00:19:32.960
of consolation. That's what is often referred to. Why because

289
00:19:33.000 --> 00:19:36.759
in Isaiah forty it's a shift, it's a change from

290
00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:42.920
what judgment to comfort? And what is the Hebrew word

291
00:19:43.000 --> 00:19:48.240
used immediately in Isaiah forty verse one, knock them? Which

292
00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:52.000
can you be used to show what? Well? In Isaiah

293
00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:56.759
twelve to one, it's reflects God's shift from anger to comfort.

294
00:19:57.039 --> 00:20:02.160
It can demonstrate a shift from judgment to comfort. That's

295
00:20:02.200 --> 00:20:07.400
exactly what's happening in Isaiah chapter forty, verse one. Everything shifts.

296
00:20:07.960 --> 00:20:11.039
That's why we separate Isaiah forty through fifty five in

297
00:20:11.079 --> 00:20:14.519
its own section because it's a major shift from one

298
00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:16.559
to thirty nine. One to thirty nine is you're a center,

299
00:20:16.599 --> 00:20:18.519
You're a center. You did this, you did this, you

300
00:20:18.519 --> 00:20:21.480
did this, you did this. Judgment judgment, judgment, judgment. And

301
00:20:21.519 --> 00:20:23.319
then all of a sudden, in chapter forty we read

302
00:20:23.920 --> 00:20:29.400
knock them knock Am, which is now the shift is

303
00:20:29.480 --> 00:20:33.279
a curry. So that word is very important to go

304
00:20:33.359 --> 00:20:37.079
to Isaiah forty nine thirteen. Now this is right there

305
00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:43.359
in that section. The Lord has comforted his people. Please

306
00:20:43.440 --> 00:20:45.920
know the Lord has almost in past tens now in

307
00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:49.279
forty nine, is it right? And we'll have compassion on

308
00:20:49.400 --> 00:20:51.359
his afflicted. Is that not how it reads? Or something

309
00:20:51.400 --> 00:20:56.440
to that effect. We'll have mercy on the afflicted. Knockam

310
00:20:56.599 --> 00:21:00.599
is tied to God's compassionate action on behalf of the suffering,

311
00:21:00.880 --> 00:21:03.640
aligning with his redemptive purposes. In other words, what this

312
00:21:03.759 --> 00:21:07.480
shows is not Gammas, tied to God doing something, not

313
00:21:07.759 --> 00:21:18.119
just feeling something, but doing something forty nine thirteen, forty

314
00:21:18.200 --> 00:21:21.559
nine thirteen. Everybody see it? Okay? I want to make

315
00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:24.079
sure I'm not confuse anybody. How about Isaiah fifty one

316
00:21:24.079 --> 00:21:32.400
to three. The Lord comforts Zion, He comforts all her

317
00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:35.720
waste places. The word expresses God's intent to restore and

318
00:21:35.759 --> 00:21:40.039
renew Jerusalem after devastation, bringing joy and flourishing. But once again,

319
00:21:40.279 --> 00:21:45.000
not chemist deal with what. It's compassion, it's mercy, it's

320
00:21:45.079 --> 00:21:49.240
to consult, but it's tied with what action. It's tied

321
00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:52.519
with and restoring. That's very key, restoring, restoring, because that's

322
00:21:52.559 --> 00:21:55.599
gonna be key here. How about Isaiah sixty six thirteen

323
00:22:04.279 --> 00:22:07.039
as one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you.

324
00:22:07.400 --> 00:22:10.960
This verse highlights the intimacy and tenderness of God's comfort,

325
00:22:11.200 --> 00:22:14.440
liking it to a mother's care for her child. This

326
00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:19.759
is showing not camus. It's intimate, it's relational, it's active.

327
00:22:21.240 --> 00:22:29.279
It demonstrates a change, demonstrates are relenting. Right, God is punished,

328
00:22:30.079 --> 00:22:34.839
but now he is comforting. Does that make sense? All right?

329
00:22:35.039 --> 00:22:39.440
That's how it choosed. Everybody see that. So what have

330
00:22:39.559 --> 00:22:41.119
we looked at? We have looked at the meaning of

331
00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:43.359
the Hebrew word. Right, we got the primary meaning, and

332
00:22:43.400 --> 00:22:45.960
we got the nuance there. Right, we got the usage

333
00:22:46.119 --> 00:22:49.079
of knockam elsewhere in the Old Testament. We saw that

334
00:22:49.200 --> 00:22:52.640
in Genesis thirty seven. Job too, we saw examples of

335
00:22:52.680 --> 00:22:55.559
it being about relenting or being sorry in Genesis sixty six.

336
00:22:55.599 --> 00:22:58.079
In Exodus thirty two fourteen. We kind of talked about

337
00:22:58.079 --> 00:23:01.440
it's almost more than a duel meaning, a triple meaning. Right.

338
00:23:01.519 --> 00:23:04.240
We kind of talked about how it's used for sorrow, comfort,

339
00:23:04.400 --> 00:23:08.640
and to relent. Right. We talked about the usage of

340
00:23:08.720 --> 00:23:11.359
Knockham and Isaiah. We looked at Isaiah twelve to one,

341
00:23:11.680 --> 00:23:14.319
Isaiah forty nine to thirteen, Isaiah fifty one to three,

342
00:23:14.599 --> 00:23:18.960
Isaiah sixty six thirteen. Now let's go to its specific

343
00:23:19.119 --> 00:23:25.440
usage where Isaiah forty verse one. All right, let's look

344
00:23:25.480 --> 00:23:28.240
at the context now, because all of that brings us

345
00:23:28.279 --> 00:23:32.440
where to Isaiah chapter forty verse one, Isaiah forty one.

346
00:23:32.640 --> 00:23:34.920
This is how one source states It opens with a

347
00:23:35.160 --> 00:23:45.240
double imperative comfort, comfort my people. This repetition emphasizes urgency

348
00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:50.319
and certainty of God's call to console his people. It

349
00:23:50.559 --> 00:23:56.400
sets the tone for the entire section, Comfort Ye, Comfort

350
00:23:56.519 --> 00:24:01.599
Ye sets the tone for the entire section, demonstrating God's

351
00:24:01.680 --> 00:24:07.960
going to act, God's going to relent, showing emotion. Does

352
00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:13.200
that make sense? Knock Am expresses God's desire to provide

353
00:24:13.279 --> 00:24:18.240
consolation and reassurance to Israel after a period of judgment.

354
00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:20.359
And where do we read of that period of judgment?

355
00:24:20.839 --> 00:24:25.279
Isaiah thirty nine six through seven. We read about that there, correct,

356
00:24:26.039 --> 00:24:30.960
all right, So there there is the context of knock

357
00:24:31.039 --> 00:24:33.440
Am and Isaiah chapter forty verse one that kind of

358
00:24:33.519 --> 00:24:38.000
gives us exactly what is going on. It's urgent, it's relational.

359
00:24:38.319 --> 00:24:41.240
It sets the tone for the entire section because it's

360
00:24:41.319 --> 00:24:46.799
expressing God's desire to provide consolation after this period of judgment.

361
00:24:47.440 --> 00:24:52.079
All right, the comfort is relational. God addresses Israel as

362
00:24:52.160 --> 00:24:57.440
what in Isaiah chapter forty verse one, my people? Everybody

363
00:24:57.519 --> 00:25:02.960
see that. It's relational, right, It reaffirms his covenantal relationship

364
00:25:03.039 --> 00:25:07.079
with them despite their unfaithfulness. You may want to circle

365
00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:12.079
my people and you want to put covenant. You can't

366
00:25:12.119 --> 00:25:15.400
take that my people and just necessarily apply that to everyone.

367
00:25:15.640 --> 00:25:20.319
Why what keeps us from saying my people in Isaiah

368
00:25:20.400 --> 00:25:23.720
forty verse one is everyone? What keeps us from doing that?

369
00:25:27.559 --> 00:25:30.200
Thirty nine keeps it because my people is identified as

370
00:25:30.200 --> 00:25:32.880
the people who were in Babylonian captivity. You can't apply

371
00:25:33.039 --> 00:25:37.480
that to the church. Does everybody understand that? That's clear?

372
00:25:37.920 --> 00:25:43.200
But it's relational based off that covenant? And what are

373
00:25:43.240 --> 00:25:46.400
we demonstrating? God is faithful even though the people have

374
00:25:46.559 --> 00:25:48.599
been unfaithful.

375
00:25:49.039 --> 00:25:49.160
Right.

376
00:25:49.720 --> 00:25:54.440
Not only that the comfort is active, so it's relational.

377
00:25:54.799 --> 00:25:58.920
Can everyone see how it's relational? My people, it's active.

378
00:25:59.200 --> 00:26:03.039
It's not merely a emotional but promises real restoration, including

379
00:26:03.119 --> 00:26:06.759
their return from exile and God's renewed presence with them.

380
00:26:07.119 --> 00:26:13.839
It's an active comfort. As we've already talked about, it

381
00:26:14.039 --> 00:26:17.160
is a divine comfort because it says comfort, ye, comfort

382
00:26:17.240 --> 00:26:27.279
ye my people, last part saith your God? Right? Everybody

383
00:26:27.359 --> 00:26:29.599
see that? So it's a divine comfort. It's not a

384
00:26:29.720 --> 00:26:33.720
human comfort. It flows from God's character as compassionate and faithful,

385
00:26:33.799 --> 00:26:41.000
grounded in his ability to deliver his people. Everybody see that.

386
00:26:42.279 --> 00:26:44.920
So in its immediate context, when we look at the

387
00:26:44.960 --> 00:26:48.799
specific usage of Isaiah of Knockam in Isaiah forty verse one,

388
00:26:49.039 --> 00:26:52.279
we see the immediate context. It's a double imperative. It

389
00:26:52.400 --> 00:26:56.400
sets the tone. We see that it is a relational comfort.

390
00:26:56.720 --> 00:27:00.680
We see that it's a divine comfort. We see it's

391
00:27:00.680 --> 00:27:03.519
an active comfort. We see all of that. Right there?

392
00:27:03.680 --> 00:27:07.000
Does that? Does everybody kind of see that? All?

393
00:27:07.079 --> 00:27:07.200
Right?

394
00:27:07.480 --> 00:27:11.680
Knock Am here reflects God's sorrow over his people suffering

395
00:27:11.759 --> 00:27:14.599
a result of their disobedience and his commitment to act

396
00:27:14.799 --> 00:27:20.119
on their behalf or to bring relief and restoration. Look

397
00:27:20.160 --> 00:27:28.640
at Isaiah forty verse two. What is it? What do

398
00:27:28.759 --> 00:27:39.160
we see in Isaiah forty verse two? Yeah, but it

399
00:27:39.599 --> 00:27:43.200
signifies what that this time of suffering has come to

400
00:27:43.880 --> 00:27:46.079
an end. I know we can break we're gonna break

401
00:27:46.119 --> 00:27:49.400
all of that down specifically, but it's basically saying it's over.

402
00:27:50.559 --> 00:27:54.759
It's over, it's come to an end. It's assuring this

403
00:27:55.039 --> 00:27:59.279
comfort is assuring the people that it's come to an end,

404
00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:02.200
the suffering, that the suffering is not the final word,

405
00:28:02.720 --> 00:28:04.480
that it's going to come to an end. There's something

406
00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:09.759
after the suffering. There's a restoration, there's something to come. Right.

407
00:28:10.400 --> 00:28:14.400
Does everybody get that? All? Right? I think that kind

408
00:28:14.440 --> 00:28:17.160
of break that kind of puts KNOCKM in its context. Now,

409
00:28:17.640 --> 00:28:20.680
let's just briefly look at how would this be significant

410
00:28:20.720 --> 00:28:22.680
to the original recipients. I don't think you really need

411
00:28:22.759 --> 00:28:24.279
my help on this, but we got to make sure

412
00:28:24.319 --> 00:28:28.240
we connect this to the original recipients. Right, The original

413
00:28:28.279 --> 00:28:34.039
recipients were Israelites in or anticipating Babylonian exile. It was

414
00:28:34.079 --> 00:28:37.799
a time of immense suffering, loss and disillusionment. Can we

415
00:28:37.839 --> 00:28:42.039
all agree with that right. That's the So the comfort

416
00:28:42.079 --> 00:28:45.759
of Isaiah forty verse one is immediate. It's God's promise

417
00:28:45.799 --> 00:28:49.000
to end their captivity. Ultimately the assurance of his continued

418
00:28:49.039 --> 00:28:52.720
covenantal faithfulness. So we see this significant to them, It

419
00:28:52.799 --> 00:28:56.519
makes perfect sense. Comfort. They need comfort. They have a

420
00:28:56.599 --> 00:29:00.200
real problem. They need real deliverance. Not only that. When

421
00:29:00.240 --> 00:29:02.920
we read in Isaiah chapter forty verse one, the phrase

422
00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:06.359
my people, it's reminding Israel that they have not been abandoned.

423
00:29:06.680 --> 00:29:10.400
God has not left them, even though they have experienced judgment.

424
00:29:10.759 --> 00:29:16.359
It reflects God's active restoration of his covenant relationship when

425
00:29:16.400 --> 00:29:18.839
he says my people, what is he saying? You are

426
00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:22.880
still my people, even though you've been suffering for seventy years.

427
00:29:23.559 --> 00:29:26.400
You are still my people. And what's the basis of

428
00:29:26.480 --> 00:29:32.799
him being their people? Covenant not their actions? Does that

429
00:29:33.039 --> 00:29:38.960
make sense all right? For the exiles, the comfort was

430
00:29:39.319 --> 00:29:44.599
deeply practical. It pointed to their eventual return from Babylon,

431
00:29:44.839 --> 00:29:47.880
the rebuilding of Jerusalem, and the renewal of their national identity.

432
00:29:48.119 --> 00:29:52.799
This was not some abstract encouragement, but a concrete promise

433
00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:57.119
tied to a historical reality. In other words, this is tangible,

434
00:29:57.400 --> 00:30:01.160
it is physical, It is material, not just like, oh, well,

435
00:30:01.920 --> 00:30:05.920
find comfort. No, it's something rooted in And why is

436
00:30:05.960 --> 00:30:08.440
that so important? Because I can't just go in instill

437
00:30:08.599 --> 00:30:14.599
that because it's tangible to their situation. Does that make sense?

438
00:30:17.880 --> 00:30:21.160
I think that can make some sense? All right? So

439
00:30:22.119 --> 00:30:25.640
what is the significance then? And understanding comfort ye or

440
00:30:25.759 --> 00:30:29.720
knock am? In Isaiah forty verse one? What is the significance? Well,

441
00:30:29.920 --> 00:30:32.000
what does it demonstrate? Well, let's just see if you

442
00:30:32.039 --> 00:30:34.119
can figure it out. What would be the significance of

443
00:30:34.200 --> 00:30:37.599
Isaiah chapter forty verse one? Comfort ye? Comfort ye? My

444
00:30:37.680 --> 00:30:40.720
people say it, you're mind? Can we agree this? That

445
00:30:40.839 --> 00:30:43.480
the first piece of significance? It shows God is the

446
00:30:43.519 --> 00:30:47.759
source of the comfort. Can we agree with that? The

447
00:30:47.880 --> 00:30:51.079
comfort of Isaiah forty verse one highlights God's unchanging nature.

448
00:30:51.400 --> 00:30:54.240
His justice leads to discipline, but his mercy brings restoration.

449
00:30:55.480 --> 00:30:59.799
It shows God is the source of comfort. Who nobody

450
00:30:59.799 --> 00:31:03.240
else is going to comfort them? Right? Why? Well? One,

451
00:31:03.720 --> 00:31:08.839
they can't get themselves out of captivity. They need something

452
00:31:08.920 --> 00:31:11.680
greater than themselves, so they have to look to God.

453
00:31:11.920 --> 00:31:16.559
God is the source of comfort. I think that's important,

454
00:31:16.640 --> 00:31:20.119
especially in its context. Agreed? All right? Next, I think

455
00:31:20.279 --> 00:31:24.079
understanding not. Gham helps see that God's comfort is rooted

456
00:31:24.160 --> 00:31:28.119
in truth. It does not ignore sin, it does not

457
00:31:28.240 --> 00:31:32.920
ignore suffering, but it addresses them with his power to

458
00:31:33.079 --> 00:31:37.839
redeem and restore. It shows a balance of judgment and mercy. Right.

459
00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:40.960
It shows a willingness to acknowledge reality. He's not denying

460
00:31:41.039 --> 00:31:45.119
the reality. He's like, hey, be comforted. No, it's like, no,

461
00:31:45.279 --> 00:31:47.680
you need comfort, and I'm going to do it in

462
00:31:47.759 --> 00:31:50.799
a very real, tangible way. There has been judgment, but

463
00:31:50.880 --> 00:31:53.400
there's going to be mercy. It does not deny reality,

464
00:31:53.720 --> 00:31:57.039
doesn't overlook sin. It's very based in reality, and it

465
00:31:57.119 --> 00:32:00.960
shows a balance between judgment and mercy. It shows that

466
00:32:01.119 --> 00:32:08.000
it is rooted in truth. It's rooted in reality. So

467
00:32:08.240 --> 00:32:10.359
Number one, it shows God's source of comfort. It shows

468
00:32:10.359 --> 00:32:13.960
a balance here. It's an invitation to trust in some ways,

469
00:32:14.079 --> 00:32:18.279
is it not? Israel was called to trust in God's

470
00:32:18.319 --> 00:32:22.799
promises during exile. Can we agree what do they have

471
00:32:22.920 --> 00:32:25.519
to trust in here? When they get these words? Where

472
00:32:25.559 --> 00:32:29.079
are they at? I mean the words come before they

473
00:32:29.160 --> 00:32:31.799
get there, but at this point, when the message is

474
00:32:31.839 --> 00:32:34.359
preached to them, they're in captivity. But they have to

475
00:32:34.440 --> 00:32:36.279
trust that God is going to bring them comfort in

476
00:32:36.359 --> 00:32:39.599
a tangible way by doing what bringing it to an end.

477
00:32:39.720 --> 00:32:43.359
They got to trust that. Can they yet see that? No,

478
00:32:43.880 --> 00:32:45.880
they have to trust it. So it does call on

479
00:32:46.039 --> 00:32:50.319
them to trust what they cannot currently see. Does that

480
00:32:50.440 --> 00:32:56.759
make sense? They have to trust in that to some level. Yeah,

481
00:32:56.839 --> 00:32:58.839
that's what I said. Yeah, it comes to be well

482
00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:03.799
one hundred I mean, Isaiah dies about one hundred years

483
00:33:03.799 --> 00:33:06.599
before it even happened, So yeah, these words are there,

484
00:33:06.799 --> 00:33:09.240
so they already know it's coming, but at first they

485
00:33:09.240 --> 00:33:10.920
probably wouldn't have known what to do with it. Now

486
00:33:11.440 --> 00:33:15.039
the words mean something when now they're in it. But

487
00:33:15.079 --> 00:33:19.160
they're gonna have to trust because they are in it, right,

488
00:33:20.920 --> 00:33:23.519
getting a word comfort, comfort, it's all coming to an end.

489
00:33:23.839 --> 00:33:26.119
You're like, well, wonderful, but you got to trust that

490
00:33:26.200 --> 00:33:29.279
it's actually going to come to an end or you're

491
00:33:29.319 --> 00:33:31.039
looking for it to happen right now, and when it

492
00:33:31.079 --> 00:33:33.480
doesn't come right now, it may cause a little bit

493
00:33:33.480 --> 00:33:36.839
of difficulty. Correct. So the Hebrew word not cam in

494
00:33:36.920 --> 00:33:40.559
Isaiah forty one captures the depth of God's compassionate response

495
00:33:40.599 --> 00:33:44.680
to his people. It signifies comfort that is both emotional,

496
00:33:45.200 --> 00:33:48.440
it is active, It is rooted in his faithfulness and

497
00:33:48.519 --> 00:33:53.680
redemptive power. The original recipients, the comfort provided assurance of restoration.

498
00:33:54.640 --> 00:33:58.400
It reaffirmed their covenant to relationship with God. And by

499
00:33:58.680 --> 00:34:02.680
understanding the full meaning of Knockam, we gain a rich

500
00:34:02.799 --> 00:34:07.079
appreciation for the profound hope and restoration promised. And Isaiah

501
00:34:07.400 --> 00:34:11.199
forty one. I think that's the case. Now, what's the

502
00:34:11.280 --> 00:34:15.639
obvious question? Now at this point, we know the comfort, right,

503
00:34:15.760 --> 00:34:18.639
we know the comfort, yes, okay, so we know how

504
00:34:18.679 --> 00:34:20.719
it applies to them. So what would be the obvious

505
00:34:20.800 --> 00:34:23.559
question we would ask? Now, as because you know we're

506
00:34:23.639 --> 00:34:27.639
Christians and we go to church, they will how does

507
00:34:27.679 --> 00:34:31.760
it apply to us? How does knockham apply to us?

508
00:34:32.400 --> 00:34:35.360
All right, Well, first and foremost, let's let's demonstrate what

509
00:34:35.519 --> 00:34:40.719
doesn't apply to us. The promises and Isaiah forty through

510
00:34:40.800 --> 00:34:46.000
fifty five, almost most of them are directly related to

511
00:34:46.079 --> 00:34:51.679
whom Israel and their covenant relationship. We can't go take

512
00:34:51.760 --> 00:34:54.679
those promises and say, well, now I'm going through this

513
00:34:54.800 --> 00:34:57.639
difficult time, but God's going to deliver me and God's

514
00:34:57.679 --> 00:35:02.159
going to restore. You can't do that, right, You can't

515
00:35:02.239 --> 00:35:05.719
do that, and Christians have a long history of doing that.

516
00:35:06.519 --> 00:35:09.840
We go to the Exodus, God delivered them from bondage.

517
00:35:09.960 --> 00:35:14.119
He's gonna deliver stop it, stop it. We cannot do that.

518
00:35:14.320 --> 00:35:18.199
So we know we can't do that, right, But how

519
00:35:18.280 --> 00:35:21.440
have we stated that there is a connection here? What

520
00:35:21.639 --> 00:35:25.360
is the spiritual connection between us in this situation? Well,

521
00:35:25.480 --> 00:35:29.800
in a similar way? Okay, these are some things we

522
00:35:29.920 --> 00:35:35.960
have in common. Was Israel sinners? Are we sinners? Were

523
00:35:36.000 --> 00:35:38.280
they living in a world where there was pain, suffering

524
00:35:38.360 --> 00:35:41.239
and death. We live in a world where there's pain,

525
00:35:41.320 --> 00:35:45.880
suffering and death. Were they giving promises? Could they see

526
00:35:45.920 --> 00:35:48.320
the fulfillment of that promise at the time they get

527
00:35:48.400 --> 00:35:48.840
the promise?

528
00:35:49.039 --> 00:35:49.079
No?

529
00:35:50.079 --> 00:35:53.599
Do we have promises? Yes? Do we have promises? Can

530
00:35:53.679 --> 00:35:56.400
we see the fulfillment of those promises right now? No?

531
00:35:56.679 --> 00:35:58.639
I can't see the fulfillment of a promise where there's

532
00:35:58.679 --> 00:36:01.039
no more pain, no more suffering, no more death, and

533
00:36:01.239 --> 00:36:03.039
everything is wonderful. And to have a new body and

534
00:36:03.079 --> 00:36:05.159
there's no more sin and everything is great. Can I

535
00:36:05.239 --> 00:36:06.639
see that in any way, shape or form.

536
00:36:06.719 --> 00:36:06.760
No.

537
00:36:07.079 --> 00:36:08.719
In fact, I may look at my life and do

538
00:36:08.840 --> 00:36:12.719
what Just like there's probably some people who were sitting

539
00:36:12.719 --> 00:36:18.880
in Babylonian captivity going, come on, this is this is trash? Okay,

540
00:36:19.239 --> 00:36:21.519
this is garbage, okay, because I don't know if you've

541
00:36:21.559 --> 00:36:24.960
realized this. We've been here thirty five years. In fact,

542
00:36:25.039 --> 00:36:27.159
a lot of the people who entered here are all dead.

543
00:36:27.440 --> 00:36:29.480
And I'm the kid of the parent who, for some

544
00:36:29.559 --> 00:36:32.440
weird reason had me born in Babylonian captivity. And I

545
00:36:32.519 --> 00:36:35.559
didn't ask to be born. My parents are trash, right, Okay,

546
00:36:35.599 --> 00:36:37.239
maybe they didn't say it exactly that way, but you

547
00:36:37.320 --> 00:36:39.280
can kind of hear that, right, I mean, if you're

548
00:36:39.280 --> 00:36:41.719
born in babylon captivity, well how did we get here? Well,

549
00:36:41.800 --> 00:36:44.239
mom and dad didn't obey God, and so now you're

550
00:36:44.280 --> 00:36:47.559
born in captivity. Well that's not fair. I mean, can

551
00:36:47.599 --> 00:36:51.400
you hear that? Complain? Right? Hey, can't imagine your kid

552
00:36:51.519 --> 00:36:55.360
eating the meal with the family and you need to

553
00:36:55.400 --> 00:36:59.079
clean your room. Well maybe you should have panged God. Okay,

554
00:36:59.119 --> 00:37:01.719
then I wouldn't have to clean my room in captivity. Right.

555
00:37:02.079 --> 00:37:04.480
You can understand why that would be the case. But

556
00:37:04.760 --> 00:37:07.719
we can relate to this. We're sinners and we live

557
00:37:07.760 --> 00:37:09.800
in a world filled with pain, suffering, and death. And

558
00:37:09.880 --> 00:37:11.920
the reason we live in this world field with pain, suffering,

559
00:37:12.000 --> 00:37:17.920
death is because of sin. Yet we read promises that

560
00:37:18.039 --> 00:37:23.320
there's going to be a deliverance. Our captivity will finally

561
00:37:23.400 --> 00:37:25.480
be truly over right, because as long as we live

562
00:37:25.519 --> 00:37:27.239
in the flesh, we're still captive to them. Even no

563
00:37:27.360 --> 00:37:29.559
Christians say we've been set free, we haven't been set

564
00:37:29.599 --> 00:37:31.679
free from the bondage of sin. Because I've been set

565
00:37:31.719 --> 00:37:33.559
free from the bondage of sin, then I would be

566
00:37:33.599 --> 00:37:35.760
able to stop sinning. And if I can't stop sinning,

567
00:37:35.920 --> 00:37:39.280
whatever's keeping me from sinning means I'm still in bondage too,

568
00:37:39.400 --> 00:37:42.079
all right, So clearly I'm still in bondage. So in

569
00:37:42.159 --> 00:37:48.239
a roundabout way, where do we live and Babylon? Do

570
00:37:48.400 --> 00:37:53.280
we have promises that are for us? Okay, we're not

571
00:37:53.400 --> 00:37:59.119
stealing their promises? And guess what those promises? What did

572
00:37:59.159 --> 00:38:01.679
we say about some of those promises that Knockham was

573
00:38:01.719 --> 00:38:08.320
pointing to that discomfort was active? Do we believe God's

574
00:38:08.400 --> 00:38:11.559
promise to us are active? We believe it will be active?

575
00:38:11.679 --> 00:38:14.039
Now for them, there was a time it wasn't active, correct,

576
00:38:15.119 --> 00:38:20.400
I mean for seventy years, right, So for us for

577
00:38:20.639 --> 00:38:22.920
seventy years, right? I remember they always say the Bible

578
00:38:22.960 --> 00:38:26.199
talks about living what's seventy and by strength seventy five? Right?

579
00:38:26.400 --> 00:38:29.599
So for about seventy years. We live in captivity. Right,

580
00:38:29.920 --> 00:38:36.960
God's promise it will be active, but not here there

581
00:38:37.239 --> 00:38:39.920
now it did do what it was active in the

582
00:38:39.960 --> 00:38:41.880
sense that God sent his son to die for me,

583
00:38:42.559 --> 00:38:44.840
but that even happened before I lived. But in my

584
00:38:45.000 --> 00:38:48.639
life doesn't mean all my pain is suffering. None of

585
00:38:48.719 --> 00:38:51.639
it may ever go away, but it will ultimately go away.

586
00:38:51.840 --> 00:38:53.599
So what do I have to do. I got to

587
00:38:53.639 --> 00:38:56.960
trust that God's promise is active and what it will do.

588
00:38:57.800 --> 00:39:01.360
It's personal because I am now declared to be a

589
00:39:03.199 --> 00:39:06.519
child of God. I'm in relationship with God, just like

590
00:39:06.679 --> 00:39:09.840
Israel is a relationship with God because I've been grafted in.

591
00:39:10.199 --> 00:39:15.719
It's a divine comfort because it comes from God. I

592
00:39:15.840 --> 00:39:20.320
can't get myself into Heaven. God has to. So it's

593
00:39:20.559 --> 00:39:24.519
very connected that sense. So I'm in captivity now. I

594
00:39:24.639 --> 00:39:28.559
have been given promises that says one day it's all

595
00:39:28.679 --> 00:39:34.119
going to come to an end. Right, one day it's

596
00:39:34.159 --> 00:39:36.400
all gonna go. I'm gonna put away this body of

597
00:39:37.880 --> 00:39:42.559
flesh and I will receive a new body that death.

598
00:39:42.639 --> 00:39:46.960
Where is thy sting? Right? Because it's all been defeated,

599
00:39:47.199 --> 00:39:51.000
but I don't see it now. They receive the words

600
00:39:51.039 --> 00:39:56.239
of comfort. But even before the captivity started, isn't that crazy?

601
00:39:56.880 --> 00:40:00.559
We received the words in a sense because way before

602
00:40:00.599 --> 00:40:03.000
we were born, right way before we were born, we

603
00:40:03.119 --> 00:40:06.000
received the words of comfort. And then we were born

604
00:40:06.039 --> 00:40:09.000
and we entered into captivity, and then we get these words,

605
00:40:09.280 --> 00:40:11.480
and then these words give us all of these promises.

606
00:40:11.639 --> 00:40:14.400
But what do we have to do? We got to

607
00:40:14.480 --> 00:40:16.239
do the same thing, Israel. Do we have to trust

608
00:40:16.360 --> 00:40:19.840
his promises in the midst of what a reality? That

609
00:40:20.000 --> 00:40:23.639
seems to say? What that there's no reason to trust it?

610
00:40:24.679 --> 00:40:27.599
Why should I trust a promise that one day that

611
00:40:27.760 --> 00:40:30.119
all this is going to happen when I can't see it?

612
00:40:30.400 --> 00:40:33.400
How would they supposed to believe it? Now? A lot

613
00:40:33.440 --> 00:40:36.559
of people will say, well, they had examples. Remember, by

614
00:40:36.599 --> 00:40:41.199
the time these people are in Babylonian captivity, they are

615
00:40:41.440 --> 00:40:45.639
generations removed from people who saw many of those great power.

616
00:40:45.960 --> 00:40:50.559
They're way removed from it. Right. In fact, many of

617
00:40:50.639 --> 00:40:53.400
them were born in captivity. All they've ever known is

618
00:40:54.679 --> 00:40:58.599
have they seen God chicana glory? No? The temple is

619
00:40:58.840 --> 00:41:02.480
in shambles. Have they seen God feeding them with manna?

620
00:41:02.719 --> 00:41:02.760
No?

621
00:41:03.519 --> 00:41:07.320
Have seen God part the Red sea? No? So they

622
00:41:07.400 --> 00:41:10.119
all they can see is reality, and reality would say

623
00:41:10.519 --> 00:41:15.679
don't trust in God's promises, just like we can feel

624
00:41:15.719 --> 00:41:19.159
the exact same thing, correct, And so what can we do?

625
00:41:19.480 --> 00:41:25.760
We have words of comfort spoken to us. What is

626
00:41:25.800 --> 00:41:28.800
a good New Testament verse about comfort? Direct that would

627
00:41:28.840 --> 00:41:30.440
be directed to us? See if you can find one?

628
00:41:33.079 --> 00:41:36.599
And the New Testament, See if you can find one.

629
00:41:38.519 --> 00:41:41.119
I think there's a verse about the God of all Comfort.

630
00:41:41.280 --> 00:41:45.400
I think that's in the New Testament. See if who

631
00:41:45.440 --> 00:41:51.719
can find it. First we find it, we can go home. Okay.

632
00:41:51.880 --> 00:41:54.039
If you don't find it, we stay here all day,

633
00:41:55.360 --> 00:41:57.280
or no, you stay here all day, I'm leaving. Okay,

634
00:41:59.039 --> 00:42:02.719
I'm gonna go home and get food. I'll see y'all

635
00:42:02.760 --> 00:42:05.280
next Sunday. You see if y'all found the verse by then, okay?

636
00:42:08.360 --> 00:42:11.159
Maybe First Corinthians. Second Corinthians is where I'm thinking, because

637
00:42:11.159 --> 00:42:14.519
that's a letter to a church that really fits a

638
00:42:14.559 --> 00:42:22.159
little bit better. Right, Second Corinthians one three? And what

639
00:42:22.239 --> 00:42:34.960
does that say? Eating Jesus the God of all comfort,

640
00:42:38.920 --> 00:42:40.760
and the Holy Spirit's called the comfort or right, there's

641
00:42:40.840 --> 00:42:43.440
lots of So there's things in the New Testament about comfort.

642
00:42:43.719 --> 00:42:47.920
So where do we look for comfort? God? Now here's

643
00:42:47.960 --> 00:42:50.079
the key. Now, I want ever to get this. We

644
00:42:50.239 --> 00:42:53.960
look to God for comfort, but that doesn't mean God

645
00:42:54.639 --> 00:42:58.599
is going to comfort us in our present captivity by

646
00:42:58.840 --> 00:43:05.199
fixing our circumstances. That's where the church messes up right.

647
00:43:07.119 --> 00:43:09.000
I can tell you God is the God of all comfort.

648
00:43:09.079 --> 00:43:11.760
Look to him for comfort. But what comfort are you?

649
00:43:11.960 --> 00:43:22.000
Guaranteed salvation in Christ Jesus, which guarantees you what no

650
00:43:22.119 --> 00:43:25.159
more pain, no more suffering, no more death, no more sin,

651
00:43:25.480 --> 00:43:30.719
no more tears? What can that? Comfort? Cannot mean? Hey,

652
00:43:31.159 --> 00:43:33.199
God is the God of all comfort. That's going to

653
00:43:33.280 --> 00:43:35.920
fix your situation. Your sickness is going to go away,

654
00:43:36.239 --> 00:43:38.039
This is going to go away, This is going to

655
00:43:38.119 --> 00:43:41.719
get better. I can't promise you any of that, but

656
00:43:41.840 --> 00:43:43.760
I can point you to the God of all comfort

657
00:43:44.119 --> 00:43:48.039
as the one who comforted us. He comforts us in

658
00:43:48.119 --> 00:43:51.320
what way? I have his word of comfort, just like

659
00:43:51.440 --> 00:43:54.519
they had a word of comfort. Now, look, I can't

660
00:43:54.559 --> 00:43:58.119
speak of you to you, but for me, if I'm

661
00:43:58.239 --> 00:44:01.760
in this situation, especially if I was born into the situation,

662
00:44:02.559 --> 00:44:04.800
I probably would have been not such a good person

663
00:44:04.880 --> 00:44:07.559
to hang around because I would have been like, what

664
00:44:08.119 --> 00:44:11.519
good is a stinking word of comfort? When the captivity

665
00:44:11.599 --> 00:44:14.400
is not being lifted up. Do something now. I don't

666
00:44:14.440 --> 00:44:16.760
care about seventy years from now, I might be dead.

667
00:44:17.800 --> 00:44:20.559
Do it now. I mean, come on, would that not

668
00:44:20.639 --> 00:44:23.119
be a reasonable I know I'm not supposed to talk

669
00:44:23.199 --> 00:44:25.079
that way, but it would be seventy years is a

670
00:44:25.159 --> 00:44:28.400
long time when the life expectancy at that time wasn't

671
00:44:28.440 --> 00:44:32.840
that long, right, but it was coming. Well, guess what,

672
00:44:33.039 --> 00:44:35.679
sometimes you know how I feel? Well, it's great God

673
00:44:35.760 --> 00:44:37.239
that you promised me I knew heaven and a new

674
00:44:37.280 --> 00:44:39.119
earth with no more pain, no more suffering, no more debt.

675
00:44:39.239 --> 00:44:41.400
But it would be great that you would do something now.

676
00:44:42.920 --> 00:44:44.760
But the problem is is I've been told that I

677
00:44:44.800 --> 00:44:47.880
should expect something now, when that's the lie, and that's

678
00:44:47.960 --> 00:44:51.760
the false comfort. The comfort that I can grab on

679
00:44:51.920 --> 00:44:58.199
to is what it's coming, and it's guaranteed, not because

680
00:44:58.239 --> 00:45:02.920
of my faithfulness, but because God's faithful. You see the parallel,

681
00:45:04.480 --> 00:45:09.000
There is a parallel. See people think whenever I argue

682
00:45:09.119 --> 00:45:12.440
for the original context that you just don't ever want

683
00:45:12.480 --> 00:45:14.360
to apply it. No, there is an application. But the

684
00:45:14.400 --> 00:45:17.360
application has to be why in a way that I

685
00:45:17.440 --> 00:45:21.280
don't do any damage to the scripture. So I can

686
00:45:21.400 --> 00:45:23.719
look to them and go, Okay, is there a parallel

687
00:45:23.800 --> 00:45:28.039
to me. I'm not inserting myself there, I'm saying, looking

688
00:45:28.079 --> 00:45:31.960
at their situation, I can see me. I'm in captivity.

689
00:45:33.880 --> 00:45:36.199
I'm in a world of pain, suffering and death. That's

690
00:45:36.360 --> 00:45:41.000
very captive to sink. So am I. Yeah, there's words

691
00:45:41.079 --> 00:45:44.000
of comfort, but those words of comforter for well seventy

692
00:45:44.119 --> 00:45:48.440
years from now, I mean obviously metaphorically speaking, right, it's

693
00:45:48.639 --> 00:45:50.840
in the future for a lot of people within seventy

694
00:45:51.039 --> 00:45:56.960
because when I die, I am delivered then from this body,

695
00:45:58.639 --> 00:46:03.880
this captivity, and then I'm truly seph free. There's the

696
00:46:03.960 --> 00:46:07.760
parallel that makes sense. And what did I not do?

697
00:46:09.000 --> 00:46:12.800
I didn't insert myself, taking their tangible promises and then

698
00:46:12.840 --> 00:46:15.800
trying to tell people in church, hey, you need comfort today, Well,

699
00:46:15.880 --> 00:46:18.880
God's there for you. God's gonna do this. God's gonna

700
00:46:18.920 --> 00:46:22.079
do that. When pastors do that, they should be sued

701
00:46:22.239 --> 00:46:27.519
into oblivion. That's malpractice. You know what I can tell

702
00:46:27.559 --> 00:46:30.360
you leave today. God is the god of all comfort.

703
00:46:30.519 --> 00:46:33.119
Find comfort in him, but don't for a second think

704
00:46:33.199 --> 00:46:35.440
that that comfort means he's going to do anything. In

705
00:46:35.639 --> 00:46:40.760
the present. Your situation may get worse and you may

706
00:46:40.840 --> 00:46:43.280
not even know what's coming. What coming may be far

707
00:46:43.360 --> 00:46:45.440
worse than anything you've ever experienced in your life. I

708
00:46:45.519 --> 00:46:53.079
hate to say that it could be. But ultimately, now,

709
00:46:53.320 --> 00:46:56.880
how do we trust that? That's called faith? And that's

710
00:46:56.960 --> 00:47:00.639
the difficulty. You know why faith is difficult because we

711
00:47:01.039 --> 00:47:05.159
believe in that which we cannot see. We believe in

712
00:47:05.239 --> 00:47:10.639
that which we have yet to experience. That's hard to

713
00:47:10.800 --> 00:47:14.599
trust because I can only trust what I can see

714
00:47:14.639 --> 00:47:17.800
and what I can experience. But by faith, that's that's

715
00:47:17.840 --> 00:47:21.239
what faith is. Faith is a complete and in some

716
00:47:21.440 --> 00:47:25.480
cases in conflict with reality. Reality says your faith is stupid,

717
00:47:27.840 --> 00:47:32.679
but we can't deny that reality. Right? Does that make

718
00:47:32.800 --> 00:47:36.119
some sense? I hope? So I hope. I hope that

719
00:47:36.320 --> 00:47:41.039
makes sense. All right, Okay, let's let's stop. Not too bad,

720
00:47:42.599 --> 00:47:45.719
twelve oh nine, not too bad. It's hard only having

721
00:47:45.760 --> 00:47:48.400
two hours now because now you said to go, oh well,

722
00:47:48.440 --> 00:47:50.360
I can do that Wednesday, or I gotta try to

723
00:47:50.400 --> 00:47:53.199
do everything and two hours on a Sunday morning, right,

724
00:47:53.519 --> 00:47:55.480
or then try to move things to the podcast. Right,

725
00:47:55.639 --> 00:47:57.199
All right, let's pray. Look, got we come before you

726
00:47:57.320 --> 00:48:03.039
this afternoon? Lord to one Hebrew word used twice in

727
00:48:03.119 --> 00:48:07.039
a text challenges us to consider what comfort is, what

728
00:48:07.199 --> 00:48:10.800
it isn't, what fake comfort is, what true comfort is.

729
00:48:11.480 --> 00:48:13.639
Try to understand the comfort that was offered to them,

730
00:48:14.199 --> 00:48:16.000
and then try to see ourselves in it. Lord, we

731
00:48:16.119 --> 00:48:19.639
may have mishandled the text, and if we did, forgive us. Lord,

732
00:48:19.679 --> 00:48:21.840
we have tried our very best to understand all of

733
00:48:21.920 --> 00:48:26.400
this in a way that hopefully brings light and understanding

734
00:48:26.960 --> 00:48:32.039
and helps with any confusion, pain and feeling disillusioned because

735
00:48:32.079 --> 00:48:34.400
of the lies that's been given to us. Help us

736
00:48:34.400 --> 00:48:37.760
see this correctly, and may we have faith to trust

737
00:48:37.840 --> 00:48:41.639
in you when everything around us sometimes says to question you.

738
00:48:41.800 --> 00:48:43.679
And we ask this in Jesus name, and God's people

739
00:48:43.679 --> 00:48:43.920
said