The Lord Alone Shall Be Exalted – Isa 2
“The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, And the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, And the Lord
Isaiah 2:11alone shall be exalted in that day.”
Despite the sin of Judah and God’s impending judgment described in Isaiah 1, God still had plans to exalted Jerusalem and to make it the centre of world-wide worship (2:1-5). He promised that one day he would establish His house in Jerusalem. It would be a place where people would come to hear God’s Word taught by the Lord Himself and from which righteousness and peace would be established in the earth.
After looking forward to there restoration of the kingdom (2:1-5), we see the more imminent judgment that would com on Judah (2:6-22). The reason for the judgment is because of looking to other source for direction about the future (v.6 ‘soothsayers’), materialistic pride (v.7), and great idolatry (v.8-9). As a result, the Lord will come in ‘the day of the Lord’ and shake the earth terrible (v.19,21). He will demonstrate the glory of His majesty (v.10), and humble the pride of all people as well as their idols (v.11-18). He alone will be exalted. These promises apply to the judgment that came on Judah at the hands of Assyria and Babylon, but also the future ‘day of the Lord’ described in Revelation.
The judgment of God will be such that men will run and hide and that which once held great value (idols of silver and gold) will be cast aside to moles and bats in their haste and fear (v.20).
Some lessons we learn from this chapter are:
- God always keeps His promises (v.1-5). Even when we go through temporary discipline and chastening, God will keep His promises just like He will keep them to Israel.
- Sin is serious and cannot be overlooked by a righteous God. Isaiah says in v.9, ‘forgive them not’ because of their idolatry.
- Pride is something God will crush (v.11). The more confidence we have in our wealth, our power, our plans, ourselves, the more God will humble that confidence. He wants us to look to Him and trust Him, and to ‘cease from man’ (v.22).
- God alone is worthy of worship (v.17). Everything He did for Israel was to make His name great, and everything He does for us is to make His name great as well. He alone deserves to be exalted through our lives. Will we give Him the worship and the glory He deserves?