| | | | Isaiah Chapter 15 - Dubious Circumstances (Part 1) The burden against Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste and destroyed, because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste and destroyed, he has gone up to the temple and Dibon, to the high places to weep. Moab will wail over Nebo and over Medeba; on all their heads will be baldness, and every beard cut off. In their streets they will clothe themselves with sackcloth; on the tops of their houses and in their streets everyone will wail, weeping bitterly. Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out, their voice shall be heard as far as Jahaz; therefore the armed soldiers of Moab will cry out; his life will be burdensome to him. (Isaiah 15:1-4)
Isaiah chapters 15 -16 is a declaration of judgment against the nation of Moab, a people who lived in the area of modern day Jordan.
At times, the Moabites were enemies of Israel. It was the Balak, king of Moab, who hired Balaam the prophet, hoping that he could curse Israel (Numbers 22-25). It was Eglon, king of Moab, who oppressed Israel in the days of the Judges (Judges 3:12-30).
At the same time, there was a Moabite connection with Israel. First, they were related to Israel because Lot was Abraham's nephew. Because of this, God told Israel in Deuteronomy 2:9 that when Israel went into the Promised Land, they were not to destroy Moab or settle their land.
There was also a family tie: David, Israel's greatest king, was one-quarter Moabite; His paternal grandmother Ruth was from Moab. David entrusted his father and mother to the protection of the king of Moab when he was a fugitive from Saul (1 Samuel 22:3-4). For these reasons, it seems there's a measure of sadness on Isaiah's part as he describes the coming judgment on Moab.
There are two points I'd like to draw out of this passage:
The nation of Moab was founded under dubious circumstances; When Lot and his family escaped the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, they went into hiding in the mountains near the city of Zoar. Once there, Lot's two daughters hatched a plan to prevent themselves from being childless - they got Lot drunk and slept with him. (I know, right???) Out of this incestuous act were born two sons, the fathers of the Ammonites, and the Moabites (Genesis 19:30-38).
#1 - Poor decisions can have long-lasting effects.
The plight of the Moabite people can be traced back to their origins, namely Lot and his daughters. I've always wondered about that situation with Lot and his daughters. Who in their right mind comes up with a solution like the one Lot's daughters did? "Lets get dad drunk and sleep with him…" huge "Ick Factor!"
Perhaps the reason could be that the mindset of Lot's daughters were affected by the environment they grew up in, namely Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot himself is presented to be a righteous man, but his family lived surrounded by a cesspool of sin. It's not unreasonable to deduce that the girls may have been exposed to things in the city that affected their perspective on morality. But let's not judge Lot's daughters to quickly, we should take this line of thought one more step back; Why was Lot's family living in Sodom to begin with?
Genesis 13 gives the account of how the flocks of Abraham and his nephew Lot became so large that they needed to spread out to gain more pasture land. Lot chose the plains to the east, and the bible tells us Lot:
... pitched his tent even as far as Sodom. But the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord. (Genesis 13:12-13)
For some reason Lot wanted to be close to Sodom, and years later we find him living in the city. That decision ended up costing his wife her life, the loss of some of Lot's daughters and their husbands who wouldn't leave, and the subsequent incident in the cave. I can't help but wonder what Lot's future would have looked like had he stayed out of Sodom.
Further, I can't help but wonder what the future of his descendants would have looked like, the people of Moab and Ammon, had the birth of those nations not come out of such dubious circumstances. In middle eastern culture, family lineage is a big deal "Who's your father? Ummm, I guess my grandfather is my dad... ?" How do you live that down?
It's a hard fact to face, but the sins of the father end up affecting the next generations:
"...yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations." (Exodus 34:7)
By the time of Isaiah, Moab was ripe for judgment:
We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud; of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath; but his lies shall not be so. (Isaiah 16:6)
Jeremiah 48 also prophesies the judgment of Moab, and also gives the reason why.
"Moab has been at ease from his youth; he has settled on his dregs, and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into captivity. Therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent has not changed. Therefore behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I shall send him wine-workers who will tip him over and empty his vessels and break the bottles." (Jeremiah 48:1-13)
What happened? Within three years of Isaiah's prophecy. the Assyrian army, on it's way towards Jerusalem, went through Moab and wiped them out. Only a small remnant was left, and they eventually perished.
So… it that it? Are we to conclude that if our ancestors made bad decisions, we're done for? Are we doomed to pay for our fathers sins? Is the die cast, and there's no way out?
(Cliff Hanger Alert) - Tune in tomorrow for part 2, where we'll find the answer in chapter 16!
… till then,
Pastor Clay | | | | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment