Original Documents

Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.

Who is Jacob? It used to be Israel, now it is the Christians, or once Christian nations, who had for centuries a knowledge of God by His Word, yet cast it aside. God says, its time for them to wake up, so they will know, that, to continue in sin, will destroy them.

Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.

While these nations continue to go to church, at least some, it does no good! Why? Their worship, is it according to God's Word? Have they checked lately?

Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

The people are so full of self righteousness, so convinced to engage in acceptable service, that they are completely oblivious of their great sinning for they do not read the Word of God as they should.

Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.

How did this happen among the spiritual leaders of Israel? Isaiah was active between 740 to 690. This covered the reign of Ahaz/Jehoahaz (735-715) and Hezekiah (715-686). We are in the time after the fall of Samaria (722 BC) and the dispersion of the Ten Tribes. Israel consisted now largely of the two tribes Judah and Benjamin. There was no shortage of wicked kings in the days and years ahead leading up to the Babylonian captivity.

Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?

It appears this fasting and outward show of religiosity was motivated by jockeying for higher positions particularly in Jerusalem. When the dry season set in, the bulrushes in the wetlands started to dry up. It is a picture of making worship of the Lord to appear full of straining and deprivation of the natural joys of life. This method was used again over a millennium later to achieve the transition from Sabbath to Sunday worship.

Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

Fasting was designed to give a person time to search his motivations to seek help of the Lord (Bible reading) in order to overcome besetting sins. Daily food gathering and preparations were in those days very time consuming. People needed a rest to take care of their spiritual needs. Wealthier families used bonded servants to accomplish these tasks.

Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

The Lord has charged His people with the responsibility to look after the poor and needy. He says, that nations need to know that God will judge them according to what they have done or neglected to do for Him in the person of the poor and suffering! Let the needy respond with gladness.

Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.

Since nations are made up of individual people, it is the responsibility of each to carry this benevolence out for those in need. When that happens there will be gladness among all people since righteousness - doing right - results in great blessings and rewards.

Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

People can serve only one master, wear only one yoke. Once the yoke of misery in servitude is removed and people are treated with respect and not pointed to with accusations every day and verbally maligned, then the Lord can bless the household, the communities and the nation.

And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:

Among all people on earth, Israel should have known, that, to have poor citizens, servants and slaves, was what their life was like in Egypt. They should not be harsh taskmasters. They should be benevolent conveyors of gladness, because they know the Lord, who leads out of such terrible situations so all can rejoice.

And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

True worship of the Lord will lead people in the path of equity and justice for all. With it comes food for the soul and body. Life becomes more cheerful and voices of discontent are not heard as long as man seeks the Lord and not self.

And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.

Old injustices and false beliefs must be corrected. False interpretations and doctrines must be abandoned. All people must work together on this, not only the leaders. Like it took time for deplorable conditions to develop, so it takes time to come out of it. The repairs must begin right away.

If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

The success of nations depends on serving the only true Creator God of all, and not depend on our own wisdom. The whole universe functions on laws, those ordained by God. Man ought not to deviate from any instruction any time. When His Law says to worship Him on the 7th day Sabbath, then Friday or Sunday exaltation represents false doctrines and must cease.

Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

The working together of all created beings in the universe is based on keeping God's Law. His realm is like a finely tuned engine. One loose bolt or one particle of grit, can cause great damage. But diligently following His instructions will keep all engines run forever.

Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

God knows all our needs better than we do. We do not realize how important it is to stay connected with God in prayer, so many don't. If we do, His graces and His power can uphold us all in the face of Satanic attempts to destroy us.

But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

We are living in a universe directed by God. This Almighty God, however, has become invisible to our eyes because of sin. Satan, the causer of sin, was once an exalted angel. His rebellion shut him out of Heaven, but it did not destroy his powers. It made him into a beast. Since his fall he has turned his great strength against God and man. He is coniving and artful in leading into sin. God, on the other hand, is always ready to uplift and help stem the tide of evil. If only we could see what goes on behind the veil of invisibility to our eyes, then we would see God working for His people.

For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

Man, like all beings, has moral freedom. Unfortunately man tends to evil instead of good. Many pile up great crimes on their conscience. They despise the good and indulge in all sorts of despicable behavior. They put themselves under the influence of the demonic power of Satan and shut off all connections with God. But Christ died for all, seek the Hope of the Ages and begin a new life in Christ.

None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

Lying was the first crime used by Satan to infect man. His first lie was to make man believe against the Word of God, that he "... would not surely die." That one falsehood became the wellspring for Satanic mastery over the human race. The lie that man has an immortal soul was crowned with success and terrible results followed. As a result Satan has captivated many into receiving this lie as if it was true. Why do so many ministers preach it, sing it, and pray it ever since?

They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.

Being under the influence is like raising poisonous snakes where there should be healthy children. Not rejecting Satan's devices, guarantees getting caught in his devious traps making a happy life impossible. While man looks only at instant gratification, he forgets how then his life will end with no hope.

Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.

All living today have an opportunity to see the results of greed and avarice among those of means who gathered it by lies and deceit. While some may seem to prosper, their end will be eternal death unless they repent. Greedy fingers stretch out to grasp everything in sight. Self is king. The world has become a den of thieves and violators of all descriptions. That, because those who should know God, have separated themselves from God by preaching the lies of Satan - so God could not bless them. Seeing with unaided human eyes, no power in obeying God, man turned to Satan.

Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.

Many do not realize or don't want to believe that God knows all our thoughts and deeds; He knows everything about everybody. But God loves for sinners to come and accept Him as their Maker and Redeemer. Sadly too many decide to make Satan their god.

The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

What is not of God is of the devil. We follow either God or the devil, there are no in betweens. Those who turn away from God, sentence themselves to eternal death unless they repent.

Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.

Mankind must know that we are not alone in the universe; that those worlds are not inhabited by fantasy creatures. Earth is the only world where sin exists. There is no other fallen planet. Live so you can meet your soon coming Maker.

We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.

Deniers of God are like blind man. They have no understanding on matters of the most importance. They hope there is no judgment day - but there is. They walk like dead man when they could be alive and be in favor with God.

We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.

Because God is a spirit and the devil is a spirit, man assumes because he can't see, God does not exist. But we also cannot see wind, but we know it exists. We also cannot see electricity, but we know it's there. So man and woman of the nations of the world, be wise and return to God.

For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;

It is a fatal error not to seek God for the forgiveness of sins. It is wickedness in man who laughs about those who pray and sing praises to God for the natural, unconverted man cannot understand it. His eyes are closed to spiritual things, he cannot fathom such realities. He is bound to his life in this world only. When it is over he has no hope. He chose to believe error.

In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

The record of those who live wickedly is long. But the ministers of God, those who claim they know God but teach falsehoods about Him, have led many into such paths. They know the law of God but disregard it every day. They may preach to thousands and show of spectacular displays and glitter. They know this attracts listeners who desire easy chair religion. Their lot is with the wicked.

And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.

Police and law enforcement is stunned by the wickedness among man. Daily they see the grossest atrocities and brutalities committed by law breakers. We cry, God, when will it be over? It will be soon now, but God's patience is enduring waiting for you and me to fully surrender to Him with all we value and possess, most of all our perfect devotion.

Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.

Many ministers of God mishandle their responsibilities and disobey God's law routinely. There is no judgment, no clarity of thinking, no knowledge of man's dependence on rain and sunshine, summer and winter, food and health, joy and strength in sadness. While these blessings reach believers as well as the wicked, they take courage and say there is no God. But if there were no God, this planet would be a desert long ago. Believe in God and you shall be saved.

Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins.

Just the same as people creep through the white lines on red and yellow lights, just as much and even less regard do they have for God's law. Just as much as they think its ok to do so when the law is not watching, so they think God does not see them commit their sins. They are sadly mistaken. Their sins will follow them all the days of their life and cause their destruction unless they repent, confess and come back to a sane life.

Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.

There is a point of no return. Continual rejection of the pleading voice of our conscience will drive away the Spirit of God and He at last will not return anymore. Therefore, always listen to the still, small voice and do its promptings for good. Never listen to those who advise evil.

When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. [Based on Isaiah 58:1-14; 59:1-15; Jeremiah 14:10-12.]

Those religious people who have a form thereof are under the power of Satan. They must be distinguished from those who are under the power of God in truth. Their works will tell them apart and their regard for the law of God. Do they keep all Ten of the Commandments of God as we find them in Exodus chapter 20? If not, they are not under the power of God, but Satan. So listen and see; soon you will know.

Bible Topics Main Menu Submenu