For centuries, countless men and women have turned to the Bible to encounter the Lord God, and to understand better the reality of life on earth and in heaven. From the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation, people have searched for God's truth, counsel, and words of comfort and strength. Each of the biblical books contained in Sacred Scripture speak to us in various ways. In particular, the prophetic books in the Old Testament echo God's word in a uniquely powerful and vivid manner. Among them, the book of the prophet Isaiah holds a preeminent position in Sacred Scripture, and in the hearts of many biblical scholars and lovers of Scripture.
The book of Isaiah the prophet begins with a third-person verse identifying the name of the book's …show more content…
It gives us a portrait of the disintegration of morality in Judah, and in the capital Jerusalem. It also places us in the context of the war in 734, when Isaiah the prophet exhorted Ahaz to trust in God, but Ahaz turned instead to the powerful Assyria to defend them against northern Israel and Damascus. Assyria did defend Judah, and defeated these two kingdoms. However, Ahaz of Judah became a vassal of Assyria, and northern Israel was divided into three Assyrian provinces. Later on in 705 BC, King Hezekiah of Judah rebelled against Assyria and obtained freedom. However, four years later, the Assyrian army attacked and destroyed all of Judah except Jerusalem—just as Isaiah prophesied in chapter 37. The people saw God's intervention in the survival of Jerusalem and rejoiced, but soon became overly confident in more ways than one.
Judah's arrogance eventually gave way to the Babylonian captivity, in which most of its citizens were deported to Babylon. This is the prophetic setting of the second section of the book of Isaiah. Boadt states that “Second Isaiah clearly refers to the capture and destruction of Jerusalem as a past event and to the present state of the people as exiles in Babylon. It praises Cyrus the Persian as a deliverer for Israel, and places major emphasis on the return home to Palestine for all exiles in
The book of Isaiah the prophet begins with a third-person verse identifying the name of the book's …show more content…
It gives us a portrait of the disintegration of morality in Judah, and in the capital Jerusalem. It also places us in the context of the war in 734, when Isaiah the prophet exhorted Ahaz to trust in God, but Ahaz turned instead to the powerful Assyria to defend them against northern Israel and Damascus. Assyria did defend Judah, and defeated these two kingdoms. However, Ahaz of Judah became a vassal of Assyria, and northern Israel was divided into three Assyrian provinces. Later on in 705 BC, King Hezekiah of Judah rebelled against Assyria and obtained freedom. However, four years later, the Assyrian army attacked and destroyed all of Judah except Jerusalem—just as Isaiah prophesied in chapter 37. The people saw God's intervention in the survival of Jerusalem and rejoiced, but soon became overly confident in more ways than one.
Judah's arrogance eventually gave way to the Babylonian captivity, in which most of its citizens were deported to Babylon. This is the prophetic setting of the second section of the book of Isaiah. Boadt states that “Second Isaiah clearly refers to the capture and destruction of Jerusalem as a past event and to the present state of the people as exiles in Babylon. It praises Cyrus the Persian as a deliverer for Israel, and places major emphasis on the return home to Palestine for all exiles in