Whom have you taunted and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel! Whom have you taunted and blasphemed?This phrase addresses the arrogance of the Assyrian king, Sennacherib, who mocked the God of Israel. In the ancient Near Eastern context, taunting a deity was considered a grave offense, as gods were believed to hold power over nations. The Assyrians, known for their military prowess and conquests, often attributed their success to their own gods, dismissing the power of the God of Israel. This rhetorical question highlights the folly of underestimating the God of Israel, who is not like the powerless idols of other nations. The act of blasphemy here is not just verbal but represents a deeper spiritual rebellion against God's authority. Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride?
Raising one's voice and lifting one's eyes in pride signifies an attitude of defiance and arrogance. In biblical literature, pride is often condemned as it leads to downfall (Proverbs 16:18). The Assyrian king's pride is reminiscent of other biblical figures who exalted themselves against God, such as Pharaoh in Exodus. This prideful stance is a direct challenge to God's sovereignty and serves as a warning against human hubris. The cultural context of the time placed great emphasis on honor and shame, and Sennacherib's actions were seen as an attempt to shame the God of Israel. Against the Holy One of Israel!
The title "Holy One of Israel" emphasizes God's unique and set-apart nature. It is a recurring title in the book of Isaiah, underscoring God's purity, righteousness, and covenant relationship with Israel. This phrase serves as a reminder of God's faithfulness to His people despite their unfaithfulness. Theologically, it points to God's transcendence and immanence—He is both above all creation and intimately involved with His chosen people. This title also foreshadows the coming of Jesus Christ, who is the ultimate fulfillment of God's holiness and the embodiment of His covenant promises. The confrontation with Assyria is not merely a political or military conflict but a spiritual one, where God's holiness is defended against human arrogance. Persons / Places / Events 1. The Assyrian King (Sennacherib)The Assyrian king who taunted and blasphemed against God, believing in his own power and might over the God of Israel. 2. HezekiahThe King of Judah during this time, who sought the Lord's help against the Assyrian threat. 3. Isaiah the ProphetThe prophet who conveyed God's message to Hezekiah and the people of Judah, assuring them of God's deliverance. 4. JerusalemThe city under siege by the Assyrian army, representing God's chosen people and His dwelling place. 5. The Holy One of IsraelA title for God, emphasizing His holiness and unique relationship with Israel. Teaching Points Reverence for GodWe must approach God with reverence and humility, recognizing His holiness and sovereignty over all creation. Pride Leads to DownfallThe Assyrian king's pride and blasphemy against God serve as a warning that pride precedes destruction. God's FaithfulnessGod is faithful to protect and deliver His people when they call upon Him, as demonstrated in His response to Hezekiah's prayer. The Power of PrayerHezekiah's reliance on prayer in the face of overwhelming odds is a powerful example of trusting God in difficult circumstances. God's Sovereignty Over NationsThe events in Isaiah 37 remind us that God is sovereign over all nations and rulers, and His plans will prevail. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the Assyrian king's attitude towards God reflect common attitudes in today's world, and how can we guard against similar pride in our own lives? 2. In what ways does Hezekiah's response to the Assyrian threat serve as a model for us when facing our own challenges? 3. How does the title "Holy One of Israel" deepen our understanding of God's character and His relationship with His people? 4. What are some practical ways we can demonstrate reverence for God in our daily lives? 5. How can the account of God's deliverance in Isaiah 37 encourage us to trust in God's sovereignty and faithfulness in our current circumstances? Connections to Other Scriptures 2 Kings 19This chapter parallels Isaiah 37, providing a historical account of the same events, emphasizing God's deliverance of Jerusalem. Psalm 46This psalm speaks of God as a refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble, which aligns with God's protection over Jerusalem. Exodus 15:11This verse highlights God's holiness and might, similar to the title "Holy One of Israel" used in Isaiah 37:23. Isaiah 6:3The seraphim proclaim God's holiness, reinforcing the reverence due to the "Holy One of Israel." People Adrammelech, Amoz, Assyrians, David, Eliakim, Esarhaddon, Haran, Hezekiah, Isaiah, Rabshakeh, Sennacherib, Sharezer, Shebna, TirhakahPlaces Ararat, Arpad, Assyria, Cush, Egypt, Gozan, Hamath, Haran, Hena, Ivvah, Jerusalem, Lachish, Lebanon, Libnah, Mount Zion, Nineveh, Rezeph, Sepharvaim, Telassar, Tigris-Euphrates Region, ZionTopics Bitter, Blasphemed, Defied, Evil, Exalted, Hast, Haughtily, Holy, Lift, Lifted, Loud, Mocked, Pride, Raised, Reproached, Reviled, Taunted, Voice, YeaDictionary of Bible Themes Isaiah 37:23 1205 God, titles of
5196 voice
8807 profanity Isaiah 37:21-24 5893 insults Isaiah 37:21-29 5776 achievement Isaiah 37:21-38 5800 blasphemy Isaiah 37:22-23 7271 Zion, as symbol
8816 ridicule, nature of Isaiah 37:22-25 8672 striving with God Isaiah 37:22-29 8782 mockery Isaiah 37:23-25 4448 forests Library Where to Carry Troubles
And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord.'--ISAIAH xxxvii. 14. When Hezekiah heard the threatenings of Sennacherib's servants, he rent his clothes and went into the house of the Lord, and sent to Isaiah entreating his prayers. When he received the menacing letter, his faith was greater, having been heartened by Isaiah's assurances. So he then himself appealed to Jehovah, spreading …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Triumph of Faith
'And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. 15. And Hezekiah prayed unto the Lord, saying, 16. O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: Thou hast made heaven and earth. 17. Incline Thine ear, O Lord, and hear; open Thine eyes, O Lord, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The First Trumpet.
The first trumpet of the seventh seal begins from the final disturbance and overthrow of the Roman idolarchy at the close of the sixth seal; and as it was to bring the first plague on the empire, now beginning to fall, it lays waste the third part of the earth, with a horrible storm of hail mingled with fire and blood; that is, it depopulates the territory and people of the Roman world, (viz. the basis and ground of its universal polity) with a terrible and bloody irruption of the northern nations, …
Joseph Mede—A Key to the Apocalypse The Power of Assyria at Its Zenith; Esarhaddon and Assur-Bani-Pal
The Medes and Cimmerians: Lydia--The conquest of Egypt, of Arabia, and of Elam. As we have already seen, Sennacherib reigned for eight years after his triumph; eight years of tranquillity at home, and of peace with all his neighbours abroad. If we examine the contemporary monuments or the documents of a later period, and attempt to glean from them some details concerning the close of his career, we find that there is a complete absence of any record of national movement on the part of either Elam, …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8 The Golden Eagle is Cut to Pieces. Herod's Barbarity when He was Ready to Die. He Attempts to Kill Himself. He Commands Antipater to be Slain.
1. Now Herod's distemper became more and more severe to him, and this because these his disorders fell upon him in his old age, and when he was in a melancholy condition; for he was already seventy years of age, and had been brought by the calamities that happened to him about his children, whereby he had no pleasure in life, even when he was in health; the grief also that Antipater was still alive aggravated his disease, whom he resolved to put to death now not at random, but as soon as he should …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem Christ Rightly and Properly Said to have Merited Grace and Salvation for Us.
1. Christ not only the minister, but also the author and prince of salvation. Divine grace not obscured by this mode of expression. The merit of Christ not opposed to the mercy of God, but depends upon it. 2. The compatibility of the two proved by various passages of Scripture. 3. Christ by his obedience truly merited divine grace for us. 4. This grace obtained by the shedding of Christ's blood, and his obedience even unto death. 5. In this way he paid our ransom. 6. The presumptuous manner in which …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion The Harbinger
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD , make straight in the desert a high-way for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. T he general style of the prophecies is poetical. The inimitable simplicity which characterizes every …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1 A Discourse of the House and Forest of Lebanon
OF THE HOUSE OF THE FOREST OF LEBANON. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. That part of Palestine in which the celebrated mountains of Lebanon are situated, is the border country adjoining Syria, having Sidon for its seaport, and Land, nearly adjoining the city of Damascus, on the north. This metropolitan city of Syria, and capital of the kingdom of Damascus, was strongly fortified; and during the border conflicts it served as a cover to the Assyrian army. Bunyan, with great reason, supposes that, to keep …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 The Holy City; Or, the New Jerusalem:
WHEREIN ITS GOODLY LIGHT, WALLS, GATES, ANGELS, AND THE MANNER OF THEIR STANDING, ARE EXPOUNDED: ALSO HER LENGTH AND BREADTH, TOGETHER WITH THE GOLDEN MEASURING-REED EXPLAINED: AND THE GLORY OF ALL UNFOLDED. AS ALSO THE NUMEROUSNESS OF ITS INHABITANTS; AND WHAT THE TREE AND WATER OF LIFE ARE, BY WHICH THEY ARE SUSTAINED. 'Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God.'-Psalm 87:3 'And the name of the city from that day shall be, THE LORD IS THERE.'-Ezekiel 48:35 London: Printed in the year 1665 …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 The Prophet Amos.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. It will not be necessary to extend our preliminary remarks on the prophet Amos, since on the main point--viz., the circumstances under which he appeared as a prophet--the introduction to the prophecies of Hosea may be regarded as having been written for those of Amos also. For, according to the inscription, they belong to the same period at which Hosea's prophetic ministry began, viz., the latter part of the reign of Jeroboam II., and after Uzziah had ascended the …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Concerning the Lord's Supper
There are two passages which treat in the clearest manner of this subject, and at which we shall look,--the statements in the Gospels respecting the Lord's Supper, and the words of Paul. (1 Cor. xi.) Matthew, Mark, and Luke agree that Christ gave the whole sacrament to all His disciples; and that Paul taught both parts of it is so certain, that no one has yet been shameless enough to assert the contrary. Add to this, that according to the relation of Matthew, Christ did not say concerning the bread, …
Martin Luther—First Principles of the Reformation Divine Support and Protection
[What shall we say then to these things?] If God be for us, who can be against us? T he passions of joy or grief, of admiration or gratitude, are moderate when we are able to find words which fully describe their emotions. When they rise very high, language is too faint to express them; and the person is either lost in silence, or feels something which, after his most laboured efforts, is too big for utterance. We may often observe the Apostle Paul under this difficulty, when attempting to excite …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2 Isaiah
CHAPTERS I-XXXIX Isaiah is the most regal of the prophets. His words and thoughts are those of a man whose eyes had seen the King, vi. 5. The times in which he lived were big with political problems, which he met as a statesman who saw the large meaning of events, and as a prophet who read a divine purpose in history. Unlike his younger contemporary Micah, he was, in all probability, an aristocrat; and during his long ministry (740-701 B.C., possibly, but not probably later) he bore testimony, as …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Isaiah 37:23 NIVIsaiah 37:23 NLTIsaiah 37:23 ESVIsaiah 37:23 NASBIsaiah 37:23 KJV
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