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A call to the savage beasts: Come on the run.
    Come, devour, beast barbarians!
For Israel’s watchmen are blind, the whole lot of them.
    They have no idea what’s going on.
They’re dogs without sense enough to bark,
    lazy dogs, dreaming in the sun—
But hungry dogs, they do know how to eat,
    voracious dogs, with never enough.
And these are Israel’s shepherds!
    They know nothing, understand nothing.
They all look after themselves,
    grabbing whatever’s not nailed down.
“Come,” they say, “let’s have a party.
    Let’s go out and get drunk!”
And tomorrow, more of the same:
    “Let’s live it up!” (The Message).

Not only should these words cause Christians to pray for their leaders; they should also prompt leaders to examine themselves.

” Keep a critical eye both upon your own life and on the teaching you give, and if you continue to follow the line I have indicated you will not only save your own soul but the souls of many of your hearers as well.” (1 Tim.4:16: J.B. Phillips translation).

I remember reading an article in ‘Leadership Journal’ some years ago. It described how pastors who give and give, can succumb to a sense of ‘entitlement.’ Maybe someone has laboured and sacrificed (and suffered) in their service, and they become vulnerable to being seduced by the argument that ‘This is just for me‘: this little compromise, this bad attitude, this indulgence. Whatever it is. ‘It’s just a little something for me.’ The devil is a slick salesman and is good at marketing such lies. We can all too easily believe them – especially when at a low ebb mentally, spiritually, physically.

How we need to pray for our shepherds!

How the shepherds need to take heed unto themselves!!

Be vigilant. Don’t fall asleep at your post.

Come, all you beasts of the field,
    come and devour, all you beasts of the forest!
¹⁰ Israel’s watchmen are blind,
    they all lack knowledge;
they are all mute dogs,
    they cannot bark;
they lie around and dream,
    they love to sleep.
¹¹ They are dogs with mighty appetites;
    they never have enough.
They are shepherds who lack understanding;
    they all turn to their own way,
    they seek their own gain.
¹² ‘Come,’ each one cries, ‘let me get wine!
    Let us drink our fill of beer!
And tomorrow will be like today,
    or even far better.’

Israel’s failure to be a light to the Gentile nations was, to a large degree, a failure of spiritual leadership. They had self-indulgent, self-seeking leaders who were dopey, blind and ignorant.

We live at a time when many prominent leaders have ‘fallen’ amid moral scandal, and some have even left the faith altogether. Spiritual leaders are exposed to intense temptation, and I think there may be peculiarly ferocious temptations faced by people in large, high profile ministries. That is not to excuse any bad behaviour, but it should encourage us to pray earnestly and faithfully for our ”shepherds”.

Let’s seek to place a ‘prayer shield’ around them.

these I will bring to my holy mountain
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
    will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
    a house of prayer for all nations.’
⁸ The Sovereign Lord declares –
    he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
‘I will gather still others to them
    besides those already gathered.’

Why was Jesus so angry with the money-changers in the Temple? (Mt.21:13). In a word: misappropriation. This was going on in the court where Gentiles could come to pray. It prevented it happening. The money-changers were also scurrilous, charging exorbitant exchange rates. But I think the main issue was that the Gentiles could not pray there while it was being used for commerce.

People don’t always associate ”joy” with prayer (7b). But it is vital that we do. Yes, it is a duty (and can be hard work), but above all it is meant to be a delight. as we have the privilege of a relationship with Almighty God.

I read an article, written by a pastor, in which he said he encouraged his congregation to come to the prayer meeting by telling them: ‘We get to be with God!’

³ “Don’t let foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord say,
    ‘The Lord will never let me be part of his people.’
And don’t let the eunuchs say,
    ‘I’m a dried-up tree with no children and no future.’
⁴ For this is what the Lord says:
I will bless those eunuchs
    who keep my Sabbath days holy
and who choose to do what pleases me
    and commit their lives to me.
⁵ I will give them—within the walls of my house—
    a memorial and a name
    far greater than sons and daughters could give.
For the name I give them is an everlasting one.
    It will never disappear!

⁶ “I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord,
    who serve him and love his name,
who worship him and do not desecrate the Sabbath day of rest,
    and who hold fast to my covenant.
⁷ I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem
    and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer.
I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices,
    because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations.
⁸ For the Sovereign Lord,
    who brings back the outcasts of Israel, says:
I will bring others, too,
    besides my people Israel.” (New Living Translation).

Israel, and her leaders (9-12) failed to be a light to the Gentiles. But it was always God’s intention that ”other sheep”…”not of this sheep pen” (Jn.10:16; see verse 8b) should be drawn to the Messiah and into His Kingdom.

‘…God did not abandon the Gentiles. The ”outcast” foreigner is accepted (vv.6-8), and the eunuch is welcomed (vv.3-5; Deut.23:1). In Jesus Christ, the wall between Jews and Gentiles is broken down; and any sinner can come to the Saviour and find forgiveness and acceptance (Eph.2).’ Warren Wiersbe: ‘With the Word’, p.487.

One beautiful New Testament example of the fulfilment of this passage is seen in the story of the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40). He was both a foreigner and a eunuch. Also, it was the scroll of Isaiah he was reading when Philip the evangelist met him and led him to Christ. ‘What a harvest was to follow in the vast African continent, a harvest still being reaped today!’ Barry Webb: ‘Isaiah’, p.223.

Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say,
    “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”
And let no eunuch complain,
    “I am only a dry tree.”

⁴ For this is what the Lord says:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
    who choose what pleases me
    and hold fast to my covenant—
⁵ to them I will give within my temple and its walls
    a memorial and a name
    better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
    that will endure forever.
⁶ And foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord
    to minister to him,
to love the name of the Lord,
    and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it
    and who hold fast to my covenant—
⁷ these I will bring to my holy mountain
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.

There is often a disconnect between what God says about us, and what we say about ourselves. We may well fall short of all God has for us if we permit our own thoughts and opinions of ourselves to prevail. We’ll be looking at our lives through the wrong set of lenses. Humility is one thing. But there can be a way of thinking and speaking about ourselves that is close to an insult to God’s gracious work in our lives.

Be careful with your words.

”Make sure no outsider who now follows God
    ever has occasion to say, ‘God put me in second-class.
    I don’t really belong.’
And make sure no physically mutilated person
    is ever made to think, ‘I’m damaged goods.
    I don’t really belong.’”

^4-5 For God says:

“To the mutilated who keep my Sabbaths
    and choose what delights me
    and keep a firm grip on my covenant,
I’ll provide them an honoured place
    in my family and within my city,
    even more honoured than that of sons and daughters.
I’ll confer permanent honours on them
    that will never be revoked.

^6-8 “And as for the outsiders who now follow me,
    working for me, loving my name,
    and wanting to be my servants—
All who keep Sabbath and don’t defile it,
    holding fast to my covenant—
I’ll bring them to my holy mountain
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.
They’ll be welcome to worship the same as the ‘insiders,’
    to bring burnt offerings and sacrifices to my altar.” (From ‘The Message’).

This passage is about the coming of Gentiles into the church on an equal footing with Jews (see Eph.2:11-22). We will think a little more about this next time.

 This is what the Lord says:

‘Maintain justice
    and do what is right,
for my salvation is close at hand
    and my righteousness will soon be revealed.
² Blessed is the one who does this –
    the person who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath without desecrating it,
    and keeps their hands from doing any evil.’

I am aware that many elections are taking place around the world this year. Here in the UK we had our first televised debate of this election season, last evening (5th June), between our Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, and the leader of the opposition, Sir Keir Starmer.

Reading these two verses this morning, I am reminded of Paul’s injunction to pray for political leaders, as a matter of priority:

 ‘I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people – ² for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ³ This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, ⁴ who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave himself as a ransom for all people.’ (1 Tim.2:1-6a).

Prayer: Lord, in your mercy, please will you give us leaders who care about justice and righteousness and your truth – who live their lives before you, walking in the fear of God, recognising that they are accountable to you. Save our politicians through the redeeming work of our Lord Jesus Christ. May we continue to enjoy peace and freedom to live and preach the gospel.

(Just to put these verses into context, God’s call to His returning exiles is to practice justice and righteousness in the land to which they are returning. It is for both leaders and led. It was injustice that had brought them to ruin previously (5:7). ‘Now those who will wake on the other side of this nightmare and have the opportunity to make a fresh start are reminded that God has the same passionate commitment to justice that he always had, and that he expects them to share it…Their life together is to be a visible sign that the kingdom of God – his reign of perfect justice and righteousness – is just around the corner, breaking in and already making its presence felt.’ Barry Webb: ‘Isaiah’, pp.220,221).

This will be for the Lord’s renown,
    for an everlasting sign,
    that will endure forever.”

Although the section we looked at yesterday may be about the return from Babylon in the short term, ultimately it is about more than that. It is a pointer to the greater deliverance still to come, in and through Jesus and His death on the Cross. The ‘second exodus’ from Babylon is the mountain peak in the foreground here. But behind it there stands the mount of Calvary, although a long valley of time separates the two.

”For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” (2 Cor.1:20).

The Lord is faithful to all His promises.

It is in and through the gospel that we will see ultimate transformation, for the glory of God.

” Thorns and briers came in with sin and were the fruits of the curse, Gen 3 18. The raising of pleasant trees in the room of them signifies the removal of the curse of the law and the introduction of gospel blessings.” Matthew Henry.

‘I’m not what I want to be, and I’m not what I’m going to be. But praise God, I’m not what I was!’

You will go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
    will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
    will clap their hands.
¹³ Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
    and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the Lord’s renown,
    for an everlasting sign,
    that will endure forever.”

God’s Word is His work. What He says will happen. His Word will not return to Him ”empty” (11). His people will return from exile to their homeland. They will go joyfully, peacefully, musically. They will experience miraculous transformation. It will all be for God’s glory. Why? Because He wills and decrees it.

”They shall go out of their captivity, and be led forth towards their own land again. God will go before them as surely, though not as sensibly, as before their fathers in the pillar of cloud and fire. They shall go out, not with trembling, but with triumph, not with any regret to part with Babylon, or any fear of being fetched back, but with joy and peace. Their journey home over the mountains shall be pleasant, and they shall have the good-will and good wishes of all the countries they pass through. The hills and their inhabitants shall, as in a transport of joy, break forth into singing; and, if the people should altogether hold their peace, even the trees of the field would attend them with their applauses and acclamations. And, when they come to their own land, it shall be ready to bid them welcome; for, whereas they expected to find it all overgrown with briers and thorns, it shall be set with fir-trees and myrtle-trees: for, though it lay desolate, yet it enjoyed its sabbaths (Lev 26 34), which, when they were over, like the land after the sabbatical year, it was the better for. And this shall redound much to the honour of God and be to him for a name.” Matthew Henry.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
⁹ “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.
¹⁰ As the rain and the snow
    come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
    without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
    so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
¹¹ so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
    It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire

This passage is often quoted by preachers (or about preaching). It is, understandably, a great encouragement, and a promise to cling to. It also applies to any sincere and faithful use of God’s Word as we seek to share it with people both inside and outside the church.

As I write these words, a soft, gentle rain is falling, and I can sense that it is refreshing the plants in our garden, and also the fields and hills around us. It is doing something. It’s having an effect.

‘Like the rain and snow that seem to be wasted, God’s Word accomplishes His will on the earth.’ Warren Wiersbe: ‘With the Word’, p.486.

Because God’s ”thoughts” (and ”ways”) are ”higher” than ours, His Word needs to ”come down from heaven” to us, as ”the rain and the snow” do. Here on earth, and in our hearts, His Word works.

”One way or other, it will take effect.” Matthew Henry