Isaiah 18
Heading into this new week, studying chapter 18 in Isaiah and another Oracle Against the Nations (OAN), it is my prayer that the energy of the resurrection of Christ be carried into your studies. May you be filled with a fervor, a fire, a passion for his Word. Although these oracles may seem pointless to your life, far removed from these nations and their judgement, it is my prayer that through careful reflection that you sense a connection to your own walk with the Lord. May you be encouraged, strengthened, and challenged as we look into God’s Word today.
This week we will be looking at the city of Cush and the oracle concerning it’s future. The land of Cush gets the name from The oldest son of Ham, son of Noah (Gen. 10:6). We can see early on in Scripture that the Israelites did not hold the highest view of the Cushites, seen in the story of Moses marrying a Cushite Aaron and Miriam did not approve (Num. 12). The Cushites settled south of Egypt, which is why if you look them up they are considered the Sudan/Ethiopia region. They are seen as tall, dark-skinned, elegant, and a warrior people. This is the tribe the warrior Nimrod is from. These people were both enemies and allies to Israel throughout their long history together. Cush is also mentioned earlier in Isaiah 11, saying that there will be a remnant of God’s people that will be collected from that land. With this information, let’s look at Isaiah 18 verse-by-verse:
Vv. 1-2 We see that Cush is sending ambassadors of peace to Israel and Israel is commanded to send messengers back quickly in response to accept.
Vv. 3-6 What is going on with this poetry? To place it in the proper historical context, we have to remember who is doing what. During the time of this writing, Assyria is the nation that is coming with God’s judgement and wiping people out. They were becoming a powerful nation. They were like a growing shoot, spreading branches all over the known world. But God is saying that before they get too large, they will be cut off. And once that happens, nations will come to fear Judah, such as Cush, though they are more powerful in human terms.
V. 7 Cush will we the power of the God of Israel and send tribute to become an ally. What event could lead to this more powerful nation becoming allies with the weaker? This would most likely be referencing the story in 2 Kings 19. In that story, God destroys the Assyrian army without a weapon, leaving 185,000 Assyrians dead at the doorstep of Judah. Such a feat is unheard of. Surely a God with that power is to be feared.
These are some concluding thoughts as we seek to understand this passage:
Fear of the Lord- When God gives such evidence of his power, as seen in this passage by the hand of his judgement, people come to notice and fear the Lord. This fear, of course, does not remove the fact that our God is a God of love. But unrighteousness does not sit well with a God of perfection; in fact sin causes us to be enemies of God. So God is often seen correcting the people of the world in the Old Testament. But what was the purpose of displays of such power? Of course he did it in reaction to the growing mountain of sin, as unrighteousness cannot go unchecked. But we also must remember that it was God’s mission that all men might come to know and believe the God of Israel. When God brought the Israelites from slavery in Egypt through the Red Sea, people came to fear the Lord (Josh. 2). And as God pours out judgement on other nations, it draws those not under that judgement to himself. Cush is one of those nations. Though they were skilled warriors and bigger that Judah, they were able to recognize that the God of Israel could beat them in any battle. Do you know your God’s strength? Do we pray in a way that recognizes his power over life and death? Do we worship him for the grace he poured out on the cross, knowing full well we deserve to be a nation under judgement?
God’s grace is for every tribe- This is one of those passages that celebrates the diversity of the creation of God. God made each person uniquely. And through years of development we have become a variety of humans. We are all different race, ethnicity, language, and tribe/nationality. But this passage reminds us that we are all equal under the fear of the Lord. We are all equal when it comes to his saving grace. The cross was not meant just for white people; likewise it was not just meant for a single nation. Christ’s blood is enough to cover all people. The Cushite people were of darker skin than the Israelite people, and yet to God they are to be celebrated because they humbled themselves before the one true God. I pray that believers all over the world take that message to heart. People are not defined by their race or heritage. Rather they are defined by whether or not they have been grafted into the family of God, brothers and sisters of all believers. And for those who are not, they are not to be hated. They ought to be loved all the more that by loving them they may come to the Lord. Our God does not want his Kingdom to represent just one part of his creation but all of it. Our lives should reflect the Kingdom in that way. Who are the people you neglect because they are not like you? Is it not time that the Gospel be heard by all?