Week 5 - Isaiah 1-6 & John 4 (Jan. 29 - Feb. 4)
The Book of Isaiah
Date of Authorship: 740-690 BC. Isaiah is writing during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah as mentioned in 1:1 (see picture below).
Author: Isaiah is the author of this book. Tradition maintains that Amoz (Isaiah's father) was a brother of Amaziah, the son of Joash king of Judah (2nd Kings 14:1). This would make Isaiah a close relative to those who were kings during his lifetime, and would explain his close association with the kings and priests. Tradition (Jewish rabbinical writings) also records that Isaiah was killed by Manasseh (the son of Hezekiah) who had him sawed in half. This tradition is likely the source for the words "They were sawed in two" in Hebrews 11:37. There are some* good reasons to consider Isaiah to be the author of only chapters 1-39 of this book, while chapters 40-66 belong to the Babylonian period two centuries later. We'll talk more about that in two weeks.
Purpose: Isaiah is a prophetic message of judgment, coming punishment, deliverance, and restoration. more on this in the coming weeks.
Notes
Historical setting of Isaiah
Isaiah prophesies during the time of the divided kingdom when the line of David rules the southern kingdom of Judah, and the house of Jehu rules the northern kingdom of Israel. during Isaiah's ministry, Israel reached the height of its power according to secular standards under the rule of Jeroboam II. However, before Isaiah's ministry ends Israel will have been entirely destroyed by the Neo Assyrian empire.
Isaiah's ministry begins in the year that Uzziah died (739 BC), and this is a critically important moment in history. The first of the great empires of the ancient near east is rising in Ashur in Mesopotamia - Assyria. The Assyrian empire's first major westward campaign began in 740 BC and was led by their king Tiglath Pileser III. Isaiah's prophecy was to a people who would have known and felt this pressure from the east, and his prophecy is filled with depictions of approaching doom from this force.
Understanding the presence and power of the Assyrian empire is important for understanding what Isaiah is telling Judah:
“The Neo-Assyrian empire was inaugurated soon after Tiglath-Pileser III's accession to the throne in 745 BC. It was not to be overthrown until 612 when Nineveh fell to the alliance of the Medes and Babylonians. The Assyrian kings Tiglath-Pileser III, Shalmaneser V, Sargon II, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, and Ashurbanipal, are known from the biblical text as well as from many documents recovered from the period. The empire expanded in all four directions; absorbing Uratu to the north, the Medes to the east, Babylonia and Elam to the south, and Syro-Palestine to the west. At its height it included all or part of the modern countries of Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Egypt. Assyria's reputation as a militaristic regime is supported by extensive documentation and stands as its historical legacy. Its strategy of psychological warfare included terrifying rhetoric, brutal destructions, and carefully chosen examples of cruel torture. Its expansion was fueled by the potential for economic gain, which would come through the plunder, tribute, and tariffs that would result from control of trade and the trade routes.
(The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament, Walton, Matthews, & Chavalas)
Isaiah 1:3a: A Verse Worth Noting
If you're in a hurry to read Isaiah because it’s Saturday and you don't want to be ashamed at Sunday school tomorrow, you may not notice something special in Isaiah 1:3a.
The ox knows its master,
the donkey its owner's manger
This is not necessarily a messianic prophecy but the presence of the "manger' here (the most significant appearance in OT) has drawn much attention from New Testament believers and the words of this verse have worked their way into much Christian art. Why does every nativity set include an ox and a donkey? because of Isaiah 1:3. Why does the old and famous hymn Good Christian Men Rejoice say, "ox and ass before him bow, and he is in the manger now, Christ is born today"? because of Isaiah 1:3 (these animals are also featured in What Child is This and The Little Drummer Boy). here is a fun article about how this verse has shaped Christian art.
Isaiah 6: Calling of Isaiah
Isaiah's calling story is unique in that it is placed after five chapters of prophecy - contrast this with Jeremiah and Ezekiel who are both appeared to by God and called to prophesy in the very opening scene of their accounts. It is likely that this scene in chapter 6 occurs at the beginning of the chronological account of the prophet Isaiah, which would make chapters 1-5 a thematic introduction to his message, which contains words that Isaiah spoke and recorded sometime after the events of chapter 6.
The vision by which God appears to Isaiah is magnificent. It is set in the temple and filled with grandiose depictions of power, such as the train of God's robe filling the temple, and the voices of the seraphim shaking the temple - a very similar scene is depicted by John in Revelation 4 which you should read for comparison sake. Isaiah's commission is bewildering. He is told by God to tell the Israelites not* to understand or see so that they will not repent. This is not a good characterization of the words of Isaiah's prophecy, instead, God is describing the reaction that he knows will result from the words he will send Isaiah to proclaim.
10th century Tell Halaf Basalt housed in The Walters Art Museum, in Baltimore, Maryland
There are interesting creatures present in this calling scene of chapter 6 called "seraphim."
Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: with two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke." (Isaiah 6:2-4)
This is the only place in scripture where a supernatural creature is called a 'seraph.' Interestingly the same word is used to describe the serpents that God sent to plague the Israelites in Numbers 21. there is a certain amount of uncertainty here as to whether these creatures are human or serpent in form or possibly some other animal. The winged serpent is a far more common element in Ancient Near East iconography, some of which possess feet as referred to in verse 2. Note that the six-winged figures in Revelation 4 are various types of animals, including a man. there is one surviving ancient depiction of a human-like, six-winged figure surviving from northern Mesopotamia which dates from the 10th century BC (200 years before Isaiah), this ancient image is shown in the picture here. I'm suspicious that the seraphim mentioned in Isaiah are the same four creatures depicted in Revelation 4 (lion, ox, man, eagle), but that Isaiah depicts them in less detail than does the prophet, John.
John 4 - Jesus & the Samaritan woman
Jacobs well is middle-right on the picture and that is Mt Gerazim (the peak is out of the frame) in the background. This is the setting for Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman in John 4
Jesus’ positive reception by *Samaritans contrasts with his reception in Jerusalem (2:13–3:9). In John 4:1-42, Jesus crosses strict cultural boundaries separating culturally distinct peoples, genders and moral status, pointing to the new and ultimate unity in the *Spirit. Some features of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman evoke earlier well scenes (Gen 24; 29; Ex 2), but to a different effect.
Samaritans worshiped Israel’s God devoutly, practicing circumcision and the Sabbath. Nevertheless, insofar as our later sources can indicate, they accepted only the Pentateuch, regarding Israel’s subsequent history as apostate. They claimed that the true site for worship was Mount Gerizim (edited even into their version of the Ten Commandments), rejecting the Jerusalem temple. Like Jews, they looked for an end-time restorer; thus one prophetic figure promised to restore sacred vessels left by Moses at Mount Gerizim (before *Pilate butchered them). Greek culture and language heavily affected Samaria, although Greek need not have been the first language of Samaritan villagers. (The *Gentile Greek city Sebaste, in the midst of Samaria, probably exerted an influence; cf. Acts 8:5.)
Keener, Craig S.. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (p. 258). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.
The site of Jacob’s well (where this conversation occurred) is known. Currently a 20th-centurny Orthodox monastery is built over the top of it, but pictures exist of the place before the building was constructed, like this one from 1900 when the well was still functional. Do you notice the big mountain in the background? that is Mt. Gerazim! The very mountain where the Samaritan woman would have believed that God should be worshiped (instead of Jerusalem). Now you can imagine her speaking the words of John 4:20 while pointing her finger as she says “on this mountain.”