Isaiah was a true, genuine prophet of the LORD. I want to present a look into the conversation in which God challenges the “gods” of Babylon (Isaiah 41:21-29).
Isaiah 41:21-29
“Present your case, says the LORD. Bring forth your strong reasons, says the King of Jacob. Let them [repeated in 45:21] bring forth and show us what will happen; let them show the former things, what they were, that we may consider [lit. ‘set our heart on’] them, and know the latter end of them; or declare to us things to come. Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that you are gods; yes, do good or do evil, that we may be dismayed and see it together” (vv. 21-23, NKJV).
In reference to verse 23, – “Yes, do good or do evil” – the Lord makes it clear: “I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God besides Me. …I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity [lit ‘evil’; Heb. ra]; I, the LORD, do all these things” (45:5,7).
The LORD challenges the “gods” of Babylon to “do good or do evil (calamity)” in Isaiah 41:23. The narrative continues like this: “Indeed you are nothing, and your work is nothing; he who chooses you is an ABOMINATION! I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come … and he shall come against princes … who has declared from the beginning, that we may know? And former times, that we may say, He is righteous? Surely there is no one who shows, surely there is no one who declares, surely there is no one who hears your words. Indeed they are all worthless [i.e., nothing]; their works are nothing…” (vv. 27-29).
The One
Verse 24 says, “I have raised up one from the north…” We know who that was – Cyrus. God raised up the pagan King Cyrus to conquer the king of Babylon. God calls him, “The Anointed of the LORD,” a title commonly used for God’s true ones, not pagans.
The Indictment
Isaiah 41:21-29 is an indictment of Babylonian “gods” (like a legal trial) in which they are challenged to prove their power over historical events and so justify their status as “gods” (vv. 21-24).
Israel’s LORD/GOD has foretold/predicted events, and now brings to pass Israel’s deliverance (vv. 25-27). The accused are unable to respond (vv. 28-29). Isaiah 43:12 – “I have declared and saved, I have proclaimed, and there was NO FOREIGN god among you; … I am God.”
Isaiah 40:17 says, “All nations before Him are NOTHING and they are counted by Him less than NOTHING and WORTHLESS” (see Daniel 4:35 and Psalm 62:9, et al.).
Consider
We might want to consider how we view the United States of America, fastly becoming the “United Snakes of Amerika” under the present criminal regime of wickedness. Will the LORD allow him/them (Commies/criminals/cons) to fully conquer the U.S. of A? No one would have believed this possible but here we are under his/their vile, abominable dictatorship, ready to hand over this Constitutional Republic. Just as God raised up Babylon to conquer Israel (because of Israel’s willful sinfulness), He can raise up a tool to punish this nation.
God can raise up a pagan nation to punish His people, and then punish the pagan nation after He uses it. Look at JesusCallstoAll.com, and read or listen to Prophetic Words of the LORD that give a lot of insight into the ways of God.
Monotheism
The Bible speaks implicitly and explicitly about monotheism (i.e., the belief in ONE God): Isaiah 43:10-11; 45:5-7, 14,18,21,22; 46:9 and 44:6, for example. In 44:6-8 we see prediction and fulfillment, where we find a contrast between the true God and false gods. God and God alone can tell and foretell the future. He lets some of His people KNOW the future; He can even let pagans know it if He chooses.
God’s claim: “No God but Me” (44:6) is a declaration of explicit monotheism. Yet this does not exclude the idea of “other gods” (see Exodus 20:3 – “You shall not have other gods besides Me”). There are demon gods aplenty, which God warned His people to stay away from (see Deut. 18 where “demon gods/goddesses” of witchcraft/occultism are mentioned, which God’s people were forbidden to worship, for such were and ARE abominations – 18:9-14).
Things of Long Ago
Isaiah 41:22 in the NAB reads, “Let them (gods) draw near and foretell to us what it is that shall happen! What are the things of long ago?”
From the very beginning, Genesis foretold and predicted that there would be “enmity between you (serpent) and the woman (Eve), and between your seed and their seed; he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15).
We all know this refers to the WAR between Christ and satan. The New American Bible uses the words, “…they [referring to offspring] will STRIKE at your head while you strike at their heel.”
The antecedent for “they” and “their” is the collective noun “offspring,” that is, all the descendants of the woman. The serpent was and is none other than the devil (see Wisdom 2:24; John 8:44; Rev. 12:9; 20:21). The LORD predicted that Christ and His descendants would, in the end, destroy the devil and his descendants.
Isaiah 41:22 tells us that no gods/idols have predicted such things, only the One Living God!
The LORD predicted (rightly) that His Son would be the One who would destroy the enemy of God and humankind (see 1 John 3:8). Genesis 3:15 was the first prediction/promise of a Redeemer for fallen and lost humankind, called the protoevangelium.
Galatians 3:19
“What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, UNTIL the SEED should come to whom the PROMISE was made…”
That SEED was none other than Christ Jesus the Lord: “But when the fullness of the time had come [predicted in Genesis 3:15], God sent forth His Son, born of a woman [lit., THE woman] born under the law to redeem those who were under the law, that they might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). The Jews first and then the Gentiles.
It is of interest to note that Irenaeus of Lyons (AD 130-200) wrote in his Against Heresies that Christ was the seed of the woman (Mary), the mother of Jesus (see also Jerome’s Vulgate).
More…
Not only did God predict/foretell the defeat of the devil, but take note of the following prophecies regarding the Messiah, the Savior of the world! Look up the predictions/prophecies in the Old Testament and their fulfillments in the New Testament. Men and women of God have taken lots of time to compile these lists (which is definitely just a short list here, for Christ did fulfill over 300 prophecies):
- Born of the Tribe of Judah: Genesis 49:10 / Luke 3:23-33
- Born of a virgin: Isaiah 7:14 / Matthew 1:18-25
- Descended from David: Isaiah 9:7 / Matthew 1:1, 6-17
- Declared to be God’s Son: Psalm 2:7 / Matthew 3:17
- Not believed to be Son: Isaiah 53:1 / John 12:37-38
- Enters Jerusalem on donkey: Zechariah 9:9 / Matthew 21:1-9
- Betrayed: Psalm 41:9 / John 13:18, 21-30
- Betrayed for silver: Zechariah 11:12 / Matthew 26:14-16
- Silent before His accusers: Isaiah 53:7 / Matthew 27:11-14
- Cast lots for His garments: Psalm 22:18 / Matthew 27:35
- Mocked on the Cross: Psalm 22:7-8 / Matthew 27:19-43
- No bones broken: Psalm 34:20 / John 19:33,36
- Buried with the rich: Isaiah 53:9 / Matthew 27:57-60
- Resurrected before corruption: Psalm 16:10 / Acts 2:24-27
- Exalted, at the right hand of His Father: Psalm 110:1 / Acts 7:56
What god/idol/false prophet has ever predicted anything like these that were not only predicted but FULFILLED?!
Micah foretold that Jesus would become a great Person, a Ruler: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting” (Micah 5:2). Note: It is believed that Isaiah 7:14 and Micah 5:2 are the same person – Jesus. The Gospel of Matthew reports that the chief priests and scribes cite their passage (Micah 5:2) as the ancient promise of a Messiah in the time of King David to be born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:5-6). As a side note, when Jesus was born, there were actually 2 towns named Bethlehem – one near Nazareth (northern region) the other near Jerusalem in Judah. The latter was formerly called Ephrathah. Jesus was born in the latter (Matthew 2:1).
Called Out
The prophet Hosea predicted/prophesied that the Son of God would be called “out of Egypt” (Hosea 11:1). Also, Hosea dates the real beginning of Israel from the time of the Exodus (Matthew 9:15; see also Exodus 4:22-23).
How did these men know all this?
Daniel 2:18-19 tells us that God reveals His secrets and the secrets of others to His prophets! (See Daniel 2:27,28,30). When Daniel made known the secret dream of the King of Babylon, the King declared, “Your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a REVEALER of SECRETS…” (2:47; see Daniel 2:22,28,29).
Amos the Prophet wrote: “Surely the LORD God does nothing, unless He reveal His secrets to His servants the prophets” (3:7; see Matthew 11:27; Philippians 3:15; Matthew 16:17; Ephesians 3:5).
Centuries Before the Event
Keep in mind that many prophecies were written and spoken centuries before they were revealed/fulfilled. Jesus spoke to some of His disciples after His death: “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was with you that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms concerning Me” (Luke 24:44).
There has been an ongoing debate whether Jesus knew the future. He knew WHY He had to die. He knew WHEN He had to die. He knew HOW He would die.
Did false prophets, gods, idols know? NO! Obviously not.
Psalm 118:22 reveals to us about the Cornerstone – centuries before the Living Cornerstone came (see Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10-11; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Peter 2:7-8). Christ was revealed to the Psalmist centuries beforehand. God knew about the succession of nations, the ones He would raise up and take down. He knew how everything would unfold, and all the pieces that would need to be in place. God KNEW!
From the Beginning, God knew about Adam’s fall, Paradise LOST, and He knew about the Second Adam, Paradise FOUND. Amen!
— Gen. Jim, POW