God’s Appraisal of His People – They Are A People Lacking Common Sense

Pastor Bill Farrow

ISAIAH 1:2

²  Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth!
For the Lord has spoken:
“I have nourished and brought up children,
And they have rebelled against Me;

Hear, O heavens - This is actually and properly the beginning of the prophecy. It is a sublime commencement; and is of a highly poetic character. The heavens and the earth are summoned to bear witness to the apostasy, ingratitude, and deep depravity of the chosen people of God. The address is expressive of deep feeling - the bursting forth of a heart filled with amazement at a wonderful and unusual event. The same sublime beginning is found in the song of Moses, Deut. 32:1: “Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.” 

Compare Ps. 4:3-4. Thus also the prophets often invoke the hills and mountains to hear them; Ezek. 6:3 tells us: ‘Ye mountains of Israel, hear the words of the Lord God: Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, and to the rivers, and to the valleys;’ compare what Exekiel says in Ezek. 36:1. ‘Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the Lord,’ Jeremiah says much the same thing in Jer. 2:12.

By the heavens therefore, in this place, we are not to understand the inhabitants of heaven, that is, the angels, anymore than by the hills we are to understand the inhabitants of the mountains. It is high poetic language, denoting the importance of the subject, and the remarkable and amazing truth to which the attention was to be called.

Give ear, O earth - It was common thus to address the earth on any remarkable occasion, especially anyone implying warm expostulation, (Jer. 5:19; 22:29; Mic. 1:2; 6:2; Isa. 34:1; 49:13). The implication here is that of the calling, officially, of the entirety of creation to bear witness at the bar of God’s justice.  It is as if the world will be the jury to hear the case God is bringing against the people He has called and blessed.  Make no mistake – this is not a thing that God does lightly.  He has pleaded with Israel time and again through the ages and it has fallen on deaf ears.  Nor should we think that the verdict of the “witnesses” would be in doubt – the case is so strong and so secure that the could be no doubt as to its conclusion.  Even the very creation will bear witness that Israel’s rebellion was heinous and profound and condemn them for it!

For - Since it is YAHWEH, the Creator God that speaks, all the universe is summoned to attend; compare Ps. 33:8-9: ‘Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the World stand in awe of him. For he spake and it was done; he commanded and it stood fast.’

The LORD – The Hebrew word here is the word for Jehovah. The small capitals used here and elsewhere throughout the Bible in printing the word Lord, denote that the original word is YAHWEH. It is derived from the verb meaning “to be;” and is used to denote “being,” or the fountain of being, and can be applied only to the true God; compare Exo. 3:14: ‘And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM, Exo. 6:3; Num. 11:21; & Isa. 47:8. It is a name which is never given to idols, or conferred on a creature; and though it occurs often in the Hebrew Scriptures, as is indicated by the small capitals, yet our translators have retained it but four times; Exo. 6:3; Ps. 83:18; Isa. 12:2; 26:4. In combination, however, with other names, it occurs often. Thus in the name of  Isaiah, meaning “the salvation of YAHWEH”; and in the name “Jeremiah,” meaning “the exaltation or grandeur of YAHWEH”, etc.; compare Gen. 22:14: ‘Abraham called the name of the place “Jehovah-jireh,’” Exo. 17:15; Judg. 6:24; & Ezek. 48:35. The Jews never pronounced this name, not even in reading their own Scriptures. So sacred did they deem it, that when it occurred in their books, instead of the word YAHWEH, they substituted the word Adonai or “Lord.” Our translators have shown respect to this feeling of the Jews in regard to the sacredness of the name; and hence, have rendered it by the name of Lord - a word which by no means conveys the sense of the word YAHWEH. It would have been an advantage to our version if the word YAHWEH had been retained wherever it occurs in the original.

God has spoken, Isaiah says.  He has waited long enough and has now entered on the course of judgment on the part of His relationship with the people of His land.  He will languish and be patient no longer – He has called, and all will spring to answer His summons. 

I have nourished - Hebrew “I have made great;”  The tense of the word means “to make great, to cause to grow;” as e. g., the hair; (Num. 6:5, plants, Isa. 44:14); then to educate or bring up children; (Isa. 49:21; 2 Kings 10:6).

And brought up – This word means “to lift up” or “exalt.” The tense used causes it to mean “to bring up, nourish, educate”; (Isa. 23:4). These words, though applied often to the training up of children, yet are used here also to denote the elevation to which they had been raised. He had not merely trained them up, but he had trained them up to an elevated station; to special honor and privileges. “Children.” Is the generic Hebrew word for sons.” They were the adopted children of God; and they are represented as being weak, and ignorant, and helpless as children, when he took them under his fatherly protection and care; (Hos. 11:1): ‘When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt;’ (compare Matt. 2:15; Isa. 63:8-16).

They have rebelled - This complaint was often brought against the Jews; (compare Isa. 63:10; Jer. 2:6-8). This is the sum of the charge against them. God had shown them special favors. He recounted his mercy in bringing them out of Egypt; and on the ground of this, he demanded obedience and love; (compare Exo. 20:1-3). And yet they bad forgotten him, and rebelled against him. The Targum of Jonathan, an ancient Chaldee version of the Hebrew Old Testament, has well expressed the idea here. ‘Hear, O heavens, which were moved when I gave my law to my people: give ear, O earth, which didst tremble before my word, for the Lord has spoken. My people, the house of Israel, whom I called sons - I loved them - I honored them, and they rebelled against me.’ The same is true substantially of all sinners; and alas, how often may a similar expostulation be made with the professed people of God!