I. THE CONDITION OF ISRAEL AND JUDAH
A. Prosperity Under Jeroboam II (Israel) And Uzziah (Judah).
1. Prosperity caused both nations to become corrupt, decay and turn to idolatry.
2. Idolatry had been rampant in Israel since the death of Solomon, beginning with the calf worship introduced by Jeroboam I. Jezebel later introduced Baal worship.
3. Idolatry contributed to the further decay of Israel: political corruption, social and moral decay. Each of these were a factor in Israel coming under the judgment of God.
B. God Sent Two Prophets To Try To Save Israel
1. Amos (755 B.C.; he warned of plundered palaces, the dismemberment of the rich along with their possessions, Israel's impending captivity.
2. Hosea (750-725 B.C.); while more sympathetic towards his listeners, he nevertheless warned of their demise unless they repented. He compared Israel's spiritual "whoredom" (idolatry) to those who pay for the services of a harlot. Hosea called the nation before the court of God to answer for their lack of truth, goodness, and knowledge of God.
C. God Also Sent Two Prophets To Try To Save Judah
1. Isaiah (740 B.C.); we shall see in our study that moral and spiritual conditions in Judah were only slightly better than in the northern kingdom.
2. Micah (735 B.C.)
D. Threats Of Invasion From the Northeast;Assyria
1. Amos never named the adversary, but did indicate the direction from which they would attack and the limit of their conquest (Amos 3:11; 6:14).
2. Hosea however was more specific, naming Assyria (Hos. 6:14; 9:3; 10:6;11:5; 13:16).
II. ASSYRIA
A. Their Emergence As A World Power
1. Began to wield influence as a commercial and military nation as early as the third century B.C.
2. Came into prominence between 1500 and 1000 B.C.
B. Early Leaders
1. Tiglath-pileser I (1116-1078 B.C.) ­ his policy of no mercy to the enemies of Assyria was followed by his successors. History tells us he was a great warrior and builder of palaces, cities, and strongholds.
2. Ashur-dan II (932-910 B.C.) and his son Adad-nirari II (909-889 B.C.) restored Assyria to their prior prominence which had waned since the death of Tiglath-pileser I. During the reign of Adad-nirari, Assyria returned to their policy of the cruel destruction of their enemies by burning of cities, beheading thousands and flaying many alive. Knowing this about the Assyrians shows the terror that Hosea's prophecy would strike into the hearts of the people.
3. Ashur-nasir-pal II (883-859 B.C.) ­ built the Assyrian army into the greatest war machine known up to that time. He conquered as far west as the Mediterranean Sea, just north of the land of the Israel.
4. Shalmaneser III (859-824 B.C.); defended and expanded the territories conquered by his father.
C. Later Leaders
1. Tiglath-pileser III (745-727 B.C.); also known as Pul (2 Ki. 15:19; 1 Chron. 5:26) usurped the throne after a period of weakness, during which time the nation fell under a plague and the capital city of Nineveh repented at the preaching of Jonah. He began the conquest of northern Israel (Zebulun and Naphtali, Isa. 9:1,2) and Samaria. It was only because a sufficient number of Judah's population heeded the prophets, Micah and Isaiah, that Judah was spared captivity at this time. Judah's King Ahaz made a treaty with Assyria to protect himself from Israel and Syria (2 Ki. 16:7).
2. Shalmaneser V (727-722 B.C.); began the siege of the city of Samaria.
3. Sargon II (721-705 B.C.); conquered Samaria, took the people captive and replaced them in the land with foreign captives, thus laying the foundation for the race of Samaritans so vilified during Jesus' time.
4. Sennacherib (705-681 B.C.); while he was a gifted military leader, his arrogant character cause him to be universally hated. He was killed by his own sons (Isa. 37:38). It was Sennacherib who besieged Jerusalem only to have 185,00- soldiers slain at the gates (Isa. 37:36).
D. The End Of Assyria (612-609 B.C.); Nineveh (see Nahum's description) and Haran were captured by the Babylonians. To their credit the Assyrians acted as a buffer between Israel and the even more barbaric tribes of the north, and developed advancements in architecture, science, literature and art. Tragically, their civilization will always be remembered for its ruthless conquest and destruction of its neighbors.
III. ISAIAH, THE MAN
A. A Man Of Strong Character, Deep Faith In God, Courage, And Conviction
1. He was able to move among the King's court, as well as the common people.
2. His mission was to cause the people of Judah to repent and thus avoid captivity at the hands of the Assyrians.
B. His Personal Life
1. His name means "the salvation of the Lord."
2. Married to a prophetess (Isa. 8:3).
3. Had at least two sons
a. Shear-jashub ("a remnant shall return")
b. Maher-shalal-hash-baz ("the spoil speedeth, the prey hasteth")
4. Besides the book of prophecy that bears his name, Isaiah also wrote accounts of the acts of Uzziah and Hezekiah (2 Chron. 26:22; 32:32) that have not been saved.
5. We do not know when he died, however tradition holds that he was sawn apart under the orders of Manasseh.
C. More About His Mission
1. All of God's prophets dealt with real-life situations that occurred during their own generation. They might also speak to succeeding generations that might face similar economic, political, and moral issues.
2. Isaiah had not only the ability to forth-tell, but to foretell the future concerning Judah, the destruction of the heathen nations, and the coming of the Messiah.
3. He was a great statesman and advisor to kings. He led what scholars have come to call the "Jehovah Party." This political party opposed Judah capitulating to either of the great world powers of the time, Egypt and Assyria.
4. He was a great reformer. Judah could only be saved by returning to Jehovah, and setting aside their idols, political corruptions, and immorality.
5. As a theologian, he was without peer. He saw Jehovah as the Eternal King, reigning over mankind with righteousness and justice. He is the most Messianic of all the prophets (1 Pet. 1:10-12; 2 Pet. 1:21).
IV. ISAIAH, THE BOOK
A. Overview
1. Shorter than Jeremiah and about the same length as Ezekiel.
2. Not always in chronological order. Perhaps written over a period of as many as 40 years.
B. Emphasis
1. Salvation by faith.
2. The Messiah will unite the Gentiles with the Jews. The prophet knew this would not be accepted by the Jews.
C. Unitary Authorship
1. Some critics claim that at least two different Isaiahs wrote this book, using chapter 39 as the dividing point.
2. Conservative commentators argue that the inspired writers of the New Testament never made such a distinction when quoting from the various parts of the book.