Some things shift and change while others remain rock solid. Situations change and with that shifting comes a demand for a different response. If I try to respond to my adult children the same way I did when they were children, the result would be disastrous. I don’t get to make decisions for them, although some times I wish I did. The situation has shifted and my response needs to shift with it. And this will also be true in our walk with God. Should we try to do church the way it was done in the fifties? And shouldn’t my understanding of God’s word grow and change? The alternative would be a stagnant faith. “When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things” (1 Corinthians 13:11 NASB). Doesn’t this imply a changing response to my changing understanding? If this is scary, that just may be a good thing. But there are things that will never change. God’s word is solid. My understanding may need to shift with study and growth, but the message is the same. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. His holiness is forever. You can stand on that rock without fear of it ever crumbling. You may need to adjust where you stand and how you respond, but God is God; His holiness is constant.
We are beginning a walk through Isaiah, which is a walk with holiness. It seems that what gets discussed and argued about the most concerning Isaiah is authorship. You see, the book covers a history of some three hundred years. Can you ascribe that to one man? So, some will break the book up into two sections: 1-39 (written by Proto-Isaiah) and 40-66 (written by Deutero-Isaiah). Others will break up the second section into 40-55 (Deutero-Isaiah) and 56-66 (Trito-Isaiah). These three divisions can be viewed historically: 1-39 covers the time span between the death of Uzziah through the reign of Hezekiah; 40-55 is about Babylonian exile; and 56-66 is about the post-exilic period. Others will throw in a lot more divisions and you might just need a program to sort it all out. It is not simply the long history that leads people to see divisions and multiple authors. There are some major differences between chapters 1-39 and 40-66. Chapters 1-39 are a collection of short oracles, while the second half is composed of much longer prophesies. There are several words that are found in chapters 40-66 that are not found at all in chapters 1-39. There are places in the second half of the book which deals with a distant future as if it has already happened. And this would make more sense if the author lived after the fact and wrote down his message to people who would be closer to the events. Anyway, all of this may just miss the point. I believe it could have been one man because I believe in a God who can give a message to his prophet three hundred years removed from the events. I believe the Vision granted the prophet could be so real that he wrote about it as if it had already taken place. I believe it could have been two or more men, because I believe in a God who can work through several people through the years to craft a book spanning centuries.
Even though there are some differences in content, there are some very major themes that appear like threads throughout the Vision. The most important of these is probably that of God being described as the Holy One of Israel. This phrase occurs twelve times in chapters 1-39 and thirteen times in chapters 40-66. The situation of Israel has changed. They will no longer be a nation unto themselves. Isaiah is encouraging the Israelites throughout this long history to accept that they will answer to other nations. The situation has changed and so must their response. This is not viewed negatively by the prophet. Jerusalem is the pilgrimage center for all nations; a reflection of God’s holiness. God is still the Holy One of Israel. He is still their rock. But their response needed to change.
What does that holiness look like? It is relationship. Yahweh loves and provides for his people as a husband loves his wife; as a father or mother cares for their children; a physician striving to heal their wounds; a husbandman lovingly laboring in the vineyard; a shepherd gently guiding his flock; a potter shaping the clay; a teacher instructing his pupils. And when holiness is viewed through the lens of relationships it is more tangible, isn’t it? The Hebrew word “holy” (qadosh) means “holy, set apart, sacred.” When it is applied to God it is all about the ways that God is not like us. He is not riddled with guilt and sin. Ah, but he is still a mother comforting her children; the embodiment of holy healing relationship. So, as situations shift and we struggle to figure out how to respond, lets walk with holiness. Shalom.