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Isaiah 1 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
The book of Isaiah is full of prophecy. Hebrew poetry used a literary style called parallelism, much like a modern-day analogy. In the first several verses, we see the parallels being drawn.
“An ox knows its owner, And a donkey its master’s manger, But Israel does not know, My people do not understand.”
Isaiah 1:3 NASB
The ox and the donkey know of their provider and owner. To set up the parallel, the next phrase contrasts the previous in order to understand it and make a point. Israel did not know or understand their provider and owner. They were worse off than a donkey or ox.
The poetry in Isaiah also uses metaphorical images to represent deep spiritual truths. It gets tricky sometimes when trying to figure out if the meaning is literal or figurative. The vivid images that are painted in Isaiah draw the reader to look deeper into the context and meaning behind the beautiful poetry.
Yet another theme that runs through Isaiah is the multiple fulfillment of prophecies. Similarly to Revelation, a prophecy may apply to the ancient timeline as well as the End Times. We cannot immediately assume all prophecies are about us (our time period) or vice versa. However, God did not leave us in the dark. We can look at the sweep of Scripture in order to make sense of multiple prophecies.
This first chapter is scathing. Although God has brought up Israel and raised her as His own, they do not recognize their Father. They have run so far away that they do not even recognize their own! However, as always, God does not leave them without hope. Those who seek justice and repentance will find mercy. It is the same today.