Isaiah 64:10-12 – The House Left Desolate
This prophecy is not looking at Jerusalem destroyed by Babylon, it is looking at Jerusalem destroyed by Rome. What are the holy cities that are spoken of here in verse 10? Zion (greater Jerusalem) and Jerusalem. Jerusalem and Zion are holy because they are where God chose for His worship. The kings ruled there. The prophets mostly came there to speak. The priests did their work of sacrifice and intercession there. This was all work that was pointing toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah is led to see a time when all of it was wilderness, a desolation.
We see the destruction of the temple itself in verse 11. All the homes where people lived, full of happy memories, are destroyed. But that’s not the worst thing. The worst thing is the destruction of the Temple. This is what most afflicts them because this was the place where the Person and work of the Messiah was set forth in different ways, through the offerings and sacrifices, the holy days, and the priesthood. You could see, dimly perhaps, but really and truly, that One was coming Who by His blood shed would bring forgiveness of sin and new life. You would see Him, you could look to Him, you could cry out to Him. And in that faith, in Him Who would come, you would be saved. That was the beauty of the Temple. Now that is wrecked. It is all gone. There are no sacrifices. There are no high priests. There can be no holy days. Now the Jews of today try to observe them, but they cannot do so in the way which the Scriptures command. God in His providence, God in His judgment, ended the types, the shadows, the forms, to give us the reality. Redemption is no longer promised. It is accomplished in and through Jesus Christ. The only hope for the Jews is to trust in the One Whom God has sent. And that is the only hope for anyone.
The people, the remnant, these whose hearts are broken over sin, cry out at the end. Right now they are still in the effects of sin. They are in the misery that follows from it. Which, if indeed they are believers, is not for their judgment, but for their discipline. In that misery, though, they do not despair. No, they continue as weeping children, who, when they have been disciplined by their parents, run to their parents for comfort. So these run to Jehovah, they run to their Saviour, they look to Him to deliver them from themselves and from their sinful folly!
Question
- What was the worst disaster for the Jews?
Prayer Points
- Pray for the preaching and hearing of God’s Word tomorrow.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.