Contributor: Martins Olubiyi

INTRODUCTION
Last week, we examined the prophetic declaration of Isaiah on the last days, with particular emphasis on Babylon. We observed that Babylon being a province in Assyria was also a term used by the Lord to typify wickedness in the end times. Today, we shall continue to examine what Babylon represented in the end time agenda of God and the ultimate goal of establishing Christ’s kingdom on earth with the restoration of Israel.

A. The Fall of The King of Babylon.
1. (vs 1-2) Judgment on Babylon Indicates Mercy on Israel.
a. For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob. Isaiah 13 ended with desolation and gloom that would come upon Babylon. Since Babylon was Judah’s great enemy, any judgment on Babylon was an expression of mercy to Israel. So, Isaiah followed the pronouncement of judgment on Babylon with ‘for the Lord will …., and still choose Israel’. Sometimes we feel that God chose us, but if He had to choose again, God would change His choice. Here, the Lord reminds His children that He does still choose us and would choose us all over again.

b. And settle them in their own land: The promise of restoration to their own land was also important. The Babylonians had forcibly exiled most of the population of Judah, so the promise of return to their own land was precious.

c. The strangers will be joined with them: The invitation to Gentiles was precious. The regathered and restored Israel would invite Gentiles to receive the goodness of God with them.

d. They will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors: In inviting the strangers to come and be joined with them, Israel would eliminate their enemies. The ultimate way to conquer an enemy is to make them your friend.

2. (vs 3-8) The Joy of the Earth at the Fall of the King of Babylon.
a. In the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from the fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve: The Lord announces a day when He will give real rest to believing Israel. They will have rest from sorrow, from fear, and from their hard bondage. This rest is the birth right of every believer in Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Mat 11:28). Do you have rest from sorrow? Do you have rest from fear? Do you have rest from hard bondage? b. That you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon: In the day of restoration, the defeat and weakness of the king of Babylon will be exposed, and Israel will rejoice.

As this prophecy continues from the context of Isaiah 13, it is important that we remember that Isaiah has two aspects of prophetic fulfilment in mind. First, there is the immediate and partial fulfilment regarding the empire of Babylon and its king. Second, there is the distant and ultimate fulfilment regarding the spiritual empire of Babylon – the world system – and its king, Satan. So, this proverb against the king of Babylon was, in a partial sense, in the mouth of the returning exiles when Babylon was finally conquered, and the people of Judah could return to the Promised Land. But in an ultimate sense, this proverb against the king of Babylon will be in the mouth of God’s people when the world system and her king, Satan, are each conquered and destroyed.

He who struck the people in wrath …who ruled the nation in anger: Both the king of literal Babylon and the king of spiritual Babylon were mighty, oppressive rulers over the people and the nations. But now, the one who once persecuted is himself persecuted and no one hinders, and as a result, the whole earth is at rest and quiet, and they even break forth into singing. Even the trees rejoice over the fall of the king of Babylon. This is true of the king of literal Babylon because the attacking kings cut down thousands of trees for both fuel and lumber, leaving Israel and Lebanon deforested

3. (vs 9-11) Hell Receives the Fallen King of Babylon.
Hell from beneath is excited about you: Hell, itself is excited to meet the king of Babylon because it can’t wait to be the place where the one who tortured so many is tortured himself. This was true both for the king of literal Babylon, and the king of spiritual Babylon.
God wants us to know now that Satan is destined for hell. He isn’t a winner, he is a loser, and he certainly isn’t the boss or lord of hell. Satan will go to hell as a victim, as the ultimate prisoner in the dungeon of darkness, and hell will be happy to receive him this way. Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us? When he went to hell, the king of literal Babylon was exposed as a mere man, though he thought of himself as greater than that. As well, when the king of spiritual Babylon goes to hell, all will be amazed to see that he was only a creature.

We often – to his great delight – exaggerate Satan’s status and importance. We think of him as the opposite of God; as if God were light and Satan were darkness, as if God were hot and Satan were cold. Satan wishes he was the opposite of God, but God wants us to know now what everyone will know someday – that Satan is a mere creature and is in no way the opposite of God. If Satan has an opposite, it is not God the Father or God the Son, it would be a high-ranking angelic being such as Michael.

Your pomp is brought down …. the maggot is spread under you, and worms cover you: In the end, it just won’t be a defeat for the king of Babylon. Both for the literal and spiritual kings of Babylon, their defeat in hell will be disgusting and degrading.
Knowing this now – how disgusting and degrading the end of Satan will be – why would any of us serve him or work for his cause, even for a minute? Who wants to end up with the maggots and the worms?

And the sound of your stringed instruments: Before his fall, Satan was associated with music in heaven Ezekiel 28: 13 says of Satan before his fall, the workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created. Apparently, the musical career of Satan did not end with his fall, because the sound of his stringed instruments is only brought down when he is imprisoned in hell.

4. (vs 12-15) The Fall of Lucifer
How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning: Here, the prophet identified the king of Babylon as Lucifer, son of the morning. Some debate if Lucifer is a name or a title; the word means morning star or day star, referring to a brightly shining object in the heavens. Whether it is a title or a name makes little difference; this once brightly shining king of Babylon is now fallen from heaven.

In the prophetic habit of speaking to both a near and a distant fulfilment, the prophet will sometimes speak more to the near or more to the distant. Here is a good example of Isaiah speaking more to the distant, ultimate fulfilment. It is true that the king of literal Babylon shined brightly among the men of his day and fell as hard and as completely as if a man were to fall from heaven. But there
was a far more brightly shining being who inhabited heaven and fell even more dramatically – the king of spiritual Babylon, Satan.

Fallen from heaven: In fact, there are four falls of Satan, and this passage refers to his final, fourth fall.

• Satan fell from glorified to profane (Ezekiel 28:14-16). This is what Jesus spoke of in (Lk 10: 18) when He says He saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. This is the only fall of Satan that has already happened.
• Satan will fall from having access to heaven (Job 1:12, 1Kgs 22:21, Zech. 3:1) to restriction on the earth (Rev. 12:9).
• Satan will fall from his place on the earth to bondage in the bottomless pit for 1,000 years (Rev. 20:1-3).
• Finally, as mentioned here in Isa. 14:12, Satan will fall from the bottomless pit to the lake of fire, which we commonly known as hell (Rev. 20:10).

This Son of the morning: This is a title of glory, beauty, and honour, which fit Lucifer well before his fall. The morning is glorious, and in Hebrew thinking, the son of “x” is characterized by “x.” So, before his fall, Lucifer was characterized by the glory of the morning.
Jesus Himself is called the Bright and Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). Satan, though a created being, had some of these glorious qualities in himself. No wonder that Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14), deceiving many with his apparent glory, beauty, and goodness.

How you are cut down to the ground: What a contrast! This being, once so high, once so shining, once so bright, is now cut down to the ground.

For you have said in your heart: Here, God tells us the reason behind the fall of both the literal and spiritual king of Babylon. The fall was prompted by something he said, even though he may have never said it with his lips – it was enough that he said it in his heart.

I will: The pride, the grasping selfish ambition, the self-will of the king of Babylon is powerfully expressed in five I will statements. This is the essence of the self-focused and self-obsessed life.

• I will ascend into heaven: It was as if Satan said, “Heaven will be my home and my place of honour”.
• I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: “I will be enthroned and will be exalted above all other angelic beings.”
• I will also sit on the mount of the congregation: “I will sit in the place of glory and honour and attention.”
• I will ascend above the heights: “I will continue to rise, even in heaven, until all see me in my bright shining glory.”
• I will be like the Most High: “I will be glorious, and be set equal to God, far above all other created beings.”

We see in these statements not so much a desire to exalt one’s self above God, but the desire to exalt one’s self above one’s peers. From this passage, it seems that Satan’s desire was not so much to be above God, but to be honoured and regarded as the highest angel, above the other stars of God, receiving the glory and attention one would receive being next to God, equal with God, like the Most High. We don’t have to want to be exalted higher than God to be like Satan. It is enough to want to be exalted above other people.

Lucifer was certainly a glorious angel (day star, son of the morning, and also called the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty…the anointed cherub who covers in Ezekiel. 28: 12,14). Yet, there came a time when despite all his beauty and glory, he departed from the heart of God by wanting to exalt himself above his peers. Instead, the heart of Jesus says, “The status of equality with God is not something to hang on to. I will let it go. I will give up My reputation, be a servant, live humbly among men, and even die an excruciating and humiliating death.” (Phil. 2:5-8).When Lucifer departed from this heart, he fell from glory.

I will be like the Most High: What prompted Satan’s desire to exalt himself above all other creatures? What prompted these five I will statements?

Why Did Lucifer Rebel?
Perhaps because he rejected God’s plan to create an order of beings made in His image (Gen. 1:26) who would be beneath the angels in dignity (Heb. 2:6-7a; 2 Pet. 2:11) yet would be served by angels in the present (Heb. 1:14; 2:7-8; Psa. 91:11-12) and would one day be lifted in honour and status above the angels (1Cor. 6:3; 1 John 3:2) Satan wanted to be the highest among all creatures, equal to God in glory and honour, and the plan to create man would eventually put men above angels. He was apparently able to persuade one-third of the angelic beings to join him in his rebellion (Rev. 12:3-4, 7 and 9).

If this is the case, it explains well Satan’s present strategy against man: to obscure the image of God in man through encouraging sin and rebellion, to cause man to serve him, and to prevent the ultimate glorification of man.

Yet you shall be brought down: Despite Satan’s desire to exalt himself, he will not be exalted at all. Certainly, there is a sense in which he is exalted right now, but this is but an eye-blink in the scope of eternity. Satan, like all those who desire to exalt themselves, shall be brought down.
1Pet. 5:6 expresses the true path to being exalted: Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. In Mark 9:35, Jesus said If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.

5. (vs 16-17) The Nations are Amazed at the Fall of the King of Babylon
Those who see you will gaze at you …”Is this the man who made the earth tremble… who did not open the house of his prisoners?” When the king of literal Babylon fell, his weakness was exposed, and others were amazed that at one time he had so much power, and so many feared him. The same will happen when the king of spiritual Babylon falls. People will see him for what he really is and be amazed at how much power he actually had.

6. (vs 18-23) The Amazing and Bloody Destruction of Babylon
All the kings of the nations: In this brief section, Isaiah brings his focus back more upon the king of literal Babylon. He notes the comfort and ease the other kings of the earth enjoy, but not the fallen king of Babylon, who is instead cast out of your grave like an abominable branch.
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction: The destruction of Babylon – both literal and spiritual – will be complete. The Lord will cut off from Babylon the name and remnant. There will not even be a remnant of Babylon left.

CONCLUSION
It is important for us as believers to know that every prophetic word of the Lord will definitely come to pass. We should not be like “last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts and saying where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from beginning of creation”. 2 Pet 3:3-4. God wants us to know now that He has numbered the days of the king of spiritual Babylon – Satan. There will come a day when his oppression will cease, when the Lord will break the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers. Therefore, we should not get so weary and discouraged from Satan’s attack and schemes in this present age. We should not think his day will last forever. Moreover, we should always remember that one reason Satan works so hard is because he knows his time is short. Today’s lesson should be view as an encouragement to us. We can remain steadfast; we can outlast him the devil.

Contributor: Isekhua Evborokhai

INTRODUCTION
In this Chapter, Isaiah had several prophetic declarations against Babylon. Babylon, apart from being a province in Assyria is also a term used by the Lord to typify wickedness in the end times. What Isaiah foresaw was a graphic destruction of Babylon, the degradation of its nobility, and the universal wickedness of its masses. Each era of the earth has known its own Babylon, but the Babylon of the latter days was seen by the prophets as being among the most wicked of any era and the object of destruction at the coming of the Lord. So when Isaiah speaks of Babylon he refers to both the empire of that time and spiritual Babylon of our present time.

Dual Fulfilment
Isaiah’s prophecies are broadly grouped into two, the near fulfillment and the far fulfillment. The prophecies were sort of like a two-edged sword in that they had an immediate connotation, but oftentimes there was also a future connotation. If we recall from chapter 7 and verse 14 when he said, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel". It had a near fulfilment, not of the virgin bearing a son, but if a child was born at that time, before he would be old enough to really know much, the kings would be destroyed from Samaria and from Syria. (Which did happen), as well as a far fulfilment of Jesus Christ, being born of the virgin Mary.
In this chapter, the prophesies were against Babylon. This particular cry against Babylon is the same as we see in Revelation 17:1-18, and Revelation 18:1-24. It talks about the Babylon of the last days. So this prophecy is carrying us out to these end times.

Judgment Upon Babylon - God Judges Nations Verse 1
At the time of this prophecy, Babylon was a significant nation, but they were definitely behind the Assyrian Empire in status. Yet, God who knows the end of all things spoke of the judgment on the pride of Babylon hundreds of years in advance.
We will all one day stand in judgement. Everyone that have been on the planet since Adam and Eve will stand at the judgement seat of God. It has been said that since Adam and Eve there have been over 77 billion people that have lived and died on earth. Judgement will come for everyone. Revelation 20 tells us that God judges the lost, 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that Christ judges His own. Revelations 2 tells us that churches are judged and here in this chapter, God judges nations.

God Raises An Army Against Babylon Verses 2-8 (Near Fulfillment)
Verse 5: “They come from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens—the Lord and the weapons of his wrath—to destroy the whole country.
This speaks of Media and Persia, coming from the north and the east to destroy Babylon.

Jeremiah 51:1 Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I am going to arouse against Babylon And against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai The spirit of a destroyer.

Jeremiah 51:11 “Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers! The Lord has aroused the spirit of the kings of the Medes, Because His purpose is against Babylon to destroy it; For it is the vengeance of the Lord, vengeance for His temple.”

It was this destruction that Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream was all about. Media and Persia are the arms of silver. Daniel 5:32 “The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze”

History tells us that Babylon finally fell in 539 BCE to Cyrus and came under Persian control. The Bible in Ezra 1:1 says: “Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom . . .”
The Terrors of judgment Upon Babylon. Verses 9-16 (Far Fulfillment)

Verse 9 - The day of the LORD comes: Isaiah now speaks in the “prophetic tense,” having in mind both a near fulfillment (the day of judgment against the Babylonian Empire), and an ultimate fulfillment (the final day of judgment at the return of Jesus).

Verse 10 - The stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be darkened: Several prophetic passages describe the cosmic disturbances that will precede and surround the return of Jesus (Joel 2:10, Revelation 6:12-14, Isaiah 34:4). Here is what Jesus said in Matt. 24:29

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”

Verses 11-12 - “11 I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. 12 I will make people scarcer than pure gold, more rare than the gold of Ophir.”

Once again, God not only tells us judgment is coming, but also gives the exact reason for it.

The Devastation of Babylon. Verses 17-22 (Near and Far Fulfillment)
In Verse 20 Isaiah prophesied that Babylon will never be inhabited or lived through all generations
“She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations; there no nomads will pitch their tents, there no shepherds will rest their flocks.”

And over time, that is what happened; and to the present day, Babylon has remained uninhabited! Today, a Google search of the question: “is Babylon habitable” returns this result.
Isaiah 55:11 says of the Lord’s Words
“[11] So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”

Whatever it is the Lord has promised us, by His Word, hold on to it and don’t let it go because it shall not return to Him void!

CONCLUSION
Whenever we see the destruction of cities, the calamities of nations, and the overturning of kingdoms, as in the case of present day Babylon, that has become desolate. And when we realize that these were as a result of the Lord’s judgements prophesied years ago, we must allow them humble us that we may learn to gather wisdom from the affliction of others, and pray for divine intervention in our own circumstances and situations. Proverbs 28:26 MSG says:
“If you think you know it all, you're a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.”

Contributor: Ayomide Oladipo

INTRODUCTION
Isaiah 12 is a song that follows the events of chapter 10 & 11. Those chapters showed us the dual prophecy that applied to the near-term invasion of Judah by the nation of Assyria, as well as a future invasion of Israel by the Antichrist. The prophecy by prophet Isaiah in those chapters gave us an insight into the destruction of the enemies of God’s people, God’s deliverance of His people and the establishment of messiah’s kingdom. Last week, we were taught and asked to imagine what life will look like when we get to heaven, when God comes to take the people that are still left on earth Isaiah 11: 11, those things that used to be afraid of for example: lions, we will play with them, Isaiah 11:6 talks about how wolfs will dwell with sheep, everyone will be at peace with each other. Isaiah11:13 was a revelation of the Messiah’s kingdom. This whole chapter was reveling to us how God will deliver his people In the same similitude by which he delivered the children of Israel from the land of Egypt.
(Isaiah 11:16 KJV) “And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt”
The prophecy is telling us that the people that are remaining on earth will now have a way out of their troubles and oppressions. Just like God made a way for the children of Israel, after Moses lead the Israelite through the red sea, Moses lead the people in a song:
(Exodus 15:1-2 KJV) “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. (2) The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God …”
In our study today, we are going to look at the song Israel will sing when Jesus comes again to rescue them from their oppressors.

Song of Praise
Verse 1: And in that day thou shalt say,O LORD, I will praise thee: though thou was angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comforted me.

This confirms to us that God could be angry, and that he has the right to be angry. The bile in Romans 6:23 “"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

This verse shows us that at some point we were all sinners and by law we are meant to die, but God been a loving father that he is, gave Christ to us for the remission of our sins. The anger of God was turned away because Christ paid the price for our sins (Death) and the later per said “and thou comforted me”, comfort there means “Salvation”. Now because the price for our sins have been paid, the anger of God is turned away and we are comforted (Saved).

Lesson:
The people that are singing here are the people of God from whom God’s anger had been turned away. They also represent those who have been that have accepted that gift of Christ Jesus. Those are the once God was once angry at, but the anger of God is turned away.

How Was God’s Anger Turned Away?
God’s anger was not turned away because we kept all the laws, or that we are righteous. The Bible says in:
(Isaiah 64:6) “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

No one can turn the anger of God away by his own deeds, (Luke 18:9-14) is the parable of the tax collector and the Pharisee that went to the temple to pray, the Pharisee was talking to God about his righteousness but the tax collector acknowledge that he was a sinner and no righteousness is found in him, Jesus said it was the tax collector that went home justified. Not because of his own righteousness, but because he acknowledges his filthiness before God, mercy was given to him, (God’s anger was turned away from him).

Romans 3:20-26 tells us that we can’t be made right before God by just trying to obey the laws. All the laws do is show us just how sinful we are, just how far short we fall of God’s standards. But being right with God comes when we accept the righteousness of Jesus and trust in his faithfulness. We go from being sinners to being declared right before God because of the price (redemption) that Jesus paid for us. God made Jesus to be the one who paid the price for our sins, the one who "appeased" His righteous anger for our sins.

Accepting the price that Jesus paid is however our individual choice to make, it is those who accept his gift of salvation that can sing this song that we are talking about today. It’s when we’ve come to the point where we are no longer going to try and please God by our own actions but have realized that the only way to please God is by accepting His solution to my sins, which is Christ Jesus.

Vs 2: “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.”

This is telling us that though Jesus Christ was the one that paid the price for our sins on the cross, that price was a gift from God to mankind.

Vs 3: “Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.”
This is telling us that after the anger of God is turned away from us when we have accepted the gift of salvation of Jesus Christ (Isiah 12: 1&2), then we can take hold of all that salvation has to offer us. The salvation that we receive gives us access into the kingdom of God.

How Do We Draw With Joy?
In John 4: 14, Jesus talks about the water He has made available for Believers.
“ . . . Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
Here we see Vs 3 saying that it is with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. So, to draw this water, we need joy. Joy is the bucket we need to draw this water from the wells of salivation.
That is why the enemy targets our joy because as it is in warfare the enemy targets the strongholds of their opponents. He knows if he steals our joy, he has not only prevented us from accessing this water but he has also stolen our strength.

Nehemiah 8:10 “Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

John 16:13-14 “However when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth; for He shall not speak from Himself, but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak, and He will show you things to come. (14) He will glorify me, for he shall receive from mine, and show it unto you”.

The Spirit of truth is the Holy Spirit, which is the life of Christ in all of us. This life of Christ in us comes alive when we accept Jesus Christ, then the Holy Spirit will teach us how to please the father, how to work towards perfection. We would not have to struggle in our own strength but through the teaching of the Holy Spirit in us. Struggling is not a joyful process but teaching and following is a Joyful one. Provided we are willing to obey, we are assured that our father is happy because the Holy Spirit will not speak of Himself, but of that which He hears the Father say.

Vs 4-6: “In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name, make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. (5) Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things, let this be known to all the world. (6) Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”

In the day when Jesus comes to rescue his people that are left on earth, when that anger of the Lord is turned away, then the people shall sing this song to the Lord.

CONCLUSION
We believers must learn to obey the Holy Spirit that is in us, because He is the life of Christ in us and the living life of Christ in us is our advantage over the unbelievers. And if you are here and have not at any point made that decision to accept Jesus or you have accepted him but have backslidden, you are at a great disadvantage on earth, not only on earth even in eternity. The gift of salvation through Christ Jesus is available for all and you can make that decision today.
We believers (Those that have taken that decision to accept Jesus) have a responsibility to rise for the salvation of others. Jesu said, “I will work the work of him that sent me while it is day, for the night cometh when no man can work”.
And together in that day, we will all sing songs of praise to the Lord.

Contributor: Esther Alajiki

INTRODUCTION
The previous Chapter concludes with a picture of doom and gloom, the nations being levelled, chopped down to bare stumps, with no new growth, no future and no hope due to arrogance and oppression. God’s judgment was going to cut down the nations like the trees of Lebanon and leaving just stumps. But suddenly, in chapter 11, amid that scene of worldwide devastation, with the final destruction of Assyria, this contrasts with the recuperative energy of Israel, which, though equally levelled to the ground (Isaiah 9:18, Isaiah 9:19), it shall spring afresh into life, and birth hope for all.

SECTION 1: The Description of the Coming Messiah
1. A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. Although through the times, David’s lineage seemed to have been cut down to the stumps. God causes a new life, a new branch to come forth in fulfilment of His words. A MESSIAH WILL COME FORTH . 

2. And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him- He is a suitable place or vessel for the Spirit to rest. --The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, (unreproachable leadership), The Spirit of counsel and strength (ability to strategically wage war, overcome sin and deliver victories), The Spirit of knowledge and of the [reverential and obedient] fear of the LORD (intimacy and holiness)—The sevenfold anointing of the Spirit working in Jesus. (Rev 1:4, 3:1, 4:5, 5:6)

3. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, (God is the priority and He desires to please God), And He will not judge by what His eyes see, (He is omniscient.), Nor make decisions by what His ears hear – (he has no need to call witnesses or listen to testimonies, defendant or plaintiff, no need for argument or retrials, evidences or forensics)

4. But with righteousness and justice He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth; (He is the voice for the voiceless, a holy judge, morally upright). And He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. (He is a righteous judge and recompenses all according to their deeds.)
5. And righteousness will be the belt around His loins, And faithfulness the belt around His waist. (There is no injustice or unfaithfulness in Him – John 14:30 (Satan) is coming. And he has no claim on Me, no power over Me nor anything that he can use against Me)

Lesson For Us
As Christ has made us joint heirs with him we need to grow in his knowledge and our intimacy will cause his anointing to work in and through us- 2 Timothy 2:20 – 26.

We must be suitable a place for the spirit to rest. If we do not imitate God with our lives, we will not be able to do exploits for him.

SECTION 2: The Description of the Messiah’s Kingdom 6-9
6. And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatted steer together; And a little child will lead them.
7. And the cow and the bear will graze [together], Their young will lie down together, And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8. And the nursing child will [safely] play over the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den [and not be hurt]. 9. They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea..

All kinds of crises and wars we are seeing now will cease The coming of our Messiah will terminate every evil work have all disappeared because they have been solved by the Messiah. Painted before us was what obtained in the garden of Eden before the fall into sin. When the curse is removed, that situation will be restored by the Lord The earth will then have been freed from the curse that has been placed upon it since man fell into sin. Peace and harmony will return.

The curse between humans and animal will cease, the curse on the ground will cease and it will no longer yield thorns and thistles. (Genesis 3:18 ). The animals no longer at war with each other. Can you picture a 2 year old riding on a lion or sitting on the back of a crocodile or your 6 months old swimming with sharks? No more hurt or pain, the instigator of evil can do no more evil and cause no more destruction, currently the earth as it is suffering as the result of man's rebellion against God. And that is why it is manifestly wrong to blame God for all of the pain and the hurt and the bloodshed and the evil and the hatred that is in the earth today.

Lesson For Us
When we allow the Lord to reign in our lives, we will enjoy the days of heaven on earth, we will enjoy the peace of God, Christ dealt with the curse on the cross. 1 Kings 5:4 But now that the LORD my God has given me rest [from war] on every side, there is neither adversary nor misfortune [confronting me]. We can pray His kingdom to manifest in our lives even now. Jesus has defeated devil and death, he has finished the work of restoration and healing, when we pray His kingdom come, we are praying for harmony, absolute peace, love and joy, no sickness, no disease, no pain, no suffering, so sorrow, no war, no poverty and lack, wickedness, manipulations, adulteries, abortions, fornications, lies, barrenness, murders and envyings – etc. But even if we don’t see it now in the world - its coming is guaranteed.

SECTION 3: The Assignment of The Coming Messiah Verses 10-16
10. Then in that day, The nations will make supplications to the Root of Jesse. Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.- As we are in the last days, we need to preach the gospel more than before, the Gentiles would seek Christ Jesus as their Lord and Saviour, and find rest for their souls 11. Then it will happen on that day that the Lord, Will again acquire with His hand a second time. The remnant of His people, who will remain, From Assyria, from [Lower] Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush (Ethiopia), from Elam [in Persia], from Shinar [Babylonia], from Hamath [in Aram], And from the coastlands bordering the [Mediterranean] Sea. 12. And He will lift up a signal for the nations And ASSEMBLE THE OUTCASTS OF ISRAEL, And will GATHER THE DISPERSED OF JUDAH From the four corners of the earth. - God will gather the remnant of his people, He does not leave any behind. 13. Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, And those who harass Judah will be cut off; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, And Judah will not harass Ephraim – There will be peace and harmony, no more evil operations. 14. Ephraim and Judah will [unite and] swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines toward the west; Together they will plunder the sons (Arabs) of the east. They will possess Edom and Moab, And the sons of Ammon will be subject to them – Children of God will arise and possess their possessions. 15. And the LORD will utterly destroy, The tongue of the Sea of Egypt; And with His scorching wind. He will wave His hand over the River; He will strike and divide it into seven channels And make [it possible for] people [to] walk over in sandals God’s hands of Judgement will be outstretched and he will utterly destroy. 16. And there will be a highway from Assyria for the remnant of His people who will be left, Just as there was for Israel In the day when they came up out of the land of Egypt.

Lesson For Us
God is our hope and help, we must strive to know him personally, He is a loving God, he does not want any destroyed. He wants His children to be at peace and enter into His rest. But we must submit ourselves unto Him, because he will not force Himself upon us. God will put an end to the wickedness of the wicked and make His children triumphant. Isaiah 60: 16-22
The shoot of the Lord will endure for ever- Will you abide in Him.

CONCLUSION
This world will not continue like this for ever, Jesus is coming back. Are we ready for Him? While we await His coming we must be fully occupied as profitable servants. His Spirit is available for us to do His works.
Rev 22: 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time [of their fulfillment] is near. 11Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy (vile, impure), still be filthy; and the one who is righteous (just, upright), still be righteous; and the one who is holy, still be holy. ” 12. Behold, I (Jesus) am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to each one [d]according to the merit of his deeds (earthly works, faithfulness). 13. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End [the Eternal One].” 14.Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) are those who wash their robes [in the blood of Christ by believing and trusting in Him--the righteous who do His commandments], so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city. 15. Outside are the dogs [the godless, the impure, those of low moral character] and the sorcerers [with their intoxicating drugs, and magic arts], and the immoral persons [the perverted, the molesters, and the adulterers], and the murderers, and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying (deception, cheating). 16. “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you and to give you assurance of these things for the churches. I am the Root (the Source, the Life) and the Offspring of David, the radiant and bright Morning Star.” 17. The [Holy] Spirit and the bride (the church, believers) say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take and drink the water of life without cost.