by Larry Ferrell | December 16, 2017
Verse I introduces a note of immediacy in contrast to the ‘last days’ perspective which has been dominant in chapter 2. But the two perspectives should not be too sharply distinguished, because, for Isaiah every occasion when the Lord intervenes in judgment is a ‘day of the Lord’ and anticipation (and therefore a warning) of the final one. What is anticipated here is famine caused by siege (v. 1), the removal of the community’s leaders by death or deportation (vv. 2-3), and as a consequence, a complete breakdown of social order (vv. 4-5). It was the Babylonians who would eventually bring this fully to pass more than a hundred years after Isaiah’s death. But Isaiah could already see in his own lifetime the direction in which things were moving. Babylon would finish what Assyria had begun. The final evidence of the collapse of order will be the desperate way the distraught populace will go about trying to reestablish it. The mere possession of a cloak will do as a qualification for leadership if only its owner can be persuaded to take it on. But no-one will be willing (vv. 6-7).

With verse 8 we move from description to explanation. Isaiah begins with the wickedness of the people in general (vv. 8-9), but then traces it back to bad leadership as its root cause (v. 12). Like a skilful cameraman he first pans the turbulent crowd, and then zooms in on those chiefly responsible. The common people are in a sense victims but they have passed the point where their behavior can be excused, for they have become openly defiant and quite brazen in their wickedness (vv. 8-9). The corrupt leaders are tyrants (they oppress the people), but the terms in which they are described suggest that their bad behavior sprang from weakness. They copied the ways of the powerful nations they feared and so ended up being exactly like them. But the general populace is not uniformly evil, and the Lord’s judgment, when it comes, will not be an outburst of unbridled anger. It will be controlled and discriminating, sifting the righteous from the wicked and giving to each what their deeds deserve (vv. 10-11).

In the first twelve verses the Lord has been portrayed as a warrior, now He is portrayed as judge (v. 13). A hush descends as the heavenly court comes to order, for the divine judge has taken His place and the judgment foreshadowed in verses 1-12 is now to be put into effect. Isaiah has singled out the leaders as those chiefly responsible; now they are to be formally indicted by the Lord Himself. Leaders (v. 14) are literally ‘princes’, men closely associated with the court and the royal family. The elders were a wider group representing local communities. The charge brought against them both is oppression of the poor. They used their position to exploit the very ones they should have protected. The divine judge will certainly avenge those who have been so grievously wronged. It’s sobering to reflect that the same high standards of accountability still apply today. Those who lead God’s people are answerable, not just to those they lead, but to the Lord who has entrusted His precious people to them, and it is to Him that they will finally give account for how they behave. We should pray for them daily.

Verse 16-17 consists of an indictment of the women of Zion followed by an announcement of judgment of them. Verses 18-4:1 is an announcement of judgment from beginning to end. The reference to their men in verse 25 suggests that these women of Zion were married. Their husbands must have been rich to deck them out so extravagantly (vv. 18-23).The elders and leaders indicted in verses 14-15 were probably the husbands of these very women. The essential sin of the men was oppression; and that of the women was vanity. But clearly the common factor is ill-gotten wealth. The women have been partners in their husbands’ crimes.

Isaiah 3:1-4:1 Reflection Questions:
What New Testament Scriptures come to mind when studying verses 3:16-4:1?
How did the women and their husbands get their wealth?
Are you a leader of God’s people (a parent, employer, manager, church leader, etc.)? Are you holding yourself to a higher standard? What does that mean to you?

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