Isaiah 12: God is my salvation Despite God’s judgement and wrath, He is a just God and a merciful God. As a father gets angry with his child, disciplines him, corrects him, and gives him a hug, so God does this perfectly with us. If a parent never disciplines his children, their disobedience continues to grow and the further they get lost in darkness. May we thank God for the rod he gives to us when we drift away from him. God uses the times when we are low to bring us closer to him. It’s especially in times of despair and sorrow that we finally give ourselves over to him. May we find our trust and salvation in God. Also, may we not forget him during the good times. “Make known his deeds among the peoples and proclaim that his name is exalted.” Work in me Lord, your Holy Spirit, that I may devote my life to serving You both in times of trials and times of plenty.

Isaiah 11: The Spirit of Jehovah and the peaceful Kingdom The spirit of the Jehovah, Wisdom and understanding, Counsel and might, Knowledge and the fear of Jehovah, When we read in the New Testament of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples and believers, these attributes are what is given. May we also pray for these. Wisdom to make good decisions. Might and boldness to stand up for what is right. Knowledge of God’s law and his scriptures and application to our daily life. Christ, the Branch of Jesse, was the perfect example of this. Life won’t be easy fearing God, but the reward will be greater than anything we can imagine. The new heavens and earth will be the ultimate peace. I vividly remember my daughter when she was about 3 years old playing at the edge of a lake. As I was watching her, I noticed a small water snake in the grass next to her and warned her about it. She calmly looked at the snake, shrugged her shoulders and replied, “he’s not bothering me.” She continued to play her toys while the snake slithered passed her back into the water. It was a small glimpse of what the new world will be like where there’s no fighting, harm or sin. Just perfect collaboration and peace among people all worshipping God under the perfect rule of Christ. So much time and energy is wasted to combat sin in this world. How little our time and energy is spent praising God. Small local communities working together under the same goal of worshipping God can accomplish much. Imagine the whole world working together without sin! May the Spirit of Jehovah be upon our lives during this pilgrimage and may we yearn for the day of Christ second coming.

Isaiah 10: Pride will be punished The leaders in Israel (735 BC) were making unjust laws and depriving the poor of their rights. God uses Assyria as His tool to punish Israel for their wickedness. God’s power is sovereign. Entire nations are his tools for carrying out his plan. Assyria boasts in themselves for being able to destroy and conquer nations. But God says “Shall the axe boast over him who hews with it?” Isaiah prophesies God’s judgement on Assyria and, sure enough, the Assyrian army is decimated with a “mysterious” plague and then Babylon and Media destroy Ninevah in 612 BC. The sin of pride is not something God takes lightly. The devil himself fell because of pride. Perhaps it can be argued that all our sins are founded on pride. The outright direct defiance of God and saying to His face, “I’m better than you,” will be punished by an angry God. After all this destruction, a faithful remnant will return who finally put their trust in God rather than national alliances. Today this is still the case. This world is filled with destruction, corruption, and arrogance. But God will preserve His small remnant for the new heavens and Earth. Stay humble and trust in God.

Isaiah 9: The new Heavens and Earth Despite the darkness all around, God shines his light through Jesus Christ. How hopeless and meaningless would life be without a greater purpose! What is this greater purpose though? Is it to make this world a better place expecting Christ’s second coming to redeem it? No, Christ said many times his kingdom is a spiritual one, not of this world. The new heavens and earth will be the place with no war and no sin. A place with productive citizens and with a common goal of serving God. And Christ will be the Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace. Until Christ’s second coming, God will continue bringing his judgement on the wicked. Nations will turn on each other. Similar to Israel and Judah, nations will be divided from within. “Through the wrath of Jehovah of hosts the land is scorched, and the people are like fuel for the fire; no one spares another. They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry, and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied; each devours the flesh of his own arm.” Isaiah 9:19&20 Opt out of this dog-eat-dog world we live in. Get off the treadmill of consumerism. The pleasures of this world only lead to darkness and despair. Look to the eternal kingdom and store your treasures there. True joy comes from serving God with all your heart, mind, and soul and love your neighbor as yourself.

Isaiah 8: Doom and Gloom? Throughout history, nations rise and fall but Jehovah’s perfect plan is constant. When things are going well and my nation is at peace, life starts to get comfortable. My human nature turns me away from God and makes me think I’m doing this by myself. Many in Judah and Isreal turned away from God and did not believe the prophecies of Isaiah. But after these prophecies came true and the Assyrians came and the Babylonians came, God’s people would then remember the words of Isaiah. During the extremely difficult life of being captive or being attacked is when we turn to God for help. God uses these events to discipline his people. I’m convinced America also will come to its end, and perhaps fairly soon. Maybe attacked by another nation. Maybe it’ll implode from within by a civil war. And not just America but any nation today. The whole world is fragile. There’s plenty of conspiracies out there but as Isaiah says in verses 12 & 13, “do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But Jehovah of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” Why waste my time and energy trying to predict the future and be ahead of others with understanding of the political events throughout the world. So I can invest money better? So I can prove to others how smart and in-the-times I am? I must simply wait for Jehovah and put my hope in him. Of course, not wandering through life aimlessly and idly, but focusing on important efforts. Serving others, raising my family in God’s word, and working diligently at the work God gave me to do. Those who turn to their own understanding “will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness.” Lord, let your face shine upon me and be gracious to me. Lift up your countenance upon me and give me peace.

Isaiah 7: Where do I turn? When I am in fear or trouble, where do I turn? Having an engineering mindset, I typically buckle down, learn, and formulate my own solutions. Or I think how I could avoid the problem all together and deal with it a later day. I actually have a pretty high risk tolerance for being an engineer. Over and over again, the kings of Judah turn to their own understanding to their and their nation’s demise. Each time they turn to God in prayer and ask the prophets what God’s will is, God answers them. After turning to God, the struggles and hardships I face are merely smoldering stubs of firewood in the grand scheme of things. These struggles are temporary compared to eternity. “But God doesn’t answer my prayers,” I complain. He doesn’t talk through prophets like he used to. After 10 minutes of reading the Word, I realize He does talk back. Christ is the sign from God – “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” How much more of a sign do I need to believe and trust in Him? What more could God do to make this so obvious for me? In retrospect, seeing the kings of Judah ignoring God makes me cringe because the answers and solutions are so obvious. As I reflect on my own past, I realize how my decisions did not include first turning to God in prayer. “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.”

Isaiah 6: Perspective Am I one that hears but does not understand? Do I see but not perceive? Or will I turn to Jehovah, be healed, and understand with my heart? All the little stresses that build up in this life. Constant fighting against not enough time in each day. Frustrations and anger arising from perceived injustices around me. The unsatisfactory desire to want others to like me more. The countless distractions of meaningless things to pop up all day long. All of this is vanity when standing before the presence of the thrice Holy God. Am I focusing on what is truly important each day, each hour? Am I asking myself “does this bring God glory or am I being selfish and putting myself before God’s will?” Isaiah describes his vision with God in Isaiah 6 to help us put life into perspective. Standing before the presence of God wiped from his mind all the meaningless things in life. His sins were displayed like blood on a sheep’s wool. How great God is and how sinful we are. My sins will be atoned for through Christ, but that doesn’t excuse me from living a transformed life. May God give me the strength and grace to do so!

Isaiah 5: God is just in His Judgement Isaiah 5 presents a prophetic message through the metaphor of a vineyard, where God (the vineyard owner) has lovingly planted and cared for His people (Judah and Israel), expecting a harvest of justice and righteousness. Instead, the vineyard produces "wild grapes"—symbolizing corruption, injustice, and moral decay. The chapter lists six "woes" against specific sins, culminating in a pronouncement of judgment: the vineyard will be left unprotected, overgrown, and destroyed by invaders. This serves as a divine indictment of Judah's failure to live up to God's covenant, with themes of social injustice, greed, and ethical inversion. Key Sins in Judah from Isaiah 5 Greed and economic exploitation (v. 8-10): People "join house to house" and "add field to field," displacing the poor and consolidating wealth, leading to failed harvests and economic ruin. Hedonism and excess (v. 11-12, 22): Pursuit of drunkenness and parties, ignoring God's works and the needs of others. Deception and prolonging sin (v. 18-19): People "draw iniquity with cords of falsehood," mocking God's patience and daring Him to act. Moral relativism (v. 20): Calling "evil good and good evil," inverting truth and light for darkness. Arrogance and self-wisdom (v. 21): Being "wise in their own eyes" and clever without regard for divine wisdom. Corruption in justice (v. 23): Acquitting the guilty for bribes while denying justice to the innocent. These sins reflect a society that has turned from God's standards, prioritizing personal gain over equity and holiness, inviting inevitable downfall. I know I can apply this chapter to myself and ask for God’s grace to fight these sins in my own life. But there also seems to be a strong correlation to the state of America right now. The consolidating of wealth (specifically agriculture), the hedonism, the outright bold rejection of God, the agendas for proclaiming sodomy and abortion are good, AI being smarter than God, and the list continues. Will God raise the signal for nations far away to come like roaring lions and bring destruction to our land? Perhaps not. But if so, God, of course, would be just and right in bringing this judgement.

Isaiah 4: Refuge in the Branch of the LORD When God’s people are humbled, brought low, and in despair—like Jerusalem in the wake of judgment (Isaiah 4:1)—God reveals His grace and love. Time and again, He warns us not to trust in things, others, or ourselves, yet I often cling to my own ways. When life unravels, I see my mistake and turn to the “beautiful and glorious Branch of the Lord” (Isaiah 4:2), the Messiah who restores and redeems. How long will I stubbornly try to work myself out of the pit I’ve dug? How many times will I turn to distractions or substance abuse before recognizing the harm they cause me and those I love? Must I fall as low as Jerusalem, desolate and broken, before seeking God’s restoration? Yet God offers hope. He promises to “wash away the filth” of sin and cleanse His people through His refining spirit (Isaiah 4:4). Like the cloud by day and fire by night that guided Israel, God’s presence is my shelter through life’s spiritual storms (Isaiah 4:5–6). He calls me to turn from sin and live as part of His holy remnant, devoted to Him. Lord, Jehovah, be my cloud by day and fire by night. Cleanse my heart of sin and guide me to trust in You alone. May Your spirit work in me, making me holy and devoted to serving You all my days.

Isaiah 3: Accepting Responsibility with the Grace of God Isaiah 3 delivers a sobering message of God’s judgment on Judah’s sin. God declares He will remove the nation’s leaders, leaving “boys” and “children” to rule (Isaiah 3:4). Chaos follows: the young disrespect their elders, and society crumbles without godly leadership. In desperation, people beg anyone—even those barely qualified—to lead, but no one wants the burden, knowing the situation is dire and their own inadequacy (Isaiah 3:6-7). The people might blame their government or circumstances, but God points to their own sin: “It is you who have devoured the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses” (Isaiah 3:14). Their rebellion and injustice have brought this collapse. It’s tempting to read Isaiah 3 and point fingers at the wickedness in our nation today. But corruption begins in the heart—in my heart, in my home. Am I leading my family with strength and godliness, trusting in God’s guidance? Or am I distracted by worldly pursuits, idling away my time, and neglecting my responsibility to raise my children and love my wife well? Isaiah also condemns the “daughters of Zion” for their obsession with appearances—jewelry, fine clothes, and accessories (Isaiah 3:16-24). Their pride in materialism reflects a deeper spiritual problem. Do I fall into the same trap? Are my kids caught up in the toys we own, the clothes my wife wears, or the car I drive? Do I secretly think I’m better than others because of my accomplishments or possessions? God’s judgment in Isaiah 3 calls us to humility. We must take responsibility for our roles—at home, in our communities, and before God. Only by His grace can we lead faithfully, reject materialism, and prioritize what matters eternally. “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God” (1 Peter 5:6), trusting Him to guide and restore.