“You are wearied in the length of your way;
yet you did not say, ‘There is no hope.’”
(Isa. 57:10)
No wonder the Jews were exhausted. Life without God is tiresome. The people in the prophet’s time discovered this just as sinners do today. They had turned away from God, running from pleasure to pleasure and searching for fulfillment which cannot be found in sin. Isaiah said they were like “greedy dogs which never have enough” (Isa.56:11). They loved to get drunk and brag, “Tomorrow will be as today, and much more abundant” (Isa. 56:12). They ran from one thrill to another with no conscience toward God. How did this exciting lifestyle make them feel? Exhausted. Their life was like “the troubled sea when it cannot rest” (Isa. 57:20).
The Jew’s religion did not help. In fact, it left them even more fatigued. The Israelites had grown tired of worshipping God and turned to idolatry. God said, “You have been weary of me, O Israel” (Isa. 43:22). THEIR attitude was like that of Jews in Malachi’s day who complained, “Oh, what a weariness” (Mal. 1:13). But the same Jews that Isaiah said were tired of serving God put even more attention and effort into worshipping idols! They wore themselves out going to mountains and valleys and streams, worshipping pagan gods “under every green tree” (Isa. 57:5-9). They were tired of giving the best of their crops and cattle to God, but they ended up sacrificing their own children to an idol. They resented taking the time and making the journey to worship the Lord, but they traveled far and wide to honor pagan gods.
People who have been down this road ought to become tired of feeling tired. You would think they would come to their senses and realize there is no hope in that kind of life. That is what the prodigal son did. He ended up with an empty stomach after having a belly full of pleasure. But he came to his senses (Luke 15:17). That is what any sensible person will do. Even the wise man had to enjoy so much earthly excitement that he became sick of it before he opened his eyes. None of the thrills of this life will fill the void of our soul. “The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing” (Ecc. 1:8). But sin is never sensible, and the Jews in Isaiah’s day would not learn. They knew the road they were traveling was making them tired, but they refused to say, “There is no hope — no future — in the way I am living.”
Do you know someone like this? Jesus tells us how to have rest. “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt. 11:28-29). This is the only way to have real peace.
Kerry
West End Church of Christ bulletin for August 15, 2021
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