For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: Isaiah 63:1-3    

1 Who is this coming from Edom,
    from Bozrah, with his garments stained crimson?
Who is this, robed in splendour,
    striding forward in the greatness of his strength?

‘It is I, proclaiming victory,
    mighty to save.’

2 Why are your garments red,
    like those of one treading the winepress? 3 ‘I have trodden the winepress alone;
    from the nations no one was with me.
I trampled them in my anger
    and trod them down in my wrath;
their blood spattered my garments,
    and I stained all my clothing.

A. Find Out:

1. How is the coming One described? v.1a,b
2. How does he say he is coming? v.1c
3. What does Isaiah ask? v.2
4. What does he say first, he has done? v.3a
5. How does he say he did this? v.3b
6. How did that leave him? v.3c

B. Think:

1. How does the coming one first appear?
2. What does he say he has come to do?
3. What does he say he has done?

C. Comment:

Isaiah (or his watchmen of 62:6) sees a figure coming from Edom. Now Edom was from Esau and Esau was the brother in opposition to Jacob. Edom was symbolically in opposition to the people of God. Now one comes from that direction, coming purposefully and strongly and in garments that are bright and red.

The question naturally springs to Isaiah’s mind, who is this? The person simply replies, “It is I”. This is a bit like the “I AM” of Moses at the burning bush (Ex 3:14). When he says, “It is I” we can take it that this is the Lord! He comes speaking truthfully and announcing salvation – that is reassuring.

But a second question springs to mind, “Why are you all red, like you’ve been in a winepress?” The answer is horrifying in its starkness – it is the blood of those I have destroyed in my judgement!

Within these three verses we see the Lord who is both Saviour and Judgement Bringer! For those who will receive Him He is their Saviour, and He wants to be that for all men (Ezek 18:30-32, 2 Pet 3:9). Yet He will not ignore ongoing, purposeful sin, He will judge it and remove those who do it from His earth. Opportunity will always be given by the Lord to turn away from that sin, but if that opportunity is rejected then the Lord will remove the impurity from His world.

D. Application:

1. Salvation is always the first option.
2. Judgement only comes after constant refusal.

Passage: Isaiah 63:4-6

4 It was for me the day of vengeance;
    the year for me to redeem had come.
5 I looked, but there was no one to help,
    I was appalled that no one gave support;
so my own arm achieved salvation for me,
    and my own wrath sustained me.
6 I trampled the nations in my anger;
    in my wrath I made them drunk
    and poured their blood on the ground.’

A. Find Out:    

1. Why had the Lord acted? v.4
2. Why was the Lord appalled? v.5a
3. So what did He do? v.5b
4. And how was this worked out? v.6

B. Think:

1. What two words stand out in verse 4?
2. What did the Lord obviously expect (v.5)?
3. How would you summarise verse 6?

C. Comment:

In the opening verses of chapter 63 we saw one coming who was covered in blood, one who is clearly the Lord. When questioned by the prophet He explains that He has been bringing judgement on the nations. Today’s verses are just an extension of that.

Why had He done this? Because “the day of vengeance was in my heart”. In other words He had waited and waited and waited until He concluded that no longer could He put it off, NOW He had to act against the rebellious world; no longer could He avoid bringing the judgement the world so clearly deserved.

But it was also a “year of my redemption”, a time when He was going to redeem or restore and create anew His people. The Lord never simply brings judgement because judgement is deserved. He always works in such a way that He brings good out of it, so there will be a continuation of His people.

So the Lord looked to see if there was anyone with a heart who understood and who would work with Him, but (apparently) even His faithful ones were not ready to deal with the world’s unrighteousness, so He had to act alone. He is the Lord and so He alone acted to remove unrighteousness and make space for goodness and hope to rise. God is a God of love who acts carefully and compassionately – even if firmly!

D. Application:

1. Be quite clear, when the Lord brings judgement, it is never hasty and always after frequent warnings.
2. When the Lord brings judgement it is always with a greater end in view, the restoration and continuation of His people.

Passage: Isaiah 63:7-10 

7 I will tell of the kindnesses of the Lord,
    the deeds for which he is to be praised,
    according to all the Lord has done for us –
yes, the many good things
    he has done for Israel,
    according to his compassion and many kindnesses.
8 He said, ‘Surely they are my people,
    children who will be true to me’;
    and so he became their Saviour.
9 In all their distress he too was distressed,
    and the angel of his presence saved them.
In his love and mercy he redeemed them;
    he lifted them up and carried them
    all the days of old.
10 Yet they rebelled
    and grieved his Holy Spirit.
So he turned and became their enemy
    and he himself fought against them.

A. Find Out:

1. What does Isaiah say he will speak about? v.7
2. What had God done and why? v.8
3. How had God empathised with Israel? v.9a
4. So what had he done for them? v.9b,c
5. Yet what had Israel done? v.10a
6. So how had God responded? v.10b

B. Think:

1. How had God shown good intent towards Israel?
2. How had that had a practical outcome?
3. Yet how had they responded?

C. Comment:

To put what went before in perspective, Isaiah now looks back over the whole span of Israel’s history, and how the Lord had related to them. First of all Isaiah is just aware of so many good things that the Lord had done for Israel that his heart filled with praise. God had blessed them abundantly. He remembers back to the days of old (v.9), probably to when they were simply twelve tribes in Egypt. The Lord had looked down on them and felt compassion (v.7) and so became their Saviour (v.8), or deliverer, and so led them out of Egypt and through the desert by His angel (v.9). This had been the greatest act of deliverance in history; this had been a supreme act of God for His new people.

But then they rebelled (v.10). What awful words. God delivered them, God blessed them, God made His presence known to them – and yet they rebelled! How terrible, and yet this is just a picture of the whole human race, and the Sin that pollutes it. Sin means we are in opposition to God, and God is in opposition to us. In the desert, God had to teach His people the awfulness of sin and so they were punished. In subsequent years they learnt that a man reaps what he sows, but they still sinned – this is the awful truth of the human race – that we are tainted with sin and sin makes us stupid! That is why God judges!

D. Application:

1. God is a God of goodness who reaches out and redeems and blesses His chosen ones. Has he done that for you?
2. Sin is naturally stupid. May that not be us.

Passage: Isaiah 63:11-14   

11 Then his people recalled the days of old,
    the days of Moses and his people –
where is he who brought them through the sea,
    with the shepherd of his flock?
Where is he who set
    his Holy Spirit among them,
12 who sent his glorious arm of power
    to be at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters before them,
    to gain for himself everlasting renown,
13 who led them through the depths?
Like a horse in open country,
    they did not stumble;
14 like cattle that go down to the plain,
    they were given rest by the Spirit of the Lord.
This is how you guided your people
    to make for yourself a glorious name.

A. Find Out:

1. Then what was remembered? v.11a
2. What do they remember God doing? v.11b,c
3. What do they then remember God doing? v.12
4. So what did He do with them? v.13
5. What had God done? v.14a
6. What had God done for Himself? v.14b

B. Think:

1. How do these verses open up the previous verses?
2. What is the point of what Isaiah is saying?

C. Comment:

In the previous verses Isaiah was speaking generally about the Lord having been their Saviour, how He had had compassion on them and delivered them. Now he puts flesh and bones on that and takes us back specifically to the Exodus, to the time of Moses, when the Lord miraculously brought them through the Red Sea.

When he asks, “Where is he….?” he is pointing up the fact that God’s miraculous presence was no longer with them. The alternative rendering of verse 11 is “May he recall…”, thus putting all these words before the Lord. He is either reminding himself and the people of what has happened in the past (to flag up the awfulness of what is happening now), or he is calling on the Lord and reminding Him what He did with this people in the past.

Even if he starts with the people, he finishes speaking to the Lord at the end of verse 14, where he reminds the Lord that when He did those things it brought glory to His name. It is as if Isaiah is saying, “Lord what was the point of all that if your name was honoured then? It isn’t honoured now.” That would be the base from which (we’ll see tomorrow) he calls on the Lord to come down and remedy the situation. The Lord always acts true to His character and to His being. He wants people to know Him, to understand His greatness and honour His name, so it will help them live their lives accordingly – righteously and in godliness. That is a good basis for prayer.

D. Application:

1. God is always true to His name. He is holy.
2. When we pray, seek for His honour and glory.

Passage: Isaiah 63:15-19

15 Look down from heaven and see,
    from your lofty throne, holy and glorious.
Where are your zeal and your might?
    Your tenderness and compassion are withheld from us.
16 But you are our Father,
    though Abraham does not know us
    or Israel acknowledge us;
you, Lord, are our Father,
    our Redeemer from of old is your name.
17 Why, Lord, do you make us wander from your ways
    and harden our hearts so we do not revere you?
Return for the sake of your servants,
    the tribes that are your inheritance.
18 For a little while your people possessed your holy place,
    but now our enemies have trampled down your sanctuary.
19 We are yours from of old;
    but you have not ruled over them,
    they have not been called by your name.

A. Find Out:

1. What does Isaiah ask the Lord to do from where? v.15a
2. What does he question Him about? v.15b
3. How does he describe the Lord? v.16
4. What does he ask the Lord? v.17
5. How does he say things have changed? v.18
6. How does he conclude this? v.19

B. Think:

1. How does Isaiah use the past in his plea?
2. How is the present obviously very different?
3. So what is his plea?

C. Comment:

In this passage Isaiah shows us various things about the Lord: First, he rules from heaven, where His holiness and splendour are clearly seen. Second He is a God of compassion and tenderness who has had dealings with Israel, who He has made His own people. Third, He has been as a Father to them, bringing them into being, providing for them and protecting and blessing them. Fourth, He has also been their redeemer, as He bought them from Egypt and made them a people. Fifth, He has stood back from His people and left them to their foolish ways.

In all of this is the underlying theme of Israel being a covenant people of God. They exist because of God, they belong to God. It is entirely on this base that Isaiah pleads with the Lord to look down from heaven and to act. At this stage, Isaiah’s plea is purely that the Lord will look down and see the state of affairs and consider them in the light of the past.

In the next chapter he will cry to the Lord, not merely to look, but to actually come down and change the situation. At the moment he understands that the Lord will not act on behalf of His wayward people unless He sees what is going on and sees it in the light of the whole picture, the whole history of Israel that goes back to the calling of Abraham, the deliverance from Egypt and the creation of a nation at Sinai. In the light of all this, he cries to the Lord to act.

D. Application:

1. God has already acted on our behalf through Jesus.
2. Any plea that we have must be because of this.