The Vineyard of the Beloved (Isaiah 5)

As we read through the verses of this week’s passage from Isaiah chapter 5, some of us might have said to ourselves, “Oh no, judgement... again? Why not a sermon on joy, instead? Week after week, I come to this church and all I hear about is God’s judgement; how God is so angry with our sin! How can I bring my friends to hear such a distressing talk? You are just going to make them feel miserable about themselves!”

If that is you, or if you are a new visitor with us today, let me just say that what we are doing here isn’t so strange. Christians gather each week not in order to praise one another for all the great things we have done. Quite the contrary. We acknowledge all the ways in which we have failed to live our lives for God. I’m talking about the Christians here, not the non-Christians. We, as Christian believers, are confessing to God all the ways in which we have ignored him and let him down - all ways in which we have sinned against God - and we dare to approach this holy, righteous God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Isn’t that what Communion is about? The bread and the cup symbolise the once-for-all substitutionary death of Jesus, who took our punishment of death on the cross. Friends, this isn’t therapy. It’s not simply a way to feel better about ourselves. Rather, the bible is calling us to Get Real: To get real with our sins because there is real forgiveness and there is real restoration at the cross. God takes away all that guilt. God puts your sin - yes, even the ones you are so ashamed of - God puts them all on Jesus, and then God clothes you with his righteousness. God covers you with his love.

Believe it or not, today’s passage is actually about God’s love. It is a passage that teaches us how difficult it is - not for us to love God - but for God to love us. I wonder if you’ve ever thought of that? Maybe you think that God ought to love everyone, that’s his job. Maybe you think God must love you; after all, you are so adorable. But isn’t it true that the people who love you most in your life - your mum, your dad, your spouse, your boyfriend or your girlfriend - are ones whom you have hurt the most in your life? The longer that they have loved you, the more occasions there have been when you’ve broken their hearts. Your loved ones are the people you’ve hurt most precisely because they are your loved ones.

It is no different with God. God looks at our lives and he doesn’t just go, “Aha! I saw that sin. Gotcha!” What this passage teaches us is that God looks upon our sin; God looks at the pride and the boastfulness of our sin; and he says, “Woe!” Six times in this passage, God responds to our sin by saying, “Woe!” The essential scene in any Hong Kong drama serial, is where the main character falls on his knees and cries out, “Tinnn ahhh!!” (Meaning: Why God! or Why Heaven!) It is a cry of frustration; a lament of deep sadness and grief. When God says, “Woe!” he isn’t saying, “All of you are going to be fried papadams!” rather, God is grieving over their sin. God is saying, “Why? Why have you done this?”

Verse 8: Woe to you who add house to house...

Verse 11: Woe to those who rise early... to run after their drinks...

Verse 18: Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit...

Verse 20: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil...

Verse 21: Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes

Verse 22: Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine

Today’s passage invites us to do something quite extraordinary: The bible is inviting us to take God’s view and to share God’s heart. It is inviting us to love the way God loves; but as a consequence of doing so, to be hurt the way God is hurt - by those whom he loves. Isaiah Chapter 5 teaches us four lessons:

1. How God’s love is spurned

2. How God’s grace is taken for granted

3. How God’s word is challenged; and

4. How God’s judgement is much worse than we think

God’s love, God’s grace, God’ word and finally, God’s judgement. Let’s look at Isaiah Chapter 5.

How God’s love is spurned

Isaiah begins with a love song. He picks up his guitar and begins to sing.

I will sing for the one I love

a song about his vineyard:

My loved one had a vineyard

on a fertile hillside.

It is a song about a farmer who gets down on his hands and knees and digs up the stones, clears the ground and plants a garden. It is hard, back-breaking work - but the farmer spares no effort or expense. He builds a watchtower and winepress - these were huge structures, one for protection, the other, for production. What he was building was a vineyard; he was growing grapes to make wine. It would have taken at least two years before any sign of a harvest, but when the first vines began to mature, the end of verse 2 tells us, “it yielded only bad fruit.” Literally, stinky grapes.

The story doesn’t end there. Isaiah turns to his friends and asks, “What more could I have done?”

What more could have been done for my vineyard

than I have done for it?

When I looked for good grapes,

why did it only yield bad?

Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard:

I will take away its hedge,

and it will be destroyed.

Isaiah 5:4

“Erm, OK,” some of us are thinking, “That’s a bit extreme - tearing the whole place up over a few sour grapes.” That wasn’t what Isaiah’s friends would have said though. To build a vineyard of this scale would have been like pouring your life savings into a business venture only to have it fail completely. But even that doesn’t capture the emotional anguish of Isaiah’s song. This farmer went the extra mile. His vineyard was a labour of love. When we read that the farmer tears down the walls, leaving the plants exposed to the elements and uncared for, some of us might go, “It’s just plants. What’s the big deal?” But try telling the third-year London Met student from China that his degree is just a piece of paper and that “It’s no big deal.” He will say to you, “You are talking about my life.” Or tell the employee who has just been made redundant, “It’s nothing personal.” And they say, “What of the years I’ve given to this company? How can you say, it’s nothing personal?”

But as you’ve probably already guessed, Isaiah’s song isn’t about money or investments or plants. It’s about people. You can understand, can’t you, what it feels like when a person lets you down; when another human being spurns your generosity and love?

The vineyard of the Lord Almighty

is the house of Israel,

and the men of Judah

are the garden of his delight.

And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed;

for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.

Isaiah 5:7

We get that Isaiah is talking about people. Some of us are even smart enough to note that God is addressing a specific group of people - the house of Israel and men of Judah - meaning, men and women who have grown up knowing God and worshipping God all their lives. But many of us miss the fruit. We don’t ask, “What is God really looking for in my life?” We don’t ask, “What is the fruit?” or I suspect, we misunderstand what fruitfulness means. It’s not being successful. It’s not trying your best. It’s not even being good and well-behaved.

What is God looking for? In a word, it’s justice. “And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness but heard cries of distress.” (The Hebrew word qavah means to “expectantly wait for”, not simply to look at. It is the same word used of the grapes back in verses 2 and 4) God was waiting for his people to grow in righteousness and justice, but what this teaches us - and this is vitally important - is that righteousness and justice are a response to God’s love. Why is this important? When Christians live according to God’s ways, it is never to earn his love, but as a response to his love.

Or put it another way, when you have been married for a while, and you know that your husband likes Big Macs, and you make a trip specially to get a Big Mac for him, do you know what you are doing? You are seeking the good of your “Beloved,” as corny as it sounds, that’s what you are doing. You just to please him. That is what the bible means by righteousness and justice. It is acting in such a way as to reflect God’s righteousness in order just to please God, to acknowledge the goodness of his love. (The Hebrew word tzedekah means acting rightly in relationship to another person)

Conversely, sin is a personal rejection of God’s love. The New Testament says, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him.” (Romans 1:21) One of the reasons why we find it hard to sing hymns praising God for who he is is because there is something in us that just doesn’t want to owe anyone anything. Not our parents. Not our teachers. Not even God. The same passage from Romans says that every person on the planet has a sense of God as creator and sustainer, “people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

But Isaiah is saying something even more significant than that. He is speaking to those of us who have known God’s love personally and intimately. We’ve grown up hearing about him. He has intervened in our lives again and again. Even with all these personal testimonies of God’s goodness, our hearts still turn against God. We spurn his love. Isaiah Chapter 5 isn’t a condemnation of the pagan unbeliever. No, it’s for you who have grown up here in the Chinese Church all these years, but have never given any serious thought to what it means to know this God. Our familiarity with God has bred a contempt for him, such that when we do sin, it’s something personal between us and God. When we do sin, we are displaying our stinky grapes with pride.

How God’s grace is taken for granted

The second lesson we learn from this passage is how God’s grace is taken for granted. Here, Isaiah describes the peculiar condition of the man who is so hungry for success but ends up in solitude.

Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field

till no space is left and you live alone in the land.

Isaiah 5:8

Here is a man who is hungry, who is passionate, who is ambitious. Here is a man who concentrates all his efforts in life on feeding his own hunger and appetite yet the irony of the whole thing is this: he is never satisfied. He always needs more.

Woe to those who rise early in the morning

to run after their drinks,

who stay up at night

till they are inflamed with wine.

Isaiah 5:11

Here is a word of application to those beginning their first year at university: Just because you can does not mean you should. Just because you can stay up all night to party; just because you are old enough to drink yourself under the table; just because no one is going to tell you who you should or should not hook up with, does not mean that you should.

Just in case you think I’m picking on those who like to go clubbing on the weekends, let me just say that this applies just as much to the hardworking student. Remember that Isaiah also speaks the ambitious man: The man who adds field to field, house to house is not unlike the student who climbs from degree to degree in the effort of separating himself from the lower classes. As a businessman, you must drive a businessman’s car. As a professor, you must sit with other professors in the dining hall. As a Cambridge student, you might go to a church that has other Cambridge students (and certainly not Anglia Ruskin students). Now I’ve heard every excuse under the sun, including the ones that go, “But I’m trying to reach other undergrads/ businessman/ academics with the gospel.” Yet in the very churches/workplaces/dormitories/housing these individuals are in, they sit alone, by themselves, away from everyone else. The reason? They are simply passing through. The are biding their time till they can graduate onto the next even more exclusive level.

Does that describe you and your life situation? You are always seeking yet never satisfied. You are always clamouring for more yet you are never quite content with what you have. Friends, heed the warning of the prophet Isaiah: God’s judgement on such selfishness is the promise of emptiness. Your mansions will become museums, your businesses will be bankrupt (verses 9 and 10). The very things you have worked so hard for will become worthless. And that’s just for starters.

Isaiah wasn’t speaking figuratively. In fact, things get pretty specific from verse 13 onwards - especially in reference to the exile. Two hundred years later, Nebuchadnezzar invaded Jerusalem and transported all its officials and noblemen back to Babylon (it’s where we get the account of Daniel).

Therefore my people will go into exile

for lack of understanding;

those of high rank will die of hunger

and the common people will be parched with thirst.

Isaiah 5:13

Eventually, God promises his people in exile, that he would bring them home. But there is none of that here. Here in Isaiah Chapter 5, there is only judgement and it’s there for a reason.

But the LORD Almighty will be exalted by his justice,

and the holy God will show himself holy by his righteousness.

Isaiah 5:16

This is saying something very important about God’s judgement and it’s this: God has every right to judge. “The LORD Almighty will be exalted by his justice.” Do you know what this is saying? God will be praised for his judgement, not inspite of it. He will be exalted. Why? Because it is the right response, it is the appropriate response - it is the only justifiable response - from a holy and righteous God. If he is God, he must punish sin. If God is a holy God, he must punish sinful men and women.

Now notice the same pair of words - justice and righteousness - as we met earlier on in verse 7. Back there, God was looking for our justice; God was patiently seeking our righteousness. Here in verse 16, we see his. What is this passage saying? When we do not respond to God’s love with the fruit of righteousness and justice, God will respond to our sin with his righteousness and his justice.

How God’s word is challenged

Despite these sober words of warning, there are always those who will question God’s judgement. The way they do that is by challenging his word. “The plan of the Holy One of Israel, let it approach... so we may know it.” They were challenging God to put into action all that he has spoken in his word.

Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit,

and wickedness as with cart ropes,

to those who say, “Let God hurry;

let him hasten his work

so we may see it.

The plan of the Holy One of Israel

let it approach, let it come into view,

so we may know it.”

Isaiah 5:18-19

After all, for Isaiah’s friends, all they kept hearing were words, words and more words. Where was this judgement he spoke of? “Let me see it, then I’ll believe.”

Isaiah was an odd fellow by our modern standards. He didn’t go up to his friends and say, “God loves you and has a plan for your life.” Nope, he said, “God hates your sin and will one day punish you for your sin.” If Isaiah turned up in the Chinese Church today, none of us would want to sit next to him, much less, ask him to help out at Sunday School (though I wonder if the kids would love having him as their teacher!) Why? Well, because this guy is just too extreme! He is insensitive and plain disrespectful!

But more than anything, I suspect the one reason why we read these words of Isaiah and get all hot and bothered under the collar is because he keeps talking about one thing over and over again: judgement. And while I do understand how important it is to be clear and loving when talking about God’s judgement here in the church, and when evangelising our friends and family, I want to also caution us from denying God’s judgement altogether. Because, you see, that’s what Isaiah’s friends were doing. They began by denying God’s judgement. And before long, they were denying God’s word altogether.

Woe to those who call evil good

and good evil,

who put darkness for light

and light for darkness,

who put bitter for sweet

and sweet for bitter.

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes

and clever in their own sight.

Isaiah 5:20-21

For a document that was written 2800 years ago, Isaiah describes a way of looking at life that is dominant in today’s thinking: postmodernism. Here were individuals reacting to Isaiah’s claims of judgement by rejecting God’s word altogether as objective truth. Good becomes evil. Evil becomes good. Who is to say which is which? This is all the more surprising, if you remember that Isaiah was talking to God-fearing Jews. They knew God, they knew the bible, yet in their cleverness, they twisted God’s word to suit their own lives and to justify their sinful lifestyles.

Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine

and champions at mixing drinks,

who acquit (or justify) the guilty for a bribe,

but deny justice to the innocent (or take righteousness from the righteous).

Isaiah 5:22-23

Their motives were far from intellectual. These friends of Isaiah didn’t stumble into some new form of thinking that challenged all previous presuppositions about the bible which then caused their faith to come crashing down into pieces, resulting in their abandoning God and becoming free-thinking atheists. No, the reason was simply sin. They wanted to justify a lifestyle that wouldn’t condemn them. They wanted to do what they wanted to do without feeling guilty or worrying about the consequences. The wanted to to be heroes at drinking wine, champions at mixing drinks - alcohol was their calling. More interestingly, these same individuals justify (masdiqe = make righteous) the guilty and take the righteousness (wesidqat) from the righteous (saddiqim).

We’re back to the theme of righteousness. Previously God looked for our righteousness but found only wickedness. Then God responded with his own righteousness, which meant judgement over our sin. But here, something peculiar happens. The men and women of Isaiah’s day heard the warnings of God’s word and decided to redefine their whole understanding of righteousness altogether. They weren’t content with being innocent. They wanted to be right in doing wrong. They made the guilty righteous and they denied justice to the innocent. More than denying God’s judgement, the people of Jerusalem were distorting God’s word. And the reason for this was not intellectual doubt, it never is. It is sin and the desire to be justified in our sinfulness.

Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw

and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,

so their roots will decay

and their flowers blow away like dust;

for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty

and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Isaiah 5:24

The section ends with God raising his hand in judgement against his people with a terrifying picture of death on the streets of Jerusalem (verse 25). You would think that that would be awful enough, but no. The very next verse reads:

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,

his hand is still upraised.

Isaiah 5:26

There something worse than death, this verse seems to be saying to us. There is something more fundamental to God’s judgement than the horrible end to our physical existence. Which brings us to our final section: How God’s judgement is worse than we think.

How God’s judgement is much worse than we think

He lifts up a banner for the distant nations,

he whistles for those at the ends of the earth.

Here they come,

swiftly and speedily!

Isaiah 5:26

What follows is a picture of relentless destruction without a trace of mercy at the hands of Jerusalem’s enemies. God calls the armies of the enemy nations to utterly decimate the city. “Not one of them grows tired or stumbles,” meaning, there is no possibility of delay. “Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung,” meaning these are soldiers and executioners, not peacemakers and politicians. “They growl as they seize their prey, and carry it off with no one to rescue.” These invading forces pounce upon they prey hell-bent on destruction, but here is the shocking revelation: they are merely doing God’s will. He whistles for them, and the nations answer his call. They carry out his execution.

There is something more fundamental to God’s final judgement than death and it is this: God removes all traces of his blessing and presence. We see this in the closing words to the prophecy which draw our attention to the state of the land.

And if one looks at the land,

there is only darkness and distress;

even the sun will be darkened by clouds.

Isaiah 5:30

What we see here is the reversal of creation and total removal of God’s blessing upon the land. Even light is replaced with darkness. What this is saying is: God would no longer have anything to do with this place. This land would be utterly forsaken.

Do you know that the New Testament writers, in describing the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, include the curious description of the sky turning dark. Except they didn’t just say that sky turned dark, or that the clouds covered the sunlight. No, what they say is this: “Darkness came over the land.” And do you know what were the immediate words of Jesus right after that description? Do you know what Mark, Matthew and Luke recorded Jesus as saying, immediately following the darkness?

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Friends, Jesus Christ didn’t simply just die on the cross. Death wasn’t enough. Do you know the bible is saying happened to Jesus on the cross? God the Father forsook his son. He removed all traces of his presence, his blessing, his love from the One being he truly loved from all eternity.

That is what it took for God to forgive your sin and my sin. God poured out all of his anger and punishment on Jesus. All that happened to Jesus before was nothing compared to this; whether it was the rejection of the crowds, the mocking of the soldiers, even the nails driven through his hands and feet. There was something which Jesus knew - and I dare say, even feared - worse than abuse, humiliation and even death itself. It was being forsaken by God the Father, but that was precisely what happened on the cross.

The story is told of a group of prisoners gathering for a bible study. (Gives new meaning to the phrase “cell group.”) The question was asked: Who killed Jesus? Some said, “Pilate.” Others said, “The crowd. They killed Jesus.” One man, who had been silent throughout the discussion, kept his head bowed down. “I did,” he answered solemnly. “I killed Jesus.” But friends, looking back at what we learned today, the bible is saying that the real answer is not Pilate, it’s not the crowd, it’s not even our sin - for all the punishment we deserve for our sin. On the cross, God killed Jesus. God condemned his own Son to take the penalty of our death on our behalf.

Why? As a display of his own love for us.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

What does this mean for us? We’ll review the four lessons we learned from this passage - but in reverse order, looking at God’s judgement, God’s word, God’s grace and finally God’s love.

Firstly, God’s judgement. We see it part in these horrible pictures of destruction in Isaiah’s prophecy. But there is a place where we see it even clearer - and that’s the cross. On the cross, Jesus Christ took the full wrath and punishment for sin - which included death, but was more than death. It was complete separation from God, the author of life.

Secondly, God’s word. Part of our aversion to the whole topic of judgement stems from our denial of God’s word. Something like this really shouldn’t surprise you, if you have been reading your bibles.

Thirdly, God’s grace; and the lesson is simply this: Don’t take it for granted. Paul writes to the Corinthians says, “We urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.” (2 Corinthians 6:1) Paul was talking to Christians who knew the gospel, who had heard the gospel again and again, and he said to them, “I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” Meaning, don’t waste time. Respond to God’s offer of forgiveness in Jesus. Today.

Finally, God’s love. And the reminder for us as Christians is: nothing can ever separate us from God’s love through Jesus Christ - not even death. He who did not spare his own Son - but gave him up for us all - how will he not also, along with him give us all things. That is a wonderful promise, isn’t it? In Jesus, there is no more condemnation. And because of the cross of Jesus, there nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the fullness of God’s perfect love.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35-39

City of Righteousness (Isaiah 1)

City of God

The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

Isaiah 1:1

Isaiah: We begin a new series on the book of Isaiah the prophet. Isaiah served under the reign of four kings, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, during which he spoke on behalf of God, through visions that were given to him (the word “vision,” can also mean insight). Hence, at times we will find Isaiah speaking from his perspective as a prophet of God (eg verse 2a, “Hear O heavens... for the LORD has spoken”), but we also find God speaking directly to his people, (verse 2b, “I reared children... I brought them up.”)

The City: Interestingly, while Isaiah serves under the kings of Judah, while he is addressing the people of God, again and again, what we find is Isaiah preaching against the city of Jerusalem. Furthermore, God equates the condition of the city they live in with the condition of their hearts. It is almost as if one is a reflection of the other.

Fifteen years ago, when I was studying here in Cambridge, only one of my Engineering classmates was from mainland China. Back then, we had Cho Mee, the famous Asian provision shop along Mill Road, but it was half its size. There was but one authentic Chinese restaurant along Regent Street - Charlie Chan. Today, mainland Chinese students comprise the largest number of internationals in the university, almost 900 undergraduates and postgraduates, and Regent Street has J, Seven Days and Yim Wah restaurants, not forgetting the two HK Fusions in the city centre. Cho Mee has not only expanded to double its former size, but now faces stiff competition from new Japanese and Chinese provision shops that have sprung up all around town. It is not uncommon to see posters printed in Chinese on some High Street shop windows. Even the banks have begun employing managers speaking fluent Mandarin to serve their new customer base.

The city is a reflection of its people. But Isaiah is saying something more. Here in Chapter 1, God’s judgement upon the city is reflection of his judgement upon his people’s hearts. This was Jerusalem, the city of God. God calls Jerusalem, the Faithful City. He calls it the City of Righteousness (verse 26). This was the city of God’s chosen king. This was the city of God’s chosen place of worship, the temple with its priests and sacrifices. But the reality was, this was a city that had turned its back against God. And as Isaiah speaks to them as God’s chosen people, he says to them, “Look at your city. Look at what it has become. Then look at your own hearts and see how you have rebelled against your God.”

I want us to see that Isaiah says three things in this opening chapter:

1. Remember your past rebellion

2. Repent of your present worship

3. Be redeemed from God’s future judgement

Past rebellion; present worship, and God’s future judgement.

1. Past rebellion

The first thing we see is Israel’s past rebellion where God speaks as a dad who isn’t acknowledged by his own children.

Hear, O heavens! Listen, O earth!

For the LORD has spoken:
“I reared children and brought them up,
but they have rebelled against me.
The ox knows his master,
the donkey his owner’s manger,
but Israel does not know,
my people do not understand.”

Isaiah 1:2-3

Now it is very surprising that God should refer to Israel as his children (verse 3), because right from the beginning of the first verse, we already read that this was a prophecy against Judah and Jerusalem. The kingdom of Israel had been split into two - the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom. They were two separate kingdoms. They had two separate kings. Isaiah was a prophet of the southern kingdom of Judah, and the rest of the chapter focus on Jerusalem, the capital of the southern kingdom of Judah. Now, the question is - and it is very important that we get this - Why does God refer to Israel - to both kingdoms?

The reason is: God is reminding his people of their long history of rejecting him. This isn’t a one-off occasion when they did something unintentional that offended him. When Isaiah begins in verse 2 by calling the heavens and the earth - the whole universe - to bear witness on what has happened in Israel, he is echoing the words of the prophet Moses. This was before there was a kingdom, before there was even the Promised Land. Moses said to Israel in the desert, “I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him.” (Deuteronomy 30:19) Moses was calling heaven and earth as witnesses to a wedding ceremony; he was spelling out the vows between God and Israel. Isaiah repeats these words to remind Israel of the very promises they had forgotten; the vows which they had broken.

Isaiah’s point was this: Right from the beginning, ever since the time of Moses, Israel has been rebelling against God. Ever since God saved them from Egypt, they continued to reject him. Ever since God gave them the land, they continued to rebel against him. This is not something new.

And friends this is true of our lives as well. We tend to think of sin as slip-ups. Oops, I did it again. We think of sin as occasions when we did something really bad. But here God looks upon our sin as our continuous attitude of rejection towards him. Sin is present in every single thing that we do. We don’t acknowledge him. We don’t thank him. “The ox knows his master, the donkey knows his owner’s manger.” Even animals understand gratitude.

Ah, sinful nation,

a people loaded with guilt,

a brood of evildoers,

children given to corruption!

They have forsaken the LORD;

they have spurned the Holy One of Israel

and turned their backs on him.

Isaiah 1:4

A pastor once spoke to me with a heavy heart about a family he was counselling. The children had repeatedly rebelled against their mum growing up under her care, and had now abandoned her in her old age. And he kept saying to me, “How could they do this? How could they do this?” He was deeply shocked by their sin. I said to him, “If we know God and his word to us about our hearts, we should never be too surprised by sin. God isn’t.” God looks upon your life and my life and God sees rebellious children. He sees ungrateful sons and daughters. It doesn’t mean that he is indifferent. God laments over Israel as a dad with a broken heart. He continues to call his people back to him. But one thing God isn’t is caught off-guard. Heaven and earth - the whole universe - bears witness to our actions, our thoughts and our rebellion against him as our God. And God says to us, “You know this, too, from your own life experience. You ought to understand how your actions have consequences.”

Why should you be beaten any more?
Why do you persist in rebellion?

Your whole head is injured,

your whole heart afflicted.

From the sole of your foot to the top of your head

there is no soundness -

only wounds and bruises and open sores,

not cleansed or bandaged

or soothed with oil.

Isaiah 1:5-6

If you could imagine someone with wounds and bruises and sores all over his body, you would think that that person was in pain. You would think that such a person would know that he needs help. But the point is, we are blind to our sin. God is saying, “Isn’t it obvious to you by now, that your rebellion is destroying you from the inside out?” Your whole head is injured, your whole heart is afflicted. Both inside and outside, our experience of God’s judgement over our sin ought to be enough of a wake-up call. And yet, we persist. Jesus once said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick,” (Luke 5:31) then adding, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:32) We don’t delay treating pain; we reach for some aspirin or we see our GP, yet when it comes to our sin, we ignore that it’s there, we deny it in the face of judgement, even in the light of the revelation of God’s word.

Here, God speaks to us, one-on-one, “Why do you persist in rebellion? Your whole head is injured. Your whole heart afflicted.” But next, God moves on to the nation as a whole.

Your country is desolate,

your cities burned with fire;

your fields are being stripped by foreigners right before you,

laid waste as when overthrown by strangers.

The Daughter of Zion is left

like a shelter in a vineyard,

like a hut in a field of melons,

like a city under seige.

Unless the LORD Almighty (or the LORD of hosts)

had left us some survivors,

we would become like Sodom,

we would have been like Gomorrah.

Isaiah 1:7-9

The experts debate as to which attack on Jerusalem (the Daughter of Zion) Isaiah is actually referring to, as the city was invaded several times in 735BC by Syria, in 701BC by Assyria (under King Sennacherib) and in 586BC by Babylon (under King Nebuchadnezzar, in which case, Isaiah was foretelling this event). Personally, I think that Isaiah wrote this chapter early in his career as a prophet and as a young man, referring to one of the attacks either by Assyria or Syria. Having said that, the description given in these verses is that of Jerusalem’s spiritual, not its physical, state. In the same way that when God says that we are covered with sores and bruises from our head to our feet, we are not to imagine everyone in the city looking like the cast of an apocalyptic zombie movie, so here, the shelter in the vineyard, the hut in the field of melons (or cucumbers, in the ESV, images of temporary shelters that have become permanent homes, akin to living in your parents garage) and the city under seige are all images of the spiritual condition of Jerusalem.

The point is, they were a pale shadow of what they ought to be. God had promised them a land “flowing with milk and honey,” (Exodus 3:8) and it needs to be said, that if you turned up in Jerusalem then as a tourist, they would have proudly showed you the sights - the temple of God, the palace of the King, the olive groves and vineyards, the busy city streets. And yet, God looked at this city and saw a broken down hut. This was a city that had been attacked again and again - by invaders and outsiders, yes - but the fact that God is described in verse 9 as “The LORD of hosts,” means it was God who sent these invaders to destroy Jerusalem. “The LORD of hosts” simply means the God of armies. Again and again, throughout this nation’s history, God had sent wake-up call after wake-up call, to turn them from their rebellion, yet in their blindness, they refused to acknowledge their sin, and in their stubbornness they refused to acknowledge their sin.

To recap, the first thing that Isaiah draws our attention to is Israel’s past history. This was a people chosen by God. This was a people saved by God. Yet like rebellious children, this was a city that had turned their backs on God. Not only were they blind to God’s love, they were stubborn in the face of God’s judgement. “Why should you be beaten anymore?” God says to the individual. “Your cities were burned with fire,” God addresses the nation. Again and again, God sends judgement in response to their sin. But next, we see that again and again, God sends them something else: He sends them his word.

2. Present worship

Hear the word of the LORD,

you rulers of Sodom;

listen to the law of our God,

you people of Gomorrah!

Isaiah 1:10

If you remember the story of Lot in Genesis (and if you don’t, you can look it up in Genesis Chapter 19), Sodom and Gomorrah were cities completely destroyed by fire from heaven for their wickedness. God is saying to his people, “You guys are like Sodom.” He says to Jerusalem, “Your city is no different from Gomorrah,” in terms of their wickedness and rebellion; in terms of the judgement that they were in danger of facing. The only reason Jerusalem was still around is because of the mercy of God. “Unless the LORD Almighty had left us some survivors, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah.” (Isaiah 1:9)

But Isaiah takes it one step further. He says, “Listen to God’s word. Listen to God’s law.” The word for law that he uses is Torah. This was the special word referring to the Law of Moses. This was the sacred writings of the history of their nation. On top of all that, this was the instruction that God gave Moses for proper worship at the temple. You see, when Isaiah says, “Listen to God’s word,” he didn’t mean, “Make sure you pay attention during the sermon.” No, he was referring to their worship. He is saying to us, “You know the songs you were just singing? You know the Lord’s Supper you just had at the combined service? You know the offering you just took? Well, were you then, listening to God’s word? Were you worshipping according to God’s word?”

“The multitude of your sacrifices -

what are they to me?” says the LORD.

“I have more than enough of burnt offerings,

of rams and the fat of fattened animals;

I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.

When you come to appear before me,

who has asked this of you,

this trampling of my courts?

Stop bringing meaningless offerings!

Your incense is detestable to me.

New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations -

I cannot bear your evil assemblies.

Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts

my soul hates.

They have become a burden to me;

I am weary of bearing them.

Isaiah 1:11-14

Earlier on, God was calling us to repent of our sin. Most of us expect to hear something like that. “Turn away from evil. Turn away from destruction.” That makes sense. That is what we usually understand by repentance. But do you see what is happening here? God is calling us to turn away from - to repent of - our empty worship.

He isn’t talking about idolatry. These “multitude of sacrifices”, “the blood of bulls and lambs and goats”, were all part of instructions given to Moses. Their worship programmes were spot on. Similarly, the instructions for the “New moon festivals” and “appointed feasts” can all be found in the book of the law recorded in Exodus. Not unlike our Mid-Autumn festival, these were big celebrations at harvest time to give thanks to God; to acknowledge him as our provider. God was not talking about idolatry. Their worship services were exactly in accordance with his instructions. Exactly according to his word in the Torah.

And yet, God says, “Stop bringing meaningless offerings!” He says to the guy who puts the money into the offering bag, the priest who slaughters the animal, the lady who is preparing the meal for that big celebration feast, the musician who is accompanying the singing of the Psalms on his guitar - he says to all of these worshippers in his temple in Jerusalem, “You guys are phonies!” Why? Because it is one big cover-up, that’s why.

Be careful of using worship as a cover-up. Be careful of using worship programmes, church programmes and Christian ministry as a cover-up for not dealing with our sinfulness and repentance; because friends, that is what they did in Isaiah’s day; and I wonder, if that isn’t what we tend to do today. We pour all our energies into making sure the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration takes place without a hitch; we pour all attention into our worship programmes; we put all our money into external forms that we can see, that we can touch - the building, the materials, the website; and at the end of the day everything looks good, the accounts are balanced, people have a good time, everyone has had the chance to worship - but God says, “You guys need to stop this rubbish.” Why? Because it’s a cover-up. We don’t want to deal with our sin. Because it is embarrassing to stand up in front of the whole church and call for repentance from our sin. Because it is much easier to have fellowship meetings - with food, fun, activities - than it is to sit down in front of God’s word and hear him say to you, “Your whole head is injured, your whole heart is afflicted” That is offensive. No-one wants to hear that.

And just in case, some of us are going, “What we really need to do is pray about it,” which I know is a very common response amongst us here at the Chinese Church, just have a look at what God says next about our prayer.

When you spread out your hands in prayer,

I will hide my eyes from you;

even if you offer many prayers,

I will not listen.

Your hands are full of blood;

Isaiah 1:15

Some people will say the solution is, “Just pray. God will hear you. God hears every one of our prayers.” This verse teaches us that simply isn’t true. Not just here, by the way; Peter reminds husbands to be considerate towards their wives so that their prayers are not hindered (1 Peter 3:7). Paul wants men to lift up “holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing” (1 Timothy 2:8, remembering how Jesus said, “Leave your gift at the altar, and first get things sorted with your brother who has something against you,” Matthew 5:24). And James says God does not answer our prayers which are asked for selfish gain. He even calls us adulterers! (James 4:3-4)

But even compared to all these references, I find this one the most shocking. God says to the guy lifting up his hands in full-on worship and reverence, “I’m not even going to look at you.” Why? God says to this worshipper, “Your hands are full of blood,” by which, God isn’t saying that this guy is a murderer. This man has blood on his hands not simply due to something evil he has done, but from neglecting the good that he ought to have done. God is actually rebuking the worshipper for his inaction.

Wash and make yourselves clean.

Take your evil deeds out of my sight!

Stop doing wrong,

learn to do right!

Seek justice,

encourage the oppressed.

Defend the cause of the fatherless,

plead the case of the widow.

Isaiah 1:16-17

This was a city that was vibrant in its worship but neglectful of the weak. This was a church obsessed with programmes yet blatantly ignoring the poor.

What about us? In a place like Cambridge, it is all too easy to focus on student ministry, on reaching the top scholars from China, on setting up cafes for the thousands of internationals that pass through the city. Everyone wants to plant a church in Cambridge. Each year, we get pastors, missionaries, church planters, visiting speakers, theology students, all wanting to start something new, something significant right here in Cambridge. But it is always some new ministry amongst Cambridge University students (as opposed to Anglia Ruskin). It always has to be in the city center; never in Arbury or Fulbourn or Chesterton. It is rarely ever amongst the sixth formers (with the excuse that they are so young, there are so many of them, and it would just be too tiring). It is never with the locals; it always has to be with the mainland Chinese. Why not the Germans and the Americans (who outnumber the mainland Chinese students, by the way?) Why not the significantly older population living right here in our city?

God says to worshipper, “Seek justice. Defend the fatherless and the widow.” Why? Because they’re weak? Yes. Because they need our help, the most? Yes, in part. But also because God is their God (Psalm 68:5). God is the God of the weak. God is the God of the marginalised. He is the God of the fatherless. He is the God of the widow, and he defends their cause; he upholds their needs. When Jesus came, he chose to hang out with the weak and despised members of society. The middle-class religious teachers couldn’t understand this, “Why does he eat with ‘sinners’?” they asked his disciples. Jesus responds, quoting the prophet Hosea when he said, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’” (Matthew 9:13) Much more than worship and performance, God wants us to learn to be generous. To be gracious. He wants our mercy, not our sacrifice.

“Come now, let us reason together,”

says the LORD.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson,

they shall be like wool.

If you are willing and obedient,

you will eat the best from the land;

but if you resist and rebel,

you will be devoured by the sword.”

For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Isaiah 1:18-20

“Think about what you’re doing,” God says to the worshipper. “Come to your senses.” The reason why the worshipper is so zealous in his prayers and offerings is because he knows there is something amiss in his life; something that needs to be covered-up, namely his sin and rebellion. Yet, God is saying, it is not your worship that makes up for your sin. it is not even the blood of the bulls and goats that take the penalty for your sin. All these sacrifices are but pointers to a greater reality; a greater sacrifice; a greater offering.

“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” There is a solution that will wipe the slate clean; spotlessly clean. And yes, God dares to promise abundant blessing on top of this final solution, “You will eat the best from the land.” What is this solution? He doesn’t tell us! Well, at least not yet. We meet God’s solution only in the final section of this chapter. For now, God is calling for repentance. Turn away from your rebellion. Turn away from God’s impending judgement and submit to the authority of his word. “For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

To recap, God is calling for repentance - repentance not from evil, but repentance from empty, worthless worship. They got all the externals right. They had all their church programmes up and running, but it was all a cover-up, a denial of the true condition of their hearts. Inside, they still rebelled against God. Outwardly, they neglected their responsibility to care for their weaker brothers and sisters. What God was looking for was justice. What God was seeking was righteousness. And as we shall see next, God is looking for righteousness in this city, this city of Jerusalem, a city that God promised he would one day redeem, that would one day be called the City of Righteousness and Faithfulness.

3. Future judgement

See how the faithful city

has become a harlot!

She once was full of justice;

righteousness used to dwell in her -

but now murderers!

Your silver has become dross,

your choice wine is diluted with water.

Your rulers are rebels,

companions of thieves;

they all love bribes

and chase after gifts.

They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;

the widow’s case does not come before them.

Isaiah 1:21-23

Two important words in Hebrew are often translated “righteousness” (tzedeqah) and “justice” (mishpat) and they both occur in verse 21 to describe Jerusalem as a city full of “justice,” (mishpat) where “righteousness” (tzedeqah) dwells. In English, they both mean the same thing. Indeed, in the New Testament, both words are interchangeable (especially in the book of Romans). However, they each take on a different emphasis and flavour in the Old Testament.

Mishpat refers to right action, often in the context of the punishment for crimes, whereas tzedeqah refers to a right relationship, within a society, within the family, or even with God. Hence, mishpat is often translated “justice”, which has the more familiar meaning of doing the right thing, acting in accordance with the rules, being fair when tasked with a heavy responsibility, such as executing just punishment for crimes. The second word, however, tzedeqah, is often overlooked. Translated as “righteousness,” tzedeqah is not be confused with being morally good. No, this is rightness in relating to those around you. Hence, there ought to be a rightness of dealing with the fatherless and the widows, not simply because it is the right thing to do, but because it is the generous thing to do when relating to those who are weaker than you. God is righteous in this sense and he wants the people of this city to act in accordance with the same generosity and grace of their God.

Jerusalem was once the faithful city, characterised by both justice and righteousness. But now, the faithful city has become a home for murderers. Its rulers have become rebels. Instead of defending the weak, instead of seeking justice, its leaders have chased after bribes and gifts. At first glance, this looks very much like what God said to the worshipper back in verse 16, “Stop doing wrong... Seek justice!” only scaled-up to include the entire city of Jerusalem. Except that here, God takes action. God will do something about the injustice in this city.

Therefore the Lord, the LORD Almighty (or the LORD of hosts, ESV),

the Mighty One of Israel, declares:

“Ah, I will get relief from my foes

and avenge myself on my enemies.

I will turn my hand against you;

I will thoroughly purge away your dross

and remove all your impurities.

I will restore your judges as in days of old,

and your counsellors as at the beginning.

Afterwards you will be called

the City of Righteousness,

the Faithful City.”

Isaiah 1:24-26

How will God deal with the injustice in this city? How will God restore Jerusalem as the City of Righteousness? The answer is quite surprising. God will bring judgement upon his enemies, that’s how. Notice that the enemies in question are not the nations who have attacked Jerusalem, but the leaders of Jerusalem herself. “Ah, I will get relief from my foes and avenge myself on my enemies. I will turn my hand against you. (meaning Jerusalem!)” (verses 24,25) But notice as well, that this judgement isn’t simply punishment on those whom God hates, it is an essential part of God’s redemption for the people he loves. As verse 27 goes on to tell us, the city and its people will be redeemed with justice and righteousness.

Zion will be redeemed with justice,

her penitent ones with righteousness.

But rebels and sinners will both be broken,

and those who forsake the LORD will perish.

Isaiah 1:27-28

My ESV study bible goes to great lengths to explain that “redeemed” in verse 27 means “saved” or “rescued,” but not “ransomed”. That is, God is promising a great transformation in the city, as long as the people Jerusalem respond with “justice” and “righteousness.” I think I have to respectfully disagree. If I understand correctly why the experts have gone with the meaning of “rescued” instead of “ransomed,” they are being responsibly cautious about reading too much into the Isaiah’s prophecy. Only later in Isaiah Chapter 40 onwards, does the concept of ransom feature more prominently as a payment for rescue.

I suspect, however, that “justice” (mishpat) and “righteousness” (tzedeqah) in verse 27 is speaking not of Jerusalem’s response, but of God’s, and follows from the long list of actions that God himself will take in verse 24 to 26 (“I will avenge myself; I will restore..”). If so, the redemption that occurs in verse 27 is also an action of God’s by which God will rescue the city through a display of his righteousness; of God’s justice. In this sense, I think that Isaiah is prophesying a ransom - a payment that God makes - in order to secure the salvation of his people. It is a payment that on the one hand, is foreshadowed by the blood sacrifices offered up in worship by the worshippers at the temple, that is, it is costly; but on the other hand, it is a payment that results in the full display of God’s justice and God’s righteousness.

In this sense then, the book of Isaiah is to the Old Testament what the book of Romans is to the New. It unfolds for us the meaning of God's righteousness. In Romans Chapter 3, the apostle Paul spells out the full impact of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, not in terms of sacrifice, not even in terms of love, but more fully in terms of God’s justice and righteousness made known.

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes by faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished - he did it to demonstrates his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

Romans 3:21-26

God will save his people through one act of redemption that will simultaneously display his righteousness as a holy and just God. That is what he did on the cross; because on the cross, Jesus’ death proved two important qualities about God’s righteousness, that is his mishpat (justice) and his tzedeqah (righteousness). God’s justice (mishpat) was fulfilled when he poured out his anger and punishment on Jesus. And God’s righteousness (tzedeqah) was displayed in forgiving sinners on the basis of their faith in Christ alone.

Yet, Isaiah’s prophecy does not end here, as much as I wish it did. If we reject God’s salvation and continue to rebel against his rule, God soberly warns us: There is nothing left for us except the certainty of his final judgement.

“You will be ashamed because of your sacred oaks

in which you have delighted;

you will be disgraced because of the gardens that you have chosen.

You will be like an oak with fading leaves,

like a garden without water.

The mighty man will become tinder

and his work a spark;

both will burn together,

with no-one to quench the fire.”

Isaiah 1:29-31

The passage ends with idolatry; and honestly, I find this a bit puzzling. The “sacred oaks” and “gardens” in which the people of Zion have delighted themselves, is a reference to pagan worship (The Greek Septuagint “idols” in place of "oaks"). Yet, aren’t these the same worshippers we met earlier, offering sacrifices, celebrating New Moon feasts, lifting up their hands in prayer at God’s holy temple in Jerusalem? Which are they - worshippers of God or worshippers of pagan idols? Or are they both? Some experts suggest that these verses reveal how God’s people have compromised themselves in their worship. On Sunday, the Christian turns up at the Chinese Church to serve on the worship team, to serve tea, to help with Sunday School; but on Mondays to Saturdays, he visits temples, burns joss-sticks and bows down to idols. Hear what God says to you, “You will be ashamed. You will be disgraced.”

Curiouser still is the last description of the mighty man. “The mighty man will become tinder, and his work a spark; both will burn together.” Perhaps you wouldn’t call yourself a Christian. You hear these words condemning the hypocrisy of empty worship and you say to yourself, “Amen, preach it, Isaiah!” Perhaps, you’re saying to yourself, “I’m glad I’m not caught up in this whole business of religion. I don’t believe there’s a God, therefore, I’m safe. Phew!” What these closing verses teach us is: We all worship something. All of us are worshippers of something, of someone. Either we worship God, or we worship idols. Or like this last man - the mighty man - we worship our own achievements. In other words, here is a man trying to save himself. He trusts in his might. His works are the basis of his righteousness. No, God says to you, Your work is the very spark for your condemnation. The man who trusts in nothing else but himself, has no-one else to help him put out the fire.

Isaiah Chapter 1 ends with a choice: between God’s justice and God’s final judgement. Either Zion is redeemed with justice, and those repentant within her are saved through righteousness. Or those who continue to rebel against God are left to face his final punishment. But in the end, when the chips are down, all of us, are trusting in something to save us. Every single one of us have placed our faith in someone or something to justify our worth, to define our identity, to prove our existence. The question is: Do you know what it is you are ultimately trusting in?

Some of us would be quick to answer that our faith is in God; I think the city-dwellers of Jerusalem in Isaiah’s day would have said the same. Yet to them, God says, “Stop your meaningless sacrifices.” Are you trusting in your worship, or in the one you are worshipping? Your hands might be lifted up to heaven, but is your heart hardened against the one who is enthroned in heaven? Jesus once told the Samaritan woman, “You worship what you do not know.” Do you know whom you are worshipping? He said to her, “The hour is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father is Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23) That hour that Jesus spoke of was the hour of his death on the cross (John 12:23) - the hour of his glory. Only through Jesus’ sacrifice are we able to enter into God’s presence. Only through his death are our sins made whiter than snow.

But what of the rest of us; what is your ultimate faith in? Could it be that your confidence is in your strength? Oh, I don’t mean your physical strength, though some of us might think we can swim faster than Michael Phelps and run further than Jessica Ennis. No, what I mean is, are you trusting in your moral record? Are you trusting in your goodness? Are you trusting in your work ethic? Are you trusting in your ministry here at the Chinese Church? “The mighty man will become tinder,” God says, and his work? A spark. Your faith in yourself, in your strength, in your goodness - it will let you down. And the day will come when God will destroy both.

To those who trust in him, and him alone, God promises something better than a world record. He offers us a spotlessly clean record, on which he inscribes all the achievements of his Son. He takes all the medals that Jesus won through his obedience and he places it on us. We become Zion, the City of Righteousness. That is exactly what takes place on the cross - a great exchange. On the cross, Jesus Christ takes our debt and exchanges it with his wealth. On the cross, he takes our sin and exchanges it with his righteousness.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Corinthians 5:21

“Come now, let us reason together,”

says the LORD.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson,

they shall be like wool.

Priestly ipods and holy underpants (Exodus 28)

Have Aaron your brother brought to you from among the Israelites, along with his sons Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, so they may serve me as priests. Make sacred garments for your brother Aaron to give him dignity and honour.

Exodus 28:1-2

What do your clothes say about you?

This week, as thousands of students process down King’s Parade and gather in front of Senate House, they will be smartly dressed in formal attire and robed in black gowns trimmed with white fur. Their attire says that they have come to the end of their academic journey, having earned a degree from the prestigious Cambridge University.

From the t-shirt clad, backward baseball cap wearing, Nike-sneaker sporting teenager; to the Moss Brothers pin-striped suited up executive; what we wear speaks volumes about our background, our tastes, our income, our profession and even our favourite football team.

So here in Chapter 28, God gives specific instructions to make a suit. Yet not just any suit. It is one of a kind, to be worn by one man, whose most important task is to enter God’s presence once every year. This is the suit of the High Priest.

Dressing the part

Tell all the skilled men to whom I have given wisdom in such matters that they are to make garments for Aaron, for his consecration, so he may serve me as priest. These are the garments they are to make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a woven tunic, a turban and a sash. They are to make these sacred garments for your brother Aaron and his sons, so they may serve me as priests. Have them use gold, and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and fine linen.
Exodus 28:3-5

These were the best materials in the hands of their most skilled craftsmen. Don’t get me wrong. There is theological significance here. But throughout these chapters, which essentially form an instruction manual for worship given by God - for the construction of the Tabernacle, the altar, the courtyard and here, the priestly clothing - God says to Moses, “You have to get your best and most talented guys working on this project.” This isn’t Ikea. The instructions may be brief, but they are exact. Every minute detail has to been observed. But more than that, it has to be handled with care and with skill. “Tell all the skilled men to whom I have given wisdom in such matters.” God is saying that the skills you have are given you by God; they are given you to worship God.

God is essentially describing worship as something that has to be engaging; something that is beautiful.

The priestly iPod... I mean, ePhod

Make the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen—the work of a skilled craftsman. It is to have two shoulder pieces attached to two of its corners, so it can be fastened. Its skillfully woven waistband is to be like it—of one piece with the ephod and made with gold, and with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and with finely twisted linen.
Exodus 28:6-8

The ephod was - for want of a better description - a very ornate-looking apron. What is interesting about the ephod was the materials used; notice how it repeatedly says to use “blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of fine twisted linen”. Aside from being very expensive materials (blue and purple were the most costly of dyes in the ancient world), these were the exact materials used in the construction of the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle (Exodus 26:1, 31). The Most Holy Place was the most restricted place in all of Israel. It symbolised the very throne room of God in heaven. No one - absolutely no one - entered the Most Holy Place, except the High Priest, and even so, only once a year to offer sacrifices on behalf of the nation. Yet when the Israelites saw the High Priest dressed in the ephod, they got a glimpse of what it meant to enter into God’s presence.

In this way, the High Priest represented God to the people. His clothing symbolised a glimpse into the presence of God. And yet the High Priest’s job was also to represent Israel to God. We see this next in the two stones - kinda like headphones that go with your iPod; the ePhod had two onyx stones, one on each shoulder.

“Take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel in the order of their birth—six names on one stone and the remaining six on the other. Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a gem cutter engraves a seal. Then mount the stones in gold filigree settings and fasten them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. Aaron is to bear the names on his shoulders as a memorial before the LORD. Make gold filigree settings and two braided chains of pure gold, like a rope, and attach the chains to the settings.

Exodus 28:9-13

Verse 12 calls them “memorial” stones. The names of the twelve sons of Israel were engraved on them. In way, they reminded Aaron, the high priest, he was an ambassador. When he walked into God’s presence, he was representing the whole nation, as he performed his duties of sacrifice and offering.

Yet looking closely at verse 12, Aaron bears these stones as “a memorial before the LORD”. Meaning God looks at Aaron and what does he see? Israel. He sees this one man, and God sees all men. He sees the names of the sons of of the man he gave his promise to - Israel; the promise of descendants and land and blessing (Genesis 28:13-15).

Decked out in bling

“Fashion a breastpiece for making decisions—the work of a skilled craftsman. Make it like the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. It is to be square—a span long and a span wide—and folded double. Then mount four rows of precious stones on it. In the first row there shall be a ruby, a topaz and a beryl; in the second row a turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald; in the third row a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst; in the fourth row a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. Mount them in gold filigree settings. There are to be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.

Exodus 28:15-21

Verse 15 we find two words you would never associate with guys: “fashion” and “breastpiece”. I mean, this guy was decked out in bling! This time, not simply with gold, blue and purple cloths - but jewels like ruby, topaz and beryl.

Yet there was substance to this style. Like the two black onyx stones on his shoulders - these twelve stones represented the twelve tribes of Israel. These were precious valuable stones signifying how valuable Israel was in God’s eyes. In fact, we find the same stones listed at the very end of the bible in the book of Revelation. Describing the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of God, John the apostle writes of the twelve foundations of the city walls:

The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.

Revelation 21:19-20

Furthermore, these stones had function. The King James version called this the “breastplate of judgement”. Now that sounds a bit more manly!

“Whenever Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breastpiece of decision as a continuing memorial before the LORD. Also put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastpiece, so they may be over Aaron’s heart whenever he enters the presence of the LORD. Thus Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the LORD.

Exodus 28:29-30

How the Urim and Thummim worked we’re not sure. We don’t even know what they looked like. But what we know for sure is they were means of discerning God’s will. We find King Saul using this in 1 Samuel 14, to enquire of God’s verdict on a judgement he has to make. The context there seems to imply something similar to casting lots. Others infer from the twelve stones of the breastpiece and root word of the Hebrew for Urim, meaning “light”, that there God’s will was indicated through the luminance and reflection of these stones (I wonder if it’s a bit like traffic lights that lit up!)

The point is verse 30. Aaron has the means of making a judgement on behalf of the people. It was a judgement before God and it was a judgement from God. Israel was to seek God’s guidance and submit to God’s sovereign will.

The bells are ringing

The gold bells and the pomegranates are to alternate around the hem of the robe. Aaron must wear it when he ministers. The sound of the bells will be heard when he enters the Holy Place before the LORD and when he comes out, so that he will not die.

Exodus 28:34-35

This is the bit Aaron would have paid special attention to. Yeah, yeah, it’s about some silly sounding bells. Ding-a-ling-aling, haha, very funny! But not so funny for Aaron the high priest. If these bells don’t ding-a-ling, he’s dead!

The reason is holiness. God is holy. The bells are heard when the high priest enters the Holy Place. The bells are heard when he exits the Holy Place. One is for God’s benefit - like a doorbell. The other is for the people of Israel. It means their offerings have been accepted. Their sins have been forgiven.

Because as the passage goes on to tell us, as the high priest enters God’s presence, this one man bears the sin and guilt of the entire nation of Israel.

“Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD. Fasten a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban. It will be on Aaron’s forehead, and he will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites consecrate, whatever their gifts may be. It will be on Aaron’s forehead continually so that they will be acceptable to the LORD.

Exodus 28:36-38

Not only was God holy, Israel was to be holy. Holy simply means separate, or set apart. When I set aside the nice plates for guests (ie. the exact same plates as all the rest, except that these aren’t chipped on the side) - these plates are holy. They are separated from the rest of the plates.

Israel was holy to the Lord. Meaning: they were set apart to God. They were not to seek after other gods. They were not to serve idols. They were exclusive to God.

And yet what this passage makes very clear is that Israel was unholy. They were guilty of sin. They were sinners before a holy God, fully deserving of God’s righteous judgement of death. Aaron’s job as high priest  - in wearing the gold plate on his turban, in offering the gifts and sacrifices in the Holy Place, in entering into God’s presence - was to bear their guilt.

Aaron was Israel. That’s the point of the stones and clothes and sacrifices. When he entered the Holy Place, Israel entered God’s presence. As Israel was unholy and sinful, so Aaron would bear their sin.

And as God accepted the sacrifices and offerings of Aaron, this one man, this high priest; so God would accept Israel, the nation and people he represented.

His was a dangerous job. Forsaking any of the instructions meant death. His was an important job. Once a year, according to Leviticus 16, he offered the sacrifice on behalf of the entire nation. Acceptance of this sacrifice - this true worship - meant forgiveness for the whole nation.

So the question is: Why don’t we do this today? Should pastors dress in ephods, turbans and put on a golden breastplate?

Before we answer that, let’s look at the last piece of holy clothing instructed by God. The underwear.

Holy underpants

Make linen undergarments as a covering for the body, reaching from the waist to the thigh. Aaron and his sons must wear them whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting or approach the altar to minister in the Holy Place, so that they will not incur guilt and die.

Exodus 28:42-43

What does this tell us (aside from perhaps the origin of white underwear - why not brown or yellow?). It tells us that the priests themselves were guilty.

You see, Aaron and his sons were not chosen because they were less holy than anyone else. They were just as guilty and just as sinful. Yet as high priest, Aaron would bear the guilt of everyone else. His sacrifices in the Most Holy Place made them acceptable.

But verses 42 and 43 remind that he himself needs to be acceptable. Down to the undergarments, Aaron and his sons were clothed to cover their guilt. They were accepted not because of who they were of what they did. No, they were accepted by God because God had provided a way to cover their guilt with his righteousness.

So today as Christians, we do not wear turbans and ephods because we know that these are mere shadows pointing forward to a better covering. We cover ourselves with the righteousness and sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

By ourselves, we are sinners deserving death. We turn our backs to God and reject him as God over our lives. But God covers over our sin with the righteousness of Jesus, just like a suit or jacket. Such that when he sees us, he sees Jesus. In Jesus we become “Holy to the LORD”.

Our true high priest

John’s gospel records the final moments leading up to the death of Jesus in a way that is peculiar to the other gospels. He tells us what Jesus wore.

Jesus was handed over to the soldiers to be tortured. But more than that, they wanted to humiliate Jesus. So they put a crown of thorns on his head, a robe on his shoulders, and bowed down to him calling Jesus the King of the Jews. But John adds one more detail. He tells us that the robe was purple. Now, to the guards and to the average reader - we read of the purple robe and think of a king. But to the Jewish reader who knows his history, and who has read Exodus 28, he knows that John is talking about the high priest.

Later, as Jesus hung on the cross, the scene turns to the soldiers again, dividing up the spoils of Jesus’ clothes. But the most precious clothing they resort to casting lots over is Jesus’ undergarment.

Now, John spend time detailing this event; telling us about the robe then the undergarment. Why? Because what we see here at the crucifixion is the disrobing of the true high priest. Jesus is stripped of these articles of clothing - clothing that was symbolic of the righteousness of the high priest - such that when he hung on the cross, he was naked and exposed. There he bore our nakedness. On the cross he took our shame.

Speaking about Jesus, the book of Hebrews says this:

Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.

Hebrews 7:26-28

Jesus is the true high priest. A truly sinless man who enters God’s presence bearing the guilt of the world. And through his nakedness and from his death, our sins are forgiven and our guilt is covered.

As Romans 13:14 says to us as Christians, we “clothe (ourselves) with the Lord Jesus Christ”.

What do your clothes say about you?

For Christians covered in the righteousness of Jesus, it says we are loved; we have been forgiven; it says we are holy to the Lord.

You placed a crown of grace on my head

You covered me in robes of righteousness

Forever I will always be Yours, Jesus

Father, thank You for Your Spirit’s work in me

For opening my eyes to the Christ of Calvary

Jesus, You gave Your life in exchange for mine

Now I will live for You who died, Jesus
(From “Who made me to know you” by Sovereign Grace)