Isaiah 46:8 through 10
(All Scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated)
I find the picture above both humorous and blasphemous! In it, God is considering the world He has created (see Genesis 1:1–2:2), as the human inhabitants (whom He also created – see Genesis 1:26-28) wreak havoc on the earth! I enlarged the theme-associated picture more than usual so you could better see the human hands depicted and the destruction they are causing on the earth!
- One hand is raking the ocean! This seems to stand for the pollution of waters of the world by man’s negligence, making them unfit for both sea creatures and human beings!
- Another hand is leaving scars across the land!
➔ This could represent the destruction of the earth’s
landmass and the life thereon by...
■ ...war resulting in human displacement, death
and injury!
■ ...famine and disease!
■ ...destructive environmental practices!
■ ...drugs and alcohol abuse and misuse!
■ ...human trafficing and slavery!
■ ...chemical polution from industrial practices,
farming mismanagement, negligent land fills...
…and so much more!
➔ But this hand seems to be attached to mechanical gears.
So perhaps it depicts the ruination of earth by the in-
dustrial revolution over the last two hundred plus years!
- There are three hands pulling down on a rope or cable. This might represent tearing down society in order to build a ‘new and better’ one!
- Finally, the earth seems to be melting! Is this a representation of ‘global warming’?
And as God watches all this, He seems to be musing, “Why did I create all this mess? I think it was a BIG MISTAKE! ”
This is not a representation of the God of the Bible! The title of this Gem is “And It Occurred to God…”
NOTHING HAS EVER ‘OCCURRED’ TO GOD!
For if something had occurred to God, it would mean that He had just thought of something that He had not known before! Consider what it says in our featured Scripture, Isaiah 46:9 and 10:
Remember this, and show yourselves men; remember the former
things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God,
and there is none like Me; declaring the end from the begin-
ning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done,
saying, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My plea-
sure.”
There are many other Scriptures that give evidence to His omniscience (meaning God is all-knowing)! Here are but a few:
- I Kings 8:39 – “…give to everyone according to all his ways…for You, only You, know the hearts of all the sons of men.”
- Psalm 139:1 through 4:
O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my
sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought
afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and
are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word
on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
- Psalm 147:4 and 5 – “He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.”
- Matthew 10:30 – “…the very hairs of your head are all numbered.”
- John 2:24 and 25 – “…Jesus…knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.”
- Hebrews 4:13 – “…there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”
- I John 3:20 – “…God…knows all things.”
Now, as they say, “Here’s the kicker…:” When we apply the Lord God’s omniscience to our lives, where does that leave us?
- Concerning the one who has accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior, and have submitted in obedience to Him as their Lord (and I will speak from my own experience)…
✞ God knows me totally! I quoted Psalm 139:1 through 4
above. Now I will share these four verses from the
Good News Bible, and add more of what David wrote:
LORD, You have examined me and you know me. You
know everything I do; from far away you under-
stand all my thoughts. You see me, whether I am
working or resting; You know all my actions.
Even before I speak, You already know what I
will say. You are all around me on every side;
You protect me with Your power....You created
every part of me; you put me together in my
mother's womb. I praise you because you are to
be feared; all you do is strange and wonderful.
I know it with all my heart. When my bones were
being formed, carefully put together in my mo-
ther's womb, when I was growing there in secret,
you knew that I was there — you saw me before I
was born. The days allotted to me had all been
recorded in your book, before any of them ever
began....Examine me, O God, and know my mind;
test me, and discover my thoughts. Find out if
there is any evil in me and guide me in the ever-
lasting way. (Psalm 139:1 through 5, 13 through
16, and 23 & 24).
✞ One of my favorite Scriptures is Ephesians 1:6:
“...to the praise of the glory of His grace, by
which He [the Father] has made us accepted in the
Beloved [the Son].” Accepted in the Beloved! God
knows me totally – my love for Him as well as all
my sins, faults, and foibles. He also totally
accepts me in and through His Son Jesus, as much
as the Father accepts the Son! Praise His holy
name!
✞ Also, according to what...
➔ ...Jesus said in John 6:37 – “All that
the Father gives Me will come to Me, and
the one who comes to Me I will by no means
cast out.”
➔ ...Paul wrote in Philippians 1:6 – “...
being confident of this very thing, that
He who has begun a good work in you will
complete it until the day of Jesus Christ
....”
➔ ...is written in Hebrews 7:25 – “...He
[Jesus] is also able to save to the utter-
most those who come to God through Him,
since He ever lives to make intercession
for them.”
✞ Jesus often referred to those who followed Him as
sheep, and He as the Good Shepherd (see John 10:1-16).
In verses 27 through 31 of John chapter 10, Jesus told
the unbelieving Jews:
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and
they follow Me. And I give them eternal life,
and they shall never perish; neither shall
anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father,
who has given them to Me, is greater than all;
and no one is able to snatch them out of My
Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.
Christians (true Christians)
are eternally safe in Him!
- But what of those who have not committed their life to Him? Woe unto them if unto death they remain in their sins!
✞ For God knows exactly what is in their hearts and
minds – as well as what is lived out in their lives!
✡ Isaiah is the Old Testament prophet who uses this
‘Woe’ phrase the most:
➔ Isaiah 3:11 and 12 – “Woe to the wicked! It
shall be ill with him, for the reward of his
hands shall be given him.”
➔ Isaiah 5:11 and 12 – “Woe to those who rise
early in the morning, that they may follow
intoxicating drink....But they do not regard
the work of the LORD, not consider the oper-
ation of His hands.”
➔ Isaiah 5:18 – “Woe to those who draw iniquity
with cords of vanity, and sin as if with a cart
rope....”
➔ Isaiah 5:20 – “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!”
➔ Isaiah 5:21 – “Woe to those who are wise in their
own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!”
➔ Isaiah 5:22 and 23 – “Woe to men...who justify
the wicked for a bribe, and take away justice
from the righteous man!”
✞ Jesus warned His followers in Matthew 10:28, “...do not
fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.
But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and
body in hell.”
✞ “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the
living God.” (Hebrews 10:31).
Take heed!
God is omniscient! He knows all!
And to add a bit of wonder to the idea:
- God not only knows what is going on with all things, without and within…
- He also knows all that happened in the past, and all that will happen in the future!
- And He knows…
➔ ...all the possible outcomes...
➔ ...all the possible futures...
➔ ...all the twists and turns that history...
…that could have been or could possibly be!
The LORD is an amazing God,
fearful and awesome,
yet loving, forgiving, and kind!
Give yourself to Him!