Read
”In that day the Lord God of hosts called for weeping and mourning, for baldness and wearing sackcloth; and behold, joy and gladness, killing oxen and slaughtering sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine. “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”“
Isaiah 22:12-13 ESV
Reflect
Isaiah 21-23 is a collection of prophecies concerning various nations. Isaiah 21 focuses on the fall of Babylon, while Isaiah 22 addresses the impending judgment upon Jerusalem. Whereas Isaiah 23 talks about prophecy on the city of Tyre and its demise.
Isaiah 22 is a chapter with a message of judgment and rebuke for the people of Jerusalem. This chapter serves as a stern reminder of the consequences of turning away from God and relying on human strength. God does not favour those who are prideful and Godless.
The people of Jerusalem are called to weep and mourn, to repent and to return to God (vs 12). However, instead of heeding the advice to repent and humble themselves, the people of Jerusalem persist in their old ways, ignoring the warning signs and continue to party and be merry! (Vs 13). They have not even thought about seeking God to repent and to plead for mercy! They continue to indulge themselves in satisfying their flesh and live like there is no tomorrow.
Relate
We may quickly judge the people of Jerusalem for their foolishness and for not heeding the warnings of the destruction heading their way. We may even wonder why they have not relied on Yahweh, the same God that helped, protected and blessed them. What have gotten into their mind that blocked their channel of communication with God?
In the world we are living in today, we are surrounded by many options and alternatives. We can quickly rely on technology, our financial resources and even artificial intelligence to solve our problems. Why would we then seek God when there are plenty of options to choose from? Our pride and self reliance blinded us from the need to seek God. We want control, and we want immediate resolution. We want certainty that God does not interfere with our decisions, hence it is better for us not to seek and consult God. We are too impatient to wait upon the Lord. Perhaps then the people of Jerusalem thought they had better options too, to rely on their own wisdom and weapons to defend themselves from the invaders. But they failed.
Are we also ignoring warning signs around us, the persisting global warming, unequal food and wealth distribution, hunger in many nations and threat of large scale world conflict? Do we continue to party and make merry when impending disasters are heading our way? Have we spent time to pray and ask God on what we can do in helping the needy and contribute our part in saving the environment? Perhaps the effect of global warming has not hit us here in Singapore hard enough yet (although we are grilled by the rising temperature each day). However we still have abundant, not lacking in any way and therefore that inadvertently created the habit of indulging in eating and drinking when the world around us is going through irreversible turmoil.
Not too long ago I had the opportunity to savour one of the most extravagant seafood buffet of my life. The buffet line was fully stocked with all the best, top end seafood and quality meat that I could hardly have enough space in my stomach to sample them all. As I started to fill my plate eagerly with all the delicacies, I was suddenly struck with a deep sense of dismal and guilt. I was hit by a sense of overindulgence, that while I have too much to eat here, there are many others who have nothing to live on.
Are we sometimes ignoring the inevitable? Are we accelerating our need for indulgence in view of the deteriorating world we are living in? Dangerously we may fall into the trap like what was mentioned in Isaiah 22:13 “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” Instead of feeling indifferent about all the tragic events that are unfolding around the world let us start acknowledging them. Let us do our part in preserving whatever little that is left for us, waste less food, reduce our carbon footprint, give generously to help those who are hungry, pray even more, throw our pride out of the window, for He must increase, but I must decrease (John 3:30).
Rest
Father I come to You with a contrite heart. I pray that I will not indulge myself in eating and drinking, while letting the world of chaos passing me by everyday. Let my heart be alert to all the warning signs around me, and not to avoid and ignore them. Let You be my only hope and my only refuge for there is no other alternative that can be more reliable than You.
In Jesus name I pray Amen
Alan Wong
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