Textual Exposition: Isaiah 55

I. Exhortation to come to the LORD 1-5

A. Exhortation to come to the waters 1

1. Calling those who are thirsty and poor 1a
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money
2. Exhortation to buy wine and milk 1b
come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and
without price.

B. Exhortation to listen to the LORD 2-3b

1. Feeling pity for those who are lavishing toil and money 2a
Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for
that which satisfieth not?
2. Exhortation to listen to the LORD 2b
hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good,
3. The first result of listening to the LORD 2c
and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
4. Repetitions to listen to the LORD 3a
Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear,
5. The second result of listening to the LORD 3b
and your soul shall live;

C. Promise of covenant 3c-5

1. Promise of an everlasting covenant 3c
and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of
David.
2. Explanation of the promise 4
Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander
to the people.
3. The result of the promise 5
Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew
not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One
of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

II. Exhortation to repent 6-13

A. A call to repent 6-7

1. Exhortation to seek the LORD 6
Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
2. Exhortation to forsake sin 7a
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts:
 3. Exhortation to return to God 7b
and let him return unto the LORD,
4. The promise of mercy and forgiveness 7c
and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly
pardon.

B. The distinctive way of the LORD 8-9

1. The different way of the LORD 8
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the
LORD.
2. The transcendent way of the LORD 9
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your
ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

C. The sure accomplishment of the word of the LORD 10-11

1. The sure effectiveness of the rain and the snow 10
For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not
thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may
give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
2. The sure effectiveness of the LORD’s word 11
[11] So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return
unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in
the thing whereto I sent it.

D. The result of repenting and turning to the LORD 12-13

1. The joy and peace of restoration 12
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the
hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall
clap their hands.
2. The transformation of life 13
Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall
come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an
everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
 Sermon Outline

In spite of God’s warnings and exhortations through His prophets, the Israelites had
continuously sinned against God, and in the end, they received God’s judgment and came to
experience the exiles in Babylon. In the situation, God calls them again and invites them into a
restored relationship with Him. This calling and invitation is not only for the Israelites but also
for all sinners.

I. A calling to come to the LORD! 1-5

For those who suffer in sins and hardships like the Israelites in Babylon, God exhorts
them all to come to Him.

A. The objects of invitation 1

In particular, God defines the objects of invitation as thirsty ones. The image of
thirsting represents the human spiritual thirst. In the book of Isaiah, the lack of
water symbolizes the judgment of God or the loss of blessing (1:30; 3:1; 50:2).
On the contrary, the image of water is used to express a divine blessing (32:2;
41:17; 58:11). Just as a man who is thirsty must go to drink water, so a man who
is spiritually thirsty must go to God to receive His divine blessings.
God does not require us to bring money. We just need to bring our trust and faith
to receive God’s gracious gift.

B. God’s gracious provision 2-3b

In verse 2, it says, “Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread?
and your labour for that which satisfieth not?” Most people in the world spend
their money and labor in workless things that cannot give an answer for their
spiritual thirst. Therefore, in spite of much endeavor, they cannot avoid the thirsty
condition. The only way to solve the thirst and enjoy a real satisfaction is to come
to God.
V. 2, “. . . eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.”
When we come to God, God graciously and abundantly provides us with what is
really good.

C. God’s everlasting covenant 3c-5

V. 3c, “I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of
David.” For the one who will come to the LORD, God promises a covenant. The
covenant is described as “the sure mercies of David.” In fact, God showed His
great mercy to David. Even when David committed adultery and murder, God did
not cut off his dynasty. As He promised in 2 Sam. 7:13, God preserved and
guided David and his descendants. The sure mercies are now applied to the all
Israelites and even us.
 Vv. 4-5, “Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and
commander to the people. [5] Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest
not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy
God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.”
David was a witness for the Israelites because he had personal relationship with
God and gave the Israelites his testimony. David was a leader for the Israelites
because he led them spiritually and politically. He led the Israelites like he led
sheep as shepherd. David was a commander for the Israelites because he gave
command to them in many battles and he demonstrated a strong leadership.
Likewise, the Israelites will play a role as a witness, a leader, and a commander
for all the countries and peoples. Directly to the Israelites, this was a promise to
let them return to their country and to restore them again as the people of God
toward all the nations.
Today, God accomplished this promise to us through the redemption of Jesus
Christ, “the Holy One of Israel.” Also, God wants us to be witnesses, leaders, and
commanders in a sense that we testifies the LORD and leads people in the world
spiritually. In 1 Pet. 2:9, it declares, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises
of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.”

II. A calling to repent of your sins! 6-7

God, who exhorted us to come to Him, says us in more details. He requires us to
repent of our sins.

A. The urgent calling 6

V. 6, “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is
near.” This verse stresses the urgency of the moment. The Israelites in Babylon
had not to delay their response to God’s calling. They had to hope for returning to
their country, and they also had to pray for deliverance. Today, we must not delay
our response. We must come to God, recognizing the urgency of the calling. In 2
Cor. 6:2, it says, “. . . now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of
salvation.”

B. God’s mercy and forgiveness for those who repent of sins 7

V. 7, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts:
and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our
God, for he will abundantly pardon.” God emphasizes the need for repentance.
The repentance needed is to abandon their evil way, and to turn to God’s way.
God promised them His mercy and forgiveness.
Today, we also must abandon our evil deeds and thoughts, and then turn to God.
As long as we persist our ways, we cannot walk on God’s way.
 III. Promised blessing for you! 8-13
God’s plan was an unimaginable thing to the Israelites at the time. So God
demonstrates the distinctiveness and the transcendence of His way in order to show
the sureness of His word. Then, He declares eternal joy and transformation that could
come upon the people of God.

A. God’s promise is surely achieved. 8-11

Vv. 8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my
ways, saith the LORD. [9] For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my
ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Here, God’s
“thoughts” and “ways” are primarily the restoration of Israel. Even though God’s
plan is unimaginable in the eyes of human, the plan is surely achieved as
described in vv. 10-11.
Sometimes, we have tendency to limit God’s greatness with our own
understanding. God is far more great and marvelous than we can imagine. The
only thing we need to do is just to trust in Him, and to obey Him. Then, we will
also experience God’s amazing works.

B. The promised joy and peace 12

V. 12, “For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains
and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field
shall clap their hands.” The Israelites could return to their country with great joy
and peace. Also, to those who repent of sins and turn to God, great joy and peace
is surely following results.

C. The promised transformation 13

V. 13, “Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier
shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an
everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” The thorn and the brier symbolize
barrenness and curse. However, after God’s gracious restoration, the barren and
cursed land will bring forth beauty and fruits.
Also, the image of vv. 12-13 seems to be connected to the image of Isaiah 65.
The complete restoration will be accomplished in the millennium.
These all things will be achieved “to the LORD for a name.” In other words,
because they are the promises of God, they will be surely achieved to show that
He is faithful and able to accomplish His promises.

In Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest,” Now, God calls the one who is thirsty in sins and hardships. When we repent of our sins
and turn to God, He will give us real joy and peace through the redemption of Jesus Christ.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Baltzer, Klaus. Deutero-Isaiah: A Commentary on Isaiah 40-55.

Calvin, John. Calvin’s Commentary: Isaiah.

Goldingay, John. The Message of Isaiah 40-55: A Literary-Theological Commentary.

Henry, Matthew. Matthew Henry’s Commentary.

Motyer, J. Alec. The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction and Commentary.

Sawyer, John F. A. Isaiah, vol. 2.