Week 29: Song of Solomon 5-8; Isaiah 1-27

Here is the reading plan for this week:

* Weekend: Song of Solomon 5-8
* Monday: Isaiah 1-3
* Tuesday: Isaiah 4-7
* Wednesday: Isaiah 8-12
* Thursday: Isaiah 13-20
* Friday: Isaiah 21-27

Welcome to Week #29 in our quest to read the Bible in one year! This week the focus is on the balance of Song of Solomon and the first third and change of the Book of Isaiah.

Dr. Chuck covered the synopsis and purpose of the Song of Solomon in last week's posting, so this week we will focus on getting to know the Old Testament prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah came to promninence at a time in history where the kingdom of Israel had already been divided into two kingdoms- Isaiah resided in the kingdom of Judah.

Now Judah had some good kings and some not-so-good kings. Isaiah served under the rule of four kings. The first two kings, Azariah (Uzziah) and Jotham, did the right thing for the Lord in their own house (2 Kings 15:1-7, 32-38), but failed to lead the people towards the Lord by allowing them to worship any god they chose. The third king, Ahaz, was not so good and he got into all sorts of trouble (2 Kings 16). This trouble carried forward to Hezekiah, who did right by the Lord and led the people towards the Lord (2 Kings 18-20).

The message Isaiah sent was one of judgement and and also comfort, as the Journey Bible outlines. Because Judah continually marginalized God, especially through the leadership of their kings, God's judgement was coming.

The people and kings of Judah worshipped "by-the-book." They sacrificed, prayed and went through the motions of the Law. But their hearts were not in it. This lukewarm religion was the key to how much they took their rights as God's chosen for granted. Well, if they are not on board fully with God when times are good, then it is time for things to turn bad.

This book is a record of the message Isaiah preached to the kings and the kingdom during this time.

To make it personal this week, consider what Isaiah might say to you if he were in your living room today. Would you be considered outright rebellious, a Sodom or Gomorrah? Would you be considered lukewarm, going through the motions but not really living in faith? Or would you be considered to be on fire for the Lord- living your faith in all aspects of your life, whether you are in public or in private? If you fall under any of the first two categories, do not despair- you are not alone. But maybe the time is right in your life to allow Isaiah to speak truth to you. But please don't stop until you have read the entire book- I won't steal the thunder from next week, but some remarkable things happen in the book that are very cool and point out the fact that no matter where we are the Lord will provide if we choose to place our faith and trust in Him.

God Bless and Happy Reading!

-Mike