Isaiah - Verse By Verse

Scripture:  Isaiah 2:9 (NIV):  "So man will be brought low and mankind humbled--do not forgive them."

Thought:  To me, as a whole, our nation is blind to the consequences of its own idolatry.

Question:  Have I humbled myself to God already, or will He have to humble me at some point?

God watches us go down into the degradation of unchecked idolatry.  He disapproves of any forgiveness of mankind until the process finishes and full humility is obtained.  Is it that we must go down before we appreciate "up"?  Is it that God's glory, by virtue of contrast, can be desired only after we trample it down?  

To me, it almost seems as if God is talking to Himself here, particularly where He says "do not forgive them."  Who else but God has the power to forgive?  Another view of these words by Matthew Henry, Commentator, states that "some think it may read:  'And thou wilt not forgive them.' "  Whichever translation is more accurate is a minor issue.  The heart of this passage is clear:  idol-worship has brought the Israelites to an all-time low, and mankind right along with them, so much so that God does not offer His forgiveness any longer, only wrathful judgment.  Hence comes the "Day of Judgment", the "time of Jacob's Trouble", "The Great Tribulaion", or, more generically, God's wrath, to be finally let loose upon the earth after long ages of gracious longsuffering on God's part.  Mankind needs humbling.  This is the key message.  

Idolatry is the antithesis of what God desires and plans for us.  No one is farther from God than when he engages in idol worship.  One could say that the "turning point" must be near because man can go no lower.  This must be why God lets us linger "down"--He knows soon we must either turn or die.  And all along God has said there will be joy, there will be happiness, there will be beauty.  Do I believe Him?  Will I forsake my idols?  The work of my own hands...?

Prayer:  Merciful and longsuffering Father, open my eyes to see the necessity to repent of sin!  Cause me to accept Your forgiveness while it is still offered and before I must be "brought low".  Amen. 

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