August 25 - Isaiah 66:1-4

August 25 – Isaiah 66:1-4

This is what the LORD says: “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?” declares the LORD.

“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word. But whoever sacrifices a bull is like one who kills a man, and whoever offers a lamb, like one who breaks a dog’s neck; whoever makes a grain offering is like one who presents pig’s blood, and whoever burns memorial incense, like one who worships an idol. They have chosen their own ways, and their souls delight in their abominations; so I also will choose harsh treatment for them and will bring upon them what they dread. For when I called, no one answered, when I spoke, no one listened. They did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me.”

The Israelites were still in the process of rebuilding the Temple and reinstating the sacrificial process following the exile.

What kind of words were these coming from the Lord? 

Long before the Law was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, the Lord had a relationship with Abraham’s children that relied less on sacrifice than it did on His children bringing themselves before Him in humility.

While the Israelites were in Babylon, they had to hold themselves together and maintain some semblance of a relationship with God, there was no Temple that would be a place for them to bring their sacrifices.

After the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD, the relationship had to change again.  The Jews found it necessary to rely on the relationship with God, not the sacrificial system.

The Gentiles also found that they would need to build that relationship with God – one based on a humble and contrite spirit. 

While this was difficult because they had relied on the structure of the Law, it became necessary.

The sacrificial system was put into place to create an ongoing bond between God and man, but just like everything else, it was abused.  Sacrifices were offered without a desire to actually be forgiven.  The sacrifice itself became more important than the relationship. 

So … the people could live as they wanted to live, ignoring the relationship while keeping up appearances.

The day will come when the Temple will no longer be necessary at all, God says.  We find this day in Revelation 21:22: “the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”

Until that day, though, standing before God with a humble and contrite spirit is the form of worship that He desires.