White as Snow
4/13/26 Bible Thought (Isaiah 1-2)
Main Idea: Though wrathful against sin, God isn’t quick to give up on people.
A Quick Backdrop:
Isaiah the prophet came on the scene in the eighth century BC during a turbulent time. It was during this period that the northern kingdom of Israel was conquered by Assyria. Judah was likewise afflicted by the Assyrians, barely escaping conquest. Isaiah came with a message of both judgment and hope. He came with a call to repentance and a promise of future blessedness for the people of God.
A Look at the Text:
At the outset, Israel (as a whole) is called to task. Though an ox or donkey know their master and his care, the people of God had utterly forsaken God, their Creator and Redeemer (Isa. 1:3).
As a result, they were experiencing destruction at the hands of the Assyrians (Isa. 1:7-9). Assyrian records recount the destruction of 46 Judean cities at the hands of King Sennacherib during this time.[1] Isaiah responded, noting that their destruction nearly paralleled Sodom and Gomorrah’s (Isa. 1:9; see also Gen. 19).
The primary issue at hand was Judah’s superficial religion.
The people outwardly served God when inwardly their hearts were far from Him. The hands that brought sacrifices also shed blood (Isa. 1:15). As a result, God concluded that He couldn’t tolerate them. Their offerings must stop (Isa. 1:13a). He could not endure their hypocrisy (Isa. 1:13d). He hated their feasts and was weary of putting up with them (Isa. 1:14).
God instituted these things, but they weren’t to be done apart from a genuine heart. God didn’t want their worship if He didn’t have them.
So God, through His prophet, issued an invitation:
“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (Isa. 1:18-20).
The choice was theirs. They could turn and be washed clean. Or they could remain and be devoured by the sword. While there was coming a day of blessing for the people of God (Isa. 2:2-4), that day was coming after a time of judgment. The proud would be humbled (Isa. 2:17) and their idols would be destroyed (Isa. 2:18).
The choice was theirs.
The Day of the Lord is a frightful thing, but they could turn to Him before judgment came and experience salvation.
Bringing it Home:
With the dawning of a new age through the coming of Christ, the invitation now goes to all peoples to repent and turn to God (Acts 17:30). A day of judgment is coming, but we can be spared if we turn to Christ in faith.
As in the days of Isaiah, we can have the hope of cleansing. Through the blood of Jesus Christ, we can be washed clean. The apostle John once noted:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 Jn. 1:9, emphasis added).
As the old hymn so powerfully states, “There is a fountain, filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel’s veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.” While people on their own are irreparably wicked, God made a way for us to be forgiven by grace.
Let us then respond to Him as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1), wholly devoted to Him. Not just in lip-service, but in life-service. Not just in words, but also in deeds. Not just in worship, but also in our walk. Not just outwardly, but at the heart-level. For the God who cleanses the most vile sinner is worthy of our uttermost devotion.
Challenge:
Do I see how bad my sin truly is?
If we don’t see our sin for what it is, we will never fully appreciate God’s mercy.
[1] John D. Barry et al., Faithlife Study Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), Is 1:7.