“”What are you doing here and who gave you permission
to cut out a grave for yourself here,
hewing your grave on the height
and chiseling your resting place in the rock?
“Beware, the LORD is about to take firm hold of you
and hurl you away, O you mighty man. ” Isaiah 22:16-17
Bible Reading: Isaiah 21-23
Do you know what tomorrow will bring?
These chapters would still talk about prophecies toward the nations like Babylon and Tyre. But strangely enough, Jerusalem in Chapter 22 will receive its own judgment too. Though she is a chosen nation. she acted like that of the nations around her, thus, judgment awaits her. In the 22nd chapter the prophecy would tell us about how Jerusalem trusted in herself. Though prophecied to be attacked and exiled, they went ahead and prepared for the battle, fortifying walls and storing water in the pools, forgetting one very important matter, that is to cry out to God and repent and ask for His help. Here, we would read of the king’s servant named Shebna. He is in a position that gives him the authority to be well esteemed, but He used it to glorify himself. Though told about the prophecy of being exiled, he went on and built a tomb for himself which sort of says to the people that would see that He is not gonna die anywhere else. To build a tomb would mean spending treasures and it is a thing that only high porfiled people can do. He exalted himself, and the Lord would deal with that as we read in the chapter. He will surely not be buried in this expensive tomb he made.
In what ways do I glorify myself and think that I am in control of everything in my life? I can get very busy in preparing a future ahead of me, but if God is not in it, and if I pursue it in my terms apart from His will, I am certainly in trouble.
Prayer:
Lord, please search my heart and show me where I have exalted myself. Please help me to remember I am nothing apart from you. You hold my future, and I desire to be there, just the way you want it to be.
JanaryCreates 