ISAIAH 28 

 

The Crown of Pride Opposes the Crown of Glory

 

The Crown of Pride represents a covenant with death and an agreement with hell.  The Crown of Glory represents the covenant with giver of  life and an agreement with heaven.

 

The Twenty-eighth Chapter of Isaiah speaks to the class of scholars of Scripture who err in the knowledge,  the understanding and the doctrine of the mighty and strong One, the Lord Most High.

 

The Crown of Pride is worn proudly by those who walk in the imagination of the minds and hearts.  This crown is the result of the wine and strong drink of self delusion.  This Chapter is an indictment against Israel's religious rulers and prophets who, as a kingdom of priests, were given the privilege of teaching God's truth.   They once were likened to a blooming flower and tasty fruit, but now are fading and wasting away in error and pride.

 

God desired to teach His knowledge and bring them into doctrinal understanding, but He found them unable to feed on the strong meat of His doctrine, as they needed milk as babes.

 

God's knowledge and doctrinal truths require diligent study and meditation.  His teaching is by precept upon precept and line upon line and a little here and there.  This requires immersion in the word with reverence and humility, not pride or hardness of heart.

 

Paul emphasizes that Israel's rulers and prophets were hard of hearing.  He quotes verse 11 in 1 Corinthians 14:21 stating that they "will not hear me [God]".   Verse 12 teaches that these privileged teachers of the law would not find the "rest" and the "refreshing" offered by the Lord.

 

Instead, the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept and line upon line and a little here and there causing them to "fall backward", and "be broken" and "snared" and "taken".  This falling, braking, snaring and taking was false knowledge and wrong doctrinal understanding.

 

God declares them to be scornful men which rule the people in Jerusalem suggesting that they lead the people away from God's truth.

 

God sees their hearts and in verse 15, He judges them with death and hell.  He declares their heart condition and states it plainly.  The voice of their hearts say, "We have made a covenant with death, and with hell we are at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:"

 

What is this covenant with death and agreement with hell ?  Is the covenant with death the Law ?  Is it the pride of position being the chosen people of God ?   Do the rulers believe that they are insulated from death and hell by virtue of their position with God ?   Is the agreement with hell, the place of the dead, the destination for all who embrace the law ?  Paul teaches this very thing in his epistles.   He says the sting of death is sin and its strength is the law.  (1 Cor. 15:56).  No man is justified by the law.  The works of the law are under a curse. (Galatians 3:10)   The law is not of faith. (Galatians 3:12).   Paul refers to the Law as the "ministration of death" (2 Corinthians 3:7), and the "ministration of condemnation" (2 Corinthians 3:9).

What man can make a covenant with death and agreement with hell ?  No man, apart from God's will, has any authority to enter into a covenant with death or an agreement with hell.

God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;   Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;  And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; (Acts 17:24-26)

He that is our God is the God of salvation; and unto God the Lord belong the issues from death. (Psalm 68:20)

This covenant and agreement are in fact God's curse upon the leadership for pride, hardness of heart, for lack of diligence in the study of the Scriptures and doctrinal error.  Death and its residence in hell are the result of prideful rejection of God's word.

 

They did not make a literal covenant with death or agreement with hell.  God is interpreting their hearts.  The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

 

By ignoring the word of the Lord, they implicitly made a covenant with death and an agreement with hell by default.  There could be no other result.  Choose life or choose death.   I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: (Deuteronomy 30:19)

 

This death and hell represent God's curse and judgment on the leadership's unbelief and hardness of heart.  Israel's rulers had effectively embraced the "hidden things of dishonesty, and walked in craftiness, handling the word of God deceitfully". (2 Corinthians 4:2) 

 

This is ultimately the transgression of Jacob.  It is the rejection of Israel's Messiah, the King of the promised Kingdom.

 

As a direct result of their heart condition, Lord God says, "Behold, I lay in Zion, for a foundation stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make hast."   The contextual teaching of verse 15, is comparing the rule of Law with the righteousness of Messiah in verse 16.  The Messiah wears the Crown of Glory. (Verse 5)  The rulers wear the Crown of Pride.

 

The Law was purposed to ultimately be the schoolmaster leading all to saving faith in Christ's atoning work on the cross. (Galatians 3:24)

 

This covenant with death and agreement with hell would be disannulled by Messiah as He fulfilled the letter of the Law in God's righteousness, so that all who believed and call on the name of the Lord should be saved. (Romans 10:13)

 

When Israel, calls on the Lord and retreats from the transgression in Jacob, receiving their Messiah, the remnant of Israel shall be saved.

 

God limits salvation to a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, Today if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. (Hebrews 4:7)

 

If you wear a crown of pride, the word of the Lord becomes a snare and instead of resulting in the covenant of life, it becomes a covenant with death.  God speaks to the humble.  The word of God is hidden from the prideful.

In verse 18 we see that the covenant with death will be disannulled and the agreement with hell will not stand.  So this covenant and agreement in their hearts would fail to save them when the "overflowing scourge shall pass through" and they will be "trodden down by it".   They will not be saved by the Law.

 

They will be vexed and troubled to "understand the report".  Who hath believed our report ? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed. (Isaiah 53:1)   They have not obeyed the Gospel. (Romans 10:16)

 

Nevertheless, among the chief rulers also many believed on him [Messiah Jesus], but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue.   But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched out my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. (Romans 10:21).

 

End Notes:

 

Covenant with death:

 

This Isaiah 28:18 "covenant with death"  is not the covenant referenced in Daniel 9:27a.  This Isaiah 28:15 covenant with death and agreement with Hell may find its typology in the future based on the Daniel 11:23 where Antiochus Epiphanes, a type of Antichrist,  made a "league" or agreement with the High Priest of Israel (the prince of the covenant).  This future league may find its fulfillment when the third Temple is defiled by the Antichrist as described in Daniel 9:27 by the abomination which causes desolation.

  

In verses 15 and 18, the "covenant with death"  is associated with a Messianic marker. This is supported in the context by the fact that the Messiah is the subject of verse 16.  The word "with" is represented by the "aleph tav".  This is a marker for judgment associated with Messiah, who is the strength of Israel's covenants which are intended for life, not death. 

 

You may recall, Jesus says he is the "alpha omega" (Revelation 1:8).  Alpha omega is the aleph tav of the Hebrew Old Testament.  The aleph tav is the Word of God who became flesh.  (John 1:1)  He appears in Genesis 1:1 and over 9,000 other verses in the Hebrew Old Testament.  He is the one whom Moses wrote about. (John 5:46).

For teaching on the "aleph tav" see: www.alephtavscriptures.com. 

 

Prophecy Interpretation:

 

The test of correct prophetic interpretation is this:  The prophesy should testify to Jesus, the God of salvation because the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.  (Revelation 19:10)  The work of the Holy Spirit is to testify to Jesus.  (John 15:26)  Revelation 6-19 all happen in Daniel 9:27.  Therefore, we should consider Jesus as the focus of this verse 27 covenant.  This is one of many reasons why the Isaiah 28:15 is not the covenant of Daniel 9:27.  Most, if not all, present day prophecy teachers, teach that the covenant of Daniel 9:27 is a "satanic covenant" which Israel makes with the future Antichrist, a treaty of sorts, albeit satanically inspired.  The Isaiah 28:15 covenant cannot be a satanic covenant with a "aleph tav" marker in between the word "covenant" and "death".   Therefore, it should not be transferred from Isaiah 28 to Daniel 9.  Its proper place would be Daniel 11, if at all.

 

The covenant of Daniel 9:27 is the fullness of the Abrahamic covenant which is confirmed by God in Christ.  This covenant is crowning glory fulfilling God's promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob in His Seed, Christ, bringing in the Kingdom and raising Israel to its proper and intended place for the Millennial reign of Israel's King, Messiah Yeshuah/Jesus.