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Isaiah chapter 28 and we're continuing our study through the book of Isaiah and we are getting to some interesting passages here dealing with some scriptures that we see in the New Testament and the first thing we see here is pretty much that there's a judgment coming upon Jerusalem and it's coming upon the leaders of Jerusalem, the rulers of Jerusalem, but we see the first thing here is that it also talks about Ephraim. Now, Ephraim is the northern kingdom, so a lot of times in the Bible you'll see Ephraim just being mentioned. That's talking about that whole northern kingdom where you have the ten tribes, okay? And then you have, when it's talking about Jerusalem, obviously, you're talking about that southern kingdom or if you're talking about Judah, then you're talking about that southern kingdom. And so the first part here, I believe it's talking about that northern kingdom. Now if you notice, if you know your timeline, obviously, is that Israel is taken out first, then Judah is taken out. So Israel is taken out and then years later down the road, Judah is finally taken out by Nebuchadnezzar. So the Assyrians take out Israel and then the Babylonians take out Judah. But look here in verse 1, it says, woe to the crown of pride to the drunkards of Ephraim whose glorious beauty is a fading flower which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine. Behold the Lord hath a mighty strong one which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm as a flood of mighty waters overflowing shall cast down to the earth with the hand. The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim shall be trodden underfoot and the glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley shall be a fading flower. And as the hasty fruit before the summer which when he that looketh upon it seeth while it is yet in his hand, he eateth it up. In that day shall the Lord of hosts be for a crown of glory and for a diadem of beauty unto the residue of his people and for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate. So the thing that I see here really just the kind of all-encompassing theme or I guess lesson that we see here is that God's gonna bring down the proud and he's gonna exalt the humble. Okay so go to James chapter 1 because we see kind of the same things that are being said here about the crown of pride and it's talking about these drunkards of Ephraim and it's gonna talk about people that are given the wine and strong drink in Jerusalem. So there's just a lot of alcohol that's being used here. But we see that drunkenness a lot of times is also because you have a lot of prosperity. People that have a lot of prosperity have a lot of time to just do drugs and do all kinds of stuff that they don't need to be doing but if you are just having to work hard you don't have time to do that type of stuff. You don't have time just to sit around and just drink and just party and do all these different things. And so there's a lot of dealing with they have a lot of riches, they have a lot of beauty and that's what we see here. But notice in James chapter 1, James chapter 1 and verse 9, it says, Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted but the rich in that he is made low because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat but it withered the grass and the flower thereof falleth. And the grace of the fashion of it perisheth. So also shall the rich man fade away in his ways. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of life which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. And there's a lot of parallels to this in this story here in Isaiah chapter 28 but we see a lot of this dealing with Ephraim, this crown of pride, it says, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower it says in verse 1. And it says that in verse 4 it talks about and the glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley shall be a fading flower. So a lot of times when it's talking about things fading away it's talking about flowers. It's talking about flowers, the grass withered, the flower thereof falleth away but the word of the Lord endureth forever. A lot of times it's using that as an example saying hey, the grass that's in the field is today and then tomorrow it's cast into the oven. And it's kind of showing you the picture that hey, that's only going to last for a short period of time, right? And the flowers are the same way, you kind of see the flowers, they look beautiful and all that but they're going to fade away, okay? And he's basically likening them onto this beautiful flower that's going to fade away and he's talking about the dichotomy of someone that is low in degree, meaning someone that's poor or someone that's humble and someone that's rich and proud, okay? And the idea is that God's going to abase the rich and proud and he's going to exalt the humble and the poor, okay? Go to Proverbs chapter 15, Proverbs chapter 15 and verse 33 because even in James it talks about that if you endure temptation you shall receive the crown of light but it even says in Isaiah 28 and verse 5, in that day shall the Lord of hosts be for a crown of glory and for a diadem of beauty unto the residue of his people, okay? And so a diadem is just another type of crown, okay? So you have a crown, you have a diadem, they're all types of crowns and basically he's stating that he's going to be a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty unto the residue of his people, meaning those that are saved, those that are humble, those that have a contrite spirit and go to Proverbs chapter 15 and verse 33, Proverbs chapter 15 and verse 33 and right now our country is very proud, okay? Whether you have the proud, you know, wicked people or you have the proud when it comes to like everybody's proud of our country no matter what it does, okay? You know, like what is it, patriotic pride or, you know, all that type of stuff is, you know, just pride. Now if you're pleased with your country because it's doing great things or it's a great godly nation, there's nothing wrong with that, okay? But Proverbs chapter 15 and verse 33 it says, the fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom and before honor is humility. So you want honor, you need to be humble, you need to be lowly, you know, when it comes to Jesus he was meek and lowly and he came to serve and now he's going to be honored above anybody else. He's going to be highly exalted above every name, his name is exalted above every name and so the idea though was before honor is humility and we need to learn that, that we need to be humble, okay? You don't just automatically get honor, just as much as you don't automatically get respect, it's earned, okay? You can't just demand it. You can demand it all you want but you're not really going to get it, okay? And so you need to earn that type of honor and that type of respect. Now go to Proverbs chapter 16, Proverbs chapter 16 and verse 18, these are familiar verses. This verse is usually kind of the middle portion of it is taken out. You probably heard pride goeth before a fall, you know, everybody usually says it that way but it's not the way it's quoted in the Bible, although it's true, okay? It's definitely a true concept because it's basically reiterating itself, okay? So it says pride, verse 18, pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. So obviously, you know, pride and a haughty spirit, those are the same thing. It's just reiterating the same point, pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall, so obviously pride goeth before a fall but we want to try to actually quote off the Bible correctly. So pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall, better is it, better it is to be of a humble spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud, okay? And that's what I see here is that, you know, God's people, you know, are supposed to be lowly, they're supposed to be meek, they're supposed to be humble and eventually what you have to look at is eventually we'll be honored, okay? But the proud, they'll be abased. I go to Proverbs chapter 18, Proverbs chapter 18 and verse 12, Proverbs chapter 18 and verse 12 and this kind of melds those two verses that I, you know, Proverbs 15 and 16 together but in Proverbs 18 and verse 12 it says before destruction the heart of man is haughty. Sound familiar? Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall and it says in before honor is humility. So the idea here that I'm getting in the very beginning of this chapter is the idea of the crown of pride, right? So Ephraim is known as the drunkards of Ephraim, right? It talks about the crown of pride and then it puts in basically two commas in between here the drunkards of Ephraim. So what's the crown of pride? The drunkards of Ephraim, okay? It's not all Ephraim but it's the drunkards in Ephraim are this crown of pride that he's going to tread underfoot, shall be trodden underfoot, okay? Now you can get into end times prophecy, you know, dealing with Leviathan. We just got done talking about Leviathan last week. And what is Leviathan? He's the king of the children of pride, okay? And when you have those that are reprobate, they're the children of pride, you know, they're the children of the devil, okay? And so you can definitely see that and see the treading underfoot obviously talking about the fact that they're going to be trodden underfoot in the very end and all that. But going further here, go back to Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 7. Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 7. Notice here that we see that the prophets are airing through wine and strong drink here. So it's not just the, you know, the rulers and all this stuff but the spiritual leaders because the prophets and the priests are the spiritual leaders, right? And notice what it says in verse 7 there, it says, but they also have aired through wine and through strong drink are out of the way. The priests and the prophet have aired through strong drink. They are swallowed up of wine. They are out of the way through strong drink. They air in vision. They stumble in judgment. For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness so that there is no place clean. And you know what? That is a true picture of alcohol right there. You know, you may see it on TV and you see the commercials and you see the stupid frog and the penguin and like the different things. That's dating me really far here but like the Budweiser frogs and all these different things. And, you know, they'll have these cute little animals and they're trying to sell this stupid alcohol, this beer and everything else. And you know what? It looks good on TV. All the people that are drinking it look attractive. They look like they're having fun, all this stuff. But what they don't show you is the tables full of vomit and filthiness and what that produces but just a bunch of disgusting, you know, and, you know, if you've ever been to any type of party or anything like that, it's disgusting, it's filthy, okay? And you know what? The Bible gives you a true picture, okay? When you go out soul winning and you see people that live in filth and people that, you know, you can just smell the alcohol on them and it's like 11 o'clock in the morning and they're like drinking a beer in the morning, you know, like alcoholics, people that are just drunkards. And you can smell it, you can see it and it's visceral. And the idea here is that the Bible is basically saying, hey, just imagine a table. If you want to think about drinking, imagine a table that's full of vomit and filthiness. There's not one spot on that table that's clean. That's what you should be thinking about. And these are supposed to be prophets and priests. Obviously it makes me think of the Catholic Church here, you know. Or just any, you know, obviously just any like apostate religion, it's all about drinking, okay? Orthodox type churches and I'm sure like the, you know, the Jews and all this other stuff and I, you know, I'm not sure what their modus operandi is with the, you know, if they drink wine or what they do, but I just wouldn't doubt if they did. But then all these other religions, it's always about drinking, drugs, you know, to try to get to this nirvana, state of nirvana and all these different things. And you know what the Bible says? That they err in vision and they stumble in judgment because of it. You know what the Bible says? Wine is a mocker and strong drink is raging and whosoever deceives thereby is not wise. And you know what? These Baptist drinking beer churches, they're not wise. You know, any church where a pastor is saying, hey, you know, I just drink a beer every once in a while or I drink alcohol every once in a while, they're not wise. They're not wise and they should not be a leader of a church. You're like, well, I'm not really getting drunk, I'm drinking. Well, the Bible says you shouldn't even look on it when it's red, when it giveth its color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. Shouldn't even be looking at it, let alone drinking it. Go to Proverbs chapter 31, Proverbs chapter 31, and I know I preached the whole sermon on drinking, but you know what? This needs to be hid every once in a while, that drinking, it should never be done, okay? You say, well, you know, I may have, there's a little bit of alcohol in Nyquil, that's not what we're talking about. Nyquil's not going to get you sloshed, okay? I mean, I don't know, I haven't tried to take that much Nyquil, but I'm pretty sure the amount of alcohol that's in it or in different types of things like that is not going to get you drunk, okay? But you know, beer, by the way, which has phytoestrogens in it, you know, so, you know, man, just so you know, estrogen is not something that you want, okay? You want testosterone, not estrogen, it's the other way around, you know, and it doesn't have testosterone, and you're like, oh man, let me drink a beer, you know? That's why you have a big gut, you know, and that's why you have, you know, and not to get graphic with the other things that happen if you drink a lot of beer, but you're better off drinking wine, and obviously I'm saying that facetiously, because wine has a lot more alcohol content than beer does. But no one wants to say they're going to drink a beer, because that doesn't sound classy, right? You know, and the Bible talks about wine, and so they want to be like, well, you know, the Bible's talking about wine, Jesus turned water into wine, and I've already covered that, but obviously Jesus did not turn it into alcoholic wine, but wine can be referring to non-alcoholic or alcoholic or even vinegar, okay, which is the fermentation that happens after it's alcohol back into vinegar, so it goes from grape juice, which is sugar, ferments into alcohol, and then the alcohol ferments into vinegar, okay? So you know, this whole process that goes in it, and wine can be used for any one of those, okay? So you've got to have context, obviously, to see which one it's talking about. Now in Proverbs 31, verse 4 here, it says, it is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, nor for princes strong drink. Unless they drink and forget the law, and pervert the judgment, pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. Isn't that exactly what it's talking about in Isaiah chapter 28? That they stumbled in judgment, that they err in vision? Why? Because they're a bunch of drunkards, and so you can't think straight, you're not sober, you're not vigilant when you're drunk, and so stay away from that junk, okay? So the Bible talks, and I love just the, you know, just the detail of what it says here, okay? Because it could just say they're drunkards, and you know, they're erring in vision, but it's just like all their tables are full of vomit and filthiness. Why does it say it like that? Because that should gross you out, okay? Does anyone think of a table full of vomit and filthiness? And you know, just use your imagination what the filthiness is, right? Isn't vomit filthy enough for you? If it was just vomit on there, wouldn't you be like, that's enough, you know, it's just vomit on there, right? But it's just vomit and filthiness, but you know what, it's just like a dog turning into his own vomit again, as soon as they wake up, they're gonna be like, I'm gonna seek it again. And so, you know, you need to be thinking about what that really is, and don't let TV or commercials or the world deceive you in what alcohol is. It's poison is what it is, okay? It's poison, and the Bible's saying don't even look at it. It says that if you're deceived by it, then you're not wise, okay? And so Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 9, Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 9, Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 9 here, it says, whom shall he teach knowledge, and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Okay, so it's basically talking about, hey, these prophets and priests, they're all drunk, right? They're erring in vision. And it's talking about who is God going to teach, okay? I'm just gonna tell you a secret here. This is talking about Jesus, okay? This is saying who's he going to teach knowledge, and who's he gonna teach doctrine? Is he gonna teach it unto the drunkards that are erring in vision, that are stumbling at judgment? The prophets and the priests, is he gonna do that? Now what's the Bible say here? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts, okay? And notice what it says here in verse 10, for precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little, for with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. So he's basically saying, hey, not only I'm gonna talk to babes, I'm gonna talk to children, I'm gonna talk to people that are not learned, and I'm gonna talk to people that are of another language. This is prophetic, obviously, to talk about his disciples, okay? Go to Matthew chapter 11, Matthew chapter 11, his disciples, and I'm just gonna keep reading there in Isaiah 28, so keep your finger there, but I want you to go to Matthew chapter 11. But Isaiah 28 and verse 12, it says, to whom he said, this is the rest, wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest, and this is the refreshing, yet they would not hear. But the word of the Lord was unto them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little, that they might go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken, wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. So who is he rebuking here? So he's talking about two different people, right? He's basically saying, who am I gonna teach? Knowledge and who am I gonna teach? Doctrine. I'm gonna teach it unto the babes, okay, and I'm gonna teach it unto those that have a different language, okay? Do you see that? And then he's saying, hey, I'm gonna do it line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little, right? But then he says, hey, you know what? They had the word of God, line upon line, precept upon precept, that they might fall and be broken and snared, okay, and who's he talking about? The scornful men that are ruling Jerusalem, okay? Sound familiar? That's like the whole New Testament. That's the whole, that's the Gospels right there. All the, and I'm gonna give you a little taste of this, but this is clearly talking about what was gonna happen when Jesus came, you know, who's he gonna teach? Because Jesus is the prophet that was to come. He is prophet, priest, and king. He's the priest after the order of Melchizedek, so you know what? They were a bunch of drunkards that were erring in vision, and they were stumbling in judgment. You know what? Jesus came to be that prophet and to be that priest, and you know who he taught? Babes, sucklings, right? And then obviously we're talking about, you know, spiritually speaking, and you know, learned wise, you know, as far as education, and then other nations, the Gentiles, right? So when it came to Jerusalem, when it came to Israel, who got saved? Who was the one that were following Jesus? Was it all the elders and leaders of the country? Some, like one or two here or there, you know, when you're going through the Gospels, right? But who was the majority? You know, people that were tax collectors, you know, sinners. Mary Magdalene, you know, that seven devil, you know, like all these different people that were like what you would call the scum of the earth or the lower, you know, brother of low degree, right? Those that are of low degree, that's who he taught, okay? But to prove that to you, you go to Matthew chapter 11 verse 25. Matthew chapter 11 verse 25, it says, And this is very clear. This is a very crucial point when it comes to Jesus' ministry is that he didn't reveal everything, he didn't reveal everything he was teaching to everybody. And they even asked him that in Matthew chapter 13, they're like, why do you speak to them in parables? It says, because it's given unto you to know the mystery of the kingdom of God, but not unto them, okay? And so the idea is that he was teaching it unto those that would receive it, that would hear it. He was not going to preach it unto those scornful men that were leading Jerusalem, that were drunkards, that were the crown of pride, okay? Now, go to Matthew chapter 21, Matthew chapter 21, Matthew chapter 21 and verse 15, just to give you, you know, a passage, because it says he's going to reveal it unto babes. But then Matthew 21 verse 15, it says, And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David, they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Here is thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea, have ye never read out of the mouth of babes and sucklings? Thou hast perfected praise. And so notice what you're dealing with. It wasn't just, you know, it was children, but everybody was saying that, okay? And the idea is that he basically said he would reveal that unto them. Just to prove that to you, you know, when you see that phrase, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings, thou hast perfected praise. And then Psalm 8 and verse 2 is where that comes from. Psalm 8 and verse 2. But there's something interesting about sometimes when things are quoted in the New Testament, okay? Nothing's in error, okay? So let's get that out of the way. Okay, there's no error in the Bible. And by the way, if this was an error, this isn't a translational error. This is a, you know, straight up transcript error. So this is, it's not just like, oh, the King James didn't translate this right or something like that. Notice what it says in Psalm 8 and verse 2. It says, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings, thou hast ordained strength because of thine enemies that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. So what does it say here? Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings, thou hast perfected, or I'm sorry, ordained strength. What did it say in the New Testament? Thou hast, or I'm sorry, thou hast perfected praise, okay? Well, a lot of times in the Bible, what it does when it's quoting something in the New Testament, sometimes it's melding two things together that fit together, okay? It's not necessarily like, just because like it quotes it off as it is written doesn't mean it's like coming from that one spot, okay? It could be two things coming together. By the way, Jesus can do this because he's God anyway. But obviously all the writers of the New Testament can do this because they're under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, meaning that the Holy Ghost knows what fits together, okay? Now I'm going to show you that if you take that verse in Psalm 8, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings, thou hast ordained strength, what you're going to find is that there's another place where it talks about this same subject, okay? So what's the subject? You know, basically that he's going to teach on the babes and that they're going to praise him, okay? Does that make sense? Go to Psalm 78, Psalm 78. Still that, or against the King James Bible though, or against the Textus Receptus a lot of times will take this and say, well, you know, the new versions, they say this differently over here or, you know, it should say this and, you know, it should be just quoted exactly like it says in this one verse in the Old Testament. But there's some cases in the Bible where it's taking two different, like a verse over here, a verse over here that's talking about the same thing, but it puts them together, okay? When it's said in the New Testament, it's not exactly in either verse, right, because it's basically putting those two together. Does that make sense? But there's nothing wrong with that, okay? It's just the same thought and obviously the Holy Ghost is the one saying it and so we know it's true. But in Psalm 78 and verse 1, it says, give ear, O my people, to my law, incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable, I will utter dark sayings of old, which we have heard and known and our fathers have told us, we will not hide them from their children. So this sounds familiar, why Jesus said he spoke in parables, right? He's like, we're not going to hide it from their children though. Showing to the generation to come, what is this? The praises of the Lord and his strength and his wonderful works that he had done. So when Jesus quotes this, what he's doing is he's putting these two passages together. Does that make sense? Like you take Psalm 8 and Psalm 78 and he's saying, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise and what he's doing is putting these two passages together because they obviously belong together. And the two places where it says he's talking about babes are these two passages right here. So that being said, I just want to kind of show you that because sometimes when you're in the New Testament and you look at the Old Testament reference, you're like, man, that's kind of talking about something different there. And I think Hebrews 8 is one of those where it's talking about where basically he found fault with them and it talks about the Old Covenant, the first covenant to the second covenant and it says he regarded them not. Well, in the Old Testament where that's quoted, it's talking about how God was a husbandman. And in the New Testament, it kind of says something a little different there. But again, you're getting the idea that obviously that's true. And what it comes down to is that, listen, out of the mouths of babes and sucklings, he has ordained strength and he has perfected praise. That's what you get out of that. Does that make sense? Both are true. And that's what Jesus is getting across is that he not only ordained strength by the children but he also perfected praise and that's exactly what it says, what it's talking about in Psalm 78. Because it says, we will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and his strength and his wonderful works that he had done. And so both are true and it works together that way. But the idea obviously is that who heard it? Fishermen, publicans, sinners, those that were not priests and prophets and all that. Now obviously there's some exceptions to the rule. But in general, it was the typical blue-collar guy that received it. Now also that other phrase where it says for with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to his people, go to 1 Corinthians chapter 14 because that's quoted in 1 Corinthians chapter 14. Anyway, I just kind of wanted to go through that. You don't really have to go through all that to understand what this passage is saying. But just for your future reference, when you're looking back at quotations, sometimes it's not exact. Sometimes though it'll say it was spoken by somebody. So when it says spoken, all bets are off as far as whether it has to be exactly the way it's written in the book. Does that make sense? But if it says as it is written in law or whatever, when it says that, sometimes it's not necessarily just one verse. It could be two verses that are in two different books somewhere that are coming together. So when you understand that, then you understand that hey, there's no contradiction. There's no error in the Bible. It's not like the apostles messed up and didn't quote it right. It's meant to be that way. So in 1 Corinthians chapter 14 in verse 20 here, it says, brethren, be not children in understanding, howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men. In the law it is written, with men of other tongues and other lips will I speak unto this people. Now, that's what it says, right? You know, it basically says it a little different way, but it says for with stammering lips and another tongue will I speak to this people, it says in Isaiah chapter 28. But notice what it says in the rest of that verse there, it says, and yet for all that will they not hear me, said the Lord. So what's the next thing that it says? So basically in 1 Corinthians 14 verse 21, it's kind of giving you the abridged version of what he said in Isaiah 28, right? Because if you go back there, it's very clear that hey, they had the word of God, precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, there a little, and it says that they were broken and snared and they fell backward. It says, so even after all that they would not hear. After all the signs and wonders Jesus did, they would not hear. And so this is where that comes from. Now going back to Isaiah chapter 28, Isaiah chapter 28, just to kind of hone in on that a little bit about who we're talking about here, but also we're getting into this chief cornerstone. Okay, this is where this verse about laying in Zion this foundation, this chief cornerstone. So obviously we're talking about Jesus, but you see a lot of prophetic stuff about Jesus in here. I mean obviously the verse about, you know, he's going to reveal this unto those that are weaned from the breast and with the milk and all that. So he's obviously talking about younger people and people that are not learned and all, you know, the high up religious status. But in Isaiah chapter 28 verse 13, that's what it says here, it says, but the word Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little. See, there's nothing wrong with that, because he just got done using that in a good tense. Does that make sense? So with the babes in Christ, that's a good thing, okay, because you could read this and be like, is that good or bad, you know, right, because at first it sounds good and then it sounds bad, because what it's basically saying is that they got the same, okay. It's not that they didn't get the same treatment. They heard it line upon line, precept upon precept, and what it comes down to is that the Jews in general were taking this way too far, right. They were tithing on mint, annas coming, but they were, they were omitting the weightier matters of law. It was all about show, but they were like doing all this crazy, you know, traditions of men and they were following everything to the letter as much as possible, the Sabbath Day, all this stuff. But they stumbled and it says that they might go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken. Wherefore, hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people, which is in Jerusalem, because ye have said, we have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we 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. So, I'm going to get to this, but this idea of making lies our refuge and under falsehood have we hid ourselves, this is talking about their religion thinking it's going to save them, okay. The idea that they think that their works are going to save them, that keeping the law is going to save them, they think they made, you know, in the law it says you think you have eternal life. Isn't that what Jesus said to them? You think you have eternal life, but it's that that speaks of me. You know, that's what Jesus is saying, it's like the law of Moses is what speaks of me, but in that is what you think you have eternal life. So, they think they have an agreement with death and hell, right. They think that they're saved. They think that they're going to go to heaven. They think that they are actually, you know, children of Abraham and they think that, you know what, nothing's going to go against them, but they made lies their refuge and they made falsehood there to hide themselves. Now, notice what it says, this is a very famous verse here in verse 16. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, behold I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation. He that believeth shall not make haste. So, all these verses, I'm going to show them to you, but all these verses where it says he that believeth on him shall not be ashamed, he that believeth on him shall not be confounded, this is where it comes from, this verse right here, okay. And go to Romans chapter 9 and it's interesting because Romans 9 through 11 just hits on this because this is obviously talking about Israel, the physical Israel and the fact that they rejected Christ and they stumbled at this stumbling stone that we're going to see here and that's what we're dealing with here. Now, in Romans chapter 9 and verse 30, because it's going to tell you, you know, this idea that they had this agreement with hell and death, right, and they had, you know, they thought that, you know, this scourge is going to pass over them. You know, basically that they're safe, but we're going to see that they weren't trusting in the right things. In Romans chapter 9 verse 30, it says, what shall we say then, that the Gentiles which followed not after righteousness, I'm sorry, I always read that wrong, okay, when I'm reading this. It says, what shall we say then, okay, and it's just, basically this is a statement that's true, okay, that the Gentiles which followed not after righteousness have attained to righteousness even the righteousness which is of faith, okay. So he's basically asking, you know, what shall we say then? And this is what we're going to say, is that the Gentiles which didn't fall after the righteousness of the law, is what we're going to get to here, have attained unto righteousness by faith, okay. Notice what it says in verse 31, but Israel which followed after the law of righteousness hath not obtained to the law of righteousness, okay, so it's basically saying, hey, the Gentiles, they weren't trying to follow after the law, but they attained righteousness, right, by faith, and those that were trying to follow after the law of righteousness had not obtained it, and notice what it says, wherefore, so it's basically saying, why, why didn't they obtain? It says, because they sought it not by faith but as it were by the works of the law, for they stumbled at that stumbling stone, and it's going to tell you exactly what that stumbling stone is, it says, as it is written, behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone, a rock of offense, and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. So Jesus is that stumbling stone. They stumbled at that stumbling stone. Now let's keep reading here because in Romans chapter 10, it's going to explain this a little further. It's just talking about, hey, you know, I've made a covenant with death, they made a covenant with death, and with hell they were in agreement, but it's all based off lies, you know, they think that they have eternal life, and that's what Jesus said, it's not that they didn't think they had eternal life, it's not that they didn't, they thought they were saved, they thought they had eternal life, but they were basing it off the law, they were basing it off their works, okay, and there's no difference today, that's what every false religion does, they base, you know, where they're going to go to have, whether they're going to heaven or not, based off their works, Romans chapter 10 and verse 1, and by the way, he's talking about people in the past, okay, and, you know, all these people that he's talking about in Israel was in the Old Testament, okay, so, well, this was in Jesus' day, that was the Old Testament, okay, the New Testament didn't start until Jesus died on the cross, okay, so that was all Old Testament, so it's like this whole dispensational garbage that, well, you know, they were saved by that, what did the Bible say? And what is it referencing? It's referencing Isaiah 28, it says in verse 1 here of Romans chapter 10, brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved, well, I thought Paul, I thought these were God's chosen people, I thought these people were automatically saved because they are of the children of Abraham, right, why are you asking for them to be saved? You know, John Hagee says they don't need to be saved, they have a covenant, you know, it's obvious, it's so ridiculous when people use that type of stuff, when Paul here is saying, listen, my heart's desire and prayer to God is that they might be saved, because you know what, you know what that means, they're not saved, and it says in verse 2 there, for I bear them record that they have a zeal of God but not a cord of knowledge, for they being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God, for Christ is the end of the law, for righteousness to everyone, that what? Believe it. And it says in verse 11 of that same chapter, for the scripture, Seth, whosoever believes on him shall not be ashamed. Just over and over again, what are we nailing down, it's been by faith, it's always been by faith, and they stumbled at that stumbling stone, okay. Romans chapter 11, because we saw that it kept talking about the fact that, hey, these people are going to be snared, they're going to fall backward, they're going to be broken, they're going to be taken. Notice what it says in Romans chapter 11, verse 6, and if by grace then is it no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace, but if it be of works, then is it no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. Sounds like works and grace don't go together. I mean, I kind of got that from that verse, but you know what, I'm sure people could twist that somehow, right? But yeah, it's very clear that it's completely polar opposite, you can't mix the two. But then, Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, why? Because they sought it by the works of the law and not by faith, right? We already established that. They didn't obtain what they seeked for, but the election hath obtained it and the rest were blinded. According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, ears that they should not hear, unto this day. And David said, notice this, let their table be made a snare and a trap and a stumbling block and a recompense unto them. Let their eyes be darkened that they may not see and bow down their back alway. Sound familiar to what was said there in Isaiah chapter 28? Isaiah chapter 28, it says that they might go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken. Yeah, it's the same thing, okay? And I'm going to show you the last place, you know, where it talks about, you know, what's quoting this passage in Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 16, go to 1 Peter chapter 2. So this is kind of the premise, this is kind of the vocal point of the sermon or this passage, or this is really where it just kind of all funnels to me is this verse right here. Because it's such a pinnacle verse, I mean, if you think about it, the idea of he that believed on him shall be saved, right? That idea, I mean, that is something that is just said over and over and over and over again. But you know what, this is a concept that was in the Bible, or that was from the beginning of time, okay? And what you have to understand is God who at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son. And that idea of he that believes on him shall not make haste, shall not be ashamed, shall not be confounded, he that believes on him shall be saved, has been something that's been preached since the foundation of the world, okay? It's just that in the New Testament it's written a lot more, okay? But it was spoken all before that. And you say, well, how do you know that you knew that? Well, Jesus said to Nicodemus, art thou master of Israel? No, it's not these things, that a man must be born again, and for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believed in him should not perish but have everlasting life. How about as the serpent was lifted up in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believed in him should not perish but have eternal life. How about that? You know, that's something that's always been there. And just because it wasn't written all over the place in the Old Testament, you know, that doesn't mean it wasn't spoken, it doesn't mean that's what wasn't being preached. Guess what? The gospel has always been preached as far as he that believeth is saved. Because Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness, and it says that he was fully persuaded that what he had promised he was able also to perform and therefore was imputed unto him for righteousness. So it's always been that way, but they've always been stumbling at this, you know. From the beginning of time to the end of time, they're going to be stumbling at the stumbling stone of the fact that they think that you've got to work your way to heaven, okay? So there's nothing new under the sun, but in 1 Peter 2 and verse 6, this is another place where it's quoting this passage. Notice what it says, wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe, he is precious. But unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner. And a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient whereunto also they were appointed. And when it's talking about being disobedient, it's talking about not obeying the gospel, right? Who has believed our report? You know, Isaiah said, Lord, who hath obeyed the gospel, who hath obeyed our report? I'm messing that up completely. So for Isaiah said, Lord, for they have not only obeyed the gospel, for Isaiah said, Lord, who hath believed our report, right? So good night. Yeah, so the idea, though, is that what's being coupled there, the obeying the gospel was believing the report, right? So what's it say? He that believe, you know, you therefore which believe, he is precious, right? Meaning that that stone to you is precious, it's elect. It's that chief cornerstone, right? But to them it's a stumbling stone. Do you see that two sides to the coin, right? See the gospel to us is the power of God and salvation, but to them it's perdition and wrath and condemnation, okay? So, but, you know, they're gonna stumble at that stumbling stone, and obviously that's something that people have been doing, you know, throughout the ages. But also when it comes to this stone, this cornerstone, and this really just is all over the New Testament. Go to Matthew chapter 21 again, Matthew chapter 21, this idea of this stone which the builders rejected is made the head of the corner, and it says that in 1 Peter chapter 2, right? It kind of couples, you know, in Mount Zion, or in Zion is laid a chief cornerstone, but then it talks about whom the builders rejected, right? The stone which was rejected is made the head of the corner. Those two things are being coupled together in 1 Peter chapter 2, okay? And in Matthew chapter 21, Jesus brings this up, and so this is really showing you the transition of the Old Testament to New Testament here, as far as what's gonna happen. In Matthew 21 verse 42, it says, Jesus said unto them, Did ye never read in the Scriptures the stone which the builders rejected? The same has become the head of the corner? This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore, say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. So they're not that dumb, okay? They at least knew that he was talking about them, okay? Now, you know, when this is quoted, it's quoting from Isaiah, I'm sorry, from Psalm 118 in verse 22, it says, The stone which the builders refused has become the headstone of the corner. This is the Lord's doing, it is marvelous in our eyes. When you're reading this in Matthew 21, it has a question mark at the end, okay? But don't, he's not saying, this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes, okay? Now, you gotta understand a little bit of grammar here. He asked the question at the very beginning of the sentence there, didn't he? What was the question? Did you never read this in the Scriptures? Okay, that's the question, right? So it's a whole sentence, okay, the question marks at the very end, but the question is did you never read in the Scriptures? The question mark is, it's not a question that it's marvelous in our eyes, does that make sense? And so sometimes you gotta be careful on how you're reading it so you're not thinking, because a lot of times, you know, you see that question mark and then you're like, oh, okay, there's a question mark, this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? You know, and you're like, okay, why am I questioning this? You know, is Jesus questioning this? You know, like, is he trying to get them to question it? No, he's just saying, hey, did you never read? You know, did you never read in the Scriptures? And then he's just making a statement, okay? And it says that, you know, basically this stone, if someone falls on the stone, it's gonna break them. Sound familiar? Because that's what was said in Isaiah chapter 28, they're gonna be broken. It says, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to the power. See, these are both bad, okay? There's no good that's being talked about here. Basically saying, if you fall on this stone, you're going to die, you know? If the stone falls on you, you're going to die, you know? That's kind of the synopsis is that it doesn't matter if you're coming, if you're falling onto it, or if it's falling on you, you're done, okay? So but also, there's another place that this is talked about, this stone, which the builders rejected in Acts chapter 4, go to Acts chapter 4. Now, I've preached on this before, but I don't have it in my notes, just because for sake of time. But in Job chapter 38, it talks about the foundation of the world being set and, you know, all that stuff. But then it talks about when the chief cornerstone was laid, which is a prophetic passage about Jesus, okay? It says, all the sons of God shouted for joy. And you know what? The chief cornerstone is Jesus, and you know what? He's the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. So is it any marvel that that stone has been laid from the foundation of the world? Because salvation's been from the foundation of the world, you know? He that believes on him shall not make haste has been from the foundation of the world. And Abraham rejoiced to see his day and was glad. And that's what Jesus said in John chapter 8. That's a sermon for another day, but just to show you that, you know, full circle, this idea of this chief cornerstone, this foundation, has been from the foundation of the world. You know, Jesus, you know, being our Savior and it being by faith has been from the foundation of the world. So Acts chapter 4 and verse 10, it says, Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him does this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at naught of you builders, which has become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. Do you see how that all works together as far as these verses, right? It's talking about the fact that, hey, you know, this chief cornerstone that's laid in Zion, whosoever believeth on him shall not make haste, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed, whosoever believeth on him shall not be confounded, and then it's talking about the fact that, hey, when we're talking about this cornerstone, whosoever believeth on him shall be saved. Okay? And obviously there's tons of verses on that as far as salvation by faith. Now go back to Isaiah chapter 28, Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 17, so we're going to switch gears a little bit here, you know, after getting off the cornerstone. But Isaiah chapter 28 and verse 17 here, it says, judgment also will I lay to the line and righteousness to the plummet, and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies in the water shall overflow the hiding place. Okay, so he's talking about, you know, they have these lies, you know, they're resting in their lies and they're trying to hide themselves. It says in your covenant with death shall be disannulled and your agreement with hell shall not stand when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then you shall be trodden down by it. From the time that it goeth forth, it shall take you, for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night, and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report. For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it, and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it. For the Lord shall rise up as in Mount Parazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work, and bring to pass his act, his strange act. Now therefore, be not mockers lest your bands be made strong, for I have heard from the Lord God of hosts a consumption even determined upon the whole earth. Now you can definitely equate this to when Jesus said, hey, you know what, you see this temple over here? Not one stone is going to be left upon another. And that definitely happened in around 70 AD, right? That Jerusalem was besieged and was completely taken out. Okay, so that definitely happened in their day. So you can definitely see how, hey, these Jews and these people that hated Christ and stumbled at him and crucified him, and Peter's rebuking these people because they did that. You can definitely see how that applies then. But then it talks about this determined upon the whole earth, okay, this strange act, this strange work, and it says this consumption, okay? There's this consumption that's going to be done by the Lord, and it says even determined upon the whole earth. Now go to Daniel chapter 9, because this consumption, I believe, is talking about the wrath of God that's going to come upon the whole world, okay? Now obviously, Jerusalem is going to be a vocal point in end times prophecy, as far as it's the spiritual Egypt and Sodom, right, and that there's going to be this temple that the Antichrist is going to say that he's God in, and all this stuff's going to be going down there. So Jerusalem has a part in that whole thing, but this consumption that's determined upon the whole earth, I believe it's talking about God's wrath that's being poured out, okay? So Daniel chapter 9, verse 27, the last verse in there, we're dealing with this one week, right, this seven-year period here. Notice what it says, and it says, and he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate. Now that happens in the midst of the week, okay, but it says, so what do we know by that point, that that's when the Antichrist comes into power, right? He comes into power at that point, at the abomination of desolation, and then he's given 42 months, which is three and a half years. So halfway through the seven-year period, three and a half years in, he's given power for 42 months, three and a half years, right? But it says that, it says that make it desolate, okay, and that's where the city and the temple and everything, it's going to be trodden underfoot for 42 months or 1260 days, okay? So that's basically what this is talking about, is that he's going to do this, and it's going to be made desolate, but then it says even until the consumption. Now, I'm sorry, the consummation, now consummation just means something that's made complete, right? Think of like consummating a marriage, right? Like completing the vows, like that's the completion of the marriage, you know, act, right? And so the idea is that consummation is that until the completion of it, okay, and what are we talking about, the completion of the week? It says, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate, okay? So what are we talking about there? I believe this is talking about God's wrath being poured upon the whole earth and upon that city, okay, and that, you know, that whole thing there. Now, I'll go to Daniel chapter 11 just to show you that too, because there's something that's said there in Daniel chapter 28, it talks about this consumption even determined upon the whole earth, and this idea of this determined, right, that that, and what I'm going to show you here is that there's a phrase here that just would always stick out to me when I was reading through Isaiah 28, and this is probably a few years ago, that that was sticking out to me, that that determined is going to be accomplished, that that determined is going to be upon the whole earth, and it just kept making me think of Daniel, and I'm like, and then I went to Daniel, I'm like, until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. You know what that shows you here? Because a lot of people are just really confused about end times prophecy, that God's wrath is in that week, okay? It's in that time period, it's in that last seven years, that's when His wrath is being poured out, okay? And notice what it says in verse 36 of Daniel chapter 11, it's going to bolster that same idea. So and it's interesting because Daniel 9, 27 is talking about the abomination of desolation, okay, and that's what it's talking about here, okay? Now it doesn't say abomination of desolation, it says that a little earlier, but it's basically kind of telling you what's going on during the abomination of desolation, it says in verse 36, and the king shall do according to his will, and he shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper, okay? Now we know that in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, what do we see, that that day, the day of Christ shall not come until there be a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, who opposes, you know, it talks about who exalts and opposes himself above all that is called God, or does worship so that he has God sit in the temple of God showing himself that he is God, okay? So he's in the temple saying, I'm God, okay? And that's what he's doing here, and it says he's going to prosper till the indignation be accomplished, for that that is determined shall be done. And that's what I believe this is talking about in Isaiah chapter 28, is that God is going to pour out this wrath upon the whole earth, and, you know, when it's talking about this one week period or this seven year period, that that's what's completing that week, you know what's completing the week? It's God's wrath being poured upon him, and, you know what, he's going to prosper, meaning that his kingdom is up until God blows that seventh trumpet, right? That's when the beast's kingdom and reign is over, because it says as soon as that seventh trumpet sounds, it says the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ. And so that's the finale there. Now to finish up the chapter here in Isaiah chapter 28, I'm just going to finish it up real quick here. I know we've got a few more verses there, but it says in verse 23, give ye ear and hear my voice, hearken and hear my speech, doth the plowman plow all day to sow, doth he open and break the clods of his ground? When he hath made plain the face thereof, doth he not cast abroad the fetches and scatter the coming, and cast in the principal wheat and the appointed barley and the rye in their place? For his God doth instruct him to discretion and doth teach him, for the fetches are not threshed with a threshing instrument, neither is a cartwheel turned about upon the coming, but the fetches are beaten out with a staff, and the coming with a rod. Bread corn is bruised, because he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horseman. This also cometh forth from the Lord of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel and excellent in working. Now, we could spend all day trying to talk about what this is exactly talking about here, but he's obviously giving you a physical example of something to explain a spiritual example, right? What I believe this may be talking about is the fact that he's separating the tares from the wheat, essentially. The fetches, and I looked at what fetches were, but it's an old term that's kind of not used anymore, but basically what I believe it is, is when you think of wheat or coming, it's kind of like there's this seed, you know, you think of wheat, you know, you have this like kind of, it's kind of like this long grass that has this stuff on the top where there's seeds in there, right? Well, there's all this kind of like papery type of material, right, that's on there. Well, you don't just take that and put it in and grind it all up together. Does that make sense? You beat it out, like you get the seeds, you want the grain out of there, right? You don't want all that stuff in there, you don't want the chaff with it, okay? So the chaff, you know, is basically the stuff that's basically covering the grain. Does that make sense? And so what I believe he's stating here is that he's separating, you don't just like put it all together, you don't grind up the fetches, right, you don't grind up the chaff, you know, you don't want that, you want that to be thrown out, okay, kind of like the silver in the dross, right, you get rid of the dross, it's rejected, it's reprobate, right? Now go to Matthew chapter 3, Matthew chapter 3, so that's what I believe he's basically stating here is that he's just kind of talking about this process of dealing with weed and coming and he's basically stating that you don't take the fetches, you know, you don't put those together, right, you beat it out with a rod or a staff, right, you get it out of there to where you're dealing with like just the weed and the coming before you start like grinding it down into flour or something like that, okay? And so notice what it says in Matthew chapter 3 to give you the spiritual aspect of it, okay, because Jesus did this all throughout the New Testament, right, when he's given parables, he's using a physical application to explain a spiritual, Matthew chapter 3 and verse 11, it says, indeed, I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear, he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire, okay? And it says, whose fan is in his hand and he will thoroughly purge his floor and gather his weed into the garner, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. So what is he doing? He's separating them and he's basically taking the weed into his barn, or into his garner, right, and he's taking the chaff and burning it. Now just one more parable on that same idea of separating the just from the unjust or separating, and this happens at the rapture, by the way, okay, he's separating, you know, the reaping of the earth and then the reaping of the wicked, and he's casting the wicked into the winepress, the wrath of God, you know, you could even take it as far as when you're getting to the end of the thousand year reign, he's separating the sheep from the goats, right? And so in Matthew chapter 13 and verse 47, this is the last thing I'll show you here, Matthew 13 and verse 47, it says, and again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea and gathered of every kind, which when it was full, they drew to shore and sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world, the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire, there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. So I personally believe that's what it's talking about at the end of this chapter, it's kind of using this terminology of dealing with wheat and coming, and he's basically saying, hey, you know, you don't just mix it all together, right? You separate it, okay? You can look at the parable of the tares, right, and the fact that, what's he do first? He binds up all the tares and bundles them together to be burned, and then he gathers up all the wheat, okay? And so the idea is separation there, the separation of the reaping. One reaping is good unto, you know, the resurrection, the other reaping is going into this wrath of God. And it's no marvel that he mentions that, you know, because he's talking about God pouring out his wrath and all this stuff that's going to be going on, but, you know, I think that's interesting on the way God explains that there in Isaiah chapter 28. So that's Isaiah chapter 28, I know there's a lot in there, but there's just a lot of good stuff as far as just different verses that are in the New Testament, and just gives you a little more information. And so it's always good when you're reading through the New Testament to go back to where it says as it is written, and just read that whole chapter, see the context, and see how that applies, and just see maybe a little more detail into some things. So let's end with a word of prayer to him, Father, we thank you for today. And Lord, we just pray that you would be with us throughout the rest of this week. We thank you for the book of Isaiah and just pray that you continue to bless us with this whole book. And Lord, just love to see all these different things in here, and not new doctrine, but just bolstering what we already believe and just showing us all those truths and how it's just throughout the whole Bible. And Lord, we just love you and just pray to be with us throughout the rest of this week in Jesus Christ's name. Amen.