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Isaiah 46 and we're continuing our study through the book of Isaiah here and the first thing we see here the first thing that just stands out is bell bell bow it down here and notice what it says there in verse 1 and then going into verse 2 it says Bell bow it down Nebo stupid their idols were upon the beasts and upon the cattle your carriages were heavy-loaded they are a burden to the weary beast they stoop they bow down together they could not deliver the burden but themselves are gone into captivity they will who's Bell well Bell I I believe I'm gonna show you from Scripture is the god of Babylon okay so basically you can think of Dagon was the god of the Philistines and and you know the story there where basically you know the arms and the legs were cut off it was just a stump of Dagon left there because the Ark of the Covenant was next to it and so a lot of a lot of you know countries had their own idol or they had this main idol you can kind of think of this even with the the Grecians or even the Romans they have like their main they have gods but then they have like their main God like almost kind of like the king of their gods if you will kind of like Zeus and and all that so and Jupiter is the one for the Romans and and so that being said Bell there's actually in the Apocrypha there's a there's a book called Bell the dragon okay now I don't recommend the Apocrypha it's rightfully named the Apocrypha which means of illegitimate authorship you know basically it's just it's not authoritative okay and so you know there's some interesting things in there as far as it's just reading but I would take that with a huge grain of salt when you're when you're reading through the Apocrypha because they're definitely contradictions when you look at the Apocrypha from the Bible and even in that Bell the dragon story Daniel is put into the den of lions but it's Cyrus that's the king and not Darius right so that's obviously unless he was thrown into the den of lions again you know like which I again I don't believe it now that being said is I do think there's truth though to Bell being a dragon okay now I can't prove that from the Bible but what I want to show you is kind of show you the fact that Bell and a lot of these gods like Baal Bell Dagon you know these different one these different main gods of these countries represent the devil okay you know the prince of the devils and if you remember in the Bible it talks about when they worshiped idols they don't you know they're worshiping devils okay so yes it's an inanimate object that they're worshiping but there is some wicked you know evil spirits behind it okay so when you think of Hinduism and you think of Buddhism and you think of like these other religions even today that have idols there is some spiritual you know stuff going behind it okay meaning that there are devils involved in this idolatry you think of the Catholic Church in the Greek Orthodox Church and the fact that these statues of Mary and these statues of all these Saints there's definitely devils behind a lot of these idols and things that people worship and bow down to okay so the the image itself is you know or that the graven image itself is nothing you know it's just it's just a piece of wood with some plated metal over top of it right but there's also the devil behind those okay now go to Jeremiah chapter 50 Jeremiah chapter 50 and I want to show you this that that Bell is associated with Babylon and I think that helps you understand who we're talking about in this passage okay so so when you're going through this chapter you're like well who are we talking about you know Bell bow it down Nebo stupid we're talking about Babylon the next chapter is gonna be very evident that we're talking about Babylon okay because it starts off saying come down and sit in the dust Oh virgin daughter Babylon okay so it's very evident once you get there but if you were reading through Jeremiah you know you would know okay Bell that's associated with Babylon and in Jeremiah chapter 50 in verse 1 here it says the word of Lord I'm sorry the word that the Lord spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the Prophet declare ye among the nations and publish and set up a standard publish and conceal not say Babylon is taken Bell is confounded Merodach is broken in pieces her idols are confounded her images are broken in pieces so very clear right and if you know Jeremiah 50 and 51 what are you dealing with Babylon and it being destroyed okay you can always couple back Jeremiah 50 51 with Revelation 17 and 18 okay because Jeremiah 50 and 51 a lot dealing with that physical Babylon the Chaldeans those that took captive Judah and all that and how they were gonna be destroyed and completely desolate but then you have the future Babylon that hasn't come yet or we you know that hasn't been destroyed yet that we are looking forward to in Revelation chapter 17 and 18 and so all that's true there now go to Jeremiah 51 there so you're in Jeremiah 50 go to Jeremiah 51 notice in verse 34 and here's where I think you can kind of see this association with a dragon okay again take the Apocrypha is not authoritative I'm not going to tell you that you know because there's a book called Bell of the Dragon that that means that this idol was a dragon now historians will tell you that I think this kind of bolsters this and when I show you the fact that how Bell is associated with the devil I think you're gonna see that as well okay that the devil is associated to a dragon okay now in Jeremiah 51 verse 34 says Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon had devoured me he had crushed me he had made me an empty vessel he had swallowed me up like a dragon he had filled his belly with my delicates he had cast me out so it's likening Nebuchadnezzar to a dragon okay now it likens Egypt or you know the Pharaoh of Egypt to a dragon and Ezekiel and so this is kind of you know we deal with these superpower countries a lot of times it's dealing with a dragon okay I'm going to show you why that's the case but go to Jeremiah 51 verse 44 okay we're gonna see Bell mentioned again it says in verse 44 it says and I will punish Bell in Babylon and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he has swallowed up okay so now let's talk about Bell swallowing up something with his mouth what was talked about before that I'm about Nebuchadrezzar okay or Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon swallowing up like a dragon okay and then it goes on to say it says and the nation shall not flow together anymore unto him yea the wall of Babylon shall fall okay so I believe you can you know cross-reference that and see that okay but go to Revelation chapter 12 Revelation chapter 12 because when you're dealing with the nations of Egypt Assyria Babylon Greece the Medes and the Persians the Grecians the Romans they all have something common their world empires okay and they are likened unto dragons and a lot of these cases okay and notice what it says in Revelation chapter 12 verse 7 Revelation chapter 12 I'm sorry Revelation 12 verse 3 it says and there appeared on another wonder in heaven and behold a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns upon his heads and his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven and did cast them to the earth and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered for to devour her child as soon as it was born it's interesting because when you're talking about Babylon it's talking about you know being devoured okay or swallowing up and who was swallowed up by Babylon but Judah Judah was swallowed up by Babylon and who here in Revelation chapter 12 is who is he trying to swallow up but the Lord Jesus Christ who is of the tribe of Judah okay now obviously he doesn't prevail he doesn't actually swallow him up because remember he flees into Egypt or his parents flee into Egypt and obviously Herod dies and this is obviously showing you how Herod tried to kill Jesus when he was a child but it didn't work a good revelation chapter 17 Revelation chapter 17 and I'm gonna prove to you that these seven heads on this this dragon the dragon is the devil okay it says and it says that in chapter 12 it says this in chapter 20 when it talks about the devil the old serpent the dragon right it's basically given up a Satan he gives him all of his names okay he's the dragon he's the serpent he's Satan he's the devil okay and so the devil is a dragon and talks about Leviathan and I preached a sermon on this before as far as a Leviathan and how God's gonna break the heads of Leviathan and Leviathan is that crooked serpent of the sea and when you go to Revelation 13 which you're not going to right now you're in Revelation 17 what comes up out there what's that beast that comes up out of the sea it's that seven headed beast right seven heads ten horns they have seven crowns on each head and seven I'm sorry ten crowns on the horns okay now in Revelation 17 is going to explain to you that this beast is talking about nations and throughout time nations that have come and gone okay in Revelation 17 verse 7 it says and the angel said unto me wherefore didst thou marvel I will tell thee the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carrieth her which had seven heads and ten horns the beast that thou sawest was and is not and shall sent out of the bombless pit and go into perdition and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world when they behold the beast that was and is not and yet is and here is the mind which hath wisdom the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sitteth and there are seven kings so when we're talking about the seven heads is representing seven different mountains and there's seven different kings associated with that and it says five are fallen and one is and the other is yet to come and when he cometh he must continue a short space and the beast that was and is not even he is the eighth and he is of the seven and goeth into perdition okay so it's basically stating that when John's writing this five were already gone so those seven heads don't represent seven kingdoms in the time again times okay because in John's day five of them have already been broken okay but what is stating is that there's one that is which I believe was the Roman Empire at that time so the sixth head was the Roman Empire the seventh is the one to come and he's basically stating that that seventh head is gonna be wounded unto death and then it's going you know so he's gonna die and he's gonna raise again which would make him the eighth okay because he technically died and this is you know so we're talking about the Antichrist in that so that being said you know you can definitely see how Bell with Babylon would be associated to a dragon okay you say well I'm not convinced that Bell is associated with the devil all right well go to go to Matthew chapter 12 Matthew chapter 12 and I'm gonna read to you 2 Kings 1 2 2 Kings 1 2 says and as I fell down before fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria and was sick and he sent messengers and sent said unto them go inquire Baal Zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease sound familiar that's a little different but you can see the word bail in there right and that's something you'll see throughout the Old Testament see bail bail bail the worshippers are bail and then you have bail Zebub well that's familiar to the New Testament right because it says in Matthew 12 verse 24 it says but when the Pharisees heard it they said this fellow doth not cast out devils but by Beelzebub the prince of the devil's but do you see that Bell at the very beginning there beginning there you say I'm not convinced okay there's two E's in that okay we'll go to 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 and you don't agree with me on this it's not that big of a deal but I do see this correlation here in 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 verse 15 it says in what Concord hath Christ with what Belial and what's the first three letters there Bell okay and you'll see this throughout the Old Testament the sons of what Belial you see it in Judges 19 you'll see it in the Kings you know when Jezebel said find certain sons of Belial you see this with Abigail saying he is such a son of Belial that no one can talk to him right and so what are you talking about children of the devil okay when you're talking about Christ versus Belial you're talking about the devil okay and so I believe Bell is the devil okay now it's the Babylonian version of it right just like Zeus would be like the devil for for the Greeks and Jupiter would be the devil for the Romans right and all the other you're like what about all the other guys they're all a bunch of devils okay but you had the prince of the devil's and all of those religions okay and so I just think that's interesting but you know when you when you know that Bell is associated with Babylon it kind of helps you when you're reading through this past you start reading off here talking about Bell bowing down okay and the idea here is that they're getting taken out the whole point here is that these these false gods of Bell and Nebo they can't bear the burden the whole point of this chapter is the fact that that our God is the true God and he can save but they can't right they can't do anything and the whole point is is that he's showing him when Babylon is destroyed he's going to show him that they are no gods that say they're gods right that the devil is you know it talks about when the devil is gonna be cast down into hell everybody's gonna be wondering at this is the man right it's gonna be this like he's he's the one that brought nations down and you know it's going to be evident that obviously God is you know infinitely more times powerful than the devil and all that now go back to Isaiah chapter 46 and look at verse 3 Isaiah 46 and verse 3 Isaiah 46 and verse 3 by the way that Bell and the dragon story the Catholic Bible takes into account the Apocrypha and it basically adds that to the end of Daniel or whatever so we know it's wrong now no obviously I don't believe it's accurate you know I don't believe it's scripture okay and that goes for the whole Apocrypha but again you know a lot of you know even if you look at historians they'll say that Bell was likened unto a dragon that the Babylonian God was likened unto a dragon so you know take it for what it's worth I think it is associated you know scripturally so take it for what it is there Isaiah 46 and verse 3 it says harken unto me O house of Jacob and all the remnant of the house of Israel which are born by me from the belly which are carried from the womb and even to your old age I am he and even to whore hairs will I carry you I have made and I will bear even I will carry and will deliver you and so this is this is a great passage when you think about the implications here first of all when it says it's talking about the house of Israel says which are born by me it's not talking about born as in like being birthed okay born b-o-r-n-e is talking about bearing up you know like something born on your back you know like you're kind of like carrying it you're bearing it and so he's talking about bearing you from the belly right and so the whole idea here is that the house of Israel he's stating I've been carrying you since you've been since you started okay this is the whole idea so if you think about this not as a child as but as much as like the nation right so since Israel became a nation when they were a child when they were in the womb in the belly he was carrying them and he's still carrying them into their whore you know and so that they're gray-headed and old okay and he's basically saying I've been carrying you this whole time okay is the idea they stating there you're saying well you know what do you mean well when was Israel a child well go to Hosea chapter 11 Hosea chapter 11 verse 1 now this this verse actually has a lot in it because it's obviously it's got a dull meaning here in the fact that obviously you can see how it's talking about the children of Israel the nation of Israel but this is also quoted in Matthew 2 talking about Jesus okay so when it says here in Hosea chapter 11 verse 1 it says when Israel was a child then I loved him and called my son out of Egypt okay so that's quoted in the New Testament talking about Jesus and the fact that Joseph and Mary had to flee into Egypt and it says when he was a child I called my son out of Egypt so it's a prophecy of Jesus but you can definitely see how in Isaiah 46 when he's saying which are born by me from the belly which are carried from the womb so he's basically talking about from when you were like in the belly when you're a child I'm bearing you up and when was it when was Israel a child when they were in Egypt right I mean if you think about it the twelve patriarchs went into Egypt okay and then they had a whole bunch of children and obviously they had children you know even before they went into Egypt right but at the same time they brought their whole family in there and you had all twelve patriarchs there they lived and died there and then they came out of Egypt okay so if you think of Israel as a nation they started off really as an agent in Egypt okay for the most part that's when they were a child that was in their their infancy if you will as a nation and then he brought that nation and brought him out of Egypt we'll go to Exodus chapter 19 Exodus chapter 19 so if you take this to the very literal sense as far as talking about the nation of Israel right and the fact that he's like I've borne you from the belly I've borne you from the womb even to your old age right he's I'm carrying you I'm delivering you and you can definitely see from when Israel was a young nation when they were just becoming a nation how he bore them and how he carried them and in Exodus chapter 19 verse 3 here this is obviously how they come out of Egypt and he's talking about this it says and Moses went up unto God and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain saying thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob and and tell the children of Israel you have seen what I did unto the Egyptians and how I bear you on eagles wings and brought you unto myself so he's literally talking about I bore you and it bore you on eagles wings and brought you out of Egypt and brought you unto myself and in Isaiah chapter 46 he's just making that point he's making that point that you know when Israel was a child I called my son out of Egypt right the idea is that Israel basically was a young nation at that point and he bore him on eagles wings and he's stating I'm still doing it okay because if yet if you understand that he's he's talking about the fact that Babylon is going to be destroyed okay and I know this is in Isaiah so it's interesting because a lot of this stuff is stuff that's gonna happen when Judah is even taken captive and at this point when Isaiah is preaching this and when he's prophesying of this they haven't been taken captive right I mean Israel has been destroyed the northern kingdom but Judah is still a nation and if you think about it during Hezekiah's reign so we haven't gotten down to where we're to Josiah and his sons to where they would be in this mess yet okay and now we know that with Hezekiah because he was lifted up and he showed all the Babylonians all his stuff that it was prophesied that all that stuff was gonna be taken out so Hezekiah kind of knew about that but Isaiah is preaching about all this stuff it's gonna happen and basically a lot of times when it talks about when it talks about them coming back from captivity of Babylon he keeps saying they're no longer gonna say that I'm the God that brought you by the hand of the land of Egypt but it rather I'm the God that brought you out of the land of the Chaldeans or out of Babylon right it's almost stating like yeah that was a big deal and it's just like everybody's just like yeah God brought them out of Egypt and brought them into Israel but what it's gonna be now said is that he's the God that brought them out of Babylon and brought them into Israel okay so you can kind of see that same thing he's basically stating that hey when you're a child I brought you out of Egypt now that you're old I'm gonna bring you out of Babylon okay I'm gonna deliver you okay so I believe that's the the you know picture that God is putting forth here now go to Isaiah 46 and verse 5 Isaiah 46 verse 5 verse 5 there it says to whom will you like me I'm sorry who will you liken me and make me equal and compare me that we may be like they lavish gold out of the bag and weigh silver in the in the balance and hire a goldsmith and he maketh it a god they fall down yea they worship they bear him upon the shoulder they carry him and set him in his place and he standeth from his place shall he not I'm sorry shall he not remove yea one shall cry unto him yet can he not answer nor save him out of his trouble remember this and show yourselves men bring it again to mind oh you transgressors remember the former things of old for I am God and there is none else I am God and there is none like me so I love this patch because if you remember you know going through Isaiah 43 44 45 what do we keep seeing I'm God and there's none beside me I'm God I know not any you know like there's no other God beside me I know not any and just there's no other Savior no not one you know like it's just going over and over and over again and you see the same thing over here only in this case he's saying that there's none like me okay now look at verse 5 there I'm just gonna be honest with you this is a verse where I've just kind of really thought about you know what this is saying now on the surface you understand what it's saying right there's no one that's like God right that's pretty simple there's no one like God but read this with me a little slower here it says to whom will you liken me and make me equal and compare me that we may be like isn't that interesting how it goes from me me me that we now I've talked to you know I was talking to other people about this and trying it because I'm not an English major okay I'm a math major you know like I so English was not my forte but obviously you know being a pastor and reading through the Bible I've had to learn English okay I understood English okay I could speak English but what I'm saying is that understand grammar and just break it down okay so usually you know when you first read this on the cuff you're kind of thinking okay he's just stating like comparing okay that we may be alike you know that's the way you normally read that is that it says to whom will you liken me so that to whom right it's kind of going back to to whom will you liken me to whom will you make me equal to whom will you compare me that we may be like now if it would have said that we may be alike I can see where it's coming from okay as far as stating that okay you're talking about God and Bell and Nebo and bail or you know whoever you want to put in the mix there now usually when this is the trick that I use when it comes to understanding who would be talked about in here when you have like we you can break it it has to be broken down into more than one person right so a pronoun the antecedent to a pronoun of we would have to include more than one person okay so if if you're comparing okay like God with someone else in the we that means you would have to say okay let's just use Bell for example because Bell was brought up at the beginning of the check the passage there it says to whom will you liken me and make me equal and compare me that that I and Bell may be like you see how that doesn't make sense because you're stating that God and Bell may be like to whom you're comparing okay I personally believe that this is a Trinity verse okay that's what I'm trying to get across here okay now you may disagree with me on that but to me grammatically and listen you can look up there's a lot of places where it says light and darkness that they may be alike and it'll like you know it'll basically use comparisons but it'll say I like like if you're going to compare two things you would say that if you say like well me and brother Dave are alike but if you said me and brother Dave are like you'd be like like what you're right because the idea is that you're kind of an incomplete thought right but if you're saying that we may be like to whom may we be like right it's kind of the idea that I'm getting here and you say well is that another place is welcome to Isaiah chapter 6 because it does that in Isaiah chapter 6 and the Bible does this a lot in the Old Testament where it'll put God as a singular pronoun like I me but then it'll say us or we and that makes sense because there are three that bear record in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost and these three are one okay one God three persons okay and I believe this is a verse where it's showing that now obviously I wouldn't use this I wouldn't be out so I'm gonna be like all right let me show you the Trinity I'm gonna pay him to Isaiah 46 here but I do believe that this is another place where you can see the Trinity being inserted in God's Word and showing you that plurality that singular and plurality at the same time okay so Isaiah 6 and verse 8 here notice what it says it says also I heard the voice of the Lord saying so who's speaking the Lord okay I heard the voice the voice so singular voice of the Lord saying whom will I send and who will go for us see that same thing going on there and obviously he says then said I hear him I said me so Isaiah saying send me but God the Lord is saying the voice of the Lord is saying you know whom shall I send and who will go for us okay so it's not like this is unprecedented that Isaiah you know or that God would be speaking to Isaiah like this because he doesn't in Isaiah chapter 6 and this is where he's literally at standing at the throne of God okay so it makes sense that he'd be saying that because you have Jesus at the right hand of the Father the whole you know the Father Son Holy Ghost or they're bearing record in heaven so it would make sense that he would be saying hey who's I'm gonna who am I gonna send that will go for us it says this in many other places go to Genesis chapter 1 I'm sorry go to go to Acts chapter 17 Acts chapter 17 verse 29 and then we'll be going to Genesis 1 say what's your whole point in this I like seeing stuff like this I like finding this this type of stuff in the Bible because it just bolsters the same thing that we believe you know that the Trinity is not a new thing it's not a New Testament thing okay the New Testament is very clear about it right when you're reading New Testament it's not like you're having to figure this out and trying to get into the grammar it's just very clear okay you have the Father the Son Holy Ghost you know that we're gonna baptize people in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Ghost that there are three to bear record in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost and these three are one in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God the same was in the beginning with God no man has seen God at any time the only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father he had declared him you know like it's just over and over and over and over again you see that okay you have the Father the Son Father Son Father Son and then you have the Holy Ghost Father Son Holy Ghost just over and over and over again in the New Testament but in the Old Testament it wasn't as revealed but it was still there and I love seeing other verses on this because I've never noticed this one in Isaiah 46 and so I notice what it says in verse Acts chapter 17 and what you have to understand is Acts chapter 17 is talking about idolatry and talking about how you can't liken idols unto God okay the whole point that he's making in Isaiah 46 is that you have all these idols that can't save and no one's like me you can't liken me unto these idols okay and it's interesting that as he's saying that he's talking in you know first person singular and first person plural at the same time because he's kind of making a point you can't liken you know God who is three and one you know the three and one the Holy Trinity you can't liken that unto some graven image okay now in Acts chapter 17 verse 29 says for as much then as we are the offspring of God we ought not to think that the Godhead is likened like unto gold or silver or stone graven by art and man's device now what's the whole point of why he's saying this well if you understand chapter 17 which you know I'm gonna end with this one this chapter this this passage actually here in a second is the fact that he's talking about that he is made of one blood all nations okay so he's kind of calling back to creation and the fact that everybody came from Adam and Eve okay and that we're the offspring of God and that's not talking about we're all children of God but we're all we were all created by God and not only were we created by God because you say well is the our you know the deer the offspring of God or you know because they're the creation there's a difference between us and animals okay we're made in the image of God okay so when it says that we're the offspring the whole point of why he's stating that this is important that if we're the offspring of God you look at us okay and who do we look like God okay we look like God and if you can't liken a man to a graven image right because you can't like a graven image can't move and talk and speak like a man can so how do you think that thing's gonna be like a god okay and the whole that's the whole point he's getting across there because he's saying you can't liken the God head to that and the whole reason he's talking about us being the offspring of God is because we are made in his image okay so you have a physical thing to look at is yourself and say hey I can't liken some inanimate object to myself though they try even today you know with the you know the AI and all this the robots and all this other stuff but listen they'll never make a conscience they'll never make life like that okay you can all they can only do as much as it's programmed to do okay and they can make it seem like it's alive they can make it seem like it's it's a real you know creation but it's not going to be now in Acts chapter 17 in verse 29 I'm sorry in Genesis 1 verse 26 sorry Genesis 1 verse 26 it says and God said this is Genesis 1 by the way God said let us make man in our image after our likeness so let's talk about the fact that we're the offspring of God that's what it's talking about is that he made man and woman you know he made man after his own image and the woman is the glory of the man okay and that we're made after his likeness and it says our you know us our our and this is let them have the menu over the fish and sea over the fowl the air over the cattle over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth notice in verse 27 so God created man in his own image so now we see that God's referring to himself as us our but then he says in his image and in the image of God created he him you're dealing with a singular pronoun again male and female created he them so God does this and he does this you know even when he kicks him out of the Garden of Eden he does this when he can found their language at the Tower of Babel which is interesting too because Babel Babylon and how that correlates with Isaiah 46 as well but the idea is that he says let us go down and confound their language and it's the Lord talking okay and so this is something that's over and over again so it's not like you look here and be like well when does that ever happen in the Bible okay happen it's happened in Genesis 1 chapter 1 of the Bible it's a that's where it was okay and so I think it's interesting and like I said I don't personally see how it could be the we being talking about God and some other like false God okay because I enough it like I said if it would have said that we may be alike okay yes I can understand that but saying that we may be like to me that doesn't make sense because when you break down that we into two different God and some other thing then it doesn't make sense okay so anyway I just think that's interesting you know to see another verse that shows that plurality and shows the Trinity and again in the Old Testament you don't really see the Trinity you definitely see the plurality you see more than one person there that's being spoken about but you don't know if it's three or how many right at that point and the New Testament nails that down you know there's three and one okay there three are by record in heaven the Father the Word and Holy Ghost and these three are one now go to Isaiah chapter 46 in verse 9 and and I didn't touch on that but in verse 9 it says remember the former things of old for I am God and there's none else I am God and there's none like me so when you think about the question he's asking who are you gonna compare me to and who shall we be like and then he says I am God and there's none like me okay and so we kind of see that same thing where it's the we and God would be there because if you read that passage and put God in there instead of we or if you put I in there instead of we that I may be like then there would be no doubt you're like yeah it's God saying you know to whom may I be like and but when you see the we you're kind of thinking automatically like are you comparing yourself to somebody like you you coupling yourself like God's coupling himself with someone saying hey you're gonna compare us you know but I don't think the way the grammar works I think it's literally God saying me me me and then he says we because it's the three and one so Isaiah 46 in verse 9 here says remember the former things of old for I am God and there's none else I am God and there is none like me declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times the things that are not yet done saying my counsel shall stand and I will go I'm sorry and I will do all my pleasure calling a ravenous bird from the east the man that executed my counsel from a far country yay I have spoken it I will also bring it to pass I have purposed it I will also do it so this is an awesome passage and it's one that you know I feel like it's taken way out of context by Calvinists in a lot of cases because they'll basically state that he is determining everything okay and I want to show I'll show you that verse and I preach a whole sermon on that okay but they'll basically try to say that God is determining everything from the end to the beginning you know from from the end to the beginning or from the beginning to the end they'll be like he's determining everything from the beginning to the end that's not what it says here it says he's declaring the end from the beginning okay and from ancient times the things that are not yet done he's declaring it okay and go to Roman chapter 4 and I think this is a good way to explain what he's stating here this doesn't mean that God's up there just determining everything that's going to happen and we don't have any self you know free will or control over it you know God's just up there like a puppet master just doing everything for us okay now he's declaring the end from the beginning because he knows the end from the beginning that's why okay so he can tell you what's going to happen and this is a common theme that when you've been following us through Isaiah I know we had a week off last week because of you know awesome winter weather but the theme that you keep seeing here is that when you're dealing with these idols it's like tell me something that's going to come to pass right the thing that keeps coming up is like these idols can't first of all they can't tell you what has already happened but it's like you know tell me that first tell me stuff have this idol tell me things that have already happened and then have it tell me things that are come to pass and what God is stating here is that these idols can't say they can't do any of this stuff and but God there's none like him because he declares the end from the beginning okay and what that means is that from the beginning from the foundation of world he's declaring what's going to be in the end because he knows the end because he's God now in Romans chapter 4 and verse 16 I believe this really kind of shows you what he's stating here it says in verse 16 it says therefore it is of faith that it might be by grace to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed not to that only which is of the law but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham who is the father of us all as it is written I have made thee a father of many nations notice that I have made thee a father of many nations before him whom he believed even God who quickened at the dead and called those things which be not as though they were the the reason that that's important when he says I have made thee a father many nations is because at that time Isaac had not been born okay so when he states this you know it it hasn't happened yet but it says he called those things which be not as though they were why because he declares the end from the beginning and the Bible says here from ancient times the things that are not yet done okay but see the whole point that he's getting crossed here is that it's going to happen okay so if God says it's going to happen it's going to happen and this gets into a lot of different things with you know God's foreknowledge and knowing what's going to happen I go to Acts chapter 2 Acts chapter 2 Acts chapter 2 and verse 22 and I preached a whole sermon on this the determinant Council foreknowledge of God and it's kind of more of a deep sermon more of an intellectual sermon if you will on understanding God's mind a little bit it says in verse 22 it says ye men of Israel hear these words Jesus of Nazareth a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you as ye yourselves also know him being delivered by the determinant Council and foreknowledge of God ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain whom God has raised up having lose the pains of death because it was not possible that it should be holding of it and so this kind of shows you that whole spectrum of what's going on here and it's stating here that it was being delivered by the determinant Council and foreknowledge of God okay and so people take this too far to say well he forced those people to kill Jesus hey well the Bible is obviously not saying that because Peter saying you by your wicked hands and destroy them and or that you you crucified the Lord and if you would have known he wouldn't have you know crucified the Lord of glory it says in other places so but the idea here is that God for knows what's going to happen okay so in you know Romans chapter 8 which the Calvinists love to go to it says whom for whom he did for know he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son and what they'll say is that well he predetermined who is going to get saved not what it says the predestination is based off the foreknowledge and the foreknowledge is talking about who first trusted in Christ okay so he predestinated those who first trusted in Christ and he foreknew who would first trust in Christ right and that's where the predestination is coming in so when it's saying that he's declaring the end from the beginning yeah from the foundation the world you were predestinated to be conformed to the image of his son and how did he know and how could he predestinate you before the foundation of the world because he knew before the foundation of the world that you'd believe but he didn't force you okay he knew all the stuff that would happen would happen with Jesus he knew that and foretold it okay he didn't force anybody to do any of that stuff though okay does that make sense so God's not like up there pulling the strings on it but he knew what would happen and God I believe is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance who have all men to be saved and come into the knowledge of truth so God obviously created man with free will because he didn't want robots okay he wanted man to actually love him because they want to love God okay so he didn't just create us with free will but he knew that obviously we'd sin okay and before he even created us he had already had a plan and had a determined counsel a determined you know outcome as far as how he was going to save us because Jesus is the lamb slain from the foundation of the world and what's that talking about go to 1st Peter chapter 1 1st Peter chapter 1 and so when it's saying to determine the counsel and foreknowledge of God God foreknew that man would sin God foreknew everything that was going to happen and inside the realm of people doing free will and having free will and making all these these decisions God has been doing things inside of that knowing if you will for lack of better terms a butterfly effect of anything he does over here it's going to affect everything over here if he kills this person over here it's going to affect everything over here that's why in the parable of the tares when when the the laborers said hey you know should we just not pull up the tares and he said no lest you pull up the wheat but it says let them grow together okay the bigger picture is that if if you were to just kill all the reprobates right now maybe less people would get saved okay I believe God is doing everything he can and everything that he does and where he would maybe do something supernatural over here or he would take this person out over here or let this person live a little longer over here everything that he does is for the purpose of getting as many people saved as possible and we don't see the bigger picture and we wonder why you know this person is still alive this person dies and you think about well why does this wicked person live why did Pharaoh live why did he live longer why didn't God just take him out because he he raised him up so that his glory would be shown throughout the whole and God's glory that is throughout the whole world say why does this innocent person die well no man take it to the heart that the righteous is taken away from evil to come you don't know all the reasons why a good person would die you know as far as we would look at it or why some wicked person would still be alive it but God's determinant counsel and foreknowledge of God and the fact that he declares the end from the beginning he knows what's going to happen he knows everything that you do and how that affects the outcome and he knows everything that he does and how that affects the outcome and thank God I'm not God okay because it racks the brain to even think about how you know when it talks about how you know you can't comprehend the knowledge of God I don't think you comprehend that because when you think about everything he has to know everything is going on all at the same time throughout history and knowing everything that he does everything that everyone else does and how the freewill choices that they make and knowing all the freewill choices they make knowing that if he if he takes out this person over here that all these people are gonna take make other freewill choices throughout time and it's just like this spiderweb of different choices based on one little action that's made but he he knows it all and he's he's obviously performing his will to that and you know in Isaiah 46 I know I have you turn to the first Peter chapter 1 there but it says Isaiah 46 and verse 11 it says calling a ravenous bird from the east the man that executes my counsel from a far country meaning that everything from a bird coming from another land okay it's all God working to try to win as many people to Christ okay that that is God's you know desire his will is that everybody be saved he knows that not everybody's going to be saved but he is doing everything he can because you may look you may look and be like well you know what's God doing he's just sitting up there just watching the show eating popcorn no God has been working from the foundation of the world to get as many people saved and everything that he does there's a reasoning behind it okay and we may not see it and we may look at it and say you know that doesn't make any sense but we're not on the outside looking in seeing the bigger picture that's going on but dealing with the fact that he declared those things declaring the end from the beginning this is how you know when it says the lamb is slain from the foundation of the world why because he caused those things to be not as though they were was Jesus literally killed at the foundation of the world no but God is outside of time and to God it had already been done okay so it's a God Jesus that already been slain from the foundation world knows what says in first Peter chapter 1 in verse 18 this is for as much as you know that the were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold from your vain conversations received by tradition from your fathers but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you see it kind of explaining that that is foreordained from the foundation of the world it was declared from the foundation of the world to God he caused those things which be not as though they were from the foundation of the world he's saying that that is going to happen and as if it has already happened at the foundation of the world but he was manifesting these last times for you meaning that yeah it actually happened in our timeline of history 2,000 years ago okay it says in 2 Timothy chapter 1 2 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 9 2 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 9 it says who hath saved us and called us with unholy calling not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace we see that talked about as far as I have purposed it and I will also do it it talks about in Isaiah chapter 46 according to his own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began put that in your dispensational pipe and smoke it that salvation by grace salvation by faith and not by works was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began because he's the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world because he's before or gained before the foundation of the world but was manifesting these last times for you because he caused those things which be not as though they were because he declared at the end from the beginning and from ancient times it says the things that are not yet done but to God it's saying here I will also bring it the past I will purpose it I will also do it so when he declares it from the beginning it's not a matter well if this happens or maybe this will happen hopefully you know in our term of hope you look in the Bible it talks about our hope that is not like what we think of when we think of when we say hope we're too like you know crossing our fingers and like you know hope we're lucky you know but what it's talking about you know but it's not a hope so it's not I think so it's not a maybe it's saying I purpose it I will also bring it the past and so that's what it's talking about here and it has a lot first of all if you understand that then it really puts this Calvinism stuff out you know in the cold because they hang their hat on people not understanding what this is talking about and what they they want this to say is that he determined the end from the beginning that's not what it says and when it says according to the determinant counsel and for knowledge of God it didn't say that he determined you know these people to do those things it was a determinant counsel and for knowledge of God see how they like to either add words or take words away you know when it comes to things in the Bible but you know what all the work all the words matter okay meaning that it all has to be there to make sense of what what it's talking about so so this is a great passage on that and it's one of those passages that I think is I honestly I think they just misquoted a lot of times they're just like he's determined everything from the beginning it's like no it says he declared the end from the beginning and what that's saying is that he's declaring from the beginning what's gonna happen in the end he's declaring it but why because he's stating what's gonna happen when it hasn't yet happened and he's not stating that he forced that to happen he just knows it's gonna happen and he's declaring it to you okay it'd be like if I was Marty McFly and I went into a time machine and got you know the the sport you know magazine that he got and then I came back and I showed you and I declared to you that such-and-such team was gonna win okay does that mean that I did I made that happen okay no I'm declaring it to you I'm stating to you I'm declaring that such-and-such team is going to win because I know what's gonna happen in the future okay but it doesn't mean that I forced it to happen or I willed it to happen and they didn't have a choice you know those players were forced to win that game or whatever okay pardon the analogy of Marty McFly and time machine but you know obviously you know God is not in a time machine he just knows everything and he knows he's not in that realm of time he's not like bound to time okay last thing to show you here is verse 12 so Isaiah 46 and verse 12 here again I preach the whole sermon on that I think it's a little deep when you get into that subject but that's kind of the principle behind it Isaiah 46 verse 12 here says hearken unto me you stout-hearted that are far from righteousness I bring near my righteousness it shall not be far off and my salvation shall not tarry and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory this these two verses right here just make me think of Romans 10 okay go to Romans 10 because you're talking about Israel and it's talking about these people that are stout hearted that are far from righteousness but it says I bring near my righteousness and he's saying it's not far off okay so it's basically like you're far off from righteousness you stout-hearted but my righteousness isn't a far off from you okay meaning that it's not far it's near it's nigh but you're not going about you're not going about to get the righteousness the right way okay pardon the same language in there the righteousness the right way Romans 10 verse 1 here says brethren my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved so who are we talking about we're talking about Israel getting saved it says for I bear them record that they have a zeal of God but not according to 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 see the stout heartedness that they're going about to get their establish their own righteousness and have not submitted themselves so what's the op what's what's a synonym for being not submissive being stout-hearted okay being you know stiff-necked you know the Bible says in the Old Testament a lot the idea of just being stubborn and not submitting to the righteousness of God it says for Moses declared the righteousness which is of the law of the man which doeth those things shall live by them but good luck with that because for whosoever it's he that is of the works of the law is under the curse first written curses everyone that continues not in all things which were written in the book of law to do them so you know what if you're gonna keep that and you're gonna live by that and you better keep it all and never mess up it says but the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise saying not in thine heart who hath shall ascend into heaven that is to bring Christ down from above or who shall descend into the deep that is to bring up Christ again from from the dead but what seth it notice this the word is 90 see that and see the similarity here it's talking about the righteousness being nigh being near that I bring near my righteousness it shall not be far off my salvation shall not tarry why because the word is 90 and you say well this is just New Testament this is a quotation of Deuteronomy okay so he's quoting Deuteronomy and it says the word is 90 even in my mouth and in my heart that is the word of faith which we preach that if thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in thine heart that God has raised them from the dead thou shalt be saved for what the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confessions made unto salvation for the scripture saith whosoever believeth in on him shall not be ashamed so when you're talking about the righteousness why are they stiff neck because they're trying to establish their own righteousness by the law they're ignorant of the righteousness which is of faith you know that that Christ is the end of the law you know the end of the law to righteousness right I'm gonna misquote that so I'm just not gonna turn to that but that being said is that I can see those similarities in these two verses here okay and going back to Acts chapter 17 so when I look at Isaiah 46 here this last thing I'm gonna show you here Isaiah 46 I see a lot of I of acts 17 dealing with the Godhead and not liking it unto idols and he's saying who can you liken me to okay but then I also see you know Romans 10 and the fact that you know he's talking to Israel and stating that salvation is near you but you're far from it okay and that's why you remember when Jesus say you're not far from the kingdom of God what's he talking about is that you're almost understanding it you're almost getting it that is not by works of righteousness that's not about being good and keeping the law because no one can there's none good but one that is God and you know some people would come up to him and he'd just be like you're not far you're not far but in other people that are starting harder you're like you're far from it because you're just completely out the lunch and not understanding this at all you're just stumbling at that stumbling stone of keeping the law to go to heaven to have righteousness when the righteousness that's going to save you is God's righteousness which is by faith and so Acts chapter 17 verse 24 it says 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 the face of the earth and have determined the times before appointed in the bounds of their habitation that they should seek the Lord if happily they might feel after him and be found though he be not far from every one of us who's he talking to is he just talking to Israelites here he's talking to everybody and so and keep reading there says for in him we live and move and have our being as certain also of your own poets have said for we are also his offspring so we're saying we're his offspring it's not stating that because people misinterpret this and they'll say well that means we're all children of God it doesn't say children of God okay it doesn't say sons of God doesn't say daughters of God it says offspring and when you couple that with what was just said it says for we for in him we live and move and have our being as certain also of your poets have written for we are also his offspring so what's coupled with offspring what is he what does he mean by offspring we live and move and have our being by him that's why we're his offspring but also it goes on talking about the Godhead we're in his image okay so we have our being and what is our being being made in the image of God right where man made in the image of God and that's why we're his offspring okay and that's what it says in verse 29 there it says for as much then as we are the offspring of God we ought not to think that the Godhead is like on the gold or silver or stone graven by art and man's device in the times of this ignorance God winked at but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent because he had appointed a day in the which he will judge the world and righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained whereof he had given assurance unto all men and that he had raised him from the dead and it all comes back to this is that that salvation is not far away that righteousness is nigh the word is nigh even in thy mouth that if thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in thy heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved it's naive it's right here you know it's the word that we preach the word of faith that we preach that who's ever believeth on the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved you know and it's very clear in this last part of the the chapter here is kind of just hitting on that that there's God there's none like him the idols aren't like him and you stout-hearted in Israel are far from righteousness but that righteousness isn't far from you if you would happily feel after it right it's talking about seeking the Lord and he's not far from any every one of us okay because God you know wants the world to be saved and he's not making it hard for people to get saved okay so that's Isaiah 46 let's end with a word of prayer daily Father we thank you today thank you for your word and thank you for the book of Isaiah and Lord just having a good time going through all these chapters and Lord just help us to to not just know these chapters but also to obviously use them and just to be strengthened in the faith by reading through these passages and just seeing all the correlations and Lord just prayed you'd be with us throughout the rest of this week I pray to bless our jobs bless our you know everything that we do through the out this week and just pray for many souls to be saved as we go out soul winning and when we love you in perilous in Jesus Christ name