Ep. 153. Isaiah 4-6 | See But Don't Perceive

EPISODE 153

SEE BUT DON'T PERCEIVE: ISAIAH 4-6

We must really grasp what is being said in Isaiah 6 8-10. "Say to this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.' Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." God told Isaiah to proclaim to the people that they would NOT understand him or perceive him. It was a sad reality that the people of Israel were to face. They were destined to hear God's words, see God's work, and yet still miss him in the midst of it. 

However, this prophecy did not end with the people Isaiah spoke to directly; instead, it carried forward to the Jews of Jesus' and the Apostles' days. Contrary to popular belief, Jesus spoke in parables so that people would NOT understand. (People still say things like, "Preachers need to preach in parables just like Jesus did so that the crowds can better understand." They miss entirely the words of Jesus that he spoke in parables so that the people would NOT repent and turn to him. The reason for such an intent becomes clear in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, "If they had understood, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory." 

Jesus himself references this text as recorded for us in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In the book of John, it is not Jesus who says these words; the author himself quotes Isaiah as it relates to Jesus. In Acts, Paul uses these exact words to shame his Jewish audience that rejected his teaching on Jesus. Paul again alludes to this text in Romans. 

Throughout the Old Testament, you will find examples of the blind eyes and the deaf ears of the people of God, and that truth will be folded forward in the New Testament. Even to this day, the Jews, as a whole, still see but don't perceive, hear, but don't understand. But there will come a day when God will awaken their hearts to know him. A hardening of the Jews has happened so that Christ would be crucified and so that the Gentiles would come to faith, but there will be a day that God will open the eyes and ears of Israel, for "The gifts and calling of God are irrevocable." 

ADDITIONAL READING: Psalm 87; Revelation 21:23-24; Job 1:10; Habakkuk 2:14; Isaiah 53:1; Romans 11:25,29 ; 1 Corinthians 2:8; Matthew 13:14-15; Mark 4:11-12; Luke 8:9-10; John 12:39-42; Acts 28:25-27; Romans 11:8