Caleb Drahosh \\ Isaiah goes into detail on how idols are made; he takes us inside of the idol factory and inside the heads of those who worship them. The absurdity of the whole situation is that the same wood that a man uses to kindle a fire to cook over, he also fashions into an idol and worships. God's good gifts are given to us not for us to worship them, but to point us to Him that we might worship the only true God.

Caleb Drahosh \\ God's people grew tired of God. They ignored His Word in weariness, claiming to be burdened, all while it was Israel who burdened God with their sins. But God is merciful and blots out the sin of His people. He extends the grace needed to return to worship that flows from the heart instead of the rote pacification of an impersonal deity.

Caleb Drahosh \\ The people of God grow insensitive to God's purposes for them and resist His discipline. But God is rich in mercy. He graciously intervenes on behalf of His people, paying a great price and going to great lengths to accomplish the redemption of His wayward people.

Blaze Culliton \\ In lieu of the foretelling of sending His chosen servant, the Lord through the prophet Isaiah commands His people to sing to the Lord a new song, lift up their voice, sing for joy and declare His praise. The Lord will redeem His people, stopping at nothing to destroy sin and death and restore them - for He does not forsake His people and faithfully delivers them.

Caleb Drahosh \\ God turns the attention away from the cheap substitute of idolatry and toward His plan. Here He introduces His servant. But this isn't one who will rise to prominence through political and military conquest like Cyrus. Instead the Lord's servant will come gently, not trampling on rulers as on mortar, but tending to the bruised reed and reigniting the faintly burning wick. Jesus Christ will disrupt the wisdom of the world and restore God's people through His own sacrifice and suffering.

Caleb Drahosh \\ God tells the idols to speak, to make a case. He tells them to speak about the future. But they can't. God pursues His people with simple reason: there is no substitute for Him. Nothing or no one can speak in the way that He speaks; nothing or no one can do the things that He does.

John Baumgartner \\ God continues to lift up valleys and bring down mountains. He contends with the nations to bring down their pride, and He comforts His people to lift them up again from their humiliation. God promises His humble people that He will use them for this work. God miraculously refreshes His people as they wait for Him to accomplish His purpose.

Caleb Drahosh \\ After clearing away the obstacles that stand in the way of His people seeing Him clearly, God challenges the comparisons that His people rebelliously make. Nations and nature and idols cannot compare to God. And for His people who are wondering where He is, God reminds them that He didn't get tired or fail to understand their situation. Rather, He reminds them to patiently wait for the renewal that He has promised.

Caleb Drahosh \\ By disciplining His people through exile, God removes obstacles for His people to behold their God. He levels out all earthly positions and highlights the fallibility and fickleness of men. God’s Word endures forever and we behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ; Christ alone is our confidence. Those who behold their God, herald their God.

Caleb Drahosh \\ In Isaiah 40-55, Israel has been carried off to exile in Babylon. They broke covenant with the Lord and God used the hand of their enemies to bring discipline upon them. But now that Jerusalem had been emptied, God speaks comfort to His people. True and lasting comfort can only come from God; peace and security may be temporarily lost, but the comfort of the Lord remains for His people because He is with them.