No Peace To The Wicked
Our Bible passage, introduction to Sunday 10th March service and hymns are below.
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Our principal verses are:
Isa 57:1 The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.
Isa 57:2 He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.
Isa 57:14 … Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people.
Isa 57:15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
Isa 57:16 For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made.
Isa 57:17 For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.
Isa 57:18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners.
Isa 57:19 I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him.
Isa 57:20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
Isa 57:21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.
No Peace To The Wicked
The Psalmist tells us, ‘Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints’. Here Isaiah contrasts the attitude of the wicked, perhaps thinking especially of the blind watchmen and ignorant shepherds of the previous chapter. They have no sense of the value lost to the church and the world by the death of those who lived uprightly, prayed for their brothers and sisters, and daily witnessed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Unbelievers do not realise the benefits they receive from the presence of the church in the world.
The blessings of death
Those who die in the Lord are triply blessed. They are evermore preserved and protected from the evil of this world. Their souls are carried into the presence of the Lord there to walk in holiness and purity with their Saviour evermore. Their physical remains rest in their grave, which is to them a soft bed of comfort and ease, until body and soul will be reunited at the coming of Christ. Then He will gather His church to glory in the new heaven and new earth.
A catalogue of corruption
Not so the wicked. They will be held accountable and will answer for their sin. There is no escape. They have mocked the Lord’s people, the Lord’s pastors, and the Lord’s gospel. In truth, it is the Lord Himself and His blood they have despised. They use God’s good gifts to indulge their lust. They slay their own children, exploit the weak, and spoil all they touch. This does not imply they are irreligious. On the contrary, they worship creatures, they worship themselves and their fleshy passions. Here Isaiah likens this to raising idols and building altars on the tops of mountains and setting images in their own homes.
False religion
The religion of natural men and women is inwardly a sham. Outwardly, they adorn themselves with scents and ointments to disguise the stench of their hypocrisy. False religion, the mystery religion of Babylon, is used to control, manipulate and exploit the powers of this world. Yet, there is no joy gained thereby. Indulging in sin wearies the wicked and brings no satisfaction. Any pleasure is fleeting and no contentment is found. Nevertheless, no thought is given to God. Man will not admit his wilful stupidity. He insists on pressing on in his soul-destroying path to hell.
Sin will be judged
The Lord promises, ‘I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works’, that is, He will expose its emptiness and pretence, and He will judge it. The Lord, by the prophet, announces to all men in all generations that He will not be mocked, nor will judgment long be delayed. A cry of fear will be heard among the reprobate when Christ is revealed as Judge, but no deliverer will rise from their assorted idolatrous practices. Only true faith in Jesus Christ will suffice.
‘Cast ye up, prepare the way’
Yet there is forgiveness with God that He may be feared. At the culmination of this prophetic passage Isaiah reminds the remnant people of the Lord’s purpose for His church. The call to ‘cast up’ is a call to make a highway, a clear way, for the elect of God to travel upon and return to Him. The high and lofty One whose name is holy is the Lord Jesus Christ. He inhabits eternity and dwells in heaven to where He calls those who by quickening, reviving grace are made contrite and humble by the Spirit of God.
Evidence of mercy
The convicting Spirit of God will act upon the hearts of God’s elect to humble and convince them of sin. Mercifully, for the weakness of our souls, He will not contend with us for long. At length, when our need of grace is learned, and the poor sinner cries out for help, the Lord is quick to heal. He is quick to lead, guide and direct so that the convicted soul may hear the gospel truth, see the Lord Jesus as Saviour, and be comforted by grace.
The fruit of the lips
Praise, gratitude and worship is ‘the fruit of the lips’ and this God creates in and from the hearts of redeemed sinners. It is the Lord’s work to bring peace where there was distress for sin, and joy to where there was fear and dread. The Lord will heal. This saving work will be performed far and near, in all nations throughout the gospel age. It was felt in the hearts of Isaiah’s hearers, revealed in the days of the Messiah, and spread among the Gentiles to the ends of the earth.
No peace to the wicked
However, as wonderful as this comfort is, the opposite is dreadful. ‘The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.’ The distress that humbles God’s elect contrariwise hardens the wicked. The conviction that brings one sinner to repentance reinforces opposition and rebellion in another. Salvation is all of grace. Mercy, upon the merits of the blood of Christ, is our only hope. May the Lord heal us under the sound of His truth in these gospel days and put His praise in our hearts and on our lips.
Amen
Our hymns are below.
Hymn 1
Gadsby selection 281
“Contrite heart.” Isa. 57. 15; Ps. 51. 17
W. Cowper C.M.
1
The Lord will happiness divine
On contrite hearts bestow;
Then tell me, gracious God, is mine
A contrite heart, or no?
2
I hear, but seem to hear in vain;
Insensible as steel;
If aught is felt, ’tis only pain,
To find I cannot feel.
3
I sometimes think myself inclined
To love thee, if I could;
But often find another mind,
Averse to all that’s good.
4
My best desires are faint and few;
I fain would strive for more;
But when I cry, “My strength renew,”
Seem weaker than before.
5
Thy saints are comforted, I know,
And love thy house of prayer;
I sometimes go where others go,
But find no comfort there.
6
O make this heart rejoice or ache,
Decide this doubt for me;
And if it be not broken, break,
And heal it if it be.
Hymn 2
Gadsby selection 1023
I dwell with him that is of a humble spirit. Isa. 57. 15
W. Cowper L.M.
1
Jesus, where’er thy people meet,
There they behold thy mercy-seat;
Where’er they seek thee thou art found,
And every place is hallowed ground.
2
For thou, within no walls confined,
Inhabitest the humble mind;
Such ever bring thee where they come,
And going, take thee to their home.
3
Dear Shepherd of thy chosen few,
Thy former mercies here renew;
Here to our waiting hearts proclaim
The sweetness of thy saving name.
4
Here may we prove the power of prayer
To strengthen faith, and sweeten care;
To teach our faint desires to rise,
And bring all heaven before our eyes.
Sin is a disturbing, distressing and ultimately destroying enemy of men and women. There is no rest for the wicked, and no real peace in time or in eternity. The Lord Jesus Christ alone can supply the grace needed to bring peace into the lives of men and women because the Lord has made peace with God for all for whom He died. Christ inherited the people God chose for Himself in eternity. He will gather them to Himself in time through the preaching of the gospel. He promises His elect, I will heal, I will guide, I will comfort, I will inspire, I will console.
10 March 2024