In Isaiah 47 God speaks to Babylon and Chaldea. He explains that they only came to power because He was angry with His people. They may have thought that they would be powerful forever and that their wealth would remain but God is still in control. They will be brought down because of their sinfulness.

In Isaiah 48 God speaks to Israel. He tells them that now they are free from Babylon. But He reminds them that if they had kept His commandments they would not have had to go through this suffering. He reminds them that He told them about this long ago. As we remember God told the people in the wilderness that if they kept His commandments they would be blessed but if they did not they would be punished. This punishment should not have come as a surprise to them. God calls them a rebel people.

God is saving His people for His own sake, not for theirs. They have been tested and now He is saving them.

We, too, know that it is better to follow in the Lord’s way than to take our own path. But we are a rebellious people. We try to take control. And we will bear the consequences of our actions. But it is comforting to know that God is still there and wants to save us from ourselves and our bad decisions. When we recognize that God is still in control and surrender ourselves to Him He embraces us with His steadfast love. We are God’s people even when we don’t know it. We are God’s people even when we deny it. God is always faithful.

Hebrews 7 is a continuation of the last chapter. The writer is comparing Jesus to the high priest Melchizedek, who was actually the King of Salem. His name is significant because it means king of righteousness, the word Salem means peace so he is also the king of peace. Melchizidek blessed Abraham and Abraham gave him one-tenth of his spoils. This is the beginning of the concept of the tithe where we give one-tenth of our earnings to the Lord as an offering. We often do not speak about this kind of giving anymore. There are many who will feel that it is an imposition to give that amount to the church. The concept of the tithe is to give to God first before you have spent your money. At that point you may spend the 90% however you wish. Since the tithe is already given it is easier to deal with the remainder rather than waiting to give to God and finding other ways to spend your money instead of giving it to the church.

Jesus was not in Aaron’s line or the line of Levi and yet God anoints him as High Priest. This is the same as Melchizedek who did not come from Abraham’s line and yet was able to bless him. Jesus is our Ling of Righteousness and our King of Peace. It is through him that we may approach God. He intercedes for us and makes atonement for our sins permanently. While the Levitical priests were fallible and prone to weakness, Jesus is infallible and is perfect. This is the High Priest of the new covenant.