ISAIAH
Chapter 1: 16-17

Isaiah 1:16-17

quote:

"Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, 17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless; Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow."

Because Isaiah wanted Judah to turn from their unrighteous ways, he not only diagnosed Judah's sinful condition, but he also gave the solution. If they were to engage in true service and worship they had to first and foremost genuinely repent. They had to stop sinning and seek to live by God's instructions. Once they repented, it would be God who would do the cleansing –

Psalm 51:7
"Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."

Isaiah now exhorts them with the command to "learn to do good". It is as though they had to begin anew and be reminded of Moses' words to the nation –

Deuteronomy 6:4-7
"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! 5 And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart; 7 and you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up."

They were now paying the price for not having passed God's teaching from one generation to the next and so they had to be reminded of God's basic instructions. These instructions were for each one individually. A nation cannot repent until the individuals who make up that nation repent.

Judah was to pursue justice in every area of life. The three specific examples given were those of general oppression of others and ill treatment of orphans and the widowed. They were not to cause anyone mental or spiritual distress by way of abuse or reckless use of authority. And those who were helpless and weak, such as the orphan and widow, were to be treated fairly. Interestingly, James defines true religion in very similar terms:

James 1:27
"This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world."

These were part of God's social justice, which could only be corrected with a heart change. Are our own hearts in line with God's justice system? To do good doesn't just include treating our friends well. Do we find it easy to come to the defense of those who are weak and those who go unnoticed? Would we fight injustice for someone who cannot repay us? There are no doubt injustices that we come across in our daily lives that God and others are waiting for us to open our hearts to – to those weak and helpless who need encouragement and blessing.