Today I was reading Isaiah 10. In v. 26 it addresses the future deliverance of the people from the Assyrians, when YHWH will strike them as he did Egypt, evoking memories of the Exodus. I am sure I have read these lines before today, and I presume I recognized what I observed now, but it stood out to me this time more than others. Isaiah says of YHWH that his staff will be raised over the sea, the way he raised it as regards Egypt (ומטהו על־הים ונשׂאו בדרך מצרים׃), yet in Exodus 14:16, 27 the one raising staff is Moses, at YHWH’s command.
It seems like Isaiah 10:26 convolutes the identity of YHWH and Moses. Thoughts?
Advertisements
The way I see it, when Moses (or anyone) carries out the will of YHWH, as the body carries out the will of the mind, YHWH is actually taking Moses into his nature. Would YHWH really have wiped out the Israelites if Moses hadn’t interceded for them on Mt. Sinai? Or did YHWH take Moses into his own character and “condescend” to carry out his own plans through human action?
Does Isa 10:26 conflate the “identity” of Yhwh and Moses, or the “function”? In context, the focus seems to be more on function. On the other hand, if the identity is “liberator,” there is not much difference between identity and function 🙂
Note that you can already see conflation of *both* identity and function between Yhwh and Moses in e.g. Exod 4:16-17; 7:1 (Moses will be like God) and 8:2+5 (both Yhwh and Moses/Aaron/staff bring frogs).
John
This makes me wonder even more about what is going on in the Gospel of John 1, where Jesus is juxtaposes with Moses a bit, and the emphasis is placed on Jesus being the one who is in the bosom of God the Father.
Michael
You are right. It seems like Isaiah is grounding his language in ideas already present in the Exodus tradition.
Indeed, I wonder too. I suppose in the same way, but to a complete and absolute degree, YHWH condescended and took up human nature into himself in Jesus the King. YHWH’s will became fully identifiable in the person of Jesus, as it had partially in Moses and as it does in us through his Spirit.
I’m not being condescending by asking, how much of the prophecy of Isaiah 10 do you believe you understand? Of more relevance, how much of the history of (the House of) Israel’s sojourn in Assyria (and subsequent history) do you know?
Not that it matters, but few Christians ask questions like you are asking, and fewer still make the observations you’ve made in this post – so don’t let pride get in the way of an honest answer (and in saying this I’m not being boastful or judging you).
I’d love to comment on this post, but only if my comments are welcome, and only if I have some sense of how much needs to be said.
John
There does seem to be a Pneumatological aspect that links Moses more so with participants in the New Covenant than Christ.
Andrew
I don’t know if I know what you are wanting me to know. I do know you’ve attempted to explain your views on Israelite-Jewish identity in the prophets, but I think it may be too complex a paradigm to communicate via this sort of medium. It seems like something that may be better served through one’s own blog, because it is a lot of content, and it may take a number of posts to make the central point. If you create said blog let me know.
Ok.
O the wonders of trying to talk about the Trinity 🙂
Here is the key text from the verse: “as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt.” – NKJV. I would suggests there were two rods at the sea: the physical rod of Moses, representing the symbolic rod of the Holy Spirit. I see no conflating here. It tells me that God intends to lift up His symbolic rod against the Assyrian. Well, in Isaiah 37, Assyria’s army of 185,000 were slaughtered by the Holy Spirit. Interesting image when compared to the dead bodies the Israelites must of have seen after watching them all drown in the Red Sea (or Sea of Reeds) all those years before. In both cases, the slaughter was at the hands of the Holy Spirit. Interestingly, God used a physical agent (Moses) to represent His rod; in Isaiah, He does not. In both cases, I believe the Holy Spirit is clearly the victor.
I also like 1 Chronicles 14:15-16. First the Holy Spirit goes out to conquer the Philistines, and then David goes and conquers the philistines. An archaeologist would only detect David’s victory, yet clearly the victory was of the Holy Spirit. As with Isaiah, there is no conflating, just the Holy Spirit doing His work, while using a man as the **apparent** agent.
One last thought, which I hope is not perceived as off topic. No matter what church I go to, I am taught that prayer is not our way of having God do our will, but is God’s way of keeping us within His will. Yet, we are to pray specifically. So, when I pray something from within my heart, am I conflating myself and God? Certainly not! I am acting in obedience, as the Holy Spirit gives utterance.
Personal theories aside, it seems reasonable if you’re going to ask about Isaiah’s prophecy, you should make some effort to identify:
a. Who was he prophesying to (and what was its context)?
b. After he prophesied, what happened to his audience, historically,?
c. Was his prophetic language consistent or inconsistent with other prophetic language?
d. If consistent, does the bible explain this language clearly (language such as ‘sea’ [Isa 57:20; Isa 60:5], ‘mountain’ [Isa 2:2-4])
It makes no sense to try to provide explanations without placing the prophecy itself in context. Isaiah was not looking back in time at the Exodus – he was looking forward, seeing the first Exodus as a ‘type’, a repeating pattern. So, unless we’re willing to grapple with questions such as the ones above that establish the landscape – we’re simply making stuff up in our explanations.
If I happen to have a theory it may because I’ve done exactly this, and asked questions others haven’t. Sure it might be bunk, but it might also be true. The only way to know, is to hear and test it against the bible for fidelity, otherwise it’s never wise to ask a question where the answer may not be liked.
Hint: the House of Israel was prophesied to be ‘sifted through the nations’ in the sieve of destruction‘ [Amos 9:9][Isa 30:28]. These nations were not random, but outlined clearly in [Dan 8]. Prophetically if these nations were ‘wicked’, and restless – could it not be this was the sea Isaiah was speaking about in [Isa 10:26]?
So [Isa 10:26] might be saying something like “Therefore says the Lord God of hosts: “O my people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians when they strike you with they (punish you) as the Egyptians did. For in a very little while my fury will (abate) and my anger will be directed in their destruction {after all did I not promise to Bless those that bless you and curse those that curse you; their destruction is certain since they will curse you![Gen 12:3; 27:29]}. The LORD of hosts will wield against them (the Assyrians) a whip as when he struck Midian at the rock of Oreb. And he will part those wicked nations set before you (to punish you) as he did the sea (in the first Exodus) as in Egypt. In that day his curse [Deu 28:45; 29:20][2 Chron 34:24] upon you (for breaking the covenant [Dan 9:11]) will depart from you ….
Isaiah is clearly saying though Israel will be sifted through the nations, they will be not hindered by them (this is the parting of the sea metaphor), and in fact it will be the cursing if Israel (and their God) that will result in the breaking of these nations.
If none of this makes sense .. try reading the quotes provided inline. They are provided for a reason – and provide clarity. Also, if you deny that the ‘sea</b' is a prophetic metaphor for wicked nations – read [Eph 4:14].
It could be as simple as the biblical principle Jeremiah evinced once,”Prepare the horse for battle, but, victory belongs to Yahweh”.
Moses lifted up his arms in obedience to Yahweh, but, the power was Yahweh’s to accomplish the goals. Moses, being Yahweh’s human agent, was in effect Yahweh Himself lifting up His arms. He gives us that value of being His agents, but, we’re nothing w/o Him.
I agree with Patrick. If a prophet speaks the Word of God, they are the Word of God not the prophet’s words. Same for Moses… if he does the Will of God, it is not Moses’ will.
Mike
I don’t think your observations are incompatible with what I suggested. Identity conflation doesn’t mean that Moses is YHWH, but it does mean that what YHWH does is done through the human agent, so that the human agent’s actions are seen as one and the same with that of YHWH. We may say this makes them an apparent agent, and that it is YHWH who is doing the real actions, but this makes me wonder why did YHWH use the human agent, especially when there are narratives when a being like the angel of YHWH acts without need of human agents?
Patrick and Rick
I think my response to Mike above is the same one I’d ask you in response to what you said.
Thanks for the clarification Brian. I misunderstood. I thought you meant Isaiah was suggesting that looking at Moses was like looking at God, the same way that looking at Jesus is looking at God. Obviously, it is not the same thing, but now I see you did not mean that.
Once can equate a man’s actions with God’s actions, without equating the man himself with God. As for why God would act through someone, instead of just acting on His own? I think the answer is that it boosts our faith. And He does it differently every time. Moses was not literally parting the seas, just lifting His rod, but it gave the Israelites faith. It boosted Moses’ faith as well, and the faith of the ones who had to help him hold up his arms! David did literally defeat the Philistines, but telling David of the defeat already achieved by the Holy Spirit gave Him faith. In the case of Isaiah, the Holy Spirit conquered the Assyrian army in chapter 37 without using anyone to do it. But, because it was prophesied, and it was reminiscent of the Exodus, it boosted the people’s faith. Three very different victories, with faith in God as the common goal.
I believe the answer to your question then is that God chooses to act in ways that boost our faith… and he boosts our faith so that we can come to know Him. It does not mean that we will choose to know Him, or that we will act on the faith He gives us. Even a modern atheist/agnostic can points at Israel’s modern victories since 1948 and say it’s almost enough to believe in God (Netanyahu in “A Durable Peace”)… it’s a boost in faith, another chance to know Him.
Moses vs YHWH is a senseless question. It is always YHWH, just as it was YHWH in Exodus, as it would be YHWH in Isaiah’s prophecy. To focus on Moses is to think like a Pharisee. YHWY’s staff was Moses, as Moses’ staff was the staff. The staff isn’t what matters.
Isaiah’s prophecy is akin to pointing out to an audience how a house is falling down around the foundation, and how it might be built up. Simply looking at Moses vs YHWH is like wondering what kind of a difference different wallpaper might make.
Isaiah was foreseeing something historical about what God intended to do. Beneath the veneer of Isaiah’s curious metaphorical speech is unassailable truth of God’s way, available to anyone willing to look at the house, rather than the wallpaper. The sea and one parting it are what matters – and that’s what we should be recognzing in Isaiah!
Inclusion of verses 24 and 27 indicate the application of power. The incredible span of prophecy is stunning. Examinations, histories beyond the actual pronouncement are challenged to obtain the fullness of intent. Of course human is inhibited in spiritual perspectives yet are the agents to prove the eventual revelation. The entirety of human activity is not to produce something or we have been terrible failures. History is the truth regarding human governments; they have all failed. This world is a demonstration of the glory of God.