Sooner or later a farmer stops plowing and plants seeds. God helps him understand what to do and when to do it. Grain isn't to be ground forever. This knowledge also comes from the Lord who is a wonderful counselor, magnificent in wisdom and excellent in working.
In this chapter Isaiah calls Jerusalem "Ariel". Ariel will mourn because she will be brought down. Suddenly the Lord will come with thunderstorms and earthquakes. It will be like a dream, very real yet unbelievable. This prophecy is just words on paper that some won't read and others can't read; it is empty for them. For those people, they speak of God, but they don't know God - their hearts are not in it. They think they can hide from their maker but they are wrong. When the Israelites finally see the great works of God they will praise and honor Him.
Bad news for those bent on finding new and exciting ways to sin. Those people keep looking in all the wrong places for whatever it is they think they want. (They don't really know.) God told Isaiah to write on paper His message to the Israelites so it would be a witness against them. They didn't want to know God's truth, they wanted to hear pretty lies. God offered protection and they rejected that too. Isaiah told them that God is waiting for them to come to Him and He will show them mercy. Isaiah told them that if they asked God for directions, they would hear a voice guiding them. God would take care of them and make sure they were safe and had plenty to eat.
Isaiah warned them that they were in trouble if they went to Egypt for help - they are only human. But God wanted them to come back to Him and also destroy all the idols. Assyria would be destroyed.
Isaiah taught the people that a king and his leaders would rule righteously under the law and with justice. Then everybody would understand that decency would prevail and they could trust their government. The women were carefree and complacent in their cushy sinful lives. But that would change and give way to desolation and they wouldn't know what to do. They weren't interested in obeying God and being helpful to others. Everything changes for the better when we have God's spirit with us and we all strive to be better people.
Tomorrow read Isaiah 33-37:29
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