Isaiah 65-66 - Indepthbible.org

16 17to My face constantly,18 19sacrificing in the gardens,15(...continued)Ezekiel 8:16-17, bowing down to the sun, “putting the branch to the nose,” evidently a symbolicgesture in nature worship;Ezekiel 16:26, Jerusalem’s prostitution with the Egyptians;Hosea 12:14, Ephraim’s guilt of bloodshed;Psalm 106:29, Israel’s eating sacrifices offered to lifeless idols at Baal-Peor (see Numbers 25);2 Chronicles 28:24-25, Ahaz of Judah shut the doors of the temple and set up altars at everystreet-corner in Jerusalem, as well as building high places for burning sacrifices to otherGods in every town in Judah;2 Chronicles 33:3-6, Manasseh of Judah built altars to the Baals and erected Asherah poles; hebowed down to the starry hosts, building altars to them in the temple. He sacrificed hissons in the the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced sorcery, divination and witchcraft, as wellas consulting mediums for guidance.What do you think? Do you wonder how Israel and Judah of old could have done suchthings to provoke YHWH, leading to their exile in foreign lands? What about ourselves? Do yousuppose that our worship of the “Almighty Dollar,” our addiction to pornography, and our trust inAmerica’s military might provokes God / Jesus Christ?16For this phrase, yn:ßP'-l[;, literally “upon My faces,” see the following occurrences in theHebrew Bible:Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 5:7, both of these, the first commandment, have this exact Hebrewphrase;Isaiah 65:3, here, of people provoking YHWH’s face constantly;Jeremiah 6:7, Israel’s sickness and wounds are ever before YHWH’s face.We think the phrase undoubtedly refers to the first of the ten commandments, and is usedto accuse Israel of having violated that commandment through the making of other Gods. Weagree with Motyer in his statement that the phrase refers to “the cultivation of alternative objectsof worship.” (P. 524)17The adverb dymi_T', means “continually,” of going on without interruption, or in a constantrepetition.18Where the Massoretic Text reads ~ynI)beL.h;-l[; ~yrIßJ.q;m.W* tANëG:B; ‘~yxib.zO*, “slaughtaering for sacrifice in the gardens and burning sacrifices upon the bricks,” 1QIs reads ßWq.n;y.w;~ynI)bah-l[; ~ydy twNëG:B; ‘~yxib.wz hmh, “and they (are) slaughtering, sacrificing in thegardens, hands upon the stones.” This variant reading makes a significant difference for the(continued...)30