Daily Devotions
Isaiah
"Woe to the crown of pride"
Text: Isaiah 28:1
THE PRONOUNCEMENT OF A SOLEMN “WOE”
Ephraim was the second son of Biblical Joseph, the erstwhile governor of Egypt in ancient days. Jacob had elevated Ephraim and Manasseh as if they were his own sons. Ephraim, in time, became the synonym for Israel!
“Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim,
Whose glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the verdant valleys,
To those who are overcome with wine!
Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one,
Like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm,
Like a flood of mighty waters overflowing,
Who will bring them down to the earth with His hand.
The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim,
Will be trampled underfoot;
And the glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the verdant valley,
Like the first fruit before the summer,
Which an observer sees;
He eats it up while it is still in his hand.”
Isaiah 28:1-4
1. Ephraim (Israel) had begun so well.
a) It enjoyed “glorious beauty”.
b) It was at the head of verdant luxurious valleys.
2. But Ephraim had become a drunkard.
a) It wore a crown of pride.
b) But it was overcome by wine.
c) The nation would lose its status as a great nation.
d) Ephraim’s pride was the cause of its downfall.
3. The LORD’s chastisement.
a) An enemy described as “a mighty and strong one” would arise.
b) This was Assyria.
c) It was compared:
i) To a tempest of hail and a destroying storm.
ii) To a mighty overflowing flood.
iii) Ephraim would be “brought down to earth”.
4. The glorious beauty that Israel enjoyed.
a) It was compared to a fading flower.
b) It was compared to the first-fruit that was eaten.
c) Israel would eat whatever was at hand for there would be no harvest.
d) The crown of pride was gone forever!