Daily Devotions
Isaiah
"Woe to those who join house to house"
Text: Isaiah 5:8
THE RAPACIOUS WEALTHY LANDOWNERS
Many were the sin problems in the land of Judah. One of them was the problem of greedy landowners!
“Woe to those who join house to house;
They add field to field,
Till there is no place
Where they may dwell alone in the midst of the land!
In my hearing the LORD of hosts said,
‘Truly, many houses shall be desolate,
Great and beautiful ones, without inhabitant.
For ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath,
And a homer of seed shall yield one ephah.'”
Isaiah 5:8-10
1. The acquisition of land.
a) The wealthy landowners kept buying houses and fields.
i) Sometimes these were done by force.
ii) Crooked means were not uncommon.
iii) A divine pronouncement of “Woe” was declared.
b) The poor were edged out.
i) They cannot compete.
ii) They end up losing their properties to the rich and powerful.
iii) The plight of the poor became worse and worse.
2. The LORD’s judgment.
a) The wicked rich would be judged by the LORD.
b) The many beautiful houses they built would become desolate.
c) War would see to the destruction of all that the rich had accumulated greedily.
3. The plans of the rich:
a) To own rich fields.
b) They hoped that there would be great harvests.
c) Then, they would increase their wealth.
4. The consequences of the LORD’s judgment.
a) He would not bless the fields with good harvests.
b) Much may be sown, but the yields would be poor.
c) The LORD would not give His blessings to those who become rich
at the expense of the poor!