Isaiah 59: The Failings of Man: Chapter 18: We Cannot Save Ourselves

Isaiah was well aware of the degradation of the human condition. He peered into the heart of man and saw death lurking at the bottom. Paul later agreed fully with that assessment, adding that this condition was universal. Both Jew and Greek were afflicted with the same mortality and its resulting corruption.

Hence, also, Paul knew that the solution was the same for all men. All come to Christ in the same manner, all are required to have New Covenant faith as manifested in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The Hopeless Condition of Adam’s Heirs

Isaiah saw the darkened heart of the people in his day, which made it clear that men could not save themselves by the power of their own strength and the will of man. Isaiah 59:9, 10 says,

⁹ Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, but behold, darkness, for brightness, but we walk in gloom. ¹⁰ We grope along the wall like blind men. We grope like those who have no eyes; we stumble at midday as in the twilight, among those who are vigorous we are like dead men.

Perhaps the Apostle John contemplated this when he presented the Light of the world (John 8:12) and showed how Jesus healed the man born blind (John 9:1). No doubt John took note that Isaiah’s pessimism about man’s ability to save himself stood in stark contrast to God’s ability to save (Isaiah 59:16). John presents Jesus as the One through whom this divine salvation had come.

But Isaiah was not yet finished with his pessimistic metaphors of the human condition. Isaiah 59: 11 continues,

¹¹ All of us growl [hamah] like bears, and moan sadly [hagah] like doves; we hope for justice, but there is none, for salvation [Yeshua], but it is far from us.

The prophet uses similar-sounding words in poetic fashion that fails to come forth in our translations. We hamah like bears and hagah like doves. These portray two types of reactions to the problem of injustice. We either growl aggressively like bears or complain passively like doves. Either way, we are discontented with the injustice that unregenerate men have done to us and to others.

Thus, the effects of Adam’s sin upon us personally and upon the political and judicial systems of men are evident. Adam had been given authority to bring forth much fruit in the earth, but his sin brought forth the sour and bitter fruits of injustice and unrighteousness. Instead of subduing the earth so that it might bring forth the fruit of the Spirit, men began to subdue the earth to themselves. We have thus reaped the fruit of sin from the seeds of iniquity.

The prophet saw no justice in his time, but yet he expressed prophetically his desire “for Yeshua,” who, at the time, was yet “far from us.” Nonetheless, this was a subtle prophecy of the coming of Yeshua-Jesus, whose name means “salvation.”

Dealing with Guilt

Isaiah 59:12, 13 says,

¹² For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities; ¹³ transgressing and denying the Lord, and turning away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words.

We all have ample evidence of our failings. Those who have a conscience know the condition of their own heart. Hence, we are often our own worst critic. Yet people react differently to this knowledge in their attempts to find the solution or to assuage their conscience.

There are many psychological tools that the carnal mind has at its disposal. Some project their sins upon others. Some frame their sins in a way that seems to reduce their liability and even make their sins appear righteous. Some deny the existence of sin under the belief that if they refuse to recognize it, then somehow it will not exist.

The righteousness of God has the only lawful solution. Like Isaiah, we are to recognize the reality of the human condition and then deal with guilt through the principle set forth in the sacrificial system. Rather than project our sins upon others, we are to project our sins upon Jesus, who took upon Himself the sin of the world. Rather than make excuses for our sin through self-justification, we are to recognize our utter inability to change ourselves but recognize that God Himself has vowed to save us and to change our nature.

We are to understand that God calls what is not as though it were (Rom. 4:17, KJV). We are not righteous, but God’s ability to call things into existence means that He has imputed righteousness to those who have faith in His ability to keep His vows. He has thus called us righteous, even though we are not yet there.

Hence, we are given right standing before God at the first sign of faith, and this continues while we are yet in training as sons of God. Though we may mourn that we are not yet actually righteous, we may also avoid a life of guilt and shame by recognizing God’s lawful provision of imputed righteousness that He has spoken into existence.

To do this, we must learn to see ourselves as God sees us. If we focus too much on what our carnal eyes see, we will continue to struggle and will never be able to enter God’s rest. We must believe that when God says something, it is the truth, even if that new reality takes time to fully manifest in us. Hence, He calls what is not as though it were and brings the light of truth into the world. We respond by faith, knowing that He is able to fulfill what He has spoken.

That is New Covenant faith (Rom. 4:21). That is Abrahamic faith.

Many people define faith in carnal terms. To many people, faith is little more than positive thinking. Men use “faith” as a tool to create their own reality, rather than seeing faith as a response to God’s reality. True faith is a response to God’s word; men’s “faith” has confidence in his own ability to create reality by the power of positive thinking and continuous positive affirmations.

Truth is truth. But many have settled for a counterfeit truth that is man-made.

Truth Stumbles

Isaiah 59:14, 15 says,

¹⁴ Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands far away; for truth has stumbled in the street, and uprightness cannot enter. ¹⁵ Yes, truth is lacking; and he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey…

The path of righteousness is set forth in Scripture. The law gives us the righteous standard. It reflects the nature of God and Christ Himself. But most men do not study the law, and those who do tend to study it through Old Covenant eyes. Old Covenant men study the law in order to know how their flesh might be obedient. New Covenant men study the law in order to know what God has promised to do to change our lives from within.

Each group reads the law differently. One reads “You shall not steal” and says to himself, “I must discipline myself so that I do not steal.” The other reads the same command and says to himself, “Thank you, Father, for Your promise to change my heart so that that I will not steal.” Seeing the law as a commandment puts the responsibility upon men to change their behavior; but seeing the law as a promise puts the responsibility upon God to change our nature by the inner working of the Holy Spirit.

Which method do you think will actually succeed in the end? Which covenant are you under? Is your faith placed in your own will and ability, or is it in God’s will and His ability?

This is the underlying issue of truth. When men have Old Covenant faith, truth stumbles in the street. When men have New Covenant faith, truth is established, the light shines in darkness, and the righteousness of God is revealed. Yet the world that opposes the truth lies in darkness, because it can neither comprehend nor overpower the light (John 1:5). Those who are children of the darkness resist the light and persecute those who are of the light.

Hence, the prophet says, “he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey.” Evil loves company and is comfortable only with those who are of the same kingdom. When a point of light is seen in the street, those who lie in darkness see it as “prey.” Truth exposes lies, and the light of God exposes the condition of the human heart that men have tried to cover or deny by their psychological tools. Alarmed by their inner guilt, they want to kill the light bearer.

No Intercessors

Isaiah 59:15, 16 says,

¹⁵ … Now the Lord saw, and it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice. ¹⁶ And He saw that there was no man and was astonished that there was no one to intercede…

Intercession is pictured as the solution to the lack of justice in the world. Yet intercessors are so scarce as to be nearly non-existent. In fact, there is only one perfect Intercessor—Jesus Christ (Heb. 7:25). All other intercessors function within the parameters of His intercessory work. Intercessors are living prayers who walk out the problem and solution in their lives for a season.

(See my book, Principles of Intercession. Or, you may read Norman Grubb’s book, Rees Howells, Intercessor, which I read many years ago when I was young. The book made little sense to me until some years later, when I experienced the work of intercession for myself. Only then did I understand what intercession was.)

There are many prayer warriors, but relatively few intercessors. Intercessors follow the same five principles of intercession that Jesus did. The intercessors learn to love their enemies by enduring their abuse, their projection of guilt, and their willingness to crucify them. The intercessors see the light at the end and know that when God raises them up in victory, they will bring many sons to glory (Heb. 2:10). The fruit of their labor is assured. Their ordeal is not in vain. Their suffering first benefited themselves in terms of spiritual maturity, but its purpose was to benefit the very people who had crucified them.

Having painted a rather bleak picture of life in an Adamic world under the Old Covenant, the prophet then gives us the New Covenant solution. After showing the helplessness of men in saving themselves by the power of their own will, the prophet shows the success of God’s promise to do what men could not do for themselves.