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ISAIAH 1:10-18—THE DIFFERENCE IN RIGHT AND WRONG SACRIFICES ACT OF WORSHIP PERSONAL BLOG 11/02/2025
The book of Isaiah holds
sharp warnings for the people of God—not only the ancient people of God but the
church today.
587 BC was a disastrous time for the
people of Jerusalem and Judah. More than a century earlier the northern tribes
of Israel were conquered and carried away by the Assyrians. Now the Babylonians
laid waste the southern territories and a seventy-year exile uprooted the
nation. Shameful idolatry had caused the undoing of the people. Innumerable
warnings incited only an unresponsive disdainfulness; the prophets were
considered fools (Hos 9:7). God, who never threatens in vain, allowed the axe
to fall (Isa 1:7).[1]
Isaiah 1:10-18 begins the Prophet’s message, and while seemingly hopeless, a reminder of the Lord’s mercy is assuredly present, for in amazing love, God never abandons his people, though they falter.
Isaiah 1:10-18
10 Hear the word of the Lord,
you rulers of Sodom!
Give ear to the teaching of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!
11 “What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
says the Lord;
I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of well-fed beasts;
I do not delight in the blood of bulls,
or of lambs, or of goats.
12 “When you come to appear before
me,
who has required of you
this trampling of my courts?
13 Bring no more vain offerings;
incense is an abomination to me.
New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—
I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.
14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts
my soul hates;
they have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even though you make many prayers,
I will not listen;
your hands are full of blood.
16 Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes;
cease to do evil,
17 learn to do good;
seek justice,
correct oppression;
bring justice to the fatherless,
plead the widow's cause.
18 “Come now, let us reason together,
says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.[2]
The waning people of God hear the words of the Lord through the Prophet Isaiah who calls them to return—return to the Lord and return to worship. In a similar manner, the message subsists today and transcends generations, as the people of God are not called to mere sacrifices but to purity of heart, for without such a condition, God’s people may not rightfully worship and, therefore, may not worship in sincerity. There are three essentials which must be observed from the text.
God’s Hatred of Empty Sacrifices (vv.
10-15)
While
God surely commands and even elicits sacrifices from his chosen people, those
which are empty are not only futile but anger the Almighty, as he is certain to
respond with vomiting those sinners from his mouth (Rev 3:16). The Prophet
Isaiah offers the people of God a stark warning from the Lord: “I’m fed up to
the teeth with your worship [or lack thereof so repent or else].”[3]
The
standing error of the ritualist is that if all depends on performing the
ceremonial act, then the more you do it the better. Says is a continuous tense: ‘keeps saying’—as something he presses
home upon us. Apart from Psalm 12:6 only Isaiah (1:18; 33:10; 40:1, 25; 41:21;
66:9) uses this verbal form referring to divine speech. To the Lord the ritual
act means nothing…, adds nothing…, and does nothing…”[4]
The
people of Israel sought to worship God without repentance, which is impossible,
as worship always produces repentance—not perfection but a turning and changing
of ways. Without repentance, one has not worshiped God. “The problem was the
disparity between what they meant in their hearts as they worshiped and what
they did in their lives outside the context of worship. He likens them to the
rulers and people of Sodom and Gomorrah, because they’re about as responsive to
Yahweh as those two cities were.”[5]
Through
Isaiah’s prophecy, the word of the Lord came in no uncertain terms: God hates
empty sacrifices, which is precisely what the chosen people of God were
propounding. God says, “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the
fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or
of goats” (v. 11). Such acts of irreverence and vile filth are considered the
trampling of the Lord’s courts (v. 12). Thus, God commands his people to bring
no more vain offerings before him (v. 13). The Lord even suggests that he hates
the appointed feasts, in which he has commanded his people to partake, for they
were a burden to him (v. 14).
No
sacrifice may substitute for the unrighteous acts performed by a heart that is
unpure. No matter how many prayers offered, songs sung, or hands lifted, God
despises an unclean heart that makes a feeble attempt at a holy sacrifice, for
without purity of heart, pride is what is offered. Without purity of heart,
people risk angering the Holy and Almighty one and, therefore, enticing his
discipline.[6]
Through Isaiah, God’s message is clear: because of unclean hearts and
insincerity, toward the rituals offered by his own people he holds disdain.
When God’s people live in blatant disobedience (sin), it does not go unnoticed. God, in fact, says to such people, “When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood” (1:15). How many times does God need to warn us before we listen? How much sin will be endured before God responds with discipline or even punishment? How many babies must be sacrificed on the altar of convenience before God counters with justice and judgment? Even God’s patience terminates. A time is coming when it will terminate for the world in which we live, for the Lord hates empty sacrifices.
God’s Pleasure in Substantial
Sacrifices (vv. 16-17)
The
opposition (and surely the answer) to empty sacrifices are substantial
sacrifices. After pronouncing coming judgment and warning the people of Israel
of the impurities in their sacrifices, Isaiah demands repentance. Through the
Prophet, God says, “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of
your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek
justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's
cause” (vv. 16-17).
The
astonishment of those who would ponder what God wants people (even individuals)
to do is that he has given such commands in his word. “He has told you, O man,
what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God” (Mic
6:8). Said another way, God’s will (with the per view of action) is plain; it
is clear; God has contended his will in his word. God loves justice and
requires it of his people. When injustice is employed, especially among his own
people, judgment is sure to follow. Moreover, the church may simplify the
commands of God to three items.
1.
Do justice
2.
Love kindness
3.
Walk humbly with God
If the church’s actions do not accomplish one or all the preceding elements, they should be abolished. When God’s people hold the position of justice in their hearts, the King is honored, and it is vital that Christians honor God in such a manner because justice reflects the heart of God (i.e., believers, found in the likeness of Christ, are not merely employing additional requirements from their lives when justice is shown; rather, they are employing the heart of God). God is a just and kind God and demands the same of his people.
God’s Mercy After His Declaration of
Judgment (v. 18)
The
third (and final) element that protrudes from the text here is God’s mercy.
Isaiah has already warned and pronounced judgment on the people of God (and
rightfully so); the Prophet has already advanced the answer to the problem
(namely repentance); now Isaiah maintains the mercy of the Lord. God is
merciful to his people even in times of discipline, for without discipline, there
subsists no evidence that one belongs to God. For such a reason, God’s people
should be eternally grateful for his discipline.
Isaiah
beckons the people of God to come and reason (v. 18a). “When a declaration of
judgment is expected, the Lord issues a gracious offer of mediation. The
language has legal overtones of attempting to resolve a dispute.”[7] Despite the unfaithfulness
of God’s people, despite their sin, and despite their unpure hearts, God offers
forgiveness. That is why the love of God is matchless and greater than any
force in the universe, for nothing may separate the chosen people of God from
his love, as the Apostle Paul contends. Isaiah declares such a message before
the people of God. “…though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be
as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like
wool” (1:18b). Although judgment is certain for those who have lived in blatant
unrepentance and although justice should be executed by a just God, grace is
still available.
Consequences
surely exist as the price for sin, although God ultimately gives humanity the
chance to receive greater than what they deserve (mercy) and even the unearned
and undeserved blessing of eternal life (grace). The message of Isaiah rings
clear and true. People of God, you have lived in disobedience and dishonored
your first love. God’s wrath burns against you, but repent, for in repentance,
you will find love and grace. No one is too far gone; no one is beyond the
reach of God irrespective of past, present, or future decisions. People of God,
be thankful for unearned and undeserved grace, for any action of attempt at
earning God’s love is futile—apart from Christ, God’s people would not
encounter the love of God, but because of the cross, the church enters eternal
rest with him. Thus, the actions of God’s people should reflect his
heart—namely that is justice, love, and worship. Without such elements, worship
has not happened.
“Almighty and merciful God, it is only by your gift that your faithful people offer you true and laudable service: Grant that we may run without stumbling to obtain your heavenly promises; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.”[8]
[1] Stuart D. Sacks, Revealing Jesus as Messiah:
Identifying Isaiah’s Servant of the Lord (Fearn, UK: Christian Focus Publications, 1998), 16.
[2] Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the English
Standard Bible.
[3] John Goldingay, Isaiah for Everyone, Old Testament for Everyone (Louisville, KY; London:
Westminster John Knox Press; Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2015),
5.
God does
not offer warnings without fulfilling them in cases of continued unrepentance.
Moreover, God always offers people (often multiple) opportunities to repent
leaving the responsibility on humanity (i.e., God’s sovereignty and human
responsibility are compatible).
[4] J. Alec Motyer, Isaiah: An Introduction and
Commentary, vol. 20, Tyndale Old
Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), 53.
[5] John Goldingay, Isaiah for Everyone, Old Testament for Everyone (Louisville, KY; London:
Westminster John Knox Press; Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2015),
7.
[6]
While God will not cease loving his people (Rom 8:38), out of love, he
disciplines them.
[7]
R.C. Sproul, ed., ESV Reformation Study Bible (Sanford, FL: Ligonier and
Crossway, 2019, 2001), 6518, Kindle edition.
[8]
“Sunday Closest to November 2,” The Lectionary Page, October 21, 2025, https://www.lectionarypage.net/YearC_RCL/Pentecost/CProp26_RCL.html.
