TODAY’S READING: ISAIAH 38-40
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” – Isaiah 40:28
As we have read through Isaiah, I have noted the repeated use of the phrase “that day” in reference to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. In That Day: The Preservation and Inheritance of Life, I observed that the phrase “that day” occurred 44 times in the first 39 chapters of Isaiah and just once from chapters 40 to 66.
This is interesting because almost every scholar and theologian has noted that the book of Isaiah seems to be divided in two with the dividing point coming between the 39th and 40th chapter. Chapters 1-39 seem to represent the Old Testament while the chapters 40-66 seem to represent the New Testament. Coincidentally,the Bible the majority of Christians use today has 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament (a total of 66 books).
In today’s verse quoted above, God, Yahweh, is called the Creator. Creator is translated from the Hebrew word bara, which means to create. This is a very special word in Hebrew as God is the only subject of the verb create. That is, God is the only who ever creates in the Old Testament.
The root word bara occurs 50 times in the Old Testament. The number 50 is the year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25:11). In the 50th year, all debts were forgiven, everyone returned to his land, and the fullness of the land was enjoyed. And, Christians are probably most familiar with the number 50 in relation to the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out on all flesh in fulfillment of the prophecy in Joel 2. Therefore, in regards to creation and the 50 uses of bara, we understand that when the creation is complete all debts will be forgiven, the fullness of the land will be enjoyed, and the whole earth will be full of the Spirit.
Now, one would think that since Genesis 1 is the account of God’s creation and that since Genesis is the book of beginnings Genesis would have the most occurrences of the word bara. But, this is not so. In fact, bara is found most often in the book Isaiah. Therefore, we could say that book of Isaiah is the book of creation more so than the book of Genesis.
Bara is used 21 times in Isaiah. The number 21 represents a period of distress. I wrote about this in That Day Sin Was Taken Away. The number 21 is also 3 x 7. Three is the number of divine perfection while 7 is the number of spiritual perfection. Therefore, the 21 uses of bara in Isaiah show us that when creation is complete all distress is taken away and the whole creation will divinely and spiritually perfect.
In regards to the division of the book Isaiah into two halves mentioned above, it is interesting that bara occurs only one time in the first 39 chapters while the other 20 uses of bara are concentrated in the last 27 chapters of the book. Notice how this is exactly the opposite of the phrase “that day,” which speaks to the crucifixion of Jesus, that occurs 44 times in the first part of Isaiah and just once in the second.
Therefore, in a sense, we can see the first part of Isaiah continually referencing to and speaking of the crucifixion of Christ while the second part of Isaiah speaks to the result of the crucifixion. And, the result of the crucifixion is that a new creation is ushered in by the one who was crucified, Jesus. Distress will be brought to an end and the creation will be full of joy and gladness, full of the Spirit.
Indeed, the last three uses of bara in Isaiah point to just this. Isaiah 65:17-19 say, “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress.”
The New Testament is all about the fulfillment of these verses through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. And, specifically, it is Christ crucified that it is the seed of this new creation.
And, just like in Old Testament, there is a singular word for create in the Greek that stands out above all others. The Greek word for create is ktizo. Just like bara, there is only one subject of ktizo. That subject is God. More specifically it is Jesus. Jesus is the Creator spoken of in Isaiah 40:28 at the beginning of this post.
Consider everything that I have written so far in light about what the New Testament says about Jesus and the creator and his creation.
While he does not use the word ktizo, John says in John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.”
Colossians 1:15-16 says, “He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through him and for him.”
Hebrews 1:1-3 says, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.”
Hebrews 11:3 says, “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God [Jesus, not the Bible], so that what is seen was not made of things that are visible.”
Jesus is the Creator!
Then note Jesus as the creator relates to us.
Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are his workmanship, created in [or by] Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Ephesians 2:14-16 says, “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.”
Ephesians 3:8-11 says, “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ [note that in Isaiah 40:28 it says the Creator’s “understanding is unsearchable”], and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rules and authorities in heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Ephesians 4:20-24 says, “But that is not the way you learned Christ! – assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
We are created in, or by, Jesus for good works, to bring peace by becoming one new man, Jew and Gentile, to make the manifold wisdom of God, the unsearchable riches of Christ known to the rules of the world, really all creation, and to bring forth true righteousness and holiness.
The result of Jesus’ creating us is that we become the sons of God. And, it is the appearing of the sons of God, the fruit of Jesus’ creation, that brings about the end of distress and weeping that Isaiah speaks of.
Romans 8:19-24 says, “For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for the adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we are saved.”
Jesus is the creator.
What is creating?
Sons of God.
Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.”
All of creation waits for the revealing of these sons of God. For, it is through these sons of God that Jesus’ new creation comes to completion. Therefore, when the sons of God are revealed the manifold wisdom of God will be known and there will be an end to distress and weeping. Hence a new heavens and a new earth.
Jesus is the creator!