{"id":796,"date":"2018-09-03T13:47:39","date_gmt":"2018-09-03T12:47:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/?p=796"},"modified":"2018-09-03T13:47:39","modified_gmt":"2018-09-03T12:47:39","slug":"though-your-sins-are-like-scarlet-they-shall-be-as-white-as-snow-isaiah-118","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/?p=796","title":{"rendered":"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow Isaiah 1:18"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the earliest days of the church the Book of the prophet Isaiah was known as \u201cthe Fifth Gospel\u201d or \u201cthe Gospel in the Old Testament.\u201d In the 4th Century Jerome wrote that Isaiah \u201cshould be called an evangelist rather than a prophet because he describes all the mysteries of Christ and the church so clearly that you would think he is composing a history of what has already happened rather than prophesying about what is to come.\u201d His name Isaiah means \u2018Yahweh (is) salvation\u2019, which fits him very well. The kings he mentions indicate that he prophesied for at least forty years, from about 740 BC, the last year of Uzziah, until some point after the siege of Jerusalem in 701 in the time of Hezekiah.
\nWe are very familiar with so many wonderful promises of salvation in the second half of the Book of Isaiah. I have preached on these passages and often quoted from them.
\nIsaiah 40 talking about how great God is!
\n25 \u2018To whom will you compare me?
\nOr who is my equal?\u2019 says the Holy One.
\n26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: who created all these?
\nHe who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name.
\nBecause of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
\nAnd that wonderful promise in Isaiah 40
\n30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;
\n31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
\nThey will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary,
\nthey will walk and not be faint.
\nThen there\u2019s my favourite chapter in the whole of the Old Testament Isaiah 43
\n1 But now, this is what the LORD says\u2014
\nhe who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel:
\n\u2018Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
\n2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
\nand when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.
\nWhen you walk through the fire, you will not be burned;
\nthe flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD your God,
\nthe Holy One of Israel, your Saviour;
\nI give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
\n4 Since you are precious and honoured in my sight, and because I love you, <\/p>\n

And this leads on to that wonderful promise of God doing a new thing.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 43 18 \u2018Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
\n19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
\nI am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
\n20 The wild animals honour me, the jackals and the owls,
\nbecause I provide water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland,
\nto give drink to my people, my chosen, 21 \tthe people I formed for myself
\nthat they may proclaim my praise.<\/p>\n

In particular the second half of Isaiah contains so many prophecies about the Messiah God would send to be the Saviour of the world, God\u2019s Suffering Servant.
\nIsaiah 53 3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
\na man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
\nLike one from whom people hide their faces
\nhe was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
\n4 Surely he took up our pain
\nand bore our suffering,
\nyet we considered him punished by God,
\nstricken by him, and afflicted.
\n5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
\nhe was crushed for our iniquities;
\nthe punishment that brought us peace was on him,
\nand by his wounds we are healed.
\n6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
\neach of us has turned to our own way;
\nand the LORD has laid on him
\nthe iniquity of us all.
\nAnd who can forget that wonderful invitation in Isaiah 55
\n6 Seek the LORD while he may be found;
\ncall on him while he is near.
\n7 Let the wicked forsake their ways
\nand the unrighteous their thoughts.
\nLet them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,
\nand to our God, for he will freely pardon.<\/p>\n

So many glorious promises! But the first half of Isaiah is also rich in promises and challenges in equal measure. Isaiah was writing in the second half of the eighth century BC. The Assyrians were threatening Israel and instead of trusting in God, Israel was trying to make alliances with them. He was writing at the same time as Hosea, Amos and Micah and they all condemned the greed, corruption and injustice which gripped Israel. But across all the prophets we find perhaps the fiercest criticism of God\u2019s chosen people here in Isaiah chapter 1.
\nGOD\u2019S JUDGMENT
\nThe nation was rebelling against God
\n2 Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth! For the LORD has spoken:
\n\u2018I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me.
\n3 The ox knows its master, the donkey its owner\u2019s manger,
\nbut Israel does not know, my people do not understand.\u2019 <\/p>\n

The Israelites weren\u2019t merely ignoring the God who had given birth to their nation. As their children they were actively rebelling against him, by doing all kinds of evil things.
\n4 Woe to the sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great,
\na brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! <\/p>\n

They were ignoring and rejecting God. <\/p>\n

They have forsaken the LORD; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel
\nand turned their backs on him. <\/p>\n

Things have got so bad that God addresses his own nation of Israel as \u201cSodom and Gomorrah\u201d \u2013 architypes of evil nations who faced God\u2019s judgment and were consumed in destruction.<\/p>\n

10 Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom;
\nlisten to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah! <\/p>\n

The sins of the people are so great that God rejects their sacrifices and holy days. Their worship and their prayers are no longer acceptable to him.<\/p>\n

11 \u2018The multitude of your sacrifices\u2014 what are they to me?\u2019 says the LORD.
\n\u2018I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
\nI have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
\n12 When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you,
\nthis trampling of my courts?
\n13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me.
\nNew Moons, Sabbaths and convocations\u2014 I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
\n14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
\nI hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me;
\nI am weary of bearing them.
\n15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you;
\neven when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. <\/p>\n

Here are solemn warnings that songs of praise and worship mean nothing to God if they come from lives filled with corruption and injustice. Sin cuts people off from God.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:2 \u201cBut your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.\u201d<\/p>\n

God\u2019s people were cut off from him by their sin. They were exploiting the poor, the orphans and widows and refugees and God was angry. We have seen recently in our series on Acting Justly that this call for justice comes again at then end of Isaiah.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 58
\n6 \u2018Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice
\nand untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
\n7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter\u2014
\nwhen you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
\n8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear;
\nthen your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
\n9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: here am I.<\/p>\n

God was rejecting Israel\u2019s empty worship and he rejects the people themselves. He says
\nYour hands are full of blood!<\/p>\n

God is justifiably so angry with his chosen people and especially with their leaders.<\/p>\n

21 See how the faithful city has become a prostitute!
\nShe once was full of justice; righteousness used to dwell in her\u2014
\nbut now murderers!
\n22 Your silver has become dross, your choice wine is diluted with water.
\n23 Your rulers are rebels, partners with thieves;
\nthey all love bribes and chase after gifts.
\nThey do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
\nthe widow\u2019s case does not come before them. <\/p>\n

So God has resolved that he is going to bring judgment on his special people and purify this nation he had chosen and called and redeemed so that they would become holy and belong to him.
\n24 Therefore the Lord, the LORD Almighty, the Mighty One of Israel, declares:
\n\u2018Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes and avenge myself on my enemies.
\n25 I will turn my hand against you; I will thoroughly purge away your dross
\nand remove all your impurities. <\/p>\n

I think by now it is pretty obvious how angry God is with Israel. As of course he is angry with all sin. But in the middle of this, you can only call it \u201ca tirade\u201d of judgment and condemnation we find one of the most beautiful and memorable promises in the whole of scripture. It\u2019s a promise we claim for ourselves as a prophecy of the wonderful salvation God gives us through Jesus.<\/p>\n

GOD\u2019S WONDERFUL OFFER OF FORGIVENESS<\/p>\n

Isaiah 1 18 \u2018Come now, let us settle the matter,\u2019 says the LORD.
\n\u2018Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
\nthough they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. <\/p>\n

What colour is sin? Some people read this verse and make the mistake of thinking that Isaiah is saying that sin is some shade of red, scarlet or crimson. Some Christians have made the mistake of thinking that immorality in particular is associated with scarlet, \u201ca scarlet woman\u201d, because Revelation talks about the Great Prostitute, dressed in purple and scarlet.<\/p>\n

But in Isaiah\u2019s time sin wasn\u2019t associated with any particular colour. The scarlet and the crimson he is referring to here were the most brightly coloured dyes they had in those days to colour their clothes. They were striking shades of red made from the extracts of tiny insects. The significant thing about those dyes was not the actual colours they made but the fact that back then before they had bleaches those dyes were permanent. Scarlet and crimson were indelible. Once a fabric was coloured with scarlet or with crimson that would be its colour. Even if the brightness faded the stain would remain forever. Nothing could remove it! So that is why this promise God makes is so amazing.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 1 18 \u2018Come now, let us settle the matter,\u2019 says the LORD.
\n\u2018Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
\nthough they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. <\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s sins were like a dye, staining and polluting the nation. Nothing anybody could do would remove them. But God can. <\/p>\n

\u2018Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; <\/p>\n

Freshly fallen snow would be the purest white anybody in Isaiah\u2019s time would ever see. God would remove the stain of Israel\u2019s sin leaving only the whiteness of snow.<\/p>\n

though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. <\/p>\n

Taking away the crimson which had coloured the material it would be restored to its original natural wool colour again. Good as new. And that is exactly how God deals with our sins through Jesus. In Christ we are justified. God makes it \u201cjust as if I\u2019d\u201d never sinned.<\/p>\n

\u2018Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
\nthough they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. <\/p>\n

HOW CAN WE RECEIVE FORGIVENESS AND SALVATION<\/p>\n

16 Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
\nstop doing wrong.
\n17 Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.
\nTake up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. <\/p>\n

God calls his chosen people to repent. To turn away from sin and do what is just and right. Just as God calls us all to repentance. Of course the irony is that the Israelites cannot wash themselves clean. Scarlet and crimson won\u2019t wash out and neither will sin. All they can do is gratefully receive God\u2019s gracious offer of cleansing which they could never do for themselves, completely unearned and undeserved.<\/p>\n

God\u2019s people face a choice. Will they pursue God or will they continue in sin? Will they accept forgiveness or not? Good or evil? That\u2019s the choice everybody faces.<\/p>\n

19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land;
\n20 but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.\u2019
\nFor the mouth of the LORD has spoken.<\/p>\n

If they choose God then his blessing will fall once again as it did before.<\/p>\n

26 I will restore your leaders as in days of old, your rulers as at the beginning.
\nAfterwards you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.\u2019
\n27 Zion will be delivered with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness.
\n28 But rebels and sinners will both be broken, and those who forsake the LORD will perish. <\/p>\n

There is the choice everybody faces. To carry on sinning and face God\u2019s judgment. Or to repent from sin and receive God\u2019s amazing forgiveness.
\nPSALM 51 begins like this.
\n1\tHave mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;
\naccording to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
\n2\tWash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. \u2026.
\n7\tCleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
\nwash me, and I will be whiter than snow. <\/p>\n

\u2018Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
\nthough they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the earliest days of the church the Book of the prophet Isaiah was known as \u201cthe Fifth Gospel\u201d or \u201cthe Gospel in the…<\/span><\/p>\n

Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[76],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/796"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=796"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/796\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":797,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/796\/revisions\/797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=796"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=796"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=796"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}