Despite his people's superficial worship, unrepentant hearts (Isa 42:22-24, 26-28), and persistent idolatry (Isa 44:9-20), God declares his deity (Isa 44:6-8), and promises to bless and pour out his life-giving Spirit upon them (Isa 44:1-5), for his own sake (Isa 42:25).Besides Me There Is No God (Isa 44:1-45:13)
God is committed to his people because he choose them ("Jeshurun" means "upright one"). They became thirsty and dry because of their rebellion, but God would pour our his Spirit upon them and the Gentiles (Isa 44:3-5, 32:15; Joel 2:28,29; Acts 2:38,39). Like God, Jesus affirms his deity by calling Himself the First and the Last (Isa 44:6-8; Rev 1:17, 2:8, 22:13). Because the Lord alone is God, it exposes all our useless worthless idols that make us stupid by deceiving our deluded hearts (Isa 44:7-20). God alone can redeem us (Isa 44:21-24). God, who is sovereign over all things, names Cyrus the Great as the one through whom he will restore postexillic Jerusalem (Isa 44:24-28, 45:1-13; 1 Ki 13:1-3; 2 Ki 23:15-17). With no financial incentive for Cyrus, his support of the rebuilding of the temple had to be of God (Isa 45:13).
There Is No Other God Besides Me (Isa 45:14-25)
God hiding himself (Isa 45:15) does not mean that God is evasive, but that he is counterintuitive. Though his people were exiled and felt abandoned by God, yet God was always with them, and God would save and deliver them (Isa 45:17). How do we know? Because God alone is God (Isa 45:14,21,22).
Practical Application: Idols never save (Isa 44:9-20), only God alone saves.
Food For Thought: "Jesus Christ will be Lord of all, or he will not be Lord at all." St. Augustine
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