Isaiah - Israel - Idolatry

Israel literally means one who wrestles with God. This is the picture throughout the Hebrew Scriptures - one who is wrestling with God.

It seems sometimes that God is just looking in on Israel and has set expectations that are being let down. But something else is going on. God had made an agreement, a covenant with Israel. God views this arrangement like a marriage.

When Israel is "unfaithful" and is worshiping other gods, this is a problem for God. God wants Israel to himself and doesn't want to share. It's like being married and your spouse says after the honeymoon, "I love you, but I still want to date around a little." It's not going to fly... well, at least for me.

So when idolatry is being practiced, it is a big thing for God. Giving yourself to someone else is a major offense to God.

So one of the main issues before we get to Isaiah 6 is idolatry. Israel is unfaithful and God wants to talk to them about what that means. So in chapter 6, we see Isaiah is recruited for the job.