Faith in Isaiah

Gordon CI Wong (VT 51.4) examines the call to "believe" in Isaiah 7 (specifically v. 9b). He asks, What does faith mean in Isaiah 7? He rejects interpretations that suggest Ahaz is supposed to respond passively to the threat from Israel and Aram by renouncing military defenses. On the contrary, Isaiah tells Ahaz to "take care," which Wong takes as an exhortation to fulfill the military necessities. Wong also rejects the notion that Isaiah is rebuking Ahaz for wanting to turn to Assyria for help; though Assyria is mentioned in Isaiah 7, and though elsewhere Ahaz is condemned for relying on Assyria (2 Kings 16), he finds no hint of this in Isaiah 7.

What then is faith in Isaiah 7?

Wong suggests that faith is, first, reliance on Yahweh when enemies threaten. To have faith is to have a sense of security in Yahweh's protection; faith is the opposite of fearful anxiety (v. 4).

Second, he notes that Ahaz fails to respond rightly to the exhortation to believe in v. 9b. Had he shown faith, he would have asked for the sign the Lord offered to give, instead of piously saying he didn't want to tempt Yahweh. Further, Wong finds verbal parallels between 7:13 and Isaiah 1:14, both of which use the verb "wear out" (L'H). In Isaiah 1, Yahweh is worn out by "the hypocricy of outward acts of worship which are not accompanied by obedience to the ethical demands of true faith." Similarly, "Isaiah sees through the outward appearance of piety in Ahaz's words. It is this religious hypocrisy that illustrates Ahaz's failure to heed the warning against unbelief in Isa. vii 9b. In short, lack of faith is portrayed as religious hypocrisy."

Moreover, Isaiah 1:21, 26 both use the root 'MN, in describing the "faithful" city, and this is the same root as the verb "believe" in 7:9. A faithful city - one that believes Yahweh - is a city of justice and righteousness; Jerusalem has become unfaithful or unbelieving, and this is expressed in a lack of concern for the poor and needy: "Faith in Yhwh is a way of life characterised by concern for justice and righteous acts of kindness. This is the life that will truly endure."

posted by Peter J. Leithart on Saturday, May 05, 2007 at 11:40 AM

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