Understanding the Book of Isaiah: Getting to Know the Famous but Misunderstood Prophet

Isaiah is perhaps the most famous, most beloved, and least understood Old Testament Prophet. This expertly taught 12-lecture course is designed to deepen your understanding of this visionary prophet. You'll explore the passion and poetry that arrests the hearts and minds of readers across millennia. You will be drawn deeply into the poet-prophet Isaiah's world with all its sham, beauty, hope, and promise. Isaiah's words accompany some of the most gripping passages of the New Testament. A virgin with child, voice in the wilderness, light in the darkness, beyond My servant, hope for gentiles, fire is not quenched, are just a few examples drawn from the Gospels. The book of Romans alone references Isaiah twenty times! But Isaiah's words were also powerful in his own day. Explore the historical times of Isaiah, the literary artistry of the text, the role that the nations play in the unfolding vision of global and cosmic transformation, and the relationship between ethical praxis and worship. Encounter the story of Isaiah's last days with Hezekiah before the collapse of the Southern Kingdom Judah that leaves the people utterly landless and on the brink of despair. Isaiah's servant songs call people then and now to mission, and the poet's vision of a New Jerusalem speaks about the transformation of not only a city but also the entire people of God. Isaiah's message is a poem to be sung and a vision to be lived for all time.