›Isaiah 28:1-13

›Blind Leading the Blind

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1 Ah, the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim,

and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

which is on the head of the rich valley of those overcome with wine!

2  Behold, the Lord has one who is mighty and strong;

like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest,

like a storm of mighty, overflowing waters,

he casts down to the earth with his hand.

3  The proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim

will be trodden underfoot;

4  and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

which is on the head of the rich valley,

will be like a first-ripe fig before the summer:

when someone sees it, he swallows it

as soon as it is in his hand.

5  In that day the LORD of hosts will be a crown of glory,

and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people,

6  and a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,

and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.

(Isaiah 28:1-6, ESV)

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7  These also reel with wine

and stagger with strong drink;

the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink,

they are swallowed by wine,

they stagger with strong drink,

they reel in vision,

they stumble in giving judgment.

8  For all tables are full of filthy vomit,

with no space left.

9  “To whom will he teach knowledge,

and to whom will he explain the message?

Those who are weaned from the milk,

those taken from the breast?

10  For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

line upon line, line upon line,

here a little, there a little.”

11  For by people of strange lips

and with a foreign tongue

the LORD will speak to this people,

12  to whom he has said,

“This is rest;

give rest to the weary;

and this is repose”;

yet they would not hear.

13  And the word of the LORD will be to them

precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

line upon line, line upon line,

here a little, there a little,

that they may go, and fall backward,

and be broken, and snared, and taken.

(Isaiah 28:7-13, ESV)

›Main Point

› These describe the leadership situation in Israel and likely Judah

› They were fading from whatever glory they once held

› Even the religious leaders are seen to be in a drunken and blind stupor

› They mock the truth that comes from God

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind

– Oftentimes leaders can be held in high esteem

– In some ways this is a good thing, leadership is not evil in and of itself

– Yet, it is possible to follow the wrong leaders

– Instead of leading us into justice, righteousness, or what is good they can lead us away from these things

– Those who should have been protecting the people from folly lead them further into it

– Instead of producing wisdom, justice, and truth with their lips they provide vomit

– We need to be on guard against leadership that will lead us astray

– It will not lead us to a better tomorrow or progress, but a pit

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (2)

– The leadership is responsible for where it leads the people, yet the people have individual responsibility to make sure they aren’t being led astray

– We need to keep our eyes open for all our sakes

– Our human leaders are entirely capable of erring

– They are capable of both good and evil, right and wrong, and finding truth and folly

– In our current time we see the ramifications of poor leadership

– Both sides are capable of error

– This isn’t to say that there is no reason for a wedge

– A good leader would not seek to hammer the wedge, but something more

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (3)

– They would seek the way of the King described in verses 5-6

– In having justice it is possible to encourage individuals to greater ideals

– Without justice society will become ever increasingly hostile and fall apart

– When injustice occurs it leads to further divides among those who have power and those who do not

– If we have one group of individuals committing a crime and getting a different sentence than another group…we have injustice

–If we have individuals being falsely accused…we have injustice

– As time goes on this causes greater division, and ultimately leads to a different worldview

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (4)

– They would seek the way of the King described in verses 5-6

– In having justice it is possible to encourage individuals to greater ideals

– Without justice society will become ever increasingly hostile and fall apart

– When injustice occurs it leads to further divides among those who have power and those who do not

– If we have one group of individuals committing a crime and getting a different sentence than another group…we have injustice

–If we have individuals being falsely accused…we have injustice

– As time goes on this causes greater division, and ultimately leads to a different worldview

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (5)

– In our society we are experiencing two distinct worldviews clashing with one another

– One side has a different definition of justice and reality than the other side

– Each are interpreting their experience in separate ways

– Where did the worldview and understanding of justice come from?

– Karl Marx, who basically taught there was conflict between those in power those without

– Wealthy class versus the poor class

– The problem is the United States has had a great middle class that didn’t necessarily feel oppressed the way other countries did

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (6)

– Then, a philosopher named Antonio Gramski in the 1920’s thought of neo-Marxism

– He rethought the conflict to be oppressed vs oppressor

– If there was a minority race, gender, sexual identity, or religious belief they were oppressed

– The problem with this is that it leads to a never ending cycle of oppressed and oppressor

– There is no good way to define “oppression”

– Power is also not evil, it can be good

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (7)

– All of this would be enough, but then you also have intersectionality

– People belong to different groups

– The more oppressed groups you belong to means the more power you should have

– A white woman married to her husband

– An African American woman who is a homosexual

– Both are in the group of being a woman

– But the African American woman is also an oppressed race and sexual group

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (8)

– It’s pretty clear to see how neo-Marxism is in our culture

– Now add the postmodern worldview

– There is no metanarrative, or overarching truth for everyone

– All cultures and subcultures have their own beliefs only because of the culture or subculture they are in

– I only believe what I believe because I am a white male living in the United States

– If I were a female living in Paraguay I might believe something totally different

– There is no real truth there are only beliefs any groups so happen to believe

– Logically two distinct truths cannot both be true, one must be true and the other false or both false

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (9)

– If you couple these things together it leads to a society which focuses more on groups than individuals

– Those groups are naturally in conflict with one another

– If you are part of a majority group you are evil by definition

– So, this is a different worldview than the view which is understood by Christians

– What you would consider hypocrisy they consider good

– Our leadership has failed us

– We seem to lack and Abraham Lincoln who can lead us in this time of frustration

– Where have the leaders gone who can help us understand these things?

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Application Points

› Blind Leading the Blind (10)

– Meanwhile our religious leaders are int eh same boat

– Many have fallen prey to similar thoughts and ideals

– As this separate worldview enters our time and place our leaders should stand against it and provide an answer

– Instead of providing a response they have produced vomit

– They believe that by adopting these understandings the Church does better

– One would say the above understandings lead not to unity but further disunity

– They smell not of justice, but power

– We are not adopting a covenant with justice, truth, or life but adopting a covenant with Sheol

– It is our responsibility to understand the times

– To not be the blind leading the blind, nor the blind being led by the blind

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Application Points

› The Gospel of Christ

– Origins

– Fall

– Redemption

– Glorification

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