Unwavering Faithfulness: Pivotal Moments in the Book of Isaiah, Part One

Unwavering Faithfulness: Pivotal Moments in the Book of Isaiah, Part One

Unwavering Faithfulness  provides an accessible guide to Isaiah, helping contemporary audiences grasp both the uncompromising demands of God's holiness and God's unshakable faithfulness to covenant relationship and desire to bring about a good future for God's people. Isaiah is a dramatic book of prophecy and oracles that sweeps through the histories of Israel's kings and dealings with surrounding nations, levying judgment but also offering the hope of restoration, blessing, and shalom. Israel is taken to task for exploiting the poor and seeking security in political treaties and the human economy rather than in the fidelity of God. Ignoring the call of covenant to enact economic justice and righteousness for neighbors, Israel experiences the holy rule of God as working through geopolitical events that lead to the destruction of Jerusalem. But Isaiah doesn't rest here, and  Unwavering Faithfulness  forecasts ahead to the promise of Israel's return to Jerusalem from the Babylonian exile and to the imagination of the early church, inspired by the poetry of Isaiah to place its hope in Jesus the Messiah. The ultimacy of God's governance and faithfulness in the swirl of global political chaos anchors this Bible study, helping listeners grasp Isaiah's vision of the covenantal fidelity of the Lord who wills newness and redemption amid failed histories. Walter Brueggemann was a beloved and prolific writer, astute biblical theologian and Old Testament scholar, and an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. He was the author of dozens of books, including Sabbath as Resistance: Saying No to the Culture of Now, Interrupting Silence: God's Command to Speak Out, and Truth and Hope: Essays for a Perilous Age. Often heralded as a prophetic voice in our time, Brueggemann constantly reminded readers of God's covenantal love and God's call to speak truth to power, to remember that grace abounds, and to loosen the bonds of injustice. Brent A. Strawn is professor of Old Testament and professor of law at Duke University. Previously, he was the William Ragsdale Cannon Distinguished Professor of Old Testament at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University. He is the author of numerous articles, chapters, and books, including The Old Testament Is Dying: A Diagnosis and Recommended Treatment and The Old Testament: A Concise Introduction.