The Cure (1)

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil,  Isaiah 1:16  ESV

Wash yourselves – In the days of Isaiah the prophet, Israel was an idolatrous nation, filled with disobedience and bound for chastisement.  YHWH sent a message to His people, warning them that if they did not change, disaster would soon befall them.  We might have imagined that the message would be about repenting, turning their hearts back to true worship and seeking God’s favor.  We might imagine that the message would instruct His people to ask forgiveness and wait for the movement of the Spirit.  But YHWH’s message directs the people toward changes that they must make; changes that can be accomplished by their direct action.  The first of these changes is rahatsu (“wash yourselves”).  The imperative comes from the verb rahats.  It is a verb about ritual cleansing, used many times to describe the washing of parts of an animal sacrificed on the altar.  This verb is the basis of the New Testament idea of baptism.  When it is used in the prophetic books, it includes the idea of cleansing from sin.

Notice that YHWH directs His people to do this to themselves.  He does not tell them to go to the confessional.  He does not tell them to start a revival service.  He tells them to begin with ritual baptism.  They are to make clean on the outside as a symbolic representation of what must be clean on the inside.  And they are to do this to themselves.

What we learn from this usage of rahats is that ritual immersion was a well-understood symbol of spiritual regeneration and that it was an expected practice indicating a change of heart.  The people of Israel needed to perform this ritual in order to begin the process of reconciliation with YHWH.  They were instructed to embrace the greater meaning of the act by presenting an outward sign of inner transformation.  The action was simple.  Bathe!  But the consequences were enormous, for this ritual bath meant they would turn away from their past sins and live according to the word of the Lord.  Sometimes the true measure of a simple act of obedience rebuffs casual compliance.  Sometimes we are so overwhelmed by the true consequences of a simple act of obedience that we can scarcely perform it.  Sometimes just getting on our knees to pray is such a powerful symbol of humiliation and submission that it seems impossible to perform.  Sometimes immersing ourselves in water is such a powerful symbol of repentance and redirection that we tremble at the river’s edge.  But God will not make you get in the water.  He will not force you to your knees.  You and I must take that simple, physical step before the floodgates of heaven are opened.  We must wash ourselves.  We must step into the water and sink beneath its surface, knowing that doing so means acknowledging our transgressions and helplessness.  We must put aside all that resistance and go under before the Lord can raise us up.  And we must do it now while our self-concern takes charge.

Topical Index:  wash, rahats, baptism, ritual, sin, Isaiah 1:16

NOTE:  Rosanne’s father died yesterday afternoon.  While Today’s Word editions are already posted for a few days, things may have to wait for awhile.  Please be patient.  Skip