The book Of The Bible Isaiah

The book Of The Bible Isaiah

Isaiah the prophet lived and preached between the time of the death of King Uzziah of Judah (ca. 738 BCE) and the end of the century through the administrations of the Judean kings jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. The book of Isaiah is usually divided into three distinct sections: chs. 1-39 (First Isaiah), attributed to the eighth-century prophet who witnessed the fall of the Northern Kingdom, Israel, and the moral breakdown of Judah; chs. 40-55 (Second Isaiah or Deutero-Isaiah), attributed to an unknown prophet during the Babylonian exile; and chs. 56-66 (Third Isaiah or Trito Isaiah), attributed to prophets who lived following the exile after 539 BCE. There is a consistency and literary unity of the whole book of Isaiah despite evidence of additions and editing over three centuries.

The prophecies in the book of Isaiah require an understanding of the historical events that establish their context. Major themes, however, dominate the writing. Isaiah underscores that the God of Israel and Judah is the God of all nations and that the whole world is subject to the providence and will of the “Holy One of Israel.” The people of Israel have a special destiny and a responsibility to live up to their call. The spiritual center of the people is the city of Jerusalem, and the Davidic dynasty is important for upholding the covenant. Isaiah prophesied “messianic oracles” known as the Four Servant Songs (chs. 40-55), which seem to refer to the role of Israel, but are interpreted by Christians as fulfilled in the person of Christ.

Isaiah is the most widely quoted prophet in the NT. The book of Isaiah is also the most widely read of the prophetic books in the liturgical calendar of the Roman Missal. Passages from Isaiah are read in all three Sunday Cycles at various Feasts: the Christmas Vigil (62.1-5), Christmas Mass at Midnight (9.1-6), Christmas Mass at Dawn (62.11-12), Christmas Mass During the Day (52.7-10), the Epiphany (60.1-6), the Baptism of the Lord (42.1-4,6-7), Palm Sunday (50.4-7), Holy Thursday (61.1-3, 6, 8-9), Good Friday (52.13—53.12), and as Reading IV (54.5—14) and Reading V (55.1—11) of the Easter Vigil.