How does Isaiah 28:15 warn against making false covenants for security? Setting the Scene Isaiah 28 addresses leaders in Jerusalem who were looking for political alliances and spiritual shortcuts rather than trusting the LORD. Verse 15 captures their boast: “Because you have said, ‘We have made a covenant with death; we have made an agreement with Sheol. When the overwhelming flood sweeps by, it will not touch us, for we have made lies our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.’” Understanding the “Covenant with Death” • “Covenant with death” and “agreement with Sheol” picture a deliberate pact with forces opposed to God—whatever people or policies promise safety apart from Him. • The leaders believed their arrangement would shield them from “the overwhelming flood” (divine judgment, cf. Isaiah 8:7-8). • They called their strategy a refuge, but God calls it lies and falsehood. False Security Exposed • Trusting in human alliances: Judah was flirting with Egypt (Isaiah 30:1-2; 31:1). History shows those deals backfired (2 Kings 18-19). • Relying on deception: They preferred propaganda over repentance. Compare Jeremiah 17:5—“Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind.” • Minimizing judgment: “It will not touch us” echoes the end-time delusion, “Peace and safety,” just before sudden destruction (1 Thessalonians 5:3). • Substituting the true refuge: Psalm 46:1 calls God “our refuge and strength,” yet they turned to lies. Lessons for Today • Any security engineered apart from God—financial, political, relational—resembles a “covenant with death.” • Lies can feel like shelter temporarily, but God exposes them (Isaiah 28:17). • Genuine safety flows from obedience, not compromise (Deuteronomy 28:1-14). • God’s Word remains the plumb line testing every agreement (Isaiah 28:16-17). Securing Ourselves in the True Covenant • Christ is the “tested stone” God lays in Zion (Isaiah 28:16; 1 Peter 2:6). Resting on Him saves from the coming flood. • The new covenant in His blood (Luke 22:20) replaces all false covenants. • Build with truth: Ephesians 6:14 urges believers to gird themselves with the “belt of truth,” not falsehood. • Stand firm: Psalm 127:1—“Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain.” Confidence anchored in Him can never be swept away. |
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