How does Isaiah 29:12 illustrate the consequences of spiritual blindness and ignorance? \Context of Isaiah 29:12\ “Then the book will be given to one who cannot read, saying, ‘Read this.’ But he will say, ‘I cannot read.’” • Isaiah speaks to Judah’s leaders who honor God with lips while hearts are far from Him (vv. 13–14). • The “book” pictures God’s clear revelation—yet it remains closed to those who refuse to see. \What Spiritual Blindness Looks Like\ • Inability, not lack of availability: the scroll is right in front of them, but they still say, “I cannot read.” • Self-imposed ignorance: blindness here is moral and spiritual, not intellectual. Compare Hosea 4:6—“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” • Hardening of the heart: Matthew 13:14-15 shows the same pattern—hearing yet not understanding. \Consequences Isaiah Highlights\ • Loss of discernment – Justice perverts (Isaiah 29:15). – Wisdom is called foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:18-20). • Vulnerability to deception – Satan blinds minds of unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4). – False confidence—“You say, ‘I am rich…’ and you do not realize you are wretched” (Revelation 3:17). • Imminent judgment – God’s marvelous work of judgment (Isaiah 29:14). – A siege that humbles proud Jerusalem (vv. 3-4). \Timeless Lessons for Us\ • Revelation ignored becomes revelation lost. When truth is set aside, capacity to grasp truth diminishes. • Religious form without inward submission breeds darkness. Lip service (v. 13) invites God’s discipline. • Humility is the doorway to sight. “To this one I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit” (Isaiah 66:2). \Restoring Sight—God’s Remedy\ • Seek the Spirit’s illumination (Psalm 119:18; John 16:13). • Receive the Word with obedience (James 1:22-25). • Embrace the light of Christ Himself (John 8:12). Isaiah 29:12 warns that spiritual blindness is not merely the absence of information but the consequence of resisting the truth already given. God’s solution remains open: turn, listen, and live in the light. |
    |