What are the consequences mentioned in Isaiah 65:11 for forsaking the Lord?

Seeing the Setting

Isaiah 65:11: “But you who forsake the LORD, who forget My holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune and fill bowls of mixed wine for Destiny,”

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What Forsaking Looks Like

• Forgetting God’s “holy mountain” – turning away from His place of worship

• Preparing a “table for Fortune” – arranging life around pagan superstition rather than God’s providence

• Filling “bowls … for Destiny” – pouring out offerings to false deities, trusting luck instead of the Lord

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Stark Consequences

(drawn from the very imagery and the next sentence of the same thought, v. 12)

• Destined “for the sword” – violent judgment (Isaiah 65:12)

• Forced to “bow down to the slaughter” – humiliation before destruction (Isaiah 65:12)

• Silence from God – He “called” but they “did not answer”; the fellowship they refused is withdrawn (Isaiah 65:12)

• Divine displeasure – God acts against what He “did not delight” in (Isaiah 65:12)

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Why This Matters Today

• Idolatry still exists whenever anything replaces wholehearted trust in Christ (Colossians 3:5).

• Trusting “Fortune” and “Destiny” sounds modern—horoscopes, luck, prosperity schemes—yet Scripture calls it forsaking the Lord.

• Consequences are real and literal: judgment, separation, loss of God’s protection (Hebrews 10:31).

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Reinforcing Scriptures

• Deuteronomy 28:15 – curses follow those who “do not obey the voice of the LORD.”

• Joshua 24:20 – “If you forsake the LORD … He will turn and bring disaster on you.”

• 2 Chronicles 24:20 – “Because you have forsaken the LORD, He has also forsaken you.”

• John 15:6 – branches that do not remain in Christ are “thrown away and wither.”

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Key Takeaways

• Forsaking God always brings personal, tangible loss—spiritual first, then physical.

• God’s warnings are acts of mercy, inviting repentance before judgment falls.

• Cling to Him alone; any alternative “table” inevitably leads to the sword.