In Isaiah 18, Isaiah continues with messages for other countries. This chapter is devoted to Ethiopia. The message is one of judgment, while the Ethiopians were known as great warriors, the message is they will bring gifts to Jerusalem. In other words, they’re defeat is assured and Israel will be victorious.
Isaiah 19 pronounces an incredible future in which Egypt, Israel and Assyria are allies and all worship the LORD! Before that, though, most of the chapter pronounces judgment, not only on the leaders and people of Egypt, but also on the land. The Nile River will dry up so the land won’t produce crops, so there will be no fish to catch, and the whole region will be decimated. While the people cry out to their idols, nothing will come from that. Only when the people turn to the LORD, as Isaiah prophesies will happen, will there be a future and hope for Egypt.
Isaiah 20 moves in a different direction. Here we are told the Philistines will be attacked by the Assyrians, and the Philistines’ allies the Egyptians and Ethiopians will be defeated and humiliated by the Assyrians. Throughout Israel’s history, it has been the “middle ground,” of the Middle East. The Assyrians or whoever was in charge in the north typically met Egypt or whoever was in charge from the south in battle in the land of Israel. The Philistines were Israel’s enemy, but they shared the middle ground, because they lived in southwest Israel. The battle predicted here would impact not only the Philistines, but all of Israel.
As we return to Mark 12, we find Jesus telling a parable about a vineyard owner and the servants of the vineyard. The parable clearly portrayed the religious leaders as the servants, and Jesus as the vineyard owner’s son, who was killed by the servants. This is a clear prediction of Jesus’ death, and it was not well received by the religious leaders. They wanted to arrest Him but were afraid, because of the crowds. After this, various groups of religious leaders sought to trap Jesus with questions, but each time Jesus demonstrated not only His superior knowledge and understanding of both life and God’s word, but showed the religious leaders where they were wrong. Once again, this added fuel to the growing fire of their desire to be rid of Jesus once and for all. The chapter ends with Jesus affirming a widow for giving away her last penny as her offering. Jesus affirmed her above the rich donors who gave much, but it was a pittance based on their wealth. The widow’s gift represented a total sacrifice, and that is the kind of gift Jesus will always affirm.