The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.
The ox recognizes its owner and the donkey recognizes the place where its master feeds it, but Israel fails to know and thoughtfully regard God as its Maker and Lord. To not know and not consider is to fail to recognize, acknowledge, and answer to Him as owner and provider, to reflect on His care and dealings, and to own dependence on Him and relationship to Him. That failure puts His people below the beasts in gratitude, attachment, devotion, and acknowledgment of ownership, a reproach to human beings gifted with reason and ability. It is the Lord's own charge against the children He nourished and brought up, His once-favored people called to universal dominion under David's seed, because they rebelled against Him, forsook Him, provoked the Holy One of Israel, and turned backward. The rebuke still calls all endowed with reason to examine their actions as God sees them, to own where they have resisted His will and refused His providential care, and to know Him and consider their ways day by day.
Israel's Failure Exposed
The ox knows its owner and the ass or donkey knows its master's crib or feeding place, but Israel does not know and does not consider God, its Maker and Lord. The contrast is the Lord's charge against His own people that they rebelled against Him. Not knowing and not considering is failing to recognize, acknowledge, and respond to God as owner and provider. It is failing to consider His care and dealings and to acknowledge dependence on Him and relationship to Him.
That failure leaves Israel worse than the animals, with less gratitude, attachment, devotion, and acknowledgment of ownership than beasts show their masters. Even the ox and the ass have more gratitude than man, for they recognize their owner and their source of care while people forget their constant dependence on God. This is a reproach to human beings endowed with reason and abilities, that many offer less grateful service than the beasts. As nature is obedient to law, its object lessons declare God's wonderful works and reprove human unbelief and forgetfulness.
The verse is the Lord's own charge and complaint against His own people, whom He nourished and brought up as children as His once-favored people. He had called Judah and Jerusalem to hold universal dominion, giving the scepter to the seed of David, but they rebelled against Him. They forsook the Lord, provoked the Holy One of Israel to anger, and went backward. Their forgetfulness of God was rebellion and the root of the sins marking the nation in Isaiah's day. It presents them as a sinful nation laden with iniquity whose whole head is sick and whole heart faint and whose land is left desolate.
The verse thus gives the reason for Israel's chastisement and presents them as a people whom God will utterly destroy for their iniquities.
Call to Consider Today
The rebuke in the verse calls people endowed with reason to examine their actions as God sees them, to recognize where they have failed, and to acknowledge that despite His care they have resisted His will. It applies to a person who knows the truth but turns from it and rebels against God, warning him not to lead his wife and children away from their faith. It warns the Battle Creek church against resisting God's will and refusing to recognize His providential judgments.
The verse means that God's people fail to know Him and to consider their ways, so that even teachers are woefully ignorant of their own characters. Students and children therefore need the nurture and admonition of the Lord set before them day by day through valuing and searching the living oracles of God. It also delineates the condition of the men driven out of the temple courts, and shows how God regards those who claim to be righteous while transgressing His holy law.
The ox and the ass stand as object lessons from nature that declare God's wonderful works and reprove human unbelief and forgetfulness of constant dependence on God. They show greater gratitude and acknowledgment than man shows, since they recognize their owner and the place where they are fed and cared for while people forget. As nature is obedient to law, God will sustain people in health and strength when they comply with the conditions of entire obedience to His law.
The ox recognizes its owner and the donkey recognizes the place where its master feeds it, but Israel fails to know and thoughtfully regard God as its Maker and Lord. To not know and not consider is to fail to recognize, acknowledge, and answer to Him as owner and provider, to reflect on His care and dealings, and to own dependence on Him and relationship to Him. That failure puts His people below the beasts in gratitude, attachment, devotion, and acknowledgment of ownership, a reproach to human beings gifted with reason and ability. It is the Lord's own charge against the children He nourished and brought up, His once-favored people called to universal dominion under David's seed, because they rebelled against Him, forsook Him, provoked the Holy One of Israel, and turned backward. The rebuke still calls all endowed with reason to examine their actions as God sees them, to own where they have resisted His will and refused His providential care, and to know Him and consider their ways day by day.
Israel's Failure Exposed
The ox knows its owner and the ass or donkey knows its master's crib or feeding place, but Israel does not know and does not consider God, its Maker and Lord. The contrast is the Lord's charge against His own people that they rebelled against Him. Not knowing and not considering is failing to recognize, acknowledge, and respond to God as owner and provider. It is failing to consider His care and dealings and to acknowledge dependence on Him and relationship to Him.
That failure leaves Israel worse than the animals, with less gratitude, attachment, devotion, and acknowledgment of ownership than beasts show their masters. Even the ox and the ass have more gratitude than man, for they recognize their owner and their source of care while people forget their constant dependence on God. This is a reproach to human beings endowed with reason and abilities, that many offer less grateful service than the beasts. As nature is obedient to law, its object lessons declare God's wonderful works and reprove human unbelief and forgetfulness.
The verse is the Lord's own charge and complaint against His own people, whom He nourished and brought up as children as His once-favored people. He had called Judah and Jerusalem to hold universal dominion, giving the scepter to the seed of David, but they rebelled against Him. They forsook the Lord, provoked the Holy One of Israel to anger, and went backward. Their forgetfulness of God was rebellion and the root of the sins marking the nation in Isaiah's day. It presents them as a sinful nation laden with iniquity whose whole head is sick and whole heart faint and whose land is left desolate.
The verse thus gives the reason for Israel's chastisement and presents them as a people whom God will utterly destroy for their iniquities.
Call to Consider Today
The rebuke in the verse calls people endowed with reason to examine their actions as God sees them, to recognize where they have failed, and to acknowledge that despite His care they have resisted His will. It applies to a person who knows the truth but turns from it and rebels against God, warning him not to lead his wife and children away from their faith. It warns the Battle Creek church against resisting God's will and refusing to recognize His providential judgments.
The verse means that God's people fail to know Him and to consider their ways, so that even teachers are woefully ignorant of their own characters. Students and children therefore need the nurture and admonition of the Lord set before them day by day through valuing and searching the living oracles of God. It also delineates the condition of the men driven out of the temple courts, and shows how God regards those who claim to be righteous while transgressing His holy law.
The ox and the ass stand as object lessons from nature that declare God's wonderful works and reprove human unbelief and forgetfulness of constant dependence on God. They show greater gratitude and acknowledgment than man shows, since they recognize their owner and the place where they are fed and cared for while people forget. As nature is obedient to law, God will sustain people in health and strength when they comply with the conditions of entire obedience to His law.