Thoughts from Isaiah

I've been reading Isaiah the past few weeks. It's got quite a few well-known passages, and this entry isn't about any of them. Just a few reflections on things that caught my eye.

First up, Isaiah 3:9. This verse is in the midst of an orcale pronouncing judgment on Judah:

For the look on their faces bears witness against them;
they proclaim their sin like Sodom;
they do not hide it.
Woe to them!
For they have brought evil on themselves.

This just gripped me. What an amazing description of the depths of depravity they had sunk into. It's one thing to sin. But they had become so entrenched in their sin, they had lost all sense of shame. They even took pride in it - proclaiming it like Sodom. At this point, there's roughly zero chance of repentance. When a conscience is so seared that sin is proudly and openly celebrated, when there's no remorse, no sense that it might even be wrong, the end is imminent. This verse profoundly illustrates just how richly deserved Judah's punishment was.

So the question is, am I like that? When I sin, do I care? Does the shame and sorrow drive me to repentance, or to self-justification? Am I getting so comfortable with my sin that I may one day not even consider it to be sin anymore? Will I reason that it's not really so bad, and then even come to think it's good? Will I, like Judah, and like Sodom, even become proud of my sin, and show it on my face? But for the grace of God...

I'd planned to do two, but I think I'll leave it there for now. Discuss.