No One Good
All of us have become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment; all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind
Isaiah 64:6(CSB)
I have heard people at funerals say that the individual was a “good” person. But how do you define a good person? Does the metrics of the world define a good person? Can one person view someone as good while another sees them as bad? The truth lies in the Word of God, which declares that no one is good. In fact, on various occasions in both the Old and New Testaments, we find that no one is good, not one. In today’s passage from Isaiah, the prophet defines the true non-good nature of humanity.
A POLLUTED GARMENT
The prophet Isaiah foretold that all of humanity lives in sin like polluted garments. This mention refers to garments soiled by the menstrual cycle. These garments represent an outward expression of the ceremonial uncleanness associated with this event. Isaiah compares our lives to polluted garments, highlighting that we are ceremonially unclean before the Lord due to the sinful nature that taints our lives.
WITHER LIKE A LEAF
The prophet compares our lives to those of withered leaves. In spring and summer, the leaves show great vitality and appear healthy; however, as summer turns to fall, they wither and lose their vigor. While we may feel we are thriving in our lives, when we try to be righteous on our own, we will wither like a leaf. We become weak and fail because, in our own ability and strength, we cannot earn the favor of the Lord. In our attempts to gain God’s favor, we will merely wither away like a leaf.
INQUITY CARRIES US AWAY LIKE THE WIND
The prophet describes a life stained by sin and personal attempts to earn God's favor as one taken away by its desires, much like a leaf carried by the wind. The wind takes the leaf from the tree and moves it wherever it blows; the leaf has no control over its destination. Since no one is good, a life controlled by sin ends up where it does not wish to go, as sin directs one's life wherever it desires.
QUESTIONS
Why do we attempt to define people as good who do not know the Lord when the only goodness is in the Lord?
How does sin take control of our lives and lead us astray from the Lord?
