In chapter 1 there is a collection of oracles which Isaiah gave to his people after his call to prophesy. After the introductory verse, the rest of the chapter can be divided into three parts, verses 2-9, 10-20, and 21-31.

1:2-9. In verses 2-3 the prophet declares God's indictment or accusation against Israel. The name Israel is used several times in this passage in the sense of the people whom God had called to be his people, and can refer to the people of both kingdoms or more specifically to Judah. At the time when these oracles were given, the northern kingdom was still in existence. Verse 2 recalls Hosea 11 and the imagery used by Hosea of God the loving father and Israel the rebellious son. Verse 3 contrasts the rebelliousness and ignorance of the people with the trusting docility of work animals. The cattle and donkeys know their masters but the people of God have no understanding of their God who provides for them and meets all their needs; they do not know him or trust him.

In verses 4-9 the prophet first challenges the people about their evil and corrupt state, which is like that of a severely injured and very ill person. The people who were called to be holy have become unholy and have turned their backs on the Holy God. In verses 7-9 Isaiah refers to some act of war which we cannot exactly identify but which could have taken place during hostilities between Syria and Judah or the northern kingdom and Judah. The suffering which resulted should have warned the people that things were wrong, but they had learned nothing from the experience. They had allowed the land, of which God was the true owner (Leviticus 25: 23), to fall into the hands of foreigners and suffer ruin.

1: 10-20. The prophet now speaks to Jerusalem. In verse 10 he compares the rulers and the people to those of Sodom and Gomorrah, the two sinful cities which were destroyed in the time of Abraham. He calls on the rulers and people to listen to what God is teaching them. From verse 11 onwards he speaks on behalf of God, in the first person. Verses 11-15 contain a total rejection of the forms of worship offered by corrupt people and reminds us of Amos 5:21-23. Sacrifices, rites, religious gatherings, festivals and prayers mean nothing if the heart of the worshipper is evil.

Verse 17 specifies oppression, disregard of the requirements of the Law, and injustice, as sins of which the worshippers are guilty. Those who lift their hands in prayer to God have also lifted their hands to kill (verse 15). The people are told to stop doing evil and learn to do right before coming to worship God (verse 16). In verses 18-20 God offers the people his forgiveness even though they are marked with stains of sin like blood stains, but he also tells them that if they continue to defy his holy will, they will die. These words remind us of Deuteronomy 30: 15 20.

1 :21-31. In verses 21-23 the prophet speaks very harshly to Jerusalem. Verse 21 recalls the language of Hosea. The city which David intended to be the holy city is now worthless and evil. The idea of good wine and poor water in verse 22 is taken up in a different way by Jesus in John 2: 1-10. This passage adds murder, bribery and theft to the sins of the leaders of Jerusalem. In verses 24-25 God continues with his offer of forgiveness; he is still willing to restore the city to righteousness but it must be through judgement and purification which will be like the burning out of impurities in metal. In verses 27-28 the prophet reinforces the message of the two previous verses. Verse 29 refers to continuing pagan worship. Verses 30-31 mean that the end result of evil is the destruction of the evildoer.