Isaiah begins his book by invoking Sodom and Gomorrah, the proverbial sin cities of the Old Testament. Their sins were like scarlet, they were crimson red. But when the prophet lists the sins they are not the ones that we expect. There is not even one mention of sexual transgressions. Instead Isaiah says, “Wash yourselves clean! Cease doing evil. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow.” In forty years of hearing confessions I’ve hear many sins of a sexual nature but not once has someone confessed that the sinned against justice, ignored the widow and orphan. The first chapter of Isaiah suggests that we need to re-examine our understanding of sin. We need to think with the prophet.
