Prophetic warnings are not a popular subject. We can create theologies about God that dismiss the warnings offered by God’s prophets. Isaiah mentioned the danger of such interpretations when he wrote Isaiah 21. We have something to learn in his warning to Babylon about the ministry of a watchman.

Isaiah wrote, “This message came to me concerning Babylon—the desert by the sea. Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert, like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev. I see a terrifying vision: I see the betrayer betraying, the destroyer destroying” (Isaiah 21: 1-2).

Isaiah referenced a message he received concerning Babylon. “Meanwhile, the Lord said to me, ‘Put a watchman on the city wall. Let him shout out what he sees. He should look for chariots drawn by pairs of horses and for riders on donkeys and camels. Let the watchman be fully alert.” (vs. 6-7). The approaching chariots and their riders represented an approaching threat that needed to be announced.

A watchman’s mission is to inform the Church of what is coming. Part of their calling is to “look for chariots.” The watchman should “be fully alert” at all times, able to see what is coming. Falling asleep on duty and not making their announcement puts people in jeopardy.

What the watchman sees requires an announcement: “Then the watchman called out, Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my Lord. Night after night I have remained at my post. Now, at last—look! Here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horses!” (vs. 8-9). It is the “now at last” part where disagreement within the Church about issuing warnings takes place. Some try to explain away a warning using their narrow interpretation of Scripture as a way to dismiss a prophetic warning.

If someone is a watchman, they need to be courageous enough to ignore the warnings to remain silent. Isaiah demonstrated that courage, “I have told you everything the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has said, everything the God of Israel has told me.'” (vs. 10).