God has foretold the inevitable results of sin, but this is far from being an arbitrary decree. God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Eze. 18:23, 31, 32; Eze. 33:11), but knowing the inevitable result of sin, He has warned man exactly what the results of disobedience will be (see Hosea 13:9; 14:1; Rom. 6:21, 23; James 1:15; 2 Peter 3:9).

 It is not an arbitrary decree of God that condemns the sinner. He only reaps what he himself has sown. As blessings accompany right living, so woe does wickedness. When men transgress the commandments of God the inevitable result is death. This is simply the outworking of the natural law of cause and effect. When Israel turned from God they inevitably entered the pathway of ruin. Moses had made this truth clear before Israel entered the Promised Land (Deut. 28:15-68). When men rebel against God and refuse to obey His law they automatically invite destruction. Every man has his fate entirely in his own hands; it rests with him alone to determine whether his future will be one of happiness or of misery. The great truth Isaiah set before the people of God was that sin ultimately brings its own destruction. Iniquity can never become the basis for eternal joy and blessedness. In a very real sense sinners are self-destroyed.