Daily Bread

Comfort, O comfort my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that she has served her term,
that her penalty is paid,
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:
‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’

A voice says, ‘Cry out!’
And I said, ‘What shall I cry?’
All people are grass,
their constancy is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
lift it up, do not fear;
say to the cities of Judah,
‘Here is your God!’
See, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
and carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead the mother sheep.

It's difficult to get our heads around how a writing can be prophetic about immediate events and also future events at the same time, but here it is. Isaiah, in poetic style, wrote about the imminent rescue of the Jewish people from captivity and exile by the Babylonians, but the text is also laden with references to the future Messiah — the great 'Deliverer'.

Isaiah's prophetic words are are as relevant today as they were when they were penned thousands of years ago. He reminded his readers that the things in the present will pass, comparing human kings and dictators as grass that grows, withers, and fades. Right now, we are at the mercy of world powers that act with incredible power and violence and, ironically, much of it centred around the nation of Israel. Who will set us free from the dominion of human pride and power?

Old Testament scholar John Oswalt put it like this, "Those great powers are as transient as the wild flowers! They are no more to be feared than a blade of grass!" Our trust and our hope is not in humanity, but in God. World powers have come and gone, but God's word stands forever. We are not people born merely of human flesh but, through Christ, we are connected to the source of eternal life. We stand, not on the promises of people, but on the promises of God.

What then should be our response? To stand firm in our faith, hold on to the promise of God, and hold our heads high. Everything we see, horrendous and traumatic as it is, will be dwarfed by the everlasting power, presence, and peace of God. We are not members of the human family that goes to war, drops bombs, starves children, or oppresses communities. We are members of God's family of justice, mercy, and grace.

God will come and "every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain," therefore let us continue to be God's people in our present world of hurt and pain. Let us never give up living our future destiny in the here and now. Love will win.

Holy God
When I see a world
being torn apart
by human pride and violence,
may I hold on to
your promise of salvation
and stand firm in my faith
trusting that your love
will conquer all.
Now and forever.