July 24 - Isaiah 51:9-16

July 24 – Isaiah 51:9-16

Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old. Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces, who pierced that monster through? Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea so that the redeemed might cross over? The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

“I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men, the sons of men, who are but grass, that you forget the LORD your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, that you live in constant terror every day because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction? For where is the wrath of the oppressor? The cowering prisoners will soon be set free; they will not die in their dungeon, nor will they lack bread. For I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves roar— the LORD Almighty is his name. I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand— I who set the heavens in place, who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’ ”

There are several different places in the Old Testament where the power of God is found in His outstretched arm.  It occurs in the story of the Exodus (Exodus 6:6, Deuteronomy 5:15; 7:19) and quite a number of times in Isaiah as well as in the Psalms.  We see in Psalm 93:1 that the Lord puts on strength as a belt!

The people of Israel call out to the Lord their God to go before them with the strength and power that He brought in days of old.  The ransomed of the Lord are those that were exiled into Babylon.  They remember the Exodus and the Promised Land and now want the Lord to go before them as they return to Jerusalem with singing and gladness and joy.  These are the same things that the Lord told them He wanted for them in previous verses. 

He responds to their words with assurance.  They have nothing to fear from mortal men.  These people are like grass, yet the Lord is the creator of heaven and earth.  They spend time worrying about mankind’s wrath, yet it is the Lord who has all of the power.

He says, “I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand.”

We do spend more time worrying about the perceptions and reactions of those who live around us and those with whom we interact every day than we do worrying about God’s reactions.  Men are like grass … they will easily fade away.  The Lord, on the other hand, is always going to be there to care for us.  He is the creator of all things, He laid the foundations of the earth.  With Him going before us, standing beside and behind us … we have nothing to fear on this earth.