July 8 - Isaiah 42:10-17

July 8 – Isaiah 42:10-17

Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them. Let the desert and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops. Let them give glory to the LORD and proclaim his praise in the islands. The LORD will march out like a mighty man, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.

 “For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools.   I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.  But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame.

This is a prophecy not about the Messiah’s first coming, but His second coming on earth.

In Revelation 5:9, we find those gathered before the throne and “they sang a new song.”  In Revelation 14:3, the 144,000 who were standing on Mount Zion with Lamb as the first fruits of mankind sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders.  We find reference to a new song in the Psalms every time God does something amazing and the Psalmist has to find a way to praise His name.

With the moment-to-moment, breath-to-breath extravagant creativeness of our God, we are always searching for new ways to praise Him. The old songs may feel comfortable in our souls, but a new song reminds us that God’s love is fresh every morning and so should be our praise!

When the Messiah returns, He will march out, the shout will be raised and He will triumph.  This is the reason for the new song!

God’s patience seems endless to us, but to Him it is a measured time.  He has remained quiet while watching sin and corruption enter His creation.  But the day is coming when He will turn His creation upside down.

The blind refers to Israel who remains spiritually blind.  But, God loves His children so much that even while He is laying waste to the earth, He will make a path for them to walk.  These are images that are profound in my mind.  I see primeval forests with the trees ripped from the ground, the rivers pouring the water out and leaving only the stones of the riverbed, the rocks and brush from the hills create an impossible barricade to move forward, yet out of all of this a smooth path is created for God’s children to walk.  While all around them, chaos is erupting, with their feet on the path, they are safe. 

He will not be bothered by those who serve other gods and worship idols.  I see in my minds-eye them (us – me and you as well) not finding the path and stumbling along, wounding our knees and our hands as we continually fall to the ground in a terrible mess.  We might be right beside the path, but our love for everything else keeps us from seeing the smooth way to the Father.