I must confess…this is challenging to write every day~ needless to say, I have not been able to do it every day. Maybe, though, in my pause for my job/life/etc…it gives you time to reflect on those things you are afraid of and how God can carry you through as He shows in these verses?

Isaiah 12

In that day you will say:

“I will praise You, O Lord. Although You were angry with me, Your anger has turned away and you have comforted me.

Surely God is my salvation;

I will trust and not be afraid.

The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song;

He has become my salvation.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

In that day you will say:

“Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done, and proclaim that His name is exalted.

Sing to the Lord, for He has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.

Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”

NIV

The context of this passage is that it was written by the prophet Isaiah. He is known as one of the greatest prophets chosen to speak for God. What he shared was rejected because what he shared in regards to repentance and the lack of was unpopular.

Imagine that…people didn’t want to hear that they needed to change their ways and return to a right relationship with God.

He was called to warn people of God’s judgement and punishment. The resounding cry from his lips was return, repent, and be renewed, then trust in God’s redemption and rejoice.

This particular chapter follows the prophecy of the coming Messiah through the line of Jesse (King David’s father -Jesus’ lineage is traced back to David). Prior to that good news, Isaiah spoke of the Assyrians coming to take the Israelites into captivity.

First, he speaks of horrible, bad news of captivity. In those days, that would mean they were removed from their homes, possibly separated from their families, and placed into whatever place the captives thought those captive would be most useful.

After this devastation, Isaiah declares a promise of the One who was coming to set them free – the Messiah.

Chapter 12 is the promise in the song of praise the people will sing in that day.

These words were spoken, or sung, by the Israelites for centuries as they endured persecution, captivity, oppression while they waited for the Messiah to come.

Jesus entered this world almost 700 YEARS AFTER THE BOOK OF ISAIAH WAS WRITTEN.

So…for 700 YEARS the people of God were encouraged by and chose to sing these words of praise and promise.

They were taken into captivity.

They were removed from their homes.

Their temple was destroyed.

And yet they still chose to believe the promise of God to be true for all those years.

I guess I have to ask this~

How long have you been waiting?

How long have you had to endure suffering?

It is a sobering thought.

Has it been 700 years?

Let’s read Isaiah 12 again…

What words or phrases stand out in this passage?

1. “Although you were angry with me”

This stands out to me because sometimes I feel that way. I feel like God is angry with me…that maybe He is punishing me. Whether that is true thinking or not, it sure makes me feel NORMAL to see others have felt the way I have and have declared those thoughts to the Lord.

2. “You have comforted me”

No matter what I have done, or thought I did, there is NOTHING that can keep the love of God away from me (Romans 8:39). He will always choose to comfort me. The question is, will I choose to recieve His comfort??

4. “I will trust and not be afraid”

Because God is my salvation (the One who delivers me from ruin, harm,or loss) I can trust Him. Will I CHOOSE to? When I trust in the Lord for who He is then I do not need to be afraid.

5. “With joy…”

I like the sound of that.

6. “Make known to the nations what He has done”

Do you declare the goodness of God? Do you tell others what He has done for you?

Do you think about His glorious things when you are afraid or only focus on the fear?

We need to really consider where our thoughts land when we are afraid. As we discussed yesterday, God does not wave a magic wand over you…you have to do your part in the action of faith.

If you say you believe, if you say you trust, if you say you have faith ..then what are you thinking about and telling yourself when you are afraid???

This passage speaks to the praise of God for who He is and what He does when He hadn’t brought to them the Messiah. They give praise because of the PROMISE.

We have the Messiah. Jesus has come. Not only that, we now have the Holy Spirit inside us to empower us, comfort us, counsel us, guide us,and to bring us peace.

If the people in Isaiah’s day, and for 700 YEARS after, could make this declaration of praise in times of trouble….can we do the same?

Our faith takes action on our part! And the time we need to flex those faith muscles is when we are afraid.

SHOUT IT ALOUD AND SING FOR JOY – no matter what your circumstance is- FOR GREAT IS THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL AMONG YOU.