DAY 291

DESTINED FOR…

Isaiah 50, 51 & 52:12 and 1 Thessalonians 5

Today I come again to some chapters of Isaiah that require some “parsing” in order for me to understand. I am going to stop at 52:12

50:1-3 and all the talk of a divorce—what is that about? The word “divorce” hits nerves with people (including me). God knows that, and it is why he uses it. The Word and all it stands for connects back to what we spoke about in the last chapter, “Has God abandoned?” The verses actually are a little sarcastic—it is as if God is saying, “So if I have abandoned you, divorced you, then where is your certificate.” I know that is a little crude on my part, but that is what is going on. Yesterday we looked at how God said you, me, and the world are carved into His hands. He has not and will not forget us—he has much bigger plans for us.

The text turns in 50:4-11 as we again here the Servant speak (I know I owe you a posting on the Servant). Today we read the Servant speaking to himself. His identity is a bit of a mystery, but in verse 10 he begins to speak of obedience. We will come to know this servant through his character.

In chapter 51 we read of the road, the highway, to Zion. It is easy to think of Zion as Jerusalem, and the people as the exiled Jews returning—but there is much more going on. First the people on this road are those pursuing righteousness (v.1) and if we look closely at vv.4-6 these are people from coastlands who hope…so that all the ransomed of the Lord will return (v.11)—the point is the same, yet it gets bigger and broader as the people being called are more than Jews—the point is that God has something much bigger planned.

In 51:12 the text again returns to a message of comfort and in some ways we are “replaying the tape” that proclaims comfort against the backdrop of all they have been through…but the “replaying tape” pushes the story one step further…Awake, awake! Whereas the previous message sought to help us deal with our sense of God in the middle of tragedy in order that we might know that God is still present, this section reaches back, touches that point, and then pushes it forward…as if to say, “OK, now that you know God is present, are you ready to act, to do your part—for I have a bigger, much bigger plan.”

The entire thrust of 1 Thessalonians 5 has this idea: it is encouraging us to remain strong, to stay focused, because, as this epistle puts it, God has a much bigger plan…He has destined us for salvation.