”“Sing, O childless woman, you who have never given birth! Break into loud and joyful song, O Jerusalem, you who have never been in labor. For the desolate woman now has more children than the woman who lives with her husband,” says the Lord. “Enlarge your house; build an addition. Spread out your home, and spare no expense! For you will soon be bursting at the seams. Your descendants will occupy other nations and resettle the ruined cities. “Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. Don’t be afraid; there is no more disgrace for you. You will no longer remember the shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood. For your Creator will be your husband; the Lord of Heaven’s Armies is his name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth. For the Lord has called you back from your grief— as though you were a young wife abandoned by her husband,” says your God. “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will take you back. In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while. But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer. “Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear that I will never again be angry and punish you. For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken,” says the Lord, who has mercy on you. “O storm-battered city, troubled and desolate! I will rebuild you with precious jewels and make your foundations from lapis lazuli. I will make your towers of sparkling rubies, your gates of shining gems, and your walls of precious stones. I will teach all your children, and they will enjoy great peace. You will be secure under a government that is just and fair. Your enemies will stay far away. You will live in peace, and terror will not come near. If any nation comes to fight you, it is not because I sent them. Whoever attacks you will go down in defeat. “I have created the blacksmith who fans the coals beneath the forge and makes the weapons of destruction. And I have created the armies that destroy. But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord; their vindication will come from me. I, the Lord, have spoken!“
Isaiah 54:1-17 NLT
The context of salvation is always despair. This is a truth that has been lost in a world that has grown up seeing the blessings of the church and Christ. His entry into the world, even by passive association, has so altered the landscape of the world that our trauma can never be as strong as it was before him. Many of our children growing out of the church come out of it specifically for this reason. They have no idea what it was like to live in a pre Christ existence and therefore have little appreciation for true salvation and the profundity of our hope in Christ. But truthfully,, he entered into a dark and desperate time that needed his presence to stay the growth of evil. Had he not come when he did, it is entirely conceivable that our savagery would’ve destroyed us sooner than later. It is in this context that our salvation is that much sweeter. Christ is a blessing to every generation and to all people. His return will solidify this truth and usher in a final sanctification for the Jewish people and eventually the world. This is why these passages have been read for centuries before and after his death. People continue to rely on them, even now as we wait for his return.
JOSH McGARY.COM 