1. This passage contains a series of "imperatives." Briefly summarize the Lord's message that follows "Listen to me"/"Pay attention to me;” "Awake, awake;" "Depart, depart;" or "Rouse yourself! Rouse yourself! in
Isaiah 51:1 Pursuing righteousness, seeking the Lord, looking to your beginnings in Him:
“Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him. Isaiah 51:1-2
Worthy of reflection---my beginnings are humble, but they are the stuff from which the Lord builds the future. There is a sense that I should not over-estimate my contribution to His work (as we are hewn by Him) but not underestimate it either, "for he was but one when I called him...that I might bless and multiply him." However, notice the work is predominately His; we are active participants but not to originators or finishers of the work. We enter into it "en medias res."
If God has hewn us from the rock we ought to hope for all humanity. -W. Birch
Take in all your life: if God has made so much of you, He can make still more. The miracle is not in the great umbrageous tree; it is in that little green blade that pierces the earth and looks like a thing that means to pray. It is not the universe, but the molecule, that is a miracle to me. Looking back at what we were, it is easy to believe and yearn to be more. -J Parker
Isa 51:3 For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
I am teaching a high school American Literature & Writing class and one of my struggles (personally and professionally) is how to give them a framework through which to understand Modernism and the big destructive events of the 20th century--the World Wars, the Holocaust, atomic bomb, etc. Do we give into despair? Is our conclusion so bleak? How do we process destruction and evil? How do we acknowledge its toll and cost without sinking?
In contrast to T.S. Eliot's "The Wasteland," I love that Isaiah speaks here of a different way and perspective---that our God is not distant and removed but that He sees it all and is in the process of restoring and comforting: "He comforts all her waste places." Yes, we have waste places, waste lands, but the story is unfinished, and we may not judge it properly until we see His canvas in full.
Isa 51:3 For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
This reflective commentary on "Rain/Reign" by Hillsong echoes this dynamic of restoration.
51:4 A law will go out from me and I will set my justice as a light to the people.
The law going forth from Zion was introduced in Isaiah 2:3 and is also found in Micah 4:2: "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem." -Isaiah 2:3
51:7 He urges his people not to fear criticisms of men.
"fear not the reproach of man, nor be dismayed at their revilings."
51:17---You drank the cup of his fury--have drained to the dregs the goblet of drunkenness.
52:1--Dress in splendid garments, clothe yourselves with strength. For the uncircumcised and unclean shall enter you no more. Break out into joy. Sing together (v9) L
52:11--Leave, get out of there, don't touch anything unclean
2. What are the people calling on the Lord to do in 51:9-11 and how does He respond in 51:12-16?
They are calling Him to awake and repeat bold deeds of the past (defeating Rahab, drying up the sea). God responds by saying "I am He who comforts you. He asks "who are you, afraid of man who dies..."
" I am the LORD your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar— the LORD of hosts is his name. And I have put my words in your mouth and covered you in the shadow of my hand, establishing the heavens and laying the foundations of the earth, and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.’” Isaiah 51:15-16
3. What message from the Lord in Isaiah 51:1-52:12 has convicted and/or encouraged you?
Isaiah 51:1-2 The Lord sought me in my obliviousness, includes me in his Kingdom, and restores my sinful nature, promising everlasting life. From small things (consider the rock from which you were hewn), he promises comfort and sustenance--a plan.
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