Truly, God’s anger does not last forever. He only wants His people
to see His loving intention and get back on track. It has never been God’s
intention to destroy. His discipline is always aimed at getting us, His people,
to see our wrong, repent and turn from our waywardness and return to Him. To
the people who are sensitive and respond to Him, he will restore them. To those
who would spurn His kind overtures, consequence would await them. This, in essence,
would be God’s way of dealing with His people.
In Isaiah 29:17, still asking a rhetorical question, the prophet saw
something positive for the people of God resulting from His discipline. He saw
a restoration of the fortune of the people. Here he foretold that in a short
while God would restore their fortune. Known for its cedar trees, Lebanon would once again be fertile.
It would become a thick forest again. And with the restoration, there would also
come clarity of God’s message and intention. In earlier verses, the book of
vision was sealed to them and even those who could read could not understand
what they had read. But a day was dawning that even the blind and the deaf could
understand God’s message, granted to them in a book. Verses 19-21 show that there
would be correction in both the political and social arena. Wicked people
including the ruthless, the scorners, and those who had caused the people to sin
would be eliminated. There would also be a fair system of justice where the poor
would be treated fairly. This would result because those rich people who once
manipulated the people would be removed.
God always has a better end for His obedient people. This is what He
said through the Prophet Jeremiah. “‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for prosperity
and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” For people
who are sensitive to the Lord’s dealings, here’s a comforting word from Psalm 30:5,
“For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may
last for the night, But a
shout of joy comes in the morning.” What a
glorious God we worship and serve!
No comments:
Post a Comment