Comforting the Weary
4 The Sovereign Lord(M) has given me an instructed tongue,(N)
to know the word that sustains the weary.(O)
He wakens me morning by morning,(P)
wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.(Q)
5 The Sovereign Lord(R) has opened my ears,(S)
and I have not been rebellious;(T)
I have not drawn back.
6 I offered my back to those who beat(U) me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;(V)
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.(W)
7 Because the Sovereign Lord(X) helps(Y) me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,(Z)
and I know I will not be put to shame.(AA)
I love the book of Isaiah, particularly the middle section where God tells Isaiah to give hope to the exiles because their time in Babylon is almost over. But, the Israelites can not see hope, and Isaiah probably thinks his words are in vain. Yet, he is encouraged by knowing that his words come from the living God, and therefore he does not turn aside but “sets his face like flint.”
Are you Isaiah or are you the exiles? Are you the persevering servant who speaks God’s words regardless of the circumstance, or do you identify with the exiles who had been under bondage for so long they had given up?
Regardless of which group you are in, know that God does love you and He is always available to hear and answer your prayers. When you determine to seek after holiness, part of that process is in reading the Scripture, and the more you read the more you will understand how it relates to your life today. Just as God wanted to offer hope to those whose hope was gone, He wants to offer hope to each of us today. Accept it, believe it, and live it, setting your face like flint toward the glory of God and what He wants to do in your life, and turning your back upon the bondage of the past.
Seeking Holiness 