Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service has been completed,
that her sin has been paid for,
that she has received from the Lord's hand
double for all her sins. A voice of one calling:
"In the wilderness prepare
the way for the Lord;
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken." See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power,
and he rules with a mighty arm.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him. He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before him all the nations are as nothing;
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing. Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
"My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God"? Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom. but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
(Isaiah 40:2, 3, 5, 10, 11, 16, 17, 21-23, 27, 28, 31 NIV)
Isaiah 40 is such a beautiful pictur of the sovereignty of God and yet the love prophecied in Jesus that this text foretells.
All the earth and people are nothing before God but fleeting whispers and yet he knows us and loves us enough to strengthen us and die for us to bring us into eternal life in him!
Thank you Lord.
Please increase my understanding of your greatness and sovereignty and humble me both by my smallness and your great love for mud who are unworthy.
Amen
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