It begins in a familiar way.
Remember when the priests and Levites asked John the Baptist who he was? He answered in the words of Yesha’yahu (that’s Hebrew for “Isaiah”):
I am, “The voice of someone crying out: ‘In the desert make the way of Adonai straight!’” (John 1:23, CJB)
Your Bible may say, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness…” No matter. I prefer the CJB translation because I’m not convinced John spent his time crying out in an empty wilderness when there were so many priests and Levites to mess with in the courtyard of the temple. (Ah, the power of the comma!)
In Middle Eastern culture, when kings came to visit, as a show of respect a new road would be built. Seriously. Everything would be cleared away and a highway would be constructed, just for their procession. It was a project of enormous proportions, and when it was finished, everyone would line up to watch the show.
And so it will be when the LORD comes back, only way bigger and way better. When He comes back in all His glory and splendor, you won’t have to push your way through the crowd to get a look. No, somehow all people will see it together. I don’t know how that works; I just know it works, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Have you ever considered what that glory will look like? I’m awed by the masterpieces God paints in the sky, with the sun and the clouds or the moon and the stars. It’s glorious! But this glory will come with the King of kings and LORD of lords Himself. It’s got to be more than just bright lights.
Then a voice says, “Proclaim!” And Isaiah, always ready, asks, “What should I proclaim?”
The voice answers:
All humanity is merely grass, all its kindness like wildflowers: the grass dries up, the flower fades, when a wind from Adonai blows on it. Surely the people are grass! (v. 6b-7)
God’s not criticizing man, disappointed in His creation. He’s just stating the facts. We’re subject to death; that’s how He made us. We’re like crocuses peeking through the last little bit of spring snow, there for a few days and then gone. Or daisies, bowing their heads and dropping their petals, just a few days home from the florist. It’s not that they have no beauty or value. They just don’t last.
The grass dries up, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.” (v. 8)
The comparison isn’t made to mock the transience of man but to glorify the steadfast, unchanging word of God.
Knowing that,
You who bring good news to Tziyon get yourself up on a high mountain; (He’s coming.) you who bring good news to Yerushalayim (He’s coming.) cry out at the top of your voice! (He’s coming!!)
Don’t be afraid to shout out loud! Say to the cities of Y’hudah, “Here is your God!” (v. 9)
Sovereign. Powerful. Ruling with authority.
Look! His reward is with him, and his recompense is before him. (v. 10)
(That’s us, by the way.)
He is like a shepherd feeding his flock, gathering his lambs with his arm, carrying them against his chest, gently leading the mother sheep.”
Who has counted the handfuls of water in the sea, measured off the sky with a ruler, gauged how much dust there is on the earth, weighed the mountains on scales, or the hills in a balance? (v. 11–12)
Two very different images, presented one right after the other. He is strong. He is tender. He’s a warrior and He’s a shepherd. The Sovereign LORD, a gentle Father. The Creator, God of order, and the caretaker of us all. Bigger than all and over it all, He is all that and more.
Who has measured the Spirit of Adonai? (It can’t be done.) Who has been his counselor, instructing him? (There’s not one.) Whom did he consult, to gain understanding? (Certainly not me.) Who taught him how to judge, taught him what he needed to know, showed him how to discern?” (v. 13–14)
No one.
With whom, then, will you compare God? By what standard will you evaluate him? (v. 18)
How foolish to expect anything made from things of earth, including mankind formed from clay, to have any advantage over the God who made them! The created can’t be compared with the Creator. While God reveals Himself through what He makes, created things can only reveal the heart of their counselor, for better or worse. We can build our lives on all kinds of things, but all will decay and topple. Only the word of the LORD endures forever.
Don’t you know? Don’t you hear? Haven’t you been told from the start? Don’t you understand how the earth is set up? (v. 21)
Throughout history, all kinds of voices have been speaking for God. But turn down the noise, and you’ll hear the reliable three. God’s glory revealed through the voice of creation. His message written on scrolls and handed down by faithful men. His strength and mercy in our lives, speaking of the power of His love. They all testify together: He is big; we are small. He is Creator; we are created. He is a tender Father, but with one breath, He can blow the bullies away.
Turn your eyes to the heavens! See who created these? He brings out the army of them in sequence, summoning each by name. Through his great might and his massive strength, not one of them is missing. (v. 26)
Back before spyglass and compass, sailors looked to the skies for their bearings. Even without the knowledge of astronomy, they knew the stars made paths across the sky, and those paths would never change. (I know, I know, the stars aren’t moving; we are. Is that any less amazing?)
Now take a deep breath.
If He can supervise all that, don’t you suppose He can order your life?
“Why do you complain?” the voice asks.
Why do you say, “My way is hidden from Adonai, my rights are ignored by my God”? (v. 27)
Haven’t you known, haven’t you heard that the everlasting God, Adonai, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not grow tired or weary?
His understanding cannot be fathomed. He invigorates the exhausted, he gives strength to the powerless. Young men may grow tired and weary, even the fittest may stumble and fall; but those who hope in Adonai will renew their strength, they will soar aloft as with eagles’ wings; when they are running they won’t grow weary, when they are walking they won’t get tired. (v. 28–31)
“Have hope,” the Voice says.
God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? (Numbers 23:19, NIV)
Not a chance.
The word of the LORD endures forever.
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