“The Lord will
wash away the filth of Zion’s people ... His glory will cover
everything” (Isaiah 4:4-5). The restoration of the divine glory is the
goal of the divine cleansing. What God does for us and in us is the
reversal of what sin does - “All have sinned and fall short of the glory
of God” (Romans 3:23). God’s people are His “vineyard”, “the garden of
His delight” (Isaiah 5:7). Our response to the Lord is to love Him and
worship Him: “Let me sing a love song to my Beloved” (Isaiah 5:1). We
rejoice in the Lord because He has forgiven our sin (Isaiah 6:7). We
sing praise to Him because all glory belongs to Him (Isaiah 6:3). Our
sin, which is great (Isaiah 6:5), has been forgiven - All glory to God!
This is the Lord’s doing. It is marvellous in our eyes. “The King” is
among us. He reveals Himself as the King of love. Out of love for the
Lord, we make our response - Here am I. Send me” (Isaiah 6:8). As we
obey God’s command, “Go and tell the people” (Isaiah 6:9), we may find
that there is much that causes us to be discouraged - “the cities lie in
ruins ... The land is completely desolate ... A large area in the
middle of the land will be abandoned” (Isaiah 6:11-12). We will also
have some encouragement - “a stump is left - The holy seed will be the
land’s stump” (Isaiah 6:13). When we are tempted to give up, when
discouragement threatens to overwhelm us, we must remember that God is
still on the throne. He is the King - and He still loves us. He is the
King of love.
“At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem”, the keynote of the service was joyful thanksgiving. They gathered together “to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving” (Nehemiah 12:27). “On that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy” (Nehemiah 12:43). They sang “songs of praise and thanksgiving to God” (Nehemiah 12:46). This joyful thanksgiving is only a foretaste of the greater joy and thanksgiving of heaven: “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:4). In the city of God, “the glory of God” will be shining with everlasting brightness (Revelation 21:23). The Church of God will be “prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband” (Revelation 21:2). The beautiful picture of the godly wife in Proverbs 31 gives us an outline of what God is seeking to do in His people. It is summarized in Proverbs 31:30: “A woman who fears the Lord is to be ...
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