Devotion for: December 16, 2016 Reading: Isaiah 32:1-20

Focus Verses: Isaiah 32:1-5 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice. Each will be like a hiding place from the wind, a shelter from the storm, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shade of a great rock in a weary land. Then the eyes of those who see will not be closed, and the ears of those who hear will give attention. The heart of the hasty will understand and know, and the tongue of the stammerers will hasten to speak distinctly. The fool will no more be called noble, nor the scoundrel said to be honorable.

Devotion: This is one of those difficult readings that is hard for us to fully read and understand the first time that we take a look at it. Chapters 32 and 33 speak specifically about what would happen to the kingdom of Assyria. However, as we look at the readings, we may wonder what will happen to God’s people in all of this desolation and destruction that is being foretold. As we see in the opening verses, Isaiah looks into the future by the power of the Holy Spirit and foretells of the people of God who dwell in a very different Israel than the one that was around during his life. He foretells the coming of the Messiah. As you read these verses, you might wonder to yourself if this is really talking about Jesus or if it is talking about some earthly king. However, upon closer inspection of this reading, we can find three distinct reasons why this passage refers to the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. First, this king will reign in righteousness and princes will rule in justice. Righteousness means that one is conforming to the rules of God. Second, men of integrity fill this kingdom and these princes provide hiding places from the wind and shelter from the storm. Finally, we read that the eyes of those who see will not be closed, the ears of those who hear will listen, the heart of the hasty will understand, the tongue of those who don’t speak clearly will open. All of these things represent for us a radical change in what we experience now. Our lives now revolve around difficulties and troubles. We are completely surrounded by sin all of the time. There is absolutely no escape from this sin and these troubles while we are here in our earthly life. However, the Prophet Isaiah is painting a picture here of what will happen when Jesus comes to rule and reign over his people. We will see all of this sin disappear from our lives and it will, in a moment, be completely forgotten. There will be no more trouble or storms in our lives. And we will live in perfection as we God intended for us. As we continue in our journey through this season of Advent, we can keep our hearts and minds focused on these amazing promises. We continue to remember the expectation of those who were waiting on the first coming of the Messiah as we wait with great anticipation for his second coming where all of the awe inspiring prophecies will finally come true.

Prayer: Gracious Heavenly Father, thank You so much for all of Your promises in our lives. Thank You for helping us to remember that You are with us always and that You will remember us and return for us one day soon. Keep us strong in our faith in You so that we may continue to look forward to that day with joy and excitement. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen