“ O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay your foundations with sapphires. I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of crystal, and all your walls of precious stones. All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children. In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you.” Isaiah 54: 11-14, NKJV.
Merciful God, today as we pause at Your Throne of Grace to seek Your guidance in the study of Your Word, we pray that You will guide us into all truth. Please open our eyes and make us see things “in the Spirit.” This we ask in the precious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
As I read our Scripture for today, it suddenly dawned on me, the similitude that exists between our Scripture, and portions of Scripture from Revelation, chapters 21, and 22. We will look at these similarities in two parts.
“I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay your foundations with sapphires. I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of crystal, and all your walls of precious stones[,]” reminds me of : “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. . . The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass” (Revelation 21: 10, 11, 18-21, NKJV).
I believe the thought that inspired the comparison, was that, all along, God’s only desire was to bless us! From the very beginning He only wanted the best for his children. The fact that there is such a similarity between what the earthly Jerusalem was to have become here on earth, is an indication that His plans for His children were always “of good” and never “of evil” (Jeremiah 29: 11). Did He not give our first parents a “perfect” garden home? Heaven was to begin here on earth! (See Isaiah chapters 35 and 60, just to mention a couple examples). In spite of the rebellion of the human race, God’s mercy chose heaven for us! And His grace will bring it to pass! Hallelujah! Every condition that provided comfort, and beauty, and rest, were in God’s plans for His children.
“ O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest, and not comforted . . . All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children. In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you[,]” reminds me of: “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” . . . Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. . . And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Revelation 21: 4, 25, 27; 22: 3, NKJV). Emphasis supplied.
Not only were His plans designed for our physical enjoyment, but more so, for our emotional, and spiritual, growth and fulfillment. None of the “cares of life” were to eclipse the beauty of heaven. Here on earth some people live in beautiful mansions, but have hearts that are breaking. They have everything that money can buy, but nothing that satisfies the soul. But in God’s perfect plans, our joy was to, and will, out-do, the outward glory of the kingdom!
Sisters and brothers, beloved friends from every walk of life, members of the world community – in Jesus there is hope! His mercy is so great, that He has done, and is doing, everything to save us! You and I are the only ones who can shut the door on His mercy. Because His mercy endures forever!