An oracle concerning Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz saw. Isaiah 13:1 (Isaiah 13-17, 34:1-4)
Not an especially inspiring verse, but stick with me as I give a little history. Judah has become subject to Assyriah. Ahaz’s sinful and perverse behavior has weakened the kingdom of God’s chosen people and now they must pay tribute to a foreign entity. The invasions Judah is vulnerable to are part of God’s plan of punishment, but these nations are not Holy! God is not endorsing them, but allowing them to proceed. They are acting out of their own imperialistic motivations and power. Isaiah knows that God will exact judgement on these nations too, in His time.
Past sins haunt us. God can forget when we ask Him to, but we lack this super natural power, and so forgetting is piled on top of all our other free will choices. We must chose to NOT remember and move forward in faith. Ugh! I thought it got easier! Trust God with everything! All the dynamics of family, things far beyond my control that directly effect my daily life, the things I hoped to accomplish in my time on earth……all this must be relinquished and I must be still and know…..that He is God, and I am not.
100 years before Babylon became a world power, Isaiah knew of its collapse and the return of the exiled Jewish people to their homeland in very specific detail. That is significant! YOUR God, MY God, Our God, The One True God HAS GOT THIS! You long to know the end of your story? You think it would make things so much easier? Well, you do know the final chapter if you diligently live in faith. God doesn’t make random stuff up. He knows the plan He has for you and it ends in Glory!
Have a Great Day!
Gretchen