Author: PGC Administrator

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Isaiah+033

 
Chapter 33 (ESV)

¹ Ah, you destroyer,
who yourself have not been destroyed,
you traitor,
whom none has betrayed!
When you have ceased to destroy,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have finished betraying,
they will betray you.

² O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you.
Be our arm every morning,
our salvation in the time of trouble.
³ At the tumultuous noise peoples flee;
when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered,
⁴ and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.

⁵ The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
⁶ and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure.

 

REFLECTION:

1. God is a sure foundation for every time, “a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge” (v.6 NIV). But we must use a key to open that storehouse, to enjoy its bounty.  Verse 6 says, “The fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure”.
2. The “fear” of God is a reverential awe that keeps us aware of Him at all times. Our awareness that God is powerful, and that He is sovereign, gives us confidence even in the most uncertain of times.
3. Do you “fear” God? How has your attitude of God impacted your life lately?

 

PRAYER:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.

 

HYMN:

Behold Our God – www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gqrli3Lkf58

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Isaiah+032

 
Chapter 32 (ESV)

¹⁵ until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,
and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field,
and the fruitful field is deemed a forest.
¹⁶ Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
and righteousness abide in the fruitful field.
¹⁷ And the effect of righteousness will be peace,
and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.
¹⁸ My people will abide in a peaceful habitation,
in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.
¹⁹ And it will hail when the forest falls down,
and the city will be utterly laid low.
²⁰ Happy are you who sow beside all waters,
who let the feet of the ox and the donkey range free.

 

REFLECTION:

1. God has promised again after so much judgment and punishment, that the ultimate outcome for God’s people will be justice and righteousness and peace. The people of God are urged to have confidence to wait for the good gifts that God will yet give in the future.
2. What does it mean for righteousness to result in quietness? Close your eyes.  Picture the complete quietness of your soul.  Feel the peace settling over you, a glimpse of the kingdom to come.  How can you better cultivate quietness?

 

PRAYER:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.

 

HYMN:

Be Still My Soul (In You I Rest) – youtu.be/mq59iE3MhXM

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Isaiah+031

 
Chapter 31 (ESV)

¹ Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help
and rely on horses,
who trust in chariots because they are many
and in horsemen because they are very strong,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel
or consult the Lord!
² And yet he is wise and brings disaster;
he does not call back his words,
but will arise against the house of the evildoers
and against the helpers of those who work iniquity.
³ The Egyptians are man, and not God,
and their horses are flesh, and not spirit.
When the Lord stretches out his hand,
the helper will stumble, and he who is helped will fall,
and they will all perish together.

 

REFLECTION:

1. Read the passages four or five times. Don’t rush through it.  Get familiar with it.
2. We don’t count on horses and chariots to protect us today like in ancient times. But there are countless things we put our trust in.
3. Consider the circumstances in your life when you have depended on something or someone other than God. If God and God alone provides ultimate security and comfort, why do you think we turn to Him for help only as a last resort?  If we truly understood God’s power and control – His sovereignty – how might that change how we live?
4. Spend a few minutes in quiet and solitude. Use the time to seek out the dark corners of your life.  Whisper, “What do I put my trust in”?  Allow the Spirit to do his work.  Don’t rush the process, but simply wait for Him to reveal the horses and chariots you depend on.  When you see them clearly, confess them to God immediately.  Be assured that He hears your prayers and forgives you graciously.

 

PRAYER:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.

 

HYMN:

In God We Trust – youtu.be/tY9Tylmulrc

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Isaiah+030

 
Chapter 30 (ESV)

¹⁵ For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, ¹⁶ and you said,
“No! We will flee upon horses”;
therefore you shall flee away;
and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”;
therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
¹⁷ A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.

¹⁸ Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.

 

REFLECTION:

1. Verse 15 urges Judah to rely on God completely as the alternative to frantic, anxious military and political manoeuvrings. Isaiah believes that trust in Jehovah God is the foundation of security.  All trust in armaments and alliances, is an act of mistrust and idolatry that will only lead to destruction.
2. The assurance of faith is the conviction that anxious self-securing does not work in the real world. God is calling us to “repent and rest, be quiet and trust” in order to be safe and well in the world.
3. Recall a time when you have experienced the kind of contentment verse 15 promises. Thank God for that gift, and pray that he will renew contentment in you.

 

PRAYER:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.

 

HYMN:

In Quietness and Trust – youtu.be/SNOupeb9se4