Slices
Prepare
Pray: ‘Open my eyes and unstop my ears, Lord, so I can see and hear you clearly today. Amen.’
Bible passage
Joy of the redeemed
35 The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, 2 it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendour of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the Lord,
the splendour of our God.
3 Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
4 say to those with fearful hearts,
‘Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you.’
5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
6 Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
7 The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
8 And a highway will be there;
it will be called the Way of Holiness;
it will be for those who walk on that Way.
The unclean will not journey on it;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
9 No lion will be there,
nor any ravenous beast;
they will not be found there.
But only the redeemed will walk there,
10 and those the Lord has rescued will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Explore
The people of Israel were very familiar with long journeys through deserts. First Abram, then Isaac, then Jacob and Joseph. The exodus was a 40-year trek and the forced march to Babylon a shorter but far nastier few weeks. The desert meant exposure to extreme temperatures and the fear and discomfort of insufficient food and water sources. We may not have experienced literal deserts, but all of us have lived in desert times where hope has scant soil in which to grow.
In this beautiful poem, the dusty trudge becomes a pilgrimage, the wayside gloriously decked out in joyful expression of the splendour of God (v 2). There are several ways in which the traveller is strengthened: first, by seeing the signs of God’s presence and love all around (vs 5–7); secondly, holding on to the truth that God is coming to save (v 4); and thirdly, by staying on the Way of Holiness which leads to everlasting joy (vs 8,10).
We are not wandering directionless through life until we stumble upon a meaningless death. We are on a highway to home. We are not alone on our journey; we are among a great throng of fellow believers and accompanied by the Lord God himself.
Respond
The imperative in verse 4 is to encourage the fearful with the words, ‘Be strong, do not fear; your God will come’. Who might you say that to? Do you need to say it to yourself?
Deeper Bible study
Nehemiah said, ‘… the joy of the Lord is your strength’.1 Has this ever been your experience? How has joy strengthened your faith?
Have you ever been in an aeroplane, flying through stormy turbulence – and then into perfect, calm weather? How did you feel the moment you saw the sun? That helps us feel the joy Isaiah describes here; the dark judgement of chapter 34 has been suddenly replaced by the brilliant joy of chapter 35. What a relief! The question we must ponder, however, is: what was the source of the joy?
The answer for Israel is: ‘God will come … with divine retribution … to save you’ (v 4). Isaiah is predicting a time when God will intervene to deal decisively with their enemies and bring his exiled and oppressed people back to Zion, singing all the way (v 10). Isaiah describes the route to this ideal future as ‘the Way of Holiness’ (v 8), reminding us that because God himself is holy, as Isaiah so memorably learned,2 we too must work at living holy lives, as Peter specifically challenged us to do: ‘But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy”’.3
This chapter also prompts us to take a long view of joy. It’s true, we live in a turbulent world and when we read the news it often feels as though the dark clouds of sin and evil are closing in, but our hope is the certainty that some day, maybe soon, Jesus will return and put things right, enabling us to be with him for ever. Unlike an aeroplane that ascends through the clouds to safety, Jesus will descend through the clouds to meet us and take us home for ever.4 Our joy will be that of the prodigal experiencing the embrace of our Heavenly Father, for ever. What joy!
Close your eyes and imagine what the second coming of Jesus might look like in your world. How does it make you feel? How will it affect your week?
1 Neh 8:10 2 Isa 6:3 3 1 Pet 1:15,16 4 Acts 1:10,11; 1 Thess 4:16–18
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Hosea 7,8; Psalms 137,138
Pray for Scripture Union
Ephesians 4:16 Praise God for bringing together SU and a wide range of partners to support one another in sharing Jesus with the next generation! (This week's prayers relate to this story.)
