Isaiah 35:1-10
1 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 splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the Lord,
the splendor 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.
DEVOTIONAL
I remember being at my grandmother’s house for different family gatherings, and there always seemed to be something baking in the kitchen. Sometimes it was the smell of freshly baked bread, or one of her apple pies or perhaps the turkey or roast that had been in the oven for several hours. The smells that wafted out of the kitchen seemed to call us out of time that the feast was ready, even though the table was not yet set. Bowls did not yet have the steamy deliciousness that would soon fill them to the brim. The bowls were still empty, the plates were bare. There was an uncomfortable disconnect between what we experienced and what we anticipated.
That in between time seemed to just take forever. I didn’t like the waiting, I wanted to sit down at the table right now. In spite of my too keen desire for something right now, we learned there is wisdom in the waiting.
In our text from Isaiah that little word will shows up 27 times. Right away we see will be glad, will rejoice and blossom, will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. We find ourselves in this text caught in between what is and what will be. And for the most part we don’t really like this disconnect. I would much rather smell the crocus than the barren and parched desert sands that Isaiah has introduced.
Isaiah proclaims that in spite of our desert experiences, no matter our barren lives and rushed relationships, that little word will keeps breaking in upon us. That little word will points toward the gracious activity of God. Our experiences are not the last word. The God of creation and redemption, our healer and provider, our protector and our comforter is the one who makes a way where there is no way as we see in verse 8.
Isaiah is telling us to look beyond our present circumstance. The smells of the parched desert can negatively impact our lives. But the crocus will bloom. The desert itself will rejoice … and the word here literally means spin around. The impact of the gracious activity of God will make the desolate desert dance!
God is at work around us, the smells from the heavenly kitchen are wafting our way like the aromas from grandmother’s kitchen. God is calling us this advent to start setting the table.
Author: David Brown
Other Scriptures for today:
- Psalm 146:5-10
- Luke 1:46b-55
- James 5:7-10
- Matthew 11:2-11
Give