Thoughts for the Day

Song of Victory

On that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

We have a strong city;
he sets up victory
like walls and bulwarks.
Open the gates,
so that the righteous nation that keeps faith
may enter in.
Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace—
in peace because they trust in you.
Trust in the Lord for ever,
for in the Lord God[b]
you have an everlasting rock.
For he has brought low
inhabitants of the height;
the lofty city he lays low.
He lays it low to the ground,
casts it to the dust.
The foot tramples it,
the feet the of the poor,
the steps of the needy.

The way of the righteous is level;
O Just One, you make smooth the path of the righteous.
In the path of your judgements,
O Lord, we wait for you;
your name and your renown
are the soul’s desire.
(Lectionary, New Revised Standard)

Thoughts

As a young child I understood that as a Christian there was a simple metaphor for God’s world – earth was where we lived now and attempted to live by God’s laws; above us was heaven where God lived with the angels and saints; and below was hell where the sinners went. My picture of heaven was a place in the clouds where the good people sat in their nighties playing harps and singing songs of praise to God. The rebellious bit of me used to think how boring it would be to do nothing but sing and play a harp, and how cold and uncomfortable it would be to sit on a cloud! You will notice I had no thought about any kind of judgement or notion of Jesus as our Saviour!

In chapter 27 Isaiah continues to offer a message of encouragement to the people of Judah during a time of political turmoil and uncertainty. He looks forward to a future with the coming of the Messiah when God’s Kingdom is triumphant. He sees it in terms of a strong city with high walls and bulwarks, where the citizens of the Kingdom trust in their Lord, where the wicked are overthrown, and where the righteous are reinstated. On the day when God’s Kingdom is restored, he says, there will be a lot of joyful singing in the City of God.

Today we may not think of God’s Kingdom in terms of a strong city or even a cloudy kingdom in the sky, nevertheless we do look forward to a time when God’s Kingdom of love and peace is completed. Because of Isaiah we too are to be encouraged to ‘trust in the Lord for ever’ for he is Yahweh (the Lord God) and He will restore His Kingdom of love and peace in His time.

Lord God,
Your Kingdom is to be like a strong city
where the righteous might enter and be safe.
We see that this Kingdom which Your Son
came to initiate is not yet complete,
but ask that You strengthen our faith
and increase our trust,
so that we might live a life that reflects
Your values of love and justice and peace,
as we look forward to the Kingdom's completion.
Amen.