Old Testament - Isaiah 26 & 27 - September 19, 2022

9/14/2022 – Isaiah 26 & 27

A wonderful institute instructor who gave classes for adults in the middle of the week covered this chapter with us. I have his notes written in my Bible.  Chapter 26, v 1 starts with “in that day” which our instructor said means ‘the future, our day’. In v 2: “Open ye the gates that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.” and he pointed out that this speaks of the gates of the temple.  V 3 is my favorite, for it tells us if we make the temple an important part of our life then: “thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”  Staying close to our heavenly Father by starting our day with prayers of thankfulness, and ending out days with going through the things we did, or didn’t do, and speak to Him of the sweet moments of our day, and of the moments we fell short and let Him guide us to do just a little bit better during our tomorrows.

V 7 tells us that our course, every day, should be “upright”; and in v 8 He tells us that “the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee”.  And then v 9 takes us back to the importance of our personal prayers: “With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.”

I love v 12: “Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us: for thou also hast wrought all our works in us.” When I feel close to the Lord, there is comfort in my world—even if I am in the midst of problems, if I have stayed close to the Lord, I feel the comfort of knowing He will guide me through my difficult times.

V 19 speaks of our resurrection…our ‘graduation’ from our earthly schooling. Then v 20 reminds us that patience is an important part of this earthly schooling, and we shouldn’t be surprised when we are forced to gather ourself in patient waiting, and during that time steadily working to keep our closeness with our Father.

Chapter 27’s synopsis: “Israel shall blossom and bud and fill the earth with fruit—She shall be gathered one by one, and shall worship the Lord”.  The Lord promises the He will give water to the House of Israel. Our part is to make use of that water and live!

The Lord knows that this life would have its difficult times, but those should be growing times for us. And He reminds us that we are only a prayer away from Him. “I the Lord do keep it: I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it. I will keep it night and day.” (v 3)  He is always on watch, He is always there to help us. All we need to do is to reach out to Him, and work to follow the paths He has given us. In v 5 He reminds us once again: “…let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me.”  In my life I have found peace in the quiet days of my life, and that same peace in the difficult days of my life, and that has made ALL the difference!

V 11 speaks of the importance of our working to learn of the Lord, and to walk in His ways is the best way for us to learn. When we patiently strive for understanding, it often brings us knowledge and sweet mercy from the Lord—and that is sweet rest to me as I work to move forward.


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