SOAP Isaiah 65: Long Before

Long Before

ISAIAH 65

”They shall not build and another inhabit; They shall not plant and another eat; For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, Nor bring forth children for trouble; For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, And their offspring with them. “It shall come to pass That before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” Says the Lord.

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭65‬:‭22‬-‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

I don’t want to give the impression that I am a theologian, and understand this completely, because I don’t. All I can say is while reading these scriptures in Isaiah it felt like the reversal of the curse at the fall of man in Genesis.

So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭3‬:‭14‬-‭19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

I know it’s human nature to want good to conquer over evil. I mean we are created in the image of God. But I have an innate inner desire to want every wrong righted.

The quantity of stories of good vs evil in books and movies shows what “the people” like.  We want to see good win… always.

When I read through these verses it felt like a release and redemption of the curse placed in Genesis. Truthfully, it doesn’t just  feel like it, it is the redemptive hope of Jesus Christ.

As we near the close of Isaiah (man, this was a big book- can you believe we’ve been working through it for the last 13 weeks?) I’m reminded here that God’s desire has always been to forgive, to be merciful, to pour out grace, to love lavishly, and to be NEAR to us.

Before we ever create a problem, sin, fall, or disappoint.  God has already created a redemptive solution.

For every sickness- He has healing.

For every problem- a solution.

For every loss- a redemptive plan.

For every question- an answer.

For God is good and His mercies endure forever.

PRAYER:Thank you for the reassurance that You are always working on my behalf, long before I’ve encountered a problem, long before I fell, long before I doubted, long before I even knew I needed You- You knew. I need You Lord. Help me to stick close, to abide and trust in every move You take and lead me in. I trust You. In Jesus’s beautiful name, amen.