Isaiah 25:1-9 (NRSV)
Read Isaiah 25:1-9 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 25O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you, I will praise your name; for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. Verse 2For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; the palace of aliens is a city no more, it will never be rebuilt. Verse 3Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you. Verse 4For you have been a refuge to the poor, a refuge to the needy in their distress, a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat. When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm, Verse 5the noise of aliens like heat in a dry place, you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds; the song of the ruthless was stilled.
Verse 6On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear. Verse 7And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death forever. Verse 8Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.
Verse 9It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
Devotion
The scripture readings this week all speak of God’s largess, God’s great and abundant love and mercy. In them we can grab onto hope for living in these times where hope and peace seem illusive.
This beautiful hymn of thanksgiving celebrates God’s mighty acts and cosmic love and mercy. It begins by recalling God’s generosity in the past, then moves to the future where God will host a most magnificent banquet of reconciliation and hope. Isaiah announces the destruction of even death itself. The hymn ends in the present. Remembering God’s great and saving acts and trusting that our God will rule with peace over all the earth, we are primed to live faithfully in this moment. When we trust in God and live in right relationship with God and all of creation, God’s peace and hope comes to us.
Prayer
Gracious God, thank you for your patience and steadfastness. Fill us with your unending love and mercy so that in sharing it we can give and receive peace and hope in a world longing for you. In Jesus name, Amen.
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