“Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion, put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.” Isaiah 52:1
The initiative of God for the spiritual blessing of men begins with His word, or the declaration of His will. Why? This is, and has always been, God’s way of dealing with sinful man. If God did not first speak, or reveal, His will, man would take the opportunity to claim some or all of the glory of His working. So, from the beginning of the book of Genesis, we find that God speaks, taking the initiative to create and accomplish His will and purposes. The question is not whether He will speak, for He most certainly has, and will. What matters is the response of our hearts, and the anticipation of looking at the gates, waiting upon Him alone, living in the expectation of Him speaking. Habakkuk had it right when he wrote: “I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what He will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.” (2:1) Habakkuk knew that the wheels of history, and the intervention of God, would begin to be revealed when He spoke. The response of the prophet is right and clear: “(I)…will watch to SEE what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.” Here is a man who knows God, who knows that God will answer his prayer, but also, one who knows that he must be willing to receive the word of God just as He declares it, embracing the message of its truth.
In the book of Isaiah, chapter 52, God calls His people to believe Him for the fulfillment of His will and purpose, giving to Israel, specifically to Jerusalem, a new beginning. In chapter 43, He had declared this: “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; NOW it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it?” (v.19) What was this new thing, and when and how was it to reveal itself? We discover in chapter 44 that the matter is certainly a spiritual one, which is of greatest blessing. Isaiah writes and declares the Lord’s words to Israel by saying: “Yet NOW hear, O Jacob, my servant, and Israel whom I have chosen.” (v.1) He goes on to declare that He will help Jacob, and that he need not fear. All of what He has said is preparatory to that which He will now promise: “For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour out My Spirit upon thy seed, and My blessing upon thine offspring.” (v.3) The beginning of the blessing is the initiative taken by God in the form of His words, giving to Israel the knowledge of His imminent will, so that she will lay hold upon Him by faith for the realization of it. God is giving to Israel a marvelous opportunity to call upon Him, believe Him, and expect the realization of what He has declared. Will she do this?
When we get to chapter 52 of Isaiah, we see the Lord specifically, and practically, calling upon Israel to realize that the time had come for her to awake to the new reality of this new beginning. Israel is called upon to “put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments.” (v.1) Does this not resemble the Lord’s words: “…now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation?” (2 Cor. 6:2) With respect to “beautiful garments,” let us remember Paul’s words to the Roman believers: “Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ…” (13:14) To the Colossians he would write more specifically: “….Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, tender mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering…” (3:12) Then he writes: “Above all these things, put on charity, which is the perfect bond of unity.” (v.14)
Dear Father, Give us grace to realize that your call is for today, to put on Christ as our life.” In Jesus’ name, Amen.