He was amazed to see that no one intervened to help the
oppressed. So he himself stepped in to save them with his strong arm, and his
justice sustained him.
Isaiah 59:16 NLV
He took notice of their weakness and wickedness: He saw that there was no man that would do anything for the support of the bleeding cause of religion and virtue among them, not a man that would execute judgment (Jer. 5:1), that would bestir himself in a work of reformation; those that complained of the badness of the times had not zeal and courage enough to appear and act against it; there was a universal corruption of manners, and nothing done to stem the tide; most were wicked, and those that were not so were yet weak, and durst not attempt anything in opposition to the wickedness of the wicked.
- There
was no intercessor, either none to intercede with God, to stand in the gap
by prayer to turn away his wrath (it would have pleased him to be thus
met, and he wondered that he was not), or, rather, none to interpose for
the support of justice and truth, which were trampled upon and run down (Isa. 59:14), no advocate to speak a
good word for those who were made a prey of because they kept their
integrity, Isa. 59:15. They
complained that God did not appear for them (Isa. 58:3); but God with much more reason complains that they
did nothing for themselves, intimating how ready he would have been to do
them good if he had found among them the least motion towards a
reformation.
What are your thoughts
after reading the above? Convicted? Do you believe such as the above is going
on today? Do you believe that not only is the above is going on today, but that
maybe, just maybe, we are one of those who simply stand around, watch, and
do nothing for the work of reformation of the ills of this world/nation, and/or perhaps, we are one of those counted among
those who do not intercede for the wronged and oppressed? Let’s meditate on that one as we read
on.
GOD engaged his own strength
and righteousness for them. They shall be saved, notwithstanding all this; and,
(1.) Because they have no strength of
their own, nor any active men that will set to it in good earnest to redress
the grievances either of their iniquities or of their calamities, therefore his
own arm shall bring salvation to him, to his people, or to him whom he would
raise up to be the deliverer, Christ, the power of God and arm of the Lord,
that man of his right hand whom he made strong for himself. The work of
reformation (that is the first and principal article of the salvation) shall be
wrought by the immediate influences of the divine grace on men’s consciences.
Since magistrates and societies for reformation fail of doing their part, one
will not do justice nor the other call for it, God will let them know that he
can do it without them when his time shall come thus to prepare his people for
mercy, and then the work of deliverance shall be wrought by the immediate
operations of the divine Providence on men’s affections and affairs. When God
stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, and brought his people out of Babylon, not by
might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts, then his own arm,
which is never shortened, brought salvation.
(2.) Because they have no righteousness
of their own to merit these favors, and to which God might have an eye in
working for them, therefore his own righteousness sustained him and bore him
out in it. Divine justice, who by
their sins they had armed against them, through grace, appears for them. Though
they can expect no favor as due to them, yet he will be just to himself, to his
own purpose and promise, and covenant with his people: he will, in
righteousness, punish the enemies of his people; see Deut. 9:5. Not for thy righteousness, but for the wickedness of
these nations they are driven out. In our redemption by Christ, since we had no
righteousness of our own to produce, on which God might proceed in favor to us,
he brought in a righteousness by the merit and meditation of his own Son (it is
called the righteousness which is of God by faith, Phil. 3:9), and this righteousness sustained him, and bore him out
in all his favors to us, notwithstanding our provocations.
He put on righteousness as a
breast-plate, securing his own honor, as a breast-plate
When righteousness is his coat of
arms, salvation is his crest. In allusion to this, among the pieces of a
Christian’s armour we find the breast-plate of righteousness, and for a helmet
the hope of salvation (Eph. 6:14-17; 1
Thess. 5:8), and it is called the armour of God, because he wore it first
and so fitted it for us. (3.) Because they have no spirit or zeal to do anything
for themselves, God will put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and
clothe himself with zeal as a cloak; he will make his justice upon the enemies
of his church and people, and his jealousy for his own glory and the honor of
religion and virtue among men, to appear evident and conspicuous in the eye of
the world; and in these he will show himself great, as a man shows
himself in his rich attire or in the distinguishing habit of his office. If men
be not zealous against sin, God will, and will take vengeance on it for all the
injury it has done to his honor and his people’s welfare; and this was the
business of Christ in the world, to take away sin and be revenged on it.
So, this we ought to know; God will make his justice upon the enemies
of his church and people plainly appear. When the enemy threatens to bear down
all without control, then the Spirit of the Lord shall stop him, put him to
flight. Hallelujah! He
that has delivered... will still deliver. A far more glorious
salvation is promised to be wrought out by the Messiah in the fullness of time,
which all the The Son of God shall come to us to be
our Redeemer; the Spirit of God shall come to be our Sanctifier: thus the
Comforter shall abide with the church for ever, John 14:16. The word of Christ will always continue in the mouths
of the faithful; and whatever is pretended to be the mind of the Spirit, must
be tried by the Scriptures. We must cry the progress of infidelity and impiety.
But the cause of
the Redeemer shall gain a complete victory even on earth, and the believer will
be more than conqueror when the Lord
receives him to his glory in heaven.This “righteousness” is His victorious
|
K
|
neeling at Your Holy Throne, we prepare our hearts to pray
this prayer unto you our Aba Father, ‘O LORD, be gracious to us; we long for
you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.’ Amen
Playwright Janet Irene
Thomas
Founder/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre
of
Fine & Performing
Arts
No comments:
Post a Comment