It shall be said in that day, “Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us! This is Yahweh! We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation!”
Parallel Translations
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It shall be said in that day, “Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us! This is Yahweh! We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation!”
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And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
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And it shall be said in that day: 'Lo, this is our God, for whom we waited, that He might save us; this is the LORD, for whom we waited, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.'
Cross-references (38)
Passages linked to Isaiah 25:9 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 27:14 Wait for Yahweh. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for Yahweh.
- Genesis 49:18 I have waited for your salvation, Yahweh.
- Micah 7:7 But as for me, I will look to Yahweh. I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.
- Isaiah 26:8-9 Yes, in the way of your judgments, Yahweh, we have waited for you. Your name and your renown are the desire of our soul. With my soul I have desired you in the night. Yes, with my spirit within me I will seek you earnestly; for when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
- Psalms 20:5 We will triumph in your salvation. In the name of our God, we will set up our banners. May Yahweh grant all your requests.
- Isaiah 35:2 It will blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing. Lebanon’s glory will be given to it, the excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They will see Yahweh’s glory, the excellence of our God.
- Revelation 1:7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, including those who pierced him. All the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. Even so, Amen.
- Revelation 19:1-7 After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation, power, and glory belong to our God; for his judgments are true and righteous. For he has judged the great prostitute, who corrupted the earth with her sexual immorality, and he has avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.” A second said, “Hallelujah! Her smoke goes up forever and ever.” The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne, saying, “Amen! Hallelujah!” A voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, the small and the great!” I heard something like the voice of a great multitude, and like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of mighty thunders, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns! Let’s rejoice and be exceedingly glad, and let’s give the glory to him. For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his wife has made herself ready.”
- Titus 2:13 looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,
- 2 Peter 3:12 looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, which will cause the burning heavens to be dissolved, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
- Psalms 62:1-2 My soul rests in God alone. My salvation is from him. He alone is my rock, my salvation, and my fortress. I will never be greatly shaken.
- Isaiah 35:10 Then Yahweh’s ransomed ones will return, and come with singing to Zion; and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.”
- Isaiah 49:25-26 But Yahweh says, “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the plunder retrieved from the fierce, for I will contend with him who contends with you and I will save your children. I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh; and they will be drunk on their own blood, as with sweet wine. Then all flesh shall know that I, Yahweh, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
- Psalms 37:5-7 Commit your way to Yahweh. Trust also in him, and he will do this: he will make your righteousness shine out like light, and your justice as the noon day sun. Rest in Yahweh, and wait patiently for him. Don’t fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who makes wicked plots happen.
- Psalms 100:1 Shout for joy to Yahweh, all you lands!
- Isaiah 8:17 I will wait for Yahweh, who hides his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.
- Psalms 9:14 that I may show all of your praise. I will rejoice in your salvation in the gates of the daughter of Zion.
- Isaiah 12:1-6 In that day you will say, “I will give thanks to you, Yahweh; for though you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust, and will not be afraid; for Yah, Yahweh, is my strength and song; and he has become my salvation.” Therefore with joy you will draw water out of the wells of salvation. In that day you will say, “Give thanks to Yahweh! Call on his name. Declare his doings among the peoples. Proclaim that his name is exalted! Sing to Yahweh, for he has done excellent things! Let this be known in all the earth! Cry aloud and shout, you inhabitant of Zion; for the Holy One of Israel is great among you!”
- Isaiah 40:9 You who tell good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who tell good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with strength! Lift it up! Don’t be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold, your God!”
- Isaiah 60:16 You will also drink the milk of the nations, and will nurse from royal breasts. Then you will know that I, Yahweh, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
- Romans 8:23-25 Not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for that which he sees? But if we hope for that which we don’t see, we wait for it with patience.
- Revelation 22:20 He who testifies these things says, “Yes, I come quickly.” Amen! Yes, come, Lord Jesus.
- Isaiah 35:4 Tell those who have a fearful heart, “Be strong! Don’t be afraid! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, God’s retribution. He will come and save you.
- Isaiah 66:10-14 “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her. Rejoice for joy with her, all you who mourn over her; that you may nurse and be satisfied at the comforting breasts; that you may drink deeply, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.” For Yahweh says, “Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; and you will nurse. You will be carried on her side, and will be dandled on her knees. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you. You will be comforted in Jerusalem.” You will see it, and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones will flourish like the tender grass. Yahweh’s hand will be known among his servants; and he will have indignation against his enemies.
- Zephaniah 3:14-20 Sing, daughter of Zion! Shout, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem. Yahweh has taken away your judgments. He has thrown out your enemy. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is among you. You will not be afraid of evil any more. In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem, “Don’t be afraid, Zion. Don’t let your hands be weak.” Yahweh, your God, is among you, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with joy. He will calm you in his love. He will rejoice over you with singing. I will remove those who grieve about the appointed feasts from you. They are a burden and a reproach to you. Behold, at that time I will deal with all those who afflict you, and I will save those who are lame, and gather those who were driven away. I will give them praise and honor, whose shame has been in all the earth. At that time I will bring you in, and at that time I will gather you; for I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says Yahweh.
- Luke 2:25 Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.
- Luke 2:28-30 then he received him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, “Now you are releasing your servant, Master, according to your word, in peace; for my eyes have seen your salvation,
- Romans 5:2-3 through whom we also have our access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only this, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance;
- 1 Peter 1:6 Wherein you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved in various trials,
- 1 Peter 1:8 whom, not having known, you love. In him, though now you don’t see him, yet believing, you rejoice greatly with joy that is unspeakable and full of glory,
- Psalms 21:1 The king rejoices in your strength, Yahweh! How greatly he rejoices in your salvation!
- Psalms 62:5-7 My soul, wait in silence for God alone, for my expectation is from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress. I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor is with God. The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
- Isaiah 33:22 For Yahweh is our judge. Yahweh is our lawgiver. Yahweh is our king. He will save us.
- Philippians 3:1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not tiresome, but for you it is safe.
- Psalms 95:1 Oh come, let’s sing to Yahweh. Let’s shout aloud to the rock of our salvation!
- Isaiah 30:18-19 Therefore Yahweh will wait, that he may be gracious to you; and therefore he will be exalted, that he may have mercy on you, for Yahweh is a God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait for him. For the people will dwell in Zion at Jerusalem. You will weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the voice of your cry. When he hears you, he will answer you.
- Philippians 3:3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh;
- Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you! He is righteous, and having salvation; lowly, and riding on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (18 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Isa 25:9 And it shall be said in that…
Isa 25:9 And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this [is] our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this [is] the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
Ver. 9. Lo, this is our God,] sc., Jesus Christ, our sole Saviour, who is God blessed for ever, and our God by a specialty. Wait for him, for he waiteth to be gracious. {Isa 30:18}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain It shall be said by God’s people, in way…
It shall be said by God’s people, in way of triumph and reply to their enemies,
Lo, this is our God: your gods are senseless and impotent idols; but our God is omnipotent, and hath done these great and glorious works, which fill the world with admiration. We may well boast of him, for there is no God like to him. Possibly it may be an intimation that God should take flesh, and become visibly present amongst men.
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We have waited for him; our Messiah or Saviour, long since promised, and for whom we have waited a long time, now at last is come into the world, bringing salvation with him.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain Here is, I. The welcome which the church shall…
Here is, I. The welcome which the church shall give to these blessings promised in the foregoing verses (Isa 25:9): It shall be said in that day, with a humble holy triumph and exultation, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him! Thus will the deliverance of the church out of long and sore troubles be celebrated; thus will it be as life from the dead. With such transports of joy and praise will those entertain the glad tidings of the Redeemer who looked for him, and for redemption in Jerusalem by him; and with such a triumphant song as this will glorified saints enter into the joy of their Lord. 1. God himself must have the glory of all: "Lo, this is our God, this is the Lord. This which is done is his doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. Herein he has done like himself, has magnified his own wisdom, power, and goodness. Herein he has done for us like our God, a God in covenant with us, and whom we serve." Note, Our triumphs must not terminate in what God does for us and gives to us, but must pass through them to himself, who is the author and giver of them: This is our God. Have any of the nations of the earth such a God to trust to? No, their rock is not as our rock. There is none like unto the God of Jerusalem. 2. The longer it has been expected the more welcome it is. "This is he whom we have waited for, in dependence upon his word of promise, and a full assurance that he would come in the set time, in due time, and therefore we were willing to tarry his time; and now we find it is not in vain to wait for him, for the mercy comes at last, with an abundant recompence for the delay." 3. It is matter of joy unspeakable: "We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. We that share in the benefits of it will concur in the joyful thanksgivings for it." 4. It is an encouragement to hope for the continuance and perfection of this salvation: We have waited for him, and he will save us, will carry on what he has begun; for as for God, our God, his work is perfect.
II. A prospect of further blessings for the securing and perpetuating of these. 1. The power of God shall be engaged for them and shall continue to take their part: In this mountain shall the hand of the Lord rest, Isa 25:10. The church and people of God shall have continued proofs of God's presence with them and residence among them: his hand shall be continually over them, to protect and guard them, and continually stretched out to them, for their supply. Mount Zion is his rest for ever; here he will dwell. 2. The power of their enemies, which is engaged against them, shall be broken. Moab is here put for all the adversaries of God's people, that are vexatious to them; they shall all be trodden down or threshed (for then they beat out the corn by treading it) and shall be thrown out as straw to the dunghill, being good for nothing else. God having caused his hand to rest upon this mountain, it shall not be a hand that hangs down, or is folded up, feeble and inactive; but he shall spread forth his hands, in the midst of his people, like one that swims, which intimates that he will employ and exert his power for them vigorously, - that he will be doing for them on all sides, - that he will easily and effectually put by the opposition that is given to his gracious intentions for them, and thereby further and push forward his good work among them, - and that on their behalf he will be continually active, for so the swimmer is. It is foretold, particularly, what he shall do for them. (1.) He shall bring down the pride of their enemies (and Moab was notoriously guilty of pride, Isa 16:6) by one humbling judgment after another, stripping them of that which they are proud of. (2.) He shall bring down the spoils of their hands, shall take from them that which they have got by spoil and rapine. He shall bring down the arms of their hands, which are lifted up against God's Israel; he shall quite break their power, and disable them to do mischief. (3.) He shall ruin all their fortifications, Isa 25:12. Moab has his walls, and his high forts, with which he hopes to secure himself, and from which he designs to annoy the people of God; but God shall bring them all down, lay them low, bring them to the ground, to the dust; and so those who trusted to them will be left exposed. There is no fortress impregnable to Omnipotence, no fort so high but the arm of the Lord can overtop it and bring it down. This destruction of Moab is typical of Christ's victory over death (spoken of Isa 25:8), his spoiling principalities and powers in his cross (Col 2:15), his pulling down Satan's strong-holds by the preaching of his gospel (Co2 10:4), and his reigning till all his enemies be made his footstool, Psa 110:1.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And it shall be said in that day,.... When…
And it shall be said in that day,.... When the feast will be made for all the Lord's people; when the veil and covering shall be removed; when death will be swallowed up in victory; when all tears shall be wiped away from the saints; when their rebuke shall be taken away from them; all which will be at the glorious appearing of Christ.
Lo, this is our God; and not the idols of the Gentiles, or the works of their hands; but Christ, who is God over all, blessed for ever; Immanuel, God with us: the phrase is expressive of his true and proper deity, of faith of interest in him, and of the joy of it:
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we have waited for him, and he will save us: as the Old Testament saints waited for his first coming, and for his salvation, believing that he would be the author of it: so New Testament saints are waiting for his second coming; and to them that look for him, and expect his glorious appearing, who have their loins girt, and their lights burning, and wait for their Lord's coming, will he appear a second time without sin unto salvation; to put them into the possession of salvation he has obtained for them, for which they are heirs, and is nearer than when they believed:
this is the Lord, we have waited for him; looking, longing, and hasting to the day of his coming; this they will say, when they shall see him coming in the clouds of heaven; whither the living saints being changed, will be caught up to meet him, and upon meeting him shall thus greet him, and one another:
we will be glad, and rejoice in his salvation; so suitable to them, so full, complete, and perfect, and so much for the glory of God; which was wrought out by him before, and now possessed by them; and is what is called the "joy" of their "Lord", they now "enter" into, Mat 25:21.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Our God - Our Messiah, long since promised, and…
Our God - Our Messiah, long since promised, and for whom we have waited long, is come into the world, bringing salvation with him.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 9. It shall be said - "Shall they…
Verse 9. It shall be said - "Shall they say"] So the Septuagint and Vulgate, in the plural number. They read ואמרת veameru, the Syriac reads veamarta, thou shalt say. They shall say, i.e., the Jews and the Gentiles - Lo, this [Jesus Christ] is our God: we have waited for him, according to the predictions of the prophets. We have expected him, and we have not been disappointed; therefore will we be glad, and rejoice in his salvation.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Isa 25:9. And it shall be said in that…
Isa 25:9. And it shall be said in that day — By God’s people, in the way of triumph and reply to their enemies; Lo, this is our God — Your gods are senseless and impotent idols; but our God is omnipotent, and hath done these great and glorious works which fill the world with admiration. We may well boast of him, for there is no god like him. We have waited for him — To appear in flesh; have waited for the coming of our Messiah, or Saviour, long since promised, and have waited a long time; and now at last he is come into the world, bringing salvation with him.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain And it shall be said in that day -…
And it shall be said in that day - By the people of God. This shall be the language of exultation and joy which they shall use.
Lo, this is our God - This is the language of those who now see and hail their Deliverer. It implies that such deliverance, and such mercy could be bestowed only by God, and that the fact that such mercies had been bestowed was proof that he was their God.
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We have waited for him - Amidst many trials, persecutions, and calamities, we have looked for the coming of our God to deliver us, and we will rejoice in the salvation that he brings.
This is the Lord - This is Yahweh. It is Yahweh that has brought this deliverance. None but he could do it. The plan of redeeming mercy comes from him, and to him is to be traced all the benefits which it confers on man.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain And it shall be said in that day, &c.--"After…
And it shall be said in that day, &c.--"After death has been swallowed up for ever, the people of God, who had been delivered from the hand of death, shall say to the Lord, Lo, this is our God, whom unbelievers regarded as only a man" [JEROME]. "The words are so moulded as to point us specially to the person of the Son of God, who 'saves' us; as He vouchsafed to Israel temporal saving, so to His elect He appears for the purpose of conferring eternal salvation" [VITRINGA]. The Jews, however, have a special share in the words, This is our God (see on Isa 25:6).
we have waited--"Waited" is characteristic of God's people in all ages (Gen 49:18; Tit 2:13).
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we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation--compare Psa 118:24, which refers to the second coming of Jesus (compare Psa 118:26, with Luk 13:35).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 9. Lo, this is our God — All the…
9. Lo, this is our God — All the ransomed from all the earth use this language.
We have waited for him — Revelation has dawned slowly, but it comes in this prediction to its perfect and eternal clearness. The truth comes out that He alone can and will save, and everlasting rejoicing ensues thereat. This foreseen joy is that of the whole redeemed Church.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 9. Lo, this is our God … save us]…
9. Lo, this is our God … save us] Or, Behold our God on whom we have hoped that he should save us. So in the next clause: on whom we have hoped.
9–12. The humiliation of Moab. The heading in Isa_25:9 marks this as a distinct section. It might indeed be supposed, from the phrase “in this mountain” in Isa_25:10, and the use of future tenses in 10–12, that the song of praise ends with Isa_25:9 and that 10–12 are the continuation of Isa_25:8. But this is unlikely. The express naming of Moab is not in the manner of the main apocalyptic prophecy, while to take Moab as a symbolic name for the enemies of God in general is hazardous, as being opposed to Old Testament usage. The violent contrast between the spirit of Isa_25:6-8 and that of Isa_25:10-12 rather favours the supposition that the latter was a separate composition. In any event, we must assume that so passionate an outburst of indignation against Moab was called forth by some special circumstance, although it is not possible to connect it with any known historic occasion.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (9) It shall be said in that day.—The speakers…
(9) It shall be said in that day.—The speakers are obviously the company of the redeemed, the citizens of the new Jerusalem. The litanies of supplication are changed into anthems of praise for the great salvation that has been wrought for them.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 9-12. After thanksgiving for deliverance in the past,…
Vers. 9-12. After thanksgiving for deliverance in the past, and commemoration of blessings in the present, confidence is expressed in the future.
(1) The redeemed declare their joy that they have "waited for God," trusted in him, and looked to him for salvation. They feel that they "have their reward.
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(2) The prophet declares his conviction that the enemies of God"s elect are henceforth powerless. They are personified under the name of "Moab," and regarded as still animated by sentiments of hostility; but their absolute impotency for working evil is insisted on (vers, 11, 12).
It shall be said; literally, one shall say; i.e. the redeemed generally shall thus express themselves. We have waited for him. During all the weary time of their oppression and persecution, the godly remnant (Isa_24:13-15) was "waiting fur the Lord," i.e. trusting in him, expecting him to arise and scatter his enemies, won-daring that he endured so long the "contradiction of sinners against himself", (Heb_12:3) but content to abide his determination of the fitting season for coming forward as their Avenger, and now quite satisfied that he has avenged them in his own good time and in his own good way. We will be glad and rejoice. (comp. Psa_118:24 and Son_1:4)
Vers. 9-12. Song of the redeemed.
I THE STATE OF THE CHOSEN PEOPLE. They will be in the joyous realization of long-awaited blessings. A brief strain from their hymn is given"Lo! here is our God! For him we have waited that he should save us; This is Jehovah, for whom we have waited; Let us exult and rejoice in his salvation!
As "a sorrow"s crown of sorrow is remembering happier things," so the crown of joy is the recollection of past miseries in the hour of deliverance. And how it intensifies joy the sense of having waited, of having ploughed and sown, watched and wept, with a view to the "far-off interest of tears!" And finally, to see and know that in this mingled experience one hand has been at work, one will has been guiding, one mercy mixing the ingredients of life"s cup! "Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself!" yea, but verily, also, thou art a God that dost in due time disclose thyself to reward the patience and faith of thy chosen, and to pour confusion on thy foes! On the sacred mountain the hand of Jehovah will rest, to protect his people, to judge his foes. Beautiful image! As a symbol of protection, cf. Ezr_7:6, 28 8:18, 22, 31 Neh_2:8.
II THE DOOM OF THE HEATHEN. Noah seems to stand for the heathen in general. Moab, as the proud foe of Israel, (2Ki_24:2 Eze_28:8-11) shall be trampled down, swamped, and contend like a swimmer for his life. But his pride will be abased; his strong walls be cut down, even to the dust. So that hand, which is outspread beneficently, like the canopy of the broad sky, to protect and bless the chosen, may be clenched in threat and for vengeance upon the wicked. There are two senses in which that hand may "rest" upon us lightly, as the father"s hand rests on the head of a beloved child, to express affection, approval, and the promise of aid; or heavily, to punish, to overwhelm, to "turn our moisture into the drought of summer." To listen to the voice, to submit to the hand of the Eternal, this is the expression of genuine piety. To writhe and struggle and resist the pressure of that hand, to turn a deaf ear to that voice, this is the expression of hardness of heart and impiety, bringing certain punishment in its turn. "Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts! J.
Waiting on God.
"This is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us." Waiting on God. Waiting for God. Waiting on when all is dark. Waiting still, when commotions and troubles surround us. Bidding us wait for him, a way of the Lord"s dealing with us. Making it hard to wait, a sign of God"s severer dealing with us. And wafting sanctified to our soul-culture. These are subjects very suggestive to Christian meditation.
I WAITING CIRCUMSTANCES. It was a waiting-time for the godly in Judah when Isaiah wrote. In their own country, luxury and profligacy were plainly bearing the country on to some terrible doom. In the nations around them the cup of iniquity was getting full, and overwhelming judgments were falling on one after another. Every man who believed in the covenant was put into silence and waiting. The scenes around him he could not reason out. Precisely what God would do with his people he could not know. All about him was painful mystery; he could only wait, keeping firm hold of the truth, faithfulness, and love of God while he waited. When circumstances are against us, the best thing we can do is to wait. "Wait thou his time, so shall thy night Boon end in joyous day.
The history of God"s ancient people is a series of waiting circumstances. Through a long Egyptian bondage they were called to wait for the day of their deliverance. Surrounded with perils, they stood at the shores of the Red Sea, and were bidden to wait for the salvation of God. Crowded in the plain before the Mount of Sinai, the people failed to wait in patience until Moses reappeared. For forty years they wandered, waiting for admission to their promised land. In their first siege they must wait until God"s signal for the falling walls. At last they must hang their harps on the willows, in the stranger"s land, waiting the completion of their seventy years of judgment. And even today, among us, Israel stands in waiting circumstances waiting while her land lies fallow; waiting while the times of the Gentiles are being fulfilled. While the story of that people Israel remains upon the records, all may know that God does a part of his work of grace in men, by placing them in waiting circumstances. What is true of the nation is true of her heroic sons and daughters: e.g. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David, Simeon, and a host of others had to wait , and often wait long, for the fulfillment of their hopes. So we are still placed in waiting circumstances. There are often times when we can do nothing we can only sit at the window, like the sailor"s wife when the storm-wrack fills the sky, and the sea makes its moan almost to heart-breaking. Times when we are put aside from busy life. Times when our way seemed to be walled up, no door would open, no sign of the guiding hand appeared; we could only wait. But this is true, the circumstances are God"s arrangement, and the waiting does God"s work. Life itself is one great waiting-time. The earth itself is but in waiting circumstances. (Rom_8:22)
II WAITING ATTITUDES.
1. The attitude of prayer, using that word in its large sense of openness of soul to God; the outlooking, up-looking of the soul to God; the humble sense of self; the silent and the spoken cry for the light and help of God. The union of prayer with waiting lifts it from the mere dull and stricken submission of the slave, into the pleasant waiting of the child, who, being sure of the Father"s love, keeps looking for the Father"s time. Waiting work never becomes weary work, or bitter work, until we cease to pray.
2. The attitude of expectancy. Waiting ought to become watching, in strong faith and assured hope; watching like that of David, when he could sing out his confidence and say, "Yet the Lord will command his loving-kindness in the daytime." Such a spirit the captives in Babylon might cherish. Flinging open their windows westward, as they knelt, they might see the temple arise, the streets of the holy city fill with busy people, and the walls encircle a delivered and independent nation; and with such expectations it could not be hard to wait, for God"s time to bless is never more than a "little way off.
3. The attitude of keeping on in the ways of righteousness, whether we find them pay or not pay. Doing right, even if it does seem to bring suffering. Purposing that our mouth shall not transgress. If, while we wait, we faint in spirit, let us take good care never to faint from righteousness.
III WAITING CONSOLATIONS. We may be quite sure that God is in the waiting. Nearer than ever to us in the hours of delay. If the waiting is God"s, if it belongs to the mysterious ways of the Divine love, then even waiting-times are blessed. They are even a gracious agency for the culture of our souls; and oftentimes better things are done for us in the waiting than in the suffering times. The great lessons of the perfect trust are learned in the waiting hours; and "patience gets her perfect work. R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain And it shall be said in that day, To,…
Isa_25:9
And it shall be said in that day, To, this is out God
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Waiting for God in times of darkness
Isaiah is thinking, first of all, of Hezekiahs victory over Sennacherib.
It was no ordinary day which saw the discomfiture of the Assyrian host before the walls of Jerusalem. We can scarcely understand the terror and dismay with which a religious Jew must have watched the growth of those mighty Oriental despotisms which, rising one after another in the great valley of the Euphrates and the Tigris, aspired to nothing less than the conquest of the known world. The victory of a conqueror like Sennacherib meant the extinction of national life and personal liberty in the conquered people; it meant often enough violent transportation from their homes, separation from their families, with all the degrading and penal accompaniments of complete subjugation. It meant this by the conquered pagan cities; for Jerusalem it meant this and more. The knowledge and self-worship of God maintained by institutions of Divine appointment, maintained only in that little corner of the wide world, were linked to the fortunes of the Jewish state, and in the victory of Sennacherib would be involved not merely political humiliation, but religious darkness. When, then, his armies advanced across the continent again and again, making of a city a heap, and of a fenced city a ruin, and at last appeared before Jerusalem, when the blast of the terrible ones was as a storm against the wall, there was natural dismay in every religious and patriotic soul. It seemed as though a veil or covering, like that which was spread over the holy things in the Jewish ritual, was being spread more and more completely over all nations at each step of the Assyrian monarchs advance, and in those hours of darkness all true-hearted men in Jerusalem waited for God. He had delivered them from the Egyptian slavery. He had given them the realm of David and Solomon. He who had done so much for them would not desert them now. In His own way, at His own time, He would rebuke this insolent enemy of His truth and His people, and this passionate longing for His intervention quickened the eye and melted the heart of Jerusalem when at last it came. The destruction of Sennacheribs host was one of those supreme moments in the history of a people which can never be lived over again by posterity. The sense of deliverance was proportionated to the agony which had preceded it. To Isaiah and his contemporaries it seemed as though a canopy of thick darkness was lifted from the face of the world, as though the recollections of slaughter and death were entirely swallowed up in the absorbing sense of deliverance, as though the tears of the city had been wiped away and the rebuke of Gods people was taken from earth, and therefore from the heart of Israel there burst forth a welcome proportionated to the anxious longing that had preceded it: Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him; He will save us. (H. P. Liddon, D. D.)
God in history
The recognition of Gods presence in the great turning points of human history is in all ages natural to religious minds. God, of course, is here in quiet times, when all goes smoothly, as though it were regulated by unchangeable law. But His presence is brought before the imagination more vividly when all seems at stake, when the ordinary human resources of confidence and hope are clearly giving way, when nothing but a sudden, sharp turn in what looks like the predestined course of events can avert some fatal catastrophe. This is what was felt by our ancestors in the days of the Spanish Armada. This is what was felt in every religious mind throughout Europe when the power of the First Napoleon was broken, first at Leipsic, and then at Waterloo. (H. P. Liddon, D. D.)
A forecast of the last judgment
But beyond the immediate present Isaiah sees, it may be indistinctly, into a distant future. The judgment of Assyria, like that upon Egypt in a previous age, like that upon Babylon afterwards, foreshadowed some universal judgment, some judgment upon all the enemies of God. The visible Divine action upon a small scale was itself a revelation of the principles upon which the world is governed, and which one day will be seen to have governed it in the widest and most inclusive sense, and thus Isaiahs prediction of the song which would be sung by Israel at the defeat of Sennacherib is a prediction of the song which will be sung by the redeemed when Christ our Lord comes to judgment. (H. P. Liddon, D. D.)
Christ our God
But between the days of Hezekiah and the final judgment, there is another event ever close to the thought of the prophet--the appearance of the great Deliverer in the midst of human history.Lo, this is our God. Christ is not for us Christians merely or chiefly the preacher or herald of a religion of which another being, distinct from Himself, is the object. The Gospel creed does not run thus, There is no God but God, and Christ is His prophet. The Author and Founder of Christianity, He is also at the same time its subject and its substance. We may say, with truth, that Christ is Christianity. (H. P. Liddon, D. D.)
Waiting for God
I. Contemplate THE GLORIOUS OBJECT we are here invited to behold. Lo, this is our God. The words express strong emotions of pleasure, admiration, and joy, arising from the merciful interpositions made in behalf of His people, whereby Jehovah manifested Himself present among them. Though God is invisible to our bodily eyes, we behold Him when we sensibly discern those visible effects which cannot be produced by any other than His omnipotent arm. There subsists between Him and us a reciprocal endearing relation, a mutual tender affection, a continued delightful intercourse, a most agreeable concord, and an intimate union of interest and design.
II. Consider THE BECOMING EXERCISE in which the Church was employed. We have waited for Him. The repetition of the words plainly intimates the great earnestness and persevering diligence with which the saints had waited upon the Lord their God. This duty includes--
1. Earnest desire.
2. Lively expectation.
3. Holy serenity of mind (Lam_3:26; Isa_30:15). This sacred tranquillity of soul represses those uneasy disquietudes and tumultuous thoughts, which disturb the mind, and unfit for the right performance of this or any other duty. It composes the soul attentively to observe every symptom of the Divine approach, every appearance from which may be deduced favourable consequences, and every opportunity that ought to be diligently improved. It gives a seasonable check to that precipitation and haste which springs from uneasiness at our present condition, and from hurtful anxiety about immediate deliverance.
III. Attend to THE ASSURED CONFIDENCE in God which the Church expressed in these words: He will save us. In every age they have viewed the Lord as their Saviour. Salvation from the hands of their enemies, which was doubtless primarily intended in the words before us, is employed as an image, to shadow out a salvation of an infinitely higher and more important nature.
IV. Examine THE CONSEQUENT RESOLUTION adopted by the Church. We will be glad, and rejoice in His salvation. In this salvation, which is admirably suited to our character and circumstances, we ought to be glad and rejoice. (R. Macculloch.)
Third Sunday in Advent
(1) In this lesson there is an interlacement of praise and prophecy.
(2) The words we have waited for Him, describe the posture of the Church at all times, but especially at this season. In the Old Testament, the Jews waited for the first coming of Christ. The light of the first prophecy became wider and brighter as the fulfilment drew nigh. The Church waits for the second coming.
I. WHAT DOES WAITING IMPLY?
1. Faith. Christians believe in the promise of His coming (1Co_1:7). Those who have reduced the Christian creed to its smallest dimensions have included in it the belief in Christs second coming as Judge.
2. Desire (2Ti_4:8; Rev_22:20; Php_3:20; Rom_8:19).
3. Patience (Jam_5:7).
4. Preparation.
II. WHY WAIT SO LONG?
1. The question was discussed in the Middle Ages. Why was the Incarnation so long delayed? Why was not the remedy at once applied to the disease? It is not for us to question the ways of God; but, although we accept them in the spirit of faith, yet, having done so, we should reverently exercise our reason, so far as we can, upon matters of faith.
2. One reason for this delay of the Incarnation is drawn from the condition of man. He had to be humiliated by a sense of his sinfulness in order that he might feel his need of a Deliverer. The remedy has not only to be vouchsafed, but to be accepted, and for this human pride must be broken down. We see the same providence in individual sinners as in a microcosm. God allows the prodigal to pursue his downward course until he is brought to his senses, and misery brings him to the turning point.
3. All delays in the approaches of God are for the sake of man that he might prepare to receive Him. The ministry of the Baptist is a visible setting forth of this need of preparation.
III. WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR? Lo, this is our God, etc.
1. That there is a primary reference to wonderful interventions of God on behalf of His people, whether in contemporary or subsequent deliverances, is admitted. Whatever may be the historic application, it cannot be more than a type of the full accomplishment of the prophecy in the Person of Christ. He alone swallows up death in victory; and wipes away tears from off all faces.
2. The text is fulfilled by the Incarnation. This is our God. It points to the mystery that our Lord is a Divine Person, and that therefore He can save us. This stirs the hymn of joy, We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation. This is no mere temporal deliverance, but freedom from the powers of darkness--the salvation of the soul, pardon for sin, gift of grace, hope of glory; these deep inward gifts awaken such chords of praise in the redeemed, that all joy and thanksgiving for earthly deliverances are but a faint prelude to their exultation. The great mystery, The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us; the great truth Unto you is born a Saviour; the great experience, Ye were sometime darkness, now are ye light in the Lord;--by these is fulfilled the blessed promise, that the veil of darkness and the wail of sorrow through Christ shall be done away, and the voice of rejoicing and salvation be in the tabernacles of the righteous.
IV. LESSONS.
1. The text impresses on us the right use of Advent as a season of preparation for the coming of Christ.
2. This preparation to consist in repentance for sin, and faith in Christ.
3. The words of the text express the joy of an earnest Christmas Communion. This is our God; we have waited for Him; for he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me (Joh_6:57).
4. They express also a true belief in the Incarnation, that realisation of the Divine and human united forever in the One Person of the Son of God, which thrilled the soul of St. Thomas when he cried out, My Lord and my God! (The Thinker.)
Waiting for God
Interwoven with all human experiences there is the consciousness of a conflict, an oppression, a captivity. But men expect deliverance. If it were not so, effort would be paralysed, and history would end. This hope is not illusive; the God who has implanted in the hearts of all men an anticipation of deliverance is a God who will give deliverance. But deliverances do not come when men desire them, hope for them, expect them. Often there is long delay.
I. GOD KEEPS MEN WAITING.
I. Let us notice how true this is of the history of our race. The race is wrestling with a mighty sorrow. We look through the ages, and we see that every age has its burden of woe. We go among the diverse peoples of mankind, and we find that there is not a tribe which does not exhibit tokens of the strife. The eternal God has spoken, and His voice has told the world that the secret of the worlds sorrow and strife and pain is the worlds sin. And the honest conscience echoes back the truth of God but the same Voice which tells the world of sin, tells also of a Saviour. But how long man had to wait before his hope was realised! And, even now that Christ has come, His advent proves to be, not some grand final stroke of triumph, but only the beginning of another waiting that, perhaps, must be longer still.
2. How true is this principle with respect to the history of the Church. God is fashioning to Himself a new race out of the ruins of the old. But think how the Church has had to wait.
3. How true is this same principle of the history of the nations. Each nation reproduces, on a smaller scale, the history of the race; and each has its burden and evil, each has its hope. But the nations likewise wait for their deliverance from thrall and pain. How impressive an example of waiting is the history of the Jews! Our England, too, is only gradually emerging from what it has been to what it shall be. So of the various nationalities of Europe, of the swarming multitudes of Asia, of the tribes of dark Africa, and the rest--who would dare to think that the goal of their history is reached!
4. But this principle is still further true in regard to individual men. Men of science, like Galileo; men of enterprise, like Columbus; men of letters, like Milton--these, who have done the most permanent work for the world, have often not been duly recognised as benefactors till they were gone. Does not our own spiritual history illustrate the same truth! How long it is, sometimes, before we reach a settled peace, an unquestioning faith; how long before we gain an established strength of purity, and are made perfect in love!
II. WHY DOES GOD KEEP MEN WAITING?
1. It is in accord with Gods universal way of working, so far as we know. We could conceive of a universe in which everything should be immediate and final; but that is certainly not the method of our universe. The records of geology tell of the earths slow development; the researches of biology attest the gradual unfolding of life; the annals of history show civilisation, science, and culture only progressing by degrees. So when God, in His providential and spiritual dealings with men, keeps them waiting, this is only in harmony with His general method and plan of work.
2. We must remember the bearing, on this subject, of mans own free will. Even when on Gods part all is ready, this sometimes interferes to cause long delay.
3. Great moral purposes are served by Gods law of waiting. It accomplishes a three-fold result: it is for the discipline of effort, of patience, of faith. Of course, we may fail to abide the test; but if we yield ourselves to it rightly, Gods principle of delay tends to the working out of one or more of these results.
III. THE WAITING DOES END SOME TIME. Otherwise, the problem would be insoluble, the instincts of mans own nature would belie themselves, and the very government of God itself would be purposeless. And while, unless mans own perverseness frustrates Gods designs, the waiting will end some time, it is suggested by these words of Isaiah that the deliverance, when it does come, will be a glad surprise. It is said that the poet Cowper, so much of whose life had been passed in bitter bondage, and who died at last in despair, wore on his face after death an expression of astonished joy. So it is true of the lesser deliverances of life, that God surprises His people at last with the swift removal of their fears, and with His more abundant benediction. And of the great deliverance which the day of God shall usher in at last, it is said, As the lightning cometh forth from the east, and is seen even unto the west; so shall be the coming of the Son of Man Mat_24:27)--so sudden, so swift, so full! What a paean shall then be sung over a transfigured world! (T. F. Lockyer, B. A.)
Connection between the confidence and the character of the true Christian
I. NOTHING WILL INSPIRE US WITH JOY AND CONFIDENCE IN THE DAY OF JUDGMENT BUT A REAL INTEREST IN JESUS CHRIST. I might go further, and say, that nothing but a good hope of an interest in Christ can give us real, abiding, exalted enjoyment in this life.
II. NONE WILL IN THAT DAY HAVE A REAL INTEREST IN JESUS CHRIST, AND CONSEQUENTLY WILL REJOICE IN HIS SALVATION, BUT THOSE WHO ARE NOW WAITING FOR HIS COMING. This expression of waiting for Christ, or other expressions of a like meaning, are frequently used in the New Testament, as descriptive of the character of Christians.
1. To wait for Christ, implies a firm belief of His second coming, and of the infinitely momentous consequences which will follow that event. The true Christian is one who walks by faith, and not by sight.
2. To wait for Christ implies constant endeavour to be prepared for that event.
3. It implies a patient continuance in well-doing. (E. Cooper.)
Nativity
I. THE PERSON HERE CELEBRATED: who is made known to us in the prophets description of Him, by His actions and by His names. The greatest wonder in this subject is the dignity of the Person who should submit to redeem His Church.
II. THE EXPECTATION OF HIS COMING. However strange it may appear, it is certainly true, that a Saviour was expected both by Jews and heathens, however they might be mistaken with regard to some particular circumstances.
III. THE WORKS THE SAVIOUR WAS TO PERFORM AT HIS COMING. The particulars are recounted in the course of the chapter (Isa_25:4; Isa_25:6-8).
IV. With this hope we are to COMFORT OURSELVES AND ONE ANOTHER. We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation. The day of His nativity was a blessed day: but what will that other day be! That will be our nativity; for then only we may be said to live, when the last enemy is conquered. When He shall appear again, He will appear as our life and we shall be clothed with His immortality. (W. Jones, M. A.)
The glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ
I. THIS MAY BE SAID OF THE INCARNATION OF GOD. Emmanuel, God with us, in one word conveys the same truth. Christ came not fortuitously; He came not in a passing current of compassion; but with full, unshaken continuity of purpose (Gal_4:4-5).
II. IN THE ABIDING PRESENCE OF HIS SPIRIT can we most joyously exclaim, Lo, this is our God.
III. Another intermediate sense in which we may consider Christ as coming to us--intermediate between His offering Himself up, and the bestowal of the influences of His Spirit--is THE FREE OFFER OF HIS GRACE IN THE GOSPEL.
IV. IN HIS EXECUTION OF JUDGMENT IN TIME.
1. Truly of Jerusalem might it be said, that not one stone was left upon another; and now she is not Jerusalem; though called still the Holy City, where is her glory? Where are her children!
2. On antichrist, too, the first shoot of present judgment has arisen.
3. Christ also comes to judgment in time, by many of what appeared to be temporal accidents.
4. And in His afflictions and deprivations He often judges the abuse of a possession, or deficient appreciation of it, and often in mercy executes this temporal judgment, in order that its effects upon the awakened conscience may obviate, and cause to be avoided, that dreadful punishment which knows no reversion.
V. In one sense, Christ has still to come. HE HAS TO COME TO FINAL JUDGMENT. (I. Hutchin, M. A.)
National thanksgiving
I. Let us consider WHAT WE ARE TO UNDERSTAND BY WAITING FOR GOD.
1. Almost innumerable instances might be referred to wherein the Jewish nation did evidently wait for God to be their salvation.
2. The same may be observed with regard to mankind in general.
(1) The inseparable difficulties attending our situation as dependent creatures are sometimes of so severe and pressing a nature, attended with such intricate consequences, and even in the eye of human wisdom so plainly productive of fatal events, that reason will naturally show us the necessity of applying for relief from a power more unlimited than our own, and cannot, when properly improved, but teach us to make our appeal to that Supreme Being who disposeth all things according to the infallible counsel of His will.
(2) And if we attend to the satisfactory instructions of revelation, this will not only show us the necessity of such a dependence, but also make us sensible of its usefulness and advantage.
II. IN WHAT RESPECTS WE MAY BE SAID TO HAVE WAITED FOR GOD.
III. THE NATURE OF THAT SALVATION WHICH HE HAS WROUGHT FOR US, and the beneficial tendency of such a deliverance.
IV. SOME USEFUL REFLECTIONS.
1. It is Our duty to acknowledge those favourable interpositions of Omnipotence, by which either national calamities are removed or national distress prevented.
2. It would be highly base and ungrateful not to rejoice in His salvation which He has so seasonably enabled us to obtain.
3. Consider what abundant advantages may arise, if we do not foolishly neglect to improve it, from the blessing of peace. (R. P. Finch, M. A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain Isa_25:9. And it shall be said in that day,…
ADVENT THOUGHTS AND JOYS
Isa_25:9. And it shall be said in that day, &c.
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Isaiah is here, as he is so often, the prophet not merely of future events, but of future states of mind and feeling; not merely of God’s dealings with His people, but of the way in which they would or should meet their God.
To what event does he refer!
1. First of all, to the deliverance of Hezekiah and his people from King Sennacherib [1054] That deliverance was recognised as God’s work. The recognition of God’s presence in the great turning-points of human history is in all ages natural to religious minds. He is with men and nations at all times, but in the great crises of history that presence is brought more vividly before the imagination. So was it when a great storm destroyed the Spanish Armada, and when the power of the first Napoleon was broken first at Leipsic and then at Waterloo. Devout minds felt that these were reappearances of God in human history, and they rejoiced in Him.
[1054] It was no ordinary day that saw the discomfiture of the Assyrian host before the walls of Jerusalem. We can scarcely understand the terror and dismay with which a religious Jew must have watched the growth of those mighty Oriental despotisms which, rising one after the other in the valley of the Euphrates and of the Tigris, aspired to nothing less than the conquest of the known world. The victory of a conqueror like Sennacherib meant the extinction of national life and of personal liberty in the conquered people; it meant often enough violent transportation from their homes, separation from their families, with all the degrading and penal accompaniments of complete subjugation. It meant this to the conquered pagan cities; for Jerusalem it meant this and more. The knowledge and worship of God maintained by institutions of God, by institutions of Divine appointment, maintained only in that little corner of the wide world, were linked on to the fortunes of the Jewish state, and in the victory of Sennacherib would be involved not merely political humiliation, but religious darkness. When, then, his armies advanced across the continent again and again, making of a city a heap, and of a fenced city a ruin, and at last appeared before Jerusalem, when the blast of the terrible men was as a storm against the wall, there was natural dismay in every religious and patriotic soul. It seemed as though a veil or covering, like that which was spread over the holy things in the Jewish ritual, was being spread more and more completely over all nations at each step of the Assyrian monarch’s advance, and in those hours of darkness all true-hearted men in Jerusalem waited for God. He had delivered them from the Egyptian slavery; He had given them the realm of David and Solomon. He who had done so much for them would not desert them now. In His own way He would rebuke this insolent enemy of His truth and His people, and this passionate longing for His intervention quickened the eye and welled the heart of Jerusalem when at last it came. The destruction of Sennacherib’s host was one of those supreme moments in the history of a people which can never be lived over again by posterity. The sense of deliverance was proportioned to the agony which had preceded it. To Isaiah and his contemporaries it seemed as though a canopy of thick darkness was lifted from the face of the world, as though the recollections of slaughter and of death were entirely swallowed up in the absorbing sense of deliverance, as though the tears of the city had been wiped away and the rebuke of God’s people was taken from earth, and therefore from the heart of Israel there burst forth a welcome proportioned to the anxious longing that had preceded it: “Lo, this is our God: we have waited for Him; He will save us.”—Liddon.
2. But beyond the immediate present, Isaiah sees, it may be indistinctly, into a distant future. The judgment of his time foreshadowed some universal judgment upon all the enemies of mankind, some deliverance final, universal, at the end of time. For that judgment and deliverance the Church, both on earth and in heaven, waits and prays (Psa_74:10; Psa_74:22-23; Rev_6:9-10). To them the answer seems to be long delayed; but it will come (Rev_6:12-17); and when at last it bursts upon the world, it will be welcomed by the servants of God as was the deliverance of Jerusalem from the Assyrian army.
3. But between the days of Hezekiah and the final judgment there is another event closer to the prophet’s thought—the appearance of the great Deliverer in the midst of human history. All that belongs to the nearer history of Judah melts away in the prophet’s vision into that greater future which belongs to the King Messiah. The Assyrians themselves are replaced in his thoughts by the greater enemies of humanity; the city of David and Mount Zion become the spiritual city of God, the mountain of the Lord of hosts, the Church of the Divine Redeemer. Here, as so often, the incarnation of the eternal Son of God, with its vast and incalculable consequences to the world of souls, is the keynote of Isaiah’s deepest thought, and in our text he epitomises the heart-song of Christendom, which ascends day by day to the throne of the Redeemer.
(1.) “Lo, this is our God.” Christ is not for us Christians merely or chiefly the preacher or herald of a religion of which another being, distinct from Himself, is its object. The Gospel creed does not run thus, “There is no God but God, and Christ is His prophet.” When He appears to the soul of man at the crisis of its penitence, or its conversion, the greeting which meets and befits Him is not, “Lo, this is a good man sent from God to teach some high and forgotten moral truths;” no, but “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him; He will save us!” (H. E. I., 835–845).
(2.) So might the Jews, the children of the prophets, have sung; so did some of those who entered most deeply into the meaning of the promises given to their fathers (Luk_1:46-55; Luk_1:68-79; Luk_2:29-32).
(3.) So might the noble philosophers of Greece have sung; so they did sing when, in Christ the incarnate God, of whom they had dreamed and for whom they had sought, was revealed to them.
(4.) So have sung in all ages that multitude of human souls whom a profound sense of moral need has brought to the feet of the Redeemer (H. E. I., 948–971).—H. P. Liddon, M.A.: Christian World Pulpit, vol. xiii. pp. 1–3.
I. WHAT ARE THOSE COMINGS OF CHRIST WHICH ARE THE OCCASION OF JOY TO THE CHURCH?
1. His coming in the flesh, His incarnation. To this His people had looked forward; in it they rejoiced. Good cause had they for gladness, for He came to spread the gospel feast, to remove the clouds of ignorance and error, to destroy the reign of sin and death.
2. His coming in the Spirit, at the day of Pentecost; in the experience of the individual soul, in the hours of penitence, of temptation, of sorrow. His coming in the flesh was the great promise of the Old Testament; His coming in the Spirit is the great promise of the New.
3. His coming to receive the soul to glory. He comes unchanged. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.
4. His coming to bring the present dispensation to a close. It may be heralded by many alarming and distressing events, but it will be itself a cause for joy. To the wicked it will be a day of unmixed terror, but to the righteous of gladness; for it will bring them redemption from the power of every sin, from the assault of every enemy; every fetter will be broken, every cloud dispelled.
II. WHAT IS REQUISITE TO ENABLE US TO WELCOME THE APPROACH OF CHRIST?
1. A knowledge of Him as our God and Redeemer.
2. An experience of the benefits of His salvation.
3. Love for Him.
4. Submission to His will and zeal for His glory.—Samuel Thodey.
I. In the day of judgment nothing will inspire us with joy and confidence but a real interest in Jesus Christ. The ungodly now possess many sources of present enjoyment; but in that day they will have ceased for ever. One grand, all-important idea will then fill the mind: “The solemn day of account is come; how shall I abide it? How shall I endure the presence of the heart-searching Judge?” But whence can this assurance be obtained? Only from an interest in Jesus Christ. Those who do not possess it will then be filled with shame and terror; but, amid all its terrors, those who do possess it will be enabled to rejoice.
II. In that day none will be found to have a real interest in Christ, nor capable of rejoicing, but those who are now waiting for His coming. This is a characteristic of all genuine Christians (1Th_1:10; Tit_2:13; 1Co_1:7; Luk_12:36). Hence, in our text, we find the saints representing their conduct towards the Lord in the days of their flesh by the same term: “We have waited for Him.” It may be useful, then, to point out some of the particulars implied in this general description of the Christian character. To “wait for Christ” implies—
1. A FIRM BELIEF IN HIS SECOND COMING, and of the infinitely momentous consequences which will follow that event. The true Christian walks “by faith, not by sight.” Unlike the profane (2Pe_3:4), he lays it down in his mind as an infallible truth that “the day of the Lord will come.”
2. A CONSTANT ENDEAVOUR TO BE PREPARED FOR IT. How the wise virgins acted (Mat_25:4).
3. A PATIENT CONTINUANCE IN WELL-DOING (Luk_12:35-46). Are you thus “waiting” for the second coming of your Lord?—Edward Cooper: Practical and Familiar Sermons, vol. iv. pp. 225–240.
The chapter from which these words are taken contains a noble description of the glory and the grace of God, of His glory in ruling irresistibly the nations of the earth, and in crushing the enemies of His Church, of His glory and grace in the salvation of mankind. It records by anticipation the triumphs of the Gospel, the downfall of the powers of darkness, the annihilation of death itself, the reign of perpetual peace and joy.
I. A recognition of the birth of the Messiah. It is a matter of historical certainty that the people of God did wait for the coming of the Saviour from the time of the very first promise given to the woman after the fall, to the period of our Lord’s appearance upon the earth, at which season there was a general expectation in all the neighbouring regions of the advent of some mighty personage who was to realise all the sublime descriptions of the ancient prophets. Anna the prophetess, Joseph of Arimithea, the aged Simeon and other devout men, were waiting for the “consolation of Israel.”
II. An assertion of His divinity. “This is our God,”—not merely a prophet, a priest, a king, chosen by Jehovah from among His people, and commissioned to give laws and statutes, as Moses was, or to assert Jehovah’s authority and punish idolatry, as Elijah was, or to denounce His wrath against an apostate people and at the same time to foreshadow a great deliverance to come, as Isaiah was himself, or Jeremiah, or any other of those holy men who spake in old times by the Holy Ghost; but this is OUR GOD, this is Emmanuel—God with us—God manifest in the flesh.
III. A declaration of His atoning Work. How vast that work He took on Himself to execute,—the reconciliation in His own person of sinful man to an offended God, the overthrow of the kingdom of Satan, and the abolition of death! No man could have performed it (Psa_49:7). Could any of the angels, then, have taken in hand this enterprise? Beyond the power, above the conception of any being of limited goodness, knowledge, and power, it could only be accomplished by the Divine Son of God. It was God’s work, devised and executed by Omnipotence.
IV. A recognition of the second coming of Christ. We are admonished by the Church that there is a Second Coming of Christ, for which the Church is waiting, and for which we, with every member of the Church, ought to be looking with earnest and anxious expectation. Is our language, “How long, O Lord?” Our answer is, How long the final triumph of the Saviour may be deferred, how long a period may elapse before the world is ripe for judgment, is one of those secrets which God has reserved to Himself (Act_1:7). The end of all things, if it be not, in the literal sense of the word, at hand, is every year and every day and every moment drawing nearer to each of us. We are all in silent but unceasing movement towards the judgment-hall of Christ. In this point of view, the moment of our death may be regarded as placing us at once before His awful tribunal, for the space between the two, as it affects our eternal destination, will be to us as nothing. When the judgment is set, the books opened, we shall suddenly stand before the Judge, precisely in that state of preparation in which we were found at the moment of our departure out of life. Those who have lived as children of God, as servants of Jesus Christ, under the solemn, yet not fearful, expectation of that day, will then be able to lift up their heads and raise the song of joyful recognition.
Application.—If ever there was a great practical truth, this is one. If we do not wait for the great day of the Lord in such a spirit of carefulness and circumspection as to refer to it all our actions, words, and thoughts, then it is perfectly certain that we shall be surprised at its coming and be taken utterly unprepared. It will come on us as a thief in the night, and we shall sink into everlasting perdition; not for the want of means and opportunities of being saved, but for want of common prudence and forethought in the most momentous of all concerns. What, then, is the conclusion? Live like men that are waiting for their Lord, that when He arrives, He may be welcomed. Accustom yourselves to His presence, in His sanctuary, at His table, in His word, in secret communings with Him in the temple of a purified heart. So when this solemn day shall have come the glad response may be, “Lo, this is our God, we have waited for Him; He will come and save us!”—C. J. Blomfield, D.D.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Praise for the Subjection of Moab
Praise for the Subjection of Moab
v. 9. And it shall be said in that day, namely, the day of final deliverance, at the end of time, Lo, this is our God, He upon whom we can place our confidence in unwavering certainty; we have waited for Him, and He will save us, they depended upon Him to save them and were not disappointed. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation, which the believers will experience and enjoy at that time.
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v. 10. For in this mountain shall the hand of the Lord rest, not only to protect Zion, His Church, but also to effect her revenge, and Moab, representing the sneering enemies of the Church, shall be trodden down under Him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill, to be saturated and rotted by the water of the dung-pit.
v. 11. And he shall spread forth his hands in the midst of them, Moab, representing the hostile forces of the world, trying to save himself by a desperate struggle, as he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his bands to swim, in an unavailing effort. And He, Jehovah, shall bring down their pride together with the spoils of their hands, in spite of all artful attempts of Moab to effect his own deliverance.
v. 12. And the fortress of the high fort of thy walls, the strongholds of Moab, shall He bring down, utterly overthrowing them, lay low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust. Thus all the enemies of the Lord will finally be destroyed with the everlasting destruction of the wrath of the just God, while the city of God, the congregation of believers, will triumph with Him in all eternity.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 It will be said
It will be said
This can be stated in active form. AT: "People will say" (See: Active or Passive)
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on that day
"at that time"
For on this mountain the hand of Yahweh will rest
The "hand" represents God's power. For Yahweh's hand to rest on "this mountain" means he will protect his people AT: "The power of Yahweh will be on this mountain" or "For on Mount Zion Yahweh will protect his people" (See: Metonymy and Idiom)
Moab will be trampled down in his place, even as straw is trampled down in a pit filled with manure
Yahweh destroying the people of Moab is spoken of as if he would step on them and crush them. This is compared to how people trampled on straw to mix it with manure. (See: Metaphor and Simile)
Moab will be trampled down in his place
Here Moab represents the people of Moab. This can be stated in active form. AT: "Yahweh will trample the people in the land of Moab" (See: Metonymy and Active or Passive)
translationWords
save
Yahweh
joy
save
hand
Moab
dung
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 25:9-12 The new community of God’s people will respond…
25:9-12 The new community of God’s people will respond in joy and faith. When the enemy is defeated, God’s people will be free forever.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.