Highway of Holiness
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Isaiah 35
1. The wilderness and the desert will be glad, And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom; Like the crocus 2. It will blossom profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, The majesty of our God. 3. Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. 4. Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come [with] vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you." 5. Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. 6. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah. 7. And the scorched land will become a pool, And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass [becomes] reeds and rushes. 8. And a highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it [will] be for him who walks [that] way, And fools will not wander [on it]. 9. No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will not be found there. But the redeemed will walk [there], 10. And the ransomed of the LORD will return, And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Today we take traveling on roads as a routine. Often we are inconvenienced by construction or repairs taking place – why does that always happen smack in the middle of rush hour? For the most part, the U.S. has fairly sophisticated interstate highway and local road and highway systems. Travel is taken for granted – as a way of life, even a necessity. In ancient times, traveling was very dangerous. Thieves waited for passersby to rob – or kill! Wild animals were certainly familiar with the availability of prey along well-traveled routes. Remember – for a vast majority of the population during biblical times, travel was on foot.
This chapter of Isaiah offers so much hope for those who have been in exile for so very long. Still today the words span time to give us comfort as well. They remind us of the promise God made long ago to his beloved. We know of the fulfillment of that promise in Christ, in the crucifixion and resurrection. We have nothing to fear, because we have proof that God keeps His promises!
Bad things still happen for reasons we cannot even grasp. People do horrific acts, and wallow in sin. Hardship and suffering exist all over the world. The resurrection of Christ transcends anything and everything we may be enduring on this earth, in this lifetime. That is what these words from Isaiah assure us. Only God can make springs of water in the middle of the desert. Only Christ can restore us to our perfected state, as we were before the Fall of Adam and Eve. Only the Spirit gives us the wisdom to know that we are only temporary inhabitants on this Earth.
Heaven awaits us!
My prayer today is that you travel the Highway of Holiness throughout your day. And that you find gladness and joy in knowing God keeps His promises.
Mary
