Isaiah 55: Pt. 7- Come that you may know God

For me, this week has been a really incredible week of learning and soaking in the grace of God. Today I want to conclude my little mini-series by summing up everything I've been finding in this deeply rich passage.

Isaiah 55

The Compassion of the LORD

 ¹ "Come, everyone who thirsts,
   come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
   without money and without price.
² Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
   and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
   and delight yourselves in rich food.
³Incline your ear, and come to me;
    hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    my steadfast, sure love for David.
⁴ Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,
    a leader and commander for the peoples.
⁵ Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,
   and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,
because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has glorified you. ⁶ "Seek the LORD while he may be found;
   call upon him while he is near;
⁷let the wicked forsake his way,
   and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,
   and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
⁸For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
⁹ For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
   so are my ways higher than your ways
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.
 ¹⁰ "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
   and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
¹¹so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
   it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
   and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
 ¹² "For you shall go out in joy
   and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
   shall break forth into singing,
   and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
¹³ Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
   instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall make a name for the LORD,
   an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off."

To conclude this series, let's look at this one more time, verse by verse, in just a sentence or two each verse.

Vs. 1: God is calling us to come to him!

Vs. 2: If we come, we must come bare before him, so that he can be sufficient for us.

Vs. 3: When we come, we can listen. If we listen and hear, then we will live.

Vs. 4: When we listen, we should become leaders and witnesses.

Vs. 5: When we witness, the nations will come.

Vs. 6: When the nations come, they will seek God, and we must show them how.

Vs. 7: If they seek God, they will leave their wicked ways and God will have compassion on them.

Vs. 8: In his compassion, God is so different from us.

Vs. 9: God's ways are not our ways: he is so much greater and higher!

Vs. 10: In his greatness, God speaks his word, and it stays and takes root.

Vs. 11: Not only does God's word take root, it also succeeds in whatever it does.

Vs. 12: As God's word succeeds, joy and peace will result among the nations-- even the mountains will worship him!

Vs. 13: This joy and peace will be everlasting, and God's reign will be forever.

Isn't this just remarkable? What a mighty God we serve!