By Grace: A New Earth
Isaiah 35:1-10
"The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow."
(Isaiah 35:7)
The curse that our Creator placed upon the earth in Genesis 3:17-19 was never more evident than it is today. The effects of God's curse are seen in earthquakes and monsoons and all manner of natural disasters. But God has promised that it will not always be so. As Peter says in 2 Peter 3:13, "...we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness." At the end of this age - soon - a new heaven and a new earth will be forthcoming.
This chapter in Isaiah speaks of this new earth. We will see God's glory (v. 2). Vengeance will be upon His enemies (v. 4). The blind will see, the deaf will hear, the lame will walk, the mute will speak, and water will burst forth in the desert (vv. 5-6). No ferocious beasts will live there (v. 9). "...only the redeemed will walk there, and the ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away" (vv. 9b-10).
INSIGHT
We live in a world tainted by sin and under a curse. But take heart! God is preparing a new home for those who love Him.
READ THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Genesis 29-30
Psalm 15
Matthew 23
Isaiah 35:1-10
Hope for Restoration
1 Even the wilderness and desert will be glad in those days.
The wasteland will rejoice and blossom with spring crocuses.
2 Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers
and singing and joy!
The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon,
as lovely as Mount Carmel or the plain of Sharon.
There the LORD will display his glory,
the splendor of our God.
3 With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands,
and encourage those who have weak knees.
4 Say to those with fearful hearts,
"Be strong, and do not fear,
for your God is coming to destroy your enemies.
He is coming to save you."
5 And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind
and unplug the ears of the deaf.
6 The lame will leap like a deer,
and those who cannot speak will sing for joy!
Springs will gush forth in the wilderness,
and streams will water the wasteland.
7 The parched ground will become a pool,
and springs of water will satisfy the thirsty land.
Marsh grass and reeds and rushes will flourish
where desert jackals once lived.
8 And a great road will go through that once deserted land.
It will be named the Highway of Holiness.
Evil-minded people will never travel on it.
It will be only for those who walk in God’s ways;
fools will never walk there.
9 Lions will not lurk along its course,
nor any other ferocious beasts.
There will be no other dangers.
Only the redeemed will walk on it.
10 Those who have been ransomed by the LORD will return.
They will enter Jerusalem[a] singing,
crowned with everlasting joy.
Sorrow and mourning will disappear,
and they will be filled with joy and gladness.
Footnotes:
a. Isaiah 35:10 Hebrew Zion.
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