Today's Passage:  Isaiah 11-13

To say the Israelites were struggling would be a major understatement.  "Struggling" doesn't seem to capture the up and down nature of their relationship with God.  They seemed to listen and follow when they needed His rescue, but when times were good again, they would go their own way.  And now Isaiah is saying that destruction is headed their way once again...but this time, with the promise of Immanuel, as we read about in chapters 7 and 9.

So chapters 11 and 12 would have been a major comfort to the people.  To hear that one of David's offspring would once again reign and that the Spirit of God would rest on Him...this was very good news indeed!  No more war, no more struggle...just the comfort of God's chosen reigning over the earth.  No wonder there would be songs of praise...even though God was angry with us, now there is comfort, because God is my salvation.

We know how this feels.  There was a time in my life when I was "struggling" with sin, which doesn't capture the weight of sin on my life.  But God is my salvation!  Through the coming of Immanuel...Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for my sin...there is freedom!  There is reason to rejoice, because God was angry with my sin, but His anger was turned away by the sacrifice on the cross.

Take some time today to have your own time of praise.  "Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name;  make known among the nations what He has done!"