He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.” Isaiah 40.11
An Imperative to Comfort (40.1-2)
Alec Motyer, the Isaianic scholar, outlines this prophetic book into three sections: the Book of the King (Isaiah 1-37), which primarily dealt with God’s judgment; the Book of the Servant (Isaiah 38-55), which deals with deliverance; and the Anointed Conqueror (56-66) which is Isaiah’s vision of the distant future (e.g. “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn” (Isaiah 60.1-3). Chapters 39 and 40 are thematically central to the progress of salvation depicted in Isaiah. These two chapters are illustrative of the symmetry of Isaiah. Isaiah 40.1-11, the focus of today’s meditation, is a prologue to the second major division of Isaiah and introduces a vision of an incomparably awesome God (40.12-26).
It is too easy to read “Comfort, comfort my people” dispassionately as only applying the plural imperatives to God’s servant Isaiah. While the command is addressed to Isaiah and his prophetic ministry, Christians continue a ministry of consolation through the proclamation of the good news. So, then, how might you apply the urgency and emotional intensity in this command to your walk with Christ? There is an imperfect tense to the imperative which carries with it the sense of “keeps saying.” This is not uncommon to Isaianic literature (1.1, 18; 33.10; 40.25; 66.9) (cf. Alec Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, p. 299). In these gentle words there is an urgent and persuasive appeal for the people of God to receive the fullness of God’s pardoning grace.
Voice: in the wilderness (40.3-5)
The first of the three prologue voices cries: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. This unidentified voice in Isaiah is identified for us in the New Testament as John the Baptist (John 1.19-23). In Isaiah 35.8 we read: And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. The Lord is coming and the people must prepare to meet Him. We know this to be true! Jesus has come and removed the obstacles of sin. John the Baptist is the voice crying in the wilderness preparing the way for the coming Messiah as he preached a message of repentance.
Isaiah foretold the invasion of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple. This would be the end of the theocracy in Israel. But Isaiah says a further day is coming when the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken it.
Voice: “The Word will stand forever” (40.6-8)
The second voice cries out: All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. This is more than just an observation about man’s physical frailty and mortality; it is an indictment of his moral failure. In contrast with the brevity of man’s life and the certainty of his judgment, there is the word of God that stands forever. Wise men look to God and live; the fool says there is no God and dies.
Voice: the arm of God (40.9-11)
The third voice proclaims: Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. That is to say: “What you have received you must now make known.” The Lord has come to Jerusalem; she has received the fullness of the Lord’s pardon. Now she must get up to a high mountain and forcefully declare what good things the Lord has done. You know what great and mighty things the Lord has done for you! Your voice has been strengthened by the Spirit of God; so, do not be afraid of those who cannot harm your soul. You are a herald of the good news. Remember: without Christ. you have nothing, with him you lack nothing.
The Lord will reward every person for what he or she has done (cp. 2 Corinthians 5.10), He is also the great Shepherd. Isaiah’s imagery of the shepherd is clear and Jesus identifies himself as the Isaianic shepherd: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. … I know my sheep and my sheep know me … and I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10.11, 14a, 15b). There is no greater comfort than knowing that God gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart (see Isaiah 40.11).
Alec Motyer, the Isaianic scholar, outlines this prophetic book into three sections: the Book of the King (Isaiah 1-37), which primarily dealt with God’s judgment; the Book of the Servant (Isaiah 38-55), which deals with deliverance; and the Anointed Conqueror (56-66) which is Isaiah’s vision of the distant future (e.g. “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn” (Isaiah 60.1-3). Chapters 39 and 40 are thematically central to the progress of salvation depicted in Isaiah. These two chapters are illustrative of the symmetry of Isaiah. Isaiah 40.1-11, the focus of today’s meditation, is a prologue to the second major division of Isaiah and introduces a vision of an incomparably awesome God (40.12-26).
It is too easy to read “Comfort, comfort my people” dispassionately as only applying the plural imperatives to God’s servant Isaiah. While the command is addressed to Isaiah and his prophetic ministry, Christians continue a ministry of consolation through the proclamation of the good news. So, then, how might you apply the urgency and emotional intensity in this command to your walk with Christ? There is an imperfect tense to the imperative which carries with it the sense of “keeps saying.” This is not uncommon to Isaianic literature (1.1, 18; 33.10; 40.25; 66.9) (cf. Alec Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, p. 299). In these gentle words there is an urgent and persuasive appeal for the people of God to receive the fullness of God’s pardoning grace.
Voice: in the wilderness (40.3-5)
The first of the three prologue voices cries: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. This unidentified voice in Isaiah is identified for us in the New Testament as John the Baptist (John 1.19-23). In Isaiah 35.8 we read: And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. The Lord is coming and the people must prepare to meet Him. We know this to be true! Jesus has come and removed the obstacles of sin. John the Baptist is the voice crying in the wilderness preparing the way for the coming Messiah as he preached a message of repentance.
Isaiah foretold the invasion of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple. This would be the end of the theocracy in Israel. But Isaiah says a further day is coming when the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken it.
Voice: “The Word will stand forever” (40.6-8)
The second voice cries out: All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. This is more than just an observation about man’s physical frailty and mortality; it is an indictment of his moral failure. In contrast with the brevity of man’s life and the certainty of his judgment, there is the word of God that stands forever. Wise men look to God and live; the fool says there is no God and dies.
Voice: the arm of God (40.9-11)
The third voice proclaims: Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. That is to say: “What you have received you must now make known.” The Lord has come to Jerusalem; she has received the fullness of the Lord’s pardon. Now she must get up to a high mountain and forcefully declare what good things the Lord has done. You know what great and mighty things the Lord has done for you! Your voice has been strengthened by the Spirit of God; so, do not be afraid of those who cannot harm your soul. You are a herald of the good news. Remember: without Christ. you have nothing, with him you lack nothing.
The Lord will reward every person for what he or she has done (cp. 2 Corinthians 5.10), He is also the great Shepherd. Isaiah’s imagery of the shepherd is clear and Jesus identifies himself as the Isaianic shepherd: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. … I know my sheep and my sheep know me … and I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10.11, 14a, 15b). There is no greater comfort than knowing that God gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart (see Isaiah 40.11).
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