2/6/26- God is Compassionate

“Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.” Isaiah 30:18

Hey, there! I wanted to take a little time this morning to share a passage that I was listening to/reading yesterday: Isaiah 30. It’s a beautiful chapter in a beautiful book: Isaiah (I will share a link to an album where you can listen to the book of Isaiah in song down below, and Isaiah 30 specifically in the Highlights section of the main page.) Just read verse 18 for a second and reflect on the warmth of love and compassion that it carries with it: “Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.” The Lord longs to be gracious, and waits to have compassion- interestingly, the same Hebrew word, “Haka” (H2442 in Strong’s), is used where “longs” and “waits” are translated. Its usages are “to wait for; to wait, tarry; to wait (in ambush); to wait, long for.” Now, there is a lot that I think you could pull from this alone- 2 Peter 3:9 comes to mind readily: “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” Isaiah may have been written to Israel directly, but the character of God is reflected at all times through His word, and it is in His character to tarry in judgement, not indefinitely, but longsufferingly. He is a God of justice, and justice means payment according to what is due, impartial and indiscriminate. (Romans 2:6-11) His judgement will come, it must come, and Hebrews tells us how we are to regard His judgement, even as believers: “For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:30-31) When I read that passage, it immediately brings me to the thought of the lake of fire, the second death. Eternal separation from God, shackled by my sins and wracked with neverending torment. Everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2) It’s petrifying to imagine, and it ought to make your heart quicken a bit to dwell on the thought. It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God. How incredible is it, then, that in Isaiah 30 the living God also tells His people Israel that He longs to be gracious to them, that He waits on high to have compassion on them? That chapter starts with these statements: “‘Woe to the rebellious children,’ declares the Lord, ‘who execute a plan, but not Mine, and make an alliance, but not of My Spirit, in order to add sin to sin; 2 who proceed down to Egypt without consulting Me, to take refuge in the safety of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt! 3 Therefore the safety of Pharaoh will be your shame and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt, your humiliation.” (Isaiah 30:1-3) This isn’t the first time the Lord has pronounced a harsh judgement against Israel; nearly the whole of the Old Testament (with the exceptions of Genesis, Ruth, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and the Song of Solomon) are either recounting the rebellions of the Israelites, God’s judgement against them, or His promise to receive them if they will only turn back to Him. How many died senselessly and in rebellion from Exodus to Malachi? How many more will perish between Matthew and Revelation? The story is not yet finished, and His final judgement has not yet come. Passages like Isaiah 30 give me a great sense of joy when I read them, because although it was said to a people who have long since passed on, the God who said it is still the same as He ever was, and His heart is still as compassionate as it ever was, just as His judgement is still as severe as it ever was. The Lord says to everyone who hears His word “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants.” (Deuteronomy 30:19) When I look back on the years of my short life, many of my memories are made bittersweet by the taint of my rebellion and downright hateful attitude. I had a stony heart, literally hell-bent on my own destruction, and was on a very bad track. I would have had no one else to thank or blame for my condemnation, because for almost every single one of my 25 years of life I chose death and curses. Thankfully- mercifully- God had other plans for me, and instilled a very healthy amount of terror into my heart. Repentance is sweet when you are reminded of what awaits the unrepentant. Not everyone is so blessed, and those who are aren’t guaranteed a limitless window of opportunity. Still, though, Isaiah 30 gives me great hope that the Lord is always calling for us to come back to Him and choose life while there is still time. Sometimes the call is soft and sweet, and other times it is hard and stern, but I truly believe that, if we will come to Him, He is willing. It makes my heart glad.

I apologize for rambling a bit- I don’t think this post is quite as focused as normal. I was just reflecting a bit on the things I shared here and, well, I thought I would share them. No groundbreaking revelations. Hopefully this is at least a little bit encouraging to you, though. If you can, take some time to reflect on the compassionate nature of God today. Give thanks to Him for all the ways He has shown it to you. It is good to stir up our souls to fixate on Him like that.

LINK TO PROJECT OF LOVE: BOOK OF ISAIAH IN SONG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eycCdXa-bgI&list=PLwXhxTyYtEDci80Z-tbmSWz5oMrvpL92F