I’ve been reading the book of Isaiah lately. At my church we’ll be looking at it in the lead up to Christmas, so I got myself a head start before school term kicked off.

For the uninitiated, Isaiah was a prophet who was writing around the time that Israel was being threatened with exile and punishment. This was something that God was allowing because Israel had rebelled against him. It was also the result of ancient super powers around them.

So, Isaiah’s not writing a nice story book for children, that’s for certain. There’s a lot of messages of judgement, particularly in the first two-thirds of the book.

This is why I found a number of points in the opening chapters such a gear shift.

I was just expecting doom and gloom. Never ending hopelessness.

But God had something else in mind:

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land…”

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.

And my personal favourite:

Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.

It will be well. Tell the righteous.

What a beautiful line.

What a beautiful truth.

I just can’t say that I was expecting it.

It will be well. Tell the righteous. Something to meditate on this week.

Yours in navigating the gear shift,

Alison