Isaiah 66: 10-16 v 13 “ I will comfort you there in Jerusalem as a mother comforts her child.”
Rejoice, be glad all who love and mourn for her ( Jerusalem). I will comfort you there in Jerusalem as a mother comforts her child. Everyone will see the Lord’s blessing on his children and his anger against his enemies. The Lord will punish the world by fire and by his sword. He will judge the earth.
If this first part of this passage of the Old Testament of the Lord comforting His children is taken to be imagery, then the second part also can be seen in the same light, especially if we apply what Jesus said about the sword and fighting. The late New Testament scholar I. Howard Marshall says that the command to buy a sword, in Luke 22, is “a call to be ready for hardship and self-sacrifice.” The Lord’s way is not easy, there will be hardship and self sacrifice along the way, joy and mourning.
Prayer: Holy god we ask for your help in the good times and the bad. To guide us into a deeper relationship with you. Amen.
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