Isaiah 33:6: Stability

Oh, Father, this world has gone absolutely mad!

In the middle of writing this, I found myself in tears praying after I got a text about an active shooter at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison. There were deaths and multiple injuries. This one hit close to home. Our daughter taught 4K in their early learning center one summer several years ago, and our other daughter knows one of the current elementary teachers.  So often it seems we cry out with Habakkuk, “How long, O Lord, will I call for help…why do You make me see iniquity, and cause me to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; strife exists and contention arises. Therefore the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous…” (1:1-4).

We live in a turbulent world that has been travailing in pain since the tragedy in Eden (Romans 8:19-25). The headlines of Isaiah’s day were disturbing, too. There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Evil just re-packages itself to accomplish its strategies in every age. Corruption. Violence. Greed. Deception. Injustice. Licentiousness. Strife. Betrayal. Exploitation. Oppression. Devastation. Without a solid anchor, we can easily find ourselves adrift at sea in a raging storm, disoriented and imperiled.

The problem is that we have such a tendency to depend, even if subconsciously, on the things of this world that are shakable…things that are not permanent…things that make up the fabric of daily life, social structure, or civil governance…counterfeits that promise security, safety, peace, and constancy but can’t be counted on to deliver. What do we do, then, when our world seems to be falling apart and spinning out of control? What do we do when the things we’ve relied upon and grown accustomed to suddenly shift and crumble away, or people let us down? How do we deal with the crushing crucibles of life and the wickedness of our days?

In the dark and discouraging days of Isaiah, God delivered a message of hope to us all.

“And He will be the stability of your times.” 

Isaiah prophesied of a glorious day of restoration, blessing, and peace when the Lord will physically live and reign among His people. But His promise to “be the stability of your times” is not exclusively for that age yet to come. God’s children can take that guarantee to the bank even now. When the wheels are coming off, God’s promise has real substance to it – something concrete to which we can anchor in any situation we might face. But how?  Isaiah 33:6 tells us that stability is rooted squarely in (1) what God says, and (2) who God is.

What God says:  “A wealth of…wisdom and knowledge”

If we think theology is overrated or that we don’t need to be diligent students of the Scriptures, we are dead wrong. We cannot afford to simply float along. God’s Word is our very lifeline in this fallen world. We live in the “difficult times” of the “last days” described in 2 Timothy chapter 3 in which “evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived…lovers of self…without self-control…brutal…haters of good….” We dare not forget that because mankind is eager to offer its own adulterated version of wisdom and knowledge through the media, academia, the rumor mill and opinion patch, and (sadly) even from pulpits.  We’re warned to turn away from the “worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ‘knowledge’” which can “toss [us] here and there” and steer us so far off course (1 Timothy 6:20; 2 Timothy 4:1-4; Ephesians 4:14). But how do we cut through the smog?

“You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of…[from] the sacred writings.”  Scripture is God-breathed truth. The Bible contains divine counsel that is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3). The Creator of heaven and earth gave us the instruction manual for life, and He intends for us to use it in order for us to benefit from it (Matthew 7:24-27; James 1:22-25). The Scriptures were “written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Corinthians 10:11; Romans 15:4).

God is the source of all real knowledge and wisdom (Proverbs 2:6).  We need to train our ears to hear His voice above the din. More than merely a collection of factual information, knowledge (da’ath) is intimate understanding, accurate perception, keen discernment, and practical application of God’s revealed truth in our circumstances. Wisdom (chokmah) extends to moral insight and the ability to apply knowledge to make righteous decisions. Wisdom guides ethical and moral behavior. In other words, God’s Word is “living and active,” able to intersect powerfully with our day-to-day lives so we can process what’s going on and proceed in the most beneficial way (Hebrews 4:12-13). God’s Word acts as a “lamp to our feet and a light to our path” in a dark and confusing world (Psalm 119:105). We need His divine GPS because “there is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 16:25). Our reasoning and physical senses are fallible. We don’t have the perspective and understanding that God does.  An article on the EAA website provides a good analogy: “One of the toughest things about learning to fly is learning to trust the instruments, especially when they disagree with what we see and feel. However, we have no choice; our eyes, our inner ear, and our general kinesthetic (a fancy word for ‘seat of the pants’) senses can all be fooled. This is one of those things that’s impossible to believe until you’ve experienced it – and then it’s impossible to forget.” While the instrument panels of aircraft can also fail, God’s Word does not.  It is perfect (Psalm 18:30; Psalm 119:160).  We need God’s revealed knowledge and wisdom to successfully navigate through our days. It orients us, guides us, and keeps us on firm footing (Psalm 19:7-11; Psalm 1; Proverbs 6:21-23; Psalm 16:7-8; Psalm 94:18-19).

Do we realize that we are at war?  God repeatedly commands us to stay alert because we have an enemy who prowls around looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).  We were born into a world that is hostile to the truth and in all-out rebellion against the Creator, so our minds are constantly bombarded and saturated with the world’s propaganda. We need some intensive mind renewal so that we don’t fall victim to the schemes of the devil (Romans 12:2; Ephesians 6:11; Colossians 2:6-8).  We must “destroy speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God…taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”  How?  By filtering the messages of our culture through the Word of Almighty God, which is “divinely powerful for the destruction of [the enemy’s] fortresses” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). 

If we want stability in our lives, we need to regularly tap into the wisdom and knowledge of God and put it into practice (Proverbs 4:5-9; Proverbs 3:5-8,13-26). It is vital to “be diligent” in “accurately handling the word of truth” so our hearts and minds are calibrated correctly (2 Timothy 2:15). Read Proverbs chapter 2 and chapter 8.  Then sit at the Savior’s feet with Mary to hear Jesus identify the one thing that is most necessary in life (Luke 10:38-42).  (Hint: It’s not the food and drink Martha was intent on preparing. “Man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.” -Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 6:25-33) He is serious. The Scriptures are what the Holy Spirit uses to do His powerful work within us and through us. His Word nourishes us with truth and righteousness in a world swarming with deceit (John 14:16-17,26-27). 

Who God is:  “A wealth of salvation”

Stability rests on not only God’s wealth of wisdom and knowledge, but also on His wealth of salvation.  What does that mean? It means He’s not a hands-off God by any stretch of the imagination. He works in providential ways in the affairs of humans, providing aid, deliverance, and victory. Divine intervention can take the form of God using any part of His creation to accomplish His will, or it can take the form of a jaw-dropping miracle as God acts outside of the constraints of the natural world.  We need to know who God is so that we are able to trust His character and power when times are hard. He is all-knowing. All-powerful. Everywhere-present. Sovereign. Faithful. Gracious. Merciful. Just. Longsuffering. Unchanging. Loving. …and all the other attributes that make Him God.  Stability comes from knowing that nothing touches us without first having been filtered through the hands of the Most High God of heaven and earth – our Abba – the Good Shepherd who holds us tenderly in His care (Psalm 23; Psalm 121; Psalm 103). I love how God describes His dominion, power, authority, and care over all things in Job 38:1-42:6. His Word is filled with accounts of His mighty works.

God calls Himself a rock, fortress, refuge, and stronghold (Psalm 18:1-3,31). He promises never to leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6). He inclines His ear to us (Psalm 116:1-2). He invites us to cast all our anxieties on Him because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7; Psalm 55:22).  “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea” (Psalm 46:1-2; Psalm 59:16-17).  “Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people from this time forth and forever” (Psalm 125:1-2).  How’s that for stability. God can and regularly does deliver us, whether by calming the choppy seas, or by reassuring us that He’s in the boat with us as the wind and waves roar (Matthew 8:23-27; Jeremiah 31:25; Zephaniah 3:17).

David was intimately familiar with crying out to the Lord in his distresses, wrestling through hard things with the Father, and trusting Him for His wealth of salvation.  David concludes Psalm 27 with sound advice for you and me: “Wait for the Lord. Be strong and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord.” The Hebrew word for wait (qavah) doesn’t suggest total inertia. No, interestingly, it means to gather or bind together; to collect. It means to fully trust the Lord to gather up the pieces of our lives and bind them together with His power and divine plan. That’s why our hearts can take courage. There is great strength in that kind of expectant qavah-ing. “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts You. Trust in the Lord forever, for in God the Lord we have an everlasting Rock” (Isaiah 26:3-4; Proverbs 18:10). 

God “is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20). Whether altering our conditions or shaping our hearts, God is always actively at work in our lives. He is for us, not against us (Romans 8:28-31). We can give Him our Goliaths, relinquish our Red Seas, surrender our sorrows.  “But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord. I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in Your hand” (Psalm 31:14-15). 

“The fear of the Lord is his treasure”

Whether it’s a personal crisis, a political mess, a natural disaster, or just day-to-day life, Yahweh is our sure foundation. Fearing the Lord – revering Him, trusting Him, anchoring ourselves to Him – is our “treasure” because by it we gain access to His wealth of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge (Proverbs 9:10; Psalm 33:18; Psalm 34:7; Psalm 85:9; Psalm 103:11; Psalm 103:13; Psalm 147:11). 

As we ride out these last days before Jesus comes again, let’s praise Him for being our steadfast security and our rock-solid hope in a world that is perishing. “Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust and not be afraid” (Isaiah 12:2). 

He is the stability of our times.