Isaiah 52 (HCSB)
1 “Wake up, wake up; put on your strength, Zion! Put on your beautiful garments, Jerusalem, the Holy City! For the uncircumcised and the unclean will no longer enter you.
2 Stand up, shake the dust off yourself! Take your seat, Jerusalem. Remove the bonds from your neck, captive Daughter Zion.”
3 For this is what the Lord says:
“You were sold for nothing, and you will be redeemed without silver.”
4 For this is what the Lord God says:
“At first My people went down to Egypt to live there, then Assyria oppressed them without cause.
5 So now what have I here”—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
“that My people are taken away for nothing? Its rulers wail”—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
“and My name is continually blasphemed all day long.
6 Therefore My people will know My name; therefore they will know on that day that I am He who says:
Here I am.”
7 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the herald, who proclaims peace, who brings news of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
8 The voices of your watchmen—they lift up their voices, shouting for joy together; for every eye will see when the Lord returns to Zion.
9 Be joyful, rejoice together, you ruins of Jerusalem! For the Lord has comforted His people; He has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has displayed His holy arm in the sight of all the nations; all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
11 Leave, leave, go out from there! Do not touch anything unclean; go out from her, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the Lord.
12 For you will not leave in a hurry, and you will not have to take flight; because the Lord is going before you, and the God of Israel is your rear guard.
The Servant’s Suffering and Exaltation
13 See, My Servant will act wisely; He will be raised and lifted up and greatly exalted.
14 Just as many were appalled at You—His appearance was so disfigured that He did not look like a man, and His form did not resemble a human being—
15 so He will sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut their mouths because of Him, For they will see what had not been told them, and they will understand what they had not heard.
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 13): Father, I have done so many unwise things in my life. Please forgive me of my unwise nature. Help me to understand, depend on, and take action on the wisdom You provide, Father. Help me to be more wise in my walk with Jesus so that I may glorify You in this life.
PROMISE (verses 7-8): You make us a promise that peace, good things, salvation, and joy are to come for Your people in Zion. I am thankful for this promise because it gives hope for the future in a severely broken world in which it’s hard to see a positive future.
ATTITUDE (verse 9): I often default to the negative, sorrowful, hurt attitudes, Father, but You tell us we should be joyful and rejoice together. Help me to embrace a joyful attitude, Father, so I can be filled with joy and rejoice in You.
COMMAND (verses 8-9): You tell us multiple times to be joyful in this Scripture, Father. If you feel the need to repeat Yourself, then You must be giving us an important instruction. Help me to receive so much of Your joy, Father, that it overflows out of me for Your glory. Help me to embrace a joyful lifestyle, Father.
EXAMPLE (verses 13-15): Again, You use Jesus as an example for us to live by, Father. You tell us that throughout His life here on earth, He always acted wisely under Your wisdom, Father. Even through the torture and torment He went through that disfigured Him, He still carried Himself in Your wisdom and Your will. What an amazing testimony of faith, trust, and living in Your wisdom He provides for us, Father. Help me to embrace and live a lifestyle in Your wisdom, Father, and not my own or of this world’s.
*DAILY NOTE: My life is riddled with so many mistakes, Father, yet You have always been faithful to me. You have always been there when I’ve called out to You, even though I have stepped out of Your will for me far too often. Please continue to help me progress properly in this faith walk, Father, so that I may slowly but surely build myself up to be a righteous person for Your glory. A person who knows and walks in Your will and Your ways, Father. Thank You so much for having never-ending faithfulness towards me even though I have failed to return the same faithfulness to You quite often.
*GENERAL NOTE: I always "sandwich" my quiet time with God in prayer and do it in a location that I will not have any distractions so that I can be focused on my quiet time with God. Do not worry about how short or long your journal entries are for that day's quiet time. Just focus on the actual quiet time and relational conversation with God through the Holy Spirit and His Word. The journaling is an enhancement to your quiet time conversation with God, but also to allow you to reflect on things later as you can look back on your journal entries later when you do the chapters again in the future to see how you have grown. See the FAQ for more detail on how I do my quiet time.
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