Isaiah 52:1-6 – Jehovah Delivers His People
Israel, here in this portion of Isaiah, is pictured like a woman sprawled out on the ground, all muddy and torn and just rather lying there. God is saying, ‘Wake up because I have hope for you, and I will make a big change here.’ Now, the state in which God’s people are when He calls them to awake is that of bondage. They’ve been in bondage to conquerors. And they are and shall be in bondage to that greatest and cruelest of masters, sin. But the new state to which Jehovah calls them is that of beauty and of being lifted up. They are weak when He calls them. But He gives them strength instead of that weakness. They’re lying there in the dust. But He gives to them robes of splendor to wear. They have had too much of the unclean being among them and leading them off into sin. But now they are Jerusalem, the holy city, and that holiness is a gift of God. We see here that God has done it all.
In verse 3, they had sold themselves for nothing. They thought they were getting great gain by selling themselves off, by estranging themselves from their God, but they got nothing. Sin will promise you so much, but it’s worth nothing. God delivers them without any money. In fact, the deliverance that we need, and the deliverance that any sinner needs, is far beyond the price of money. There is not enough money in the universe to buy back one soul. For God, the price was almost unbelievably high. To rescue His people, He determined that He must give His own Son, Who died that His people might live. But for His people, what is the price that they pay? They can do nothing. They have nothing. In fact, they owe everything. How can they be right with God? Only through Jesus, Who makes the payment at the cross.
Jehovah graciously promises other deliverance as well. In verse 4 He speaks of deliverance from foreign lands. We see that these foolish enemies in verse 5 are ones who do all kinds of terrible things. When people in high places bring the people of God to wail, and when they begin to talk reproachfully about the living and true God, God pays attention, and God works revenge. In verse 6 we have the greatest promise. The people shall know God not merely about God. They shall find their joy and fulfillment in Him. They shall see every one of His promises coming true.
Questions
- What does sin promise?
- What was the price of your salvation?
Prayer Points
- Pray for the salvation of family and friends.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.