Isaiah 55:1-11
Isaiah is a complex book, mostly because it is likely 3 or 4
distinct sections, collected/composed at three very different times and
locations in the life of Israel and Judah. The second part, sometimes called “Second
Isaiah”, includes chapters 40-55 and dates from the Babylonian Captivity,
597-538 BCE. When the people are in exile and don’t know where God is (the temple
has been destroyed, so where can God live?), they long for assurance that God
is still there, still their God, and knows where they are.
“For the prophets, history is not merely a stage for human
actors but is the arena where God guides, warns, challenges, and liberates God’s
chosen people and reaches out to all the peoples of the world.” Lutheran
Study Bible, Introduction to Isaiah, 1092
In this particular section there are words of comfort for
the exiles, and words of hope and promise for a better future. God invites them
to feast on the goodness of God for free. God promises a new covenant with
them, renewing the covenant with Noah and expanding the covenant with David to
include all people. God will bring them
through a new exodus, leading them out of this land of exile and back to the
promised land. Third Isaiah, ch. 55-65, addresses the people after they have
returned to rebuild Jerusalem.
Some very familiar lines are found in this section. One of
my favorites is quoted in a book, Tattoos
on the Heart by Gregory Boyle. He
says, “Your ways are not my ways, says the Lord (v. 8)—but they could be.” In
this new covenant, new exodus, new chance, all are called to the mission to
live in God’s ways.
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