Isaiah 54:1-5 “Shout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no child; Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed; For the sons of the desolate one will be more numerous Than the sons of the married woman,” says the LORD. 2 “Enlarge the place of your tent; Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your cords And strengthen your pegs. 3 “For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left. And your descendants will possess nations And will resettle the desolate cities. 4 “Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. 5 “For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the LORD of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth.

Isaiah 54:10 “For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not be shaken,” Says the LORD who has compassion on you.

Isaiah 54:17 “No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their vindication is from Me,” declares the LORD.

My reading of this passage is that Israel is the barren woman who will enlarge her tent and become numerous. I suspect this is a reference to the saving work of Jesus (see chapter 53) bring gentiles into God’s family.

The Lord will protect and defend those who are a part of the Lord’s family. We do not need to defend ourselves; rather, we can trust in the Lord to defend.

The Promised Land is divided up into an inheritance for each tribe of Israel. While this chapter is pretty boring in and of itself, it is actually the culmination of all the promises and covenants God has made with the people of Israel going back to the time of Abraham.

“You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

“All the people answered together and said, ‘All that the LORD has spoken we will do!’ And Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD.”

Do we obey God’s voice and keep God’s covenant? That is a question we should ask as individuals, as church communities, and as the church universal.

What does God’s voice say? Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.
The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.

What is God’s covenant? There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeard to him and said…’As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendents after you for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendents after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.”

Oooooooooooouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch! The guy is ninety-nine years old. But seriously…God does require a commitment from us. Are we willing to make a sacrifice for God? Circumcision may not be the sign of the covenant that God is making with us. Maybe our sacrificial sign is moving to a new place. Maybe our sacrificial sign is changing jobs. Maybe our sacrificial sign is entering a ministry that makes us uncomfortable.

If God is entering into a covenant with you, then he will let you know what the sacrificial sign of your covenant is. The nice thing about circumcision is that it’s hard to forget. When God reveals your sacrificial sign be sure to remember it and keep it close to your heart.