Isaiah 30:15 - We Need To Repent And Rest in God Placing Our Full Confidence And Trust In..
Isa.30:15; We Need To Repent And Rest in God Placing Our Full
Confidence And Trust In Him.
CONTENT; What's in the verse; Translations; Paraphrase; Word
Study:
Isa 30:15 (AMP) For thus said the Lord God, the Holy one of
Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in
quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you
would not,
Isa 30:15 (TLB) For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, says:
"Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved; in
quietness and confidence is your strength"; but you'll have none of this.
CONTEXT; What's around the verse; Overview; Topic:
Overview
Isaiah condemned Judah's decision to rebel against Assyria and
make a treaty with Egypt. That treaty was a covenant with death
(28:1-29), and God's unresponsive people would suffer humiliation
(29:1-24). Plans made without consulting God will fail (30:1-31:9), yet
God's plan to establish a righteous kingdom will succeed (32:1-20). In
His time God will arise. Jerusalem will again experience peace
(33:1-24). [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary]
30:1-33
In the previous chapter, Isaiah denounces those who seek human
support, instead of depending on the Lord. In chs. 30 and 31, Isaiah
addresses the specific folly of depending on Egypt. This woe oracle
consists of a condemnation of dependence on Egypt (vv. 1-17) and a
promise that the Lord will save Israel and destroy Assyria (vv. 18-33).
[Nelson SB]
30:1-17
This section reflects the existence of a pro-Egyptian party in
Hezekiah's court. God warned that true deliverance was not to be found in
Egypt but in the security of his own person. Zoan (better known today
as Tanis) is located in the northeast region of the Nile Delta.
Hanes (known today as Ahnas) is located west of the Nile about
fifty-five miles south of Memphis. [New Bible Companion]
Judah Should Trust the LORD, Not Egypt
A Rebellious People (30:8-17)
CROSS REFERENCES; What's in verses elsewhere.
Jeremiah 3:22-23 (KJV) Return, ye backsliding children, and I
will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art
the Lord our God. [23] Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the
hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God
is the salvation of Israel.
John 5:40 (KJV) And ye will not come to me, that ye might have
life.
COMMENTARY / APPLICATION: Moving From The Head To The Heart
What is God teaching here? What does it teach about Jesus?
The leaders of Israel were not men of faith. They were men of
sight. With trouble approaching them from the Assyrian power, their
sight convinced them that there was safety in Egypt and her swift
horses. God, through the prophet Isaiah, was showing them that the way
of deliverance sought by them was wrong. Their strength was not to
be found in themselves or in Egypt. Salvation was to be found
through faith in God. By returning to him and resting in him, they would
find safety. A quiet, patient trust in their God would make them
strong. When danger threatens, it is difficult to abstain from using
one's own strength. It is most difficult to maintain inward composure
and not trust in externals. But true faith is a confidence which
casts every concern upon the Lord. One is strongest when reliance is
greatest in the Lord. [Daily Devotional Bible]
Our work is an important part of our identity. We have a
legitimate need to contribute and to feel competent. Too often, however,
this legitimate need is distorted by a compulsion to work. We work
and work and work because we want to prove ourselves. When our
identity and value are primarily wrapped up in our productivity, it
provides us with an appearance of strength. But this strength does not go
deep - it is only a matter of appearances. The more we achieve or
produce, the more anxious we become. We wonder when it will all come
crashing down. We wonder when we will be found out.
This verse suggests that strength comes from other sources. The
most surprising suggestion is that salvation comes from rest and
strength comes from quietness. Why would quietness and rest be so
important?
Salvation is not possible when we are in charge because we are
not the Messiah. We cannot save the world. We cannot even save
ourselves. When we rest, we are forced to abandon our messianic illusions.
When we rest we accept our place as creatures in need of being saved
by someone with power greater than our own. When we do this,
repentance comes and salvation is possible.
Quietness has a similar effect. We cannot hear what God has to
say when our lives are full of noise. The frenzy of life can drown
out his voice. But when we rest, we can hear him again. And it is
his words of love that can make us strong. [Life Recovery Devotional
SB]
In moments of crisis, where do you turn? To your friends? To
your family? To your investment counselor? To yourself?
The answer to that question will in large measure determine how
well you handle the crisis. If you turn to yourself, you'll find that
you run out of wisdom and strength long before you run out of
problem! Put your trust in other people and you will quickly learn their
resources are just as limited as your own!
God warned Judah not to turn to Egypt for assistance against the
approaching Assyrian threat. Why? "For Egypt's promises are worthless"
(30:7). To put your trust in human resources - regardless of the
numerical superiority - is to lean on a shaky crutch indeed. But it's
always safe to lean on the Lord.
On a three-by-five card write these words from 30:15 - "Only in
returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved; in quietness and
confidence is your strength." Jesus Christ is not a crutch; he is the very
ground to walk upon! Carry your "crisis card" with you throughout the
day; pull it out and read it often. And on the back, record any
special ways in which God answers your prayers for confidence in the
midst of your problem. You'll find that Jesus is the Christ for every
crisis! [Daily Walk Bible]
A Hiding Place
Every man and woman needs a hiding-place. You say a hiding-place
from what? ...
First of all, every one of us needs a hiding-place from the
accusations of our own conscience. Every man and woman here ... has a
conscience, and ... has sinned against their conscience....
In the second place, we need a hiding-place from the power of
sin within ourselves. Now every man and woman here ... who know
themselves at all well know that there are powers of evil resident within
themselves which are more than they can master in their strength....
In the third place, we need a hiding-place from the power of the
devil.... more than a match for you and me....
In the fourth place, we need a hiding-place from the wrath to
come. There are a great many people who do not believe that there is
"a wrath to come." I do. Why? ... Because the Old Book says so....
Is there a hiding-place? ... [According to the text] a man shall
be ... the God-man, Jesus Christ. by R. A. Torrey [Spirit Filled
Life Devotional SB re Isa.32:2]
Place a check next to each of the following calamities you have
experienced in your lifetime:
_______ Sat in a chair that collapsed under your weight.
_______ Had a flat tire on a busy street.
_______ Loaned something of value and had it lost or damaged.
_______ Set the alarm clock for 6 A.M., and it rang at 8 A.M.!
What do these traumas in everyday life have in common? They are
all examples of misplaced confidence. You put your trust in an
object (such as a chair or a tire or an alarm clock) and it let you
down. Or you relied on another person who failed you.
Isaiah warned both Ephraim and Ariel, "Don't put your trust in
the armies of Egypt, for they will fail you. Put your trust in the
Lord of hosts, for He will never fail you nor forsake you." Heedless
of the prophet's warnings, the nations misplaced their trust - and
felt the sting of God's discipline.
Are you in danger of doing the same? See if you can complete
this sentence in 10 different ways: "Today, I am trusting God for.....
" If you have difficulty coming up with 10 endings to that
sentence, perhaps a good deal of your trust is in untrustworthy objects
and people. What needs to change in order to make God the One you
lean upon? [Your Daily Walk SB]
No amount of fast talking or hasty activity could speed up God's
grand design. We have nothing to say to God but thank you. Salvation
comes from God alone. Because he has saved us, we can trust him and be
peacefully confident that he will give us strength to face our
difficulties. We should lay aside our busy care and endless effort and allow
him to act. [Life Application SB]
Those who desire to labor with God have need of His Spirit every
day; they need to walk and labor in meekness and humility of spirit,
without seeking to accomplish extraordinary things, satisfied to do the
work before them and doing it faithfully. Men may not see or
appreciate their efforts, but the names of these faithful children of God
are written in heaven among His noblest workers, 4BC1144
A life in Christ is a life of restfulness. There may be no
ecstasy of feeling, but there should be an abiding, peaceful trust. Your
hope is not in yourself; it is in Christ. Your weakness is united to
His strength, your ignorance to His wisdom, your frailty to His
enduring might. So you are not to look to yourself, not to let the mind
dwell upon self, but look to Christ. Let the mind dwell upon His love,
upon the beauty, the perfection, of His character. Christ in His
self-denial, Christ in His humiliation, Christ in His purity and holiness,
Christ in His matchless love --this is the subject for the soul's
contemplation. It is by loving Him, copying Him, depending wholly upon Him,
that you are to be transformed into His likeness.
Jesus says, "Abide in Me." These words convey the idea of rest,
stability, confidence. Again He invites,"Come unto Me, . . . and I will
give you rest." Matthew 11:28. The words of the psalmist express the
same thought: "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him." And
Isaiah gives the assurance, "In quietness and in confidence shall be
your strength." Psalm 37:7; Isaiah 30:15. This rest is not found in
inactivity; for in the Saviour's invitation the promise of rest is united
with the call to labor: "Take My yoke upon you: . . . and ye shall
find rest." Matthew 11:29. The heart that rests most fully upon
Christ will be most earnest and active in labor for Him.
When the mind dwells upon self, it is turned away from Christ,
the source of strength and life. Hence it is Satan's constant effort
to keep the attention diverted from the Saviour and thus prevent
the union and communion of the soul with Christ. The pleasures of
the world, life's cares and perplexities and sorrows, the faults of
others, or your own faults and imperfections--to any or all of these he
will seek to divert the mind. Do not be misled by his devices. Many
who are really conscientious, and who desire to live for God, he too
often leads to dwell upon their own faults and weaknesses, and thus by
separating them from Christ he hopes to gain the victory. We should not
make self the center and indulge anxiety and fear as to whether we
shall be saved. All this turns the soul away from the Source of our
strength. Commit the keeping of your soul to God, and trust in Him. Talk
and think of Jesus. Let self be lost in Him. Put away all doubt;
dismiss your fears. Say with the apostle Paul, "I live; yet not I, but
Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for
me." Galatians 2:20. Rest in God. He is able to keep that which you
have committed to Him. If you will leave yourself in His hands, He
will bring you off more than conqueror through Him that has loved
you. SC70-2
"Be not therefore anxious for the morrow. Sufficient unto the
day is the evil thereof." Matthew 6:34, R.V
If you have given yourself to God, to do His work, you have no
need to be anxious for tomorrow. He whose servant you are, knows the
end from the beginning. The events of tomorrow, which are hidden
from your view, are open to the eyes of Him who is omnipotent.
When we take into our hands the management of things with which
we have to do, and depend upon our own wisdom for success, we are
taking a burden which God has not given us, and are trying to bear it
without His aid. We are taking upon ourselves the responsibility that
belongs to God, and thus are really putting ourselves in His place. We
may well have anxiety and anticipate danger and loss, for it is
certain to befall us. But when we really believe that God loves us and
means to do us good we shall cease to worry about the future. We shall
trust God as a child trusts a loving parent. Then our troubles and
torments will disappear, for our will is swallowed up in the will of God.
Christ has given us no promise of help in bearing today the
burdens of tomorrow. He has said, "My grace is sufficient for thee" (2
Corinthians 12:9); but, like the manna given in the wilderness, His grace is
bestowed daily, for the day's need. Like the hosts of Israel in their
pilgrim life, we may find morning by morning the bread of heaven for the
day's supply.
One day alone is ours, and during this day we are to live for
God. For this one day we are to place in the hand of Christ, in
solemn service, all our purposes and plans, casting all our care upon
Him, for He careth for us. "I know the thoughts that I think toward
you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you
an expected end." "In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in
quietness and in confidence shall be your strength." Jeremiah 29:11;
Isaiah 30:15.
If you will seek the Lord and be converted every day; if you
will of your own spiritual choice be free and joyous in God; if with
gladsome consent of heart to His gracious call you come wearing the yoke
of Christ,--the yoke of obedience and service,--all your murmurings
will be stilled, all your difficulties will be removed, all the
perplexing problems that now confront you will be solved. MB100-1
Is there any note in all the music of the world as mighty as the
grand pause? Is there any word in the Psalms more eloquent than the
word "Selah," meaning pause? Is there anything more thrilling and
awe-inspiring than the calm before the crashing of the storm, or the strange
quiet that seems to fall upon nature before some supernatural
phenomenon or disastrous upheaval? And is there anything that can touch our
hearts like the power of stillness?
For the hearts that will cease focusing on themselves, there is
"the peace of God, which transcends all understanding" (Phil.
4:7);"quietness and trust" (Isa. 30:15), which is the source of all strength; a
"great peace" that will never "make them stumble" (Ps. 119:165); and a
deep rest, which the world can never give nor take away. Deep within
the center of the soul is a chamber of peace where God lives and
where, if we will enter it and quiet all the other sounds, we can hear
His "gentle whisper" (1 Kings 19:12).
Even in the fastest wheel that is turning, if you look at the
center, where the axle is found, there is no movement at all. And even
in the busiest life, there is a place where we may dwell alone with
God in eternal stillness. [Streams in the Desert by Cowman re
Psa.46:10]
Your rod and your staff they comfort me. Psa 23:4
At my father's house in the country, there is a little closet
near the chimney, where we keep the canes, or walking sticks, of
several generations of our family. During my visits to the old house, as
my father and I are going out for a walk, we often go to the cane
closet and pick out our sticks to suit the occasion. As we have done
this, I have frequently been reminded that the Word of God is a
staff.
During the war, when we were experiencing a time of
discouragement and impending danger, the verse "He will have no fear of bad
news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD" (Ps. 112:7) was a
staff to walk with on many dark days.
When our child died and we were left nearly brokenhearted, I
found another staff in the promise "Weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning" (Ps. 30:5).
When I was forced to be away from home for a year due to poor
health, not knowing if God would ever allow me to return to my home and
work again, I chose this staff, which has never failed: "For I know
the plans I have for you, . . . plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jer. 29:11).
In times of impending danger or doubt, when human judgment seems
to be of no value, I have found it easy to go forward with this
staff: "In quietness and trust is your strength" (Isa. 30:15).And in
emergencies, when there has been no time for deliberation or for action, this
staff has never failed me: "He that believeth shall not make haste"
(Isa. 28:16 KJV). Abbott Benjamin Vaughan, in The Outlook
Martin Luther's wife said, "I would never have known the meaning
of various psalms, come to appreciate certain difficulties, or
known the inner workings of the soul; I would never have understood
the practice of the Christian life and work, if God had never
brought afflictions to my life." It is quite true that God's rod is like
a schoolteacher's pointer to a child, pointing out a letter so the
child will notice it. In this same way, God points out many valuable
lessons to us that we otherwise would never have learned. selected
[Streams In The Desert By Cowman re Psa.23:4]
The Lord wants human beings to take time to rest, time to think
of and appreciate heavenly things. Those who do not value the
things of heaven sufficiently to give time to them will at last lose
all. 4BC1144
Salvation belongs to those who return to God and surrender to
Him... His people should trust Him and act accordingly. He does not
force them. When they choose to have none of His way, He gives them
freedom to be away from Him. [Disciple SB]
The man caught up with this world is not ready for the next one.
[Your Daily Walk SB]
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