>>>
Isaiah 30:15 - Finding Rest and Strength.

Isaiah 30:15 - Finding Rest and Strength.

Isaiah 30:15 (TNIV)  This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy 
One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in 
quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. 

Isaiah 30:15 (NLT) This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One 
of Israel, says: "Only in returning to me and resting in me will 
you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you 
would have none of it.  

Isaiah 30:15 (GWT)  This is what the Almighty Lord, the Holy One 
of Israel, says: You can be saved by returning to me. You can have 
rest. You can be strong by being quiet and by trusting me. But you 
don't want that.  

Isaiah 30:15 (MSG) God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this 
solemn counsel: "Your salvation requires you to turn back to me and 
stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come 
from settling down in complete dependence on me-- The very thing 
you've been unwilling to do.  

CONTEXT

Woes: Isaiah 28:1-31:9.
A Warning for Rebellious Judah: Isaiah 30:8-17.
Judah Should Trust the LORD, Not Egypt: Isaiah 30:1-18.

  When Assyria threatened Judah, the leaders did not immediately 
turn to God for help but trusted in diplomacy. Their ambassadors went 
through dangerous territory (30:6-7) to go to Egypt, but Egypt could not 
help Judah. Egypt was as helpful as a shadow (30:1-5), a wall about 
to fall down (30:12-13), or a broken clay vessel (30:14). The 
Egyptians were only men, not God (31:1-3). Are you trusting things that 
cannot help you while the Lord waits for you to come to Him for help 
(30:15, 18)? 
  Those who wait on the Lord for help will experience blessings, 
such as answered prayer (30:18-19), God's guidance (30:20-21), 
cleansing (30:22), fruitfulness (30:23-26), victory (30:27-33; 31:4-9), 
and a song (30:29). 
  The horses of Egypt can never take the place of the chariots 
of God (Ps. 20:7-8). [Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary by Warren 
Wiersbe re Isa. 30 and 31] 

COMMENTARY APPLICATION

Quiet Confidence
  This verse describes the revealed heart of God toward 
humanity: "Return to me" was always God's heart toward his people even 
when they were in rebellion and were rejecting his call to come under 
the shelter of his wings. Despite the hardened condition of the 
people's hearts at the time Isaiah penned these verses, God declared this 
to be his desire - to receive the penitent, to extend salvation to 
them, and to grant them rest, quietness, and strength. What a shining 
promise to us today! Wherever we are in life, whatever mess we have made 
of things, or however bleak the outlook, God calls to us, "Return 
to me!" He knows that only in him can we find true rest for our 
souls as we live in this hectic world. He calls us to repentance so 
that we can experience his salvation. He calls to us to be quiet, 
still, and confident in him so that we can experience his strength. 
  Oh, LORD, thank you for always calling me to return to you. My 
desire is to walk in harmony with you. But sometimes I become distant 
from you. Even then, I know that you haven't distanced yourself from 
me. You are ever waiting for me to return, to repent, and to find 
rest in you. [Praying Through The Bible By Fuller] 

Pretending Spirituality
  When it comes to living my life, I tend to be a bit driven. 
For a long time I didn't have a clue what was driving me. I 
pretended that it was God, and indeed, my "public self" looked quite 
spiritual. To family and friends, I appeared to be deeply devoted to 
ministry work, but the truth was, I had become anxious, tired, and 
resentful. With me at the wheel, my "calling" resembled a long, hard drive, 
and I was ready to quit. 
  God wanted me to quit too. He wanted me to quit feeding the 
deception that he doesn't provide rest, quit displacing quiet time for 
frenetic attempts to "get it all under control," quit trying to buy 
others' approval by (subtly) letting them know how busy and disciplined 
I was, and quit buying into my own suspicions that God requires 
exhaustion and I'm a lousy Christian if I can't keep up the pace. I'm so 
grateful that he is patient; I think I would've worn out a lesser god 
long ago. 
  Now that God has directed me to Isaiah 30:15, I find myself in 
an attitude of repentance all the time. God shows me where to find 
rest just as surely as he provides my daily bread. When I quiet down 
long enough to remember how trustworthy he is, I receive strength. He 
continues to save me from myself and gives me confidence to let go of the 
wheel and enjoy the ride. 
  Maureen Thrash is cochair of the Monterey Bay chapter of Women 
of Vision, a volunteer arm of World Vision International. The 
chapter works in community partnership with a village in Malawi, Africa, 
an area hit hard by the AIDS pandemic. [The One Year Bible Live 
Verse Devotional] 

SOME FINAL THOUGHTS

God asks us to work hard for His kingdom (1 Thess. 5:12), but He 
never instructs us to strive for anything apart from the empowering of 
His Spirit. Dependence upon Him leads to a quiet, confident spirit. 
[Life Principles SB By Charles Stanley] 

Is not prayer precisely of itself peace, silence, strength, 
since it is a way of being with God? Jacques Ellul (1912-1994)  

www.aBible.com