The One Who Formed You [Isaiah 43-44]

24Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb,
         "I, the LORD, am the maker of all things,
         Stretching out the heavens by Myself
         And spreading out the earth all alone,
    25Causing the omens of boasters to fail,
         Making fools out of diviners,
         Causing wise men to draw back
         And turning their knowledge into foolishness,
    26Confirming the word of His servant
         And performing the purpose of His messengers
         It is I who says of Jerusalem, 'She shall be inhabited!'
         And of the cities of Judah, 'They shall be built.'
         And I will raise up her ruins again.
    27"It is I who says to the depth of the sea, 'Be dried up!'
         And I will make your rivers dry.
    28"It is I who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd!
         And he will perform all My desire '
         And he declares of Jerusalem, 'She will be built,'
         And of the temple, 'Your foundation will be laid.'"

Isaiah reminds me of a roller coaster ride. You begin slowly ascending a steep climb to the top where the entire landscape provides a breathtaking view. Then, with little warning, your breath is literally squeezed out of you as the coaster dives nearly straight down, then suddenly jerks around one corner after another covering all sorts of territory high and low, but it's all a blur until you find yourself slowing down to a stop. I have read through Isaiah many times through the years and every time I get to the end, I feel a lot like I just finished riding a roller coaster again! However, each year, I do find new things to ponder and consider even in the blur of it all. Isaiah is fertile with descriptives of God's character. And if we continue to read it just looking at Him, we will walk away satisfied and richer for it.

The Isaiah passage above always blesses me because it reminds me that God is the God over all history. He knows what is going to happen and with whom it will happen. In this case, God named Cyrus as the one to send the remnant captured by the Babylonians 70 years earlier back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and the city. The startling part is that Isaiah wrote these words 175 years before this actually happened. When Isaiah wrote these words, Jerusalem was still a city on a hill with a temple, a strong wall and lots of people. The Babylonians weren't even a threat at that time, Assyria was. Cyrus wasn't born and wouldn't be for a long time. However, God did, 175 years later, form Cyrus in his mother's womb and grew him to be a powerful ruler in the Medo-Persian Kingdom along with Darius. By then, the Assyrians had been conquered by the Babylonians. Then, Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and took the people captive in Babylon. After that, the Babylonians were conquered by the Medo-Persians. Finally,Cyrus, became a king in that kingdom and did allow the captives to return to rebuild Jerusalem. He even provided the materials for the people to rebuild!

We praise You, God, that You are the God over all history and for the many ways You show that to us in Your Word through the prophecies and their fulfillment. Cause us to surrender our doubts concerning Your Sovereignty and to trust that You are totally in control and that You formed us and You love us.

Beth Warlick, 11/21/2009