Thursday - Isaiah 54 - Forsaken for a Moment

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HEN the Lord Jesus Christ hung on the cross, He made only 7 statements that are recorded for us in the gospels. Perhaps the most shocking of them all was His cry to His Father, "Why have You forsaken me?" The very idea of the infinite Son of God asking His Father a "why" question seems strange. But, when the Father did turn His back to the cross, was the forsakenness of the Son permanent, or even long term? From our perspective? No! The separation was only temporary (Isaiah 54:7). This is not intended to belittle the significance of His sacrifice. The infinite Son of God endured the equivalent of the eternal damnation of billions of souls in just a few hours. His agony was immeasurable (Mark 15:34).

But in Isaiah 54, we are reminded unmistakably that Israel's troubles are but temporary.  They will yet be the servants of Jehovah and of His Christ. They will yet receive His righteousness by faith unto their justification. The day will come when the Jews will be a majority, not a minority (Isaiah 54:3). Their past misery will be eclipsed and forgotten (Isaiah 54:4). The mercies of God will bring about unmeasured, unrivaled success in Israel (Isaiah 54:7-8). God's wrath and rebuke will be exchanged forever for a covenant of kindness (Isaiah 54:9-10). Affliction will give way to affection (Isaiah 54:11).  Knowledge, peace and righteousness will take the place of oppression, fear and terror (Isaiah 54:13-14). Someday, God will never again allow any threat to arise against His people, the Jews.