Isaiah 56:1-8 (NIV)

Read by: Javelin Lewis

Today’s passage really moves us into the global picture of restoration the LORD has in mind. In fact, he has always had it in mind, as we’ve seen throughout Isaiah, but now it’s beginning to take shape in (as one writer puts it) “the marks of a redeemed community.” He says that God’s people are those who are following in the footsteps of The Servant, listening to the LORD, growing in wisdom, choosing to go His way and not our own way. And this kind of redeemed community will be known by two things: Justice and Openness. No one who is willing to follow the Servant is to be excluded from this new family, and everyone should be treated fairly. Remember, a big part of Israel’s trouble was that they had become marked by injustice and exclusivity. Their religion had been separated from living rightly, and their embrace of outsiders was virtually nonexistent. But the LORD’s Servant brought these qualities back together, embodying in his life, his suffering, and his sacrifice both God’s justice and his desire for the whole earth to know him. The Servant is God’s perfect human partner, and he made a way for everyone to serve the LORD with him.

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1. What words or phrases caught your attention?

2. There’s a beautiful echo in today’s reading of the barren woman from chapter 54. The desolate woman would have “more children than her who has a husband,” and the eunuch will have an everlasting name. It’s about honor in place of shame, and security in the family of God, regardless of your sexual identity or parental or marital status. It’s about faithfulness to Jesus. How does this idea challenge your ideas of blessing and honor in our culture?

3. The church today is no stranger to the separation of our religion from justice. We have a deep history of living a disembodied faith. In what ways might God be calling you to bear his image in every area of your life? At work? In your social life? In your community? Ask him for wisdom to live a life of integrity, embodying justice and openness in your whole life.

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Bible Project: Isaiah 40-66 >>

BP Exploring My Strange Bible Podcast: The Meaning of Hope >>

InterVarsity Press Selections: Isaiah >>

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