For weeks, maybe even months, Isaiah 40:5 has been stuck in my head. I'm sure practicing and singing a portion of Handel's Messiah for our church's Christmas cantata has something to do with it, but while I rejoice in the birth of the Messiah, I treasure the promise that Isaiah's prophecies will be made complete in Christ's return, and this verse whispers wonders to my soul that I can only begin to grasp.
Often, I think, when we look forward to that day, we inadvertently miss the bigger picture. Daily faced with this world's imperfections, we await the "new heaven and new earth" (Revelation 21:1). Cares and struggles make us eager for the day when there will be "no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying," or pain (Rev. 21:4). When are weary, we are reassured that He has promised to reward us when He returns (Rev. 22:12), and we take comfort in knowing that someday, "God will wipe away every tear" (Rev. 7:17).
While all of these things are wonderfully true, when we dwell only on those things that speak to our temporal concerns, we miss the best part: "The glory of the LORD shall be revealed..." Can you imagine it? The glory of He who "has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand" (Isaiah 40:12) and who "stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in" (Isaiah 40:22). The glory of the LORD who is the "everlasting God" who "neither faints or is weary" and whose "understanding is unsearchable" (Isaiah 40:28). The glory of the "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS" (Rev. 19:16) shall be revealed, and "all flesh shall see it together" (Isaiah 40:5).
I can't imagine it, not really. It's too big for my human mind to understand. But something deep within me does understand, and my spirit literally dances in anticipation for the day when "all flesh shall see it together." Until then, we wait in confident expectation for this wondrous gift, certain it awaits us because "the mouth of the LORD has spoken it" (Isaiah 40:5).
