Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“On that day the Lord of hosts will be a garland of glory,
and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people;
and a spirit of justice to the one who sits in judgement,
and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, April 6, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
“On that day” is big with the prophets. Many speak of “the day of the Lord” when God will come in glory to restore the fortunes of Israel and rule the whole earth in peace and justice. Often the day of the Lord is synonymous with apocalyptic imagery—falling stars, earthquakes, the end of all things—at which point God will sweep in and create all things new. It’s another way of looking at God’s divine rulership, as we have been exploring. Again, the focus is on justice and protection and restoration of an oppressed people. Interestingly, this two-verse passage is dropped seemingly randomly amidst a diatribe against all those Israelites who are living in self-serving ways directly opposed to justice for the oppressed. So this promise of God’s divine rulership isn’t a declaration of the superiority of Israel as a “chosen people” who God will unilaterally restore. It’s a statement of hope for those who are poor and downtrodden by their self-serving countrymen/women.
This text from Isaiah is a beacon of hope for those in my country who live lives diminished by systemic racism, enforced poverty, homophobia, environmental destruction, and a whole host of other oppressions by the status quo. May we all work to make “on that day” today.
Where do I see God’s reign already at work in the world?
