Isaiah 26

Isaiah 26:1

THE KINGDOMThis is their prospect. In that day this song will be sung in Judah. They don’t have this song today, friend. It is obvious that the present return to Israel is not a fulfillment of prophecy.

Isaiah 26:9

“With my soul have I desired thee in the night.” I wonder if you and I recognize the great need for communion with Christ. In the little book of the Song of Solomon, the bride said, “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth …” (Son_1:2). That was the kiss of pardon and of peace and of passion. Then the bride, recognizing that she can’t rise to the heights she desires, says, “Draw me, we will run after thee …” (Son_1:4). Isaiah is expressing the same thought here. “With my soul have I desired thee in the night.” My friend, do we have that passion for God? I hear a lot of pseudo-love today and a smattering of spirituality.

I see people pretending to be pious and hear them quoting platitudes. I get tired of hearing, “Oh, I love the Lord, and I want to serve Him.” My friend, when you lie on your bed at night, do you have a desire for God? Do you really want Him? Do you have a real passion for Him? Are you able to say, “Draw me, and I will run after thee”? In the time of the Millennium they will be saying, “With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early.” I confess that many times I find myself running from Him. I find myself running ahead of Him, out of His will, and then the tensions come. I am frustrated, and I say, “Oh, I’ve left Him. I’ve gotten away from Him. I am not close to Him.” I don’t see many people crying out for God today. I don’t mean to be critical, but I don’t see much of it today, and when I do detect it, what a blessing it is to my own heart.

Isaiah 26:16

In the past the remnant turned in prayer to God. Now they go back in retrospect to those difficult days:

Isaiah 26:17

In the Great Tribulation the nation Israel was like a woman in childbirth, so great was their suffering. The prophet is now looking back over that period (which is yet future). He saw it from the other side of the river of time.

Isaiah 26:18

“We have as it were brought forth wind"that is, the suffering produced no fruitful results. This period did not change the heart of the wicked. They continued to blaspheme the God of heaven. Today the suffering that comes to you, like a birth pang, will either bring forth something worthwhile, or it can just be wind. I am afraid many of us have suffered for nothing, simply because we do not see that all things work together for the glory of God. Remember that Isaiah is talking about the coming Millennium, and we could be living in a state similar to the Millennium if we would only seek Him early.

Isaiah 26:19

Chapter 27 concludes the threefold song of the coming of the Kingdom which we have in chapters 25-27.