Bible ReadingIsaiah 40:1-31 “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins. A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’ A voice says, ‘Cry!’ And I said, ‘What shall I cry?’ All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.’ Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold your God!’ Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens with a span, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance? Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or what man shows him his counsel? Whom did he consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding? Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales; behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust. Lebanon would not suffice for fuel, nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering. All the nations are as nothing before him; they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness. To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? An idol! A craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains. He who is too impoverished for an offering chooses wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skillful craftsman to set up an idol that will not move. Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power, not one is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God’? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
[34:42]Isaiah 39:5-8 “Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ‘Hear the word of the Lord of hosts: Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord. And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ‘The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.’ For he thought, ‘There will be peace and security in my days.’”
[43:01]Hebrews 12:5-6 “And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? ‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.’”
[49:24]Psalm 23:1-6 “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
[01:12:00]Observation questions- In Isaiah 40, what are the three different voices announcing, and what does each one say about God or people? [53:09]
- In Isaiah 40:10-11, what two pictures are placed side by side when God comes—one of power and one of care?
- In Isaiah 40:12-26, what repeated images show how different God is from nations, rulers, and idols? [01:05:00]
- In Isaiah 39:5-8, what does Hezekiah seem to care about most when he hears that Babylon will one day carry Judah away? [43:01]
Interpretation questions- Isaiah 40 begins with comfort after exile and discipline. What does that suggest about the difference between God’s discipline and God abandoning his people? [46:52]
- Isaiah says that all flesh is grass, but the word of God stands forever. How does that speak to the temptation to trust human strength, stability, or leadership? [55:48]
- “Behold your God” is followed by the picture of a mighty ruler and a gentle shepherd. Why is it important to hold both of those truths together when thinking about who God is? [56:57]
- Isaiah 40:31 says that waiting for the Lord brings renewed strength. If waiting means active trust and continued obedience, how does that change the way a person thinks about seasons of delay, weakness, or confusion? [01:10:13]
Application questions- When life feels unsteady, what is the first “structure” usually leaned on for safety—control, money, approval, planning, strength, something else? What might it look like to trust God there instead? [01:10:53]
- There are many voices competing for attention—fear, pride, panic, comfort, self-protection. Which voice has been the loudest lately, and how can greater attention be given to the voice that says, “Behold your God”? [58:59]
- Hezekiah was relieved that there would be “peace in my time.” Where is there a temptation to settle for short-term comfort instead of long-term faithfulness? [43:49]
- Some hardships are the result of sin, and some are part of God’s training. Is there a hard situation right now that may need to be received not as proof that God is done, but as a place where he is still at work? [49:24]
- Isaiah answers discouragement by pointing to the greatness of God. What specific habit could help someone meditate on God’s grandeur this week—slow Bible reading, prayer, going outside, singing, journaling, or something else? [01:05:20]
- “Those who wait for the Lord” keep living under God’s instruction while expecting him to act. In one current situation, what would active waiting actually look like over the next few days? [01:09:53]
- God is the shepherd king who gathers lambs in his arms and gently leads the weak. Where is weariness, fear, or weakness most deeply felt right now, and what would it mean to let God shepherd that part of life? [57:31]
