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"? 28 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. 29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 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. (Isaiah 40:27-31 ESV)

Lectionary Epiphany 5B Isaiah 40:21-31

With poetic beauty, Isaiah proclaims that the God who created and sustains the universe has a strength beyond comprehension. If the people of God are in tough straits, it's not because is weak, tired or overwhelmed by events. While human effort always exhausts itself, God renews the strength of the weary.

Of course, this is not merely an abstract thought for Isaiah. Those wearied by oppression and exile in Babylon are about to find their strength renewed in freedom and return to their homeland. God's arm will set them free and God will empower his people for the long journey home.

This prosaic summary of Isaiah's ideas themes, though, misses something important. The words themselves - their artistry and beauty - convey the power of hope to a people in exile. Isaiah's words themselves are a partial fulfillment of his prophecy. His words bear the power they describe.

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