Contemplative Bible Reading

Isaiah 40: (New Living Translation)

1 “Comfort, comfort my people,”
says your God.
2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem.
Tell her that her sad days are gone
and her sins are pardoned.
Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over
for all her sins.”

3 Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting,
“Clear the way through the wilderness
for the Lord!
Make a straight highway through the wasteland
for our God!
4 Fill in the valleys,
and level the mountains and hills.
Straighten the curves,
and smooth out the rough places.
5  Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!”

The glory of the Lord will be revealed. The Savior is coming. Prepare everything. The time of punishment is over.

It was all predicted. How did the world react? Not so good. Those stupid people. Hmm, they acted just the same way we would act today. Not much improvement over a few thousand years of civilization or however we describe ourselves.

Notice that the Lord is coming from the wilderness. Why? Why not from Manhattan? And where is “the wilderness” today? How would we recognize someone coming from that place? Lots of questions, few answers. I guess that shows how much “smarter” God is.