June 26, 2026 - Isaiah 1-3

Isaiah spoke to the nation of Judah words of harsh judgment:

“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth;

      for the LORD has spoken:

 Children have I reared and brought up,

      but they have rebelled against me. . . .

 Ah, sinful nation,

      a people laden with iniquity,

      offspring of evildoers,

      children who deal corruptly!

 They have forsaken the LORD,

      they have despised the Holy One of Israel,

      they are utterly estranged” (1:2-4).

But Isaiah also spoke these well-known words:

“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD:

      though your sins are like scarlet,

      they shall be as white as snow;

      though they are red like crimson,

      they shall become like wool” (1:18)

Is it possible for us ever to cease being amazed at God’s great mercy and how he forgives over and over again?

Come, sinners, saith the mighty God,

Heinous as all your crimes have been,

Lo! I descend from mine abode,

To reason with the sons of men.

No clouds of darkness veil my face,

No fearful lightnings flash around;

I come with words of life and peace:

Where sin hath reigned, let grace abound.   -- Samuel Stennett (1790)