G-d's Bride

[Isa. 58:5] For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
Israel converted is compared to a wife (54:5; 62:5) put away for unfaithfulness, but now forgiven and taken home again. The converted Gentiles are represented as a new offspring of the long-forsaken but now restored wife. The pre-eminence of the Hebrew Church as the mother Church of Messianic is the leading idea; the conversion of the Gentiles is mentioned only as part of her felicity.
The whole chapter is G-d’s restored love for His bride. In ancient Israel, the barren woman carried an enormous load of shame and disgrace. Here, G-d likens captive Israel to a barren woman who can now sing - because now more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman. The children mention are the Gentiles that were adopted by special grace into the original Messianic church (54:3; 49:20, 21). Israel and her children, are distinguished from ‘the Gentiles’, the adopted chidren. They were the married wife’s spiritual children, when Israel was still a married wife (under the Law, before the Babylonian exile), before G-d put her away. (Gal. 4:27), but the full accomplishment of it is yet future.
The Babylonian exile and captivity meant more than oppression for Israel; it meant shame, disgrace, and humiliation. G-d promises a glorious release from not only the exile and captivity, but also from the shame, disgrace, and humiliation. The Hebrew verbs of shame, disgrace, and humiliation are sharing the fundamental idea of disappointed hopes, the embarrassment of expecting - even publicly announcing - one thing and then reaping another.
Not until He manifests Himself as G-d of Israel shall He appear as G-d of the whole earth (Ps 102:13, 15, 16; Zec 14:5, 9).
[17] No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.
Their enemies would "condemn" them, but I justify and vindicate them, and so they condemn their enemies.”
Though Israel might have been regarded as forsaken as a widow, G-d promises to stand in the place of her husband. Through the centuries, many a hurting woman has taken this promise for herself. Forsaken by a husband, or forsaken of a husband, they have found beautiful comfort in the promise that G-d would be a husband to them, when all others forsook them. The principle is true; G-d will supply and meet our emotional needs, and rescue us from our disgrace and shame, when others forsaken us. Not only does G-d supply a husband, but a great one - Himself!
The L-RD G-d can be a greater husband than any man can be. This is something for every single woman to remember; and something no married woman should forget. An earthly husband can never fulfill every need that the great Heavenly Husband can.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

This so wonderful, i have forward this to my twin sister who has been very lonely and i believe it will give her courage.
thank you
with Christ love