Isaiah 18

When Alex Hayley’s book, ‘Roots’, became a sensational success on television, he was interviewed and asked the secret. His reply was, ”I don’t really know, but I remember something my grandmother told me. She used to say, ‘You never know when the Lord’s going to come, but He’s always on time!’ ”

Verses 4 to 6 lie at the heart of this passage. When we don’t know what to do, God does know what He will do. Instead of fretfully plotting and scheming, let us also ”remain quiet and…look on…” Here is one of the big lessons of the Christian life: learn to wait on and for the Lord. Don’t run ahead of Him, and certainly don’t lag behind Him, but wait for Him. When the time is ripe He will act, and, although it may not seem so to us, He’s always on time. He is unperturbed by the things that bother us. He knows the end from the beginning, and what He will do to put things right. Relinquish those worries to Him today. You may not know how to untie that knot, but God will come through for you as you look to Him.

So, Cush was a large area to the south of Egypt, covering present day Sudan and Ethiopia, and the river Nile ran through it. It was ”the land of whirring wings” because of its numerous insects (or its mighty armies.). We need to understand that its leaders had sent envoys to various nations, including Judah, with the intention of trying to form an alliance against Assyria (1, 2). However, Isaiah tells the envoys to return to where they came from (2), and carry the message that the Lord Himself will lead the fight against the Assyrians. But the message is not only for Cush; it is for all the ”people of the world” (3), meaning, in this case, the nations of the Middle East. There is coming a time when a ”banner” will be raised and a ”trumpet” will sound, and the nations will be called together to fight Assyria. But this will be according to God’s timetable, not man’s, and when it happens, they who once preyed on others will themselves become the prey(6). The passage ends with a wonderful promise that the people of Cush will one day come to worship God at the temple in Jerusalem, the place where the Lord has put His ”Name” (Deut. 12:5). They will see for themselves that the Lord God of Israel is more powerful than all the nations of the world, and they will come to honour Him. (See 2:3; 11:10; chapters 60 – 62; Pss.68:31-35; 87:4. There is a world vision in the Bible that sees people coming to Israel’s God from all over the globe.)

”Is not this a marvellous conception of God – being still and watching? His stillness is not acquiescence. His silence is not consent. He is only biding his time, and will arise, in the most opportune moment, and when the designs of the wicked seem on the point of success, to overwhelm them with disaster. As we look out on the evil of the world; as we think of the apparent success of wrongdoing; as we wince beneath the oppression of those that hate us, let us remember these words about God being still and beholding…he was only waiting the moment He could interpose most effectually…He will come to save thee when the precise moment has arrived.” F.B. Meyer: Great verses through the Bible, p.276.

Prayer: Lord God, you know the things that weigh on my mind today. I have no answer to them, but I leave them with you, knowing that you are not puzzled or perplexed, and you have a plan and a timescale for intervention. Knowing this settles me down and brings peace to the troubled waters of my heart.