“But now listen, Jacob, my servant,
    Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 This is what the Lord says—
    he who made you, who formed you in the womb,
    and who will help you:
Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant,
    Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
    and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring,
    and my blessing on your descendants.
4 They will spring up like grass in a meadow,
    like poplar trees by flowing streams.
5 Some will say, ‘I belong to the Lord’;
    others will call themselves by the name of Jacob;
still others will write on their hand, ‘The Lord’s,’
    and will take the name Israel.

Just one further thought on this glorious passage. It comes from Barry Webb’s commentary on Isaiah in ‘The Bible Speaks Today’ series (p.180):

‘All this, of course, is exactly what was promised to Abraham: a great name, many descendants, blessing overflowing to all the families of the earth. How remote the fulfilment of that promise must have seemed to the small, humiliated remnant in Babylon. The purpose of this passage is to remind them, when they had reached the depths of that bitter experience, that God had not forgotten his promise to Abraham, or with drawn his call from their descendants. Beyond the dark days of exile they would flourish again and become the blessing to the nations that he had always intended them to be. The final word of encouragement to Israel rests upon the bedrock of God’s faithfulness, and strongly reaffirms his commitment to fulfilling his promises to them and through them. There would be many twists and turns in the road ahead, but it would not be a dead end. All God’s promises would eventually find their resounding ‘Yes’ and ‘Amen’ in Christ, to the glory of God.’

(See Gen.12:1-3; 2 Cor.1:20).

Writing a diary piece in last week’s ‘Spectator’, Richard Dawkins wrote:

‘If anyone merits a good biography, it’s Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Her autobiography, Infidel, chronicles her extraordinary life, from childhood in the Islamic hell (for women) of Somalia, her escape to the Netherlands where she swiftly learned Dutch and became an MP; then the all-too-credible threat from the jihadist murderer of her colleague Theo van Gogh, in a note pinned with a dagger to his corpse. After moving to America, this valiant, charming intellectual warrior became a stalwart of the atheist movement, on a par with Christopher Hitchens, Dan Dennett and Sam Harris. But now, in an astonishing volte-face, she has announced her conversion to Christianity. Imagine the Pope suddenly becoming an atheist – or, worse, an Orangeman – and you’ll get an idea of the fluttering in atheistic dovecotes caused by Ayaan’s tergiversation.”

Although, in the next paragraph, he seems to question how fundamental Ayaan’s Christian beliefs her, his love and admiration for her shine through.

It reminds me, that by the power of the poured out Holy Spirit, many can be/will be converted. God is still fulfilling this great Scripture. It can even happen to Richard Dawkins. We should pray it does.

I seem to remember there was this guy named Saul, from Tarsus…

Hmm…it makes you think, doesn’t it?

(FOR FURTHER ENCOURAGEMENT: I can highly recommend this podcast series, hosted by Justin Brierley, and based on his recently published book: ‘The surprising rebirth of belief in God.’)