I LOVE JESUS Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! — Isaiah 30:18 New International Version Therefore will the Lord wait that he may be gracious unto you. God often delays in answering prayer. We have several instances of this in sacred Scripture. Jacob did not get the blessing from the angel until near the dawn of day--he had to wrestle all night for it. The poor woman of Syrophenicia was answered not a word for a long while. Paul besought the Lord thrice that the thorn in the flesh might be taken from him, and he received no assurance that it should be taken away, but instead thereof a promise that Gods grace should be sufficient for him. If thou hast been knocking at the gate of mercy, and hast received no answer, shall I tell thee why the mighty Maker hath not opened the door and let thee in? Our Father has reasons peculiar to himself for thus keeping us waiting. Sometimes it is to show his power and his sovereignty, that men may know that Jehovah has a right to give or to withhold. More frequently the delay is for our profit. Thou art perhaps kept waiting in order that thy desires may be more fervent. God knows that delay will quicken and increase desire, and that if he keeps thee waiting thou wilt see thy necessity more clearly, and wilt seek more earnestly; and that thou wilt prize the mercy all the more for its long tarrying. There may also be something wrong in thee which has need to be removed, before the joy of the Lord is given. Perhaps thy views of the Gospel plan are confused, or thou maybe placing some little reliance on thyself, instead of trusting simply and entirely to the Lord Jesus. Or, God makes thee tarry awhile that he may the more fully display the riches of his grace to thee at last. Thy prayers are all filed in heaven, and if not immediately answered they are certainly not forgotten, but in a little while shall be fulfilled to thy delight and satisfaction. Let not despair make thee silent, but continue instant in earnest supplication. And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious to you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy on you… I. A WAITING GOD. 1. A wonderful reason for waiting. Therefore — mark the word! The Lord Jehovah does as He wills both in heaven and earth, and His ways are past finding out; but He never acts unreason. ably; He does not tell us His reasons, but He has them; for He acts according to the counsel of His will. God has His therefores and these are of the most forcible kind. Full often His therefore are the very reverse of ours: that which is an argument with us may be no argument with God, and that which is a reason with Him might seem to be a reason in the opposite direction to us. For what is there in this chapter that can be made into a therefore? Whence does He derive the argument? Assuredly it is a reason based on His own grace, and not on the merit of man. (1) The chapter contains a denunciation of the false confidences of the people, and because of these one might have concluded that the Lord would cast them off forever. If they will have Egypt to lean upon, let them lean on Egypt, till like a spear it pierces their side. (2) Further, these people were rebels against God, and the Lord was waiting to let them fully manifest their rebellious spirit, and be made ashamed of it. The chapter begins that way: Woe to the rebellious children. Further on He calls them a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord — was that a reason for waiting to be gracious? Yes, with the Lord sin shows the need of grace, and so becomes a reason for grace. I think the Lord permits many sinners to go to the full length of their tether in order that they may know in future what stuff they are made of, and may never trust in themselves. (3) The Lord would wait for yet another reason, namely, to let them suffer somewhat the effect of their sin. It is well that they should see what kind of serpent is hatched from the egg of evil. Perhaps some of us were left in the same way, and we shall never forget what we thus learned. We put our hand into the fire until it was burned, and now we dread the fire. (4) I do not doubt that the Lord waited in this case to be gracious until the people should begin to pray, for that seems to be the turning point in this affair. The prophet says, He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry. The Lord is listening for the sinners prayer. 2. The singular patience of God in that waiting. What does it mean when we are told that the Lord waited that He may have mercy upon us? (1) It means that He kept back the sword of justice. (2) It means the continuance of privileges; for the Lord told these people that, although He might give them the bread of adversity and the water of affliction on account of their sins, yet He would not take away their teachers from them any more; they should still be instructed, and warned, and invited to come to Him. (3) So singular was Gods patience that He even increased His holy agencies to lead the people to Himself. He says, Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it. Do we not remember how when the public ministry seemed to miss us we began to be bestirred by an inward force more powerful than visible ministries? Conscience cried aloud and accused us from within doors. (4) This is not all; for all this while God was passing by our rejections of Him, blotting out our sinful refusals, and insulting despising of His goodness. (5) Please remember that all this while God has been waiting but everything has been ready, ready for the sinner to come to Him. 3. A most remarkable action which follows upon the waiting. After the Lord had displayed His patience to His people, He resolved to go further, and proceeded to a most notable matter which is thus described — Therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you. You and I would have turned the text round the other way, and said, Therefore will He have mercy upon you, that He may be exalted: that would be true, but it is not the truth here taught. The picture represents the Lord as it were as sitting still, and allowing His people through their sin to bring suffering upon themselves; but now, after long patience, He arouses Himself to action. Methinks I hear Him say, They will not come to Me, they refuse all My messengers, they plunge deeper and deeper into sin, now will I see what My grace can do! It also bears this meaning. When a man is about to deal a heavy stroke he lifts up himself to give the blow: he exalts himself to bring down the scourge more heavily upon the shoulder. Even so the Lord seems to say, I will put forth all My might, I. will exercise all My skill, I will display all My attributes up to their greatest height, that I may have mercy upon these hardened, stiff-necked sinners — I will be exalted that I may have mercy upon them. 4. There is a final success to all this waiting (vers. 19-22). See what free grace can do: it is no enemy to holiness, but the direct cause of it. II. We have A WAITING PEOPLE. Blessed are all they that wait for Him 1. Gods waiting people wait upon God only. 2. Expectantly. 3. What are they waiting for? For many things. Sometimes they wait for the tokens of His grace. Sometimes for the fulfillment of His promises. Every promise will be kept, but not today nor tomorrow. Gods word has its due season, and His times are the best times. We may also have to wait for answers to our prayers. Frequently we may have to wait for temporal blessings. There may be somewhat in your character which cannot be perfected except by suffering and labor and it is better that your character be perfected than your substance increased. Wait cheerfully. If God sees fit to say Wait, do not be angry with Him. And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you,.... Or yet , or nevertheless though such an utter destruction shall be made, there are a few that the Lord has a good will unto, and therefore waits till the set time comes to arise and have mercy on them; he has taken up thoughts and resolutions of grace and favor concerning them, and has fixed the time when he will show it; and he is, as it were, panting and longing after it, as the word (r) used signifies, as some have observed, until it is up; he waits for the fittest and most proper time to show mercy; when things are brought to the worst, to the greatest extremity, and when his people are brought to a sense of their danger, and of their sins, and to repentance for them, and to see their need of his help and salvation, and to implore it, and to depend upon him for it; then, in the mount of difficulty, and in the most seasonable time, does the Lord appear; and hereby the mercy is the sweeter to them, and his grace is the more magnified towards them: so he waits to be gracious to his people in conversion; he is gracious before; he is of a gracious disposition; he is inclined, nay, resolved, to show favor to them; yea, he has done various acts of grace before, such as their election in Christ, the provision of a Savior for them in the covenant, putting all grace into his hands for them, the redemption of them by him, and the adoption of them into his family; but in conversion there is an open exhibition and display of the grace of God; much grace is then shown in applying pardoning grace, a justifying righteousness, and salvation by Christ unto them; by many love visits, and by opening the treasures of his grace unto them, as well as by implanting much grace in them, as faith, hope, love, and every other: now there is a fixed time for all this; and, until that time comes, the Lord waits to be gracious; this is his longsuffering towards his elect, which issues in their salvation; he does not cut them off in their sins; he bears much and long with them, and, as it were, longs till the time comes to unbosom himself to them, and bestow his favors on them; and so, after conversion, he waits and observes the fittest time to deliver them out of afflictions, temptations, &c. and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you; or, will exalt himself (s); raise up himself, who seemed to be asleep, and careless of his people, and rise up against their enemies, and in defense of them, which is showing mercy to them; or be exalted on his throne of grace, that he may give, and they may find, grace and mercy to help them in time of need: or, he will exalt, or lift up; that is, his Son; so he was lifted up on the cross, that his people might be drawn after him, and saved by him; and he has also exalted him at his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance unto Israel and forgiveness of sins; and he is now lifted up as the serpent on the pole in the ministry of the word, that whosoever believes in him should have everlasting life; so that these exaltation, or lifting up, are in order to have mercy; and his waiting to be gracious is by the Jews interpreted of his desire after the Messiahs coming, and his waiting for that: or, he will be exalted, in, or by, having mercy on you ; the glory of God is displayed in showing mercy to his people; they are engaged and influenced hereby to glorify God for his mercy, both in things temporal and spiritual. The word in the Arabic language, as Schultens observes , signifies to desire ; and this will make the words run smoothly in agreement with the former; and therefore, or nevertheless, will he desire to have mercy on you; which denotes the Lords good will to his people, and how much his heart, and the desires of it, are towards them: for the Lord is a God of judgment; or, though he is a God of judgment (y), of strict justice, judges in the earth, and will judge the world in righteousness; see Malachi 2:17 his grace, mercy, and justice, agree together, in redemption justification, pardon of sin, and salvation: or of moderation, clemency, and grace to correct his people; he corrects them not in wrath and hot displeasure, but in judgment, in a tender and fatherly way and manner, Jeremiah 10:24 and he is a God of discretion, Psalm 112:5 of wisdom and knowledge, and does all things after the counsel of his will; he has fixed upon the proper time, and he knows which is the best time, and he waits that time to show grace and mercy to his people: blessed are all they that wait for him; that do not run here and there for help, and are tumultuous, restless, and impatient, but wait Gods own time to do them good; that wait for his gracious presence, and the discoveries of his love, for the performance of his promises, for answers of prayer, for all blessings temporal and spiritual, and for eternal glory and happiness; these are happy persons, all and every one of them; they enjoy much now, and it can not be said, nor conceived, what God has prepared for them hereafter; see Isaiah 49:23. Amen and Amen Gods Mercies 18Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him. 19O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you.… Cross References 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:15 Bear in mind that our Lords patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. Isaiah 2:11 The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day. Isaiah 2:17 The arrogance of man will be brought low and human pride humbled; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day, Isaiah 5:16 But the LORD Almighty will be exalted by his justice, and the holy God will be proved holy by his righteous acts. Isaiah 8:17 I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the descendants of Jacob. I will put my trust in him. Isaiah 25:9 In that day they will say, Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation. God Bless
Posted on: Sat, 16 Nov 2013 16:18:38 +0000