Consider these questions as you dwell in Isaiah 12:1-6:

1. In this passage, the people of God express their gratitude for God's salvation despite His previous anger. How does this idea of God's anger turning away to bring salvation resonate with your understanding of God's character and His willingness to forgive and redeem?

2. The passage emphasizes the proclamation of God's deeds among the people and to the ends of the earth. How can we, as Christians today, actively participate in proclaiming God's salvation and His great works to others in our communities and beyond?

3. The passage mentions the holy one of Israel being in their midst. How does the presence of God in our lives bring us strength and confidence, enabling us to trust and not be afraid? How do you personally experience the presence of God in your daily life?

Transcript:

This is one of those passages that I read, and I just want to say, Well, I'm going to skip on the commentary today because it's just that good. You don't need me to add anything to it, but here we are. I'm going to do it anyway. We have this repeated statement here in the Psalm. You will say in that day, this idea of this is coming, that's repeated here in verse one and verse four, this idea that this is a coming thing and there is something that you are going to say, there is going to be something that is going to come out of you in praise to God. And we see what that is here, right? I'll give thanks to you, Lord. For though you were angry with me, your anger turned away that you might pamper me. God was angry. And seems there's an acknowledgment here that this anger from God is obviously justified, that God is right to be having this feeling or this anger toward people of God. But now they realize, they realize that he is the one that saves them. As we have been seeing through this, the goal is not punishment for punishment's sake.

The goal is to discipline them, to get them back on track. The goal is repentance. We see here that the response of the people is not only going to be that they're going to give thanks, but they're going to say, Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust and will not be afraid. For the Lord, God is my strength and my son, and he has become my salvation. They get it because they have seen it. They have seen how God, yes, judged them. Now he has rescued them. He has brought for himself a people. He has brought his people back. And so we see here in verse 3, this idea that there is this water, this well that they will draw from. What beautiful imagery with joy you're going to go to this and you're going to embrace this salvation, you're going to drink freely of it. Then we have that repeated phrase I already mentioned. You will say in that day, give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name, make known as deeds among the people, proclaim that His name is exalted. This idea that praise flows out of the salvation. And we understand that as reformed Christians, we always talk about these categories of the Heidelberg Catechism.

We see our guilt before God, our misery before God. We are then shown the grace and mercy of God, and then we respond in gratitude, and that is praise and that's faithful service. It's all that right here for us, right? That we will now make known His deeds among the people. We will proclaim the goodness God. And so we see here in verses five and six, sing praises to the Lord for he is done glorically. Let this be made known and all the Earth is going out. Now, the idea here that's important for us to understand that this is being proclaimed outside of their little group. It's being proclaimed, even to all the Earth, tooth to Gentiles. This idea of the salvation of God going out is a huge theme here in Isaiah. And it says, shout and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great and your midst is the holy one of Israel. They are to understand, and they do understand that God is with them, that they are a set apart people because God is the one who rescues them. They are his people, and He is God. As we look at this passage, this now becomes our hymn of praise.

It becomes our song of praise. And I want to dwell here on verse one. I'll give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away that you might come to me. We remember that when we remember the Prophet that God was angry with our sin. But yet he poured out that sin on himself in God, the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And what was the purpose of that? That he might bring salvation to his people, that even though we were in rebellion against him, we are comforted by this good news that we are his people and he has become our salvation. So may we do what it says here, as we remember this good news each and every day, may we sing verse to behold God is my salvation. I will trust and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. May that be our song, because we know that we don't have this within ourselves. We have been rescued by the holy one of Israel.