The exiles have endured 70 years of captivity, risking a dangerous
journey across the wilderness, anticipating a glorious homecoming. But their
return home was anything but glorious. Jerusalem’s walls were torn down,
the Temple was gone, and they continued to be a people exposed and vulnerable
to enemy attack. The evidence speaks loud and clear: This is a God-forsaken
city, a desolate land, and an abandoned people (62:4). However, as the poet
gladly proclaims, this is not God’s last word for disappointed hearts.
The lectionary reading stops at Isaiah 62:3. However, we have
extended the parameters of the text to verse 5 so that it is bracketed by
the theme of joy. Isaiah 61:10 declares the poet’s (people’s) intent
to rejoice (emphatic in Hebrew text) in the Lord. Isaiah 62:5 concludes with
this divine promise, “So shall your God rejoice over you.” Relationship
between God and people is marked not simply by duty and obligation, but with
exultant delight.
Images of affection abound in this passage, but none more intimate
or powerful than that of bride and bridegroom. God (the bridegroom, decked
in festive garland) clothes Zion (the bride, adorned with jewels) with garments
of salvation. God covers the beloved with the robe of righteousness. Zion
(God’s beloved) is given a new name, no longer to be called “Forsaken,”
rather “My Delight Is in Her.” The land is no longer named “Desolate”
but “Married.” The poet joins with Hosea and Jeremiah in the prophetic
tradition of employing the metaphor of marriage to describe God’s love
for Israel. What is new here is the intensity of God’s affection for
Israel as shown in the metaphor of “rejoicing.” What an amazing
revelation, that we are the beloved of God, the object of divine affection.
Contemporary society is plagued with feelings of being “forsaken,
abandoned, and unloved.” Shallowness of relationship, fear of intimacy,
and rising divorce rates are epidemic in our time. Many worshipers wrestle
with past abuse and rejection that have convinced them that they are both
unlovely and unlovable. How strange these words sound to our ears, “The
Lord delights in you” (62:4).
We also know that Post-Christmas Doldrums (PCD) is a growing
syndrome in our affluent, consumer society. During this season, we give and
receive gifts at record proportions, hoping to numb the deep-seated anxiety
and restlessness that plague us. Emptiness often ensues, as we come to realize
again that material gifts never truly satisfy. Our dreams of magical, joy-filled,
family celebrations seldom come true. We come to church on the first Sunday
after Christmas frustrated. We long for something real and satisfying. What
an opportunity for the strange new world of the gospel to resituate us in
a life bracketed by God’s joyous love.
This longing for intimacy, relationship, and a life of security
and joy is met by the determined resolve of God, “I will not keep silent
. . . I will not rest, until . . . ” (62:1). God has already opted for
this forsaken people. God has already chosen Israel in love. Notice how God
is the subject of all these verbs of restoration. God clothes and covers (61:10).
God causes righteousness and praise to spring up (v. 11). God speaks and acts
(62:1). God gives the new name (v. 2). God delights in them (v. 4). God rejoices
in them (v. 5). In every way, God is the Great Romantic, setting His affection
on these people, relentless in His pursuit of them. God is like a young lover
who woos the beloved and will stop at nothing until he captures and possesses
the beloved’s heart.
The passage opens with the people rejoicing in God—very
typical for a hymn of praise. God is worthy of our highest adoration and devotion.
But the poet is bold to assert that God also rejoices and delights in us!
Can we begin to receive this news? Can we accept this wonderful truth: even
though we have sinned against God, like Israel, and brought humiliation and
devastation upon ourselves, God still desires us, values us, and delights
in us? This is world-transforming news! Remember Jesus’ parables of the
pearl of great price and the treasure in the field. It is great to read them
like this: God is the pearl (treasure)—let’s sell all we have to
obtain relationship with Him. But it is even more wonderful to read them in
this way: We are the pearl (treasure)—God has sold everything to obtain
relationship with us! We are resituated in a new world of grace! Rejoice,
beloved of God, you are the object of God’s affection! Rejoice, for God
delights and rejoices in you!
(For a complete manuscript of this sermon, go to www.preachersmagazine.org.)
The controlling image of this sermon will be that of bride and
bridegroom. One strategy would be to employ an imaginative narrative that
traces a young person’s journey from loneliness to love. Begin with this
situation: A young man grows up in a stern family environment and develops
a low sense of self-worth. The matter is complicated when a failed relationship
drives the young man into a destructive lifestyle. He feels destined for a
life of forsakenness. Relate this situation to Israel in exile. Even upon
her return, prospects of renewal were dim—Israel still saw herself as
“Forsaken.”
Return to the story of the young man. A woman sets her affections upon him, and his world turns upside down. His future is different than he ever imagined, for he is valued and delighted over. Such is the power of love. For Israel, everything turns on the love of God. Even though she is marred and broken by sin, there is no stopping the heart of the lover. Israel is now “God’s Delight,” “Married,” “Beloved.” That identity is given as a gift, and it becomes the means by which Israel reimagines her future and lives out her calling. May the Church ever be captivated by this radical vision—our God rejoices over us. Let the wedding celebration begin!
