Weapons

 Isaiah 54:17 ESV

 no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”


I can think of a couple of objections to this verse at least, off the top of my head. Firstly, we might be servants of the Lord who feels like we're losing at life. I'm sure Isaiah's original hearers felt the same, harried by foreign oppressors.

Note what the verse doesn't say. It doesn't say that there won't be any weapons formed against us. We're in a spiritual battle and we have a mighty foe.

The second main objection to this verse could be that it applies to ancient Jews, not to modern Gentiles. Yet the Apostle Paul insists that in Christ Jesus, all the promises of God are yes and amen. Jesus is simultaneously the Jewish Messiah and Saviour of the world, in whom we have the victory.

As Christians are sheep to the slaughter in much of the world, this verse might feel like an empty promise. Yet nothing can separate us from God's loving victory for us in Christ. Not even persecution and death will ultimately defeat us.

'Lord God Almighty, we're grateful that this verse is true, even when it doesn't feel like it. Please make our enemies fail, and vindicate us we pray, in Christ's name, amen'.

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