Isaiah 22:19-23: A Peg in a Sure Spot
Tuesday, August 13, 2024
In the world’s present climate, leaders who look for security might take heed of these words from the prophet Isaiah.
The Lord will remove you from office and bring you down from your high position. (GNT)
In our federal, state and local organizations, we see those we know will fall.
I will thrust you from your office, and you will be pulled down from your post. (NRSV)
In our homes and workplaces, we interact with those we know will be snatched away.
I will remove you from your office,
I will snatch you from your post. (CJB)
In our hearts and minds, we guard against becoming the corrupt who take refuge in their own comfort at the expense of those on the margins.
God is about to sack you, to throw you to the dogs. He’ll grab you by the hair, swing you round and round dizzyingly, and then let you go, sailing through the air like a ball, until you’re out of sight. (MSG)
So who will replace the corrupt leader? Who will arrive to guide and protect us?
I will fasten him firmly in place like a peg, and he will be a source of honor to his whole family. (GNT)
That leader is already among us.
I will fasten him like a peg in a secure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his ancestral house. (NRSV)
That leader is already our shepherd.
I will place the key of David’s house
on his shoulder;
no one will shut what he opens;
no one will open what he shuts. (CJB)
That leader will never abandon us.
I’ll pound him like a nail into a solid wall. (MSG)
That leader is a sure peg in the solid wall of faith. On this we can hang our hope. In this we can believe and love.
When we compare these and other versions of these verses, we know that we must rely on the one sure peg of Christ’s great love that God pounds into our hearts through the indwelling of the Spirit.
To reflect on the sturdiness of sure posts in sure beams, and to learn about the preservation of old barns built with peg and post technology, click on the image above or visit: https://nipmoosebarns.org/german-barn-history/
For another reflection on this blog, see Euphoria at: https://thenoontimes.com/tag/sure-peg-in-sure-spot/
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