UPDATE: I was floored by how many of you jumped into the classroom and participated in this assignment! (As of noon Monday, several hundred have yet to be moderated but you’ll see them posted soon.) Your papers were FABULOUS. You did exactly what we hoped. You gave the assignment thought and authenticity. My tremendously busy weekend only afforded me a perusal but I look so forward to getting deeper into the stack. You are amazing women. You blow my mind over and over. I wish so much you could all have been at staff prayer today because each coworker brought her homework for us to discuss. We also had a particularly fun and unique translation addition (remember how you were to check 3 translations?)Â because I asked Melissa if she’d read it to us in Hebrew. We got such a charge out of it. It truly was beautiful. To me, one of the most intriguing insights from many of your papers was the varied forms fleeing can take. Those differences were also articulated in our staff circle today. Running takes all sorts of forms, doesn’t it, Sisters? Here’s what we can know: Only when we’re fleeing from God can the enemy catch us. And even then, if we’re in Christ, he cannot have us. Nor can he keep us. Our God be praised. Gotta get back to work! Bible study tomorrow night! I love you, Sisters! And I think about you daily. THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING!!
Happy Friday, you wonderful things!
As soon as I push publish on this post, I’ll be heading out the door to the airport. I have a Life Today taping this weekend for the Wednesday program. (Two sessions tonight. Two in the morning.) Please pray for Jesus to fill us, teach us, heal us, and thrill us and that the group will be greatly responsive. Thank you! I do not know where I’d be without prayer. What I’m asking for in this Bible study ministry as a whole is something only Jesus can do. I need Him so much.
OK! So, this morning God impressed something on me in prayer time that I became convinced over the next hour He wanted me to share also with you. It’s coming in the way of a homework assignment I want to offer to any of you who’d like to participate. I have to be sparing in my words this morning because I have very little time but my heart is tremendously enlarged over it.
Here’s the ground rule: Please complete your assignment without reading any of the comments. Let’s resist any comparison or competition. Everybody who participates gets an A+. So you’re not tempted and so that you don’t get well into the assignment and lose your connection and your work, do it first on a Word document or the equivalent and then copy and paste it into your comment. I’m not looking for smart or scholarly sounding responses or ones that demonstrate impressive and great Spiritual prowess. I’m just looking for thought-out answers that are real.
You game? Me, too! OK, here goes. You do not need to include the questions or instructions in your answers but, for the sake of organization, please do list them by number. (1-6)
1. Please go to a website like Bible Gateway or to your Bible software if you have it and look up Isaiah 30:15-18. Please read it thoroughly in 3 different translations. In your response to this first exercise, please tell me what 3 translations you read then copy and paste the one that spoke the most blatantly to you. (In your answer you will have the abbreviations to three translations and then the full text in one of them. Make sense?)
2. Look up the word “threat” in any good English dictionary and write the full definition. After you write the definition, please share how it hits you and how you feel most threatened in this season, if at all. Keep in mind that nothing trips the switch on our insecurity like feeling threatened. Be careful as always in this community not to over-share by telling things about other people who wouldn’t necessarily appreciate it.
3. What does “fleeing” tend to look like in your life? In other words, how are you most prone to flee? And, are you in fleeing mode right now?
4. Compare or contrast the Isaiah text (30:15-18)Â to 1 Peter 5:8-10 and James 4:7.
5. One of my translations this morning for this text was The Message. Here it is on the card I wrote out.
Do you perchance need to hear the words “settle down!” as much as I do? If so, why?
6. Finish your assignment with any particular personal insight you gained from it and, most of all, what you discern God is saying to you through it.
I love this kind of thing! If you don’t, I still love YOU. I will look so forward to reading many of your “papers.” Girl, I do dearly relish a classroom, and from both sides of the desk. Lindsee will be in town moderating your comments then I will start looking at them as soon as I finish up in Dallas.
PRAY FOR US! I LOVE YOU!!!
LPM Homework 1/25/13
1.) NASB; Holman; Amplified Is. 30:15-18 15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not,
16 And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that]
17 One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill.
18 And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2.) threat 1.)a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace: He confessed under the threat of imprisonment.
2. an indication or warning of probable trouble: The threat of a storm was in the air.
3. a person or thing that threatens.
I am not feeling a threat at this time, but I have in the past. I can picture the desire to flee from the person who is posing a threat to my safety/security.
3.) It can look like âhidingâ emotionally or physically withdrawing from people to be alone and away
4.) God is looking to be our compassionate defense against our enemy. When we allow Him to be our All then the enemy flees.
5.) It is always good to be reminded of Godâs character! Hearing again that He is FOR me does âsettleâ me down with a sigh of relief!
6.) I am in a season of discerning the next course: last one at home is graduating from H.S. this spring. The empty nest is ahead! Sometimes I feel like one of the unbelieving spies Moses sent out: âthere are giants in the land!â while I really want to be like Caleb and Joshua! This is yet another reminder of the Truth of Godâs Presence and Provision regardless the circumstances.
Thank you for this sweet time in Godâs Word!
1. NIV 1984, The Message, and HCSB:
For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said:
âYou will be delivered by returning and resting;
your strength will lie in quiet confidence.
But you are not willing.â
You say, âNo!
We will escape on horsesââ
therefore you will escape!â
and, âWe will ride on fast horsesââ
but those who pursue you will be faster.
One thousand will flee at the threat of one,
at the threat of five you will flee,
until you alone remain
like a solitary pole on a mountaintop
or a banner on a hill.
Therefore the Lord is waiting to show you mercy,
and is rising up to show you compassion,
for the Lord is a just God.
All who wait patiently for Him are happy.
(Holman Christian Standard Bible)
2. Theat: a declaration of an intention to punish or hurt; a menace of bodily hurt or injury, such as may restrain a personâs freedom of action; an indication of something undesirable coming (threat of war); a person or thing as a likely cause of harm etc.
I feel most threatened during this season by myselfââfear itself.â
3. Yes, I think I am in âfleeingâ mode now. Escaping in my life looks very different from what it used to look like. Now I run to God, and I know that I am needing him now. This exercise is goodâhighlighting the reality Iâve been struggling with.
4. InterestingâŚlet the devil flee, not me! Itâs steadfastness I want! Okay, this makes me realize Iâm âfleeingâ from nothing, anxious for nothing because I have God. So I just return and rest.
5. Iâm writing it too! âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on me.â Why do I need to hear this? I guess getting wound up is my âdefaultâ pattern. The holidays, the election, anticipating things to come, disruption of regular schedule leaves me anxious
6. What Iâm left with is GRATITUDE for your reminder. Less, not more. Quietness, rest, strength, confidence in GodâŚcalm, breathe, He is my refuge, I need to soak in Him, take in His word, be in His beauty, meditate on His promises. Aaaaahhh, I feel better alreadyâŚthanx, sista!
1. NIV, ESV and NKJV
Out of the ESV(my personal favorite):
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
âIn returning[a] and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.â
But you were unwilling, 16 and you said,
âNo! We will flee upon horsesâ;
therefore you shall flee away;
and, âWe will ride upon swift steedsâ;
therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
17 A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.
The Lord Will Be Gracious
18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.
2. An expresson of intention to inflict evil, injury or damage–Merriam Webster. I am surprised that the definition includes “the intention of”….sometimes I think threats are just haphazard, but this shines new light…and makes me see that the evil one really does have intention on wrecking our relationship with God and may use situations that happen to us to do just that.
3. When things get hard..I just start thinking about leaving..the situation, city and sometimes the state. I think to myself.. if I could get away from this, I could really start again fresh somewhere else..and this problem won’t be there..one of my mentors asked me this question a while ago..”what are you running from?” which surprised me because I didn’t think I was running..just kind of walking very briskly. đ But yeah when things get hard I tend to think of just picking up and leaving..
4. First of all, praise God for 1 Peter 5:8-10…and after a little while..He will restore you..oh praise Jesus! Beth I have been going through it! I mean like I don’t know what hit me. Anyway..in 1 Peter– there is more of a clear pointing at who is the threat..and there is great imagery –the prowling around– so that we can know this is for real. Its like instead of saying..”don’t flee” the passage is reading..”don’t flee because there is one there ready to devour you”..well you know..not exactly..but something like that! and James 4:7 is saying the same except instead of just not fleeing..the author instructs us to submit ourselves to God and the evil one will flee from us..this takes it one step farther from what peter instructed on being alert to the ways of the devil and resisting the devil..because one can be alert all day long and try to resist all day long..but only submission to our Lord can keep the evil one at bay
5. I do hear those words settle down–and need to hear them. I have been running around like a chicken with the head cut off..trying to get my crazy life together..and keep it together..I think God is just telling me to settle down.
6. I love how in Isaiah, it says “the Lord waits to be gracious to us”..I just think that is so cool..it’s like He knows we are struggling but if we just come to Him, He is ready to offer his grace and mercy and love..I am equally surprised by the thought of a threat moving faster to catch us if we try to run from something..seems like it is almost better to just wait through the storm sometimes…
I didn’t mean for this to turn into a term paper. ha!
NIV 1984, ESV, NET
Isaiah 30:15-18
New English Translation (NET)
15 For this is what the master, the LORD, the Holy One of Israel says:
âIf you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered;
if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength,
but you are unwilling.
16 You say, âNo, we will flee on horses,â
so you will indeed flee.
You say, âWe will ride on fast horses,â
so your pursuers will be fast.
17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier;
at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away,
until the remaining few are as isolated
as a flagpole on a mountaintop
or a signal flag on a hill.â
The Lord Will Not Abandon His People
18 For this reason the LORD is ready to show you mercy;
he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you.
Indeed, the LORD is a just God;
all who wait for him in faith will be blessed.
Threat: noun
1. a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace: He confessed under the threat of imprisonment.
2. an indication or warning of probable trouble: The threat of a storm was in the air.
3. a person or thing that threatens.
Wow, first of all I needed this assignment badly. It is so easy to feel so beat up by criticism, perceived threats, people in general, people living in your home, your fellow church members and the world in general that you start to try to guard your heart from perceived threats and become automatically defensive when you are misunderstood. At this point in my life itâs not a threat that I feel from the Lord. You know the kind where you are waiting for the Lord to be faithful to His word in disciplining you and you are waiting to be chastised in some way and are relieved when that threat comes because otherwise you wouldnât be legitimate. Moreover, my situation is something I canât speak to on an open forum but it is the threat of being misunderstood. As I was reading in the NET âOne thousand from or before [or âbecause ofâ] one battle cry.â âŚis often defined as âthreat,â but in war contexts it likely refers to a shout or battle cry.â Then, as the scholar notes continue for the rest of the verse that âfrom or beforeâŚthe battle cry of five you will flee.â
I have felt so beat up emotionally speaking by someone for so long that I sort of gave up on fighting the good fight and trying to be obedient when it came to being quiet and putting my trust in the Lord because it just didnât seem to matter in this situation as I was constantly provokedâŚso instead, Iâd get right in the mud with this person in what I call âChristian cussingâ. I am not a cusser but I would just retaliate with the right things to say. I would justify away based on years of prayer and nothing ever changing but me and stacks of journals to prove it. Yet along the way, the other person knew all the right things to say in public and private to the people that seemed to matter to where it began to look like I was the one that bore the responsibility for the non-existence of the relationship and felt like I couldnât even be honest in a âsafe-settingâ without feeling threatened by people who do not live in my house and have not walked in my shoes. I have had to always go back to the fact that God is the God who sees me. El Roi. So, in particular, when those notes in the NET talk about fleeing at the shout of a thousand or five it just reminds me of me. I want to flee the situation Iâm in and by all respects have every right and reason to fleeâŚyet no matter what I am a doulos of Jesus Christ and I wonât forget studying James and reading where we miss the force of being a bond-slave of Jesus Christ because slavery has negative connotations to most of us but what an honor it was considered to be a bondslave of Christ. Well, I know that is the same for me that no matter what I have given my life to Him. I have nothing to give to repay Him but my life as the living sacrifice in Romans 12. Yet itâs so easy to get in the rut where you are constantly threatened and you try your best to guard your heart like the garden that is depicted and you so badly want Jesus to be the watchman on the wall but pain is involved and the only way you know at times is to harden that wall toward the person who is the perceived threatâŚthe one who threatens your mental stability, your parenting, your worth, your equality, and when you guard your own heart it almost always leads to bitterness. When Isaiah 58 talks about the kind of fast God desires, He wants us to put away the pointing of the finger and in so many situations it is easy to point, point, point the finger because maybe you are just tired of always hearing whatâs wrong with you and you want to put the attention on someone else. The Lord wants us to turn that finger in and see sin in the mirror and in turn repent. Yet my knee jerk reaction is to retaliate or to want to throw in the towel and flee. And I could cry as I type thisâŚover and over in the last week the Lord has called me to the carpet literally and made me revisit the verses in Isaiah 45:2-3 âI will go before you
and level mountains.
Bronze doors I will shatter
and iron bars I will hack through.
3 I will give you hidden treasures,
riches stashed away in secret places,
so you may recognize that I am the LORD,
the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel.
And not to take it out of context about using King Cyrus to allow the Israelites to return to be able to worship but yes for meâŚthat when I waver in unbelief and I donât stand firm in faith then I canât stand firm at all. I canât put my faith in an outcome but my faith in the Lord. Iâve pondered over James 1 in the NET all weekâŚthat if we are deficient in wisdom we can ask the Lord and He will give it without reprimand. The words âwithout reprimandâ mean so much to me. The God of all the earth will give if I am not being a woman of two mindsâŚHe will give to me without reprimand. Then, so tenderly this week the Lord has nearly allowed Isaiah 54 to leap off the page as I had memorized so much in the NIV84 and now my main read is the NETâŚwhen it says in verse 9 that He will not be angry at you or shout at you. Again, coming from the place Iâm in and back to the verses about CyrusâŚsomewhere along the way, I got in self-protect mode and yet the Lord has been like Jenny, repent even if you have a million reasons and hurts turn to me, fix your gaze on me, rest in me, wait on me, stop trying to fight your own battles, quit wavering, quit going back and forth on whether or not you are going to run awayâŚrest. Let me apply the balm of my word to your precious soul. Let me speak tenderly to you if no one else will. And I can hardly see to type right now because the Lord is not words on a page to me, He has been my life and the length of my days. In so many situations I have suffered personally they have driven me straight to Him and pushed me further in my need for Him to where I can look in James and go in no way have I been made perfect but because of bearing up under the load of trial, I have learned what it means to endure and because of that His word says I will be âcompleteâ ânot deficientâ. Yet so much hurt comes from feeling threatened constantly but if I live in submission and quiet myself before Him and literally quiet my tongue and turn to Him and forsake the wrestling matchâŚHe will give me rest. I wonât flee over the battle cry or end up alone because my bitterness has spread like gangrene and I am the lonely flagpole on a hill as if the enemy can claimâŚyep…we got Jennyâs eyes off of the Lord because of the bloody battle and we conquered her and drove a flag on top of this hill alright as a sign for all that we couldnât steal her salvation but we got her to live life out in the mud and she missed her calling because she wouldnât turn away from trying to do battle herself. It sends shivers down my spine. I want to always exclaim that hey from my youth the enemy has plowed my back and made His furrows long, but HE DID NOT GET THE VICTORY. He DID NOT get to drive a stake over me and hang his victory flag over me for all to see. I want to weep forward and because of suffering I can turn back and strengthen the brethren and pass the baton of faith even if it didnât turn out like I thought that God was more to me than anything I can see, taste, or touch because of these things and that He met me in places I never would have known Him were it not for the things that caused me pain and suffering. I have sought the Lord daily, yet the Lord has called me to turn back to Him and get my eyes off of the affliction and onto Him. Yet life is so messy and we can have desires that are totally godly desires yet I truly know what it means to suffer in the way of having unmet needs and desires yet relying on the Only One who can meet the longings of my soul without hewning out broken cisterns. I canât even begin to mention the people I have had to straight up let off the hook in life because they were too full of themselves to have anything left for anyone else. They should be the very people that should love and nourish but how could they when they were so full of themselves they didnât even have room for God and love comes from GodâŚso you have nothing to give if you arenât getting from Him. And again in such a weird way I would never trade all the hurt or pain in my life for what Jesus has been to me. It is so easy though to in essence tell the Lord, âLord, I have only about a half of a mustard seek hereâŚYou say you will level mountains before people who thought even going back from there slavery to worship You was impossibleâŚyet You are trueâŚIâm just not seeing it over here. Or feeling that your situation or perceived threat is as strong as iron and bronze and time keeps rolling by and like the book of Esther with the whole His name isnât mentioned but HE is all over the scene workingâŚthat we are still called to walk by faith and obedience and not by sight or feelings. Thatâs where I get so hung up. Yet, I want to die believing Him instead of the flip side. I love in Hebrews 11 when it talks about the people who did not receive here what was promised but they died in faith and this world was not worthy of them. Too many are fleeing situations, marriages, churches, and responsibilities because they have bought the lie that this world is about their happiness and so many are lovers of self and spend their very souls to gratify the desires of their flesh and instead they are trading their inheritance for a bowl of straight up canned stew. Ew. The One I needâŚthe One we truly need is coming on a white horse but it surely wonât come in the form of fallen humanity. Yet still I have to repent and wave my flag of surrender as I get so nervous thinking of how God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. I remember studying that term in the Greek that it was a military type picture that God arranges Himself in battle to the proudâŚlike a wrestling match, hand to hand combat and we know who wins. So, cease striving Jenny, trust, not in an outcome, but in my person and know. You donât have to prove anything, and when I have a mind to move I willâŚbut you sure need to get out of the way because contrary to what you thinkâŚIâm really not using you as a tool for vengeance that is mine. He will take up my cause when I lay it down. It will mean being solidified in Him. Otherwise I shouldnât expect to receive anything. And yes, I need to resist the devil and he will flee and also have a plan and know where he gets me to go left every time and cease cooperating. Cease the conversation in my head that oh I know our battle is not against flesh and blood but mine really is clothed in flesh over here. And on another note, God is so willing to show mercy and compassion but am I willing to repent of my striving? Because if I donât Iâm self-inflicting injury and He is going to oppose me. But just what if I stop and He does come through and raise the dead in my own life? I want to believe Him for that and rest in the fact that He sees, He knows, Nothing gets past Him, and what matters is what He thinks. I have nothing to prove.
And I donât know about some but the enemy has gloated over me a good bit and I can not wait for the day when surely we will see God kick his butt and his cohorts and we will surely gloat over him and his cohorts for what they have done for all of eternity and I want a front row seat to that match because itâs going to be good!!!
And also these words have been such balm as I have read them anew in the NET all week:
Zion Will Be Secure
54 âShout for joy, O barren one who has not given birth!
Give a joyful shout and cry out, you who have not been in labor!
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
than the children of the married woman,â says the LORD.
2 Make your tent larger,
stretch your tent curtains farther out!
Spare no effort,
lengthen your ropes,
and pound your stakes deep.
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
your children will conquer nations
and will resettle desolate cities.
4 Donât be afraid, for you will not be put to shame!
Donât be intimidated, for you will not be humiliated!
You will forget about the shame you experienced in your youth;
you will no longer remember the disgrace of your abandonment.
5 For your husband is the one who made youâ
the LORD who commands armies is his name.
He is your protector, the Holy One of Israel.
He is called âGod of the entire earth.â
6 âIndeed, the LORD will call you back
like a wife who has been abandoned and suffers from depression,
like a young wife when she has been rejected,â says your God.
7 âFor a short time I abandoned you,
but with great compassion I will gather you.
8 In a burst of anger I rejected you momentarily,
but with lasting devotion I will have compassion on you,â
says your protector, the LORD.
9 âAs far as I am concerned, this is like in Noahâs time,
when I vowed that the waters of Noahâs flood would never again cover the earth.
In the same way I have vowed that I will not be angry at you or shout at you.
10 Even if the mountains are removed
and the hills displaced,
my devotion will not be removed from you,
nor will my covenant of friendship be displaced,â
says the LORD, the one who has compassion on you.
11 âO afflicted one, driven away, and unconsoled!
Look, I am about to set your stones in antimony
and I lay your foundation with lapis-lazuli.
12 I will make your pinnacles out of gems,
your gates out of beryl,
and your outer wall out of beautiful stones.
13 All your children will be followers of the LORD,
and your children will enjoy great prosperity.
14 You will be reestablished when I vindicate you.
You will not experience oppression;
indeed, you will not be afraid.
You will not be terrified,
for nothing frightening will come near you.
15 If anyone dares to challenge you, it will not be my doing!
Whoever tries to challenge you will be defeated.
16 Look, I create the craftsman,
who fans the coals into a fire
and forges a weapon.
I create the destroyer so he might devastate.
17 No weapon forged to be used against you will succeed;
you will refute everyone who tries to accuse you.
This is what the LORD will do for his servantsâ
I will vindicate them,â
says the LORD.
And at this point I have no clue if anything I said make sense but the Lord just spoke so much to me through those words in Isaiah 30. His word has been my salvation and I pray to spend my life on Him for the rest of my days and pray that others would truly KNOW the God of the bible. Not some westernized pasty white JesusâŚbut the Jewish Messiah, the One who chose the ordinary men to follow Him and people took note that these unschooled, ordinary men, had been with Jesus. He takes the broken and shattered and faithless and redeems. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever and is already in my tomorrow and the next day. Thankful for the privilege of repentance and I am on my knees even now as I type this and something has to give and that something is me otherwise it will be the death of me. And Iâm not even wigging out in a deep pit but my unwillingness to let Him fight for me is pride and sin. I turn the finger in and sit on my knees even nowâŚitâs meâŚI need to changeâŚI will not fleeâŚI am Yourâs LordâŚI will not go free.
1. NIV, NLT,GWT, : NLT- This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it. You said, ‘No, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.’ But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.” So the LORD must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. ( Although I liked this one the best, I loved how GWT starts out by saying, âThe Almighty God.â Will reveals the authority of it.
2. Threat: Danger, risk, hazard, warning, intimidation â The last word spoke out to me, intimidation. Like controlling, or having power over you & the situation. Once that power is back in Godâs hand, the danger is over with.
3. Fleeing look like: I am in constant fleeing mode. Fleeing from my over-weight, my looks, my short-comings, etc. But the one that has had the strongest hold on me, is friendship. I donât do well with friends, so the protective bar of not getting too close comes up, & I flee from friendship. Some flees we will conquer in this life, I think this one will be with me until I go home.
4. 1Pt, âStay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Jas, So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.â Itâs funny, the two words, danger and flee is exactly what 1Pt. & Jas added to Isa. Giving us instructions of how to handle Isa. Stay alert & humble yourself, we are in danger with the Devil, flee. Anything pushing away from God, is pulling toward Satan, and we must realize danger & control is approaching.
5. Yes, settling down, to calm down & get a hold of the situation, to look at it in a calm, reasonable, & understanding way. âThe very thing youâve been unwilling to do.â
6. For such little time, Beth had, she sure put a powerful statement, (message) in. This revealing message from God, is something that we need to have with us on a daily journey.
Isaiah 30:15-18 ESV, MSG, NLT
New Living Translation (NLT)
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD,
the Holy One of Israel, says:
âOnly in returning to me
and resting in me will you be saved.
In quietness and confidence is your strength.
But you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt.
They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.â
But the only swiftness you are going to see
is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
17 One of them will chase a thousand of you.
Five of them will make all of you flee.
You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill
or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â
18 So the LORD must wait for you to come to him
so he can show you his love and compassion.
For the LORD is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for his help.
New Living Translation (NLT)
2. The word threat at present imposes the feeling of fear of past situations reoccurring in the present. Which take away my ability to control or protect individuals from words or situations. Threat dredges up the past, which was firmly embedded in a deep hole (well so I thoughtď)
3. Am I in fleeing mode? Initially fleeing mode is the inner turmoil within, from which one wants to escape. Alas running is not my m.o. which causes me to refocus my thoughts on God, take 10 steps back to look upon the bigger picture.
4. Therefore, as I compare these 3 passages the common thread is Godâs unwavering steadfast love for me, and his faithfulness.
5-6. Again and again I truly have to learn to rest completely in Him, trust Him and know that Godâs faithfulness is more powerful than my fears. That my confidence and strength will be restored and continually built upon, by resting in the arms of my gracious heavenly Father. In other words, âBe still and know I have your backâ.
1. Isaiah 30:15-18
New King James Version (NKJV)
New International Version (NIV)
Amplified Bible (AMP)
15Â For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not,
16Â And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that]
17Â One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill.
18Â And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2. Definition of THREAT
1 an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
2 one that threatens
3 an indication of something impending
How it âhitsâ me â Praise God, right now I am not feeling threatened, any impending evil, injury or damage. I attribute this to being able to spend most of the day in the Word and doing homework/writing out scripture for a ladies bible study at my church.
3. Fleeing : If I think about what â coulda shoulda woulda â literally fleeing in my mind after what might have been. I am getting better at remembering that what âtheyâ (satan or who ever they might be at the time) meant for evil (broken marriage, addicted family member, sickness or simply not having the white picket fence/family/life) God has turned for good and HE LITERALLY HAS!! Thankfully, not in the fleeing mode right now.
4. In Isaiah you flee till you are left like a beacon on a hill because your were threatened, and sped on you own horse (away from God) in 1 Peter and James we are called to resist the devil and he will flee.
5. Settle Down â Not right this second, but when I start to think how will this mess ever work out? How will the bills get paid? Etc. Then I remember that the Lord has brought me thru the last 4 ½ months when, by the worlds standards/logic, I should have sank, on the contrary, I have not only tread the water but rested/trusted on/in the word of God (after all waiting is NOT just treading water, rather it is trusting right?), and truly believe I am almost ready to cross the Jordan đ
6. It is a gentle reminder that we are not to flee from the everlasting arms who are waiting to carry us any time day or night. Flee the devil is not an option, choice rather it is a command FLEE, don’t let him occupy the precious territory of your mind. After you have suffered for a little while HE HIMSELF will restore you….does it get any better than that?
(1-6)
NASB. NIV, The Message
15 God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solemn counsel: âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on meâ The very thing youâve been unwilling to do.
16 Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!â Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough! Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!â Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
17 Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker. Before a mere five youâll all run off. Thereâll be nothing left of youâ a flagpole on a hill with no flag, a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But Godâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you. Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you. God takes the time to do everything rightâeverything. Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
I feel threatened by old age (my own and my husbandâs), becoming obsolete in the job market, feeling overlooked or neglected by my adult children, the freefall of our government into deeper depravity.
âFleeingâ often looks like gluttony, inactivity, fretfulness. Iâve been ill with bronchitis for a full month and have spiraled downward. I was walking so faithfully while I was well!
To obey God by âturn(ing) back to Me and stop(ping) your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on meâ (Isaiah 38:15) looks like watching, carefully, realizing my enemy is hunting me to kill me â being firm in my faith in Christ is resisting him. Suffering is a part of life â after Iâve done the suffering for awhile, GOD who has called me to His Son, will HIMSELF restore, confirm, strengthen and establish me. (1 Peter 5:8-10). The very action of submitting to God resists Satan (James 4:7)
1.Isaiah 30:15-18, Contemporary English Version:
The holy LORD God of Israel had told all of you, “I will keep you safe if you turn back to me and calm down. I will make you strong if you quietly trust me.” Then you stubbornly said, “No! We will safely escape on speedy horses.” But those who chase you will be even faster. As few as five of them, or even one, will be enough to chase a thousand of you. Finally, all that will be left will be a few survivors as lonely as a flag pole on a barren hill. The LORD God is waiting to show how kind he is and to have pity on you. The LORD always does right; he blesses those who trust him.
(other 2 versions – The message, New American Standard)
2.âthreatâ – an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage. One that Threatens. an indication of something impending
I feel threatened by youth and beauty and sweet married Christian women who have perfect outfits, big old rocks on their hands, and are pregnant with baby #4, a loving man at home (who is not a secret criminal or jerk). Being a single mom I often feel threatened and insecure and I feel like I do not fit in or belong.
3. My fleeing tacticâs: keep to myself, Recluse, a lot of loner time. I donât get out much, and when I do â it is for childrenâs events. And yes I am currently living in this fleeing state.
4.God has given us the power to resist these lies and threats from Satan, Satan has come to destroy – BUT God will restore! Resist the threats â that are evil attempts from Satan â rest in/wait on Godâs word/promise that HE (not me) will establish me.
5&6. Soooo…just realized my #2 answer is really my fear⌠fear of not being established⌠and here God just speaks though his word that it is HIS job and I just need to âsettle downâ & âbe stillâ – 1 Peter 5:10 is my first memory first of this year. ⌠He is faithful, he is at work⌠HE is proving over and over how HE is in control and he will renew, confirm, strengthen and Establish me in HIS time and HIS way. So be it Lord!
and to clarify, I do not find “sweet married christian woman” who are blessed with such gifts to be a bad thing, it is just how Satan uses something I do not have as a way to make me feel “threatened” or jealous.
1. Isaiah 30:15-18 NIV/YLT/CEV
New International Version:
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: âIn repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. 16 You said, âNo, we will flee on horses.â Therefore you will flee! You said, âWe will ride off on swift horses.â Therefore your pursuers will be swift! 17 A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee away, till you are left like a flagstaff on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill.â 18 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!
2. Threat: An expression of an intention to inflict pain, injury, evil, or punishment; an indication of impending danger or harm; one that is regarded as a possible danger; a menace.
Feeling threatened is something that I have lived with for years. Whether this is a threat of real and/or imagined harm, my usual response is to rely âthinkâ on God for safety and the threat loses significance and/or the perpetrators lose control. The actual danger has played out on many occasions in my life when I did not look to God for safety and panicked. The panic turned into full-fledged terror and I lost all control. These particular occasions were of real, not imagined, danger and I lived through them by the grace of God. An indication of pending danger has not reared its ugly head in many years however sometimes I imagine danger when there is none (False Evidence Appearing Real).
3. The fleeing mode for this gal is to move on and donât look back. This usually happens when I feel threatened or my needs are perceived as no longer being met. I have had patterns of thinking/behavior that take my attention away from truth and distract me away from God.
4. Isaiah speaks about repentance and resting is my salvation, and that in quietness and trust is my strength. He urges to not do what others do because it is the popular thing to do. Peter warns me to be on the lookout for the devil suggesting that I rely on my faith. He also states that this faith will make me complete, steady, strong, and firm. James talks about surrender and being totally in Godâs care. He suggests that this surrendering to God and NOT the devil will cause the devil to leave. Probably because the devil will then know that he canât have you. The similarities in these three scriptures is the encouragement to look towards God and donât give in to the devil. By staying strong and having faith I can rest.
5. WHAT I FIND INTERESTING IS THE CHOICE WORD âcounsel.â He states that God counsels me to come back to Him and stop trying to save myself. This is the very thing that I have been unwilling to do. I have always felt the need to save myself. âWho else is going to take care of me?â I must protect myself at all cost. âIf I surrender completely, then I will have no control and anything can happen.â I am learning that His word is my stronghold and I can trust what it says. If I want to âLet Go and Let Godâ then I must first get to know Him personally. The bible affords me the opportunity to study God and build my trust in Him. Settling down to me means âSLOW DOWN.â I canât pay attention to God if I am going a hundred miles an hourâŚ
6. What I discern God saying to me is to stop running âfleeingâ and slow down long enough to know my strength in Him. He wants me to rest in a quiet place âsanctifyâ and be âreconciledâ to Him. I knew Him once in a very personal way and have sense got lost in the world and their view of God âreligion.â I have tried to fit in like I did as a youth and put my trust in people verses Him. Heâs not mad at me, just wants me to return to HimâŚ
Now I’m so cracked up as I have not been able to keep up with the blog that you wrote about Isaiah 54 already when I included it in my essay. Ha. I love The Lord for that and how alive and active He is to drive a point home to this Siesta.
1. ESV, MSG, NKJV
Isaiah 30:15-18
New King James Version (NKJV)
15 For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
âIn returning and rest you shall be saved;⨠In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. ââ¨But you would not, 16 And you said, âNo, for we will flee on horsesâââ¨Therefore you shall flee!⨠And, âWe will ride on swift horsesâââ¨Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift! 17 One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, â¨At the threat of five you shall flee,⨠Till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain â¨And as a banner on a hill. 18 Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you;⨠And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you.⨠For the Lord is a God of justice;⨠Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
2. Threat:
⢠A declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace.
⢠An indication or warning of probable trouble.
⢠A person or thing that threatens.
There is one particular relationship that is beginning to worry and cause anxiety. At the moment it is a situation that is threatening my peace, joy and at times makes me question my ability to hear accurately from the Lord. I believe that this is being used as a way of distracting me right now and I know that God has already restored it but it still feels like something that will threaten my future, because of things the Lord has spoken to us both, and right now my peace of mind and ability to rest!
3. My âfleeing lookâ is generally to back away from situations that I donât understand, God seems to be allowing to âdrag onâ when Iâd have sorted it faster *smile* or are hurting me, I also do all the things a âgoodâ Christian should do (pray, bible, church) but do it keeping God at arms lengthâ in my âfleeingâ moments I forget that God is for me and never allows anything I canât stand. Iâm bordering on âfleeingâ right now âitâs a fight Iâm having daily right now.
4. If we stand our ground, not allowing our emotions to dictate our response and making us flee from God then the devil will flee from us because he has no ability to devour us or harm us.
5. Absolutely!! I am an avid over-thinker and almost always react immediately from an emotional point of view so I start to plan and pray the way I think things should go and then get in a big emotional mess when my plan or timeframe donât pan out!
6. It confirms what the Lord has really been speaking to me about âseeking first the kingdomâ â not just in terms of the physical but also making sure that my response to everything, good and bad, is to turn to God and not allow my high emotional tendencies to cloud my view and attack my knowledge of Godâs goodness because itâs at that point we open a door to the enemy.
1. NLT, NKJV, and AMP copied below:
Isaiah 30:15-18 AMP
For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In
returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in
[trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not, And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses!
Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon
swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so
swift that] One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them;
at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on
a hill. And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking,
and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may
have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the
Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who
[earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His
peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2. Threat: 1. a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace. 2. An indication of warning of probable trouble. 3. a person or thing that threatens.
The first definition particularly grabs me…a DECLARATION of INTENTION or DETERMINATION to INFLICT … It makes me think how intentional the enemy is to get us off course, or even just get us to grab onto a seed of doubt. So, if the enemy is SO intentional to get me off track any way he can, how much more intentional do I need to be to stay the course with my Father?! I think of all the things I “should do,” yet the Lord promises that if I simply resist the enemy he will flee and that the Grace of God will settle me down…wow, what a sweet and calming reassurance! I have walked through the most difficult 4 years that would take hours to detail…a severe injury, multiple surgeries/procedures and years of therapy to regain the ability to resume a “normal life,” the most difficult character assault I have ever experienced, losing everything I own as a result of that injury (as a single woman with no family, losing your house is terrifying!), and then having to live in an environment that in my childhood was very unsafe as I recovered from surgeries and rebuilt my life financially. I want to immediately say that the Lord protected me, caused healing and restoration to abound in that environment, and just this last week I have been able to get an apartment and as of April 1st I will have my own home after 2 years of living out of a suitcase. So, in those 4 years I felt horribly threatened and my insecurities were waving like a flag…I am so grateful to say today that the Lord walked me through hell and preserved me…He even PROSPERED me despite the circumstances. He has convinced me beyond doubt that NO plan of the enemy against me will prosper because the Lord God is my strong tower and refuge! My trust in Him is deeper than it ever has been and I am convinced that I am His child and that He has a fantastic plan for my life and what He has begun in me, HE WILL COMPLETE!
3. For me, “fleeing” is going into “auto pilot.” It is a pattern where there is no thought or effort beyond the absolutly necessary action to get through the day and go to bed. No real communion with God…just a sad and lonely state where I still know He’s there but I don’t have the strength to even call out to Him.
4. They all speak of the plan of the enemy and they all speak of the promise of God. The grace of God settles us and when we resist the enemy he will flee.
5. Yes, I desperately needed to hear the words “settle down!” And it just so happened that in October, He did just that. I was spending an exorbitant amount of energy trying to force MY plans of deliverance to work. There was nothing wrong with the goals and focuses I had to move forward and get in my own space again and rebuild life…I desperately wanted the vision God gave me 8 years ago to come into play NOW…because, of course, if that happened NOW all of the current circumstances would go away! Not surprisingly, I felt like I was beating my head against brick walls everywhere I went. One afternoon in October I was driving and the Lord spoke so clearly to me and said “TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF.” I felt that heavy, weighty glory of God so heavily in my car that my hands fell to my side and the breath went out of my chest (I was at a stop light, so no worries, the car wasn’t moving!). God was not denying me the vision or the pursuit of that vision, but I stepped out AHEAD of Him and sabotaged all my efforts to move forward. Once He gave me that revelation I called who I needed to call to asked to be released from commitments I made outside of the Lord’s counsel. It was hard, but IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. I had to get back in order with the Lord so He would be the one to cause this vision to come to pass in HIS time and for HIS glory.
6. Insights and what God said to me through this exercise…His timing is PERFECT and sometimes faith is not screaming scripture and professing belief in the vision He has given…faith is HUMBLE and trusts that when I wait for Him, His grace will overtake me and the plan of the enemy will be cancelled. Faith is SUBMISSIVE…I may run and try to hide from the circumstances and think I know the way for my own deliverance, but His thoughts and plans are SO far above my thoughts and plans, so let Him be in charge. I see that faith is being willing to submit and humble myself before God…the one who will rush in and rescue me no matter what because I’m His daughter!
1. Please go to a website like Bible Gateway or to your Bible software if you have it and look up Isaiah 30:15-18. Please read it thoroughly in 3 different translations. In your response to this first exercise, please tell me what 3 translations you read then copy and paste the one that spoke the most blatantly to you. (In your answer you will have the abbreviations to three translations and then the full text in one of them. Make sense?
I read NKJ, Holman, Amplified, The Message
Isaiah 30:15-18
The Message (MSG)
God Takes the Time to Do Everything Right
15-17 GOD, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on meâ
The very thing
youâve been unwilling to do.
Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!â
Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!
Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!â
Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.
Before a mere five youâll all run off.
Thereâll be nothing left of youâ
a flagpole on a hill with no flag,
a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But GODâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.
Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.
GOD takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
2. Look up the word âthreatâ in any good English dictionary and write the full definition. After you write the definition, please share how it hits you and how you feel most threatened in this season, if at all. Keep in mind that nothing trips the switch on our insecurity like feeling threatened. Be careful as always in this community not to over-share by telling things about other people who wouldnât necessarily appreciate it.
Threat: An expression of intention to inflict evil, injury or damage, one who threatens, or an indication of something impending.
The third part of this definition is what hits me today.
3. What does âfleeingâ tend to look like in your life? In other words, how are you most prone to flee? And, are you in fleeing mode right now?
Fleeing, for me, is searching for a way out of a sticky situation, rather than waiting on the Lord for His way out. I am in a situation of âa long obedience in the same directionâ (Peterson) and it is easy to believe that God is not ever going to change things for me. Thus fleeing sometimes means I try to change things myself, rather than stay in a hard place.
3. Compare or contrast the Isaiah text (30:15-18) to 1 Peter 5:8-10 and James 4:7.
Both of these texts command us to resist the devil â his constant barrage of endless sowing seeds of doubt. It is easy to listen to his voice in my ear saying, âGod must not want you to be happyâ and âFace it, this will never work out!â. I am understanding the idea that the devil is the one who needs to flee â not me! In fact, my resisting him will enable me to settle down and wait on God.
5. Do you perchance need to hear the words âsettle down!â as much as I do? If so, why?
Yes, I sure do. My own efforts are wearing me out!
6. Finish your assignment with any particular personal insight you gained from it and, most of all, what you discern God is saying to you through it.
But GODâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.
Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.
GOD takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
This verse encourages me a great deal. I must remember that Godâs timing is not subject to my timetable. He is not slack concerning His promises. Heâs âwaiting aroundâŚâ to be gracious to me! âGathering strength to show mercyâŚâ. What a Savior.
NIV, AMP, MSG
Isaiah 30:15-18 (MSG)
15-17God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solemn counsel: “Your salvation requires you to turn back to me[ ] and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down[ ] in complete dependence on meâThe very thing[ ] you’ve been unwilling to do. You’ve said, ‘Nothing doing! We’ll rush off on horseback!'[ ] You’ll rush off, all right! Just not far enough! You’ve said, ‘We’ll ride off on fast horses!'[ ] Do you think your pursuers ride old nags? Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.[ ] Before a mere five you’ll all run off. There’ll be nothing left of youâ[ ] a flagpole on a hill with no flag,[ ] a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.” Isaiah 30:18-19 (MSG)
18[But God’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you. ] He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you. God takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.[ ] Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.[ ]
Threat:
1.
a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace: He confessed under the threat of imprisonment.
2.
an indication or warning of probable trouble: The threat of a storm was in the air.
3.
a person or thing that threatens.
I feel threatened by my health, this diagnosis of lupus hanging in the air until I see a specialist in February. Fleeing mode? Yes, somedays I am. Not thinking about it. That’s my version of fleeing.
I didn’t think I needed to hear God telling me to settle down, but maybe I do. I think the message I keep hearing is trust, trust, TRUST! Don’t listen to what satan is trying to tell me. Listen to my God, my ABBA, who is bigger than anything I might face.
NLT, GNTD, AMP – The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says to the people, âCome back and quietly trust in me. Then you will be strong and secure.â But you refuse to do it. Instead, you plan to escape from your enemies by riding fast horses. And you are rightâescape is what you will have to do! You think your horses are fast enough, but those who pursue you will be faster! A thousand of you will run away when you see one enemy soldier, and five soldiers will be enough to make you all run away. Nothing will be left of your army except a lonely flagpole on the top of a hill. And yet the Lord is waiting to be merciful to you. He is ready to take pity on you because he always does what is right. Happy are those who put their trust in the Lord. (Isaiah 30:15-18 GNTD)
2. Trouble coming my way makes me anxious and afraid, and sometimes just panic. Depending on the threat level, I may respond in a calm manner or just flat out lose it and turn into a mess inside out of fear and insecurity. I feel the threat of the enemy against my family and particularly against my marriage. The stronger we grow, the more he seems to attack. God says “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” So I’ve realized the more firm I stand with Jesus, trusting Him and resting in His shadow, the less the enemy is able to penetrate my mind and heart. Also the more aware and alert I am to his schemes, the more prepared I am to fight, or be still and let The Lord fight for me. Knowing who the threat is from is half the battle!
3. Fleeing – Fleeing for me is running away from someone or something, usually through avoidance and distance or disconnect. I avoid a person, a phone call, a conversation or an action I know I should take, but don’t want to for various reasons. I don’t like confrontation and try to avoid it whenever possible, and like most of us I want to be comfortable and in control. I’m at a point where I’d like to flee a situation because it seems so hard and uncomfortable, and its not what I wanted or pictured in my near and distant future. Out of obedience to God and trust in His will & goodness, I am not fleeing. I continue to walk the path I feel He has laid out for me and pray for strength, encouragement, guidance and for Him to keep working on my heart. I want to want what He wants!
4. The people in Isaiah were stubborn and disobedient, and did things their way. That only brought them destruction and disaster – consequences of their sin and disobedience. God told them how they could find rest and peace, but they chose not to come to Him. So He waited, because He is good and merciful. 1 Peter continues to give us warnings of our enemy and his plans to kill us, body and soul. By standing firm and staying strong in The Lord, through spiritual exercise and discipline, we can withstand the attacks of the enemy. God calls us, and although we will face trials of many kinds, joy comes in the morning! James tells us to stay humble before God – seek Him and His ways, not our own. In doing so we can resist the enemies traps and win the battles. God has already won the war for us.
5. I do need to hear the words “settle down!” and I need to hear them often. My mind and soul can get so stirred up, especially when I focus on my issues more than on Jesus. He reminds me often He is in control and I can trust Him. Once I do settle down, peace washes over me that is really beyond understanding.
6. This assignment is another reminder of how my choices can affect me for good or for bad. If I choose my own way instead of God’s will, the path is usually rough and rocky and lonely. When I choose His way, it’s not always easy or pain free, but I am not alone and He always brings good out of it! I’d much rather walk through this crazy life under the care and shelter of the God of the universe, then alone and vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy and the danger of my own fleshly desires and nature.
1.
AMP, NIV, ESV
“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel says: In repentance and rest is your salvation; in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. You said, ‘No, we will flee on horses.’ Therefore you will flee! You said, ‘We will ride off on swift horses.’ Therefore your pursuers will be swift! A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all feel away, till you are left like a flagstaff on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill.” Isaiah 30:15-17 NIV
2. I feel most threatened by picks and pricks from the Evil One though various people I interact with who question something I said or direction I’ve given. It’s a feeling of being small and of little worth.
3. I typically flee by actually removing myself from the situation and actually feeling like I put a shield up to keep my from the situation or person. I flee like I’m fleeing from situations momentarily right now and really work at bringing myself back.
4. With James 4:7, the truth is that I running/fleeing from Evil, it’s positioning myself, truly submitting myself to God to be with Him that will cause Evil to flee, not me and not me from God.
5. Yes, I need to settle down and truly rest in God. ‘My’ strength and my peace will ONLY come thru resting in God, putting ALL my faith in God and submitting myself fully to Him; not fearing, not fleeing…
6. Keep myself submitted to God; be with Him; rest with Him and Evil will flee.
1.NET, NIV, Message
Isaiah 30:15-18
New English Translation (NET)
15
For this is what the master, the Lord, the Holy One of Israel says:â¨âIf you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered;â¨if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength,â¨but you are unwilling.
16
You say, âNo, we will flee on horses,ââ¨so you will indeed flee.â¨You say, âWe will ride on fast horses,ââ¨so your pursuers will be fast.
17
One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier;â¨at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away,â¨until the remaining few are as isolatedâ¨as a flagpole on a mountaintopâ¨or a signal flag on a hill.â
18
For this reason the Lord is ready to show you mercy;â¨he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you.â¨Indeed, the Lord is a just God;â¨all who wait for him in faith will be blessed.
2. Threat: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage; an indication of something impending
I think first of Satan threatening me with lies with the INTENT to damage my relationship with God and dim my light that shines Godâs glory in all areas of my life. What am I doing to stop Satanâs plot to ensure I donât walk in defeat?
I struggle with feeling threatened that I wonât measure up PERIOD. Whether it is in the area of motherhood, job, wife, Christian, friendâŚ..several rotating insecurities I deal with.
3.I withdrawal from others; eat when I am not hungry; buy things I donât really need. I will claim scripture, pray, listen to praise music and I am praying each day that I am more consistent to “fleeing” towards God, but I am most prone to flee by isolating/comforting myself with food. I am in fleeing mode right now with relationshipsâinvested in relationships and got burned and I just donât want to put myself out there and take the time to invest. I have casual friends, but no one really close. I hide behind my job and family and tell myself that I donât have the time.
4. We (believers of Christ) are in a battle with the enemy (Satan). We have a choice to wait on God for deliverance or take the battle into our hands. Waiting on God means we have His strength for the fight. We can stand firm against Satanâs schemes and Satan will flee when we stand firm on the promises of God. Blessings come from fighting with God on our side. Only God brings lasting deliverance against Satanâs attacks.
5. Yes! Settle down on Godâs truth/cry out for his strength and fight for deliverance/freedom. I want to just settle down right at the feet of God as He is reigning on His throne. There is no better place to settle down!
6. Why do I rob myself of blessings and let Satan have the victory? Why am I quick to flee to things of this world instead of settling down with God and His promises?
1. HCSB, KJV, RcV “For thus says the Lord Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, In returning and rest you will be saved; In quietness and in trust will be your strength; But you were not willing, And said, No, for we will flee. And, We will ride upon the swift; Therefore those who chase you will be swift. One thousand will flee at the rebuke of one; At the rebuke of five you will flee, Until you are left Like a bare mast upon a mountaintop And a standard on a hill. And therefore Jehovah waits to be gracious to you, And therefore He remains on high to have compassion on you; For Jehovah is a God of justice; Blessed are those who wait for Him.”
2. Threat: An expression of intention to inflict evil, injury or damage. One that threatens. An indication of something impending. Origin – Middle English – thret, coercion. My present threat is instability.
3. Fleeing for me is inward by detaching from those around me. Praying constantly and pushing myself to stay out of fleeing mode right now by considering what is hindering me and forcing myself to stay in fellowship.
4. Looking at the difference between withstanding and fleeing. Neither is engaging. It takes absolute trust to stand firm with a perceived threat around me and the security that someone else is engaging the enemy on my behalf.
5. Yes. He knows the things I want to flee and even though I’m presently withstanding, I’m wasting thought, worry, time and even previous prayers considering them.
6. Ok, so this is probably silly but … I have read lots of Louis L’amour. His cowboy characters know it’s unwise to “skyline” themselves, that is, to top out on the rise of a hill where you can easily be seen by the enemy and he has a clear shot at you. Isa. 30:17 says, to me, that when we flee we will end up skylined for the enemy.
Weekend Homework
1. NIV, CEV, NLT
Isaiah 30:15-18
New Living Translation (NLT)
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD,
the Holy One of Israel, says:
âOnly in returning to me
and resting in me will you be saved.
In quietness and confidence is your strength.
But you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt.
They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.â
But the only swiftness you are going to see
is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
17 One of them will chase a thousand of you.
Five of them will make all of you flee.
You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill
or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â
Blessings for the LORDâs People
18 So the LORD must wait for you to come to him
so he can show you his love and compassion.
For the LORD is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for his help
2. From Merriam Webster online dictionary — definition of threat
1
: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
2
: one that threatens
3
: an indication of something impending
I like both the second and third parts of this definition because, in this season of my life, I perceive âthreatsâ most often as people and as feelings. First, sometimes the words and actions of people in my life can strike insecurity and terror right into my heart. And, second, I like the word âimpendingâ in the third definition because it is also easy for me to see different things happen or go through various circumstances and have the âthreat feeling.â You know, that feeling of dread that âSomething terrible is about to happenâŚâ So, I guess threat for me is usually either a person or the feeling of fear: the fear of the âother shoe droppingâ or that some big bad terrible thing is finally going to happen once and for all.
3. Fleeing in my life happens both internally and externally. Sometimes when I canât really run away from a situation on the outside, I just run away on the inside by thinking about something else, or denying the situation, or â most of all — making all these plans that âI can controlâ to take care of the situation. And sometimes fleeing happens on the outside when, instead of trusting God, I run around like a fruit loop trying to handle a perceived threat instead of just resting in Him and His strength.
4. In First Peter, I see that the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, but Christians are instructed to âstand firmâ because after a little while God will ârestore, support, and strengthenâ them. It reminds me of the Isaiah text, because waiting is involved, but Godâs support will place the believer on a firm foundation in the end. In James, we are reminded to âcome close to God and He will come close to us.â Again, when we quit trying to do everything ourselves and just come close to God, He comes close to us with His power and strength.
5. â⌠your salvation will come from SETTLING DOWN IN COMPLETE DEPENDENCE ON ME.â The messageâŚ
6. I think God is telling me that I have to trust Him with absolutely every part of my life⌠and that doesnât mean just saying, âI trust you, God.â It means to stop making all these plans and foolish efforts and just wait on Him to come through with His perfect plans. It means to stop all the mental exercise of trying to figure out answers to my own problems and focus my mental energy on Him and His Word instead.
1.HCSB, NIV, The Message
HCSB 15 For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said:âYou will be delivered by returning and resting;your strength will lie in quiet confidence. But you are not willing.â16 You say, âNo! We will escape on horsesââtherefore you will escape!âand, âWe will ride on fast horsesââ
but those who pursue you will be faster.17 One thousand will flee at the threat of one, at the threat of five you will flee, until you alone remain like a solitary pole on a mountaintop
or a banner on a hill.18 Therefore the LORD is waiting to show you mercy, and is rising up to show you compassion, for the LORD is a just God. All who wait patiently for Him are happy.
2.Threat: a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace: He confessed under the threat of imprisonment. -an indication or warning of probable trouble: The threat of a storm was in the air. -a person or thing that threatens.
My threat I am most dealing with is one of transition, growing older..I turn 50 in a few daysď So much change in my body, my mind, my family, my relationships. I am afraid I wonât have what it takes to do the next half of my life well..health, finances, sane mind, capacity.
3.My âfleeingâ is one of withdrawal..when insecurity hits, my go to is to withdraw from life and play it safe. If I donât have to face a challenge, then I am less likely to screw anything up. I know the devil wants me to sit in my insecurity and isolate, giving the Lord zero opportunities to be glorified in my life. I am currently fighting against the desire to pull away from life a bit..am thankful for His Word and that Priceless Holy Spirit who keeps pushing me out the door each day into precious relationships where I can see glimpses of Him continuing to use me in spite of myselfď
4. What an ah ha moment! Love this! The âthreatâ is the evil one! I love that by submitting to God, by returning to Him, instead of me fleeing from the devil, he flees from ME! Grace upon grace!!
5. Yes! I have just returned from a mission trip from East Africa..I so enjoy my time with our friends there, but returning home always leaves me discombobulated! (is that a word) ď So many needs, so much to process and trying to do this with major jetlag! So thankful His Word instructs me to settle down and just rest in Him. He will strengthen, and establish my way..Praise Him..
6. I donât have to run away..I just have to surrender to my Jesus. Heâs got me. In Him, I am more than enough..He âwill personally restore, establish and support meâ..Thanks, Bethď
Seeing the pictures of the Bible Study has made me long for such teaching and worship. I must confess envy when I see all of you gathered together. At our church, we four women gather and right now are following the Daniel study on Sunday mornings. This morning, doing this homework has been a blessings, to know that others, sit in their PJs, before the Word and learn from Him. I am so comforted by this homework. Repentance, rest, wait.
1. NIV- In repentance and rest there is rest, quietness and peace; horses, then swifter horses-YET-the God of justice answers, WAIT for Him
KJV-returning and rest, quiet & confidence, left as beacon/ensign; God of judgment
Good News- God of mercy -left as a lonely flagpole
2. Threat-stated intention to do harm, especially if they do not do what you want them to do; a person or thing likely to cause harm or danger; the possibility of danger
3. Fleeing- fear cause me to flee to resort to myself-find an answer, solve the problem, hurry up to make things right again, find the answers for others, taking care of things in order to make things right
4. Isaiah, I Peter, James-There, it is all about Godâs way of standing, waiting, being sober, being alert, recognizing the danger but waiting
5. Bethâs word from God was âSettle down,â but mine is wait for the Lord
6. I have always âfledâ from trouble by trying to be the one who solved all the problems. I would find the answers, get the resolution, make things right. Instead of praying more for our son when he was small, I fled to Christian school and youth groups to âmake sureâ he would turn out right and now he is far away from the Lord because he saw the failure of man instead of the trust his mom should have put in a quiet, resting returning faith in God;
I have fled to myself for too long. I see in these verses that the result of my âhorseâ there were just as many powerful horses to follow and eventually, I was the lonely flagpole of my own doing. God is a just God, yet He is also merciful (Thanks, Beth for making us look up the different versions). He never left me. It takes time to undoing my own doing, but I need to rest with confidence and strength for His deliverance, not mine.
I read the KJV, the NIV, but the GNT spoke the most to me:
Isaiah 30:15-18
Good News Translation (GNT)
15 The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says to the people, âCome back and quietly trust in me. Then you will be strong and secure.â But you refuse to do it. 16 Instead, you plan to escape from your enemies by riding fast horses. And you are rightâescape is what you will have to do! You think your horses are fast enough, but those who pursue you will be faster! 17 A thousand of you will run away when you see one enemy soldier, and five soldiers will be enough to make you all run away. Nothing will be left of your army except a lonely flagpole on the top of a hill. 18 And yet the Lord is waiting to be merciful to you. He is ready to take pity on you because he always does what is right. Happy are those who put their trust in the Lord.
Threat: an indication of something impending <the sky held a threat of rain
I think Iâm the most threatened by the thoughts that I allow the enemy to slowly creep into my head. âYouâre not going to get your whole list accomplishedâ. âYouâre going to be so worn out by all that you have to do that you just wonât be able to go on.â
In this context, the fleeing looks like heading into depression. Instead of getting all Phil 4:14 on those thoughts, I allow the enemy to have the upper hand. But, hellllloooo! I have the word, which is sharper than a two edged sword already! Through Christ, I donât have to siiiiiink!
Contrast: Welllll, hello. Did I need that Word, or what? The Lord gives it to us just when we need it, no? Use the Word, and the enemy will flee! And outloud, already, Colleen! You and Jesus can make it all happen (if you quietly trust!)
Thank you, Lord, for your Word, which smacks me right on the head, and reminds me to focus on YOU, rather than my own thoughts and silliness! I love you, Jesus!
1.) As in the NKV the Lord blesses those who wait for Him… Often times we are impatient and do not want to wait, we would rather flee a situation as opposed to waiting on God working in and through us…
First verse:
Isaiah 30:15-18 (NKJV)v. 18For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
2.) As in The Message; The Lord takes His time to do all things right and yet we try to flee at the instant something happens, not waiiing on the Lord:
v.(The Message) God takes the time to do everything rightâeverything. Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones
3.) AS in NIV; the Lord wants us to repent and rest, He is low to compassionand so mericful, but yet we still try to move ahead of Him.
V.18 NIV 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.
THREAT: An Annoyance, harm or danger..
4.)In this lession reading how often we are threatened by things of the past and we run not waiting on the Lord to move on our behalf. All too often we want to flee, jump ship or bail out before we rest in Him. I can so relate to this as with the plan of the adoption that God had forth ordained in our lives with our precious child.
I was so fearful and threatened, but determining to go before the throne of grace and laying it at His feet, I saw the reward and salvation of the Lord come to my rescue. With this the Lord blessed us fully and completely with an amazing Child of the King. Here we are a few years later praising Him for He waa moved with compassion and showed forth the most amazing process. We praise Him for this daily and look forward to seeing the work completed in this precious child should He tarry…
God has remained faithful and steadfast through it all. We did not flee nor feel threatened, we embraced the opportunity to walk it out. KNowing His will is His will…
5.) As in Romans 5:8-10 & James 4:7
We are justified by His precoius blood and we are redeemed, we know the enemy roams like a toothless giant, but we are mighty soldiers of the cross…. Waiting on Him is imoperitive, resting in His precepts and meditation on His law is needed for every believer, young and old. We must truly submit ourselves to Him and rest assured knowing that He is waiting for us….
Will we come to Him today?
Will we wait upon Him?
Will we hunger for His word?
rest knowing His love…. Blessings, Mama M
Isaiah 30:15-18 New International Version (NIV)
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:
âIn repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
but you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will flee on horses.â
Therefore you will flee!
You said, âWe will ride off on swift horses.â
Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
17 A thousand will flee
at the threat of one;
at the threat of five
you will all flee away,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on a mountaintop,
like a banner on a hill.â
18 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!
<<
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International VersionŽ, NIVŽ Copyright Š 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.Ž Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
1.NKJV, NIV, MSG
Isaiah 30:15-18
New King James Version (NKJV)
15 For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel:
âIn returning and rest you shall be saved;
In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.â
But you would not,
16 And you said, âNo, for we will flee on horsesââ
Therefore you shall flee!
And, âWe will ride on swift horsesââ
Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
God Will Be Gracious
17 One thousand shall flee at the threat of one,
At the threat of five you shall flee,
Till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain
And as a banner on a hill.
18 Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you;
And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
2.Threat: an expression of intention to inflict evil; one who threatens; an indication of something impending. I am feeling most threatened with concerns for the future of my family.
3.Fleeing in my life looks like anxiety, intimidation and I end up feeling like a ship tossed to and fro, out of control. I donât think Iâm in fleeing mode just yet. I was in ânot sure what to do modeâ when this hit my reader.
4.While Isaiah 30:15-18 paints a picture for me of a woman fleeing on horse back, 1 Peter 5:8-10 shows a portrait of a real go getter, a Annie Oakley of sorts who digs her heels in and lets the lion circle about her, knowing full well that her Jesus, is a straight shooter who gets what heâs aiming for. You didnât ask but I took the liberty of looking up synonyms and antonyms for vigilant and sober. Sheâs careful, watchful, aware, attentive and sharp. Further, sheâs restrained and steady. This picture of resisting the devil? Thatâs not merely defense, is it? Itâs offense. We do that by being steadfast in faith. So, itâs not a thing we do on our own, we do it in cooperation with the King. Then a prayer of promise, that God would establish, strengthen and settle us. Not just any old god either, but our God, the one true and faithful God, full of grace (full of grace for us). .. who has called us (yes, He knows our names). . .in Christ Jesus. (You can’t see me but I’m rejoicing my socks off right now).
5. I loved Isaiah 30:15 from the NKJV âIn returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.â
6. I know what to do now. These scriptures provided a whole bunch of hope in the face of uncertainty, Iâm going to press in on my Savior, keep a guard on inner life and my lips and be confident of who I belong to.
Thank you, Jesus!
1. NIV, ESV, NLT – This is what the Sovereign L ord , the Holy One of Israel, says: âOnly in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it. You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.â But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â So the L ord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the L ord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. (Isaiah 30:15-18 NLT)
2. Definition of threat- 1: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage. 2: one that threatens. 3: an indication of something impending (the sky held a threat of rain)
Right now, I feel most threatened by health problems in my family or the possibility of health problems in the ones I love. I fear death. I fear what might be.
3. Fleeing is when I over schedule myself and get over involved in others lives or other activities so I don’t have to think about anything that worries me or anything that might be wrong. The Lord has made this clear to me so I am trying to back out of things and not over involve myself. I look to get my help from knowledge and people. I need to be in the quiet more and be confident in who my God is and his ability to give me strength for any circumstance.
4. My adversary, the Devil, does seek to devour me and I must be on guard. He wants me to flee to something other than my all powerful God. He always threatens with half truths and lies. I must maintain my confidence in the Truth that comes from God’s word alone, not in what I think.
I have a tendency to try to work things the way that I want them. Perhaps to manipulate. Ah, I don’t like that truth about my tendencies. I spend time and energy trying to get things and people where I want them so I can feel secure. The truth is that’s the Lord’s job, not mine. If I would “settle down” and wait for him to work in his perfection I would save myself and others lots of grief. He is the only place that I can go in this crazy, unpredictable world and really feel peace and the security I long to be wrapped in.
Thanks, that was a good exercise to start my day đ
1. NIV & NKJV
New Living Translation (NLT)
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: âOnly in returning to meâ¨and resting in me will you be saved.⨠In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it. 16 You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.ââ¨But the only swiftness you are going to see⨠is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! 17 One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. â¨You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â 18 So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.
2. Threat: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage; one that threatens; an indication of something impending (example: the sky held a threat of rain)
Although I donât feel personally threatened in this particular season, the first definition strikes me . . . âintention to inflict evilâ. I do feel that many in our society have intent to inflict evil, whether through physical harm, bullying or even cyber bullying, and that makes me sad for the world in which we live. I have an 8-month-old son and it does make me concerned about things in his future. I also have a husband who, in his job, is constantly threaten by evil.
3. Although I am not fleeing right now, I often flee to the wrong things first. I flee to others instead of running to the Lord, FIRST!! Oh that I may run to the LORD as my first resort and then have others pray along with me after I have received guidance from Him.
4. I Peter tells us to always be aware of the threat of evil lurking around us . . . ready to pounce at any moment. We resist by standing firm in our faith and submitting ourselves to the Lord. When we are found strong in the Lord, THEN and only then, we will have the strength to stand up against the impending threats of evil and resist the devil!
5. I always need to hear the words âsettle downâ, whether it be over small or huge things. I donât know why I resist it. The peace and comfort and joy found in settling down with the Lord are so amazing . . .yet, I tend to have to constantly be reminded, by Him, to do so.
6. As a new Mommy, a wife of a deployed Air Force pilot (who happens to be in a combat zone) and a high school teacher, I MUST find time and to rest in the Lord and receive strength from Him. This is an evil world with the devil just sitting on ready to inflict harm . . . but I serve the One who has overcome already and I need to remember that. I need, also, to be always on guard, yet have peace that the Lord âhas my backâ and front and side and top and bottom and loved ones =))!!!
Mel Ann Sullivan, Millry, AL –
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test of time he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those that love him. James 1:12 NIV
1- NIV , MSG, ASV I Isiah 30 :13-16 NIV
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says:
âIn repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
but you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will flee on horses.â
Therefore you will flee!
You said, âWe will ride off on swift horses.â
Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
17 A thousand will flee
at the threat of one;
at the threat of five
you will all flee away,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on a mountaintop,
like a banner on a hill.â
18 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!
2 – Threat an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury or damage. And indication of something impending
Itâs very real to me this season. I feel that my career is being threatened by not well thought out changes people are planning to make to people and organization both in structure and programs. Personally I lose part of team, and have a new shaky project and another person will be promoted who has personal ties to the boss. And I am not handling the threat well. My worse moment was saying I was the wicked witch in snow white and I was going to start making apple sauce. Clearly, not in keeping in line with daughter of the king relationship.
2- Fleeing I have 3 ways to leave .first emotionally distancing, 2- denial and 3 physically leaving
Yes in some situations in my life, I am in some stages of all three; Thank God is most situations I canât. For example I canât walk away from job, or teens etc. So it forces me to turn to God for help.
4=I like Isaiah better as the other 2 felt like I had to be strong and firm. I like the words rest, wait, trust. On the other hand the three scriptures made it clear to me that I need to see threats not as human foibles but the enemy prowling and roaring
5 â Oh yes â right now the anger and threats are in my head like helicopter noise. The scripture felt like God says turn everything off and listen. Settle you heart mind and spirit down. I remember telling my kids when they are over excited to settle down and now I hear God saying to me settle down
6=I am awestruck. Yesterday I was so upset about the work issue s and last night around 10 God asked me to settle down and listen. And what pops up… this assignment. And timing is everything â if I got earlier I would have ignored it as too much work. It was because I was settling down I said MMM. â And when I read the scripture all the anger washed away. I felt peace. One again I realized I was being threaten and reacting to something that didnât happen. Preparing for a situation that could happen. And assuming the worse. And instead I needed to trust God , wait on God , settle my spirit, see this treat as an enemy plan ( to distract , hurt me and din this case hurt myself ) in the confusion. In some ways In my reacting to the threat and fleeing I was falling on my own sword and making a mess of I . Instead I now know that whatever changes are coming it will be for good. At work I need to continue to do good things and be His kid and not react or flee. Stand still and wait.
So grateful that He told you to do this and you obeyed. I am glad I did the work. And btw I got the gateway app now and love it. Two gifts in one
1. NIV1984, ESV, KJV
Isaiah 30:15-18
King James Version (KJV)
15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.
16 But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.
17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.
18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.
2. Threat= the expression of an intention to inflict evil or injury to another.
3. Distancing ones self for a sense of safety. The emotional side of relationships
4.
5. When I read the Message passage what jumps out at me is COMPLETE DEPENDENCE. Does that echo for anyone else?
6. From the translations I used submit and stand firm grabbed me. It lines up with complete dependence. Coming form a place of so many shadows in my life sometimes it is hard to do any of those things. It is Godâs grace, mercy and guidance that I lean on. I only pray that one day I will have the complete dependence with looking over my shoulder to make sure I am safe.
1. NIV, NLT, NASB
a. This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.
You said, ‘No, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.’ But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.”
So the LORD must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.
2. Threat â a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc. in retaliation for or conditionally upon some action or course, menace. An indication or warning of probable trouble. I feel threatened right now in my most important relationship.
3. Fleeing is often distance in relationship for me. I am not fleeing right now but I might not be pursuing either which in and of itself might be the same.
4. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters [fn] all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.
In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
If I stand firm and rest in the Lord, I am actively resisting the enemy; not in action but in my obedience. There is no need to flee if I stand on the Rock. He will place me on a firm foundation. The battle is His if I allow Him to be my banner.
5. I have been trying to learn the lesson of settling down but havenât always applied it in all areas of my life. Today, I needed to remember it and apply it here.
6. Today, I have been reminded of His sovereignty in my life when I allow Him access to all of me. I donât want to chase horses from Egypt when I have the armies of the Living God at my side. I have in the past held to His promises for this relationship and believed that He has something beautiful to build that will bring glory to Him but I needed the reminder today and the promise of a firm foundation. Thank you Lord! Thank you, Beth for being his vessel.
1. 3 translations: NIV, The Message and Amplified
Isaiah 30:15-18 Amplified
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not,
16 And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that]
17 One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill.
18 And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2. Definition of threat-
Merriam-Webster: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage; one that threatens; an indication of something impending
Google: A statement of an intention to inflict pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not…: “the family has received death threats”; A menace of bodily harm, such as may restrain a person’s freedom of action.
I think the 2nd part of the google definiton hits me the most – a menance of bodily harm, SUCH AS MAY RESTRAIN A PERSON’S FREEDOM OF ACTION. The enemy’s biggest threat in my life has been & continues to be insecurity. In this current season, I am leading a Bible study and the enemy comes at me hitting on every insecure thought…he tells me I shouldn’t be doing what I’m doing, that I don’t have any formal training, I’m not speaking anything new or revelatory, etc. This definition is so applicable because if I listened to that THREAT, I would stop doing what I know I am called to do.
3. Fleeing in my life can be one of 2 things:
1) sticking with that which I am most comfortable (instead of going to the “new thing” God is calling me to)
2) depending on “horses” (aka others) to feed my ego and carry me through.
Mostly no – I am not in fleeing mode but I do see myself depending somewhat on others thoughts & opinions rather than what God told me.
4. We don’t need to flee – stand firm, resist the devil and HE WILL FLEE!
5.It’s a great thought!! We don’t have to figure it ourselves or do it on our own – it is God who is our deliverer & source!
6. I had this thought prior to doing this particular study this morning…and the study confirms it for me. We all have insecurities – let them humble me not hinder me from fulfilling my appointed purpose.
1. NIV, AMP, MSG
⢠15-17 God, the Master, The Holy of Israel,â¨has this solemn counsel:â¨âYour salvation requires you to turn back to meâ¨and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.â¨Your strength will come from settling downâ¨in complete dependence on meââ¨The very thingâ¨youâve been unwilling to do.â¨Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!ââ¨Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!â¨Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!ââ¨Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?â¨Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.â¨Before a mere five youâll all run off.â¨Thereâll be nothing left of youââ¨a flagpole on a hill with no flag,â¨a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But Godâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.â¨Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.â¨God takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.â¨Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones. Isaiah 30:15-18 MSG
2. Threat:
⢠A statement of an intention to inflict pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not…
⢠A menace of bodily harm, such as may restrain a person’s freedom of action
The part that says, âin retribution for something done or notâ hits meâŚ..thank God for grace. I feel most threatened in this season because what I am believing God to do in my life I am not necessarily âqualifiedâ for.
3. âFleeingâ tends to look like stress and anxiety in my life. I was in âfleeing modeâ on Thursday and Friday.
4. In Isaiah 30:15-18 God is telling me to cease trying to run this race on my own strengthâŚ.for it nor I will last or be victorious, but to instead depend on His strength for He is going to do everything right—-everything. 1 Peter 5:8 speaks to me because here God says for us to keep a cool head and to stay alert. The devil would love to see me take a break or give up! This scripture encourages me to keep a firm grip on the faith because Godâs plans are great and He will do what He said He would do. God cannot lie! James 4:7 says for me to humble myself and to let God work. I need to constantly resist the devil and say no to all that comes with him such as the anxiety and stress and say yes to God for He will rescue me and work out everything for my good.
5. Yes, I do. Sometimes I get so anxious about what, how, and when God is going to do something. âSETTLE DOWN RAVEN!!â
6. To continue trusting God and to not give the devil any place by allowing stress and anxiety to come into my life. God is saying to me to stop relying on my own strength and to depend on Him and His strength. He is faithful and He will do what He said He would do. He cannot lie. I was also reminded of our Esther Bible Study where Mrs. Beth presented Scenario #6 (Over Anxious) âItâs tough being a woman who can balance passion and patience.â She then used Isaiah 30:18 and said, âThere is something that the wait is for! You wait. You long. But do not fret! Itâs going to turn out good! And God is waiting/longing too!â I have been greatly encouraged!
#1.
NRSV, The Message, NLT
From the NLT:
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord,
the Holy One of Israel, says:
âOnly in returning to me
and resting in me will you be saved.
In quietness and confidence is your strength.
But you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt.
They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.â
But the only swiftness you are going to see
is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
17 One of them will chase a thousand of you.
Five of them will make all of you flee.
You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill
or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â
18 So the Lord must wait for you to come to him
so he can show you his love and compassion.
For the Lord is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for his help.
#2. Threat â 1) an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage; 2) an indication of something impending (m-w.com)
A threat, by this definition, is scary. Terrifying to think that someone INTENTIONALLY wants to cause harm.
The biggest threat I feel right now, and by this definition, Iâm not sure it actually implies because the meaning is slightly different, but the biggest threat for me is lack of time. Thereâs so much to do, and so little time left to do it all.
#3. Fleeing â in past years, fleeing meant getting away from dangerous situations, or ducking out on responsibilities, or giving up. Today looks nothing like that â no fleeing, no need to flee. Iâm safe, gaining strength to be all God is calling me to me (even when it seems hard or scary!), determined to finish well.
#4. Comparing verses, I found one line in The Message version of 1 Peter 5:8-11 that really stood out: âYouâre not the only ones plunged into these hard times. Itâs the same with Christians all over the world.â The enemy, satan himself, is our worst enemy. But if we stand firm, as James tells us, he will flee.
#5. âYour strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on meâ (same verse from The Message) â itâs the âcomplete dependenceâ that spoke to me in this translation. I tend to try to do it all myself, but over the last couple of years, the Lord has shown me so clearly my deep, never-ending need for dependence on Him, and Him alone.
#6. This lesson today reminds me to stay on guard, that yes, indeed, the devil is our biggest threat, but if we stand firm in our faith, he will flee. I need to trust God â have confidence in Him, REST in Him. And we need to remember that the enemy attacks our brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world â we must pray for each other, encourage each other, stand in faith with each other.
1. ESV, NIV, NLT.
This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says:
âOnly in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it. You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.â But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â So the LORD must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. (NLT)
2. âA statement of an intention to inflict pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not. A person or thing likely to cause damage or danger. An indication of something impending.â
Iâm not sure that threatened is the right word to use for this season, but reading a âthing likely to cause damageâ really hits me. Through the Lordâs guidance, I came off antidepressants two weeks ago for the first time inâŚyears (PRAISE GOD!). Iâve been on medication since I first entered into my relationship with Jesus, and for the first time I get to see and savor and love and rejoice over Him without the aid of pharmaceuticals. But itâs scary to fully trust and rely on God to hold me up, because it was such a crippling stronghold for so many years, and the looming possibility of another depressive episode isâŚsimply threatening.
3. Fleeing in my life is manifested mostly by avoiding confrontation, pain or discomfort. Usually I am most prone to flee by simply recoiling. For me, it is much easier to go into my most isolated and protected place with only God and myself, where I can sit still without having to face any challenges head-on. But fortunately, Iâm not in fleeing mode right nowâIâm facing some major demolition with my two sticks of dynamite, and when you pray Godâs Word over serious strongholds, fleeing really isnât an option đ
4. In Isaiah, we are being called to be quiet, restful and confident in God, while in 1 Peter, we are warned to âstay alert!â But I donât think those ideas are mutually exclusive. While God strengthens us and promises that He is our help, we are still commanded to be discerning and test the spirits, because we know that the enemy is cunning and sly. Itâs still possible to be resting in God while part of you is being devoured by the enemy, if we fail to stay alert and continually allow God to surface our sins and hidden faults. And though James tells us that if we resist, the enemy flees, Isaiah says that we will flee from the enemyâŚIF we ride into battle without the help of the Lord and His strength. James gives the condition for our resistance: humbling ourselves before the Lord. And clearly, the only way to resist and cause the devil to run is if the Lord is His true opposition, living in is, waging war against the force of darkness as we purely submit to Godâs will and follow His instructions. God is faithful and wants to show love and compassion! We canât be devoured when weâre humbling ourselves before the Almighty! Praise God!!
5. Settling down is so tough to do when thereâs spiritual warfare going on. Iâm a college student for Aerospace Engineering and so the anxiety is really reaching a peak. I can never read the words enough to âquiet my soulâ or âsettle downâ, etc., because sometimes it feels like thatâs the LAST thing I should be doing, you know? Thereâs so much work to be done! So much growth that needs to be tended to and life that needs to get figured out! But God already has it figured outâŚoh, I want that benefit of peace from God so terriblyâit just gets really distorted in my mind and in my life when the enemy finds a way to twist it into a negative, when really God completely intends on His peace being a gift.
6. It isnât up to me. I donât have to make all the pieces fit together. The only way life works is in full surrender to my Creator and my Father, who is renewing my mind every day and strengthening me when I humble myself at His feet. My weakness is my strength, because I get to draw from Him. As worried as I am over my job interviews, moving to Houston, dealing with some long-term strongholds, and keeping schoolwork under control, as well as making disciples and digging deeper into the Word, I know with FULL ASSURANCE OF FAITH that God is able, willing, and promising to take care of it if I submit as His child đ Thank You Jesus! Iâm so refreshed in hearing Him tell my heart exactly what I needed to hear…just wait on Him, rest in Him, be confident in who He is, and never pick up a sword unless itâs of His Spirit and He has already armored me up. Because He has love and power and rescue in store for me. âWe wonât move without You, Youâre the light of all and all that we need!â
1.NAS, NIV, MSG
Isaiah 30:15-18 (MSG)
15 GOD, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solemn counsel: “Your salvation requires you to turn back to me and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on meâ The very thing you’ve been unwilling to do.
16 You’ve said, ‘Nothing doing! We’ll rush off on horseback!’ You’ll rush off, all right! Just not far enough! You’ve said, ‘We’ll ride off on fast horses!’ Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
17 Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker. Before a mere five you’ll all run off. There’ll be nothing left of youâ a flagpole on a hill with no flag, a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.”
18 But GOD’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you. He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you. GOD takes the time to do everything rightâeverything. Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
2. Threat – : an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
: one that threatens: an indication of something impending <the sky held a threat of rain
I feel most threatened by âtimeâ and my almost perfectionist personality. Due to the economy, I am doing 3 jobs at work, one of which is forcing me to go to back to school for certification and the amount of time for the class is overwhelming, aging parent, home, family, church, Bible Study leader, friends who need . . . and there is never enough time or money . . .
3. Fleeing is a thought, never a consideration. We get ourselves into some situations, and God is ever present, and every morning, I go to His presence and he graciously takes me through each day. Has He answered all my prayers and given me all I ask â NO â and that is sometimes my struggle. Life can be so hard and I know what the Word says, but in reality I wish for a loooooong season of ease. If I could, I would flee lifeâs difficulties or realities.
4. I KNOW God is working and I do yell at the devil, to leave and let me get on with life. I do see God working and I feel a glimpse of some of my constant prayers for 20 years, but oh, the waiting and wishing.
5. I need to settle down and let God do His thing, and stop wrestling with Him over it and follow His will in other areas of my life, and just let the thing rest â settle and Know that all things are in His hands and all things work together for good and He will supply all my needs â just believe it and SETTLE ON THIS!
6. I have caught âthe bugâ and I have a huge paper due in the class, a musical coming up, and testing in front of me. I prayed and prayed in the night for Godâs help and guidance today and then I read this. God is telling me to let go and âsettleâ in Him. Stop stressing over everything in life, all the things I cannot change, the family issues I cannot fix, and rest in Him â just settle!
Thank you â God knew I was the one who needed these verses.
1) Message
KJV
NIV *15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. 16 You said, ‘No, we will flee on horses.’ Therefore you will flee! You said, ‘We will ride off on swift horses.’ Therefore your pursuers will be swift! 17 A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee away, till you are left like a flagstaff on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill.” 18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
2) Threat-an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
I feel threatened in my marriage, that I am not the desire or focus of my husband.
3) Fleeing- looks like my moving away to protect my heart. Fingertips and nose on the window looking out.
4) Comparison of all verses: All verses lead to Christ (standing firm in faith, trusting Him)
5) Yes, I need to “settle down with the Lord” and close the window shade.
6) God is speaking to me: I need to get alone with God… quiet spot to be poured into, filled with Him, so that I can be refreshed and then pour out Him on those around me.
1. ESV, NET, NLT: This is what the Sovereign Lord,â¨the Holy One of Israel, says:â¨âOnly in returning to meâ¨and resting in me will you be saved.â¨In quietness and confidence is your strength.⨠But you would have none of it.You said, âNo, we will get our help from Egypt.⨠They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.ââ¨But the only swiftness you are going to see⨠is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you.⨠Five of them will make all of you flee.â¨You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hillâ¨or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.â So the Lord must wait for you to come to himâ¨so he can show you his love and compassion.â¨For the Lord is a faithful God.⨠Blessed are those who wait for his help.
2. threat: a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace; 2) an indication or warning of probable trouble; 3) a person or thing that threatens.
It jumps out at me that a threat can be a person or spoken/written words (concrete, actual entities), but it can also be, according to definition two, just a sense or feeling (more abstract, but just as real). For me in this season, I feel most threatened by the more abstract threats that I create in my own mind: âYou donât have time to get everything done/take time for that/be there for that personâŚ..Youâre not capable enough to do that, etc.â
3. I tend to flee from the unknown/untested. If Iâm not sure I can do it well, I try to avoid it. In a different sense, when I do feel pressured by circumstances and long to-do lists, I tend to become like a hamster on a wheelâscurrying around very fast, but never seeming to move forward.
4. They all speak to the importance of rest, quietness, humility as being signs of strength. No applause for the hamster-like scurry!
5. Yes, my MO is to ramp up the energy to barrel through a tough situationâthe exact opposite response that this verse declares. I do know from past experience that when I rest in the Lord and make Him my focus through the day (and not my circumstance), I have peace beyond understanding and strength beyond my own.
6. I am just finishing a very relaxed, refreshing week of vacation. When I return and step back into the faster, fuller pace of life, this is a great reminder to me that I donât have to trade the quietness and trust for âfrantic horseback riding.â His strength, love, and compassion are available no matter what the pace.
1. For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not, And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that] One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill. And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]! (Isaiah 30:15-18 AMP)
NJKV, Message
2. Threat – an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage – one that threatens – an indication of something impending
In reading this I realized what my posture would be when I sense a threat (real or imagined). And then I get a clear understanding of why I get so emotionally exhausted. A threat instantly puts me in self preservation mode – how can I battle it, how can I beat it and survive? When I live in that mode for an extended period of time, my behavior becomes erratic or I just wear myself out. Hmmmmm
3. Fleeing is always wanting to quit for me. I am definitely in a “want-to-flee” mode and daily battle not giving in. The threat is not wanting to be rejected.
4. 1 Peter 5:8-11 Being sober and vigilant are not as energy consuming as feeling threatened. Feeling threatened brings to mind a posture of “back on you heels” not exactly knowing where it’s going to come from – sort of a paranoia. Being sober and vigilant means you are aware and ready but your posture is not so defensive. You know where the attack will be coming from and you are prepared and confident for when that time arrives.
James 4:7 – simple and straightforward – threats make you feel confused, uneasy and unsure.
5. Settle down means I don’t have to feel threatened. Settle down when everything in me wants to flee. Settle down, resist the devil and he will flee. I get to stay where I have roots, where I can grow. If I don’t flee all of the time, I get the opportunity to flourish.
6. Wow what a timely Word for me this morning! I have been doing something I know God wants me to do and have spent the last 5 months trying to flee because I feel threatened. Because I feel the potential for rejection and hurt is huge. No wonder I’m emotionally tired! Settle down. That’s my new word I’m going to put everywhere. Thanks Beth!
Homework: I read KJV, NIV and the Message. The Message spoke to me the most:
Isaiah 30:15-18
The Message (MSG)
God Takes the Time to Do Everything Right
15-17 God, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on meâ
The very thing
youâve been unwilling to do.
Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!â
Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!
Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!â
Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.
Before a mere five youâll all run off.
Thereâll be nothing left of youâ
a flagpole on a hill with no flag,
a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But Godâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.
Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.
God takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
Threat:
1 : an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
2 : one that threatens
3 : an indication of something impending *the sky held a threat of rain*
Iâve been battling this one for nearly 2 decades in the work place. My self-esteem has been shattered—badly beaten. Each day holds threats to my self-esteem.
I recently encountered fleeing in my life. God gave me a huge writing assignment, and I allowed my shattered self-esteem to dictate my feelings rather than fully realizing my life verse which is Philippians 4:13: âI can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.â Like Jonah, I freaked-out and tried to flee. The wonderful, dear lady whom God used to give me the assignment wouldnât allow me to flee. She emailed me: âYou can do this.â She encouraged me. Self-esteem can sometimes be a threat to us. We cannot allow that to happen. God loves us and believes in us. When He gives us an assignment, He has His reasons for giving it to us. He knows we can do it, because He is the one at the helm, not us. And each day in the earthly workplace (here Iâm not talking about Kingdom work), I continue to flee each time I feel threatened by words and occurrences that cause yet another crack in this clay pot—-and I turn to the Potter to repair the cracks. 1 Peter 5:8-10 and James 4:7 is such an integral part of my life. Satan attacks me on a regular basis, and last week I was under one of his aggressive attacks. Sometimes it takes me several days to a week to figure out heâs attacking me (DUH!!!), but when I do figure it out, I tell him: âIn the name of Jesus, be gone from me!â Satan is then the one who flees, he and his minions scattering like leaves in the wind. Our God is a mighty spiritual Hurricane, and I am reminded that we need only allow Him to extend His hand to us, and the wind from that movement will cause all threats to flee.
1. NIV, ESV, HCSB : Isaiah 30:15-18
15 For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said: âYou will be delivered by returning and resting; your strength will lie in quiet confidence. But you are not willing.â 16 You say, âNo! We will escape on horsesââ
therefore you will escape!â
and, âWe will ride on fast horsesââ
but those who pursue you will be faster. 17 One thousand will flee at the threat of one, at the threat of five you will flee, until you alone remain like a solitary pole on a mountaintop or a banner on a hill. 18 Therefore the LORD is waiting to show you mercy, and is rising up to show you compassion, for the LORD is a just God. All who wait patiently for Him are happy.
2. threat , noun, 1. declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace: 2.an indication or warning of probable trouble: 3.a person or thing that threatens.
A threat may exist only in my mind, it may be probable, it may be a sure menace, it may be a person or a thing. The things that threaten me in this season are almost purely imaginary. I struggle with negative thinking and wage a constant battle to exercise Phil 4:8 thinking.
3. âFleeingâ for me is giving in to depression. I sleep. I am very self-focused in âfleeingâ mode. I disengage from those people or situations that threaten. âFleeingâ can also be slinging words and struggling to find the right thing to DO to relieve the anxiety.
4. Compare or contrast the Isaiah text (30:15-18) to 1 Peter 5:8-10 and James 4:7.
The threat in 1 Peter 5:8-10 is real. God admonishes me to be alert, resist, be firm in the faith. Know that it is not all about me. God promises in this scripture to establish and settle me. The devil is the one doing the fleeing. James 4:7 calls for me to align myself under God, to resist the devil and to watch him flee. The threat (real or imaginary) is not overcome by anything I do. It is resting (settling down) in what I know is true about God and resting in what God can do and will do.
5. Do you perchance need to hear the words âsettle down!â as much as I do? If so, why? Yes! My anxieties and negative thinking screams at me to DO SOMETHING in my own strength. I would love to find strength, to find relief in the quiet confidence of knowing Godâs got it handled.
6. âYou will be delivered by returning and resting; your strength will lie in quiet confidence.â Repentance. Do a soul double-check and let go of anything hindering my relationship with God (anger, bitterness, forgiveness, etc.). Rest. Stop striving. Trust God. Be confident in what I know is true about God (loving, pure, just, unchanging, always there, sovereign . . .)
I awoke at 4:46 this morning, restless, praying for so many, but God would not quiet my soul so I got my little laptop and went back to this – which I saw last night before I went to bed and thought oh this sounds like something I “might” look at later…well now I know why God would not let me sleep. Thank you Beth for each challenge you give me. I started doing your Bible Studies a few years ago. The first year a Godly woman facilitated the study and when I asked her if she was doing one the next year she was not able to do one. I was so disappointed I was so challenged by your teaching. So to make a long story short God kept after me (LOL) and I decided to see if there were other women who would be interested in a study and now 3 years later I’m facilitating my 3rd Bible Study! I thank God for your challenges to dig deeper just like this one! I pray God continues to bless you and this ministry.
The Message
Amplified
The NIV Isaiah 30:15-18
âIn repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have not of it.
In all the translations this is what stood out to me. I need to rest in my salvation not wondering all the time if Iâm good enoughâŚI need to be quiet and trust God for his salvation. I know that Satan is alive and well but I know who wins.
I love the end of 1Peter where it says: 10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.
1. Isaiah 30:15-18
ESV
MESSAGE
New International Version (NIV)
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:
âIn repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
but you would have none of it.
16 You said, âNo, we will flee on horses.â
Therefore you will flee!
You said, âWe will ride off on swift horses.â
Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
17 A thousand will flee
at the threat of one;
at the threat of five
you will all flee away,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on a mountaintop,
like a banner on a hill.â
18 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!
2. Threat-1: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage
2: one that threatens
3: an indication of something impending <the sky held a threat of rain
Failing as a mother, wife, follower of Jesus. I am threatened by comparing to others and feeling Inadequate spiritually, intellectually, or physically.
3. Fleeing, bottling up saying nothing letting the root of bitterness take hold. Isolating myself from others I feel threatened by. Jealousy of others to appear to be in a more consistently obedient relationship with Jesus. In some ways, I feel it creeping up its ugly head, I see to be more aware of my fleeing than before.
4. 1 Peter I love the resist the devil, it is so easy to run but standing firm who I am in Christ. Don't believe the lie you are all alone there are so many dealing with similar issues. When we are alert it is easier to react and be firm in the fact you may suffer awhile before strength is given. Isaiah seems to show us a reaction based on me my own strength and abilities. 1 Peter and James shows me a reaction based on faith in Jesus and my submission to his ways and timing.
5. Settle down..yikes how I build stuff up in my head. Trust and relying on Christ instead of feeling I have anything to offer of any worth without Him. I get worked up on so many selfish worthless things and miss opportunities to grow in Christ, and learn to lean on him.
6. I think it is good to have to think and evaluate myself in the light of God's word. To truly examine how I am living out Jesus and how I need to change. Making my self stop worrying about today or tomorrow or me and meditate on my amazing Jesus. The cry I feel is consistent from God is submit , and draw near to me and I will draw near to you.
Thanks I hesitated on doing this but so glad God placed it on your heart to post.
1. NIV, NASB, NET 15 For this is what the master, the LORD, the Holy One of Israel says: âIf you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered; if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength, but you are unwilling. 16 You say, âNo, we will flee on horses,â so you will indeed flee. You say, âWe will ride on fast horses,â so your pursuers will be fast. 17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, until the remaining few are as isolated as a flagpole on a mountaintop or a signal flag on a hill.â18 For this reason the LORD is ready to show you mercy; he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you. Indeed, the LORD is a just God; all who wait for him in faith will be blessed.
2. Threat: an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage; one that threatens; an indication of something impending. It makes me think of Satan. He has evil intentions for injury and damage. I also think of my own spoken and unspoken threats. I feel most threatened by financial insecurity. What will happen if I make less money? What if my job disappears due to lack of money?
3. I first flee to the half a dozen spreadsheets Iâve made to keep track of the flow of my God-allotted money. The percentages, the averages, the impending threat of future bills⌠My pastor told us he wrote, âGod is infiniteâ on the top of his budget, so I did the same. I do think about this and am reminded of and can see how God has provided in many circumstances already. When I become exhausted by looking at the numbers, I flee to solitaire, and that deck of cards is able to momentarily drown out the threat of financial insecurity.
4. I saw a roaring lion at the zoo. The only reason I was able to resist fleeing was because of the thick glass that separated him from me. I was very sober, very alert, and my faith in that glass was very strong. But if I were to flee, then my faith would no longer be in the glass, but in my âfast horseâ. So, if I stay behind the glass, he will have to look for something else to devour. The devil will be the one fleeing from me, probably not because Iâm particularly intimidating, but because heâs hungry and tired of waiting for me to panic.
5. Settle down. Lions roar, but heâs not roaring at me, heâs roaring at God, the glass Iâm standing behind. It would be silly to run.
6. Financial insecurity is my roaring lion. It looks pretty threatening, but I know that my brothers and sisters throughout the world are enduring the same kinds of suffering. And, after I have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called me to his eternal glory in Christ will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish me. I also want to be willing to let Him redefine what financial security looks like for my family.
1. Niv, Amplified, The Message.
15-17 GOD, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on meâ
The very thing
youâve been unwilling to do.
Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!â
Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!
Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!â
Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.
Before a mere five youâll all run off.
Thereâll be nothing left of youâ
a flagpole on a hill with no flag,
a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But GODâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.
Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.
GOD takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
2. Threat-
Noun. 1. a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace. 2. an indication or warning of probable trouble. 3. a person or thing that threatens.
Verb. 4. Archaic. to threaten.
I feel threatened in my relationship with the Lord as satan is constantly bombarding me with the sins of my past. I feel unworthy and ashamed.
3. I âfleeâ by avoiding relationships. In fact, I recently moved 300 miles from my home of 16 years to start over where I know no one. I am a nameless and faceless person in a town of 100,000 people and a church of 3,000.
4. My life verse if 1 Peter 5:8. The devil has surrounded me and I have been bitten on more than one occasion with severe wounds. I try to run from him but he is too fast and strong. I know that I need to trust and rely on Jesus to protect and defend me because He only wants good for me and His plan is already set. When I truly trust God, I can stand for Him and the devil will flee not ME. It is just hard to go forward with the knowledge of my past that continually wraps itself around me.
5. Yes, I need to settle down. My spirit is in turmoil and I am filled with a fear that I do not understand. Why am I fighting the battle from 16 years ago again? What has changed that has put me back in the rut again? I believed this battle was dealt with and done.
6. My heart is sad and filled with defeat. Why does satan have this hold over me and to what purpose? I am hiding Godâs Word in my heart and studying His Word daily but I have not received the answer yet. I need to see and understand what God wants to do with the mess of me. Please pray for me.
1. Message, NCV, NIV
Isaiah 30:15-18
15-17 GOD, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on meâ
The very thing
youâve been unwilling to do.
Youâve said, âNothing doing! Weâll rush off on horseback!â
Youâll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!
Youâve said, âWeâll ride off on fast horses!â
Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.
Before a mere five youâll all run off.
Thereâll be nothing left of youâ
a flagpole on a hill with no flag,
a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.â
18 But GODâs not finished. Heâs waiting around to be gracious to you.
Heâs gathering strength to show mercy to you.
GOD takes the time to do everything rightâeverything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
2. Threat â
A statement of an intention to inflect pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not. A menace of bodily harm, such as may restrain a personâs freedom of action.
⢠Being a single mother, it creates a staggering fear that I would not be able to provide for my children or myself. In addition, it creates an overwhelming feeling of being thrown into a deep, dark, pit with no way out except death and leaves me wanting to give up even before I begin.
3. Fleeing feels different sometimes. Sometimes it feels like running away from something terrible. Sometimes it feels like retreating to a safe place. I think Iâm always in some sort of fleeing mode because Satan is always around, but still trying to be bold and courageous and rebuke him.
4. Stop thinking you have time to do what want. The time is now to live holy lives. We have been chosen and God has work for us to do. We need to stop messing around and do it. Forget the worldly stuff. Love His people and busy ourselves with teaching the gospel to those who do not know it.
1. I read from the HCSB, MSG and the one I enjoyed the most:
AMP
Isaiah 30:15-18
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not,
16 And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that]
17 One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill.
18 And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2. an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage. As a minister’s wife in a struggling church..I am threatened by fear, and uncertainty and Satan himself trying to derail a church from being God’s church.
3. I flee by just staying home and doing nothing!
4. 1 Peter: Be serious! Be alert!..God of all grace…will personally restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little
James: 7 Therefore, submit to God. But resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
God doesn’t call us to flee..he calls us to submit and resist!!
5. Yes…I need God to settle me down when I let the world and fear take over my thoughts!
6. These are great verses to begin a New Year with! Insight..keep trusting in God and keep resisting the Enemy! Simple yet profound Easily understood yet so difficult to keep doing consistently! Today I choose to obey!
1. HCSB, NLT and NIV.
15 For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said:
âYou will be delivered by returning and resting;
your strength will lie in quiet confidence.
But you are not willing.â
16 You say, âNo!
We will escape on horsesââ
therefore you will escape!â
and, âWe will ride on fast horsesââ
but those who pursue you will be faster.
17 One thousand will flee at the threat of one,
at the threat of five you will flee,
until you alone remain
like a solitary pole on a mountaintop
or a banner on a hill.
18 Therefore the LORD is waiting to show you mercy,
and is rising up to show you compassion,
for the LORD is a just God.
All who wait patiently for Him are happy. (HCSB)
2. Threat: a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course; menace. An indication or warning of probable trouble.
I am feeling threaten by the âlong waitâ for God to come and rescue me. I am sometimes tempted to think He has forgotten me and the purpose He has for my life that I look at Egypt as an option to return to.
3. Fleeing has always meant for me to stop whatever is too hard for me to endure. Yes I am in fleeing mode. I have been battling not enduring the place where God has me today (a job). I sense He brought to this job to help me in the calling He has for my life. However, I am constantly contemplating going back to Egypt as an easy escape from the difficulties I am experiencing. Five years ago the Lord had me in the same place, I opted to flee. This time, even though tempted in many ways, and hurting during this season, I am sticking to see His deliverance and what He has for me beyond this time of endurance. Much prayer is needed.
4. These Scriptures confirm to me that I should continue to strengthen what is weak and resist the devil in all his attempts to have me quit. He is working overtime. 1 Peter 5:10b speaks to me right now saying that God himself: âwill personally restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little.â I am waiting on Him to do this for me.
5. âYour salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on meâ
Beth, you have always been used by God to speak into my life. It seems as if I am in the same classroom as you are. The things you share are so timely.
This verse speaks so clearly to me about âsettling downâ because I am in fleeing mode once again. I need to learn to rest on God. I am in âbetween the rains.â My constant declaration is that âmy rain is comingâ (Hosea 6:3). It helps me in my endurance.
6. One more time God is saying to wait on Him, to settle down. My heart is filled with gratitude knowing that He is working and has not forgotten about me. Thank you for Father for a timely word of encouragement this day: âAll who wait patiently for Him are happy.â
1.NIV, Amplified (see below), ESV
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength. But you would not,16 And you said, No! We will speed [our own course] on horses! Therefore you will speed [in flight from your enemies]! You said, We will ride upon swift steeds [doing our own way]! Therefore will they who pursue you be swift, [so swift that]17 One thousand of you will flee at the threat of one of them; at the threat of five you will flee till you are left like a beacon or a flagpole on the top of a mountain, and like a signal on a hill.18 And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
2.âthreatâ – an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage (Merriam-Webster)
I think that in this season of life, I feel âthreatenedâ by things that are intangible, particularly the unknown. You could almost say I feel threatened by my own fears about the future because it is so totally unknown.
3.Fleeing usually looks like worry and fretting that can often be paralyzing. It looks like fear taking over, and me retreating and turning to self-pity.
4.1 Peter 5:8-10 – Be firm in the faith â steadfast, rooted â rather than running our own way and fleeing every which way. Verse 10 in Amplified – 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace [Who imparts all blessing and favor], Who has called you to His [own] eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely, and strengthen, and settle you. Our rest is in Him.
James 4:7 â Submit to God and resist the devil and instead of us fleeing, he will flee.
5.I need to settle down in terms of being so restless and fearful and discontent. I feel like I am waiting for certain things to happen in my life, and my wish for those things often keeps me from returning and resting and settling down, realizing my completeness is in Him â that He is all I need.
6.Rather than returning to God and resting in Him, Iâd rather take control and speed off on my own horse and âfigure things out.â Or, Iâd rather flee from my fears to my own comfortable corner where I can complain and feel sorry for myself. So, I end up being like that broken down sign on a hill, at a loss for what my real purpose is. Only in coming to my Father am I restored; only in Christ Jesus am I made complete and grounded in who I really am in Him. I am found in Him. Praise the Lord.
I looked up the ESV, the HCSB and stuck on this one:
New Century Version (NCV)
15 This is what the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, says:
âIf you come back to me and trust me, you will be saved.
If you will be calm and trust me, you will be strong.â
But you donât want to do that.
16 You say, âNo, we need horses to run away on.â
So you will run away on horses.
You say, âWe will ride away on fast horses.â
So those who chase you will be fast.
17 One enemy will make threats,
and a thousand of your men will run away.
Five enemies will make threats,
and all of you will run from them.
You will be left alone like a flagpole on a hilltop,
like a banner on a hill.
18 The Lord wants to show his mercy to you.
He wants to rise and comfort you.
The Lord is a fair God,
and everyone who waits for his help will be happy.
“threat”: 1. An expression of an intention to inflict pain, injury, evil, or punishment. 2. An indication of impending danger or harm. 3. One that is regarded as a possible danger; menace. (The American Heritage Dictionary)
Honestly, I feel threatened by my own stinkin’ imagination most of the time. When I look at this particular definition of ‘threat’ I don’t see any actual “expressions of intention” or “indications of impending danger” anywhere. I imagine them. All it takes is a mere suggestion and I’m off and running with it….ugh. When will I ever learn the lesson of taking thoughts captive?
“fleeing”….in my life this tends to look like hiding. Burying myself in distractions. Keeping busy so I don’t have to deal with/think about whatever it is I’m imagining is happening. The NCV says “we will ride away on fast horses. So those who chase you will be fast.” Yep. It always catches up to me.
1 Peter 5:8-10 and James 4:7, along with this passage in Isaiah all spell it out pretty clearly. GOD ANSWERS ANY THREATS. GOD SHUTS THE THREAT DOWN. We have to turn to Him and let Him. Why do I continue to 1. listen to the threat? 2. Entertain the threat? Because I’m not trusting God. I. Don’t. Trust. God. I confess it. I’m bawling my eyes out as I type….here I find myself again. AGAIN.
God asks me “why don’t you come back to me? Why don’t you calm down? I’m ready and willing to take care of you and strengthen you and cover you, but you don’t even trust me enough to come to me with this.” Maybe I think God has let me down in the past. (He hasn’t.) Maybe I believe God will blame me for getting in this mess in the first place. (He won’t and this passage proves it.) He WANTS to be merciful to me. He WANTS to comfort me.
I’ve got some stuff to deal with. With Him. Prayers, please.