Isaiah 11:13-15

The Voice

There are no capricious acts with God. God, and no one else, is the undoing of Israel. He may use Assyria as His agent to chastise the people of Judah for their wrongdoing, but judgment is never God’s last move. When God judges—when God punishes—He does so for a reason. His judgment is always measured, finite, and based on His covenant loyalty. God takes no delight in His people’s suffering; but sometimes, tragically, it is necessary. Willful ignorance and blatant disregard for God and others cannot be ignored. In the end, God’s purpose is to repair a world deeply injured by sin and its consequences. So His next move is to rescue and restore His covenant partners. Reconciliation and grace always follow destruction.

¹³At that time Ephraim will no longer envy Judah,
    those who afflict Judah will be brought down,
For those groups who had been at odds with each other—
    envy and hostility will end.
¹⁴But they will join forces against those who threaten them,
    swooping down on the slopes of Philistia in the west,
Plundering and prevailing over the nations in the east who oppressed them:
    Edom, Moab, and Ammon.
¹⁵And the Eternal will make it easy,
    so easy for God’s people to return from Egypt and Assyria.
He will create a swath of dry land through the gulf of Egypt’s sea;
    with a wave of His hand, He will blow a scorching wind
Over the Euphrates—breaking it up into seven streams—
    so the people can cross it in their sandals.