Psalm 19:14

 
 
 
 

Isaiah 26:4

Verse of the Day Devotion.  Isaiah 26:4

“Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.” – Isaiah 26:4  

This verse, along with the one prior to it speak of focusing our minds on God regarding all things. In verse one we see this is a song that was sung in Judah upon the return of the people from Babylon to Judah. “In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security.” Isaiah 26:1. The idea that they have a strong city does not refer to the fortification that was around the city, for this was essentially brought down when they were overtaken by their enemies. The idea here is that God will be that wall of protection. He will himself be the defender of his people in the place of walls. Then in verse two, “Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter, The one that remains faithful.” Isaiah 26:2, This is a cry to open the gates to allow Israel, the people who remained true to God throughout their time in Babylon, that they may enter into the land given to them by God.

Then in verse three we find this very true and powerful verse, “The steadfast of mind Thou wilt keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in Thee.” This confidently states that certain people will have perfect peace. This indicates that some have a frame of mind and perspective that is steadfast, which implies an undeviating commitment to a purpose, conviction, or person. The root meaning of the translation steadfast is to support, but the Hebrew passive participle carries the idea of “leaning on, depending on, resting on” something. In this case, it refers to leaning on, depending on, and resting on God.

Now to our focus verse. “Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.” Isaiah 26:4. The author first states in the previous verse that those who trust in the Lord will have perfect peace. Now He takes it a step further by telling them ‘to’ trust in the Lord ‘forever’. Not simply to trust Him in some things, or to only trust Him at times when they struggle trusting themselves or something or someone else, But to trust Him forever. Now let’s look at something else in this verse which is also intriguing. ‘Trust in the LORD forever, for in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock’. The word translated ‘Lord’ in both instances is the Hebrew word “yehôvâh” which means self-Existent or eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God: – Jehovah, the Lord. Now, the word translated ‘God’ is the Hebrew word ‘yâhh’ which is a contracted form of yehôvâh meaning essentially the same thing. Now, I say this to say that the threefold use of Jehovah denotes exactly which God they should rely on, for the name “yehôvâh” is used three times in the sentence and not just a generic term for any god.

It is so important that we do not rely on people, things, organizations, or anything else to provide the peace we so need in the place of Jehovah, the true God. We are facing trials on every corner; hatred from many who deny Jehovah even exists, and persecution from those who want to destroy the idea of Christianity altogether. It does not matter what they do or say for the true God, stated here as “yehôvâh” can be trusted no matter what. If this is so, the exhortation to trust God makes sense, for God is like a solid rock that is eternally stable and unmovable. If we want to find peace that will truly last forever, Yahweh, the God of Israel, is a stable and reliable source to depend on. Remember what the writer of Hebrews said. “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. So we can confidently say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6. If He will never leave of forsake us, we can absolutely place our complete trust in Him.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.