Is. 23-25
Again, there is a lot that I don’t understand about all these prophesies. But there are a few things that come through loud and clear.
- The one who will take down the mighty, bring low the haughty, and destroy the destroyer is God. “The LORD of hosts has purposed it, to defile the pompous pride of all glory, to dishonor all the honored of the earth.” (Is 23:9). God purposed it, and nothing can stop what God has purposed. I find it interesting that the ESV Bible (and maybe others) notes that the Hebrew words for “glory” and “hosts” in this verse sound alike. That is significant to me because it indicates that those who are being put in their place are those who are attempting to claim as their own the glory that belongs to God alone.
- After judging the nations, God will judge the whole earth. Nobody will escape it. Neither position nor possession will save anyone from God’s mighty, righteous hand.
- God does not fly by the seat of His pants. He has had a plan from the very beginning. And there will come a day when those who thought they were high, those who thought they were strong will fear and glorify God. The whole world will know and acknowledge that He is God. And for those who trusted in Him, who are named as His people, “He will swallow up death forever” (Is 25:8a). He will take away their reproach and it will be no more. And we will say, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, that He might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for Him; let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” (Is 25:9).
Eph. 5:17-33
Submission. It has something of a negative connotation these days. People tend to think of it as a position of weakness, cowering to another and making yourself low and somehow worth less. But I don’t see that as an accurate depiction of what Paul is saying here. First of all, Paul doesn’t just tell wives to submit to their husbands, as everybody likes to focus on. He tells us to submit to one another. All of us. To each other. That means that his admonition for husbands to love their wives is also a form of submission.
I looked up the word “submit” and found two main definitions. There is the one we most commonly associate with this passage, which is to “accept or yield to a superior force or to the authority or will of another person.” But then there is another meaning, which is to “subject to a particular process, treatment, or condition.” This makes me think of Peter, when Jesus washed the disciples’ feet at the last supper. Peter did not initially want to subject himself to Jesus’ act of service. He did not submit, and it wasn’t because he was too proud to lower himself before Jesus. But if we don’t submit ourselves to Christ, we cannot receive the gift of grace that He humbly offers to us. Likewise, if wives do not submit to their husbands, they cannot receive the love their husbands offer.
In addition to all of that, Paul clearly shows marriage to be a representation of Christ’s relationship with His church. Christ submitted Himself to His church, not by yielding to her authority, for there is no authority greater than God, but by setting aside His authority and humbling Himself to love and to serve Her. He used His authority not to Lord it over His church, but to save her and reconcile her to God. And so husbands, who are the head of the household, should use their position to love and to serve their wives. And the wives should accept their husbands’ love with humility and grace, giving them the honor and respect their position as head of household deserves. We submit to each other and so are made one in Christ.