Isaiah 61-66

The Facts (Chapter number: Verse)

61:10 - "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels."

62:4-5 - "You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate; but you shall be called My Delight Is In Her, and your land Married; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you."
62:11-12 - "The Lord has proclaimed to the end of the Earth: Say to the daughter Zion, 'See, your salvation comes, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.' They shall be called, 'The Holy People, The Redeemed of the Lord'; and you shall be called, 'Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.'"

Isaiah 63 - No mention of any women.

Isaiah 64 - No mention of any women.

Isaiah 65 - No mention of any women.

66:7-13 - "Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son. Who has heard of such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? Shall a nation be delivered in one moment? Yet as soon as Zion was in labor she delivered her children. Shall I open the womb and not deliver? says the Lord; shall I, the one who delivers, shut the womb? says your God.

"Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her - that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breast; that you may drink deeply with delight from her glorious bosom.

"For thus says the Lord: I will extend prosperity to her like a river, and the wealth of the nations like an overflown stream; and you shall nurse and be carried in her arm, and dandled on her knees. As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem."

My Comments

I'm sorry, I still find the marriage relationship between God and people really weird and a bit icky. In essence it's like a father marrying his young daughter, because God was our creator and is termed the Father (or in this case the builder). Plus he's constantly referring to these cities as daughters, so it's not just simply me inferring a father/daughter relationship. And then he's populating these cities with children...

It just freaks me out. Maybe this is because we have a different view of marriage now than they did back then, when it was more a business contract, and that's why it just seems creepy for God to continually be waxing poetic about his "children" in marriage terms. Either way, not gonna change the creepy factor with me. I mean, I can understand it and still think it's a little weird, especially since churches still use this terminology to this day.

Thank dog, we're finally done with Isaiah! :D

Wednesday: Jeremiah