Friday
We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts.
Open the gates that the righteous nation may enter, the nation that keeps faith.
You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.
Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal. . . .
Lord, establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us.
(Isaiah 26:1b-4, 12, NIV)
This song of praise for God’s deliverance beautifully pictures the foundation of true peace to be God, the Rock eternal, a firm footing that can be reliably built upon. In fact, the prophet Isaiah states that if we trust in God, we can have “perfect peace.”
Isaiah’s graphic description of “perfect peace” is illustrated by an image of a city with impenetrable walls and ramparts whose gates are opened only for righteous people to enter, but are closed to all others. Peace is not viewed as some abstract mental state, but as a sense of safety from enemies provided by thick walls and reinforced gates.
Verse 12 makes it clear that even though we are responsible to accomplish certain things to protect ourselves, God is still the one who provides peace for us. Even what we do is made possible by God. The picture of complete dependence on God cannot be stated more powerfully. Peace built on any other foundation will fail. There is one foundation for peace and it is absolutely trustworthy. It is the Lord.
Prayer
God, we worship you, the Rock eternal, for you are trustworthy. We know that only you can give us perfect peace. Teach us to trust you alone. Amen.