Arise and Shine (Isaiah 60:1-22) DISCOURAGEMENT

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears over you. Isaiah 60:1-2

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Chapter 59 closes with a grand description of the glory and brilliant splendour of our Lord. And this chapter is the climax of Isaiah’s vision of the completion of the promises of God to Israel. It begins with a call to Israel to arise and shine. 

The command to arise assumes the nation is lying down, perhaps prostrate in their shame and sinful misery. But now, the moment has come for her to stand. To arise from her discouragement and distress. Israel is called to shine because her salvation has come. This light or salvation refers to the “glory of the Lord,” which comes from knowing the Lord’s presence and His deity (60:19-20). The Lord has come. His beautiful presence has come over Zion like a sunrise that banishes the night. And so, Israel is called to arise and shine with the radiance of God’s light, which would be with them and in them, always.

God is consistently associated with light in Scripture. The Bible opens with the creation of light (Genesis 1:3-5). The Lord led Israel through the wilderness with a pillar of fire at night (Exodus 13:21-22). The psalms are filled with descriptions of the Lord in figures of light. In the New Testament, Jesus. Himself said “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life (John 8:12). 

How is knowing this Light, helping you arise from your discouragement today?

Lord, help me shine your light to the world around me, I pray.

Extended Reading — Isaiah 59-6

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