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Isaiah 45 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Exodus 33:20 NASB But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!”
He is the unseen God, and for good reason. If we would look at Him, we would surely die! This, according to Spurgeon, is an act of mercy upon us.
“This is a most merciful arrangement, for, if God did not hide himself, none of us could exist. The full blaze of his divine countenance would be our destruction.”
Charles Spurgeon
Though He hides Himself, He is near to us. His Salvation is available and His presence is thick. Because He is Lord over all, the words He says will come true. Sometimes we forget this.
“I have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in a waste place’; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, Declaring things that are upright.
Isaiah 45:19 NASB
The Lord shoots straight with us. Everything He revealed to Isaiah is true for us today. There isn’t anything that will come in our future that was not consistent to the faithful men and women of the past. He does not speak in secret; He speaks openly and with clarity.
Now, think about these two concepts and put them together. He hides Himself from us, but He speaks openly and plainly (not in secret). Do they seem to contradict one another?
I believe from my own relationship with the Lord that there are many times He hides Himself. He works in mysterious ways, and I can say from experience I’m thankful for that. There are times when I am drawn near to Him because of His hiding. There are times when I seek His Word more diligently when He is hiding. And it’s in His Word that I find how openly and clearly He has spoken! There isn’t anything else we need in this life. Everything we need to live each day is found right here in His Word.
Sometimes we get frustrated because He’s hiding, or impatient because He isn’t clear. But we know that He loves us and that nothing can separate us from that love. When He hides, or when things seem to be unraveling, we flex the muscles of faith where the true power exists. Without these moments, would we really be serious believers? How shallow would our relationship be? God is unchanging. His truth extends beyond time, space, and matter. His grace overwhelms us like a tidal wave at sea.