Sunday, August 22, 2010

Salvation for All

 

This is what the Lake looked like this morning. After a lot of perfect summer days, it rained off and on last evening and then during the night.
I've been reflecting on Isaiah 66:18-24 which ends the book with a very strong statement about God's intention to save all people. In verse 18 God says, "I am coming to gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see my glory." In the Jewish Publication Society's Study Bible that I use the book ends by repeating verse 23,
"And new moon after new moon,
And sabbath after sabbath ,
All flesh shall come to worship Me.
--said the Lord"
The Christian bibles that I checked end simply with the negative verse 24. A footnote in the Jewish Study Bible says, "In Jewish practice, v.23 is always printed again after v.24 so that the book ends on a positive note." It points out that the same practice is observed at the end of Malachi, Ecclesiastes, and Lamentations.
What I find worth remarking is that the passage says that, as all the peoples of the world come to see God's glory, they bring with them all the Jews who have been scattered throughout the nations.
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