Isaiah 25:6-9 (NRSV)
Read Isaiah 25:6-9 on biblegateway.com
Verse 6On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear. Verse 7And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death forever. Verse 8Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.
Verse 9It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
Devotion
We usually think of homesickness as missing something comforting in the past but, the prophet is addressing a hunger for something consoling in the future. In Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, Anne Tyler wrote about an owner who cooked foods that recreated feelings of security in those he fed. He made tacos for his neighbor missing Mexico and mashed potatoes for a woman missing her grandmother. Homesickness comes over us sometimes when life is out of kilter. What makes you homesick with unfulfilled longing? When we are disoriented there’s a heart-squeezing yearning for reorientation.
Isaiah envisions a “Homesick Restaurant” kind of meal. The Lord will make a feast for all people like the celebrations our hearts crave. On the holy mountain, God will wipe away the tears and despair of the Lord’s people. With the wine and bread, we will feast on joy. We await that promised day with confidence.
Prayer
Gracious God, infuse our imaginations with visions of your restoration of humankind and all creation. Remind us of the healthy, joy-filled world you intended when you spoke us into being. Amen.
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