HomeChapter 8c
Isaiah's You keep him in perfect peace The people of Judah lived in a time in which it was easy to be troubled. Assyria had conquered all of the neighboring kingdoms, and their army was at the gates of Jerusalem. But Isaiah assured Hezekiah that there wasn't anything to worry about. God was in control.
We live today in a time in which it is easy to be troubled: riots in the streets in our country and around the world; nuclear weapons being tested and
ballistic missiles being fired; terrorism around the world; wars being fought or threatened; adherents of Islam demading Shariah law or Islamic states;
predictions of stock market downturns, or rampant inflation or deflation....All of these periodically are in the news. On top of that we
see Christianity seemingly infiltrated with non-Christian views and values. What can we trust?
Trust God. He is in control. The world will end according to his timetable, not man's. A remnant of his people will persist even through trials and persecutions, even in times of uncertain sounds, misguided teachings, or outright heresy. Trust God. He is in control. Be at peace in your souls.
As we grow older, disease begins to take hold on our body. Soon death approaches. What will happen? When the end comes, is that all there is? Will there be a light beyond the darkness? Be at peace. Trust God. He has come and shown through the resurrection of his Son that there is life beyond the grave. He has prepared a place for us. Be at peace. Trust God.
This passage in Isaiah chapter 26 is the basis for the song "Peace, Perfect Peace". A verse that we don't have in most of our songbooks is as follows:
Peace, perfect peace, death shadowing us and ours? In the original Hebrew, there is no word for "perfect" in this passage in Isaiah chapter 26. More literally, the passage reads,
Thou dost keep him in peace peace, In Hebrew, to emphasize perfection, a word is said twice. "Peace" is said twice, to emphasize that this peace will be perfect.
Be at peace. Trust God. He is in control.
The author of the song "Peace, Perfect Peace" was Edward H. Bickersteth. In the year 1875, he heard a sermon one Sunday morning on Isaiah 26:3. Later that day, he went to visit a dying relative. To try to comfort him, he read to him the passage that he had heard that morning. When his relative went to sleep, Bickersteth wrote the words to the song, "Peace, Perfect Peace".
A song that I also mentioned previously in an earlier chapter is "For Unto Us a Child Is Born". It is from the "Messiah" by Handel and is based upon Isaiah 9:6.
For to us a child is born, Handel's "Messiah" is perhaps best known for the "Hallelujah" chorus. But much of Handel's "Messiah" consists of songs based on passages in the book of Isaiah. Fifteen songs from the "Messiah" come almost directly from the book of Isaiah. Some of these include:
"Comfort Ye My People"
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. "Every Valley"
"Every valley shall be lifted up, "And the Glory of the Lord"
"And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, "Behold, a Virgin Shall Conceive"
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. "O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings to Zion"
Get you up to a high mountain, "For Behold, Darkness Shall Cover the Earth"
For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, "The People That Walked in Darkness Have Seen a Great Light"
The people who walked in darkness "Then Shall the Eyes of the Blind Be Opened"
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, "He Shall Feed His Flock Like a Shepherd"
He will feed his flock like a shepherd, There are five songs in Handel's Messiah from the 53rd chapter of Isaiah:
"He Was Despised and Rejected of Men" Handel's "Messiah" is far from the only musical work that is based on portions of the book of Isaiah.
The song "Battle Hymn of the Republic" is based in part on a passage in Isaiah chapter 63 (and on passages in the book of Revelation that allude to it).
"I have trodden the winepress alone, Passages in the book of Revelation have echoes of the verse in Isaiah.
So the angel swung his sickle on the earth and gathered the vintage of the earth, and threw it into the great wine press of the wrath of God...
(Revelation 14:19 [RSV])
From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. The song "Rock of Ages" was written by Augustus Toplady in 1775. It was inspired in part by a tremendous thunderstorm in which he was caught and by a rock shelter that he found along the road. He later rounded out the lyrics, drawing upon passages in Isaiah, one of which we looked at earlier:
Trust in the LORD forever, An "everlasting rock". A "Rock of Ages".
They thirsted not when he led them through the deserts; "...he cleft the rock...". "Rock of Ages, cleft for me".
The song "It Is Well With My Soul", although it has roots in the story of the Shunnamite woman in II Kings chapter four, also has roots in the book of Isaiah: "When peace, like a river, attendeth my way..."
Another song that drew upon the book of Isaiah is "A Shelter in the Time of Storm". The chorus of the song says,
Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land, This draws from Isaiah chapter 32:
Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, The song "Beulah Land" originates with a passage in the 62nd chapter of Isaiah. Most people don't know what "Beulah" means. It's a Hebrew word that most Bible versions translate into English, but some, like the KJV and NIV, leave untranslated. It means "married". The picture in Isaiah 62 is of the Jewish people returning home from Babylonian Captivity. The land of Israel is depicted as no longer being forsaken, but as married.
Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; "Hephzibah" means "My delight is in her"; and "Beulah" means married. The land will no longer be forsaken but will be blessed by God. The nineteenth century song in poetic language suggests that Heaven itself can be seen from the highest mountains of Beulah Land.
"O Beulah land, sweet Beulah land! The song "Have Thine Own Way, Lord" draws from Isaiah chapter 64:
Yet, O LORD, thou art our Father; "Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Another song with roots in the book of Isaiah is "How Firm a Foundation".
...therefore thus says the Lord GOD, Not only the title but also some of the lyrics are based in Isaiah.
...fear not, for I am with you; "Fear not, I am with thee; oh be not dismayed, Some of the more recently composed songs that we sing also find their beginnings in the book of Isaiah. One of them, "Firm Foundation" (by Jamie Harvill and Nancy Gordon), draws from one of these same verses.
Another recent song that continues the tradition of drawing material from the book of Isaiah is the song "Mighty to Save". The title of the song comes from chapter 63 of Isaiah:
Who is this that comes from Edom, The last line of the first verse of the song "Mighty to Save" refers to "the hope of nations". This phrase is based on similar phrases in Matthew 12:21 and Romans 15:12.
"...and in his name will the Gentiles hope." In each of these, they are quoting from the Septuagint, an early Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament. Specifically, they are quoting from Isaiah chapter eleven, verse ten.
In that day the root of Jesse shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; him shall the nations seek, and his dwellings shall be glorious. In the Hebrew, it has something like "him shall the nations seek". The Septuagint has "in him shall the Gentiles hope" or "in him shall the nations hope", which has given rise to the phrase "the hope of nations".
Jesus is indeed the hope of nations.
There are many other songs that draw their inspiration from the book of Isaiah. These are some of the better known ones.
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