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The Lord's Mighty Power
The Lord said:
9 Israel, you have no right
to argue with your Creator.
You are merely a clay pot
shaped by a potter.
The clay doesn't ask,
“Why did you make me this way?
Where are the handles?”
10Children don't have the right
to demand of their parents,
“What have you done
to make us what we are?”
11I am the Lord, the Creator,
the holy God of Israel.
Do you dare question me
about my own nation
or about what I have done?
12I created the world
and covered it with people;
I stretched out the sky
and filled it with stars.
13I have done the right thing
by placing Cyrus in power,
and I will make the roads easy
for him to follow.
I am the Lord All-Powerful!
Cyrus will rebuild my city
and set my people free
without being paid a thing.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
The Lord Alone Can Save
14My people, I, the Lord, promise
that the riches of Egypt
and the treasures of Ethiopia
will belong to you.
You will force into slavery
those tall people of Seba.
They will bow down and say,
“The only true God is with you;
there are no other gods.”
15People of Israel,
your God is a mystery,
though he alone can save.
16Anyone who makes idols
will be confused
and terribly disgraced.
17But Israel, I, the Lord,
will always keep you safe
and free from shame.
Everyone Is Invited
18The Lord alone is God!
He created the heavens
and made a world
where people can live,
instead of creating
an empty desert.
The Lord alone is God;
there are no others.
19The Lord did not speak
in a dark secret place
or command Jacob's descendants
to search for him in vain.
The Lord speaks the truth,
and this is what he says
20to every survivor
from every nation:
“Gather around me!
Learn how senseless it is
to worship wooden idols
or pray to helpless gods.
21“Why don't you get together
and meet me in court?
Didn't I tell you long ago
what would happen?
I am the only God!
There are no others.
I bring about justice,
and have the power to save.
22“I invite the whole world
to turn to me and be saved.
I alone am God!
No others are real.
23 I have made a solemn promise,
one that won't be broken:
Everyone will bow down
and worship me.
24They will admit that I alone
can bring about justice.
Everyone who is angry with me
will be terribly ashamed
and will turn to me.
25I, the Lord, will give
victory and great honor
to the people of Israel.”
Reflect
“New and improved” are an unassailable pair fortifying each other in our modern culture. We take it so much for granted that new is better that it’s difficult for us to understand that the Bible assumes what is old and enduring is better.
The potter comes before the clay, and the virtues of the pot are owed by the pot to the potter. This is true as a matter of design, but the ancients also valued what was old and enduring in a world where so little could be counted on to last.
Just as surely as God formed Israel, his pot, he formed the heavens and the earth which are enduring and self-evident in their wonders and goodness. The earth had outlasted many generations and endured, and still God is greater and more enduring than the earth.
Idols, by contrast, came yesterday and were created by people (God’s pots), and those people themselves will not endure, to say nothing of their idols.
God’s wisdom is seen in the enduring purposes he builds into his creation, the earth, Israel (his pot), and us. What is more, God did not “speak in secret” (speaking being another way to describe God’s forming work in the world). God’s wisdom is self-evident and God “declares what is right” in what he forms through his words.
This is the challenge that the pot brings to the potter when he says, “What are you making?” or “Your work has no handles: I know better than you and I’ll show you my improvement in this idol that I’ll make.”
God’s response is: “Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength.”
How often do we question God’s goodness in our questioning of how he has created us?
Respond
Heavenly Father, Thank you for your wisdom in creating the earth and creating me. I receive these gifts, acknowledging your wisdom in their design and purpose. Help me to enter into the joy you have in your work by fulfilling your purpose for me and helping those around me to do the same. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Rick Hiemstra
Rick Hiemstra is Director of Research and Media Relations at the EFC. Prior to coming to the EFC, he served as a Wesleyan pastor and as a high school mathematics and computer science teacher. Rick speaks on Canadian church and cultural trends, including the new Renegotiating Faith research about emerging adulthood and faith formation. He has recently contributed to Canadian studies on Bible Engagement, local church missions engagement and emerging adulthood and faith formation. Currently he is leading a study on small evangelical churches and another on parental discipleship of children in the home. He holds a BMath from the University of Waterloo, a BEd from Ottawa University and an MTS from Tyndale Seminary.