Be Still And Know

Isaiah 1:18 If you want to know what God’s like when he’s in a rage, read the first chapter of Isaiah. He is fuming. He simply can’t believe that anyone could treat him like this. After all he had done for his people it was as though they now didn’t even recognise his existence. God pointed out that even an ox and a donkey know who their owner is, but Israel didn’t seem to have a clue who their master was. The country was in ruins and beautiful Jerusalem had been abandoned. The situation was disastrous and yet, amazingly, the people continued with their religious practices. However, God was repelled by their worship because he knew that it didn’t come from their heart. He asked them to stop making their sacrifices and offering their meaningless gifts, and assured them that when they prayed he would refuse to listen. We spend so much of our time thinking of God’s love, generosity and kindness that it’s hard to think of him being so cross. It would be understandable if the chapter concluded by saying that i