Isaiah 60:17-22: a reflection

17For bronze I will bring gold; for iron I will bring silver; for wood, bronze, and for stones, iron. I will also make peace your governor, and righteousness your ruler. 18Violence shall no more be heard in your land, nor desolation or destruction within your borders; but you will call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise. 19The sun will be no more your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon give light to you, but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. 20Your sun will not go down any more, nor will your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will end. 21Then your people will all be righteous. They will inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. 22The little one will become a thousand, and the small one a strong nation. I, the LORD, will do this quickly in its time.”

Isaiah paints a radiant picture of God's restored people, and it rises to a promise of surpassing hope. The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor the moon by night, for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, he says, for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and, most tenderly of all, the days of your mourning shall be ended. It is a vision of a future where God himself is our light and where sorrow has come to an end.

Notice the two promises woven together: God as our everlasting light, and the end of mourning. The picture is of a day when we will no longer need sun or moon, for God's own presence will be our unfailing light, a light that never sets; and a day when the mourning that fills so much of this life will finally, permanently, end. The Book of Revelation takes up the same promise: God will wipe away every tear, and death and mourning and crying will be no more.

That is a hope to hold onto, especially in seasons of grief. This life is full of mourning, of tears and sorrow and loss, and of nights that seem long. But God promises a future where he himself is our everlasting light, where the sun of his presence never sets, and where the days of mourning are ended forever. If you are grieving, or weary of the long nights of this life, lift your eyes to that promise. A day is coming when God will be your light and your mourning will end. Hold onto that hope: the everlasting light is coming, and the days of mourning will be over.

Lord, you promised your people a future where you yourself would be their everlasting light, where the sun would no longer set, and where the days of their mourning would be ended. Hold that hope before me, especially in seasons of grief. This life is full of mourning, of tears and loss and long nights, but you promise a day when you will be my everlasting light and my mourning will end forever. When I am grieving or weary of the long nights, lift my eyes to that promise. A day is coming when your presence will be my light and my sorrow will be over, when you will wipe away every tear. Thank you for so bright a hope; help me hold onto it, and to live in the light of the day when mourning ends and you are my everlasting light.