His Hand Is Not Too Short
Nothing is wrong with our Father's hearing; sin is what stands between. The people describe it themselves, groping at walls at noon, waiting for justice that never comes. No one steps in, so he arms himself and comes as Redeemer to those who turn.
59 1Look, our Father's hand is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2But your wrongs have separated you from your Father, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he does not hear. 3For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with sin; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue mutters wickedness. 4No one calls for justice, and no one pleads with honesty. They trust in emptiness and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil. 5They hatch the eggs of vipers and weave the spider's web; whoever eats their eggs dies, and when one is crushed, a viper breaks out. 6Their webs cannot become clothing, and they cannot cover themselves with what they make. Their works are works of wrongdoing, and their hands are full of violence. 7Their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are thoughts of wrongdoing; ruin and destruction lie along their every road. 8The way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their ways. They have made their paths crooked; no one who walks in them knows peace. 9Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We wait for light, but there is only darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom. 10We grope along the wall like the blind; like those without eyes we grope. We stumble at noon as if in twilight; among the strong we are like the dead. 11We all growl like bears and moan mournfully like doves. We wait for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it stays far from us. 12For our rebellions are many before you, and our sins testify against us. Our rebellions are with us, and our wrongdoing we know: 13rebelling and denying our Father, turning back from following our Father, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and muttering lying words from the heart.
14So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands far off; for truth has stumbled in the public square, and integrity cannot enter. 15Truth is missing, and whoever turns from evil is plundered. Our Father saw it and was displeased that there was no justice. 16He saw that there was no one, and was appalled that no one would intervene; so his own arm brought salvation, and his righteousness upheld him. a a v16 Our Father saw no one could save, so he sent his own arm — the strength of his salvation. John identifies the arm of our Father as Jesus (John 12:38). 17He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he clothed himself in garments of vindication and wrapped himself in zeal like a cloak.
18According to their deeds, so he will repay: wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies; to the distant coastlands he will give them what they deserve. 19So they will fear the name of our Father from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come like a rushing river, driven by the wind of our Father. 20Then the Redeemer—Jesus—will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from their sins, declares our Father. b b v20 Paul quotes this verse of Jesus's return — Romans 11:26. The Redeemer who comes to Zion to gather our Father's children is Jesus.
21"As for me, this is my covenant with them," says our Father: "My Spirit who is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouth of your children, or from the mouth of your children's children," says our Father, "from now on and forever."
