"How Long?"

by Stephen Rouse

"Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore He exalts Himself to show mercy on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him." (Is. 30:18)

In Isaiah’s day, the people of God were constantly being oppressed and threatened by the nations around them. When suffering seems to be unjust or unnecessarily prolonged, it is not uncommon for the righteous to cry out, "How long, O LORD?" (Ps. 13:1-2)

In times of trouble, Israel would have felt the urge to question God as to why their oppression was so lengthy. Had God forgotten them? Did He hear them? Would He ever answer their cries for relief? However, there is another factor in oppression that we all must consider before questioning the Commander of all things. Did the people themselves have anything to do with incurring the oppression?

The LORD had been urging Israel over and over again to accept His deliverance, but "[they] were unwilling" (Is. 30:15). They had stubbornly resisted every offer for mercy and deliverance because they desired to walk by sight and take matters into their own hands by making sinful military alliances with the nations around them. So the reason for God’s seeming disinterest was not God at all but the unyielding pride of the people themselves.

Does this pattern sound familiar? We all have the tendency to act just like Israel and turn to our own power and our own petty methods. We trust in what we can see, rather than walk by faith. Instead of receiving God’s persistent opportunities to repent, we take the deceptive bait of Satan and reject the salvation God offers. Often our predicaments are nothing more than the just result of our own failures to turn to the right Savior.

However, there is wonderful news even if our track record is dismal. In Is. 30:18, the Lord reveals Himself to be a patient God. His earnest desire is like that of a father wishing to give good gifts to his children. God wants to forgive us!

Our sinful practices keep us from being the recipients of His good favor. As long as we continue in our selfish will, God will not extend His mercy to us, for to do so would be contrary to His justice. So the one waiting turns out to be God, not us.

At the time when we are most inclined to shout to the heavens "How long, O LORD," in reality God is looking down on us, asking, "How long, stubborn child?"

The following verses (Is. 30:19-33) vividly describe the blessings God has in store for those who repent and turn to Him: God will hear their cry (vs. 19), reveal Himself (vs. 20), give them guidance (vs. 21) and help them clean out their lives (vs. 22). The voice of the LORD is alluded to numerous times in His deliverance of His people from their oppression (vss. 27, 28, 30, 31 and 33).

What a moving picture of God’s answer to His people when they choose Him over their self-willed substitutes! Where do you find yourself in this picture? Are you righteously waiting for God’s deliverance, listening to His voice and walking by faith? Or are you stubbornly asserting your own will and crying to God for deliverance when God is really waiting on you to clean up your life?

Praise God for His patience! But also know that He will not wait forever to see you return. Make things right while it is still today, and God will graciously grant you His mercy and guidance. How long, stubborn child, how long? 

 

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