Burden Bearer
“ I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more ” —Isaiah 43:25, NIV Isaiah is perhaps the most “evangelical” of the Old Testament books. In this particular chapter the Lord, through the prophet, reminds Israel of some of the many ways God, their Redeemer, (43:14) has delivered them in spite of their rebellion against Him. I am intrigued by the phrase “ for my own sake ” in this verse. Israel’s rebellion against God made God an object of ridicule among the neighbouring nations, particularly when disaster came upon the nation as a result of that sin. What kind of God couldn’t keep His subjects in line? What power had a God whose subjects ignored and abused Him? The restoration of Israel was as much a matter of restoring God’s damaged reputation as it was of restoring Israel to a place of blessing. But there is another feeling we get as we read Isaiah’s words. If ever the loving heart of God is exposed in the pages of the Ol...