This week in Crisis Counsels we are looking at two verses in the center of the book of Isaiah —

The Lord is exalted; he lives on high, filling Zion with justice and righteousness. God will provide security during a lifetime: a source of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. Reverence for the Lord will be Zion’s treasure.

Isaiah 33:5–6

After declaring that God “is exalted” – that God reigns with power over all things – Isaiah goes on to say that God “fills Zion with justice and righteousness.” Zion was the name of the hill upon which the temple was built in Jerusalem, and the term “Zion” came to be a symbol for the whole community of God’s people. So the verse is saying that God is at work to fill us, our church, and our whole society “with justice and righteousness.” The Hebrew word translated “justice” – mishpat – refers to proper governance. The Hebrew word translated “righteousness” – tsedaqah – refers to the personal quality of living rightly. Isaiah is saying that God addresses both the outward structures of human living – our laws and rules – and the inward character of our personal lives. This has great application to the present day, when many people are much concerned about injustice in our society. Some people want to focus purely on changing what the government is doing. Some people say the focus should be on individual behavior. The Scripture says it is both! God works both for justice (the right functioning of the society or the church as a whole) and for righteousness (the commitment of each individual to upright living). So we are called to let God work in us, leading us to righteous living, and helping us to create a truly just society.

If you missed Sunday worship, you can join with the recorded service of either the 9:30 or 10:30 worship hours at live.kentmethodist.org

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