The prophet Isaiah spoke to the people
of ancient Israel in the last part of the 8th century BC in the area
around Jerusalem. Biblical scholars believe that when the first chapter of
Isaiah was written, the Assyrian empire was in the midst of attacking the city
of Jerusalem, having already defeated its northern neighbors 20 or 30 years
earlier. The message in today’s reading from Isaiah is particularly relevant to
us during this holy season of Lent. Through the prophet Isaiah, God offers
mercy to the people if they repent. The
image of washing is used by Isaiah in a metaphorical sense, speaking of the
ethical purity of the people. The people
are told to wash their hands and to clean up their act.
God is willing to regard the scarlet
and crimson sins of the people as white as snow, but the condition is that
Israel be willing to be obedient. Thus,
there cannot be salvation without responsibility. God anticipates the openness of the people of
ancient Israel to this invitation. If
the people respond affirmatively, they will eat the good of the land, yet if
they refuse, they will be destroyed by violence. This message may seem harsh to us in our
modern era, but the offer of a future is always there, it is always made by the
Lord. The Lord graciously offers life to his people, even in the face of their
disloyalty. Isaiah tells us that the
mouth of God has spoken – there is no ambiguity here.
During our journey during Lent, during
our call to repentance and our desire to put all that weighs us down and all
that burdens us at the cross of Jesus as symbolized by the rocks that we are
carrying around with us during Lent, how do we respond to the word of God that
speaks to our daily lives? How much are
we willing to repent, to wash our sins, to clean up our act?
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