God’s Tender Care

He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart. Isaiah 40:11

READ Isaiah 40:10-11, 29-31

Sitting in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit, I visited with a mother as her newborn baby cuddled up against her chest. In this technologically advanced medical facility, the doctors had recommended a very low-tech “prescription” to improve and strengthen the child’s health—the new mom was to spend extended periods of time simply holding her daughter.

There’s almost nothing like the overwhelming love and tender compassion of a parent providing healing comfort for a child. We see this powerful imagery in the prophet Isaiah’s description of God with His people.

Even after prophesying impending exile for the nation of Israel because they’d rejected God (Isaiah 39:5-7), Isaiah emphasized to the people that God still loved them and would always provide for them. God’s tender compassion and secure care is evident in the beautiful metaphor where He is described as a shepherd who, much like a loving father, gathers His sheep “in his arms and carries them close to his heart” (40:11).

God’s presence grants us peace and protection and reminds us that He carries us close to His heart, like a newborn baby with its mother. As He “gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (v. 29), the Spirit’s healing comfort allows us to meet the challenges of each day.

By Lisa M. Samra

REFLECT & PRAY

What comes to mind when you think about the love of a mother for her newborn baby? How has God’s protective and loving care strengthened you?

Heavenly Father, I'm so grateful that You hold me close to Your heart.

SCRIPTURE INSIGHT

Isaiah 40 signals a shift in this prophetic book. Up to this point, the prophecies have focused on the situation of the people of Judah and their looming judgment. They’ve repeatedly broken God’s covenant made with them through Moses. Now Isaiah looks far ahead, and the tone shifts dramatically. But what is this “reward” he refers to in verse 10? The context is militaristic: “the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm.” Hence, reward likely refers to the spoils taken in battle. And what is “his recompense” (v. 10)? It’s either the repayment God will give to His people when He restores them or the vengeance He’ll pour out on those who’ve oppressed them. Such militant language is ironic given the compassionate tone of so much of this chapter. God’s strength, appropriately displayed, enables Him to show us this great compassion and comfort as we meet the challenges of each day.