August 24 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Isaiah 58

¹Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.
²Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.
³Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.
⁴Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.
⁵Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?
⁶Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
⁷Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
⁸Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy reward.
⁹Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;
¹⁰And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:
¹¹And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
¹²And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.
¹³If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:
¹⁴Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

Devotional

What wonderful promises! What blessings for those who re­ceive them! and what blessings flow from them upon others! But who are they that shall be blessed so abundantly? God found fault with his people. He told the prophet: "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins." What were their sins? In a word, they stood before God in their self-righteousness. They were outwardly religious; they fasted and afflicted themselves, and thought the Lord ought to reward them for it. But the Lord told them what kind of fast was pleasing to him: to remove the burdens from the shoulders, to let the oppressed go free, to feed the hungry, to bring the out­casts into their houses, and to clothe the naked. Then, if they would call upon the Lord, the Lord would answer them and bless them. Then should their light arise in darkness, and the Lord would guide them continually, satisfying their souls, make their bones fat, and they should be like a watered garden, and like never failing springs of water. That is always the way of God with his people "Unto the upright arises light in darkness ... The Lord will guide them with his eye ... He satisfies them with the fatness of his house." "Their soul shall be as a watered garden ... and from them shall flow rivers of living water." This Jesus said of the Spirit which they that believe on him should receive.

Prayer

Our Father in heaven, we thank Thee that when we sin against Thee, and go our own way, Thou dost not im­mediately punish us as we deserve; but Thou art gracious and merciful and longsuffering. We thank Thee that Thou dost invite us to return unto Thee; and dost offer us Thy pardoning grace. We thank Thee that with Thee there is forgiveness, that Thou mayest be feared. Grant us grace that we may truly repent of all of our sins, so that we may receive Thy forgiveness, right­eousness and eternal life. Bless us with Thy abundant blessings and make us a blessing to others. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

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Scripture in Devotional: !sa. 58:1, 6-8, 10, 11; Ps. 112:4; 32:8; Jer. 31:12; John 7:38, 39; 44:3.

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