In our Trinity Hymnal there is a wonderful Advent hymn that you may not be all that familiar with. It is entitled, ‘Comfort, Comfort Ye My People.’ Its title and its four beautiful stanzas come directly from the words of Isaiah 40:1-2.

Isaiah 40 marks a dramatic shift in the message of Isaiah to the sinful people of Judah.  For the first thirty-nine chapters of his book, the prophet has confronted Israel’s sins with an almost frightening level of directness.  He has made it clear that exile is in their future, sooner rather than later. Yet, as chapter forty commences, the tone of the prophetic message shifts in a blessedly new direction.  God’s Word, given to the prophet to proclaim, is now one of divine “comfort”!

The first two stanzas of the hymn capture the amazing reversal that God’s grace will cause:

‘Comfort, comfort ye My people, speak ye peace, thus saith our God; Comfort those who sit in darkness, mourning ‘neath their sorrow’s load; Speak ye to Jerusalem of the peace that waits for them; Tell her that her sins I cover, and her warfare now is over.’

‘Yea, her sins our God will pardon, blotting out each dark misdeed; All that well deserved His anger He will no more see nor heed. She has suffered many a day, now her griefs have passed away, God will change her pining sadness into ever springing gladness. ‘

Our text for Sunday’s second Advent message will come from Isaiah 40:1-2. As we examine the inspired words of the great prophet Isaiah, we will learn the wonderful secret of how our gracious God will bring about such a reversal of Israel’s condition.  And, as you might suspect, it has a lot to do with a manger in Bethlehem!