”no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.
Isaiah 54:17New International Version (NIV)
Isaiah 54:17 Devotional
No weapon forged against you will prevail
While Isaiah 54:17 tells us that “no weapon forged against us can prevail“, sometimes it may feel like the weapons formed against us are prevailing (succeeding or prospering). But that is usually an illusion – a perspective that the enemy creates and maintains in us.
Nevertheless, the fact is that God is our salvation (protection). Therefore, we can trust Him and not fear. He is all-powerful and has already won the ultimate battle, through Christ, to protect us.
Isaiah 54
In Isaiah chapter 54, God talks about how He will restore Israel, the Lord’s wife. Therefore, Isaiah depicts Israel as a barren woman, who her husband abandons. But that husband (that is, God) has returned (Isaiah 54:7).
Consequently, out of this new affirmation of love comes the promise of Isaiah 54:17, which is the promise of protection. It is only natural that a lover protects his/her loved one (Romans 8:31-39).
But before this promise, Isaiah lists promises of prosperity and peace. That is, God promised the exiles prosperity and peace.
Enemy attacks versus God’s victory for us
Therefore, the context recorded in Isaiah 54 is that of God’s people under foreign dominion. And even in that hopeless situation, God did not allow His people to be destroyed by the words or actions of their masters. He established a remnant for Himself – these are the ones who finally came out of exile.
Consequently, when the enemy attacks you and me, especially in situations where God has allowed us to look weak and become vulnerable, he will not succeed. And this is what Paul testified of in 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 when he wrote:
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us (7). We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair (8); persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed (9). We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body (10). For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body (11). So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you (12).
Protection is God’s promise to us
Therefore, the enemy may attack our health, that of our children or loved ones, or use people against us, but God promises that these attacks will not destroy us. And many passages in Scripture encourage us to see ourselves as strong in the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:9).
Moreover, this same promise applies to the church. Therefore, being the new Israel (Church), our promise is that God will not allow the enemy’s or his agents’ weapons to destroy us.
So we can continue to journey toward His eternal promises for us in full confidence that the enemy will not succeed. Protection and safety are the heritage of the children and servants of the Lord.
God of all
Additionally, verse 16 reveals that God is the God of all. That is, God is God of the fashioned of weapons, and God of the one employing weapons for destruction (ravager).
Therefore, in protecting us, God may take the weapon out of the hands of our enemies or render the ravager ineffective. God may even allow the ravager’s weapon to strike us but not let its evil prosper.
But whichever way, we will have to trust God to protect us. And for sure, He will because God’s promise to protect us is a dependable promise that God’s children can be confident in. Because whatever weapon is trained against God’s people will be destroyed. It will not succeed.
Divine weapons
Moreover, our weapons are not like the weapons of the world (2 Corinthians 10:4). That is, the power of God is what makes you and me overcome our enemies. And this happens through prayer and the word of God.
Prayer/Blessing
Father in Heaven, I thank You for Your protection. Help me to trust You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Daily Bible Reading
Genesis 37-39 (see How to Read the Bible in One Year or How to Read the Bible (for Beginners))
