Isaiah

Isaiah 32: God’s righteous rule brings peace

Begin in prayer

Before we read the promise of a righteous King, let us ask God for the peace only He can give. Pray that our family would trust Jesus and receive His Word with hearts made willing by His Spirit.

I will hear what God, Yahweh, will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, his saints; but let them not turn again to folly.

Psalm 85:8

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us the righteousness of Jesus and our need of Your Spirit. Turn us from careless ease to humble trust in Your promise. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

A king will reign in righteousness, and just rulers will bring shelter and refreshment like shade and water in a dry land. Eyes, ears and hearts will receive understanding, and fools and scoundrels will lose the honor they wrongly held. Their evil words dishonor God, deprive hungry people and destroy the humble through lies. Careless women are called to mourn because the harvest will fail and their pleasant land and city will become deserted. That desolation lasts until the Spirit is poured from on high and wilderness becomes fruitful. Justice and righteousness will bring peace, quietness and confidence, with safe homes for God’s people even as forest and city fall. The chapter ends by blessing those who sow beside abundant water.

As you read Isaiah 32, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God gives a righteous King and pours out His Spirit to bring peace.

The promised rule gives shelter like a great rock’s shade to people weary in a dry country. Right judgment also exposes the difference between a noble person and a harmful fool. Folly speaks against God and empties the hungry, while lies take away the needy person’s rights. The noble person plans and continues in what is noble. The warning to careless women interrupts any confidence that present comfort will continue. Failing harvests, sackcloth and deserted houses show the trouble ahead. Fruitfulness begins when God pours out His Spirit, and righteousness then yields lasting peace. This promise rests on God’s renewing gift, while His judgment still brings down the forest and city.

How does Isaiah 32 show us that God gives a righteous King and pours out His Spirit to bring peace?

God’s righteous rule exposes false honor.

A fool will no longer be praised as noble. His words offend God and leave hungry people empty. The scoundrel’s lies harm the needy even when their plea is right.

God warns people who feel secure in ease.

The careless women are told to exchange fine clothing for sackcloth and mourn. The vintage and harvest they expect will fail. Thorns will fill the land, and palace and city will be deserted.

God’s Spirit brings the fruit of righteousness.

The wilderness becomes fruitful when the Spirit is poured from above. Justice and righteousness dwell where there was desolation. Peace and lasting confidence follow, with secure dwellings for God’s people.

Memorise

The work of righteousness will be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.

Isaiah 32:17

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, whose rule do I want, the righteous rule of Jesus or my own comfort?

The promise joins righteous rule to shelter for weary people and the Spirit’s gift to lasting peace. Isaiah has already promised a Son whose just government never ends (Isaiah 9 verses 6 and 7). That hope reaches its fullness in Jesus Christ.

Our careless ease and harmful words show how far we fall from His righteousness. Jesus was pierced for His people, and He answered God’s justice once for all. He rose from the grave, the righteous King who lives forever. His people need no other ground of acceptance before Him, and the Spirit’s renewing work bears fruit in righteous living.

Turn from sin and trust Jesus for forgiveness. The King’s pardon is for all who seek shelter in Him through faith. Ask God to give you a heart that hears His Word. The righteous King shelters His people and teaches them to seek the peace His Spirit brings.

Parent's note

Tell your children that God promises a righteous King and pours out His Spirit, and that Jesus is that King. Please explain the warning to the careless women and the sackcloth in verses 9 to 11, in your own words. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that His righteous rule and His Spirit bring the peace His people need, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?

Luke 11:13

Father, thank You for Jesus, the righteous King, and for the renewing work of Your Spirit. Please turn us from careless sin and help us trust Him. Teach us to speak truth and care for needy people. Let our family seek the peace of Your rule this week. Amen.