God drew out a people for Himself. He will protect them, not without correction, but He will protect them!
We will not always understand.
Zechariah 14:2
For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
At one time or another, we all have struggled to understand God's plan when faced with confusing circumstances. God knew exactly what He was doing. So let's cling to God's Word and His promise of ultimate victory during times of confusion and fear. When we choose to obey God despite our uncertainty, the Holy Spirit strengthens us so we may follow Christ's example of radical love, obedience and service. First 5
We are, every one of us, so beautifully fragile.
Let us not forget: this vulnerability is not a weakness, but a strength.Vulnerable doesn’t mean helpless victim. Now, an invitation to embrace this vulnerable, broken, and sufficient… And to let the light spill...Instead of aversion, it is an invitation. To live and love from that place of grace. Broken pieces alchemized, as we are willing to touch and feel each of them with the “hands of our heart,” so we know them intimately and can accept them all into our transforming self.
If instead, I give my energy to protecting myself from all manner of breakability (and "crippledness"), I seal off my heart and soul with Teflon.
It is true; there will be no pain or brokenness.
However, sadly, there will be no love. Sabbath Moments
Japanese Bowl by Peter Mayer
I'm like one of those Japanese bowls
That were made long ago
I have some cracks in me
They have been filled with gold
That's what they used back then
When they had a bowl to mend
It did not hide the cracks
It made them shine instead
So now every old scar shows
From every time I broke
And anyone's eyes can see
I'm not what I used to be
But in a collector's mind
All of these jagged lines
Make me more beautiful
And worth a higher price
I'm like one of those Japanese bowls
I was made long ago
Zechariah 12:1.2.3.
12 The burden of the word of the Lord against Israel. Thus says the Lord, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: 2 “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. 3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. The New King James Version
“Who stretches out the heavens, founds the earth” demonstrates Yahweh’s omnipotence.
The term form used here is commonly used to describe the work of potters as they mold clay.
A cup of reeling describes a cup of wine that causes the person drinking it to stagger. The surrounding nations will become like a stumbling, drunken man. A stone weight describes a stone that injures those who try to lift it. Those nations who attempt to attack Jerusalem will find the task too difficult and will end up injured. Faithlife Study Bible
The burden is a weighty judgment that the prophet must discharge.
Three phrases are used here in describing the greatness of God as Creator of the heavens, the earth, and the spirit of man.
Jerusalem is depicted as a cup of wine or strong drink which causes drunkenness. The cup is a common metaphor for God’s wrath. Siege warfare involved encircling a city to prevent the inhabitants from fleeing and to cut off all supplies of food and water.
Jerusalem is compared to a heavy stone that brings injury to anyone who tries to remove it from its place. The NKJV Study Bible
Isaiah 42:5
Thus says God the LORD,
Who created the heavens and stretched them out,
Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,
Who gives breath to the people on it,
And spirit to those who walk on it:
Isaiah 51:22
Thus says your Lord,The LORD and your God,
Who pleads the cause of His people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
The cup of trembling,
The dregs of the cup of My fury;
You shall no longer drink it.
Isaiah 51:23
But I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you,
Who have said to you,‘Lie down, that we may walk over you.
’And you have laid your body like the ground,
And as the street, for those who walk over.”
Jeremiah 51:15
He has made the earth by His power;
He has established the world by His wisdom,
And stretched out the heaven by His understanding.
Zechariah 14:2
For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
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