Do the Right Thing – Isaiah 58:1-9

A text – Isaiah 58:1-9    

58 Shout out; do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet!
Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob their sins.
² Yet day after day they seek me and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments; they want God on their side.
³ “Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?”
Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day and oppress all your workers.
⁴ You fast only to quarrel and to fight and to strike with a wicked fist.
Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high.
⁵ Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush and to lie in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?

⁶ Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice,
    to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover them and not to hide yourself from your own kin?
⁸ Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly;
your vindicatorshall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, “Here I am.” If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil.

A reflection:

It is pretty easy, these days, to read this section of Isaiah and be reminded of what is going on in our country at the moment. “They seek to know my ways,” God says, “As if they were a nation that practiced righteousness…they want God on their side.” I guess we all want God on our side. That’s natural. But what is God saying here in reply? Following fasting rules and doing other pious behavior doesn’t make it ok to fight and strike with the fist and oppress your workers. Being holier-than-thou doesn’t solve your problems with God if you are not doing the right thing for your neighbors.

And what does “doing the right thing” look like? Verses 6 and 7 sum it up: work for justice, break the yokes, share your bread, house the homeless, clothe the naked. If you spend your life doing these things, your light will shine, your healing will be quick, your God will both lead you and protect your back. Cruelty cannot be godly, because God is love.  If what we are seeing on the news lately is disturbing, rest assured, it should disturb us. Especially when the victims are actually doing verses 6 and 7 when they are assailed.

So be kind to one another. Be good. Do what you can to do the right thing in these days, dear friends. Be seen by others to be generous and fair. Break into this time of strife carrying the kingdom of God with you. And God will go before you and also have your back.

Don’t forget to breathe. Practice the presence of God, thanking God for the many gifts you have been given. Thank God every day, increasing your time in God’s presence and feel the peace of God fill you. Be filled with that and not fear. God is near you all the time. Just seek God’s presence and you will know what to do.

A prayer:

Lord God, thank you for loving us. Thank you for giving us scripture to learn from. Help us not to be afraid, despite the cruelty in front of us. Help us to remember that doing the right thing is never wrong, and that you stay by our side no matter what. Amen