and those the LORD has rescued will return.
Isaiah 35:10 NIV
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Much of Isaiah looks ahead to a time of judgment. Judgment on the ungodly nations as well as for a disobedient Israel. But some passages look to a time when the Lord will redeem his people and deliver them from all they have been facing. And Isaiah 35 is one of those passages.
The desolate land will bloom and prosper. And it will contain a highway, the Way of Holiness. This highway will be only for the redeemed, those rescued by the Lord. This highway leads to Jerusalem (Zion), and the redeemed will enter with singing and with their heads crowned with everlasting joy. Sorrow and sighing will be replaced with gladness and joy.
Are you walking in the way of holiness as one of the Lord’s redeemed? If you are, this is a picture of what awaits you at the end of your road. Rescue from the fate that awaits the rest of the world. And entry into the holy city of God. It will be a joyous time of celebration. The struggles and difficulties of this life will be replaced with the joy and gladness that come from being in God’s presence. And your head will be crowned with everlasting joy.
