Devotional Thoughts Based on the Glory to God Hymnal

Isaiah 22:22

The book of Isaiah is filled with oracles of judgment and deliverance. God’s people have been disobedient, and they must come back into line. Yet, they are still God’s people.

One of the comforting refrains of this song of God’s care comes from an echo involving the line (and the house) of David. David too was fallen and redeemed by God. In Isaiah 22:22 we find a familiar chord:

²² I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and no one shall shut; he shall shut, and no one shall open.

As we look in our own lives for God’s deliverance, Advent and Christmas are seasons when the promises of God are often rehearsed. As we become involved in an annual count-down to Christmas, there are 7 verses in the hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel that can be sung daily (one verse per day – December 17 – December 23.)

The verse for December 20 says:

O come, O Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe for us the heavenward road
and bar the way to death’s abode.

 Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.

For those of us still seeking assurance of God’s deliverance — Rejoice!

Prayer

God, You never turn Your back on Your children. Thank You for looking upon me just as You did upon David – as a child who could be forgiven. Let me live my life now in praise and service to you, as I follow the One from the line of David, my Lord and Savior Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.