◄ Isaiah 26:8 ►














Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
A Thirst For God
Isaiah 26:8, 9
W. Clarkson
The desire of our soul is to thy Name... with my soul have I desired thee. The primary reference here is to the hope of troubled hearts for Divine deliverance; but the words of the text are suggestive of the general truths -

I. THAT MAN IS CONSTITUTED TO CRAVE AFTER GOD. We have many indications of this truth. We find it in the facts that:

1. The noblest spirits among cultivated peoples find their chief joy in communion with him.

2. The worthiest spirits among uncultivated peoples have been athirst for God.

3. Religious truth and Divine worship prove a powerful attraction to the vast majority of mankind.

4. Every human being is found to possess a capacity for religious knowledge and devotion.

5. Human life without God is found to be constantly unsatisfying and restless.

II. THAT THIS GODWARD ASPIRATION, DULLED BY SIN, IS OFTEN AWAKENED BY AFFLICTION. "I desired thee in the night." Our interest in God, reduced by the various harmful and despoiling influences of a sinful society, sometimes so reduced as to be practically lost, is often awakened by affliction of some kind. It is not until the soul is brought down very low by sickness, by calamity, by bereavement, by treachery and disappointment, or by earthly failure and disenchantment, that it finds its deep and sore need of a heavenly Father, of an unfailing Friend, of a heavenly treasure. When thus injured and spoiled by sin, it is not until our souls are made to see their sinfulness in a fierce and awful light that we crave and cry out for an almighty and all-sufficient Savior; but then we do.

III. THAT, REAWAKENED IN ADVERSITY, IT BECOMES A PERMANENT HABITUDE OF THE SOUL. "With my spirit... will I seek thee early." Whether or not we find this doctrine in the text, we find this truth in the will of God; and God expects to find this fact in human experience. It is bitterly disappointing to the good - and is it not a disappointment to the Good One? - when they who have been brought to the throne of grace by reflection are found, in after-days of comfort and sunshine, to leave the sanctuary unvisited, and to walk on their way, godless, prayerless, hopeless. Such men

(1) defeat God's kind purposes;

(2) add iniquity to their iniquity;

(3) most seriously endanger their own future (see Isaiah 1:5). - C.

Biblical Illustrator
Yea, in the way of Thy Judgments, O Lord, have we waited for Thee.
Isaiah 26:8
God's people waiting for Him in the way of His judgments
W. Mackray, M. A.
I. THE WORDS CONTAIN A SOLEMN PROTESTATION — a protestation, on the part of these faithful people of the Lord, to Himself, in reference to His "judgments." "Yea," say they, "Verily Thou, O Divine Searcher of hearts, knowest that we lie not, when we declare that in the way of Thy judgments we have waited for Thee." What a happy state of mind and heart is this! There may be a multiplication of observances, lastings, solemn assemblies, where, on the part of multitudes, there is nothing but form.

II. THESE GODLY JEWS SPEAK TO THE LORD OF HIS "JUDGMENTS." If a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without. Thy knowledge and permission, how much more is Thy agency to be traced in those mighty desolations that have moved the earth, and come down with such appalling fury on the land of Thine own people!

III. THESE GODLY PEOPLE, IN THEIR SINNING AND CHASTENED LAND, SPEAK TO GOD OF "THE WAY" OF HIS JUDGMENTS. We read of Jehovah's "way" in a gracious sense — His way of mercy to lost sinners — the wondrous and glorious path along which He has passed, and is still passing, in saving sinners of our fallen race through the atonement of His own beloved incarnate Son (Psalm 67:1, 2). Blessed, most blessed, are they who are Divinely taught this "way" of the Lord! A far other "way" of Judah's God is that to which her mourning children refer in the verse before us. It is His judicial way — the wrathful way in which He is provoked to "come out of His place," and move towards highly favoured but deeply sinning and guilty lands.

IV. Let us contemplate and imitate the exercise of this "small remnant" of the fearers of the Lord in the land of Judah. THEY WAITED FOR HIM IN THE WAY OF HIS JUDGMENTS. What are the elements which should enter into the exercise to which we are this day called?

1. Solemn recognition of God.

2. Solemn adoration of this high and holy Lord God.

3. Justification of God.

4. Humiliation of soul before God.

5. Pouring out the heart in earnest supplication before the Lord.

(W. Mackray, M. A.)

The right improvement of public or private calamities
Essex Congregational Remembrancer.
I. IN EVERY AFFLICTIVE DISPENSATION OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE IT BECOMES US TO RECOGNISE THE HAND OF THE LORD. They are "Thy" judgments. In doing this we imitate the example of the wise and good in every age.

II. EVERY CALAMITY, WHETHER PRIVATE OR PUBLIC, SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A MANIFESTATION OF THE DIVINE DISPLEASURE AGAINST SIN. They are Thy "judgments."

III. IN EVERY CALAMITY THE MIND OF THE BELIEVER SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO GOD. "The desire of our soul is to Thy name, and to the remembrance of Thee."

1. This part of the passage expresses the most anxious solicitude that the Divine glory might be promoted by all the dispensations of His providence towards the children of men.

2. This part of our text seems to intimate also to whom the afflicted believer should apply for support. "The desire of our soul is to Thy name, and to the remembrance of Thee."

3. This part of our text exhibits the believer finding a source of encouragement under present trouble, or in the anticipation of future difficulties, in a reference to his former experience of the power, the faithfulness and grace of his covenant God. "The desire of our soul is to the remembrance of Thee."

IV. IN CIRCUMSTANCES OF AFFLICTION, WHETHER PRIVATE OR PUBLIC, IT IS THE DUTY AND PRIVILEGE OF THE BELIEVER TO BE FOUND WAITING UPON GOD. "In the way of Thy judgments have we waited for Thee, O God." The verb "to wait," as used in the text, denotes desire, expectation, patience, and perseverance. Learn —

1. That it is an evil thing and bitter to sin against God.

2. The infinite value of that system, which opens the way for the sinful creature to return to God, with the certain hope of being pardoned, adopted, and eternally blessed.

3. Let the sinner he exhorted to seek that Divine blessing which turns the curse into a blessing.

4. Let the believer labour to live in the exercise of the high and glorious privilege — waiting on God.

(Essex Congregational Remembrancer.)

Christians, and their communion with God
(with ver. 9): —

I. THERE IS, IN THE PEOPLE OF GOD, A PRINCIPLE OF COMMUNION WITH GOD.

1. This is where their spiritual life begins.

2. This is where the life of the real Christian grows.

3. It becomes to the believer the tenor of his life to please God.

4. This principle of communion with God becomes the very flower of our lives.

5. This is the hunger and thirst of the Christian.

6. This proves that there has been a Divine renewal wrought in us.

7. This proves your sonship.

8. This proves your holiness, too, in a measure, for like will to like.

9. This proves your heavenliness, too, for that same desire which draws you to God is drawing you to Heaven.

II. THIS PRINCIPLE DISPLAYS ITSELF AND WORKS IN VARIOUS WAYS. "Yea, in the way of Thy judgments," etc. We are longing for God, and it is dark and cloudy. What shall we do then?

1. Why, wait for Him. Sometimes, the way of God's judgments may mean the appointed way, the regular way. Whenever thou hast a great trouble, expect a great mercy.

2. This communion leads to desiring. The desire of our soul, etc.

3. Your desire is to remember the Lord. "And to the remembrance of Thee." I wish that I had a memory that was so narrow that it could only hold the things of God.

4. This principle of communion shows itself in a personal yearning. The eighth verse is in the plural, the ninth in the singular.

5. This principle of communion takes one other form, that of personal seeking. "Yea, with my spirit within me," etc.

III. THE LORD TAKES PLEASURE IN THIS COMMUNION WITH HIS PEOPLE (ver. 20).

( C. H. Spurgeon.)

The desire of our soul is to Thy name.
The desire of the renewed soul
J. Irons.
What is personal religion, and what is personal evidence of it? One single word, in my text is a key to all — "desire." The sum and substance of a believer's longings towards God is to know more of God, to enjoy more of God, to live more upon the fulness of the Son of God, and to become abstracted from all but God Himself. A sound creed is contained in these three things: I am a guilty wretch, deserving hell; Jesus is everything I want, for time and for eternity; I am His, and He is mine. Now, keeping this in view, let us descant upon —

I. THE OBJECT OF THE REGENERATED SOUL'S DESIRE. Look at this as it relates to the Holy Three in One. The soul may be longing for another sight of his Bible. But why? Because he longs to meet with God there. He may be longing to hear another Gospel sermon. Why? Because it sets forth the perfections of the God he loves, and therefore he expects to meet Him there. He may be longing for another ordinance day. Why? Because Jesus is often made known to him in "breaking of bread." And so whatever means and ordinances are used, whatever externals are laid before the child of God and employed by him, it is not these that will satisfy him. It is God in them. I pass on to show —

II. WHAT WEANING WORK IS ESSENTIAL TO THIS. Until there is a great deal of weaning in the Christian's experience there will not be a very great deal of spirituality.

III. THE NEGOTIATIONS THAT ARISE OUT OF THIS. If the earnest desire of my soul is after the enjoyment of God, I cannot grow careless about using means

(J. Irons.)

People
Isaiah
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Desire, Eagerly, Hearts, Indeed, Judgments, Laws, Memorial, Memory, O, Path, Remembrance, Renown, Soul, Souls, Wait, Waited, Waiting, Walking, Yea, Yes
Outline
1. Trust in God's Provision

Dictionary of Bible Themes
Isaiah 26:8

     5909   motives, importance
     8613   prayer, persistence

Isaiah 26:7-8

     4020   life, of faith

Isaiah 26:7-9

     8158   righteousness, of believers

Isaiah 26:8-9

     5832   desire

Library
Our Strong City
'In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks. Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.'--ISAIAH xxvi 1-2. What day is 'that day'? The answer carries us back a couple of chapters, to the great picture drawn by the prophet of a world-wide judgment, which is followed by a burst of song from the ransomed people of Jehovah, like Miriam's chant by the shores of the Red Sea. …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Song of Two Cities
'In that day shall this song he sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks. 2. Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in. 3. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee; because he trusteth in Thee. A. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength: 5. For He bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, He layeth it low; He layeth it low, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Inhabitant of the Rock
'Thou wilt keep him In perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength.'--ISAIAH xxvi. 3-4. There is an obvious parallel between these verses and the two preceding ones. The safety which was there set forth as the result of dwelling in the strong city is here presented as the consequence of trust. The emblem of the fortified place passes into that of the Rock of Ages. There is the further resemblance …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Desire of the Soul in Spiritual Darkness
"Tis midnight on the mountains' brown, The cold round moon shines deeply down; Blue roll the waters, blue the sky Spreads like an ocean hung on high, Bespangled with those isles of light, So wildly, spiritually bright; Who ever gazed upon them shining, And turning to earth without repining, Nor wish'd for wings to flee away, And mix with their eternal ray." Even with the most irreligious person, a man farthest from spiritual thought, it seems that there is some power in the grandeur and stillness …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 1: 1855

The Song of a City, and the Pearl of Peace
This song of a city may, however, belong to us as much as to the men of Judah, and we may throw into it a deeper sense of which they were not aware. We were once unguarded from spiritual evil, and we spent our days in constant fear; but the Lord has found for us a city of defence, a castle of refuge. We have a burgess-ship in the new Jerusalem which is the mother of us all; and within that strong city we dwell securely. Let us sing this morning, "We have a strong city." The man that hath come into …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 31: 1885

A Sermon on Isaiah xxvi. By John Knox.
[In the Prospectus of our Publication it was stated, that one discourse, at least, would be given in each number. A strict adherence to this arrangement, however, it is found, would exclude from our pages some of the most talented discourses of our early Divines; and it is therefore deemed expedient to depart from it as occasion may require. The following Sermon will occupy two numbers, and we hope, that from its intrinsic value, its historical interest, and the illustrious name of its author, it …
John Knox—The Pulpit Of The Reformation, Nos. 1, 2 and 3.

O, this is Blessing, this is Rest --
"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed in Thee: because he trusteth in Thee." -- Isaiah 26:3. O, this is blessing, this is rest -- Unto Thine arms, O Lord, I flee: I hide me in Thy faithful breast, And pour out all my soul to Thee. There is a host dissuading me, -- But, all their voices far above, I hear Thy words -- "O taste and see The comfort of a Savior's love." And, hushing every adverse sound, Songs of defence my soul surround, As if all saints encamped about One trusting …
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

Sleeping and Waking
C. P. C. Is. xxvi. 19 We slept--a sleep of death, and yet of dreams, Fair dreams that pass, and sad dreams that abide, Where yearneth to the sound of distant streams The soul unsatisfied. We woke--but oh for speech of that fair land Wherein the soul awaketh, to declare The wonders that no heart can understand, That hath not entered there. For there the light that is not sun nor moon, That glows as morning, and as eve is sweet, And hath the glory of eternal noon, Doth guide the joyful feet. And …
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

From his Return from Russia to his Last Journey.
1853-1858. John Yeardley had scarcely returned to England before war was declared with Russia. The confirmation he received from this lamentable event, that his journey had been made at the opportune time, filled his heart with gratitude. The work he had been able to do had been small, but he had the satisfaction of knowing that it had been accomplished at the only juncture in which it would have been practicable. The year 1853, he writes, closed with many mercies to a poor unworthy servant. I consider …
John Yeardley—Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel

I Fear, I Say, Greatly for Thee, Lest...
39. I fear, I say, greatly for thee, lest, when thou boastest that thou wilt follow the Lamb wheresoever He shall have gone, thou be unable by reason of swelling pride to follow Him through strait ways. It is good for thee, O virgin soul, that thus, as thou art a virgin, thus altogether keeping in thy heart that thou hast been born again, keeping in thy flesh that thou hast been born, thou yet conceive of the fear of the Lord, and give birth to the spirit of salvation. [2142] "Fear," indeed, "there …
St. Augustine—Of Holy Virginity.

Pleading
We shall consider our text, then, as one of the productions of a great master in spiritual matters, and we will study it, praying all the while that God will help us to pray after the like fashion. In our text we have the soul of a successful pleader under four aspects: we view, first, the soul confessing: "I am poor and needy." You have next, the soul pleading, for he makes a plea out of his poor condition, and adds, "Make haste unto me, O God!" You see, thirdly, a soul in it's urgency, for he cries, …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 17: 1871

"For the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus Hath Made Me Free from the Law of Sin and Death. "
Rom. viii. 2.--"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." You know there are two principal things in the preceding verse,--the privilege of a Christian, and the property or character of a Christian. He is one that never enters into condemnation; He that believeth shall not perish, John iii. 15. And then he is one that walks not after the flesh, though he be in the flesh, but in a more elevate way above men, after the guiding and leading …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Nature of Spiritual Hunger
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness Matthew 5:6 We are now come to the fourth step of blessedness: Blessed are they that hunger'. The words fall into two parts: a duty implied; a promise annexed. A duty implied: Blessed are they that hunger'. Spiritual hunger is a blessed hunger. What is meant by hunger? Hunger is put for desire (Isaiah 26:9). Spiritual hunger is the rational appetite whereby the soul pants after that which it apprehends most suitable and proportional …
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12

Out of Sectarian Confusion
I was still a Methodist. The Methodist did not license women to preach; but when the preachers found out that God was using me in the salvation of souls and that I was not especially interested in building up any certain denomination, I had an abundance of calls. God had already begun talking to my brother Jeremiah about the sin of division, and he was beginning to see the evils of sectarianism. The winter after I was healed, he had attended the Jacksonville, Illinois, holiness convention, and had …
Mary Cole—Trials and Triumphs of Faith

His Journey to South Russia.
1853. The call which John Yeardley had received to visit the German colonies in South Russia, and which had lain for a long time dormant, now revived. A friend who had watched with regret his unsuccessful attempts on former journeys to enter that jealous country, and who augured from the political changes which had taken place that permission might probably now be obtained, brought the subject again under his notice. The admonition was timely and effectual. After carefully pondering the matter--with, …
John Yeardley—Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel

Of the Last Resurrection.
1. For invincible perseverance in our calling, it is necessary to be animated with the blessed hope of our Savior's final advent. 2. The perfect happiness reserved for the elect at the final resurrection unknown to philosophers. 3. The truth and necessity of this doctrine of a final resurrection. To confirm our belief in it we have, 1. The example of Christ; and, 2. The omnipotence of God. There is an inseparable connection between us and our risen Savior. The bodies of the elect must be conformed …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

The Heart's Desire Given to Help Mission Work in China.
"Sept. 30 [1869].--From Yorkshire L50.--Received also One Thousand Pounds to-day for the Lord's work in China. About this donation it is especially to be noticed, that for months it had been my earnest desire to do more than ever for Mission Work in China, and I had already taken steps to carry out this desire, when this donation of One Thousand Pounds came to hand. This precious answer to prayer for means should be a particular encouragement to all who are engaged in the Lord's work, and who may …
George Müller—Answers to Prayer

The Love of the Holy Spirit in Us.
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not."--Matt. xxvii. 37. The Scripture teaches not only that the Holy Spirit dwells in us, and with Him Love, but also that He sheds abroad that Love in our hearts. This shedding abroad does not refer to the coming of the Holy Spirit's Person, for a person can not be shed abroad. He comes, takes possession, and dwells in us; but that which is shed abroad …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

"But if the Spirit of Him that Raised up Jesus from the Dead Dwell in You, He that Raised up Christ from the Dead, Shall Also
Rom. viii. 11.--"But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead, shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you." As there is a twofold death,--the death of the soul, and the death of the body--so there is a double resurrection, the resurrection of the soul from the power of sin, and the resurrection of the body from the grave. As the first death is that which is spiritual, then that which is bodily, so …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Love
The rule of obedience being the moral law, comprehended in the Ten Commandments, the next question is: What is the sum of the Ten Commandments? The sum of the Ten Commandments is, to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind, and our neighbour as ourselves. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.' Deut 6: 5. The duty called for is love, yea, the strength of love, with all …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Another Shorter Evening Prayer.
O eternal God and heavenly Father, if I were not taught and assured by the promises of thy gospel, and the examples of Peter, Mary Magdalene, the publican, the prodigal child, and many other penitent sinners, that thou art so full of compassion, and so ready to forgive the greatest sinners, who are heaviest laden with sin, at what time soever they return unto thee with penitent hearts, lamenting their sins, and imploring thy grace, I should despair for mine own sins, and be utterly discouraged from …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Iranian Conquest
Drawn by Boudier, from the engraving in Coste and Flandin. The vignette, drawn by Faucher-Gudin, from a statuette in terra-cotta, found in Southern Russia, represents a young Scythian. The Iranian religions--Cyrus in Lydia and at Babylon: Cambyses in Egypt --Darius and the organisation of the empire. The Median empire is the least known of all those which held sway for a time over the destinies of a portion of Western Asia. The reason of this is not to be ascribed to the shortness of its duration: …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 9

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