April 7, 2026, Isaiah 1:21-31

April 7, 2026, Isaiah 1:21-31

²¹ How the faithful city
    has become a whore,
    she who was full of justice!
Righteousness lodged in her,
    but now murderers.
²² Your silver has become dross,
    your best wine mixed with water.
²³ Your princes are rebels
    and companions of thieves.
Everyone loves a bribe
    and runs after gifts.
They do not bring justice to the fatherless,
    and the widow's cause does not come to them.

²⁴ Therefore the Lord declares,
    the Lord of hosts,
    the Mighty One of Israel:
“Ah, I will get relief from my enemies
    and avenge myself on my foes.
²⁵ I will turn my hand against you
    and will smelt away your dross as with lye
    and remove all your alloy.
²⁶ And I will restore your judges as at the first,
    and your counselors as at the beginning.
Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness,
    the faithful city.”

²⁷ Zion shall be redeemed by justice,
    and those in her who repent, by righteousness.
²⁸ But rebels and sinners shall be broken together,
    and those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed.
²⁹ For they shall be ashamed of the oaks
    that you desired;
and you shall blush for the gardens
    that you have chosen.
³⁰ For you shall be like an oak
    whose leaf withers,
    and like a garden without water.
³¹ And the strong shall become tinder,
    and his work a spark,
and both of them shall burn together,
    with none to quench them.

Isaiah 1:21-31 laments Jerusalem’s fall from a righteous city to a corrupt one filled with murderers, rebels, and corrupt leaders who neglect the vulnerable. God vows to purge this "dross" through judgment, destroying rebels while restoring faithful judges to make the city a "City of Righteousness" once again. 

What does righteousness look like for you? 

How do we learn more about righteousness and what it looks like to be blameless before the Lord? 

How can we protect the vulnerable and share God’s love?

Robin Adams