"I will gather the lame;
I will assemble the exiles
and those I have brought to grief.
7 I will make the lame a remnant,
those driven away a strong nation.
The LORD will rule over them in Mount Zion
from that day and forever.
8 As for you, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored to you;
kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem."
9 Why do you now cry aloud—
have you no king?
Has your ruler perished,
that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor?
10 Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion,
like a woman in labor,
for now you must leave the city
to camp in the open field.
You will go to Babylon;
there you will be rescued.
There the LORD will redeem you
out of the hand of your enemies.
11 But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, "Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat over Zion!"
12 But they do not know
the thoughts of the LORD;
they do not understand his plan,
he who gathers them like sheaves to the threshing floor.
13 "Rise and thresh, Daughter Zion,
for I will give you horns of iron;
I will give you hooves of bronze,
and you will break to pieces many nations."
You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the LORD,
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
Questions to consider:
- Compare the future of the people with a woman in travail. What indignities do they suffer?
- In what ways are the people of God different from the “many nations”?
- Compare the nations that besiege Jerusalem with sheaves.
- Do you feel like you “know the thoughts of the Lord”? Are there ways in which you can seek to know them more?
Possibilities for prayer:
Who can truly know the thoughts or plans of God? That’s a big thing--one that we, as humans, can never completely grasp. And yet, we are offered the opportunity to have little glimpses of God’s thoughts everyday...through prayer. Isn’t that exciting? So let’s take a moment to pray with that kind of understanding and excitement, to realize that a conversation with God, in the form of prayer, is really an opportunity to grasp some of the thoughts of God; the thoughts that He has about us, about our friends and family, about this city--really about almost anything we can think to talk about.
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