““As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”” (Isaiah 66:13, NASB95)

It has been said, “The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.”

 

Imagine the power behind this statement when this kind of comfort is applied to God. One of the greatest sorrows of a parent is a rebellious child. Israel had abandoned the love of God and followed after idols resulting in their destruction because of their poor choices to follow after idols. God viewed the nation of Israel as His child, whom He raised in Egypt and redeemed to inherit land and blessing. It was God’s heart to be their God, and they would be His people, but they rejected His love. Yet God never abandoned His child, Israel.

 

The comfort God offers is in a restored and renewed relationship. The return of Israel back into the land is like a new birth, and as a mother comforts a newborn baby, God comforts His people when they return from exile. The return of the Jews to their land will be swift like childbirth after their “travail,” known as “Jacob’s trouble. After birth, a new life is celebrated, and the pain and suffering are forgotten. The same kind of comfort is available for the wayward soul. Many have rebelled against God and gone their own way. It breaks God’s heart when His children reject His love, just like a mother’s heart breaks when her children abandon her. And yet there is a great joy, and all is forgiven and forgotten when that child returns.

 

Perhaps today you find yourself as that rebellious, wayward child. Will you come home to God and let Him comfort you, give you a new life and forgive all your sins.