Freedom from Darkness

As I write, the sun is shining. Given our recent weather in Atlanta, Georgia, this is no small thing. For five straight days we have endured dark clouds and rain. By day three, the grey days had begun to affect me. I felt sleepy and somber, overcome by the dreariness and wanting nothing more than to stay in bed and hibernate. I know I was not alone because this morning the sidewalks are full of people walking dogs, running, and riding bikes. People are in the park, chatting, laughing, and throwing frisbees. As I walk, people smile at me and wave, many commenting on the arrival of the sun. We are grateful to be in the light again.

Isaiah is speaking to people who have been living in another type of darkness for a very long time. The tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali have been conquered and forced to endure poverty and harsh treatment by those in power. This has gone on for generations, long enough for the people to feel as if they are in a “pitch-dark land” (ceb) with no way out. I imagine that many of them have given up or even have accepted that life is nothing more than their oppression.

Yet Isaiah is proclaiming that the people will see a great light. This light will be like no other. It will break through the darkness and shine across the land. It will bring freedom from their oppressors. And it will come in time; Isaiah declares the light will come before the people become “exhausted,” before they give up. The light will be a light of liberation, freeing them for a whole new way of being.