Hark the Glad Sound

Isaiah anticipates that the people in Babylonian exile will miss his Gospel message in Isaiah 40:1–5. He signals his disappointment through the sudden shift from the divine glory, witnessed by all flesh (Isaiah 40:5), to the pathos of human transience in Isaiah 40:6–8a where “grass” is used to describe people four times. In our transient lives and world, the only sure source of joy and life is God’s Word which endures forever (Isaiah 40:8b).