- 66. Joy and Gladness
Isaiah 35:10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Those who believe in Jesus Christ have been ransomed. The ransom shall return to God and to the Land and to Zion. The first application of the prophecy is for the people of Israel in Exile in Babylon. That return is a typical prophecy of the Messiah who would come to earth and ransom all people who believe in Him. Believers in Christ will return to the God who created them and they will enter into the kingdom of God by repentance and faith in the Gospel.
The promise connected to this ransom and return is that these redeemed people will come to the Lord with songs and everlasting joy. They will obtain joy and gladness. Sorrow and sighing will flee away. God Himself will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Sin causes weeping and sadness. Redemption brings joy and gladness because the sin is forgiven. When sin is forgiven sorrow flees away and tears are wiped away. This actually happens every time we hear the Gospel. That’s a promise.
When a sinner repents there is joy and gladness in heaven. Every time we repent God rejoices. We make the Lord happy every day when we repent and believe. Who wouldn’t want to make God happy, along with the angels in heaven? We cause the Lord to gather friends and neighbors together and rejoice, like the owners of the lost coin and the lost sheep. When the lost son returns home he finds the father hugging him and making merry with a big party.
When we make the Lord glad we also have obtained joy and gladness. Daily repentance and faith is a joyous party with a fatted calf, music, dancing and merry-making. But the metaphor fails in this: a party will always end; the party’s over. But the joy of the Lord is an everlasting joy. This party is never over; it just goes on and on. That’s what happens when we bring God joy. The byproduct: we obtain eternal joy. We never have to come down from such a high.