The King In His Beauty

Our Bible passage, introduction to Sunday 24th September service and hymns are below. You may listen to an audio recording by clicking above or there is a video link to our YouTube channel at the bottom of this page.

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Our principal verses are:

Isa 33:2  O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

Isa 33:13  Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.

Isa 33:14  The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?

Isa 33:15  He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

Isa 33:16  He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.

Isa 33:17  Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.

 The King In His Beauty

A principal purpose of Isaiah’s message was to comfort the Lord’s people with promises of grace and peace in anticipation of the times of trial soon to overtake the nations of Israel and Judah. Trials will come but they will come to an end, too. The treacherous spoiler of the Lord’s people will receive in kind what he has meted out and the people who wait for salvation from God will not be disappointed. This promise has its fullest application in gospel times and in the kingdom of Christ.

A promise old and new

These words are a comfort for every believer at any time who is tried in faith or attacked by spiritual enemies. God shall arise to His people’s defence. Christ will be exalted for His church’s protection and vindication. The Judge of all the earth will do right and no hand raised against the Lord or His people will prosper. Every individual believer may not live to see the full effect of the Lord rising in strength and power yet we may be sure He will. Justice will be done.

Now, now, now

The Lord’s repeated use of ‘now’ in verse 10 gives a sense of impending judgment but also suggests frequent and regular instances of retribution. Christ is an ever-present Judge. We should not think of judgment only in terms of final judgment or the end of the world because our Lord and Saviour goes forth constantly in power and glory ‘conquering, and to conquer’, and thereby bringing to nothing the schemes of our enemies and punishing the wicked for their sin.

Sinners in Zion, beware!

There is a particular condemnation specified against hypocrites and sinners in Zion which may point to false professors in the church who use faith as a tool for self-righteousness and the church as a vehicle for self-promotion. These enemies of God tread underfoot the Son of God and count the blood of Christ an unholy thing. Isaiah warns they will not be spared when God’s judgment falls on the wicked. Hell’s devouring fire and everlasting burning will consume them as dried thorns.

Right in the sight of God

Only those justified in the Lord Jesus Christ will be delivered and shielded from the anger of God against sin. The elect of God are righteous in God’s sight. They alone will be preserved and defended because they are hid in Christ. They shall be provided with living bread and living water, the living bread of Christ and the living water of spiritual grace. Under the care of their Saviour Christ’s people will see their King in all His beauty and the heavenly land He has prepared for them who trust Him.

Behold, the beauty of Christ

There is an encouraging lesson here. God’s people see the beauty of Christ in this life while beholding the land of heaven afar off. God’s elect see the beauties of Christ in time before we enter our eternal rest. We see Christ’s beauties now. Later Isaiah will say of the incarnate Christ, ‘when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him’. However, when grace opens our eyes to the spiritual accomplishments of King Jesus, the ugliness, shamefulness and cursedness of the cross disappear. What remains is the infinite mercy of God and the glorious sacrifice of His dear Son who is altogether lovely.

The perfect Man

The cross of shame becomes the wondrous cross and now believers see the Lord Jesus as they never saw Him before. Now Christ possesses all spiritual beauty. He who was marred is perfect. He who was crushed is exalted. He who stooped to suffer disgrace is risen to reign in everlasting glory. God’s elect own their Saviour as the dear and precious lover of their souls. They say with Zechariah, ‘For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty!’

The glorious LORD

Isaiah highlights numerous features of Christ’s beauty. Christ rises to judge and conquer with sublime majesty and exquisite justice. He reigns in grace and righteousness, dispensing wisdom and granting knowledge of holiness and spiritual truth. He establishes an enduring stability in His kingdom and rules amongst His people as Judge, Lawgiver and King. He heals all who flee to Him for mercy and supplies all who come to Him for help. Such are the beauties of Christ to His Bride in all His covenant offices.

Amen

Our hymns are below.

Hymn 1

Gadsby selection 246

On Love to Christ as a Redeemer.  John 14. 21

B. Francis                           8s

1
My gracious Redeemer I love;
His praises aloud I’ll proclaim,
And join with the armies above,
To shout his adorable name.
To gaze on his glories divine
Shall be my eternal employ;
And feel them incessantly shine,
My boundless, ineffable joy.

2
He freely redeemed with his blood
My soul from the confines of hell,
To live on the smiles of my God,
And in his sweet presence to dwell;
To shine with the angels of light,
With saints and with seraphs to sing;
To view with eternal delight
My Jesus, my Saviour, my King.

3
In Meshech, as yet, I reside,
A darksome and restless abode:
Molested with foes on each side,
And longing to dwell with my God.
O when shall my spirit exchange
This cell of corruptible clay
For mansions celestial, and range
Through realms of ineffable day?

4
My glorious Redeemer! I long
To see thee descend on the cloud,
Amidst the bright numberless throng,
And mix with the triumphing crowd.
O when wilt thou bid me ascend,
To join in thy praises above,
To gaze on thee, world without end,
And feast on thy ravishing love?

5
No sorrow, nor sickness, nor pain,
Nor sin, nor temptation, nor fear,
Shall ever molest me again;
Perfection of glory reigns there.
This soul and this body shall shine
In robes of salvation and praise,
And banquet on pleasures divine,
Where God his full beauty displays.

6
Ye palaces, sceptres, and crowns,
Your pride with disdain I survey;
Your pomps are but shadows and sounds,
And pass in a moment away.
The crown that my Saviour bestows,
Yon permanent sun shall outshine;
My joy everlastingly flows;
My God, my Redeemer, is mine!

Hymn 2

Gadsby selection 441

“Jesus wept.” John 11. 35; Luke 19. 41; Heb. 5. 7

B. Beddome            L.M.

1
So fair a face bedewed with tears;
What beauty e’en in grief appears!
He wept, he bled, he died for you;
What more, ye saints, could Jesus do?

2
Enthroned above, with equal glow
His warm affections downward flow;
In our distress he bears a part,
And feels a sympathetic smart.

3
Still his compassions are the same;
He knows the frailty of our frame;
Our heaviest burdens he sustains;
Shares in our sorrows and our pains.

The Lord Jesus Christ is our King. He is altogether lovely to His people. In His holiness and all His divine attributes He is beautiful. In His character by love, faithfulness, goodness and every high and exemplary quality He is beautiful. In all His covenant offices and accomplishments as our Saviour He is beautiful.

24 September 2023