June 24

The Prophecies of Isaiah (Continued) - Isaiah 5:24-30, 1:27-31, 2:19-3:7, 1:18-20, 4:2-6, 2:1-5; 2 Kings 15:19-28, 15:6-7; 2 Chronicles 26:22-23, 27:1, 8, 27:2; 2 Kings 15:32-35; Isaiah's Mission Told in Vision - Isaiah 6:1-13; 2 Kings 15:35; 2 Chronicles 27:3-6

Sunrise at Mt Sinai

"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

     to the house of the God of Jacob.

He will teach us His ways,

     so that we may walk in His paths."

Isaiah 2:3

I apologize that my I attention always focuses on scriptures surrounding mountains.  But, for me, the mountains are where I am closest to God.  The "mountain of the Lord" -- I have been there.  If  you've seen the sunrise from a mountain or walked in mountain snow, you've had a glimpse of God's beauty and grace and love toward us.  If you've been caught in a thunder or hail storm, you understand something of the awesome power of the Lord.  And if you've hiked for long miles on a mountain path, you know how He surrounds us day by day by day. 

The mountains seem to me to be a geological exclamation point in scripture.  The Ark comes to rest on a mountain, God's law is given on a mountain, Moses sees the promised land from a mountaintop and is buried there, God  passes by Elijah on a mountain, the Temple is built on one, there is the Mount of Olives and the mountain Jesus' transfiguration.  And as this scripture suggests, the mountains are a metaphor for heaven and the dwelling place of God.  So mountains have a certain prominence and loftiness in scripture.  

I long to be in the mountains.

Lord knows.